5.04.2015
Through The Grace of Kamakshi Amman
Yesterday I was blessed
with another year of life, another year of living within this human
prison, and I felt there may just be more purpose to my existence. The
yearning was back, the calling grew stronger and for some reason I had
the strong urge to go to Kanchipuram to seek the divine Mother.
I get crazy spiritual
ideas, that may not make sense to anyone but they are paramount to me
and I follow them more than any other rule ever written. I had the deep
urge to wear rudraksha constantly, and sure enough quality thoughts
flowed in during puja. It’s a time when I get instruction, it’s when I
read every thought as divine grace, and it’s when I am conscious of
which thoughts to kill and which ones to keep. During puja, I wait
without expectation, without much wishing and seek the next steps as
they pour in from the divine world into my little mind. And I just take
what’s given, no arguments for the ego is dead at that moment.
The calling was loud,
the thought persisted and the steps unfolded in my mind. I was not very
far from the day I was born years ago, and I had to do things really
fast. I was advised to take the rudraksha that I had worshiped with the
Lord for the past several years and string them into a strong chain.
There was a need for haste and I rushed over to the jewelers shop with
my little precious rudrakshas to get them strung. I was thankful they
arrived well ahead of time. They were consecrated at the feet of Tara Ma
and stayed there for three days being worshiped.
Finally the night
arrived, and though I planned to get sleep early, I could barely catch a
wink, it was the first time, and I had spent the week mustering up my
courage and fears to hit the road to Kanchipuram on the highway alone,
and now the time had come. Up fresh at 3:00am and ready to go, I hit the
road at 4:00am. The night sky was gloomy, the winds were strong and the
rain had wet the roads. I had to be careful with my speed and through
the highway with occasional vehicles around me, it was a crazy drive
into the darkness. It was amazing for not a thought of fear ever struck
me on the road. I felt free, free of bondage, free of humankind, free of
karma, free of everything... I was driving into oblivion and enjoying
every moment of it.
As I neared kanchipuram,
I realized I might just make it in time for the Abhishkam of the great
Mother. How lucky would I be! Armed with a gorgeous Saree, a garland of
lotus flowers and some Archana offerings, I confidently walked in
towards the sanctum. The crowds were huge and on this auspicious day of
Chitra Pournami, I was just glad I was born on this day. I reached
behind the main sanctum and placed my request to the security guard.
While he couldn't promise me anything, he allowed me through to have an
up-close darshan of the Mother. Seated in front of her, absorbing her
divine presence, every anxiety to want to see her just flew off the
mind. She was there, in front of me, in my heart and for now... my mind
went blank. I shook in my seat, observing every bit of her form, her
graceful body as she sat on her seat, getting ready for her bath. The
shastris took the garland and the saree, while I held on to the silver
chain that held my precious rudrakshas with me. I handed it over to the
main priest, who was in silence right through the entire operation. He
worked with gestures and the security guard deftly unfolded their
meaning. (Reminded me of Karz for a brief moment, except that he didn't
tap on a glass)
The rudrakshas lay on
the Mother's lap absorbing all her divine grace while my heart worked
hard to fill itself with love for the Mother, and my eyes worked even
harder etching her form into my mind and I sat still for as long as I
could, not disturbing any of the functions underway. In a short while,
the head priest came back, returning the rudrakshas to me and having
learned the strict aachaaram being followed I raised my hands but
carefully didn't meet the eyes of the priest. He threw a pomegranate at
me in typical Brahmin style, and I scrambled over the floor trying to
catch it. (clearly I don’t play cricket yet with my kid)
I rose up, thinking this
was the end for I wasn't permitted to continue sitting there to watch
the abhishekam. He gestured me to see the other forms of the Goddess on
the other side of the inner sanctum wall. This was a blissful moment
intellectually for I learned of Varahi, Annapurni, Lakshmi,
Mahishasuramardhini, Bhairava and a lot of other Goddesses who sat
within the niches of this great shrine. Clearly during the Chola time,
this temple was not as large as it is today, it was way smaller. The
Vijayanagar Kings had added the other prakaras to this temple over a
period of centuries and now they had merged so well into each other...
the difference could hardly be seen. But this is a tantrik strong hold,
and I love every bit of this shrine. Adi Shankara had got it so
perfectly right.
I was ushered out of the
chamber, and sent back to the guard. I was happy though I looked at him
with a stray hope to get a glimpse of the abhishekam. He pointed me to
another guard who took me to a seat directly in front of the mother, on a
higher platform outside the sanctum. I was excited, I didn't ask for
this, from here it was a bonus. I sat through the entire abhishekam,
reciting Mrityunjaya swaying with the flow of the Mother being bathed
inside the shrine. Every version of her looked gorgeous and Adi
Shankarcharya was not exaggerating when he wrote the lines describing
her form. They described her so well, I am tempted to go back again and
read the Soundarya Lahari and map it to the etching in my mind.
She is straight backed,
voluptuous, and slim. She follows the tenets of the making of a
beautiful woman, she was the personification of that form. The curtains
were drawn and the crowds went silent. I will never get enough of her, I
knew that for sure. They drew the curtains again and this time she was
ready, all her alankaram in place, she just looked every bit a bride,
every bit a lover, every bit a damsel, every bit the great Mother, every
bit ...
We were asked to get up
to leave, the security guard sent me back to the earlier one and I was
ready to pay what every he wanted. I was just so thrilled. I stood at
the back of the sanctum, as I watched the head priest gesture in his
silence, frantically asking for me to come in. I quietly walked in, not
knowing what to expect. I was quickly palmed off to another priest who I
figured was his brother. He asked me about myself, my where about and
placed a vcard into my hand. I was confused but took it anyway. He told
me to mail him and render any help that I could towards their website.
I was sent back into the
sanctum, this time made to sit in front of the Mother again, and the
whole thing played out once more, I saw her up close, this beautiful
bride, this celestial being from heaven, this great Mother of Love. I
quickly handed over the rudrakshas back to the priest and requested him
to place it over the Sri Chakra. It was the only pending item in my
divine list of activities. I was sent back to varahi and after bowing to
all the Goddess around me, I returned back to the Great Mother. The
chain was handed over, and the priest spoke with a lot of respect,
considering he had been shouting at all the other folk, I was very
lucky. As I turned to leave, the head priest broke his silence... all he
said was "Call me when you get home".
I nodded and walked out
without paying anyone anything. The purity of Brahmin culture was
visible for a few seconds thanks to the divine grace of the Mother, as I
paid the security guard handsomely for his effort. I was fulfilled with
the experience, fulfilled with the calling, fulfilled with the strong
belief that the Divine Mother indeed communicates with me in her strange
way. I walked out on to the streets of Kanchi, free from bondage, free
from attachment, free into the world of divine love as the warm sun
blessed me with its light. I felt I was finally home, and more than
anything else, I felt deep down that Tara Ma had reappeared in the form
of Kamakshi Amman. Divine grace had touched me again and I couldn't have
asked for a better gift on my birthday.
4.09.2015
The Mysterious One Who Protects Me
I met him finally, the
mysterious one and as I inched closer I realized I was getting to know
him even more... this bizarre side of him was completely a discovery. I
have known him for a while as the pleasant one, as a great loyalist if
you got on his good side, as a great lover if we understood where his
deep love was headed, but with a temper that could burn a city down in
his wrath.
He glows in orange when he is happy, when his mind is deep in divine love, when he displays his dasya bhava. But this time... he just looks very different.
He was furious over how evil could challenge fate when he realized Mahiravana had abducted his one and only saviour and strung a web of powerful black magic spells around him. He turned dark in anger, his form paled into a deep black and he grew himself into the five headed fierce one each face flaring within its forehead an open third eye of fire. Yes, the five headed one, with fifteen fiery eyes was now on the hunt for the villain who challenged him. With the protruding teeth of a black monkey in sheer anger he faced east looking for his prey.
He shined in the brilliance of a million suns, looking south giving a wild roar of anger, shaking the earth with his force. The fearless one, the lion within glows in black as the great Narasimha looking south assuring those who loved him well, that he is there to protect them. Such anger stems from deep love, and such deep love gives intense capability to devour any evil, subdue any force and nullify the poisons of any enemy, be it deadly snakes or be it mad ghosts. He takes the form of the brilliant Garuda who will nail all evil at the tip of his sharp beak, and reduce them to insignificance as he looks west towards the setting sun.
He hunts like he has never hunted before, in all the worlds for his Master, his saviour. He appears black like the midnight sky, going into the underworld with the vigour of a fierce boar, trashing ghosts, lions, and any form of disease along the way. He displays such force, such intensity, such aggression, such anger as he digs down into the earth stopping at nothing. He rises up high into the sky like a triumphant horse destroying all evil, in the brilliance of gyana into the white sky in the form of Hayagriva as he destroys his enemy.
He is merciful even when he is angry, the fierce one with ten hands, holding the power of jyana and protecting us all. He carries on himself the trident, the sword, the rope, the goad, the mountain, the tree and the water pot in his hands as he bestows love and blessings on lesser mortals. He is the black one, mysterious indeed, fragrant and dressed in divine garlands and seated on a corpse, defying death.
He is the mysterious one, the five faced Anjaneya, dispelling all fears with his vishwarupa as he sniffs out all evil from all the worlds. I breathe in deeply, absorbing his form, absorbing his energy praying to the great form of Hanuman.
I offer my prayers to the son of Anjana through the thumb for he resides in my heart.
I offer my prayers to the great Rudra through the fore finger for he resides in the fire of enlightenment, in its blue flames.
I offer my prayers to the son of the wind God through the middle finger, Om Vashat
I offer my prayers to the Lord who has Om Hoom, the armour for the fire within him through the fourth finger,
I offer my prayers to the great Messenger of Rama through the little finger
And to the five faced great Lord I offer my prayers through my palm, Om Phat for the arrows of the five faced hanuman.
Om asya Sri Pancha Hanuman maha manthrasya
Sri Ramachandra Rishi
Anushtup Chanda
Pancha Mukha veera Hanuman devatha
Hanumanithi bheejam
Vayu puthra ithi shakthi
Anjani sutha ithi keelakam
Sri Rama dhootha hanumath prasada sidhyarthejape viniyoga.
Ithi rishyadhika vinyaseth.
Om Anjani suthaya angushtabhyam nama
Om Rudhra murthaye Tharjaneebhyam nama
Om Vayu puthraya madhyamabhyam nama
Om Agni garbhaya Anamikabhyam nama
Om Rama Dhoothaya kanishtikabhyam nama
Om Pancha mukha hanumath kara thala kara prushtabhyam nama
Ithi Kara nyasa
Om Anjani suthaya hrudayaya nama
Om Rudhra murthaye Sirase Swaha
Om Vayu puthraya shikhaya vashat
Om Agni Garbhaya kavachaya hoom
Om Rama dhoothathaya nethraya Voushat
Om Pancha mukha hanumathe asthraya phat
Om Pancha mukha Hanumathe swaha
Ithi Hrudhayadhi nyasa
He glows in orange when he is happy, when his mind is deep in divine love, when he displays his dasya bhava. But this time... he just looks very different.
He was furious over how evil could challenge fate when he realized Mahiravana had abducted his one and only saviour and strung a web of powerful black magic spells around him. He turned dark in anger, his form paled into a deep black and he grew himself into the five headed fierce one each face flaring within its forehead an open third eye of fire. Yes, the five headed one, with fifteen fiery eyes was now on the hunt for the villain who challenged him. With the protruding teeth of a black monkey in sheer anger he faced east looking for his prey.
He shined in the brilliance of a million suns, looking south giving a wild roar of anger, shaking the earth with his force. The fearless one, the lion within glows in black as the great Narasimha looking south assuring those who loved him well, that he is there to protect them. Such anger stems from deep love, and such deep love gives intense capability to devour any evil, subdue any force and nullify the poisons of any enemy, be it deadly snakes or be it mad ghosts. He takes the form of the brilliant Garuda who will nail all evil at the tip of his sharp beak, and reduce them to insignificance as he looks west towards the setting sun.
He hunts like he has never hunted before, in all the worlds for his Master, his saviour. He appears black like the midnight sky, going into the underworld with the vigour of a fierce boar, trashing ghosts, lions, and any form of disease along the way. He displays such force, such intensity, such aggression, such anger as he digs down into the earth stopping at nothing. He rises up high into the sky like a triumphant horse destroying all evil, in the brilliance of gyana into the white sky in the form of Hayagriva as he destroys his enemy.
He is merciful even when he is angry, the fierce one with ten hands, holding the power of jyana and protecting us all. He carries on himself the trident, the sword, the rope, the goad, the mountain, the tree and the water pot in his hands as he bestows love and blessings on lesser mortals. He is the black one, mysterious indeed, fragrant and dressed in divine garlands and seated on a corpse, defying death.
He is the mysterious one, the five faced Anjaneya, dispelling all fears with his vishwarupa as he sniffs out all evil from all the worlds. I breathe in deeply, absorbing his form, absorbing his energy praying to the great form of Hanuman.
I offer my prayers to the son of Anjana through the thumb for he resides in my heart.
I offer my prayers to the great Rudra through the fore finger for he resides in the fire of enlightenment, in its blue flames.
I offer my prayers to the son of the wind God through the middle finger, Om Vashat
I offer my prayers to the Lord who has Om Hoom, the armour for the fire within him through the fourth finger,
I offer my prayers to the great Messenger of Rama through the little finger
And to the five faced great Lord I offer my prayers through my palm, Om Phat for the arrows of the five faced hanuman.
Om asya Sri Pancha Hanuman maha manthrasya
Sri Ramachandra Rishi
Anushtup Chanda
Pancha Mukha veera Hanuman devatha
Hanumanithi bheejam
Vayu puthra ithi shakthi
Anjani sutha ithi keelakam
Sri Rama dhootha hanumath prasada sidhyarthejape viniyoga.
Ithi rishyadhika vinyaseth.
Om Anjani suthaya angushtabhyam nama
Om Rudhra murthaye Tharjaneebhyam nama
Om Vayu puthraya madhyamabhyam nama
Om Agni garbhaya Anamikabhyam nama
Om Rama Dhoothaya kanishtikabhyam nama
Om Pancha mukha hanumath kara thala kara prushtabhyam nama
Ithi Kara nyasa
Om Anjani suthaya hrudayaya nama
Om Rudhra murthaye Sirase Swaha
Om Vayu puthraya shikhaya vashat
Om Agni Garbhaya kavachaya hoom
Om Rama dhoothathaya nethraya Voushat
Om Pancha mukha hanumathe asthraya phat
Om Pancha mukha Hanumathe swaha
Ithi Hrudhayadhi nyasa
Reference: Pancha Mukha Anjaneya kavacham
2.05.2015
AIB Roaster - Pray what is Indian Culture?
Culture - Nice word, but I am losing touch with the meaning. In the Indian context, Culture is a difficult word to define given its religious and secular undertone.
AIB says:
"There’s a larger cultural conversation going on here, where we’re at the very edges of what it’s okay to say. And it’s a conversation we need to have now because the world we live in is entirely too complicated to be run by silences. We still stand by our belief in the right to absolute freedom of expression for us and for anyone who has anything to say about anything at all. We hope to be part of an environment that supports that sort of expression without fear of persecution, intimidation and most importantly, annoyance. As always, in our own AIB way we’ll continue to strive towards creating that very environment."
Seriously... in this age and time, AIB, do you really think you are making any sense? You sound short sighted and immature. It’s an ideal world you are looking for living in the perfect HELL. Get real.
The reason why AIB got roasted is because their humor and use of forbidden vulgar language was not behind closed doors, but it was being endorsed by celebrities who thought it was cool. Young blood, I understand their view point. But in a country where women get raped every few minutes and men continue to be chauvinists, how much of responsibility is the influential youth showing to the impressionable public? Ladies, please, you are encouraging the men... and that is not good. It’s not cool...
I didn’t get educated into this vulgarity until recently. If women were to speak this language it is also a freedom of expression, but AIB, would you appreciate it if they did say that to you with a straight face, meaning every word? You would abuse them in return, especially if you were driving on the road.
In my world culture is way bigger than the freedom of expression alone, it is the freedom to be allowed to learn and understand and realize what true living is all about and live life based on that school of thought. It’s a different story that freedom of expression is being curbed more by political forces, don’t ask me why, but that is a misplaced ideology on culture. AIB, I think you are being a little short sighted.
AIB Roaster was sad humor, a bunch of very expensive dirty jokes. The only shade of good humor was on Alia, which was clean and really funny. Am glad the girl took it well. But we shouldn't mix "I dare" with "its funny". Challenge is one thing and good humor is another.
I am already aware of a deep generation gap between the kids on stage of AIB roaster and me, but would I like my son to use the same language publicly as a laugh... No, and would my son ever dare to do it in front of me - No. I didn’t bring him up that way you see and it’s not our culture to be disrespectful to the elders. Hence this language is best left within boys hostels and guy groups because we can’t really stop it, but we don't want to hear it.
Culture in the west is defined by a certain decorum of possible pleasantness, politeness, friendliness and compassion to the next individual. It baffles me that we didn’t think of aping that part of their culture, we took all the garbage!
Culture in the Indian context used to be the same thing, what I was taught is that it is a part of my faith because we define that by Dharma and Sampradaya - The law of good living and the discipline associated with it. What AIB showcased is cacophony in my rhythmic existence. We come from a past where even a curse uttered had an effect and speech was considered extremely sacred, hence it was used sparingly.
We now live in an era, where the tongue wags and all that comes out is utter garbage and there is a crowd that loves to hear it. People are being applauded for the filth, when what they actually did was abuse people with the worst words possible. You know the Romans used to enjoy while gladiators killed people, it was entertainment. How different are you from them, except that you killed culture instead of people. But that is the culture that is going to go forward, your kids will learn it and that is not the culture we grew up with.
So everybody, hold on for a minute. There is chaos all around, and the din is getting louder. Don’t waste this form of energy by exercising your vocal chords in the wrong direction. Every sound you emit, has an impact on you, the more you shout dirt, the worse it gets for you. Hold your voice. You will realize that silence is far more useful and healthy and when you speak, its way more powerful.
Language is a beautiful thing and if used appropriately it can be complete music to the ears. I am not even venturing into the supernatural world of sound associated with beeja mantras and its amazing benefits, because that science is dead in this era. All am saying is, there is poetry in speech, why would you give it up for filth? Why are we degenerating from the power of sound to absolute crass noise? Does the youth of today even know the quality of ancient living they are currently missing because they believe its superstition or outdated?
Silence is golden, look for gold, not garbage. Oh Lord, Bless our Youth.
As the Viveka-Cuda-Mani - The Crest Jewel of Wisdom by the great Shankara goes...
These three things are hard to achieve, and are attained only by the grace of God - human nature, the desire for liberation, and finding refuge with a great sage.
And therefore...use your nature well.
Pour upon me your sweet words, imbued with the taste of God's bliss. They spring from your lips as if poured out of a jug, and are pleasing to the ear. For I am tormented by samsara's afflictions, like the flames of a forest fire, Lord. Blessed are those who receive even a passing glance from your eyes.
AIB says:
"There’s a larger cultural conversation going on here, where we’re at the very edges of what it’s okay to say. And it’s a conversation we need to have now because the world we live in is entirely too complicated to be run by silences. We still stand by our belief in the right to absolute freedom of expression for us and for anyone who has anything to say about anything at all. We hope to be part of an environment that supports that sort of expression without fear of persecution, intimidation and most importantly, annoyance. As always, in our own AIB way we’ll continue to strive towards creating that very environment."
Seriously... in this age and time, AIB, do you really think you are making any sense? You sound short sighted and immature. It’s an ideal world you are looking for living in the perfect HELL. Get real.
The reason why AIB got roasted is because their humor and use of forbidden vulgar language was not behind closed doors, but it was being endorsed by celebrities who thought it was cool. Young blood, I understand their view point. But in a country where women get raped every few minutes and men continue to be chauvinists, how much of responsibility is the influential youth showing to the impressionable public? Ladies, please, you are encouraging the men... and that is not good. It’s not cool...
I didn’t get educated into this vulgarity until recently. If women were to speak this language it is also a freedom of expression, but AIB, would you appreciate it if they did say that to you with a straight face, meaning every word? You would abuse them in return, especially if you were driving on the road.
In my world culture is way bigger than the freedom of expression alone, it is the freedom to be allowed to learn and understand and realize what true living is all about and live life based on that school of thought. It’s a different story that freedom of expression is being curbed more by political forces, don’t ask me why, but that is a misplaced ideology on culture. AIB, I think you are being a little short sighted.
AIB Roaster was sad humor, a bunch of very expensive dirty jokes. The only shade of good humor was on Alia, which was clean and really funny. Am glad the girl took it well. But we shouldn't mix "I dare" with "its funny". Challenge is one thing and good humor is another.
I am already aware of a deep generation gap between the kids on stage of AIB roaster and me, but would I like my son to use the same language publicly as a laugh... No, and would my son ever dare to do it in front of me - No. I didn’t bring him up that way you see and it’s not our culture to be disrespectful to the elders. Hence this language is best left within boys hostels and guy groups because we can’t really stop it, but we don't want to hear it.
Culture in the west is defined by a certain decorum of possible pleasantness, politeness, friendliness and compassion to the next individual. It baffles me that we didn’t think of aping that part of their culture, we took all the garbage!
Culture in the Indian context used to be the same thing, what I was taught is that it is a part of my faith because we define that by Dharma and Sampradaya - The law of good living and the discipline associated with it. What AIB showcased is cacophony in my rhythmic existence. We come from a past where even a curse uttered had an effect and speech was considered extremely sacred, hence it was used sparingly.
We now live in an era, where the tongue wags and all that comes out is utter garbage and there is a crowd that loves to hear it. People are being applauded for the filth, when what they actually did was abuse people with the worst words possible. You know the Romans used to enjoy while gladiators killed people, it was entertainment. How different are you from them, except that you killed culture instead of people. But that is the culture that is going to go forward, your kids will learn it and that is not the culture we grew up with.
So everybody, hold on for a minute. There is chaos all around, and the din is getting louder. Don’t waste this form of energy by exercising your vocal chords in the wrong direction. Every sound you emit, has an impact on you, the more you shout dirt, the worse it gets for you. Hold your voice. You will realize that silence is far more useful and healthy and when you speak, its way more powerful.
Language is a beautiful thing and if used appropriately it can be complete music to the ears. I am not even venturing into the supernatural world of sound associated with beeja mantras and its amazing benefits, because that science is dead in this era. All am saying is, there is poetry in speech, why would you give it up for filth? Why are we degenerating from the power of sound to absolute crass noise? Does the youth of today even know the quality of ancient living they are currently missing because they believe its superstition or outdated?
Silence is golden, look for gold, not garbage. Oh Lord, Bless our Youth.
As the Viveka-Cuda-Mani - The Crest Jewel of Wisdom by the great Shankara goes...
dur-labham trayam ev'aitad dev'anugraha-hetukam
manusyatvam mumuksutvam maha-purusa-samsrayah.
These three things are hard to achieve, and are attained only by the grace of God - human nature, the desire for liberation, and finding refuge with a great sage.
brahm'ananda-ras'anubhuti-kalitaih purtaih susitair yutaih
yusmad vak-kalasoj jhitaih sruti-sukhair vaky'amrtaih secaya
samtaptam bhava-tapa-dava-dahana-jval'abhir enam prabho
dhanyaste bhava-diksana-ksana-gateh patri-krtah svikrtah.
Pour upon me your sweet words, imbued with the taste of God's bliss. They spring from your lips as if poured out of a jug, and are pleasing to the ear. For I am tormented by samsara's afflictions, like the flames of a forest fire, Lord. Blessed are those who receive even a passing glance from your eyes.
1.29.2015
To My Fellow Countrymen
It hurts me to see this
unrest, it hurts me to feel the pain and fear of insecurity that every
man carries in his/her heart today. It hurts me to see people take
rebellious steps when they feel their faith is being threatened. It
hurts me to see us having such a myopic view of our spiritual future as
compare to the intolerance brewing around this beautiful countryside.
How did we end up here and why are we doing this to each other? This is
the land of Dharma, of Ahimsa.
To the VHP and RSS
I am completely disappointed with you and given your discipline, your behavior is very unbecoming of you. I think you got it wrong, completely wrong. Whether it is about "Ghar vapsi" which I as a Hindu think is a really sick thing to do, or whether it is giving advice on having 4 kids or whether its about rebuilding the Ram temple... I think you seriously got it all wrong and you are not helping us or Prime Minister Mr.Narendra Modi who is crying himself hoarse to get you to focus on development.
The Hindu faith doesn't work by head count, it works by the potent power of bhakti of ONE potential head. If you tried to read the Bhagavat Gita and understand its meaning, you will know clearly that you are so not in sync with your Dharma. Making it a national book achieves nothing!!
If you want to show Hindu mettle, then please do it with the heart(compassion) and do it with non violence, both of which you sadly lack. It doesn't matter how many people get converted to Christianity or how many Muslims are born in this country but if you have ONE able person who is spiritually uplifted and driven by spiritual protocol(and not a self styled Guru) to the likes of Ramakrishna or Ramana Maharishi, then a million other faiths will not match up.
The power of Hinduism is in its Bhakti, its in the essence of divine scriptures both of which you have neither understood nor realized. So who are you really, to set the moral code of Hindu standards and teach the rest of us? If you knew even a morsel of what our great scriptures held you wouldnt even react this way. You would forgive rather than show the might of political power.
Hit the problem at the root, not in the number of conversions. But for that you need to be educated in the spiritual spectrum to even understand where you are missing the point. Your insecurity comes from the deep fear that you dont understand your faith, and with the passing of time you are only losing it further. Your people are losing faith too and what you are stuck with are a dozen dos and don'ts but there is no reason why they are given that way. And people are bound to ask questions and when they dont get the answer, they are bound to move on... or convert.
Blind faith rules all the faiths of today, be it the others or our very own Hinduism. Everyone is getting worried with your high handedness, including me because what you showcase is NOT WHAT HINDUISM REALLY IS, I beg to differ. Why dont we try something new. People are in desperate need to know the truth, but they are no where near capable to deal with it when it really shows up on the face. And that includes you too. So why are you barking up the wrong tree and fighting a non existent battle?
How much have we progressed in History? We are supposed to evolve and not dive back into an archaic world of fears. Where is the maturity to be compassionate and tolerant. Isnt that what Lord Krishna taught in the Bhagavat Gita? If you really want to dive back into the archaic past and seek value out of it, then do it this way. Understand the core behind our rituals and our holy scriptures, realize it and live it, and dont worry about whether the next man got it right or whether he changed faith out of frustration.
Bottom line - There are more sacred texts beyond the Bhagavat Gita, I hope you know that. I would be seriously disappointed if you didnt.You have no business to think that you are the keeper of the faith. And second, rule by Love and not by Fear so please grow up.
Glory to the Sri Krsna sankirtana, which cleanses the heart of all the dust accumulated for years and extinguishes the fire of conditional life, of repeated birth and death. This sankirtana movement is the prime benediction for humanity at large because it spreads the rays of the benediction moon. It is the life of all transcendental knowledge. It increases the ocean of transcendental bliss, and it enables us to fully taste the nectar for which we are always anxious.
- Sri Krsna Caitanya Mahaprabhu
To the VHP and RSS
I am completely disappointed with you and given your discipline, your behavior is very unbecoming of you. I think you got it wrong, completely wrong. Whether it is about "Ghar vapsi" which I as a Hindu think is a really sick thing to do, or whether it is giving advice on having 4 kids or whether its about rebuilding the Ram temple... I think you seriously got it all wrong and you are not helping us or Prime Minister Mr.Narendra Modi who is crying himself hoarse to get you to focus on development.
The Hindu faith doesn't work by head count, it works by the potent power of bhakti of ONE potential head. If you tried to read the Bhagavat Gita and understand its meaning, you will know clearly that you are so not in sync with your Dharma. Making it a national book achieves nothing!!
If you want to show Hindu mettle, then please do it with the heart(compassion) and do it with non violence, both of which you sadly lack. It doesn't matter how many people get converted to Christianity or how many Muslims are born in this country but if you have ONE able person who is spiritually uplifted and driven by spiritual protocol(and not a self styled Guru) to the likes of Ramakrishna or Ramana Maharishi, then a million other faiths will not match up.
The power of Hinduism is in its Bhakti, its in the essence of divine scriptures both of which you have neither understood nor realized. So who are you really, to set the moral code of Hindu standards and teach the rest of us? If you knew even a morsel of what our great scriptures held you wouldnt even react this way. You would forgive rather than show the might of political power.
Hit the problem at the root, not in the number of conversions. But for that you need to be educated in the spiritual spectrum to even understand where you are missing the point. Your insecurity comes from the deep fear that you dont understand your faith, and with the passing of time you are only losing it further. Your people are losing faith too and what you are stuck with are a dozen dos and don'ts but there is no reason why they are given that way. And people are bound to ask questions and when they dont get the answer, they are bound to move on... or convert.
Blind faith rules all the faiths of today, be it the others or our very own Hinduism. Everyone is getting worried with your high handedness, including me because what you showcase is NOT WHAT HINDUISM REALLY IS, I beg to differ. Why dont we try something new. People are in desperate need to know the truth, but they are no where near capable to deal with it when it really shows up on the face. And that includes you too. So why are you barking up the wrong tree and fighting a non existent battle?
How much have we progressed in History? We are supposed to evolve and not dive back into an archaic world of fears. Where is the maturity to be compassionate and tolerant. Isnt that what Lord Krishna taught in the Bhagavat Gita? If you really want to dive back into the archaic past and seek value out of it, then do it this way. Understand the core behind our rituals and our holy scriptures, realize it and live it, and dont worry about whether the next man got it right or whether he changed faith out of frustration.
Bottom line - There are more sacred texts beyond the Bhagavat Gita, I hope you know that. I would be seriously disappointed if you didnt.You have no business to think that you are the keeper of the faith. And second, rule by Love and not by Fear so please grow up.
ceto-darpana-marjanam bhava-mahadavagni-nirvapanam
sreyah kairava-candrikavitaranam vidyavadhujivanam
anandambudhi-vardhanam pratipadam purnamrtasvadanam
sarvatma-snapanam param vijayate sri-krsna-sankirtanam
Glory to the Sri Krsna sankirtana, which cleanses the heart of all the dust accumulated for years and extinguishes the fire of conditional life, of repeated birth and death. This sankirtana movement is the prime benediction for humanity at large because it spreads the rays of the benediction moon. It is the life of all transcendental knowledge. It increases the ocean of transcendental bliss, and it enables us to fully taste the nectar for which we are always anxious.
- Sri Krsna Caitanya Mahaprabhu
1.09.2015
PK - Faith and our identity on this planet.
And the repercussions of Faith as our identity on this planet
A French artist paid with his life, an Indian director got paid 200 crores.
The various faces of
religion are indeed interesting to see in terms of the way it has shaped
us up through history. Our outlook has changed and we have moved away
from the core concepts of schools of thought to just numbers in terms of
followers to self proclaimed Gurus.
Satire is a humorous way
of bringing reality to the fore, but most people really don't want to
know it. That's the sad side of being human, specially in these times.
An artist drew out Prophet Muhammad and he paid for it dearly with his
life, why, because someone else couldn't tolerate the apparent
blasphemy. Meanwhile back home, a director cracked a joke on the
primordial truth, a concept way beyond our realm of understanding and we
all laughed. Believe me I felt very sorry about the director's
ignorance towards his faith and ours because we laughed rather than feel
ashamed about it.
We are a very emotional
race and we identify our existence with our faith but if the same faith
is not completely understood where are we headed? Chaos rules when
anything spoken against our Gods is not taken to kindly though we
realize that we are not in a position to explain why we believe our Gods
exist. But here is the thing, if the director tried to go against any
other faith apart from Hinduism, he would probably have met a similar
fate in the future at some point. People don't forget when you hurt them
you know. But with Hinduism, it shows two things about us, our
tolerance and our ignorance. Whether its good or bad is debatable, but
we live in an age where being Hindu in Hindustan is fast becoming a
curse.
A group figured out that
it was wrong, and they chose to vandalize theaters, its definitely
better than taking the gun and killing someone. The unfortunate thing is
the group doesn't quite know what was wrong with the movie but for the
fact that it did hurt sentiment. One argument is that its just a movie,
see it and forget it. But another argument is that it made 200 crores
which means many people may completely agree with it. If that is true,
we are so doomed.
Everything was right
about PK, everything was beautifully stitched together but it clearly
depicted the director's ignorance about why things are done they way
they are specially in ritual. Oh MY God and PK both claim that milk
should not be poured over the Shiva linga but fed to the poor. While am
not against the thought of feeding the poor, I will explain why milk is
necessary to pour over deities, not only Lord Shiva's emblem.
Have you seen fairness
cream commercials that shout out the presence of milk as an ingredient.
Milk is important for it has the magical essence that can deliver a
living thing to immortality. Anything/anyone bathed in milk regularly
has a greater chance of survival in addition to remaining youthful.
Similarly, at temples which are the super power centers of our deities
made of specific stone and installed with prana pratishta,
need to be consistently bathed in milk to keep the energies active and
running, thus delivering these temples as living temples. And we visit
temples to reach these sacred shrines and be graced by the power that
surrounds them. That is the essential purpose of our temple visits.
Alternatively we can also enshrine them at home and build our own little
power centers at home. The concept works like fire, whether you light
one lamp or several lamps, the first flame is as bright as the last
frame lit. Similarly whether we have power centers at temples or in our
homes, we are accumulating drops of supreme power around us to enhance
our living environment. And milk is the essential ingredient to keep the
power center active and therefore the giver of milk, the cow is a
sacred animal. We DONT kill it or eat it. Ideally the milk should drain
out to the river or the sea and should not go down the gutter. But it is
not meant for consumption after use for it is empowered and the
physical body will not withstand its energies.
But who is going to explain this to us? At the same time it doesn't mean its a wasted ritual!
Unfortunately, we don't
realize these truths and as we sink deeper into ignorance, we tend to
laugh and pay 200 crores rather than cry and feel pathetic about
ourselves.
But there was on
fantastic portrayal in the movie that made me really appreciate the
director. The depiction of seeking God desperately and the sadness of
failure because of our own inadequacy probably touches our hearts the
closest for we all at some point have come face to face with this
frustration. That emotion was true, honest and completely humble.
We need to persist in our faith, we need to seek the truth and we need to give room in our minds to accept ritual for this discipline has an impact and it will show the way surely if we are true seekers without doubt and ready to surrender to the Lord.
12.23.2014
Adventures of a Spiritual Vagabond
It was a regular day,
seated at my seat with my wavering mind trying hard to come back to
ground zero where my great Guru smiled through the walls of His
photograph. Fate had not been to kind and my jumping mind needed some
really serious answers to solve its problems and it was not going to
rest till the solution percolated through the pores of my thoughts. It
had been quite a few sessions of aggressive worship yielding no tangible
results.
"Go to Tarapith"
The thought struck me like a bolt from heaven. It was strong enough to vanquish all the other thoughts that played havoc within my poor mind. "Really?" I thought, "Now that’s a good idea but will it work?" My mind raged on as the worship for the day came to a close. Would it ever be possible? It wasn’t too long that I realized fate aligning with the divine words and I found myself heading down the highway to the small town of Tarapith, a week later against all odds. It was just unbelievable, this was for Real and something was bound to happen. But what... let’s keep an open mind. Anything can happen, and I have been instructed to go so nothing negative can really happen. With deep excitement and a tinge of doubt, the events unfolded almost orchestrated by the Lord Himself.
"Come to me, Bathe Me"
I found myself within the sacred chamber early in the morning staring straight at the inner shrine. We took our places in front of the Goddess and looked at the priest waiting for him to perform his part. But little did I know that there was a change of plan. The priest ushered me closer to the Goddess and handed over the oils and rose water to me beckoning me to go ahead and perform the sacred rite of bathing her. I took to it like a fish to water, feeling the moment of being the temple priest [a job I would have loved to have], as I caringly washed her and anointed her. I almost heard Her call out telling me to bathe Her earthly form. What a divine role that was and how I completely enjoyed being the priest for those few minutes. My hands trembled as I touched Her form, my mind went blank and my words failed as I stammered through my sacred verses. He gave me all the time I wanted, as I gently wiped her clean and covered Her in a saree we had brought for Her and stared Her straight in the eye, thanking Her for this phenomenal experience.
"Come to me, hug me"
The priests soon took
over and continued the rituals while the crowd look on occasionally
shouting her name "Joy Tara Ma" and I joined them with enthusiasm
proclaiming her glories to the world. I was overwhelmed and I shook just
staring at her form. After the rituals were through, the priests
ushered out everybody from the tiny garbha griha within which she
rested. We were told to stay back and when the crowd was cleared he told
me to get closer to her again. This time I was not clear on what was
coming next. He emptied a box of sindhur into my bright red hands and
directed me to smear it over her third eye. It was the culmination of a
divine experience as I placed my humble palm over her divine forehead
and touched it. I shook in my knees as he pushed me to her, telling me
to hug her tight. And what a lovely hug that was as I held her close to
me with the only sound that came out of my mouth "Tara Ma" as I sank
myself into her lap.
"Visit my son in the cremation ground"
I walked out of the temple with my family, reeling out of the experience. Something had happened in there, something for real and something for good. I had transformed and Ma Tara had called me over to bless me and hug me tight to reassure me that all was really well. My mind was amazingly silent, no thought dared to even make its presence felt. I blankly asked my folks if they would like to come along to the cremation ground and I met very reluctant faces. It didn’t matter, I walked back alone to the temple and down to the cremation ground as I asked for directions. Bare feet over dusty earth, I probably was walking over some poor soul's bones that lay buried in the earth of the shamshan. The fresh air of the morning made it look green while the sacred pyres lay silent.
"Am in your heart, always"
Bama Khepa rested in his
Samadhi, and I walked up close to it. A couple of people charged at me
asking for dakshina, but went silent in just as much as the same speed. I
sat with him for a good while, reciting the sacred Mrityunjaya and then
I circumambulated his shrine, bowing at all the four directions before I
came to stand in front of him. Tears rolled down my eyes and I thanked
him and the divine Mother for granting me this opportunity. Tara Ma had
taken her seat in my heart, and it felt warm in there. My earthy
problems looked small, like stray thoughts in the mind, like unwanted
noise and it was so easy to throw them away. I was home, and my mother
hugged me close. I had nothing else to fear. I looked at the cremation
ground and it felt as much at home as any place else. I loved it there
and I felt at peace. Ma Tara was with me and her warmth continues to
keep the flame in my heart burning.
I came back home, to the south of India, calm, complete, quiet. What an adventure that was!
Tara Ma, Her beauty -
unbeatable, Her grace - unmissable, Her presence - rejuvenating, Her
brilliance - all embracing, Her home - Tarapith
Joy Ma Tara!!
11.24.2014
To My Great Guru, I Pray.
It has taken me a long
time to realize just how much I have not understood your presence in my
life. I have come to a point where I feel hopeless and insignificant,
where I realize you had come to touch my heart twice before and I failed
to catch those moments. And now I try again, to reach out to you in
desperation, in shame, and with all humility. I have come to detest the
very nature of the limitations within the realm of being born human and
at the same time I look for any sign, any hope that can make me rise up
to you again.
Getting to be your disciple has been a blessing, its not achievable to many and I had the luck. I have seen you just once from a distance, when I was a little girl giggling around not realizing the moment I was going to miss. It was when you departed that I seriously felt, I wanted to just come away with you. I lost that moment then but you reappeared again in my life, this time with greater trust, with greater love, with greater teaching. You initiated me, and I learned, I fumbled but I believe with all my inadequacies and flippant attitude, you gave me a precious gift and I kept it close to myself.
The time has come again and the echo for your divine grace grows within my heart. Time is running out and as I live, every passing breath just yells at me echoing how wasteful I have been. I have immersed myself into reading about great saints, about the divine grace that they have been blessed with and the more I sink into that world the more I realize just how far fetched it is to reach from where I am. And yet, this miserable self will try, try as much as I can, to make myself ready for you to reappear and shower your grace upon me.
There is so much to say and yet words fail me. Am I ever capable of getting there, I dont know, but the hunger grows. I have begun to question my existence, my purpose, my being with respect to spiritual capability. I realize deep down how difficult it is to tread your path but do I have a chance? You taught me to have faith in you and yet I fear you. You taught me discipline and yet am flippant. You taught me humility and I felt I owned you. You taught me dignity but I can feel my worhtlessness grow. You taught me to surrender but I held on to my ego.
Am back, a hopeless mortal, at your door step requesting you for another chance to teach me again, to shape my path of realization. I find no pleasure in other mortals, I find no pleasure in material gain. I am fast losing interest in the pleasures of life, I just seek your divine grace. I know there is still time, time for me to give up this lifestyle. But meanwhile is there a chance that I may be blessed with your grace again.
To my Great Guru, I pray.
Getting to be your disciple has been a blessing, its not achievable to many and I had the luck. I have seen you just once from a distance, when I was a little girl giggling around not realizing the moment I was going to miss. It was when you departed that I seriously felt, I wanted to just come away with you. I lost that moment then but you reappeared again in my life, this time with greater trust, with greater love, with greater teaching. You initiated me, and I learned, I fumbled but I believe with all my inadequacies and flippant attitude, you gave me a precious gift and I kept it close to myself.
The time has come again and the echo for your divine grace grows within my heart. Time is running out and as I live, every passing breath just yells at me echoing how wasteful I have been. I have immersed myself into reading about great saints, about the divine grace that they have been blessed with and the more I sink into that world the more I realize just how far fetched it is to reach from where I am. And yet, this miserable self will try, try as much as I can, to make myself ready for you to reappear and shower your grace upon me.
There is so much to say and yet words fail me. Am I ever capable of getting there, I dont know, but the hunger grows. I have begun to question my existence, my purpose, my being with respect to spiritual capability. I realize deep down how difficult it is to tread your path but do I have a chance? You taught me to have faith in you and yet I fear you. You taught me discipline and yet am flippant. You taught me humility and I felt I owned you. You taught me dignity but I can feel my worhtlessness grow. You taught me to surrender but I held on to my ego.
Am back, a hopeless mortal, at your door step requesting you for another chance to teach me again, to shape my path of realization. I find no pleasure in other mortals, I find no pleasure in material gain. I am fast losing interest in the pleasures of life, I just seek your divine grace. I know there is still time, time for me to give up this lifestyle. But meanwhile is there a chance that I may be blessed with your grace again.
To my Great Guru, I pray.
11.06.2014
When Lord Jagannathan Entered My Life
I am not completely
aware of Krishna consciousness, and neither have I spent too much time
trying to understand Vaishnavism. Maybe its time to start. Krishna made
his intriguing presence felt when I started to learn more about Kali and
Tantra. Thanks to my son's die hard concentration
and irresistible attraction to Little Krishna, Lord Jagannatha grew on
me subconsciously while I sat through repeated serials of the Divine boy
on television. I found myself falling for that child, for that little
village of Brindavan and all his companions, Balarama, Madhu and
Subhala. With my son's new found emotions gripped by these imaginary
beings who ruled his head day in and day out, I came to realize
subconsciously that they were as real to me as they were to him.
The Lord sends his messages in strange ways and in each way, I found myself sinking into a pool of deep emotion of Love, call it Bhakti, call it what ever you like. An email fell into my mailbox, with a picture of Krishna/Kali and a question - Guess who this is? With that started my next hunt, what is the Krishna association with Kali. J C Joshi's innumerable comments came flashing back to me. His whole volume of belief left behind as pearls of wisdom with the comments of my various blogs echoed back in my head well after his physical body turned history. Who really is Jagannatha?
I penned my last paragraph of a book I plan to publish sometime in the near future and realized that I, who assumed herself to be a great follower of Shiva and Shakti, had given a lot of attention to Jagannatha unconsciously in my story. I sat back to think of all the temples I had visited, it was Tirupati that had overwhelmed me the most and make me weep profusely, every time without fail. The atmosphere, the energy, the silence inside the sanctum, and his form left me in a pool full of tears. The last visit of taking my son there had proved fatal in this divine love affair. But somehow, the form that stuck in my head as the divine Krishna is Jagannatha. From that little child I would love to cuddle to the divine lover, Krishna conquers my mind in every form.
And then he played his divine trick again in a dream, and the Ras Lila enveloped my thoughts, divine love in the eyes of the "knower" can make the emotional doer do a lot of things. A line from Sri M's book echoed in my head, when it comes to Jagannatha, we take the form of the divine lover, that's the only state of consciousness one can reach. And in the dream he came, as a singer of divine song, as the one who plays sweet notes in his flute. A face so gentle, so handsome and yet distant beckoning me to come forward and touch him, experience him. The intoxicating sounds of his beeja mantra echoed inside my head, his searching eyes oozed the emotion of warmth, the emotion of longing, the emotion that beckoned me to just accept everything he wanted, thoughtlessly, helplessly, completely emotionally.
I stood on the floor, in our world, my thoughts caught in his web as the beeja mantra echoed on, I could feel the weakness in my knees. I could barely hold myself for a surge of energy just headed upwards towards my heart, towards my head and I felt myself swoon in sheer bliss as I felt my consciousness fade from the real world. I clung on crying out for help - Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya - O Vasudeva, O Shankara! Hold me, for I am unable to hold myself.
I realized how difficult it was for me to come back to the real world that minute.
The Lord sends his messages in strange ways and in each way, I found myself sinking into a pool of deep emotion of Love, call it Bhakti, call it what ever you like. An email fell into my mailbox, with a picture of Krishna/Kali and a question - Guess who this is? With that started my next hunt, what is the Krishna association with Kali. J C Joshi's innumerable comments came flashing back to me. His whole volume of belief left behind as pearls of wisdom with the comments of my various blogs echoed back in my head well after his physical body turned history. Who really is Jagannatha?
I penned my last paragraph of a book I plan to publish sometime in the near future and realized that I, who assumed herself to be a great follower of Shiva and Shakti, had given a lot of attention to Jagannatha unconsciously in my story. I sat back to think of all the temples I had visited, it was Tirupati that had overwhelmed me the most and make me weep profusely, every time without fail. The atmosphere, the energy, the silence inside the sanctum, and his form left me in a pool full of tears. The last visit of taking my son there had proved fatal in this divine love affair. But somehow, the form that stuck in my head as the divine Krishna is Jagannatha. From that little child I would love to cuddle to the divine lover, Krishna conquers my mind in every form.
And then he played his divine trick again in a dream, and the Ras Lila enveloped my thoughts, divine love in the eyes of the "knower" can make the emotional doer do a lot of things. A line from Sri M's book echoed in my head, when it comes to Jagannatha, we take the form of the divine lover, that's the only state of consciousness one can reach. And in the dream he came, as a singer of divine song, as the one who plays sweet notes in his flute. A face so gentle, so handsome and yet distant beckoning me to come forward and touch him, experience him. The intoxicating sounds of his beeja mantra echoed inside my head, his searching eyes oozed the emotion of warmth, the emotion of longing, the emotion that beckoned me to just accept everything he wanted, thoughtlessly, helplessly, completely emotionally.
I stood on the floor, in our world, my thoughts caught in his web as the beeja mantra echoed on, I could feel the weakness in my knees. I could barely hold myself for a surge of energy just headed upwards towards my heart, towards my head and I felt myself swoon in sheer bliss as I felt my consciousness fade from the real world. I clung on crying out for help - Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya - O Vasudeva, O Shankara! Hold me, for I am unable to hold myself.
I realized how difficult it was for me to come back to the real world that minute.
10.17.2014
The Paradox in Nirvikalpa Samadhi
Everyone wants to reach
the state of perfection, of course perfection at the moment continues to
be a relative term and in the nuances of human behavior there is a very
thin line separating one level of perfection from the other.
The sacred doctrines describe the ultimate state of consciousness, the state of Nirvikalpa Samadhi as the perfect state. This state describes the merging of the self with Atman such that there is no individual self left. With heightened bhakti and complete love for the supreme this state is very possible to achieve as proven by a few men who have walked the earth.
But what is this state, how do we describe a person who has achieved it. The most popularly understood approach to reach this state is when the Bhakta doesn't connect with the world around them any more, be it in mind or in body. From the social perspective, they have traveled so far into themselves that the world outside, the maya as we may call it, hardly matters to them any more. From the physical sustenance perspective, the physical body becomes so perfect that its mortal desires are either addressed internally by the body or killed purely by the evolution of the being.
Lets take the case of self sustenance, it is the ability of the physical body to secrete Amrit within the head region and taste it frequently thus killing any external desire or dependency on food and water. And any other desire be it of the body or mind automatically dies, because the energies have been successfully channelized towards the single source of all bliss - realization of the Atman.
And so we toil and toil hard, to reach that level of perfection, may be if not in this life we take the next and the next to get it right. We often resort to resignation than try to realize whether this path is ever possible. And with every chance we take, divinity shows the passage in rather strange ways to keep us continuously believing that we are getting there.
But no one really told us what the rule book holds when we achieve it, the perfect state. We would almost love to be immortal. live for as long as we wished and enjoyed the fruits of living with the associated powers to get us health, wealth and happiness. But did we ever know that when a person really reaches this state, they no longer crave for that human body within which they live! The very body that we have been trying to "perfect" for all these years, centuries and lives is now something we want to or more importantly need to discard in order to move to the next level of highest spiritual endeavor.
How contradictory this turns out to be that we struggled so much on something we ultimately choose to discard. It is the liberation from the ultimate maya, this human state that we need to achieve and Nirvikalpa Samadhi is that unreachable state that we need to get to. The human state is that last physical thing that we have to give up before we move it to the realm of the supreme.
The thought still blows my mind! What are the great Gods really trying to teach us!
The sacred doctrines describe the ultimate state of consciousness, the state of Nirvikalpa Samadhi as the perfect state. This state describes the merging of the self with Atman such that there is no individual self left. With heightened bhakti and complete love for the supreme this state is very possible to achieve as proven by a few men who have walked the earth.
But what is this state, how do we describe a person who has achieved it. The most popularly understood approach to reach this state is when the Bhakta doesn't connect with the world around them any more, be it in mind or in body. From the social perspective, they have traveled so far into themselves that the world outside, the maya as we may call it, hardly matters to them any more. From the physical sustenance perspective, the physical body becomes so perfect that its mortal desires are either addressed internally by the body or killed purely by the evolution of the being.
Lets take the case of self sustenance, it is the ability of the physical body to secrete Amrit within the head region and taste it frequently thus killing any external desire or dependency on food and water. And any other desire be it of the body or mind automatically dies, because the energies have been successfully channelized towards the single source of all bliss - realization of the Atman.
And so we toil and toil hard, to reach that level of perfection, may be if not in this life we take the next and the next to get it right. We often resort to resignation than try to realize whether this path is ever possible. And with every chance we take, divinity shows the passage in rather strange ways to keep us continuously believing that we are getting there.
But no one really told us what the rule book holds when we achieve it, the perfect state. We would almost love to be immortal. live for as long as we wished and enjoyed the fruits of living with the associated powers to get us health, wealth and happiness. But did we ever know that when a person really reaches this state, they no longer crave for that human body within which they live! The very body that we have been trying to "perfect" for all these years, centuries and lives is now something we want to or more importantly need to discard in order to move to the next level of highest spiritual endeavor.
How contradictory this turns out to be that we struggled so much on something we ultimately choose to discard. It is the liberation from the ultimate maya, this human state that we need to achieve and Nirvikalpa Samadhi is that unreachable state that we need to get to. The human state is that last physical thing that we have to give up before we move it to the realm of the supreme.
The thought still blows my mind! What are the great Gods really trying to teach us!
9.03.2014
Sacred Map to the Secret Door of Heaven
Ganesha, Devi, Shiva,
Vishnu, Brahma... we believe in them deeply, our lives are dotted with
their repeated presence and we have grown up listening to stories about
them and we have been taught that if we need help they are the ones who
will give it abundantly. But do they really exist?
A faith so old and a population so vast have little to show for their real existence. Unlike Christianity and Islam which take their principles of faith from prophets and saints who once walked the earth and laid their philosophies for the world to follow, Hinduism has been backed by strange experiences of individuals who sang in praise of these divine beings who gave an audience to a lucky few. Our faith doesn’t make Gods out of saints but tries to look at the Gods in totality through the eyes of our great saints. And weirdly so, they nearly had the same experience. Whether it was Kalidasa or Shivaji or Ramakrishna or some wayside aghori or tantric, the explanation of Ma Kali's form has been rather consistent. Even more strange is that even the ancient Egyptians may have had a sneak peek of her divine form and called it Anubis the Jackal in their eagerness rather than wait it out through the experience to realize that its a Goddess they were looking for.
All said and done, no matter how much we praise Science, given its shade bit easier to comprehend, we cannot write away ancient mythology that so richly describe these beings with super human strength from another realm who have invaded our hearts for generations and left us surrendering willfully to their divine needs with some hope of a blessing towards a more comfortable life which is off course very relative.
So, do they really exist... I strongly believe they do and our ancients and even the artists today in their own shabby way have tried to maintain and represent their iconography as closely as possible. We have various treatise that describe in depth, not just their nature imbibed in various names associated with them but also the way they look and the way they behave and their skillful capabilities that is beyond human nature of what you and i possess. And yet they have been strongly depicted in near human forms, though they don’t carry the name "manusha" against them. They go more along the lines of "Deva".
There is a beautiful line on Lord Shiva... a description of him in his bija mantra:
Divyaya devaya digambaraya Shiva.
The divine celestial who is white and pure, such is the beauty of Lord Shiva himself.
Agreed... but where do we look? Clearly Lord Shiva doesn’t belong to this perceptive world of ours where what I envision is completely different from what you read as the workings of this universe. And yet, in this maze of illusion and clashing perceptions that make up our lives and entangle us so deep that we cant clear our heads of these cobwebs of stale thoughts of "rightful existence", there were still a handful of people who got lucky and described strange beings of divine beauty very consistently with no difference in anyone's perception. And from that they penned down their divine visions in words which took life in form and color and today we have these divine being turning into a breathing reality in our Puja rooms and in our temples.
Clearly there is truth in it. When the Gods said "I am the divine truth" they meant that they exist beyond this perceptive world of ours. Its another story that we blame them for dumping us in it with no accountability that the pathetic way we lead our lives right now doesn’t call for any greater experience...but that is not the point.
The point is we have established through our great saints that they didn’t proclaim themselves as Gods but tried to tell us about who the Gods really are and how we can reach out to them. But they didn’t give it easy... they set us a riddle. A deep thought provoking riddle. The riddle is to find the door that leads to that zone or world which lies beyond this earthly world of illusion. Our only hint is the pancha bhootas or the five elements that are integral to our worship of these great Gods.
And so, let’s collect them all and see what we get. We worship the five elements through a complex set of activity which involves the offering of light, sound, water, fruit and flower. Fruit symbolizes earth while flower symbolizes wind [vayu]. Light symbolizes fire, water is clear and sound symbolizes ether. But this is not about symbolism as much as it is about the "real truth" embedded in the puja.
Where does fire go when the flame dies? Where does sound go when it can’t be heard any more? Where does light go when we can’t see it anymore? Where does the human soul go when it leaves the dead body behind? They disappear and transcend into another realm but they don’t die. They may reappear in another form in another place but they don't die. What is that zone where they cheat us off our senses? Is that the gateway to the other world where our divine beings reside, silent and vigilant watching us searching around blind folded with no idea?
It just increases the mystery of Hinduism tenfold, and it’s really our business to dig deep and read into the individual experiences of each of these great saints to understand who they experienced and what they felt. In their vision lies the key to that invisible door way where all these elements disappear, the secret map to which is given in our sacred pujas, our great rituals of worship that we take such pride in turning down as superstition. If we have Bhakti, we will find that secret door really fast... but if we consider the Gods as wish fulfilling trees, there is little chance of finding the invisible door to heaven anytime soon.
A faith so old and a population so vast have little to show for their real existence. Unlike Christianity and Islam which take their principles of faith from prophets and saints who once walked the earth and laid their philosophies for the world to follow, Hinduism has been backed by strange experiences of individuals who sang in praise of these divine beings who gave an audience to a lucky few. Our faith doesn’t make Gods out of saints but tries to look at the Gods in totality through the eyes of our great saints. And weirdly so, they nearly had the same experience. Whether it was Kalidasa or Shivaji or Ramakrishna or some wayside aghori or tantric, the explanation of Ma Kali's form has been rather consistent. Even more strange is that even the ancient Egyptians may have had a sneak peek of her divine form and called it Anubis the Jackal in their eagerness rather than wait it out through the experience to realize that its a Goddess they were looking for.
All said and done, no matter how much we praise Science, given its shade bit easier to comprehend, we cannot write away ancient mythology that so richly describe these beings with super human strength from another realm who have invaded our hearts for generations and left us surrendering willfully to their divine needs with some hope of a blessing towards a more comfortable life which is off course very relative.
So, do they really exist... I strongly believe they do and our ancients and even the artists today in their own shabby way have tried to maintain and represent their iconography as closely as possible. We have various treatise that describe in depth, not just their nature imbibed in various names associated with them but also the way they look and the way they behave and their skillful capabilities that is beyond human nature of what you and i possess. And yet they have been strongly depicted in near human forms, though they don’t carry the name "manusha" against them. They go more along the lines of "Deva".
There is a beautiful line on Lord Shiva... a description of him in his bija mantra:
Divyaya devaya digambaraya Shiva.
The divine celestial who is white and pure, such is the beauty of Lord Shiva himself.
Agreed... but where do we look? Clearly Lord Shiva doesn’t belong to this perceptive world of ours where what I envision is completely different from what you read as the workings of this universe. And yet, in this maze of illusion and clashing perceptions that make up our lives and entangle us so deep that we cant clear our heads of these cobwebs of stale thoughts of "rightful existence", there were still a handful of people who got lucky and described strange beings of divine beauty very consistently with no difference in anyone's perception. And from that they penned down their divine visions in words which took life in form and color and today we have these divine being turning into a breathing reality in our Puja rooms and in our temples.
Clearly there is truth in it. When the Gods said "I am the divine truth" they meant that they exist beyond this perceptive world of ours. Its another story that we blame them for dumping us in it with no accountability that the pathetic way we lead our lives right now doesn’t call for any greater experience...but that is not the point.
The point is we have established through our great saints that they didn’t proclaim themselves as Gods but tried to tell us about who the Gods really are and how we can reach out to them. But they didn’t give it easy... they set us a riddle. A deep thought provoking riddle. The riddle is to find the door that leads to that zone or world which lies beyond this earthly world of illusion. Our only hint is the pancha bhootas or the five elements that are integral to our worship of these great Gods.
And so, let’s collect them all and see what we get. We worship the five elements through a complex set of activity which involves the offering of light, sound, water, fruit and flower. Fruit symbolizes earth while flower symbolizes wind [vayu]. Light symbolizes fire, water is clear and sound symbolizes ether. But this is not about symbolism as much as it is about the "real truth" embedded in the puja.
Where does fire go when the flame dies? Where does sound go when it can’t be heard any more? Where does light go when we can’t see it anymore? Where does the human soul go when it leaves the dead body behind? They disappear and transcend into another realm but they don’t die. They may reappear in another form in another place but they don't die. What is that zone where they cheat us off our senses? Is that the gateway to the other world where our divine beings reside, silent and vigilant watching us searching around blind folded with no idea?
It just increases the mystery of Hinduism tenfold, and it’s really our business to dig deep and read into the individual experiences of each of these great saints to understand who they experienced and what they felt. In their vision lies the key to that invisible door way where all these elements disappear, the secret map to which is given in our sacred pujas, our great rituals of worship that we take such pride in turning down as superstition. If we have Bhakti, we will find that secret door really fast... but if we consider the Gods as wish fulfilling trees, there is little chance of finding the invisible door to heaven anytime soon.
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