Contrasts

While watching the amazing BBC documentary ‘The Life Story’ and reconnecting with nature was mesmerizing along with the photography and the anecdotal commentary! Watching evolution through a lens jolted me to ask a question, why the most evolved and intelligent animal--the human being has disassociated from the very simple principles of nature? Every creature of the animal kingdom emotes and relates to both positive and negative feelings. They go through the cycle of life without worrying about what their fellow creatures will think.  They live in the moment for that moment!  And although they display emotions of love, caring, anger, jealousy and fear yet their reactions surface and ebb in that moment. None of the creatures display ego or consistently live in their past or future.  All are doing their karm without worrying about the outcomes. On failure they either learn their lesson or abandon and move on to the…

Nature’s Diwali

Nature’s Diwali

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On the dark, moonless night of the month of Kartik, rows of lamps flutter fearlessly, cutting through the abject darkness. This humble act represents the greatest law of Nature; that darkness can only be dispelled by light. Darkness of ignorance and tamasic inertia are hardest to overcome. Only awareness, dhyan and action in the right direction can uplift the human being towards ‘enlightenment.’  Shadows appear when there is resistance to light, and these become less significant as light emerges. It is a Natural law that the sun at its zenith reduces shadows.  Deepawali stands for the victory of truth over falsehood, as Shri Ram represented righteousness, while Ravan with his devious abduction of Sita ji, stands for is all that is arrogant, indolent and reprehensible.  Nature supports this principle of light of truth, and states satyamev jayate, truth pervades and prevails. She imparts equal energy to truth and falsehood, so…

Time to stand with the TRUTH

Time to stand with the TRUTH

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Today, a 'right' thinking journalist has been arrested. The following is an article written 20 years ago, that is prophetic and relevant even today. Arise! Awaken O Bharat. The psychic, manas sons and daughters of the Ved Bhumi of the Himalayas, the land of Ram, Krishn, nurtured in the laps of the Ganga, Yamuna. Guiding lights for the entire world, the descendents of the sun and the moon, you have been dying due to infighting, you have been losing your power, shakti, and divinity, alaukikta, as a result of which other races started ruling over you, and your entire culture, civilisation, divine knowledge, wisdom were stolen and others derived benefit out of these. Fraught with eternal discord and heady with the power to rule, you have always been losing your way. So may gurus, saints, Vivekanands showed you the way, and made you realise your identity, but lusting for your…

Does Gita incite violence?

Does Gita incite violence?

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There is a raging debate on social media these days that asks the following question - 'Krishna says in the Gita that even hurting someone’s heart is violence, but how come an avatar who is a promoter of love incites Arjun to fight? Does Gita incite violence?' The Mahabharat is actually a struggle for righteousness to survive so humanity can benefit in the long run, so imperfection does not thrive. The Kauravas and their clan did grave wrongs -- they tried to kill the Pandavas on several occasions, trapped them an the house made of lac and then burnt it down; tried to insult them and disrobe Draupadi, their wife; cheated the Pandavas out of their kingdom through a game of dice and did not give them their rightful share of the kingdom. So this kind of adharm had to end one day, perfection had to surface so that the…

Three Mahadevis and the the Cycle of Time

Three Mahadevis and the the Cycle of Time

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Be aware O’ being! Use your intelligence to read and understand the message of time and awaken your sleeping wisdom. You are steeped in so much laziness, so much comfort that you cannot even see the legs of your own bed on fire! There are four yugas, times cycles or ages and each yug has three symbolic reigning divine powers. First, when the yug just begins, Mahasaraswati is predominant. Since the yug is still in its infancy, learning happens, wisdom and knowledge of science are gained for overall progress. Till this time, Lakshmi is not so dominant. Earlier, writers, thinkers, teachers were not deluded by the opulence of Lakshmi. Saraswati is served by way of sadhna or penance. At the time of youth of the yug, Mahalakshmi’s benevolence is showered on this very gyan and dhyan and slowly Lakshmi starts dominating and Saraswati starts to be traded and the yug’s…

Svadhyay – A close study of the self – Part 4

Svadhyay – A close study of the self – Part 4

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Right from my childhood, while other peers were busy in normal mundane affairs, my curiosity to know what a human body comprises of and to unravel the processes which made it diseased, always fascinated me. In this curious exercise, I got an opportunity to sift through varied subjects, which, in the normal course, were neither needed to be pursued for academic distinctions nor for any specific motive in mind. I was not sure whether what I inferred was, in fact, right or wrong, but whatever I acquired, with the Divine Grace, made me believe that what all of us call as a “man” is a product of “discursive formations” and of the “socio-political contingencies” of the various epochs of human history. The concept of “man” is beyond grammar and logic. “Man” is an invention of society, in the same way that “being” is an invention of metaphysics. While a famed…

The Irony of Cowherds and Cow Protection

The Irony of Cowherds and Cow Protection

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In the name of cow protection and propagation and rearing,  samvardhan many divine qualities of gau mata are highlighted. From various platforms the meaning and importance of gau mata in Bharatiya culture, also know as a manifestation of kamdhenu - ''from whom all that is desired is drawn” or "the cow of plenty" are often heard. Suddenly many learned people and cow-worshippers are involved in this cause with all their might, just like many guru-swamis are engrossed in pravachans and kathas to save dharm. Gau mata, without a doubt, is a priceless legacy of Bharat, and every learned, evolved and aware Bharatiya knows its importance well. But can the problem of protecting the indigenous cow be solved by simply creating so many NGO’s, hunger fasts, protesting through dharnas and speeches from grand decorated podiums. To solve this problem, first we have to go to the root of the issue, which…

Svadhyay – A close study of the Self – Part 3

Svadhyay – A close study of the Self – Part 3

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Before proceeding with penning down my musings on “Svadhyay” I find here an opportunity to profusely thank Venerable Meena Om ji, the originator and the exalted driving force behind this innovative platform of pranam.org, to have encouraged me to lay bare my personal experiences, which I think, are never ending to uphold the infinite concept of swadhyay. It would be pertinent to refer to what Swami Vivekanand once told a seeker when asked how many persons have been influenced by his sayings. He said that even if he can change only one person in his life time, it will make his life well lived for. As truth is eternal and multi faceted, therefore, Swami Vivekanand succinctly opined that “Truth can be stated in a thousand different ways, yet each one can be true." Through these musings what I am conveying about my personal experiences with “svadhyay” is true as well.…

Save Khadi and Khadi will save you!

Save Khadi and Khadi will save you!

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Gandhiji’s tapasya of Truth gave us two potent concepts of ahimsa and khadi -- symbols of karm yog, self-sufficiency and self-respect. Both are unique as they encapsulate and represent the essence of satya sanatan dharm. Ahimsa is well accepted all over the world, and really requires no patenting as it remains essentially Bharatiya. Bharat is the land where hand-made artifacts, from fabrics to architecture, have  spiritual beauty which has a significant impact on the soul. Shri Krishn states that the whole universal mechanism moves with bhaav, feel. If we look upon Khadi as our heritage, then we should all work towards preserving our superb heritage. Khadi is an outcome of our connection with nature, and has to be preserved through the proper channel of tradition which has now lost its pure luster. When our infrastructure is weak, other strong powers are definitely going to attack and seep in to claim…

SVADHYAY – A close study of the self – Part 2

SVADHYAY – A close study of the self – Part 2

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Now starts the step by step story of my journey in pursuing “svadhyay”. Between the age of 5 to 10 years, children played “gulli-danda” or “kanche” or flew kites, all my innate self drove me to collect herbs, plant flowers, fruits and roots, macerate them and put them in one “pateela” discarded by my mother. In the name of fire, I used to make a “desi chulha” by using three bricks in stand on position. Collect dried leaves and dried twigs from a number of trees growing in our house. In the boiling cauldron, some salt and some sarson oil was put to prepare medicine, which in my juvenile mind, perceived to cure humans and cattle of their ailments. Apart from my innocuous shenanigans with plants, I took to reading “Satyarth Prakash” by Swami Daya Nand, Books by Swami Vivekanand, Swami Ram Tirath and Swami Satya Nand. These books was…