we need not force change upon ourselves just for change's sake

Change happens.. that is the law of nature, law of God.. every being too changes.. no one is the same as what he or she was even a nano nano nano second ago..

That said, I have to add that change will take care of itself.. It has the capacity and wisdom too to do so.. We need not either swim with the flow, nor against the flow..

The rough rock just remains and faces the flow of torrential waters, but gets changed into smooth, rounded and shiny one without any serious attempt on its own ..

Of course, we have to be vigilant against other agencies including some nosy human beings who push us either towards or against the natural flow of change..

We eat food to maintain ourselves and grow too. But we need not eat for eating's sake. Similarly we need not force change upon ourselves just for change's sake.

if one does not have Krishna, he should find Him, and possess Him

We can share happiness, fun, hopes, dreams, and all beautiful things with others,, perhaps even through Social media..

But black gloom, frustration, anxiety and fear, anger, diffidence, sense of futility.. all these too arise in our minds.. these cannot be shared, and there would be hardly anyone to notice even if one attempts to shares these..

There the God comes.. Krishna comes.. He will listen in silence to whatever one says.. Whether He will give a solution or not, one can unburden one's stories of woe to Him

So if one does not have Krishna, he should find Him, and possess Him.

Even though the horse is very old

Even though the horse is very old, and could not pull the cart, or do anything worthwhile there is no deficiency in his consumption of fodder..

And there is no abatement in the show of self importance by arrogant trots and body language for small distances..

Many people make complaints about that...

and many face similar situation in life too..

Especially the old men or the old horses like me..

This thought was triggered in my mind by some posts in a Senior Citizens Forum..

we must take care to chew only what we can swallow

life seems to be very generous.. at least apparently..

Life gives a lot of opportunities for action.. the action may be good or bad..

But there are physical limitations..

An individual can engage himself beneficially only in a limited number of actions..

He has to use his discretion..

A worthless action is sheer waste.

Life gives a lot of opportunities to read and write..

Books are many..

Reading material is available in plenty..

We can write as much as we desire..

But we have to understand that there are limitations for our mind, eyes and ears..

We cannot read everything..

Diligence in choice is the watchword..

We cannot memorize dictionaries and encyclopaedias just to increase our knowledge..

And in using words, and even in using the mind for thinking, our opportunities are infinite..

But if we do not use moderation, we may reach nowhere.. perhaps except a lunatic asylum

Opportunities are in plenty..

But we must take care to chew only what we can swallow..

धूरसि धूर्व धूर्वन्तं धूर्व तं

धूरसि धूर्व धूर्वन्तं धूर्व तं योऽस्मान्धूर्वति तं धूर्व यं वयं धूर्वाम स्त्वम्। देवानामसि वह्नितमं सस्नितमं पप्रितमं जुष्टतमं देवहूतमम्।

dhūrasi dhūrva dhūrvantaṁ dhūrva taṁ yo'smāndhūrvati taṁ dhūrva yaṁ vayaṁ dhūrvāma stvam| devānāmasi vahnitamaṁ sasnitamaṁ papritamaṁ juṣtatamaṁ devahūtamam|

Yajurveda Vajasaneyi Samhita..

Oh Lord Agni, you are the one who can burn and destroy everything. May you be pleased to annihilate those who cause harm and destruction to us without any provocation on our part, may you be pleased to cause destruction to those whom we desire and pray to be destroyed because of their evil nature, may you destroy the evil propensities which we want to see being destroyed. Among the missives and messengers of gods you biggest one, you are the most eminent one, you are the greatest purifier among those who clean up everything, you are the one who fills everything and every space completely, you are the most beloved one for the Gods, and you the the one most capable to address and bring here all the gods to participate in the yajna.

A vedic prayer to Agni, the Fire

A vedic prayer to Agni, the Fire

उद्दीप्यस्व जातवेदोऽपघ्नन्निऋतिम् मम।

पशूग्ंश्च मह्यमावह जीवनम् च दिशो दिश॥२।२०

मा नो हिग्ंसीज्जातवेदो गामश्वम् पुरुषम् जगत्।

अबिभ्रदग्न आगहि श्रिया मा परिपातय॥२।२१

महानरायणोपनिषद्

uddīpyasva jātavedo'paghnanniṛtim mama|

paśūgṁśca mahyamāvaha jīvanam ca diśo diśa||2|20

mā no higṁsījjātavedo gāmaśvam puruṣam jagat|

abibhradagna āgahi śriyā mā paripātaya||2|21

mahānarāyaṇopaniṣad

uddiipyasva jaatavedo.apaghnanniRRitim mama.

pashuugMshcha mahyamaavaha jiivanam cha disho disha..2.20

maa no higMsiijjaatavedo gaamashvam puruSam jagat.

abibhradagna aagahi shriyaa maa paripaataya..2.21

mahaanaraayaNopaniSad

This is a mantram found Krishna Yajurvedam.. Taittireeya Aranyakam and in Mahanarayanopanishat..

The greatness of Fire as the source of welfare and destroyer of maladies when it is benevolent to us and the impossible power of destruction the same fire can wield on us when it is in rampage was understood with great awe and reverence by the Vedic man..

Hence the prayer.

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While offering lighted lamp (Deepam ) to God during our poojas, we chant this mantram.

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Translation

---------------

Holy Fire Jaathaveda, may you shine for ever with brilliance.

May your intensity wipe away all my sins and blemishes.

Oh fire, bestow on me large number of cattle..

Oh fire, provide me with living space in all directions.

Oh Agni, please do not cause any destruction to cattle, horses and human beings occupying the whole earth..

Oh Agni, Please manifest yourself before me without holding in your hands any weapons of destruction.. Oh Agni, provide me with abundance of wealth..

musings 255

This is the essence of the teachings of the Blessed Lord Krishna..

 We have to just remember..

The great Lord did not advice anyone to be inactive or blind or indifferent to the natural duties as a human being..

He just asks us to perform such duties with the full realisation that we are existing, moving and performing such duties under His guidance, under His eternal watch..

If we are conscious of His presence, how can we go wrong, do evil deeds?

What He expects of us is that we should perform our duties and lead our lives in His sacred name and if we do so we can always be sure that His guidance will visit us every moment..

That kind Krishna the black one, is the friend of everyone..

He is not the exclusive property of Arjuna.. He is a friend of Yours and mine too just as Arjunas..

So when Krishna says , "think of me, be my devotee, make entreaties with me, bow down before me, and you will reach me alone, this I promise as you are my dear friend", this promise is to every living thing in this world because He is their dear friend too..

May be I am being too partial and personally loyal to Sanskrit..

I find that views are expressed by many that Sanskrit was never a language used for day to day transactions in a worldly way at any point of time but is just an elegant language used for Vedas and Kavyas... I am somehow not able to agree.. May be I am being too partial and personally loyal to Sanskrit.. But I am just sharing my views on the issue as I posted elsewhere.

" There are theories that some sort of language or sanskrit itself has been a day to day language too. And the elementary influence of sanskrit are prominently perceptible in most of the indian languages to various degrees. Malayalam and telugu abound in sanskrit words and usages. True, the language developed classy feature and so its poorer cousins became more of egalitrian use. And like any language sanskrit too had its own transitions. The rigvedic language was not the same as kalidasas or even of the itihasas. The works penned in various geographical areas too vary in content. Texts found in trivandrum kumbhakonam pune kashmir lahore dacca calcutta etc exhibit the local variations. Jaydevas style in gitagovindam and that of bhasaa in pratimanatakam or swapnavasvadattam are so different. The problem with sanskrit is that it is like gold or platinum here at an intellectual plane..difficult to be afforded by all."

" If the conversations in Sanskrit Drama are read, the male important characters talk Sanskrit and the lady characters, the menials like kanchuki, talk in a Prakrit language, which is Sanskrit for all particular purposes with many simplifications in grammar and pronunciation.. Of course, some great characters like Arundathi, though female talk chase Sanskrit it Uttararamacharitam of Bhavabhooti..

The practice in Kerala among Nambudiris was that once a boy was initiated into Brahmacharyam.. that is right from the day he starts to wear Krishnajinam.. the deer skin, he should converse in Sanskrit only.. In fact the hilarious situation arising because of that in the case of Tholan.. who was also a great poet is a household story in Kerala.. Panasi Dashaayam Paasi... for Chakki is entering the granary (to steal paddy) ( Chakka is panasam ... so chakki is Panasi, granary is Pathaayam.. Pathu is Dasam.. so Pathaayam is Dashaayam... Kayaru means rope and climb too.. and Kayari is therefor inerpreted as Paashi..)

Sanskrit was a conversational language till a few decades ago that way.. Even now the Karikas in poojas and many sentences for upachaaram are just conversation in Sanskrit.. Sankalpams we perform too are conversations.. All religious activities we see all over in India using Sanskrit are not just incantations on Mantra.. Many parts are just conversational prose... withe perhaps some mix of poetry in some cases..

I have read about Greek and Latin too, but the social impact on use of those languages is not known to me.. But I have studied Indian Society in the light of Sanskrit, and I cannot entirely agree, in the light of the above decisions that Sanskrit of not in use as a conversational language..

I can myself converse fairly well in Sanskrit... and for a brahmin.. I still do not really know whether the local language like Tamil or Malayalam is the Mother tongue or Sanskrit is a mother tongue too.. From the moment a child is born when the Jatakarmam is performed, to the last moment of his life when Karnamantram is chanted in his ear, Sanskrit is used.. How can such a language called as a non conversational language.. I just cannot agree..

Of course Greek and Latin are either cousins or grand nieces of Sanskrit.. but their behaviour need not affect our evaluation of Sanskrit.."

catholicity in Hinduism

I was trying to translate and present a famous Vedic Mantram.. where the importance of offerings to gods and the gods getting satisfied with such offerings and blessing the one who made offerings is dealt with

Some query was raised as to whether there is inherent contradiction in this because Gita and other philosophical texts would not approve of such offerings in expectation of returns.. as indicated in the Vedic mantram..

My reply to that query is just reproduced here.

===========

"Bhagavat Gita is a text on philosophy... and a part of epic Mahabharatham.. And Mahabharatham is a work. a story subservient and subordinate to Vedas..

I think you presume that Gita or what is said in Gita is the final word in Hinduism.. It is not so.. Definitely not so.

And even the principles or Saguna Upasana, Nirguna Upasana, Manifest Deity, Unmanifest Deity are all part of Hinduism that run together.. These various modes are dealt with approval even in Gita.

Of course the Hindu religion is so catholic and permissive that diametrically opposite viewpoints can be maintained by the people belonging to the same religion..and all of them can come under the umbrella of Sanatana Dharma

I was quoting a mantram from Veda.. here Krishna Yajurvedam.. and this mantram is accepted by millions of Vedic believers..

And even in Gita it is said in one place..devan bhavayatanena te deva bhavayantu vah parasparam bhavayantah sreyah param avapsyatha. Bagavat gita chapter 3 sloka 11..

देवान भावयतानेन ते देवा भावयन्तु वह परस्परम भावयांतः श्रेयः परम अवाप्स्यथ (गीता ३.११ )

Meaning..You pay offerings to Devas through Yajnas and then those devas or gods will look after your welfare.. And this mutual allegiance and assistance would lead to the welfare of all..

And the various chapters of Gita give stress to Karma, Bhakthi, Jnaana, esoteric, mysterious and so on.. often with no real connection or justification of other concepts..

Though scholars and some staunch integrators attempt to find some uniformity or unity of purpose. in the eighteen chapters of Gita . the explanations are rather belaboured..

In fact, even Gita is a multi spectrum .. and often disjointed treatise..

So raising logical issues quoting one part of Gita or Upanishads and contradicting some other philosophy contained elsewhere is not of much use..

Even the much acclaimed six systems of Hindu philosophy.. Sankhya, Yoga, Nyaya, Vaiseshika, Mimasa and Vedanta ( or purva Meemaamsa and Uttara Meemaamsa ) often define and deal with issues in contradictory manners

The acceptance of diversities and catholicity and tolerance in viewpoints is the noble hallmark of Hinduism..

Of course, we can accept all viewpoints graciously.. follow ideas which appeal to us and our society in the best way, and live happily.."

वेदाभ्यासात्तथा ज्ञानं शनैः पर्वतलङ्घनं

अटनेन महारण्ये सुपन्था जायते शनैः।

वेदाभ्यासात्तथा ज्ञानं शनैः पर्वतलङ्घनं॥

aṭanena mahāraṇye supanthā jāyate śanaiḥ|

vedābhyāsāttathā jñānaṁ śanaiḥ parvatalaṅghanaṁ||

mahasubhashitasamgraha 476

When one sets out on a journey through a thick forest, the ideal path ahead becomes known only slowly and in a very phased manner. In climbing mountains too the steps ahead become clear only very slowly, may step by step. Acquisition of great knowledge through study of Vedas and sciences too happen only slowly and the accumulation of knowledge increases in an evenly paced manner. Too much of haste, impatience or impetuosity would not yield any good results in such situations.

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The chemical reactions inside the biological mass that is called human body, must be making dissimilar response in varied situations like the reflex reactions of the individuals caused not only by its programmed tendencies at birth but also by the traits acquired during lifetime..

And even for the same individual, the chemical reactions invoking the sense of taste can differ in degree and quality of pleasure or pain arising.. according to the health of the person, the frequency of such reaction ( a mango will not give the same sweetness and pleasure when you have a diarrhea.. or when you have already eaten a dozen of them.. to cite two examples ready on hand)

However in such matters we can at least think of a comparable behavior pattern based on the past experiences..

But spirituality as we conceive is too abstract and unclear, and no comparable or set pattern has ever been seen or reported.. No Pavlov methods ever seen in spirituality

Supreme being is only a human definition.. and the definition can vary from person to person.. But there is general agreement on a few points..

First, we have by consensus ascribed certain agreeable qualities and powers not seen even in the best of humans to that being.. and every religion and even the non believers, usually use such standards to expound the idea of that superior being..

Secondly, we human beings find that the capacities to think, understand and achieve vary markedly with reference to Individuals and that such achievements are never matched with the faculties possessed by them.. So by definition an ideal being is created who does all things rightly and perfectly and we call that being as the Supreme being.. If an individual cannot agree to such calibration, then for him there is no supreme being.

Even in language or in other social transactions, we bring in some standard rules by consensus..The shape of a letter or a figure, the method of recording them on some recoverable medium.. all these have been defined and agreed by substantial number of stakeholders.. to enable communication.. If someone refuses to learn the symbolic logic, he simply remains ignorant.. Even a language is difficult to understand if he refuses to learn.. but then there are certain rigid and agreed patterns.. and so through a language we can communicate over centuries or millenniums.. And if the logic of that language is not known to us we are helpless.. this happened with reference to Harappan seals..

The laws and practices of the society also evolved by set definition , and there is some set pattern and reasonable uniformity in applying such law.. Even the Apex Court relies on judicial precedence..

But when it comes to God and spirituality, it becomes very difficult to cite any standard or reasonably foreseeable response to any input or prayer or entreaty.. and most of the spiritual texts just exhort us to believe without any validation

This situation, IMHO is beyond the capacity of a logical mind to conceive and interpret ..

Independence seems to be just a platitude..

Old age seems to be a phase in life where we have to see many departures..

Maybe waiting for our turns.

Krishna Krishna Krishna.

We own nothing on this earth .

We are just visitors

mere guests

or chance intruders.

We have to leave when we get the marching orders.

But we are bound and shackled here.

We cannot leave on our own accord.

Independence seems to be just a platitude..

Carbon has three forms.

Carbon has three forms. Charcoal a shapeless or powdery mass,

graphite

and

diamond.

In the shape of charcoal carbon mixes with everything, burns and becomes gas easily and is easily affected by contaminants.

But in the graphite form the same carbon is tough but somewhat pliant..

It can be powdered easily ..

it conducts electricity somewhat

.It wears off easily when rubbed.

But its tendency to burn and get contaminated is far lesser than charcoal.

However when carbon appears as diamond it is tough , bright, uncontaminated and practically unaffected by external stimuli.

Still we know that all these are just variants of the same element, carbon.

If we can keep our mind as tough and unyielding as diamond karmas cannot affect us much.

But if our minds are kept clueless and shapeless like charcoal or pliant like graphite karmas too can erode us.

It is our choice to fix our minds like diamond graphite or charcoal.

मान्या एव हि मान्यानां मानं कुर्वन्ति नेतरे

मान्या एव हि मान्यानां मानं कुर्वन्ति नेतरे।

शम्भुर्बिभर्ति मूर्ध्नेन्दुं स्वर्भानुस्तं जिघृक्षति॥

mānyā eva hi mānyānāṁ mānaṁ kurvanti netare|

śambhurbibharti mūrdhnenduṁ svarbhānustaṁ jighṛkṣati||

subhashita ratnakara Shargadhara subhashitam ratnabhandagara

Only highly respectable people with lofty character and enlightened thought process would deem it fit to recognize and acknowledge the merit in great people and great places.

See, Lord Shiva, a great soul, accorded to the mooa a place of honour in his matted locks adorning his head. However, the cruel and characterless demon Rahu the Svarbhanu is ever prowling around ready to swallow the great moon.

Yes, good people always value the company of similar people. Evil fellows would be eager to cause damage to good people. That is so obvious.

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Indian and Vedic culture was that a reasonably balanced person would mind his own business, and would never flaunt his views, advises and opinions all around..

The social media culture was completely alien to such ideas..

It was expected that a person should render advise or even his opinion only if he feels that he is capable of giving that opinion and that too when he is called upon by the proper authorities.

.Often such learned men or women resopnded only when they were commanded or requested to express their views .. and only when this request came to them repeatedly and they could not avoid speaking out..

A lawyer talks in a court if he is retained and is having a Vakalath or power of attroney..

Any professional worth his salt would talk about his profession and would render his professional views only if he is appointed through an authorisation, or retained through some valid document or fees ( the retainer may vary from profession to profession)or when he is bound by law of the land to act..

Here in social media we can seen all and sundry giving professional advises, with no one ever asking for it..

We can find even medical opinions.. that can kill.

Again recipes that can kill

Taxation advises that can drain your pocket

and so on

I have been a pseudo scholar, pseudo professional, for the past ten years now..

I think it is time to shut up, even though I have no other business to mind..

We have control only on ourselves..and that too with limitations.

What the giver should do can be decided if only you are the giver.

What the taker can do can be decided only by the taker.

We just exist in the society reserving the right to disagree with grace honesty and decency..

The majority might kill us even for dissent.

But our character stands out when we stand up.with calm determination for what we think as right.

We have control only on ourselves..and that too with limitations.

മാത പനസി ദശായം പാശി ( panasi dashaayam paashi).. मात! पनसि दशायं पाशि

Most of the scholars are unanimous in their view that Sanskrit was always an official and formal language.

.Every householder must have used different languages or dialects for garden use...

If we see the dramas in Sanskrit like Shakuntalam, the dialogues rendered by the Vidhushaka, menials and Lady characters are in Prakrita..( with Sanskrit Transliteration for the bookish persons)..

The adoption of Sanskrit as a completely spoken language in Mathur is to be praised as a pioneering move to further the greatness of that classic language.. but I doubt very much whether they would have used the grammatical Sanskrit at any time to make a statement that one is going to the loo..

I am in love with Sanskrit all my life..The full sixty years or more.

And I would love to be born as a person who can be in unconditional romance with Sanskrit even in every life to come.

This gap between the scholarly and layman's version may apply to other classical languages also. Be it Greek or Latin.

The funny situation that can arise over misplaced use of Sanskrit languageis described by Kottarathil Shankunni in Aithihyamala, (Aitihyamala is a comprehensive compendium of legends and folklore in Kerala..it is a classic on its own rights) while recording the biography of the poet Tholan.. or Tholakavi

Tholan is indeed a great poet in Sanskrit and Manipravalam in Kerala.

He is the Pioneer in penning many chaste Sanskrit dramas and prose works too..And his works have been used in many Aatta kathas on dance dramas and in paadakam, chakyaar koothu etc. He is held in high esteem in Kerala for his literary accomplishment . He must have flourished after Kalidasa and many major classical poets but earlier to Thujathu ezhuthassan and Melpathur Bhattathiri.

Tholan was a Nambuthiri youth... and a great scholar of all times for that matter.....

It was the aacharam among Nambuthiris that after Samavarthanam, the men should only use Sanskrit for conversation.

For tholan, Samavarthanam was over, but he had not picked up much sanskrit...

There was a maid-servant Chakki(ചക്കി) in their illam, and the boy Tholan happened to see that this woman was climbing atop the great granary (പത്തായം) and stealing paddy .

He could not use Malayalm to report this to his mother because he was prohibited from using any other language other than Sanskrit.

So he said, മാത പനസി ദശായം പാശി ( panasi dashaayam paashi).. मात! पनसि दशायं पाशि .His logic is... Matha.... mother ചക്ക chakka or jackfruit is പനസം in malayalam.. so he called chakki as Pansai.. Granarya Pathaayam ,,,പത്തു ആയം ദശ is the sanskrit for ten.. so pathayam is dashaayam.. കയറ് kayaru is paasham in sankrit... Kayari..കയറി kayar is paasham in sanskrit, and kayari means climbed in malayalam so paashi is climed in Sanskrit so Paash for kayarii. So to inform his mother that Chakki had climbed atop the Pathayam.. he had to use the abracadabra..." Panasi Dasaayam Paashi".

Sure it is not necessary to extend our addiction to puritan Sanskrit to this extent.

musings 252

My view on our speculation regarding attaining unity with the Supreme soul

There are only opinions either way as to whether we can or we may not be able to attain unity with the Supreme.

And there can be no proof.. It is not known whether anyone has reached such stages and even if such a stage is reached, that person has been able to give others an exact account of his journey..

The package is not intellectual, but is mixed with emotion..

And emotive level vary from person to person, and even in the same person that varies with time and other physical circumstances..

There are no standards of measurement in absolute terms..

In such matters what you feel as best at a point time might work for yourself..

And even at the same moment it may not work for another one with a different mind..

At best people can just exchange views and stop at that..

We may tend to think so, but was Shankara or Marx or Kanada or Kapila were the last words in terms of absolutely correct thought process and interpretation.?.

This question can never be answered.

The difficulties can be the resut of the inherent defects in their thought process, subtle as they may be, and /or the incapacity of the the recipient mind to understand them.. and it can be due to many other gaps in communication.. and inadequacy in database..

Logic and emotion are strange bedfellows..

musings 251

perhaps a new born child is a stranger..

an ET (an Extra Terrestrial Being) ..

and the mother accepts it.. owns it up and tries either to transform it for the society or transforms herself to suit its needs.

. A father does that perhaps to a lesser extent..

The family tries to mould him to suit to its needs more than to adopt to its whims and fancies..

That ET becomes big as a grown, up accepts a male or a female as the mate..

And the mate tries to just transform or even manipulate it to suit the mate's desire and fancies..

And finally death comes and just snatches him away forcibly even if the ET is kicking out in protest..

Because by that time the ET Being has adapted itself to the need of this solid and is eager to live and enjoy here on this earth, for ever, if possible

But another territory, the territory of death wants to own the ET and wants to accept it, adopt it.

So acceptance has various dimensions..

Who is to thank whom..

Whom it is that one should thank..

God only knows..

True, an ET like this, perhaps one in a million arrives and he or it transforms the whole world around Him..

A Jesus, A Gandhi, A Krishna,

We remember them and thank them for ever..

We have to..

जितमस्माकं उद्भिन्नमस्माकं ऋतमस्माकं तेजोऽस्माकं ब्रह्मास्माकं

जितमस्माकं उद्भिन्नमस्माकं ऋतमस्माकं तेजोऽस्माकं ब्रह्मास्माकं स्वर्स्माकं यज्ञोऽस्माकं पशवोऽस्माकं प्रजा अस्माकं वीरा अस्माकम् ll अथर्ववेदे १६।८।१

jitamasmākaṁ udbhinnamasmākaṁ ṛtamasmākaṁ tejo'smākaṁ brahmāsmākaṁ svarsmākaṁ yajño'smākaṁ paśavo'smākaṁ prajā asmākaṁ veerā asmākam atharvavede 16|8|1

May resounding victory in conquests be with us

May we blossom and grow in all directions

May the eternal truthful law guide us

May we possess ultimate effulgence

May the realization of Supreme one be with us

May the heavens be within our reach

May we be enabled to perform all the yajnas and partake in their bountiful results

May we be blessed with lots and lots of cattle

May we have large number of progenies in our clan

May our clan be filled to the brim with valorous men

musings 250

but ultimately, that point is where that Supreme Consciousness perhaps thinks of kindling and owning the spark in us..

It is the choice of His. We have little control..

Perhaps, unstinting Faith and love might carry us towards Him with greater speed..

Ajnaana thimirena andhaH..(अज्ञान तिमिरेण अन्धः अज्ञानतिमिरान्धः) Thimira is cataract.. our eyes are blind because they are covered by the opaque film of ajnaana..

Have you seen one thing?..infants are normally not affected by cataract.. may be the ajnaanam is yet to reach them..

If there is a surgeon who can remove that cataract, we believe it is the Guru..

The guru can be the God Himself.. that has happened to Arunagirinathar, Agashtya and Muthuswamy deekshitar.. for them Murugan was the direct Guru..For Sanatkumaras.. God Dakshninaamoorthy Shiva himself was the Guru.

But I do not know who can be our gurus, what can be their shape, ... for many seekers Gurus come in search of them at the proper time..

However I cannot think that God will exhibit unnatural miracles..

The whole set up that is this universe and our lives is the greatest miracle..

musings 249

I think the world is divided into two types of thinkers and philosophers

Those who think and act in the normal course of living, and, perchance may share their experiences once in a while in social media too.

Then there are those who use their brain and mind only to churn out material for publishing in social media..

Usually for the first type, the ideas might do some good whether shared in social media or not

And for the second type the delivery springs out within nano seconds of conception.. and the offspring are mostly still-born..

Dharma cannot be defined beyond this

Someone asked me what is dharma...

The answer according to my limited understanding is

I am reminded of a quote from mahabharatham धर्मस्य तत्वं निहतं गुहायां महाजनो येन गतः स पन्था the essence of Dharmas is hidden in the pitch darkness of a cave.

So the real path to travel is the one along which great men who preceded us travelled.

Dharma is that which carries righteousness..the basic principle of Satyam and ritam the path shown by Vedas and smritis are the two cardinal limbs of dharma.

Dhaaryate it dharmaH..

Simply the path of truth fairness and tolerance chalked out by Vedas and shastras are dharma.

It is expected that each person should try to follow the path shown by his grand fathers and the rishies or preceptors who presided over the clans to which they belonged.. the pravaraas of their gothtrams.

Dharmas can vary with situations and functions. Rajadharma pithrudharma putradhatma grihasta dharma pathivrathaa dharma aapad dharma and so on.

The texts like Vedas, dharmasastras, dharma, shroutha, grihya etc soothras define the action to be followed by various persons in each situation

In short dharma is nothing but guidelines for honest happy and peaceful life

Dharma cannot be defined beyond this

विहाय जम्बुको मांसं तीरे मीनाय धावितः

विहाय जम्बुको मांसं तीरे मीनाय धावितः। मीनोऽपि प्राविशत्तोयं मांसं गृध्रोप्यपाहरत्॥

vihāya jambuko māṁsaṁ tīre mīnāya dhāvitaḥ| mīno'pi prāviśattoyaṁ māṁsaṁ gṛdhropyapāharat||

A fox, wandering around in the jungle discovered some flesh of a dead animal and was readying to gobble up the sumptuous food. It was in the banks of a stream. Suddenly the fox notices that a fat fish had just jumped out of the water and landed up in the shore. It was struggling to get back to the stream. The avaricious fox wanted to have the fish and ran towards it leaving aside the flesh it was in the process of eating.

By the time the fox approached it the fish had managed to struggle back into the stream and had simply swam away. However, an alertly watching eagle swept on the flesh half eaten by the fox and flew away with it.

The poor fox lost both the flesh and the fish too.

Shivoham shivoham

Shivoham shivoham

nothing wrong in visiting a temple or worshiping an idol..

the Divine One is present there too,

and those who visit also carry the thought of Him usually when they visit...

Sivaanandalahari - 12* of Shankara

गुहायां गेहे वा बहिरपि वने वाऽद्रिशिखरे जले वा वह्नौ वा वसतु वसते: किं वद फलम् ।

सदा यस्यैवान्त: करण-मपि शंभो तव पदे स्तितं चेध्यॊगोऽसौ स च परम-योगी स च सुखी ॥

"whether one resides in a far off cave or in a residential flat,

in the open ground or inside a forest or on the top of a mountain,

in water or in fire...

is the place of residence really matter?

Oh Lord Shambu, if one's inner spirit is always fixed at your feet,

then He is yoga,

He is the yogi,

and he is enjoying the greatest comforts.. "

So ultimately for the one who can see God everywhere,

the idol and temple are also okay..

For a person not so disposed, no place is okay...

A story is told of Avvaiyaar the Lady Saint of Tamil..

Once she was passing through a village and she was tired walking for long in hot sun..

She saw a temple of Shiva.. and the mandapam was open..

She went there, and rested there sprawling her tired legs pointing to wards the sanctum.. where Shivalingam was consecrated..

Someone came and asked..

"Old lady, why are you showing your feet to the lord? "

She replied..

" Son, just show me a direction where I can place my feet and that will not point towards that eternal Shiva.."

Here Shiva is the universal Lord, and forget any philosophy or religion involved..

Still that is the truth..

Of course, this is not to say we should show our feet to the idol in the temple..

Just only a reminder that we can feel the presence of the Divine everywhere.

Shivoham, Shivoham

पाणिग्रहे पर्वतराजपुत्र्याः

पाणिग्रहे पर्वतराजपुत्र्याः पादाम्बुजं पाणिसरोरुहाभ्याम्।

अश्मानमारोपयतः स्मरारेः मन्दस्मितं मङ्गळमातनोतु॥

pāṇigrahe parvatarājaputryāḥ pādāmbujaṁ pāṇisaroruhābhyām|

aśmānamāropayataḥ smarāreḥ mandasmitaṁ maṅgaḻamātanotu||

subhaashitaratnabhaaNDaagaare

May the benign and enigmatic smile of that arch enemy of Kamadeva, Lord Shiva bring all grace and prosperity to all of us

The smile, that erupted from His lips as he held the feet of Uma the daughter of the sturdy mountain Himavan,with his hands as soft as a lotus flower and her feet too so soft like another lotus.. The Lord was lifting her feet to be place it on a stone signifying marital fidelity..

What a study in contrast… The mother is tough, she is the daughter of the mountain. The Lord is tough. He simply burned off Kamadeva once. But He uses all the softness of His hand not to cause any sort of discomfort to the soft foot of Uma..

The bride’s foot is placed on stone by the groom to signify that the bride would be so sincere and steadfast and solid in her fidelity for the husband. As solid as the rock. But here Mother Uma is the daughter of the Mountain Himavana herself.. Who can be more solid?

The toughest, the eternal pair are just playing the role of a newly married couple… That brings a secret smile on the face of the Lord.. That is natural.

May that eternal couple, Uma Maheshvara bless us.

musings 248

Often we read that there is intolerance in India.. or Indian society .

And such views take us to discussion of lack of tolerance which is supposed to be a part of Hindu way of life and Hindu religion..

But I do not think we are being fair to Hinduism..

Every ritual, every social transaction, based of that religion would show that there is wonderful flexibility and exhibition of mutual respect for heterogeneous beliefs..

We are never afraid to criticize anyone including the Supreme being and even crack jokes over their faux pas..

The hardcore Vaishnavas or Shavaites never hesitated to discuss the funny activities of the leaders (Perumal and Shivanaar) of their groups and their families..

Fun ans frolic was part of the Indian and Hindu life..

and humour and sarcasm can be found in abundance even in Vedas, Upanishads and Agamas.

And Hindus usually set apart some time-slots to accommodate even the apparent absurdities during the most solemn festivities, knowing very well that such frivolities are just frivolities but then they act as effective lubricants to reduce tension.

Hinduism actually created deities like Ganapathy or Narada, and many others just to have fun..

Shiva flirting with Ganga when Uma was away, Krishna just bolting off with the clothes of girls from a bathing ghat leaving them completely naked and crying... and numerous such narratives are part of solemn Hinduism.

Often lack of appreciation for the basic fabric of the most generous and multi-spectrum Hindu way of life and even commercial interests make people fight with one another.. but that happens because of the basic trait of selfishness in man.. and to be selfish a man need not be a Hindu..

If many things that we speak in public about our Gods in Hinduism and have hearty laugh are mentioned even in utter secrecy about Gods holding similar posts in other religions, the tongue and the mouth, the head and he torso would part company with immediate effect..

That can never happen in Hinduism and still we say and others say there is intolerance..

musings 247

for a Hindu like me faith in God has not originated from suffering..

it was not burned into me through suffering.. it needed no fortification by suffering..

I was just born into my faith...

In fact even before I was born my samskaras observed by my parents and their forebears had already made me a product of God..

Good or bad may happen..

Happiness or utter misery may arise..

I may laugh or I may cry, but at both moments I will be calling my God not exactly because he will reduce my suffering or increase my pleasure but just because I have the faith that I belong to Him for ever..

Let Him do whatever that is his pleasure, but then I just have faith in His fairness..

He is my role model..

Krishna I love you

चन्द्राननार्धदेहाय चन्द्रांशुसितमूर्तये

चन्द्राननार्धदेहाय चन्द्रांशुसितमूर्तये।

चन्द्रार्कानल नेत्राय चन्द्रार्धशिरसे नमः॥

नमः शिवाय निःश्शेषक्ळेशप्रशमशालिने।

त्रिगुणग्रन्थिदुर्भेद भवबन्धविभेदिने॥

candrānanārdhadehāya candrāṁśusitamūrtaye|

candrārkānala netrāya candrārdhaśirase namaḥ||

namḥ śivāya niḥśśeṣakḻeśapraśamaśāline|

triguṇagranthidurbheda bhavabandhavibhedine||

Pranams to that Supreme Lord Shiva

Half of whose body is shared by that beautiful lady Uma who shines with a face resembling full moon

The Lord whose spotless body complexion resembles the cool soothing hue of the rays of moon

The Lord whose three eyes are the moon, sun and the fire

And the Lord adorns his hair with half of the moon

Indeed He is Chandrasekhara by all means.

Pranams to that Supremely benevolent Shiva

Whose greatest quality and habit is to remove the difficulties faced by all his creations

And who is the only one capable of shattering the unbreakable bondage caused by the three gunas sattva, rajas and tamas, the bondage that binds all the beings on this universe to worldly woes

NamaH Shivaaya.. Shivaaya NamaH

Umamaheshvaraabhyaam NamaH

musings 246

Silence is golden,, it is said. It is an under estimation.. Silence is the five metals, many mentals, panchabhootam and all bhoothams pretams pishachus etc... The www is becoming a place where you can rub your fingertips with the keyboard just to relieve even temporary itching..

musings 245

What is the most right thing for an individual varies from persons to person..

In fact there is nothing right or wrong in very strict terms..

Whatever makes one happier and less miserable, is the right thing for him..

Whatever that would cause least disturbance and dislocation for all others is the right thing according to the society..

If one can manage to have a reasonable balance between what one finds as right for him and what society finds as right on his part, then he can life in fair comfort..

But the balancing is dynamic..

Some Individuals stretch a point too much and transgress the norms set by the society from time to time.

Some societies prescribe too rigid norms for its constituents.. Both the situations can topple the delicate equilibrium.. and the result is strife, and conflict..

Yes, instead of trying to prove who is right, it is always better to have a meeting point somewhere in between..

This idea should be valid in the case of persons and societies or social groups in any transactions.

musings 244

The best way to cure oneself of jealousy and skepticism seems to be just to read and study impartially the viewpoints and writings of the persons of whom we are jealous or whose views we do not really feel to be in agreement with..

If we are fairly impartial, we would find that whether we agree with them or not, we do not have sufficient material to be critical of their views and postures..

And even in the writings of those who hold entirely opposite views we would find materials and references they have used to oppose the divergent views.. These references can lead us to deeper study either in favour or in opposition of a view..

We should realize that we know very little to equip ourselves either to agree or disagree with another..

And the agreement of an individual or disagreement either matters very little in the long run..

Most of the time our disagreements are with a person and his attitudes rather than his thoughts and ideas..

It is always better to think deep on selected subjects rather than wasting our brain and its energy on too many issues.. especially the issues that do not concern us much..

जानामि भो नाग तव प्रभावं कण्ठे स्थितो गर्जति शङ्करस्य

स्थानं प्रधानं न बलं प्रधानं स्थाने स्थितो कापुरुषोऽपि सिंहः।

जानामि भो नाग तव प्रभावं कण्ठे स्थितो गर्जति शङ्करस्य॥शुक्रनीति

sthānaṁ pradhānaṁ na balaṁ pradhānaṁ sthāne sthito kāpuruṣo'pi siṁhaḥ|

jānāmi bho nāga tava prabhāvaṁ kaṇṭhe sthito garjati śaṅkarasya||śukranīti

More than physical strength one’s position and location give him greater commanding power and advantages. Placed in a vantage location even an unmaly and cowardly fellow would look strong and would show off. The eagle is very strong and at any point of time is capable of attacking and annihilating any snake. However, the snake (Vasuki, perhaps) sitting around the neck of Lord Shankara is showing funny faces and poking gestures at the eagle Garuda. The eagle cannot attack the snake because it is in the company of the Lord. So the eagle says, “ I know how strong and bold you are in reality, you wretched snake.. However you are making roaring hisses because you are curling around the neck of Master Shankara. “

न स सखा यो न ददाति सख्ये

 

न स सखा यो न ददाति सख्ये सचावुभे सचमानाय पित्वः॥ ऋग्वेदे

na sa sakhā yo na dadāti sakhye sacāvubhe sacamānāya pitvaḥ|| ṛgvede

If a person claims that he is a friend but if he is not prepared to render any help at all, then it is meaningless to call him a friend. Contact and association with such fellows is worthless.

नमन्ति फलिनो वृक्षाः नमन्ति गुणिनो जनाः

नमन्ति फलिनो वृक्षाः नमन्ति गुणिनो जनाः।

शुष्ककाष्ठाश्च मूर्खाश्च न नमन्ति कदाचन॥

namanti phalino vṛkṣāḥ namanti guṇino janāḥ|

śuṣkakāṣṭhāśca mūrkhāśca na namanti kadācana||

chanakya 

The above subhashitam is in support of humility and flexibility..

The Meaning is

The trees which are heavily laden with fruits bend down

Similarly people of nobility and class are humble and give respect to others

However, the trees which have dried up and are mere logs would never bend.

The adamant and foolish people also never bend down or show flexibility.

Like all platitudes in life, the idea of humility is stressed here, and in that process the rigidity exhibited by some people are ridiculed.

But think, the reality is somewhere in between.. Humility and flexibility in the right place and at the right time are great.. However, excessive flexibility becomes just shameless compromise when core issues are at stake..

When we hear or read about some great virtue, we tend to assume that the virtue or quality which is an antithesis of the one we are dealing with is reprehensible..

That need not be so

Any thought or action or attitude is either great or not so great according to the situations alone.

Word analysis

फलिनो वृक्षाः trees that have fruits

नमन्ति bend down, are flexible

गुणिनः जनाः people with great qualities, nice people

अपि नमन्ति too bend down, are humble

मूर्खाः adamant, foolish people

शुष्ककाष्ठाः dry logs

च and

कदाचन न not once, never

नमन्ति bend down.

Law, Language and Lexicon

Law, Language and Lexicon.... These are the creations of society, a group of persons.. When and individual tries to deviate from law, invariably he is punished.. When a group which is large enough(can we call it a crowd?) clamours for change or even breaks the law, it becomes a demonstration, agitation or revolution as the case may be.. And when the law is tampered with by the legislature, it becomes an amendment..

When an individual uses a word differently, it becomes a spelling mistake.. When a small group does the same thing it become a slang.. And when a large number does it , may be the language gets changed, or even new languages are born..

In short, legitimacy depends merely on numbers, and perhaps nothing else..

musings 243

We provoke people, we hurt them and then they sustain wounds and scars in the body and mind.. and cruelty arises..

But I have a feeling that basically every human being is inherently kind, and generous too..

It is wrong to presume that every human action stems out of crass selfishness..

Maybe we cannot prove it with scientific precision, but the first response of an unprejudiced human being when he meets a fellow human being is that of affection and love..

Sad to see that we create so many artificial compartments.. of caste, creed, language, territory, religion, faith, colour of the skin and so on..

Earth will be a more beautiful place if such unreal partitions and torn asunder..

करिष्ये वचनं तव

We have just to remember that our body-mind stay in this world is to burn out our karma.

We are born perhaps to suffer and thus get purified.

If we try to escape from pain by invoking God's mercy we are just prolonging our agony.

If I am a knife I have to do the cutting. I cannot claim that I will remain ice cream and do softy softy jobs alone .

In the concluding chapter of gita Arjuna promises to the Blessed Lord..

करिष्ये वचनं तव

karishye vachanam tava..

Master, I shall just obey what you command.

So let us worship and praise Krishna because our love for Him is unconditional and limitless.

But He knows how to handle us.

We need not give Him guidelines

Krishna I love you

musings 242

People are proud

dignified

and they would prefer to have a secret niche where they store

what they don't share

what they can't share

and

what they won't share.

There are things that people won't share even with themselves except at the moment of happening.

That is just out of helplessness.

But sharing seems a better option..a safer option..

There are things which people do not know how to share.

Many thoughts and ideas are

so nebulous

so unclear

that they die prematurely

in the mind and brain or are very shortlived.

But all these thoughts are realities.

They impact the subconscious and unconscious strata of the mind and have a decisive role in shaping behaviour patterns.

Often they can gather like the not so clean water clogging the pipeline.

So the best thing is to let go as smoothly as one can.

Unshared material can clog and obstruct.. can cause irreversible damages when the explosion occurs

विमलमपि कथितमर्थं मूर्खा मोहादपहसन्ति

मूर्खेषु कुशलमानिषु विजानताप्यकुशलेन भवितव्यम्।

विमलमपि कथितमर्थं मूर्खा मोहादपहसन्ति॥ १८ ॥

neeti dvishastikaa of sundarapandya

mūrkheṣu kuśalamāniṣu vijānatāpyakuśalena bhavitavyam।

vimalamapi kathitamarthaṃ mūrkhā mohādapahasanti॥

We can find stupid fellows dime a dozen who consider themselves as epitomes of erudition and efficiency. While dealing with such persons, even if we have thorough knowledge and efficiency, we should give the impression that we are ignorant and are almost on the verge of stupidity.

Usually, the stupid fellows, out of ignorance, would insult us and our ideas which are flawless and praiseworthy and relevant.

प्रतिपर्वरसावहम्

भारतम् चेक्षुदण्डं च कलानाथं च वर्णय।

कालिदासकविर् ब्रूते प्रतिपर्वरसावहम्॥

bhāratam cekṣudaṇḍaṁ ca kalānāthaṁ ca varṇaya|

kālidāsakavir brūte pratiparvarasāvaham||

Kalidasa was asked to describe the greatness of Mabhabharatham, A stalk of sugarcane and the Moon..

Kalidasa replied.. all the three are sweet and tasty in each parva..

The chapters in Mahabharatham are generally classified as parvas.. Each parva is great beyond words.

Sugarcane stalk has many joints each is called a parva.. Joint to joint everywhere it is sweet.

The moon waxes and wanes from new moon to full moon and back. Each such fortnight is called parva.. Moon is beautiful from start of parva to the end of parva and back.

Here the versatility of Sanskrit language is underlined.. The word Parva conveys so many meanings.

You must not ask in what Kavyam Kalidasa has said it.

It is only an anecdote.. You can mention the name of any great poet in place of Kalidasa.

why is it that Govinda does not keep company with such a devotee for ever ?

Devotees after a lot of penance and sadhana gets the glimpse of Krishna the God for a little while.

Then He leaves gifting to the devotee that sweet memory for ever

But even if the same penance is continued, repeated physical manifestation of Krishna never happens or happens rarely.

Someone asks..why is it that Govinda does not keep company with such a devotee for ever ? What is the fault of the devotee ?

My answer is.....(I may be wrong too..)

It is not our fault. Nor is it Krishna's fault.

God is all pervasive and He is touching us, speaking to us and is with us all the time.

But our sense organs are having limitations.

We love ,we hate ,we feel angry or happy.

But we never see those things.

When we are absolutely innocent and having absolute faith and we are in distress Krishna may show up for a moment.

But when we are just living on how can He keep company with us for ever?

He just lives in us sharing all we have.

Even Dhruva and Prahlada who met the God Krishna in physical form did not see him again when they were in their earthly bodies.

God is with us but we cannot expect him to announce to all that He is there.

Is it necessary?

We lived inside our mothers for about ten months. Can we expect to continue to do so for ever?

It is a truth that our mothers love us the same way as they loved us when we resided in her womb..

musings 241

Caezer was the title for the emperors of Rome..

Even Kaiser of Germany appears to be a variant of that title..

Many ceasers marked their place in history and literature..

Shakespeare Immortalized a couple of them..

Maybe by the quirk of fate, cutting open the uterus of a lady to effect childbirth too came to be known as scissarian or caesarean an section..

And pets like some dogs too were names after Caezer..

So if one discusses about

the Caesers or Rome

or

Shakespeares Caeser and Cleopartra

or

the Mark Antony's speech

Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears;

I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.

and if a question is asked

Is Caeser not the name of a dog

or

Is Caeser a baby born through caesarean section

All that one can do is to run away for safety..

But that happens too often in our social media discussions..

I mean the irrelevant quip..

The bolting is optional..

लक्ष्मीर्यस्य गृहे स एव भजति प्रायो जगत्पूज्यताम्

तिर्यक्तां भजतु प्रतारयतु वा धर्मक्रियाकोविदं

हन्तु स्वां जननीं पिबत्वपि सुरांशुद्धां वधूमुज्झतु।

वेदान् निन्दतु वा हिनस्तु जनतां किम् वाऽनया चिन्तया

लक्ष्मीर्यस्य गृहे स एव भजति प्रायो जगत्पूज्यताम्॥

tiryaktāṁ bhajatu pratārayatu vā dharmakriyākovidaṁ

hantu svāṁ jananīṁ pibatvapi surāṁśuddhāṁ vadhūmujjhatu|

vedān nindatu vā hinastu janatāṁ kim vā'nayā cintayā

lakṣmīryasya gṛhe sa eva bhajati prāyo jagatpūjyatām||

A straight meaning of this slokam is, Even if one is living the life of an animal without empathy, even if one cheats and causes harm to people doing pious yajnas, even if one kills his own mother, even if one consumes hooch, even if one drives away his devoted wife of purest character, even if he talks insultingly about vedas, or even if he is killing people en masse, if he is having great wealth (Lakshmi) in his house he will be worshipped by one and all in the universe.

However there is an oblique reference to Lord Narayana Here.

He tooks incarnations as Fish, Tortoise, Boar and Lion, which are all just wild animals or similar creatures.

He cheated Mahabali and other great Vedic performers who conducted yajna in the banks of Narmada, in his avatara as Vamana.

As Bhargava Rama or Parashurama, he beheaded his mother Renuka.

As Sankarshana, the Balarama, he was notorious for his drinking habits As Ramachandra of Ayodhya who proceeded to forest to uphold his promise to Dasaratha his father, he had to abandon his own chaste, pure wife Sita.

Incarnated as Buddha he repudiated the contents of Vedas.

And He will incarnate and Kalki and is expected to behead masses of people who deviate from the path of propriety.

Thus, a person with all the terrible qualities and who has perpetrated all those deeds is worshipped as the Supreme Lord Narayana, everywhere.

What is the reason? He is having Lakshmi, as the controller of his own house and his beloved life partner.