गुणा गुणानुबन्धित्वात्

ज्ञाने मौनं क्षमा शक्तौ त्यागे श्लाघाविपर्ययः ।

गुणा गुणानुबन्धित्वात् तस्य सप्रसवा इव ॥1.22॥

A description about the sterling personal qualities of the monarch of the clan of Raghu as given by Kalidas in the first Chapter of his monumental work Raghuvamsam.

The monarch of the Raghu clan was possessing great knowledge but was rather silent and never deemed it fit to exhibit or flaunt such knowledge

He was extremely strong and valorous but was very patient and tolerant

He was very generous but was completely averse to self-praise and publicity about such munificence

Usually knowledgeable people lose no opportunity to show off their knowledge through words and actions. People who are strong and sturdy become impatient and irritated even if they face the slightest discomfiture. People who are charitably inclined usually manage to grab every opportunity to attract limelight and accolades.

However knowledge and silence, strength and patience and munificence and reluctance towards publicity, the mutually contradictory traits gelled together in him as if they were uterine brothers.

musings 203

Application of any resources that will deplete its value without reasonable recouping is a crime we do to the earth, the system or the society.. Our existence really cause depletion to the natural set-up, because the intelligent human being has always attempted to tamper with the rhythm of nature.

Like the entropy loss we study in thermodynamics. The least we can do, and we owe that much to our friends and fellow living beings, is to take a solemn decision to refrain from causing the least depletion to any existing resources.. and this will apply to wasting money, time and enrgy in ostentatious and pompous show-offs, be it a marriage or a funeral.. ईशावास्यमिदं सर्वं यत् किञ्च महत्यां जगत.. तेन त्यक्तेन भुञ्जीथा मा गृथा कस्य स्विद्धनम्..

if every paisa spent on any ostentation is not spent that way, it is great.. it can be greater if every paisa is spent on a genuine cause to further the happiness ( in some real way) or in the mitigation of suffering of some hapless person or group or being..

if dharma fails there will be darkness all around अफलो यदि धर्मः स्याच्चरितो धर्मचारिभिः

अफलो यदि धर्मः स्याच्चरितो धर्मचारिभिः।

अप्रतिष्ठे तमस्येतज्जगन्मज्जेदनिन्दिते॥

महाभारते

aphalo yadi dharmaḥ syāccarito dharmacāribhiḥ|

apratiṣṭhe tamasyetajjaganmajjedanindite||

mahābhārate

Oh virtuous lady, please listen carefully, If the path of virtue and righteousness scrupulously adhered  to by ardent followers of the path of dharma gets obstructed, become futile or fails to take them in the right direction then the whole universe will be submerged in the abysmal darkness of destruction.

അഫലോ യദി ധര്‍മഃ സ്യാച്ചരിതോ ധര്‍മചാരിഭിഃ।

അപ്രതിഷ്ഠേ തമസ്യേതജ്ജഗന്മജ്ജേദനിന്ദിതേ॥

മഹാഭാരതേ

സാധ്വീ, ശ്രദ്ധയോടെ മനസ്സിലാക്കുക.. ധര്‍മ്മത്തിന്‍റെ പാതയില്‍ മാത്രം സഞ്ചരിക്കുന്ന സജ്ജനങ്ങള്‍ക്ക് ആ നേരും നെറിയും നിറഞ്ഞ മാര്‍ഗ്ഗത്തിലൂടെ മുന്നേറാനുള്ള മാര്‍ഗ്ഗം കൊട്ടിയടക്കപ്പെടുകയോ, നല്ല വഴിയില്‍ മുന്നേറാനുള്ള അവരുടെ ശ്രമങ്ങള്‍ വിഫലമാവുകയോ എത്രയേറെ കഷ്ടപ്പെട്ട് ആ പാതയില്‍ മുന്നേറിയാലും ഉദ്ദേശിച്ച ലക്ഷ്യത്തില്‍ എത്തിപ്പെടാന്‍ സാധിക്കാതെ വരികയും ഒക്കെ ആണെങ്കില്‍ പിന്നെ ഈ പ്രപഞ്ചം തന്നെ ഒരിക്കലും രക്ഷപ്പെടാന്‍ പറ്റാത്ത വിനാശത്തിന്‍റെ തമോ ഗര്‍ത്തത്തില്‍ ചെന്ന് പതിക്കും എന്നതില്‍ ഒരു സംശയവും ഇല്ല

अनुग्रहश्च दानं च सतां धर्मः सनातनः

 

अद्रोहः सर्वभूतेषु कर्मणा मनसा गिरा । अनुग्रहश्च दानं च सतां धर्मः सनातनः 

Mahabharate श्लोक 12.156.21

This is the time tested and eternal rule of virtue- Non-violence and desisting from violence in thoughts and action and words towards all beings. Wishing for the welfare of all, having benevolent thoughts for all and desire to share ones bounties with others through gifts and presents too are integral parts of that eternal golden rule

कृष्णप्रणामी न पुनर्भवाय

एकोऽपि कृष्णस्य सकृत्प्रणामो दशाश्वमेधावभृतेन तुल्यः।

दशाश्वमेधी पुनरेति जन्म कृष्णप्रणामी न पुनर्भवाय॥

eko'pi kṛṣṇasya sakṛtpraṇāmo daśāśvamedhāvabhṛtena tulyaḥ|

daśāśvamedhī punareti janma kṛṣṇapraṇāmī na punarbhavāya||

Even a single prostration at the lotus feet of Krishna is equal to performance of ten Ashvamedha Yajnas..

There is one difference. The person who has performed ten Ashvamedha Yajnas would come back to earth being reborn once the punya of virtue of the Yajna is exhausted. But the person who has fallen at the feet of Krishna will reach eternal emancipation on death and he will never be born again

ഏകോഽപി കൃഷ്ണസ്യ സകൃത്പ്രണാമോ ദശാശ്വമേധാവഭൃതേന തുല്യഃ।

ദശാശ്വമേധീ പുനരേതി ജന്മ കൃഷ്ണപ്രണാമീ ന പുനര്‍ഭവായ॥

ഭഗവാന്‍ കൃഷ്ണന്‍റെ കാലടികളില്‍ ഒരു പ്രാവശ്യം നമസ്കരിക്കുന്നത് പത്ത് അശ്വമേധയജ്ഞം ചെയ്യുന്നതിന് തുല്യമാണ്.

പക്ഷെ ഒരു വ്യത്യാസം ഉണ്ട്. പത്ത് അശ്വമേധം നടത്തിയവന്‍ ആ പുണ്യം കൊണ്ട് സ്വര്‍ഗ്ഗത്തില്‍ എത്തും. ആ പുണ്യഫലം അനുഭവിച്ച് തീരുമ്പോള്‍ അയാള്‍ വീണ്ടും ഭൂമിയില്‍ ജനിക്കും. പക്ഷെ കൃഷ്ണന്‍റെ കാലില്‍ വീണവന് നിരന്തരമായ മുക്തി ലഭിക്കുന്നു. അവന്‍ ഒരിക്കലും വീണ്ടും ജനിക്കുകയില്ല.

musings 202

Someone quoted two interpretations of a Vedic verse one commentary in English and one in Hindi and pointed out very patent contradictions and asked which is the right one.

My answer..

One interpretaion is symbolic.. one is based on a legend.. Both may be right apporximately.. Even the language of Vedas is not exactly like the medeival Sanskrit.. We adopt the bhashyams of Sanskrit Scholars.. like Sayana.. and for our ritualistic purposes that is right..

The Western scholars have interpreted with the database they possess and perception that they derive.

There is nothing right or wrong in any interpretation..

Of course, if the interpretation by an alien person causes damage to our culture and traditional beliefs, we need not accept it..

interpretation, we should have an open mind. There are only varying ideas.. no rights and wrongs.

No one can really translate vedas.. No one really knows what the stand-alone stanzas of Veda that evolved five millenniums ago really means. Maybe after a long time, nighantu of yaska etc appeared, the rules of grammar like that of Panini evolved.. and commentators tried to interpret the words and verses in the way they could understand through etymology, phonetics and other linguistic tools..

In sanskrit one and the same word can have too many different meanings in varying circumstances.. A single word, the same word would even convey opposite meanings in different contexts.. So there cannot be any translation worth its name in such matters. It is just two interpretations, the one you may prefer or like and another which you may not like. It is absolutely unscholarly to have a fight holding the view that one interpretation is right and another is wrong..

Forming opinions merely by reading some text in the web is just risky.. And declaring that such interpretation is gospel truth is another fallacy

musings 201

Mothers are superior beings, posted a respected friend.. Maybe in a general and populist way it is true.

But what about

Mothers who permit MTP and kill her own child even in an advanced stage of pregnancy, even without and health or social reasons..?

Mothers whose love for a son changes from affection to hatred the moment he marries?

Mothers who show partiality among their own offspring?

Mother who loves a daughters child more than a sons child?

The above list is just indicative..

Thousands of situations can be listed,

I think in any relationship between persons, so much of subjectivity is involved,, the causative factors may be personal predilections, social compulsions, physical material and psychological advantages arising out of such relations.. and so on.

I do not want to like or share cliches'

That is my considered personal view..

I am no one to say that others should accept this view..

musings 200

Friendships, relations, even show of love .. all are valued by an individual basically because these add to his peace of mind and happiness.

If these become triggers of mental strife and irritation.. even after all the positive and negative aspects are evaluated and balanced, then it is better to clinically remove such friendships and relations and abstain from such stressful activities.

They are like cancer to the mind..

Yes, many friendhsips, relations etc couched in jealousy and crass selfishness would exhibit a facade of geniality.. the hallmark yellow full toothed smile..

Such smiles are poisonous weapons..

Every one is free to have his own way of life... Unless he has been subjected to laws enforceble by statutes..

musings 199

Attitudes are the result of response to set circumstances using ones intelligence and tempering of the mind by the basic environment in which one grows.

Such response when repeated many times becomes a habit and that creates the attitude too.

We can control our own minds to a certain extent but we do not have the power to control the happenings outside us.

So unless we possess a will of iron we will have no control over our attitudes not to speak of the attitudes of others