DANGER IN STORE - AHAMKARA (EGO)

Ahamkara (ego) emanates from the mind.  It is the root cause of  all vices, actions ,  pains  because it is identified with the physical body.   It is a major stumbling block  in the path of self realisation.  It is deep rooted causing evil doing, vices like greed,  jealousy and anger.   Pride is associated with ego.
Unless it is thrown out, with determination, it subjugates the very  being in which it is rooted. Thus the mortal in question succumbs to worldly things and weaned away from his well being.  But as a silver lining in the dark cloud , a ray of hope is always there  for a person to destroy this ugly  and
vicious  villain, by resorting to sampurna saranagati 'total surrender' to the Almighty. Even if the feeling 'I' is persisting  one can let it be identified with Universal  'I' , The Supreme Self' (Ahambrahmasmi).  An interesting story of  Buddha time, revealing how the dangerous ego 'I' was detected and thrown out....

A villager  set out  on some work to the neighbouring village.  In between the two villages there was a forest to cross.  While leaving the house his wife gave a cloth bag with two packets of food, saying one was meant for the lunchtime and the other to be opened  in the night in case he was detained in the neighbouring village due to delay in the work.  By the time he entered the forest it was noon. As he felt tired and hungry,  he sat under a tree, opened one packet and after finishing lunch took a nap for a while. Thereafter, he hurriedly proceeded to the neighbouring village. As he finished his job luckily within no time he embarked on return journey.  As he entered the forest once again,  he encountered a bikku (buddhist monk) who stopped for a while, stared at the villager and pronounced 'Death awaits you. If you return home, your wife will die  and if you remain here, you will die'. Without further detailing the bikku left him. The villager with much anguish debated upon in himself about who had to sacrifice life. He resolved  in himself to save the life of his wife.  Deciding to stay back in the forest  for the night he started loitering aimlessly and found Buddha sitting under a tree with his disciples. He approached Buddha, saluted him and narrated about the premonition uttered by the bikku.  He prayed him for saving his life.  Buddha asked for his bag containing food as he was hungry.  As the villager tried to open the bag, Buddha warned and snatched the bag from his hands. Buddha inserted his hand into the bag, pulled out a big cobra to the astonishment of all and flung it away. The shocked villager fell on the feet of Buddha and said that he didn't know that  he was carrying the death on  his shoulders till then and continued further that the snake which might have entered the bag while he was asleep, would have bitten his wife if he reached his home early and would have bitten him instead if he opened the bag for night meal in the forest.  Buddha replied smilingly, ' You were not aware about the death you were carrying on your shoulder till I revealed it to you.  Same way, you be aware of the more poisonous and deadly Ego in you,  throw it away and lead  peaceful life.'

Ego is such an evil that it needs to be reiterated  time and again that  only 'Total Surrender' or widening personal I(selfish ego) into Universal (selfless) I is the only way for one's liberation !

Om Shanti !                                                                                                                                               

KSHEERSAGARA MADHANAM ( CHURNING OF OCEAN OF MILK)

Story telling  is an effective tool  in building up character in a child from grass root level.   The stories from the  great Indian epics like Ramayanam, Mahabharatam, Srimadbhagavatam are embedded with high spiritual content which are revealed by learned men in their religious discourses.
The  way  in which the importance of Meditation is brought forth in  a charming story like kheerasagara madhanam (churning of Ocean of Milk) is remarkable.

Kashyapa has two wives namely Diti  and Aditi . The children of Diti, Asuragana  and the children of Aditi, Devagana are always at war with each other. The latter are comparatively weak and being at the losing end, seek Lord Vishnu's advice.  He proposes churning of Ocean of Milk and get Amrit
( nectar of energy, youthfulness and immortality) along with the danavas. So, both the teams start churning the Ocean of Milk by making the mountain  Mandara as churning stick, snake Vasuki as churning rope, holding tightly on the tail side by the devatas and on head side by the asuras.  Initially the items like Surabhi (Kamadhenu cow), Ucchaisravam horse, halahalam ( deadly poison ),  the moon, Sri Lakshmi  come out of the churning.  As churning continued with determination, Amrit
comes out finally.  As quarrel ensues among them  for the possession of it,  Lord Vishnu takes the form of a beautiful lady, Mohini and dispenses the nectar to the devatas skilfully. This is the story in brief.

One cannot but appreciate the way in  which the importance of Meditation is being emphasized in the above story.  One's mind is represented as the Ocean of Milk. Whether  for poison or for nectar it is the source.  The churning teams are virtues (devatas) and vices (asuras).  One has to churn it with the help of churnig stick, Buddhi, (Intellect) and churniug rope, Ahamkara (Ego) and the process of churning is Meditation, Meditation, Meditation.  With  undeterred pursuit of it, one will get the powers called Ashtasiddhis ( Anima, Mahima, Garima, Laghima, Praptya, Prakamya, Isatva, Vasitva )
on the way to Salvation.  Only those who are not lured by the Siddhis will attain the ultimate - Mukti or Salvation !

Meditation is alluded  not only to  'churning' of  Ksheerasagara madanam (Ocean of Milk) but also
compared to 'friction' of Arani wood, a kind of fuel used to ignite fire by friction of wooden pole  in
a wooden block as base.

             Svadeha maranim krutva pranavam chotta raranim,
             Dhyana nirmadhanabhyasardevam pasyennigudhavat ll
                                             - Swetaswaropanishad (1.14)

By making the mind and body  as bottom block of Arani and  by making the Omkara (Primordial Sound, Pranava nada) as upper pole, if  Friction  called Meditation indulged in, fire spark called the Almighty will come out  from within !

Om Shanti !                                                                                                                                               

KAALAATEETA - BEYOND TIME COMSCIOUSNESS

The gradual process of total surrender -  sampurna saranagati, of the body and senses to the universal I,  is replete  with so many testing occasions which are worth to be shared with the seekers without any inhibitions whatsoever, as I ponder over the past life for the sake of these musings and scribblings with a humble intention of motivating others.

Now,  I do not have time consciousness ( kaalaateeta, if I may be excused for using the word because in fact the word actually refers to being beyond  the consciousness of past, present  and future ) , in the sense that every moment is auspicious for a soul to get things performed by this body with name and form.  To be more clear, the past life with sentiments like observation of rahukalam, durmuhurtam ( bad period in a day ) observation of bad days in a month namely, amavasya, ashtami, navami for starting on a task, for going on a journey ;  and sticking to the principles of  not parting with money on Tuesdays and Fridays, and more strictly avoiding payments on a Festival day (lest,  Goddess of Prosperity, Sri Mahalakshmi, might leave our house  once for all ) - is bygone.  I jump into action in any moment called for  without hesitation whatsoever, as I am  aware for sure that every act is ordained by Him only.  No good time, no bad time, it's just like that.  Now I reap the benefit of getting good results only even though never anticipate anything in my performance of 'karma'.   Let me share however, the last remnant of  'observing  sentiment' which left from me once for all  by the Almighty's intervention.........

In November 2012,  one of our  yoga practitioners had brought factory fresh cashew nut in one kilo packet from his native place and gave it to me to be handed over to another senior colleague who was out of station at that time.  When the latter returned to city and turned  up at the yoga practice, I handed over the cashew packet costing rupees 600/-. The following morning he gave me a 1000/- rupee note, Natural corollary was  for me to return the 400/- change on the next  day.   But,  it   happened to be a Festival day - Diwali, on which Lakshmi puja (  to the Goddess of Prosperity)  is performed all over the country and abroad. and that too, making  me more  sore about parting with the Goddess of Prosperity, it fell on Tuesday !  So, naturally, with unwilling heart, I took out 400 rupees from my cupboard (niche of Goddess Lakshmi ),  and started off for the morning yoga at the park.  All along the route, I was contemplating thus, ' what would happen if I pretended of having forgotten the amount, asuring to return it on wednesday instead.   A 'sorry' would suffice to avoid the embarrassment in me'.  You know what the Almighty's disposition was ?  As I entered the park and greeted my colleague, he told to my dismay, that he was going to miss the yoga right from the next day for another fortnight.. Without much chagrin, instantly I took out the 400 rupees notes from my pocket and returned to him with sincere looks! The slap on my cheek by the Almighty for vacillating still about die-hard sentiments in remnant form is a vivid lesson unforgettable  even for today.  After all, for the one who is blessed with splendid  spiritual prosperity  with bubbling happiness within, of course, Goddess Lakshmi is also happy about the comfortable stay in my humble divine abode !

Om Shanti !                                                                                                                                              

WEIGHT OF THOUGHTS

For a seeker on the spiritual path, conditioning of mind is a must. A master can only show the way but it is for the seeker to realise the goal with steadfast,  unflinching practice. It is for the sincere seeker  to minimise thoughts in his mind to reach almost  to the point of emptiness. I admire a Buddhist story so much that  I always like to share  with as many practising seekers as possible,  for the reason that this story brings out beautifully  the contrast between the emptiness of mind  in one and the mind with  futile weight of thoughts in another.

Two bikkus ( Buddhist monks) used to set out for their alms to the neighbouring village a little far from their ashram. They had to cross a small river with shallow waters before entering the village. One day as they were returning from the village after fetching alms, they saw a woman crying loudly near the river bank.  One of the bikkus asked her the reason for crying.  She told him that leaving her little child on the other side of the river she had crossed the shallow waters  for her work on this side of the river. But due to unexpected rains  in the upstream of the river, water level had increased making her difficult to cross back.   She begged him to carry her to the other side of the river to reach for her  child crying for her milk. Without second thought the monk who spoke to her asked her to cling on to his back and crossed the river.  She thanked him for saving the child's life who would have died  due to lack of milk if not being helped by him in time.

The  bikkus proceeded to their ashram.  As they were about to reach the ashram the second bikkum who was  silent till then, opened his mouth and asked the first one, ' My friend, the Code of Conduct of our Ashram prohibits us from contemplating about women even in a dream. And we are not expected to see , talk, or touch them. Whereas you have not only looked at her but talked to her, and even touched her.  Don't you think you have done a great sin by flouting the Code of  Conduct  of our Ashram.'  The first one replied,  ' My friend, I had left the woman at the riverside but you are still carrying her.!

This story thus brings out how one simply responds with heart to save a life in dire situation and forgets about the matter then and there keeping his mind free of thoughts  and the other one's mind  in contrast bogged down with weight of futile thoughts.  It's writing on the wall that, the first  one should be the sincere seekers' inspiration !

Om Shanti !                                                                                                                                               

WHATEVER HAPPENS, HAPPENS FOR GOOD

In the month of September 2010,  I happened to see a news item about spate of tourist visits to Nagarjuna Sagar Dam, a splendour to enjoy with all twenty gates raised. It is just about 130 kilo meters  from the city.  One can start off in the early morning from the city and return by night fall.

I mooted the programme, with my son and two sons-in-law, engaged  spacious Innova taxi and started off with six  adults  and three children, one fine morning on a holiday (Diary Note... Friday, 10/09/2010)

Cool breeze. smooth road in good condition, with green fields passing by on either side was making the journey pleasant.  In my heart  of hearts, I was feeling sorry for missing my regular yoga by spiritual master.  My mind was contemplating on the routine prayers delivered by the guru, though far away in the city we left behind.  After about fifty kilo meters of journey, my grand daughters requested the driver to stop for a while to go for toilet.  He slowed down and parked the vehicle by the side of the road.  All passengers came out of the car to stretch their legs  for a while. The driver was standing just behind the car.  Just as a sedan car zoomed past us with good speed, a small gravel stone kicked 

off  by one of its tyres, y came  like a bullet, passed from the side of head of the driver and hit the back window glass  of our vehicle. It was broken. We were stunned for a while upon the unexpected damage to the car. Naturally, the driver was quite upset about the expenditure to be met to replace the glass.

With a thought of solacing, I approached him and asked,  'Do you believe in God ?'  Pat came reply

from him ' Oh !  surely sir,  I have faith in Him and perform my daily prayers regularly,'  I said,  'then immediately express your gratitude to Him'.  'What for,sir ?  I do not understand you''.   ' See, you have to show your gratitude to Him for saving your life with a very narrow escape.  If the gravel hit your temple instead of the car what would have been your fate ?   Can you imagine the fate of your wife and children without you ?  I can assure you that my contemplation on the spiritual yoga at this very moment  being practised  in the city, worked  as a sincere prayer to please the God and made Him divert the damages  from you to the car.  You can get the glass replaced  of course  with a little expense, but can your family get back you,  if some unwarranted thing happened ?  It is difficult to understand the intentions of the God, but they are always for the benefit of  His devotees only'.  To fortify his faith in my deliberations, I narrated a small story......

'Once Lord Siva with His consort Parvati embarked on visiting his devotees on earth in disguise.

They went to the house of a poor brahmin devotee, who welcomed  the guests with open hands and shared whatever meagre food he had.  The night passed by. Parvati  expected Siva would  bless the poor brahmin  family with some prosperity. But Siva was silent. On the contrary, as the divine couple left the place in the morning, they  heard brahmin family crying over their dead cow. Agitated Parvati asked  Siva  with some annoyance in her tone, ' On the one hand you haven't blessed the deserving poor brahmin with wealth and on the other hand you haven't stopped the death of his source of income, the cow. What is the intention behind ?'  Siva replied, 'You are thoroughly mistaken.  Actually what happened last night was that, the God of Death came here to take the life of the  poor brahmin as per his schedule. To save my devotee's life,  I asked the God of Death to take the life of the old cow instead.  Rest assured,  soon he will be better off financially too'.   Parvati sighed with 

great relief.'

By the time I finished my story, the  driver too was relaxed.  The vehicle moved on.  Our veneration for the Almighty increased all the more,  as we could comprehend how safely he was protecting us from accidents, pitfalls in our daily life.

Om shanti !

NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR HIM

One day my bosom friend made a courtesy visit to our house  and started  the conversation,  ' So, your daughter-in-law has left for her parents's house  for the first delivery.  Take it for granted from me that she would be delivering a female child'.   'How can you be so sure about the child ?'  I surprised. He continued with a smile,   'This is my accurate foretelling.  I will tell the valid reason also for my surmise.  From her parents' side all the  three children are daughters only  And from your side you have two daughters and a son born later.  So,  the law of nature points towards a female child only in the first delivery'.  I put forth my view,   ' What you have foreseen might be a law of nature for which I have due respects.  But above these laws is the One who  framed them.  His dispositions are  beyond comprehension of the human beings.  Who knows, my daughter-in-law's parents might be destined to rejoice with the blessing of a much-sought after-first male child in  their family, as grandson. We should not under estimate the divine schemes'.  In this context,  I narrated to my friend a story from the  'Gospel  of  Ramakrishna'...........

One day in  the midst of conversation about God, Mathur Babu ( nephew of Rani Rasmani,  in charge of the Kali temple and Ramakrishna  was  the priest of it) observed,  'God too must abide by his own laws.  He has no power to transcend them'.  'What an absurd proposition'  Ramakrishna exclaimed, 'One who has made a law can repeal it at pleasure or make a new law in its place'.  How can that be', said Mathur,  'A plant that produces red flowers can not produce any other colour - white for instance, for such is the law.  I shall like to see God produce white flowers from a plant bearing only red flowers'.  'This too He can do',  answered Ramakrishna', 'for, everything depends on His Will'. Mathur was not convinced.   The next day while taking a stroll  in the temple garden,  Ramakrishna came across a Chinese Rose plant with two flowers on the same stalk, one of which was red and the other snow white !  Ramakrishna broke off the branch to show it to Mathur who felt highly surprised at the sight of it and exclaimed,  ' Father, I will never more argue a point with  you !'.

As I finished the story,  my friend got up to bid adieu, but with a passing comment , ' Any how,   I have unflinching faith about my surmise of female baby and it would be proved  very  shortly'.  I simply smiled.  When the news about the birth of grandson was conveyed to him,  he replied, 'it is strange but true.   I admit  that  'Nothing is Impossible for Him !'

Om Shanti !

A FLOWER AT BLOOM IN THE PARK

   "In the seen will be merely what is seen,

    In the heard will be merely what is heard,

    In the sensed will be merely what is sensed,

    In the cognized will be merely what is cognized ', 

When you see an object, be conscious of just  the visible object;   when you hear a sound, be conscious of just the sound;  when you smell or taste or  touch something, be conscious of just the smell, or the taste or the touch  and when you think of anything, be conscious of the mind - object.

In this way, you should train yourself.  Then you are not in that.   When you are not in that,  then you will be neither here  nor beyond  nor between the two.  Just  this is the end of the Suffering' "

                                                                                                                        - Goutama Buddha.

Way back in 2009, when I stepped into Krishnakant Park, for yoga practice for the first time, my eyes fell on the lush green trees, soft velvet like  lawns and benches in wood and granite to relax. 

Immediately, my mind reminisced ...' Oh!, this is the same park visited  by me with my family members - wife, two daughters and son.  Look ! Those are the granite benches on which we sat with ease ;  the bushes from which we plucked colourful flowers ;  the Canteen shed  from which we purchased snacks ; and  the soft lawn on which we laid down and enjoyed staring at the star-studded sky. Where are those memorable days ?   Where is that family with cosy and  warm relationships ? Time passed. Much water had flown under the bridge.  Life partner left for the divine abode rather early by age ; children got married and engrossed themselves  with their own families.  One sigh, some unknown pain touching the inner chord with melancholy......

That was about six years ago !  The place, the park,  was same  - for other visitors it was a pleasant retreat to  enjoy'.  But for me, the association of mind with past events caused gloom (suffering).  It is quite clear by now that, identifying, associating with transitory existences of persons, places, events end up in pain only.   The root cause is the unconditioned mind.  This is,  viewing an object with attachment and its resultant effect - suffering.

Now let me consider  other side of the coin, that is,  viewing an object with detachment. Again the 

example is same park.  As of now, as I pass through the gates, I start looking downwards on the path just in  front, to minimise distraction from the moving people coming for walking,  jogging, running.

Once I reach the regular place of yoga, I settle down  with my kit,  As our guru,  yogacharya starts off punctually, I close my eyes and follow him through, shunning from the surrounding world.  Only one mind-object ;  yoga.    In such concentration, in the absence of  any attachment, association or identification with other objects of the past or present, by the mind, where is the scope for suffering? There is only one blissful mind with sole object - yoga.

So, this is the benefit from  'detached view' in day to day life. All the teachings  from our vedas, upanishads, Buddha  stress on  this wonderful  attribute for human beings to possess, to reach for  the sweet fruit of  'Divine Bliss',  ' Nitya - Suddha - Buddha - Mukta - Sat - Chit - Brahma - Ananda !'

Om Shanti !                                                                                                                                                

PAINTING ON JAR

"When doubts haunt me, when disappointments stare me in the face and when I see not one ray of light on the horizon, I turn to Bhagavadgita and find a verse to comfort me and I immediately begin to smile in the midst of overwhelming sorrow.  My life has been full of external tragedies and if they had not left any visible and indelible effect on me, I owe it to the teachings of  Bhagadgita "

                                                                                                                         - Mahatma Gandhi.

The magnificent role played by the spiritual books in  manifesting  divine intervention with timely guidance, particularly when one is in doldrums or when the mind goes astray, is a thrilling experience for me too.

The event took place in September 2011, the days when I was having frequent visitors on account of monthly yoga meets at my home.  In one corner of the large hall among other things there was an earthen jar with beautiful Japanese figure  but with faded colours.  My son suggested one day that either  the  charmless jar should be removed from the hall or try for repainting it, on the original design  to bring back its attractive look. I thought for a while and decided  to try for renovation with bright colours. After finishing the job, I wondered at the jar with  new life. Appreciations from my son and other visitors made me feel proud of the painting, ' I did it'.  As a part of my daily chores I opened up a spiritual book, 'My Ramanashram Days' by Suri Nagamma.  I started reading....' An Andhra lady who came to stay at Ramanashram (Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu), used to enthral the Bhagavan and his devotees by her melodious voice singing bhajans and songs on Ramana Maharshi, claiming that they were written by herself. Bhagavan was however  suspicious about her claims. When the matter went to the extent of translating into English,  Suri Nagamma could not brook further and revealed the mischievous copying of other authors' works  by the Andhra lady. The translation  work was put off and the Andhra lady had to  bow down in shame before the devotees and  Bhagavan.

In the above context, Bhagavan himself narrated another  episode about  a devotee by name Perumallu Swamy, who used to bring a poem every four days and read before the Bhagavan, claiming it as his own work. Being suspicious about the familiar stanzas he had read before, Bhagavan  asked his devotees to bring 'Tiruvuralpavu' written by popular author Ramalingaswamy and verified.  By replacing  'Ramana'  for 'Rama'  in the poetry 'Ramapadikam'  in  the book, Perumallu Swamy tried to claim ownership about the poems.   Being exposed before the devotees for the manipulation  he became a laughing stock.

When the divine hand made me peep through these two passages of the book , my egoistic  proud about the repainting had a steep slide with humility, The real credit should belong to the skilful potter who worked hard day and night to create the earthen jar and painted a beautiful Japanese figure on it,  with vivid eye catching colours,  to turn it into a marvellous art piece.  The Almighty opened my eyes cautioning me not to feel proud about the simple task of repainting.  With all humility, I admired the   'Potter'  who subdued my Ego !

 Om Shanti!                                                                                                                           

ATMA BANDHU - THE SOUL MATE

A river in rainy season has  its own majestic charm with flood waters rising nearly up to the brim of the banks. Things of sorts like, small bushes, twigs, wooden planks, logs, rags, plastic containers to mention a few, float in different  courses some coming close to other items  and parting with them in the next moment.  One wonders  why this transitory nature of relations  is hard  to believe among human beings  where everything  is taken for granted that  the relations  would be long lasting. How to come out of this delusion and seek out a 'soul mate', if there is any, who will assure permanent relationship with us.   A touching story to make one shed a tear or two......

As the train left the station and picked up speed,  passengers  settled down in their seats. The Ticket Collector entered the compartment and began to check  their tickets. He noticed a black colour money purse fallen under a seat, picked it up and opened it.  It contained a few currency notes and a photo of Lord Krishna. Holding  up the purse in his hand he asked the passengers to provide some proof of contents to claim if any one of them lost it. Immediately an old man raised his hand and claimed it was his and told that it contained a few currency notes and the photo of Lord Krishna. The Ticket Collector promptly returned the purse and left for finishing the job of checking in  the compartment. After a while he returned back to the old man, sat beside and requested him to clarify his doubt that mostly people keep photos of their near and dear, but why the old man preferred Lord Krishna. The old man made a deep sigh and started to narrate his story ;

' Sir, It's a long story.  When I completed schooling my parents gifted this purse.  With veneration, I inserted their photo in it.  When I became handsome college youth, I replaced with my photo.  When I got job and was married, I replaced with my beautiful wife's photo.  When I got a son, I replaced with my son's photo.  By the time he grew up and completed his education, my parents and my wife left this world one after another.  When my son got married and started paying less attention

to me due to preoccupation  with his young wife, I came to realise about the illusory, non-permanent nature of  human relations. It dawned upon  me that our True Companion all along, right  from womb to tomb and even beyond, is the Eternal Soul Mate - The 'Almighty'.  Hence, I replaced with my 'Atma Bandhu (Soul Mate)' - Lord Krishna'.

A drop trickled from the eyes of the spell bound listeners around.  As the next station approached, the Ticket Collector reached for a book stall on the platform and enquired if a photo of Lord Krishna was available for sale !

Om Shanti !

HIDDEN TREASURE

By and large, the attitude of the earthlings is to be complacent with the fortunes of this material world fraught with dualities, They don't believe the transitory and ephemeral nature of the mundane objects. Only very few  have the inquisitive attitude to search for a liberator in the form of  a   sadguru

who awakens the spiritual yearning towards salvation.  It can be a chance occurrence in  their life, just as  in the case of a story  narrated by Buddha to his wife, after receiving alms from her, to justify that his leaving the family, the pleasures of the palace, the  kingdom and loitering far and wide- was a must for him, to get the 'Enlightenment Within'.  

Story by Buddha......

In a place by name Panchavati, there was an old priest,  suffering from poverty.  One night the Goddess of Prosperity appeared in his dream and advised to go to the capital and find the treasure hidden by the king  under a bridge near the palace and get rid of poverty. After waking up the priest 

recollected the dream but doubting about it's veracity ignored it. The  following night the  Goddess of Prosperity  reappeared and advised to heed her words. After waking up again the priest pondered over the dream but again brushed aside.  On the third night however the Goddess of Prosperity insisted on 

his visiting the capital.  So, the next day he decided to take a chance and by nightfall he reached the 

bridge in the capital in disguise and started searching for the treasure. The guard on duty noticed and detained him. Upon being asked about  his whereabouts and intentions, the priest in disguise revealed that he came from Panchavati basing on a dream that has been haunting him for the last three nights.  At this, the guard laughed boisterously and said, "What a fool you must be to believe in dreams  For that matter, I too had a dream last night indicating about hidden riches  in the central portion of the house of the priest of your place,  Panchavati.  I am not a fool to run after it,  basing on a mere dream just as you have done now". The priest in disguise got astonished about the revelation. He immediately left for his place, and dug up in the central part of his house. And fabulous treasure hidden by his ancestors dazzled his eyes !

So, anyone who probes into the centre by way of  sincere sadhana (practice) inwards, can discover the bounty of  sat-chit-brahma-ananda , the Eternal Bliss !

Om Shanti !

SATYA NISHTA (ADHERENCE TO TRUTH)

SATYA NISHTA  (ADHERENCE TO TRUTH)

Satyam bruyat priyam bruyat, na bruyat satyam apriyam l

Priyam  cha nanritam  bruyat,  esha dharmah sanatanah ll

Speak truth in such a way that should be pleasing to others. Never speak truth which is unpleasant to others. Never speak untruth to please others.  This is the path of eternal morality, sanatana dharma.

'Satya nishta'  is one among the three  practices propounded by Kenopanishad to elicit  The Truth and Self Realisation, the other two being 1) Tapasya ( penance) and Control of Senses  2) Study of Vedas dealing with the Parama Satya (Eternal Truth).

To the  basic tenets about Truth  mentioned above, somehow another one slowly crept in as an addition in later ages. That is, ' One can speak untruth only in dire conditions of boosting up the morale of a patient'.  Some times  suppression of truth might also be justified  in the interest of protecting good from evil,  When Sita ( no less than Goddess in Indian mythology) was questioned by the guarding rakshasas (demons) about the visit of Hanumanta to her, she pretended ignorance and retorted back that it must be illusory form (incognito) of  one of those rakshasas only.  Dwelling on the subject  further, I may say that  there is a proverb in telugu - 'Veyi abaddalu cheppi ayina sare,  oka pelli cheyali' which means  - ' Thousand lies (untruth) may be told to get a marriage done '.   We need not probe into the wisdom of such practices at this juncture.  Any how, it is said  that if the basic tenets mentioned in the sloka are practised with austerity as 'Satya nishta' (adherence to truth) for a period of twelve years, it is more than tapasya (penance) that leads to  one's Enlightenment.

Now  let us have an interesting story about a hermit who handled an embarrassing situation tactfully to save a life.  A sage by name Satyavrata  was in  meditation under a tree near his hermitage. A wild
boar wounded by a hunter came out from bushes towards him.  He opened  his eyes and saw the boar with an  arrow pricked into the body. The boar saw him pitiably  and rushed into his hut for safety.
Just then the chasing hunter came towards the hermitage  hurriedly and upon seeing  the sage asked
if he had noticed the wounded boar.  Now the sage was in a dilemma.  If he tells the truth ( observing Satya nishta) that the boar is in his hut, the hunter would surely take the life of the boar then and there and return home with it.  If he tells a lie that he has not seen the boar, to save it's life, he would be breaking the austerity of Satya nishta.  He thought for a while to overcome from the dilemma. Then
turned towards the hunter and stated, " Those which have seen,  can not tell (eyes) ; and the one which can tell, has not seen (mouth)".  Perplexed by this confusing statement the hunter murmured in  himself and left the place in search of the boar, in another direction.Thus the life of the wounded boar was saved by the sage  without breaking the austerity of Satya nishta.

Om Shanti !                                                                                                                                                

TRUE KNOWLEDGE

                                                             

TRUE KNOWLEDGE

Human life is an admixture of dualities  of pleasure and pain , happiness and sorrow, rise and fall in fortunes,  fraught  with trials and tribulations landing in mixed results. Where is the  respite ?  In such situations of  groping wilderness, one must not lose heart but  seek out  for the beacon lights flashed with benevolence by learned  sages.. They gave us the knowledge to steer through the Bhava Sagara (the ocean of worldly existence) and reach the other shore safely - attain the ultimate goal of salvation without being drowned in the deep waters. Any knowledge proficiently mastered  is of no avail in realising the Ultimate, except the spiritual path.

Once a pandit (scholar) entered into a boat sailing towards  a far off town on the other side of the river. He was quite boastful about his scholarly knowledge of  various scriptures. He picked up conversation with a passenger sitting by his side.

Pandit : Do you know 'Vedanta' ?
Pass.   : No, I don't know sir !
Pandit : So, a quarter of your life is wasted. Did you study 'Sankhya Yoga Darshana' and 'Patanjali                   Yoga Sutras' ?
Pass.   : No sir, I didn't hear those names in my life time.
Pandit : Oh my God ! Half of your life is wasted.  So, you didn't study any of the scriptures.
Pass.   : No, sir !
Pandit : Three quarters of your life is wasted.  I feel sorry for you , man !

Meanwhile, unexpectedly the sky turned dark, tempest set in and the boat capsized  in the high waves and was about to sink. The passenger who was engaged in conversation with the pandit till then turned towards the latter and asked,
         
Pass.    : Panditji ! Did you learn the subject of Swimming ?
Pandit : No man, I didn't hear about the scripture you are talking about. I didn't learn it.
Pass.   : Panditji ! I don't know any scriptures you are conversant with.  But I know 'how to swim' by                which I can jump now and save my life by swimming to other shore.  Whereas, your life is                  going to be 'totally' wasted - by drowning in the river as you don't know how to 'swim' !
 

Om Shanti !                                                                                                                                             

CLOUD FORMATION

A leaf from my diary note dated 7.01.2010....

Yoga sadhana!  I owe a lot to the Almighty for blessing me with the virtue of going through the spiritually motivating yoga sadhana round the year , in the nearby Krishnakanth park, Yousufguda,

undeterred by inclement weather conditions like drizzle to moderate rain and severe cold in winter.  How much thankful I should be to Him, when I come to have convincing evidences that He is within us  as a well-wisher caring always for our well-being.  Keeping aside self-interests, if one tries to trod the path of praying  for other beings only,the gradual revelation of inner divinity will be manifest in anybody.

                                                 CLOUD FORMATION

Our guru (yogacharya) is committed, in a unique way, to impart devotional and spiritual knowledge 

through yoga session throughout the year.  His magnanimity lies in not accepting cash or gift articles

even as Guru Dakshina (traditional method of meeting the needs of the Guru's requirements or payment in cash or kind by the students at the time of departing after education) on the occasion of Gurupuja (performed on Vyasa / Guru Pournima Day which usually comes in the month of July every year).   However he was persuaded  by some senior practitioners to accept at least to go on a pilgrimage  from the Guru Dakshina funds. This idea materialised first in 2010. He expressed his wish for visiting his Master's (Ramakrishna Paramahamsa) holy places in and around Calcutta.  How divine  it was to see him prostrate  and kiss the holy grounds of Paramahamsa's trodding on earth.

As if the Bhagawan pleased with his devotees' visit, a dark  cloud  took the shape of a  sage sitting

in dhyana (meditation) posture, on the outskirts of Jayarambati (Maa Sarada Devi's birth place). I instantly captured in my camera the  rare image which vanished within no time.  It is strange but

true. I always trust as ever before that it is the Almighty's handwork!

The above mentioned photographic evidence of 13.08.2010 again took shape of a true-to-life oil painting by me on 29.05.2012  displayed below.

Cloud formation on 13.08.2010

Om Shanti!

IN THE LAP OF MOTHER NATURE

Om Shanti ! "jantunam narajanma durlabham" (Adisankaracharya).  This very human birth is the ultimate in the sense that one has a chance to become aware of the whole creation, all-pervading divinity, understanding the universal 'I' breaking the barriers of self and identifying oneself with super-consciousness that manifests in the universe and beyond ; And all this made possible by the divine gifts namely, Intellect and Wisdom.

Today, i.e.,  on 15.08.2015, I have taken a decision to share, with like-minded seekers, whatever little  divine knowledge I have been  gaining, though step by step, for the past few years.  In due course, I will be posting 'Incidents revealing Divine presence'.  The write-ups  are entitled 'Paramatmuni leelalu" in Telugu; short spiritual stories gathered from different sources for many years, a few oil paintings done by me, who never held brush before -with brief explanation wherever necessary.  Coming to know that Annamacharya keertanas are all about the spiritual knowledge(brahma jnaana),  I have collected  upto one thousand seven hundred plus kritis (songs) and sung for myself to my satisfaction. In coming sessions, I share with you some of the beautiful tatvajnana (spiritual wisdom)  based keertanas of Annamayya.

A little introduction of how all it began may be necessary to acknowledge by the readers how
some turning points in our daily life bring about sea-change towards realisation.  In my case the turning point came in August 2009. Unable to bear with overweight problem, I sought a friend's advice who introduced me to a Yoga master imparting freely in a nearby park. Lo, what a surprising discovery in my life ! lofty  and magnificent trees  with cool breeze , pleasant atmosphere, and lush green lawns serving the sage like yogacharya  and his practitioners. Surprisingly, I lost eighteen kilos within just two months of joining.  The way of yoga taught is extraordinary, for the guru  dwells on entirely Bhakti(Devotion) and Jnana(spiritual wisdom) revelations, throughout one and a half hour sadhana, starting off with explanation of the importance of OM the pranava nada(Primordial Sound).

The creativity in me awakened, in the lap of  Mother Nature, extempore praising the spiritual mentor,Yogacharya, in the following lines in freelance, though I never tried poetry ever before..


       IN THE LAP OF MOTHER NATURE

       You shall think of me as one
       Who did treat you second to none,
       For  how much bliss God gave me
       By divine yoga you taught me !

       The day starts with chanting Om
       I part you with heavy bosom,
       Ninety minutes of precious stay
       Keeps me joyous rest of day !

       When vibrations are in my palm
       The word 'Relax' makes me calm,
       The Asanas make my body tuning
       And health too gets perfect grooming !

       I perceive by your yoga kind
       Disease-free body, stress-free mind,
       'Raise yourself, Praise yourself'' you teach
       Shall be the goal for me to reach !

       My soul is full of rapture
       When in lap of Mother Nature,
       I pray God for your noble 'deed'
       A Happy and Prosperous Life to lead !

Poem sung by me

           

Om Shanti!