837 – Meditations

The Temple of Nature: Rig Veda

Nature’s beauty is an act of God
Let us feel the touch of God’s invisible hands.
In everything beautiful
By the first touch of his hand,
Rivers throb and ripple
When He smiles the sun shines,
The moon glimmers, the stars twinkle,
The flowers bloom
By the first ray of the rising sun
The universe is stirred,
The shining gold is sprinkled
On the smiling buds of rose;
The fragrant air is filled
With sweet melodies
Of singing birds.
The Dawn is the dream of
God’s creative fancy.

Chandogya Upanishad 1.10 & 1.11

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829 – What is the nature of spiritual initiation?

One wishes to attract the attention of an entity one can see but one does not know his name. One uses a word or a sound to attract his attention. He comes over and says that his name is so and so and was one seeking him. Similarly, God himself in the role of the Guru discloses himself to the pilgrim wandering in search of a guide. In the ultimate analysis the pilgrim is one with the name and with the Guru. How can it be otherwise? He alone can impart the gift of his name and none but he himself can sustain the knowledge of his name. As explained by Sri Anandamayi Ma. Continue reading

825 – The Brain is wider than the Sky

The Brain – is wider than the Sky –
For – put them side by side –
The one the other will contain
With ease – and you – beside –
The Brain is deeper than the sea –
For – hold them – Blue to Blue
The one the other will absorb –
As sponges – Buckets – do –
The Brain is just the weight of God –
For Heft them – Pound for Pound –
And they will differ – if they do –
As Syllable from Sound –
Emily Dickinson, 1862

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816 – Blessings from a spiritual bank

Dear ones, I read an interesting article in the newspaper, and I will share with you. In Ayodhya, the ancient city where Lord Rama was born, there is a bank for transaction of spirituality and inner peace. It is called the International Shree Sitaram Bank. It was set up in November 1970 by Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, chief of Sri Ram-janm Bhoomi Teertha Kshetra Trust. The deposit in the bank is Likhit Japa (written chant) booklet. Continue reading

800 – Parental love

What is parental love based on? Father’s love is based on reason and motherly love is based on emotions and unconditional love. Actually, now when we examine parental love, we have to exclude male and female affection. We must address it as who assume the fraternal role and who assumes the maternal role. Continue reading

797 – Sacrifice

What is the meaning of sacrifice? Sacrifice means an act of offering to a deity something precious. It also means something given up, like the sacrifice made by the parents for their children. Its moral is that it means achieving of transcendence, in which one sacrifices one’s self interest for the sake of higher values and commitments. A sacrifice is an offering which is made with joy in one’s heart. Self-sacrifice is used to justify the most brutal acts. Continue reading

782 – Goodbye Narcissism. Hallo Atmabhava.

Dear ones, I have written on this subject before and it means feeling the pain and distress of others. According to my Guru, the sum and substance of spiritual life and the best teaching of Vedanta is Atmabhava.

Do we empathize with others as if it is our own pain and distress? If we did, would we be having such acts of destruction and terrorism on our planet? We would not be attacking and destroying each other. Continue reading

771 – Love, hope and joy are the true gifts for Christmas

Do we recall the gift God gave us in Jesus? What comes in our minds when we think of Christmas? We worry about our gifts exchange. We think that if our gift is not right, it will be misunderstood. Have we forgotten that we are loved, are never alone and can hope for the future? Continue reading

767 – Puja and Yagna

 

What is the difference between Puja and Yagna? The word puja means prayer and it is 2500 years old. It was found in Griha Sutra, which talks about rituals. It describes the ceremonies (samskaras) that mark each stage of an individual’s life, from the moment of conception to the final death rites; the five daily sacrifices (mahayajna); seasonal ceremonies; and those observed on special occasions, such as house building or cattle breeding. The Griha sutra mentions the word pujaniya, worthy of reverence. It is assumed that the word puja comes from it or from south India. In Tamil, pujai means flowers or offering of flowers. Continue reading

761 – What we learnt as children in a Hindu home

It was unspoken. We knew that God would bless us. Since most of us asked for help to get us out of trouble. It depended on whom one asked. Favorites were Ganesha, Hanuman, Durga, and Saraswati. There were certain simple rituals practiced at home. They were not in your face but they were there. The lamp, and the incense made one aware of the light and the fragrance. And if on the way to school one passed a shrine, one closed one’s eyes for a moment. Continue reading

750 – Shiv Tandava Strotram

By Ravana

Salutations to Lord Shiva, whose hair is like a dense forest, whose throat is wet by the pure flowing water of the Ganga. The snakes resting around the neck of Shiva are like long garlands. They are iridescent in the sunlight. The sound of the drums is echoing the passionate dance of Shiva. Continue reading