The Peace that passeth all understanding has been the axis around which Indian culture has revolved in all its aspects.
Peace is a divine attribute. It is a quality of the soul. It fills the pure heart. Continue reading
How do we define ourselves? Are we spiritual? Are we religious? Spirituality is defined as one’s search for the sacred meaning of life. It means one is seeking to understand one’s inner being. Religious indicates to have a strong belief in religion. It also means being devout and pious.
Can we combine spiritual and religious? Continue reading
How do I stay in my home? How can I be at peace in my home? Do I define my home as being materially comfortable or is my home my internal spiritual abode? Where is my home? Continue reading
I love the idea of the Bhagwad Gita’s Birthday. It is a beautiful celebration as we work on ourselves and offer prayers to Krishna and Lakshmi. The birthday of the Gita is known as Gita Jayanti. It is celebrated on the 11th day of the waxing of the moon in the Margashirsha Shukla Ekdashi. In the lunar calendar it either begins on the new moon or the full moon. It corresponds to the ninth month of the lunar year. It is considered the most sacred month in Hindu faith. Continue reading
Kindness is a virtue which is prized in every faith. Kindness brings one closer to God. In Judaism great importance is laid to a good moral life observed at every moment. Charity has a very high premium. It must be practiced with sincerity and a proportion of one’s income has to be kept aside for it. Continue reading
Repeating the name of the Lord is an invocation of the divinity. Chanting Om Namaha Shivaya or Sri Rama is only a reminder. Divinity is total and comprehensive. It has no form and is universal. God’s name reminds one of purity, divinity and greatness.
Dear ones, ask yourself the questions listed below and then read the answer given by Swami Sivananda. Continue reading
Which is it to be, my heart or my mind? I have read and thought about it and I share with you what the Gurus say.
The only basis for a true and lasting unity
Of all humanity is the religion of the heart.
People can only be united if they are free from jealousy, hatred and petty mindedness.
Purify your heart first.
Meet hatred with love and malice with goodwill.
The purer you make your heart,
The greater will be the power of your love. – Swami Sivananda
Look into your heart. Find out what special talent God has given you. Develop it and use it for the good of others. Eradicate negative qualities by practicing their opposite virtuous traits. Virtue begets virtue. If one virtue is developed, another virtue will automatically come to you. – Swami Sivananda Saraswati
A few days ago a London bound Air India (Flight 1206) plane crashed just leaving the airport. It crashed near a medical facility and some doctors died and some were hurt. All the 290 travelers on the flight died, except for one person. This happened in Ahmedabad in India and the plane was a Dreamliner. I am sharing with you all, because of the irony. Continue reading
Uddaseena Vritti is a mental state where one can observe the world and its happenings with equanimity. It is a step towards achieving a state of nirvana.
The learned or the wise smile through the eyes; the middle-class smile through the teeth and lips; the lowest make a roaring laughter; but the muneeshwara (a form of Shiva) never smiles or laughs. Continue reading
How are we affected by the law of opposites. Prince Ram in the Yog Vasistha said to Sage Vashisht that he did not long to live and he did not long to die. He remained neutral about life as well as about death. Duality exists around us and there is uncharted space which Krishna describes as being free from opposites.
The karma yogis, who neither desire nor hate anything, should be considered always renounced. Free from all dualities, they are easily liberated from the bonds of material energy. – Gita 5.3
A person steady wisdom.
Sthithaprajna means one whose intelligence is fixed on self-realization or one who is fixed in wisdom. It describes a state of inner calmness, equanimity and detachment from external influences. In the context of the Bhagwad Gita it means one is not affected by the ups and downs of life. One is detached from the fruit of action. One performs one’s duties, only focusing on the action itself.
Salutations to the Supreme Lord of the Universe.
Peace is a divine attribute. It is the quality of the soul. It fills the pure heart.
Peace, God, Atma, Freedom, Moksha—are synonymous terms.
Realize
Peace through meditation, devotion, Japa and prayers.
Cultivate peace in the garden of your heart by removing the weeds of
Lust, hatred, greed, selfishness, and jealousy.
Calm the mind. Be still.
Be in tune with the Divine will.
Be good. Do good to others. Make others happy.
See God in all. – ‘Message of Peace’ by Swami Sivananda
I have extracted this message from Swami Sivananda’s words. Continue reading
Who knows if to live is to be dead, and to be dead is to live? And we really, it maybe are dead; in fact, I once heard sages say that we are now dead and the body is our tomb. – Socrates
What is the meaning of this quote? Continue reading
Words like tolerance, compassion and benevolence are used in our daily language. Do we really understand the meaning of these words? How can we inculcate their usage and application in our ongoing life? Continue reading