Next, about the house of God, the residence of the concretized formful aspect of Divinity, the temple (alaya or mandir) and the rules of dharma relating to it. Rules have overgrown and overwhelmed these institutions, following the whims and prejudices of various authorities. They have led people away from dharma and Brahman and even away from proper action; they have confounded the devotees by their variety and unreasonableness. The rules are insisted upon blindly, so they have done much harm to the welfare of the world itself. In fact, the rules and formalities form the first steps in the retreat away from God and have fostered atheism in great measure.
Functions of the temple
Think deeply over the functions of the temple. Temples are centres of discipline, where the aspirant is guided step by step to attain a vision of the truth. They are schools for the training of the spirit, academies for the promotion of scriptural studies, institutes of super-science, laboratories for the testin...
The stages of life (asramas) regulating man’s life are four: student, householder, forest dweller, and renunciate (brahmacharya, grihastha, vanaprastha, and sanyasa). They are all based on the householder stage of life.
That is the chief stage, because the householder fosters the other three. The householder is the most important of all.
Just as all living beings depend upon air for their existence, the other three stages are dependent on the householder. Householders not only feed and clothe the others, they also provide facilities for the study of the Vedas. Manu, in his texts on dharma (Dharma Sastras), has emphasized this point very clearly. He has declared that householders also attain liberation, but they must follow strictly the dharma laid down for their stage of life.
There is no doubt that everyone who adheres to the dharma of their stage of life, no matter which stage it is, will attain liberation.
All four stages lead to liberation
In the Manu texts (Manusmrithi), in the ...
In the immaculate, pure Solar Dynasty was born the highly mighty, the far famed, the strong armed, the intensely loved and revered ruler Khatvanga. His rule showered supreme bliss on the immense population under his throne and persuaded them to pay homage to him, as if he were himself God. He had a “one-and-only” son, named Dilipa. Dilipa grew up, shining in the glory of knowledge and virtue; he shared with his father the joy and privilege of guarding and guiding the people. He moved among his subjects, eager to know their joys and sorrows, anxious to discover how best to relieve pain and distress, intent on their welfare and prosperity.
The father watched his son grow straight and strong, virtuous and wise. He sought a bride for him so that, after marriage, he could place part of the burden of the sceptre on his shoulders. He sought her in royal houses far and wide, for she must be a worthy companion for the prince. At last, the choice fell on the Magadhan princess, Sudakshina. Th...
“All this will disappear and lose individuality with the emergence of the highest wisdom (jnana),” said the sage Vasishta to Rama. “Rama,” he advised, “You have to understand how this non-knowledge grew and by what means it can be destroyed.” Superposition of falsehood over truth There is one mystery hidden in this advice. Centuries of enquiry have failed to unravel this secret: from where did the cosmos originate? How did it emerge? If it had a personal cause, the enquiry could have succeeded.
The cosmos (jagath) is not such an object. The questions “how did it emerge?” and “from where did it originate?” are exactly on a par with the question, how did the “serpent” appear on the “rope” and cause the “terror”? Only the rope exists there; the serpent was imposed thereon, at dusk, by the defective intellect of the onlooker - that is to say, on account of illusion created by reasoning. In other words, ignorance is the basis of the misapprehension.
Brahman i...
Rama is the Indweller in every body. He is the Atma-Rama, the Rama (Source of Bliss) in every individual.
His blessings upsurging from that inner spring can confer peace and bliss. He is the very embodiment of dharma, of all the codes of morality that hold mankind together in love and unity. The Ramayana, the Rama story, teaches two lessons: the value of detachment and the need to become aware of the Divine in every being. Faith in God and detachment from objective pursuits are the keys for human liberation. Give up sense objects, and you gain Rama.
Sita gave up the luxuries of Ayodhya so she could be with Rama, in the period of “exile”. When she cast longing eyes on the golden deer and craved for it, she lost the presence of Rama. Renunciation leads to joy; attachment brings about grief. Be in the world, but not of it.
Each brother, comrade, companion, and collaborator of Rama is an example of a person saturated with dharma. Dasaratha is the representative of the merely physical, ...
Rama is the indweller in every body. He is the source of bliss (the Atma Rama) in every individual. His blessings upsurging from that inner spring can confer peace and bliss. He is the very embodiment of dharma of all the codes of morality that hold mankind together in love and unity.
The Ramayana, the Rama story, teaches two lessons: the value of detachment and the need to become aware of the Divine in every being. Faith in God and detachment from objective pursuits are the keys for human liberation.
Give up sense objects, and you gain Rama. Sita gave up the luxuries of Ayodhya so she could be with Rama in the period of “exile”. When she cast longing eyes on the golden deer and craved it, she lost the Presence of Rama. Renunciation leads to joy; attachment brings about grief. Be in the world, but not of it.
The brothers, comrades, companions, and collaborators of Rama are examples of persons saturated with dharma. Dasaratha is the representative of the merely physical, with the te...
Devotee: Greetings, Swami.
Swami: Be well.
Devotee: With Your grace, everything is auspicious (subha). Without it, everything is inauspicious.
Swami: Good, but have you realised how both of these are based on grace? In one, both subsist; both are conferred by the self-same grace. Well, let that topic stand by. Last time you had a folk poem to digest, and it must have affected your thoughts deeply. In what stage of equanimity is your brain now?
Devotee: Ah. Everything appears as a puppet show now, Swami. But only on and off. The mind forgets and gets caught by the fascination of objects. What mystery is this, Swami?
Swami: Well, the mind is associated with all kinds of activities. It always follows the trail of the impulses and instincts (vasanas). This is its very nature.
Devotee: That is as much as to say that we cannot set it right. Then what is the hope? Ultimately, Swami, do we have to get immersed in impulses and become degraded?
Swami: There is hope, my boy! No need to get immers...
Krishna’s leaving marks the beginning of the Kali age
Sahadeva, who had been silent so long, approached Bhima and said, “Calm yourself, don’t get excited. Remember the reply Krishna gave Dhritharashtra that day in the open assembly, when He proceeded there to negotiate peace between us?” Bhima said, “When Krishna was questioned in Dhritharashtra’s court by Duryodhana, Dussasana, and others as to why He should intercede in the family disputes of the Kauravas and Pandavas and favour one section more than another, as if the Pandavas were nearer kin to Him than the Kauravas, what did the Lord reply? Remind yourselves of that reply now. Picture that scene before your eyes. Pacing up and down, like a lion cub, He roared, ‘What did you say? Are the Kauravas as near to Me as the Pandavas? No, they can never be on the same level.
Listen, I shall tell you of the kinship that binds Me to the Pandavas: For this body of mine, Dharmaraja is as the trunk, and Nakula and Sahadeva are as ...
Arjuna brings bad news of Krishna’s demise
Bhima managed to muster up courage.“Brother! Grant me leave, and I’ll go to Dwaraka and return quickly, bringing full information of all that happened to remove your fear.” Even while Bhima was praying on bended knees for permission, the sun set and the lamps started emitting feeble light, from every place.
A guard from the main entrance rushed in, announcing that Arjuna had come and was approaching the royal apartment. Everyone rose as if they had suddenly come to life; they hurried forward to meet Arjuna, thirsty for news from Dwaraka. Arjuna came in, depressed and despondent, devoid of any sign of joy. Without looking the brothers in the face, he rolled over Dharmaraja’s feet.
The signs confirmed Dharmaraja’s fear, and he became eager to inquire further. He asked about the welfare of friends and kinsmen at Dwaraka. Arjuna couldn’t rise or turn his head. The brothers, seeing Dharmaraja’s feet streaming with the tears shed by ...
Swami: Oh! How is this? You came so early this time!
Devotee: You made me come, so I have come! Is there anything I can call mine?
Swami: That is true; but will even a scrap of paper move without some cause? So too, there must be a reason for you to come so early.
Devotee: Nothing else, Swami! Hearing that You are proceeding to Trivandrum on the 16th, at the invitation of Sri Ramakrishna Rao, the Governor of Kerala, I felt that I might not get much chance to speak to you if I came only on that day. So, I came now, excuse me!
Swami: Well done! But why do you ask Me to pardon you? Really speaking, one should not ask for pardon even when one commits wrong! Then, what is the fun of asking for it, when you have done the right thing?
Devotee: Why, Swami? Why should we not ask for pardon when we do wrong?
Swami: No, you mustn’t ask either for pardon when wrong is done or for reward when right is done! Doing right is but man’s duty; it is its own reward. What other reward can there be? The...
