Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Year 21
Issue 11
Published by
http://www.vmission.org.in / vmission@gmail.com
Section Index
1.
Message of P. Guruji
4.
Letter
2.
5.
6.
7.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
Tattva Bodha
6-7
Gita Reflections
10-11
Yoga Vasistha
14-15
VM News
18
Jivanmukta
Story Section
13
17
VM Activities
19
VM Programs
23
Album
20-21
Tattva Bodha
person and a total disinterest in any kind of performance. Often this is used a s a means of torture
towards prisoners under interogation.
Doership & Enjoyership:
In the waking state since I am identified with
the gross, the subtle, and the causal body there is
a strong sense of doership and enjoyership. There
are various thing I want to persue, there are various resolutions made and having fulfilled them I
also wish to enjoy the returns of all such persuits.
In the dream state I identify only with the enjoyer
and enjoy an imaginary world. In the deep sleep
state I am neither the doer nor the enjoyer of the
world. In the absence of thoughts in the deep sleep
state there is no concept of space, time and duality. Hence while asleep I am totally unaware of how
long I slept or where I am sleeping. Sometimes it
takes a few seconds to come to understand where
I am and what the time is. Is it morning or night or
noon?
Vedanta Sandesh
Different Perspectives
A Minister travelled for days by train
and car and boat to one of the furthest islands in the nation. As he surveyed the
bleak but inspiring landscape, he turned to
a local villager and said: "You're very remote here, aren't you?" She responded:
"Remote from what?"
Vedanta Sandesh
Transcendence
Hari om!
Thanks for your mail. Nice to know that you are studying Tattva Bodha nicely.
Knowledge of our tattva ultimately is to not only negate the various self-
imposed & baseless limitations on ourselves, but thereafter see the non-dual
The
transcend
is
word
an
interesting word, it
implies deeper insight
into both the cause &
manifested. However, in this process the truth of the so called 'everything' has
also to be appreciated & also resolved. It is this knowledge which brings about
true freedom, fulfillment & love for all.
A few words on the word transcend, which you used in your mail. While you
because of which the truth gets apparently veiled, and we need the capacity &
merely appreciating
appreciating
the
perceptible so very
nicely that you see
- PoojyaGuruji
-9-
by
Swamini
Samatananda
Freedom from various conditionings of the mind, freedom from mental dualities of personal likes & dislikes blesses a spiritual seeker with the ultimate knowledge of liberation. Thus speaks Sri Krishna in the 7th chapter of the Gita. A mind
free of various impurities of self-centric attributes which are born of illusion is
freed from the clutches of old age and death. Sri Krishna reveals one who has the
courage to break the shackles of all worldly support and surrender at the feet of
the Supreme and make all the required efforts to discover the truth, they come to
know Brahman as their very own Self and these are the ones who also know
karma in its entirety.
Freedom from old age and death:
Old age and death are an inevitable part of the graph of life. Life manifested from the unmanifest grows, reaches its peak and then old age comes as a
knock on the door of the unmanifest and then death is once again going back into
the unmanifest. It is our day to day experience how old age features a natural
decay of the physical body, the senses and the various attributes of the mind. The
once upon a time hyper active body slows down and soon demands a support to
walk, sit, eat, sleep etc. The slowing down and decay of the body often keeps
people away and loneliness becomes the name of the day. Sometimes such is
the misery of old age that people pray for death to embrace them. This is the glory
of old age at the level of the physical body. Although physical changes and pain
are universal yet mental suffering is relative depending upon the mental attitude
and knowledge of a person. In the realm of ignorance surely old age is a chapter
of great suffering. Thereafter death is a gradual step into the realms of the
unmanifest. On one hand old age is a direct experience of pain and suffering,
death becomes an imaginary horror where there is pain of going into the unknown
& pain of leaving behind our beloved ones. Little does one realize the blessings
and beauty of death as being the threshold of adorning a new robe to once again
experience the beautiful creation of God. Neither is an ignorant being aware of
the fact that the experience of death by itself is not painful. It is like gliding into a
deep slumber only to wake up again in the dawn of a new innings. At the face level
old age and death both appear to be harmless by themselves. yet the Scriptures
and our great masters speak of freedom from old age & death. Surely there is a
deeper insight into the whole concept of freedom from birth, freedom from old age
and freedom from death. What is this freedom? And in that context what is the
nature of bondage that one feels the need to be free of it?
The nature of bondage and freedom from old age and death?
Even though the body goes through old age and death, yet the body does
not say that I am afraid of death or I do not wish to die. It is me the I who says
so. Thus an important question arises, Who am I ? My identity of the Self is associated with the body that appears to be. I see myself as the body and hence all
modifications of the body, old age and death happen to me. I am born, I grow up,
I go through changes, I turn old and I die. These are all notions borne out of the
Vedanta Sandesh
conviction that I am this body and mind. Thus even though the body does not feel
anything towards old age and death I am the one who constantly lives in fear.
Therefore freedom does not lie in the immortality of the body. Bondage is not the
physical change and death of the body. Bondage lies in the wrong identification of
the Self. Hence freedom too lies in freeing oneself of these wrong understanding
of the Self. Moksha is not from physical death but it is from these wrong notions
that I am the body and therefore I am born one day and I shall die one day too.
This is the nature of freedom.
Taking refuge
in me, invoking my
Grace, they seek to
know me and towards this they make
efforts-Maam
ashritya yatanti ye.
Refuge is in
the form of enquiry
and as a result one
comes to see God as
one with their own
self.
fighting in my heart. One wolf is the vengeful, angry, violent one. The other wolf is
Vedanta Sandesh
Wandering
in Himalayas
VYas,
Brahma Sutra, was composed in the second century B.C. It is said that during
& Sankara
fifth and the fourth centuries B.C. that philosophers like Socrates and Plato lived
Gaudapada
that period there was an awakening of thought all over India. Not only India, but
also some countries in the West were wide awake at that time. It was during the
and taught in Greece. The dates of their birth and death have been fixed with
certainty, but it has not been possible to fix the dates of our great men like Vyasa.
We have to be content with the little information derived from the Puranas and
traditions regarding them. Following such accounts, we shall take it that Krishna
that Vyasa passed his last days here. To me the greatness of Vyasa and the
he imparted to Badrikavanam. The Puranic story that Nara and Narayana performed their penance at this place, or that it is the holy abode of Lord Narayana,
may not be accepted by most historians. Yet, the story is enough to invest this
spot with supreme sacredness. there is no evidence to disaprove the tradition
that Vyasa composed his Mahabharata and Vedanta Sutra here. It has been my
Excerpts from
the
Travel Memoirs
of
custom to spend some time, whenever possible, in the cave of Vyasa, breathing
its sacred air.
Not only Vyasa but many other ancient Rishis like Sanaka, Bhrigu, Narada,
and Sukra are associated with this cave. Here, on the bank of Alaknanda, is the
famous Gaudapada Sila, the rock on which, according to tradition, the great
Sage Gaudapada used to sit in meditation.
Historians are of the opinion that gaudapada belonged to the eighth cen-
Param Poojya
tury A.D. It was Gaudapada who, for the first time, introduced to the world in a
Tapovanji
and arguments that he had adopted from earlier Buddhist teachers like
Swami
Maharaj
scientific, logical, incontrovertible manner, the theory of Advaita with its accom-
scholars argue that gaudapadas mandukya Karika is nothing more than an ad-
mixture of Nagarjuna;s Sunya Vada set forth in the Lankavathara; and in support
of their contention they point out that the firbrand and other examples of
gaudapada have been borrowed from Buddhist literature , where they were quite
familiar.
- 13 -
by
Swamini
Vidyananda
All words in the scriptures are used only for the explanation for the ones
who want to understand. And words operate in duality only, and all pairs of
opposites are invented for the ease of communication. They all are not real in
themselves but if used in the right way, they all point to the supreme reality,
which alone is their base and support. Like an arrow has two ends - one is
pointing to the goal and another is pointing in the opposite direction. So also the
words, understood wisely, point to the supreme reality; but understood
casually will indicate only trivial things. The words of the wise, based on the
teaching of Vedas, are the only valid means for attaining of the reality. Knowledge
of that, which cannot be described in words, is attainable by following the words
as pointers to transcend the world of names and forms. By themselves, the words
are not real, their reality is borrowed from the Supreme. When truth is known,
all descriptions cease, and silence alone remains. And this silence of the absolute
denote a truth, duality is inevitable; however, such duality is not the truth. All divisions
are illusory.
only. This samsara, or the world of transient appearances, is nothing but the
mind filled with its likes and dislikes, and when it is free of them, the world of
Adhyatmic
Teachings
of
Guru
Vasishtha
to
Sri Ramji
duality comes to an end, and that which was seen as samsara, is recognized as
the self-evident reality of the pure Consciousness only. The inert aspect of the
mind is the cause of the illusory appearances, which are cognized by the mind
due to the consciousness, reflected in it. So, the consciousness in the mind,
which is reflection of the pure Consciousness, is the seed of all substances and
objects. Because of the omnipresence of the consciousness the mind takes the
form of the knowable and thus becomes the seed of the universe, like a child
imagining the existence of the world. The cosmic mind is the cause of the world,
and the individual mind is the cause of the samsara. There is a huge difference
between the world created by the cosmic mind, and samsara, created by the
individual mind. The world, as it is, is neither good nor bad, neither suffering
nor joyful, it is just a playful manifestation of the omnipresent bliss of selfexistence of the Consciousness. For the omnipresent Shiva sitting in meditation,
perfect and full. Samsara, the world of separation, lack and suffering, is the creation
of the mind which attaches its own notions to the divine manifestation. Individual
mind sees something as desirable and something else as undesirable, and
both are seen as separate from the mind itself. And so, the rat race begins - going
to the desirable, avoiding the nondesirable and always being limited and insufficient,
lacking in fullness, comfort and freedom. When the mind is illumined it experiences
the infinite Consciousness within itself.
So, the mind is the creator. Cosmic mind creates the world, and
individual mind, not knowing its own truth, creates its own incorrect views causing
sorrows. Cosmic mind of Ishvara never loses its touch with reality, it is not
deluded thinking itself as separate. It is individual mind who is deluded and suffering.
Yet, in both cases, the mind is the cause of creation, be it total or individual.
Whatever is created by the mind, lasts till the notion of creation ceases in the
mind and cannot be destroyed by any other means. To illustrate that, Vasishtha
tells another story about creation of the worlds by the Creator Brahma.
-7-
Quotes
As water carves through stone those who persevere will win.
There may be nothing more treacherous than
false knowledge.
Vedanta Sandesh
Samudra Manthan
Story
Section
n
o
p
u
e
c
O n e ...
m
a ti
Indra, the King of Devas (gods), while riding on the elephant Airavata,
came across Sage Durvasa who offered him a special garland given to him by
the God Shiva. Indra accepted the garland and placed it on the trunk of the
elephant as a test to prove that he was not an egoistic god. The elephant, knowing that Indra had no control over his own ego, threw the garland to the ground.
This enraged the sage as the garland was a dwelling of Sri (fortune) and was to
be treated as a prasada or religious offering. Durvasa cursed Indra and all devas
to be bereft of all strength, energy, and fortune.
In battles following the incident, the Devas were defeated and Asuras
(demons) led by King Bali, gained control of the universe. Devas sought help
from the Supreme God Vishnu who advised them to treat asuras in a diplomatic
manner. Devas formed an alliance with asuras to jointly churn the ocean for the
nectar of immortality and to share it among them. However, Vishnu told the Devas
that he would arrange that they alone obtain the nectar.
Mandara or Mandar Parvat was used as the churning rod, and Vasuki, the king of
serpents, who abides on Shiva's neck, became the churning rope. The demons
demanded to hold the head of the snake, while the gods, taking advice from
Vishnu, agreed to hold its tail. As a result the demons were poisoned by fumes
emitted by Vasuki. Despite this, the gods and demons pulled back and forth on
the snake's body alternately, causing the mountain to rotate, which in turn churned
the ocean. When the mountain was placed on the ocean, it began to sink. Vishnu,
in the form of a turtle Kurma, came to their rescue and supported the mountain
on his back.
Ocean of Milk. One was the lethal poison known as Halahala, which in some
versions of the story, escaped from the mouth of the serpent king as the demons
and gods churned. This terrified the gods and demons because the poison was
so powerful that it could destroy all of creation. Then the gods approached Shiva
for protection. Shiva consumed the poison in an act to protect the universe, and
his wife Parvati grabbed Shiva's throat in an effort to prevent him from swallowing the poison, which was the most deadly poison in existence, harmful even to
a god. As a result, Shiva's throat turned blue. For this reason, Lord Shiva is also
called Neelakantha (the blue-throated one; "neela" = "blue", "kantha" = "throat"
in Sanskrit).
- 17 -
Vedanta Sandesh
By P. Swamini Samatanandaji - from 6th to 12th April at Sivananda Samskrutik Kendra. G-2/Katha 1-2
Vedanta Sandesh
Poojya Guruji, Sw Amitanandaji & Sw Poornanandaji & various devotees visited Ujjain on 18th April
Sri Ram Navami was on the 15th April. At 12 noon speacial Aarti, bhajans & chanting was done
- 21 -
Vedanta Sandesh
Yagna at Ramkrishna Math campus in Khar, Mumbai from 15th to 21st May. Subjects
will be Gita-14 / Mundaka 3-2.
The April 2016 edition of monthly Hanuman Chalisa Satsang will be organized
on 29th May. There will be bhajans, chanting of Hanuman Chalisa, followed by continuation
of the talk of P. Guruji on the 8th chaupayi Chalisa. Open to all.
at Atmajyoti Ashram, Baroda from 6th to 12th June. Gita Chapter - 5 / Katho 1-1
Poojya Swamini Amitanandaji will be conducting a five days Gita Gyana Yagna at
Samutkarsh Complex in Ahmedabad from 27th Jun to 1st July . She will take Gita Ch-1
and Dhyana Shivir in the morning.
This year Guru Poornima is on 19th July. Special pujas / Satsang & Bhandara will
Poojya Guruji and all other Mahatmas of Vedanta Ashram will jointly conduct the
five days Vedanta Camp at Ashram from 20th to 24th Aug. 25th is Janmashtami, and
next day will be a special Yatra for campers. Subs: Atma Upanishad / Gunatraya Vivek.
- 23 -
Om Tat Sat