Why we worship the Feet of the Guru?

Why we worship the Feet of the Guru?

The uninitiated may wonder why the feet of holy ones are so reverently worshiped in the Hindu faith. According to tradition, the totality of the satguru is contained within his feet. All nerve currents terminate there. The vital points of every organ of his bodies-inner astral, inner mental and soul-are there. Touch the feet and we touch the spiritual master.

 Kathopanishad speaks of the Guru as the preceptor who alone can guide the disciple on the spiritual path. Over time the Guru's syllabus gradually enlarged incorporating more secular and temporal subjects related to human endeavor and intellect. Apart from usual spiritual works his sphere of instruction now included subjects like Dhanurvidya (archery), Arthashastra (economics) and even Natyashastra (dramatics) and Kamashastra (sexology). Such was the ingenuity of the all pervading intellect of the ancient Acharyas that they perpetuated even shastra like thievery.In the field of Sadhanas devotion to the Guru is most important. Through dedication and by obeying all commands of the Guru a person gains spiritual and moral strength which initiates him onto the path of Sadhanas. According to the text "Sharda Tilak" only a person who has same unwavering faith in the Guru, he has in God is able to realise Supreme Truth, and all subtle secrets of the spiritual world are revealed to him.

Powers of the Guru instill determination in the Sadhak, always keep showering upon him kindness of the Guru and each moment provide him with courage and support.Thus even in adverse situations such a Sadhak does not become perturbed, for he knows that due to his true devotion and faith in the Guru, his problems shall get solved all by themselves.The ancient texts, known as Shastras, clearly state that sins of the previous births can be absolved in present life only through devotion in the feet of Guru. A Sadhak (a level which comes after being a true disciples) who wishes to achieve Siddhi (divine accomplishment) in the field of Sadhanas(Penance), should always follow the directions given by his Guru.It is not the work of a Sadhak to analyse actions of a Guru, his only duty is to obey the Guru's command without any hesitation.He should follow the path shown to him by the Guru and if he is not able to remain in active service of the Guru he should present himself before him at least once in a year.

The Guru's Sandals, or padukas, represent the power of the Guru to uplift and transform us. The Indian scriptures tell us that the fountain of grace which God pours upon humanity actually flows through the feet of the great beings. Thus, the sandals of the master are regarded with reverence.The Guru's Sandals are the threshold of the Formless, which explores the essential mystery at its heart. 

Mystics teach that the big toe on the left foot exudes the most grace. The left foot is the revealing grace, and the big toe of that leg connects to the guru’s pituitary gland, the entrance to the door of Brahm, deep within the sahasrara chakra where, in contemplation, he merges with Siva. The vibration of the satguru can be subtly felt through gently touching his sandals. In doing so, one tunes in to the feet of the preceptor’s physical, pranic, astral, mental and soul bodies.

In deep spirituality there is little presumption of ego. All that one hopes for, all that one pays for, all that one strives for is to touch the Divine in the most modest of ways. Worship of the feet epitomizes this humble attitude. Devotees worship the feet of the guru as the feet of God Shiva, the attainable attainment, seeking to partake of, absorb into themselves, the vibration of their guru, ultimately to become like their guru, who has realized his oneness with God Shiva.

Satguru Sivaya Subramaniyaswami wrote, “Practices to Advance spiritual unfoldment include prostrating before God, Gods and Guru, full body, face down, arms and hands out stretched, and in that act, total giving up, giving up, giving up, giving up. What are these devotes ones giving up? By this act they are giving the lower energies to the higher energies. It is a merger, a blending. When one is performing this traditional devotional act, awakening true prapatti, it is easy to see the lower energies from the base of the spine through all six chakras above it and out through the top of the head. It is transmuting, changing the form of, the base energies which breed conflict and resistance, ‘mine and yours’ and ‘you and me’ division, insecurity and separateness, into the spiritual energies of ‘us and we’ amalgamation, security, togetherness.

There is yet another meaning of the holy feet. When a person walks upon the Earth, only the feet touch the ground. Similarly, when God and Guru contact the Earth, it is the esoteric feet, the lowest part of consciousness, which make that contact. This, then becomes the locus of communion with the Divine. In India the greatest of all initiations is for the satguru to place his holy feet upon the worthy disciples head.

The mystery and reverence of the Guru's Sandals is also expressed in the Guru Paduka Panchakam.Adi Shankaracharya has also written five devotional verses under the title "Guru Paduka Panchakam" as salutations to his guru, in this case meaning the Lord. The English language translation of the first verse means:

Salutations and Salutations to the sandals of my Guru,

Which is a boat, which helps me, cross the endless ocean of life,

Which endows me, with the sense of devotion to my Guru,

And by worship of which, I attain the dominion of renunciation..

Letz have Morning Tea :-)

Letz have Morning Tea :-)

Most of Us has seen Tea, and majority of them know the process of making it.

Let’s see what it says..
Tea Bowl=Human Body
Water=Unconditional Love
Milk=Purity of thought's 
Sugar=Joy

Tea Leaves= Devotion
Filter/Sieve=Wisdom
fuel(gas)= Sense Organs
Burner= Ego
Add Water, Milk, Sugar, and Tea Leaves in a Tea Bowl boil it on the gas burner, the more it boils the stronger Tea is Produced and filter it with Sieve and have a excellent Tasty Tea…
In same way:
When our Unconditional love, Devotion, Pure thoughts and joy is added to the Self, and our sense organs heats these mix by burning the Ego, as it produces a beautiful blend of Tea, the more it boils the much Stronger the devotion and filter it with Wisdom, and feel the Ultimate BLISS….

............

Significance of the Lord Ganesha .....

                                   Ganesha

Ganah in sanskrit means “multitude”. Isa means ‘Lord’. Ganesha therefore literally means the Lord of all Beings .Ganesha is the first son of Lord Siva. Siva represents the supreme reality, the son of Siva symbolises one who has realized the reality, one who has discovered the Godhood in him, such a man is said to be the Lord of all beings.

Ganesha is known by other names as well, Ganapati, Gajanana, Vinayaka, Vighneswara, etc,.. Ganapati has the same literal meaning as Ganesha, Gajanana means elephant-faced,  Gaja=elephant, anana=face, . Vinayaka means the supreme leader, Vigneshwara is the Lord of all Obstacles, worshipped in the initiation of Hindu rituals & ceremonies. As the name suggest Vighneswara removes all the Obstacles, overcomes all challenges of life.

In Hindu litreature Ganesha is described as having a human form with an elephant’s head. One of the tusks in his head is broken,. He has a conspicuously Large stomach, He sits with one leg folded in, at His feet a variety of food is spread,. A rat sits near the food & looks up at Him as if it were asking Him for the sanction to eat the food! This Mystical form of Lord Ganesha represents not only the Supreme state of Human perception but the practical path to reach that state,. The details of his description suggest deep Philosophical significances which can guide you to reach that ultimate state,.

The first step of spiritual education is Sravana which means listening to the eternal truths of Vedanta. The second step is Manana which is independent reflection upon those truths,. The Large ears and the head of Ganesha indicates that he has gained previous Wisdom through Sravana and Manana, An elephant’s Head on a human body in Ganesha is menat to represent Supreme Wisdom.

The Trunk which springs from his head represents the intellect, the faculty of discrimination which necessarily arises out of Wisdom.

Intellect is the discriminating faculty, the discerning ability or the judging capacity in man. Man’s intellect is of two distinct types, namely the Gross and the Subtle,. Gross intellect is that aspect of his discrimination which is applicable to the realm of the terrestrial world, the part of the intellect which distinguishes between the pairs of opposite existing in this world,. 

Distinguishes day & night, black & white, joy & sorrow etc,. Subtle intellect  is the other aspect of his discrimination which distinguishes between Infinite & the Finite, the Real & the Unreal, the Transcendental & the Terrestrial etc,.   A Man of realization like Ganesha is one who has fully developed both his Gross and Subtle intellects,. He has perfect understanding & knowledge of the terrestrial as well as transcendental .

The Trunk of an elephant has the unique capacity of performing both gross and subtle activities,. A trunk can uproot a tree, it can pick up a needle from the ground. One rarely finds gross and subtle operations being performed by a single instrument! A spanner which is used for fitting a locomotive is useless for repairing a wrist-watch.. The elephant’s trunk is an exception to this rule.. It serves both the ways, so does Ganesha’s Intellect penetrate the realms of the material & spiritual worlds,. That is the state which man must aspire to reach..

A man of perfection is thus rooted in the supreme wisdom,. He is not victimized by likes ( raga) and dislikes ( dwesha). He is not swayed by agreeable and the disagreeable circumstances, pleasant and unpleasant happenings, good and bad environment. In other words, he is not victimized by the pairs of opposites existing in the world,. Heat & cold, joy& sorrow, honor & dishonor, do not affect him, influence him or harras him. He has transcended the limitations of the opposites in the world. He isdwanda-ateetha, beyond opposites. This idea is well represented in Ganesha by having one of his tusks broken. The common man is tossed between the two opposites (tusks),. He should endeavor to overcome the influence of the pairs of opposites in him. Man ought not to act merely by his likes & dislikes, these are his worst enemies he has to control and conquer. When he has completely mastered the influence of these pairs in him he becomes a Ganesha.

Ganesha’s large belly is meant to convey that a man of perfection can consume and digest whatever experiences he undergoes. Heat or Cold, War or Peace, Birth or Death, and other such trials and tribulations do not toss him up and down. He Maintains an unaffected grace in and through all these fluctuations of the world. Figuratively , he is represented as being able to stomach and digest all types of Experiences..

Kubera, the God of Wealth offered a dinner to Ganesha in his palace, Ganesha ate all the food that was prepared for the entire gathering of guests, thereafter still dissatisfied, he started eating the festive decorations that were used for the occasion. At this juncture his father Lord Siva approached him and offered him handful of roasted rice , Ganesha consumed the roasted rice and his hunger was satisfied immediately . This story is a directive to mankind that man can never be satisfied with the joy’s provided by the world of oblects represented by Kubera’s  feast,. Material pursuits can never give peace, contentment, or happiness to mankind. The only way to attain absolute fulfillment or Peace is by consuming your own Vasanas, which are the unmanifest desires in you,. The destruction of Vasanas is represented by the consumption of roasted rice,. When rice is roasted it loses its capacity to germinate,. The consumption of roasted rice indicates the destruction of Vasanas or desires in you. Thereafter you remain in a state of absolute peace and bliss..

Ganesha sits with one leg folded up and the other leg resting on the ground, the leg on the ground indicates that one aspect of his personality is dealing with the world while the other is evr rooted in single-pointed concentration upon Supreme Reality . Such a man lives in the world like anyone else, but his concentration and meditation are ever-rooted in the Atman within himself. This idea is symbolized in the above posture.

At the feet of the Lord is spread abundance of food , food represents material wealth, power & prosperity, when a man follows the high principles of living indicated above he achieves these material gains, he has them always at his command though he has an attitude of indifference towards them.

Besides the food is a tiny Rat looking up towards Ganesha, the rat does not touch the food but waits for the master’s sanction as it were for consuming it, the rat represents desire, a rat has a small mouth and tiny sharp teeth, but it is the greediest of all animals , it’s greed & acquisitiveness are so great that it steals more than it can eat and hoards more than it can remember, often abandoning burrows full of hoarded grains through forgetfulness. This predominant trait in a rat justifies amply its symbolism as desire,. One little desire entering man’s mind can destroy all his material & spiritual wealth earned for many long years, The rat looking up therefore denotes that the desires in a perfect man are absolutely under control, the activities of such a man are motivated by his clear discrimination &  judgement rather than by an emotional craving to enjoy the variety of sense objects of the world.

There is a belief amongst Hindus that it is inauspicious to see the Moon on the Vinayaka Chathurthi day, that is the birthday of Ganesha, the puranic story says that the moon saw Ganesha riding on his tiny rat and laughed at the ludicrous scene, for this reason the moon is condemned & people are forbidden to see it on this day,.

Ganesha riding on his rat indicates a man of perfection trying to use his limited body, mind & intellect to convey the illimitable Truth. The body, mind & intellect are finite, they cannot express the infinite Atman,. A man of Realization finds it almost impossible to convey his infinite experience through his finite equipments, hence we find the words & deeds of all spiritual masters are peculiar & incomprehensible, the common man’s intellect cannot comprehend the Truth. The Moon is the presiding deity of the mind, the moon laughing at Ganapati riding on  the rat indicates the ignorant scoffing at the man of realization’s  attempt to convey the truth, this attitude of scoffing at the spiritual preceptors is detrimental to humanity, the generations are therefore warned not to laugh or scoff at the spiritual messages, if they do they meet with degradation and disaster.

The whole cosmos is known to be the belly of Ganesha (hence, his other name is Mahodara). Parvati or Shakti is the primordial energy. The seven realms above, seven realms below and seven oceans, are inside the cosmic belly of Ganesha, held together by the cosmic energy (kundalini ) symbolized as a huge snake which Ganesha ties around Him. At other times, the snake is shown around Ganesha’s neck. Here, it represents kundalini, the coil of psychic energy that lies at the base of our spine.

Ganesha has four arms ,the four arms represnts the inner equipments of the subtle body, namely Mind(manas), Intellect(buddi),Ego(ahamkara), and conditioned consciousness(chitta),Ganesha reresents the Pure Consciousness,the Atman which enables these four equipments to function in you,.

In one hand he holds an axe and in another a rope, the axe symbolises the destruction of all desires and attachments and their consequent agitations & sorrows. The rope is meant to pull the seeker out of his wordly entanglements and bind him to the everlasting and enduring bliss of his own self. In the third hand he holds a rice ball –Modhaka, which represents the joyous rewards of spiritual seeking. A seeker gains the joy of satisfaction and contenment as he progress on the path of spiritual evolution. In the fourth hand he holds a Lotus-padma, which represents the Supreme goal of human evolution, by holding the Lotus in his hand he draws the attention of all  seekers to that supreme state that each one of them can aspire for and reach through proper spiritual practices . He blesses all his devotees to reach the Supreme State of Reality.

Thus by indicating to mankind the goal of Human evolution and the path to reach the same, Lord Ganesha occupies a place of distinction in the Heart of all the seekers. May he give us all the strength & courage to pursue the path which he has led and may we gain that Supreme Goal.

Diwali and its importance

Diwali, also called Deepavali (Sanskrit: दीपावली, Tamil: தீபாவளி Kannada:ದೀಪಾವಳೀ) is a major Hindu festival. Known as the “Festival of Lights,” it symbolises the victory of good over evil, and lamps are lit as a sign of celebration and hope for mankind. The festival of Diwali is rooted in the mythological epic Ramayana, and is a celebration of the return of Lord Ram after killing Ravan the Demon during his exile for 14 years. The day of killing Ravan is celebrated as Dussehra (19 to 21 days before Diwali). Celebrations focus on lights and lamps, particularly traditional diyas (as illustrated). Fireworks are associated with the festival in many regions of India.

Diwali is celebrated for five consecutive days in the Hindu month of Ashwayuja. It usually occurs in October/November, and is one of the most popular and eagerly awaited festivals of India. Hindus, Jains and Sikhs alike regard it as a celebration of life and use the occasion to strengthen family and social relationships. For Jains it is one of the most important festivals, and beginning of the Jain year. Jains celebrate Diwali because Lord Mahaveera has gone to Moksha. It is also a significant festival for the Sikh faith.

Etymology

Word Diwali is derived from Sanskrit word Deepawali. This is a compund of two words Deepa and Avali. Deepa means light and Avali means row or line. Thus the literal meaning of the word is ‘line of lights’.

Dates in various calendars

During this festival one must fast for three days. The festival is worshipped on exactly the same set of days across India, it falls in different months depending on the version of the Hindu calendar being used in the given region.

The Amantnm (“ending on the no-moon”) version of the Hindu Calendar has been adopted as the Indian national calendar. According to this calendar, which is prevalent in southern India and Maharashtra, deepavali falls in the middle of the month of Ashwayuja. According to the Purnimanta (“ending on the full-moon”) version prevalent in northern India, the 5-day celebration is spread over the last three days of the month of Ashwayuja and the first two days of the new month of Kartika. According to this calendar, the festival of Deepavali marks the new year’s day of this calendar and is therefore an especially significant festival.

The festival marks the victory of good over evil. The Sanskrit word Deepavali means array of lights that stands for victory of brightness over darkness. As the knowledge of Sanskrit diminished, the name was popularly modified to Diwali, especially in northern India.

On the day of Diwali, many wear new clothes, share sweets and light firecrackers. The North Indian business community usually starts their financial new year on Diwali and new account books are opened on this day.

Hindus find cause to celebrate this festival for different reasons:

* As per sacred texts, according to Skanda Purana, the goddess Shakti observed 21 days of austerity starting from ashtami of shukla paksha (waxing period of moon) to get half part of the body of Lord Shiva. This vrata is known as kedhara vrata. Deepavali is the completion day of this austerity. This is the day Lord Shiva accepted Shakti into the left half of the form and appeared as Ardhanarishvara. The ardent devotees observe this 21 days vrata by making a kalasha with 21 threads on it and 21 types of offerings for 35 days. The final day is celebrated as kedhara gauri vrata.

* Diwali also celebrates the return of Lord Rama, King of Ayodhya, with his wife Sita and brother Lakshmana to Ayodhya from a war in which he killed the demon king Ravana. It is believed that the people lit oil lamps along the way to light their path in the darkness. In North India, the festival is held on the final day of the Vikram calendar. The following day marks the beginning of the North Indian new year, and is called Annakut.

* It commemorates the killing of Narakasura, an evil demon who created havoc, by Lord Krishna’s wife Sathyabhama. This happened in the Dwapara Yuga during this time of Lord Krishna’s avatar. In another version, the demon was killed by Lord Krishna himself. In South India, Diwali does not coincide with the beginning of a new year as South Indians follow a different calendar, the Shalivahana calendar.

* In Bhavishyottara and Bramhavaivarta Purana, Diwali is associated with the Daitya king Bali, who is allowed to return to earth once a year.

The Five days of Diwali

Diwali is celebrated over five days in most of North India. All the days except Diwali are named using the designation in the Indian calendar. A lunar half-month is 15 days. Diwali as a new-moon day, marks the last day of a 15-day period.

1. Dhan-trayodashi or Dhan teras: Dhan means “wealth” and Trayodashi means “13th day”. Thus, as the name implies, this day falls on the 13th day of the first half of the lunar month. It is an auspicious day for shopping. (Gujarati: Dhan Teras)

2. Naraka Chaturdasi: Narak means ‘of a new era of Light and Knowledge’. Chaturdasi implies fourteenth day. (Gujarati: Kali Chaudas)

3. Diwali: the actual day of Diwali, is celebrated on the third day of the festival, when the moon completely wanes and total darkness sets in the night sky.

4. Varsha-pratipada or Padwa: Beginning of the New Year (Kartikadi Vikram). Pratipada means the first. (Gujarati: Bestu Varas)

5. Bhayiduj (also Bhayyaduj, Bhaubeej or Bhayitika) — on this day, brothers and sisters meet to express their love and affection for each other. (Gujarati: Bhai Bij, Bengali: Bhai Phota)

The celebrations vary in different regions:

* In Southern India, naraka chaturdashii is the main day, with firecrackers at dawn.

* The main festival is on Amavasya evening with Lakshmi Puja which is followed by lighting of oil lamps around the house.

Laxmi Pujan

As per spiritual references, on this day ‘Laxmi-panchayatan’ enters the Universe. Sri Vishnu, Sri Indra, Sri Kuber, Sri Gajendra and Sri Laxmi are elements of this ‘panchayatan’ (a group of five).

The tasks of these elements are:

Vishnu: Happiness (happiness and satisfaction)

Indra: Opulence (satisfaction due to wealth)

Kuber: Wealth (one who gives away wealth)

Gajendra: Carries the wealth

Laxmi: Divine Energy (Shakti) which provides energy to all the above activities.

Importance of Laxmi Pujan

A. Destruction of distressing energies On this particular day, Goddess Laxmi’s destroyer (marak) form is active, since it is the new moon day. The spiritual emotion of the person doing ritualistic worship, activates Goddess Laxmi’s marak form and destroys the distressing frequencies in the environment.

B. Arrival of other Gods (Devtas): Lord Indra and other male deities also get drawn to the place of ritualistic worship and follow Goddess Laxmi. Thus happiness, opulence, prosperity, stability and wealth is maintained in the premise (Vastu) by worshiping the 5 elements or Deities

People in Bharata every year celebrate famous “Dipalikaya”, to reverently worship the Jinendra on the occasion of his nirvana on the amavasya of Kartika month.

To add to the festival of Diwali, fairs called Melas are held throughout India. [2] Melas are to be found in many towns and villages. A mela generally becomes a market day in the countryside when farmers buy and sell produce. Girls and women dress attractively during the festival. They wear colourful clothing, new jewelry and their hands are decorated with henna designs.

There are plenty of activities that take place at a mela. These activities include performances from jugglers, acrobats, snake charmers and fortune tellers. Food stalls are set up, selling sweet and spicy foods. A variety of rides are present during the fair, which include Ferris wheels and rides on animals such as elephants and camels. Another attraction are the puppet shows that are shown throughout the day.

Diwali in other parts of the world

Diwali is celebrated in various parts of the world, in countries such as Britain, The Netherlands, Suriname, Canada, Guyana, Mauritius, Fiji, Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Singapore, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Trinidad and Tobago, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, Australia, much of Africa, and the United States.[3] With more and more Indians now migrating to various parts of the world, the number of countries where Diwali is celebrated has been gradually increasing. While in some countries it is celebrated mainly by Indian expatriates, in others it has become part of the general local culture. In most of these countries Diwali is celebrated on the same lines as described in this article with some minor variations. Some important variations are worth mentioning.

In Malaysia, Diwali is known as “Hari Deepavali,” and is celebrated during the seventh month of the Hindu solar calendar. It is a federal public holiday throughout Malaysia. In many respects it resembles the traditions followed in the Indian subcontinent.

In Nepal, Diwali is known as Tihar and celebrated during the October/November period. Here, though the festival is celebrated for five days, the traditions vary from those followed in India. On the first day, cows are given offerings, in appreciation of the food they have given and agricultural work they have performed. On the second day, dogs and all living animals are revered and offered special food. On the third day, celebrations follow the same pattern as in India, with lights and lamps and much social activity. On the fourth day Yama, the Lord of Death, is worshipped and appeased. On the fifth and final day, brothers and sisters meet and exchange pleasantries.

In Singapore, the festival is called “Deepavali”, and is a gazetted public holiday. Observed primarily by the minority Indian community, it is typically marked by a light-up in the Little India district and is most known for the fire-walking ceremonies not practised as part of the festival in other countries. Hindu Endownment Board of Singapore along with Singapore Government organises lot of cultural events around Diwali time.

In Sri Lanka, This festival is called as Deepavali and is celebrated by the Tamil community. On this day people wear new clothes and exchange pleasantries.

Diwali is celebrated in the Caribbean Islands as well. Especially in Trinidad and Tobago, Diwali is marked as a special occasion and celebrated with much fanfare. It is observed as a national holiday in this part of the world and some Ministers of the Government also take part in the celebrations publicly. Diwali is also celebrated in the South American country of Guyana.

Economics of Diwali

Diwali is an annual stimulus for the Indian economy. Indians purchase gold, gifts, decorations, crackers (fireworks) and household appliances during this festival and many Indian films (Bollywood, Kollywood, etc.) are released during this period. Companies offer huge discounts during the Diwali season to attract customers, which helps the economy and also helps the poor. Food distributed as acts of charity during community festivities also helps the underprivileged . Diwali also brings tourists to the country.Also, schools in India are closed during this festival, and many young people have the free time and the money to spend on luxury items.

The Soul and Its Destiny

The Soul and Its Destiny
By Swami Nikhilananda 

The Vedanta philosophy discusses the
nature of the soul from two standpoints:

1. Absolute or transcendental and
2. Relative or phenomenal


From the absolute standpoint, the soul is non-dual, immortal, ever pure, ever free, ever illumined, and one with Brahman. It is untouched by hunger or thirst, good and evil, pain and pleasure, birth and death, and the other pairs of opposites. That is the soul's true nature. The realisation of which is the goal of a man's spiritual aspiration and striving. From this absolute standpoint, the soul is called PARAMATMA or Supreme Soul.

But from the relative standpoint, the Vedanta philosophy admits the existence of a multitude of individual souls called JIVATMAS, and distinguishes them from the Supreme Soul. Attached to the body, the individual soul is a victim of the pairs of the opposites. Entangled in the world, it seeks deliverance from the eternal round of birth and death, and with that end in view, studies the scriptures and practises spiritual disciplines.

The embodied soul is associated with the sense organs, the mind and vital breath (Prana). There are ten sense organs, all subordinate to the mind as the central organ; five organs of perception and five organs of action. The five organs of perception comprise the organ of taste (tongue),smell (nose), vision (eyes), hearing (ear), and touch (skin). The five organs of action are the hands, the feet, the organ of speech, the organs of evacuation and the organ of generation.

The four functions of the mind

The mind is the inner organ and consists of such functions as desire, deliberation, doubt, faith, want of faith, patience, impatience, shame, intelligence and fear.

The impressions carried by the organs of perception are shaped by the mind into ideas, for we see only with the mind, hear with the mind. Further, the mind changes the ideas into resolutions of the will.

There are four functions or divisions or parts of the mind.

One part of the mind called Manas, creates doubt.
The Buddhi (intellect) makes decisions
Chitta is the storehouse of memory
Aham (the ego), creates I-consciousness.
The five organs of action, the five organs of perception, the five pranas, the mind, and the intellect constitute the gross and the subtle body of the embodied soul (jiva). The subtle accompanies the individual soul after death, when the gross body is destroyed. The subtle body is the abode of the KARMA or impressions left by action, determining the nature of the new body and mind when the soul is reborn. As the jiva (the embodied soul) does and act, so it becomes.

The presence of an irrefragable Self or consciousness is assumed in all acts of thinking. The Self or consciousness, which is the true 'seer' or subject, is unchanging intelligence, and can never be imagined to be non-existent. Atman (the Self) in man and Brahman in the universe are completely identical.

The idea of body, senses, and the mind, associated with the non-self, is falsely superimposed upon the Self, and the Self, which is of the nature of pure consciousness, appears as a jiva, or phenomenal being, subject to the various limitations of the physical world.

The soul:
The Rishis speak of two souls: the real soul and the apparent soul. The real soul is birthless, death less, immortal, and infinite. The same real soul, under the spell of ignorance, appears as the apparent man identified with the body, mind and senses. This apparent man becomes, on account of his attachment to the body, a victim of birth and death, virtue and vice, and the other pairs of opposites.The apparent man is bound to the world, and it is he,again, who strives for liberation. The enjoyment of material pleasures, and the subsequent satiation and weariness; the consciousness of bondage, and the struggle for freedom; the injunctions of the scriptures, and the practice of moral and spiritual disciplines- all this refers to the apparent man. Again, it is the apparent man who performs virtuous or sinful deeds, goes, after death, to heaven or hell, and assumes different bodies. But it must never be forgotten that rewards and punishments are spoken of only with reference to the reflected, or apparent soul. The real soul is forever free from the characteristics of the relative world.

But the real soul is always free, illumined, and perfect. The real sun, non-dual and resplendent, shines brilliantly in the sky, though millions of its reflections are seen to move with the movement of the waves.

Two souls are mentioned in the Vedas

From The Mahabharata
Santi Parva Section CCXXXVI
Translated by Sri Kisari Mohan Ganguli

Vyasa said: "That has been said to be Manifest which is possessed of these four attributes, viz., birth, growth, decay and death. That which is not posessed of these attributes is said to be Unmenifest. Two souls are mentioned in the Vedas and the sciences that are based upon them. The first (which is called Jivatman; embodied soul) is endued with the four attributes already mentioned, and has a longing for the four objects or purposes (viz., Religion, Wealth, Pleasure and Emancipation). This soul is called Manifest, and it is born of the Unmanifest (Supreme Soul). It is both intelligent and non-intelligent. I have thus told thee about Sattwa (inert matter) and Kshetrajna (immaterial spirit).

Both kinds of Soul, it is said in the Vedas, become attached to objects of the senses. The doctrine of the Sankhyas is that one should keep onself aloof or dissociated from objects of the senses. That yogin who is freed from attachment and pride, who transcends all pairs of opposites, such as pleasure and pain, heat and cold, etc., who never gives way to wrath or hate, who never speaks an untruth, who, though slandered or struck, still shows friendship for the slanderer or the striker, who never thinks of doing ill to others, who restrains the three, viz., speech, acts and mind, and who behaves uniformly towards all creatures, succeeds in approaching the presence of Brahman.

That person who cherishes no desires for earthly objects, who is not unwilling to take what comes, who is dependent on earthly objects to only that extent which is necessary for sustaining life, who is free from cupidity, who has driven off all grief, who has restrained his senses, who goes through all necessary acts, who is regardless of personal appearance and attire, whose senses are all collected (for devotion to the true objects of life), whose purposes are never left unaccomplished, who bears himself with equal friendliness towards all creatures, who regards a clod of earth and a lump of gold with an equal eye, who is equally disposd towards friend and foe, who is possessed of patience, who takes praise and blame equally, who is free from longing with respect to all objects of desire, who practises Brahmacharya (celibacy), and who is firm and steady in all his vows and observances, who has no malice or envy for any creature in the universe, is a Yogin who according to the Sankhya system succeeds in winning Emancipation."
"I am the Self seated in the hearts of all beings"
-Gita,Chapter 10, verse 20:
The soul is the very pivot of our existence. Either man is the body and has a soul or man is the soul and has a body. If man is the body and has a soul, then the materialist is right. Then glorification of the body is the goal of existence, and competition, violence, and hatred are the means to attain this goal. But if man is the soul and has a body, then religion is right. Then the body becomes a secondary thing, only a means to fulfil a spiritual end.

The Rishis of the Upanishads describe the different
courses followed by the unillumined souls after death.

After death the souls of the extremely wicked-
those who are given to violence, greed, lust, passion and cruelty - assume after death the subhuman bodies of animals and insects. They too, after the punishment is over, come back to earth to be incarnated as human beings. The experiences in a subhuman body cannot destroy the innate spiritual nature of the soul.

Those who have performed meritorious actions on earth, but with the selfish motive of reaping their results, pass after death through a succession of stations associated with gloom and darkness, and at last arrive at an inferior heaven called the 'plane of the moon' where they enjoy for many years material pleasures as a reward for their previous works. Afterwards they are reborn on earth and again take up the thread of their spiritual evolution. This is known as the 'way of the fathers.'

Then there is the 'way of the gods.' Those who devote themselves to worship and righteous activities but cannot attain to Self-Knowledge owing to certain defects, pass, after death, through a number of stations associated with light, and at last reach an exalted sphere called the plane of Brahma, corresponding to the highest heaven of the dualistic religions. The inhabitants of this plane are always aware of Cosmic Consciousness, but a thin obstacle stands in the way of their complete emancipation. After spending many years in meditation, they attain to emancipation at the end of the cycle, when the whole plane itself is absorbed in Brahman, or the God-head.

What Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi
wrote about a cow named Lakshmi

"Even as a calf Lakshmi behaved in an extraordinary way; she would daily come to me and place her head at my feet. Years later, on the day the foundation was laid for the goshala (cow shed), she was so jubilant that she came and took me for the function. Again on the day of graha pravesham (on completion, making formal entry to the cow shed), she came straight to me at the time appointed and took me to the goshala. In so many ways and on so many occasions, she behaved in such a sensible and extremely intelligent way that one cannot but regard her as an extraordinary cow. What are we to say about it?"

"The soul goes out of the body enveloped with subtle parts
of the elements with a view to obtaining a fresh body."
Brahma Sutra.III.i.i.

In a universe of oneness, death is impossible

Bell's Theorem suggests that conscious human activity influences the behaviour of subatomic particles in actual laboratory experiments.

The implication that human consciousness is a factor in determining the features of the 'real' world is affirmed by the quantum physicist H.S.Stapp. Stapp contends that Bell's Theorem is the most important result in the history of science, and that it demonstrates the effect of human consciousness at the level of Macrocosm. The impact of our consciousness lies both in the direction of the very small and the very large (microcosm and macrocosm).

The principle of oneness is revealed through Bell's Theorem and through the connectivity in the 'Biodance'. In essence it says that through the unbelievable richness of contact that every human has with the universe at large and with every other human being, our concept of death is wrong. In a universe of oneness, death is impossible. The richness of connectivity renders personal extinction impossible, because personal extinction is possible only in a universe of personal isolation. We do not live in such a universe.

The failure to feel the universal oneness that envelopes us all perpetuates the greatest illusion of modern man: the inevitability of personal extinction. This illusion can be countered by an appreciation of the quality of oneness in the universe so well described by modern science.

The usual tradition of equating death with an ensuing nothingness can be abandoned, for there is no reason to believe that human death severs the quality of oneness in the universe. If we participate in this universal quality before our death, our survival after death is demanded. The oneness principle endures and we endure with it.

The theorems of Godel and John.S.Bell do much to affirm the experiences of the great Rishis of the Upanishads.

Our greatest spiritual achievement may lie in total integration of the spiritual and the physical - in realising that the spiritual and the physical are not two aspects of ourselves but one. Perhaps the ultimate spiritual goal is to transcend nothing, but to realise the oneness of our own being, which is implied by Godel and Bell.

The view of ourselves as independent objects that are isolated from the universe we inhabit is erroneous. We cannot distance ourselves from the universe because of our oneness with it.

Existence

There was neither non-existence nor existence then.

There was neither the realm of space nor the sky which is beyond.

What stirred?
Where?
In whose protection?

                             Was there water, bottlemlessly deep?

There was neither death nor immortality then.
There was no distinguishing sign of night nor of day.
That One breathed, windless, by its own impulse.
Other than that there was nothing beyond.

Darkness was hidden by darkness in the beginning,
with no distinguishing sign, all this was water.
The life force that was covered with emptiness,
that One arose through the power of heat.

Desire came upon that One in the beginning,
that was the first seed of mind.
Poets seeking in their heart with wisdom
found the bond of existence and non-existence.

Their cord was extended across.
Was there below?
Was there above?
There were seed-placers, there were powers.
There was impulse beneath, there was giving forth above.

Who really knows?
Who will here proclaim it?
Whence was it produced?
Whence is this creation?
The gods came afterwards, with the creation of this universe.
Who then knows whence it has arisen?

Whence this creation has arisen
– perhaps it formed itself, or perhaps it did not –
the One who looks down on it,
in the highest heaven, only He knows
or perhaps He does not know.

VIJAYADASAMI

VIJAYADASAMI

The Great Goal And Its Attainment

tavàmçtasyandini pàdapaïkajenive÷itàtmà kathamanyadicchati

sthite.aravinde makarandanirbharemadhuvrato nekùurasaü hi vãkùate

TODAY is the glorious day of the celebration of the Mother’s Victory. It is a day of Vijaya, when all the gods rejoice and all mankind is in an exuberance of joy; for they have received the Supreme Assurance that so long as they turn to the Mother in their extremity and distress, there will be no lack of support and of strength. For, Mother is the champion of those in distress and those who seek refuge at Her divine feet. She is Strength Infinite, Maha-Shakti; and as such we have but to turn to Her and no more will weakness persist in us. The supreme victory over all the forces of darkness, ignorance and nescience is achieved and we shall be partakers together with the Mother of joy of Vijaya. Vijaya-Dasami is a supreme day of confidence, strength and courage for all seekers.

On this day all aspirants and those in quest of God have the greatest strength and courage for by the annihilation of all the forces that stand in the way of the fullest manifestation of divinity, Mother has thrown open the gateway as it were to the abode of Para Brahman. The worship of the Mother upon this supreme day is the worship of Maha-Maya in Her purest and absolute Vidya aspect. Till now, during the Navaratra, we worshipped the Mother in Her different aspects as She is manifest in this phenomenal world of human affairs. But when we come to Vijaya, we transcend the Mother in all Her external and Vidya-Avidya aspects and we gaze into Her face as the Pure Vidya-Maya, the Para-Shakti, to gaze at Whom is verily to gaze into the Infinite and the unfathomable depth of Para Brahman Himself.

For, we started at the very commencement of this worship by declaring that Mother is none else than the Para Brahman. The Supreme Being is Itself the Mother. Therefore, in Her Pure aspect as Vidya-Maya, She is Para Brahman Itself; and it is in Her radiant and all-glorious form of the Vidya, the radiance of Atma-Jnana, that we offer our salutations and adorations to the Mother upon this Supreme and blessed day of Vijaya Dasami.

On this day there no longer exists any element of the lower nature. There is no Asuric Sampat at all. There is no trace of demoniacal nature. All that is darkness has been completely annihilated. It has vanished. There reigns Mother and Mother alone in all Her supremacy. She is once again that mass of infinite consciousness. To invoke Her in this radiant, all vigorous aspect is to plunge ourselves in the supreme worship of the Transcendent Being. Thus, now, we start our worship and adoration of the Supreme Being, reaching which man has no more to go this round of painful birth and death. That is the abode of everlasting light from where there is no more return to sorrow. There is no more pain. Once for all we reach that supreme abode which is beyond all sorrow, all pain and all delusion. That is the supreme goal of the aspirant, the seeker, of all human beings, in fact, for this human birth has been given to us for that purpose of the highest attainment and for that purpose alone. All other pursuits are delusions and the one purpose of attaining the Supreme Being is the sole meaning, end and aim of this invaluable and precious human birth.

Guru: The Embodiment of Supreme Power

Upon this glorious day, let us take the opportunity of looking into one very great secret of the spiritual life. We have considered the Mother in Her threefold aspects of Durga, Lakshmi and Sarasvati, as She is manifest as different movements in this phenomenal existence, as different qualities in the aspirant and also as different forms of living and different phases of man’s life and activities. But all this has been more or less in an impersonal way. She is also manifest in a special and an occult form; and this occult form of Her is in the nature of a divine personality. The manifestation of the Mother as our divine preceptor is a rare secret that is revealed to the heart of the spiritual seeker only through the Grace of the Lord, of Mother Saraswati. This secret of the direct personal manifestation of the Mother in Her supreme aspect of Vidya-Maya and Vidya-Shakti is the Guru to the disciple. She is the Sat-Guru to the seeker. To a spiritual seeker, that spiritual being whom he has accepted as his spiritual preceptor and the Guru is in the completest sense the visible personal manifestation and embodiment of the Supreme Divine Mother. Upon this conception of the Divine Mother rests the entire foundation of the seeker’s spiritual life. Upon this rests the entire philosophy in Hindu culture. This is a unique conception the parallel to which cannot be found in any other culture upon the whole earth. This secret of seeing the Supreme Being as embodied and manifest in the visible personality of the Sat-Guru is at the very bottom of the success of the aspirant’s spiritual quest. Thus, to every circle of spiritual seekers that particular personality whom they have surrendered themselves to and whom they have accepted in the core of their hearts as their spiritual guide, is the Supreme Embodiment of Para-Shakti, he is Brahma, he is Vishnu, he is Maheshvara, he is Shakti, and he is the Akshara Para Brahman Himself. This is a truth which no aspirant who is earnest in his quest for the Eternal can afford to lose sight of or miss or forget even for a single moment of his spiritual life. For him the human aspect of the Guru’s personality should vanish; in its stead there should stand before him only the radiant embodiment of the Supreme Divine Power. This is an earnest reminder and a prayer to all aspirants and all seekers throughout the universe, be they of the East or of the West. This is a reminder also of the attitude which they should adopt towards their Sat-Guru, be they the followers of any spiritual personage whom they have accepted in the inmost core of their hearts as their spiritual Guru.

For, the degree and the measure by which we shall be fully aware of this special manifestation of the Mother in Her purest Vidya-Maya aspect in and through the living personality of the Guru, to that degree and in that measure will be the unfoldment of the divine knowledge in our consciousness; to that degree and measure will be the success of our spiritual realisations. Therefore it is that again and again the aspirant and the seeker who has surrendered himself at the feet of his Sat-Guru is reminded to worship the Guru-God; and the Slokas which all aspirants repeat every day embody this great secret and this highest truth:

Gurur Brahma Gurur Vishnu Gurur Devo Maheshvarah

Guruh Sakshat Param Brahma Tasmai Sri Gurave Namah.

Dhyanamulam Gurormurtih, Pujamulam Guroh-Padam

Mantramulam Gurorvakyam, Mokshamulam Guroh-Kripa.

Tvamhi Vishnur Virinchistvam Tvamcha Devo Mahesvarah

Tvameva Shakti-ruposi Nirgunastvam Sanatanah.

Guru is Brahma. Guru is Vishnu. Guru is Siva. Guru is the Supreme Brahman Itself. Prostration to that Guru.

The form of Guru is the root of meditation. The feet of Guru are the root of worship. The teaching of the Guru is the root of all Mantras. The Grace of Guru is the root of Salvation.

Thou art Vishnu. Thou art Brahma. Thou art the god Mahesvara. Thou alone art the form of Sakti. Thou art the attributeless Eternal.

What is the real form of Guru? What should we feel he is?

Yasyantar Nadi Madhyam Na-hi Kara-charanam Nama Gotram Na Sutram

No Jatir Naive Varno Na Bhavati Purusho No Napumsam Na Cha Stree

Nakaram No Vikaram Na-hi Jananamaranam Nasti Punyam Na Papam

No Tattvam Tattvamekam Sahajasamarasam Sat-Gurum Tam Namami.

In these glorious utterances we have a little of the great secret of this manifestation of Divine Vidya-Maya revealed to us.

The Quintessence of Great Scriptures

Upon this glorious day of Vijaya our worship of the Divine Mother in Her victorious Vidya-Maya aspect, this in reality constitutes the adoration of the Supreme Para-Brahman as manifest and embodied in and through the spiritual personality of the Sat-Guru. We have worshipped the Mother in various ways. Today we have specially tried to adore Her in the form of the written word, the lofty scriptures; the Vidyarambha with the reading of the Gita, the Brahma Sutras, the Bhagavata, the Ramayana, etc. Therefore, it will not be out of place to just mention in a few words what this approach to the Mother as the written word, as the scripture, She actually means to us. As I have tried to explain, Svadhyaya means a very special process to the aspirant. But it is also a practical way of life. The Svadhyaya is meant to mould our aspirations, our aims and ideals and our day-to-day living and actions also. Therefore, these scriptures—Gita, Brahma-Sutras, Bhagavata, Ramayana and the Mahabharata—contain a number of valuable lessons to us upon the spiritual path.

In a word, what is the great call of the Mother through the Bhagavad Gita? In the Bhagavad Gita, Mother has one supreme admonition and call, Tyaga. Gita means Tyaga; it is the scripture of the secret of renunciation. It says the one method of realising the Supreme is to renounce all that belongs to the phenomenal world—renounce your Kartritva-Abhimana, egoism, attachment—to feel the whole universe is the Virat-Svarupa and that all your actions are worship of the Virat. Anasakti and Tyaga are the supreme admonitions given in the Gita. In the Bhagavata we have the positive side. Renounce this phenomenal world; detach the mind from everything that belongs to this perishable world and have supreme love for the Lord. The one word which sums up the entire message of the Bhagavata is Love: love for the Lord. It is the radiant essence of pure Prem. It is Rati for the Lord. Gita teaches complete detachment; Bhagavata says: attach thyself to and whole-heartedly give thyself in complete oneness of love at the feet of Bhagavan.

The Mahabharata sums up the one ideal of sticking to Dharma. The Message of the Mahabharata is: even if life is to be sacrificed, do not deviate from the code of Dharma. Stick to Dharma even then. By Dharma one will be able to purify one’s heart and life.

In the Ramayana the practical ways in which Dharma manifests itself in all the spheres of man’s life are given. For, the Ramayana is a scripture which places before us concrete and practical living models of the ideal man of Dharma. It is a scripture which puts before us the moulds of the ideal husband, the ideal son, the ideal brother, the ideal wife, the ideal servant, the ideal seeker and the ideal king. The ideals of all these aspects of man’s life in their detailed aspects are given in the form of concrete models in the various divine personalities of the Ramayana. If a man wishes to cultivate Love of the Lord and to live a life of Dharma, how then is he to conduct himself in his various aspects? For this the Ramayana gives the pattern upon which he may mould himself so that he may live a life of Supreme Dharma.

In the Brahma Sutras we are given the ultimate reason for all these things. It shows the supreme goal for which man has come. It says: the one purpose of this life is to reach the imperishable, that which is eternal bliss and to this end all these things are the means. Through the means you reach that Supreme Abode, reaching which there is no more return into the world of pain and death; for, the ultimate conclusion of the Brahma Sutras is that once having reached the Para Brahman through Dharma, Tyaga, Bhakti, Na Punaravartate the Jiva returns no more. He is once for all established in the transcendent, infinite consciousness, immortal existence, the eternal bliss, and perennial peace.

This is the goal. Yadgatva Na Nivartante Tad Dhama Paramam Mama says the Lord in the Gita. Having reached that Abode, man does not return to this world.

It is of the nature of Supreme plenitude. Yo Vai Bhuma Tat Sukham. That Bhuma is the goal of man in this world.

Knowing which nothing else remains to be known. Yasmin Jnate Sarvamidam Vijnatam Bhavati.

Obtaining which there is no greater thing to be obtained. Yam Labdhva Chaparam Labham Manyate Nadhikam Tatah.

That is the glory, the supreme splendour of the transcendental state which we are all here to strive for, to attain and to enjoy eternally. Thus, they have given us the goal and the ideal. The goal is Self-realisation. The means are the Tyaga of the Gita, the Bhakti of the Bhagavata, the Dharma of the Bharata, and the ideal life of the Ramayana.

We have gone through these supreme scriptures, to bring to our minds in its most vivid and intense form the aim and goal of human life, the means of its attainment and the practical pattern of the spiritual aspirant’s life if he should attain the end through these means.

Prayer:

Upon this day of the Vijayadasami which culminates the nine-days worship of the Supreme Divine Mother, let us all pray to Her that She may illumine our hearts as Buddhi, as Smriti. Let us all pray to Her that as Smriti She may ever keep alive these great truths in our hearts so that we may base our entire lives, mould our entire lives and conduct our entire lives upon a vivid consciousness of these truths. For mysterious is Her power as Bhranti and Maya that even though we know these truths we hear of them again and again, and we try to remember them, yet somehow in the twinkling of an eye, She makes us forget them; She makes us be only aware of these external objects of the sensual world. We forget those great truths the moment Her veil is thrown over our consciousness. We become conscious only of things to indulge in and things that give us momentary pleasure and bind us to this external world of names and forms.

Therefore, we must pray again and again: “Mother, manifest to us as the Vidya-Maya. May my consciousness be illuminated by Thy Vidya-aspect.” As we have seen just now, while reading the Devi Sukta, She is everything—Nidra, Kshudha, Chaya, Trishna, Bhranti, etc.,—at the same time She is Buddhi, Daya, Matha. We should, therefore, fold our hands, bow at Her feet and pray: “Ha, Mother! Manifest Thyself to me in Thy illuminating aspect and save me from the aspect of Thy Avidya-Maya.” She will be propitiated; She will be pleased; and She will open Her radiant eyes upon us; She will smile upon us. Then all our delusion, all our sorrow, all darkness will come to an end; and we shall see Her as the Satchidananda Para Brahman.

These ten days we have tried to touch an infinitesimal fringe of the garment of the Mother. We have tried to see if we may understand a little atom of the Nature of the Mother. We may go on speaking for hours and hours through all eternity, yet we shall not be able to gain even a fraction of an idea of the unknowable nature of the Mother. All scriptures, all sages from eternity, have failed to express Her in Her entirety. Therefore, it will be presumptuous for us to think that through a few words, we have understood even a little fringe of the garment which the Mother has thrown over Herself and through which She hides Herself. What we have known is unto the grain of mustard; what remains unknown of the Mother is like the vast shores of the oceans. But, it is the love of the child that would make it approach the Mother and try to grasp Her hand and to know Her. Therefore, these ten days our attempt at trying to speak about the Mother has not been in the form of an endeavour to know Her—if She reveals Herself, then only can we hope to know—it is an attempt at a little flower-of-feting, a little worship at the feet of Divine Mother. Worship has been carried on during these nine days in is various ways. There has been music, songs, dance, decoration, Puja; and as one part of the worship, we have offered our adorations in the form of Her own aspect as Vak, which She Herself has given to us. We have tried to adore Her with words. And, upon this supreme day of Vijayadasami, we conclude this worship through words by offering at Her divine feet and praying to Her: “Mother, accept even this. Thou art love. Thou art compassion. Thou art illumination. Thou art release. Why to say all this? Suffice it to say: Mother, Thou art Mother. Therefore, as Mother, accept this humble offering of love at Thy Feet and may we all be blessed by Your Grace. Smile upon us, Mother; banish the darkness of Thy Avidya-Maya. Confer upon us all seekers at the Lotus Feet of this Divine Personality, our Gurudev, the radiance and illumination of Atma Jnana and the bliss of Satchidananda”.