20. Listen to Heart – Compassion for the Eternal Soul is Self-Realization…..

Hari Bol....

20. Listen to Heart – Compassion for the Eternal Soul is Self-Realization…..

We all as human beings have Compassion. We all are compassionate person. As human beings we have deep awareness of suffering of another and we wish you relieve him or her. We have a feeling of distress and pity for misfortune of another, accompanied by a desire to alleviate the suffering. It is an emotion that is a sense of shared suffering, most often combined with a desire to or reduce the suffering of another; to show special kindness to those who suffer. Compassion essentially arises through empathy, and is often characterized through actions, wherein a person acting with compassion will seek to aid those they feel compassionate for.

I would like to say that it is human quality of understanding the suffering of others and has a desire or wish or want to do something about it. It is a feeling of kindness and forgiveness. Today is a day when people are celebrating it as ‘Mothers’ Day’. I find everyone is celebrating it, in his or her own way. The word ‘Ma’ cannot be defined. She is the biggest strength and weakness of every child. I will not be wrong to say that every mother is compassionate about her children. She is full of compassion. She cares for us more than she cares for herself. She understands the suffering of her children even if she is not told and does everything possible for relieve. Mother is the best example for kindness and forgiveness. We all are children of our Lord. Can say that the Lord is the real Mother, Father, Brother, Sister, Friend… So let us all thank the Lord for his kindness and forgiveness.

Compassion is a quality which is positive in nature. If you are concerned about others for their support it gives positive energy. The vibration which will surround will be positive in nature. It will help us to listen to our heart. The soul would be pure. This is not easy. For this one has to be saintly in nature. Dalai Lama said, “If you want others to be happy, practice compassion.” But there are other benefits as well, and these are emotional and spiritual. The main benefit is that it helps you to be happy, and brings others around you to be happy. If we agree that it is a common aim of each of us to strive to be happy, then compassion is one of the main tools for achieving that happiness. It is therefore of utmost importance that we cultivate compassion in our lives.

It will bring immediate and long-term happiness to our lives. It is something that will bring true and lasting happiness. Should we develop compassion in life? Well, there are scientific studies that suggest that there are physical benefits to practicing compassion — people who practice it produce 100 percent more DHEA, which is a hormone that counteracts the aging process, and 23 percent less cortisol — the “stress hormone.” Meditate in the morning or in the day time or whenever one feels good but practice regularly. In this way, it becomes a part of our life. The key to developing compassion in our life is to make it a daily practice. Dalai Lama also said, “This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness.”

If a person who is saint and spiritual in nature has love, peace, self-control and compassion then we can understand that he or she is actually connected properly to his or her roots of tradition with values and cultures.

I was going through an article by Leo Babauta which I would like to share which will help us to cultivate Compassion in our life.

·        Morning Ritual: Greet each morning with a ritual. Try this one, suggest by the Dalai Lama: “Today I am fortunate to have woken up, I am alive, I have a precious human life, I am not going to waste it. I am going to use all my energies to develop myself, to expand my heart out to others, to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all beings, I am going to have kind thoughts towards others, I am not going to get angry or think badly about others, I am going to benefit others as much as I can.” Then, when you’ve done this, try one of the practices below.

·        Empathy Practice: The first step in cultivating compassion is to develop empathy for all human beings. Many of us believe that we have empathy, and on some level nearly all of us do. But many times we are centered on ourselves and we let our sense of empathy get rusty. Try this practice: Imagine that a loved one is suffering. Something terrible has happened to him or her. Now try to imagine the pain they are going through. Imagine the suffering in as much detail as possible. After doing this practice for a couple of weeks, you should try moving on to imagining the suffering of others you know, not just those who are close to you.

·        Commonalities Practice: Try to recognize the commonalities rather than of recognizing the differences between yourself and others.we are all human beings. We need food, and shelter, and love. We crave attention, and recognition, and affection, and above all, happiness. Reflect on these commonalities you have with every other human being, and ignore the differences. One of exercises comes from a great article from Ode Magazine — it’s a five-step exercise to try when you meet friends and strangers. Do it discreetly and try to do all the steps with the same person. With your attention geared to the other person, tell yourself:

1.     Step 1: “Just like me, this person is seeking happiness in his/her life.”

2.     Step 2: “Just like me, this person is trying to avoid suffering in his/her life.”

3.     Step 3: “Just like me, this person has known sadness, loneliness and despair.”

4.     Step 4: “Just like me, this person is seeking to fill his/her needs.”

5.     Step 5: “Just like me, this person is learning about life.”

We all will agree that if we have more of commonalities the frequency would be matched by mind, intellect and heart. We have heard the saying ‘birds of same feather folks together’.

·        Relief of Suffering Practice: Once you can empathize with another person, and understand his humanity and suffering, the next step is to want that person to be free from suffering. This is the heart of compassion — actually the definition of it. Try this exercise: Imagine the suffering of a human being you’ve met recently. Now imagine that you are the one going through that suffering. Reflect on how much you would like that suffer to end. Reflect on how happy you would be if another human being desired your suffering to end, and acted upon it. Open your heart to that human being and if you feel even a little that you’d want their suffering to end, reflect on that feeling. That’s the feeling that you want to develop. With constant practice, that feeling can be grown and nurtured.

·        Act of Kindness Practice: Now imagine again the suffering of someone you know or met recently. Imagine again that you are that person, and are going through that suffering. Now imagine that another human being would like your suffering to end — perhaps your mother or another loved one. What would you like for that person to do to end your suffering? Now reverse roles: you are the person who desires for the other person’s suffering to end. Imagine that you do something to help ease the suffering, or end it completely. Once you get good at this stage, practice doing something small each day to help end the suffering of others, even in a tiny way. Even a smile, or a kind word, or doing an errand or chore, or just talking about a problem with another person. Practice doing something kind to help ease the suffering of others. When you are good at this, find a way to make it a daily practice, and eventually a throughout-the-day practice.

·        Those Who Mistreat Us Practice: The final stage in these compassion practices is to not only want to ease the suffering of those we love and meet, but even those who mistreat us. When we encounter someone who mistreats us, instead of acting in anger, withdraw. Later, when you are calm and more detached, reflect on that person who mistreated you. Try to imagine the background of that person. Try to imagine what that person was taught as a child. Try to imagine the day or week that person was going through, and what kind of bad things had happened to that person. Try to imagine the mood and state of mind that person was in — the suffering that person must have been going through to mistreat you that way. And understand that their action was not about you, but about what they were going through. Now think some more about the suffering of that poor person, and see if you can imagine trying to stop the suffering of that person. And then reflect that if you mistreated someone, and they acted with kindness and compassion toward you, whether that would make you less likely to mistreat that person the next time, and more likely to be kind to that person. Once you have mastered this practice of reflection, try acting with compassion and understanding the next time a person treats you. Do it in little doses, until you are good at it. Practice makes perfect.

·        Evening Routine: I highly recommend that you take a few minutes before you go to bed to reflect upon your day. Think about the people you met and talked to, and how you treated each other. Think about your goal that you stated this morning, to act with compassion towards others. How well did you do? What could you do better? What did you learn from your experiences today? And if you have time, try one of the above practices and exercises.

These compassionate practices can be done anywhere, any time; at work, at home, on the road, while traveling, while at a store, while at the home of a friend or family member. By sandwiching your day with a morning and evening ritual, you can frame your day properly, in an attitude of trying to practice compassion and develop it within yourself. And with practice, you can begin to do it throughout the day, and throughout your lifetime.

This, above all, with bring happiness to your life and to those around you. As per Dalai Lama, “My message is the practice of compassion, love and kindness. These things are very useful in our daily life, and also for the whole of human society these practices can be very important.” Someone also said, “Give 1000 chances to your enemies to become your Friend but never give a single one to your Friend to become your Enemy”. Arjuna a man of Saintly in nature also wanted to give chances to his brothers (Kauravas) who were standing in the battlefield as his opponents to compromise and settle so that the battle can be avoided.

Arjuna refuges to fight the battle with Kuravas. He seeks refuge in Lord Krishna, imploring him to remove the intense grief that burns him within. Arjuna is in no condition to receive any advice. He is in mentally distraught condition. Arjuna considers Krishna not only as friend but also as a wise man and as guru. His mental state is not in condition for taking any help from Krishna. Krishna waits for Arjuna till his mental state is ready to take help and advice from Krishna as he is in deep compassion state with depression. Arjuna is in state of dejection. He is overwhelmed with emotions and forgot the role of a Kashtriya. Arjuna expresses his unwillingness to fight with his near and dear ones and he becomes silent. Thus he let his emotion burst out. Material compassion, lamentation and tears are all signs of ignorance of the real self. Compassion for the eternal soul is self-realization. Arjuna addresses Krishna as ‘Madusudana’. Lord Krishna killed the demon Madhu, and now Arjuna wanted Krishna to kill the demon of misunderstanding that had overtaken him in the discharge of his duty. No one knows where compassion should be applied. Compassion for the dress of a drowning man is senseless. One who does not know this and laments for the outward dress is called a Sudra, or one who laments unnecessarily. Arjuna was a Khashtiya, and this conduct was not expected from him. Lord Krishna, however, can dissipate the lamentation of the ignorant man and for this purpose the Bhagavad-Gita was sung by Him. It helps us in self-realization by an analytical study of the material body and the spirit soul, as explained by the supreme authority, Lord Krishna. This realization is possible when one works without attachment to fruitive results and is situated in the fixed conception of the real self.

All Glories to Lord Krishna & All His Loving Devotees….. Hari Bol……

Courtesy : Bhagavad-Gita As It Is (by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada ) ,  Srimad Bhagavad-Gita ( by A. Parthasarathy  & www.gitadaily.com ) Chapter 2 : Text 1 , www.google.com, Wikipedia

19. Listen to Heart – Selflessness is its own Reward….

Hari Bol...

19. Listen to Heart – Selflessness is its own Reward….

Motive should be Selfless. Motive should be Selfish. Both the sentences have everything in common except for one word. One has Selfless which indicates positive and other is Selfish which indicates negative. Selfless gives positive energy with positive vibrations and positive thoughts and positive action and selfish is negative energy with negative vibration and negative thoughts and negative action. Selfless motive is having, exhibiting, or motivated by no concern for oneself which can also be termed as unselfish motives. It is the quality of not putting yourself first but being willing to give your time or money or effort etc. for others. Acting with less concern for yourself than for the success of the joint activity.

As per Khalil Gibran, “Wisdom ceases to be wisdom when it becomes too proud to weep, too grave to laugh, and too selfish to seek other than itself.” Selfless actions and thoughts are not only possible, but give a real sense of satisfaction and abiding happiness. Selflessness means we act without thought for how we will profit or be rewarded. If we give help to others, but expect recognition or the favor to be returned, this is not a selfless action. True selflessness means we would do the action, even if it was never know to anyone else. Selflessness means we identify with others. Our service to others is not an act of condescending charity in helping others; our action is motivated by a feeling of oneness. We help others because we identify with their problems and their suffering. Selflessness is its own reward.

It helps to conquers pride. In a true selfless action we are not acting to feed our ego and receive the flattery of the world; we are not acting out of competition or desire to prove our self to others. Selflessness means we act out of a motivation to do the right thing and help others. By definition, selflessness cannot involve inflating our ego, it does exactly the opposite. Selfless helps us to expand our mind. When we act only out of selfish motives we bind and limit ourselves. Every action, we calculate how we might benefit; this attitude hinders the intuitive and spontaneous feelings of the heart. When we act through selfless motives we are helping to expand our sense of self and sense of identity. This enables us to get joy from the achievements of others; it enables us to get joy from serving others. This outlook on life is the best guard against jealousy, meanness and vanity. As per Sri Chinmoy, “Your mind’s selfishness, Is your all-exclusive individuality. Your heart’s selflessness, Is your all-inclusive universality”. True Friendship and love is not like a bartering service at an auction. If we wish to love in a selfless way it means we need to identify with others. This is very different love to the human love that demands and expects things in return. Real love and friendship must involve a forgetting of self and a willingness to put others first. Selflessness is Attractive. It is ironical that when we work for praise and outer recognition it proves fleeting and elusive. But, if we are really selfless, our sympathetic actions will definitely be appreciated by others. True selflessness is a quality that we instinctively appreciate in others.

While giving a thought on Motive it should be Selfless rather Selfish, the first name and picture which came to my mind was of our lovable Mother (who needs no introduction) – Mother Teresa. Clad in a white, blue-bordered sari, she along with her sisters of the Missionaries of Charity became a symbol of love, care and compassion for the world. Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, known the world over as Mother Teresa, was an Albanian-born Indian citizen who abided by her religious faith of Roman Catholicism to serve the unwanted, unloved and uncared people of the world. One of the greatest humanitarians of the 20th century, she led all her life serving the poorest of the poor. She was a ray of hope for many, including the aged, the destitute, the unemployed, the diseased, the terminally ill, and those abandoned by their families. Blessed with profound empathy, unwavering commitment and unshakable faith since young, she turned her back to the worldly pleasures and focused on serving the mankind ever since she was 18. After years of service as a teacher and mentor, Mother Teresa experienced a call within her religious call, which changed her course of life completely, making her what she is known as today. Founder of the Missionaries of Charity, with her fervent commitment and incredible organizational and managerial skills, she developed an international organization that aimed towards helping the impoverished. For her service to the humanity she was honored with Nobel Peace Prize in 1979.

Mother Teresa felt that her work with the poorest of poor was a directive from God. When she breaks her silence after hearing the Lord’s voice in regards to her ministry, we learn some key elements of her belief system. Her statement, “I am merely God’s pencil. It is He who writes,” is key to the humility that she exudes. Mother Teresa is not glorifying in her accomplishments, but giving full credit to the Lord. For all that Mother Teresa accomplished in her lifetime, she remained humble to the end.

I would like to spell few of her quotes,

·        We all are pencils in the hand of God.

·        Work without love is slavery.

·        Every time you smile on someone it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.

·        Never be so busy as not to think of others.

·        Love is a fruit in season at all times and within reach of every hand.

Arjuna due to his saintly and selfless nature and because he was overwhelmed with emotions he once again says to Krishna, “Alas, how strange it is that we are preparing to commit greatly sinful acts. Driven by the desire to enjoy royal happiness, we are intent on killing our own kinsmen”. Driven by selfish motives, one may be inclined to such sinful acts as the killing of one’s own brother, father or mother. There are many such instances in the history of the world. But Arjuna, being a saintly devotee of the Lord, is always conscious of moral principles and therefore takes care to avoid such activities. It is the custom—according to kshatriya fighting principles—that an unarmed and unwilling soldier should not be attacked. Arjuna, however, decided that even if attacked by the enemy in such an awkward position, he would not fight. While observing the situation of his enemy, Arjuna stood up on the chariot, but he was so afflicted with lamentation that he sat down again, setting aside his bow and arrows. Such a kind and soft-hearted person, in the devotional service of the Lord, is fit to receive self-knowledge.

All Glories to Lord Krishna & All His Loving Devotees….. Hari Bol……

Courtesy : Bhagavad-Gita As It Is (by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada ) ,  Srimad Bhagavad-Gita ( by A. Parthasarathy  & www.gitadaily.com ) www.google.com Chapter 1 : Text 45 – 47

18. Listen to Heart – Sow No Seed Rather Sow Bad Seed…

Hari Bol....

18. Listen to Heart – Sow No Seed Rather Sow Bad Seed…

In the evening I was in the garden which was full. I would find some having brisk walking, some were walking casually, some sitting and chatting, children were running around and playing. There was a good breeze and few drops of rain also started. Slowly I observed that only few of us were left. I went and sat on a bench under a tree. I could observe garden was full of flowers. I was thanking God for this. It realized I should also be thankful to gardeners also. The gardener gives all the inputs to the plants and makes the root strong so we are able to get good flowers and fruits.

In the similar way the roots of the family also needs to be strong. When I say strong I don’t mean financially strong. According to me financial aspect is the last. I mean strong by traditions with core values. The core values can be achieved from parents, elders, teachers and complete society. If the core values are not pumped in well it will result into a bad person which will result to bad society in the similar way if the plants are not fed properly it will not give good fruits. Our human body system also works on the same principle. Heart pumps the pure blood which is purified by kidneys. The way functioning of heart is important in same way society is important is which full of values and tradition.

I was going through an article about Phoolan Devi who was known as Bandit Queen. I would like to share some portion of the article so we can understand the way family is destroyed with it culture which further leads to all negatives when Adharma (Impiety) starts clouding the society. Had the principle of Dharma been followed by Phoolan’s uncle she would have been a good citizen with so much of will power. This is a case how society with negative vibrations produces so many other negative forces as Phoolan Devi.

Phoolan was born into the mallah (boatmen) caste, in the small village of Ghura Ka Purwa (also spelled Gorha ka Purwa) in Jalaun District, Uttar Pradesh. She was the fourth child of Devi Din and Moola. Phoolan's father owned an acre (0.4 hectare) of land with a huge Neem tree on it. He hoped that the valuable timber of the tree would enable him to pay the dowry for his daughters' marriages. Phoolan was eleven years old, her grandparents passed away within a short time and her uncle declared himself the head of the family. He took over the inheritance by deceit, leaving Phoolan's family to remain in poverty. Her Uncle had a son, Mayadin. He cut down the Neem tree and sold the wood, intending to keep the proceeds for himself. Although her father submitted with mild protest, Phoolan confronted her cousin. She taunted him, publicly called him a thief and attacked him. With her elder sister, she staged a sit-in on his land. Even after violence against Phoolan - knocking her out with a brick — she wouldn't relent. In an effort to rid himself of Phoolan, Mayadin arranged to have her married to a man named Putti Lal, who lived several hundred miles away. Putti Lal was in his thirties; Phoolan was eleven. Devi claimed in her autobiography that he was a man of "very bad character". Phoolan's husband raped and mistreated her, which was agonising for her to endure, particularly due to her age and isolation. She ran away several times, and would be returned to her husband for severe punishment. She was returned to her village, being deemed too young to fulfill her duties as a wife. Three years later in 1977, she was returned back to Putti Lal's home. She protested, and was returned back to her father's home. A wife leaving her husband was a serious taboo in the rural areas, and Phoolan was marked as a social outcast. Phoolan continued to challenge her cousin Mayadin, accusing him of thievery. She took him to court for unlawfully holding her father's land, but lost the case. In 1979, Mayadin accused Phoolan of stealing small items from his house, and arranged for her arrest by the police. During the three days in jail, she was beaten and raped by the authorities. She blamed her cousin for the injustice, and developed hatred for men who routinely denigrated women. When released from prison, she was further shunned by her village and her family. When she was about 15, Phoolan was gang raped in her home by village leaders (with her parents watching), and soon after, the police at the Kalpi Jail did the same thing to humiliate her and silence her. This, however, was not enough to shut her up or cool down her anger, so, finally, the leaders of the village hired a bandit gang to kidnap her and permanently remove her from the village and district. Justice was elusive and she felt hurt by her helplessness.

Sometime later, Shri Ram and Lala Ram, two upper-caste brothers belonging to the Thakur caste who had previously belonged to the gang and had quit to return to their families, rejoined the gang. They were outraged to hear of the murder of Babu Gujjar, their former leader, and held Phoolan responsible for inciting the act. They berated her for being a divisive wanton, and she answered them back with her characteristic foulness of tongue. Shri Ram then held her by the cuff of the neck and slapped her hard, and a scuffle ensued. Phoolan seized this opportunity to allege that Shri Ram had touched her body parts and molested her during the scuffle. As leader of the gang, Vikram Mallah berated Shri Ram for attacking a woman and made him apologise to Phoolan. Shri Ram and his brother smarted under the humiliation, exacerbated by the fact that Phoolan and Vikram both belonged to the Mallah caste of boatmen, vastly lower than the land-owning Thakur caste to which they themselves belonged. After this incident, whenever the gang ransacked a village, Shri Ram and Lala Ram would make it a point to beat and insult the Mallahs of that village. This displeased the Mallah members of the bandit gang, many of whom left the gang. On the other hand, around a dozen Thakurs joined the gang at the invitation of Shri Ram and Lala Ram, and the balance of power shifted gradually to the Thakurs. Vikram Mallah then suggested the gang be divided into two, one mainly of Thakurs and the other mainly of Mallahs. Shri Ram refused this suggestion on the grounds that the gang had been composed of a mixture of castes during the days of Babu Gujjar and his predecessors and it should remain that way. Meanwhile, the other Mallahs were also not happy with Vikram. The fact that he alone had a woman living with him incited jealousy; some of the other Mallahs had bonds of kinship with Vikram's actual wife; and Phoolan's tongue did not endear her to anyone who interacted with her. A few days after the proposal for division had been floated; a quarrel ensued between Shri Ram and Vikram. Apparently, Shri Ram made a disdaining comment about Phoolan's morals, and Vikram responded with comments about Shri Ram's womenfolk. A gunfight ensued and the result was that Vikram and Phoolan, with not a single supporter, had to make their escape in the dark. However, they were tracked down in daylight by the other gangsters and Vikram was shot dead. Phoolan was taken to the Thakur-dominated village of Behmai, home to Shri Ram, Lala Ram and several of the new Thakur recruits.

Phoolan was locked up in a room in one of the houses in Behmai. She was beaten and raped by several men over a period of three weeks. She then managed to escape, after three weeks of captivity, with the help of a low-caste villager of Behmai and two Mallah members from Vikram's gang, including Man Singh Mallah. Phoolan and Man Singh soon became lovers and joint leaders of a gang composed solely of Mallahs. The gang carried out a series of violent robberies across Bundelkhand, usually (but not always) targeting upper-caste people. Some say that Phoolan Devi targeted only the upper-caste people and shared the loot with the lower-caste people, but the Indian authorities insist this is a myth; there is no evidence whatsoever of Phoolan or any of her partners sharing money with anyone.

Seventeen months after her escape from Behmai, Phoolan returned to the village to seek revenge. On the evening of 14 February 1981, Phoolan and her gang marched into Behmai dressed as police officers, at a time when a wedding was in progress in the village. Phoolan demanded that her tormentors be produced, along with all the valuables in the village. However, most of the able-bodied men had gone to the city in search of manual work, and even after an exhaustive search, only two Thakur members of the former gang of bandits were found. These two men were not among those who had gang-raped Phoolan; they were merely Thakur members of the gang's Shri Ram faction that was opposed to Vikram Mallah.

Phoolan is said to have been frustrated that no actual culprit had been apprehended. Nevertheless, she had by this time developed a deep hatred for the entire caste of Thakurs, a few of whose members had protested the killing of Babu Gujjar, then challenged the leadership of his murderer Vikram Mallah. Phoolan therefore ordered her gang members to line up each and every man belonging to the Thakur caste that they could lay their hands on in Behmai village. This included Thakurs who belonged to other villages and towns and who had come to attend the wedding in the village. The Thakur men were lined up and then, at Phoolan's order, they were shot dead by Phoolan's Mallah gang members. Twenty-two Thakur men were executed. Later, Phoolan would try to absolve herself in court by claiming that she herself had not opened fire or killed a single person.

The Behmai massacre provoked outrage across the country. A massive police manhunt was launched which however failed to locate Phoolan Devi. It began to be said that the manhunt was not successful because Phoolan had the support of poor people in the region; stories on the Robin Hood model began circulating in the media. Phoolan began to be called the Bandit Queen, and she was glorified by a segment of the Indian media as an intrepid and undaunted woman, the underdog struggling to survive in the world. The very flaws in her character and personality were interpreted as being manifestations of the suffering she had supposedly undergone. None of these stories had much basis in fact and not a single confirmed instance has ever come to light where Phoolan gave money to anyone in charity.

Arjuna talks to Krishna about the consequences of destroying the family. With loss of family immemorial religious rites will perish, spirituality will be lost and impiety will overcome the entire family which would bring corruption in women and intermixture of castes. Arjuna tells O Janardana, that men who have lost their family religious rites dwell in hell for an indefinite period. Arjuna manifests further emotions. His belief in indefinite suffering in hell indicates fear of punishment. The multifold emotions – attachment, desire, anger, revenge, fear – have overwhelmed his intellect, leaving him in confusion. Arjuna forgot that Pandavas conceived the war only to eliminate the evil of the society and revive the spiritual values. Krishna himself showed the power of example when despite being the most powerful warrior in the world he went to the Kauravas as a humble peace envoy. His example of humility coupled with his sound reasoning influenced many of the Kuru leaders, but not Duryodhana. Some people like Duryodhana are totally blinded by their greed for power. Such people if they gain power can become monstrous misleaders who can harm millions. To prevent such a calamity, they need to be taught in the only language they understand: the example of power. They can be silenced and subdued only by a display of power greater than theirs, as happened at Kurukshetra after Krishna spoke the Gita.

All Glories to Lord Krishna & All His Loving Devotees….. Hari Bol……

Courtesy : Bhagavad-Gita As It Is (by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada ) ,  Srimad Bhagavad-Gita ( by A. Parthasarathy  & www.gitadaily.com ) Chapter 1 : Text 41- 44

17. Listen to Heart – Be Rich by Enriching Tradition….

Hari Bol....

17. Listen to Heart – Be Rich by Enriching Tradition….

India is a country which has various culture and religion. Every culture and every religion has its own values and tradition. We as Indians respect the values and tradition of all culture and religion. We all know that all culture and tradition leads to the same destination of attaining and practicing humanity and thus asks us to move towards keeping our Soul pure.

We as Indians are looked upon as Human beings with Humanity. Indians are supposed to be mild, soft calm without any harshness in our principles and ideals. We have tolerance and believe in ahimsa. All our great leaders struggled hard to get Independence and freedom was achieved without taking a drop of blood. We all stand together with unity. India has a fusion of old traditional values with modern principle which satisfy all the three generations in present India. India is a secular country having freedom of worship without any violation of any other religious beliefs. This is one of the reasons we have festivals throughout the year which we all enjoy and celebrate together. The Indian Social System is mostly based on the Joint family System, but for some of the recently cropped nuclear families. The families are closely knit with Grandfathers, fathers, sons and grandsons sharing the same spirit, tradition and property. India’s population has descended from a variety of races. The oldest ones are the Negroid aboriginals called the Adivasis or First settlers. Then there are the Dravidians, The Aryans, the Mongols, The Semites and innumerable inter-mixtures of one with the other. The great Epic, The Mahabharata and the sacred text, the Bhagavad-Gita teaches the Indians that survival can only be in terms of quality of life. It provides a framework of values to make the Indian culture well- groomed.

I was going through an article on ‘The Indian Traditional Values and their Indications for Education in India in the Modern Age of Science & Technology’ by D.D. Vadekar. I would like to share some of its aspect. The Indian traditions and values, has already and long been with us and that it is the other side moderns science and technology, which has come in for that confrontation with it, though it has been with us for a century and more and has already been having its significant impact on the first. The Indian tradition and values, which we are in search of, in present context of our efforts to determine our educational goals and values to suit the requirements of our contemporary life in a scientific and technological world, need not to be transcendentally philosophical or religious ones. Both are speculative and intuitive essays of human spirit, which at their highest level, ultimately and in the last resort, impinge upon the transcendental and the cosmic. The traditional Indian values corresponds to; Intellectual – Speculative, Social – Cultural and Moral Spiritual.

I personally belong to a very simple middle class farmer’s family. I have stayed for few years in my village ‘Muraura’ which is in old and great Nalanda District in Bihar. You must be aware of Nalanda University about which we all have studied during our school days. I am lucky to be part of that historical place. Courtesy to my parents’ vision that they shifted me in Scindia School, Gwalior for my studies and my sisters were also put in Scindia Kanya Vidyalaya, Gwalior. My parents ensured that we spent our vacations in the village itself so that we are enriched with our traditional – family culture, core values and be spirituals by heart which is must for any human beings. I would once again like to quote my grandfather’s view,” You have come as human beings in this world and the foremost aim should be to attain and practice humanity. The professional degrees will automatically fall in line”. I have a friend who has also passed out from a reputed Public school and spent his life in hostel. Coincidentally we have an English teacher as common. He has taught in both the institutions. We planned to meet him who has settle down in a city close by where we are. We wanted to give him a surprise so we reached to his place one day without any call. We rang the bell. The door was opened by his wife – our respected madam (what we use to call her in school). We introduced ourselves and were in the hall where are great Guru was sitting and reading some books. I touched the feet of madam and sir. Sir shook hands with me and asked me to relax. Similarly my friend also paid equal respect to both of them by saying hello and then bowed down to take their blessings. They both welcomed us as their child and took us into their arms. We were full of emotions. We were overwhelmed with emotions. Our eyes were full of tears. In fact we had to wipe our tears. The tears were of happiness and love and respect. We started chatting and gossiping and was refreshing our old memories. My friend asked, “Sir you have taught in Scindia and in my school. Could you be fair enough to say the difference between both institutions?” He jokingly continued, “My school is better”. Sir replied, “I will try to be honest as you both are grown up and matured. Both schools have their own core values which has made both competing each other. Both have their own educational system which is equivalent”. We both were looking each other and were in the process of thinking that, “Is it a wrong question in a wrong time.” Sir continued, “I will now give you an example. He said about me that when I entered the hall I first touched his feet and then said hello and about my friend, he said hello and then bowed. This is the difference between both the schools. Scindians are grown up with Indian culture and trained of modern techniques to move in the society where as in other school; students are grown with modern culture and trained of Indian culture”.

By putting us in hostel at Scindia and making we stay in the village our parents ensured that the culture was well transferred from their generation to ours and ensuring that their children were well prepared to move in the modern society also. By this I would once again like to take this opportunity to thank my parents and the Lord. We are grateful to you.

The survival and destruction of a community depends upon the core values and traditions which cherished by passing on to the next generations. A family which grows with roots rises up and blossom and the family which loses its core values will be destroyed. Arjuna argues with Krishna that if fights the battle, adharma (impiety) will prevail in the community once the family is destroyed. He says that family’s destruction will take place not only physically but also ethically with its religious values. But he had forgotten that at the time of Mahabharatha war the community had already plunged to its lowest level of morality. The values had been lost. The practicing of humanity had degraded. The Kauravas had brought on this downfall of the community. The Pandavas were trying to restore with help of Krishna. But their efforts had failed. The only recourse was to destroy the evil forces with negative energy and vibration. The war was inevitable. So Arjun’s fallacy in maintaining that destruction of families will bring about adharama (impiety). Only through the destruction of those unrighteous families could be restored.

All Glories to Lord Krishna & All His Loving Devotees….. Hari Bol……

Courtesy : Bhagavad-Gita As It Is (by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada ) ,  Srimad Bhagavad-Gita ( by A. Parthasarathy  & www.gitadaily.com ) Chapter 1 : Text 40

16. Listen to Heart – Do not Let Emotion Overwhelm ….

Hari Bol....

16. Listen to Heart – Do not Let Emotion Overwhelm ….

We all are tied up to each other with emotions. It is very important part of life. All relationship is based on emotions. It is because of emotions a feeling arises for each other. Now a days different emotion symbols are used to express our feeling. This has been discussed in one of the previous article, ‘Listen to Heart - De-Cloud the Cloud of Emotion…’

We have seen that Over Confidence leads to lack of Confidence similarly emotion is good and necessary but if this emotion is overwhelmed it paralyses a person. Everyone experiences this in his lifetime. It empowers a persons’ ability to act and think rightfully at the right time and thus one is not able to reach his desired goal. It may be caused due to stress which people face in todays at work and home. It even may lead to health problem. Generally one finds overwhelmed by emotions because of difficult circumstances in life which one did not wish for.

I was going through an article on unconditional love which I would just like to share. To love and be loved in return is a wonderful state. Reciprocal love is yearned for, dreamed about, craved and cherished when achieved. The ultimate form of love is unconditional love, where the loved one is fully accepted and valued without any preconditions, need to be changed or judgments. Receiving the greatest human gift possible overwhelm some well-loved individuals. Mostly all of us have experienced the unconditional love during our childhood by our parents and all near and dear ones. Nothing was expected of them as they were cherished for ‘just being’. As per Christopher Peterson and Martin Seligman state, “Love represents a cognitive, behavioral, and emotional stance toward others that takes three prototypical forms. One is love for the individuals who are our primary sources of affection, protection, and care … The prototype of this form is a child’s love for a parent. Another form is love for the individuals who depend on us to make them feel safe and cared for … The prototype of this form is a parent’s love for a child. The third form is love that involves passionate desire for sexual, physical, and emotional closeness with an individual whom we consider special and who makes us feel special. The prototype is romantic love.” As desired as being loved is, many people become overwhelmed and fearful when they sense their lover’s awe includes viewing them as “perfect”. The best level of unconditional love is the Love by the Lord and by our parents for all of us. When the doctor enters the operation theater he has unconditional love for the patient. By the emotion of love one is overwhelmed.

In our lives, we often focus on the physical and intellectual development, but how many of us are trying to get a complete emotional control. By understanding the emotional system one can try to control the overwhelming emotions. This may lead to a special awakening and perpetual peace of mind. As per another article overwhelming emotions can be dealt in following ways;

·        Recognize that an overwhelming emotion is already engulfing you. It controls your thought and actions. This phase is equal to undergoing a spiritual awakening or waking from a long sleep,

·        Accepting the situation if one has understood that emotion has overwhelmed else it would lead to frustration and would demoralize.

·        Observe the situation once you have recognized and accepted it. Nurture the feeling of inner peace. The observation can be difficult at first, but like many things in life, you’ll get better with time. Create an emotional buffer and don’t attach yourself to any emotion, thought and concerns of possible outcomes.

·        Release the emotions peacefully by accepting it for a while. Convince yourself that the emotion is no longer a part of your mind. You’ll know when it has gone, because you don’t feel the internal pull and experience a noticeable inner calm.

Depending on how well you accept the emotion, how neutral you can observe the emotion and how intense your emotion is, you can start to control your overwhelming emotion for between 30 to 45 minutes. It may not be easy for some people, but you’ll get better the more you practice it. Be positive, both on your mind and your body.

I know a family which is full of doctors. All of them are leading ones in their field. There is a huge line of the patients waiting outside the Nursing for their chance to come. Some get appointment after days and weeks. People still wait for their turn and considers it as an opportunity. This family has third generations of doctors. My friend’s grandmother had to be operated for Cataract. The whole family started discussing about various doctors who could be consulted for the operation.  Finally they decided the doctor and the date were confirmed. Grandma was ready early on that particular day. She was not nervous but excited. All of them moved to the hospital ‘Healthcare’ which was run by them. The Dr. Gupta who had agreed to operate had also agreed to perform the operation in their hospital itself i.e. Healthcare. Dr. Gupta had also reached. All the staffs were more alert as Grandma was the patient. They were meeting her to keep her motivated. In return they all were discussing about her excitement. They had never seen her so excited neither they had seen any patient so excited. Finally Grandma was moved to the operation theater (OT). She called her eldest son Dr. Bharat who was the leading Eye surgeon. She asked, “Everything fine”. In reply he said, “You do not worry, I would be there during the operation”. She asked, “What do you mean by saying that you would be there?” Dr. Bharat said, “Dr. Gupta would be leading the operation but I would be there in the OT”. Grandma replied, “Beta you are not getting me operated by the top most eye surgeon. I have all respect and love for Dr. Gupta because he is also like my son to me and he equally qualified but he is not at the top. I want the leading doctor to operate. I have taken so much pain and did sacrifice to make you a doctor. I am happy today that are at the top and I want you to operate.” Dr. Bharat said, “No son operates his mother, in fact not even any of their relatives”. His mother replied,” I am not asking you operate your mother but I as a patient is requesting a leading doctor to operate me. Please doctor I beg you to operate”. This discussion went on and on. Finally the operation date was postponed and it took place after two days by Dr. Bharat. His mother thanked Dr. Bharat as a patient for accepting her request. She said, “Today I am satisfied that I suggested you to be a doctor and today was your real test as doctor when you operated your mother as patient. Do not allow the emotion to overwhelm you else you will not be able to perform your duty as a doctor i.e. Karma, because every patient is as important as your family member and even your family member should be treated as a patient by you in Healthcare. This was also my duty to prepare you for such a situation. I feel satisfied as mother by doing this karma also. Remember sometimes one has to be cruel to be kind for his duty. “

Emotion had overwhelmed Arjuna. He tells Krishna that he does not find any good in fighting the battle with Kauravas. He says that Kauravas have become blind in their greed to acquire kingdom, wealth and power and so they cannot see the effects of the battle. He says that if Kauravas cannot see the effect, at least he himself can see the effect of the battle. Arjuna sees evil in the destruction of family and so he wants to be away from this sin. Well knowing the effect of the battle he tells Krishna that he wants to withdraw from the battle and was ready to refuse the challenges of Duryoudhana. Obligation is actually binding when the effect is good, but when the effect is otherwise, then no one can be bound. Considering all these pros and cons, Arjuna decided not to fight and forgot the karma of a Khashtriya. This was his narrow vision of life. Generally an ignorant people are very adamant about his opinion. At this moment of war which was just to explode, Arjuna’s proposal of turning down the challenges by Duryoudhana was escapism. No leader or warrior can run away from the responsibilities. This would amount to cowardice. It was all due to emotions which had overwhelmed Arjuna.

All Glories to Lord Krishna & All His Loving Devotees….. Hari Bol……

Courtesy : Bhagavad-Gita As It Is (by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada ) ,  Srimad Bhagavad-Gita ( by A. Parthasarathy  & www.gitadaily.com ) Chapter 1 : Text 38 & 39

15. Listen to Heart – Tasmat is always therefore but therefore is not always therefore…..

Hari Bol...

15. Listen to Heart – Tasmat is always therefore but therefore is not always therefore…..

‘Therefore’ is word which we use in our daily life. You must be wondering why I am talking about a simple word ‘Therefore’. Simple is always great and simple is always complex and tough. We need to understand anything and everything in life in a simple manner, which is the most difficult task. It is said ‘Simple is not Simple, Simple is Complex’. Simplicity is attained by practicing simplicity in a simple way with pure soul.

I was going through few articles to understand this great word ‘therefore’. It is used for, that reason or cause; consequently or hence as verb. It is a sentence connector. It is used to mark an inference on the part of the speaker. ‘Those people have their umbrellas up: therefore, it must be raining’. It means consequently; i.e. as a result ‘they heard the warning on television of tsunami and therefore they went home’.  It is used to introduce a logical conclusion. Therefore is used as a way of showing how a sentence or clause is related to what has already been said. The new school bag is lighter and softer and therefore more comfortable to carry. I have support of the people; I have therefore decided to nominate myself for the post. It is a word which is used in all languages, English, Hindi, Marathi, Bhojpuri, Maghai, Tamil and so on. ‘Therefore’ is such an important word that; even a symbol has been dedicated to this word (∴ ). Anyway I am not an expert to talk to you on this great word; I was just trying to understand myself and put my thoughts. It is up to you great personalities to decide on. My purpose was just to pass on to all that therefore is important word in life so; “Therefore is not always therefore” unless used in right context.

Now let us try to understand from Srimad Bhagavad Gita.  ‘Tasmat’ means ‘Therefore’. It tells us about the conclusion by various series of pertinent facts and logical arguments made by Arjuna. He concluded that he should not kill his own kinsmen. It would be wrong to kill them and take the sin. He was trying to give reasons. But his reason had no depth and direction as he was full of emotions. He was not in a position and in right frame of mind to conclude this thought. He arrived at wrong conclusion as he was overwhelmed by emotions. The word ‘Tasmat’ does not fit in this context. Krishna uses this word ‘Tasmat’ throughout Gita while drawing conclusions. Krishna always uses this word with logic and clear reasons. He teaches very scientifically and systematically. Krishna logical presentation and conclusion provide a striking contrast to Arjuna’s.

It is difficult to make someone understand if he thinks that he knows everything and there is nothing for him to learn. I had put my views that unlearning is a part of learning process in the article ‘Listen to Heart - Learning by Unlearning has No Bar …..’ Generally we all ignorant people with poor knowledge and poor reasoning come to erroneous conclusion. We generally divert from the main issue. A Kshatriya’s duty is to fight in the battle. Questioning the battle on the battlefield  is not the role and responsibility of a Kshatriya. Arjuna could not have got a better opportunity to perform his duty. He rather than focusing on the duty of his in the battlefield, he started thinking about the consequences of the battle because of his emotions. We all face this situation in our life. Therefore (Tasmat) we should perform our Karma with mind and heart.

All Glories to Lord Krishna & All His Loving Devotees….. Hari Bol……

Courtesy : Bhagavad-Gita As It Is (by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada ) ,  Srimad Bhagavad-Gita ( by A. Parthasarathy  & www.gitadaily.com ) Chapter 1 : Text 37

14. Listen to Heart – Thin Line is thicker than ….

Hari Bol....

14. Listen to Heart – Thin Line is thicker than …. 

Right from our childhood we are trying to read and learn Line. If you ask any child he will say when we connect two or more than two dots it forms a line. He may have thick line, thin line, dotted line, center line, outside line, inside line, cross line, any colorful line and so on and on. During school days we were asked to walk in straight line and not in a curved lines or zigzag line. So we were asked to stand in queue. Even a symbol is designated to it as ‘Q’, which is not straight but it means a straight line. This is even applicable in our day to day life. In Hindi it is called ‘Rekha’. As a student I also learnt the same. While studying B.E., I learnt the importance of center line. It was important because there is a dimension to which it is drawn. If the dimension ratio is not to the specification we were not awarded any marks for it. Even in professional life, line is used for designing and drawing.

Here is this phrase, ‘there is a fine line between love and hate’.
My understanding and the standard definition of "fine line" is that "they are so similar that one can easily become the other." If there is a fine line between one thing and another, they are very similar although the second thing is bad. Based on this definition, I understood "a fine line" is different from a "thin line" and that people don't say "there is a thin line between, say, love and hate and there's a thin line between courage and foolishness”. People use this thin line for emotions, relationship, responsibilities, roles, etc.

I was going through an article about Lakshman Rekha (Line) about an incidence from our great Hindu Epic ‘Ramayana’ which I would like to share with you all. Lakshman Rekha (Sanskrit: लक्ष्मण रेखा), in some later versions of Ramayana, is a line drawn by Lakshmana around the dwelling he shares with his brother Rama and Rama's wife Sita at Panchavati in the forest of Dandakaranya which now part of the city of Nashik in Maharashtra. The line is meant to protect Sita, while he is away searching for Rama. Mandodari rebukes Ravana on his boisterous claims of valour by hinting that his claim of strength and valour is shallow for he could not even cross a small line drawn by Shri Rama's younger brother Lakshmana. In the story, Rama goes chasing a golden deer (which actually is the Rakshasa Maricha in disguise), and does not return for a long time. When Sita forces Lakshmana to leave in search of his brother, Lakshmana who cannot bear to see Sita cry in grief, reluctantly decides to go and search for Rama, subject to his condition that Sita not cross the protective line he draws. Anybody other than Rama, Sita and himself attempting to cross the line would be signed by flames erupting from the line. Once Lakshmana leaves in search of Rama, the Rakshasa king Ravana comes in the form of a mendicant and asks Sita for alms. Not expecting a trick, she unsuspectingly crosses the Lakshman Rekha to provide alms to him and Ravana kidnaps her in his Pushpaka Vimana. Radhey Shyam Ramayan mentions that the crossing of Lakshaman Rekha by Sita was done absent-mindedly by an anxious Sita only to honor the great Indian tradition of "अतिथि देवो भवः" (Atithi Devo Bhava): the guest is embodiment of a Deva (divine entity). Sita crosses the boundary line only to give alms to Ravana once he insists that alms cannot be accepted across a barrier as having a boundary in between was against the principle of free will of the donor. Lakshman Rekha.

In modern Indian society it refers to a strict convention or a rule, never to be broken. It often refers to the ethical limits of an action, traversing which may lead to undesirable consequences. In Indian tradition it is still believed that women are supposed to take care of the family members – father, mother, father in law, mother in law, children, husband and all related to the family. She is known as “Home maker and not a House wife”. Men are supposed to take care of all the activities outside the house. He is supposed to earn and feed the family members. As a rule; dress codes and timings were defined. If one deviates, he or she had to take permission from the head of the family. But in today’s modern world it is diminishing. This could be one of the reasons for various unfortunate happening taking place in the society. This is the reason it is said, “We should build a Home and not a House”.

Arjuna was also confused when he refused to Krishna for fighting the battle of Mahabharatha. The battle was to start when he surrendered to Krishna. He saw all opponent soldiers as his relatives on the battlefield. He started thinking about the consequences of the battle and he did not want take sin. He was confused between his role of dharma i.e. Kula Dharma and Kashtriya Dharma. The imminent fratricidal war set one piece of his life, his professional duty (kshatriya-dharma), for a head-on collision with another piece, his dynastic duty (kula-dharma). As a warrior, he had to protect law and order by punishing wrongdoers, whereas as a member of the respectable Kuru dynasty, he had to protect his relatives. What to do when the wrongdoers were his relatives? The conflict tore at his heart, threatening to throw the pieces of his life far apart. He forgot that he had already reached the battlefield and the battle was to start so he was there in the role of a soldier as Kashtriya. If he wanted to follow the Kula Dharma, he should have not accepted the challenges of Duryodhana. In despair, he turned to Krishna for help as he was not able to listen to his heart.

I am not competent enough to say anything more. I would leave up to you all intelligent to decide if so called thin line is thin or thin line is thicker than thick line.

All Glories to Lord Krishna & All His Loving Devotees….. Hari Bol……

Courtesy : Ramayana, Bhagavad-Gita As It Is (by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada ) ,  Srimad Bhagavad-Gita ( by A. Parthasarathy  & www.gitadaily.com ) Chapter 1 : Text 36