Newsletter Archive

Facing Vritrasura – The Greatest Adventure of Indra

"Even though Indra saw his guru, he turned away his gaze as if he had missed seeing him….So, during the performance of sacrifices, he would pour offerings not only on behalf of the gods, but also secretly give offerings on behalf of the demons… The entire world was filled with a feeling of forgiveness towards him… The gods felt helpless, not knowing what to do, until they took refuge with the Lord Narayana dwelling in their hearts. The fact is that everyone in this world is engrossed in his selfish interests…. Whenever people like us make an effort to achieve material objects like power and money, He renders these efforts fruitless…How was he able to recall the Supreme Lord in his last moments, this being difficult for even the most accomplished of yogis?"

Published in Feb 2014

Way of the Avadhuta, The Phase of Ultimate Detachment

"Stepping out of the house, Rishabha took a vow of absolute silence and stopped replying even when spoken to…. Physically he was perfect. He had a broad chest, lissome limbs and a beautiful face made all the more charming by the natural smile…. Therefore he started to live like a python….Why then did he have to send them away?....One should never make friends with one’s mind…. He now kept a piece of stone in his mouth. Thus, at the end of his life, Rishabha gave trouble to no one for performing even his last rites."

Published in Jan 2014

A Householder’s Life, Lord Vishnu Shows the Way

"It was the learned Brahmin’s performing the sacrifice who answered on the king’s behalf.... Along with his wife left for the sacred site of Badrinath.... He spent the student days of his life at the house of his teacher (gurukula), where he studies the Vedas and also learned other worldly sciences.... By his actions he laid down, for the sake of the ignorant, the righteous way of life, known as Dharma.... They feel no attraction whatsoever for a house teeming with wife, children and wealth.... f they do not abide with these instructions one should get angry with them.... This is the true worship of God."

Published in Dec 2013

Yuddhishtara and the Crane: Essence of Dharma in the Mahabharata

"When he did not return even after a long interval, another of the brothers went after him.... Who makes the sun rise?.... Nilakantha, the most ancient and authoritative commentator on the Mahabharata, has clarified the meaning of this verse.... Who is the friend of a dying man?.... His wife is the friend given to him by the gods.... With whom does one’s friendship last forever?.... What is the greatest wonder in this world?.... Thus did end this story on a happy note."

Published in Nov 2013

Savitri and Satyavan: The True Essence of Love and Friendship

"Every day he would pour offerings into the sacred fires, accompanied by a hundred thousand chantings of the Gayatri mantra.... She stood before him with folded hands.... The princess, though bashful, did not even for a moment doubt her father’s words.... From there he proceeded on foot to where the hut of the blind king was..... After her father had gone, Savitri removed all her ornaments and rich clothes and donned clothes made of barks and leaves as befitting forest-dwellers.... Outwardly she seemed normal and happy but inside she was burning in the fire of torment.... Seeing him, she gently placed her husband’s head on the ground.... Your words are as soothing to me as water is to a thirsty man."

Published in Oct 2013

A Woman’s Dharma : Some Significant Aspects

"The amount of hardship she undergoes to bring up the child, that too with pleasure, is astounding.... Make their stay pleasant while they are in your house.... Remember that you are at the root of the future of the family.... So, the choice is ours – will we believe the publicity generated by a selfish media, or listen to our ancient selfless Rishis?.... Indeed, Dharma is protected at the grass roots by women only."

Published in Sep 2013

From Student to Retiree: Relevance of Dharma Today

It should also be remembered that it is not only one’s parents but the whole society that helps him to grow.... This does not mean that one should stop eating.... Infatuation for a certain thing goes only by developing infatuation for a higher thing.... Never praise them in so many words when they achieve something.... The issue is this: ‘Life survives on life’....The desire to live and the desire to develop compassion are opposed to each other.... By this age, one will have surely done the best one could do for one’s family. Now it is the time to turn inwards and work for one’s own spiritual good.

Published in Aug 2013

Did Krishna Follow Dharma? Doubts and Resolutions

"There are serious reservations about Lord Krishna’s actions in the Mahabharata war.... There were many veterans sitting in the assembly while the above ignominy was taking place.... His Dharma is towards the greater good.... A criminal is speeding away in a car after committing heinous crimes.... How then did Lord Krishna indulge in amorous sports with the gopis of Vrindavana?.... They bent their heads without answering Him.... Nobody will be washing clothes or cooking, etc in the dead of night."

Published in Jul 2013

Moments Before Death : Transfer of Karma from One Birth to Another

"Finally, when the moment of death approaches, the person lies down and all his activities cease....Then people around the dying person say: ‘His speech has stopped; nevertheless, he still understands things. He can recognize us’.... They then bring the sacred water of river Ganga and pour a bit of it into his mouth.... Anyhow, while coming to the earth, he enters into rain and through it into food grains.... The conditions however may not yet be suitable for the father to have him right away."

Published in Jun 2013

From Karma to Dhyana : Meditation According to the Gita

"Meditation is often interpreted as a translation of the Sanskrit word ‘dhyana’.... In particular, it is the sixth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita which dedicates itself exclusively to answer all our queries regarding mediation.....not indulging in what we think is right, but doing what God knows is right, by unquestionably obeying His commands like a dutiful servant....This verse is not speaking of two different people.... The phrase ‘look at the tip of the nose’ is not to be taken literally to mean that one should direct one’s eyeballs towards the tip of one’s nose.... Next the Gita speaks of how a meditator should eat.... Meditation is not done to calm the mind."

Published in May 2013

Navadha Bhakti – The Nine Ways of Connecting with God

"How does this love towards the divine manifest itself?.... Kirtana consists of chanting aloud God’s divine name and glories of His form.... Smarana means the constant remembrance of God.... The obvious example of this kind of Bhakti is our mother goddess Lakshmi.... Consists of the physical worship of God in the form of an idol etc, using the correct rituals.... He was overcome with emotion and the consequent surge of affection for Krishna made his hair stand on its end and the overflowing eyes began to shed tears....No wonder that Shri Rama embraced him.... Stories about the friendship of Krishna and Arjuna abound in the Mahabharata.... One whose each and every action can be deemed as Bhakti."

Published in Apr 2013

The Non Dual state : Is It in Our Experience?

"Their activities include not only performing karma, but also experiencing its fruits.... In the waking and dream states, we do not know anything about what another person is experiencing.... . In dreams however, the sense organs are inactive and only the mind functions....An Ananda in which grief is totally destroyed.... One who had lost kingship becomes king again.... We have always been accustomed to obtaining sukha only through an effort.... Why should happiness terminate when still in contact with the object? It is known that the first thing he would seek would be sleep, then food and then the pleasures from outside objects....The all compassionate God is everyday giving us an experience to understand our oneness with Him."

Published in Mar 2013

Moksha : What the Vedas Say About Liberation

"There are different opinions regarding the nature of Moksha.... Arjuna could not avoid grief in the battlefield.... what exactly is meant by ‘without a body’?.... When we say that “He is singing standing”, there is no interval between his standing and singing.... This goes on till one is satisfied with what one has heard.... Needs listening, logic and experience.... There is no other way to generate the fruit of a Karma.... Moksha is not produced because it is eternal."

Published in Feb 2013

From Helpless to Wise : The Evolution of a Devotee

"At some juncture in his life, he undergoes a tremendous amount of suffering....As this happens, his suffering too loses momentum and starts decreasing.....Observing that God is doing him well, he is emboldened to ask for more....Now that he has all he wanted, there seems to be no need for God, and he forgets Him..... This happens again and again, and he continues to oscillate....Once he is at this level, there is no going back or falling down for the Bhakta....God, who is seated inside his heart, draws him back, inspiring him to reflect....Like the small child, whose exclusive devotion to her compels his mother to forever keep him under her protective arms."

Published in Jan 2013

Inactive or Active : Karma According to the Bhagavad Gita

"The Gita says that the subject of Karma is extremely mysterious....We need to first understand the three types of Karma....However, it is exactly the opposite for a householder....This defines most of what goes on in the name of meditation today....Just like the sky, which remains unaffected by the coming and going of clouds....him to remain a mere detached spectator....believing himself to be happy because he is free from Karma....However, a true and intelligent man can discover in himself that even in physical inaction there can be intense mental and intellectual activity."

Published in Dec 2012

Shri Rama: What Constitutes His True Worship

"Can a flower said to be the creation of human hands?...It is at this stage, when we delve into what the ancient scriptures like Valmiki Ramayana say about Him....This is in fact the crucial difference between Shri Rama and Lord Krishna....His tongue could never utter those terrible and tragic words....During His childhood, while playing with His brothers, Rama never attempted to defeat them....At times we see someone ready to share their wealth with others, but not his own brother....Shri Rama unfailingly used to get up before dawn....Towards the end of the Ramayana, when Shri Rama had killed Ravana....Thus it constituted Dharma."

Published in Nov 2012

Navaratri: A Festival of Austerities

"Rigorous fasts, temples thronged by crowds of devotees....assimilates two widely different facets, though both, positive and creative: one, purely spiritual in which reflects man’s desire for achieving ends beyond this birth, and the other, a desire to seek in this birth itself world’s all colours, freedom from ills and good for all....The Mahabharata, the great epic, is considered the earliest to allude to the Devi with absolute specificity....Revered as the ultimate divine power capable of destroying every evil and every wrong, nurturing good and sustaining life in whichever form it exists....The Divine Female, and perhaps she alone, has the power to choose any form as her vehicle and conduct her powers through it....The major role of the Devi consists in leading to light out of darkness; the festival is hence Nava-Ratri: nine nights, not days."

Published in Oct 2012

Uma Sutam Ganesha: His Mother's Son

"No epithet, even any contextual to his father Shiva, defines him so completely as does ‘the son of Parvati’....Ganesha himself is the manifest cosmos, duality diluting into his very form – an entirety, a presence beyond act.... Ganesha only assures that ‘Shri’ or Lakshmi, the goddess of riches, shall precede him when his presence is invoked....The innocent looking Ganesha ever remains, essentially and exclusively, the mother-born, the product of an innocent playful mind filled with positive energy desiring creation and effecting it.....Brahma was ordained to create a world of numbers, measurable, subject to rule and that which decayed and had an end....Full of zeal, energy, sportiveness, mischievousness in eyes, carefree disposition, cool, soft, simple, benign, child-like innocent looking Ganesha is essentially the mother’s son – Uma-sutam."

Published in Sep 2012

I am Yours: A Love Letter to God

"Like a loving mother, she guides us to the supreme and purest form of love....The only sister of five brothers, she was obviously much loved and the center of attraction at home....She would send a message to Krishna, professing her single-minded affection for him....Having once heard of Lord Krishna, one starts losing his heart to him....If so happened this would be in clear violation of the promise made by God himself in the Ramayana....How do we know that we are following our Dharma properly?....She then proceeds to ask him a question, answering it herself...."

Published in Aug 2012

Dreams : Glimpsing the All Illuminating Illumination

"A baby dreams for about nine hours....Vedanta analyzes the dream state to bring out the nature of the light illuminating our dreams....That is why a sleeping body does not appear like inauspicious....However, they are only visible to the dreamer, not to others....Dreams are only a recall of the memory of what has happened in the waking world....The three texts give three different versions as to who is the creator of dreams....Suppose one eats too much and gets a stomach ache....The Vedas adopt the style of direct teaching from the Guru to disciple....In the waking state it is our eyes which serve as instruments to view the world....It is the one who is witnessing the absence of everything....It is through the dream state that we get introduced to the soul’s self-illuminating nature."

Published in Jul 2012

King, Deer and Brahmin : Tracing a Yogi’s Journey

Having performed his Dharma as a king for many years, and observing the graying of his hair....When he continued to perform this worship daily without fail, his heart melted with a surging, ever increasing love for God....Suddenly a lion roared, and the poor creature, frightened out of her wits, panicked....Even during the course of performing his religious duties, which required single minded devotion, he would rise up again and again to check on the young one....He had become so terrified of any attachment to anybody that he stayed all alone....The pious Brahmin was much worried about his son....Whenever somebody wanted him to do something, Bharata would ungrudgingly do whatever was asked of him..... Observing his excellent physique, they chose him to share the load....It seems as though a man is walking on it, but the foot of the man who walks on the earth is also made of the same earth.

Published in Jun 2012

Varnas: The Four Pillars of Dharma

All of man’s activity is directed towards attaining that which is pleasant to him and preventing that which makes him suffer....Even then, the Vedic Karma could not be performed....This is how and why Dharma was created; the four Varnas being, in a sense, its four pillars....Consider the amount of virtues expected of a Brahmin performing sacrifices for others....The king, who, even though he takes taxes from his people, remains oblivious to their protection, is considered a great sinner....He is fully entitled to the knowledge of Vedanta....Karmas like Vedic sacrifices, etc., destroy the negative residue of sins accumulated by us over our many births....This is called working like a servant under God.

Published in May 2012

Hyperbole in the Vedas : A Study in Arthavada

"Difficult to reconcile to some seemingly exaggerated statements, which cannot be substantiated by any means of knowledge....Any sentence can convey its meaning in either of two ways....During a Vedic sacrifice, a particular space is marked out for its performance....Hence an outlet for the smoke should be constructed....Taken by itself this Arthavada statement holds no meaning....When it is said ‘feed all Brahmins’, it does not mean that we feed all Brahmins in the world....Vedic Karma leads to fruits only if it has been fully completed....One should collect water holding a piece of gold in one’s hand....Enlightening in its method and inspirational in its impact."

Published in Apr 2012

Sannyasa the Highest Ashrama: Classification and Content

"It is the Vedas themselves which give us scope to leave Karma in a prescribed manner....If there is no reason for continuing with Karma he does leave it....The answer to this is that calling a house one’s own inevitably leads to affection and attachment....Continues to perform Karma for setting an example or even to hive of criticism....Karma has been delineated by the Vedas themselves, which we know are infallible....This is the Nishkama Karma done with a feeling of offering to God....However this does not lead to a consequent purification of the mind....Whatever is enjoined for one is his or her Dharma.....A householder cannot become celibate."

Published in Mar 2012