That devotee who looks upon friend and foe with equal regard, who is not buoyed up by praise nor cast down by blame, alike in heat and cold, pleasure and pain, free from selfish attachments, the same in honor and dishonor, quiet, ever full, in harmony everywhere, firm in faith--such a one is dear to me.
-Bhagavad Gita 12:18-19
Monday, December 22, 2008
Free from Selfish Attachments
Why do you run about so wretchedly ?
Knowing yourself as That
In which the worlds rise and fall
Like waves in the ocean,
Why do you run about so wretchedly?
-Ashtavakra Gita 3:3
Why one utters Cruel words ?
Why would anyone speak cruel words,
Having observed the happiness that kind words confer?
To utter harsh words when sweet ones would serve
Is like eating unripe fruits when ripe ones are at hand.
-Tirukkural 10: 99-100
Cessation of Mind
Don't think about ideas such as bondage and liberation, simply abandon all craving and through wisdom and dispassion bring about the cessation of the mind. Even if the wish "may I be liberated" arises, the mind will come back to life.
-Maharamayana
Friday, December 19, 2008
Evolution of Hinduism - (Main Table)
Hinduism is the predominant religion of the Indian subcontinent. Hinduism is often referred to as Sanātana Dharma, a Sanskrit phrase meaning "the eternal law", by its practitioners.
I have tried to depict the evolution of this eternal law over the time in history to the present age.
In this section i will try to draw a table diagram to prove how Hinduism has developed or evolved over the ages with the changing period or centuries. And also it is fascinating to know that the base of this eternal law remains firm at its place.
Evolution of Hinduism - (Main Table)
(Click on the Picture - if it is not readable properly)
Note: This is the just the main chart of my article. I will try to draw subsequent charts (a - f) as time permits. Also, i will write a relevant commentary for each chart.
Chart (a) - Diagram
Chart (a) - Commentary
Chart(b) - Diagram
Chart(b) - Commentary
Chart(c) - Diagram
Chart(c) - Commentary
Chart(d) - Diagram
Chart(d) - Commentary
Chart(e) - Diagram
Chart(e) - Commentary
Chart(f) - Diagram
Chart(f) - Commentary
I sincerely, hope you all enjoy reading my writings.
"Tathastu"
Hinduism: Some Facts
meaning of name
Hinduism, from the Persian hindu (Sanskrit sindhu), literally "river." Means "of the Indus Valley" or simply "Indian." Hindus call their religion sanatama dharma,"eternal religion" or "eternal truth."
date founded
Earliest forms date to 1500 BC or earlier
place founded
India
founder
none
adherents
900 million
size rank
third largest in the world
main location
India, also United Kingdom and United States
major sects
Saivism, Vaisnavism, Saktism
sacred texts
Vedas, Upanishads, Sutras, Bhagavad Gita
original language
Sanskrit
spiritual leader
guru or sage
place of worship
temple or home shrine
theism
pantheism with polytheistic elements
ultimate reality
Brahman
human nature
in bondage to ignorance and illusion, but able to escape
purpose of life
to attain liberation (moksa) from the cycle of reincarnation
how to live
order life according to the dharma
afterlife
if karma unresolved, soul is born into a new body; if karma resolved, attain moksa (liberation)
major holidays
Mahashivarati (mid-February)
Holi (Spring)
Ramnavami (late March)
Dusserah (early November)
Diwali (mid-November)
Hinduism by the Numbers
three paths:
* karmamarga - path of works and action
* jnanamarga - path of knowledge or philosophy
* bhaktimarga - path of devotion to God
three debts:
* debt to God
* debt to sages and saints
* debt to ancestors
four stages of life:
* brahmacharga - school years - grow and learn
* grhastha - marriage, family and career
* vanaprastha - turn attention to spiritual things
* sanrgasu - abandon world to seek spiritual things
four purposes of life:
* dharma - fulfill moral, social and religious duties
* artha - attain financial and worldy success
* kama - satisfy desires and drives in moderation
* moksha - attain freedom from reincarnation
seven sacred cities:
* Ayodhya
* Mathura
* Gaya (Bodhgaya)
* Kasi (Varanasi, Benares)
* Kanci
* Avantika (Ujjain)
* Dvaraka
ten commitments:
1. Ahimsa - do no harm
2. Satya - do not lie
3. Asteya - do not steal
4. Brahmacharya - do not overindulge
5. Aparigraha - do not be greedy
6. Saucha - be clean
7. Santosha - be content
8. Tapas - be self-disciplined
9. Svadhyaya - study
10. Ishvara Pranidhana - surrender to God
Sources
1. "Hinduism." Oxford Concise Dictionary of World Religions.
2. "Hinduism." Encyclopedia Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica Premium Service. 2004.
3. Huston Smith, The World's Religions.
4. Linda Johnsen, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Hinduism, pp. 222-24.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Simply being Together
When you are with someone you love very much, you can talk and it is pleasant, but the reality is not in the conversation. It is in simply being together. Meditation is the highest form of prayer. In it you are so close to God that you don't need to say a thing--it is just great to be together.
-Swami Chetananda
A spark of my Essence
But there is no end to my divine attributes, Arjuna; these I have mentioned are only a few. Wherever you find strength, or beauty, or spiritual power, you may be sure that these have sprung from a spark of my essence.
-Bhagavad Gita 10:40-41
Fearless and Deathless
"That which moves about in joy in the dreaming state is the Self, fearless and deathless. That is Brahman, the supreme."
-Chandogya Upanishad
Should You Spread the Faults of Friends?
If men are disposed to spread the faults of friends,
What deadly harm might they do to strangers?
-Tirukkural 188
The Practise of Meditation
Some realize the Self within them through the practice of meditation, some by the path of wisdom, and others by selfless service.
Others may not know these paths; but hearing and following the instructions of an illumined teacher, they too go beyond death.
-Bhagavad Gita 13:24-25
The Eternal Brahman
True sustenance is in service, and through it a man or woman reaches the eternal Brahman. But those who do not seek to serve are without a home in this world.
-Bhagavad Gita 4:31
He is the Source
He is the source of all powers of life.
He is the lord of all, the great seer
Who dwells forever in the cosmic womb.
May he purify our consciousness!
O Lord, in whom alone we can find peace,
May we see your divine Self and be freed
From all impure thoughts and all fear.
-Shvetashvatara Upanishad
Defend yourself against Hatred
Dread hatred from within and defend yourself against it.
In calamitous times it will cut deeper than a potter's knife.
-Tirukkural 89: 883
Realize the Self
Those who realize the Self are always satisfied. Having found the source of joy and fulfillment they no longer seek happiness from the external world. They have nothing to gain or lose by any action; neither people nor things can affect their security.
-Bhagavad Gita
The Mind is an Object
The mind is an object of perception
like the eternal world.
The Atman, the real seer,
remains unknown.
-Pantanjali
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Listen to Learned
Even though he has no learning, if a man but listens to the learned
That will be his staff of strength in adversity.
Words from the lips of upright men
Are like a steadying staff in a slippery place.
-Tirukkural 42:414-415
The Separate Self
The Lord of Love holds in his hand the world,
Composed of the changing and the changeless,
The manifest and the unmanifest.
The separate self, not yet aware of the Lord,
Goes after pleasure, only to become
Bound more and more. When it sees the Lord,
There comes an end to its bondage.
-Shvetashvatara Upanishad
A man's wealth
If his countenance is harsh and access to him is hard,
A man's wealth, however vast, might as well belong to a demon.
If he is unkind and speaks cruelly,
A man's lofty wealth cannot last long--it ends right there.
Virulent language and overly severe punishment,
Like a keen file, grind down a king's conquering powers.
-Tirukkural 57: 565-567
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Wisdom is the Milk
The milk of cows of any hue is white.
The sages say that wisdom is the milk
And the sacred scriptures are the cows.
-Amritabindu Upanishad
Source: BeliefNet
Follow the Path
Those who follow the path of service, who have completely purified themselves and conquered their senses and self-will, see the Self in all creatures and are untouched by any activity they perform.
-Bhagavad Gita 5:7
Cosmic Consciousness
Even as rock remains rock, carved or uncarved, consciousness remains consciousness whether the world appears or not. The world-appearance is but an empty expression; its substance is nothing but consciousness.
In fact, even these manifestations and modifications are but Brahman, the cosmic consciousness—though not in the sense of manifestation or modification. Even this distinction—modification in the sense of modification, or any other sense—is meaningless in Brahman. When such expressions are used in relation to Brahman, the meaning is quite different, like water in the mirage.
-From the Yoga Vasishtha
Guru
If all the land were turned to paper and all the seas turned to ink, and all the forests into pens to write with, they would still not suffice to describe the greatness of the guru.
-Kabir
One Blade of Grass
As a caterpillar, having come to the end of one blade of grass, draws itself together and reaches out for the next, so the Self, having come to the end of one life and dispelled all ignorance, gathers in his faculties and reaches out from the old body to a new.
-Brihadaranyaka Upanishad
Distraction by False Imagining
Meditation is needed
Only when the mind is distracted
By false imagining.
Knowing this,
I am here.
Without joy or sorrow,
Grasping at nothing, spurning nothing,
O Master, I am here.
-Ashtavakra Gita 12:3-4
Live in the World Like...
Live in the world like a waterfowl. The water clings to the bird, but the bird shakes it off. Live in the world like a mudfish. The fish lives in the mud, but its skin is always bright and shiny.
-Ramakrishna
Refrain from Unrighteous Retaliation
Though unjustly aggrieved, it is best to suffer the suffering
And refrain from unrighteous retaliation.
Let a man conquer by forbearance
Those who in their arrogance have wronged him.
-Tirukkural 16: 158-159
Many Men... One Wilderness
I see only one.
Many men,
One wilderness.
Then to what may I cling?
-Ashtavakra Gita 2:21
Eloquence of Speech
The content of worthy speech binds friends more closely,
And its eloquence draws even enemies to listen.
-Tirukkural 65:643
Self
The Self is one. Ever still, the Self is
Swifter than thought, swifter than the senses.
Though motionless, he outruns all pursuit.
Without the Self, never could life exist.
-Isha Upanishad
Diligent Effort
Never say in weakness, "This task is too difficult,"
For perseverance will give the ability to accomplish it.
Beware of leaving any work undone, for the world
Will abandon those who abandon their work unfinished.
The pride of profuse giving dwells only
With the dignity of diligent effort.
-Tirukkural, 62:611-613
Sweet Words Spoken
Better than a gift given with a joyous heart
Are sweet words spoken with a cheerful smile.
-Tirukkural 92
Like Two Golden Birds
The ego and the Self dwell as intimate friends in the same body, like two golden birds perched in the same tree. The ego eats the sweet and sour fruits of the tree, while the Self looks on detached. For as long as you identify with the ego, you will feel joy and sorrow.
-Mundaka Upanishad
Control Your Senses
Those who abstain from action while allowing the mind to dwell on sensual pleasure can not be called sincere spiritual aspirants. But they excel who control their senses through the mind, using them for selfless service.
-Bhagavad Gita 3:6-7
Be Free
Inwardly be free of all hopes and desires, but outwardly do what needs to be done. Without hopes in your heart, live as if you were full of hopes. Live with your heart now cool and now warm, just like everyone else. Inwardly give up the idea "I am the doer," yet outwardly engage in all activities. This is how to live in the world, completely free from the least trace of ego.
-Maharamayana
Wherever you go, Be Happy
Desire and aversion are of the mind.
The mind is never yours.
You are free of its turmoil.
You are awareness itself,
Never changing.
Wherever you go,
Be happy.
-Ashtavakra Gita 15:5
God Alone Is..
A poor devotee points to the sky and says, "God is up there." An average devotee says, "God dwells in the heart as the Inner Master." The best devotee says, "God alone is and everything I perceive is a form of God."
-Ramakrishna
Thoughtless Glutton
The thoughtless glutton who gorges himself beyond
His digestive fire's limits will be consumed by limitless ills.
-Tirukkural 947
What is Brahman ?
Brahman is the Self hidden in everyone. He is only obvious to those who, minds focused one-pointedly on the Lord of Love, nurture intuitive knowledge. Meditation leads them deeper into consciousness, passing from the world to thoughts, and beyond thoughts to the wisdom of the Self.
-Katha Upanishad
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Should You Be Courteous to Enemies?
The world commends the civility of those
who combine fruitful effort and kindly benevolence.
Disparaging words are painful even when uttered in jest.
Hence, knowers of human nature are courteous even to enemies.
-Tirukkural 100: 994-995
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