Monday, December 22, 2008

Free from Selfish Attachments

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

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 - Sankhya




(Click on the picture - if not visible properly)

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