Pearls of Wise

01/01/2019 2. GODDESS OF AUSPICIOUSNESS :- In the domestic sphere the concept of  Goddess Lakshmi is wonderful and unique in this blessed land of Bharatavarsha. For the home itself  is regarded as the abode of Lakshmi, where the  Mother manifests Herself in the worshipful form of  the Grihini (house-wife or mistress of the house).  Therefore, we are familiar with the expression  Grihalakshmi, the Mother who presides over the  auspiciousness, welfare and progress of the home-life and family. She is conceived of as the very embodiment of Goddess Lakshmi. In the West the woman is more conceived of as the wife, an equal partner to the man, vying for privilege with him in all spheres of activity and trying to assert not only her equality but even further her personal independence. Whereas, to the Hindu heart, woman is the mother. It is the motherhood of the woman that is ever present in the consciousness of the true Hindu. This is the blessing of...

(Spoken on May 1, 1983) 01/01/2019 4. We are, at the present moment, in the political, social, and physical level of existence. We are overly concerned with our political associations, requirements and involvements. Whatever be our spiritual, moral or philosophical longing in our leisure hours, there is no gainsaying that as a citizen of a particular nation a person is conscious of his or her involvement in what is called the national setup.  There is an involvement in human society, in the community to which one belongs and from which relationship one cannot easily extricate oneself. And there are the fundamental involvements which are the ingredients of our own psychophysical individuality. While it is true that we are units in a politically organised nation, and are individuals related to human society in a particular manner and not totally independent of human relations, there is something more about us than what is visibly available in this manner. We are apparentl...

31/12/2018 2. In the Vivekachudamani, there is a Slokam which runs as follows: ‘Durlabham trayamevaitat devanugraha-hetukam; Manushyatvam maumukshutvam mahapurushasamsrayah.’ Three things are very difficult to obtain. Only through the grace of God the Jivas obtain them. To be born as a human being is no small privilege. It is a very precious gift given by God to the Jiva. Having got a human birth, to have an aspiration for liberation is the next difficult thing to obtain. So, if one obtains both these, one is indeed doubly blessed. But having been born as a human being, if you do not want to know, and yet even after knowing that, if you do not know the way, you are not fully blessed. Therefore, if you get the shelter of a Mahapurusha, one who has known what has to be attained and one who is in a position to show you the way, you can admit that you are thrice blessed. This unique blessing has to be remembered always. Then alone will you be careful not to waste the oppo...

31/12/2018 Bhagavad Gita for the modern life . Today, we will see the most formidable Pandava or the biggest enemy in the mental warfare of our Karma Kshetram. Bhishma, the Kuru Grandfather as you all know felt Hastinapur was “his kingdom” and it was his duty to maintain and protect it by any means. Whenever, he felt the pride of Hastinapur was threatened he used all his might and force. A simple example is his abducting the three princesses Amba, Ambika, Ambalika, against their will. We all know the story of Amba who was rejected by her Fiancé because of his reckless action, and in turn became Shikhandi causing his death. Let us see what Bhishma represents in our life. The word Bhishma comes from the root “bhi” meaning to scare or frighten. Bhishma represents our ego which becomes the grandfather of our individual existence, and generates all other vices in us. It attacks forcefully when threatened and has no remorse of any bad deeds because our ego always feels it is doing ...

30/12/2018 While sitting in satsanga with Pujya Gurudev Swami Chinmayananda, as often happened in his presence, a deep *peace overtook the assembled crowd and no one said a word, although many of us surely had saved up plenty of questions for him earlier, with every intention to ask them. However, especially after we were already some days into a yajna or camp and had slowly allowed the usual turmoil in our minds to abate a little, we often found ourselves simply sitting in satsanga in *silence. Gurudev focused his large, #expressive eyes on our silent faces, drummed his fingers along the sides of his chair, and said : “Come on! I’m just an empty drum by the roadside. Unless you beat on me, no sound comes out!” So some *listeners managed to summon up a question or two from the recesses of their minds and drummed away at the always willing drum of the Guru. Swamiji outshone many a *teacher in knowing how to reach down to the level of the audience. The proof of the effica...

30/12/2018 2. *This article was recorded by Ida Ansell in shorthand. As, however, Swamiji's speed was too great for her in her early days, dots are put in the articles to indicate the omissions, while the words within square brackets are added by way of linking up the disconnected parts. *(Delivered in San Francisco, April 5, 1900) ---------------------------------------------------- The Yoga doctrine, which we are having our lecture on, is not from that standpoint. [It teaches that] there is the soul, and inside this soul is all power. It is already there, and if we can master this body, all the power will be unfolded. All knowledge is in the soul. Why are people struggling? To lessen the misery.... All unhappiness is caused by our not having mastery over the body.... We are all putting the cart before the horse.... Take the system of work, for instance. We are trying to do good by ... comforting the poor. We do not get to the cause which created the misery. It is ...

29/12/2018   There is a general assumption that democratic governments are more inclined to maintain peaceful relations than dictatorial or autocratic governments.  This assumption is based on the idea that the general population of a country has no reason or incentive to go to war, and generally suffers extreme hardships as a result of war, including having their families disrupted through death and injury and calls to military service.  In a democratic society, in theory, the populace would therefore resist calls to war, unless urgent need, such as defense against aggression, made it necessary.  On the other hand, it is generally assumed that a ruling elite, whether focused in a monarchy or dictatorship, or in an aristocracy or power elite, would be able to act without the consent of the general populace, and would act in such a way to aggrandise their power and profits, with warfare being a profitable enterprise for various military related industries, and ...

*This article was recorded by Ida Ansell in shorthand. As, however, Swamiji's speed was too great for her in her early days, dots are put in the articles to indicate the omissions, while the words within square brackets are added by way of linking up the disconnected parts. *(Delivered in San Francisco, April 5, 1900) 03/12/2018 1. Everyone's idea of practical religion is according to his theory of practicality and the standpoint he starts from. There is work. There is the system of worship. There is knowledge. The philosopher thinks ... the difference between bondage and freedom is only caused by knowledge and ignorance. To him, knowledge is the goal, and his practicality is gaining that knowledge.... The worshipper's practical religion is the power of love and devotion. The worker's practical religion consists in doing good works. And so, as in every other thing, we are always trying to ignore the standard of another, trying to bind the whole world to ...

03/12/2018 3. Nothing Is Undesirable : The Gita also uses two words — Avikaramanasha and Pratiyavaya. 1. Avikaramanasha means loss of effort; for example, in agriculture, a sudden drought or attack of pests destroys the standing crop and all the effort which has gone into tilling and sowing goes waste. 2. Pratiyavaya means adversity of results. For instance, a doctor delivers an injection to a patient who turns out to be allergic to it. The treatment thus does him more harm than good. These results can be seen in the objective world. However, in Karma Yogam, Krishna says we are not bothered about avikaramanasha and pratiyavaya because we always look into the subjective impact of the objective results and this neutralises everything. (Gita, 2.40). Take, for example, the unsuccessful launch of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle. The subjective impact of this objective result is an opportunity to study the reasons for the failure and for further research to plug loophol...

02/12/2018 Shri Krishna as Bhagavad Gita Chapter 3 - Bhagavan Shri Krishna's ankles The third chapter deals with Karma Yoga. It points out the path to the goal. To reach this we have to make some effort. This is the commencement of our sadhana. To still or quieten the mind we need to purify it first. This can be achieved through selfless action or karma yoga. Someone asked Ramana Maharishi, “How can I see God?” “Be still”, he answered “and you will know that you are God”. Sri Krishna explains the meaning of kartavya or duty…its importance and the dynamics of right action. When we perform our obligatory duties, the mind is slowly purified. Purification of the mind is a prerequisite to the silence we are seeking. Bhagawan advises Arjuna to follow the path of Karma yoga to purify his mind. The chapter exhaustively deals with action…what is action…different types of action…the performance of action with a particular attitude. We perform actions according to our abilitie...

02/12/2018 Bhagavad Gita for the modern life: As we discussed in the prior session we are going to see the faults of EGO consciousness one by one, and techniques to modify them and improve ourselves.  Let us see the first one in the list, Kama. KAMA is a compulsion to indulge in sensory pleasures. The classic example is Duryodhana who went to the extent of not being able to part even an inch of his territory for the Pandavas. Today’s lesson: Our scriptures give so many examples where Kama forces even learned and respectable men to stoop low and behave like monkeys and asses. In our daily lives we see varying examples which get people into trouble. Lust for food and drinks at the expense of health, lust for wealth, power and fame which make our politicians do wrong to the society, lust for flattery and sweet talk that get our boys and girls in trouble, are all examples of how lust directs our life in the wrong direction. Kama destroys ones clarity in thinking and power ...