Pearls of Wise

Thursday, June 11, 2020. The understanding and acceptance of a pure mental consciousness and being, separate from the operations of the physical body or the life-force, was epitomized in the famous statement by Rene Descartes: “I think, therefore I am.”  This self-awareness of a mental functioning that could be observed and participated could not be denied by any thinking human being.  The identification of the essential being moved from the desire-ego of the life-energy to the newly identified awareness of the mental self. We are at a time in the evolutionary cycle where we see individuals once again pressing forward and shifting their identification beyond the formation and action of the mental power to what is now being identified as a spiritual consciousness and being.  While still in its early stages, it has become clear that for an increasing number of people, the identification with the mind is no longer the primary characteristic of their awareness.  There is...

Wednesday, June 10, 2020. What concerns us most is the religious thought — on soul and God and all that appertains to religion. We will take the Samhitâs. These are collections of hymns forming, as it were, the oldest literature, properly speaking, the oldest literature in the world. There may have been some scraps of literature of older date here and there, older than that even, but not books, or literature properly so called.  As a collected book, this is the oldest the world has, and herein is portrayed the earliest feeling of the Great Rishi-s, their aspirations, the questions that arose about their manners and methods, and so on. At the very outset we find a very curious idea. These hymns are sung in praise of different gods, Devas as they are called, the bright ones. There is quite a number of them. One is called Indra, another Varuna, another Mitra, Parjanya, and so on. Various mythological and allegorical figures come before us one after the other — for instance, Indra the ...

Tuesday, June 09, 2020. To shed the animal in man and to sublimate the human in him into the divine, to express this sublimation in his daily, hourly, life in thought, word and deed - that is truly divine life. To speak the truth at all costs, to speak sweetly with love, to practise non-violence, celibacy, to behold the Lord in all forms is Divine life. To be ever in communion with the Lord by annihilating mineness and egoism through faith, devotion and self-surrender is Divine life. If you want to be a devotee of the Lord, you must also realize the evils of undivine life. This will surely save you, Repetition of the Lord's Names will purify the mind. But along with these you must also practise vichara, When the mind entertains unholy thoughts, remember the consequences, viz. pain, disease and death. Also think of the advantages of leading a pure life. Remember the lives of saints and draw inspiration from them. Pray to God for more and more strength. Read Ramayana, Bhagavata and t...

Monday, June 08, 2020. Post-4. 1. Education is for living life and not to suffer it. It is a wrong concept of the basis of life that has led to the defective structure of the present educational system.  It is not necessary that religion in the orthodox sense or Dharma as the conservatives understand it should be proclaimed in the schools.  The right type of education should have a very broad outlook and exceed the limits of parochial religions or the cult of any class of society and should be free from the prejudices of caste, creed and colour.  The present-day system of education is thoroughly unsatisfactory, for, while it rejects all religion in the name of secularism, it rejects also the essentials of human aspiration and makes education a dead mechanism which has to be operated by a living being from outside.  Education is not a machine to be driven by an external impulse but constitutes a vital process which has life in it and grows of its own accord when soul ...

============================================================== ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Sunday, June 07, 2020. ------------------------------------------------------------------ Knowing that there are diversities in human nature and abilities, knowing that not all are ready for the same highest teachings, accordingly the teacher gives. Let the Supreme Being bless us to have the right and proper understanding of the teachings of Guru Bhagavan Swami Sivanandaji. There is a story in the Upanishads of the three da. Da is a letter in the Sanskrit alphabet. A human individual, a celestial and a demon all approached Brahma, the Creator, seeking knowledge of the Higher Self. Coming down from His deep meditation, He looks at each one of them and gives the same identical upadesa or spiritual instruction. And the upadesa is to look at their image and pronounce the word da. And each one understands the meaning according ...

=============================================================== -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Saturday, June 06, 2020. BHAGAVATAM : kANDAM-1. Bheeshma Sthuthi : ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lord Krishna knew how badly this “man of justice” was perplexed. So, Krishna took the frustrated Dharmaputra to seek advice from his grandfather Bheeshma who was still lying on “Sharashayya” – a bed of arrows – in the war field itself. He was awaiting the arrival of Uttaraayana, the auspicious time for leaving his body. The Pandava brothers along with Sage Veda Vyasa and other Sages followed him. Bheeshma Pitamaha was lying like a fallen mountain on the bed of arrows that adorned his entire body. As he could not get up from there, he offered Pranam to the Lord with his glance and words of honour. Pandavas prostrated before him and he looked at his grand children with...

================================================================== -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Friday, June 05, 2020. Salutations to the Ocean of Compassion ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1.Introduction : My salutations to the One who is an ocean of compassion. Compassion is love expressed in action. This is the most beautiful quality of the Teacher. It blesses even those students who are not qualified to receive the blessings. It may take us a lifetime to remove our defects and impurities and become fit students, but it is the Teacher who, out of compassion, overlooks our imperfections and blesses us. The compassion is causeless and infinite like the ocean. The Realised Master could easily remain absorbed in the bliss of the Self, free from the worries of the world, but he chooses to leave this blissful state and come down to the level of the world and bless mank...

================================================================ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thursday, May 04, 2020. When we aspire to succeed in something, we need to take care that the means and ends are honourable, writes SWAMI TEJOMAYANANDA. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Introduction : The simple definition of success is the achievement of a desired goal. If I want something and I get it, then I think I am successful, although that success may not be admirable. For example, when a terrorist strikes, and several people are killed, the perpetrator may call it a successful bomb blast. But surely, it is not a praise-worthy act. Suppose a poorly prepared student wants to pass the examination and he does that by copying, should his success be praised? Therefore, when we talk about success, we should be clear that not only should the goal be noble, but the means t...

=============================================================== ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Wednesday, June 03, 2020. --------------------------------------------------------- We are mesmerised by the outer world, the great drama of life. Seldom do we spend time to think about the glory and the potential of the mind,of the universe within. We tend to think first of the downside. The mind is passionate,prejudicial, fearful and jealous. Maybe it's hereditary entrapment. Rarely does one try to find out: Is it the outer world and its allure that i have to enjoy and rejoice in, or is there something even more wonderful in the inner world? Take a fresh look, cultivate a new outlook. The mind is a wide panorama; it's expanse is infinite, as is its power. Don't get bound by negative thoughts. Understand that the mind is capable of spinning and weaving enormous confidence, creating incalculable loftiness,impenetrab...