The Banyan Tree

||Sri Ramakrishna Sharanam||

 

Holy Mother

Aum Namo Narayanaya

 

2012 has been a bumpy ride with many businesses feeling the pinch of the global economic crisis; people picking up the pieces from the various natural disasters and also from the regular challenges that dissipate our energy and enthusiasm about life. As that may be,  the year end  is a time which is anxiously awaited, where the thoughts of all these mundane activities are shelved for time with the family, friends and merriment.  But for many householders - although unfortunate, the mode for satvic activity definitely resigns to the backburner. 

 

It therefore stands to reason that many organisations normally don’t schedule activities during this time. However for the deeply spiritual and seekers of truth, the quest for inner peace never ceases... hence there are always programmes and activities at ashrams etc. Many Narayana temples will observe Vaikunta Ekadashi - a night long vigil a few days before Christmas. And to ensure that we do not lose track of our spiritual practices in the midst of the festivities, the Divine Mother in the form of Holy Mother (Sri Sarada Devi) took birth in this month. Many celebrations will be held in Her honour throughout the world.

 

Coinciding with the demise of 2012, my reading of Bhagavatam currently relates the demise of Kamsa.  It is a very intriguing read to note how Kamsa, despite knowing that all his emissaries were slayed at the hand of Krishna and that He is divine, refused to concede and take refuge at the feet of the Lord... and continues to try fruitlessly to end the Lord’s life (the one who is never born and is eternal).

 

My work found me in a rural forest recently. As we were almost packing, a blanket of darkness covered the entire region. The air turned to a frosty chill. The silence turned crusty as the leaves started to rustle like a rattle-snake as a wave of gale winds ripped through the trees. We immediately suspended our activity and took shelter in the vehicle. Through the gaze of our windscreen we watched as this spectacle of nature unfolded. The dehydrated carpet of leaves on the forest took flight as the fierce winds battered the trees bare of foliage. The entire forest of trees howled as the storm swept past.

 

This incident finds correlation in not only Kamsa's behaviour but that of man in general. Rooted to the ground by its intense network of roots, the trees were helpless against the rolling storms. Man who is rooted to the world by his network of activities and attachments also finds himself defeated by the storms of life.

 

On the Ekadashi day in this month, another very historic and important event took place. The sacred scripture revered by millions across the world was spoken to Arjuna by Krishna Bhagawan. In this divine conversation, the Lord refers in Chapter 15 to a very unusual concept of an upside down banyan tree. This image symbolically projects the idea that whilst man is living in the world, he should be rooted not in materialism but in spiritual consciousness, thus giving one the flexibility to weather the storms of life and also provide shelter and shade to humanity.

 

A wonderful incident in the life of Swamiji comes to mind. Once, He went to Master who was confined to His bed due to His illness and asked to put Him in nirvikalpa samadhi for three days and nights without a break. But Sri Ramakrishna answered Him with a rebuke saying:“You fool! There is a state much higher than that...I thought you would grow like a huge banyan tree, sheltering thousands from the scorching misery of the world."

 

It was Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi's life which could be epitomised as the ideal of spiritual motherhood and perfectly fits the ideology of the upside down tree. Her life abounded with selfless love and devotion to Her family, Master and humanity. Her physical comforts never entered the horizon of Her thoughts. Her discipline to duty was unparalleled. [The ground floor of the Nahabat or Concert House was a small low-roofed room of about nine and a half feet by eight, with a verandah four and a quarter-feet-wide surrounding it. If any modern bride was subjected to such accommodation, she will not be able to stay in there for half a day. Besides being Her living room, it served as her provision store, kitchen and reception room as well -- a surprising combination of functions for such a small enclosure. But so patient and stoic She was that what would have been impossible for others was no problem for Her].(from net)

 

Mother ensured that all who came were fed full to their contentment - a tradition that still continues at Her ashrams to this day. Those that are sincere devotees of the divine seem to also take root in Her pure divine character. I recall one day whilst I was taking the boat trip from Belur to Dakshineswar across the Ganges, two brahmacharins from the Math joined us. As the ferry was approaching the banks of the Kali temple, an old poor devotee of the Holy Mother who had only 30 rupees in his purse, lovingly obliged to pay the fare of the brahmacharins. A thought that never entered many who could afford it that sat nearby.

 

True peace, love and purity can never be enjoyed if one is rooted in the world. Swamiji  eloquently presents this when He said: "In the absence of spirituality, all moral perfection will be extinct, all sweet-souled sympathy for religion will be extinct, all ideality will be extinct, and in its  place will reign the duality of lust and luxury as the male and female deities... with money as its priest; fraud, force and competition its ceremonies; and the human soul its sacrifice."

 

Let us all take shelter under this huge spiritual Banyan tree which is Mother, who has given us the assurance: "I am the Mother of the wicked, as I am the Mother of the virtuous. Never fear. Whenever you are in distress, just say to yourself I have a mother." One who visits Belur Math will notice that Her temple is the only temple that faces the Ganges looking over Kolkata - re-enforcing Her statement of being our mother that consoles and comforts us always.

 

I take this opportunity to wish all readers a blessed Sri Sarada Ma Jayanti, Gita Jayanti, Vaikunta Ekadashi and a safe and wonderful festive season. This will be the last blog for the year. I look forward to interacting with you early in the New Year.

 

May Mother bless us all is my sincere prayer.

 

With love and prayers always

Yogan 

 

TIRU- KURRAL

Swami Vimokshananda
at first Tirukurral class
SVET

||Sri Ramakrishna Sharanam||

 

Aum Namo Narayanaya

 

Today was definitely a very auspicious moment in the history of the Shree Veeraboga  Emperumal Temple.  The temple was founded in 1914 by very senior fathers who hailed from the Kilpfontein sugar barracks, who believed that the ideas contained in all our scriptures was the panacea for their anxieties. One can only imagine the hardships and struggles our forefathers had to endure so that we were able to grow and prosper in a free country.

 

Therefore, they always made time to partake of satsang and immerse themselves in the glory of God for strength and compassion to pass their strife-stricken days. The founding fathers would gather under the canopy of the banyan tree and read from the Shree Veeraboga Saritram (Prophecies of Kali Yuga) giving much hope and solace to all who listened.

 

Today, from those humble beginnings gathering informally, the organisation has concretised into a large spiritual edifice in the town of Tongaat. As in the case of our body, which will collapse without the presence of the divine energy or force called the prana... in the same way a temple is futile if it does not help people elevate their consciousness to the divine level. Today it seems all our founding fathers whose spirits were awaiting for this moment finally returned to the higher realms satisfied, when our Tirukurral class commenced, conducted by our Revered Swami Vimokshanandaji Maharaj.

 

There was a strange yet beautiful energy that permeated the room, where for some time everything seemed infused with a brightness. And although seated in front of our Swami Vimokshananda, I could only see my Guru - most Revered President Maharaj.  My attention was so focused on the words that came forth like lotus petals, fragranced with profound wisdom. I was in disbelief that one hour had passed by so stealthily. All of those devotees must have done well in their past births to be given the opportunity to be seated at feet of Revered Maharaj and accept the spiritual knowledge that flowed like the Ganga at Rishikesh. The Upanishads being re-enacted in our very own town in this very age was indeed glorious.

 

In some ways our lives are like the Kurral which Swamiji explained as a shortened idea. We are spiritual beings have a human experience, we are the shortened expression of God. Swami Vivekananda based His central teachings on the potential divinity of man. This gives us as they say in the sporting world "a home ground advantage". The atmosphere created by good supporters is the impetus required to give teams the edge to up their performances, with the majority of cases resulting in victory.

 

Why is it then, with the knowledge of the potential divinity that we are, that we are not expressing the divinity in all our actions and thoughts? Why is there animosity and squabbles between families and nations? Essentially the question can be expanded to the point of "why is the world in so much turmoil?".

 

The answer to this question lies not in analysing the macro, but with the micro self. Swamiji so daintily exposed the discipline with which ThiruValluvar and his wife lived their lives in which every action was performed with a sense of duty and austerity.

 

Knowing that the medication for your illness lies in the hospital... it is of no use wandering the beaches or parks looking for it.  We find that today, many youth especially have no sense of goal or focus in their lives. They live their lives without discipline and a sense of duty. Young able bodied men and woman with a capacity to shift the world, with enough might and energy to alter the course of destiny dissipate their lives fruitlessly. "What the world wants today is twenty men and women who can dare to stand in the street yonder, and say that they possess nothing but God. Who will go? Why should one fear? If this is true, what else could matter? If it is not true, what do our lives matter?" said  Swami Vivekananda

 

In His introductory remarks, Maharaj gave a brief outline of the Tamil language and placed the author in perspective. The Tiru before the word Kurral is a Tamil way of giving respect to this great work by a great saint known as Vallavur, hence he was also appropriately referred to as Tiruvallavar.

 

I therefore reason that if we live by  this Tamill Vedam (Tamil Veda - Tirukurral) and by the powerful words of Swami Vivekananda above, we have the scope of transforming our lives from Kurral to Tirukurral. Enacting discipline and a sense of purpose and duty into our lives will activate the potential divinity into kinetic divinity, allowing us to alter the course of our journey from 'Manava to Madhava' (man to God).

 

Let us wake up every morning and start the day with a home ground advantage: converting action into a goal for spiritual evolution. Take one idea from our scriptures and make it a part of your daily activities... in this way we will be contributing towards the creation of a peaceful world. Gandhi said that one must be the change that one wants to see in the world.

 

It is imperative then that virtue, peace, truth and love be found within us before we can expect to find it in the world. This is the foundation on which the great Tiruvallavar lived his life, and that's the reason why this totally universal scripture of virtuous living written 4000 years ago floats on the ocean of humanity as a life boat .

 

Let us find peace within, is my sincere prayer.

 

With love and prayers always

Yogan 

You belch what you have eaten

||Sri Ramakrishna Sharanam||

Swamiji

 

Aum Namo Narayanaya

 

With Diwali behind us now, the celebration mood shifts gear with the ensuing festive season and New Year celebrations demanding our attention. An outing to the various shopping complexes and trade arenas will introduce you to the glittering, colourful and fancy decorations accompanied by jingles that get you tapping into your purse to indulge yourself with all your fancies. I, together with other millions of people around the world wait for 56 days to usher in the 150^th Birth Anniversary of the great luminary Swami Vivekananda.  It is quite interesting to note that November and December present two pivotal and life altering moments in His life. It was in November 1881 that the Master first met His disciple at the residence of Keshab Chandra Sen which transformed Him from Naren to the fire-brand Vivekananda. During the month of December - after His wanderings through the length and breadth of India - His travels culminated at the southernmost tip of India in the town of Kanya Kumari, where He meditated on a rock for three days and nights on all His experiences. It was there that His mission for India and the world, in terms of unpacking Vedanta into a practical vehicle for liberation, unfolded.

 

Sailing from India in search of a better life, our forefathers landed in Durban on the shores of KwaZulu-Natal on 16 November - 152 years ago. Their aim of cutting the bonds of poverty were to an extent realised... when they organised themselves and through education were able to push back the frontiers of poverty. However, to this very day - though living in a free society, there is a continuous struggle against forces that undermine our divine birth right of being equal and free children of God.

 

 

We find ourselves continuously on the collision path of racism, discrimination, insults, corruption, adultery and a mountain of other challenges that rob us of peace daily. Our faith, practices and way of life are always under attack. Why do we always have to face this onslaught from others in this manner?

 

One day, Sri Ramakrishna whilst chatting with Bankim, asked (to Bankim, smiling) "Well, what do you say about man's duties?

 

BANKIM (smiling): "If you ask me about them, I should say they are eating, sleeping, and sex-life.

 

Master scolds Bankim.

 

MASTER (sharply): "Eh? You are very saucy! What you do day and night comes out through your mouth. A man belches what he eats. If he eats radish, he belches radish; if he eats green coconut, he belches green coconut. Day and night you live in the midst of 'woman and gold'; so your mouth utters words about that alone. By constantly thinking of worldly things a man becomes calculating and deceitful. On the other hand, he becomes guileless by thinking of God. A man who has seen God will never say what you have just said.

 

This makes me think that the actions and words of people are the manifestation of their inner being. Sri  Ramakrishna also used to say that however clever you may be, you will stain your body if you live in a sooty room.  If the mind continues to dwell on the world and sense gratification then our inner being becomes  stained. No matter  what we do, we will definitely project the sootiness within. Ignorance of our true nature and fanatical pursuits to the allurement of the senses has made mankind claim superiority over another based on race, wealth and gender. To this very day, conflict continues in this regard.

 

I was once listening to a discourse by a Swami who prudently explained when the finger is broken; no matter what you touch, will result in pain. When our heart and mind is broken from the pure divine consciousness that we are, then everything we do shall result in pain. The words we speak, the actions we do and the thoughts we process. Therefore if we want peace in the world and man to live in harmony as brothers - these words of Swamiji will guide us.  

 

"All love is expansion, all selfishness is contraction. Love is therefore the only law of life. He who loves... lives. He who is selfish... is dying. Therefore, love for love's sake, because it is the law of life, just as you breathe to live. It is our own mental attitude which makes the world what it is for us. Our thoughts make things beautiful, our thoughts make things ugly. The whole world is in our own minds. Learn to see things in the proper light.

 

First, believe in this world - that there is meaning behind everything. Everything in the world is good, is holy and beautiful. If you see something evil, think that you do not understand it in the right light. Throw the burden on yourselves! Feel like Christ and you will be a Christ; feel like Buddha and you will be a Buddha. It is feeling that is the life, the strength, the vitality, without which no amount of intellectual activity can reach God. The moment I have realised God sitting in the temple of every human body, the moment I stand in reverence before every human being and see God in him --- that moment I am free from bondage, everything that binds vanishes, and I am free.

 

Condemn none! If you can stretch out a helping hand, do so. If you cannot, fold your hands, bless your brothers, and let them go their own way."

 

These words spoken by this great son of the Universe more than 100 years ago seems more relevant now than ever. In these times of conflict, it is not the world that we must change but our very own selves.  Mediate and pray regularly for the pure consciousness to engulf your being.

 

May Swamiji help us all live the divinity that we are... is my sincere prayer.

 

With love and prayers always

Yogan

 

Be the Beauty That Murugan Is

||Sri Ramakrishna Sharanam||

 

Lord Murugan

Aum Namo Narayanaya 

 

The possibility of a conspiracy orchestrated by weather gods against our community could not be ruled out as thousands probably gazed out into the sky bearing witness to the seething river of storm clouds that devoured the placid heavens busy laying the sun to rest. The poignant countenance on many a face in the stadium where the Tongaat Diwali celebration was about to be marred by heavy rain for a third year in succession soon turned horrid as the skies presented a symphony of rain, thunder and lightning  as if deliberately trying to upstage our fireworks display. Undeterred though, taking the name of Krishna during the Hawan - the show continued with hundreds culminating under the arena marquees, like taking refuge under the Govardhan Mountain held by Krishna during a storm.

 

The scenario came across to me as a question posed by the heavens on behalf of the Great Lord: “Oh foolish man what are you celebrating? Being ruled and controlled by the dark forces, how can you celebrate this festival of light?"

 

When will I worship Lord Sadasiva (eternally auspicious) with equal vision towards the people and an emperor; and a blade of grass

and lotus-like eye, towards both friends and enemies; towards the valuable gem and some lump of dirt; towards a snake and a garland?

 

Before you challenge your brain to ascertain from which great sage the above prayer emanated, let me dispel your curiosity to tell you the above verse comes from the Shiva Tandava Stotram - from the mouth of King Ravana. He whose life's breath was released from the body by the Supreme Lord on account of His wicked ways is the author of this Stotram which is said to be a very powerful prayer to invoke the grace of Lord Shiva.

 

A mysterious character helplessly drowning in the sea of paradox, yet finds resonance in so many peoples' lives. Having knowledge of so many value systems and techniques to live a good life, so many spend their lives ravaging for moments of peace and happiness.  Sri Ramakrishna explains this in a wonderful way when He says in the Gospel: “The almanac may forecast twenty measures of rain; but you don't get a drop by squeezing its pages." Simply expressing the idea that book knowledge alone is of no use in life if we are unable to utilise it practically.

 

The dilemma of Ravana explains itself with the approaching Skanda Shasti festival which begins on Diwali day itself. Even though man out of his own ignorance may try to divide himself along various lines through his practices and beliefs - the Lord through His leelas demonstrates the onenesss of the world like how many rivers converge into a single ocean.

 

Although poles apart in respect of origin, both Skanda Shasti and Diwali converge along the same lessons of righteousness over evil and light over darkness and further extend into similarities with respect to the celebrations namely: new clothes, fireworks, lamps and festive food.

 

The slaying of the demon Soorapadman by Lord Muruga is the central component or root of the festival of Skanda Shasti. It is believed that the demon who had captured the son of Indra started to wreck havoc in the heavans. It was then that they enlisted the assistance of Senapathi (Lord Muruga) - commander of the heavenly armies to destroy this enemy.

 

It is recorded that the battle ensued for 6 days. Finally the demon assumed the form of a tree, and detecting this form of mastery in illusion, Lord Muruga launched his 'vel' which then split the demon into two resulting in the demon becoming a peacock and rooster. Lord Muruga then assigned the peacock as his 'vahanam' (vehicle) and the rooster as the symbol of His flag that is raised at all his functions and temples.

 

Within each and everyone one of us there are deep seated tendencies or 'vasanas' which have the ability to influence you in your life. Irrespective of the amount of scripture you have read or the amount of prayers you conduct - if you do not have the strength to diffuse these tendencies, you can easily be over-powered. Hence Swami Vivekananda repeatedly for the purposes of highlighting its importance thundered: "Strength is life, weakness is death".

 

If we break the name of the demon Soorapadman up: 'soora' in Tamil refers to being covered. The divine qualities and strength as emphasised by Swamiji is covered by base qualities like ego, greed, etc. The 'vel' as utilised by Lord Muruga represents the sharp-pointed intellect which functions through discrimination. By practising the faculty of discrimination at every juncture we will be sounding the death knell on the base influences.

 

With the splitting of the demon, two animals emerged. The peacock represents ego and pride and the rooster represents the alert mind. By taking the peacock as His vehicle, the Lord asks us to bring our ego and pride under control, and by placing the rooster on His flag flying high, He asks us to be alert and raise our intellect to the highest levels by exercising discrimination. Thus we shall be victorious in our pursuits in life.

 

It is no wonder that the heavans are angry with us... every scripture from Bhagavat Gita to Gospel has been relaying the same message from time immemorial, yet we pay not a heed to them. We continue to perpetuate misery and blame God.

 

Like the wick in the lamp represents the mind, and the oil representative of the world bewitching maya;  do not remain complacent soaking in the world of bondage. Pray sincerely to God (whoever He may be to you) for His grace to light your life, so that His divine blessings will destroy all the fetters that bond you to the world.  Let us pray that we must experience the divine rather than just reading about the divine.

 

I wish all a prosperous and joyous Diwali and all observing Skanda Shasti a rewarding and peaceful  observance.

 

May we all have the opportunity to translate our wonderful teachings into practice is my sincere prayer!

 

With love and prayers always

Yogan

Dhiya Shakti

|| Aum Sri Ramakrishna Sharanam||

 



Aum Namo Narayanaya

Happy Diwali



 

Sometimes it elicits much disbelief to understand that in this ultra technical and literate age, symbols continue to exert much influence in our daily lives. From bathroom signage to cautionary signs behind road haulers; pretty much every building to social media - man still finds this ancient art of communication relevant. Indeed a picture can say in a glance what would normally take a few words to say. It is the depth that symbols carry which found favour with our ancient saints and seers in communicating profound and explicit truths of this universe. Hindu Dharma even in the face of criticism, invasion and onslaught from other religions continued to thrive and grow by unpacking the timeless wisdom contained in these symbols.

 

One such symbol of Hindu Dharma which is central to the idea of God and also utilised everyday in some form to help a devotee connect with the divine light (so much so that the very first word mentioned in the Vedas - the authority of Hindu Dharma that's over 5000 years old) is AGNI (Fire God). History in general will account chronologically how fire has been a key component in the evolution of man from the cave to Silicon Valley. This light and fire which escalated to the pedestal of divine simply brings to the fore the insight and intuition of these great saints about the truths of the Universe. Today we cannot imagine a world without the sun, fire and light - hence we find with great humility our Hindu brethren since time immemorial have bowed at the crack of dawn to the effulgent, luminous Surya Narayana as the preceptor of life on earth.

 

As Maharaj so  succinctly pointed out that during Navarathri, some quarters of India celebrate the slaying of Ravana while others celebrate the slaying of Mahishasura. However the locus of these celebrations remain the triumph of good over evil. We experience a similar trend with the global celebration of Diwali, unquestionably the biggest Hindu celebration to date. Various regions in India place emphasis on various events that occurred in that time namely: "the return of Lord Rama from exile" and "the slaying of Narakasura by Lord Krishna”. In other regions the auspicious Sri Luxmi pooja is performed -  all ultimately celebrating the divine influence of light over darkness. If one continues with a base understanding to perpetuate the literal ritualistic aspect of this mass phenomenon of Diwali, then little or no spiritual benefit can be extracted for the sustenance of our journey to liberation.

 

Imagine someone living in an area with sub-zero temperatures. Of what benefit will it be to that person to be seated in a room away from the fire place. Apart from light of the fire, he will not be able to extract the heat to warm his body. In the same manner, a mere celebration of Diwali without any spiritual foundations shall provide unsustainable enjoyment only and will result in an entropy of these beautiful and colourful traditions.

 

Within each and every one of us is the light (spark) of the Divine known as the atman. However many people walk around the earth like zombies without the slightest expression of the pure divinity that they are.  We simply utilise the prana (oxygen) to keep the body alive, which is like the fire place which is far away from the cold person.  We have thus allowed the layers of ego, lust, greed, hatred, anger, falsehood and all other adharmic tendencies that we have, to cloud us.

 

The following symbolic traditions of Diwali illustrate what we need to do to allow the Divine Shakti from within to radiate and manifest to the world. The oil bath is the cleansing of the physical being. The new clothes represent our intention to remove all our old qualities and traits for new, sublime ones. Sitting for hawan and pooja  are for the purification of the mind and inner being. The sacred chanting and singing must dilute all that has inhibited our divine manifestation.

 

The lighting of the first dhiya (lamp) from the main lamp is symbolic of the Shakti or power  of the Divine. We must understand that it is not the light that lights the dhiya but the energy (heat) which causes the wick to burn.  As we burn  one dhiya from another, we must understand that the Lord is the doer of everything (heat) and we are His instruments (light).  Swami Vivekananda said: "That Brahman is the sum total of all beings manifest and not".  Therefore, to truly experience the power of God, we must ensure that all of humanity (dhiyas) can come together; all of the same quality of flame and will thus be able to collectively radiate with great intensity the light and energy of God.  Therefore, the celebration is called Deepavali (row of lights), which is an orderly arrangement of the dhiyas to ensure maximum luminosity which ultimately reflects our journey from dvaita to advaita (from many to one) - all becoming one jyothi (light) which is Brahman.

 

The firework which has become synonymous with the celebrations is an expansive expression of the shakti within. Just as the wick of the fire canon is lit from the dhiya and eventually explodes into the sky into a magnificent array of colours and designs for the delight of all; our shakti and divinity must be utilised to the delight and service of humanity. When our dhiyas have become strong and still in the turbulence of the world, we must endeavour to light up the lives of others through selfless seva because Swamiji has proclaimed that liberation is only available through the emancipation of humanity from the shackles of bondage.

 

May this Diwali bring upon us a burning desire to radiate the divinity within us by practicing spiritual sadhanas, and enagaging in devotional  service. Let every dhiya we light illumine every dark tendency within us. As Master said: "A single spark in an instant dispels a room that has been dark for a million years".  Let us then meditate on this illumined self: Bhargo Devasya Dhimahi Dhyo Yo nah Prachodayat, so that it will guide and inspire us in the right direction - the direction of truth, fearlessness, compassion, love, right conduct and non violence.

 

Let us all journey from darkness to light, is my sincere prayer.

 

Happy Diwali  to all.

 

PS: As we celebrate let us spare a thought for all who are sick, and our dear animal friends. Let us also feel some compassion towards our South African students writing Matric exams. Let us be considerate when using fireworks and engaging in loud outdoor activities.

 

With love and prayers always

Yogan 

 

Maha Yajna of Life

|| Sri Ramakrishna Sharanam||

 

Aum Namo Narayanaya

 

The time: 22:30, the date: 26 October 2012, the place: Ramakrishna Ashram Durban. It was the eve of my birth - and I sat in my room embanked by the shrine housing the Holy Trio, the quarters of the two Swamijis and an ensemble of my thoughts that projected out of over 3 decades of experiences. The lives of these elevated souls forming the benchmark and basis of reference of a life lived; I am convinced that the impending anniversary arguably cannot substantiate any celebration. The hours, days and years that stack beneath - how have they been utilised? As much as half of it has been spent sleeping. I cannot really account for the waking hours being spent efficiently and productively expressing the potential divinity that I am. I want to take this opportunity to bow to and thank all those who called and expressed their messages of prayer, blessings, gifts and good wishes. I was overwhelmingly moved by the number of calls and messages that flooded my phone and computer. But I also seek forgiveness and bow to all those that I may have offended, hurt and failed to serve during the course of these years.  I stand repentant, but collected and focused not to repeat those mistakes again.

 

Master's party for me began before sunrise as I joined Swami Brahmaroopananda, Swami Vimokshananda and Brother Chandi for morning meditation, japa and mangal aarthi.  Blessed with the grace of Master, Mother, Swamiji and making morning pranaams to our revered Maharajs' set the bar for a perfect day, but more importantly reconstituted and repositioned me with the inspiration and impetus to live a life representative of my true nature.  Making and serving coffee to both Swamijis brought an immense amount of joy that would sustain all other activities for the day

 

It was however during breakfast that Master through the profoundly striking words of Swami Vimokshananda presented a gift that is priceless beyond all currencies. Sharing from His own cup a concoction of hot water and a pinch of neem powder, Maharaj said: ”Whilst everywhere sweets are given during a birthday, I give you this bitter drink." Partaking of the freshly sliced fruit, delicious curries and “thawa” rotis, my mind started to cognise on the depth of this string of words by Maharaj.

 

It was surprising to note that my birth month is shared with quite a few luminaries who have touched millions of people by their actions - the likes of Theodore Roosevelt and Oliver Reginald Tambo. But, significantly with 4 Presidents of the Ramakrishna order. Their lives portray an exemplary array of inspiration that motivates us to find our true purpose and try to achieve it. One such divine soul whose birth thithi was on the auspicious Mahalaya day this October was Revered Swami Akhandanandaji Maharaj who was affectionately known as “Baba Maharaj” for His compassion and affection shown to humanity as a  monk with a fatherly love.

 

Swami Vimokshananda in His discourse last night beautifully and eloquently painted for all the illustrious and selfless life of this great disciple of Sri Ramakrishna who is accredited to starting the Mission work of the order. What really intrigues me upon listening to the biographies of these saints is that they were able to undertake such great work with the minimal resources; yet in this resource endowed world we still struggle to bring relief to the hunger of another human being.

 

 

Being a renunciate monk, Swami Akhandanandaji without hesitation once fed almost an entire section of a village struck by famine with puffed rice with a mere four annas given to Him as pranami by a family. When will the hearts of those with excess reserves feel for those who go to bed without a meal?

 

It was 6.30 am before breakfast when Swami Brahmaroopananda, a few devotees and myself were seated around a hawan kund. We were about to start the scheduled Saturday yajna. I felt blessed to be incorporated into this special sacrifice as part of my birthday. Bowing our heads in invocation prayer and after the purificatory cleansing, the fire was lit. Each was given a container of hawan samagree (mixture of different herbs, roots and stems). After addressing the different deities, the mixture of samagree and butter ghee was inserted into the fire with the chorus recitation of swaha.  Fruit and sweatmeats  coated  with ghee were offered. The yajna concluded with peace chants and the singing of the Hanuman Chalisa.

 

The effect of the yajna pounced upon me as I walked to my room after breakfast. The words of Maharaj found correlation with the yajna. Each of us frozen within our own egos and self have become cold to our fellow humanity.  Like the mixture of samagree, we all don our own unique personalities and temperaments which impedes our ability to interact as a homogenous society. The lighted fire represents God and His infinite grace. When Swami Vivekananda developed the motto of the Ramakrishna Mission “Atmano mokshartham jagat hitaya cha" - 'For one's own salvation and for the welfare of the world', He presented the twin goals in the journey of life. When we embrace God in our lives and surrender at His feet - by His mere touch He melts our egos and as we offer all the different ingredients, even the ghee coated offerings with the word swaha (meaning self), we must offer all our flaws and imperfections to the Lord, who by His mercy smoothes us to perfection. This is seen as within a few minutes of being offered, everything in the kund becomes a pure white ash.\

 

With this realisation that the result of all life and creation is perfection, and that essentially we are all constituted of the same divine energy, we must live by Swami Vivekananda's principle of: 'for the liberation of the self and the welfare of the world'. Swami Vimokshananda's bitter tonic is this ultimate reality. It is of no use living a life of sugar-coating with dreams and illusions, thinking that we are above all and happy. True and real bliss shall only come when we are purified with the touch of God.

 

It is only then when you have lived by that you need not worry about celebrating your birth anniversary - but the world will celebrate it for you! I offer my eternal salutations and pranaams to all these selfless luminaries and saints who lived amongst us to show the way.

 

May their lives give us inspiration and impetus to live a divine life is my sincere prayer.

 

With love and prayers always

Yogan 

Bhairavi to Bhavani

||Sri Ramakrishna Sharanam||

 

Mother Kali

Aum Namo Narayanaya

 

The heavens benevolently graced the earth with nourishing showers from the inception of the Navarathri festival in honour of the Mother Universal. It was encouraging to note that the weather did not deter the bhaktas from making their way to the worship halls to offer worship and dance in the spiritual mood of Ambe Ma. Although this festival has not enjoyed the same enthusiasm within the South African South Indian community, there is notable growth over the years, as people become more knowledgeable and embracive of the celebration.

 

It was on Thursday within the first 3 days dedicated to Mother Kali, that an insuppressible thought encroached me. My mind was drawn toward a dear friend who I had not spoken to in a long while. It was with much trepidation that I considered calling my friend, uncertain as to whether I will get through or whether the call will be cordially received and reciprocated with the sentiments of friendship that still possessed my heart.

 

At the end of the call, I was instilled with a sense of joy that touched the zenith of my emotions. It was like my blood in an instant was replaced with joy that travelled to every cell of my being. As this feeling lingered with me for a while, I questioned myself about this experience. If such an engagement with a long lost friend delivered such euphoria, how is it that majority of people cannot connect with and derive joy from the absolute bliss that is within each and every one of us?

 

Listening to my internal inquisition - Master, who has the ability to hear even the footfall of an ant, graciously responded when on two consecutive mornings whilst reading the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, I opened to the same page. 

 

The answer also came enforced on the third day when I read Swami Vimokshananda’s blog titled “Not I but Thou”:

 

“Once, when I was explaining God's actions to someone, God suddenly showed me the lake at Kamarpukur. I saw a man removing the green scum and drinking the water. The water was clear as crystal. God revealed to me that satchidananda is covered by the scum of maya. He who puts the green scum aside can drink the water.” The words of Master immediately struck a definitive chord when I read Swamiji's blog. ”Spiritual life is nothing but slowly effacing this ‘I’ and bringing an awareness of the Mother’s doing. When the feeling of “not I, but Thou’” comes in our core of our heart, we are, though living in the body yet liberated in this very life.”

 

It was Mother Jagadatri, Bhavadharani - the merciful and compassionate Mother Herself, who on the  last day of worship to Mother Kali revealed that the scum that obscures our enjoyment of the bliss within,  is our EGO. The iconography of Mother Kali, invokes mixed sentiments across the spectrum of society. She is a divine paradox defying comprehension. 

 

Garlanded with heads of slain demons, and wearing their appendages around her waist, mouth dripping with blood - She dances violently amongst corpses.  Terror is Her form; darkness is Her name. Swami Vivekananda in His poem on Mother Kali describes Her as follows:

 

For Terror is Thy name,

Death is in Thy breath.

And every shaking step

Destroys a world for e'er.

Thou 'Time', the All-destroyer!

Come, O Mother, come!

 

Yesterday after satsang at ashram, by Mothers grace I attended for a little while the Navarathri celebrations at Saptah Mandir. It was an incredible experience as I sat through the latter part of the proceedings and caught a bit of the discourse on Ma Kali. I am uncertain of the scripture that Pundit Jinabhai was reading from, but at one point he spoke of how Parahamsa Sri Ramakrishna  was able to see Mother Kali as Ananda Rupini (form of bliss) compared to how many see Her only as 'Kali the terrible'.

 

The symbolism of the iconography described above relates to the destruction of the ego. The garland of heads and appendages around Her waist refer to the body. By utilising these as ornaments and apparel, Mother directs us to get rid of the body consciousness. So long as we retain the “I ness” we shall have desires. The blood represents the quelling of desires - we must put an end to desires. Transcending the body and all the attachments to it, we can engage with the spirit within: the reservoir of incalculable bliss.

 

It is those that are egocentric that harbour strong attachment to the world and body; who live for the satisfaction of self - who shall have fear of Mother Kali. They shall see Her as the terrible goddess, simply because She is in contradiction to all that that they stand for.

 

For those who like Master, who have renounced all attachment to the body, world and are pure in every aspect of their being - will see Mother as an embodiment of bliss, compassion, love, and liberator of all souls. Master who has attained perfection through complete surrender and love for the Divine Mother, with the understanding that all is Her will alone, presents Her as Nityakalyani - the eternal bestower of mercy, compassion and beauty to Her children.

 

Mother Kali, as the purana describes, manifested from between the brow of Mother Durga. This symbolises the third eye of wisdom. Whilst we see the world through the conventional organs of sight; in order to view the ananda roopa and engage with the satchidananda within, we need to utilise the third eye (gateway to higher planes of consciousness) which only develop when man moves from being asuric to suric (negative to positive-pure).

 

Let us unite in prayer to the Divine Mother to help us eradicate our ego, selfishness, lust, greed, desires and make us pure like Master. Sri Ramakrishna attained such a high state of perfection and purity that anyone who merely mentions His name will start to transform, and is worthy of being made pranams to.

 

As our prayer and sadhanas intensify over the next few days towards Vijaya Dashami (day of victory), may the grace of the Divine Mother flow abundantly to all, is my sincere prayer.

 

With love and prayers always

Yogan 

Mother My Haven of Love and Safety

|| Sri Ramakrishna Sharanam||

 

Aum Namo Narayanaya

Lord adorned as Sri Laksmi Narashima

 

As the curtains came down on the austere and puritanical month of Purutassi, it was an emotional experience to see hundreds of devotees descend upon the Veeraboga Temple to celebrate this occasion with Lord Narayana - all bedecked in His finery of jewels and clothing. Pleasing all devotees with His dharshan, He returned to His throne in the sanctum-santorum after presiding over the prayers for a month.  I recall when I was little, my granny used to tell us that Lord Vishnu used to awaken at the beginning of Purutassi and go back to sleep (or go into yoga-nidra as Maharaj sometimes refers to it) at the end of Purutassi. As much as it is a myth, as the Lord never sleeps, I do feel pity for Him considering what He has to put up with in this age of Kali. So let us like compassionate children give Him a weeks rest as we join in the company of the Divine Mother.

Master seeking comfort from His MotherDivine

 

The very word mother oozes much comfort and tender love. Her every action is a safety net, lest we fall from the efforts of life. Sharing our pains and sorrows and celebrating our joys, she embraces a quality so unique that none can clone. From 16 October, for nine nights, people from all over the world shall immerse themselves in pooja and fasting to attain the grace of the Divine Mother.

 

The Festival known as Navarathri glorifies the Mother in her 3 aspects or attributes as: Brahma-Shakti (creative), Vishnu-Shakti (preserver) and Shiva-Shakti (dissolution).  As the famous hymn from the Devi Mahatmayam reads: Sristi Stiti  Vinashanam, Shakti Bhute Sanathaye: Oh Mother you are the power of creation, preservation and destruction. The programme for the nine days consists of strict fasting, fire sacrifices (havan), bhajans, discourses and special sessions of garbha dancing is observed at some centres.

 

The principle scripture which forms opinion of Devi worship is the Devi Mahatmayam. Some temples often read this scripture during a special havan ceremony. As much as temples and ashrams may differ in the way they observe this period, the central theme of intense devotion and surrender to the Mother is prevalent all over.

 

Mother worship, given special attention in Hindu Dharma, provides an avenue for immense comfort and solace to a devotee who lies stranded on the island of despair and anxiety. The loving embrace of a mother can subdue a child’s frantic cry even under the most trying circumstances. Instantaneously the child feels safe and fearless.

 

The compelling narrative on Sri Ramakrishna’s life unveils to the contemporary reader the ‘mother and son’ relationship that invokes a new level of bhakti in this dark age. The unconditional surrender of complete self at the feet of the Mother resulted in the Master’s vision of the Mother whilst occupying His mortal body. Intoxicated to the depths of His heart with love for her, She became His constant companion, good counsel and protector. There are many scenes that refer to the Master even dancing with Her.

 

A child who is in the company of his mother has no fear of hunger, shelter and clothing. In the same way, if devotees can reach the levels of bhakti practiced by Sri Ramakrishna, the doors of the spiritual heavens are open for you.

 

 

We all know that in order to develop bhakti or make spiritual progress, it takes a lot of discipline, hard work and perseverance. Swami Vivekananda’s clarion call of “Arise, Awake and stop not till the goal is reached” speaks to our tendency to submerge ourselves into tamas (laziness, sleep and lethargy).

 

The Devi Mahatmayam tells how a demon called Mahishasura(half buffalo half man), having obtained a boon that no male shall be able to vanquish him, started to torment the heavens and the world. Unable to bear this torture, the devas approached the trio of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva for assistance. Taking cognisance of the boon granted to Mahishasura, they converged their powers - from which emerged Mother Durga.

 

Characterised by celestial beauty - adorning ten arms, armed with specialised weapons from all the Gods - She waged battle with the buffalo demon for nine nights. On the tenth day known as Vijaya Dashami, She vanquished him.

 

The buffalo is described as a very lazy animal which lies submerged in water for most of its day. It can eat up to 4 % of its weight a day reaching 2000 pounds on weight resulting in extreme lethargy.

 

We as well, unaware of our divine potential within and our life’s mission of God-realisation, have been caught up in the web of tamaguna.  The 10 arms of the Divine Mother  working in concert represent our 5 organs of action and 5 organs of sense - which if brought under control and working in union with the intellect for the sole purpose of spiritual elevation - can vanquish the laziness and lethargy that has set in.

 

Sri Aurobindo said: This is why Swami Vivekananda, noticing the deep tamas of India, used to say: "Rajas is needed, the country needs heroes of action, let the strong current of impulsion flow. Even if evil follows in its wake, it will be a thousand times better than this tamasic inertia".

 

Many people waste this life away in sleep and laziness. This body or form is a great gift from God. Utilise it for the welfare of God in humanity by unearthing fearlessness through worship of Mother Kali (first 3 days); wealth (vista of spiritual knowledge ingrained within) and prosperity by worshipping Mother Lakshmi (middle 3 days); and fine tuning our intellect by worship of Mother Saraswathi (last 3 days). The convergence of these 3 attributes will annihilate the tamas and awaken the divinity within.

 

May this period of spiritual sadhana on the Divine Mother bring you to action on your journey towards moksha is my sincere prayer.

 

Jay Ambe Ambe Mata ki Jay!!!!!.

My saluations and adorations at the feet of Holy Mother

With Love and Prayers Always
Yogan

Love For Loves Sake Alone

||Sri Ramakrishna Sharanam||

Aum Namo Narayanaya

From the moment we arise from bed to the time we retire to bed, we interact with various experiences that create many impressions in our mind. A multitude of these experiences constitutes our life. Apart from the current direct interactions with the experiences of daily life, we have to also contend with our past experiences which indulge on us as samskaras. Hence, the human journey can become quite taxing at times. It leaves one confused, overwhelmed and despondent when life unfolds against their wishes and efforts with no apparent reason.

Swami Vivekananda explains the phenomenon of life as a continuous struggle between us and everything on the outside. Every moment we are actually fighting with external nature, and if we are defeated then our life has to go. Ask for nothing, want nothing in return. Give what you have to give, it will come back to you, but do not think of that now.

I generally don’t like to attend commercial conferences because from my past experiences it proves to be a very elaborate and exhausting ‘talk-shop’ which ultimately results in or amounts to nothing.  However my mind has failed to close its doors on the Hindu conference organised by the Sri Sarada Devi Ashram at the University of Kwazulu-Natal last week. The flood of well researched, awe inspiring papers and talks based on scriptures like the Ramayana and Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna has yet to subside as it continues to erode my  ignorance and misconceptions of life.

Swami Vimokshananda’s talk on Prayer in the Gospel was a vibrant, ingenious and candid expose of our ignorance and lack of understanding of the operations, laws and mechanisms within the universe, and our fragile and sketchy faith in the Master of the universe as the preceptor of our liberation.

Is there one who has not shed tears of anguish or questioned God as to why certain prayers were not fulfilled. You may have done pilgrimage to all the main temples in hope of certain rewards; you make have undertaken severe austerities and fasting and still not achieved what you wanted. On the other hand, you see people making no effort and achieving their wishes. Everything they touch or do turns to “gold”. It is at these junctions and moments of despair that we see faith shatter into a million pieces.

A very profound poem by Mary Stevenson comes to mind now, which brings some solace to the mind when you sit back and reflect on these incidents and try to simulate how your life actually would have turned out if your prayer was answered.

One night I dreamt I was walking along the beach with the Lord.

Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky.

In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand.

Sometimes there were two sets of footprints,

other times there were one set of footprints.

This bothered me because I noticed

that during the low periods of my life,

when I was suffering from

anguish, sorrow or defeat,

I could see only one set of footprints.

So I said to the Lord,

‘You promised me Lord,

that if I followed you,

you would walk with me always.

But I have noticed that during the most trying periods of my life

there were only one set of footprints in the sand.

Why, when I needed you most, were you not there for me?’

The Lord replied,

‘The times when you saw only one set of footprints in the sand,

is when I carried you.’

A sense of gratitude conjures in your heart, bowing in prayer to the Lord for saving you from what would have been a total disaster. It is your needs that the Lord takes care of not your wants, expressed Swami Vimokshananda, whose countenance radiated with divine effulgence as He relayed these assuring words to a devoted audience.

Being exposed to the mind-purifying aura of revered Maharaj on that day, I was constantly subjected to a mental image of Lord Shiva for the entire week after the conference. It was only on Thursday night when I was doing some reading on Revered Swami Madhavanandaji Maharaj, the 9th President of the Ramakrishna Order (as His mahasamadhi day according to the Gregorian calendar fell on Saturday, 6 October) that I found resonance in this image.

Swami Madhavananda like Swami Vivekananda translated the Vairagya Satakam  - a poem by the illustrious Saint Bharthari  which contains 100 verses on renunciation. It is after reading this poem that the mind relinquishes any doubt that insatiable desires are the root cause of his troubles.

Mahadeva is regarded as the Lord of renunciation, who adorns nothing but a tiger skin smeared with ash seated in the cremation grounds, absorbed in deep meditation on the self. Even though the moon which is so far away can cause mental turbulence in man, how is it that He who adorns the crescent moon on His head radiates such bliss? It is this state that we should all aspire to achieve. A few verses below will give you an indication of how renunciation of desires will help elevate your levels of bliss instantaneously.

Hope is the name of this river, whose water is desire,

And thirst the waves thereof.

Passion is the crocodile living in that water,

Vain resolves are the birds that reside

In the tree of virtue on the shores and kill it.

But there are the whirlpools of delusion

And despondence, the high banks.

The great Yogis are blissful because they,

With their pure minds, never crossed this river.

Many of us, like Maharaj mentioned in His talk, engage in ‘petitionary prayers’ -  with the hope of fulfilling our desires in exchange for the worship rendered. Swami Vivekananda has cautioned us against such with His fiery words:  

Give up hope, says the Vedanta. Why should you hope? You have everything, nay, you are everything. What are you hoping for? If a King goes mad, and runs about trying to find the King of his country, he will never find him, because he is the King himself. He may go through every village and city in his own country, seeking in every house, weeping and wailing, but he will never find him, because he is the King himself. Knowing that we are God we become happy and contented. Give up all these mad pursuits. It is better to love God for love’s sake; and the prayer goes: O Lord, I do not want wealth nor children nor learning. If it be Thy will, I shall go from birth to birth. But grant me this, that I may love thee without the hope of reward - ’love’ unselfishly for love’s sake.

It is with this firm conviction and surrender to the feet of God alone, that you can rest assured that all your needs will surely be taken care of. This assurance is also given in the Bhagavat Gita itself by Sri Krishna: Those persons who worship Me, meditating on their identity with Me and ever devoted to Me—to them I carry what they lack and for them I preserve what they already have.

On this day as we remember Revered Swami Madhavananda and His contributions, may we strive to cultivate deep love for God alone; renouncing all wants for desires, and attain the perfect state of bliss and yoga like Lord Maheshwara, is my sincere prayer. Please follow the hyperlink below to read the complete Vairagya Satakam.

With love and prayers always

Yogan

Link for Vairagya Satakam: http://www.ramakrishnavivekananda.info/vivekananda/volume_9/writings_prose_and_poems/bhartriharis_verses.htm