An Atheist Professor of Philosophy was speaking to his Class on the Problem Science has with GOD, the ALMIGHTY. He asked one of his New Christian Students to stand and . . .
Professor : You are a Christian, aren't you, son ?
Student : Yes, sir.
Professor : So, you Believe in GOD ?
Student : Absolutely, sir.
Professor : Is GOD Good ?
Student : Sure.
Professor : Is GOD ALL - POWERFUL ?
Student : Yes.
Professor : My Brother died of Cancer even though he Prayed to GOD to Heal him. Most of us would attempt to help others who are ill. But GOD didn't. How is this GOD good then? Hmm?
(Student was silent )
Professor : You can't answer, can you ? Let's start again, Young Fella. Is GOD Good?
Student : Yes.
Professor : Is Satan good ?
Student : No.
Professor : Where does Satan come from ?
Student : From . . . GOD .. .
Professor : That's right. Tell me son, is there evil in this World?
Student : Yes.
Professor : Evil is everywhere, isn't it ? And GOD did make everything. Correct?
Student : Yes.
Professor : So who created evil ?
(Student did not answer)
Professor : Is there Sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things exist in the World, don't they?
Student : Yes, sir.
Professor : So, who Created them ?
(Student had no answer)
Professor : Science says you have 5 Senses you use to Identify and Observe the World around you.. Tell me, son . .. . Have you ever Seen GOD?
Student : No, sir.
Professor : Tell us if you have ever Heard your GOD?
Student : No , sir.
Professor : Have you ever Felt your GOD, Tasted your GOD, Smelt your GOD? Have you ever had any Sensory Perception of GOD for that matter?
Student : No, sir. I'm afraid I haven't.
Professor : Yet you still Believe in HIM?
Student : Yes.
Professor : According to Empirical, Testable, Demonstrable Protocol, Science says your GOD doesn't exist. What do you say to that, son?
Student : Nothing. I only have my Faith.
Professor : Yes, Faith. And that is the Problem Science has.
Student : Professor, is there such a thing as Heat?
Professor : Yes.
Student : And is there such a thing as Cold?
Professor : Yes.
Student : No, sir. There isn't.
(The Lecture Theatre became very quiet with this turn of events )
Student : Sir, you can have Lots of Heat, even More Heat, Superheat, Mega Heat, White Heat, a Little Heat or No Heat.
But we don't have anything called Cold. We can hit 458 Degrees below Zero which is No Heat, but we can't go any further after that. There is no such thing as Cold.
Cold is only a Word we use to describe the Absence of Heat. We cannot Measure Cold. Heat is Energy. Cold is Not the Opposite of Heat, sir, just the Absence of it.
(There was Pin-Drop Silence in the Lecture Theatre )
Student : What about Darkness, Professor? Is there such a thing as Darkness?
Professor : Yes. What is Night if there isn't Darkness?
Student : You're wrong again, sir. Darkness is the Absence of Something You can have Low Light, Normal Light, Bright Light, Flashing Light . . But if you have No Light constantly, you have nothing and its called Darkness, isn't it? In reality, Darkness isn't. If it is, were you would be able to make Darkness Darker, wouldn't you?
Professor : So what is the point you are making, Young Man ?
Student : Sir, my point is your Philosophical Premise is flawed.
Professor : Flawed ? Can you explain how?
Student : Sir, you are working on the Premise of Duality.
You argue there is Life and then there is Death, a Good GOD and a Bad GOD. You are viewing the Concept of GOD as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, Science can't even explain a Thought. It uses Electricity and Magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view Death as the Opposite of Life is to be ignorant of the fact that Death cannot exist as a Substantive Thing. Death is Not the Opposite of Life: just the Absence of it. Now tell me, Professor, do you teach your Students that they evolved from a Monkey?
Professor : If you are referring to the Natural Evolutionary Process, yes, of course, I do.
Student : Have you ever observed Evolution with your own eyes, sir?
(The Professor shook his head with a Smile, beginning to realize where the Argument was going )
Student : Since no one has ever observed the Process of Evolution at work and Cannot even prove that this Process is an On-Going Endeavor, Are you not teaching your Opinion, sir? Are you not a Scientist but a Preacher?
(The Class was in Uproar )
Student : Is there anyone in the Class who has ever seen the Professor's Brain?
(The Class broke out into Laughter )
Student : Is there anyone here who has ever heard the Professor's Brain, Felt it, touched or Smelt it? . . . No one appears to have done so.
(The Room was Silent. The Professor stared at the Student, his face unfathomable)
Professor : I guess you'll have to take them on Faith, son.
Student : That is it sir . . . Exactly ! The Link between Man & GOD is FAITH. That is all that Keeps Things Alive and Moving.
That student was Albert Einstein.
Friday, December 11, 2009
Understanding Hindu Religion
Once I was traveling abroad. An American girl was sitting by my side, reading Bible. After sometime, she smiled and we had an acquaintance talk. I told her I am from India. Then suddenly, the girl asked, “What is your faith?”
Looking at my puzzled look, she asked again, “What is your religion? Are you a Christian or a Muslim?”
“I am a Hindu”, I said.
“Hindu? What? Who is your Prophet?”, she asked.
“We don’t have a single Prophet”, I replied.
“What is your Holy Book?” she asked
“We don’t have a single Holy Book. We have hundreds of sacred scriptures” I replied.
“Oh, Come on. At least tell me who is your God?”
I thought for a moment. Christians and Muslims believe in one God. Her mind is conditioned with that kind of belief and rigidly narrowed down to believe that religion means there must be one Prophet, one Holy Book and one God and anything else is not acceptable. I understood her perception and concept about Faith. You just can’t compare Hindu Religion with any of the subsequent religions.
Hearing me that we have one God who has multiple figures, names and Gunas, she said, “I don’t understand.”
I told her that Hinduism is not a religion like Christianity or any other, because it is not founded by any one person and does not have any one single organized controlling body like the church.
“So, you don’t believe in God!”, she said.
“I didn’t say that. We do not discard the divine reality. Our scriptures, the Vedas, Srutis, Smritis, Upanishads and Gita tell us about God and we pray that Supreme Authority, the Para Brahman, the Creator of this Universe.
“Good, you agree that God does exist. You said you pray. What is your Prayer?”
“Again there are many prayers. One of them is Loka Samastha: Sukhino Bhavanthu, Om Shanti…..”
“What does it mean”, she asked.
“May all the beings in this world be happy. Let there be peace, peace, peace. ‘Isavasyam Idam Sarvam’ says God is present in all beings and non-beings. Respect every living and non-living as God. That is what Hinduism teaches you.
3
“Very interesting. Yours is very democratic, broad minded and free. I want to learn more”, she said.
Courtesy: Sri Sudhir Srinivasan
Looking at my puzzled look, she asked again, “What is your religion? Are you a Christian or a Muslim?”
“I am a Hindu”, I said.
“Hindu? What? Who is your Prophet?”, she asked.
“We don’t have a single Prophet”, I replied.
“What is your Holy Book?” she asked
“We don’t have a single Holy Book. We have hundreds of sacred scriptures” I replied.
“Oh, Come on. At least tell me who is your God?”
I thought for a moment. Christians and Muslims believe in one God. Her mind is conditioned with that kind of belief and rigidly narrowed down to believe that religion means there must be one Prophet, one Holy Book and one God and anything else is not acceptable. I understood her perception and concept about Faith. You just can’t compare Hindu Religion with any of the subsequent religions.
Hearing me that we have one God who has multiple figures, names and Gunas, she said, “I don’t understand.”
I told her that Hinduism is not a religion like Christianity or any other, because it is not founded by any one person and does not have any one single organized controlling body like the church.
“So, you don’t believe in God!”, she said.
“I didn’t say that. We do not discard the divine reality. Our scriptures, the Vedas, Srutis, Smritis, Upanishads and Gita tell us about God and we pray that Supreme Authority, the Para Brahman, the Creator of this Universe.
“Good, you agree that God does exist. You said you pray. What is your Prayer?”
“Again there are many prayers. One of them is Loka Samastha: Sukhino Bhavanthu, Om Shanti…..”
“What does it mean”, she asked.
“May all the beings in this world be happy. Let there be peace, peace, peace. ‘Isavasyam Idam Sarvam’ says God is present in all beings and non-beings. Respect every living and non-living as God. That is what Hinduism teaches you.
3
“Very interesting. Yours is very democratic, broad minded and free. I want to learn more”, she said.
Courtesy: Sri Sudhir Srinivasan
Understanding Sri Vaishnavism
REligion means Bhakti towards the Divine. In the Bhakthi schools, there are people who [1] worship Vishnu and Mahalakshmi and [2] those who worship Siva and Sakthi. Vaishnavas are Vishnu Dasas who worship Vishnu and Mahalakshmi. .
Vaishnavas are called Sri Vaishnavas because they workship both Sri and Vishnu, i.e. Mahalakshmi and Sriman Narayana, together.
Sri Vaishnavas worship Sriman Narayana in five forms, viz. Param, Vyuham, Vibhavam, Archa and Antharyami, as under:
1. Param is that form of Lord Sriman Narayana who lives in His permanent abode, Sri Vaikuntam. There He is sitting on Adisesha along with His consorts.
2. Vyuham is that form of Lord Sriman Narayana wherefrom he focuses on Creation, Maintenance and Destruction, from the posture of Vyuha Vasudeva lying down on his Bed Adisesha in Thirupparkadal, the Milky ocean.
3. Vibhavam is that form of Lord Sriman Narayana in which He took Avatara in this world and was known in different names such as as Nrisimha, Rama, Krishna, etc.
4. Archa is that form of Lord Sriman Narayana in which, having been duly invocated, He gives Darshan to you and I, in various temples on this earth. In these temples, He had taken such form as the Bhaktas have wished and gives them Darshan day today.
5. Antaryami is that form of Lord Sriman Narayana in which He resides within all of us as our soul, giving guidance day to day to people who care to listen to Him.
Sri Vaishnavism is a broad-based universal religion, which is open to one and all independent of Caste , creed, gender, or scholarship of the individual.
Sri Vaishnava Philosophy:
The Basic Tenets of Sri Vaishnava Philosophy are:
1. Sriman Narayana is Supreme God, the Para Bhamham. The Para Bramham is not Nirguna or Nirakara as claimed by certain schools , but possesses inifinite auspicious qualities.
2. Sriman Narayana not only created the Nature and the Jivas, but also resides as Anthryami / Soul in everyone and everything. Thus everything is in Him and He is in everyone / everything. Thus the jivas are part of this Supreme God.
3. While ultimately all the Jivas have to merge with the God, this merger could take many Janmas / births till the Jivas qualify for this merger by doing good deeds.
4. This merger with Sriman Narayana can be quickened to happen at the end of current life itself, provided we do Prapatti / Saranagati through an Acharya and lead a righteous / Dharmic life after doing the Prapatti.
5. Once the soul reaches Sri Vaikunta, the abode of Sriman Narayana, having been freed from the cycle of birth and death, the soul engages in eternal service to Sriman Narayana.
Sri Vaishnava Literature
We know every country has a Constitution. And every country frames various Acts and Rules under the Constitution. And under these Rules, Procedures are written up. And to supplement the Constitution, Rules and Procedures, many guide books are written by many knowledgeable people.
In the same way, the Constitution for our religion is Vedas. And God Himself took Avataras, gave us Ramayana, Mahabharata, Gita, etc to give us Rules for leading our day to day life. The Procedures for conduct of Temples and worships were written up in the form of Agamas. Then many kritis were made by Alwars explaining the pathways for understanding the Vedic philosophy and Teachings. Then the very learned Acharyas gave us many books / Granthams for understanding and practicing the codes contained in the Vedas and other religious literature that would serve as Guide Books to laymen.
Thus Sri Vaishnavism has a very rich five-fold literature. They are:
1. The Vedas
2. The Puranas, like Ramayana, Mahabharata, Srimad Bhagavata, Gita, etc.
3. Agamas, the Procedures for Temple construction and worship
4. 4000 Divya Prabandham by Alwars
5. Variious Books / Granthams written by Acharyas
Alwars:
There are 12 Alwars who were born to propagate Bhakti among the common men. Though they all lived like human beings, they were in fact divine incarnations of God Himself. There is reference to the future birth of Alwars in Srimad Bhagawatam as under:
kalau khalu Bhavishyanthi narayaaa parayana:
kvachin kvachi mahabhaga dramidesu cha bhurisa:
thamaraparani nadI yatra krtamaalaa payasvinI:
kaverI cha mahabhaga prathIchI cha mahanadhI
(Srimad Bhagawatham- XI-5- 38-39)
Meaning: In the beginning of Kaliyuga, persons exclusively devoted to Narayana and endowed with spiritual knowledge will be born here and there but in large
numbers in the land of the Draavidas where the flow of rivers Thaamaraparani, Krtamaalaa (Vaigai), Payasvini (Paalaar), the holy river Cauveri, and the MahaanadhI (Periyaaru), which runs westwards.
Alwars -in pure Tamil "Azhwar"- means "One who immerses himself". They really, deeply immersed themselves in their devotion and bhakti towards the Lord Sriman Narayana and burst out bhakti laden great works for the sake of humanity. The works of Alwars were a replica of the Vedas themselves and therefore came to be known as Tamil Veda.
We had stated above that Vaishnavism is a broad-based universal religion, which is open to one and all independent of Caste , creed, gender, or scholarship of the individual. The proof for this statement is the composition of Alwars themselves. Among the 12 Alwars, one is a lady [Sri Andal] and the others are gents. Again among the 12 Alwars, only two belong to Brahmin community and the rest belonged to various other communities, including from the then untouchables.
The Alwar Kritis which were mostly made in the beginning of Kaliyuga, were all oral and passed from one generation to another. Any written record of these were on palm leaves. With a few thousand years passed after Alwar’s kritis were made, many were lost over a period of time.
Acharyas:
Sri Nathamunigal was born towards the end of 9th Century AD. He prayed Sri Nammalwar by doing Tapas and received the Alwar Kritis in Upadadesam. Thus Sri Nammalwar who made the first Upadesam, is First Earthly Acharya of Sri Vaishnavas.
Sri Nathamunigal took great effotts to collect, consolidate and codify all the kritis of Alwars and revived their recitation in Sri Vaishnava Temples. For the above contribution and for his own kritis, Sri Nathamunigal is revered as the next Acharya after Srii Nammalwar.
Sri Nathamunigal’s Sishya Sri Uyyakkondar and and Sri Uyyakkondar’s Sishya Manakkal Nambi were the next level Acharyas.
Sri Manakkal Nambi handed the inherited spiritual treasuires to Sri Alavandar. Sri Alavandar wrote many Books and enriched the Sri Vaishnava Sampradaya. His heritage were then inherited by Sri Ramanuja. And all these spiritual leaders are our Acharyas.
Along side the above advent of Sri Vaishnava Sampradayam, India saw some other religions entering the masses. The Budhism, Jainism were the most prominent. The people were getting converted into Budhists and Jains during this period. Then came the invasion by Muslims and again Hindus were at a great disadvantage and pressure. Many were being forcibly being converted into Muslims. Our Temples were attacked by many Muslim leaders and it was becoming difficult to follow Hinduism in general and Sri Vaishnavism in particular.
In this Scenario, Sankaracharya was born and he re-established Hinduism with his Adwaita Philosophy. Many Hindu Kings were influenced by his philosophy and embraced the Adwaita philosophy and became Saivaites. Now it was the tough time for Sri Vaishnavas. Even Ramanuja was under attack by the Saiva Kings and he had to shift from Srirangam to Melkote at Karnataka.
Coming immediately after the advent of Adi Sankara’s Advaitha, Sri Ramanuja had the hectic duty of re-establishing the Sri Vaishnava Philosophy among the masses. And he did that with great ability and aplomb. Unmatched by his predecessors, Sri Ramanuja had a great following in his days. Since Sri Acharya Sri Ramanuja re-established the Sri Vaishnava philosophy, the Sri Vaishnava Sampradayam is also known as Sri Ramanuja Sampradayam.
Until the time of Sri Ramanuja, the Sri Vaishnava Siddhanta was handed down by Acharyas to their own disciples. But Sri Ramanuja appealed to the masses to recognize the glory of Sri Vaishnava Principles. For propagating these principles, he appointed 74 learned men and asked them to carry the religion to the people.
After Sri Ramanuja, we had a very great Acharya in Sri Vedanta Desika who not only wrote more than 125 Kritis for the benefit of Sri Vaishnavas, but also withstood the onslaught of Mohammedan invasion and destruction of our temples and re-established Sri Ramanuja siddhantam to its original glory.
And after Sri Vedanta Desika, many acharyas took up the task of propagating Sri Ramanuja Siddhanta. Among them, Sri Adivan Satakopa, taking divine instructions from Sri Ahobila Nrisimha, established Sri Ahobila Mutt in the year 1398 AD.
Similar to Sri Ahobila Mutt, other Institutions such as Parakala Mutt, Srimad Andavan Ashramam were all born.
Since then a succession of Acharyas have been touring places all over India and propagate the Sri Ramanuja Siddhantam tirelessly among the masses.
Thus we have the Lord, Alwars and many Acharyas to offer our daily obescience to. Our list of Acharyas is very long and the same is called Gutu Parampara.
Vaishnavas are called Sri Vaishnavas because they workship both Sri and Vishnu, i.e. Mahalakshmi and Sriman Narayana, together.
Sri Vaishnavas worship Sriman Narayana in five forms, viz. Param, Vyuham, Vibhavam, Archa and Antharyami, as under:
1. Param is that form of Lord Sriman Narayana who lives in His permanent abode, Sri Vaikuntam. There He is sitting on Adisesha along with His consorts.
2. Vyuham is that form of Lord Sriman Narayana wherefrom he focuses on Creation, Maintenance and Destruction, from the posture of Vyuha Vasudeva lying down on his Bed Adisesha in Thirupparkadal, the Milky ocean.
3. Vibhavam is that form of Lord Sriman Narayana in which He took Avatara in this world and was known in different names such as as Nrisimha, Rama, Krishna, etc.
4. Archa is that form of Lord Sriman Narayana in which, having been duly invocated, He gives Darshan to you and I, in various temples on this earth. In these temples, He had taken such form as the Bhaktas have wished and gives them Darshan day today.
5. Antaryami is that form of Lord Sriman Narayana in which He resides within all of us as our soul, giving guidance day to day to people who care to listen to Him.
Sri Vaishnavism is a broad-based universal religion, which is open to one and all independent of Caste , creed, gender, or scholarship of the individual.
Sri Vaishnava Philosophy:
The Basic Tenets of Sri Vaishnava Philosophy are:
1. Sriman Narayana is Supreme God, the Para Bhamham. The Para Bramham is not Nirguna or Nirakara as claimed by certain schools , but possesses inifinite auspicious qualities.
2. Sriman Narayana not only created the Nature and the Jivas, but also resides as Anthryami / Soul in everyone and everything. Thus everything is in Him and He is in everyone / everything. Thus the jivas are part of this Supreme God.
3. While ultimately all the Jivas have to merge with the God, this merger could take many Janmas / births till the Jivas qualify for this merger by doing good deeds.
4. This merger with Sriman Narayana can be quickened to happen at the end of current life itself, provided we do Prapatti / Saranagati through an Acharya and lead a righteous / Dharmic life after doing the Prapatti.
5. Once the soul reaches Sri Vaikunta, the abode of Sriman Narayana, having been freed from the cycle of birth and death, the soul engages in eternal service to Sriman Narayana.
Sri Vaishnava Literature
We know every country has a Constitution. And every country frames various Acts and Rules under the Constitution. And under these Rules, Procedures are written up. And to supplement the Constitution, Rules and Procedures, many guide books are written by many knowledgeable people.
In the same way, the Constitution for our religion is Vedas. And God Himself took Avataras, gave us Ramayana, Mahabharata, Gita, etc to give us Rules for leading our day to day life. The Procedures for conduct of Temples and worships were written up in the form of Agamas. Then many kritis were made by Alwars explaining the pathways for understanding the Vedic philosophy and Teachings. Then the very learned Acharyas gave us many books / Granthams for understanding and practicing the codes contained in the Vedas and other religious literature that would serve as Guide Books to laymen.
Thus Sri Vaishnavism has a very rich five-fold literature. They are:
1. The Vedas
2. The Puranas, like Ramayana, Mahabharata, Srimad Bhagavata, Gita, etc.
3. Agamas, the Procedures for Temple construction and worship
4. 4000 Divya Prabandham by Alwars
5. Variious Books / Granthams written by Acharyas
Alwars:
There are 12 Alwars who were born to propagate Bhakti among the common men. Though they all lived like human beings, they were in fact divine incarnations of God Himself. There is reference to the future birth of Alwars in Srimad Bhagawatam as under:
kalau khalu Bhavishyanthi narayaaa parayana:
kvachin kvachi mahabhaga dramidesu cha bhurisa:
thamaraparani nadI yatra krtamaalaa payasvinI:
kaverI cha mahabhaga prathIchI cha mahanadhI
(Srimad Bhagawatham- XI-5- 38-39)
Meaning: In the beginning of Kaliyuga, persons exclusively devoted to Narayana and endowed with spiritual knowledge will be born here and there but in large
numbers in the land of the Draavidas where the flow of rivers Thaamaraparani, Krtamaalaa (Vaigai), Payasvini (Paalaar), the holy river Cauveri, and the MahaanadhI (Periyaaru), which runs westwards.
Alwars -in pure Tamil "Azhwar"- means "One who immerses himself". They really, deeply immersed themselves in their devotion and bhakti towards the Lord Sriman Narayana and burst out bhakti laden great works for the sake of humanity. The works of Alwars were a replica of the Vedas themselves and therefore came to be known as Tamil Veda.
We had stated above that Vaishnavism is a broad-based universal religion, which is open to one and all independent of Caste , creed, gender, or scholarship of the individual. The proof for this statement is the composition of Alwars themselves. Among the 12 Alwars, one is a lady [Sri Andal] and the others are gents. Again among the 12 Alwars, only two belong to Brahmin community and the rest belonged to various other communities, including from the then untouchables.
The Alwar Kritis which were mostly made in the beginning of Kaliyuga, were all oral and passed from one generation to another. Any written record of these were on palm leaves. With a few thousand years passed after Alwar’s kritis were made, many were lost over a period of time.
Acharyas:
Sri Nathamunigal was born towards the end of 9th Century AD. He prayed Sri Nammalwar by doing Tapas and received the Alwar Kritis in Upadadesam. Thus Sri Nammalwar who made the first Upadesam, is First Earthly Acharya of Sri Vaishnavas.
Sri Nathamunigal took great effotts to collect, consolidate and codify all the kritis of Alwars and revived their recitation in Sri Vaishnava Temples. For the above contribution and for his own kritis, Sri Nathamunigal is revered as the next Acharya after Srii Nammalwar.
Sri Nathamunigal’s Sishya Sri Uyyakkondar and and Sri Uyyakkondar’s Sishya Manakkal Nambi were the next level Acharyas.
Sri Manakkal Nambi handed the inherited spiritual treasuires to Sri Alavandar. Sri Alavandar wrote many Books and enriched the Sri Vaishnava Sampradaya. His heritage were then inherited by Sri Ramanuja. And all these spiritual leaders are our Acharyas.
Along side the above advent of Sri Vaishnava Sampradayam, India saw some other religions entering the masses. The Budhism, Jainism were the most prominent. The people were getting converted into Budhists and Jains during this period. Then came the invasion by Muslims and again Hindus were at a great disadvantage and pressure. Many were being forcibly being converted into Muslims. Our Temples were attacked by many Muslim leaders and it was becoming difficult to follow Hinduism in general and Sri Vaishnavism in particular.
In this Scenario, Sankaracharya was born and he re-established Hinduism with his Adwaita Philosophy. Many Hindu Kings were influenced by his philosophy and embraced the Adwaita philosophy and became Saivaites. Now it was the tough time for Sri Vaishnavas. Even Ramanuja was under attack by the Saiva Kings and he had to shift from Srirangam to Melkote at Karnataka.
Coming immediately after the advent of Adi Sankara’s Advaitha, Sri Ramanuja had the hectic duty of re-establishing the Sri Vaishnava Philosophy among the masses. And he did that with great ability and aplomb. Unmatched by his predecessors, Sri Ramanuja had a great following in his days. Since Sri Acharya Sri Ramanuja re-established the Sri Vaishnava philosophy, the Sri Vaishnava Sampradayam is also known as Sri Ramanuja Sampradayam.
Until the time of Sri Ramanuja, the Sri Vaishnava Siddhanta was handed down by Acharyas to their own disciples. But Sri Ramanuja appealed to the masses to recognize the glory of Sri Vaishnava Principles. For propagating these principles, he appointed 74 learned men and asked them to carry the religion to the people.
After Sri Ramanuja, we had a very great Acharya in Sri Vedanta Desika who not only wrote more than 125 Kritis for the benefit of Sri Vaishnavas, but also withstood the onslaught of Mohammedan invasion and destruction of our temples and re-established Sri Ramanuja siddhantam to its original glory.
And after Sri Vedanta Desika, many acharyas took up the task of propagating Sri Ramanuja Siddhanta. Among them, Sri Adivan Satakopa, taking divine instructions from Sri Ahobila Nrisimha, established Sri Ahobila Mutt in the year 1398 AD.
Similar to Sri Ahobila Mutt, other Institutions such as Parakala Mutt, Srimad Andavan Ashramam were all born.
Since then a succession of Acharyas have been touring places all over India and propagate the Sri Ramanuja Siddhantam tirelessly among the masses.
Thus we have the Lord, Alwars and many Acharyas to offer our daily obescience to. Our list of Acharyas is very long and the same is called Gutu Parampara.
Alwars and Acharyas
To know about the Guru Parampara, Alwars and Acharyas, please go throuh the contents of my blog on Alwars and Acharyas -- http://alwarsandacharyas.blogspot.com/
Great Books to read
Ramayana
Let us start with Ramayana. There are many things to learn from this Purana. It is not just possible to narrate all the things said in Ramayana in this Blog. To some extent I have blogged some lessons we need to learn. They are contained in my blog srimadramayana.blogspot.com
Learning from Krishna
Much can be written on Lord Sri Krishna as well. Please see my blog krishnamahima,blogspot.com
SRIMAD RAHASYA TRAYA SARAM
This book is about the quintessence of the three esoteric mantras, Ashtakshara Mantram, Dwaya Mantram and Charamaslokam which constitute the lifeblood of our SriVaishnava Sampradaya.
It is verily the Guide Book to Liberation. All concepts of the Sri VisishtAdavaita Sampradaya are elaborately explained in this work, which could be characterised as Swami Desikan's magnum opus.
At the beginning of every chapter, there is a sloka and/or pasuram introducing the reader to the concepts to be covered in the chapter. Similarly, at the end of the Chapter too, Swami Desikan appends a pasuram or sloka, summarising the matter dealt with. The organisation of the Chapters too is graded and logical, leading the sishya from one topic to another with ease and coherence.
Let us start with Ramayana. There are many things to learn from this Purana. It is not just possible to narrate all the things said in Ramayana in this Blog. To some extent I have blogged some lessons we need to learn. They are contained in my blog srimadramayana.blogspot.com
Learning from Krishna
Much can be written on Lord Sri Krishna as well. Please see my blog krishnamahima,blogspot.com
SRIMAD RAHASYA TRAYA SARAM
This book is about the quintessence of the three esoteric mantras, Ashtakshara Mantram, Dwaya Mantram and Charamaslokam which constitute the lifeblood of our SriVaishnava Sampradaya.
It is verily the Guide Book to Liberation. All concepts of the Sri VisishtAdavaita Sampradaya are elaborately explained in this work, which could be characterised as Swami Desikan's magnum opus.
At the beginning of every chapter, there is a sloka and/or pasuram introducing the reader to the concepts to be covered in the chapter. Similarly, at the end of the Chapter too, Swami Desikan appends a pasuram or sloka, summarising the matter dealt with. The organisation of the Chapters too is graded and logical, leading the sishya from one topic to another with ease and coherence.
Rituals to know about
The Sanatana Dharma is not only a religion, but is essentially a way of life.
The Vedas are our highest religious literature. Since it is very difficult for lay men to understand the sayings of Vedas, our ancient Rishis wrote simple literature propagating the values imbibed in Vedas. With the help of these teachings the human society was evil free. The people believed in simple living and purity of character, had simple food habits and simple customs and ceremonies.
But with the passage of time and evils crept up in our society. While in the age of Ramayana, there was no love for power, every one was obedient to parents and there was immense love among the brothers, in the age of Mahabharata, there were quarrels among the brothers the respect for women came down. Then came the Bhagwat Gita that told us about the importance of Karma Yoga, Gyana Yoga, Bhakti Yoga and the whole philosophy of life and death.
But then the Kaliyuga started and the deterioration of society was even faster. Though several Acharyas were born and made their unique contribution to arrest the downward trend, the advent of other religions and the foreign invasion by Moguls and the British took their toll on our religion. Slowly people started losing their touch with Vedas and the Sastras.
Then new efforts were started to re-introduce Dharma Sastras to us in the form of reminding us about various Samskaras that we need to do as per the Vedas. The Samskaras even today create an awareness among us about our rich traditions and serve as ethical efforts for moral uplift of the individual over material benefits and help bring the human life into contact with the higher power.
While these Samskaras are 40 in number, many among them have become unknown to us and only half of them are practiced in the form of marriages and post-marriage domestic ceremonies. Samskaras like Deva Yagna, Pitru Yagna, Manushya Yagna, Bhuta Yagna, Brahma Yagna, Sthalipaka, Agrahayana, Aswayuji, Agnihotra, etc have almost become extinct.
All the same let us know that we have three kinds of rituals:
Nitya Karmas like Sandhyavandanam, to be performed eaily
Naimittika karmas like rituals to be performed on specific days like Ekadasi or Amavasya
Samskaras to be performed on reaching certain stage of life, such as Namakaranam, Anna Prasanam, Upanayanam, Vivaham etc.
Why Rituals?
Why should we do Sandhya Vandanam, Agni Sandhanam and other rituals at home?
To our ancestors Home was not so much a place on earth
meant for enjoyment of conjugal or domestic bliss
("kaama") as it was a place conducive for spiritual
atonement, practices and advancement.
"panchyasUnA gruhasthasya vartantE'hara-harah sadA
khandanI pEsanI chuLLi jalakumbha upaskarah".
The verse above is a very interesting one indeed. It
attracted the attention of none other than the
venerable (late) "AchArya" of Kanchi, Pujyasri
Chandrasekherendra Saraswati, who devoted one whole
chapter to it in his famous book of spiritual
discourses and commentary in Tamil, "deivattin-kural".
It would be profitable for us to briefly summarize
that chapter in the context of our ongoing discussions
on the subject of "kaama" as it extends to Man's
"homing instinct".
**************
In what comes to us as rather shocking revelation,
one's home is a brutal butchery, says the above
Sanskrit couplet. And because our home is a butchery,
it is a place of rampant "himsa" or violence.
There are many sins in the world of which Man can be
guilty. Violence is perhaps the most heinous of them.
Violence is rather unbecoming too of a man of
spiritual refinement. Therefore it is sin that he must
shun and avoid in life with all the courage and
conviction at his disposal.
Unfortunately, Violence sometimes becomes unavoidable
in life due to the inexorable working of the law of
"karma" i.e. due to the exigencies and vagaries of
life. Conditions and circumstances of human existence,
as well as the ebb and tide of human affairs sometimes
conspire to make violence inevitable. In life
sometimes, Violence is imposed upon Man against his
personal will and willingness.
One such human circumstance, where Violence becomes
inevitable and ineluctable, says the above Sanskrit
couplet of the ancient "dharma-sAstra", prevails in
Man's very home. In his very house, says the verse,
day in and day out, Man commits such brutal acts of
killing and such savage taking of life, that a home
really deserves to be called a bloody butchery. It is
a place where the business of violence is conducted
daily, unceasingly and unfeelingly, in five different
murderous ways. This is what is meant by the phrase:
"panchyasUnA gruhasthasya vartantE'hara-harah sadA"
****************
Now, why does the "dharma-sAstrA" say a man's home is
a butchery where violence is perpetrated daily in five
different ways? The answer is in the next line of the
verse:
"khandanI pEsanI chuLLi jalakumbha upaskarah".
The word "khandani" in Sanskrit means "cutter" (some
of you may instantly recall the word as it appears in
the 2nd stanza of Swami Desikan's famous "stOtra",
"sri sudarshanAshtakam": "shubajagadrUpa mandana,
suragaNatrAsa KHANDANA"!). Any instrument that cuts,
cleaves, minces, chops, sloughs, decapitates, lops...
is called "khandanI".
In all our homes, we carry all varieties of such
"khandani" kitchens --- e.g. knives, cleavers,
cutters, mincers, graters etc. --- and in our garages
--- e.g. hacksaws, chain-saws, blades etc. Now, with
these lethal "khandani" in our kitchen, we commit
violence on many life-bearing organisms indeed
everyday. In "non-vegetarian" homes, the "khandani" is
used to wring out the necks and gouge out the flesh of
ducks, turkey and fish. In "vegetarian" homes, they
are used to cut, chop, slice and dice root-vegetables,
leafy vegetables and fruits (which even though are not
locomoting living-creatures like chickens or fish, are
nevertheless living organisms too, and who therefore
suffer pain when violence is inflicted upon them,
though not perhaps to the same degree locomoting
creatures do when they meet their end on a kitchen
table).
Next, there is "pEsani". This is a very interesting
Sanskrit word for anyone who is interested in
linguistics and philology. There is the English word
"pestle" which all of you know. We use pestle and
mortar as instruments when we want to grind something,
or crush, knead, mash, granulate or powder something.
The word English "pestle" probably has its roots in
the Sanskrit "pEsani" because that instrument of
destruction is exactly what is meant too in the
subject verse. At home in the kitchen we use "pesani"
to grind and pound seed, gram, pulses and other kinds
of grain in order to make food for ourselves. In the
olden days they used the stone pestle ("ammi",
"worrel", "olakkae", it used to be called in Tamil).
These days we use the modern mechanical automatic
"kitchen system" with such global brand-names as
Moulinex, Philips and Braun that do the same job as
the "pesani" more efficiently and at great speeds. The
purpose of these "pesani" tools is to pulverize the
grains and seeds we use as food items for ourselves.
Although such grain or seed is not a locomoting living
creature, still it does contain the potential for life
and life-giving, isn't it? (If we take a seed of paddy
and plant it, it will surely grow and multiply). So by
pounding and gnashing grain and seed with "pesani" in
our kitchen, says the above verse, we do inflict pain
on them and commit violence in our homes.
Then there is "chulli". This is the fire-place,
hot-stove, hot-plate or oven in the kitchen that we
use to cook our food. Today we have "micro-waves"
which are the modern avatars of the old "chulli". In
the process or cooking with the aid of "chulli",
unknowingly and unwittingly, we also burn up little
insects and organisms that are present in the air
around our kitchen surroundings but which are
invisible to the naked eye. When we boil water or
milk, or when we roast something or fry something,
alongwith the edible portion of what we cook,
invariably and quite unavoidably, we also destroy
millions of living micro-organisms too that are
present in such food-items. So, in that particular and
narrow sense, we do commit mass-slaughter of life. Our
"chulli" is (in the parlance of Sri George Bush II)
indeed a "weapon of mass-destruction" housed within
our kitchens.
Next, there is "jalakumbha". In the kitchen of the
olden days in India, they used big earthen pots to
store water. These were called "jalakumbha". Large
quantities of water were daily poured in and decanted
out for various purposes from these pots. While doing
so, again, many tiny insects and creatures and other
micro-organisms in the air and on the floor of the
house-kitchen would be deluged and drowned. Thus, the
"jalakumbha" too in the house was regarded, by this
verse, as a tool of great violence.
And finally, there was the "upaskarah". This was the
most lethan weapon of destruction in the hands of the
lady of the house. The broom-stick. The lady of the
house who kept the home surroundings tidy and clean
did so by daily sweeping away all manner of dust,
grime, garbage and trash. IN the process, she also
caused death and destruction to the lives and homes of
millions of minute creatures, insects and microscopic
living organisms that inhabit such dust, grime and
garbage. In the modern home, the simple tool of
"upaskarah" has been developed and perfected into a
technologically advanced and sophisticated
killing-machine. It is the Hoover vacuum-cleaner. It
can sweep away billions and billions of
micro-organisms and germs from our homes with a single
swish and a single stroke of Madam. The modern Hoover
is to the Vedic-day "upaskarah" what the modern
atom-bomb is to the pre-historic spear.
****************
It was because of the above orgy of violence
perpetrated daily by humans in their homes ---i.e.
"panchyasUnA gruhasthasya vartantE'hara-harah sadA"
--- that the "gruha", the Home, in spite being
undoubtedly a very auspicious and virtuous institution
otherwise, was yet regarded by the ancient
"dharma-sAstras" as an inexhautible source of
unavoidable sin --- the sin of "himsa". It was really
a butchery of sorts.
And that was the reason why our ancient ancestors did
not get over-excited about or go overboard in their
love and attachment for the home. They did not allow
the "kaama" of the "homing instinct" overpower them or
distort their sense of life-values. They maintained at
all times "vairAgya", a sense of emotional distance
from the Home.
The home was a cradle of many human virtues and
happiness indeed. But it was also a fountainhead of
unwitting sin and error for which, the ancient
ancestors recognized, Man needed to atone in a deeply
moral and spiritual way. It was for that very reason
that they regarded the home not so much as a place for
indulgence in personal pleasure, comfort and enjoyment
("kaama"), but as a conducive place for spiritual
atonement and penance. It was the reason therefore why
the home was considered the fittest place to carry out
daily rituals of sacrifice and offerings to the gods
(e.g. "sandhyavandana arghya", "agni-sandhAnam") as
well as of human charity and expiation ("owpasanam",
"vaisvadevam").
It was a measure of our Vedic ancestors' wisdom that
not only did they believe that 'charity begins at
home' but also that 'self-sacrifice', the greatest of
all charitable deeds, too begins at Home. Such deeds
were ritualized in the Vedic scheme of things --- in
little daily sacraments such as the "vaisvadeva" rite
or the daily "arghya-samarpaNam" routine. The Home
thus became "yagnya-bhUmi" --- a place primarily meant
for Man's self-sacrifice, not self-gratification.
Thus, by ritualizing daily life at home into
sacrificial expressions of spiritual charity and
atonement, the overpowering feeling of "kaama" --- the
deep-rooted instinct of attachment and possessiveness
that arises in the human heart for one's "own home"
and property -- that "kaamic" urge was sought to be
conquered.
Regards,
dAsan,
Sudarshan
The Vedas are our highest religious literature. Since it is very difficult for lay men to understand the sayings of Vedas, our ancient Rishis wrote simple literature propagating the values imbibed in Vedas. With the help of these teachings the human society was evil free. The people believed in simple living and purity of character, had simple food habits and simple customs and ceremonies.
But with the passage of time and evils crept up in our society. While in the age of Ramayana, there was no love for power, every one was obedient to parents and there was immense love among the brothers, in the age of Mahabharata, there were quarrels among the brothers the respect for women came down. Then came the Bhagwat Gita that told us about the importance of Karma Yoga, Gyana Yoga, Bhakti Yoga and the whole philosophy of life and death.
But then the Kaliyuga started and the deterioration of society was even faster. Though several Acharyas were born and made their unique contribution to arrest the downward trend, the advent of other religions and the foreign invasion by Moguls and the British took their toll on our religion. Slowly people started losing their touch with Vedas and the Sastras.
Then new efforts were started to re-introduce Dharma Sastras to us in the form of reminding us about various Samskaras that we need to do as per the Vedas. The Samskaras even today create an awareness among us about our rich traditions and serve as ethical efforts for moral uplift of the individual over material benefits and help bring the human life into contact with the higher power.
While these Samskaras are 40 in number, many among them have become unknown to us and only half of them are practiced in the form of marriages and post-marriage domestic ceremonies. Samskaras like Deva Yagna, Pitru Yagna, Manushya Yagna, Bhuta Yagna, Brahma Yagna, Sthalipaka, Agrahayana, Aswayuji, Agnihotra, etc have almost become extinct.
All the same let us know that we have three kinds of rituals:
Nitya Karmas like Sandhyavandanam, to be performed eaily
Naimittika karmas like rituals to be performed on specific days like Ekadasi or Amavasya
Samskaras to be performed on reaching certain stage of life, such as Namakaranam, Anna Prasanam, Upanayanam, Vivaham etc.
Why Rituals?
Why should we do Sandhya Vandanam, Agni Sandhanam and other rituals at home?
To our ancestors Home was not so much a place on earth
meant for enjoyment of conjugal or domestic bliss
("kaama") as it was a place conducive for spiritual
atonement, practices and advancement.
"panchyasUnA gruhasthasya vartantE'hara-harah sadA
khandanI pEsanI chuLLi jalakumbha upaskarah".
The verse above is a very interesting one indeed. It
attracted the attention of none other than the
venerable (late) "AchArya" of Kanchi, Pujyasri
Chandrasekherendra Saraswati, who devoted one whole
chapter to it in his famous book of spiritual
discourses and commentary in Tamil, "deivattin-kural".
It would be profitable for us to briefly summarize
that chapter in the context of our ongoing discussions
on the subject of "kaama" as it extends to Man's
"homing instinct".
**************
In what comes to us as rather shocking revelation,
one's home is a brutal butchery, says the above
Sanskrit couplet. And because our home is a butchery,
it is a place of rampant "himsa" or violence.
There are many sins in the world of which Man can be
guilty. Violence is perhaps the most heinous of them.
Violence is rather unbecoming too of a man of
spiritual refinement. Therefore it is sin that he must
shun and avoid in life with all the courage and
conviction at his disposal.
Unfortunately, Violence sometimes becomes unavoidable
in life due to the inexorable working of the law of
"karma" i.e. due to the exigencies and vagaries of
life. Conditions and circumstances of human existence,
as well as the ebb and tide of human affairs sometimes
conspire to make violence inevitable. In life
sometimes, Violence is imposed upon Man against his
personal will and willingness.
One such human circumstance, where Violence becomes
inevitable and ineluctable, says the above Sanskrit
couplet of the ancient "dharma-sAstra", prevails in
Man's very home. In his very house, says the verse,
day in and day out, Man commits such brutal acts of
killing and such savage taking of life, that a home
really deserves to be called a bloody butchery. It is
a place where the business of violence is conducted
daily, unceasingly and unfeelingly, in five different
murderous ways. This is what is meant by the phrase:
"panchyasUnA gruhasthasya vartantE'hara-harah sadA"
****************
Now, why does the "dharma-sAstrA" say a man's home is
a butchery where violence is perpetrated daily in five
different ways? The answer is in the next line of the
verse:
"khandanI pEsanI chuLLi jalakumbha upaskarah".
The word "khandani" in Sanskrit means "cutter" (some
of you may instantly recall the word as it appears in
the 2nd stanza of Swami Desikan's famous "stOtra",
"sri sudarshanAshtakam": "shubajagadrUpa mandana,
suragaNatrAsa KHANDANA"!). Any instrument that cuts,
cleaves, minces, chops, sloughs, decapitates, lops...
is called "khandanI".
In all our homes, we carry all varieties of such
"khandani" kitchens --- e.g. knives, cleavers,
cutters, mincers, graters etc. --- and in our garages
--- e.g. hacksaws, chain-saws, blades etc. Now, with
these lethal "khandani" in our kitchen, we commit
violence on many life-bearing organisms indeed
everyday. In "non-vegetarian" homes, the "khandani" is
used to wring out the necks and gouge out the flesh of
ducks, turkey and fish. In "vegetarian" homes, they
are used to cut, chop, slice and dice root-vegetables,
leafy vegetables and fruits (which even though are not
locomoting living-creatures like chickens or fish, are
nevertheless living organisms too, and who therefore
suffer pain when violence is inflicted upon them,
though not perhaps to the same degree locomoting
creatures do when they meet their end on a kitchen
table).
Next, there is "pEsani". This is a very interesting
Sanskrit word for anyone who is interested in
linguistics and philology. There is the English word
"pestle" which all of you know. We use pestle and
mortar as instruments when we want to grind something,
or crush, knead, mash, granulate or powder something.
The word English "pestle" probably has its roots in
the Sanskrit "pEsani" because that instrument of
destruction is exactly what is meant too in the
subject verse. At home in the kitchen we use "pesani"
to grind and pound seed, gram, pulses and other kinds
of grain in order to make food for ourselves. In the
olden days they used the stone pestle ("ammi",
"worrel", "olakkae", it used to be called in Tamil).
These days we use the modern mechanical automatic
"kitchen system" with such global brand-names as
Moulinex, Philips and Braun that do the same job as
the "pesani" more efficiently and at great speeds. The
purpose of these "pesani" tools is to pulverize the
grains and seeds we use as food items for ourselves.
Although such grain or seed is not a locomoting living
creature, still it does contain the potential for life
and life-giving, isn't it? (If we take a seed of paddy
and plant it, it will surely grow and multiply). So by
pounding and gnashing grain and seed with "pesani" in
our kitchen, says the above verse, we do inflict pain
on them and commit violence in our homes.
Then there is "chulli". This is the fire-place,
hot-stove, hot-plate or oven in the kitchen that we
use to cook our food. Today we have "micro-waves"
which are the modern avatars of the old "chulli". In
the process or cooking with the aid of "chulli",
unknowingly and unwittingly, we also burn up little
insects and organisms that are present in the air
around our kitchen surroundings but which are
invisible to the naked eye. When we boil water or
milk, or when we roast something or fry something,
alongwith the edible portion of what we cook,
invariably and quite unavoidably, we also destroy
millions of living micro-organisms too that are
present in such food-items. So, in that particular and
narrow sense, we do commit mass-slaughter of life. Our
"chulli" is (in the parlance of Sri George Bush II)
indeed a "weapon of mass-destruction" housed within
our kitchens.
Next, there is "jalakumbha". In the kitchen of the
olden days in India, they used big earthen pots to
store water. These were called "jalakumbha". Large
quantities of water were daily poured in and decanted
out for various purposes from these pots. While doing
so, again, many tiny insects and creatures and other
micro-organisms in the air and on the floor of the
house-kitchen would be deluged and drowned. Thus, the
"jalakumbha" too in the house was regarded, by this
verse, as a tool of great violence.
And finally, there was the "upaskarah". This was the
most lethan weapon of destruction in the hands of the
lady of the house. The broom-stick. The lady of the
house who kept the home surroundings tidy and clean
did so by daily sweeping away all manner of dust,
grime, garbage and trash. IN the process, she also
caused death and destruction to the lives and homes of
millions of minute creatures, insects and microscopic
living organisms that inhabit such dust, grime and
garbage. In the modern home, the simple tool of
"upaskarah" has been developed and perfected into a
technologically advanced and sophisticated
killing-machine. It is the Hoover vacuum-cleaner. It
can sweep away billions and billions of
micro-organisms and germs from our homes with a single
swish and a single stroke of Madam. The modern Hoover
is to the Vedic-day "upaskarah" what the modern
atom-bomb is to the pre-historic spear.
****************
It was because of the above orgy of violence
perpetrated daily by humans in their homes ---i.e.
"panchyasUnA gruhasthasya vartantE'hara-harah sadA"
--- that the "gruha", the Home, in spite being
undoubtedly a very auspicious and virtuous institution
otherwise, was yet regarded by the ancient
"dharma-sAstras" as an inexhautible source of
unavoidable sin --- the sin of "himsa". It was really
a butchery of sorts.
And that was the reason why our ancient ancestors did
not get over-excited about or go overboard in their
love and attachment for the home. They did not allow
the "kaama" of the "homing instinct" overpower them or
distort their sense of life-values. They maintained at
all times "vairAgya", a sense of emotional distance
from the Home.
The home was a cradle of many human virtues and
happiness indeed. But it was also a fountainhead of
unwitting sin and error for which, the ancient
ancestors recognized, Man needed to atone in a deeply
moral and spiritual way. It was for that very reason
that they regarded the home not so much as a place for
indulgence in personal pleasure, comfort and enjoyment
("kaama"), but as a conducive place for spiritual
atonement and penance. It was the reason therefore why
the home was considered the fittest place to carry out
daily rituals of sacrifice and offerings to the gods
(e.g. "sandhyavandana arghya", "agni-sandhAnam") as
well as of human charity and expiation ("owpasanam",
"vaisvadevam").
It was a measure of our Vedic ancestors' wisdom that
not only did they believe that 'charity begins at
home' but also that 'self-sacrifice', the greatest of
all charitable deeds, too begins at Home. Such deeds
were ritualized in the Vedic scheme of things --- in
little daily sacraments such as the "vaisvadeva" rite
or the daily "arghya-samarpaNam" routine. The Home
thus became "yagnya-bhUmi" --- a place primarily meant
for Man's self-sacrifice, not self-gratification.
Thus, by ritualizing daily life at home into
sacrificial expressions of spiritual charity and
atonement, the overpowering feeling of "kaama" --- the
deep-rooted instinct of attachment and possessiveness
that arises in the human heart for one's "own home"
and property -- that "kaamic" urge was sought to be
conquered.
Regards,
dAsan,
Sudarshan
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