jabdakhata

If we analyze European history we have seen sagas of rise and fall quite often. Spectacular rises have given way to humiliating and crushing falls. If we consider ancient Greeks as part of Europe, then we have a golden period followed by the rise of Romans, a general darkness after the fall of Rome which was assuaged by the spread of Christianity, even though this spread itself was marked by bloody wars between the so called “believers” and “heathens”. Europe’s ascent through the dark ages was threatened by a rapidly advancing Islam and therefore the two Semitic brothers got engaged in a series of devastating civil wars over the occupation of the common holy ground. In this respect Jews, the original inhabitants of middle Asia were nowhere to be seen and as Christianity spread its wings, they became an object of much hatred in the Christian world, because of their role in the killing of Jesus the Christ. Of course it was not apparent to the general populace that the Savior himsel...

Swami Vivekananda was very categorical when he tried analyzing India and its problems. The kernel of India lies, not in religion, or dogma, or politics, nor in dharma or virtue, but in countless sagas of devotion, service, contemplation, sacrifice and wisdom, not found in any other culture. From time immemorial India’s culture has soaked it in the stories of Ramayana and Mahabharata, in the Vedas and Upanishadas, in Puranas and other smritis, poems like Gita Govinda or Ramacharitamanasa, Baul, Vaishnava and Sufi ballads. Many holy men have walked on the dusts of this land which has made this country holy, their well wishes and their spiritual practices have played a major role in shaping the destiny of this country despite the many obstacles and many enemies, both internal and external. Very few countries in the world have bled like India had over a span of more than thousands of years through myriads of foreign invasions. There are very few countries like India in which only a han...

The differences and variations are nature's rule, not exceptions. Nature likes variations because it helps in maintaining a harmony among disharmony, order among chaos. Differences exist because they help in preserving the supremacy of nature. We are all different, in our tenacities, in our culture, beliefs, values, customs, manners, superstitions, attitudes, behaviour and a whole lot of other things. There are so many varieties of plants, animals, insects, and other living and non living organisms, there are so many varieties of natural formations, of colours, sounds, tastes, smells and other objects of senses. These varieties on the one hand exist because they fit with others. Take for instance culture - there is no inferior or superior culture, it merely fits the person who embraces it. Similarly the varieties of sense objects are there to satiate the sensory pleasures of different tastes and preferences, which themselves stem from the varieties of nature and character of a ...

While poverty of material wealth is a widely acknowledged source of tribulations, another type of poverty frequently goes unnoticed, and that is the poverty of mind. Poverty of mind is manifested in various forms – like corruption and nepotism, where gathering of material wealth at any cost is considered to be the very purpose of existence and where little consideration is displayed towards others, crime, vulgar display of wealth and power, fanaticism, bigotry and intolerance, biases and prejudices, deliberate maligning of whatever or whoever one dislikes ( You may be good, but I don’t like you and therefore I’ll say only bad things about you), lack of compassion, indifference towards injustice and evil ways, and so on. The drivers are ego, lust, greed, pride, jealousy, and so on. They obfuscate truth and cover mind just like fog covers a landscape. Poverty of mind is ubiquitous. One can see a rich spending millions in his daughter’s marriage while some poor and hungry suffers not far...

A democracy, one would argue, would pave the way for a more liberal and tolerant regime and people would be aware of any transgressions in an era of fast communication. Dissent can be voiced and people can throw away elected representatives if they do not function properly. Secularism and pluralism are encouraged. Just puase, look around, and think. You are living in a democracy, are these the traits around you? The media, which is supposed to be the watchdog of a democracy often connive with the ruling elite as they propagate certain ideologies and hate campaigns against others. Media exhibit certain biases against specific classes, creeds and communities as they are controlled by organizations and insititutions which have their own vested interests. Thus news and opinions promoted are often false or worse, selectively false. Ruling classes often suppress information, esp. the ones which would be detrimental and inimical to their interest. Power and money play the supreme role and pe...

In West such checks and balances were not elaborate. The king in the middle ages in Europe was often in cohort with the church which interefered extensively with the state affairs,and the nobility, who had their own vested interests. Thus Rajtantra in West was often of an inferior form and therefore people suffered a lot, whereas in India we hardly find any notable instance of people suffering for long under a corrupt regime, except during the period right after Shashanka in Bengal (known as Matsyanyaya) when there was no strong king at the helm and when the lawlessness reigned supreme. That state of affairs was discontinued when a strong monarch came to power (in case of Bengal the Pals ascended to the throne of Gauda). However when we come back to the flawed democracy that we’ve inherited we find that much of Swami Vivekananda’s apprehensions have come to be true. There is a heartless bureaucracy at the centre of affairs which is also largely corrupt and which has largely retaine...

Swami Vivekananda was not very comfortable with the concepts of Western democracy, although he was aware of the merits. He saw various democracies from close quarters and felt that in their present form they would not be ideal for India. Because in a democracy, people should be intelligent and educated enough to understand the nuances of various decisions. Otherwise there is an inherent risk of an unintelligent or honest majority being taken for a ride by a cunning, devious but shrewd minority. Swami Vivakananda also felt that a democracy run by bureaucrats, is unsuitable as bureaucracy is normally heartless. Bureaucrats go strictly by policies and procedures and peoples’ woes do not matter to them. In an informal discussion with his disciples he cited the examples of many innocent persons from India who lost everything, including their lives, while nurturing a vein hope of going to England to lodge their complaints with the Queen and getting their problems resolved. He said that t...

In Mahabharata, Shanti Parva, there is an interesting story as part of the conversasion between Bhisma, the aged Kuru warrior who is on his deathbed, and Yudhisthira, his grandson, the Pandava king,who belongs to the opposite camp and whose army just won the war against the Kauravas or the Kuru clan. In response to the questions asked by Yudhisthira, Bhisma is explaining to him the duties of a king, of a householder, of an ascetic, the path of righteousness and virtue and the ways of dealing with people, as well as the paths of attaining the highest knowledge. In the process we come across several stories and parables – one of them illustrates how diverse interest groups instigates persons to behave in a certain way and how people should be wary of the motives behind what seems like innocent advices. A Brahmin who lost his only son went to creamte him along with his village men. Since it was already evening they decided to stay for the night and cremate the child in the morning. A ...

In Gita the lord says in the second chapter, verses 62 and 63– Dhyatah vishayan punshah sangasteshupajayate Sangat sanjayate kama kamat krodhabhijayate Krodhatbhavati sanmohah sanmohat smriti bibhramah Smriti bhramsad buddhinashah buddhinashad pranashyati This means that while meditating constantly on a worldly matter which affects one deeply, one may develop an attachment and cannot get rid of the troublesome thought. Attachment results in desire and desire, if resisted or unfulfilled, results in anger. It is very surprising how the two common enemies of mankind as proclaimed in Gita – Anger and Desire, are intrinsically related, from the latter often the former evolves and the former often fuels the latter. The desire may be gross or even subtle, like earning some name and fame, a wish that somebody will praise an act, getting some material objects including begetting children, wealth and prosperity, power, good fortune, having to get go of something which is desirable or clo...

How do we develop dispassion? One way is to consider this world as a hell, with all its sufferings and miseries and thereby long for a reprieve, a kind of escape from the mundane and gross reality. However, that is pessimistic approach. A far better way is to cultivate love, love for a better life, love for peace, love for the divinity inside and a strong belief that the divinity can be realized. Everybody in this world strives for a better life, for improvement in the living conditions. The purpose of natural evolution is improvement in living conditions, progressing from a lower to a higher and better form of life, from amoeba to human being with consciousness, from man to divinity, the seat of consciousness. The evolution happens over physical, mental and spiritual plain, when we change forms, when we mature and when we grow inwards. Meditation is a way of connecting to the divinity, of achieving this higher state, of being and becoming divine. Love is one of the ways of manifestin...

Swami Vivekananda had prescribed several steps towards a good meditation – 1st step is to assume a posture and pray that the posture can be retained till the end. 2nd step is to pray for the well being of all, eliminate all selfish thoughts 3rd step is to do a few pranayams or breath control exercises (a maximum of three, because pranayams, although it is said that they can help in controlling the mind better by controlling the vital forces in the body, can be dangerous if not performed under the supervision of a qualified person) 4th step is to go for the actual meditation, for atleast half an hour. Swami Vivekananda also advocated letting the mind run around for sometime before even trying to focus it. The mind like an errant child, after playing for sometime will get tired and come back to its resting place, just as a child goes back to its mother after being tired with a day’s play. Another way which is advocated by spiritual seekers is to let the mind work its way ins...

Only a yogi is able to completely control the mind; however for ordinary folks even attempt to do so has lot of benefits. Purification of mind increases the divine or superior nature or Sattvic bhava and eliminates the baser nature or the crude Rajasic and Tamasic bhavas or the demonic characters. That means one has lesser anger, material cravings and desires, impulsiveness, excitement, stress, depression. One experiences more joy with life, gets a real purpose of life, becomes more compassionate, understanding, and develops empathy and fellow feeling which helps in personal and professional lives. One is able to contend with the internal enemies like lust, anger, greed, pride and ego, delusion and envy better as one becomes aware of their presence. Awareness is the first step towards fighting the menace. Once somebody is aware of his or her weaknesses, he or she is able to fight it out. Connecting to the inner world is necessary to know one self completely, which is often hidden am...

So all these practices are intrinsically linked to each other and can form a comprehensive or holistic way of having superiority over the vagaries of mind. It is very easy to train and control a pure mind, just as it is easy to control a docile and good natured horse. However it requires a lot of patience and determination. Mind is a very powerful enemy, unless one has formidable strength of will, battling with mind is not easy. A lot of patience is needed because focusing or concentration does not happen easily; it needs a lot of time before one can even concentrate for a few minutes, unless one starts at a very early age. One has to get rid of desires arising and anxieties looming large and all other kinds of thoughts which tend to surface up just as one starts looking inwards. Sri Ramakrishna narrated a small parable on determination about a young boy who, in order to get water, began digging in a place, but getting disheartened with only rocks and sand and no water, he left it a...

What happens when one begins to meditate? Anybody who has tried meditation will agree with Arjuna that it is very difficult to control the mind because it always tends to run away in different directions, it scatters, it runs after sense objects, all the problems and thoughts which have been lying hitherto hidden, surfaces up and gives much pain. It is impossible to attain a complete focus on a subject even it is only for a few minutes. So what is the way out? The key lies in practice, sadhana. The first thing which is necessary to focus the mind is to think of a form, may be of God, or that of any thing very dear to anybody. Sri Ramakrishna had prescribed to a devotee that she could meditate on the form of her nephew whom she loved very much. Such affection helps in restraining the mind. A form is very essential contrary to the popular belief that “meditation is freeing the mind from all thoughts and making it blank”, because we need something to focus upon, so one single, determin...

Therefore first step in good meditation is to control the senses. That’s what the Lord prescribes in 3rd Chapter of Gita when he says – Tasmad indriyani adyaou niyamya bhatarsabha Papmanam prajahi hi enam gyanavigyananashanam -First control your senses and try overcoming these sinful impulses (lust, anger) which destroys the knowledge (of the Self). Continence is the key in restraining lust, a key enemy against leading a pure life. Continence helps in controlling senses by taking away senses from their resp. objects, the source of distractions and deprives the mind much of its power to scatter in different directions. The other step is restraining desires. Desires will invariably drive mind and senses in different directions. Restraining desires also restrains anger as the two are intrinsically related (anger stems from desire – Gita Chapter 2, verse 62, 63) The second step is getting rid of the dirt and grimes which have accumulated in the mind over a long period of time, in...

Attachment to sensual things means that mind gets a powerful source of distraction. If you are too concerned about money, name, fame, innumerable desires, power, lust, greed, anger, passion, jealousy, hatred, sorrow, or for that matter worldly joy and happiness, cravings and sensory pleasures, you are nowhere near to controlling the mind, instead it will control you. In Bhagvat Gita 3rd chapter the lord asks Arjuna to first control the senses (five sensory organs or eyes, ears, nose, skin and tongue and the five work organs of legs, arms, mouth, anus and reproductive organs), because the source of all troubles in the world – Kama and Krodha, or Desire and Anger, reside in the senses, in the mind and in the intelligence. These overshadow the Self, who is shining bright, just as smoke covers the fire, and dust covers a mirror, and the womb covers or encapsulates the fetus. He also goes on saying that senses are greater than the body, because they control all bodily functions, mind is ...

The basic purposes of meditation are contemplation, connecting with the inner world and diminishing the influence of the noises and disturbances of the outside world. However more often than not it is considered as a fad, a new trend for “spirituality seekers” whatever that may be. Nevertheless, getting addicted to meditation is certainly better than getting addicted to drugs, nicotine or alcohol and if a generation spends some time and money in search of that elusive peace, what is the harm? Peace is a fundamental need for every living being on this earth and there are very few who would not opt for this at any cost. Most of the fellows who are addicted to hemp or cocaine or alcohol do so because they can blissfully forget the “existence” which is so full of problems and miseries. However the effect of such recourse is very temporary and the impact is most damaging. Meditation, on the other hand can bring you closer to the ineffable bliss of the divine reality, at best, called Sat Ch...

There was a piece of news that Supreme court has reduced the compensation to be paid to the victims of Uphaar cinema hall tragedy in which several people were burnt alive in 1997, from Rs 15 lakhs to Rs 7 lakhs. While the Supreme Court is the highest authority and any attempt to write against it would be treated as “contempt of the court”, I humbly ask one question to the honorable judges – what is the value of life? How can one even compute the value of a life lost, the cost of pains and sufferings and miseries for over fourteen years for the family members who are fighting for justice? In any civilized country the court would have asked for maximum punitive damages from the guilty party, in this case the builders, the MCD, the police etc. who gave the necessary safety clearances (a clear case of corruption). Sadly in India human life is treated with utmost contempt and often vested interests and other considerations hold greater sway. The builder (Ansals) however will appeal even th...

When we proclaim that we are going to usher in changes, clear the mess and do whatever its possible to bring improvements in the lives of the people, we probably hid within ourselves a smug and self congratulatory tone, that we are the real “doers”, that we have the ability to change lives, to positively (or negatively) influence society, community and the nation. But hold on! Who or what are you? Whether you are a theist or an atheist does not matter. Whether you truly believe in God or whether you are a believer in destiny, karma or whatever, it does not matter in the least. Do you really think you are the doer? Do you really think you create and shape your own circumstances and also that of others who are waiting to be helped by you, your visions, your dreams and your works? Think of at least one event in your life that has been solely and purely influenced by you, think of anything that “you” have changed. Isn’t there interplay of too many factors and actors in all those events ...

When sometimes we undertake a journey have we ever realized how similar it is to the life’s journey that we are making day in and day out since our birth? Imagine that you need to go and visit some place with many interesting things to see, having many accessible and inaccessible nooks and corners, each one of which is worth visiting. Himalayas for instance offer one such interesting destination. There are so many things to see but you end up seeing something and missing others. When you start the journey you are full of enthusiasm, just like when you are a child beginning on the life’s journey, eager to learn, full of optimism. But as you progress in your journey, you see many interesting things, some of the sites fascinate you, some do not, you are able to visit some interesting places and miss out on some others. In real life, you have so many experiences, some of them interesting while some are painful, others are just boring. You have so many desires; some of them get fulfilled, ...

When Swami Vivekananda was wandering as a mendicant in Varanasi, he was once troubled by a group of monkeys. He started running out of fear but the monkeys chased him. Seeing this, another ascetic shouted at him, ‘Swami, turn around, face the brutes!’ Swamiji did just that and the monkeys vanished. Later, while recalling this experience Swamiji said that problems in our life are like that of these monkeys. If we run away from the problems, they will chase us and hunt us down, but if we face them bravely, we may be able to beat all odds and emerge unscathed. It is a vital lesson of life that unless we stand up and face the challenges, the challenges will multiply and will eventually destroy us. What is a vital lesson for an individual is also a lesson for a nation and for the entire world. India has repeatedly been attacked but it has not faced the brutes. Time and again for the past 60 years or so it has proved that it is a nation of cowards, non violence and tolerance are just i...

Another terror attacks strikes Mumbai. The pattern is now oft repeated – bold headlines, TV channels running for TRP and excitement, innocents losing lives, families getting shattered, politicians including the heads of the state “condemn” and request people to maintain “calm” (why don’t they just hand over a previously recorded version instead of repeating the same glib statements is something beyond my limited wisdom, and why do media attach so much importance to their repetition is also strange). Another thing that comes up repeatedly, esp. in the media is the “resilience of Mumbaikars”. Now that leads me to wonder, what is meant by resilience? Is it to suffer attacks time and again and do nothing, just go back to old business, forgetting everything – is that what is resilience? Silently suffering all corruption, bad civic infrastructure, monsoon flood – are these all part of the same resilience? To my mind, this is not resilience but far from it, it is cowardice. It is the tendenc...

Ramakrishna was born in a poor Brahmin family, he was devoid of formal knowledge and education but he was not "illeterate" as some of the contemporary studies would like to believe. He got to know of scriptures from various sources like enlightened discussions, but what would be the need of a formal education for a person who is born illuminated. Just as it says in Gita that for a "Brahmavid or the knower of the Brahman, the knowledge of the vedas is as limited as compared to a small water tank in an area which is flooded with water". He did not need to know the scriptures, he was born to teach them from his own direct experience, of arriving at the same truth by following various disparate paths. He was a personification of the Upanishad's profound statement - "There is but one truth, the wise call it by various names". He, using simple colloquial Bengali language, similies and metaphores, clarified effortlessly the most profound and most difficul...

Before getting back to the discussion on Sri Krishna, lets talk about another person who figures very prominently on the divine appearance list. The difference between the rest and him is that 1) He is the most recent 2) His leela or divine play has been well documented and corroborated by various sources. Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa has been varioulsy refered as "Avatar", "Yugavatar", "great saint", "mystic", "sage" and "phenomenon" (the last one by Christopher Isherwood). However, my belief is that nobody, except for a very select few, knew who he truly was, he revealed himself only to his nearest and dearest whom he called as 'Antaranga' or the innermost circle. In his own language, he was "achin gachh" or that unknown plant, ever mysterious and beyond comprehension of ordinary mortal. Vivekananda certainly knew who he was, being his foremost disciple. The very depth of his feeling about Ramakrishna c...

Elsewhere when we look around the world we find similar parallels. Every 500 or 600 years, when a part of the world is submerged under great darkness, there came great men with message of deliverance. In the West when the Roman civilization was at its nadir, when barbarsim, beastliness and debauchery reigned supreme, when ritualism and oppression haunted the Western faiths, both Jewsih and pagan, there appeared a great man with the message of selfless love, compassion who laid the foundation of future European civilization based on what later came to be known as Christian principles. Similarly about 600 years later there appeared another great man who was a karmayogin, who united much of the barabaric cruel and viscious Arabic tribes into a cohesive force on the principles of universal bortherhood and replaced the terrible prevailing practices of the different tribes with a comprehensive rule of law, of worshipping one true god in place of stones and woods so that they could be...