Dear Divine Souls,
‘Quote Of The Day’ on the right sidebar are updated. 365 new quotes of all four saints (Sri Ramakrishna, Sri Sarada Maa – 320 quotes, Swami Vivekananda and Paramhansa Hariharananda) are updated. Each day a new quote will be displayed for 1 year.
We hope you find inspiration from the quotes.
Namaste
INDIASPIRITUALITY
"He who is called Brahman by the jnanis is known as Atman by the yogis and as Bhagavan by the bhaktas. The same brahmin is called priest, when worshipping in the temple, and cook, when preparing a meal in the kitchen. The jnani, sticking to the path of knowledge, always reasons about the Reality, saying, 'Not this, not this'. Brahman is neither 'this' nor 'that'; It is neither the universe nor its living beings. Reasoning in this way, the mind becomes steady. Then it disappears and the aspirant goes into samadhi. This is the Knowledge of Brahman. It is the unwavering conviction of the jnani that Brahman alone is real and the world illusory. All these names and forms arc illusory, like a dream. What Brahman is cannot be described. One cannot even say that Brahman is a Person. This is the opinion of the jnanis, the followers of Vedanta philosophy.
"But the bhaktas accept all the states of consciousness. They take the waking state to be real also. They don't think the world to be illusory, like a dream. They say that the universe is a manifestation of God's power and glory. God has created all these — sky, stars, moon, sun, mountains, ocean, men, animals. They constitute His glory. He is within us, in our hearts. Again, He is outside. The most advanced devotees say that He Himself has become all this — the twenty-four cosmic principles, the universe, and all living beings. The devotee of God wants to eat sugar, not to become sugar. (All laugh.)
"Do you know how a lover of God feels? His attitude is: 'O God, Thou art the Master, and I am Thy servant. Thou art the Mother, and I am Thy child.' Or again: 'Thou art my Father and Mother. Thou art the Whole, and I am a part.' He doesn't like to say, 'I am Brahman.'
"The yogi seeks to realize the Paramatman, the Supreme Soul. His ideal is the union of the embodied soul and the Supreme Soul. He withdraws his mind from sense-objects and tries to concentrate it on the Paramatman. Therefore, during the first stage of his spiritual discipline, he retires into solitude and with undivided attention practises meditation in a fixed posture.
"But the Reality is one and the same. The difference is only in name. He who is Brahman is verily Atman, and again. He is the Bhagavan. He is Brahman to the followers of the path of knowledge, Paramatman to the yogis, and Bhagavan to the lovers of God."
Source: The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna
Wishing You A Very Happy Deepavali
And
A Prosperous New Year
Deepavali (or Diwali) is the festival of lights. Light symbolizes knowledge. Knowledge self-illuminates spontaneously after the removal of ignorance. Spirituality is the path of removal of ignorance. Uninterrupted Peace and Eternal Bliss are the fruits of knowledge of Self Realization out of direct experience.
On this occasion, we humbly pray
'AsatoMaa Sad Gamaya
TamasoMaa Jyotir Gamaya
MrutyorMaa Amrutam Gamaya
OM Shanti Shanti Shanti'
Let all of us transform ourselves from
Asatya to Satya (Untruth to Truth),
Ignorance to knowledge,
Death to Immortality (Brahman).
OM Shanti Shanti Shanti ( OM Peace Peace Peace).
Namaste,
INDIASPIRITUALITY
"But one undoubtedly finds inspiration in a holy place. I accompanied Mathur Babu to Vrindavan. Hriday and the ladies of Mathur's family were in our party. No sooner did I see the Kaliyadaman Ghat than a divine emotion surged up within me. I was completely overwhelmed. Hriday used to bathe me there as if I were a small child.
"In the dusk I would walk on the bank of the Jamuna when the cattle returned along the sandy banks from their pastures. At the very sight of those cows the thought of Krishna would Bash in my mind. I would run along like a madman, crying: 'Oh, where is Krishna? Where is my Krishna?'
"I went to Syamakunda and Radhakunda (Places near Mathura associated with the episode of Krishna and Radha.) in a palanquin and got out to visit the holy Mount Govardhan. At the very sight of the mount I was overpowered with divine emotion and ran to the top. I lost all consciousness of the world around me. The residents of the place helped me to come down. On my way to the sacred pools of Syamakunda and Radhakunda, when I saw the meadows, the trees, the shrubs, the birds, and the deer, I was over- come with ecstasy. My clothes became wet with tears. I said: 'O Krishna! Everything here is as it was in the olden days. You alone are absent.' Seated inside the palanquin I lost all power of speech. Hriday followed the palanquin. He had warned the bearers to be careful about me.
"Gangamayi became very fond of me in Vrindavan. She was an old woman who lived all alone in a hut near the Nidhuvan. Referring to my spiritual condition and ecstasy, she said, 'He is the very embodiment of Radha.' She addressed me as 'Dulali'. When with her, I used to forget my food and drink, my bath, and all thought of going home. On some days Hriday used to bring food from home and feed me. Gangamayi also would serve me with food prepared by her own hands.
"Gangamayi used to experience trances. At such times a great crowd would come-to see her. One day, in a state of ecstasy, she climbed on Hriday's shoulders.
"I didn't want to leave her and return to Calcutta. Everything was arranged for me to stay with her. I was to eat double-boiled rice, and we were to have our beds on either side of the cottage. All the arrangements had been made, when Hriday said: 'You have such a weak stomach. Who will look after you?' 'Why,' said Gangamayi, 'I shall look after him. I'll nurse him.' As Hriday dragged me by one hand and she by the other, I remembered my mother, who was then living alone here in the nahabat of the temple warden. I found it impossible to stay awav from her, and said to Gangamayi, 'No, I must go.' I loved the atmosphere of Vrindavan."
Source: The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna
It is not a question of believing or disbelieving. I was born there and the caste system exits there. I was raised in that caste structure. There are no true caste system, we are children of God (from spiritual standpoint). We have only one real caste, our real nature, and we are all divine. For me, there is no distinction between castes, creed, colours, races or languages. To me, all are God’s children and all are divine, but as some people do not practice spiritual discipline systematically, their potential divinity is not being manifested. In my understanding of human beings, there is no distinction of caste.
When you pray, meditate, are devoted to God and study the scriptures, you are a brahmin. When you are doing work to take care of your physical body, such as exercise, you are like a warrior. When you go to work to earn money or go shopping, you are like a businessman. When you take a shower, shave your face and comb your hair, you are like a shudra, the helping class.
When you are always God Conscious, the inner spiritual meaning is that you are a brahmin. When you are working to eliminate your weakness, trying to kill your weakness, fighting with your inner evil, you are a warrior, a kshatriya. When you use your time in a very calculated and disciplined way, you are a businessman; time is capital. When you are trying to develop the qualities of spirituality, love service, kindness and compassion, then you are in the forth category, a servant, who serves people.
In the inner meaning of depending upon your personal traits, qualities and your activities.
Source: Page 51, The Divine Quest by Paramhansa Hariharananda of Kriya Yoga.
The caste system was developed long ago in India as a division of society based on the quality of a person’s personality and the type of work they do. There were four castes, or categories of people. In the Bhagvad Gita (4:13), it says:
chaturvarnam maya srushtam gunakarmavibhagashah
tasya kartaram api mam viddhy akartaram avyayam
“the system of four castes has been created by Me, based on the differentiation of qualities and actions. Although I am the creator of all these, know Me as a non-agent (the one who has not done anything- akartaram) and immutable (avyayam – without any body)
i.e. I am without caste and body and I have not done anything.
Guna means quality and karma means activity, or work. Brahmins were the first group of people and were considered to be peaceful, calm, quiet, and spiritual and their work includes study, teaching, and priestly activities. This is the simple meaning of Brahmin, but the real meaning is “Self Realised” those who are on the path of truth. Brahman janati iti brahmanah: on who knows brahman, or realizes brahman is really brahman or becomes brahman or is not different than brahman. Brahmins usually lead strict and disciplined spiritual lives, practising different religious rites and rituals and helping people to live a religious and spiritual life.
Source: page 50-51, “The Divine Quest” by Paramhansa Hariharananda of Kriya Yoga
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