Govardhana Puja 2020

“As the director of different kinds of clouds, Indra called for the samvartaka. This cloud is invited when there is a need to devastate the whole cosmic manifestation. The samvartaka was ordered by Indra to go over Vrindavana and inundate the whole area with an extensive flood. Demonically, Indra thought himself to be the all-powerful supreme personality.” (Krishna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vol 1, Ch 25)

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Might is right? Survival of the fittest? The strongest person is automatically the best? He with the most money should be honored and worshiped by society? That person wielding the most influence is best equipped to be leader? The occasion of Govardhana Puja reminds us how there is no match for the potency found in the Supreme Personality of Godhead and how He properly discriminates in revealing the extent of that potency.

Today it is an annual tradition, but it began as a rebellious act. Nanda Maharaja’s son was something like an iconoclast. No one would suspect Him of nefarious motives, as Krishna was a mere child. Innocent and adorable, though able to survive potentially lethal attacks from the worst of the asuras, who visited from the nearby town of Mathura.

Nanda was the king of the farm community known as Gokula. Too many cows in his possession to count. Living off the land, free of exploitation. Every person happy and satisfied in their occupation of choice, matching their nature. At one with the beautiful creation surrounding them, appreciating everything God’s mercy has to offer.

Pious in every way, the people were rewarded with the direct presence of the Almighty in the avatara known as Krishna. God is indeed a person, and He can appear in front of us in so many ways. He is neither limited to the unmanifest concept nor prohibited from action which invites subsequent worship.

Whatever Krishna does is dharma. He is the object of religion. He is the source of the material and spiritual worlds, and He is the origin of the instruction manual, so to speak, for living within those worlds.

अहं सर्वस्य प्रभवो
मत्तः सर्वं प्रवर्तते
इति मत्वा भजन्ते मां
बुधा भाव-समन्विताः

ahaṁ sarvasya prabhavo
mattaḥ sarvaṁ pravartate
iti matvā bhajante māṁ
budhā bhāva-samanvitāḥ

“I am the source of all spiritual and material worlds. Everything emanates from Me. The wise who know this perfectly engage in My devotional service and worship Me with all their hearts.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 10.8)

There is a small amount of independence in those worlds for the living entities, who are sparks, amshas, emanating from the original spiritual energy. That means you and I have the freedom to choose in which direction to go. I can stay with Krishna or I can try to compete with Him, which involves forgetfulness of His position.

When travelling in the direction of competition, there is potential for promotion to the highest post: king of heaven. I could be the leader of svarga-loka, the place where the pious land after the completion of life. The term “dying and going to heaven” equates to promotion to the svarga-loka region, according to the Vedic tradition.

Such a promotion should never be equated with becoming God or even wielding the most influence in the world. A conditioned soul remains conditioned if they have the material consciousness. In the first Govardhana Puja, we see Indra succumbing to petty jealousy, directed at a child, no less.

The people skipped the sacrifice in Indra’s honor that year. No malice intended. Krishna convinced Nanda to worship Govardhana Hill, instead. There was a method behind the madness. There was a purpose to breaking from tradition.

Indra decided to retaliate with overwhelming force. Assert your dominance over those that you rule. Prove to everyone that you are indeed God. If Indra were actually so, he would not need to display any potency or magic. There would be no reason to justify horrible behavior in order to remind yourself of how much power you have.

What would normally be considered devastating rain, instigated by the samvartaka cloud, did not make a dent in the place guarded by Krishna. The young son of Nanda simply lifted the just-worshiped Govardhana Hill and held it above His head for seven straight days. The world’s largest umbrella thwarted Indra’s attack.

Krishna could have shown this might at the beginning. Just as a way to scare people, to prove wrong the doubters, to remove any ambiguity to the situation. But it wasn’t necessary. The real God is always sure of His abilities. He does not need to prove anything to anyone.

On the other hand, even if we rise to the position of king of heaven, we will always be looking over our shoulder, to see if a challenger is encroaching upon our territory. This is all Krishna’s space, to begin with, and so the devotees have no reason to fear or be paranoid. They are never in competition with the Almighty, who can protect them through even inanimate objects like a hill.

In Closing:

Through inanimate object protecting,
When that hill into air projecting.

So defeated Indra’s strength,
Where retaliation severe in length.

Never this way inferior to feel,
Krishna in standing real.

So beautiful that puja to see,
Lifter of Govardhana is He.

Diwali 2020

“Today evening in the city of Raghuvira there is great splendor and beauty. The Lord of Ayodhya is seeing the lovely festival of Diwali, which does so much good.” (Gitavali, 309.01)

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साँझ समय रघुबीर-पुरीकी सोभा आजु बनी |
ललित दीपमालिका बिलोकहिं हित करि अवधधनी ||

sām̐jha samaya raghubīra-purīkī sobhā āju banī |
lalita dīpamālikā bilokahiṁ hita kari avadhadhanī ||

Sometimes, it takes just one light, lit in one home, shining on one night, directed towards one person and His family, recognizing the one accomplishment, where He overcame that one villain, to correct the many wrongs that went on for too long.

There are many reasons to be thankful for the gifts of the Almighty, and on the occasion of Diwali the devotees of the Supreme Personality of Godhead remember His victorious return to the sacred land of Ayodhya, where the people were uninhibited in their outpouring of affection.

You arrived in this world

“Shastra teaches that Bhagavan, the person otherwise known as God in the vague sense by the rest of the world, descends to this world personally, in His svarupa, whenever and wherever He sees fit, to remedy gross negligence in adherence to righteous principles and to stem the growing tide of wicked intent and execution of nefarious deeds.

यदा यदा हि धर्मस्य
ग्लानिर् भवति भारत
अभ्युत्थानम् अधर्मस्य
तदात्मानं सृजाम्य् अहम्

yadā yadā hi dharmasya
glānir bhavati bhārata
abhyutthānam adharmasya
tadātmānaṁ sṛjāmy aham

“Whenever and wherever there is a decline in religious practice, O descendant of Bharata, and a predominant rise of irreligion - at that time I descend Myself.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 4.7)

“Thank you for choosing Ayodhya as the site for one of those appearances, where you take birth, in the transcendental sense, as the eldest son of King Dasharatha. Known affectionately as Rama, the eldest of the four brothers, you are the life and soul of the citizens, who follow the lead of the pious monarch.”

You upheld your father’s honor

“Thank you for making the unimaginable sacrifice of leaving the kingdom for fourteen years, just when you were about to succeed your father on the throne. It was to protect His honor that you left voluntarily, maintaining his solemn promise previously offered to the queen named Kaikeyi.

“While we were sad to see you leave, you would not let sentiment get in the way of duty. We tried to follow you, but for our own benefit you finally snuck away unnoticed, leaving us to return home and await your arrival, which seemed too far in the distance to ever become a reality.

You defeated Ravana

“Thank you for removing the menace to society that was Ravana and his large population of man-eating ogres, who were concentrated in Lanka. These night-rangers had no issue taking excursions to remote forests to harass innocent sages. These were the worst of the worst, and they even tried to attack you.

“The deck was stacked against, in fact. One man fighting against fourteen thousand, who could change their shapes at will. Ravana wouldn’t enter a fair fight, though he boasted of his ability. You taught him the greatest lesson, that God is always unconquerable, Ajita.

You returned home

“As parting was sweet sorrow, we were so thrilled to have you return. A triumphant voyage back on the aerial car known as Pushpaka, accompanied by Sita and Lakshmana. You were kind enough to bring some of the principal men in your Vanara army with you. Only you could have such an amazing servant as Hanuman working tirelessly for the interests of good.”

You are our king for life

“We welcomed you home with an array of lamps. The entire city celebrated in this way. From high to low, from rich to poor, from man to woman, from leader to servant, there was unity in diversity, displaying the ideal society which can only be found in a place centrally focused on serving your lotus feet.

“We will continue to honor you every day, but especially on the annual occasion of Diwali. While you may one day have to depart for the spiritual world, we will never feel separated from you. God is good, and you are the greatest. May you be our protector in every successive birth that we may happen to experience.”

In Closing:

On Pushpaka car flown,
Lamps of residents shone.

For greatest welcome demonstration,
Where too long in separation.

Thankful that even originally came,
Dasharatha’s son of Rama the name.

And the wicked Ravana eventually defeating,
Through you evil and fear retreating.

What Is The Harm In Trying To Earn A Lot Of Money

“The Personality of Godhead said: Under the supervision of the Supreme Lord and according to the result of his work, the living entity, the soul, is made to enter into the womb of a woman through the particle of male semen to assume a particular type of body.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 3.31.1)

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श्री-भगवान् उवाच
कर्मणा दैव-नेत्रेण
जन्तुर् देहोपपत्तये
स्त्रियाः प्रविष्ट उदरं
पुंसो रेतः-कणाश्रयः

śrī-bhagavān uvāca
karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa
jantur dehopapattaye
striyāḥ praviṣṭa udaraṁ
puṁso retaḥ-kaṇāśrayaḥ

“I often hear His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada speak against the interest of earning a significant sum of money in a lifetime. He is almost mocking the idea; as if no sane person would ever consider venturing down that path.

“The justification is that a person will one day be forced to exit the body. Another life. A subsequent birth. The resetting of the clock. The great unknown. According to the Vedic science, we have influence in the decision-making process; we can act in certain ways to direct the next birth to a specific kind of nature.

“More or less, though, we have no say. We could end up anywhere. High or low. Moving or nonmoving. Living up in a branch on a tree. Maybe we could be the actual tree, standing in one place for thousands of years. Somewhere deep within the earth, tolerating the manmade disturbances brought on by the industrial age.

“For some reason the mocking attitude rubs me the wrong way. What is really the harm in trying to accumulate money? Should we voluntarily become poor? How are we supposed to eat? How can we survive if the focus is simply on something else? Look at the rampant poverty in these countries where the government intentionally stole the property of the wealthy. Doesn’t society need an upper class in order to remain viable?”

Money is certainly required. No one can deny that working for a living is necessary to continue an existence. The issue is on priority. Focus. Attention. What keeps a person up at night and what gets them out of bed in the morning, enthused to begin the day.

The top priority should not be anything related to the material world. As Kapiladeva explains in Shrimad Bhagavatam, karma and the Divine forces of nature operate on the conditioned living entity to place them in a particular type of body.

This change is guaranteed. Whether we enjoy money for five days or fifty years, the end will arrive. The travel to the next body will take place. What wise person would put priority on something that merely passes the time? It would be like trying desperately to earn a high score in a handheld video game, where no one else sees the achievement.

Even if they did, they are in the same predicament. They will have to one day leave the illusion created through so much intense labor and suffering. Why not strive for something more? Why not dedicate the same effort for stopping birth and death?

The controller of these forces of nature, the Supreme Lord, has nothing to do. In the eternal land of Vrindavana, Shri Krishna is always playing. The all-attractive one finds His friends, and they then enjoy the day. Sometimes they look for Him, desperately wanting personal association. When separated the consciousness remains fixed on Him. That separation is merely another feature of meeting.

As the proprietor of the spiritual world is free of responsibilities, the property extends to His devotees. In other words, they will be taken care of. They should not worry about how to get food or pay for life’s necessities. Not that in the material world they will simply sit back and hope for items to magically appear. But with some minimal effort, with a focus on pleasing Shri Krishna, they will have more than enough to continue their life in devotion.

That devotional life brings peace in the present experience and it serves as the foundation for the clear consciousness necessary at the time of quitting the body, when there is the chance to escape the strict rules of karma and repeated birth and death.

Just as the material world operates under Divine direction, so the fortunes of the spiritually aware person belong in the lotus-like hands of the great coordinator, who is creating innumerable universes through His breathing, who never has anything to do, and who crafts the best shelter for the souls surrendered at His lotus feet.

In Closing:

When surrendered at lotus feet,
The best future to meet.

With end already assured,
Left behind wealth procured.

So priority elsewhere giving,
In manner of eternal living.

Krishna taking care of the rest,
Devoted souls eternally blessed.

What Is The Greatest Trick Maya Pulls Off

“The last illusion, the last snare of maya to trap the living entity, is the proposition that he is God. The living entity thinks that he is no longer a conditioned soul, but God. He is so unintelligent that he does not think that if he were God, then how could he be in doubt? That he does not consider. So that is the last snare of illusion.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Bhagavad-gita, 18.73 Purport)

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“I hate to use pop culture references as the starting point of a discussion into spiritual matters, but I thought this one would be appropriate, on many levels. There is a line from a famous movie that says something to the effect of ,’The greatest trick the devil pulled off was making people believe that he doesn’t exist.’

“I think the correlation is to organized crime on the street. It happens under everyone’s nose, but people are generally unaware. There is no mistaking the criminal nature of the activity; hence the comparison to the devil. But there is this illusion created which leads people to believe that everything is operating as per normal, in accordance with the law.

“I have heard some spiritual leaders compare the concept of the devil to the maya described in Vedic literature. I understand that in the Vedanta school, the genuine kind, the comparison does not hold up. This is because maya is not an equal to God. She is a servant in the truest sense. She is an illusory energy working under His direction.

“If you were to assess the situation, however, what would maya’s greatest trick be? What would be the most amazing thing that she is able to accomplish?”

Whether there is a higher degree or lower, illusion is still illusion. A small child thinks that they can eat ice cream day and night without suffering negative consequences in the future. An adult does not see the harm the addiction to intoxicants will cause moving forward. One is a small kind of illusion and the other much larger, but they are both in the same situation.

Rather than compare in terms of greater or lesser, the acharyas present the analysis in terms of time or sequence. In other words, the first illusion that maya creates and then the last. The beginning is obvious. We can think back to our time during childhood. Just enjoy. Accumulate toys. Satisfy the senses. Give no thought to long-term interest, shreyas.

In adulthood that attitude manifests to the greatest magnitude in business and political dealings. Become the richest person in the world. Have it be said that you were a “rags to riches” story. You started with nothing and ended up a millionaire.

Someone like Hiranyakashipu wants to rule the entire world. They seek immortality through tapasya, though the purpose should always be divyam. Austerity and penance for the pleasure of the Divine, for purifying the consciousness. Instead, the leader of the Daityas tortured himself in the fleeting hopes of remaining alive forever.

He had to settle for becoming the most feared ruler in the world, with everyone under his thumb. Of course, there are always exceptions. This time it was the king’s own son. Prahlada Maharaja could not be controlled, though he had no physical assets to fight back against coercion. He had a different kind of strength supporting him.

When a person realizes that they cannot be happy through accumulation, they turn towards the other direction. This is only natural. Sanskrit literature compares this to swinging on a pendulum. One side is enjoyment, bhoga. The other side is renunciation, tyaga.

In the extreme case of tyaga, a person thinks that they have become God. His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada refers to this as maya’s last snare. We could say this is the greatest trick, but maya pulls of so much within her spell of illusion that a solid case could be made for the other side.

If I know the subtleties and intricacies of this world, how there is intelligence embedded into every aspect of creation, and then still think that everything came together through randomness, it is certainly amazing. Maya has done her job well. She is a trusted servant for a reason.

As powerful as that illusion is, the Supreme Personality of Godhead can dissipate it in an instant. He does so through direct words of wisdom, as offered to Arjuna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra. He does so through recorded recollections of His dealings in this world, as found in the Puranas and Mahabharata.

He also sends His representatives, whose sole objective is to rescue others from the darkness and place them into the light. The method of implementation may vary to fit the time and circumstance, but there is effectiveness due to the link to Shri Krishna.

In Closing:

To devil not comparison exact,
Since maya as servant to act.

Working under God’s direction,
Illusion when under her protection.

Only Krishna the cloud to dispel,
Where matter from spirit to tell.

So no impact even last snare,
Since of Almighty aware.

Beware What Stalks You In The Night

“Being under the influence of illusion, I underestimated Rama and took Him to be a mere child. Thus I ran towards Vishvamitra’s sacrificial altar. With that, Rama released an acute arrow capable of destroying His enemies. Upon hitting me, that arrow forcefully threw me away to an ocean one hundred yojanas [eight hundred miles] away.” (Maricha speaking to Ravana, Valmiki Ramayana, Aranya Kand, 38.18-19)

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अवजानन्नहं मोहाद्बालोऽयमिति राघवम्।
विश्वामित्रस्य तां वेदिमभ्यधावं कृतत्वरः।।
तेन मुक्तस्ततो बाणः शितश्शत्रुनिबर्हणः।
तेनाहं त्वाहतः क्षिप्तस्समुद्रे शतयोजने।।

avajānannahaṃ mohādbālo’yamiti rāghavam।
viśvāmitrasya tāṃ vedimabhyadhāvaṃ kṛtatvaraḥ।।
tena muktastato bāṇaḥ śitaśśatrunibarhaṇaḥ।
tenāhaṃ tvāhataḥ kṣiptassamudre śatayojane।।

The Sanskrit word is nishachara. Rangers of the night. Attacking when visibility is limited. Not that they were afraid of the targets. The aggressors did not expect much opposition. They chose the specific time of day because of the surprise factor and also the close proximity to fruition of an important observance on the other side.

These were the tapo-vanas. Forest areas conducive to sacrifice, penance, and austerity. Try looking for some peace and quiet today. It is not easy to find. If living within small quarters in an urban area, there is constant noise. From the people walking in the apartment upstairs. From the children downstairs playing video games with the sound turned up. The constant blaring of sirens on the streets outside.

Even if you live in a large establishment, there is the issue of the other people living under the same roof. Similar sources of noise as mentioned above, but this time they are members of your own family. If you manage to get away to a log cabin somewhere in a distant area, you could still be distracted by televisions and smartphones.

The wise munis would retreat to the vanas in order to establish a routine of dedicated practice in dharma, at the highest levels. They did not expect disturbances. These were highly respected people, who would certainly accept visitors every now and then. The visitors were thought to be friendly and respectful, looking for the highest wisdom in exchange for humility and sincere inquiries into higher topics.

The nishacharas were also man-eaters. Cannibals, known as Rakshasas in Sanskrit, they had lethal intent, to carry out the greatest damage and then feast on their victims in the aftermath. Maricha was one of the leaders in this group, and he recalled an incident where things didn’t go according to plan.

He was prepared to attack the yajna of Vishvamitra, who was one of these sages with residence in the forest. The yajna was everything to these munis. It was a dedicated worship ceremony that carried several benefits simultaneously.

There was the obvious reward offered as a reciprocal benefit from the devas. The demigods in heaven literally feed off the oblations poured into the sacrificial fire. When the devas are pleased, they bestow plenty of sunshine and rain onto the world, which is vital to sustaining life.

Yajna is also beneficial in the change in consciousness that results to the person performing it. More into spiritual life; less interest in the temporary. Yajna is synonymous with Vishnu, who is the personal God. There is only one Almighty, but depending on a person’s association or lack thereof with spiritual leaders, they may not have a complete picture of the Divine.

During this particular attack, Maricha saw a youth standing near the sacrificial fire. This was Shri Rama, the prince of Ayodhya, specifically requested as a bodyguard by Vishvamitra. This was for the protection of all the sages in the forest. Rama is an avatara of Vishnu, so the yajna was essentially in His honor. Rama was not about to let the night-rangers spoil that right under His nose.

Maricha’s attack was welcomed with an arrow that carried tremendous potency. Rama’s weapon thrust Maricha backwards almost eight hundred miles. The Rakshasa survived, for the moment, but he always remembered the incident. He tried to warn Ravana, the leader of the ogres in Lanka, against mounting a similar strike against Rama, that he was essentially playing with fire.

Ravana was too consumed by lust to heed good advice. He had to have Sita Devi, Rama’s wife, no matter what rules had to be broken in the process. While the sages had been harassed for so long in the dark of night, there would be proper retribution in the future. Rama would personally deliver it, as He is always the protector of the saints.

In Closing:

Of rangers in the night beware,
Who of yajna timing aware.

So that at right time to attack,
But this time blow sending back.

Because arrow from Rama released,
Bringing to sages needed relief.

The same lesson again to teach,
When Ravana’s Lanka to reach.

Isn't It True That We Are All Just Chemicals

“Where do all these chemicals come from? The answer is that they are produced by the inconceivable energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Living entities are part of the Supreme Godhead, and from their bodies come many chemicals. For example, the lemon tree is a living entity that produces many lemons, and within each lemon is a great deal of citric acid. Therefore, if even an insignificant living entity who is but a part of the Supreme Lord can produce so much of a chemical, how much potency there must be in the body of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Chaitanya Charitamrita, Adi 16.81 Purport)

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Friend1: I came upon an interesting realization the other day. It was while watching a video that was downloaded to my local machine.

Friend2: As opposed to streaming it from another server?

Friend1: Yes, I wanted to have the comfort of distraction-free viewing. Also, the application on my PC saves the viewing progress, so that I can pause and resume without issue.

Friend2: That is the worst part about streaming, for sure. Along with the buffering.

Friend1: Anyway, it dawned on me that since the video is saved as a file in a directory, it essentially becomes a set of data written to disk.

Friend2: Umm, that is how saving files works. You never realized that before?

Friend1: Well, think about it. Real-life images. Accompanying sound. All reduced to bytes on a machine. I was blown away.

Friend2: In the sense that you could capture or even replicate real life by rendering bits, ones and zeroes, on a computer?

Friend1: Exactly. So amazing if you sit down and really contemplate. Everything that we see. All that we witness. Convert that to a file on a hard drive. Render something new based off imagination. Life, as we know it, translated in machine language.

Friend2: Just imagine the work of the creator, then. Known as Vidhata in Sanskrit, he takes the base three ingredients of goodness, passion and ignorance. The universe is like his blank canvas.

Friend1: I am pleased you went in that direction. This got me to thinking about the theory that life is just chemicals.

Friend2: Okay.

Friend1: Isn’t it true, to an extent? Just as we translate the images and sound to bits on a computer, couldn’t we say everything in this world is molecules? Protons, neutrons, electrons, and so forth.

Friend2: Atomic particles.

Friend1: Yes, precisely. That is the argument from a portion of the scientific community. When you break everything down, we are just a set of chemicals.

Friend2: Okay, but from where did those chemicals come?

Friend1: Never mind that for now. Do you concur with that assessment?

Friend2: I certainly would, if but for one glaring flaw.

Friend1: What is that?

Friend2: If we are all just chemicals, you would be able to take an identical chemical composition, replicate it, and create life.

Friend1: Not sure I follow.

Friend2: Let’s go back to your downloaded video example. If you want me to have a similar experience, how would you go about that?

Friend1: I don’t know. Maybe send you the video.

Friend2: And what does that involve?

Friend1: Uploading. Downloading. Computers. The internet.

Friend2: Copying. That is what you are forgetting. The essence of the object is the file, which is a collection of machine instructions. You copy that exact collection and then send to me.

Friend1: Yes.

Friend2: What is the nature of that copy? Is it inferior or superior?

Friend1: We are not talking about copying VHS tapes, here, which have the issue of degradation. There is no such thing as a highly “generated” copy of these video files. What you get is identical to mine.

Friend2: That is what I wanted you to admit. The copy is exactly the same, though there was an origin. Can you do the same with the chemicals that make up the human body?

Friend1: Maybe? I don’t know.

Friend2: You can’t. There is soul inside. That is what gives the spark. Scientists can’t even find the soul, let alone copy it.

Friend1: I see.

Friend2: As His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada explains, the basis for modern science is some trust in authority. Let’s say it is extended to Newton or some other prominent scientist from recent history.

Friend1: There is a constant evolution. People adding to previous discoveries.

Friend2: The followers of Vedanta extend the same trust, except there is nothing to add. The information is perfect from the beginning. We know what the soul is, where it came from, how it got here, and to where it is going (in the general sense). Thus our information is superior. That is the only way to know that we are more than chemicals.

Friend1: God is involved.

Friend2: The origin. The creator. The source of the material and spiritual energies. The original shelter and hopefully our future home, provided we align with the spiritual science under the guidance of an expert teacher.

In Closing:

My video file to contemplation reverted,
How life to machine language converted.

With human being not the same?
Where just collection of chemicals with name.

The key ingredient forgetting,
That life only if soul setting.

And that unique to you and me,
From Vedas superior way to see.

Four Responses To Grief Due To Tragedy

“In order to be saved from the danger of spoiling the human form of life and being attached to unreal things, one must take warning of death at the age of fifty, if not earlier. The principle is that one should take it for granted that the death warning is already there, even prior to the attainment of fifty years of age, and thus at any stage of life one should prepare himself for a better next life. The system of the sanatana-dharma institution is so made that the follower is trained for the better next life without any chance that the human life will be spoiled.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Shrimad Bhagavatam, 2.1.16 Purport)

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1. Lament

“The loss of life is tragic. Do you watch the nightly news? I can’t believe what is happening to our country. Hospitals overcrowding. Mass hysteria and panic. A person is fine today, and within less than a week they are gone.

“I have never witnessed anything like this. I am afraid to get out of bed in the morning. I don’t know where to turn. It seems others are not taking the issue seriously. They act as if nothing is happening. How can they be so cruel of heart? Where is the compassion?”

2. Prevent

“I will stay home to stop the spread. They said fourteen days a month ago, but that has since been revised. Whatever the number, I will do my part. If I simply keep my distance from my fellow man, I will be able to contribute to a healthier society.

“Yes, I understand that disease will not go away by doing this, but what else are we supposed to do? Follow the recommendations of the doctors. The health experts know what they are doing. The last thing we need is to be careless and then get a host of people sick. They then spread the disease, and we are left with a terrible situation. Forced home confinement, for everyone from young children to the elderly, is the way to go, even if it lasts for years.”

3. Accept

“Are people serious with this? They act as if death has never occurred before. News flash: you are all going to die. Locking yourselves at home is not going to save any lives. If that was the way to go, then everyone should follow for every day of the year. Keep the cars off the streets. No more alcohol consumption. Forget the amusement parks and skydiving.

“I am not going to live a panicked life. Death was guaranteed ever since birth took place. A wise person understands this. It is one of the cruelties of the human experience. That day when you realize you will not get to stay here forever.

“Better to accept and move on. Don’t act carelessly, but why live in perpetual fear? There have been contagious respiratory illnesses carrying the potential for death since the beginning of time. If you think it is irresponsible to leave your home today, then that was also the case last year, five years ago, ten years into the past, and more. Wake up!”

4. Prepare

“If I am forced to die, where will I go in the future? What was I doing here to begin with? I need answers. I refuse to sit down and ignore the issue. I will not bury my head in the sand, hoping the problem will go away.

“Now is the time for inquiring into these higher topics. I have a feeling that the existence will not cease upon death’s arrival. It seems more like a commencement than a conclusion. Getting ready to be launched somewhere else. I want to see if I can influence the direction of the travel.”

…

The entire Vedic culture has this last step as the starting position. The Sanskrit aphorism is athato brahma-jijnasa. This roughly translates to, “Now is the time for making an inquiry into the spiritual subject matter.” What exactly is Brahman and how does it relate to me? I could not make this inquiry in previous births, of which there were countless.

Of the 8,400,000 varieties of species, I have fortunately found the human form, which is the most auspicious. The reason is the potential to make the very inquiry just mentioned. Start at the planning phase. Save valuable time by avoiding the stages of grief, fear and capitulation.

The proper Sanskrit definition for the culture, which mistakenly gets the label of Hinduism due to the ignorance of outsiders, is sanatana-dharma. This is the eternal way of living that matches the essential characteristic of the individual.

From the higher level description descends specific rules and regulations within a systematic approach at reaching transcendence. For instance, one aspect of sanatana-dharma is the division of the life experience based on stages. These are known as ashramas, or spiritual institutions.

The idea is that man should never permanently settle for material comforts, be it at home or at the professional occupation. There should always be an eye on death, which is the forced exit from the temporarily inhabited body.

Consider the spiritual subject matter today and target the daily objectives and tasks to create a specific kind of consciousness. Not one that fears or welcomes death, but one that remains alert to the illusion of the surroundings and how there is a single force which represents reality.

He is known by many names in the generic sense, such as God, Ishvara, the Almighty, and the Supreme Lord. The idea is that if I am always conscious of Him, then I will be able to handle any situation. I will always be on the path of liberation, which means that death can take me at any time and I will be awarded the proper destination in the afterlife.

The existence continues, since spirit never dies. I am spirit soul, part and parcel of the Supreme. If I live in a way that I am always conscious of Him, then I have nothing to fear. I will remain steady in my adherence to the principles of dharma, knowing that the objective of every act is the pleasure of the all-attractive one, who is also known as Krishna.

In Closing:

Futility in this experience shown,
Where guarantee of death known.

Why then so much to fear?
This as much should be clear.

Preparing right way smart,
Since in human species to start.

Consciousness of Krishna maintaining,
And proper destination attaining.