Contents Page No.Editorial 2I am ‘I’ 3The Vedas 4Amrita Dhara 6Spiritual Quest 7Bhakti & Saranagati 8Truth of life 9Yuvanjali 10From My Heart 10It feels good, for once 11Road to Happiness 12The Invitation 14Mahavakyas 15The Ideal Message 16The Curtain rises & always falls 17Panchama Veda 18Living with a Divine Soul 20Law and Justice... 21Sri Andal 22Swami Ranganathananda 24The Holy Mother Sri Sarada Ma 25For I may never... 26Right to Information 28Samskrit - Lesson Ten 30Celebrations 31Sponsor Options 32An Appeal 33Invitation 34Subscriptions 35

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EDITORIAL

Time and again the existence of God is questioned, especially when one goesthrough a grave phase in life. No one is an atheist for all are the creation of theLord and repositories of the Grace. In everyone’s heart there is a spring of love andthat love is God. But we nearly lose faith in God when our prayer demands are notmet and there seems to be no relief in the near future. When we are put throughall kinds of tests in our lives, we are thoroughly depressed and feel we are desertedby God. But God always assists us. Perhaps our sins are much more horrible so asto cause much more torture than what we are currently undergoing.

Instead of coming up with the question, ‘Why God, why only me?’ let us understandwe have to pay for our past karmas. ACCEPTANCE is the key. We should accept thatwe are suffering much less than we ought to and that it occurred due to our sins.Let us be mentally prepared to face the consequences. Let us never lose faith in God;for, we need Him now more than ever before. If we can do this, then God is boundto solve our crisis as He always does. Just surrender to His Feet and then see whatHe does! He would for sure stretch His invisible hands and wipe away our tears.Everything is His will and not ours. Surrender, Trust and Accept!

Our attraction towards God should not be influenced by the fact of fulfillment ornon-fulfillment of our prayers. It should be filled with pure bhakthi which flows likeriver Ganga longing to merge with the sea. We can develop loving devotion whenwe understand that our soul originates from God. Let us accept Him as the sourceof all and trust that all exist in Him. Worship Him and surrender to Him with suchfaith. The day should come when we can sit back and think of all the difficult timeswith a smile on our face, for we haven’t lost our faith in God.

- Subhadra K.

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- Swami Nachiketananda

I am ‘I’, tiny or bigI do not knowBut I am ‘I’

I am ‘I’, ego or soulI do not knowBut I am ‘I’

I am ‘I’, worldly or spiritualI do not knowBut I am ‘I’

I am ‘I’, servant or MasterI do not knowBut I am ‘I’

I am ‘I’, source for hatred or LoveI do not knowBut I am ‘I’

I am ‘I’, temporary or permanentI do not knowBut I am ‘I’

But then who am II do not knowBut I am ‘I’

Every moment we use ‘I’. There is no time whenthis ‘I’ is not involved. There is no action when thistiny ‘I’ is missing. In fact we live, we breathe, we eat,we chew, we express, we enjoy, we overproject, this‘I’ but without knowing it. Yet we are not very keento know who this ‘I’ is.

In the real journey called life, we do have two ‘I’s.One is external and the other one is internal. Thisexternal ‘I’ is mere reflection of inner ‘I’ and inner ‘I’is the soul, our true identity- the source of everythingthat exists and beyond. But due to our ignorance weassume external ‘I’ as the true ‘I’ and follow itthroughout life. Then all our calculations of life,analysis of life and everything that exists speaks onlyabout the external ‘I’. And within no time this mereshadow called tiny ‘I’ become ‘real person andeventually personality’, left for the entire society tofollow…

In this journey called life, mere reflection becomestrue object and we invest our whole life and allenergies into it, by thinking that one day we willachieve that which is beyond human comprehension.We live an imaginary life with false identity. Weindeed achieve imaginary realization and live thereforever, thinking that we are permanent. This falserealization is enough to damage the whole race, as itis contagious and spreads faster than mind’s speed.

Robot can do better work but can never be areplacement for human being. A picture can bebeautiful than the person but it cannot be taken forlife. We cannot live with a robot or a picture. Yet dueto external ‘I’ we live with all our false identities.Then ‘I’ becomes the mantra for life. And living withsuch ‘I’ is more disastrous than any natural ormanmade calamities.

But if we are not accepting this external ‘I’ as awhole in the journey called life, then the ‘I’ that iswithin will guide and make life more precious than adiamond... livelier than life. Then the inner ‘I’ speaks,whispers, sings and dances. Then doors for thepossibilities open up. External ‘I’ dissolves into inner‘I’ and expresses real ‘I’.

In this journey called life, even for a moment if thisexternal ‘I’ becomes silent then real melody beginswithin. Then inner ‘I’ plays the mystic flute andspreads music all over. Then the real dance begins inthe life. Then external ‘I’ gets tuned to inner ‘I’ andlife reveals life, soul reveals soul, ‘I’ reveals ‘I’.

I am ‘I’

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Veda is the basis of existence of the universeand Sanatana Dharma. It is an ocean ofnectar and wisdom of the ocean. Veda ispure and divine wisdom. The meaning ofSankrit word “Veda” means “to know”,“Wisdom or Supreme knowledge”. Vedasare not claimed by any prophet or sage.According to Sanatana Dharama Vedas are“Apaurusheyas”, means in the beginning ofthe universe, Vedas are directly revealed bySupreme himself. In the state of Samadhiour sages have received this sacred wisdomwhich is as old as this universe. That’s whyVedas are called “Srutis”.

Vedas are not mere samskrit mantras;however due to lack of Samskrit knowledgemany do not understand the language ofVedas. In fact Vedas discuss the Divinescience of the self as well as the universe. Itwas discovered by Galileo and Copernicus inthe 16th and 17th century that earth isspherical, but many Yugas ago, in the oldestveda of Rigveda, it is mentioned that“Bhugola sarvato Vrittaha” means the earthis round from all the sides. Sushrutha is thefather of Surgery. Vedas have more advancedscience than modern science.

Vedas talk about Astronomy, Medicine,Physics, Chemistry and every science whichmodern science discusses. The mostimportant aspect the modern science failsto talk about, but Vedas discuss in detail isthe soul, the supreme knowledge calledAtma vidya or Brahma vidya.

Thousands of years ago our sages havespoken about Anuvu and Paramanuvu meansmolecules and atoms. Vedas discuss about

body, mind, and soul. Vedas not only discussabout hell and heaven, but they go beyondand they discuss about the supreme or thehigher self.

Today a small child to youngster will expressa wish to go overseas to pursue his/herhigher education. Hardly there are any peoplewho show interest in learning Vedas orjoining a Veda patashala. Because knowledgeof Vedas certainly does not fill our stomachand it doesn’t produce a man of money. Butvedic education makes a man of characteror a perfect human being. If you want to seea developed nation, there is no powerfultool than the Vedic education. Moderneducation’s ultimate aim is money. In thismodern age, even a highly educated personis committing many crimes and involving inmany evil acts. Example: corruption in everyfield of life.

But the aim of Vedic education is supremeknowledge or the discovery of truth.

From many Yugas we have been impartedVedic knowledge by our ancestors. But todayin this modern age people hardly payattention to Vedic knowledge. Bramhinswere thorough in Vedic knowledge, and itwas considered the responsibility of abramhin to pass on this rich and Vedicheritage to the next generation. But todaybecause of livelihood many bramhins haveturned to different professions and fields. Ifyou ask any bramhin parent to join theirchildren in Veda Patashala, they wouldn’t doso. Because, many parents think about thelivelihood of the child but not the life of thechild. Here ‘brahmins’ do not just meanbrahmins by birth. Brahmin is not some sectaccording to Varna vyavastha and BhagavatGeeta. Brahmin is not a caste, it is a nature.Varna vyavastha is misunderstood andmisinterpreted by many people. But the varnadepends upon the person’s nature ratherthan biological birth in some particular caste.

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By birth, no one becomes a Brahmin,Kshyatriya, Vysya and Shudra. Valmiki andVyasa Maharshi are great examples. He is areal Brahmin, who has thirst for supremeknowledge.

This divine knowledge is classified into 3branches. They are: 1.Moola vedamantras

2. Bramhangranth 3. Upanishads.

1. Moola veda mantras classified into fourSamhitas. They are 1. Rig Veda 2. Yajur Veda3. Sama Veda and 4. Atharva Veda.

To receive this wisdom, our Rishis have givenus the Darshana Shastra in the form ofaphorisms. “Drishyate anena iti darshanam”,the meaning of Dharshanam is “through whichone can perceive the true essence of theobject”.

In the world, the smallest creature to thehuman beings, go through three types of pains;Adhyatmik, Adi Daivik and Adi Bhoutik.Everyone in the world tries to be free fromthe sorrow but somehow many will not befree from it. The man throughout his life runsbehind something by thinking that it mightgive him sensory enjoyment and happinessand frees him from the cloud of sorrows. Butat the last moment of life he discovers that,on what he spent his entire life was completelywasted and gone with the wind. The man’sachievement finally, couldn’t give him thehappiness, insteed gave misery.

Example: Lottery

There are four aspects of Darshana

1. Heiy: What is the true form of misery?

2. Heiy hetu: Where from this misery arisesand the true reason of it?

3. Haan: What is the manifestation or thestate of the misery?

4. Hanopaye: What is the remedy toovercome the misery?

To shed more light on these aspects, to findout the root cause and other dimensions thereare three other aspects mentioned by oursages:

1. Chetana Tatva (Jiva or Soul): Whosuffers from misery? The sufferer of the misery.

What is the true nature of him? If the misery isthe true nature of the Jiva, he wouldn’t haveattempted to free himself from the misery. Thisconveys that it is the Tatva, the Jadata andmisery is not the very nature of the Jiva. It isthe pure Atman. It is the Chetana tatv. Whenman realizes his Chetana Tatva or soul, then hegets the answer for third question. Realizationbreaks misery into thousand pieces.

2. Jada Tatva ( Nature): The opposite ofChetana Tatva another Tatv also needs to beaccepted. The nature of it is misery, from wherethe misery takes birth and that which iscompletely opposite to Chetana is Jada Tatva.Misery is the nature of the Jada tatva but notthe nature of the Atma. The complete wisdomabout Jada Tatva and Chetana Tatva is Hanopaywhich mean the tool of destroying misery.

3. Chetana Tatva (Supreme): Afteraccepting Chetana and Jada Tatva, it is neededto accept that the first Chetana Tatva isSanukula and the Jada Tatva is completelyopposite which means where there is completeknowledge. Chetana Tatva is full of wisdom,which is ever knowing, ever pervading and everpowerful; every moment where you experiencethe knowledge and ignorance, that which is theocean of knowledge, from where the Jiva getsthe knowledge and becomes free from the Jadatatva and ignorance. When one becomes everfree from misery he gets the answer for Haanand Hanopay.

To understand all the questions of Heay, Hetu,Haan and Hanopay, in Dharshana Shastra allthese aspects of Chetana, Jada and Chetanatatva have been explained in the form of smallaphorisms. These six Darshanas orShaddarshanas are very important.

They are 1. Mimamsa 2. Vedanta 3. Nyaya4. Vysheshika 5. Samkya 6. Yoga

- Swami Shivanandamayi

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-Compiled by Geetha K.

Swami Brahmananda known as Rakhal Chandra Ghoshin his pre-monastic life was born on January 21, 1863 ina village near Calcutta. His mother was a deeply spiritualwoman who chose the name Rakhal in honour of thecowherds, who were Krishna’s companions as a boy.Rakhal was a childhood friend of Naren (SwamiVivekananda) and since He was a gentle and shy boy wasdrawn to Naren’s boldness.

Since He was treading the path of spiritualism, His fatherout of fear for His son’s future, got Him married at the ageof sixteen. He was a reluctant bridegroom but accepted Hisfather’s decision. But it was His bride’s brother whointroduced Him to Sri Ramakrishna who was instrumentalin His renouncing the world.

Sri Ramakrishna had several visions prior to the arrivalof Rakhal and when He set eyes on Rakhal He recognisedhim as the boy of his visions. In one of His visions, MotherKali had placed the boy in His lap and hence He wasregarded as Sri Ramakrishna’s spiritual son. One day, SriRamakrishna said to Naren, “Rakhal has the keenintelligence of a king. If He chose, He could rule akingdom.” Naren spoke to the other disciples about Rakhal’sgreatness and declared, “henceforth, we shall call Rakhalour king.” Rakhal came to be known as Raja.

After the passing away of Sri Ramakrishna the brothermonks stayed together in abject poverty in Baranagoreand made it their monastery. Rakhal also wandered widelyaround India and had some of the greatest spiritualexperiences in Vrindavan.

In 1895, He returned to Calcutta and rejoined His fellowdisciples. In 1897, Vivekananda returned home from Histrip to America, and Swami Brahmananda was the first towelcome Him. Vivekananda touched Brahmananda’s feet,quoting from the scriptures, “the Son of the Guru is to beregarded as the Guru Himself.” Smiling, He in turn touchedVivekananda’s feet and said “one’s elder brother is to berevered as one’s father.” The money He collected from theAmerican devotees was handed over to Brahmananda asHe felt that Brahamananda was the real owner.

On May 1, 1897, Vivekananda called a meeting ofthe monastic and devotees in order to put their workon an organised basis. It was thus that the RamakrishnaMath and Mission came into being and SwamiBrahmananda was made the first President of theMath from its inception and held on to the post for theremainder of his life.

He was a great administrator of the Mission’sactivities, but his first priority was spirituality and socialservice came second. His focus was only to realiseGod and then serve God in mankind. He said, “Keepat least three fourths of your mind in God. It is enoughif you give one fourth to service.”

He was very particular about the source of thedonations and was particular not to accept from all andsundry. Once a rich man wanted to renounce and offerhis entire fortune to the mission. But Brahmanandarefused citing the reason that the person was acting onimpulse and would regret his offer later.

He was not quick to judge people and would dealwith the offenders in the Math directly. He wouldhowever be stern in his rebukes and subject monksand senior disciples to public humiliation, especiallywhen he regarded them as having exceptional qualitiesand wished to train them for difficult duties.

He also said it is good to laugh everyday. It relaxesthe body and the mind. He was also without fear andhad the power to make the atmosphere of a placevibrate with his spirituality. He spent most of his later lifein a state of high spiritual consciousness, coming downfrom it only in order to teach and help others. He beganto have the vision of Ramakrishna almost every day;not only seeing him but also talking to him.

He left his mortal body on April 10, 1922 and therewas no coma at the end, his eyes were brilliant andhis last words to his disciple were, “Do not grieve; Ishall be with you always.”

Direct disciples of Sri Ramakrishna- Swami Brahmananda

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- Swami Nachiketananda

Ans: Yes! We can realize our true naturealthough we are not doing asanas andpranayama. Yogarshi Patanjali gave a certainguideline to awaken the hidden potentialwithin. He talks about Yama, Niyama, Asana,Pranayama, Pratyahara, Dharana, Dhyana andSamadhi. He says unless we are not practicingYama and Niyama it is highly difficult to treadthe spiritual path. But if we understand thephilosophy given by Patanjali and follow anyone of Ashtanga Yogas – eight limbs of yoga,we are bound to reach the highest pinnacle oflife called Samadhi.

When we look at any step with awareness,we will come to know that each step is uniquein nature, yet completely tuned with all othersteps. If we are able to follow one, all othersteps happen on its own. No matter whetherwe have read it or not, no matter whether wehave practiced it or not; automatically Asanas,Mudras or Pratyahara take place in one’s life.We just we need to begin sadhana.

Patanjali takes us to the door of ‘SelfRealization’ step by step. Therefore sometimesit is essential for sadhakas to follow the setguideline under expert guidance of Guru. Aqualified Guru is necessary in this journey. Ifwe try on our own, just by reading somethingor listening, it may cause severe problems tous and harm the society as well. So it is betterto get proper guidelines and work on ourenergies systematically.

Spiritual Quest

There are people, following certain traditionsand promoting yogic practices withoutexpecting anything in return. Their lives arebased on purity, simplicity and spirituality. Theylive for the welfare of society and withoutcreating any negative repulsion they disappearsilently. Undoubtedly, rare are those spirituallyevolved souls, but if we have sincere longing tofind them, they are bound to come and guideus.

They say in the spiritual journey we need todrop everything. They also say that once westart treading the spiritual path sincerely,everything gets dropped on its own. Even thename of God will be forgotten completely.Then what remains is the soul- ever pure entitydwelling within and without our true nature.

There are people who never practiceanything, yet are spiritually qualified andauthentic, because in them yoga is happeningdue to their unique karmic cycle. They areborn yogis. Their every action is mudra, theirevery outward action is pratyahara and theirevery shallow or deep breathing is pranayama.Their very soul breathes, speaks, sings, dancesand writes…

When we want to take refuge in life, suchsouls are the best option than anything in theworld. Kubera’s wealth is unique but nothingcompares to the vastness of knowledge andthe richness of experience of such souls.

Without doing Asanas and Pranayama can we realize our true nature?

Swamiji answers questions from the seekers. Questions are welcome from everyone.They can be e-mailed to nachiketananda@gmail.com

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“Oh Lord, take my love and let it flow infullness of devotion to Thee;

Oh Lord, take my hands and let them workincessantly for Thee;

Oh Lord, take my soul and let it be mergedin one with Thee;

Oh Lord, take my mind and thoughts andlet them be in tune with Thee;

Oh Lord, take my everything, and let me bean instrument of Thee”.

I’m not aware of the author or origin of thisbeautiful prayer but as a child, we chanted itevery day in school during assembly. At that age,the only thing that was running in my mind whilesaying it was not to miss out any of the “Love,hands, soul, mind and everything” and to say itin the right order!

I remembered the prayer after all these yearsand thought how wonderfully it sums up theessence of true devotion. Most of us think thatdevotion is something that we exhibit before thevarious images in the shrine, by chanting slokasand prayers or sitting for Dhyana for a fewminutes. We all remember someone from ourlives, who seem very devoted in the puja roombut once out of it, the person’s interactionsthrough the day do not indicate any truetransformation. This is not to judge someoneelse’s progress but to use it as a pointer forreflection. Also, don’t we catch ourselves prayingardently only in times of dire need and despair?And at other times our longing and love for theLord is half-hearted?

True devotion (Bhakti) and surrender(Saranagati) is a full time Sadhana. It’s almost asif we have to “learn or practice” loving andsurrendering to the Almighty. Seeing everyoneas embodiments of the Divine is the first step.And then follows, offering up every action throughevery faculty that we possess– the mind, bodyand soul. Why should we do this at all?

In Hindu culture, the flowers symbolize theoffering of love and the fruits symbolize theoffering of ‘fruits of action’. This is what we taketo the deity when we go to a temple. When Ioffer my emotions (love) to others around mewith the thought of offering it to the Divine inthem, I face little disappointment whenrelationships fail. There is no feeling of insecurity,jealousy, possessiveness and all other pitfallsthat accompany human love. When I offer myactions (hands) to the world around me withthe thought of serving Him, I can work with fullzest and yet be unfettered when things gowrong. When I offer my mind with its myriadthoughts, both good and bad, at the feet of theAlmighty, I don’t need to make efforts to purifymyself as it happens on its own. In everythingthat I do, if I only consider myself as aninstrument, my ego is refined and ripened to theright extent. Thus true freedom and joy isexperienced as a result.

I believe that, Meera bai, Surdas and othersaints we hear of, were not “blessed” in anyspecial way to have such deep devotion. Theydeveloped it through “practicing the presenceof God” and learning to love Him, in their manylifetimes. So if they can, we can too, with ourown effort. The Lord says, “If you take one steptowards me, I will take 100 steps towards you”.Let us be encouraged by this assurance by ourHeavenly father and the Divine Mother.

I have also noticed that the more effort wemake on this front, the more expansive webecome and the more courage we acquire toface life. Spiritually inspiring lives have alldisplayed extraordinary courage in the face ofany adversity. Let us make our effort to live ourlives more fully by imbibing that courage bit bybit.

St Teresa of Avila gave the followingadmonition, as it is called;

‘Let nothing disturb you;

Nothing affright you;

All things will pass but God changes not.

Patient endurance brings you to victory

Once you have God you want nothing more

God alone, God alone, God alone is all weever need.’

- Harini Nandakuru

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I always wondered, ‘Why me?’ Many a times feltthat I was punished for no reason and for nomistake of mine. Grumbling made it tougher for meto digest the truth of life or rather the secret of life.At a point of time, I felt that there was no reasonfor me to live. Time revealed the secret of life; lifegets better as you understand it through experience.It is like a candy you chew, the more you chew, thesweeter it gets. Experiencing life and understandingits essence is all what one lives for. You carry yourkarma which solely becomes the purpose of yourliving.

Once, Krishna and Arjuna were walking in avillage and Arjuna asked Krishna, “Oh Lord! I wonderwhat it means when people say that karma is thethread of life. Can you please explain?” Krishnaremained calm for a while; and as they walked,they saw a hen lay an egg. Krishna asked Arjuna togo and whisper his question to the egg; when hedid so, the egg broke and died. Arjuna wasbewildered at that. He insisted on Krishna explainingthe mystery behind all that was happening. Krishnaspoke nothing in reply but walked quietly. Soon,they reached a place where lay a cow and a newborn calf beside her. Krishna asked Arjuna to askthe new born calf, the same question and Arjunadid as told. When he asked the calf what he wastold to ask, the calf died; and this time Arjuna wasshocked to see what happened. He was awestruckand asked no more questions but walked withKrishna. When they reached the palace of thekingdom, Krishna told Arjuna that a baby was justborn in the palace and he insisted that Arjunashould put his question to the new born baby. Thistime, Arjuna was hesitant because previously whenhe asked the egg and the calf the question, theydied and if anything happened to the inheritor of thekingdom, he knew he wouldn’t be spared for theworld. Taking the God’s name, he walked in andasked the baby his question and the baby spokeand Arjuna was amazed at that. The baby said, “OhArjuna! Having seen the outcome of putting forwardyour question, if you are surprised to hear mespeak, I shall explain what it means. First, whenyou approached me, I was an egg and when you

Truth of Life asked me howkarma became thethread of life, Iwished to answerbut the realizationabout life in me,brought me tocease and take a better form of life. When youapproached me for the second time, again I wishedto answer but the realization that karma i.e., thedeeds I perform in my janma is what becomes thethread of life brought me to cease and be born inthis royal family. The third time you asked me thisquestion, I was mute but when you spoke, I startedspeaking and this makes me feel better becauseI am always the chosen one. Whenever you spoketo me, you took the God’s name and that got mebetter every time. I realized that I was the chosenone by the God. Every time you asked me howkarma became the thread of life, I was performingmy karma and getting better by descending Hiscommand of trying to explain you. I performed mykarma and that became the thread of life. Everytime I gained birth as an egg, a calf and a mutechild, I asked myself ‘Why me?’ And every timeGod sent you to me because I was the chosenone; and now, I don’t ask myself ‘Why me?’Because I know I am blessed by the God. That isthe truth of life and that shall always remain thetruth of life!” After the discourse he had from thechild, Arjuna came out, fell on Krishna’s feet andthanked Him for the immense intellect He hadbrought in him.

Now, ask yourself ‘Why me?’ And start performingwhatever is being asked of you by God and youshall know the purpose of your living and the truthof your life. Remember! Life always gets betterwhen you still perform the task with utmostdiligence even though you feel it is difficult toheed. Take his command and start your day.Remember! You are the chosen one.

Ramya Manasa Kandala1st Year Undergraduate StudentUniversity of AlbertaEdmonton, Alberta, Canada.

I love writing poems, stories andsongs; compose them and sing. All Ican write is about life because thatis all I can experience.

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Every Hindu who hastasted the fruits of thisworld must give up thelatter part of his life,and he who does not isnot a Hindu and has nomore right to callhimself a Hindu. Weknow that this is theideal- to give up afterseeing and experiencing the vanity of things.Having found out that the heart of the materialworld is a mere hollow, containing only ashes,give it up and go back. The mind is circlingforward, as it were towards the senses, andthat mind has to circle backwards; the Pravrittihas to stop and the Nivritti has to begin. Thatis the ideal.

Let me tell you again that you must be pureand help anyone who comes to you, as much aslies in your power. And this is good Karma. Bythe power of this, the heart becomes pure(Chitta-Shuddhi) and then Shiva who is residingin every one will become manifest. He is alwaysin the heart of everyone. If there is dust on amirror, we cannot see our image. So ignoranceand wickedness are the dirt and dust on themirror of our hearts. Selfishness is the chief sin,thinking of ourselves first. He who thinks, “I willeat first, I will have more money than others,and I will possess everything”, he who thinks, “Iwill get to heaven before others, I will get muktibefore others” is the selfish man. The unselfishman says, “I will be the last, I do not care to goto heaven, I will even go to hell if by doing soI can help my brothers.” This unselfishness is thetest of religion. He who has more of thisunselfishness is more spiritual and nearer toShiva. Whether he is learned or ignorant, he isnearer to Shiva than anybody else, whether heknows it or not. And if a man is selfish, eventhough he has visited all the temples, seen allthe places of pilgrimage, and painted himselflike a leopard, he is still further off from Shiva.

Crying crying for millions of miles,

My eyes overflowing with tears,

Indicating the happiness I have lost.

Depression in my heart never dies,

Ever in my heart lies the mistake I havedone.

Always pricking my heart for the mistake Ihave done.

For every second I feel I have donesomething wrong.

For every minute I feel I had done nothing.

Crying heart says why should I cry?

Why should I fear? Says my feared heart.

Why should I hesitate? Says my heart withhesitation.

Why should I get angry? Says my angryheart.

MY HEART SAYS BOTH.

I feel it is wrong as well as right.

What should I believe? Thinks my mind

What should I trust? Says my rolling tear

What should I listen? Says my ear

What should I speak? Says my tongue

My nose inhaling the every act I have done,

I may be wrong and I may be right;

I am confused.

I feel both. What can I do?

Crying with depression.

My eyes stopped crying,

My ears stopped listening,

My mind stopped thinking,

I am in silence.

Feeling every second of my heart.

Yuvanjali

M.Sai Harathi, IX Standard,DAV BDL Public SchoolSource: The Complete Works of

Swami Vivekananda Vol.310

They told me,Don’t dream of things that cannot beDon’t look beyond what your eyes see

Don’t even think you can be free

So I sat still,Against the window grill,

My knuckles white,Eyes shut tight.

This is how it’s always been,And nothing more than black I’ve seenUntil today, when I finally break free

No more of their ways, no more of their rhymes.My life is now all mine.

I burst through the front door, out into the open. Itrip, fall and hurt myself.

But it feels good.

It is winter now, and spring will soon arrive. My skintastes the wet snow. My hair feels the icy windruffle it. I can still see naught from under the

blindfold. But for once I know, and for sure I know,I’m free.

It feels good.

Breathing harshly, my feet sinking in the snow, Imake my way across the garden. I bump into a

tree. My trembling fingers gauge its bark. It’s rough,scaly and could.

But it feels good.

My hands make their way up a slender branch. Atthe very end of it is something soft. It’s a flower,

not yet in full bloom. It seems to reach out and letmy fingers caress it.

Yes, it feels good.

All of a sudden, from nowhere, two tears ooze downmy eyes. I feel them staining the blindfold, moist

and heavy. They’re tears of blood.

The years of darkness and fear seem to convergeinto this one moment, breaking through the shacklesof time. They fall out as soft tears as my eyes gently

bleed. It pains a little. But it feels good.

All it took was one decision in one moment of light.I’m free now.

Oh, yes. It feels good.- Avinash Agarwal

It feels good, for once

Avinash Agarwal is astudent of St. XaviersCollege, Mumbai and hasa deep flair for writing.He has written manythought provoking essays.

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This world is nothing but a group of people living together. Togethernesscomes through the relations we maintain with each other. We are bornalone; live with our family throughout our lifetime. Does that make us acomplete human being? The answer is no. Whether you like to maintainrelation or not with your own people that doesn’t matter much, whether youenjoy the relation or not is also irrelevant, because you are bound to yourown family through responsibility and it is your dharma to support yourfamily. Living and staying with your own people will not make you sustainforever. Our parents teach us virtues, good habits, obedience from ourchildhood. They do it for our development. Our duty is to implement themat different stages of our life. Good virtues include good relations, relationwith yourself will make you understand yourself better and relation withpeople around you will make understand world better. We are all dependenton each other for some reason or the other. Acknowledging this aspect andrealizing that every other person is as important as ourselves will bringhappiness to us. Relation with yourself would help in knowing strengths andweaknesses and relation with others will bring success in your career andrecognition in the society. A student learns faster if he maintains a goodrelation i.e. better tuning with his teacher. A businessman flourishes in hisfield if he maintains a better relationship with his customers. A professionalwill succeed in his respective field, if he maintains a better relation with hisclients. A good friendship with likeminded people will bring contentment inour lives. Similarly good relationship with colleagues and superiors will bringlaurels in the line of employment. Every success or failure revolves round therelations. Most of the relations are built and continued on the principle ofgive and take. If any favour in business is done, in turn he should alsoreciprocate in the same coin, else the business may not last longer. It issaddening to note that the people are also trying to maintain relations onthe principle of give and take. If the other person is of no use to them theyare simply discarding them. Gratitude is seldom noticed in relations. Usingpeople for our selfish deeds and avoiding them later is also one of the presenttrends. The relations last long if they are formed on the lines of good faith,mutual respect and admiration, last but not least, expecting nothing in turn.Doing things in a detached manner is one of the best ways of maintainingrelations in the long run. There are some people, though they don’t meetregularly they have tremendous mental tuning. One can easily tell aboutother; what he is trying to convey without a single word being uttered.

The relations normally run on four aspects: 1. Necessity 2. Similar hobbies3. Identity crisis 4. Attraction. Any human relation outside our family is basedon necessity. Necessity is the mother of invention. The invention of a newrelation must bring succor to disturbed minds. The accountability ruins therelations in no time. ‘I have done this to you and you must do this to me’will only bring the relation to the brink of failure from where the return tonormality is impossible. Relations are meant to console each other and itprovides a soothing effect to broken hearts. Necessity is always subjected toprevailing conditions. If they are not met the relations may come to end.The necessity if converted into interdependency will make the relation

Road to Happiness

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survive forever. From dependency to interdependency is the success mantrafor a trusting relationship. It would bring relaxation. It is termed as the bestrelation where each one is accepted as they are, no one tries to impressupon the other and one’s own entity is not lost. Similarity in hobbies isanother character that makes the relation gel together. It is said that birdsof a feather ruffle together. Likewise the people with same mindset comecloser easily. A sports lover does not understand the subtleties that had goneinto the literary work of a writer. It will be appreciated by people who havethe habit of reading or writing. These types of people enjoy a rapport amongthemselves. Mutual admiration will bind them strongly. Identity Crisis is alsoa trait of relationships that brings people together. These people arenormally a frustrated lot. They always look for a shoulder to keep their headson and cry. Ever ready to pour their heart out in front of anybody who tendsto show some sympathy. It is a temporary relation that may not last long,once they find a better person or opportunity, they bid adieu to the earlierrelation. The only complaint they always have is that people are notrecognizing them and not showing any concern towards them. These relationsare very fragile in nature. They are living complaint boxes. Attraction is abeautiful facet of all the relationships. We can say it is the shortcut to asuccessful relation. As we all know, people of opposite sex get attracted toeach other, so easily. Beauty is a temporary phase, as the time rolls on thebeauty may be lost. We say inner beauty is the real beauty, but relationsbased on attraction normally begin with physical beauty. If that attractiondoes not get deeper and remains superficial, it will not withstand the testof time. A matured mind alone knows the importance of inner beauty. It isthe attraction of a friend that makes us remember him always. Attractionmeans not physical, it is his or her attitude, thoughts and lifestyle. Friendshipis considered as one of the best relationships for this reason. If he is a goodfriend, he will bring a good change in you. Though he is not related to youby blood or by family, he influences your life. A friendship is defined as anunconditional love between two souls. The relations will last long on thisprinciple alone. An unconditional relationship should be termed as the zenithof relationships. Till today no one could invent a sure success formula forgreat human relationships. But here are a few tips that help us maintaina better relation with people around us:

1. Six important words – I admit I made a mistake

2. Five important words – I am proud of you

3. Four important words – What is your opinion

4. Three important words – If you please

5. Two important words – Thank you

6. Most important word – He / She

7. Least important word – I.

Relation innately has a meaning re – elated, to experience let us getrelated to each other for a better and peaceful haven.

- M. Koti Rajasekharkoti.rajsekhar@gmail.com

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My visit to Shirdi was long overdue. I hadbeen insinuating myself about not making thetime to visit Shirdi. Perhaps, my intent was notsincere enough to invoke Baba’s invitation. IsBaba only in Shirdi and not in your heart... myinner voice questioned me many times. I knewthe answer well… He was, is and will be withme always… everywhere and anywhere. Butwhenever I visit Shirdi or any other religiousplace, I feel energized and my connection with‘Him’ becomes very clear… rather without anydisturbances and interruptions. Finally, I gotmy call two weeks ago. “He, who calls, makesall the arrangements to come and seek hisblessings.”

We took off to Shirdi in SVR Travels bus whichwas very comfortable. Almost at the crack ofdawn, we alighted the bus at a hotel 2kmsaway from the main temple in Shirdi. Afterablutions, a hotel van was supposed to drop usat the main entrance of the temple. As wewaited for a pick-up on this cool, cloudy daywith mild breeze spreading the sambraniincense of Baba at the reception of the hotel,my mind, like the, sky was clouded withthoughts of Khandoba temple and Baba’sdarshan.

In Sai Baba’s Satcharitha book, Baba wouldalways ask his devotees to visit the Khandobatemple; the presiding deity; an incarnation ofShiva, before visiting him. Earlier, I had mademany trips to Shirdi, but never visited theKhandoba temple due to lack of time and moreso out of lethargy. But during my last read of‘Satcharitha’, my mind kept dwelling on theKhandoba temple consistently. I promisedmyself that during my next visit to Shirdi, Iwould definitely visit the Khandoba temple.Here, now as we sat in the van, I hoped to visitthe Khandoba temple. As the van swiftly movedthrough the highway, my eyes focused on theguava trees lined on either side of the highway.Oh! I wished I could take some guavas asPrasad for Baba as he loved guavas.

Within five minutes, the van screeched to ahalt. And lo! We were standing right at theentrance of the Khandoba temple. That wasthe drop off point from where we would betaken on foot by the hotel staff to theentrance of the main temple. Was it acoincidence that the van stopped at theKhandoba temple? But my inner self knewbetter… it was no coincidence… when youlong for something sincerely, Baba has tofulfill it and will do so. I was so overjoyed thatBaba had heard me through. We had a darshanof the Khandobha lord. Then we picked upPrasad enroute to the main temple.

Hoping that there was not too much rush,we entered the queue complex in the maintemple. The line moved in smoothly. Within15 minutes, we stood face to face with blearyeyes and blank minds trying to comprehend‘Guru’s’ presence. As Baba welcomed us withopen arms… we embraced him gently withour bare souls and it seemed to be likeeternity. His darshan quietened the agitatedsenses and there I stood almost non-existentto everything. As the crowd was less, wewere allowed an uninterrupted ‘Connection’with the ‘Guru’ for sometime.

After, the blissful darshan, we left thetemple premises to visit Dwarakamaayi. As Iwas walking, I saw a lady selling guavas in abasket. Her guavas were almost sold outexcept for a few. I rushed to her hoping to getat least some to offer as ‘Naivedyam’ to Babaduring our Aarti visit. I grabbed the last few…surprisingly seven in number. Ah! Now I wasso thrilled that Baba had heard me again.Another coincidence… But, how many

14

coincidences? Ask him with your heart, andBaba like a mother will bestow it on you againand again.

We had a wonderful darshan of Baba’s Aartiand I got a chance to offer the guavas as‘Prasad’. I offered his creation… The guavas…to himself. What a paradox! My heartwhispered:

OM Jai Jagadish Hare, Sai Jagadish HareBhakt Janoke Sankat, Daas ganoke SankatKshn Me Door Kare, Om Jai Jagdish HareSai, you remove the difficulties of your

devotees and your servants in a second. OmJai Jagadish Hare!

“Tan, Man, Dhan Sab Kuch Hei Tera,Sab Kuch Hei Tera

Tera Tujh Ko Arpan, Tera Tujh Ko Arpan,Kya Laage Mera.”

Om Jai Jagdish HareSai, this body, this soul, and this money are

all yours. I offer to you what is yours. Om JaiJagadish Hare!

As Baba’s face gleamed with the light fromthe Aarti, the darkness inside and outside me,faded. I thanked Baba again with all that Ihad in me for ‘THE INVITATION’ he had givenme.

“HE WHO CALLS, MAKES ALL THEARRANGEMENTS TO COME…

RECEIVES YOU…AND THEN SHOWER HIS BLESSINGS.”

- K. Anuradha Raju

Mahavakyas are the great sayings that occur inUpanishads. Each Mahavakya is associated to one ofthe four Vedas and presents the essence of the entireVeda as a statement. Mahavakyas can serve asutterances that are capable of destroying ignorancewhen mediated upon. They can be best understoodwhen meditated on in a still and silent mind. Justbecause they are “Mahavakyas” they need not beaccepted blindly. But they rather be reflected upon untiltheir meaning is validated as an experience.

Prajnânam brahmaAitareya 5.3, Rig Veda

“Brahman is knowledge”

Ayam âtmâ brahmaMandukya 1.2, Atharva Veda

“The Self (or the Soul) is Brahman”

Tat tvam asiChhandogya 6.8.7, Sama Veda

“Thou art that”

Aham brahmâsmiBrihadaranayaka 1.4.10,Yajur Veda

“I am Brahman”

“Brahman is knowledge” (Prajnanam Brahma). Ourdiscernment of truth is the truth itself. It indicates that theDivine intelligence is present within us and has thepower to return us to the Divine. Our inmost intelligenceis that supreme intelligence through which we canmerge into the Absolute.“The Self is Brahman” (Ayam Atma Brahma). Thisstates the identity of the soul with the Absolute but in anobjective manner. Not only is our Self the Divine. It is thesame Self in all beings that is the same Absolute truth.“That thou art” (Tat tvam asi). Whatever we see or thinkabout we are that. Not only is the I That, the You is alsoThat. We are that ultimate I and Thou in all. Theconsciousness in the other is also the Divine.“I am Brahman” (Aham Brahmasmi). This states theidentity of the inmost consciousness of the individual withthat of the supreme Divine. The Upanishads teach thatour own Self is the true Divinity, that it is the presenceof the absolute within our heart and the entire universe.These are statements of the identity of the individualconsciousness with the Absolute or Divine reality. Theyall derive from and merge into Om (AUM), the DivineWord of “I am all”.

Mahavakyas

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Holy Scriptures state, the one who is movedby someone’s suffering and tries to alleviatethe suffering is the best example of goodbehavior. It is necessary for us to understandthe hunger of the needy. He is the truedevotee, who is aware that serving the poor,the weak, the old and the handicapped is thetrue service to God. If we are able to allowour minds to dwell always in Satwaguna, wecan sure enjoy the bliss of human life.

Sages and saints have reiterated the truefact that God loves those who help othersmore than those who worship Him. We shouldalways aspire to love our fellow-beings. Evena life spent in the right way goes waste if weare not able to help a needy person.

Once in a desert, on a dark night there waspin drop silence all around. Suddenly a stormhit the desert. An old person was caught in thestorm. He looked around for help and wasrelieved to see a small house at some distance.With great difficulty he reached the place.The owner of the house was about to sit downfor his dinner. When he saw the old man, heremembered that his religion states a guestshould be fed and he invites the old man toshare his meal. The old man was too happyand immediately sat down beside his host. Hishands reached out instantly to the plate offood and when he was about to put a morselin his mouth, the owner’s voice thundered,“Stop!” The old man was taken aback. “Doyou know how this food is available? It is dueto God’s grace. Don’t you know that you haveto thank God for giving you food before startingto eat?” The old man shrunk in fear at hisanger. “Sir, I do not know about all this. Myonly thought is to fill my belly.” “I can’t feeda person who has no faith in God. You are notfit to eat this meal. Get out of this placeimmediately,” the owner shouted.

The old man withtears in his eyes andgreat disappointment,looked at the food butfollowed his host’sorders. He disappearedinto the pitch darkness.The host offered

prayers to God, thanked Him for givinghim food, ate well and slept. In themidnight, he felt someone was waking himup. He opened his eyes and saw a DivineLight. He could hear a voice from thatdirection. “You drove away an old personwho approached you with hunger. You didnot show any sympathy on him. Youbehaved in an atrocious manner which Idon’t appreciate. Dharma devata isweeping…”

“Oh God, how can I feed a person whohas no faith in you?” asked the owner ofthe house. “Nothing is yours. Everythingbelongs to me. I have been feeding thatold man since the last 75 years. Youcouldn’t share a single meal with him.What is the use of practicing religiousnorms and prayers when your heart ispolluted?” Saying this, the Divine Lightdisappeared. The owner realized his follyand wept in repentance.

Whether this story is true or fiction is notimportant. The one who realizes thesorrow behind the grief-stricken faces isthe true bhakta. We have to comprehendthe ideal message that God stays awayfrom those who cannot help their fellow-beings.

- Subhadra K.

The Ideal Message

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One of the fears I always carried, especially since wewere living in the US, so far away from our immediatefamily is the loss of a loved one. Given my mother’shealth issues, I was always nervous when I heard thephone ring or hear any other correspondence fromback home. The one thing I dreaded most finallyhappened in 2008 when my mother passed away andseeing death from such close quarters has been lifechanging for me and added another perspective alltogether to life. Having witnessed how she startedbecoming distant and distant days before and havingseen how her life slipped away in minutes seemingly soeffortless and easy, made me start pondering on the trueessence of life. After having gone through that experience,something in me has changed forever. I have neverviewed life or death the same way and one thing thatjumps at me is- how in birth anddeath, we are all exactly the same...it’s just the time in between that is ‘Toeach their own’. If you compare thisto a movie, imagine if every singlemovie started the same way and endedthe same way, but with a different plotin between, how interesting or ratherhow boring would that be... and wouldwe want to still keep going and watchingthose movies. But, here is wherecomes the genius of our Creator... itseems like He has an unlimited supplyof screenplays up His sleeve andalthough He brings us all into thisbeing the same way and takes usaway in the same way, He makes theperiod in-between so interesting and totally action packedand a nail-biting suspense thriller right until the very end.

Something I read recently also stayed with me... it isabout the purity in a child’s smile. When we are born,we are so pure, devoid of any expectations from theworld, from one another and can accept anything andeverything just for what it is. This purity gives us the

ability to feel the pure love, sheer happiness without toomuch analysis and reasoning. As we grow older andolder and our reasoning power develops, it also takesaway our ability to accept things just as is. We start toanalyze and over-analyze each interaction, situation,start to plan and over-plan our days and our life andslowly lose the ability to just live in the moment andexperience the moment.

Just recollect the last time you saw a smile or joy ona child’s face, it is so pure. Children just feel the lovewhen you give them a little hug or a little smile or evena little lollipop and experience it whole heartedly... nowlet’s say we did the same to another ‘grown up’ person,the first thing they start to think is, “why is this personbeing nice to me? Does he/she want something fromme? How should I react? I don’t want to look dumb orsilly... let me just ignore for now”... so on and so forthand in the process completely miss enjoying and feelingthat smile or love. Imagine, if only we could preservethe child like purity throughout our life and experience lifefor what it is, Life will just seem so beautiful andmomentous.

So, as the curtain of our life is lifted,we all start off the same way...as a littlebaby with so much purity. Then, as themovie starts reeling, our lives transformfrom one to the other just as the caterpillartransforms into a butterfly and in theprocess there are also so manyexpectations built, impressions made,there are so many bonds made, somany bonds broken, there are so manyemotions experienced, so many of somany things happen in between makingus constantly think or plan for ‘whatnext’... and then suddenly... Poof... Hedecides... ‘Time is up’...and the curtain...comes down. The curtain’s rising andthe curtain’s falling are the constants and

everything in between... is what we call Life... a LiveMovie where characters are all real and not fictitious, butnot representing any other person living or dead. Eachcharacter is absolutely unique and experiences life intheir own way and therein lies the beauty of the Creatorand His creation.

- Vasantha Gullapalli

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Absorb your mind and heart in me, becomemy devotee, worship me, offer yourobeisances to me and then certanily youwill come to me. I promise you this becauseyou are very dear to me.

man-mana bhava mad-bhaktomad-yaji mam namaskurumam evaisyasi satyam te

pratijane priyosi me - Bhagavad Gita 18.66

mayy eva mana adhatsvamayi buddhim nivesaya

nivasisyasi mayyevaata urdhvam na samsayah

- Bhagavad Gita 12.8

urdhva-mulam adhah-sakhamashvattham prahur avyayam

chandamsi yasya parnaniyas tam veda sa veda-vit

- Bhagavad Gita 15.1“The Supreme Personality ofGodhead said: It is said thatthere is an imperishablebanyan tree that has its rootsupward and its branches downand whose leaves are the Vedic hymns. Onewho knows this tree is the knower of the Vedas.”

Pancham

na tad bhasayate suryona sasanko na pavakahyad gatva na nivartantetad dhama paramam mama- Bhagavad Gita 18.62

“The Supreme Lord is situated ineveryone’s heart, O Arjuna, andis directing the wanderings of allliving entities, who are seated ason a machine, made of thematerial energy.”

ye tu sarvani karmanimayi sannyasya mat-parah

ananyenaiva yogenamam dhyayanta upasate

tesam aham samuddhartamrityu-samsara-sagarat

bhavami na cirat parthamayy avesita-cetasam

- Bhagavad Gita 12.6-7

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“The humble sages, by virtue of trueknowledge, see with equal vision a learnedand gentle brahmana, a cow, an elephant,a dog and a dog-eater [outcaste].”

vidya-vinaya-sampannebrahmane gavi hastinisuni caiva sva-pake capanditah sama-darsinah - Bhagavad Gita 5.18

Just fix your mind exclusivelyon my Syamasundara formand engage your intelligencefully in me. Thus, uponleaving your body, you shallcertainly come to reside withme. Of this there is no doubt.

ma Veda

Lord Krishna says: “But thosewho worship Me, giving up alltheir activities unto Me andbeing devoted to Me withoutdeviation, engaged in devotionalservice and always meditatingupon Me, having fixed theirminds upon Me, O son of Pritha(Arjuna) - for them I am theswift deliverer from the ocean ofbirth and death.”

“I am the source of allspiritual and material worlds.Everything emanates from Me. The wise who perfectlyknow this engage in My devotional service and worshipMe with all their hearts.”

aham sarvasya prabhavomattah sarvam pravartate

iti matva bhajante mambudha bhava-samanvitah

- Bhagavad Gita 10.8

“The Supreme Lord is situated in everyone’s heart, OArjuna, and is directing the wanderings of all livingentities, who are seated as on a machine, made of thematerial energy.”

ishvarah sarva-bhutanamhrd-dese ’rjuna tishthatibhramayan sarva-bhutaniyantrarudhani mayaya-Bhagavad Gita 18.61

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Nature teaches us many great lessons. Wecan learn subtle truths when we are able totune with nature. Similarly I am learning greatlessons being with Swami Nachiketananda.

I wish to share with you two such incidentswhich took place recently. Sometimes we wouldhave the pleasure of Swamiji’s company duringour early morning walks in KBR Park. Towardsthe end of our walk Swamiji would pluck fewtender neem leaves and give Shavandamayiand me to eat. This was a daily ritual for uswhenever we would go for a walk. One day Heasked me to pluck the tender neem leaves andI obediently set about the task immediately. Iheard Him say “Ma did you take permission topluck from the tree?” I sheepishly said no andthen looked at Him. By looking at Him Iunderstood the mistake I had made. Throughthat look He conveyed the anguish of the tree,the hurt it may have suffered by my calloustreatment of it. His message that the tree toohad life was passed on silently. After seeing themixed feelings on His face I promised myselfthat I would never repeat the mistake in mylifetime. He then went on to explain how thetrees respond when you talk to them with loveand touch them in a gentle way.

The second incident took place recently whenwe were on a spiritual tour to Gujarat. We allalighted from the bus in one of the temples inour itinerary. Some of us went straight to thetemple seeking darshan straightway and somewent to the pond to sprinkle holy water. When

I saw Swamji at the pond I also went thereand stood next to Him. When I saw everybodysprinkling holy water on them and I also wantedto partake in that ritual. Immediately I putboth my feet in the water and Swamiji waswatching me silently. Once again I had to facethe same question as He asked me whether Itook permission before wetting my feet in thepond. I once again was caught red handed andsaid no and I was treated with the same lookand same message. This time I felt reallyashamed. He explained that before enteringinto any river or pond we should pray to thatriver deity and take permission from Her. Heasked me never to disrespect the river or pondagain. First He said you should take water inyour hand and pray and then sprinkle water onyour head and then on your feet and enterinto the river or pond.

From both the incidents I felt Swamiji wasexperiencing the oneness in whatever He wasdoing. I have never seen him workingmechanically. Whether it is praying or talkingor driving or engaged in magazine work orplaying or cracking jokes, or eating He totallyfeels one with it (living with that).

If we follow what swamiji said about seeingdivinity in nature we will never neglect ourduties to look after our beautiful earth. Wewill never ill-treat or hurt Her. Then motherearth will reveal Her true identity to us.

Living With a Divine Soul

- Vasundhara P.

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A few days ago, I was having a conversation with oneof my friends. He was ruing about misuse of funds in theholy precincts of the University in which he was studyingand how the students there could not do anything. I assuredhim that the law would not leave them helpless. He thenvery sadly remarked that the law has been sold out and sowas the media which has to bring to the fore issues of publicimportance. It hurt me a lot, myself being a student of law.

The outgoing Chief Vigilance Commissioner, Mr. PratyushSinha, in an interview to a newspaper said that one out ofevery three Indians is ‘utterly’ corrupt. He was distressedthat corruption has gained a sort of social acceptance.Transparency International, the global anti-graft body, putsIndia 84th on its corruption perception. This is deeplysaddening to know.

One day, I was discussing with my mother that we applyfor a contest that promised lots of money as award. Herreply touched me. She said, “Child! Always trust yourselfand earn money with hard work. Easily earned money isnot going to stay with you for long.”

We are a culture that is deeply entrenched with values.Our values and ethos teach us never to hurt others, neverto make profit at other’s cost and distress. Importance ofKarma or doing ones duty in a steadfast manner hasalways been a part of our scriptures. Lord Krishna said inthe Bhagavad Gita,

which when translated means, “Controlling your indriyas,O best of the Bharatas, restrain this source of sin, which islust — the foe of knowledge and the destroyer of wisdom.”

Thus, we are warned by none other than God against thedomination that can be possibly done on our thoughts byour senses and the lust that engulfs them.

In the context of the present world, where competitionforces people to do anything, do these values have anysignificance? Definitely, they do. Values are something whichhave perpetual relevance and which are a part and parceland the essence of our heart and soul and very existence.

More often than not, it does happen that we getfrustrated with all that is going on around us. But,Swami Vivekananda said, “Nothing can happen tous unless we allow it to happen.” Therefore, itrequires great self-control and restraint on our part toface the injustice and dishonesty that is perpetratedin society. Nevertheless, it is a sin to bear injusticealso. But doing the right thing at the right time is whatmatters the most. A student has to study, envision agreat future for himself and his nation, see how thatfuture can be achieved, inculcate in himself integrityand courage and then move ahead.

What is necessary in the present day is concertedeffort. One person on his own can do very little,which will most probably go unnoticed. When agroup of people, however small, does something,then it carries more value. The like minded peoplewho are ready to place the cause of the nation beforetheir own cause need to come together and act. Weneed to be totally intolerant to acts of corruption. Forthat, we need to be aware of our rights. Ultimately, itrests on us as to what extent we are aware and towhat extent we possess the patience and courage tofight.

When I remember the following shloka ofJayadeva’s Gita Govinda on Dashavatar of theLord, I feel the time has come for God to take anincarnation on this earth and cleanse it, therebyprotecting His innocent and righteous children:

“mleccha nivaha nidhane kalayasi karavaalamdhuuma ketum iva

kim api karaalam kesava dhrita kalki sariira jayajagadiisa hare”

Nitika Gogula, 3rdyear B.A. L.L.B.student, has passionfor writing articleson social issues.

Law and Justice-Have they been sold out?

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Alwars are Dravidian saints. They are the bhaktasof Sri Maha Vishnu. Alwars, the ‘God-steepedmystics’ are the ones who give up all materialwealth and comforts seeking His Lotus Feet. Unlikeother saints, the only purpose of Alwars is to getreunited with the Lord and none else - notknowledge, not wisdom, not riches, not mukthi,not salvation, not any boons. They composed andsang beautiful poetry called Paasurams on theDivine Beloved Vishnu in Tamil. Between the sixthand ninth century, in the Tamil-speaking region ofSouth India, these saints revitalized the Indianreligious milieu, sparking a renewal of bhaktithroughout the subcontinent. Tradition reckons12 Alwars who come from all walks of life and allstrata of society and includes only one woman -Sri Andal whose life and poetry are celebratedevery December-January (month of Margaseershaor Marghazi or Dhanurmasam) by singingThiruppavai, one of her two compositions.

A devout brahmin named Vishnuchitta (alsoknown as Periyalwar, an Alwar himself) lived inVilliputtur, a town near Madurai. One morning,as he was picking flowers in his garden for worship,he discovered a baby girl lying under a tulasiplant. Vishnuchitta having no family of his owntook her home, gave her the name Godai and

raised her as his own in an atmosphere of loveand devotion. He imparted Godai his philosophyand knowledge of music and poetry. His love forthe Beloved Lord intensified further in hisdaughter, and before long she was passionatelyin love with Lord Krishna. Even as a child, Godaimade up her mind to marry none but the Lordof Brindavana, and refused to think of anyhuman being as her husband. She would adornherself with the garland prepared for the Lordadmire her reflection thinking of herself as Hisbride and put it back for the worship. One daywhen Vishnuchitta noticed this, he scolded Godaifor the desecration and offered Lord a freshlyprepared garland asking for forgiveness. Thatnight Lord appeared to Vishnuchitta and toldhim that He preferred to wear the garlandsworn by Godai (soodi koduththa nachchiyar).Vishnuchitta then realized the spiritualgreatness, purity and intensity of Godai’s lovefor the Lord and henceforth she came to be

known as “Andal”, the girlwho “ruled” over theLord.

As Andal grew to be ayoung girl her love for theLord also grew so intenseand to Vishnuchitta’sdespair she refused tomarry anyone exceptLord Sri Rangantha of SriRangam. Then Lordappeared before

Vishnuchitta in his dream and asked that Andalbe sent to Him in all her wedding finery. Hemade all the wedding preparations and arrangedfor Andal’s journey in a palanquin to Srirangam.Andal waited with excited anticipation as thewedding party approached Lord Ranganatha’sshrine. As they entered the temple, she jumpedout of the palanquin, unable to restrain herselfany longer. Running into the temple sanctum,she embraced Lord Ranganatha and disappearedin a blaze of glory, having joined her Lord. Shewas only fifteen at the time. Tradition reckonsher in fact to be the descent of Bhumi Devi(Mother Earth) in human form to show humanity

SRI ANDAL

22

the way to His lotus feet. She is present in allSri Vaishnava temples, in India and elsewhere,next to her Lord, as she always desired.

In her short life, Andal composed two worksin Tamil unique in their literary, philosophical,religious, and artistic content. Thiruppavai –‘thiru’- an honorific prefix like Sri, pavai- thereligious vow; a poem of thirty verses in whichAndal imagines being a cowherd girl duringKrishna’s incarnation yearning to serve Him andattain eternal happiness and describes the vowthat she and her fellow cowgirls will take forthis purpose. Just like the Ramayana, peopleare never tired of listening to the Tiruppavaiwhich is known to contain the quintessence ofVedas and Upanishads in a succinct and simpleform. The Poem of Surrender to Lord is recitedwith great religious fervor, particularly in TamilNadu and also other places of South Indiaincluding Tirupathi especially during the monthof Margali (December-January).

Nachchiyar Tirumozhi – “Nacciyar” meansgoddess, so the title means “sacred sayings ofour Goddess.” A poem of 143 verses, this fullyreveals Andal’s intense longing for Vishnu, theDivine Beloved, and is recited in Vaishnavaweddings in Tamil Nadu. Her expression ofintense love to Krishna, in varying moods ofbridal love—tender hope, utter dejection, joyfultriumph, woeful sorrow and total surrender—are depicted. Tamil brides are dressed as Andalfor She is the symbol of feminine youth, grace,beauty, devotion, talent and purity.

Today, the tulasi garden in which Andal wasfound is preserved in Srivilliputtur. Vishnuchitta’shouse, adjacent to Lord Vishnu’s temple, hasbeen converted into a temple in honor of Andaland contains the well calledDarpana theertham in whichshe admired her reflectionwhile wearing the Lord’sgarlands. The water in thiswell is crystal clear and never dries up!

“As for determination, one should follow theexample of the sparrow who lost her eggs in thewaves of the ocean. A sparrow laid her eggs onthe shore of the ocean, but the big ocean carriedaway the eggs on its waves. The sparrow becamevery upset and asked the ocean to return hereggs. The ocean did not even consider herappeal. So the sparrow decided to dry up theocean. She began to pick out the water in hersmall beak, and everyone laughed at her for herimpossible determination. The news of her activityspread, and at last Garuda, the gigantic birdcarrier of Lord Vishnu, heard it. He becamecompassionate toward his small sister bird, andso he came to see the sparrow. Garuda was verypleased by the determination of the small sparrow,and he promised to help. Thus Garuda at onceasked the ocean to return her eggs lest hehimself take up the work of the sparrow. Theocean was frightened at this, and returned theeggs. Thus the sparrow became happy by thegrace of Garuda. Similarly,

sa niscayena yoktavyoyogo ’nirvinna-cetasasankalpa-prabhavan kamams tyaktva sarvan

asesatah manasaivendriya-gramam viniyamyasamantatah

The practice of yoga, may appear to be a verydifficult job. But if anyone follows theprinciples with great determination, the Lordwill surely help, for God helps those who helpthemselves.” - Bhagavad-gita 6.24

Determination

Compiled by Annapurna R.

23

Swami Ranganathnada, fondly called ‘Shankaran’ was born in awealthy agricultural family of Sri Neelakantha Shastri, Lakshmi Kuttyat Trikkur village in Kerala on December 15th, 1908.

Swamiji’s childhood was full of different activities like games,gardening, and swimming with an interest in Swami Vivekanand’sliterature. As a young boy, He had a vivid dream that bright light cameout of the Shiva Temple near his house and engulfed him. The ‘Gospelof Sri Ramakrishna’ enhanced his spiritual vision influencing him to jointhe Ramakrishna Mission at the age of seventeen. He had a very closeintimacy with many direct disciples of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa.While walking in the foot steps of Swami Vivekananda, He gatheredthe nectar of love and wisdom from them and silently filled countlesshearts with spiritual gifts. It is this ‘Divine call’ that transformed avillage boy into a great saint and messenger of truth.

Swami Ranganathananda, being a great orator, through His teachingschanged many lives. In one of His powerful talks He said “We givemoney to our children: we set up bank accounts for them; we oftenindulge in all sorts of malpractices so that we may leave something toour children; but by these measures we only ruin our children and sapthe manhood and womanhood of our nation. Money is meant to bespent; it is good as a servant but bad as a master; let it circulate; letit bring happiness everywhere, of which only one part is our childrenbut to the children we should say: “We will give you education; wewill give you manliness; we will give you strength and courage; wewill give you training in swimming, then we shall leave you on thesea of life, sink or swim, it depends on you.” This fact said by Swamijiis apt for modern age, where selfishness reached its peak and peoplefeel compelled to earn more and more money to have secured life fortheir family and children.

Swami Ranganathanada as a great vedantist with His simple andlucid language simplified Vedanta, so that even a layman also canunderstand and practice. Through His life He always exhibited Vedanticvalues. His every pore was filled with Vedantic aroma. Any one cominginto contact with Him used to get engulfed by His Divine presence.Such was the presence and fragrance of Swamiji and why not? Whensomebody is so compassionate and kind to the entire man-kind...

Swami Ranganathananda

24

According to the dictionary, a mother is a woman whohas conceived, given birth to, or raised a child in the role of a parent.However many women have time and again disproved this by theirspontaneous, unconditional and supreme love and Sri Ramakrishna’sDivine Consort, Ma Sarada is foremost of them. From Sarada Ma’slife it is evident that if Universal love is the nature of God then thattrait is amply exhibited by the Holy Mother in her remarkable lifeon Earth.

An incident outlined here provides just a glimpse of the HolyMother’s abounding love towards her family and the strangers, thesaints and the criminals, the rich and the poor, the sick and thesuffering all alike. Once Sri Akshay Kumar Sen, a close disciple of theGreat Master had sent some things to Sarada Ma through a womanknown to be from a low caste. The lady along with her salutationhanded over the articles sent through her and the Motheraffectionately welcomed her and insisted that she has a bath, foodand a night’s rest before starting her journey back. Accordingly thewoman had a refreshing bath and a hearty meal of Prasad andrested on the bed arranged for her on the portico by the Mother’sdoor. The woman who was old, tired from the journey, also apatient of malaria, fell fast asleep during which she unconsciouslydirtied her bed in sleep. The Mother who gets up very early in themorning realized this and decided to act upon quickly before othersin the house came to know of it lest the poor woman would beharassed in many ways, the thought of which gave much pain tothe Mother. Ma softly woke her up, placed a packet of Muri andGur for her breakfast and in sweet words asked her to start herreturn journey at once to avoid hot Sun. And as soon as the womanleft, the Mother with Her own hands, washed the mat, dried it,cleaned the portico and spread cow dung on it so that the inmatesnever knew what had happened.

“If we cannot see here the face of the all loving UniversalMother, of God the Redeemer where else can we? Only we shouldhave the sensitiveness to recognize that the subtle potency of lovetranscends the obtrusive display of power.”- Tapasyananda

Adapted from The Mother As I saw Her by Swami Saradeshananda

Sri Sarada Ma’s Birthday is celebrated on December 22nd, 2010.

The Holy Mother Sri Sarada Ma

25

From time immemorial this holy land has been blessed by Divinesouls. As they walk on this soil, it is sanctified. In tune with DivineConsciousness, they help the mankind to continually evolve. The greatones lift the mankind physically, mentally and spiritually. Devoid of anyselfish motive, they help the men in many unknown ways. Beinghumble, they never boast of their existence. Whether they hide in a cave,or sit under a tree or dine with an ordinary person or among the crowds,the Divine One is constantly in communion with the Almighty. Peoplemistake Him for an ordinary man, as the actions of the Divine One don’treflect the Divine light. Therefore it is very difficult to recognize Him. Infact their actions are in conformity with the Divine Wish; which most ofthe times is mysterious and beyond comprehension. Such a DivineSoul, when comes and plays a human drama, as was done by LordRama, Lord Krishna, Ramakrishna Pramahamsa, PramahamsaYogananda, Bhagavan Ramana, Shirdi Saibaba, it is a supernal blessing.

When a Divine One, free from ego, comes into the midst of thehumanity, we take Him for granted and usually do not accord reverenceHe deserves. Even Arjuna treated Krishna as a friend till he saw theViswaroopa. He was not in his usual self till he could see the Lord inHis human form and hear the reassuring words from the Lord… TheDivine One doesn’t care for what is said to Him or of Him; He plungesinto the ‘work’ with total devotion and dedication, for He knows Hismission ordained by God. He is aware of the people who help Him inHis mission, the souls He has known and are yet to come. Fullyconscious about the vision, which is already there; the Divine Soul,chosen by God will carry the movement ahead.

It was one evening, this writer happened to enter the portals of Tapovanto behold a serene young personality, radiating a Divine aura. Perennial,charismatic smile added to the beauty of the young hermit. Boisterouslaughter from the monk can diffuse any tense situation, instantaneously.When He invited us, to the Tapovan grounds, we were immediately atease with ourselves. He listened to us with rapt attention and spoke atlength and showed different sections of Tapovan and explained theactivities. People served us a simple yet sumptuous meal.

We came to know about the activities of Tapovan, slowly and beganto understand the tidbits of the personality of Swamiji, who is the fulcrumof this mission. His love for humanity is unlimited. The kids, whogathered around Him bear a testimony to this. The tiny tots who weregetting education, hail from the slums nearby. Swamiji is simple and areal monk at heart.

This writer digresses from the subject to bring to focus that the worldis balanced because of people who have been relentlessly working insilence in different corners of the earth contributing their might for the

…For I may never passthis way again

Work silently,For those who are

silent from agestogether...

Be simple andhumble,

While showingthem the

divine path...Be sincere and

dedicated,While making them

stand on theirown feet...

That is the way toserve…

That is the way toget blessed…

That is the way toexpress divinity…

26

improvement of the society. I am in this connection,reminded of our ‘teacher’ who believed in ‘humanity’,I narrate below.

The scene is a small village. There were no metalroads. They are kutcha. Even if it rains for a while theroads become marshy. To catch a bus, one has towalk about 5-6 miles in any direction. There is anelementary school and a high school. This is the centreof learning for many boys and girls in the radius of 5-6 miles. The village is inhabited by about 6-7 thousandpeople. It is divided into a few streets, each streetusually dominated by a caste. The village has twohamlets separated by a kilometer. There is a veterinarydoctor and a government ayurvedic doctor to take careof villagers health needs.

There is a banyan tree, a village idol, an elementaryschool on the banks of one of the tanks. A rice mill isseen farther in the fields. In midst of agricultural fields,by the banks of a canal, is a high school building. Theperson is a teacher by profession, a doctor by practice,a humanist by nature. Mornings and evenings, witnessa hub of activity in his small house, patients on onehand and poor students on the other. His treatment forthe rich and poor is alike and so there is no dearth ofpeople. He was giving free treatment for poor, payingtuition fee for the students and some students used tostay permanently in his house.

Belonging to an orthodox family, the teacher used tofollow his daily rites andrituals, but he never gaveprecedence to them. If apatient comes fortreatment, he would giveup everything, includingthe worship of God in the

middle to attend to them. Once, a couple fromHarijanwada was coming along with a one year oldchild. The child is taut. All the muscles must havebecome rigid. He is motionless. The teacher who was

about to move to school was in his daily worship.Somebody informs him of the arrival of the couple. He isyet to offer the food to God before partaking it. He stops thepooja (worship), takes an injection from the ampoule andadministers to the child. Lo, the child weeps and bothmother and father are on their knees filled with tears. Theteacher used to keep nearly 20 ampoules for the child tomeet the contingency, out of his meager salary.

The teacher believed in humanity. He is not well versedin scriptures nor did he quote any verse any time. He leda simple, yet fruitful life.

All popular philanthropists, nay good human beings areinspired probably by

I shall pass this way but onceAnd any good therefore I can do

Or any kindness that I can show to anyoneLet me do it now

For, I may never pass this way again.Though he is no more on this earth, even after four

decades the people fondly remember him. He has left hisfoot prints on this soil. The contribution of the teacher maybe small but he is an institution.

From time to time, out of great love for humanity, Godsends these great souls to earth to redeem our sufferingin one way or the other. Always remembering that this lifeis ephemeral; the man should march on, helping in everyway, the souls that he comes across and try to be apartner in the great mission of the Divine souls to becomereceptacles of Divine mercy. Let us join together to drinkthe nectar of love and grace that flows from the great soulShri Nachiketanandaji Maharaj!

- R. Sridhar

27

Chandra Prakash is a fresh post graduate inBusiness Management. He is a bright studentwith social consciousness. He is very rational.One day an employee working in his father’scompany asked his father as to why he wasremoved from the employment? His fathertold that he need not give any reply and it is hisprerogative. Chandra Prakash was in sixthstandard then. He was not happy with theanswer given by his father. When he wasstudying ninth class, he got less marks in themathematics examination, than he expected.He asked his teacher to show his answer sheet.She denied. When his friend was denied theopportunity to represent the college, in theCricket tournament, he asked the collegeprincipal. He denied giving reason. Studentsare not given minimum required facilities inwelfare hostels. Poor patients are deniedmedicines in the government hospitals. No oneknows as to how much budget was allotted andhow much was spent? Chandra Prakash wasalways thinking as to how this type of menaceis to be encountered.

He read in the newspaper that The Right toInformation Act was enacted by the Parliamentto be effective from 13-10-2005. From thatday, every citizen has a right to ask any publicauthority for any information including records,documents, memos, e-mails, opinions, circulars,orders, logbooks etc. Not only that, every citizenhas the Right to inspection of work, documents,records; taking of notes or certified copies. Theright to freedom of information is a statutoryright and the public authorities are under acompelling obligation to supply the information,

unless such disclosure would prejudicially affectthe sovereignty and integrity of India or isforbidden to be published by any court or is abreach of privilege of Parliament or Legislatureetc. The important feature of this Act is thatthe information which cannot be denied to theParliament or a State Assembly shall not bedenied to the citizen. Public authorities of theCentral and State Governments are under theobligation to publish the particulars of theirorganization, functions and duties; the powersand duties of their officers and employees, adirectory of their officers and employees, themonthly remuneration received by each of themetc.

Every public authority, under the control ofthe Central Government, shall designate‘Central Public Information Officer’ in alladministrative units or offices and ‘CentralAssistant Public Information officer’ at eachSub-Divisional level. Similarly, every publicauthority under the control of the StateGovernment shall designate ‘State PublicInformation Officer’ in all administrative unitsor offices and ‘State Assistant Public Informationofficer’ at each Sub-Divisional level, to receivethe applications for information.

Any person who desires to obtain theinformation under this Act, shall make a requestin writing or through electronic means in English,Hindi or in the official language of the area,addressing to the Central Public InformationOfficer if the public authority is under the controlof the Central Government or to the StatePublic Information Officer if the authority isunder the control of the State Government.The letter shall be accompanied by DemandDraft or IPO for Rs. 10/- towards fee drawn infavour of the addressee. If the amount sent isinsufficient the Information Officer shall ask forthe payment of the balance fee amount. The

28

letter seeking the information shall clearly specify the particularsof the information sought by him. The subject of informationsought, must relate to the administration only, either relating topresent or past.

On receipt of the letter the Public Information Officer shalleither provide the information or reject the request on theground that the information sought is covered under theexceptions given by the Act; within 30 days from the date ofreceipt of the letter. If the information is not provided within 30days it shall be deemed that the request for the information isrefused. If the information is refused or the information is notproperly given, the applicant may prefer an appeal to an officerholding superior rank. If the order made by the appellate officeris also adverse to the applicant, he may prefer a second appealto the ‘Central / State Information Commission’ within 90 days,who shall dispose off the appeal within 30 days; which shall bebinding.

Chandra Prakash is very happy about the Act. He startedasking different authorities for information under the Act. Basedon the information, he started giving representations to differentauthorities as to the irregularities committed by the officials andrequested to rectify the same to serve the needy in a betterway. He could gather the information on many welfare measuresof both the Central and State Governments, the budget allottedto it, the criteria for the beneficiary under the given scheme andas to whether the allotments are reaching the actual persons.When he could see the positive outcome in the process, hecontacted his friends and convinced them to serve the poor forone year. Accordingly, a group of ten persons adopted a Mandaleach. They moved from one village to another and observed theconditions in which the villagers were living. In the process theymet the educated youth in the Village. They were educatedabout the funds the Central and the State Governments wereallotting towards medicines and nutritious food, to the pregnantwomen, eradication of malaria and other viral fevers, for theliteracy and for the upliftment of weaker sections of the societyand explained to them about the Act. The youth were motivatedto send letters to the concerned departments, for informationon different issues. Based on the information, the entire villagepeople were educated on different developmental and welfareactivities, and funds allotted for their implementation. Thevillagers could become active participants as responsible citizens,in the positive development of the village.

Act by itself cannot give the result. Its implementation makesall the difference. The country needs more and more personslike Chandra Prakash to take the fruits of the Act to every nookand corner. - R. Muralidhar

Knowyourself

andyouwill

knowthat

whichis

beyondall!

29

Let us look at slightly longer sentencesnow. However, concentrate on the verbforms and their meanings only.oÉÉsÉÈ SÒaÉÑïhÉÇ irÉeÉÌiÉ, AWÇû SÒaÉÑïhÉÇ irÉeÉÉÍqÉ – balaHdurguNaM tyajati, ahaM durguNaMtyajAmiBoy leaves bad habit.xÉÈ qÉkÉÑUÇ ZÉÉSÌiÉ, AWÇû qÉkÉÑUÇ ZÉÉSÉÍqÉ – saHmadhuraM khAdati, ahaM madhuraMkhAdAmiHe eats sweet.mÉÎhQûiÉÈ UÉqÉÉrÉhÉÇ eÉÉlÉÉÌiÉ, AWÇû UÉqÉÉrÉhÉÇ eÉÉlÉÉÍqÉ–paNDitaH rAmAyaNaM jAnAti, ahaMrAmAyaNaM jAnAmiPandit knows Ramayanam.mÉѧÉÏ pÉÉåeÉlÉÇ MüUÉåÌiÉ, AWÇû pÉÉåeÉlÉÇ MüUÉåÍqÉ – putrIbhojanaM karoti, ahaM bhojanaM karomiDaughter does (takes) meals.zÉÑlÉMüÈ xÉ…¡ûÏiÉÇ zÉ×hÉÉåÌiÉ, AWÇû xÉ…¡ûÏiÉÇ zÉ×hÉÉåÍqÉ –SunakaH sa~ggItaM SRuNoti, ahaMsa~ggItaM SRuNomi (‘~g’ stands for the5th letter in kavarga. ‘~j’ stands for 5th

letter of cavarga.)Dog listens (to) music.uÉSÉlrÉÈ uÉx§ÉÇ SSÉÌiÉ, AWÇû uÉx§ÉÇ SSÉÍqÉ –vadAnyaH vastraM dadAti, ahaM vastraMdadAmiDonor gives cloth.ÌmÉiÉÉ kÉlÉÇ mÉëåwÉrÉÌiÉ, AWÇû kÉlÉÇ mÉëåwÉrÉÉÍqÉ – pitAdhanaM preShayati, ahaM dhanaMpreShayAmiFather sends money.

- Krupalu Ogeti, Secretary, Samskrit Bharati, Hyderabad.email:okrupalu@samskritam.net

Samskrit Lesson - TenSamskrit Lesson - TenSamskrit Lesson - TenSamskrit Lesson - TenSamskrit Lesson - Ten

aÉ…¡ûÉ mÉÉmÉÇ mÉë£ÉÉsÉrÉÌiÉ, AWÇû mÉÉmÉÇ mÉë£rÉÉsÉrÉÉÍqÉ –ga~ggA pApaM prakShAlayati, ahaMpApaM prakShAlayAmiGanga washes sins.oÉÉsÉÈ zÉÏbÉëqÉç ĘɸÌiÉ, AWûqÉç zÉÏbÉëqÉç ĘɸÉÍqÉ –bAlaH SIghraM uttiShThati, ahaM SIghraMuttiShThAmi.Boy gets up fast.qÉÌWûsÉÉ EmÉÌuÉzÉÌiÉ, AWûqÉç EmÉÌuÉzÉÉÍqÉ – mahilAupaviSati, aham upaviSAmiLady sits (down).qÉÉiÉÉ A³ÉÇ xjÉÉmÉrÉÌiÉ, AWÇû A³ÉÇ xjÉÉmÉrÉÉÍqÉ –mAtA annaM sthApayati, ahaM annaMsthApayAmiMother puts (serves) food.NûɧÉÈ xÉqrÉMçü xqÉUÌiÉ, AWÇû xÉqrÉMçü xqÉUÉÍqÉ –CAtraH samyak smarati, ahaM samyaksmarAmiStudent remembers well.

While we Indians know quite a lot ofSamskrit words, we may lack thesentence framing skill. Therefore, it wouldbe a good idea to read the above Samskritsentences aloud and try to internalizemÉëjÉqÉmÉÑÂwÉ and E¨ÉqÉmÉÑÂwÉ forms of thesepopular verbs, which are very useful inour day-to-day life.

30

Diwali celebrations began in Nachiketa Tapovan with a traditionalLakshmi puja and lighting of the lamp on the morning of November4th. Our chief guest to inaugurate the celebration was Smt. Sushmawho lit the lamp. Although today much of Diwali is about firecrackers, we reminded ourselves that Diwali to us, meant illuminingour souls with the “inner light”. Sixth grader Chi. Nagamanieloquently gave details of the significance of the festival based onvarious stories from our mythology.

This was followed by a lively drama presented by the fourth andfifth graders on Narakasura vadha. The teachers and studentsutterly enjoyed the show that was presented with great enthusiasmby the little artists. They had eagerly spent time in the library andwith teachers to help them prepare the necessary information for theplay.

The highlight of the event was a fantastic show put up by firstgraders on fire safety during Diwali celebrations. This very pertinentand timely presentation conveyed emphatically on how crackersshould be handled and the care we need to take, to avoid accidentsand fire.

The celebration joyfully concluded with offering of Naivedyam(Offering to the divine) followed by distribution of prasadam (blessingsfrom the Divine).

The following evening in Tapovan was filled with the powerful yetserene vibrations of the mantra chanting during Lakshmi Puja. Thepuja was beautifully performed under the holy guidance of SwamiShivanandamayi Ma in the Dhyana Mandir. The peaceful and joyfulsatsang experienced by all who attended, is a grace in itself, of theDivine mother.

The little ones at Tapovan also had a nice treat on Children’s dayon November 14th. The tribute to Chacha Nehru started off withVidya mandir teachers Ms T Jyothi and Ms Parlimala rendering aspeech and a song respectively.Games and activities were conductedfor the teachers and the children entertained themselves watchingtheir teachers in a playful atmosphere. The little hearts were amusedto see their teachers scampering for a seat in Musical Chairs andwere thrilled to see them engage in a Baseball game. The fun-n-games which the teachers enthusiastically participated in, was afeast to their eyes. Thanks to Ms. Bindu and all the others whohelped organize the event.

The children were glad to receive new school bags lovinglydistributed. And…the fun didn’t end there for the 6th and 7th graders!They got to watch the movie ‘Alice in Wonderland’ in Prasad Imaxand experience great thrill and suspense, making the day evenmore memorable. Nevertheless, they took back much more, thespecial memories of togetherness and being children on a super funday.

May the Lord grant us at Tapovan, many more occasions toenrich and light up their spirits in a positive and spiritual atmosphere,so they too can grow up to radiate and share that light with others!

Diwali and Children’s Day at TapovanCelebrations:

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SPONSOR OPTIONSAnna daanam maha daanam; vidya daanam mahattaram.

Annena kshanika trupthihi yaavajjeevanthu vidyaya.Vidya Mandir at Nachiketa Tapovan is currently able to accommodate a family ofabout 170 children who receive all-round nourishment from man-makingeducation to milk-n-meals and basic health-aid in an atmosphere of genuinelove. Kind-hearted Well wishers have been the unseen force behind this offeringto God. We thank you for your continued support.

Vidya Daanam (Education) ` 4500/year/childAnna Daanam (Mid-day Meals) ` 3500/dayKsheera Daanam (Morning Milk) ` 700/dayAlpa Aharam (Snacks) ` 500/dayVastra Daanam (Uniforms) ` 600/2 pairsDinnerware (Steel Plates & Glasses) ` 5000/ 50 setsStationery Supplies (Copier Paper) ` 5000/termFestivals Celebration ` 1500/festivalOushadhi (Medical Supplies) ` 5000/month

Celebrate your Special Days with the Children at Nachiketa Tapovan!

The CDs comprise instructions given ondifferent yogic techniques based on anextensive research done by SwamiNachiketananda and assisted by other Swamisand volunteers. 'Om' - A divine melody is firstof the series. All the CDs are available at theNachiketa Tapovan premises at Kavuri Hills, andalso in leading bookstores.Cost of each CD is ̀ 20

PUB

LICATIO

N

A set of 8 'Yogic CDs'

Samskrita Bharati4-2-72, Badi Chowdi, Sultan Bazar, Hyderabad – 500 195

Phones: 040-2475 0111, 2475 0333, samskritabharatihyd@gmail.comAt this time, we have the following Samskrit learning centres in the Twin Cities (Hyderabad/ Secunderabad), which are planned to be run on a steady basis for the coming one year.1. Padmaraonagar – Kowtha Swarajya Vihar, Near Park/Gharoanda Super Bazar Gita Sikshana Kendram – Tue, Wed and Thu – 6:30pm to 8:30pm2. Madhapur – Nachiketa Tapovan, # 70, Phase I, Kavuri Hills, Madhapur, Hyderabad Balakendram – Thu only – 2.00pm to 3.00pm Saptahikam – Thu only – 3.00pm to 4:30pm Saptahikam – Sat & Sun – 10am to 12noon & 1.00pm to 3.00pm (Gita Sikshana)3. Yousufguda – Vivekananda Kendra, Near Sarathi Studios Saptahikam – Thu only – 11.00am to 1.00pm4. AS Rao Nagar – Tentatively at Sri VS Raju’s House, Near Poulomi Hospital Saptahikam – Thu only – 6:30am to 8:30am

Learn Samskrit

Learn Samskrit

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Dear Atman,

Nachiketa Tapovan has launched a massiveAshram project in Kodgal village, JadcherlaMandal in Mahboobnagar district with a noblevision of providing Free Education, Medicalaid, Vocational training and Spiritual upliftmentfor the underprivileged. Temples, Dhyanamandir, Residential Campus, Vidya Mandir andDispensary are given priority in the 1st Phaseof construction. With the grace of theAlmighty we have been moving forwardtowards the completion of some of theseprojects.

First we want to thank our supporters andwell wishers for accomplishing our goals ofconstructing a Dhyana Mandir and ResidentialCampus at the Ashram. Your support wasessential for meeting the substantial expensesof this Humanitarian work for which we aredeeply grateful. At present our top priority isthe major Temple Project and Vidya Mandirwhich are under construction. The total costfor these projects is estimated at ` 2.9 CroresCurrently we have collected ` 1.19 Crores.The rest of the funds have to be raised toinaugurate the Ashram. For the coming year,

our goal is to continue reaching out to moreand more souls with our basic spiritualservices, programs and publications and alsoto accomplish a number of smaller projects atNachiketa Tapovan, Kavuri hills and Ashramat Jadcherla.

We hereby make a fervent appeal forgenerous donations. You can contribute tothe project in any manner possible. Pleaseparticipate in this noble task so that ourcultural heritage and religious traditions willbe safeguarded for the coming generations.

It may kindly be noted that donations toNachiketa Tapovan are exempted from IncomeTax U/S 80 G of IT Act, 1961 of Govt of India.Donations in the form of cheques/ Demanddrafts may please be drawn in favour ofNachiketa Tapovan.

Yours in the service of Motherland

Swami Nachiketananda

AN APPEAL

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Invitation

Swami Ranganathananda Jayanti15th Dec 2010Time: 1.00 pmLunch follows

Ma Sarada Jayanti22nd Dec 2010

Time: 11.00 amPlease partake in Prasadam

Nachiketa Tapovan is celebrating

Gita Jayanti17th Dec 2010Time: 2.00 pm

Christmas24th Dec 2010Time: 1.00 pm

with best complements

Infomile Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

Divine intervention is what we need!

Venue:

Nachiketa Tapovan

Venue:

Nachiketa Tapovan

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a) You can send articles by email tonachiketanjali1@gmail.com or by post toNachiketanjali, Nachiketa Tapovan, PlotNo.70, Phase I, Kavuri Hills, Madhapur,Guttlabegumpet, Serilingampally, RangaReddy District. A.P., with your full name,address and contact details.

b) No article is returned.c) Your article should be reader friendly with

a positive view point.d) No controversial or political issues are

published.e) Word limit for an article varies from 300

(one column) to 600 words (two columns).Writers can contact the editorial team forfurther details.

f) The styles of references should be as perthe ‘Documentation of Sources’ given atthe end of the Merriam Webster’s CollegiateDictionary.

g) Editor reserves the right to accept/ rejectarticles and edit the selected articles.

h) Unsolicited articles are not acknowledged.i) The Editor does not accept responsibility

for the author’s views.j) Articles received will be published in one

of the forthcoming issues.

A NOTE TOWRITERS:

BOOK REVIEWWe request Publishers to send two copiesof their Spiritual, Philosophical andReligious books for publishing a BookReview in our “Nachiketanjali” - monthlyMagazine.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTNachiketa Tapovan is indebted to all thewell-wishers, donors, patrons and advisorswhose immense help and cooperation inmultiple ways has helped us accomplishour goals.

SUBSCRIPTIONS INDIA GIFT

Single copy ` 10 ` 10

1 year ` 100 ` 100

3 years ` 280 ` 280

5 years ` 450 ` 450Subscriptions can be sent by MO/DD/Cheque/Cash in favor of ‘Nachiketa Tapovan’.(Plus ` 30 for outstation cheques)

SUBSCRIPTIONS:

WELL-WISHERS:1. K. Vijay Kumar 2. P. S. Reddy3. Y.V.S.S. Prasad 4. Rama Devi K.5. Intelligroup 6. Maa TV7. Matrix Labs

Page Size Multi Black colour & white

Fourth Cover 15cm x 19cm `̀̀̀̀ 12,000 N.A.Third Cover 15cm x 19cm `̀̀̀̀ 10,000 N.A.Inside Page 15cm x 19cm N. A. `̀̀̀̀ 5,000Inside Strip 4cm x 15cm N. A. `̀̀̀̀ 2,500

We thank our patrons for joiningNachiketanjali’s Patron Scheme:

Sri C. P. Nayar - `̀̀̀̀ 10,000Smt. Sudha - `̀̀̀̀ 5,000Sri Prashanth - `̀̀̀̀ 16,000Sri Murlidhar - `̀̀̀̀ 5,605Sukanya G. - `̀̀̀̀ 5,000

Ashraydatas are encouraged to become patrons ofthe magazine by joining Nachiketanjali’s Patron’sScheme. You can become patrons by donating` 5000/- which will be deposited in the magazine’scorpus fund. We express our thanks by announcingtheir names in the following issue of the Magazineand the patron will also receive a 5 year subscriptionof the same.

AN APPEAL TO PATRONS & SPONSORS

ADVERTISEMENT TARIFF

with best wishesGriha Constructions, Chennai

Home is made by Heart!

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with best wishes

VASAVI PRINTS, HYDERABAD

Yada Yada Hi DharmasyaGlanirbhavati Bharata

Abhyutthanam AdharmasyaTadatmanam Srujamyaham!

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