The Story of Revolutions

The Baba continued: ‘Revolutions, as we have already seen, can be violent or non-violent. Violence begets more violence. The oppressors in this case have at their disposal the police, the army and the entire state machinery… 

‘The only power the oppressed and deprived people can have in such a case is the power of the fire of hunger or anger burning in their empty stomachs. This ‘fire’ of hunger or anger will lead them to indiscriminate violence and destructive reactions which will be put down mercilessly by the power of the state. Such merciless violence by the state will also be justified by the laws of the state… 

‘However, even if such a violent revolution succeeds by the sheer strength of numbers and magnitude of bloodshed, the resulting system will be equally, if not more, unjust and exploitative…. This is what we have seen and learnt from the experiences of Communist revolutions across the world….

‘Learn from history, my son. The Gandhian revolution, the Martin Luther King revolution or the Mandela revolution can provide us inspiring models of the kinds of non-violent revolution required in the modern world….. 

‘But also remember, none of these leaders were poor or illiterate.. They were part of the educated elite of their societies…. 

‘Non-violent revolutions can be initiated and led by enlightened leaders who also have to be integrated personalities of great character and courage. Emergence of such men and women of integrity, character and courage is essential for a non-violent revolution to succeed…

‘But history also bears testimony to the fact that such enlightened leaders often emerge out of the better off sections of the society. They are educated, mature and deep-thinking people…. Have you observed this fact?’ 

The Baba asked his disciple who was deeply attentive to every word spoken by him.

‘Guruji, is there a process through which such leaders go through and develop themselves to become effective instruments of God for a non-violent revolution?’ Asked Atma Prakash.

‘Yes, of course. Nothing in the divine providence happens by accident. Everything has a purpose behind it. Everything also goes through a process.’ The Baba said and continued:

‘The evolutionary growth of human personality and consciousness, my son, is from the ‘herd’ to the ‘sovereign’, from the collective to the singular. This means that as one grows mature in life with age and with the resulting expansion in consciousness, one tends to become more and more detached from the herd mentality and collective identity of the earlier times in order to grow as an independently strong and sovereign personality…..

‘No tree can grow big under the shade of another big tree, my son. Like a majestic oak tree, each one of us has to find a space for oneself to grow and expand… But at the same time, we also have to remember that we are social beings living in a network of relationships. We cannot exist like islands cut off and separated from one another, or like Billiard balls always clashing with one another…... 

‘We need the love, respect, appreciation and support of others to make our own lives happy, peaceful and fruitful in this world. This is possible only when we are able to give love, respect, appreciation and support to others. The ultimate goal of human life in this world is to become such ‘sovereign spiritual persons’ capable of loving, respecting, appreciating and supporting others unconditionally…..

‘Thus, we come to the realization that, while there is a need to remain distinct from others and to uphold the uniqueness of our individual personalities for allowing our own individual growth and fruitfulness, there is also at the same time a greater need for us to be related to one another with mutual love, respect, appreciation and support….. 

‘The harmonious development of the human personality can be achieved only if and when the growth in one’s individual consciousness is associated with a similar growth in one’s ability to love, respect, appreciate and support others. If this does not happen, we will find it very difficult to live and work with people of different ideologies, opinions, characteristics and faiths. Such individuals and groups end up in conflicts and breakups within and among themselves….. 

‘Understand this process and apply it. You will be an enlightened leader and a sovereign spiritual person, my son.’ The Baba stopped and closed his eyes.

Excerpts from ‘Integral Revolution’.

Brain Power

Many years ago in a small Indian village, a farmer had the misfortune of owing a large sum of money to the village moneylender. The moneylender, who was old and horrible, fancied the farmer's beautiful daughter. So he proposed a bargain. He said he would forgo the farmer's debt if he could marry his daughter. Both the farmer and his daughter were horrified by the proposal. The cunning moneylender suggested that they let providence decide the matter. He would put a black pebble and a white pebble into an empty moneybag. Then the girl would have to pick one pebble from the bag.

1. If she picked the black pebble, she would become his wife and her father's debt would be forgiven. 2. If she picked the white pebble, she need not marry him and her father's debt would still be forgiven. 3. But if she refused to pick a pebble, her father would be thrown into jail.

Standing on a pebble-strewn path in the farmer's field, the moneylender bent over to pick up two pebbles. As he picked them up, the sharp-eyed girl noticed that he had picked up two black pebbles and put them into the bag. He then asked the girl to pick a pebble from the bag.

 

Now, imagine that you were standing in the field that day. What would you have done if you were the girl? If you had to advise her, what would you have told her?

Well, here is what she did. She put her hand into the moneybag and drew out a pebble. Without looking at it, she fumbled and let it fall onto the pebble-strewn path where it immediately became lost among all the other pebbles. "Oh, how clumsy of me," she said. "But never mind, if you look into the bag for the one that is left, you will be able to tell which pebble I picked."

Since the remaining pebble was black, they had to assume that she had picked the white one. And since the moneylender dared not admit his dishonesty, the girl changed what seemed an impossible situation into an extremely advantageous one.

Most complex problems do have a solution, which you can find if you stretch your mind. If logic doesn't work, try lateral thinking. Lateral thinking is a creative exercise. “The secret to success is in seeing an aspect which nobody else has seen; in knowing something nobody else knows; in doing something which no one else has done.”

Indian Thoughts Archives

Ardent Inventor

Thomas Alva Edison is one of the most quoted and celebrated inventor of history. Here I bring you an inspiring story of another enthusiastic and ardent inventor John Logie Baird, the inventor of Television. This story came across my eyes while I was searching the net for happenings on 26th January. The first working public demonstration of television was given on 26th January, 1926. Health wise Baird was a 'often sick' type of person but what he produced in a small workshop in London, with things like an old hatbox, a pair of scissors, some darning needles, a few bicycle light lenses, a used tea chest, sealing wax and glue, was world's first device to transmit moving images. In this very workshop he met an accident with very high voltage shock and was forced to leave this rented premises. His attitude was of an keep moving person. He did not stop after making the first black and white television. He went on to discover the colour television and then even the CRT based television. He even demonstrated the concept of a 3D television. He also conceived the idea of a HD television in his times that became a reality in recent times only. 

Interestingly Baird also had many failures in experimenting with other type of ideas he was trying to develop. He failed in making pneumatic shoes which was an inspiration drawn from pneumatic tyres. He got partial success in making thermal socks for a person with cold feet. Baird survived only 57 years, but he kept on working on newer and newer ideas. What I was much impressed in this story was that he had a role to play in every new breakthrough in his field. Most scientists get credit for one or two inventions and enjoy the reputation for rest of their life. This man kept on making drastic improvements and made several breakthroughs. Only an extra ordinarily enthusiastic and ardent person can keep moving at such pace. So remember, 26th January has an another reason to be a great date in our history. 

And let me share another point with you that this year 2016 is being considered by technologist as the year of next level of video revolution. HD videos are already there in every hand. 4K video is changing the way we see digital motion in our lives. Many passionate people do live in our life times also to make these changes. Let us bow down in front of such talented and hard-working people also. 

Dr. Sunil Ji Garg

Tough Love

The whole world evolved from love. Everything beautiful comes from love energy. Love puts up with all kinds of inconveniences. It puts up with our and others’ shortcomings. Sometimes it is more convenient to give in to others’ demands and not to confront them so they take responsibility for their actions. Herein is where tough love comes handy. 

Tough love is operating when someone treats another person, often a close relative or friend, gently and lovingly but firmly with one’s long term good. The person thus dealt with may not like our treatment as our true motive is not understood at the time. Tough love is difficult for the one using it as well as the one undergoing it. Many persons enable others in their destructive behavior. A parent, for instance, may yield to a child’s inappropriate demand rather than take a difficult stance; a wife may support the alcohol or drug abuse habit of her husband from her hard-earned daily wage, that I witness in my surroundings everyday.  Recently I had a difficult experience when I refused money to a close friend. He makes wasteful, irrational trips to officials far away to solve his problems using the scant income he has. He lost an enormous amount of money to swindlers who promised several times the amount of money he would spend in installments to get a large grant from a charitable trust fund that did not exist. Due to his naïve credulity and greed for money, he fell prey to their scheme and got traumatized losing his income for a comfortable living left by his mother. As I told him that I would give him only enough money to get a ticket to reach his home, he stormed out of the ashram. The reason for the impulsive behavior he gave was that I was trying to control his life.  Another involved a so-called well-wisher who freely doles out advice to others, and who is meddlesome, to say the least.  As I was leaving a close friend of mine after offering my best wishes before the long official inauguration of his financial enterprise, the “well-wisher” did not think that my leaving before the function was the right thing to do. I had to clearly and assertively tell him that it was my judgment call, and that I had to plan the use of my time.

Tough love should not generate guilt feelings if intended outcome does not result. We cannot change anyone’s behavior. We can help motivate people in the right direction. But they have to ultimately make the choice for constructive change. Instead of enabling a near or dear one to maintain one’s bad habits, we can at least use our limited resources for making a difference in the life of someone  who wants to change for the better. Whether one wants to contribute to the short-lived appeasement or lasting behavior change that promotes humanity towards its destiny will be determined by tough love that makes hard choices. Love is tough because the path chosen is tough.

Swami Snehananda Jyoti  

Welcome Mud Pots !

Mud, to which everything in this Nature is accustomed, is an important element of nature. It contains important minerals, which have positive effects on human health. Mud can absorb toxins from human body. It is very useful in preventing many diseases. It is also known for its healing properties. It also helps in cooling and relaxing body as it can hold moisture for a long time. 

‘In less time at less space’ is the law of the land now. In our mad run after conveniences, luxury and comfort, India also underwent a transformation from the traditional to the advanced, only to see that ‘old was gold’. The result was clearly more stress and more diseases. Recent studies say that we should not have broken our mud utensils for glittering non-stick carcinogenic pans we use now. Experience says that our ‘Namaste’ is many times stronger than a formal lifeless good morning. The style we sit for food, the order of items served, the organic food we cook…. all contributed in keeping our ancestors healthy every time. India never needed as many hospitals as we do now.

Nobody has ever found out a better healer than Nature, a better treatment than yoga and a better behaviour than being natural. This wisdom is not reserved to India only. In many parts of the world, homes are still made from locally obtained materials like wood, palm or grass thatch, mud, and even cow dung. Travel within villages occurs on trails, not roads, and peasant farmers forage foods, herbs and building materials from wild vegetation near their homes. At night, the stars shine overhead without any city lights to compete with them. People who live in Nature are undoubtedly the happiest and healthiest people living upon this earth. Were it not happiness and satisfaction that we would have inevitably looked for in life?

Joseph Mattappally

Fear - Taken to It

Once a king was sailing on the sea with some his courtiers. There was also this young man who had never been to sea who got very frightened with all tossing up and down of the ship. He was so terrified by it all that he sat in a corner screaming and wailing. Many tried to calm him down, and the king himself could hardly stand it any more.

The king’s physician offered to cure the young man, if His Majesty would give the permission, which was promptly granted.

The physician ordered the seamen to throw the screaming courtier overboard. They were all so annoyed with the courtier that they promptly executed the order. Gasping for air, as you can imagine, the young man thrashed about in the water and cried for help. After he has had a few gulps of seawater, and was nearly drowning with fear, the physician ordered him to be pulled out. From then on he sat quietly in a corner.

The king couldn’t understand and so he asked the physician for an explanation. “He had never experienced the sea,” answered the physician, “and didn’t know how dangerous it can be. So he did not also know, how good it was to have a ship between himself and the sea.”

Our worries often result from a lack of appreciation of the blessings that we have.

Look at the butterflies! They hope from flower to flower all the day but get to taste no honey. They neither have time or patience to go deep into the inner core, whereas the bee is not excited about the superficial. When it lands on a flower it goes directly to the root of the petals, where it is too dark and congested gets busy systematically extracting honey and nectar. To get anything done, you have got to stick and do it systematically no matter how hard or inconvenient it might be.

Indian Thoughts Archives

The ‘3-E’ Method

‘There are different ways of responding to the crises facing the society, depending on the level of consciousness of those working to overcome the crises, and of those who are victims of the crises.’ the Baba began the day’s discussion. He looked into the eyes of his beloved disciple and continued: ‘For example, let us take the crisis of poverty and hunger in India. More than 30% of the Indian population live below poverty line even today. They are not able to eat one nourishing meal a day.

‘The most emotionally appealing way of responding to this crisis of poverty and hunger is to feed the hungry…. Organize community feeding programmes, distribute food packets, dole out freebies…. This is the ‘charity’ approach. This appeals emotionally to the largest number of people. They will ‘donate’ food items, ‘sponsor’ meals, ‘contribute’ money…… 

‘The ‘charity’ approach appeals mostly to the donors, the rich and the ruling class whose selfishness, greed, injustice and corruption directly and indirectly contribute towards promoting the widespread poverty and hunger in India….

‘A better and more intelligent way of responding to the crisis of poverty and hunger is through education and development leading to employment and empowerment of the poor. ‘Instead of giving them fish everyday, teach them to fish’… This is an old dictum with much wisdom…. 

‘Education-Employment-Empowerment was the ‘3-E’ method developed and applied very effectively by Sri. Narayana Guru, the great saint of the Ezhava community in Kerala, a century ago for the upliftment of his very poor, illiterate, exploited and downtrodden community…. As a result, the Ezhava community in Kerala today has become a very powerful economic and political force.... This can be termed ‘developmental’ approach….

‘Now imagine a situation when many have learnt to fish, but the fish in the lakes, ponds, rivers and sea are limited or the area available for fishing is limited…. Then we will have to make rules and regulations to ensure that all who earn their livelihood from fishing get equal opportunities to fish and earn their living… Favoritism, partiality and corruption at this level will lead to organized agitations and revolts from those who feel deprived of their ‘rightful share’…… Here we will need a ‘legal’ approach….

‘All the above three approaches to crisis management - the charity approach, the developmental approach and the legal approach - are within the ‘system’ .... 

‘But there are times when the existing ‘system’ itself is unjust. For example, the ‘system’ that we discussed before can earmark a larger part of the fishing areas exclusively for the rich and privileged categories, or give ‘subsidies’ to certain special class of people. Imagine that their representatives are sitting in the Parliament and Assemblies in the country, making laws and rules for their benefit…. They can easily consolidate their position through laws, rules and regulations made by the decision-makers and law-givers who are their own people…. 

‘We know how to fish, we are in fact experts in catching fish… However, a situation can arise in which we want to catch fish but we are not allowed to catch fish as the catchment areas are under the legal ownership of the rich and the powerful who are also making the laws and ruling the country… The system itself has become unjust and exploitative in this case…. Such a crisis situation cannot be handled by the charity, developmental and legal approaches as discussed earlier. It calls for a systemic change. A systemic change calls for a ‘revolution’…. 

‘Have you understood this far, my son?’, the Baba asked Atma Prakash.

‘Yes, of course guruji.. This is precisely the analysis of the naxalites also.’ Atma Prakash replied.

Excerpts from ‘Integral Revolution’.

How Organized Religions Struck at the Root of Freedom

I am going to describe the Catholic Church, a worldwide organization, that is hierarchically and autocratically, not democratically, governed by a central authority in Rome as an example of how religions systematically ruined spiritual freedom through gradual and systematic development of convenient doctrines and dogmas on the theoretical level, and rituals and devotional practices in the practical day-to-day life.  Spiritual freedom is the basis of other freedoms such as emotional or inner freedom and physical freedom. In this context, it is good to recall that Christ is believed to come to give all humans the “glorious liberty of God’s children”, and model a life of freedom, not different degrees of enslavement and bondage, as his sole mission. One can only imagine what the status of the world would have been if the most powerful Catholic Church of the sixteenth century, in many ways corrupt and abusive of basic human rights,  would have continued undivided into the present time! I am attempting to compress volumes of history into a very small article. The Christian religion has the highest number of followers in the world. The Catholic denomination or the Catholic Church is the most powerful section of the Christian religion. It is also the best organized entity that is tightly governed at the grass roots level through its dioceses all over the world, and is answerable to the Pope, the highest authority who has his government in Vatican in Rome. Vatican is also an independent city state (nation) that has embassies or diplomatic missions all over the world.

 

It is very likely that the Catholic Church as the first highly organized and tightly controlled religious body modeled religious freedom for other religions that came later (for instance, Islam) or organized later (for instance, Hinduism). The Catholic Church at one point thought that it had not only spiritual but also temporal power over the entire world, thus crowning even kings and rulers who had fealty to the pope. Certain doctrines such as the divine right of kings, infallibility, the primacy of the pope, the inerrancy of the Bible, that developed out of expediency, and the manipulation of people through supremacy, power, and control,  were given divine or moral sanction and protection. These doctrines were not needed either for spirituality and holiness or for salvation.  They were mere products of an unenlightened dark middle ages.  There was such a confusion of boundaries related to spiritual and temporal powers that emperors or kings determined the selection of a pope or appointment of cardinals or bishops to dioceses. The popes or the kings in their misguided ways did evil things in the name of God and religion. Instead of spreading the Kingdom of God, a kingdom of truth and justice, a kingdom of peace and reconciliation, and, above all a kingdom of love and freedom, they often spread unquestioned faith and blind obedience and feudal vassalage and loyalty.

Catholic Church believed to be a divine institution could not be questioned with regard to its doctrines in medieval times without risking harsh censures including imprisonment and death penalty. The fact that all were children of God who is Father and Mother of all destined in divine providence to be judged by a loving and merciful parent was not given the due importance.

The whole preoccupation turned out to be with us saved versus them damned. The teaching of Christ was pretty much replaced by sterile rubrics and ritualized practices. The memorial at the last supper that Christ left with us was meticulously ritualized and institutionalized. It (the Mass) became the center of Christian worship that can only be performed by priests duly ordained after long years of training prescribed by official hierarchy. Mass became unreachable to ordinary Christians who were called lay. I wonder how the simple carpenter of Nazareth with no formal training, who preached against all the shackling norms of his own religious authority of the day even to the point of death, think about all this! When God-worshipping persons of good will who belong to other paths or groups did things what his disciples did, Christ reassured them that they were alright since they were not against them. Before the time of Christ the official Jewish priesthood did not listen to the warnings given by their prophets. After the coming of Christ one can say the main stream Christian Churches including the Catholic Church do not listen to the teachings and the warnings of Christ. The most powerful churches in Europe and the USA rolling in wealth are not compassionate as Christ was. Nor are they concerned about the poor, the oppressed, and the down-trodden. The disciples of Christ till the very end wrongly thought that Christ as the Messiah (the Anointed,savior) would liberate the Jews from the oppression of the Roman empire. That was why they were so disheartened when he was dishonourably and shamefully crucified on the cross between two thieves.

 

History repeats for those who do not take lessons from it. Catholic Church, divine or not, is no exception. Fine theological phrases like the Deposit of Faith that is entrusted to the Church, and that can only be interpreted by the official church do not matter when it comes to the interpretations of the scriptures or traditions. Any sincere person of good will or faithful follower of Christ can validly and legitimately interpret them.  This is one of the most valuable insights contained in Christ’s teachings.  Questioning the mighty religious authority of his own time, Christ empowered his disciples to question authority when it went wrong. That spirit of Christ, I am sure, is what made Paul, a murderer of Christians turned a follower of Christ, question Peter, the first pope, regarding his hypocrisy in an open meeting. The signs have been and are all over for those who want to see. There are Christian denominations fighting one another in the name of Christ and even going to the secular courts to settle their disputes. The wars that resulted after the Protestants broke away from the Catholic Church lasted  for 30 years. All honest religious institutions are divine in their own inscrutable and mysterious ways guided by the same Holy Spirit. A sincere search of the scriptures will manifest that.

History of religions down the ages has been one of curtailing or suppressing freedom often imposing hard to bear burdens on the unthinking ordinary and often poor faithful who are heavily programmed under the threat of social sanctions in the present life and the eternal damnation in the next. Such censures and sanctions can only lead us to bondage not freedom. That does not bode well for religions as they preach and represent God who gave us freedom as the greatest and most precious gift that alone makes us truly human. What I said about Catholic Church can be said a fortiori to other Christian denominations and religions. At least Catholic Church is attempting to reform its ways. Other religions like Islam is still living in the dark ages wherein conversion from one’s religion to another can mean death. Hinduism is still guided by strictly prescribed and enforced ritual purity. A Hindu woman, for instance during her life-time of menstruation (supposedly during the age between 10 and 50) cannot visit the deity in a very popular shrine of Hindu pilgrimage in the Sabarimala hill. We need to thoroughly examine ourselves with regard to human rights - the most basic God-given rights - as far as religions are concerned? Can these rights be abridged or eliminated altogether in religions? The answer is a most emphatic no. My long term prediction is that religions after a long period of painful reformations and purifications over many years, perhaps centuries, will shed all their ungodly ways and become paths to God as intended by their founders or inspirers. Meanwhile during the long transitional period, we may have no choice other than going beyond religions to spirituality as a way to God while studying as well as affirming all that is good in all religions and working for human welfare and the Unity of Humanity.

Swami Snehananda Jyoti

Inspiring Failures

We often celebrate success achieved by people who have achieved it against all odds. Stories of people who are still struggling or who fail to achieve their goals usually remain untold. Only success is brought to lime light by all forms of media. This is also true that the success that comes to limelight is very often the material success. Here I bring to you a unique story of a cancer patient who failed but he did inspire others. He was an ordinary man with a typical small family. A wife and a kid. Everything changed for him the day he was diagnosed with cancer of liver. He had limited money. Taking the kind of treatment doctors advised him was beyond his pocket. One of the doctor was his childhood friend. He called on his friend's residence to take his personal advice to draw out his plan of action. The doctor did tell him all the possible treatment options, but he also told him his survival chances after six months. The situation was truly difficult. This man was a teacher by profession. He decided to create a decent set of notes that his students can use after him. He decided to put most of the money he had in the investments to secure his family's future. He set his goal of completing his notes creation assignment within next three months. He worked hard to create a marvel. His health started deteriorating. Writing notes became difficult. He starting narrating things to his wife. After some time even narration became difficult. He started marking the relevant sections in books and his past notes. Finally the dooms day came and he had to leave this world without completing his task. Meanwhile his students had already come to know about the work he was doing for their future. A group amongst these students decided to take his work further and created an excellent reference book. Today this reference book is guiding so many students to pass well in their exams. The teacher failed in his lifetime, but his mission did not. Such failures are worth a salute. 

Dr. Sunil Ji Garg

Sum and Substance

This is an extract from the conversations between two Indian saints, Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa and Swami Vivekananda. The questions are from Swami Vivekananda. 

Q:- “I can’t find free time. Life has become hectic.”

A:- “Activity gets you busy. But productivity gets you free.” 

Q:- “Why has life become complicated now?”

A:- “Stop analyzing life. It makes it complicated. Just live it.”

Q:- “Why are we then constantly unhappy?” 

A:- “Worrying has become your habit. That’s why you are not happy.”

Q:- “Why do good people always suffer?” 

A:- “Diamond cannot be polished without friction. Gold cannot be purified without fire. Good people go through trials, but don’t suffer. With that experience their life becomes better, not bitter.”

Q:- “You mean to say such experience is useful?”

A:- “Yes. In every term, Experience is a hard teacher. She gives the test first and the lessons later.”

Q:- “Because of so many problems, we don’t know where we are heading.”

A:- “If you look outside you will not know where you are heading. Look inside. Eyes provide sight. Heart provides the way.” 

Q:- “Does failure hurt more than moving in the right direction?”

A:- “Success is a measure as decided by others. Satisfaction is a measure as decided by you.”

Q:- “In tough times, how do you stay motivated?”

A:- “Always look at how far you have come rather than how far you have to go. Always count your blessing, not what you are missing.” 

Q:- “What surprises you about people?”

A:- “When they suffer they ask, “why me?” When they prosper, they never ask “Why me?”

Q:- “How can I get the best out of life?”

A:- “Face your past without regret. Handle your present with confidence. Prepare for the future without fear.”

Q:- “One last question. Sometimes I feel my prayers are not answered.”

A:- “There are no unanswered prayers. Keep the faith and drop the fear. Life is a mystery to solve, not a problem to resolve. Trust me. Life is wonderful if you know how to live.”

Joseph Mattappally

Principles Basic

‘Today I will share with you the ‘foundational principles’ upon which this Ashram-gurukul itself is built.’ The Baba began with this opening remarks during the next session.

‘I have laid down seven foundational principles for this Ashram from the very beginning. I live by it. Mataji lives by it. All members of this Ashram try to practice them. These foundational principles help us grow and live in the unitive divine consciousness. Hence, I think it will be very useful for you in your own quest for growing in the unitive divine consciousness.’ The Baba told Atma Prakash.

‘Please tell me about them guruji’ Atma Prakash requested his guruji.

‘Our Ashram is named ‘Navasrushti Ashram’. The word ‘navasrushti’ means a new creation. It also implies a growth from divisive human consciousness to unitive divine consciousness….

 ‘Unitive divine consciousness’ in the context of our Ashram implies the consciousness of our inherent unity and divinity as children of God created in His own image and likeness. It will enable us to see the whole humanity and all living beings, and also the whole creation, as one large family bound with a common destiny. It will also inspire us to accept the various religions and nations in the world as smaller families within the larger human family…. 

‘A unitive divine consciousness is the true and abiding basis of a healthy, happy, harmonious and fruitful life in this world. It is also the strongest foundation for sustainable human development and lasting global peace…. 

‘Navasrushti Ashram’ has been my prayerful initiative to create a community of men and women who will be fully committed to the mission of living a unitive divine consciousness and promoting it among people of all categories in order to build a culture of abiding peace in the present conflict-ridden world… 

‘The vision and mission of this Ashram are based on the seven foundational principles. These foundational principles are:

1. The One Ultimate Reality, God, is the Supreme Spirit that permeates the whole creation, and is above and beyond all religions and scriptures of humankind.

2. Human beings are children of God created in His own image and likeness, and are called to be ‘sovereign spiritual persons’ of love, peace, freedom and joy, embodying the unitive divine consciousness of their inherent unity and divinity.

3. All religions and their scriptures are only meant to help human beings to discover and unfold their inherent unity and divinity, and to grow from the present divisive human consciousness to a unitive divine consciousness. 

4. The unitive divine consciousness that had found its best historical expression in, with and through Sadguru Jesus Christ is the perfection to which all human beings are called to grow as sovereign spiritual persons.

5. Our vision is the ‘kingdom of God’  of love, unity, peace and joy on earth. 

6. Our mission is to work tirelessly, fearlessly and prayerfully for promoting a unitive divine consciousness in the present conflict-ridden world by following the path of forgiving, enduring and self-sacrificing love as taught to the world by Sadguru Jesus Christ. 

7. Holistic health of body, mind and spirit, and a life lived in harmony with nature are the prerequisites, and also the fruits, of a unitive divine consciousness……

‘All men and women who accept these seven foundational principles and are prepared to live a life based on them are accepted and initiated by me as members of our Ashram irrespective of their cultural, religious and ethnic backgrounds. I am responsible to accept and initiate aspiring members after the necessary orientations…. 

‘Members are being initiated as ‘Sadhaks’, ‘Sevaks’, ‘Acharyas’ or ‘Sanyasins’ depending upon their age and level of spiritual maturity. Initiated members can be resident or visiting members of the Ashram. We have a good number of visiting members….

‘All members of the Ashram are required to adhere to the five-point rule of life, the ‘Pancha nishta’ that we had discussed during our last session…. 

‘These foundational principles are also the foundational principles for a divine life on earth. You can adopt them and make them your own… for the fruitfulness of your own life and mission’ the Baba concluded.

‘Thank you guruji….. I will’ Atma Prakash promised.

The Baba closed his eyes and went into meditation.

Atma Prakash bowed low and got up.He went for a long walk in the forest.

Excerpts from Integral Revolution

Busy All Day Doing Nothing

I decide to wash my car.  As I start toward the garage, I notice that there is mail on the hall table.  I decide to go through the mail before I wash the car. I lay my car keys down on the table, put the junk mail in the trash can under the table, and notice that the trash can is full.  So, I decide to put the bills back on the table and take out the trash can first.

 

But then I think, since I'm going to be near the mailbox when I take out the trash anyway, I may as well pay the bills first.  I take my check book off the table, and see that there is only one check left. My extra checks are in my desk in the study, so I go to my desk where I find the can of Coke that I had been drinking.

I'm going to look for my checks, but first I need to push the Coke aside so that I don't accidentally knock it over. I see that the Coke is getting warm, and I decided that I should put it in the refrigerator to keep it cold. As I head toward the kitchen with the coke a vase of flowers on the counter catches my eye-they need to be watered. I set the Coke down on the counter, and I discover my reading glasses that I've been searching for all morning.

I decide I better put them back on my desk, but first I'm going to water the lowers. I set the glasses back down on the counter, fill a container with water and suddenly I spot the TV remote. Someone left it on the kitchen table. I realize that tonight when we go to watch TV, I will be looking for the remote, but I won't remember that it's on the kitchen table, so I decide to put it back in the den where it belongs, but first I'll water the flowers.  I splash some water on the flowers, but most of it spills on the floor.  So, I set the remote back down on the table, get some towels and wipe up the spill.  Then I head down the hall trying to remember what I was planning to do. At the end of the day: the car isn't washed, the bills aren't paid, there is a warm can of Coke sitting on the counter, the flowers aren't watered, there is still only one check in my check book, I can't find the remote, I can't find my glasses, and I don't remember what I did with the car keys. 

Then when I try to figure out why nothing got done today, I'm really baffled because I know I was BUSY all day long, and I'm really tired.

Indian Thoughts Archives 

Parable Of The Pencil

  

The Pencil Maker took the pencil aside, just before putting him into the box. "There are 5 things you need to know," he told the pencil, "Before I send you out into the world. Always remember them and never forget, and you will become the best pencil you can be."

"One: You will be able to do many great things, but only if you allow yourself to be held in Someone's hand."

"Two: You will experience a painful sharpening from time to time, but you'll need it to become a better pencil."

"Three: You will be able to correct any mistakes you might make."

"Four: The most important part of you will always be what's inside."

"And Five: On every surface you are used on, you must leave your mark. No matter what the condition, you must continue to write."

The pencil understood and promised to remember, and went into the box with purpose in its heart.

Now try to place yourself in the place of the pencil.  Always remember them and never forget, and you will become the best person you can be.

One: You will be able to do many great things, but only if you allow yourself to be held in God's hand. And allow other human beings to access you for the many gifts you possess.

Two: You will experience a painful sharpening from time to time, by going through various problems in life, but you'll need it to become a stronger person.

Three: You will be able to correct any mistakes you might make.

Four: The most important part of you will always be what's on the inside.

And Five: On every surface you walk through, you must leave your mark. No matter what the situation, you must continue to do your duties.

Allow this parable on the pencil to encourage you to know that you are a special person and only you can fulfill the purpose to which you were born to accomplish.

Never allow yourself to get discouraged and think that your life is insignificant and you cannot make a change.

 

Indian Thoughts, Archives

On Space and Time

The Baba said reflectively: ‘Space and time are two sides of the physical reality. They can be transcended with love and creativity. When there is deep love, we can transcend the limitations of space. The lovers sometimes tend to lose awareness of their surroundings. Even when far away from each other, their love remains intense….

‘Similarly, when one is creative, one tends to transcend the awareness of time. For example, an artist who is immersed in his painting can go on for hours and hours together, even days together, without food, drink or rest. A scientist in his laboratory involved with an absorbing research work can also lose track of time. Any creative work takes us deep into a realm of our being where time stands still….

‘Where there is love, there will always be creativity. We want to give our best to our beloved. Love also will bring out the best in us. We display talents that we never imagined that we had. Some people start writing poetry and singing songs, and do many other creative things, which they never used to do before they fell in love….

‘So my son, when you say time is moving very fast for you, it implies you have developed the qualities of love and creativity in your life. It is really good…

‘May God bless you with more of love and creativity.’ 

The guru blessed his disciple.

They had started referring to their weekly interactive sessions as ‘Guruvar Satsanghs’.

Both the guru and the disciple came to look forwad to these ‘Guruvar Satsanghs’.

They always began the Guruvar Satsangh with a silent meditation. The guru then blessed his disciple with great love, and began the discussion on the day’s theme.

Excerpts from ‘Integral Revolution’.

Aural and Oral Cultures

One of the traditions that is fast disappearing is the very valued, Eastern aural (relating to the ear or the sense of hearing) culture. Oral culture (relating to the mouth or speech) predominantly characterizes the Western culture while aural culture is an important aspect of Eastern spirituality or of being Eastern. In the West listening to music or talk shows while engaged in other activities is a very common phenomenon. It is becoming increasingly common in the East. That the world is shrinking or becoming one has a great deal to do with it, especially in this age of information, communication, and world-wide trade. None the less we cannot but take note of this important shift or change.

I still very fondly cherish one of the experiences narrated to me long ago by my provincial (superior of the region that I then belonged) after a visit of my family. He happened to be a Spanish Jesuit who did not know any Malayalam (my mother tongue), and my mother did not know any language other than Malayalam. My provincial told me that he was very touched by my mother sitting silently in a happy demeanour during his entire stay of three hours. I guess it was the next best to seeing her far away son. I must also note that in those days of very rigorous regulations, my first very short visit of her after joining the Jesuits was after 8 years, and that too caused by her grievous illness.

We are as a people losing the art of listening to the internal and external stimuli. That way we little by little lose touch with ourselves. Do we have time to silently reflect and formulate our own our views before we are unduly influenced by others’ interpretations of events? It appears that we like to speak more and narcissistically hear our voices more than we attentively and empathically listen to others and understand what they are saying in order for us to appropriately respond to them. Are we formulating our answers or our defense while others are talking? Do we frequently interrupt others because we know what they are going to say? Even if we anticipate what others are going to say, it is a good policy to listen through so the other person feels understood? Some persons have such an internal pressure to interrupt lest they forget what is on their mind at the time. And my answer to them is that they would remember if something is worth saying. Even if they are forgetting what is worth saying, I think they gain more by listening rather than by interrupting.

We are constantly bombarded by unwanted external stimuli. Sensible people would think when they go to a church, temple, a mosque, or a political party meeting, they should be able to hear the readings, songs, prayers or speeches related to the worship or functions conducted there. In a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, multi-religious, and a multi-party society that ours is, unwanted voices blared out and subjected, willy-nilly, especially at times when we want to rest, study, or do our own prayer or meditation, through loud speakers for the entire town or village, become noxious stimuli easily contributing to disturbance of piece, tranquility, tolerance, and noise pollution.

I have witnessed devout persons visiting holy persons or sages in their ashrams while they are talking to others, and staying in their presence for a time and leaving without having uttered a word. They just came for darshan (seeing the person or just being in the presence of the person). That way their need was satisfied. Sometimes attentive, non-verbal presence is all that is required, and, at such times, speech becomes superfluous. The world around us with all the beings and happenings is the greatest live university where all kinds of courses worth learning are continuously taking place. Attentive and empathic listening will enrich and streamline our conversations, and eliminate at least sometimes our spoken words altogether.

Swami Snehananda Jyoti

Rebellion

A line in J.K Rowling's novel "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" particularly attracted my attention. It was "I want to commit the murder I was imprisoned for". It was said by the character Sirius Black. Here the context was quite different, but the way this sentence was framed drew my attention. All along our lives we also feel imprisoned by some kind of binding thoughts. Sometimes we feel bound by religious beliefs. Sometime we are bound by the relations we are in and sometime our own actions bind us so much so that we want to break free from everything and do something exactly opposite of whatever is expected of us. Recently I was hearing a discussion where most people involved wanted to give capital punishment to anyone who says anything against religious beliefs of other religion. Sometimes I feel that we have again started living in a time where solutions are found by demanding hanging of any such person who voices a different opinion. Opinions itself have become a reason to create social unrest. I also feel imprisoned, when such thing happen around me. But! I do not blame this on rising intolerance. I blame this on inaction of self declared tolerant people. 

A social action movement against corruption few years back gave hope to so many Indians that something will change now for the better. Things changed for the better for few individuals of that movement. A wide scale social movement across borders of the nation is required to remove the menace of forced religious beliefs also. The way we do environment summit and decide to reduce pollution, we also do some thing similar to curb the pollution in our thoughts. An organised set of people is trying to pollute our minds so that we become controllable and leave our identities. Hope we can face this onslaught by practicing non-violent murder techniques. People who are surprised by hearing this term non-violent murder, I shall advise them to read some thing more about our father of the nation Gandhi Ji. 

Dr. Sunil Ji Garg

Proper Education

Some time back, I happened to read the story of a Japanese train station which operates just for one passenger and that a girl student. The Kami-Shirtaki train station in Hokkaido Island is the station referred here. Due to insufficient passengers, authorities had virtually decided to abandon this station. It was then that they noticed that there is a girl whose only conveyance is this train. Not only they dropped the idea of abandoning the station but also rescheduled the timings of the train according to this student’s convenience. Is education that important? Certainly, it is.

There is a popular American Story. In 1923, nine of the wealthiest people in the world met in Chicago’s Edge Water Beach Hotel. They included the president of the largest gas company (Howard Hubson), the president of the largest steel company (Bethlehem Corporation - Charles M Schwab), president of one of the greatest commodity traders (Wheat speculator - Arthur Cutten), President of the New York Stock Exchange (Richard Whitney), a member of the President’s Cabinet (Albert Fall), the greatest bear on Wall Street (Jesse Livermore), the head of the World’s greatest monopoly (Ivar Kruegar), the President of the International Bank of settlements (Leon Fraser) and  the president of the greatest Utility company (Samuel Insull).

25 years later, Howard Hubson went insane, Charles M Schwab died Bankrupt, Arthur Cutten died insolvent, Richard Whitney was imprisoned, Albert Fall was released from jail just to die in peace, Jesse Livermore committed suicide, so did Ivar Kruegger and Leon Fraser. The remaining Samuel Insull died penniless. What could have been the missing factor, which led to their falls? Might be proper education, I guess.

Joseph Mattappally

Follow Your Bliss

I have heard of a bus driver in Chicago who does just that. He sings while he drives. That's right... sings! And I don't mean he sings softly to himself, either. He sings so that the whole bus can hear! All day long he drives and sings.

He was once interviewed on Chicago television. He said that he is not actually a bus driver. "I'm a professional singer," he asserted. "I only drive the bus to get a captive audience every single day.

His "bliss" is not driving a bus, though that may be a source of enjoyment for some people. His bliss is singing. And the supervisors at the Chicago Transit Authority are perfectly happy about the whole arrangement. You see, people line up to ride his bus. They even let other busses pass by so they can ride with the "singing bus driver." They love it!

Here is a man who believes he knows why he was put here on earth. For him, it is to make people happy. And the more he sings, the more people he makes happy! He has found a way to align his purpose in living with his occupation. By following his bliss, he is actually living the kind of life he believes he was meant to live.

The Puzzle of Time

Atma Prakash utilized his time very well. The interactive sessions with the Baba every Thursday and his discussions with Mataji now and then were really enriching. They were ‘eye openers’ for him. He read widely on the related subjects. 

Mataji also took keen interest in his growth and studies. She often discussed ecological and environmental issues with him whenever he went to help her in the kitchen. He was very much impressed by her knowledge of various subjects and books. She was also trying to develop an integral spirituality, which she has termed ‘Eco-spirituality’. ‘It is a spirituality wherein ecology and spirituality are integrated’, she had told him.

Atma Prakash felt that days and weeks were flying real fast for him.

‘Guruji, the time seems to be moving very fast for me these days.’ He told the Baba one day.

‘The passage of time is a relative experience, my son. When we are happy time moves very fast for us. Months and days will appear like just hours and minutes. When we are sick, unhappy or troubled, time moves very slow. Hours and minutes will appear like months and days.’ The Baba told him.

‘Everything in life, in a way, will depend on our inner state. What we see, depends on where we stand. ‘A jaundiced man sees everything yellow’ is an old dictum. I had read somewhere a very interesting story about the manner in which Dr. Albert Einstein had explained his Theory of Relativity to a group of simple women’ the Baba added.

‘A group of simple women asked Albert Einstein what was this ‘Theory of Relativity’ that made him so famous, and about which there was so much discussion all over the world… 

‘In response, Einstein asked the youngest of them where her husband worked and how many days did he come home. She told him that her husband worked in a city far from home and he came home only on weekends for two days….

‘How do you feel when he is at home for two days with you on weekends?’ was his next question...

‘I feel it is just like two hours. Time flies very fast’… she said…

‘But, madam, suppose you are sitting on a hot stove for two hours, how will you feel?’ he asked her.

‘Two hours!… On a hot stove! Who can sit on a hot stove for two hours?’.. she asked back…

‘Well,.. madam, two days with your beloved husband feels like two hours.. Two hours on a hot stove will be unimaginably long…This is ‘Theory of Relativity’, madam’. He told her…

‘The ladies now understood the ‘Theory of Relativity’ very well… ‘It is so simple!’ one of them exclaimed…’

Excerpts from Integral Revolution’

Intentional Living

Our life needs to be simple, intense, and intentional that is lived very close to nature. When my wife and I wound up our handsome jobs in the USA, and came to spend most of the time in our life’s last stage - setting zone - in India, we felt we had a special inner call. I was born and brought up in India; she was born and brought up in the USA. This fact ideally suited our cherished goal of East-West Awakening, that integrates the very best from the East and the West. We always lived a simple life in the USA. Because we believe a simple life is the only one worth living. We currently live an intense life in the midst of persons coming from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and religions. Our purpose is to live an intense life in all its diversity as world citizens, while affirming each person that comes to our life as one is, and witnessing to the unity of humanity. We are grateful to the animals that enhance our life, especially our cows that give us wholesome milk, cooking gas, and fertilizer, and our dog, Tantran, with full of love, that alerts us to everything in the surroundings with his short and benign barks.

With regard to food, we have a vegetarian diet in the ashram though we make very limited accommodation for an inmate in the ashram who has difficulty. On the whole, we believe the vegetarian life is the way to go. We consider milk and eggs to be part of a vegetarian diet. The spirit of the ashram does not allow imposition of any view or ideology on anyone. I spend most of my time meditating, reading, reflecting, landscaping, gardening, or meeting with persons who come to see me. The atmosphere in and around the ashram is one that helps persons foster the kind of growth and development so they can become what they are capable of. On Wednesdays, I spend my time in silence and solitude in learning and experimenting on how to get closer and closer to the higher source of energy (God) and humanity, and what to write for the Thursday article for Indian Thoughts. Often I do not have a clue on what I am going to write. So I go to bed around 9 p. m., and spontaneously get up around 1 a. m. on Thursday and write on I think I need to write on hoping it will be beneficial for my readers. If I am satisfied with what I write, I think there is a greater chance for the readers to appreciate it. I am aware many of my well-wishers think that I am wasting my time and talents spending an enormous amount of time working on the land. They think that I take too seriously my vocation of being a bhoomiputran (son of earth). Little do they know that this endeavor of mine not only keeps my feet firmly planted in the earth with the overwhelming majority of persons who are farmers in the world but also affords me the opportunity to learn from nature that currently for me is the best better teacher in the universe.

So where are we? We are wherever we are. Because where we are is the very destination of the many thousands of miles of journey our life of pilgrimage consists of. For me it even not only figuratively but practically coincided as I began my journey from Kerala long ago and came back to Kerala, certainly one of the most beautiful landscapes of the world. And the only thing worthwhile doing is to spend every moment of our life in the way we think best not the way others think how we should impress this world whose attention span for even the greatest celebrity is very short-lived. So shall we store up our treasures, where certainly our hearts are, in a place where “neither moth and woodworms destroy them nor thieves can break in and steal”?

Swami Snehananda Jyoti