There Always is a Chance

I’ve seen people lamenting over the bad luck befallen over them. At a close observation, we will find that all those situations would have been otherwise, if they had willed it properly and adopted a different befitting approach. The questions, ‘may I smoke while praying’ and ‘may I pray while smoking’ are same in effect. But both these questions invite different answers. The story of a millionaire and a few beggars comes to my mind. I pass it as I received it. 

‘There was a good-natured millionaire in the town. Three beggars thought of approaching him for help. The first man went to the millionaire and said: “O Boss! I want five rupees. Give it to me.”

The millionaire was taken aback at this man’s impudence. “What! You demand five rupees from me as though I owe you the money! How dare you? How can I afford to give five rupees to a single beggar? Here, take these two rupees and get away,” he said. The man went away with the two rupees.

The next beggar went to the millionaire and said: “Oh Boss! I have not taken a square meal for the past ten days. Please help me.” “How much do you want?” asked the millionaire. “Whatever you give me,” replied the beggar. “Here, take this ten rupee note. You can have nice food for at least three days.” The beggar walked away with the ten rupee note. 

The third beggar came. “Oh Boss, I have heard about your noble qualities. Therefore, I have come to see you. Men of such charitable disposition are verily the manifestations of God on earth,” he said.  “Please sit down,” said the millionaire. “You appear to be tired. Please take this food,” he said, and offered food to the beggar. “Now please tell me what I can do for you.” “Oh Boss,” replied the beggar; “I merely came to meet such a noble personage that you are. You have given me this rich food already. What more need I get from you? You have already shown extraordinary kindness towards me. May God bless you!”  

But the millionaire, struck by the beggar’s spirit, begged of the beggar to remain with him, built a decent house for him in his own compound, and looked after him for the rest of his life.

Joseph Mattappallil

Whither Humanity?

Humanity is at crossroads looking for direction. Who can lead humanity from the present malaise? A country that spies on the leaders of its friendly countries, for instance, has lost its moral ground. A true friend does not spy on one’s friend. History tells us that the great models of humanity such as Socrates, Christ, M. K. Gandhi, M. L. King were done away with by the society in which they lived. These guides were non-violent and were ahead of time in attempting to change their corrupt world through their message. Their message related to search for truth, release from physical and spiritual bondage, human rights, right relationship among humans, forgiveness and reconciliation with God and other humans. They invariably went against their culture and value system. They stirred things up. For the establishment they were inconvenient nuisances that stirred up trouble.

Currently politicians and religious leaders try to broker the good society and the Kingdom of God. They, blind as they are, trying to lead us to the promised land. They are bound to fail as they are lost in their own arrogant ignorance and double-talk, and wander in the barren desert of their own hypocrisy. So it is time to be assertive, take back the trust reposed in these leaders, and lead ourselves in the light that we have. At this point we have nothing to lose but our own chains, indolence, ennui, and insecurity. We need to come to the realization that we know what is good for us more than they do, and that we do not need these mediators and exploiting middle men and women to arrive at where we need to go. The sad reality is that these leaders block the road. They themselves do not go and will not let others go. They do not know what is good for them and others. Otherwise they will not be doing what they are doing. The utterly condemnable phenomenon of politicians declaring strikes (hadtal) at their whims in Kerala is unimaginable in a civilized, democratic society. These politicians encouraging anti-social activities represent only evil as they suppress freedom and violate human rights. Who is safe when the Chief Minister of Kerala cannot travel in his state without being attacked and injured in broad daylight? What about a  parish priest condoning or encouraging violence toward innocent persons who have been only doing good for the community? What about Hindu-Muslim pogrom encouraged and supported by religious and political leaders? 

Before we can take over the reins of our own lives, we ourselves need to be armed with a strong value system and a solidly formed conscience. A good value system should comprise truth, justice, fairness, equality, and respect for others and their rights. The Golden Rule of doing to others what we like others to do to us is an excellent summary of a good value system. Our conscience is our light and guide in all situations if we scrupulously and uncompromisingly follow it. Even when we go wrong in anything, our faithfulness to our conscience and our sincerity in following it will come to our rescue, and save us ultimately. This is no small consolation. This also shows our God or the Universal Energy has provided us with all that we need to negotiate the bad and hostile terrain of this world. For humanity to survive and reach its desired goal, we need to re-order our priorities. Currently we are devoting almost all our energy to acquire material wealth. We spare no sacrifice for our material advancement. We need to devote time and energy to our spiritual and mental health. We cannot have physical well-being without spiritual and emotional well-being. We also need to look at humanity from a humanistic perspective wherein humans are responsible for the consequences of their decisions they make in freedom. 

Swami Snehananda Jyoti

GOD – Gives, Owns, Destroys

While I often used to describe the full form of the word GOD as Give Out Distrust to the people who always questioned the concept of GOD, I tried to search the internet to understand how this word originated. Lots of theories came across me, including that which claims it to be of Aryan origin. I also found expansions like Gathering Of Deities, Get Out of Doubt and Giver Of Desires. Somehow I was not convinced. I decided to work out an expansion on a piece of paper whole day, till I got something which electrified a thousand watt bulb in my mind. The final one which I got, not only illuminated my mind, but it gave me as much inner satisfaction as I get when I talk to myself calmly. The expansion I got is the title of this article, I write it here again in a different form as:

GOD Gives, GOD Owns, GOD Destroys.

The word "Gives" explains the attribute which we relate to GOD, i.e., the power of creation. In Indian system we call it as Brahma. The word "Owns" relates to continuity we have while owning something. During the phase of running this world it is actually GOD who owns, not we. This is quite similar to the icon whom we give the name Vishnu. And finally the word "Destroys" explains the end of lifecycle of anything so that it can be created afresh. You guessed it right; I am now talking about God of destruction, Mahesh. This is true that it is a simple alphabet jugglery to just prove a point for the sake of it. But what is so exciting is that this provides with a good memory mnemonic to understand the power of nature so well.

As a science enthusiast, I am surprised that out of these three important aspects, the concept of "how this world runs" is understood only a little bit till date. The concept of "How this world was created" and "How this world would be destroyed" is yet unknown. The recent discovery of Higgs Boson, that we nicely call as "GOD particle" is just a small beginning to venture into the world of unknowns.

Dr. Sunil Ji Garg

Self-Reliance

Every man must carry his own sack to the mill.

Three men are my friends---he that loves me, he that hates me and he that is indifferent to  me. Who loves me, teaches  me  tenderness; who hates me, teaches caution; who is indifferent teaches me self-reliance. Love for oneself is the foundation of a brotherly society and personal peace of mind. We need to  insist on the necessity  of a proper self-regard as a prerequisite  of the good and moral life .Man must be first restored to  himself, that, making in himself as it were a stepping stone, he may rise thence and be borne up to  God. Cure yourself of the inclination to  bother  about how you look to other people. Be concerned only with the idea God has of  you.

Tagore says, with begging and scrambling we find very little, but with being true to  ourselves  we find great deal more than we desire. Learning how to  be  strong, intelligent and balanced; how to  resist fatigue, how to  avoid making oneself detestable to  others is no less essential than eating, sleeping, studying at school or working in the office, farm or factory. Strength of numbers is the delight of the timid. The valiant of spirit glory in fighting alone. Be you one or many, this valour is the only true valour, all else is false. And the valour of the spirit cannot be achieved without Sacrifice, Determination, Faith and Humility. Self-help is the capacity to  stand  on one’s legs without anybody’s help. This does not mean indifference to  or rejection of outside help, but it means the capacity to  be at peace with oneself, to  preserve one’s self-respect, when outside help is not forthcoming or is refused.

In his childhood Alexander the Great  visited  the study of an Athenian sculptor and found it full of little gods. He particularly  liked  one with covered face and winged feet.

“What ‘s  his name?”

“Opportunity”

“Why is his face covered?”

“Because men live so haphazardly that they rarely see it when it passes in front of them.”

Sr (Dr) Lilly Thokkanattu SJL

Non- attachment 7

If we watch the movie which is our mind like a spectator, a witness, without identifying with it, without condemning it, with total disinterest, then we will find the whole movie dropping away. Before long, it disappears. And by and by the witnessing consciousness alone remains, without any object before it. This objectless awareness is alone, and it is aloneness. And one who attains to this aloneness attains to non-attachment. The very experiencing of this consciousness, empty and alone, is non-attachment. The behavior of a man of non-attachment will be radically different from others, and this behavior is called Anasakti Yoga or the discipline of non-attachment. He accepts everything- like a mirror- without attachment or dislike. Now he knows for himself what self-nature is, what non-attachment is. He knows that self-nature and non-attachment are inseparably together, and he also knows that attachment and aversion are just behavioral. 

Having known and understood the Anasakti in depth, his behavior towards outside world will be radically different. For him the world has ceased to be what it was before. His consciousness has undergone a mutation. A man of such consciousness will relate with people and things but he will not enter into relationships involving attachment or aversion. He will mix in society, but his aloneness will remain inviolate and untouched. His mirror of consciousness will reflect both love and war, but in itself will remain unaffected by either. He will no more remain a doer but he will be an actor on the stage of life. If Krishna is anything, he is an actor- a superb actor at that. There has never been a greater and more skilled actor in the whole world history of mankind. He is incomparable even as an actor- he who turned the whole world into a stage. If a wooden stage can be used for a performance, why not the whole world is? The world is turned into a leela, a theatrical performance. We all can play our roles as actors and performers. An actor weeps and laughs, but tears and laughter don’t bind him. When he loves he does not love, when he fights he does not fight. He is never involved in the roles as us the worldly people. He plays the friend and foe without being involved in friendship and enmity. 

The life one, who treats everything as play-acting becomes a triangle, a complete triangle. Ordinarily our life is only two points of triangle, while the third is submerged in darkness. While the two points of triangle, the aversion and attachment are functioning and visible, the third angle of non-attachment is shrouded in darkness. A person of non-attachment brings this third side into light, and the triangle becomes complete. In reality, he exists in the third point, and to be on this third point is called anasakti or non-attachment. 

Wishing you good health and happiness,

Dr. Dwarakanath, Director, Mitran foundation- the stress management

Grace of God

Most of us have our own version of God’s grace. When the events of life appear favourable to us, we feel the grace of God but when it is not so, our faith in Him is shaken and we feel that the grace of God is missing. I feel that it is not fair to blame God and by thinking this way, we show our complete ignorance about Him. The fact is that all acts of God or Nature are blessings only and they have a positive purpose behind them. Even the so-called unfavourable events fall in the category of blessings. It is a different matter that we fail to understand the purpose behind them. Quite often they happen for setting our karmic account in balance and the sooner it happens, the better it is. I am sharing here a personal incident to establish this fact. 

Once, I was visiting Mirzapur in eastern UP with a good friend of mine who belonged to a political party and had been a minister in the state government. We both had a spiritual leaning and any interaction with him was always a joy. We travelled together in the same car from Lucknow to Mirzapur, which took about six hours. This period passed very pleasantly on account of our common interest. We reached straight to a guest house and took some rest after lunch. We stayed in the same room. 

In the afternoon, the attendant brought tea for us with separate milk and sugar. First, he asked my friend whether he would take sugar or not. To this, he said that he would because he had no sugar problem by the grace of God. At that time, he did not realise that I was diabetic, a fact which was very well known to him. Then the attendant turned towards me and asked the same question. I had very carefully noticed the reply of my friend and so in the same tone I said that I won’t because I had sugar problem by the grace of God. This answer immediately drew the attention of my friend who realised the narrowness of his definition of God’s grace. He also regretted his words, which of course was not necessary, as far as I was concerned. Then our discussion turned to the subject of God’s grace and we realised the true impact of it. He fully agreed with my version which has been mentioned in the beginning. 

The reason for this narrow version of God’s grace is that we don’t consider ourselves a part of Nature and in the process stop following its laws. When we do so, Nature only tries to amend us and if we still don’t pay heed to it, the laws of Nature operate and this operation appears to us as the lack of God’s grace. Also, life cannot be seen as a close- ended process, and so our sense of time may not match with the timing of Nature’s process. That is why, at times, good persons appear to be suffering and not so good prospering. Once we understand this secret of Nature, we start seeing God’s grace in all the events of our life.

Rakesh Mittal IAS

God-Consciousness

There are many existing realities for which we do not have answers. How did our universe come into being? How is there such order and predictability in this universe? Every day we are discovering new facts that throw more light on this universe. Our faith supplies answers to some questions that give not only purpose to our life but also help us cope with our life. God is a postulate of our faith. Christians believe that Christ, the incarnation of the second person of the Holy Trinity, revealed his Father – God – to humanity. Hindus especially in Advaida (non-duality) believe that God and humanity are one like an ocean and its waves. And we have wonderful treatises of speculative theology and traditions in both religions. God is the only thing that matters for those who believe in God. Apart from revelations or speculations, how we came to the consciousness of God always fascinated me. How then did we come to the consciousness of God?

Before Vedas and Vedantas including Upanishads and Bhagavadgita of the Hindus, there was no mention of God in the East. Mono-theistic concept of God primarily comes from the Judeo-Christian scriptures (Bible) originating in the Middle East and spreading to the East and the West. Both the Eastern and the Middle-Eastern scriptures were believed to be revealed by God. Primitive humans either feared or worshipped primeval forces. So we can only speculate on how humans came into God-consciousness. It makes extremely good sense to think that as finite humans evolved in reflection, meditation, and consciousness, they got into the depth of their being where nothing else but an infinite Fullness of Being, that is God, satisfied them and gave meaning, purpose, and fulfillment to their life. Once we arrive at this kind of deep thinking where we experience emotional, if not intellectual, satisfaction with a Supreme Being, the leap of faith into the lap of a God who provides for us and takes care of us in every way becomes easy. For most of us, if not all, who have been born into very religious families with strong belief systems and traditions in this day and age, all the thinking and searching have been done by those who have gone before us. So the day we were born, deep programming began. For us to question or not to believe in what we have been programmed over the years would be fraught with dangers.  At this point all I want to say is that I continue to have doubts but I continue to will and choose to believe. I certainly envy the faith of St. Paul or Mahatma  Gandhi or my own mother. And I say with St. Peter who, reminded of his little faith by the Lord, said: 

“Lord, I want to believe; but help my unbelief”.

A Hindu sanyasi (monk) friend of mine told me the other day: “Swamiji,  nothing else except prayer matters; He (God) is everything; I am nothing”. I responded: “God is everything, but I am also everything in my own unique way as a child God”.  I read a summary of a recent interview given by Pope Francis to Jesuit journalists. Asked as to who he was, the pope replied: “I am a sinner”. I want to appreciate his humility or self-emptying (kenosis) as I think he was sincere. But I do not agree with him as he is defining himself negatively. Sin is absence of goodness or some particular virtue.  We are all saints as children of God and friends of Christ; we are called to be saints. We all as humans fall short of the mark, and do things that we should not, and do not do the things that we should. We fall down, get up, and progress in perfection. That is what really matters. So God is more intimate to us than we ourselves are as St. Augustine said. We live, move, and have our being in God as St. Paul said. We are all Brahmacharis, that is walkers or movers in God. So God-eneregy saves us all when we want to save ourselves. All that matters is our sincerity. The deeper we get into our inner being, the more intense we are aware of that Presence who wants to take us beyond us. God-consciousness resides in the depth of our being. It does not matter what kind of faith I have; for me I am satisfied with the desire to have the right faith as the mystic Thomas Merton indicated. As for God-consciousness, it does not matter as I am always in God, and God is always in me. Am I aware of my breathing or the blood flowing in me when I am asleep?! No. I need to be aware of that Universal Force within me and around me. That consciousness is all that matters. That alone is my Bliss.

Swami Snehananda Jyoti