31.What is equivalent to performing Ashwamedha Yaga?
Charity to the Poor,
Initiating Puja for a temple, which is without it,
Helping to dispose of a body which has no claimants.
The last has no equal.
* These have been collected from various Shastras, from the Sayings of Lord Krishna, Nakula, Sahadeva,Sanskrit Literature, Bhartrihari.Neeti Satakam,Vidur Neeti,Bhishma Parva of The Mahabharata,
Following the Karma Kanda of the Vedas also binds you.
The performance of Yajnyas lead to bondage y giving Beneficial Results.
So much so, the ‘Chamaka'(of Sri Rudra Prasna) says ‘Yajnyo Yagyena kalpathaam’, May the resultsof the Yajnyas be sacrificed in this Yajnya.
( The difference between a Yaga and Yagnya is that the Yaga is performed with a specific result in mind as a Resolution or Sankalpa, The Yagnya is performed because it has to be performed with out any resolutions.)
What happens if we follow this path?
You are not the Enjoyed,the Enjoyed or the process of enjoyment.’Aham Bhojanam Naiva Bhojyam Na Bhoktaa’
You become ‘Cid-Aananda-Ruupah Shivo[a-A]ham Shivo[a-A]ham’
You become the Supreme Consciousness,Bliss,That which is always Auspicious(Sivam)
न पुण्यं न पापं न सौख्यं न दुःखं
न मन्त्रो न तीर्थो न वेदो न यज्ञ ।
अहं भोजनं नैव भोज्यं न भोक्ता
चिदानन्दरूपः शिवोऽहम् शिवोऽहम् ॥४॥
Na Punnyam Na Paapam Na Saukhyam Na Duhkham
Na Mantro Na Tiirtho Na Vedo Na Yajnya |
Aham Bhojanam Naiva Bhojyam Na Bhoktaa
Cid-Aananda-Ruupah Shivo[a-A]ham Shivo[a-A]ham
It does not believe in Numbers, nor in Proselytism.
As a matter of fact, The Vedas do not mention collective worship at all.
Those who disseminate Knowledge did so, free of cost, after evaluating the student’s aptitude.
Symbolism Of Lord Ganesh.
However a token was accepted, of the Teacher‘s choosing, from the students’ parents, either to make people understand that nothing must be gained free of cost or to test the skill-set and dedication of the Student.
Lord Krishna was asked to save Santipini’s son from a demon in the Ocean, as Guru dakshina.
By doing so, Lord Krishna acquired his famous Panchajanya.
Drona asked, nay punished Ekalaivya by asking for his Thumb, this is an exception, for this act his son Aswathama was cursed to roam as Chiranjeevi (ever living) in the forest.
Or the Gurus asked of their students to undertake a mission for the welfare of the Society.
But never they hankered after wealth for their efforts.
One must remember in the Vedic System of Life, the students were living with the Teacher in his household, partaking what was available;their parents, however rich were not permitted to offer anything.
Over a period of years the system of conveying the Vedic Thoughts, The Ithihasa, Ramayana, Mahabharata and others came into vogue.
When it started the preachers never accepted anything but were driven the noble thought of spreading the Good Word.
Over a period of time, this become an Industry where people , in the garb of disseminating knowledge have started making money and only money, with presenting facts that would suit the audience.
The system of negotiating Rates for Pravachana began.
Till some time back there was this habit of’ ‘taking the plate around’ among the audience to raise for some noble cause;later it degenerated into collecting money from the audience for the preacher!
Now with Media networks running wild to make quick buck by presenting miish mash of programmes called Religious, popular figures in the filed of preaching are called in.
What they do more is to advertise themselves, distort stories.Philosophy to suit TRP!
Nauseating is their naked lust for money and fame.
Worse is their treatment of people who attend their Pravachanas or Preaching, Kathas.
People come to their Pravachanas or Kathas to know more of the Subject.
They are treated with contempt,; the man does not even acknowledge you or at times if he inclined will tell you rudely’he has no time”
This applies all the Pravachanakarthas including Velukkudi Krishna who is the craze now.
He stares at you indifferently and keeps mum or looks at some body.
But hear his Pravachanas, you would believe he is embodiment of Knowledge, Wisdom,Eager to help people and, as irony would have it,Humble!
I recall Sri Kripanandavariar , great preacher asking people in the midst of a Lecture for their doubts and clearing them on the spot!
If one were to approach him later, he would patiently explain things till he was satisfied that you understood him!
Preachers of Hinduism, what you are doing is not Dharma and you are insulting Hinduism
Note.People might ask me why I have not said anything about Christian Preacher,..
Well…it is their profession sanctioned(?) by their Religion.
Nor I am saying anything about the self-styled Gurus, like Chandrasawmi,Baba Ramdev or the one who teaches the ‘Art of Living’ as if Hinduism teaches the ‘Science of Death!’
These guys should remember what would be their position that if Vedas, Bhagavad Gita, Ramayana, Mahabharata,Yoga had Copyright and IPR!
My son was telling me( he is a Believer, Agnostic and a Non believer, all rolled into one, don’t ask me how, he is-I do not tell him what he should,on occasions I used to suggest him when he is that state of Mind to enquire within;he also knows the essentials of Indian Thought and knows important Sruti by heart) and an hour ago asked my that Miracles happened in the past ,especially in Treta Yuga( an Indian Aeon) and people thought of God and He appeared and why they do not now,
In Indian Philosophy, unlike in other Philosophical Systems of the World, there is no such thing as ‘Super Natural’
For a Hindu, everything in the Universe is natural, be it Rebirth, Good Actions producing good results, Bad, the bad.Clairvoyance and the like and God.
God would appear if one where to call out to Him..
Belief is the feeling that some thing or some event would be the same way as it has been in our experience..
Child believes that its Mother would take care of it.
This kind Belief turns into Faith when the Belief turns out to be true at all times in one’s experience.
This Faith performs the seemingly impossible.
Faith is clothed as ‘Positive thoughts’ in modern parlance.
When one thinks he has Faith, he has lost it.
It should be as natural as breathing and to cite a daily example ‘the morning Ablutions’.
These things, you do not contemplate, analyse,but are Natural.
When one thinks he has Faith, he is aware of it and expects things to happen definitely.
But if this feeling is natural, you do not even for a second contemplate the desired result, because you are unconsciously convinced the that the desired result would be there and It is there for you..
Pu it simply, it is the Faith of the Child in its Mother.
In this sense, Faith does not perform Miracles,
It does , when one does and has the disposition of doing things naturally.
For people of the earlier Yugas, Miracles and Faith did not exist separately for them.
Faith was in their being and the result was embedded in that Feeling.
Hence they could do and see things which we, to-day call as Miracles .
He never thought it was faith, it was a natural feeling with him.
If he had Faith on Lord Krishna only because he believed Krishna to be God , Arjuna would not have called Krishna as ‘a Cowherd, Friend(yadava, Saket and in many instances ridiculed him(He apologized to Krishna in The Bhagavad Gita for this in The Viswaroopa chapter of the Srimad Bhagavad Gita)
Arjuna took Krishna as his friend and treated him accordingly and what we call Miracles to-day were there for him.
The moment Arjuna felt differently, he was routed.
There is a story in the Mahabharata which narrates this point.
After the passing away of Lord Krishna(the term Dehavyoha is to be used here), Arjuna’s wives were captured by ordinary Dacoits..
Arjuna got agitated and swore that he would finish the dacoits off , get his wives back and bragged that those dacois did not know the power of Arjuna and his Kandipa(Arjuna’s Bow)
Narada just smiled and accompanied Arjuna in this assault on the dacoits.
Arjuna’s Kandiva was ineffective , broken and he was squarely beaten by the dacoits.
He asked Narada what happened to him and his Kandiva.
Narada replied,
‘You forgot the essential part of You, Lord Krishna; so long He was apart of You naturally , you vanquished every one.
Now you are humiliated”
Arjuna yearns for Krishna and got his wives back after defeating the dacoits with his Kandiva.
So long as belief and Faith natural and a part of you, nothing is a Miracle.
You shall get whatever you want( so long it does not run contrary to Dharma(Righteousness)
This self belief is to be inculcated in the Children right from their infancy as it has been the case with Dhruv(Dhruva) or Prahlad.
Then there are no Mountains, only mole hills in Life.
( As water from Rains, in the form Rivulets, Streams. Ponds, Rivers ultimately reaches and get submerged in the Ocean and become a part of it,worship of all and any God ultimately reaches Kesava( Lord Vishnu)
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