Bharatheeyam : ( 08/11/2012. )

02/02/2017. Chapter 13 : Lord Skanda – The Concentrated Divine Energy -1. Skanda-Shashthi message given on the 9th of November, 1980. 1. In the history of language and literature, the most outstanding works are the epics of the various nations.  In Bharatham, we have the Itihasas and also the Puranas. Here, in this type of poetry and expression, the soul rises to the maximum of its virility and portrays in the most majestic manner the picture of creation. The intention of these poets,  is to describe in soulful language and in picturesque style, the processes of creation, the comedy and the tragedy of evolution and involution, the story of the life of man which is painted sometimes with the optimistic colours of comedy and sometimes with the pessimistic ones of tragedy. Life is both, and it can be pictured from two different angles of vision. The central motif of all the epics of the world hinges upon a conflict which gets resolved in the end. Somehow, the...

26/01/2017 Chapter -12. Yajna – Quintessence of the Culture of India-17. Deepavali message given on the 25th of October, 1973. Dipavali means the line of lights. 'Dipa' is light, and 'Avali' means line. So, Dipavali, or the festival of the line of lights, is the celebration of the rise of Knowledge. It is also the celebration of the victory of the Sattvic or divine elements in us over the Rajasic and Tamasic or baser elements which are the real Asuras, the Rakshasas – Narakasura and others. The whole world is within us. The whole cosmos can be found in a microscopic form in our own body. Rama-Ravana-Yuddha and Tarakasura-Vadha, and all such epic wars – everything is going on inside us. This Dipavali is thus also a psychological context, wherein we contemplate in our own selves the holy occasion of self-mastery, self-subjugation and self-abnegation, leading to the rise of all spiritual virtues which are regarded as lustre or radiance emanating from Self...

19/01/2017 Chapter -12. Yajna – Quintessence of the Culture of India-16. Deepavali message given on the 25th of October, 1973. 1. So, the sum and substance of the message connected with Dipavali is : - that it is a three-day festival beginning with Naraka Chaturdasi, a day prior to Amavasya; then the main Lakshmi worship day, which is Amavasya itself; and the third day which is Bali Padya, connected with the honour bestowed upon Bali Chakravarti as a devotee of Bhagavan Narayana. 2. It is also an occasion for spiritual exhilaration, a lighting-up of all darkness, socially as well as personally, outwardly and inwardly, for the purpose of allowing an entry of the Supreme Light of God into the hearts of all people. Swami Krishnananda To be continued ...

12/01/2017 Chapter -12. Yajna – Quintessence of the Culture of India-15. Deepavali message given on the 25th of October, 1973. There is a third aspect of it which is called Bali Padya, the day following Amavasya. It does not look that the Bali Padya festival is directly connected with Lakshmi Puja or Naraka Chaturdasi. But it has another background altogether, namely, the blessing Narayana, in His incarnation as Vamana, bestowed upon the demon-king Bali Chakravarti, whom He subdued when He took a Cosmic Form in the Yajnasala of Bali, the details of which we can read in the Srimad Bhagavata Mahapurana. Bali Chakravarti was himself a great devotee, an ideal king and ruler, and having submitted himself to being thrown into the nether regions by the pressure of the foot of Narayana in the Cosmic Form, it appears he begged of Him to have some occasion to come up to the surface of the earth and then be recognised as a devotee of Bhagavan Narayana Himself. This recognition, this ...

05/01/2017. "Very important - A Nation is built from the tradition of family! Read carefully, understand, keep in mind and apply the lesson day to day life." Chapter -12. Yajna – Quintessence of the Culture of India-14. Deepavali message given on the 25th of October, 1973. 14.1.1 We have various occasions throughout the year to remind us of the threefold duty. They are called Vratas, some of which are annual, some monthly, and some daily. The Dipavali Vrata is observed every year on the fourteenth day (Chaturdasi) of the dark fortnight in the month of Kartika (October-November). 14.1.2 People take a holy oil bath, put on new clothes, and eat delicious dishes. Crackers are burst, and lines of light are lit everywhere. There is an atmosphere of gaiety and sanctity. Goddess Lakshmi is worshipped and Divine grace is invoked. 14.1.3 Though there are many stories associated with this celebration of Dipavali, the prominent one is the killing of the demon Narakasura by Lord Sri Kr...

"Very important - A Nation is built from the tradition of family! Read carefully, understand, keep in mind and apply the lesson day to day life." Chapter -12. Yajna – Quintessence of the Culture of India-13. Deepavali message given on the 25th of October, 1973. Whatever it is, when knowledge gets adulterated through intense sensory activity, weakness of will and lack of moral force, the understanding of Dharma also falls. So we must have a whip to goad us to the path of Dharma, spirituality and God-consciousness. The tradition of India, Bharatavarsha, is full of such goading whips. While the Vedas, the Puranas and the epics may be said to be direct teachers in an institution or an academy, the culture of India has also instituted many occasions for bringing home to our minds the facts of our eternal glory and our duties to God, the world and mankind. We owe three kinds of duties which are mentioned in the eighteenth chapter of the Bhagavadgita: - "Yajno d...

"Very important - A Nation is built from the tradition of family! Read carefully, understand, keep in mind and apply the lesson day to day life." Chapter -12. Yajna – Quintessence of the Culture of India-12. Deepavali message given on the 25th of October, 1973. In villages, some ladies have a peculiar habit. Suppose a lady wants a sari. She cannot tell her husband directly, "I want a sari." So, she will say, "The neighbour's wife has purchased a new sari today. It is very good, very nice. I saw it myself." Her husband understands her intentions. He will say, "Why do you describe all these things? All right, I will purchase one for you." And the poor man purchases a sari. The epics and Puranas follow a similar indirect way of instructing the truths. But the Vedas directly tell the truth, openly: "You must do this; it is like this." This is scientific. Science always plainly tells the truth as it is, without any camouflag...