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A Cultural and Spiritual Monthly of the Ramakrishna Order since 1914

TheVedanta

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The GuruSwami Vivekananda

The Value of DisciplineProf. Sudha Shastri

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Editor: Swami mahamedhananda Published by Swami Vimurtananda, Sri Ramakrishna Math, Chennai - 600 004 and

Printed by B. Rajkumar, Chennai - 600 014 on behalf of Sri Ramakrishna Math Trust, Chennai - 600 004 and Printed at M/s. Rasi Graphics Pvt. Limited, No.40, Peters Road, Royapettah, Chennai - 600014.

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देवि सुरेश्वरर भगिवि गङ्े, वरिभुिनिाररवि िरलिरङ्े । शङ्करमौवलवनिावसवन विमले, मम मविरासिाां िि पदकमले ॥

O stainless pure one who resides in the matted locks of Shankara, may

my devotion remain firmly established on your lotus feet.

हररपादपद्मिरवङ्वि गङ्े, वहमविधुमुक्ाधिलिरङ्े । दूरीकुरु मम दुषककृविभारां, कुरु ककृपया भिसागरपारम् ॥

O Mother, please remove the burden in my mind created by evil deeds, and 

by your grace finally make me cross the ocean of samsara.

—Sri Shankaracharya

Ganga Dashahara on 12 June 2019 at

Belur Math

Gangotri M

andir

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Lyrics in Terracotta – Ratneshwar Temple of BhattamatiDevashis Nandy

Sant TukaramArpana Ghosh

Bishop John J. Keane: In Defense of Swami VivekanandaAsim Chaudhuri

The GuruSwami Vivekananda

The Value of DisciplineProf. Sudha Shastri

The ‘As’-‘Is’ HybridSwami Satyapriyananda

FEATURES

7 Dakäiëàmùrti Stotra 8 Yugavani 9 Editorial18 Reminiscences27 Vivekananda Way33 Pariprasna40 Book Reviews48 What is Religion?50 Topical Musings52 The Order on the March

Poorva: Magic, Miracles and the Mystical TwelveLakshmi Devnath

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A Cultural and Spiritual Monthly of The Ramakrishna Order

JULY 2019

The VedanTa Kesari106th

Year of Publication

CONTENTS Vol. 106, No. 7 ISSN 0042-2983

Editor: Swami mahamedhananda Published by Swami Vimurtananda, Sri Ramakrishna Math, Chennai - 600 004 and

Printed by B. Rajkumar, Chennai - 600 014 on behalf of Sri Ramakrishna Math Trust, Chennai - 600 004 and Printed at M/s. Rasi Graphics Pvt. Limited, No.40, Peters Road, Royapettah, Chennai - 600014.

Website: www.chennaimath.org E-mail: vk@chennaimath.org

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Dear Readers,The Vedanta Kesari is one of the oldest cultural

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1909 the magazine publication became irregular, and stopped in 1914 whereupon the Ramakrishna

Order revived it as The Vedanta Kesari. Swami Vivekananda’s concern for the

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Dakäiëàmùrti StotraSri Shankaracharya

Verse 7बालयारदषिवप जाग्रदारदषु िथा सिावासििसथासिवपवयािृत्ासिनुििवामानमहवमतयनिसस्ुरनिां सदा ।सिातमानां प्रकटीकरोवि भजिाां यो मुद्रया भद्रयािसममै श्ीगुरुमूिवाये नम इदां श्ीदवषििामूिवाये ॥ ७ ॥7.  Obeisance  to  Śrī  Dakṣiṇāmūrti, who  is  the 

Guru, who by the auspicious mudrā1 is revealing to his votaries2 his own Self3, which is persistently present  as  the  ‘I’  always  shining  inside,  in  all  the various and mutually exclusive states like childhood etc. as also waking etc.4

Notes:

1. Mudrās are certain mystic poses of  fingers and hands. Sometimes a mudrā is defined as that which gives pleasure (mudaṁ rāti) to the gods and make their hearts melt out of compassion (= drāvayati). Sculptured images of gods invariably  exhibit  the  mudrās.  Dakṣiṇāmūrti  is  usually  shown  with  the  cinmudrā or jñānamudrā, the pose indicating transmission of wisdom.

2. Unless one takes refuge in the guru, he will not teach spiritual wisdom. The Gītā (4.34) says:

िवविवधि प्रविपािेन पररप्रश्ेन सेिया ।उपदेक्यननि िे ज्ानां ज्ावनन ित्िदवशवानः ।।

‘Know  that  (Truth)  by  making  obeisance  to  the  knowers  of  Truth  and  by  asking inquisitive questions. (Those) wise men, the seers of Truth, will teach you (that) knowledge.’

3. The Self of Īśvara, the Supreme Lord, and the Parama-guru, the Supreme Teacher, is the same as the Self of all beings. This has already been dealt with in the previous sections.

4. Whatever be the state, the sense of ‘I’ inside does not change. ‘I, who was a child, am now an old man’; ‘I, who had slept, am waking up now’; ‘I, who was seeing, am now hearing’—This is how the ‘I’-consciousness persists through all the states.

Dakṣiṇāmūrti Stotra with Mānasollāsa. Translated and Annotated by Swami Harshananda

Yugavani

Ego alone the cause of bondageSir, why are we bound like this? Why don’t we see 

God? Maya is nothing but the egotism of the embodied 

soul. This egotism has covered everything like a veil. ‘All troubles come to an end when the ego dies.’ If by the grace of God a man but once realizes that he is not the doer,  then he at once becomes a  Jivanmukta. Though living in the body, he is liberated. He has nothing else to fear.

This maya,  that  is  to say,  the ego,  is  like a cloud. The sun cannot be seen on account of a  thin patch of cloud; when that disappears one sees the sun. If by the grace of the guru one’s ego vanishes, then one sees God.

Ego creates upadhisThe jiva is nothing but the embodiment of Satchidananda. But since maya, or ego, has 

created various upadhis, he has forgotten his real Self.Each upadhi changes man’s nature. If he wears a fine black-bordered cloth, you will at 

once  find him humming Nidhu Babu’s  love-songs. Then playing-cards and a walking-stick follow. If even a sickly man puts on high boots, he begins to whistle and climbs the stairs like an Englishman, jumping from one step to another. If a man but holds a pen in his hand, he scribbles on any paper he can get hold of—such is the power of the pen!

Erase the EgoA man cannot realize God unless he gets rid of all such egotistic ideas as ‘I am such an 

important man’ or ‘I am so and so’. Level the mound of ‘I’ to the ground by dissolving it with tears of devotion. 

Vijnani’s understanding of EgoThe man coming down from samadhi perceives that it is Brahman that has become the 

ego, the universe, and all living beings. This is known as vijnana.      

Ego in KaliyugaIn the Kaliyuga the life of man is centred on food. He cannot get rid of the feeling that he 

is the body and the ego. Therefore, the path of devotion is prescribed for this cycle. —Sri Ramakrishna

Ego

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Shiva Jnane Jiva Seva

Editorial

of that Revelation unto men which was the life and  gospel  of  Sri  Ramakrishna.’  One  such profound idea that Swamiji discovered from an everyday conversation, was Shiva Jnane Jiva Seva.

One  day,  when  sitting  in  his  room  at Dakshineswar  surrounded  by  Naren  (later Swami Vivekananda) and other disciples, Sri Ramakrishna  spoke  about  the  Vaishnava religion  and  explained  the  three  practices enjoined upon its followers – relish for the name  of  God,  compassion  for  all  living creatures, and service to the Vaishnavas. Even as  he  uttered,  ‘compassion  for  all  living creatures’, Sri Ramakrishna entered into Samadhi!  After  some  time  as  he  came  out  of that deep level of consciousness, he said to himself, ‘… Compassion for creatures! … No, it cannot be. It is not compassion for others, but rather service to man, recognizing him to be the veritable manifestation  of  God!’ When  Naren came out of the room he told the others, ‘What a  strange  light  have  I  discovered  in  those wonderful  words  of  the  Master!  …  I  have understood that  the  ideal of Vedanta  lived by the recluse outside  the pale of society can be practised even from hearth and home and applied to all our daily schemes of life. …’ Later as Swami Vivekananda, he preached this idea across the world as Practical Vedanta.  

Serving God in man is indeed an ancient spiritual practice. But it had remained confined to a small group of people. It was the genius of Swami Vivekananda that he unveiled the full dimension of serving Jiva as Shiva. He traced it to the positive approach to life which sees the whole creation as divine. This affirmation of life in  a  spirit  of  consecration  is  the  basis  from which people can discover their fundamental

‘He who knows how to serve, knows how to rule,’ wrote Swami Vivekananda. 

Recently, the Prime Minister of India echoed  this  idea  in  his  first  address  to  the parliamentarians of the ruling party elected to the 17th  Lok  Sabha.  He  called  upon  the parliamentarians to remain unattached to power, because power is intoxicating. To be free from its disorienting  influence  he  advised  them  to cultivate the spirit of Shiva Jnane Jiva Seva—‘to serve man as God’ as taught by Sri Ramakrishna. He asserted that there couldn’t be a greater or better  path  than  this  spirit  of  seva  to  achieve their own good and the good of the country. To the extent they developed this seva bhav, he assured them, the intoxication of power would decrease and the blessings of people increase. 

Sometimes, hidden in the folds of everyday events, life presents a profound thought,  a  subtle  insight,  or  the  deepest transcendental truths. Ordinary minds usually fail  to  perceive  these  gifts.  It  requires  a disciplined, creative mind to discover them.  

In the presence of an avatara these revelations of life are grand and world-moving. As  the  avatara  is  the  embodiment  of  Life,  he presents ideas vital for the evolution of higher life in that age. More than a hundred years ago, Sri Ramakrishna, the avatara of the Age, gave us a  flood  of  such  ideas.  Those  around  him, disciples  and  lay  householders,  according  to their capacity caught some of these ideas and worked them out. But it was given to his chief disciple  Swami  Vivekananda  to  recognise, interpret  and broadcast  the  core  teachings of the avatara. As The Life of Swami Vivekananda puts  it,  ‘His  soul  was  most  attuned  to  the spiritual vibrations of the Master’s words. Thus he read volumes where others read but pages 

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oneness  with  the  whole  humanity  and  bring about real harmony of mind and heart. 

Serving fellow beings as manifestations of God  also  transforms  the  receiver.  In  a  relief work  undertaken  in  a  slum  by  one  of  the Ramakrishna Math centres, the swami in-charge explained in simple terms the divinity in man  and  after  leading  them  in  devotional singing and prayers, joined them in eating the food  offered  to  God.  Two  women  then approached him and said, ‘Because we are poor and live in a slum, people sometimes come and  give  us  old  clothes  and  left-over  food.  We feel small. Today, when we had prasad we felt  a  sense  of  peace  and  dignity; we may  be poor,  but  we  know  we  are  really  equal  to others.’

But  is  it  so  easy  to  see  fellow  human beings  as  God  and  serve  them?  It  requires  a long  methodical  preparation.  Swamiji prescribed  a  three-step  process  that  will gradually empower us to perceive the divinity in  man.  The  first  step  is  to  feel  with  a sympathetic heart the miseries and challenges experienced by the masses. This feeling should be so intense that it pulsates in our blood and nerve currents. When  the whole body  is  thus tuned to the real needs of fellow beings, we are ready  for  the  second step. This  is  to discover the means to relieve individual and social miseries.  These  solutions,  Swamiji  stresses, should be in line with our cultural and spiritual heritage. The  third  step  is  to  strictly monitor our motive in service and make sure that we ‘are not actuated by greed of gold’ or, ‘by thirst for  fame  or  power.’  If  our  legislators  and administrators can be trained to think, feel, and act in this manner, they will manifest their higher  nature,  and  the  whole  system  of governance will evolve to Shiva Jnane Jiva Seva. 

What is the right time to learn and imbibe the spirit of Shiva Jnane Jiva Seva? Childhood is the answer. Education is the only tool that can effect a  large scale social transformation.  It  is 

on the foundation of education that a civilisation  is  built.  The  greatness  of  ancient India was based on its knowledge system which was centered around the guru. It was a system whose  every  aspect was  firmly  linked with  a religious,  spiritual  outlook.  Education  in modern India too should be rooted in the twin ideals of Renunciation and Service that Swami Vivekananda presented as our national ideals. Our students have to learn to renounce the lower  ego  which  functions  as  selfishness, jealousy,  etc.  And  they  should  pursue knowledge not for mere livelihood, but to serve the nation. 

The Draft of National Educational Policy 2019,  released  last month,  speaks of  training school  children  in ethical  reasoning and  then inculcating in them ‘traditional Indian values of seva, ahimsa, swacchata, satya, nishkama karma, tolerance, honest hard work’ etc. But it should be noted that ethical reasoning cannot effect a spiritual orientation, and without a spiritual  outlook,  values  by  themselves  are ineffectual  for  the  good  of  humanity.  The University  Education  Commission  1948-49, headed by Dr. S. Radhakrishnan rightly notes: ‘We have to understand that the great virtues of loyalty,  courage,  discipline  and  self-sacrifice may be used for good or bad ends. These are essential  for  a  successful  citizen  as  for  a successful  villain.  What makes a man truly virtuous is the purpose for which he lives, his general outlook on life. Virtue and vice are determined by the direction in which we move, by the way in which we organize our life. Unless morality  is  taken  in  a  larger  sense,  it  is  not enough.  If we exclude spiritual training in our institutions, we would be untrue to our whole historical development.’

May the Guru who resides in our heart give us the strength to serve Him in our fellow beings. May He lead us from untruth to truth, from ignorance to knowledge, and from death to life eternal. 

The most popular of all the Maharashtrian devotional saints is undoubtedly Sant Tukaram (1608?-

1650). His songs for Vitthala of Pandharpur so deeply  influenced  Marathi  literature  and culture that they literally have become part of Maharashtra’s  public  memory!  There  is  no home,  no  village  where  someone  doesn’t memorize at least a couple of Tukoba’s abhangs – many know hundreds by heart! Coming from an  ordinary  background,  showing  his  full tangible  humanness  by  laying  bare  his anxieties, sufferings, weaknesses; speaking the simple tongue of the common people, Tukaram is very much a saint the masses can identify with; they regard him as one of themselves!

In a famous abhang –santa kripa jhali–his disciple  Bahinabai  visualizes  this  Bhakti-Sampraday, the Varkari-Panth, as a temple built over  the  last  eight  centuries  with  the contributions  and  blessings  of  all  the sants, culminating in Sant Tukaram as the kalash or pinnacle. Not because he was greater than the other saints in his realizations, but because the teachings of this grand, straight and simple path of bhakti came to full fruition in him. He is the people’s  poet  –  millions  of  illiterate  villagers have been voicing  their prayers of  love of God through  Tukoba’s  abhangs,  receiving  all necessary spiritual instructions through them.

He  not  only  realized  God  himself,  but brought God-realization within the easy reach of all!

‘Jnanoba  –  Tukaram’  are  the  two  great names  chanted  by  hundreds  of  thousands  of Varkaris during the annual Ashad-pilgrimage to Pandharpur.  Sant  Jnaneshvar–the  foundation, and Sant Tukaram–the pinnacle, contain within them the blessings of all the other bhakti-saints over the centuries.

LifeSant Tukaram (1608?-1650) was born in 

Dehu, a small village near Pune, not  far away from  Alandi,  the  sanjivan-samadhi  of  Sant Jnaneshvar. Both towns lie on the banks of the river Indrayani.

Tukaram’s  family were devoted Varkaris going  back  for  generations.  One  of  his ancestors, Vishvambar, was so attracted to Lord Vitthala that he would walk the distance of 250 km to Pandharpur twice a month for ekadashis! Moved by this great ‘love-toil’ of their bhakta, Vitthal  and  Rukmini manifested  in  two  black stone  murtis  in  Dehu  itself  and  became Tukaram’s ancestral deities!

Tukaram   h imse l f   wro te   many autobiographical  abhangs.  He  calls  himself  a ‘Kumbi’, a peasant and trader. Having inherited the office of ‘Mahajan’, they were also revenue-collectors  and moneylenders.  The  family was initially  well-off  and  by  no  means  socially backward. Tukaram, the second of three sons, was married early and since his first wife was ailing  and  couldn’t  cope  with  the  household chores, he married a second time.

Sant Tukaram

Arpana Ghosh, a German by birth, is settled in Chennai for 27 years. She has embraced Vitthal Bhakti and is Vitthal’s German Varkari. arpana-ghosh@hotmail.com

Cover Story

ARPANA GHOSH

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Then  adversity  struck. His  parents  died and  he  had  to  shoulder  the  burden  of  his extended family at the tender age of 17. Initially he  showed  a  good  hand  with  his  father’s business, but gradually he ran into losses. In a terrible famine his first wife Rakhuma and his elder  son  starved  to  death,  and  though  he strove hard, borrowed money and tried various trades,  he  was  driven  to  bankruptcy  and penury. The village council humiliated him and stripped him of his ‘mahajan’ title!

Tukaram   became   very desperate.  Devastated  by  the horrors of the famine and failure after failure to make a living, he now turned whole-heartedly to their family-deity Vitthala.

In  an  autobiographical  abhang  he says kaya khave ata…, ‘What to eat? Where to go? What to do? On whose support? I’m tired of everything  -  I  shall  now  go  and  find  out Vitthala!’

Tukoba’s one-pointed devotionHe  set  out  with  an  unparalleled  one-

pointedness, thinking day and night of nothing else  than  Panduranga.  He  repaired  the  old Vitthala shrine and spent most of the time there or  in  the wilderness  of  the  nearby  Bhandara and Bhamchander hills, meditating on Vitthala and trying to study the  Jnaneshvari and other writings  of  the  previous  sants.  He  entirely stopped  working  for  a  living.  There  was no income and he hardly paid attention to household responsibilities; his wife had to fend for herself with the children.

There was this extreme desire to see the Lord,  but he  felt  shame and extreme anguish about his  faults and shortcomings! He was  in constant warfare with himself! All he wanted was  a  vision  of  Vitthal’s  feet!  The  element  of seeking–begging  for  compassion–is  so dominant  in  Tuka  like  in  none  of  the  other saints.

He sings tujalagi majha jiva jhala pisa…, ‘hunting after you my life has become mad! I’m seeing everywhere only Panduranga!  I  left all worldly  affairs!  In my mind  there  is  only  the sound of his name! I’m in total anguish—like a panting, twisting fish out of water! Tuka says: the only remedy now is to obtain his  feet!’ or anika dusare maj nahi ata… ‘now there is nothing else for me—Pandurang in my mind, in my  thoughts,  awake  and  also  dreaming!  My eyes  see  only  one—Him  on  the  brick!’  Many 

times he uses the expression: ‘Vitthal, I’m entirely sold to you! My head  is  like  a  sacrificial  animal  at your feet—do with me what you want!’ People  first regarded him as mad; but his devotion to Vitthala and 

his compassion for everyone won them over. He helped everyone in need, even animals! And he never  made  a  difference  between  his  own family and others. 

Legends  tell  that  Vitthala  himself  on various  occasions  came  in  disguise  to  help Tuka’s household with grains, money and other goods.  Tukaram  however  wanted  to  live  on the grace of God from day to day, and although his own children didn’t have much to eat, he always immediately distributed any surplus—to  the  great  frustration  of  his  wife  Avali! Though  in  the worldly  sense  she was  a  good wife, she was a great nag and forever berating Vitthala, calling him the ‘black destroyer of her samsar’!

Tuka  practically  led  the  life  of  a renunciate;  not  because  he  advocated  such  a way of life in order to find God, but because he made God so central in his life that everything else  simply  dropped  off.  He  never  thought about his body, he ate and slept when nature compelled,  but  he  took  no  interest  in it.  Tukaram  did  not  advise  this  lifestyle  for everybody!  The Varkaris  are  all  hardworking householders –  peasants,  labourers,  traders, and the like who integrate bhakti, bhajan and 

He made God so central in his life that everything else simply dropped off

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the recommended pilgrimages to Pandharpur– the varis–into their life. Sannyasis are generally not found here!

Sant Namdev in a DreamAbout this time Sant Namdev appeared to 

him  in  a  dream,  asking  him  to  compose abhangs.  More  than  300  years  ago  Namdev Maharaj  had  vowed  to  write  one  billion abhangs  for  Vitthala,  but  had  fallen  short  by several  thousand–Tukaram  was  now  to complete the task.

But Tukaram was diffident to accept this mystic invitation. He sang, ‘How can I compose? I  never  had  a  real  darshan!  I  can  sing  with justification  only  if  I  have  seen  you,  Vitthal!’ There are such strong parallels between Sant Namdev  and  Sant  Tukaram–in  their  writings and fervour of their bhakti–that people regard Tukaram  Maharaj  as  an  incarnation  of  Sant Namdev.

Tukaram finds his GuruTukaram did not have a guru in flesh and 

blood. He tells us that he received initiation in a dream. Stating the specific day he says:  ‘My Guru appeared in my dream. He put his hand on my  head,  told  his  name  as  Babaji  Chaitanya, mentioned his spiritual lineage and gave me the mantra: ‘Ram Krishna Hari’! It is assumed that his Guru came from the shishya-parampara of Sant  Jnaneshvar. He experienced a  fullness of being like never before and took to the mantra with all his heart.

DarshanAfter the agonies of Tukaram reached an 

extreme  stage,  Vitthala  gave  him  darshan  on the Bhamchander hill. One can visit  this  cave even today in the outskirts of Dehu. Tukaram sings: ‘My anxiety and doubts are at an end, my previous  outlook  has  entirely  changed!  I’m filled  with  infinite  bliss,  His  light  is  like  a million moons! Wherever I go God pursues me 

now! Everything has become auspicious, I see God everywhere, I prostrate in front of rivers, trees and stones! Blessed that my love was fixed in  His  name!’  Again,  he  says:  ‘How  could  an uneducated fool have the power to speak what transcends the Vedas? He fills every nook and cranny of me! I bear his stamp! Now my only business  is  to  spread  this  easy  road  to  the world and carry  them over  the ocean of  life!’ Tukaram started singing in street processions with tal and chipli performing kirtan.

The ‘Drowning of the Gatha’Though  Tukaram  Maharaj  had  a  great 

following,  there  were  many  who  hated  him. After all it was something completely unheard of: a Shudra guru who gave the message of the Vedas in the vernacular Marathi and who had even brahmin disciples! Starting right back in the  13  C.E.  with  Sant  Jnaneshvar  this  radical bhakti-movement had been in constant conflict with  the brahminical  rules,  ritualism and  the caste-system. The Brahmins felt very offended! They  sent  a  great  scholar  named  Rameshvar Bhatt to charge Tukoba with heresy for writing the secrets of the Vedas in Marathi while being of a low-caste. 

He forced Tukaram Maharaj to destroy his abhang manuscripts by immersing them in the Indrayani  river.  Though  Tukaram  meekly complied,  it was  the worst ordeal. The Gatha was his  life-achievement,  his  song-offering of love for Vitthala! That Vitthala allowed them to be  destroyed  meant  that  everything  was meaningless! Tukaram Maharaj went on a fast unto  death.  Then,  after  13  days  the  Gatha bundle  floated up dry  and  intact,  and he had Vitthala’s darshan!

This was a turning point in his career as poet  and  saint.  His  detractors were  silenced, and  he  became  phenomenally  popular  in  his lifetime.  And  his  persecutor  Ramesh  Bhatt became one of his prime disciples who wrote the famous Arati Tukarama  and  the  abhang 

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‘Repeat  his  name— Tukaram,  Tukaram—and death  is  trembling!’  His  brahmin  disciple Bahinabai  states:  ‘His  abhangs were magical, his  personality  charismatic!’  People  started arriving  from  faraway places  of Maharashtra. He had a group of 14 tal-bearers who followed him everywhere to play the cymbals (tal) in his kirtans.  Marathi-speaking  people  were brought  together  like  never  before  with  the audience  singing  along  in  the  chorus.  His message was easy to understand and simple in nature.

Chatrapati ShivajiEven the great king Chatrapati 

Shivaji had heard about the saint and was  very  eager  to  meet  him.  Yet Tukaram  Maharaj  declined  an invitation  to  the  kingly  court.  He refused all honours and kingly patronage and chose  to  live  life  day  to  day  accepting  its uncertainties. Legend tells that the king himself came to Dehu with precious gifts, but Tukaram Maharaj  rejected  them  all  saying.  amhi tene sukhi… ‘I am happy if you say Vitthala, Vitthala! What is for you a great treasure is for me equal to dust! Wear tulsibeads on the neck and keep the Ekadashi-fast, tell that you are a servant of Hari—that  is  what  makes  me  happy!’  and mungi ani rava …. ‘ants and kings are  all  the  same  to me!’  Shivaji wanted to renounce his kingdom then,  but  Tukaram  Maharaj asked him not to leave his dharma.  After  Sant  Tukaram’s disappearance Chatrapati Shivaji became  the  disciple  of  Sri Samartha Ramdas.  

Sant Tukaram leaves for Vaikunth

If we set his year of birth as 1608, Sant Tukaram disappeared at the age of 42 without a trace. People believe that Vitthal himself came 

on Garuda during one of his ecstatic kirtans and carried him away to Vaikuntha—with his mortal body! We have samadhis of all the other saints, but not of Tukaram! Intriguingly he left a set of farewell abhangs, where he tells that he is leaving for good for Panduranga was calling! He  requested  everybody  to  stick  to  the  holy name, he solicited their blessings and vanished. 

The AbhangsWhat  Tukaram  Maharaj  left  for  us  are 

around 4500 abhangs which are known as Tukaram Gatha .   His abhangs are more popular and widely sung  than  those  of  the  other  sants, and there are great Varkari Maharajs who know the whole Gatha by heart! Tukaram’s  abhangs  can  be  easily discerned  by  his  mudra  in  the  last 

line, Tuka mhane,  ‘says  Tuka’.  Unfortunately, there is no chronological order in the abhangs; they appear as a huge  jumbled up collection! Among  them  we  find  many  socio-critical abhangs–against  false  sadhus  and  pandits, about  the  hypocrisy  of  brahmins,  against  the worship  of  many  different  idols,  against superstition  and  caste  etc.  Apart  from  the different bhakti-topics, his abhangs for Vitthala can be categorized into abhangs of great agony 

and  yearning,  abhangs  of  resignation  and waiting,  and  abhangs  of  indifference.  In  the latter ones he challenges even the existence of 

Shivaji wanted to renounce his kingdom, but

Tukaram Maharaj asked him not to leave his dharma.

Celebrations at Sant Tukaram Temple in Dehu

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God!  He  accuses  Vitthala  of  not  keeping  his promise.  He  sings,  ‘God  is  nothing  but  a meaningless  word,  an  empty  symbol!  I’m ashamed to call myself your servant! You are a beggar and a liar! I refuse to utter your name again! Would  I  have  known  you  don’t  exist,  I would have not hankered after you!’ And then there are the songs of bliss, where he tells how everything  entirely  changed  after  getting Vitthala’s darshan, how his limbs are bathed in waves of indescribable bliss! 

Vitthal’s formThe  most  popular  of  all 

his  abhangs  is  ‘sundara te dhyana…,  which  along  with Sant Jnaneshvar’s rupa pahata locanim… is sung as an  invocation during any bhajan or kirtan. Here  Tukaram  Maharaj  describes  Vitthala’s enchanting form standing on a brick, hand on the waist, with tulsi garlands around his neck, yellow  dhoti,  decorated  with  fish-shaped earrings and the kaustubha-gem. Tuka says: ‘He is  all my happiness!  I  always  love  to  think  of him  like  this!’;  and  Tuka was  very  particular that he wanted to see Vitthala exactly like this and not in any other form!

Tukaram  is  like  the  other  bhakti  saints firm  in  his  sagun  approach.  He  says:  nako brahmajnana… ‘I don’t want brahmajnana – I’m your bhakta and you are my Deva, keep it like this! I want to see your face, want to embrace you, want  to speak with you! Don’t make  late now, enchanter of the Gopis, keep your feet on my head!’ 

Vitthal as a motherTukaram felt himself much like a little boy 

and Vitthala as his mother. He chides Vitthala: ‘What mother are you that you left your child in the forest alone!? How could a mother not fulfill the  wishes  of  her  darling  child?’  He  pleads: bhetivancuniya duje nahi chitti… ‘No  other thought than to meet you! Come and whisper to 

me  loving words,  let  us  eat  the  food  of  bliss together! Mother and child are not separate—they  eat  together  from  one  plate!’  Again,  he sings: thakalose dvari… ‘I’m a beggar standing at your door! Vitthala, I want some alms— send me out some little love-tokens!’  

On the human birthThe  Varkaris  don’t  have  a  self-negating, 

renouncing approach to  life. Tuka says: barve jhalo alo ya janmasi … ‘It was good that I took 

birth  and  acquired  a  human body,  a  vessel  of  bliss,  the greatest gain! He gave  the  five senses—hands, feet, ears, eyes and  a mouth  to  speak!  If  you, 

Vitthala, join to them and be the sole object of perception, then the bhavarog, the disease of worldly life is destroyed!’ 

About  the  sharira,  the  body,  he  says: sharira dukhace kothara…   ‘The  body  is a storehouse of misery, full of diseases and impurities,  the  cause  of  entanglement  in Maya—at the same time this body is the best of all, you can reach with it Parabrahma, you can break with it the fetters of samsar! Tuka says: Quickly use it to do bhajans of the Lord!’

LettersSpecial  to  Sant  Tukaram  are  a  set  of 

abhangs titled Patrika. These are wistful letters which  Tukoba  formulated  for  Vitthala  when once he was too sick to join the pilgrimage to Pandharpur.  He  sent  them  along  with the Varkaris passing by his house.

PandharpurIn  many  wonderful  abhangs  he  invites 

people to go to Pandharpur and plunder there the  unlimited  treasure  of  the  holy  name.  He calls  the  city  a  touchstone  and wish  fulfilling tree! sakala tirthahuni Pandhari mukutamani… ‘What  can  I  tell  you  about  the  splendour  of Pandhari,  the  crest  jewel  of  all  tirthas! There 

I don’t want brahmajnana – I’m your bhakta and

you are my Deva, keep it like this!

Celebrations at Sant Tukaram Temple in Dehu

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the husband of Lakshmi stands on a brick! No need  of  vows,  pilgrimages,  alms—the  same punya you get here by just having one darshan of Vitthala! Sadhus and sants sing his name! It’s a  place  of  absolute  rest  for  all  beings!  Tuka says: No matter  how many praises  I  heap on Pandhari— it’s never enough!’ 

Who are the Sants?The  association  with  these  supreme 

bhaktas, who have made Vitthala their all in all, is  one  of  the  most  significant elements of  the Varkari  Sampraday. ‘Sant  is God and God  is Sant!’ Many sants plead for this divine association in  their  abhangs,  and  Tukaram Maharaj stresses it the most. ‘A saint who  gives  himself  over  to  the  Lord and is entirely without desire is the ornament  of  all  ornaments,  greater  than  a touchstone or wish-fulfilling  tree! All  he  sees and speaks  is God!  I want  to be the sand and pebbles in Pandharpur where the sants walk!’

He lists up their qualities: ‘The servants of Hari are entirely  free  from fear, desire, worry and  hope!  They  are  full  of  compassion,  see everybody as  equal,  and  friend and  foe alike! They have no ego and pride,  and  they calmly bear  the  buffets  of  the  world!  They  never engage  in  miracle-mongering!  They  have abandoned the world—they need no honour or perishable goods! God’s name is ever on their tongue, they are filled in and out with the Lord and they bear his seal! People live at their feet!’

UpadeshTukaram Maharaj recommended constant 

repetition of God’s name with one-pointed devotion  and  holding  on  to  Vitthala’s  feet  in one’s heart! ‘Say his name with such love that God  stands  before  you!  You  don’t  need  to  go anywhere—God  comes  home!  The  name  is utterly  sweet—repeating  it,  all  bad  qualities drop off automatically! Among all sadhanas the 

holy name is the greatest and most effective! Go and  plunder  Pandhari!   There  is   the marketplace of God’s name—and it’s all free!’

God’s  grace  is  most  important  because you cannot enforce spiritual vision! But if you call him with  tears and all  satvika bhavas, he cannot  hold  himself  back  and  he  will  give darshan!  svalpa vate cale jaun …  ‘After  God’s embrace  you will  see  him  everywhere!  Then why mortify the body? You can dance now! Why in solitude? There is great bliss in the company 

of the sants!’  ‘I’m walking the simple and  easy  road—and  I’m  singing Vitthala!  You  and  me  in  merry playfulness, roaring, shouting in bliss! Carrying  f lags,   adorned  with gopichandan  and  tulsimalas!  Tuka says:  This  road  is  straight  and  goes right to Vaikuntha!’

Tukaram  Maharaj  expects  from  his Varkaris very high moral values. All men and women  are  considered  as  Panduranga  and Rukmini!  The  worst  is  to  hanker  after somebody else’s wife or property! Among other qualities  he  emphasizes  utter  simplicity, truthfulness, humility and steadfastness.

The hardcore VarkarisAmong  the  hundreds  of  thousands  of 

Varkaris,  there  are  groups  who  take  Sant Tukaram’s message in a very literal way. They try to follow all his precepts, and these ‘hardcore Varkaris’  are  the  personification  of  simplicity. They practically live on the road, walking up and down Pandharpur-Alandi on Ekadashis, during which they fast and sing throughout the night. They receive food and clothing as is needed to survive, and they lead a life of bhajan absorbed in Vitthala. With their worn-out dhotis, stitched up  bags,  lota  and  tal  dangling  from  their shoulders, sleeping on plastic sheets and gunny bags,  they  take  pride  in  living  life  day  to  day, accepting the uncertainties of life. The frequent expression  in  the  abhangs:  kaya vaca mana

Say His name with such love that God stands before you!

You don’t need to go anywhere—God comes home!

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samarpana, ‘surrender body, speech, and mind’ is what they practice. 

Dehu and the Tukaram PalkhiEvery year in March (phalgun), the little 

town  Dehu  celebrates  Sant  Tukaram’s Vaikunth-Arohan or ascension to Vaikuntha. It is a one-day festival of bhajan where hundred thousand  of  Varkaris  fill  up  every  nook  and corner.  It  is  called  the  ‘Tukaram  Beej’. Pandharpur, Alandi, Dehu and Paithan are the most venerable places for the Varkaris. 

In June/July the Tukaram Palkhi sets out from Dehu for the Ashad - Yatra (the ‘Vari’) with hundred  thousands  of  Varkaris  walking  to Pandharpur for the great Ashad Ekadashi. The Tukaram Palkhi is next to the Jnaneshvar Palkhi the most prestigous. 

The  journey  itself  has  the  greatest significance—the  pilgrims  become  the embodiment of this many century old tradition. It  is  open  to  all,  and  it  is  considered  a  great honour and privilege to walk the sacred road to Pandharpur.  Here  on  the  road  everybody  is deemed a sant.

Vitthal’s heroes and the timeless Pandharpur

Tukaram Maharaj  appears  so meek  and gentle, yet there are several abhangs where his voice is full of power. He is aware of his ability to inspire people and claims the status of a messenger:  amhi namace dharaka… and kas ghaloni balkat… ‘I have wrestled with time and death and made a pathway over the ocean of samsara!  I  have  come!  I’m  the  bearer  of  the name! I bear the stamp of Vithoba!’ In many an abhang  he  says:  eka gave amhi vithobace nama…  ‘There  is  no  more  birth  and  death,  I promise! I planted my foot on the forehead of death!’ ‘I have destroyed the razorblade narrow path so difficult to cross—now we can walk a 

broad  road  fit  for  a  king!  Take  out  the mridangam,  the  vina  and  the  tal!  Let’s  enjoy, let’s  taste  brahmarasa,  “the  Bliss  of  the Absolute”! Now I have no other work  than  to sing  Vithoba’s  name!  Tuka  says:  Even  the greatest  sinner  becomes  a  jivanmukta  and crosses over in no time!’  

Speaking of the ‘Warriors of Vitthala.’ he says: ‘The only true warriors in the world are the sants—they are softer than butter, but they can cleave a diamond—not to fight for material goods like land and property, but to fight faults and bad qualities! What has to be destroyed are the  fetters  of  samsar!’  Tukaram  Maharaj envisaged  a  united  world  in  the  footsteps  of these  sants!  He  says  vira vitthalace gadhe… ‘Death even falls at the feet of these powerful warriors of Vitthala! When they thunderously roar the names of Hari up in the sky, they burn all  faults.  Their  weapons  are  forgiveness, compassion and peace!’

Tuka’s vision  is a Pandhari beyond  time and death! The city of the sants, the city of love and joy, where there is no pride of caste, where people fall at each other’s feet, where everybody  is  equal!  A  place  where  Vitthala comes out of the priest-and-ritual controlled temple to dance with his bhaktas on the sand bed  of  the  river!  Tuka  says:  Heci dana dega deva…  ‘Vitthala, give me  the boon  that  I  shall never forget you! All I ever want is to sing your name  with  love!  I  don’t  want  liberation  or wealth—let me always be with  the sants!  I’m happily accepting then to be reborn again!’

The Varkari tradition is very much alive even today. But a personality like Sant Tukaram has  not  sprung  up  since  the  last  370  years!  The abhangs of his disciple Sant Niloba were the  last  to  be  integrated  in  the  abhang collection of all the Marathi bhakti-saints. Sant Tukaram  remains  the  last  of  the  great,  the pinnacle! 

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Reminiscences

25.9.60

A sannyasi who was the head of a large,  reputable  college  went  to Hrishikesh for some days.

Maharaj: Look. It is an act of manliness to walk away from so much honour, influence, and luxury.  He  has  great  potential  as  a  spiritual seeker.  But  there  is  a  flip  side  to  this.  On returning from Hrishikesh, he will gain prestige among his friends and adding to the honour he already enjoys, he will be certified as a sadhu from  Hrishikesh  (i.e.,  a  tapasvi)!  All  these aspects should be kept in mind. 

The  Brahmin  priests  are  endowed with tremendous  rajoguna  – so many ritualistic practices, waving of hands, reciting verses, and performing yajnas with much affectation. Just notice how rajoguni the tantrikas (practitioners of  Shakti  worship)  are  –  smearing  their foreheads  with  red  sandalpaste,  etc.  The devotees of Krishna are full of  love, Gauranga (Sri  Chaitanya  Mahaprabhu)  devotees  are emotional, and the devotees of Sri Ramakrishna are serene – gentle and dignified.  

Brahmachari:    Is  there  any  need  for sannyasis to read the Sri Sri Chandi, or is it enough if they just read the Gita?

Maharaj:  We can learn many things about Indian  culture  by  reading  the  Sri Sri Chandi. Although there is no need for sannyasis to read 

this book, it is a must for learning about Indian culture.

The  foundation  of  the  Sri Sri Chandi is Saguna  Brahman  (Brahman  with  attributes). Creation starts with the combination of Akasa, Ether, and Prana, Life force – these have been depicted  variously  as  the  goddesses  Chandi, Jagaddhatri,  and  Durga.  The  metaphors  of Mother Kali and Lord Shiva also stand for Saguna  Brahman  and  Nirguna  Brahman (Brahman without attributes). The practice of worshipping trees, stones, and serpents slowly evolved from these concepts.

People who have not yet felt the need of God in their lives see only the defects in the lives of great men. Do you know why they do this? Their minds are weak, so to justify their own weaknesses they criticise the lives of great men. Such people even allege that Swamiji had the desire for honour and fame. 

8.10.60Maharaj:  Some  sadhus  roam  about  as 

parivrajakas (itinerant  monks)  without  any definite purpose. But a sannyasi has a goal – to try and exhaust his rajoguna. Wherever he goes, his mind should always remain spiritually oriented.  He  should  remember  the  Creator whenever  he  sees  beautiful  scene.  Thus, gradually  his  mind  will  turn  inward.  The 

Reminiscences of SargachhiSWAMI SUHITANANDA

(Continued from previous issue. . .)

The author, now one of the Vice Presidents of Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission, noted these conversations while serving Swami Premeshananda (1884 – 1967) at Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama, Sargachhi, Murshidabad, West Bengal. Premeshananda Maharaj was a disciple of Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi. He inspired countless men and women to lead a life of spirituality and service. These reminiscences were originally published in Bengali.

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purpose of becoming a parivrajaka is to avoid attachment to anything.  

Suppose a seeker practises spiritual discipline  for  fifty  years.  Perhaps  he  had committed an evil act ten lifetimes ago. Now in this   birth   a   coincidence  of   s imilar circumstances may lead him to commit the same evil act again. For this reason, we have to always  remain  alert.  Who  knows  what untoward action I may commit in a weak moment? 

Dispassion is a subjective matter. It wells up from within. To quicken and make it strong, we must practice abhyasa-yoga,  living  in  a community  life  in  accordance  with  definite prescribed rules.

Listen. Listen here. Fetch ‘Srim’.  Attendant: What is ‘Srim’?Maharaj: Oh! Don’t you know the story? It 

is about the doctor you see there – the one who is aged, dark, and thin. When he was studying medicine  in  Kolkata,  he  went  to  Belur  Math once  or  twice.  Possibly  as  a  volunteer  he distributed khichuri prasada to devotees during some celebration. In the afternoon he attended the  religious  meeting  as  well.  The  direct disciples of Sri Ramakrishna too were present there.

After completing his studies, he took up a job. The World War began; he went abroad on commission and earned a  lot of money. After retirement he returned to his own house in Murshidabad. One day he went to a shop to buy something. The shopkeeper gave him the item wrapped in a sheet of paper. When he read the text written on it, the subject seemed familiar. It included the names of Baburam, Khoka, and others. Actually the wrapping paper was a page from the Kathamrita (the  Bengali  original  of The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna).  When  he recognised it as a page from the Kathamrita, he arranged to get a copy of the book. As he read the book, a deep sorrow welled up within him. ‘Alas!’ he thought. ‘How much I have lost!’ 

Then  the  Udbodhan office  cabled  him information about the Sargachhi ashrama and Premeshananda. Since then he has been coming here  now  and  then. Notice  that whenever  he comes he brings some produce from his farm. One  day  he  asked  me,  ‘Have  you  read  this book?’ I asked, ‘Which book?’ He replied, ‘Srim’. Without getting annoyed, I said,  ‘The name of the book is Sri Sri Ramakrishna Kathamrita – as told by Sri Ma’ (‘as told by Mr. M.’ In Bengali, ‘m’ is pronounced ‘ma’, like the letter of the alphabet; but the doctor joined the two words – Sri and M, and pronounced it as ‘Srim’!).  

Let me tell you another story about him. For  some  days  he  had  been  pestering  me: ‘Please  give  me  your  photograph.’  I  tried  to avoid  this,  but  he  was  persistent.  Eventually, one day  I  asked him  to  come after  taking his bath. So he came after bathing and respectfully spread his cupped hands. I took a photograph from a cloth bag, held it face down, and put it in his hands. He touched his head to it reverently and  then,  turning  it  over,  found  that  it was  a photograph  of   Sri   Ramakrishna!   He remonstrated,  ‘But  it  is  Sri  Ramakrishna’s photograph!’ I said to him, ‘Sri Ramakrishna is God, and God is all-inclusive. When everything is within him, isn’t Premeshananda there?’ And I added, ‘Never lower your ideal.’

(To be continued. . .)

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RAMAKRISHNA MATHGanganagar, P.O: Uttarkashi

Uttarakhand: 249193Email: uttarkashi@rkmm.org

Offering to Bhagavan Sri Ramakrishna: An Appeal

Dear Devotees & Friends,Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission, Belur Math declared open a Math

centre at Uttarkashi, an ancient holy town in the Garhwal Himalayas on 20th Oct 2017. There was already a small dwelling house, named as Ramakrishna Kutir since 1963, where sadhus of our Order used to stay for intense Tapasya in the traditional monastic way — begging food from outside and living a simple austere life. Swami Turiyananda, a direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna spent a year or so in Uttarkashi during his wandering days. Impressed by the Swami’s overwhelming personality and knowing him to be a disciple of Sri Ramakrishna, the Raja of Tehri donated a piece of land to him at Uttarkashi and the then Mahant of Kailas Ashrama built a small hut for him. That was the sowing of the seed of future Ramakrishna Math in Uttarkashi.

In view of spreading Swami Vivekananda’s ideal of service and spirituality among the masses, we plan to purchase some land measuring at least one acre in Harsil Valley, 75 kms off Uttarkashi and 25 kms from Gangotri. Along with retreat centres for sadhus and devotees, some welfare activities for the benefit of the poor and underprivileged will be taken up after acquiring and developing the land.

A sum of Rs. 2 crores is estimated to set up and develop this additional unit of the Uttarkashi Math. We request our friends and devotees, trusts and corporate bodies to contribute liberally to complete this project of welfare and spirituality at the earliest.

Donations can be made by NEFT/RTTGS to the Ramakrishna Math, Uttarkashi, Union Bank of India, Uttarkashi Branch; IFSC: UBIN0560189, A/c No. 601802010006696.

Kindly mention the purpose as “Donation for purchase of land and development of the Math centre” and send your PAN and full address by email to uttarkashi@rkmm.org or SMS to 9447051231.

May Sri Ramakrishna, Ma Sarada, Swami Vivekananda bless you all.

Date: 1 June 2019 Yours in the Lord,Swami Amaleshananda

Adhyaksha

A study of  temples  in Bengal of  the late medieval period is an interesting  chapter  in  history  of 

Indian  art  and  architecture.  Evolving  in intimate association with the changing phases of life and faith, temple architecture of Bengal with its varied styles – Chala, Ratna, Deul, Dome-shaped,  Flat-roofed  etc.,  –  and  the decorations,  designs  and  graceful  terracotta works of floral, animal and human figures is a great  legacy.  The  low-lands  of  Bengal  are sustained by rivers and canals and its alluvial soil  inspired  the  then  artisans  to make  brick temples.  In  the  humid  and  moist  climate  of Bengal it is very natural that instead of stones, clay  was  chosen  as  the  medium  to  give expression  to Bengali  sentiments  and  culture through terracotta (baked clay) temples across the  Rarh  Bengal  specially  in  the  districts  of Bankura,  Birbhum,  Hooghly,  Murshidabad, Medinipore,  Howrah,  Purulia,  Burdwan  and Nadia.  The  subject  matters  in  terracotta  on these  temples  are  generally  Hindu  epics  – Ramayana,  Mahabharata,  Krishna  Lila, Vaishnavism, Mangal Kavyas; social scenes with different types of floral and geometrical designs also cover the temple walls. There are hundreds of beautiful terracotta temples still existing in Bengal.  Some  of  them  are  –  Radha  Govinda temple of Antpur, Ananta Vasudeva  temple of Hooghly,  Shyamrai  and  Jor Bangal  temples  of 

Lyrics in Terracotta – Ratneshwar Temple of Bhattamati

DEVASHIS NANDY

Bishnupur in Bankura, Laxmi Janardan Temple of Daspur in Medinipore, Pratapeshwar temple of  Kalna  in  Burdwan,  Raghunath  Temple  of Ghurisha in Birbhum, and Raghaveswar temple of Dignagar in Nadia. 

This article  is about Ratneshwar  temple –  a  beautiful  five-pinnacled  terracotta ornamented  Saivaite  temple  which  is  fading into oblivion.

Article

The author, who lives in Chandannagar, W.B., has a number of publications on Terracotta temples. devashisnandy1957@gmail.com

Ratneswar Temple

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Bhattamati,   is  a  small  village  in Murshidabad district, located about 5 kms west of  Lalbag  Court  Road  Railway  Station  on Howrah – Azimganj section of Eastern Railway. The  presence  of  Ratneshwar,  a  Pancharatna Shiva temple full of terracotta artwork, indicates  that  the village had a glorious past. Most  of  the  terracotta  artwork  has  been destroyed due to neglect and passage of time. Still one can enjoy the beautiful handiwork of the artisans of those times, and the temple can easily stand in favourable comparison with any other terracotta temple of Bengal.  There is no dedicatory plaque and it is not known who built this temple. 

The  village  was  initially known  as  Bhattabati,  the  abode of  Bhattas;  it  later  became corrupted as Bhattamati. It is said that four hundred Carnatic Bhatta  Brahmins  settled  in  this village  in  the  days  of  Allauddin Hussain Shah  (1494  -1519),  the king of Gaur. The reign of Hussain Shah  was  known  for  religious  tolerance towards Hindus. It was during his reign that the celebrated  medieval  saint  Sri  Chaitanya Mahaprabhu  preached  the  Bhakti  cult throughout  Bengal.  Two  high  level  Hindu officers in Hussain Shah’s administration, one his  private  secretary  (Dabir-i-khas) Rupa Goswami  and  another  his  confidant minister (Saghir-Malik)  Sanatan  Goswami  became 

devoted fo l lowers of Sr i Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. These two were instrumental in bringing these Bhatta Brahmins to this village. It  can be presumed  that  they were  tasked  to establish  a  Vaishnava  learning  school  in Murshidabad to spread the Vaishnava culture and the teachings of Sri Chaitanya. There  is a large pond in the southern direction known as Kalisagar. 

This is a Pancharatna temple i.e., having five turrets on the top – four pinnacles on the sides  and  the  one  at  the  centre  being  much larger  in  size.  The  entire  structure  is  on  a square base and each of the ratnas or turrets 

which are pyramidal in shape, are in symmetry with the main structure  of  the  temple.  The temple faces south to which is its single entrance. This south-facing wall has the richest terracotta ornamentation.  All  the  exterior w a l l s f o l l o w a s i m i l a r arrangement  of  three  tiers with overhanging cornices. Inside the 

temple  there  is  a  huge  Siva  lingam  which  is worshipped daily by a local priest.

The  front side,  i.e.,  the south  face which has a rectangular space between the first and second arch is heavily decorated with social and  domestic  scenes  like  hunting,  dancing, music,  smoking, and even a guru  followed by his disciples. These different scenes are on the two  sides  of  beautifully  carved  Mangala

Four hundred Carnatic Bhatta

Brahmins settled in this Bengal village during the reign of Allauddin Hussain

Shah (1494 -1519).

Base Freize Front Facade

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Kalashas, the auspicious earthen pots, set vertically  one  above  the  another.  The  second arch has an overhanging cornice supported on nine  twin  tigers  standing  on  their  hind  legs. The  entire  arch  is  overhung  by  a  heavily ornamented vine design. Above  the design  is stucco  work  of  different  leafy  structure.  A smaller  arch  above  that  supports  a  series  of panels of Dashavataras, the ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu, flanked by Ganas. Almost all brick temples in Bengal of t h e l a te m e d i eva l period portray the Dashavatars.  These panels  are  flanked on either side from bottom to the top by a  series  of  panels. Those  on  the  right side depict episodes from the life of Lord Rama, while those on the left side present the life of Lord Krishna.  Interestingly, on either side of the doorway, just above the base frieze there, there are two groups approaching each other – from the right  come  a  troop  of  Englishmen with  suits and hats, and from the left come a brigade of Muslim soldiers.

Other than on the southern side, the rest of the temple’s terracotta plaques are in a dilapidated  condition.  On  the  western  side, there  is  an unusually  large 6ft  height Matsya Avatar,  the  Fish  Incarnation  of  Lord  Vishnu. Similarly, on the northern side there is the 6ft height Vamana Avatar, the Dwarf Incarnation of 

Lord Vishnu. On the eastern face of the temple, to  the  left  is  Gour  Nitai,  to  the  right  Radha Krishna,  and  in  the  middle  Sharabhuja Gouranga, or Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu with six  hands.  It  is  believed  that  Sri  Chaitanya revealed this form with six hands to Sarvabhauma, Ramananda and Nitai. The first two hands hold a bow and an arrow, the second 

two hands hold  a  flute  in  the  act  of playing upon it, and the last two 

hands hold a danda, or stick, and a kamandalu, or sacred  water  pot. By 

this manifestation, Sri Chaitanya made Nitai understand that he was Rama as well as Krishna.

The  religious, social, and political

scenes depicted on the temple  walls  reflect  a 

society which was at the crossroads in late medieval

Bengal, especially in the field of temple  building.  Although  this temple  was  first  documented  and 

notified  for  renovation and protection by  the Directorate of Archaeology and Museums, Govt. of West Bengal  in 1973,  the  renovation work was carried out only in 2005-2006 with the help   o f   Publ ic   Works   Department , Murshidabad. But after that there has been no arrangement  to  protect  this  priceless monument. The temple stands in the midst of paddy  fields  surrounded  by  ponds,  awaiting curious tourists and lovers of terracotta temples. 

Front Facade

Sharabhuja Gouranga

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Correction: In the article ‘Swami Vivekananda in Sri Lanka: New  Findings’,  June  2019  page  24  the  caption  for  the photograph should be as: Vennarpannai Shivan temple and adjoining Kathiresan (Murugan or Kartikeya) temple where Swamiji worshipped on 24 January 1897.

Introduction

Swami  Vivekananda’s  first  three speeches at the Parliament of Religions  in  1893:  ‘Response  to 

Welcome’ (September 11),  ‘Why We Disagree’ (September  15),  and  ‘Paper  on  Hinduism’ (September  19),  were  respectively  an  appeal for tolerance or acceptance, an appeal for interfaith  understanding,  and  a  profound exposition of Hinduism. But it was a different story on September 20 (‘Religion not the Crying Need of India’). That was a speech accusing the Christian missionaries in India of trying to save the  souls  of  the  heathen  instead  of  trying  to save their bodies from starvation. He was not scheduled  to  speak  that  night.  It  was  a fortuitous coincidence that some of the speakers didn’t show up and the audience persuaded him to take the podium. The Chicago Inter Ocean  of  September  21  reported  the following as to what happened just prior to his actual speech:At the close of the reading of Mr. Headland’s paper  on  ‘Religion  in  Peking’  Dr.  Momerie announced that the other speakers bulletined  for  the  evening  had  failed  to appear.  It was  but  9  o’clock,  and  the main auditorium  and  galleries  were  well  filled. There was an outburst of applause as  they caught  sight  of   the  Hindoo  monk, Vivekananda, sitting in his orange robe and scarlet  turban  upon  the  platform.  This popular Hindoo responded to the generous 

Bishop John J. Keane: In Defense of Swami Vivekananda

ASIM CHAUDHURI

applause by saying that he did not come to speak tonight. He took occasion, however, to criticize many of the statements made in the paper  by  Mr.  Headland.  Referring  to  the poverty which prevails in China, he said that the missionaries would do better to work in appeasing  hunger  than  in  endeavoring  to persuade the Chinese to renounce their faith of centuries and embrace Christianity at [as] the  price  of  food.  And  then  the  Hindu stepped back on the platform and whispered to  Bishop  Keane,  of  the  Catholic  church,  a moment.  He  then  resumed  his  address  by saying that Bishop Keane had told him that Americans would not be offended at honest criticism. This is the first time we see Bishop Keane 

entering  the  ‘Vivekananda  Orbit’.  It  is  highly likely that they had some prior discussions on that  general  subject.  The  absence  of  the scheduled  speakers  in  that  time  slot  gave Swamiji the opportunity to speak. We will see later  how  the  bishop’s  views  coincided  with those of Swamiji. 

Who was Bishop Keane?It  may  be  appropriate  at  this  point  to 

introduce  Bishop  John  Joseph  Keane  (1839-1918), then the rector of the Catholic University of  America  in Washington,  D.C.,  and  also  the bishop  of  Richmond,  Virginia.  Bishop  Keane was  known  for  his  liberal  and  progressive views.   Although  the  Cathol ics   were 

Article

The author, a well known researcher on Swami Vivekananda, lives in U.S.A. asimphoenix@gmail.com

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discriminated  against  in  the  19th century, he strongly  advocated  the  full  representation  of the Catholic Church at the World’s Parliament of  Religions.  His  deep  commitment  to education,  and  to  interfaith  understanding were  legendary.  He  constantly  reached  out beyond  the  confines  of  his  church, and was the first Catholic bishop in Virginia  to  preach  to  the  African-American  community.  His  liberal/progressive worldview drew the ire of  conservative  members  of  the Catholic Church hierarchy and he was forced to resign his rectorship in 1896.

Bishop Keane was a friend of the poor and disenfranchised.  He  worked  tirelessly  for  the social  and  cultural  uplifting  of  the  working classes and for the rapid assimilation of immigrants  into  American  life.  He  drew  a distinction between the poor and the destitute. Just  before  he  expressed  his  support  on September  21,  1893  at  the  Parliament  (as reported by the Herald) for Swamiji’s views, the day  before,  he  had  said,  ‘Christ  would  bless poverty,  but  Christ  would  never  bless destitution. Christ was poor, his apostles were poor,  but  Christ  and  his  apostles  never  were miserable  and  destitute.  It  is  a  mistake  to suppose  that  the  Church  of  God  gives  any sanction  or  benediction  to  destitution  or wretchedness.’  There  is  a  subtle  difference between poverty and destitution. While poverty is a state of being materially poor or  indigent, destitution  goes  beyond  poverty;  it  implies reduction to a state of abjectness—a degrading mental  state.    The  distinction  is  important, because  Swamiji  had  taken  vows  of  chastity, poverty, and mendicancy—but not of destitution. 

Bishop Keane’s endorsement of Vivekananda

On  September  21,  the  day  after  the whispered  communication  between  Swamiji and Bishop Keane on the platform, the bishop 

was  reading  a  long  paper  by  one  Charles  F. Donnelly at the Parliament, titled ‘The Relation of the Roman Catholic Church to the Poor and Destitute.’  But  he  paused during  the  reading and said, as reported by the Chicago Herald of September 22, 1893 (page 10):

…..My  heart  was  glad  when  I listened  last  night  [September  20] and  heard  our  good  friend,  the Hindoo, confess that for years he did not know where he was going to get his next meal. That was the way with 

these  poor  Franciscan  monks.  They  were reduced  to  poverty  in  order  that  they  might better consecrate themselves to the service of God  everywhere.  And  let  me  also  say  here, because  it  is  in  close  connection  with  the thought  printed  in  the  paper  [Mr.  Donnelly’s paper],   from  my  heart  I   indorse  the denunciation  that was hurled  forth  last night against  the  system  of  pretended  charity  that offered food to the hungry Hindoo at the cost of their conscience and their  faith. The question might well be asked whether among Christian people such a system was possible, and yet we have only to look back to the history of famine in  Ireland  in  order  to  know  that  such  things have been. A  shame,  a disgrace  to  those who call  themselves Christians. But  I  am happy  to state, in answer to a half question also asked last night, and in connection with this subject, that in China and in India, the Sisters of Charity and the Little Sisters of the Poor have many institutions in which they are pledged by holy vows to care for the indigent, no matter what might be their faith, without asking any man to be guilty of the sham hypocrisy of pretending conversion in order to get bread. [Applause.]

I will go further and say: We were startled at the denunciation that came also from the heart  of  the  Hindoo  monk  last  night,  of  the Christian system of the atonement, as he understood it. I sympathize with him from his standpoint. There have been men who through 

Christ would bless poverty,

but would never bless destitution

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a mistaken piety have so exhausted the supremacy of God as to utterly annihilate all responsibility  and  the  co-operation  of  the human  free will.  For  any  such  system  or  the idea of the atonement of Christ I have no more sympathy than has our Buddhist [sic] friend. I say  to  him  let  him  go  on  criticizing  the Christians, we do not hear half enough of this. I firmly  believe  in  the  principle  laid  down  by dear Bobby Burns [Robert Burns]: 

O wad some power the Giftie gie usTo see oursels as ithers see us. [Applause]And  if  by  these  criticisms  Vivekananda 

can  only  stir  us  and  sting  us  into  better teachings and better doings in the great work of  Christ  in  the  world  I  for  one  will  be profoundly  grateful  to  our  friend,  the  great Hindoo monk. [Applause.]

A friend in deedSwamiji rarely received such public

endorsement of any clergy in the U.S., and that too in front of an international audience of Christians of all denominations. He must have been in the audience listening in appreciation to every word of it and must have been grateful to the bishop for his support. It is important to note that the bishop said things that Swamiji had left unsaid.

It is unfortunate that very little is known about their interaction during the rest of the Parliament days and thereafter; maybe there wasn’t any. Swamiji was in Washington, D.C., the home of the Catholic University of America, in the fall of 1894, but there is no record of his meeting with Bishop Keane, who had spoken his mind against the ‘system of pretended charity’ of Christian missionaries in Asia. The bishop’s defense of the Hindu monk probably did not sit well with the conservative leaders of his church, and might have been added to the list of his other unorthodox views that led to his forced resignation from the rectorship three years later.

Bishop John Joseph Keane will always be remembered as Swamiji’s friend in need. They were of the same mindset. Swamiji consulted with him before firing his salvo of criticism against Christian missionaries; and the bishop came back, praised him for it the next day, and did more of the same. Bishop John J. Keane (1839-1918)

Swami Vivekananda in Chicago Sept 189326

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issue 10Issue 19

IN THIS ISSUE:

Message 7

Expand your heart

PULLOUT FOR REFERENCE

Note: This is the seventh issue in the 9-part series on Swami Vivekananda's message to the youth. For previous issues refer The Vedanta Kesari: January � June 2019

>Explore further...

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First, feel from the heart. What is in the intellect or reason? It goes a few steps and there it stops. But through the heart comes inspiration. Love opens the most impossible gates; love is the gate to all the secrets of the universe. CW:III: 225

“ At your very threshold, Nârâyana Himself in the form of a poor beggar is dying of starvation! Instead of giving him anything, would you only satisfy the appetites of your wife and

children with delicacies? Why, that is beastly! CW:V:382

“

Even if you cannot give to others for want of money, surely you can at least breathe into their ears some good words or impart some good instruction, can’t you? Or does that also require money? CW:V:382

“Even the least work done for others awakens the power within; even thinking the least good of others gradually instills into the heart the strength of a lion. CW:III:382

“

Swami Vivekananda extols us to expand our heart and genuinely feel for others. In his own words:

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Here are some examples of people who were moved by the plight of others & took action. Can you think of more?

example 3

example 4

example 1 example 2

Children of Sathe Nagar, had to walk across a 100 feet long stretch of an open and dirty canal, which has also claimed a few lives. The parents were reluctant to send their children to school.

As a college student, whenever

HIMANSHU PATEL went back to his village Punsari, he was bothered by the stark difference between the town and the village. (i) There was no electricity, water system, health centres, angandwadi, etc. (ii) Law & order was out of control & there was no effort to resolve the frequent internal clashes in the village.

He could not digest the condition of the people & the village. Even as a student, he wanted to do something about it. For example, he would search out government schemes and propose it to the Sarpanch. However, no one was willing to listen to a young boy who didn’t hold any position in the village.

So, after completing his education, he decided to take up full responsibility for changing the condition of the village. Becoming a Sarpanch at the age of 22, he has been living this goal for the last 10 years, and the difference can be seen.

Today, Punsari is one of the best villages of India, with all the amenities of a city - electricity, street lights, pucca roads, toilets, garbage management, wifi, and so on. Himanshu is one of the most dynamic Sarpanchs India has.

Earth Saviours Foundation at Gurugram supports abandoned and mentally-challenged persons. With 500 people to cater to, the Foundation was primarily

reliant on a borewell for their water needs. But as the groundwater in the city continued to deplete, they had to keep digging deeper. Soon they were facing acute water shortage which was affecting the lives of the residents.

Seeing this, 15 year old TAVISHI felt the urgent need to address this crisis. She decided to help them with a cost-effective yet efficient method of ensuring a sustainable water source. How? Through rainwater harvesting.

She only had a month before the monsoon season started. The marathon began - she campaigned for funds, contacted experts for guidance & planned the implementation, got necessary permissions, all the while managing her exams & swimming practice. The time-crunch was challenging but she was determined. The project was completed on time and it has made a huge difference to the Foundation.

Moved by the plight of the common citizens in the face of not only riots but also tragic fire accidents, the two friends set out to come up with a quicker & easy-to-use solution that could prevent such tragedies. After endless research & development they've come up with a cylinder-shaped fireball that can douse fire within 3-10 seconds.

Moved by the terrible conditions the school children had to suffer, & the consequent effect on their

education, 17 year old ESHAN BALBALE took the initiative to ensure safe travel for the children. He decided to build a bridge.

Realizing that building a concrete bridge would take a long time due to permission from the government, he decided to make a bamboo bridge which would be light yet strong, and could provide basic safety to the kids as they travel every day.

SAGAR RASKAR & PANKAJ SHELKE have witnessed the devastating effects of rioting - burning of shops and vehicles, leading to loss of life and property. “In such situations, common citizens are at the receiving end of the carnage. [Such] violence prompted the two of us to do something about it”, says Sagar.

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What stops us from expanding our hearts and becoming like these people? Here are some of the common barriers...

Barrier 5: Feeling of separateness or division

Barrier 6: Disengagement

In the course of routine, Agency's blunder leads to cancellation of 5000 ration cards

The Times of India Mar 15, 2018

Barrier 1: Selfishness Barrier 2: Callousness or insensitivity

Murugan's house abuts a very narrow lane, which causes issues during catastrophes like fire etc. A proposal to widen the lane by taking in the the compound wall along the lane, has been proposed...

In this case, Murugan is unwilling to go beyond his own narrow self-interest for the sake of

collective good

In this case, Rajeev is unwilling to empathize with the ground realities of children in various parts of our country

Rajeev is watching the news on the T.V.

BREAKING NEWS2.3 crore kids in India malnourished

Such things happen because of overpopulation. These villagers produce so many

kids & they can't feed them.

No way! I will lose part of my property, which I worked so hard for!!

Under the National Food Safety Act, new cards were to be issued to all ration card holders. Many applicants left the Aadhaar field blank in the form, as it was not specified as mandatory. However, the department had to get the job done, so they filled in random Aadhaar numbers to get those forms submitted. However, as the verification process failed, the system not only rejected the application, but also cancelled the existing ration cards of those applicants. These families came to know only when they went to collect their supplies!

Barrier 3: Apathy or lack of concern

Barrier 4: Insincerity

This is a case where people are reluctant to step out of their preoccupation with their own interest and are unwilling to take even

a little trouble for other people.

In this case, the employee is unwilling to sincerely commit to helping somebody else and invest herself into the other person’s problems.

A 39-year-old civic employee lay helplessly on the railway tracks at Halisahar station after a train severed both his legs on Monday morning. Hundreds of people including GRP and RPF personnel and commuters watched, yet no one raised a finger to help. After 20 minutes, another train crushed him to death.

The Times of India Jan 19, 2016

In a co-operative bank, a pensioner comes in with a genuine & urgent need...

This is a case where Rakesh is unwilling to let go of the artificial barriers that he has

created with other people.

Why should I help him? He is not from my community. Let him struggle on his

own!

Ayan is searching for a house to rent in a city. He asks Rakesh for help...

RAKESH

This is a case where people are unwilling to get involved to genuinely solve a problem, and look for quick fix answers instead, which may lead to great

unintentional harm.

CUSTOMERBANK

EMPLOYEE

Why should I hurry up for this lady. Anyway, it's

5 pm and I need to go home today...

Come back tomorrow and check. It might be ready...

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How to expand our hearts?Four Practices which can help begin our journey...

PRACTICE 3: PRACTICE 4:

narrow identification

narrow vision & aspirations

wider identification wider vision & aspirations

Expanding our sense of identification

Expanding our vision of life & our aspirations

I am identified with my family,

friends and people from

my community/ locality/ religion.

I am identified with my country and hence I feel a oneness with

all fellow citizens

good lifestyle?

new kinds of challenges to face & solve?

valuable and fulfilling

work-life?good pay?

contribute towards nation

building?

career growth?

positive impact on society at

large?

PRACTICE 1: PRACTICE 2:

Expanding our concern set Expanding our zone of self-interest

narrow concerns

wider concerns

my wife & children

my career

my friends

my relatives

infrastructure and public facilities

employment & livelihood

for all

safety for women and children

harmony between

communities

better quality of education

senior citizen friendly services

narrow zone

wider zone

My benefits?

Benefit for all

concerned? How will it affect everyone - in

different ways?

Win-win for all?

What's in it for me?

Is it in the larger interests

of everyone?How am I affected?

Share examples of your experiences of trying out these practices, on www.vivekanandaway.org

Any questions that come up in your mind while doing so, can also be discussed here.

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“One hundred and fifty,” Poorva concluded. Boredom had forced her to count the ants crawling out of her window in a perfectly straight  line. “How I wish I were one of them,” she sighed. Standing near the window, Poorva 

watched with utmost irritation as yet another salt-and-pepper head bobbed into her house. She shifted her position and saw the ungainly figure attached to the almost non-existent neck. God! It was the lady from across the street. Aunties, uncles … so many of them – they kept coming … coming to see HIM! 

Poorva walked towards the staircase and leant over the railing. Yes, there he was – the old man with the saintly smile. His eyes looked so gentle that Poorva felt her anger wane. Her  change  in  mood,  however,  lasted  for  barely  a  few  seconds.  He  was  the  supreme saboteur, she reminded herself. The one who had ruined her holiday plans! 

Poorva had been  forced  to  remain at home  for  the  last  two months. First, her baby brother had  fallen  ill,  and  then she had 

come  down  with  chickenpox.  Notwithstanding  all  these setbacks, the family had just decided to make the most of the 

last week of her holidays, when the old man had come to stay in their house, “completing the disaster sequence,” Poorva fumed. Anger surged within her as she recalled yesterday, the day her mother had brought home this Mr. 

– or should she say ‘Swami’ – Ramaswamy. Apparently, he was her granduncle, who had surfaced after a long time. 

The  previous  night,  her mother  had  gushed  to  her father, “We always addressed him as ‘Swami Maama’ and now he has evolved into a true Swami! I’ve heard from so many people that his spiritual powers are enormous. Don’t you think we did the right thing by inviting him home? I 

can understand Poorva’s disappointment, but we may never get another opportunity to have somebody like Swami Maama stay with 

LAKSHMI DEVNATH

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The author is a researcher and writer with various books and articles on Indian music and culture to her credit. lakshmidevnath@gmail.com Illustrator: Smt. Lalithaa Thyagarajan. lalithyagu@gmail.com

Magic, Miracles and the Mystical Twelve

us.” She had then turned to Poorva, standing beside her with a pronounced scowl on her face, and said, “Kanna, don’t look so grumpy. I’m sorry that I have upset your holiday plans. But I came to know only yesterday that he was visiting Chennai. Poorva, Swami Maama is like your Thaatha. I’m sure you’ll get to like him.” 

Not impressed, Poorva had cut in, “When will he be leaving?” Her mother had replied, with a reproachful glance, “Stop being rude, Poorva. It’s a 

privilege to have him stay with us.” This was surely the most pathetic holiday ever, or so Poorva thought. 

(To be continued. . .)

The book is available through www.lakshmidevnath.com

AazhvaarsThe Aazhvaars or Aalvaars were 12 great Tamil saint-poets who worshipped Sri Vishnu as the 

Supreme Lord. They were called Aalvaars because they always remained immersed in experiencing the love and presence of God. They lived in the serene countryside on the banks of Tamraparani and Cauvery and shores around Mamallapuram and Mylapore. 

The Aalvaars poured out their ecstatic experience of the Divine in chaste Tamil poems which are called Pasurams,  or  verses.  Collectively,  these  Pasurams constitute the Nalayira Divya Prabandham, which amounts to 4000 verses. They are famous for their poetic beauty, rhythm, and deep philosophic and spiritual truths. 

It  is believed that the Aalvaars are  incarnations of different aspects of Sri Vishnu as given below:  Name Incarnation of Birth PlacePoigai Aazhvaar Paanchajanyam (conch) Thiruvehka in KanchipuramBhootham Aazhvaar Kaumodhaki (mace) Thirukadalmallai or MahabalipuramPey Aazhvaar Nandhaka (sword) MylaporeThirumazhisai Aazhvaar Sudarsana (discus) ThirumazhisaiNammazhvaar  Vishwaksena (commander-in-chief) Thirukkurugoor or Aazhvaar 

ThirunagariMadhura Kavi Kumudha (one of the celestial beings in 

Sri Visnu's kingdom)Thirukkoloor

Kulashekhara Aazhvaar Kausthubha (gem) Mahodayapuram now KodungallurPeriaazhvaar Garuda (vehicle) SrivilliputhurAndal  Bhooma Devi (Mother Earth) SrivilliputhurThondaradippodi Aazhvaar

Vaijayanthi (garland) Mandhankudi, near Kumbakonam

Thiruppaan Aazhvaar Shrivatsam (a mole on the chest) UraiyurThirumangai Aazhvaar Saarangam (bow) Thirukkuraiyaloor

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PariprasnaQ & A with Srimat Swami Tapasyananda

(1904 to 1991), Vice-President of the Ramakrishna Order.

Approach the wise sages, offer reverential salutations, repeatedly ask proper questions, serve

them and thus know the Truth.                                      — Bhagavad Gita

Reason and FaithQUESTION: What are the relative roles of reason and faith in the path of devotion?MAHARAJ: Faith and reason are the two unique faculties of the human mind. Animals have 

neither of these. Many a learned man recognizes that reason is a distinguishing feature of man from animal. But by a strange perversity, they fail to recognize that the faculty of faith is equally so. Faith and rationality are like the two legs of a man. One who is devoid of either of these faculties is like a one-legged man.

In everyday life also it would be noticed that ninety per cent of our activities are based on information accepted on faith. For this the so-called rationalists have perhaps no objection. All their objection is reserved for the acceptance of an ultimate spiritual principle that transcends Nature and of which Nature is only an expression.

Now,  it  is  an obvious  fact  that  reason understood as a processing of data  cannot  in  itself provide  the  data.  In  matters  connected  with  life  and  Nature,  the  data  are  provided  by  sense experiences.  These  also  include  scientific  powers  of  the  senses  enhanced by  instruments.  The function of reason consists in processing these data and establishing connections between them drawing inferences from them, and formulating theories based on them.

Naturalism contends that Nature is self-sufficient, and self-explanatory. There are no data beyond Nature and even if there are, there is no way of getting at them. Large numbers of people feel  that  this  is a very unsatisfactory position. For  it makes  life and Nature meaningless and to submit to a meaningless existence is an impossible situation with the human spirit. Those who are satisfied with the life of the senses and the joys and fulfilments it offers, however, stifle questions on this problem. They follow the way of the ostrich by ignoring the problem.

But no one with an earnest spirit can rest at that. Such a person struggles through the path of introspection to overcome this stalemate and it is the verdict of the best among such, that they are able to solve the riddle by developing the power of intuition by which they recognize that Reality in its essence is Sat Chit Ananda (Existence Knowledge Bliss) and not a mere mechanical entity. The witness of intuition is immensely more powerful than sense perception.

Now this power of intuition is only developed from faith. Faith must begin to operate when pure reasoning gets stultified. Faith is the pre-acceptance of the nature of the ultimate reality as Sat Chit Ananda, with utmost sincerity and with resolution to live in a way as to lead to this intuitive experience. It includes also faith in the Sastras or scriptures that inculcates doctrines based on the intuitions  of  the  great  seers  of  the  spiritual  reality  and  the  disciplines  laid  down  by  them  for aspirants to follow.

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The so-called rationalists scoff at the ideas stated above about the method of intuition. But their attitude reveals only their ignorance and dogmatism. They seem to have a vested interest in their ignorance.

Reason has a place  in dealing with the data got through intuition.  Just as  it processes the findings of science and formulates theories it can do the same with the findings of intuition,—study them as experiences of different seers, establish their relation with the findings of natural science and build systems that will appeal to the rational understanding of man. Thus reason and intuition have to work together to build a comprehensive theory about life and its goal.

All trouble starts when some people begin with the idea that faith is fundamentally a pursuit of superstition, which it is not. It can of course degenerate into that if it is not properly cultivated, just  as  the  reasoning  faculty  of man  can  lead  to  fallacious  conclusions  if  it  is  not  trained  and exercised  properly.  What  faith  can  give,  can  never  be  got  by  mere  reasoning;  for  faith  is  the forerunner, the germ, of intuition. Reasoning is also required to coordinate and regulate the findings of intuition based on faith.

Love of GodQUESTION: What is meant by the expression ‘Intellectual Love of God’?MAHARAJ:  The  expression  ‘Intellectual  Love  of  God’  was  used  by  the  great  western 

philosopher Spinoza in the context of his conception of an absolute and impersonal God. God loves Himself but does not return the love and prayers of finite beings, according to him. But the finite being, man, is in his essence one with the only substance, which is God. To know oneself in that relation  with  the  eternal  Being  i.e.,  be  united  with  Him  in  essence  by  discarding  the  hold  of impermanent entanglements, is to participate in His self-love, which is only another name for ‘Bliss of pure existence or unsullied Being’. Such participation in the bliss of the eternal Being through union with Him is called Intellectual Love in contrast with sentimental, personal devotion to a Being who is expected to respond to personal love and prayers.

This is not much different from the point of view of the followers of the path of pure Jnana or even of devotion mixed with Jnana in the Indian tradition. But the followers of the path of pure devotion would also consider God as personal. To say that He is only an impersonal Principle is to compromise with His absoluteness. To limit Him as irresponsive to  love and devotion will only reduce participation in His bliss to the status of enjoyment of a natural scenery or appreciation of a scientific law. It is the contention of the Bhakti school that God reveals His pure Bliss-Nature only to one who considers Him as his ‘own’ and approaches Him in a personal relationship. Of course, here also the devotee does not crave for any favours except the joy of serving Him. Here also God is bliss, but He is active bliss. He has the power of bliss, which actively elevates the devotee who  approaches  Him  through  prayer  and  surrender  to become  a  participant  of  divine  bliss  by  destroying  all obstacles that stand in the way and raising him to the state of participation in the bliss of service (Bhajanananda).

Selections from Spiritual Quest: Questions & Answers by Swami Tapasyananda

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The  men  of  Knowledge  state  that Brahman alone is real; the world is illusory like a dream. Yet we know 

that in dream the dream experience is real. To explain their point, they take the illustration of the snake and the rope. What lies there in front of  us  is  just  a  rope,  but  we  become  afraid thinking  that  it  is  a  snake.  We  tremble  and shout for help. However, when someone throws a beam of light and points out that none of the features of a snake is present in that thing and it  is  just  a  rope,  all  these  unnerving  feelings leave  us.  Even  more  unfortunate  is  our condition if we look at a snake and think that it is just a rope! If we try to pick it up, we will be bitten. So, we are warned not to see Atman in the Anatman (world) and nor be attached to the unreal world. We should continue our quest for Brahman through a system of disciplines.

It  is  strange  also  to  see  that  men  of Knowledge  explain  creation!  From  Atman comes  space,  fire,  water,  earth  and  so  on  to embodied  people.  If  the  world  were  really unreal  why  should  one  go  to  such  elaborate explanation  of  creation.  The  five  fires explaining  creation  found  in  the  Upanishads seem to be out of place. So also is the idea that Brahman felt lonely and thought I shall become the many. In many there will be enjoyment of the ‘other’. And stranger further is the utterance that  having  projected  the  world,  Brahman entered into it.

The main objection that the world would limit the infinitude of Brahman can come under question.  Where  was  the  world  into  which 

The ‘As’-‘Is’ HybridSWAMI SATYAPRIYANANDA

Article

The author is a senior sannyasi of the Ramakrishna Order and lives in Belur Math. satyapriyananda@rkmm.org

Brahman  entered?  In  the  case  of  embodied beings, the Atman is lodged in the five sheaths composed of food, vital force, mind, knowledge, and bliss. Where  are  these  sheaths when  the world  itself  is denied? One would expect  that there  would  be  no  attempt  to  describe  the ultimate Truth relying in any way on something unreal which eventually gets discarded.

In the explanation that, that from which beings  are  born,  that  in  which  they  are sustained and that unto which they return on dissolution, is Brahman – it is again a reliance on the false world to point out the real Brahman.  Even  a  knower  of  Brahman  is  not averse  to  running  ashramas,  preaching  to disciples, or begging for alms; all of these have interaction  with  the  denied  world!  Men  of knowledge believe that a daring man turns his vision  (and  other  senses  too)  inward  to perceive the Atman. What was there to perceive outwardly anyway, that one had to turn inward? 

In  all  religions  barring  Hinduism,  such bold questioning  is denied; acceptance of  the dogma is a must. But Hinduism gives scope for d e v e l o p m e n t o f spiritual  ideas.  The above  observations were to arrive at a better understanding.

Let us take the example to illustrate the ‘Is’ ness of the worldly objects.  This  pot  exists; this cloth exists. Existence is the common feature of the denied world. So, the ultimate Reality is Sat, Existence. It is further described as Chit, Consciousness/

The ‘As-Is’ hybrid supposes that Brahman alone is present, either

‘As’ the world or ‘Is’ Brahman.

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Knowledge  and  Ananda, Bliss . So the svarupalakshana  of  Brahman  is  Sat-Chit-Ananda. This is supported also by our efforts (a result of the natural tendency to reach that state)  to  live  long,  to  be  conscious  and knowledgeable, as well as  to enjoy undivided bliss. However, in the mortal plane there is no place  of  absolute  Sat-Chit-Ananda;  it  can  be only  relative. We  can  live  longer,  know more, and be happier. The absolute in a relative world is only a mirage.

Referring  to  the above examples one could take the stand that ‘whatever is’ is ‘what  it  looks  as’.  The  ‘Is’ ness of Brahman looks as the pot or the cloth in the world. This gives rise  to  the  ‘As’ ness of Brahman or Shakti  as  it  is  called.  Here  comes  the significance  of  Sri  Ramakrishna’s  statement that Brahman and Shakti are identical; that he calls  Brahman when  it  is  not  engaged  in  the acts  of  creation-preservation-destruction. When  engaged  in  these  activities  which  we perceive all around us,  it  is Shakti. Therefore, the world need not be denied and there is no problem of the world limiting the infinitude of Brahman.  It  is  like  an  equilibrium  reaction: reactants  <  –  >  products.  Following  Le Chatelier’s principle, the reaction can proceed from  left  to  right  or  from  right  to  left.  In ordinary  usage  we  can  call  that  involution-evolution. What is evolving from the amoeba to the perfect human at the other end was already involved. This is the theory of cycles; it is not a linear  progress.  If  there  is  evolution  in  some places,  it  could  be  involution  in  other  places. The ‘As-Is’ hybrid supposes that Brahman alone is present, either ‘As’ the world or ‘Is’ Brahman.

What  is  the outcome? The world  is  also real. The pair of terms used such as ‘Real and unreal’,  ‘Nitya  and  Lila’,  ‘Brahman  and  the world’ need not confound us. They are just two modes of perception. Turn the mode switch to 

‘Is’ and it is all Brahman; turn the mode switch to ‘As’ and it is this world. With this perception we  can  explain  our  otherwise  inexplicable interactions with the world, our sadhana, our concepts of bondage and liberation, our service to humanity in the spirit of worship of God and last but not the least our ‘namaskar/pranams’ with folded hands. By being stuck to one grove we deny  the other and  in  the  language of  Sri Ramakrishna,  we  do  not  get  the  complete 

weight of the Bilva fruit. As to whether we will rest in ‘Is’ mode  or  ‘As’ mode  depends on  the  Will  of  the  Divine Mother whom we supplicate with humility. If She chooses to, She may place a privileged 

person  in  that  state  of  being  in  touch simultaneously with ‘As’ and ‘Is’ aspects. That is what Bhavamukha is.

Sri Ramakrishna did not like to be merged in Brahman for ever when one behaves like a child, a mad man, a ghoul or an inert person. He wanted multiplicity by being in the company of devotees, singing songs on the Divine Mother, speaking  of  spiritual  topics  and  dancing  in ecstasy  and  showering  blessings  on  eager aspirants.  He  would  eat  food  items  without mixing  them up  so  that  his mind  did  not  get merged into Unity experience. Again sometimes he  wanted  to  be  completely  away  from  all company, even removing the pictures of deities from his room. This is a see-saw. Knowing the frustration of this to and fro movement, the Divine Mother perhaps asked him thrice to remain  in  Bhavamukha.  From  this  vantage point one could see both sides. It is like being in Gomukh and seeing no stream on one side and a gushing,  splashing,  tumultuous river on  the other side. It is like being at the threshold of a house  and  seeing  both  the  inside  and  the outside.  That  is  why  Sri  Ramakrishna  asked 

(Continued on page 45...)

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Sri Ramakrishna asked devotees not to be one-sided:

form, formless and many more possibilities exist.

Put no limit to God.

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Scholarship for the 80 poor students

Free medical camp

Free Coaching class for 75 students

Free Tailoring Classes

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On returning to India in January 1897 after his triumphant visit to the West where he propagated the ancient religion of our country, Swami Vivekananda had stayed in Maharaja Bhaskara Sethupathy’s Palace Guest House for 3 days from 29th to 31st January, 1897 and delivered speeches that awakened our nation.

A Math centre was started at this spot sanctified by Swamiji’s stay and affiliated to the Ramakrishna Order on 26-6-2016. Those who live at Nagachi, Mandapam, Pamban & Rameswaram are mainly poor fishermen & women whose children, unable to afford higher studies, go for daily labour or fishing. The Math is conducting a number of service activities for these poor people.

You can also create an Endowment for Rs. 10000/- and above for the above activities.

We request you all to give a helping hand to these poor children of God, through your small or big contributions and be the recipients of the Lord’s blessings.

All donations are exempted from 80 G under Income tax act, 1961. The Cheques/ Drafts/ M. O. should be sent in the name of “Ramakrishna Math, Ramanathapuram”. Or it may transferred through RTGS to the following account:

Account name: Ramakrishna Math Bank: Indian Bank Branch: Ramanathapuram A/c No.: 6426034057 IFS Code: IDIB000R051

Please inform us with your address and PAN number after transferring the amount through RTGS.

Educational, Medical and Other Services for the Poor and Afflicted Through Ramakrishna Math, Ramanathapuram

Yours in the service of the Lord,Swami Sutapananda

Adhyaksha

Sl No Activity Expenditure1 Education: Educating 80 poor students in 

Nursing, Polytechnic, and Arts & ScienceRs. 30,000/ per student for one year. Total cost = Rs. 24 lakhs

2 Mobile Medical Service: Conducting medical camps

Rs. 6 lakhs per year

3 Free Coaching Classes: Coaching for 75 poor school children besides giving them food, uniform, notebooks, etc. 

Rs. 4 lakhs per year.

4 Tailoring Course: 3-month classes for poor women & gifting them One Tailoring Machine to earn their livelihood.

Rs. 6 lakhs per year

5 Free School Uniform: For 500 poor students Rs. 3 lakhs per year6 Construction:  Monks’ Quarters & 

Community HallRs. 2.15 crores

Scholarship for the 80 poor students

Free medical camp

Free Coaching class for 75 students

Free Tailoring Classes

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Book Reviews

For review in The VedanTa Kesari,

publishers need to send us two copies oF their

latest publication.

Swami Vivekananda’s Vision of Future Society

Papers from a seminar at Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture;

Publ ished by Secretary R M I C , G o l P a r k , K o l k a t a - 700 029. 2014, hardbound, pp. 177+ix. Price not given.

This volume consists of some really thought-provoking  scholarly  essays on Swami Vivekananda’s vision on an

emerging India and her society. The topics range from Spirit of Scientific Enquiry,  its place in the India of the future, the role of the teacher, India’s duties and expectations. The essays are diverse – examining the role of women in contributing to a new culture and, best of all, examining the place of electronic media  in contemporary education. The progression is significant; the speakers have examined Swamiji’s contributions to the thought of  not  just  his  own  times  but  his  continuing relevance a hundred and fifty years later. 

The underlying theme of the essays in the volume is education and, through education, the refining of the collective social consciousness and intelligence,  such  that  humankind  transforms itself into the best it can be.  Every single paper proves the axiom that Swamiji’s vision was so spectacularly broad that while India was its base, its trajectory was vast and covered the whole world.

This  volume  is  one  of  those  rare publications  which  has  something  in  it  for everyone interested in a positive, optimistic roadmap  for  the  future  of  India  and  through  it the whole world. Needless to say, it requires close, dedicated  reading  and  reflection  and  is  worth every minute spent on those two endeavours.___________________________ PREMA RAGHUNATH, CHENNAI

Indian Cultural Unity Edited by Sabyasachi Bhattacharya

Published by Secretary, RMIC, Gol Park, Kolkata - 700 029. 2014, hardbound, pp. 361+ ix. Price not given.

This scholarly work is the result of a seminar held in the Ramakrishna

Institute of Culture on the occasion of Swami Vivekananda’s 150th Birth Anniversary in 2013.

The book consists of thirteen essays spread over six sessions which examine a wide range of historical, anthropological, social and geographical conditions  that  give  a  culture  its  true  identity; they  focus  on  the  way  culture  gains  richness and a  colour all  of  its own. The  starting point  is the reformist movement of 19th  century  Bengal, notably  the  part  played  by  Raja  Rammohan Roy,  Keshab  Chandra  Sen,  Sri  Ramakrishna,  and Swami  Vivekananda.  The  mood  of  questioning and  framing new belief  systems, accepting  those which  were  relevant  and  disregarding  those which had outlived their relevance was very much  in  the  intellectual atmosphere of  the  time. Swami Vivekananda went one step further: ‘I do not believe in it (tolerance),’ he said,  ‘I believe in acceptance.  Why  should  I  tolerate?  Toleration means I think you are wrong and I am just allowing you to live.’ (page 65). This very novel approach has 

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been  examined  along  with  other  contemporary philosophies of the time as well as the manner in which these views were reflected in the literature of the time.

Another important theme explored, by Shri Imtiaz  Ahmed,  is  an  interesting  examination  of the religions existing in India – Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism and Jainism – which co-existed without conflict until self-interest created differences. The author argues that these can now be equalised by using modern technology to spread awareness of misconceptions.

The third and fourth essays are specific to cultural unity in India through, paradoxically, its cultural diversity, which is a point of interaction rather than separation as the goals of all cultures remain the same. 

The next session is devoted to two themes – an anthropological examination of cultural unity and  the part  played by  geography  in  creating  a pluralistic  society.  This  is  of  particular  interest today when artificial barriers have been created between  urban  and  rural  societies,  between the  indigenous and  the borrowed, and between Western and Eastern influences.

The  topics  in  the  next  session  are  more specific.  Choosing  one  pan-Indian  text,  the Ramayana, the many ways in which the story has been handled and has evolved in different parts of North-East India, the speakers have shown how this  story  can  be  interpreted  in  different ways. There is an accepted trajectory for the Ramayana – beginning in Uttar Pradesh, winding its way to Sri Lanka via Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Kerala. These writings show how the stories vary in their details according to the greater or lesser importance  given  to  the  characters,  in  the  local languages, thereby leading to their exclusion from the Sanskritisation of religious stories. This leads on to art forms, such as dance and theatre,  born out of Vedic rituals in the next essay. 

The final essay  in the book brings  it up to the 20th century with the contributions made by Sikhs to the freedom struggle and India’s culture through polity.

The  book  raises  several  questions  –  how do we attempt to define culture?  Is our national 

identity  the  amalgamated  result of several individual identities rolled into one, embracing the differences rather than militating against them? Do we need  toleration or acceptance? Archeological findings have proved the depth of Indian culture which can very easily absorb diversity. The caves of Ellora, for instance, show the artistic unity of three religions – Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism. The works  of  poets  like  Kabir  represent  a wide-lens view of  religious  traditions.  Swami Vivekananda was  consumed  by  the  fire  of  breaking  down barriers.    There  is  copious  evidence  to  show that  as  a  concept,  Unity  was  the  cornerstone of  Indian  culture  and  civilisation.  Swamiji’s contributions emanate from his interpretations of Sri Ramakrishna’s unshakeable faith in the validity of all religions and cultures. 

An erudite exposition indeed, this book is of value to students and lovers of history, religion, anthropology and society. It is not for the casual reader as the papers are expert views from every field and require focused reading.___________________________ PREMA RAGHUNATH, CHENNAI

Indian Philosophy of Nada and its Vocal Applications by Justice B.S.Raikote

Published by Motilal Banar- sidass Publishers Pvt. Ltd. 41, U.A. Bungalow Road, Jawahar Nagar, Delhi - 110 007 2016, Hardbound, pp.481, Rs.695.

Generally  the  subject  matters of Indian philosophy are logic  and  epistemology, 

metaphysics,  ethics  and  religion;  these  are extensively, analytically and even academically discussed and described. Philosophy of language, philosophy  of  beauty,  political  philosophy,  and social philosophy are studied as the offshoots of  classical  Indian  philosophical  systems.  An intellectual  investigation  of  aesthetics  in  India became  popular  after  the  famous Natya Sastra of  Bharata  was  published.  The  text  prescribes the grammar of beauty in terms of precepts and concepts and elucidates the denominations of it in  nature  and  in  arts.  Later  the metaphysicians 

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linked the Supreme Reality  viz.,  Brahman  with the aspects of aesthetic enjoyment such as vastu Brahma vada, sabda Brahma vada, nada Brahma vada, and rasa Brahma vada. Of these sabda  Brahman  is  the  unmanifest  form  of  the transcendental  nada  emanating  from  Siva-Sakti as dhvani or sabda  (sound).  The  concepts  such as sthayibhavas  (permanent  emotions),  rasa (aesthetic  experience),  dhvani  (suggestive  of specific emotions) are the manifested aspects of joyous enjoyment.

Since the book under review is a Ph.D thesis, Justice Sri Raikote has justified the selected theme throughout  this  work  from  musical,  linguistic, aesthetic  and  mystical  perspectives.  He  opines that the conception of nada emanates from the primordial sound known as Omkara or Pranava. The  conception  of  nada  has  exerted  a  strong influence  on  Indian  culture;  the  Vedas  and  the Tantras  use  it  while  performing  rituals  in  the form  of  pranava  sound  and  music  tinged  with divine propensities. This book mainly deals with the ontological nature of dhvani as promulgated in the upanishads, the six orthodox schools of Indian  philosophy,  grammatology,  tantragamas and musicology.

Since the seers of darsanas in India inquired into the nature of Reality with spiritual intuition, metaphysical  conception  and  logical  precision, they seldom evinced keen interest in the analysis of sabda or nada which stand for ‘sound’ or ‘noise’. Incidentally  Nyaya-vaisesika,  Mimamsa  and Vyakarana  studied  the  implications  of  sabda  in terms of word-meaning, and sentence-meaning; this  in  turn  enabled  them  to  logically  ponder deeply  about  the  idea  of  reality.  However,  the basis  for  word-sentence-meaning  is  sabda  or nada or dhvani. Hence a detailed study of  these terms with their denotations and connotations has  necessitated  the  author  to  highlight  the philosophical overtones and he has successfully accomplished the assigned task.

The  author  envisages  the  notions  of  vak, nada and dhvani from the pre-Vedic and the Vedic  standpoints  along  with  the  conceptions of rtam, aksara, or omkara, and nada or Purusa. He  succinctly  derives  the  idea  of  sabda  as  an 

evolute of akasa and develops its application in  all  the  mahabhutas  as  explained  by  the Samkhya-Yoga  system.  Nyaya-Vaisesika  builds up the philosophical system from atomism, and nada  is  a quality  (guna) of  akasa  (ether) which is an extensive atom – phenomenal theory of sound. Nada  is an eternal  substance  (dravya)—transcendental  theory  of  sound—according  to Mimamsa and Vedanta.

Tantragama  subscribes  to  the  vibration theory  of  sound,  according  to  which  nada  is  a phenomenal  activity  (kriya  or  spanda)  being the  manifestation  of  cosmic  energy.  Positivistic theory  of  sound  has  been  propounded  by  the grammatical  system  which  holds  that  nada  is an artificial  sound produced by vaikhari dhvani of  vocal  chords.  The  musicologist  develops  the transcendental theory of sound which states that nada  is  the manifestation of cosmic energy (or kundalini  shakti  in  the body)  in  the  form of  vocal  sound.  The  nastika  darsanas  known  as Carvaka,  Jainism  and  Buddhism  promote  the materialistic theory of sound since nada or sabda is ‘mode’, a ‘form’, a ‘quality’ or a ‘potential force’ of matter.

All  the  above  mentioned  theories  have been  critically  evaluated  by  the  author  which act  reveals  not  only  his  academic  acumen  but also  his  stability  in  intellectual  pursuits.  In  the chapter on the vocal applications of the accepted theories of  nada he narrates  the Vedic  (arcika), musical, aesthetic and spiritual applications with logical  conviction  and  scientific  explanation.  In the conclusion he develops a distinction between ‘transcendental nada’ and ‘phenomenal nada’. 

Undoubtedly  this  work  opens  the  new vistas of philosophical investigation into a novel subject-matter  which  will  certainly  satisfy  the intellectual quest of the common readers and also  nourish  the  mental  vigour  of  research scholars.  The  author  deserves  appreciation  for his deep erudition, accumulation of relevant facts, and  scholarly  presentation  of  the  entire  gamut of the chosen theme with ample illustrations, accurate references, appropriate citations, critical evaluation, and clinching argumentation._____________________PROF. R. GOPALAKRISHNAN, CHENNAI

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As a generation grows older, it is not unusual for elderly men and  women  to  bemoan  the 

dilution of values in the younger generations. Discipline is probably the most common value which is seen as highly compromised.

Discipline, which means ‘to be disciplined’ in  one’s  thoughts,  actions  and habits  –  is  the source of all other values. Let us recall Swami Vivekananda who memorably declared: ‘Mind you, there is no value in learning. You are all mistaken  in  learning.  The  only  value  of knowledge  is  in  the  strengthening,  the disciplining, of the mind.’ 

What this means is that discipline is the mother and father of all knowledge. It may be true that one needs to know addition and subtraction,  multiplication  and  division  to learn  Mathematics;   or   the  alphabet , vocabulary and grammar to learn a language and its literature. But it is impossible to learn even numbers and letters without the aid of discipline. It is the foundation of any learning, progress and achievement.

Like  everything  else,  the  best  and quickest way to learn discipline is in childhood.  The  child’s  mind  is  fresh, uncluttered, and has great assimilation power because  it  absorbs  ideas without doubt  and distraction.  Hence,  discipline  as  a  value should be inculcated in childhood. Schools, no less  than  parents,  have  an  integral  role  in teaching  children  to  be  disciplined. Ways  of inculcating discipline may differ from parent 

to parent, and teacher to teacher. There is no one  correct  way.  Depending  on  a  child’s temperament and circumstances, the parent or teacher needs to find a way that will work. In some contexts, the fear of being punished may  teach  a  particularly  obstinate  child  to learn  to  be  disciplined.  Pressure,  however, should be used as the last resource. For it is a cliché worth remembering that we learn our lessons best when we are taught with love. 

Discipline by exampleDiscipline, on the face of it, seems to call

for  severity  and  strictness.  How  does  one ensure that a child remains disciplined if it has no fear of consequences? It is a prevalent belief that fear is a successful tool to impose an unpleasant  learning experience. And  to a child, whose natural instinct is to be carefree and  playful,  having  to  obey  restricting  rules can be unpleasant indeed. This belief however may  need  to  be  revised  in  today’s  liberal times.  In  fact,  the  best  and  longest  lasting lessons are those taught by example.

The highest example for such teaching is perhaps what the four children of Guru Gobind Singh  imbibed  from their  father, and 

The author is a professor of English at IIT, Bombay senorita.sudha@gmail.com

Article

The Value of DisciplinePROF. SUDHA SHASTRI

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other   family   members .   Betrayed  by Aurangzeb’s  false  promise,  Baba  Ajit  Singh and Baba Jujhar Singh, the two eldest sons of the Guru, gave up their lives on the battlefield fighting against heavy odds. They were just 18 and  14  years  old,  but  had imbibed  their  father’s  heroic faith  in  justice  and  God.  Baba Fateh  Singh  and Baba  Zorawar S ingh ,   the   younger   sons displayed even greater heroism. Betrayed by a greedy ex-servant, they stood firm in the face of the Mughal governor’s temptations to convert to Islam or  face death. Calling to memory their grandfather Guru Teg Bahadur who embraced death  to  conversion,  the  two  boys  stood  in prayer as they were walled in alive to die. The two brothers were just 9 and 6 years old.

Teaching by example is invaluable and the most elevated form of teaching. It also makes an interesting point about discipline: discipline is essentially self-discipline. It is something that comes  from within  an  individual.  After  a  few initial  external  lessons,  it  can  be  internalized only through self-teaching. 

When we observe discipline, we are both learning  as  well  as  teaching  ourselves. Discipline  is  not  information  or  knowledge which  can  be  obtained  from  outside.  It  is  an inner capacity that we develop by training our mind  to  think  and  do  the  right  thing.  In childhood we need parents and teachers to tell us what is right and wrong, and where to sow discipline. But  thereafter,  as moral  and  social adults, we understand intuitively where our behavior needs to be disciplined. 

Discipline and TimeDiscipline is also associated with

timeliness and punctuality. To be disciplined is to be aware of the value of time. Time’s arrow moves in only one direction. It  is  irreversible. Time lost, is lost forever. Shakespeare famously 

declares  through  King  Richard  in  his  play Richard II, that ‘I wasted time, and now doth time waste me.’ 

Learning  to  respect  time  and  obey  its demands is the best way to inculcate discipline 

in  oneself .   During  school assemblies for morning prayers, the school authorities are very particular  about  students  not being even a minute late, because these  assemblies  are  as  much about discipline in punctuality as about praying to God.

A Positive ValueThere  is  a  pressing  need  to  associate 

disciplined behavior with positive values in our country today. Standing at traffic signals, how often we find vehicles driven by educated men and women halt right over pedestrian stripes! Jumping  queues  with  impunity  is  also  a common  sight.  This  disregard  for  rules,  even after having the benefit of education, seems to arise from a false equation of indiscipline with power! Instead of feeling ashamed, such people take pride in a false sense of freedom. They fail to understand that freedom is always associated with responsibility. 

To   be   disc ip l ined  is   to   accept accountability. How lack of discipline can result in a counter-intuitive behaviour is revealed in a real  life  incident.  A  middle-aged  lady  had parked her  car outside her  gate. Her  teenage neighbour took his car out in such a hurry that he dented her  car. When  the  lady  rushed out and  seeing  the  damage  to  her  car  became agitated,  the  teenager  instead  of  apologizing became offensive  and  rudely questioned why she  was  making  such  a  fuss  about  a  small matter. His indiscipline in driving, led to other character flaws like disrespect, dishonesty, and arrogance. 

We  need  to  recognize  that  being disciplined is not about losing one’s freedom, 

‘Independence means voluntary restraints

and discipline, voluntary acceptance

of the rule of law.’

devotees  not  to  be  one-sided:  form,  formless and many more possibilities exist. Put no limit to God.

Let us consider the construction of a dining  hall.  First  there  is  the  thought  of construction:  it has no form and yet thoughts do take shape  in  the mind!  Then  there  is  the diagrammatic or written representation in the blue print or write-up. This  is a more  formed presentation of  the  formless  thought, and yet far  away  from  the  actual  building  which requires estimation and the lengthy process of construction.  At  each  stage  the  formless was progressing to the formed. As Hindus put it, it is thought-word-deed. And yet, it is only in the deed  stage  that  one  can  call  it  a  functioning dining hall.

Imagine a  satellite  thrown  into  space;  it plunges  back  to  the  earth;  or  it  flies  away  from  the  earth’s  orbit;  or  it  revolves around  the  earth.  At  just  a  particular  velocity  and  radius  of  the  orbit ,   the  satellite  is  geo-stationary.  It  is  just  like  that: standing at the top of the cliff and seeing not a 

trace of water on the one side and the river on the  other  side.  It  is  being  beyond  all  bhavas (moods) and a rich, variety of moods for people of various temperaments: bhava-atita and bhava-sagara .   What  is  in  between  is Bhavamukha.

(Continued from page 36...)

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but about manifesting self-control and power in the real sense. Power over oneself and one’s lesser  instincts  is  more  difficult  to  achieve than power over others, and hence the former sort of power is something to take pride in. To be  able  to  control  one’s words  and deeds  is the hallmark of a leader.

Discipline and Indian freedom movementA  shining  example  of  discipline  in  our 

national history, is the manner in which we sent  out  the  colonial  rulers,  not  through military force, but by the immeasurable power of self-discipline that thousands of Indians manifested  with  the  mantra  of  Satyagraha. 

Mahatma Gandhi declared: ‘There will have to be rigid and iron discipline before we achieve anything  great  and  enduring,  and  that discipline  will  not  come  by  mere  academic argument and appeal to reason and logic.’ More pointedly, he said, ‘Independence means voluntary restraints and discipline, voluntary acceptance of the rule of law.’ 

Discipline  arising  from  self-restraint  is integral  to  social  harmony  and  all-inclusive development. The sooner our society, especially our children and youth, learn to associate discipline  with  affirmative  values  like  self-esteem, and national responsibility, the more promising will be our future.   

The ‘As’-‘Is’ Hybrid

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The GuruSelections from The Complete Works of

Swami Vivekananda

Who is a real guru?

A real Guru is one who is born from time to time as a repository of spiritual force which he transmits

to future generations through successive links of Guru and Shishya (disciple). The current of this spirit-force changes its course from time to time, just as a mighty stream of water opens up a new channel and leaves the old one for good. Thus it  is seen that old sects of religion grow lifeless in the course of time, and new sects arise with the fire of life in them. Men who are truly wise commit themselves to the mercy of that particular sect through which the current of life flows. Old forms of religion are like the skeletons of once mighty animals, preserved in museums. They should be regarded with due honour. They cannot satisfy the true cravings of the soul for the Highest, just as a dead mango-tree  cannot  satisfy  the  cravings  of  a man  for luscious mangoes. 

The one thing necessary is to be stripped of our vanities—the sense that we possess any spiritual wisdom— and to surrender ourselves completely  to  the  guidance  of  our  Guru.  The Guru only knows what will lead us towards perfection. We are quite blind to it. We do not know anything. This sort of humility will open the door of our heart for spiritual truths. Truth will never come into our minds so long as there will  remain  the  faintest  shadow of Ahamkara (egotism). All of you should try to root out this devil from your heart. Complete self-surrender is the only way to spiritual illumination.

The need of guru Every soul is destined to be perfect, and 

every being, in the end, will attain the state of perfection. Whatever we are now is the result of  our  acts  and  thoughts  in  the  past;  and whatever we shall be in the future will be the result of what we think and do now. But this, 

the  shaping  of  our  own  destinies,  does  not preclude our receiving help from outside; nay, in the vast majority of cases such help is absolutely necessary. When it comes, the higher powers  and  possibilities  of  the  soul  are quickened, spiritual life is awakened, growth is animated, and man becomes holy and perfect in the end. 

This  quickening  impulse  cannot  be derived from books. The soul can only receive impulses from another soul, and from nothing else. We may study books all our lives, we may become very intellectual, but in the end we find that we have not developed at all spiritually. It is  not  true  that  a  high  order  of  intellectual development always goes hand in hand with a proportionate development of the spiritual side in Man.  In  studying books we  are  sometimes deluded into thinking that thereby we are being spiritually helped; but if we analyse the effect of the study of books on ourselves, we shall find that at the utmost it is only our intellect that derives profit  from such  studies,  and not our inner  spirit.  This  inadequacy  of  books  to quicken  spiritual  growth  is  the  reason  why, although almost every one of us can speak most

Compilation

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wonderfully on spiritual matters, when it comes  to  action  and  the  living  of  a  truly spiritual  life,  we  find  ourselves  so  awfully deficient.  To  quicken  the  spirit,  the  impulse must come from another soul. 

The person from whose soul such impulse comes is called the Guru—the teacher; and the person to whose soul the impulse is conveyed is  called  the Shishya—the  student. To  convey such an impulse to any soul, in the first place, the soul from which it proceeds must possess the  power  of  transmitting  it,  as  it  were  to another; and in the second place, the soul to which it is transmitted must be fit to receive it. The  seed must be  a  living  seed,  and  the  field must be ready ploughed; and when both these conditions are fulfilled, a wonderful growth of genuine religion takes place. “The true preacher of religion has to be of wonderful capabilities, and  clever  shall  his  hearer  be”—आश्र्चययो िक्ा कुशलोऽसय लबधा;  and  when  both  of  these  are really wonderful and extraordinary, then will a splendid  spiritual  awakening  result,  and  not otherwise. Such alone are the real teachers, and such alone are also the real students, the real aspirants.  All  others  are  only  playing  with spirituality.  They  have  just  a  little  curiosity awakened, just a little intellectual aspiration kindled in them, but are merely standing on the outward fringe of the horizon of religion. There is no doubt some value even in that, as it may in course of time result in the awakening of a real thirst for religion; and it is a mysterious law of nature  that  as  soon  as  the  field  is  ready,  the seed must and does come; as soon as the soul earnestly  desires  to  have  religion,  the transmitter of the religious force must and does appear to help that soul. When the power that attracts the light of religion in the receiving soul is full and strong, the power which answers to that attraction and sends in light does come as a matter of course. 

There are, however, certain great dangers in the way. There is, for instance, the danger to 

the  receiving  soul   of   i ts   mistaking  momentary  emotions  for  real  religious yearning.  We  may  study  that  in  ourselves.  Many  a  time  in  our  lives,  somebody  dies  whom  we  loved;  we  receive  a  blow;  we  feel  that  the  world  is  slipping  between  our  fingers;  that  we  want  something  surer  and higher,  and  that  we  must  become  religious.  In  a  few  days  that  wave  of  feeling  has  passed away, and we are left stranded just where we were before. We are all of us often mistaking  such  impulses  for  real  thirst  after religion;  but  as  long  as  these  momentary emotions are thus mistaken, that continuous, real  craving  of  the  soul  for  religion  will  not come, and we shall not find the true transmitter of spirituality into our nature. So whenever we are tempted to complain of our search after the truth  that  we  desire  so  much,  proving  vain, instead of so complaining, our first duty ought to  be  to  look  into  our  own  souls  and  find whether the craving in the heart is real. Then in the  vast  majority  of  cases  it  would  be discovered that we were not fit for receiving the truth, that there was no real thirst for spirituality. 

There are still greater dangers in regard to the transmitter,  the  Guru.  There  are many who, though immersed in ignorance, yet, in the pride of their hearts, fancy they know everything, and not only do not stop there, but offer to take others on their shoulders; and thus the blind leading the blind, both fall  into the  ditch.  अविद्ायामनिरे ििवामानाः सियां धीराः पन्डििममनयमानाः। दनद्रमयमािाः पररयननि मूढा अनधेनमैि नीयमाना यथानधाः।।—“Fools dwelling in darkness, wise in their own conceit, and puffed up with vain knowledge, go round and round staggering to and fro,  like blind men led by the blind.”—(Katha  Up.,  I.ii.5).  The  world  is  full  of  these. Every one wants to be a teacher, every beggar wants to make a gift of a million dollars! Just as these  beggars  are  ridiculous,  so  are  these teachers. 

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What is Religion?

Religion is Common Sense

every human being. At best when we want to hear  of  spiritual  things  our  standard  is  the senses; or a man hears things about philosophy, and God, and transcendental things, and after hearing about them for days, he asks: After all, how much money will  they bring, how much sense-enjoyment  will  they  bring?  For  his enjoyment is only in the senses, quite naturally.’3

‘None  can  teach  another.  You  have  to realize  truth  and  work  it  out  for  yourself 

according to your own nature…All must struggle  to  be  individuals  –  strong, standing on your own feet, thinking your own  thoughts,  realizing your own  Self.  No  use  swallowing doctrines others pass on – standing up  together  like  soldiers  in  jail, 

sitting  down  together,  all  eating  the same food, all nodding their heads at the 

same  time.  Variation  is  the  sign  of  life. Sameness is the sign of death.’4

Therefore  Swamiji  says:  ‘The  secret  of religion lies not in theories but in practice. To be good and to do good – that is the whole of religion. “Not he that crieth ‘Lord’, ‘Lord’, but he that doeth the will of the Father.”’5 Religion is not  lip-service,  but  a  perception.  From  that perception arises a conviction, which becomes action. Mind you, merely running around in rut 

Religion  is  a  common-sense, everyday  thing.1 Religion  is  not mumbo-jumbo. It is not magic. It is 

not mysterious. It is not doctrine or dogma. It is  not  based  on  tradition.  It  is  based  on common-sense.  If  religion does not permeate the everyday life of its follower, it is not religion; it is something else! This is the view of Swami Vivekananda.

He  elaborates  this  idea  variously  as follows:

‘Cleanse the mind, this is all of religion.’2  Just  look  at  the  beauty  of this idea. Can religion be made any simpler? We believe that religion is cumbersome, with  its  heavy  load of beliefs, rituals, ceremonies and observances.  But,  none  of  those actually  constitute  religion.  Even  if we  engage  in  all  those  so-called prescribed  activities,  and  do  not  cleanse  our minds  therefrom,  it  is  not  religion,  whatever else it be!

‘The one objection raised here is this, that love for ceremonials, dressing at certain times, eating  in  a  certain  way,  and  shows  and mummeries  of  religion  like  these  are  only external religion, because you are satisfied with the senses and do not want to go beyond them. This  is  a  tremendous  difficulty with  us, with 

Every science has its own method

of learning, and religion is to

be learnt the same way.

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in the name of doing good to the world is not what  is  meant  by  action.  There  is  a  definite method to the action that constitutes religion. 

Hence, Swamiji warns: ‘You will find many persons in this world who will say, “I wanted to become  religious,  I  wanted  to  realize  these things,  but  I  have  not  been  able,  so  I  do  not believe  anything.”  Even  among  the  educated you will  find  these.  Large numbers  of  people will tell you, “I have tried to be religious all my life, but there is nothing in it.” At the same time you will find this phenomenon: Suppose a man is a chemist, a great scientific man. He comes and tells you this.  If you say to him, “I do not believe  anything  about  chemistry,  because  I have all my life tried to become a chemist and 

1 The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda. Vol-2: The Goal

2 Ibid. Vol-7: Inspired Talks: Monday, July 29, 18953 Ibid. Vol-1: Vedic Religious Ideals4 Ibid. Vol-6: Formal Worship

do not find anything in it”, he will ask, “When did you try?” “When I went to bed, I repeated, ‘O chemistry, come to me”, and it never came. That is the very same thing. The chemist laughs at you and says, “Oh, that is not the way. Why did you not go to the laboratory and get all the acids  and  alkalis  and  burn  your  hands  from time  to  time?  That  alone  would  have  taught you.”  Do  you  take  the  same  trouble  with religion? Every science has its own method of learning, and religion is to be learnt the same way.’ 6

‘In one word, the ideal of Vedanta is to know man as he really is, and this is its message,  that  if  you  cannot  worship  your brother man, the manifested God, how can you worship a God who is unmanifested?’7

5 Ibid. Vol-6: Epistles – Second Series: 30th April, 1891: To Govinda Sahay

6 Ibid. Vol-6: The Methods and Purpose of Religion7 Ibid. Vol-2: Practical Vedanta: Part II

References

Once we rise beyond our tiny ego, everything that we do, every worship, every meditation, every work, even the so-called worldly work like looking after one’s own family, become a stimulus for our spiritual growth. It is on this basis that Swami Vivekananda presented the universality of Practical Vedanta, its being as the basis of all religions and relevant to all peoples. By discharging their responsibilities and facing the challenges of life, and keeping in view the steady unfolding of spiritual growth through them, all can realize the highest goal. That is why this yoga is defined by Sri Krsna in the second chapter of the Gita as yogah karmasu kausalam— ‘Yoga is efficiency, dexterity, in action’. Through this efficiency, man increases the material welfare and happiness of society, outwardly, through his productive labour; and achieves his or her own spiritual growth as well, inwardly. When we find that our actions result in the economic, social, and cultural growth outside and our own spiritual growth within, we shall know that we are implementing the message of Yoga of the Gita, that we are approaching religion as a science of spiritual growth and fulfil ment.

—Eternal Values for a Changing Society. Swami Ranganathananda. Bombay: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. 2:540

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Topical Musings

W e shall present two facts to our readers. Putting these two facts together,  we  will  be  able  to 

appreciate the utmost relevance of Swamiji’s prescription of Spiritual Sadhana for the modern age.

1st fact: Spiritual Sadhana requires an activity  (or  a  set  of  activities)  that  man  can perform over and over again, on a daily basis.

2nd fact: Never before in recorded human history have so many people been  involved  in  economic activity  on  a  daily  basis,  all through the year!

How  are  these  two  facts connected?

Since society, in the past, could  not  engage  man  in  any activity on a daily basis, all through the year, Rishis had to invent special activities that  could  indeed engage man on  such basis. That  explains  the  evolution  of  Yajna,  rituals, ritualistic Puja, ritualistic Mass, ritualistic community prayer, building temples, mosques, cathedrals,  seva  to  idols  and  images,  japa, dhyana,  nidhidhyasana,  contemplation,  etc. Although  this  is  true  across  cultures  and religions of the world, it is more so with respect to Indian society down the ages.

These activities were all special activities. What we mean is – these activities were never primarily  economic  activities.  Man  has  to survive from day to day. That is vital. Only when daily survival has been taken care of, man will be able  to  strive  for his  spiritual  growth; not 

Our Sadhana (Continued from the previous issue...)

before  that!  Hence,  we  say  that  all  through history, activities which were conducive to spiritual  growth  were  never  primarily economic  in  nature.  As  a  result,  the  Indian society came up with certain traditions, where certain groups of people were  ‘taken care of’ economically, and they were left free to perform these ‘special activities’. The rest of the people  in  society  engaged  in  economic 

activities, part of which sustained these groups  of  people  too.  Centuries after centuries, this has been the tradition.1  And  what  was  the nature of the economic activity that these people engaged in? It was periodic, seasonal in most cases.  Agriculture,  hunting, 

fishing,  metal-working,  trading, entertainment, warfare, etc. All  these 

activities were never on a  large-scale, and hence were periodic only. Unless you engage in sustained activity, day-after-day, for years together,  without  any  respite,  that  activity cannot  lead  to  spiritual  growth.  Spiritual practice is not sporadic. 

From the 18th century onwards, with the development of science and technology, a new age  has  dawned.  The  entire  structure  of economic  activity  has  changed.  Innumerable people are participating in productive activity all over the world, daily, year after year. Never before  has  the  common  man  had  such sustained engagement with work! This is one of  the  greatest  contributions  of  the  modern  age.

Character is self-restraint. Self-restraint is self-direction.

Self-direction is concentration.

Concentration when perfect is Samadhi.

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Whenever  and  wherever  you  have sustained activity, there is a scope of converting it into spiritual practice. This is the cornerstone in Swami Vivekananda’s conception of Sadhana for the modern man. If society naturally evolves such  activity,  it  is  well  and  good.  If  society cannot evolve such activity, then the spiritual leaders of society invent sustained activities, to enable people to engage in spiritual practice. 

When  Swami  Vivekananda  travelled around the world, he saw the immense possibility hidden  in  the new socio-economic structure  created  by  the  modern  paradigm. Though this paradigm was mainly developed in the West, gradually it has permeated the whole world. Now, for the first time in human history, we have common people, everywhere, engaged in activity on a daily basis. If a suitable turn can be  given  to  the  worker,  he  can  immediately participate in the activity, which will

simultaneously  bring  economic  as  well  as spiritual benefits; economic benefit for society and spiritual benefit for the individual! Where is  then,  the need  to design separate activities for spiritual growth? If we could only mine the immense activities that man is now engaged in, incredible  spiritual  fruits  could  be  obtained! This was the vision of Swami Vivekananda.2

Therefore,  Sister  Nivedita  points  out: ‘How  are  we  to  fight  (for  spiritual  growth)? Most of us, by work. The world’s work  is  the great  Sadhana,  wherein  we  accumulate character, by which, when the time comes, we can rise even into the Nirvikalpa Samadhi itself. Character is self-restraint. Self-restraint is self-direction.  Self-direction  is  concentration.  Concentration when perfect is Samadhi. From perfect work to perfect Mukti. This is the swing of the soul. Let us then be perfect in work!’3

(To be continued...)

1 Swamiji used to lament that the ancient spiritual traditions produced one saint at the cost of a hundred lives! He wished to reverse this situation, whereby multitudes could attain spiritual heights in society.

2 The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda. Vol-5: Sayings and Utterances: Jnana, Bhakti, Yoga and

Karma – these are the four paths which lead to salvation. One must follow the path for which one is best suited; but in this age special stress should be laid on Karma-Yoga.

3 The Complete Works of Sister Nivedita. Vol-3. Religion and Dharma: Work

References

‘... Ramakrishna institutions, … are not like the usual type of religious organizations where there is a gulf between life and religion. Sri Ramakrishna came to bridge that gulf and to teach us that life is itself religion. He exhorts us to see life in its unity and wholeness. This is the vyavasayatmika buddhih (one-pointed intel ligence) spoken of in the Bhagavad-Gita (II. 41), where there is a unity of vision and unity of purpose and endeavour, external and internal. This is the basis of all character development. Young people today want to see character coming out of religion; if they do not see this, they are not going to be inspired by religion or religious people. … So, this is the challenge before all religion: can it and does it show character? Just as the food that you take in must show its effect in the strength of your body, so also the religion that you profess and live by must show its effect in your inner riches, in your character, in your spirit of service, in your day-to-day life.’

Eternal Values for a Changing Society. Swami Ranganathananda. Bombay: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. 2:129

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News & Notes from Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission

The Order on the March

HeadquartersThe  123rd  Foundation  Day

of the Ramakrishna Mission was  celebrated  at  Belur  Math on  1  May.   Srimat  Swami Smaranananda  Ji   Maharaj, President of Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission chaired the programme. A good number of monks, devotees and well-wishers were present in the programme.Sri  Tathagata  Roy,  Governor 

of Meghalaya, visited Belur Math on 27 May.

125th Anniversary of Swami Vivekananda’s Addresses at the World’s Parliament of ReligionsThe   fo l lowing   centres 

held  various  programmes  as mentioned below:Antpur :   Seminar   (200 

people);  Asansol:  Four  Youth Conferences  (477  youth); Jalpaiguri:  Parents’  Convention (430  people)  and  Devotees’ Convention  (1350  devotees) i n w h i c h S r i m a t Swa m i Suhitananda  Ji,  one  of  the Vice-Presidents of the Order part ic ipated;   Mangaluru: 

Lectures  (850  youths);  Rajkot: Public  Meeting  (400  people) which  was  presided  over  by Srimat Swami Shivamayananda Ji, one of the Vice-Presidents of the Order.

Malaysia: Lectures and music in a public hall in Kuala Lumpur attended  by  300  devotees;  St. Louis,  USA:  Talks  and  bhajans held at  the Hindu Temple of St. Louis (250 devotees). 

News of Branch Centres (in India)

Srimat Swami Smaranananda Ji  Maharaj,  President  of  the Ramakrishna Order, installed new  pictures  of  Holy  Mother Sri Sarada Devi and Swami Vivekananda in Sri Ramakrishna temple at Bamunmura centre on 7  May,  the  auspicious  Akshaya Tritiya.  The  programme  was attended  by  130  monks  and about 500 devotees.Swami  Gautamananda  Ji, 

one of the Vice-Presidents of the Order, reconsecrated the renovated Sri Ramakrishna temple  at  the  Nettayam  sub-centre  of  Thiruvananthapuram Ashrama on 7 May. A procession, 

public  meetings  and  cultural programmes  were  held  in  this connection from 6 to 8 May.

Salem Ashrama  conducted discourses  and  bhajans  at  the Central Prison in Salem which were  attended  by  about  500 prison inmates. 

Summer CampsSummer Camps for students

were held in these centres : Aurangabad, Bengaluru, Chennai Math, Chennai Mission Ashrama, Hyderabad,  Indore,  Kadapa, Kayamkulam, Kochi, Madurai,

Koilandy Chennai Math Puri

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Mysuru,  Nagpur,  Porbandar, Rajkot  and  Tirupati.  In  total 4956 students participated. The programmes included chanting, bhajans,  yogasanas,  values education classes, etc.

Youth Programmes241 youths participated in

a state-level residential youth camp  conducted  by  Agartala centre.  Delhi  centre  conducted 24 values education workshops in 10 states and 2 union territories; 1655 teachers and 182 principals participated. 425 students from 5 interior schools in Kutch district participated in  programmes  conducted  by Rajkot  centre.  180  students participated  in  a  programme conducted by Salem centre.

Medical ReliefThrough  14  centres  in  India 

the Order conducted Eye-camps  in  which  6586  people were  treated,  829  were  given spectacles, and 975 operated. 

V i j a y a w a d a c e n t r e , in association with Madras Dyslexia  Association,  held  a training  programme  in  which 62 teachers received training in imparting education to children affected by dyslexia.Aalo centre conducted an

anti-tobacco  and  health  aware-

ness  programme  in  a  nearby village;  50  people  attended. Koyilandy centre held a medical camp in which doctors checked 60  children  from  a  fishermen colony and gave medicines.

Lusaka centre,  Zambia,  held a blood donation camp in which 42 people donated blood.

Swachchha Bharat AbhiyanMa n g a l u r u A s h r am a 

conducted   the   fo l lowing activities  in  May:  (i)  four cleanliness drives in Mangaluru involving  1950  volunteers, (ii)  awareness  campaigns  for 24 days in which volunteers reached out to 1450 households in  different  parts  of Mangaluru city, spreading awareness about waste  management,  and  (iii) cleanliness drives in 100 villages of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts.

Cyclone Relief Fani,  an  extremely  severe 

cyclonic storm, made its landfall in  Puri  on  3  May.  The  cyclone caused  severe  damage  to  the homes and public infrastructure in Odisha and also a few parts of West Bengal. Bhubaneswar, Puri Math and Puri Mission centres have  surveyed  the  afflicted areas and are in the process of distributing  relief  materials. 

Manasadwip  centre  distributed relief material to 11 families. 

Drought Relief In the aftermath of the recent

drought,  Aurangabad centre distributed water storing drums to 150 affected families.

Summer Relief Madurai centre  distributed 

600  litres  of  buttermilk  to thirsty wayfarers.

Fire ReliefChennai  Math  distributed 

clothes and utensils to 16 families whose huts were destroyed in a fire accident. 

Distress ReliefThrough  5  centres  in  India, 

the  Order  distributed  3544 shirts, 401 trousers, 704 jackets, 386  sweaters,  1250  saris,  122 blankets, 100 mosquito-nets and some grocery items.

Flood RehabilitationIn the aftermath of the

floods  that  had  hit  Kerala  in August  2018,  Tiruvalla centre setup a water treatment plant, cleaned  a  well  and  distributed 10 computers, 3 printers and a  camera  benefitting  over  360 families in Pathanamthitta and Alappuzha districts.

54

The

Veda

nta

Kes

ari

July

201

9

T a m i l N a d u , t h e

land of Alvars, Nayanmars, and

Acharya Ramanuja has a unique place in the history of Ramakrishna-Vivekananda movement for its association with Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi, and several direct disciples of Sri Ramakrishna including Swami Vivekananda, Swami Brahmananda, Swami Shivananda and Swami Ramakrishnananda. The Swamis themselves founded as well as inspired others to establish several ashramas and outstanding service institutions in this State. There are now 17 branch centres of the Ramakrishna Order in the State, the latest of which is in the city of Villipuram.

Two groups of devotees who were conducting service activities under the banner of Sri Ramakrishna Seva Sangam, Villupuram, and Vivekananda Mandram, Valayampattu formed Sri Ramakrishna Educational Society in May 1983. From the very beginning these devotees worked under the guidance of the sannyasis of the Ramakrishna Order including

Swami Tapasyananda, the then Adhyaksha of Sri Ramakrishna Math, Chennai and one of the former Vice-Presidents of the Order, Swamis Tanmayananda and Raghaveshananda, the two former managers of the Math, and in recent times by Srimat Swami Gautamananda Ji, the Adhyaksha of Chennai Math and one of the Vice-Presidents of the Order.

In the year of inception, the Society established two schools: Ramakrishna Vidyalaya Matric. High School for classes VI-XII and Ramakrishnananda Nursery & Primary School for Pre-Kg to class V. In 1996, the Ramakrishna Vidyalaya Matric Higher Secondary School for classes VI-XII was added. Affiliated to the Metric board of Education, Tamil Nadu, all the three English medium co-education schools provide quality education to about 4550 students. The Society also runs Sri Sarada Devi Free Homeopathy Clinic since 1994 and Gadhadhar Abhyud a y a P r a k a l p a i n Valayampattu village.

It was the sankalpa of the founding devotees that one day these institutions would foster the

establishment of a branch centre of the Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission in the city. This dream came true on 25 April 2019 when Society registered and transferred all the three schools and the charitable dispensary to Belur Math, the Headquarters of the Order, in presence of Swami Bodhasarananda, one of the Asst. General Secretaries of the Order. Thus was born Ramakrishna Miss ion Vi l lupuram. The Govt. of Tamil Nadu has given exemption for stamp duty and registration fees worth of Rs. 3 crores appreciating this noble effort. On 2 June 2019, the day of Phalaharini Kali Puja, the centre was formally opened in a grand function in the presence of Srimat Swami Gautamananda Ji, Swamis Divyananda and Muktidananda, Trustees of the Order, Dr. L. Subramaniyan, the District collector, K. Munusamy, Chief Educational Officer of the district, managing committee members of the Society and other dignitaries. In total 53 Sadhus, 300 devotees, 270 staff and 1500 students attended the function. Detailed activities of the centre can be followed at rkmvillupuram.org.

Ramakishna Mission Villupuram— 17th centre in Tamil Nadu

55

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56

Vol.106. No.7 The Vedanta Kesari (English Monthly) July 2019. Regd. with the Registrar of Newspapers for India under No.1084 / 1957.

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