Nbz!3122Year 16 Issue 11

Monthly eMagazine of the International Vedanta Mission

Pn!Tsj!Hvsvcizp!Obnbi!"

In This Issue

1. Vedanta Section: Atma Bodha - Shloka-30

2. Letter Section: Dhyana & Vedanta

3. Devata Section: Sri Adi Sankaracharya

4. Katha Section: Indra and Virochana

5. VM Programs: Mission / Ashram Progs

From Poojya Guruji

Vedanta SandeshSpreading Love & Light

Monthly eMagazine of theInternational Vedanta Mission

Sharing the message of Vedanta and Sanatan Dharma

May 2011

On the Net since 1995

Started by:

Poojya Guruji Sri Swami Atmanandaji

Editor:

Swamini Samatananda

Published from:

Vedanta Ashram

E/2948-50, Sudama Nagar

Indore-452 009, India

Web:

www.vmission.org.in

Email:

vmission@gmail.com

Hari om!

India saw a unique four days movement last month - no arms, no violence, nowar, yet the gargantuan surrenders. Corruption has indeed become a terriblescourge in India. It has become very rampant, and nothing moves without greas-ing the hands of someone. Leaders & govt officials seem to have got license toloot the tax-payers money, and at times become the licensed extortionists too.Privitisation made sense because anything associated with govt was a guar-anteed low-quality stuff & service. Naxalism & separatism are in fact a helplesslast resort of poor people, because the men in power are rarely seen as friends,but more often as foes alone. It is mind-boggling to hear the amount of blackmoney stashed in Swiss Bank accounts by Indians. All the national debt can berepayed many times over. No wonder the infra-structure of all those countriesis world-class. India has indeed lot of wealth, but alas it is a wealthy country ofpoor people. A milking cow. Indeed there is something fundamentally wrongwith the system, and we need to go into all this thoroughly. The very objectiveof independence is lost if our own people dont have food, water & clothing, andare neither empowered to do anything about it. The proposed Lokpal will be anew constitutional authority in India to go into any complaint of corruptionagaingst any govt authority, including PM & judiciary, and hopefully the men inpower will have something to fear, but a more fundamental question is whetherfear is the real deterrent for stopping us to lead a truly conscentious & ethicallife, or will such hanging swords help invoke ingennuity to discover better waysof corruption. It is all a matter of intention and faith, about which there is aterrible deficit. What if the Lokpal himself becomes corrupt? We had earlierthought that elected representatives will assure honest governance, but thatwas not to be. Today our tragedy is that we are being looted by our own people.

History has proved us time & again that deterrents are never the bestmotivator to lead an ethical life, that is why communism with all its noble inten-tion failed. Purity of intention has to come from within, then alone it sustains,inspite of anything. If we 'really want’ to lead a noble & ethical life, then weknow that nobody can stop us, but how do we assure that everyone really'wants' that & that alone. What are we doing at the level of law & education toassure this? What is the role of visions & values? What role philosophies &religion played for this? It should not be too difficult to discover such systems,after all history tells us that so many earlier visitors to our country were amazedat the purity & nobility of the people of this land. We will win such wars onlywhen we can assure 'sincere noble intentions' in our leaders & people. Realrevolutions are possible only by subjective transformations, and not by justexternal checks & pressures. Such realization is yet to come.

Love & om,

Swami Atmananda

Vedanta Section

Atma Bodha - Shloka 30

Nishiddhya nikhila upadhinThe kowledge of Vedanta or Self knowledge

is a very tricky knowledge. Usually we are condi-tioned to know something as an object, that whichis seperate from the knower. So there is a knowerand an object of knowledge and this knowledge tootakes place in the mind. Anything that is known bythe mind becomes an object of the mind and any-thing that can be objectified becomes inert and isseperate from the subject, the knower. But in caseof knowing the Self, it is the very ‘I’, the knower whichis to be known. The ‘I’ or the Atman is ever existentand therefore it is only to be seen in its true es-sence. It is not to be attained. Attaining somethingimplies its absence at one time and then being at-tained at another time. We are the pure effulgentand blissfull truth even now. So the only valid means

Vedanta Sandesh - May 2011

Mahavakya’s reveal Identity

of knowledge here is the ‘word’, which is communi-cated by a Preceptor who has seen it for himselfand is also able to communicate equally effectively.Hence the role of the preceptor and the scripturesbecomes a very delicate affair where the Masterunlocks the meaning behind the word without giv-ing rise to any imagination or new conditioning.

The role of the scriptures and Teacher is toawaken one into the truth that which already ‘is’. Itonly has to be realised. Although all of us do have ageneral awareness of the Self. I am aware of myexistence. I know ‘I am’. So there isn’t a total igno-rance of the Self. But surely we are ignorant of thereal nature of the Self as being the limitless, eternaland blissful. Not only are we ignorant of the realityof the Self but we have superimposed various lim-ited adjuncts and identities of the body, mind and

In the previous sloka the Acharya explained the Atman is Self-luminous. It does not need anotherlight to illumine it. The sense organs, the mind and the intellect cannot illumine the Atman but the Atman isthe illuminator of all things. If this is the case then a question arises how then can the nature of the Atmanbe known. If it is said that the Atman is known by the scriptures then it implies that the Atman is objectifiableand if something can be objectified it means that it is inert and dependant on another source of light for itsexistence and also to be known. The following sloka answers this query and reveals how the scriptures arethe only valid means of knowledge and how the Upanishads beautifully reveal the Atman even though itcannot be known as an object.

Nishiddhya nikhila upadhin neti neti iti vakyatah

Vidyataikyam mahavakyaihi: Jivatmanah paramatmanoh:

Nishiddhya: Negating; nikhila upadhin: all limiting adjuuncts; neti neti iti vakyatah: with theexpression not this, not this; Vidyat: know or come to realise; aikyam: identity; mahavakyaihi:with the help of the Great Statements; Jivatmanah paramatmanoh: of the individual and theSupreme Self.

Eliminatining all limiting adjuncts with the expression ‘not this, not this’, one should realisethe identity of the individual and the Supreme Self with the help of the great Mahavakyas.

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intellect on the Self. The nature of awakening thusimplies negating all such super-impositions like I amthe body, mind and intellect and all that is born ofthis identification. Today our identity is based on ourassociation with the manifested form of our exist-ence, the BMI. The scriptures reveal, know this iden-tity to be relative, ephimeral and limited and negateall that is limited at the level of time, space, andobject. The process of negation is the art of the scrip-tures to reveal that which already ‘is’.

Neti neti iti vakyatah:

The process of negation under discussion isbrought about by discriminating between the Realand the Unreal. That which is the ‘Real’ is the eter-nal, unchanging, lifegiving factor, whose very na-ture is bliss.The ‘Unreal’ engulfs all that is other thanthe Self and hence can be objectified by the Self.Everything begining from the objects of the world,the gross physical body, the subtle bodies of themind and intellect, the causal body of ignorance, inshort all that comes into the realm of objective knowl-edge. All these things and the various experiencesborn of them are constantly changing and dying.They are inert because they are dependant on ‘Me’for their existence. They are born at one particulartime, are limited to space and are bound by specificattributes. A student of Vedanta aspiring for selfknowledge drops all these by seeing them as Un-real. He eliminates all that which is seperate fromthe Self. Although it is also significant and interest-ing to understand that negation does not imply physi-cally negating manifested forms but it implies cast-ing off the undue and excessive importance of real-ity that we have given to that which is unreal. Suchnegation reveals to us the divine nature of the Self,just as the Sun is revealed as the clouds move awayfrom the Sun.

Vidyataikyam mahavakyaihi:The Acharya further goes on to prescribe

having done the discrimination between the Realand the Unreal now come to see the truth by see-ing the unity between the jiva (the individual) andIshwara (God). A spiritual aspirant begins his jour-ney by seeing the insignificance of that which is

unreal. He also sees the existence of a divine powerwho is the creator and controller of this universe. Anindividual jiva’s life is a continuous blessing of thisdivine entity whom we refer to as God. In the beginingan individual lives a life of a devotee offering all hisactions and desires as a humble service to God. Hav-ing established such a divine relation a jiva lives a lifeof peace, contentment and selfless happiness. Butthe fact still remains that this Jiva is seperate fromIshwara. There is not only a duality between Jiva andIshwara but also a sense of limitation that the Jiva issmall and limited and Ishwara is the one with infinitepower and knowledge. Ultimate liberation comeswhen the Jiva sees the unity between himself andIswara by negating the manifested form of the indi-vidual Jiva and the magnanimous form of Iswara. Thistruth is revealed in the great statements called theMahavakyas like ‘Tat Tvam asi’ i.e. That Thou Art-You are that, implying there is no duality between Jivaan God. This may come as a shock for many asadhakas who have humbly seen themselves asdevotees of God , God who is omnipotent, whereasmyself as an indiviual limited in every way. Althoughthis mind set is iportant to purify the mind of variousego-centric attitudes and negativities but liberationcomes by seeing the unity between jiva and Iswara.Hence the journey then begins to realise this unity.This process is brought about by negating the mani-fested form of the individual body, mind and intellectand also by negating the manifested form of Iswarawhich was invoked by his Maya. Once the manifesta-tions are negated what then remains is pure exist-ence and pure consciousness that simply ‘is’.

Jivatmanah paramatmanoh:

This realisation of oneness frees an individualof his sense of limitation and continuous seeking. Thejiva or the Individual becomes one with the Supreme.In the state of ignorance there is the existence of in-dividuality and totality where consciousness manifestsat the level of the individual and totality known as theJiva and Ishwara. Once this manifestation of individu-ality and totality i.e. the Jiva and Ishwara are bothnegated what remains is pure consciousness. This isthe oneness between the Jiva and Ishwara realisedby the Mahavakyas like Tat tvam asi.

Best Wishes on the occassion of Sri Adi Sankaracharya Jayanti

Hari om M...,

Further to your question regarding the role of Dhyana & Bhakti in

Vedanta.

Well, if we define Dhyana as a means of paying complete unflinching

attention, along with humble inquisitiveness to the words of our Guru,

who removes the veil of ignorance and thus reveals the unknown, then

certainly Dhyana has an important role in Vedanta. When an enlightened

master reveals and the student pays complete, unconditioned attention

to comprehend the subtlest of implications, then such attentiveness is

indeed part & parcel of effective communication, it becomes a facilitator

to further our journey from darkness to light, from unknown to known.

But if by Dhyana we simply imply focusing intensely on something which

is 'already known', then such a sadhana doesn’t really help the getting

of any new knowledge. This is what Upasana is all about. Upasana

and Karma have initial preparatory role to play, but are never a revelatory

means for new knowledge, so a student of vedanta keeps aside all

such karmic sadhanas, physical or mental, for entering the portals of

vedanta. That is what karma sanyasa is all about, and is extremely

necessary, because any kind of karma basically ignores 'what is' for its

imaginary preference for 'what should be'.

There is a shloka which says that if you do not know the truth, then

dhyana doesn’t make sense, and if you know the truth then it is not

required. So obviously dhyana has a limited role. People who practice

Dhyana seem to aim an experience of a particular state of mind rather

than aiming to efface ignorance of their Self. Any karma, whether

physical or mental is prompted only by conclusions about what is that

which is presumably something worthwhile & great etc, so such people

start with a conclusion, and do not have the humility of an open minded

seeker. So in Vedanta we prefer to just see the role of dhyana as capacity

to pay complete unflinching attention to the ‘teachings of an enlightened

Knowledge is all

about being aware

of the truth of what

is, while Yoga and

Bhakti aim to

change the mind for

the better, so

technically they fall

in the category of

karma, working to

change something.

For knowledge even

a sankalpa to

change anything is

an impediment,

because then our

priorities change

from knowing what

is to working for

what should be.

- Poojya Guruji

Dhyana & VedantaLetter of theMonth

If we define

Dhyana as a means

of paying complete

unflinching attention,

alongwith humble

inquisitiveness to the

words of our Guru,

who removes the veil

of ignorance and

thus reveals the

unknown, then

certainly Dhyana has

an important role in

Vedanta... But if by

Dhyana we simply

imply focusing

intensely on

something which is

'already known', then

such a sadhana

doesn’t help.

Vedanta Sandesh - May 2011

Page # 7

masters’, rather than simply absorption of a doer in some so called divine object/being/state.

Here we are more bothered about the subject rather than any objects, howsoever great it

maybe.

So, listening to Sad-gurus with complete attention is the essence of studying, thinking deeply

on them to sort out any of our doubts & conditionings is reflection, and reveling in this knowledge

all the time so as to drop our habitual errors is the real meditation. Regarding Bhakti, it is all

about having deep, selfless love for something. We prefer to see the role of bhakti as the

deep & intense ‘inquisitiveness to know the truth’. With such love alone the Sravana, Manana

& Niddidhyasana are truly possible.

Love & om

Swami Atmananda

Imagine for a moment that there is a bank that credits your account each morning with $86,400.

It carries over no balance from day to day.Every evening deletes whatever part of the balance you failed to useduring the day. What would you do? Draw out ALL OF IT, of course!!

Each of us has such a bank. Its name is TIME.Every morning, it credits you with 86,400 seconds.

Every night it writes off, as lost, whatever of this you have failed to invest to good purpose.

It carries over no balance. It allows no overdraft.

Each day it opens a new account for you. Each night it burns the remains of the day.

If you fail to use the day's deposits, the loss is yours.There is no going back. There is no drawing against the "tomorrow."You must live in the present on today's deposits. Invest it so as to get from it the utmost in health,happiness, and success!

The clock is running. Make the most of today.Treasure every moment that you have!And remember that time waits for no one.Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery.Today is a gift. That's why it's called the present!!!

Time Bank

Vedanta Sandesh - April 2009 Page # 10

Sri

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Vedanta Sandesh - May 2011

Sankaracharya Jayanti falls on the 5th day of the bright half of the month of

Vaishakh (around Apr-May). This year as per the english calendar in 2011 it falls

on 8th of May.

The existence of Vedic Dharma in India today is primarily due to Sankara.The

forces opposed to Vedic religion were more numerous and powerful at the time of

Sankara than they are today. Still, single-handed, within a very short time, Sankara

overpowered them all and restored the Vedic Dharrna and Advaita Vedanta to its

pristine purity in the land. The weapon he used was pure knowledge and spiritual-

ity.

Sankara is the foremost among the master-minds and the giant souls which

Mother India has produced. An expounder of the Advaita philosophy, Sankara

was a giant metaphysician, a practical philosopher, an infallible logician, a dynamic

personality and a stupendous moral and spiritual force. His grasping and elucidating

powers knew no bounds. He was a fully developed Yogi, Jnani and Bhakta. He

was a great Karma Yogi. Bharata Varsha would have ceased to be Bharata Varsha

several centuries ago and would never have survived the murderous sword, the

devastating fire and the religious intolerance of the successive invaders, if Sankara

had not lived the life he lived and taught the lessons he taught.

His teachings can be summed up in three crisp aphorisms:

‘Brahma Satyam Jagat Mithya, Jeevo Brahmaiva Naparah’, meaning Brahman

alone is real, this world is illusory; and every Jiva is basically that one, infinite

blissful divinity alone, and we have no separate identity apart from him.

Brahma Satyam:

Brahman is that which is the life principle, pure conscousness. It is the

substratum of the entire creation just as water is to waves and bubbles. The word

‘Satya’ is that which exists in all three periods of time. Past, present and the future.

That which transcends time and is thus timeless. That which exists at all times

and that which cannot be effaced by time. In that sense Brahman is that Reality

which existed before the creation, is there inspite of the creation and will be there

even when the creation dissolves. Hence Brahman is not the manifested

consciousness reflecting as the ‘I’ in our mind but it is that pure consciousness

which is beyond all manifestations. Infact it is that which exists first and then

everything follows. When we look at the creation, it is so beautiful, orderly and

perfect. Such a creation cannot happen by itself of inert matter, but there has to be

an omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent power which creates and sustains all

living and non-living things. This power alone is the Atman of everything. It is our

basic essence which we all must aim to awaken into.

Page # 9

Jagat Mithya:

The word Jagat embraces in itself the entire world. Anything that can be

objectified and can be known other than the Self comes into the realm of ‘Jagat’.

The objects of the world, our physical and subtle bodies, all our experiences and

the concept of time everything comes under this word Jagat. The word Jagat means-

Jayate Gachhati iti jagat i.e. that which is born and dies in the realm of time is

Jagat. The scriptures reveal that the nature of this world or jagat is ‘Mithya’ i.e. it is

illusionary in nature. It is comparable to a dream world. We have some experiences

but it does not have any real existence. This is Mithya. Mithya is that which is not

there in all three periods of time. It was not there in the past, will cease to be in

future but as though appears to be there in the present. The aphorism ‘Jagat Mithya’

thus implies that all experiences are transcient and have no real existence. Another

important feature of Mithya is that it does not have the capacity to give us that

fulfillment which we seek. It is like eating dream food. How much ever we eat we

are still hungry on waking up. So too we experience the best of pleasures in this

world yet we remain where we are. Empty and seeking. The world surely helps us

to make life comfortable and organised but it does not fulfill the seeker within. True

contentment lies within the Self. That which is Mithya does not have an independant

existence. It is dependant on a living entity, on the life giving principle. How then

can it give the Self happiness. This aphorism helps us direct our life towrds knowing

the reality of things.

Jivo Brahmaiv Naparah:

This sutra reveals that the Jiva who sees himself as a limited, finite being is

truly infinite and limitless in nature. It is Brahman. The existence of the Jiva or the

individual comes about due to ignorance of the Self and wrongly identifying the

Self with the the body and various roles that we play through this body. The body

and all the experiences borne of this body are limited in time & space hence we

come to see ourselves as limited in the same way too. Our basic serach is for

limitlessness, for bliss because that is our very nature but by identifying with the

limited body, mind and intellect we are constantly seeking and getting more and

more trapped with the sense of limitation and seeking outside. The only path to

liberation from this sense of limitation and seeking is knowing the Reality of the

Self, the world and its creator. One needs to observe the limited and transcient

nature of the world and all the experiences in this world. This alone will help us turn

our focus on that which is eternal. The journey of awakening from a limited Jiva to

the limitless Brahman is a journey of knowledge, of awakening. It is a state or

reality of the self which one does not have to attain through any actions but by

knowing that which is already there. I am the limitless, self effulgent and blissful

Brahman right now. All one needs to do is to see the ephimeral nature of the

objective world and see that which is untouched by change, untouhed by birth or

death.

Awakening into this truth one is freed from the bondages of dependancies

and constant seeking. The world is a beautiful place but it’s true beauty is lived

when a person lives in it knowing its reality and also the reality of the self.

Vedanta Sandesh - May 2011

Offering the Best

One rainy night many years ago, an elderly man and his wife en-tered the lobby of a small hotel in Philadelphia. Trying to get out of thestorm, the couple reached the front desk hoping to get some shelter for thenight.

"Could you possibly give us a room here?" the husband asked. Theclerk, a friendly man with a winning smile, looked at the couple and ex-plained that there were three conventions in town. "All of our rooms aretaken," the clerk said. "But I can't send a nice couple like you out into therain at one o'clock in the morning. Would you perhaps be willing to sleep inmy room? It's not exactly a suite, but it will be good enough to make youfolks comfortable for the night." When the couple declined, the young manpressed on. "Don't worry about me; I'll make out just fine," the clerk toldthem. So the couple agreed.

As he paid his bill the next morning, the elderly man said to theclerk, "You are the kind of manager who should be the boss of the besthotel in the United States. Maybe someday I'll build one for you." The clerklooked at them and smiled. The three of them had a good laugh. As theydrove away, the elderly couple agreed that the helpful clerk was indeedexceptional,as finding people who are both friendly and helpful isn't easy.

Two years passed. The clerk had almost forgotten the incident whenhe received a letter from the old man. It recalled that stormy night andenclosed a round-trip ticket to New York, asking the young man to paythem a visit.

The old man met him in New York, and led him to the corner of FifthAvenue and 34th Street. He then pointed to a great new building there, apalace of reddish stone, with turrets and watchtowers thrusting up to thesky. "That," said the older man, "is the hotel I have just built for you tomanage." "You must be joking," the young man said. "I can assure you Iam not," said the older man, a sly smile playing around his mouth.

The older man's name was William Waldorf Astor, and the magnifi-cent structure was the original Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. The young clerk whobecame its first manager was George C. Boldt. This young clerk neverforesaw the turn of events that would lead him to become the manager ofone of the world's most glamorous hotels.

Page # 13Vedanta Sandesh - April 2009

Indra & Virochan

Page # 11

Once upon

a time ...

Stories fromPurana’s

Once Prajapati, a knower of Brahman, declared: 'The Atman which is freefrom evil, free from old age, free from death, free from sorrow, free from hungerand thirst, whose nature is truth should be sought. He who has found out and whounderstands that Atman attains all the worlds and all the desires.'

Both gods and demons heard this proclamation. Indra among the gods andVirochana among the Asuras, then approached Prajapati and said : 'We haveheard that the Atman has to be known, the Atman that is not touched by sin, or oldage or death or sorrow or thirst or hunger. Please instruct us about this Atman'.

Prajapati asked them to practise austerities and celibacy for thirty-two years, andthen instructed them thus: 'The Purusha (the Self) visible in the eyes, reflected inthe water or in the mirror is the Atman. Look at yourselves in water and let meknow what you see.' When they did this Prajapati asked them, 'What did you see?''We saw the whole body', they said. Prajapati asked them to dress well and againlook at the image and they said that the images also looked well-dressed. Prajapatisaid, 'This is the Atman that you seek', and they went away satisfied.

Virochana went back to the Asuras and proclaimed, 'The body is the Atman, serveit well and you will obtain all your desires here and hereafter'.

Now let us follow Indra. As a result of living a right type of austere life, Indrabecame endowed with intelligence, the power of discernment. On his way back hereflected, 'If the Atman becomes lame if the body is lame, and blind if the body isblind, and is well-dressed if the body is well-dressed, and is destroyed if the bodyis destroyed—I see no good in this teaching.'

So he went back to Prajapati who asked him to live a life of celibacy for anotherthirty-two years. Then he said: 'He who moves about as the Lord in the state ofdream, is the Self, the Atman.' Indra, again reflected on the way back: 'Though thisdream Purusha is not affected by any damage to the body, yet at times he is beingchased or hurt or that Purusha feels pain or weeps. This certainly cannot be theSelf.'

Again he went back to Prajapati. After thirty-two years more of celibacy, Indra wastold, 'The Self in the state of deep sleep is the Atman, immortal, fearless, he isBrahman'. Indra again expressed doubt: 'The Self is not affected by dream, ordamage to or destruction of the body, but it seems not to know itself, and is, as itwere, dead in this state of deep sleep (sushupti). I do not see any real good in this.'

He again went to Prajapati and was told to practise celibacy for five more years. Atlast Prajapati found Indra fit to receive the true teaching and instructed him: 'OIndra, mortal indeed is this body, held by death. But it is the support of this death-less, bodiless Atman that enlivens everything. This Atman is of the nature of truthlife and bliss. Know this Atman. He obtains all the worlds all the desired objects,

who having known that Atman revels in it.'

Gita Gyana Yagna at Sevalia:

A Gita Gyana Yagna by Poojya Swamini Amitanandaji was organized

at Sevalia, a small township near Godhra in Gujrat. The subject matters of

this Gujrati language Gyana Yagna were Gita Chapter 17, and Bhaja

Govindam.

The Yagna shala was lovingly made in one of the open areas by erect-

ing pandal etc. It was the first time such a Gita Gyana Yagna was organized

and the inspiration and initiative was by Kaileshbhai of Ahmedabad, who

basically belongs to this town. The response to this first ever Gyana Yagna

was good. A good crowd regular attended and appreciated the initiative to

bring the message of Bhagwad Gita. Normally they just heard Ramayan &

Bhagwad. P. Swaminiji’s room was near the fields & forest, with chirping

birds, peacocks and greenery.

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Vedanta Sandesh - May 2011

Special Session for Hastamalaka Stotram, Sevalia:

Apart from the two regular discourses at Sevalia, P.Swaminiji used

the time there to conduct two more sessions for advanced devotees and

conducted special discourses on Hastamalaka Stotram. Even though this

session was meant for select few, many more joined to take a dip in the

Gyana Ganga.

Hasstamalaka Stotram is a profound text revealing the vision of

Vedanta, and is attibuted to Hastamalakacharya, one of the well-known dis-

ciples of Sri Adi Sankara. This stotram pertains to the first introduction of

himself to his great Acharya by Hastamalakacharya, and in & through the

introduction beautiful pointers are given about one’s Atma. A great stotra to

chant & revel. On the last day a session of conducted meditation was also

conducted, so as to directly appreciate what had been studied so far.

P.Swaminiji visits an old Temple near Sevalia:

On one of days Poojya Swaminiji along with a group of devotees

went for an outing to get darshan of Valteshwar Mahadev. This is a very old

temple, whose shikhar had been dececrated and broken by Moghul invad-

ers. Till date the temple stands without its shikhar, waiting for some resur-

rection & renovation. Regular puja is conducted, and the structure contin-

ues to bring resolutions in the mind of devotees to do something substantial

to protect their dharma and its institutions.

Before the darshan everyone took a dip in the Mahisagar river nearby.

The river originates from a place near Sevalia, and takes a big form even

after 10-15 Kms, where this spot was. Obviously it must be sourced by some

good underground watersprings, and thus it is a perenial river flowing in the

same way throughout the year. The dip was refrshing in the clean waters of

the river.

Check out the detailed Photo Albums of the various functions onVM News Blog at : http://vmissionews.blogspot.com/

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Ram Navami Celebration, Indore:

This year Ram Navami was on the 12th of April. On that day a beau-tiful altar was made in the Shiv Tample and all the ashramites alongwithGita class students and various neighbours got together to celebrate the‘birth’ of their beloved & reverential Bhagwan Ram.

Apart from bhajans, everyone chanted the Vishnu Sahasranama, thethousand names of Lord Vishnu, whose avatar Bhagwan Ram is. BhagwanVishnu protects and sustains this beautiful creation by presenting and pro-tecting the order of Dharma. Dharma is that which sustains the world andalso the individual. Dharanat Dharmah. When everyone appreciates theirswadharma and lives as per it in the attitude of being an instrument of Lord,then one gets tuned with the cosmos, and is blessed in every way. Dot at 12everyone chanted the appropriate sections from Ramayana celebrating themanifestation of Bhagwan. Later there was Maha-Aarti & prasad.

Sanyas Deeksha Day of Sw. Samatanandaji:

On 30th April was the Sanyas Deeksha day of Poojya Swamini

Samatanandaji. This year was its seventh anniversary.

Sanyas is all about dropping all compulsions for doing any kind of

‘karma’ whatsoever. While karma is a very powerful & potent means avail-

able in the hands of human beings, and that is where every devotees and

sadhaka starts his or her spiritual journey, but the very scriptures which re-

veal to us the potential of karma, also reveal to us the limitations of karma.

Karma can change, create or purify, and all this is good for our worldly goals,

but insistence on change denies us the knoledge of ‘what is’, and such a

person is always bothered about what should be. This is the very anti-thesis

of knowledge of ‘what is’, and thus scriptures rightly advise all the students

of truth of be a sanyasi first.

Satsang at Bharuch:

On her way back from Sevalia, Poojya Swamini Amitanandaji visited

some acquaintances at Bharuch, an well-known industrial township on the

banks of Narmada River. This is the place where Narmadaji meets and

merges in the Arabian Sea, and thus the place has a great religious signifi-

cance too. The place thus has many ashram’s too.

On 30th April evening a Satsang was organized in a temple hall in

one of the residential societies. The temple stands like a gem in the middle

of multi-storeyed buildings and thus there was good attendance in the

satsang too. As in Sevalia, here also the devotees heard a Gita discourse

for the first time. Swaminiji talked on the famous shloka of Gita,

‘Karmanyevadhikaraste...’ It was very nicely recieved and appreciated. Later

everyone chanted Hanuman Chalisa.

Vedanta Sandesh - May 2011

Quotes

“If you see a friend without a smile; give him one of yours.”

“Smile, it is the key that fits the lock of everybody's heart.”

“A smile happens in a flash, but its memory can last a lifetime.”

“There are hundreds of languages in the world, but a smilespeaks them all.”

“Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimesyour smile can be the source of your joy.”

“What sunshine is to flowers, smiles are to humanity

“The robb'd that smiles, steals something from the thief”

“A warm smile is the universal language of kindness.”

You haven't lost your smile at all, it's right under your nose. Youjust forgot it was there.”

“If someone is too tired to give you a smile, leave one of yourown, because no one needs a smile as much as those who have

none to give”

Forthcoming Programs

Page # 15

Gita Gyana Yagna, Dehradun:A Gita Gyana Yagna will be organized at the residence of Dr Bhatia in Dehradun from

6th-10th May for five days. The subject matters of the discourse series will be Gita Chapter 2,and Kathopanishad 1-2.

Sadhana Camp, Rishikesh:A Sadhana Camp will be organized at Arsha Vidya Peetha, Rishikesh from 7th to 11th

June 2011 by Poojya Guruji. The subject matters of the discourse series will be IsavasyaUpanishad and Chapter 4 of Bhagwad Gita.

Guru Poornima, Indore:Guru Poornima will be celebrated at Vedanta Ashram on the 15th of July. As earlier,

first there will be a pujan of Bhagwan Sri Sankaracharya and Poojya Gurudev by PoojyaGuruji. There after a Pada Pooja of Poojya Guruji will be done. Later there will be a Bhandara.

Gita Gyana Yagna, Wellingborough:A Gita Gyana Yagna will be organized at the Hindu Temple at Wellingborough from

23rd July by Poojya Swamini Samatanandaji. The subject matters of the discourse series willbe Gita Chapter 2 and Atma Bodha.

Gita Gyana Yagna, Mumbai:A Gita Gyana Yagna will be organized at BHA Hall Mumbai from 7th to 12th May. The

subject matters of the discourse series will be Gita Chapter 4, and 3rd valli of the first chapterof Kathopanishad.

Hari om !

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This is a Net Publication of theInternational Vedanta Mission

Om Tat Sat