Caverns of Gupt Godavari ( Chitrakoot)

We left for Chitrakoot from Allahabad after having breakfast. The road to Chitrakoot is really very bad and our van had tire puncture. So we got delayed by more than an hour.

There are a number of places around Chitrakoot connected with Lord Rama. Part of the town is in UP and rest is in MP.But it appears that both states are neglecting this important pilgrim centre.

 Gupt Godavari is a perennial stream of water in the caves on Kamadgiri. It is a huge cavern with beautiful formation. Here we do not see the normal stalactite found in most of the caverns. It appears as though some persons have chipped the rocks to make this. There are pedestal formation on which idols are kept. There are three caves from one of the points water comes and to reach that point, one has to wade through the water in narrow gaps between the rocks. Even though there are electric lights, the whole place lacks proper management in handling the crowd.The whole setting is simply breath-taking, with green mountains all around. 

Since we were already running late on our schedule, we had biscuits and grapes as lunch. Then we went to  Sati Anusuiya Ashrama. This is on the banks of river Mandakini and the ashrama has lot sculpture depicting the scenes of Ramayana..From there we went to Sphatic shila where Lord Rama was resting. This stone feels very soft and smooth.We have to skip one or two places for it was getting dark and we were not too sure about the road. As we feared,  our van tire got punctured and we have to wait in a kind villager's house for 2 hours .We really experienced the hospitality of rural India. Finally we were back in our rooms by 11-30 PM.

For anyone , who likes to see the Chitrakoot area, they should plan to stay overnight at Chitrakoot, where you can get decent accommodation.

 

Quiet flows the Ganges!

Ganges at Varanasi is unique. Ganges is joined by Varan river and Asi river. The ancient city Kashi lies between the two rivers and is called Varanasi now-a-days.

The most important event, that should not be missed  is the evening Aarti at Dasashwamedh Ghat. We had the opportunity to watch this from the boat, parked in front of this ghat. Before the aarti which starts at about 6-00 PM, Most of the pilgrims go on the boat ride seeing the various ghats (numbering 40).

Our boatman, Bhailal gave us the details of all ghats, which were very interesting. Harishchandra Ghat is where the bodies are cremated and the ashes are thrown into the river. There was a big queue of bodies waiting for their turn. Most of the maharajas  have built mansions of the banks and the ghat are named after them.

Cremation at Harishchandra Ghat

The water level was low . We have to get down about 40 steps to touch the water. But, the boatman told that there was 60 feet of water in the centre of the the river. The Ganges at Varanasi looks still on the surface as though it is a lake. Lots of foreigners were taking the boat ride.

Bhailal told that Varanasi is famous for five things.1. Ganges 2. Viswanath 3.Saree 4. Pan( Betel) and 5. Brahmin's( priest) endless demands. We also saw an Aghori ( A reclusive  cannibal) sitting on the banks.

Ganga Aarti

We had a wonderful view of Ganga Aarti. Two sets of priests did the aarti.The first set of five priests dressed in red clothes  and the second set of seven priests in white dress. The rituals are the same. There were seats arranged for VIPs on the banks. The ceremony lasts for about 30 minutes. I felt that there was not a big crowd, compared to what I had seen at Haridwar.

Sun Rise 

On the western bank is the city of Varanasi. because of the various offerings of flower, mala, floating lights, the western bank is polluted. I heard that during night, this bank is cleared of the debris.So next day we took the boat to the other side where we really had a good dip.Then we proceeded to Saranath

Dr.Ambedkar Memorial Park Lucknow

 On my visit to Lucknow, I was curious to see Babasaheb Ambedkar Park, because of the newspaper comments on this project of Mayavati ( ex CM of Uttarpradesh).

Once we forget the huge funds accounted on this project, we have to but appreciate. This huge park (more than 100 acres) has no trees or plants. The entire area is laid with polished stones. This has statues of Dr. Ambedkar, Narayan Guru,Mahatma Jyotiba Phule, Sant Kabir das and many others. All are huge ( about 18" tall). These statues are housed in two buildings with hemispherical domes. The entire dome is clad with metallic design. In the centre of both the buildings  are the statues of Mayavati. The statues are identical . Mayavati's figure has been sculpted on four sides ( similar to our Asoka stupa).

Dr Ambedkar's memorial building is almost 250 metres away from the Mayavati building .Dr Ambedkar's statue is unique here. The statue is in sitting posture similar to Lincoln Memorial in Washington  DC  USA.The entire stretch is lined with statues of elephants ( 25 pairs).The entire park has special lighting.Powerful beams from various points of the park converge on the sky forming like an umbrella. Most of the other lights had been switched off to save electricity. So we have to imagine only about the fully lighted park.

People will visit the Nawab's Imam baada,I feel one should visit this park also

Personal (Family) doctor Vs Polyclinic specialists (Corporate Hospital)

Big companies provide medical benefits to their employees. Since the employee is too busy with his job and career, he goes to the company approved corporate hospital for even for small ailments. He is not bothered about the charges.

Now he is attended by some doctor. This doctor prescribes a series of tests and after the test reports only, he decides his course of treatment. If the patient happens to go for a second time, most probably the attending doctor is different, unless it is specified. Then if that doctor is not available for that day, the patient ends up with another doctor, who goes through the earlier records to decide his treatment or further tests. These tests will be explained as to make sure that there are no other problems other than complained.

Dr. Shigeaki Hinohara, Japan, who turned 101 last year, is one of the world's longest-serving physicians and educators. He advises

“When a doctor recommends you take a test or have some surgery, ask whether the doctor would suggest that his or her spouse or children go through such a procedure. Contrary to popular belief, doctors can't cure everyone.” 

Today, many that go to the doctor with problems in their daily lives hear that their problems are 'stress-related' but don't know the reason or how to stop it. Doctors today are encouraged to know more, but ask less. They have access to huge amounts of medical information, but rarely take the time to have a real conversation with a patient to find out about other factors in their lives including how they actually live them

The Bio –psycho- social model, or BPS, instructs the medical professional to take not only the sheer physical status of the patient at a given point, relying on physical measurements, but to take other factors in. These factors may be psychological (thoughts, emotions, behaviors) and/or social (socio-economical statues, environmental and cultural issues).

This approach is followed by homeopathy practitioners.

If you have a family doctor, who knows you very well over years, he will advise you the course of action, with few or no tests.

Akshardham Temple , New Jersey

BAPS (Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha) have built their largest Swaminarayan temple at Robbinsville .New Jersey, USA
The construction of this temple has created a number of records. When one approaches the temple area, neither the typical tower nor the flags can be seen. This is because the entire temple is encased inside a square structure. On entering this, you will be wonder struck with the beauty.The entire temple is constructed with marble. We were told by the volunteers that the marble slabs quarried at Italy, were sculpted by the artisans of Rajastan. 15339 sculpted marble pieces were shipped to Robbinsville. This temple is very much similar, in many aspects, to Dilwara temples at Mount Abu. All the pieces have been put together by skilled artisans at the site with the help of local engineers and BAPS volunteers.

It is interesting to note that no two pillars are identical. The rectangular ceiling above the four pillars are intricately carved. None of the rectangular ceiling are similar. The temple has two hemispherical domes packed with fine bracket figures, chandelier type carving in the centre, and innumerable motifs. The whole temple is lit with concealed LED type spot lights to enhance the beauty of the carvings.

The flooring is covered with different designs created with various coloured stones. The flooring has been done with underground heating so that the marble will not be too cold. The entire space within the encasement building is temperature controlled.

In this temple complex, there is a huge convention hall ( Maharaj Pramukh Swami Sabha hall), which has a seating for about 2000 people. This hall is flanked on either side by full size indoor basket ball courts.
More details about the temple can be had from
HTTP://www.baps.org/Global-Network/North-America/Robbinsville/News.aspx

Adventure at Muktinath

We,a group of ten people went to Nepal to have the darshan of Muktinath. This is one of the Divyadesams outside India.

Our travel to Muktinath was full of adventure, even though our travel agent arranged everything. I like to share my experience with the people who are interested in visiting Muktinath. Going to Pokhara from Kathmandu by road is very interesting. On the way , we visited Manokamna Devi temple. The ride by cable car to the shrine is breath-taking. One should avoid going to Manokamna temple on Saturdays, as there will be heavy rush and one may have to wait for hours to get the cable car ride.

From Pokhara, one has to take a flight to Jomsom, the base for going to Muktinath. The flight to Jomsom by small planes is operated only in the morning between 7 AM and 10-00 AM. The plane has to fly between the mountains and if the wind in the gorge is high, the flights are not permitted. One has to count his luck to have the flight on the day. We met many people in the hotel, who could not have the flight.

We were lucky to get the flight to Jomsom. The hotels here display the menu board in Tamil. The hotels offer idli, dosai, sambar, rasam etc. We were supposed to go to Muktinath temple , which is at an altitude of 12000' by jeep. Here our adventure started. The jeep operators were on a strike. Our hotel owner suggested that we could go on motorbike.The distance from the hotel to Muktinath temple is 25 kms. Only we got on the bike, we started to realise the adventure in this ride.Literally there is no road and the path is full of stones and pebbles.The path crosses Gantaki river bed and continually winding and rising.With the chill wind blowing on our faces, we at last reached Muktinath with our hearts in our mouth. The eldest member of our group is 75 years and no one believed that we traveled to Muktinath by bike.

The temple is managed by some Nepali women. There is no puja or archana in the temple. There are 108 theerthams ( only spouts) in which devotees take bath, Then they dip themselves in the two ponds in front of the temple. After the darshan,we were lucky to get the jeep, which had started plying.

We had an wonderful and awesome experience and all felt the Viswa roopam of the Almighty in this trip.

Kailashanathar Temple at Kanchipuram

Last week I had been to Kanchipuram and visited some temples which I had not visited in my earlier visits.

The most interesting one was Kailashanathar temple. This temple complex is under Archaeological Survey of India. It is situated slightly outside the town. The temple opens at 9 A.M like an office. All temples under the control of ASI ( Darasuram temple near Kumbhakonam, Avinashi temple near Erode) have the same timings.

When I saw the temple first, I felt as though the Mahabalipuram temple had been lifted and placed there. The difference is that the entire temple is made of sand stone. So one can see the heavy wear and tear of all sculptures due to the weather. ASI are patching those damages with some lime mortar mixtures. In spite of all, one can never miss the beauty of this Pallava architecture.

There are two Shiva lingams in this temple. The mythological story is that these were worshiped by Lord Vishnu and Muni Naradha. The lingams are unique . They have sixteen faces,each representing one kala and not circular. The lingam with Avudai is made of pure black granite. It is shining without a drop of oil and looks grand. There is a belief that doing parikrama inside the temple is equivalent to doing parkrama of mount Kailash. For doing this, one has to crawl through a small hole in the wall and come out through another hole.

The outer prakaram is full of beautiful sculptures.  People visiting Kanchi should include this temple also.

America on wheels museum,

On our way to Vraj , we visited the America on Wheels museum at Allentown, PA. There is good collection of various cars produced in USA. They are all old and older models, giving us the idea of evolution of automobiles. The oldest model exhibited, had been manufactured in1904!. The head lamps are oil wick lamps made of brass. It was interesting to note that electric car was made in 1917, as the people were not liking petrol cars. There were single seat cars, that look like Go-carting vehicles. The designers of those days had toyed with the idea of strong wooden axles.









Car with wooden axle

Another interesting exhibit is a complete railway station along with a park and buildings. The entire thing is constructed with LEGO bits. This exhibit was displayed by a group of LEGO enthusiasts. The interiors of the building and the rail-coach were full of details.


 

 

 

Temples near New Jersey

Recently I had the opportunity of visiting two temples in the New Jersey area. The first one is Sri Ranganatha temple at Pamona, New York. I got the nice feeling when I had the darshan of Sri Ranganatha Perumal. Inside the temple , I felt as though I was in a Tamilnadu temple. All idols (moola murthis) are of black granite and look very grand.It being the markazhi month, there was chanting of Thiruppavai. Another unique thing in this temple is that there is no ticket for anything, whether it is an archanai or kalyana utsavam. Everything is donation  as one likes (yatha sakti). The temple gives typical prasadams of Venpongal, akkaravatisal and curd rice. There is no cafeteria food, as in most of the N.American temples. Of course you can have more details in their website http://www.ranganatha.org/ .

 

 

 The second one is Srinathji temple at Vraj, Schuylkill Haven, PA. The temple is managed by Pushti Margiya Vaishnav Samaj Of North America. This temple replicates the traditions followed by the temple at Srinathdwara. The idol of Srinathji is small but the temple provides binoculars to the devotees to have a close look of the idol.Again this temple does not have cafeteria but all are provided with Maha Prasad - conventional Gujarati food with puri, shak, bath, kadi and sweet. They entertain second helping. If you are going as a big group ,they want advance information for providing you the Prasad! More details can be had http://vraj.org/ .

 

 

 

Avudaiyar Koil

I went to Avudaiyar koil some months ago and I am sharing the impressions.

 

This temple is unique, as the lingam( Athmanathar) does not have the top portion and only the base (avudai) is there. The lingam at sanctum sanctorum is shown with a metallic cylinder which is hollow, This represents the all prevading Atma , hence the presiding deity is known as Atmanathar.This top cylinder is removed once in a year, when the public can see the formless.

The temple was built by Manickavasakar, who was the minister of  Arimardhana Pandyan.

 

The temple is renowned for its special architecture and sculptures. The temple is famous for its stone canopies, which appears to be made of timber, with its tie-bars and nails. One can see the damage caused by the Englishman , who did not believe that the canopy is carved out of granite. There are two holes caused by the bullets.

 

 

 

 

In one of the mandapams, there are sculptures of horsemen, each of them attired in different costumes, including an Arab dress. One should know the story behind the temple to appreciate this feature. Manikavasakar was asked to get high breed horses by the king . But being devotee of Shiva,   he  built the  temple with the money given for the purchase of horses.

               

All the temple festivals are mainly for Manikavasakar and Atmanathar is included. The temple is near Aranthangi, in Pudukottai district of Tamilnadu.

Sadhana chatushya Sampati- Pramanam

All spiritual persons know that to get the Jnanam, one should be a sadhaka. Just wishing to become a Jnani, one cannot get the Jnanam. He should have the requisite qualifications, to be a sadhaka. These qualifications are listed by various Acharyas, which is known as Sadhana chatushtaya sampati. The four qualifications for a sadhaka are 1) viveka 2) Vairagyam 3) shamadi shatka Sampati 4) Mumukshutvam.

These are given very clearly in Tattva Bodha.  What is the base reference (pramanam) in sruti?  These are referred in Brhadaranyaka Upanishad. This Upanishad occurs in Yajur Veda at two places 1) in Kaanva Shaka and 2) in Maadyaandika Shaka. There are small differences in slokas of the Upanishad in the two shakas. The sloka, which refers to the Sadhana chatushtaya sampati, gives only five of the shatka sampati (3^rd qualification). In one shaka it refers to shama, dama, uparati, titiksha, and sraddha. In the other shaka, the reference is made to shama, dama, uparati, titiksha and samadhanam. The acharyas have taken both sraddha and samadhanam and given six sadhanas

Classifications in Sanatana Dharma (Hindu Philosophy) Part 3

Let us see the classifications of the human beings. The entire population has been classified into four groups (varnas) based on their nature of work. They are Brahmana, Kshtriya, Vysya and Shutra. Brahmanas study the scriptures and take care of the religious functions. They pass on their knowledge to their disciples and preserve the tradition. Kshtriyas are the leaders of the society and they offer protection to the community. Vysyas are the backbone of the society’s economy. They engage themselves in producing, buying, transporting and selling of goods. Shutras are the group of people who help all of them in their activities. These classifications were made in order to have a smooth functioning of the society and all groups were considered equal and essential.

The qualities in each individual are classified into three- Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. In simple terms, sattva guna binds a person to knowledge and humble nature, rajas binds one to passion and action and tamas binds to inaction and submissiveness.  All gunas are present in each and every person in varying degrees.  Predominantly, Brahmanas have sattvic guna, Kshtriyas and Vysyas have rajasic guna and Shutras are with tamasic guna. In present day world, A Brahmin by birth may have rajasic nature in helping others  (Kshtriya nature) but he may be doing business (Vysya by profession). Similarly it can be in any combination! In a single day,  for some hours one can be sattvic, after that he can become tamasic, and again his nature may be ruled by rajasic.

Raghurajpur-Centre of Odissi traditional art

Recently I visited Odisha with my friends. We had a memorable trip, thanks to the excellent arrangement done by Odisha tourism.

We were cautioned by my friends that Puri Jagannath temple is infested with pestering pundits. But Odisha tourism had arranged with the head priest of the temple. We (8 members) had no problem in having the darshan of the Lord. We spent more than 20 minutes in the sanctum sanctorum. They also showed us the great kitchen, containing nearly 600 chulas, for the preparation of prasadam. Puri is considered to be the Bhog place for Lord. There is no offering of prasadam by individuals here, but can contribute for the bhog in the temple. We were given lots of Khaja (sweet prasadam) from the temple.

 While going to Bhubaneswar from Puri, we had the opportunity of visiting Raghurajpur, the village that is still preserving the traditional odissi art of palm leaf painting. Our driver took us to the house of master craftsman. He demonstrated to us the art of drawing on palm leaf. He took less than a minute to draw the image of Ganesha.

Then he applied black dye prepared from some leaf. He told that this dye is water- resistant and the picture on the palm leaf can be wiped with wet cloth. There were a number of paintings on palm leaves, which are stitched together and can be folded. He was teaching this art to some students. He also paints on tussar silk cloth and the dyes for this are made from various coloured rocks available in that region. We all purchased few art pieces.

 Anyone visiting Puri, should visit Raghurajpur

Rebirth

Many religions of the world do not believe in rebirth. Simply they preach to be good in the present life and join the Almighty after the mortal death or suffer for the evils done, in hell.   The idiom “ join the majority” indicates the philosophy of Christianity.

How do the vedic scriptures deal this? They tell that Atma  only has to be considered  and the body is described as its temporary abode .When a body falls dead, the Atma departs  that body only to acquire another. The type of body , that Atma will get, depends on the karma.

People having faith in other religion may say that this is only a theory.  The following is the explanation, I have gathered from the various discourses.

New born baby has no life experience and it sleeps for most of the time in a day. Also the doctors agree that the new born baby has very limited visibility. But it is observed that the baby smiles suddenly and also switches to crying in few seconds, while sleeping. At this period of life ( before the baby is able to focus and see),the baby is reacting to the dreams. The dreams are accepted to be reproduction of earlier experience in one’s subconscious mind. The reaction of the baby is only due to the experiences it had earlier ( in his previous births).

All living beings have the fear of death. Till one does not know that fire will burn his hand, he has no fear. Only an experience of fire, will give him fear. Unless one had an experience of death, why does the living being get scared? The answer is in its (his /her) earlier birth.

Mitya

Mitya  is one of concepts in Hindu philosophy. What is existing always , is satyam. What is not there, is termed as “Asat”. What is really non-existing , but appears to exist, is termed as “mitya”.

Satyam and Asat are easily understood by many , but not mitya. In real life, we experience many things, but Vedanta negates  and declares them as mitya. Here comes the classical example of rope appearing to be snake, till it is clarified.

Satyam is so much real, it cannot be negated. Asat is not there and is unknown, it is not necessary to negate. Mitya is negated as it gives a false reality.

The word “mitya” has not been used in any of the Upanishads. To explain this aspect, the word used is either “iva” or “artham”,which can be translated as “ similar to”. This implies that it is not real (satyam).

But the word “mitya “ has been used by many acharyas, who had written commentaries.

Perhaps English dictionary has got the word “myth” from this.

Classifications in Sanatana Dharma (Hindu Philosophy) Part 2

Now let us try to understand the creation.  In the very beginning there is only,repeat only, Brahman.Brahman which is ever existing ( beyond time) and beyond space. For any creation , there are two causes-  material cause (upadana  karana) and instrumental cause(Nimitta karana). Brahman is the material cause as well as the instrumental cause for the creation.  Brahman created five elements from itself.which are termed as bhootas. They are akash(space),vayu (air),agni (fire),apah(water) and prithvi (earth). This classification is very interesting. According to scriptures, the first one akash has only one property (guna) of sound. From the space, vayu has formed which has two properties of sound and feeling. The third one formed is Agni which has three gunas of sound, feeling and visibility. From agni emerged water with four properties of sound, feeling, visibility and taste. The last one is earth with five properties of sound, feel, visibility, taste and smell. All the five bhootas are inanimate (jatam) and the entire universe  along with the things like planets, earth and all living beings (jivas) are made of these five bhootas .Jiva is enlivened by Brahman which is present in each and every jiva.

By jiva, it includes all living things, animals, birds and human beings. This jiva is created in four ways. The lowest level of jiva comes out by breaking the surface (Plants). The next level gets the life under humid and other suitable conditions (worms and insects from closed container of food). The next one is by hatching out of eggs (birds) and the last one is born by mammals. The highest level of Jiva is the human being, who has the option of choosing his wish and action. The other jivas do not have this option. The corollary is that human being can improve or degrade himself, while other jivas complete their life as they are destined.

A jiva gets its body depending on its karma. The karma is classified into three-a) Sanchita Karma b) prarabta Karma  and  c) Agaami Karma. Sanchita Karma is the repository of the Jiva form which it takes various janmas(birth).Prarabta Karma is that part of Sanchitam, which makes the jiva to experience the happiness(Sukham) and sadness (Dukham) in one janma. Agaami Karma is the accumulation of results (Punyam or Paavam) due to the actions in one’s janma. It is also told that only human beings have the choice of doing good or evil actions .Depending on one’s actions he  /she accumulates Punyam or Paavam . So Aagami Karma applies only to human beings.

Classifications in Sanatana Dharma (Hindu Philosophy) Part 1

The basis of this philosophy is that there is only One existed, exists and will continue to exist, and that One is called Brahman. The entire universe with all its contents and variations is the One (Brahman) only, which is real.

To understand this, there are three main texts, known as Prasthana Thrayam. These texts are Bhagavad Gita, Upanishads and Brahma Sutra. Upanishads are known as Sruti Prasthanam and Brahma Sutra is known as Nyaya Prasthanam. Bhagavad Gita is known as Smruti Prasthanam. Bhagavad Gita consists of 700 verses as discussion between Lord Krishna and Arjuna.   In this, the entire philosophy is explained to the common man, who may not be able to study the other texts (Upanishads) in detail. 

In order to get deeper knowledge, one has to study the Upanishads. The Upanishads are part of vedas, which is the basic text. Veda, which means knowledge is considered as (Apurushya) not written by any man(Rishi). Vedas were classified by Sage Vyasa into four. The four vedas are, Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharvana. All these vedas contain Upanishads. These vedas are generally divided into two parts- the first is Karma Khanda or Purva  Khanda and the second part is Uttara Khanda.  Generally the word  ”Vedanta”refers to upanishads , which are found in vedas  but not in the end. "Vedanta" can be translated as end (goal) of Vedas

All will have different types of goals in their life. These are classified as Artha (material), Kama (wishes), Dharma (right way of living), and Moksha (self-knowledge). The ways to achieve the first three are covered in Purva Khanda of the vedas and Vedanta or Uttara khanda shows the way for moksha.

There are many Upanishads (in all about 108) and ten are considered as important , for which Shankarachaya  had written commentaries. All Upanishads contain Maha Vakhyam. Maha Vakhyam literally means big sentence, but in Vedanta , any sentence which gives the relation between Jiva and Paramatma is called Maha Vakhyam. The most popular maha vakhyams are four , one from each Veda.

There are commentaries on both parts of Veda. These are known as Mimamsas, the commentary on Purva khanda is written by Sage Jaimini, disciple of Sage Vyasa and it is called Purva Mimamsa. This work consists of 12000 slokas. The commentary on Upanishads, (Uttara Mimamsa) written by Sage Vyasa is called Brahma Sutra –third prasthanam. Brahma sutra consists of 555 slokas, Bhagavad Gita consists of 700 slokas and Upanishads contain many slokas. But studying Brahma sutra should be undertaken after going through Bhagavad Gita and Upanishads.

All these vedic texts are in Samskrit. Even a person who has studied Samskrit language in depth, cannot understand these texts without the teaching and guidance of an Acharya. The reason for this is that the same word gives opposite meaning at different places of these texts. A Samskrit scholar cannot correctly understand these scriptures from the  meaning of the words from the dictionary. Only a teacher (Acharya) who has learnt the scriptures from a Guru with tradition ( Parampara) can explain.

Brahman

Upanishads give the definition of Brahman in different methods. The methods fall in two categories

1) positive way (vidhi mukham)  2) negative way (Nisheda mukham).

Taittriya Upanishad follows the first method. “Satyam  Jnanam  Anatam  Brahma” is positive way of explaining Brahman. In simple translation, Brahman is pure existence (satyam), ultimate knowledge (jnanam), and infinite (anantam).

Brahma-vid apnoti param, tad eshabhyukta,
Satyam jnanam anantam brahma           (Tait. 2.1.1)

Brhadaranyaka Upanishad follows the second method of negating the different attributes as that of Brahman. In chapter 3 ,section8, sloka 8 Brahman is explained as Akshram. It is further clarified by nisheda mukha way.

Brahman is not big , not small ( if one thinks it as small), not gross, not subtle, nor short, not tall, not dark, not coloured, not attachable, not a shadow, not a reflection, not related to anything, neither gas nor gas dependent, neither space nor space dependent, neither has taste nor can be tasted, neither has smell nor can be smelled, neither has sight nor can be seen, neither has hearing nor can be heard, neither has speech nor can be spoken, not a mind , not having thoughts, not a subtle body (sukshama sareeram),no gates  or openings, neither can be measured nor weighed, no ends ,nothing outside of this. What remains is Brahman.

Finally Brahman does not enjoy anything  and nothing can enjoy Brahman.

“na tat ashnadi kinchana, na tat ashnadi kashchana”

Even though, Brahman is explained in Vidhi mukham some places, it is better defined by nishedam, because Brahman is nirguna. No attribute  can really describe. The only way to understand  is to negate all we know and experience.

                     

 

Adyaropa Abhavada nyayam- Negotiating tool

Adyaropa  abhavada  Nyayam is a logic used in Vedanta  to settle a point. After learning and understanding the logic behind it , I am of the opinion that this is an excellent tool for negotiating.

First let me tell you about adyaropa  abhavada  Nyayam . Adyaropa means initially taking or accepting a point, about which one does not agree. Abhavada means to negate the same logically, such that the other party agrees. To understand this, let us see an example ,oft quoted in our vedantic scriptures. A person mistakes a coil of rope lying for a snake. To make him understand that the thing is really a rope , not a snake, one can tell him that it is only a rope. When this statement is made, then there is a possibility for him to think that a rope is there in addition to a snake,( which have gone now). In order to avoid this mis-understanding , our scriptures say that the snake which you are seeing is a rope.

When this statement is made, it initially accepts the presence of snake (even though it is not there) and then negates it , by telling that it is a rope.

Whenever there is a discussion, there will be always someone’s point which is not right. But if the point was bluntly criticised, then it takes a turn of ego clash. If we follow this Adyaropa abhavadam, then we initially accept the (wrong ) point  and subsequently we tell our (right) views. By this, the resistance to our point will be less, and no ego will play apart in objecting. Finally what is right or good for the organisation can be done

Visit to Temples near Vellore

We had an one day trip to Vellore from Bangalore. The road was excellent, but for the number of tolls to pay. On the trip to Vellore and back, we had to pay Rs 400/- as toll charges for the van. One can have a decent break fast near Krishnagiri at the Adyar Ananda Bhavan, which is on the high way itself.

First we had darshan at Virinchipuram Margabandeswara temple. You reach this temple just before you enter  Vellore   An ancient temple is a" must- visit".
Then we proceeded to Shenpakkam Vinayaka temple.The temple has no sculptured idols of Ganesha.There are in total eleven figures of Ganesha in a court yard open to sky. All the idols are not fully formed.

Then we went to Vellore fort, where the temple of Jalakandeswara is located. The fort itself is very impressive with its moat and massive walls.The temple has a beautiful mandapam with a stage ( perhaps  a hall for dancing recitals). The sculptures of this mandap is really awesome. There is a museum in side the fort, but unfortunately we could not see that, as it was closed. There is boating in the moat, which also we skipped.

Then we had our lunch break, at Arya bhavan. We then went to Rathinagiri murugan temple. As we parked our vehicle, the temple was closed( Quite common in most of the temples in south India). We had to satisfy ourselves with the darshan of the hill and the tower of the temple!                                                                             

From there we went to Sripuram Golden temple, which is about 10 kms towards Krishnagiri. This is only a show piece and it seems to be hyped out of proportion.The place is well maintained, but there are other places of worship also better than this. I have visited Swami Narayan temples (Ahmedabad, Delhi,), which I consider higher, in many aspects.Many ISKCON temples outscore this.It looks more like a week end outing place , since you have all facilities of food, drink, water,toilet facility with an USP of gold(?) cladded mandap and the working hours are from 8 AM to 8 PM. This place reminded me of many US museums where in you are let out through the gift shop.The other dis(turb)gusting feature of this complex  is the volunteers at the entrance, suggesting you to buy tickets for quick darshan. On the whole, this temple visit was quite disappointing, perhaps I was expecting something unique.