Questions to Ravisankar S Mayavaram (was French scholars translations)

[MSR]

namaste Guy:

The questions you ask are very complex. I have no authority to
answer them.  I think all these fundamental problems arise
because we chose to learn from printed texts. The right way is to
learn from a competent teacher.

I ask myself, what is my goal? Is it to impress people with my
scholarship or to attain Self realization? In my case, answer is
latter. If I believe a system, then I should believe it
completely and not based on my conveniences. I know that I should
learn my sakha of the veda from a competent teacher. I am not
supposed to learn it from a book. By not learning what I am
supposed to learn, I am sinning. But I will not be doing any
better if I learn it from a printed text. I am afraid, I will be
doing worse.  I cannot selectively choose to believe according my
conveniences.  At this point, all I can do is pray to ambAL (God)
to guide me to do my dharma correctly.

As an aside, I have no sympathy for those who think we should do
something preserve veda-s even if it is contrary to what is
stated in shruti. That attitude undermines the role of Ishvara.
Even if every living creature on this planet is destroyed and
they are to come back after many hundred years, I have no worry
veda-s will survive, because it is HER problem and
responsibility. Not ours.  We need not take a wrong route to do a
right thing.


I have heard that one can read bhagavad gIta and texts like yoga
vashiShTa, tripura rahasya on one's own. Still it is best to
learn from a teacher. A teacher can gauge the student and teach
based on his capacity.  People like me go all out to enroll in
good universities to learn mundane things like "heat transfer"
and "fluid mechanics" from competent teachers. Should I not take
a greater care when it comes to brahma vidyA?

I have no authority to give you any suggestions on whether you
can read a particular text or not. But your teacher can. It is
purely your choice.

About "gayAtrI", I gave it as an example. I trust that for a
Christian, "Lord Jesus Christ, Have mercy on me" should be as
effective as gAyatrI for a dvIja. Again, I am not saying you
should this or that. You should ask your guru or elders.

I live in a glass house, I throw stones only at mine. If it broke
your window by error, I can only apologize. To be honest, my head
is filled many questions related to what I should do and how? I
am waiting to ask them when I meet shrI jayendra sarasvati or
shrI shankaravijayendra sarasvati. Till then the best I can do is
avoid what I am prohibited to do on my own. This mail, I wrote so
much in first person, so that  I give no room for doubt, that the
stones are thrown only at my glass house.

But you are welcome to throw stones at my house ;-)

With love and respects,
Ravi

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