O Desire!

[Bondada Umamaheshwar]

Hi

But still there is a significance to places.  This is nicely brought out in
the editorial of February 2000 issue of Vedanta Kesari
(http://www.sriramakrishnamath.org/vk/editorial.asp).

Though the editorial discusses largely the issue of places of worship, the
argument can be easily extrapolated (with caution) to geographic locations
too.

Om Namah Sivaya

Umamaheshwar

-----Original Message-----
From: Jagannathan Mahadevan [mailto:jagan at CCWF.CC.UTEXAS.EDU]
Sent: Monday, March 06, 2000 11:42 PM
To: ADVAITA-L at advaita-vedanta.org
Subject: Re: O Desire!


I would say no land is particularly pure or no land is specifically mean't
for spiritual pursuits. Also I don't think anybody gets a free
meal. Whether one is in India or elsewhere the efforts for survival are
the same. Besides spiritual advancement is purely a individual issue
rather than a collective issue. In the sense that it is not a requirement
for the society, it is for the individual. It is another matter that
individual well being collectively determines the society's well being.

The west has also worked hard to achieve what they have. They set the
trend in Sciences and Technology. They have shown commitment to their
beliefs. India has had ages of leadership in spiritual studies and
philosophy. The West has to use the advancement already made by Indians in
philosophy and the East(atleast India) has to use the advancement already
made by the Western society. One has no choice over this and the world has
to come together. Swami Vivekananda had said about this in his series of
lectures(I unable to quote right now, but shall do so soon).

I think it is a global society now and is no more restricted to
places. People will travel and explore different parts of the world if
they can and come their own conclusions about what they want. Instead of
hardening our beliefs by cocooning ourselves, we could carry the message
of our rishis and our conviction to everybody. And there are so many who
want to know it only they don't know where it is. I think this is a far
more true picture.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
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"Love yourself and you will love everybody"
"Pardon yourself and you have the capacity to pardon others"
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
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Mahadevan Jagannathan,
Graduate Student,                           3301, Speedway, # 203,
Department of Petroleum Engineering,        Austin, Texas,
University of Texas at Austin,              TX 78705.
Texas, TX 78705.
Ph: (512) 232-5824                          Ph: (512) 481-9590
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On Mon, 6 Mar 2000, Anand Hudli wrote:

> It is said that Sri Chandrasekhara Bharati Mahaswami of Sringeri would
> often walk to the KAla-bhairava temple with some of his disciples. On the
> way, the disciples would recite verses full of vairAgya from various
> works.
>
>  One such work that speaks of vairAgya in an honest and simple manner
>  is the vairAgya shataka of bhartR^ihari. I will post some verses from
>  time to time drawn from this useful work.
>
>  bhrAntaM deshamanekadurgavishhamaM prAptaM na kiJNchitphalaM
>  tyaktvA jAtikulAbhimAnamuchitaM sevA kR^itA nishhphalA |
>  bhuktaM mAnavivarjitaM paragR^iheshhvAshaN^kayA kAkavat.h
>  tR^ishhNe jR^iMbhasi pApakarmapishune nAdyApi saMtushhyasi ||
>
>   I have wandered about with great difficulty and undergoing hardships
>  in many countries. But I have not derived any benefit whatsoever. Giving
>  up the dignity of my caste and family, I have served (the rich). But even
>  that is without fruit. I have shamelessly eaten, with apprehension just
>  like a crow, the food offered by others (without showing me any respect).
>  O Desire! You who are the indicator of evil deeds! Even now (after
putting
>  me through all this) you are not satisfied!
>
>  How many of us can identify with things said in this verse! Back home
>  in India, we make a bee-line for the nearest foreign consulate for that
>  coveted visa. Once we arrive in a foreign land, a lot of hardships
>  await us. Some of us even do even menial jobs just to make sure we can
>  cover the "living expenses." Giving up all dignity associated with the
>  BrAhmaNa (or other dvija) caste, we seek favors from the rich mlechchhas
>  (the flesh-eating people) with the hope of "striking it rich." In the
>  course of career or business, we attend "business lunches", "parties",
>  and the like, and shamelessly eat the food that is offered without
respect.
>  Food offered with respect is served with friendship. It is not sold.
>  It is not a "buffet" offered saying "help yourself! Feel free to go for
>  second round!". Moreover we eat like crows. A crow always eats with
>  fear of losing what it has got. Even in an affluent country like the
>  US, people flock together like crows almost instantly when they hear
>  "free food" is being offered somewhere. This country also has a famous
>  saying "There is no such a thing as a free lunch." This implies, if
>  free food is offered, usually it is done as a gratuity for something
>  or with the expectation of something.
>
>
>  Anand
>
> --
> bhava shankara deshikame sharaNam
>
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--
bhava shankara deshikame sharaNam

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--
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