[Advaita-l] A French man guided into spiritual practice by the Sringeri Jagadguru: 1928

[Kuntimaddi Sadananda]

Subbuji - PraNAms
Beautiful and thanks for the post.
Hari Om!Sadananda

 

    On Sunday, May 10, 2020, 01:10:38 PM GMT+5:30, V Subrahmanian via Advaita-l <advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:  
 
 1928. A Frenchman letter to H.H. Sri Chandrasekhara Bharathi Mahaswamiji
Followed by the answer of H.H.
==============================
A Frenchman by name Jean Rivière, wrote to His Holiness Sri Chandrasekhara
Bharathi Mahaswamiji the following letter on 17 May 1928.

Addressed by:
Jean Rivière,
19, Rue Jouvenet
Paris 16
France.

To: The Dharmathipathi Vidyasagar Sri Sankaracharya Madathipathi.

My Venerable Guru,
Research of the truth and love of peace are my apologizing for sending this
letter.
I am a Frenchman. My learning in English is not all right and I beg to
apologise to my mistakes in their language. I do not know Hindi or Tamil.
If I take the liberty, Venerable Guru, to write directly to your Honour, it
is because I believe in the superiority of Vedanta. I tried to find truth
in occidental philosophies and I found nothing. We are in Europe, in Kali
Yuga age, and there are here too much of excitement, egoism, selfishness,
and materialism. From my boyhood, I try to find path of light. But I am
alone in Europe: there are no light, no Guru, no pandit; Occidental
teachers are intellectual, not spiritual men.
Happily, I found some translations in English of Hindu philosophy. I found
Upanishads and Bhashya of Sri Sankaracharya; I tried to study Sanskrit by
myself and I learned and studied these sacred books.
My aim is illumination. I know that, above all intellectual knowledges,
there are Brahma-Vidya and pure Buddhi. But how to attain the path? I read
on the sacred books that the way is meditation. But how is good meditation?
I take refuge in your honour to enlighten me. I believe in Vedanta and
Divine teachings of Veda. I believe in Divine incarnation of Sri
Sankaracharya. I believe firmly that Truth and Peace are in realization of
Purusha, out from Maya and Avidya.
I have no guide on the hard path; I am alone and I implore your help. I
know you have great experience and powers. I know that space and time are
nothing to you on a certain plane. May I ask your honour to give me light
and peace? What is the mantra or the word; who will give me the way to
realize the teaching of the sacred books? If I was sure that I am linked
with a spiritual center, I could ask for the help of my Guru.
I give over to the kind attention of your honour to care to see the best
way to my spiritual assistance. I know that all will be always right at
last. May I hope to have a letter from your Holiness. I beg your spiritual
blessings and through your honour, I bow to the sacred feet of the
Venerable Sri Sankaracharya.
Jean Rivière
 =======================================
THE JAGADGURU'S REPLY
The reply from the Mutt contained the following pregnant passages :
"His Holiness is highly pleased to see what an amount of interest you take
in Sankara in spite of the great barriers of language and distance. He is
deeply touched by your spiritual earnestness.
"The pursuit of Vedantic truth leading to Atmic realization requires as a
preliminary qualification in the seeker that he should have attained a
certain degree of spiritual awakening as much as of intellectual acuteness
which he may have acquired in his previous births. And as he advances he
may meet with difficulties, which he can overcome only with the help of a
Guru. It is not therefore possible to prescribe any one course suitable for
all stages.
"The following directions would however be found most helpful to seekers
who are not able readily to consult their Guru at each step and who are
eager to make rapid progress. The steadying of one"s mind is a sine qua non
for the realisation of the Vedantic goal. Keeping this in view the
practices indicated below are advised.
"Firstly, physical: The avoidance of all stimulating food, drink, and the
adoption as far as possible of the vegetarian diet.
"Secondly, moral: The daily exercise of universal love without distinction
of any kind towards all beings and the actual rendering of helpful services
to them in a spirit of selfless service.
"Thirdly, mental: The cultivation of a habit of retiring into one"s own
self. Daily concentration of thought on some single object held in the
highest reverence through which spiritual light is sought. Concentration
should be practised whenever the mind is fresh and vigorous and it may be
resorted to as often as convenient without getting tired. The mind should
be guarded against falling asleep during the exercise. One may start with a
few minutes practice and the period may be gradually increased.
"Fourthly, intellectual: Enquiry (vichara) should be made every day and the
problem of truth deeply pondered over whenever they occur.
"His Holiness fully realizes your difficulties especially as you are
struggling in an atmosphere surcharged with materialism. But Europe is
bound to seek Vedantic light in due course. Only she has to persevere in
her pursuit of truth in preference to things of a lower order. She is now
steadfast in seeking truth in the world of science. She will be led to the
search of truth in metaphysics also provided her thirst for knowledge
continues.
"Should you adopt the practices indicated above as far as it is possible
for you to do so and write to His Holiness again, He will most gladly give
you such further help as may be possible in this direction".
It is interesting to learn that the gentlemen earnestly followed these
directions and desired to have a picture of His Holiness or Sri
Sankaracharya to fix his mind upon and have "a vivid object of daily
contemplation." In reply thereto he was informed that His Holiness was
highly pleased to learn that he was pursuing with much earnestness the
practical as well as the theoretical courses indicated and the at His
Holiness was much pleased to send for his use a picture of His own Guru
which he himself constantly kept before Him.
He was cautioned, "This picture should be approached every day only when
one is perfectly clean in body and perfectly clean in mind. Absolute purity
in thought, in word and in deed, is demanded. The more steadfast and
concentrated the devotion with which one prays for help seeking Atmic
light, the more quickly does one receive the blessings of the Guru whose
spiritual existence will always be felt whenever there is a sincere seeker.
Kindly continue your efforts with this conviction."
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