[Advaita-l] Ekadashi

[Shashi Vishwanath]

Kaushik, 

I think what you’re saying about krama mukti and Bhakti is so obviously right that if any other suggestion were made Madhusudana Saraswati and Upanishad Brahmendra would be laughing.

Also, I don’t know why disrespect to other Devatas was brought up. As you pointed out, It happened to be Ekadasi, and just as Pradosha/ Trayodasi is very dear to Siva Bhaktas, so is Ekadasi/ Dvadasi dear to Vishnu Bhaktas.

Sincerely,
Shashi 

Sent from my iPhone

> On Jul 21, 2021, at 6:32 AM, Kaushik Chevendra via Advaita-l <advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:
> 
> On Wed, 21 Jul 2021, 17:00 Kaushik Chevendra, <chevendrakaushik at gmail.com>
> wrote:
> 
>> Namate, the discussion is going in all directions.
>> So here are the statements I have said.
>> 
>> 1.Unflinching devotion to isvara leads to krama mukthi. And devotion unto
>> him by namasmarana isn't a mere "chitta sudhi" as stated by our acharyas,
>> both present and past.
>> 
>> 2. Even grihasthis can attain jnana. This statement again is made by our
>> acharya. And hence its a final verdict. So if takes the upadesha he will
>> Attain gnana. If he doesn't it means he doesn't desire liberation or at
>> least isn't hundred percent dedicated to it. So why will he gnana?
>> 
> Please read as," Why will he get gnana?".
> 
>> 
>> 
>> My initial post was a form of praise of Lord on ekadashi and it has bought
>> out various topics.
>> This will be my last reply.
>> 
>> Om namo narayanaya.
>> 
>>> On Wed, 21 Jul 2021, 16:53 Aravind M, <aravindeie13 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> 
>>> There is a special topic in kanchi periyava deivatin kural 6th volume
>>> as"uchakata gnanam turavikae"...Janaka though was managing the kingdom got
>>> gnana upadesam from rishis ..How many grihastas in this age got maha vakya
>>> upadesam from a Sannyasi acharya
>>> 
>>>> On Wed 21 Jul, 2021, 4:48 PM Aravind M, <aravindeie13 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> 
>>>> Can u tell some of grihasta jeevan muktha gnanis   from kali yugam...
>>>> 
>>>> On Wed 21 Jul, 2021, 2:41 PM Kaushik Chevendra, <
>>>> chevendrakaushik at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>> 
>>>>> Here is an expert from discourse of mahasanidham.
>>>>> 
>>>>> D: Does Your Holiness opine that householders cannot get jñāna and
>>>>> attain mokṣa?
>>>>> HH: No. They too can attain jñāna and mokṣa. However, their path is
>>>>> tougher. An unmarried mumukṣu (one keen on mokṣa), especially
>>>>> one who is a saṁnyāsin, can remain away from causes of mental
>>>>> distraction and lead a life directed wholly to the attainment of mokṣa.
>>>>> Householders, however, have to live with familial responsibilities
>>>>> and deal with situations that are unfavourable. Nevertheless, it is
>>>>> incorrect to contend that they cannot secure jñāna. Janaka and
>>>>> such other householders were jñānins.
>>>>> 
>>>>> 
>>>>> On Wed, 21 Jul 2021, 14:11 Aravind M, <aravindeie13 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>> 
>>>>>> Why aadi shankara took avatar as a Sannyasi..
>>>>>> 
>>>>> 
>>>>> 
>>>>>> On Wed 21 Jul, 2021, 2:06 PM Kaushik Chevendra, <
>>>>>> chevendrakaushik at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>> 
>>>>>>> Namaste.
>>>>>>> Grihasthi ashrama isn't something that restricts gnana. As long as
>>>>>>> the householder has a vairagi bhava and lives in accordance to dharma he is
>>>>>>> eligible for moksha.
>>>>>>> And unflinching devotion is what I meant when I said "surrender to
>>>>>>> isvara".
>>>>>>> So when a person has unflinching devotion to the Lord and is engaged
>>>>>>> in isvara nama smarana he is saved.
>>>>>>> On Wed, 21 Jul 2021, 14:00 Aravind M, <aravindeie13 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>> In that march 2021 issue,maha sannidanam mentioned "nama leads to
>>>>>>>> attaining paramatma"..But he never mentioned that we will attain that in
>>>>>>>> this birth itself staying in grihasta ashrama,doing all lowkkeega stuffs
>>>>>>>> and also chant name in the name of pseudo-bhakthi as many nama sankirtan
>>>>>>>> vidwans are doing...only a Sannyasi who got the maha vakya upadesam is the
>>>>>>>> authority for gnana
>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>> On Wed 21 Jul, 2021, 12:40 PM Kaushik Chevendra, <
>>>>>>>> chevendrakaushik at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>> And this is the statement of bagavtpada in the last stanza of
>>>>>>>>> "bhaja govindam"-
>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>> *bhajagovindaM bhajagovindaM govindaM bhajamuuDhamate .
>>>>>>>>> naamasmaraNaadanyamupaayaM nahi pashyaamo bhavataraNe .. (33) *
>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>> *Worship Govinda, worship Govinda, worship Govinda, Oh fool ! Other
>>>>>>>>> than chanting the Lord's names, there is no other way to cross the life's
>>>>>>>>> ocean.*
>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>> And the works of "narayaneeyam" and "gudartha dipika" by advaita
>>>>>>>>> acharyas specify the importance of bhakthi. It's not a mere form of "chitta
>>>>>>>>> sudhi".
>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>> On Wed, 21 Jul 2021, 11:52 Kaushik Chevendra, <
>>>>>>>>> chevendrakaushik at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>> Namaste sir.
>>>>>>>>>> Its true that the attainment of gnana alone leads to liberation.
>>>>>>>>>> But the aspect of devotion is nowhere given less importance. This has been
>>>>>>>>>> stated many times by shri abhinava tirtha swamin in his discourses. In now
>>>>>>>>>> way can knowledge be attained without the grace and of guru and isvara.
>>>>>>>>>> And for people who completely surrender to isvara, the aspect of
>>>>>>>>>> "krama mukthi" is accepted. So, there is no rule that it has to come after
>>>>>>>>>> many births.
>>>>>>>>>> Regarding the power of nama smarana, here is a link to the
>>>>>>>>>> discourses of jagadguru - "
>>>>>>>>>> http://www.tattvaloka.com/jagadguru-speaks". The discourse in
>>>>>>>>>> March 2021 under " Chant the names of Lord and attain highest good" the
>>>>>>>>>> power of nama smarana is given. There is also a discourse in telugu given
>>>>>>>>>> by him in 2013 regarding the greatness of smarana- "
>>>>>>>>>> https://youtu.be/LqLkkwWm1cY".
>>>>>>>>>> From jagadgurus discourses it's evident the power of nama smarana
>>>>>>>>>> and bakthi shouldn't be compared to other rituals. Bakthi indeed is
>>>>>>>>>> superior to them.
>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>> And I have no way indicated inferiority of other gods. It was
>>>>>>>>>> ekadashi, a special day to narayana and vaishnavas. And hence I had a few
>>>>>>>>>> thoughts about the immeasurable daya and splendor of narayana and shared it
>>>>>>>>>> in the group. And other than a praise of him and a rememberance of him, it
>>>>>>>>>> had no other intention.
>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>> Om namo narayana.
>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>> Thank you.
>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>> On Wed, 21 Jul 2021, 10:24 Venkatesh Murthy, <vmurthy36 at gmail.com>
>>>>>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>>> Namaste
>>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>>> Our Sampradaya has laid down Panchayatana Puja to worship
>>>>>>>>>>> Ganesha, Shiva. Vishnu, Shakti and Surya. There is a reason for this. We
>>>>>>>>>>> should not become fanatics of one God and quarrel with devotees of other
>>>>>>>>>>> Gods. It will be a big obstacle for us if we become fanatics. Every God is
>>>>>>>>>>> a form of Saguna Brahma. No God is inferior and nobody is superior.
>>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>>> On Wed, Jul 21, 2021 at 5:44 AM Kaushik Chevendra via Advaita-l <
>>>>>>>>>>> advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>>>> Namaste subbu sir.
>>>>>>>>>>>> Thank you for your kind words.
>>>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>>>> On Tue, 20 Jul 2021, 23:18 V Subrahmanian, <
>>>>>>>>>>>> v.subrahmanian at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>>>>> Dear Kaushik,
>>>>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>>>>> You have beautifully articulated the position of the Shastra
>>>>>>>>>>>> and our
>>>>>>>>>>>>> sampradaya.  Your post, though short, is full of wisdom.
>>>>>>>>>>>> Thanks for
>>>>>>>>>>>>> sharing your thoughts.
>>>>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>>>>> warm regards
>>>>>>>>>>>>> subbu
>>>>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>>>>> On Tue, Jul 20, 2021 at 9:14 PM Kaushik Chevendra via
>>>>>>>>>>>> Advaita-l <
>>>>>>>>>>>>> advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> The differences between the school of advaita and dvaita are
>>>>>>>>>>>> many. But the
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> CHATNTING of harinama and sublime devotion to vishnu is the
>>>>>>>>>>>> common and
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> most
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> important aspect in both the school. In the age of kali, it
>>>>>>>>>>>> is said that
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> no
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> penance, austerity, charity etc has the same fruit as the
>>>>>>>>>>>> rememberance of
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> hari nama. The last verse in "bhaja govindam"says "There is
>>>>>>>>>>>> no other
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> measure to escape samsara other than rememberance of hari
>>>>>>>>>>>> nama". It's said
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> that narayana finds some excuse to lift people from samsara.
>>>>>>>>>>>> Such is his
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> daya ,he is the uplifter of sinners,he is "patita pavana". He
>>>>>>>>>>>> always
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> protects his devotees. People who hated hari, such as kamsa,
>>>>>>>>>>>> sisupala etc,
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> too were given mukti because they constantly thought about
>>>>>>>>>>>> him. He is an
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> ocean of daya and forgiveness. Being sarvasaktha isvara he
>>>>>>>>>>>> underwent
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> samsara as rama, to show us how to live a life according to
>>>>>>>>>>>> dharma. He
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> gave
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> the essence of Upanishads in the form of krishna to save the
>>>>>>>>>>>> people of
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> kali.  Today being ekadashi, this day belongs to narayana.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Just a few thoughts I had on this auspicious day.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Om namo narayanaya.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> _______________________________________________
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>>>>>>>>>>>>> 
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>>>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>>> -
>>>>>>>>>>> Regards
>>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>>> -Venkatesh
>>>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>>> 
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