Vows of Shiva and Parvati

The Marriage Vows Between Lord Shiva and Parvati Devi

Our lives are filled with relationships, but very few take the necessary steps to seriously commit the totality of themselves to another. Yet, successful relationships require this!

These beautiful vows between Lord Shiva and Parvati Devi will enchant all of you who are seeking a Divine Communion – either with a spouse or a significant other. Take the time to understand these Divine Vows and review your own commitments. By attentively putting your promises into practice, your relationship is destined to blossom in Divinity! 

Parvati: It is my great privilege that, because of my actions in my previous births, you have become my husband and I am your wife. 

Shiva: I will always protect you with my Love. You remain without concern. I will remain with you both in pleasure and in pain.

Parvati: In circumstances of pain, I will maintain patience, and in pleasure I will express my delight.

In both pleasure and in pain I will always be with you. I will protect and nourish our children, my husband, and our family.

Shiva: I will provide all the necessities for life for our family, including food, clothing, and shelter, whatever is needed. I will seek your agreement in all matters of our household life.

Parvati: I will remain contented in any standard you choose to maintain us, and I will always respect and obey your every order. I will always prepare food for you and our family, and assure that you are always satisfied with food.

Shiva: I will always enjoy whatever you give me to eat, and I will never have desires from any other woman. I will not make any other woman my source of nourishment.

Parvati: I will always adorn myself appropriately, and I will act appropriately in every circumstance. I will dedicate my mind, body, and soul to your satisfaction.

Shiva: Without you I will not perform any actions of Dharma, Yajna, or Puja, or even pursue material gain. You will always be present as the motivation for my every action. 

Parvati: In Puja, Yajna, and all acts of dharma, I will always be present to help you. In all acts of dharma, artha, and kama I will always be present to assist you according to the dictates of your mind. Without you I will not contemplate anyone else’s puja, yajna, or acts of dharma.

Shiva: I will always dedicate my mind and renunciation of all selfishness to your greatest delight.

Parvati: Wherever you stay, there I also will stay; wherever you dwell, I also will be by your side. I will never become tired from my beloved or from our love.

Shiva: I will never question your authority to be by my side. I will never leave you or renounce your love. I live with the hope that you will be my source of comfort eternally. 

Parvati: All present here are witness that you are my husband and my Lord, and I have offered myself to you completely and eternally. 

Shiva: I will always give you my respect. Your desires will be the most important goals of my life. I will never consider that you are inferior to me. You will always be with me as my partner, as I with you.

Lord Vishnu: Defining these as the goals of divine marriage, I pronounce this marriage as consummated. 

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Vishnu Sahastranam

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*868. सात्त्विक:.

            sAttvikah.

     ॐ श्री  सात्त्विकाय नम:. 

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sAttvikah = Virtuous, Honest, Good, True, Brave, Energetic, Natural, Courageous, Unaffected, Genuine, Spirited, Pure, etc., 

HE Who dispenses the fruits of Dharma, Knowledge, Non-Attachment, and Riches, is called 'sAttvikah'. 

"One Who is full of sAttvik qualities".

Quietude, Tranquility, Peace - these are some of the sAttvik Qualities. sattva is the creative-pause of the Mind before it launches out in to a burst of creative thoughts and action. Full of inspiration and meditative-poise is the Total-Mind, BhagavAn. 

HE Who is essentially established in sattva guNa;

HE Who confers the fruits of sattva guNa;

One Who makes HIS Devotees possessors of Sacred Divine Knowledge;

HE Who bestows the sattva aspect on people, on the plants, etc., as they deserve;

So BhagavAn is called 'sAttvikah'. 

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*869.  सत्य:

            satyah.

   ॐ श्री  सत्याय नम:. 

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satyah = True, Pure, Intrinsical, Faithful, Actual, Honest, Sincere, Virtuous, Effectual, Authentic, Good, Real, Genuine, Valid, Realism, Peepul, Golden Age,  satyayuga, satyalOka, etc., 

One Who is Well-Disposed towards Pious Souls;

One Who is good in a Supreme Way;

HE Who is established in Truth;

HE Who is Real, and Who alone exists;

HE Who is in the form of prANa, anna, and surya;

One Who is exceptionally good;

One Who is having Infinite Auspicious Qualities;

One Who is truly established in good people;

One Who is Embodied as Virtue of Truth specially;

So BhagavAn is called 'satyah'. 

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870. 

            सत्यधर्मपरायण:.

            satyadharmaparAyaNah.

     ॐ श्री  सत्यधर्मपरायणाय नम:. 

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satyah + dharma + parAyaNah = satyadharmaparAyaNah. 

satya = True, Pure, Intrinsical, Faithful, Actual, Honest, Sincere, Virtuous, Effectual, Authentic, Good, Real, Genuine, Valid, Realism, Peepul, Golden Age,  satyayuga, satyalOka, etc., 

dharma = Virtue, Natural Qualities, Code, System, Tradition, Justice, Duty, Manners, Moral Merit, Attribute, Statute, Usage, Righteousness, Regulation, etc., 

parAyaNah = Devotion, Earnestness, Good Shelter,  Linked, Linkable, The More Diligence, The More Desire, Deeply Interested,  Rapt, Absorbed, Resort, Related, The Main Objective,  Shelter, Refuge, Extract, Principle, Headline, Principal Object,  Final End,  Panacea,  Universal Medicine, Essence, Immersed,  Zenith, etc., 

One Who is present in Truthfulness and Righteousness in its many aspects is called 'satyadharmaparAyaNah'. 

HE Who is pleased with the True dharma practiced by HIS Devotees;

HE Who is ever devoted to, and established in, Truth and in Righteousness;

HE Who provides the support to, and Who shows the path for, those who follow the Superior Path of dharma;

Refuge of Devotees as yadu, turvaSa, etc., who take interest in discharging Virtuous Duties;

So BhagavAn is called 'satyadharmaparAyaNah'. 

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|| सर्वेजना: सुखिनो भवंतु ||

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       🔔ॐ🔔

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86400 in Bank

Imagine there is a bank account that credits your account each morning with $86,400. It carries over no balance from day to day.

Every evening the bank deletes whatever part of the balance you failed to use during the day. What would you do? Draw out every cent, of course?

Each of us has such a bank. It's name is TIME.

Every morning, it credits you with 86,400 seconds.

Every night it writes off as lost, whatever of this you have failed to invest to a good purpose.

It carries over no balance. It allows no over draft. Each day it opens a new account for you. Each night it burns the remains of the day.

If you fail to use the day's deposits, the loss is yours. There is no drawing against "tomorrow."

You must live in the present on today's deposits. Invest it so as to get from it the utmost in health, happiness and success!

The clock is running!! Make the most of today.

To realise the value of ONE YEAR, ask a student who failed a grade.

To realise the value of ONE MONTH, ask a mother who has given birth to a premature baby.

To realise the value of ONE WEEK, ask the editor of a weekly newspaper.

To realise the value of ONE HOUR, ask the lovers who are waiting to meet.

To realise the value of ONE MINUTE, ask a person who just missed a train.

To realise the value of ONE SECOND, ask someone who just avoided an accident.

To realise the value of ONE MILLISECOND, ask the person who won a silver medal at the Olympics.

Treasure every moment that you have! And treasure it more because you shared it with someone special, special enough to spend your time with. And remember time waits for no one........Jai Bhagavan......

BG Chapter 2 Verse 57

Srimad Bhagavad Gita Chapter two verse57

य: सर्वत्रानभिस्नेहस्तत्तत्प्राप्य शुभाशुभम् |

नाभिनन्दति न द्वेष्टि तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता || 57||

yaḥ sarvatrānabhisnehas tat tat prāpya śhubhāśhubham

nābhinandati na dveṣhṭi tasya prajñā pratiṣhṭhitā

One who remains unattached under all conditions, and is neither delighted by good fortune nor dejected by tribulation, he is a sage with perfect knowledge.

Commentary

Rudyard Kipling, a famous British poet, has captured the essence of this verse on  Sage of steady intelligence in his famous poem

 “If.” Here are a few lines from the poem:

If you can dream—and not make dreams your master;

If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim,

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster

And treat those two impostors just the same…

If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,

If all men count with you, but none too much:

If you can fill the unforgiving minute

With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,

Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,

And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!

See the acceptance of this couplet indicates the usual urge in people to grasp the state of enlightenment, which The Supreme Lord defines to Arjuna. 

One may marvel how an English poet uttered the same state of enlightenment that is narrated by the Supreme Lord. 

The proclamation is that the craving for enlightenment is the inherent nature of the soul. 

Hence, perceptively or unknowingly, everyone craves for it, in all cultures around the world. 

The Supreme Lord is defining it here, in answer to Arjuna’s question.

One saint stated in context to same verse (Swami Mukundananda)

A man should never despise himself, for dazzling success never attends on the man who is condemned by himself.

See Sugar and sand may be mixed together, but the ant rejects the sand and carries away the grains of sugar. 

So the holy Paramahamsas and pious men successfully sift the good from the bad.

The water of a rapid stream moves round and round in eddies and whirlpools in some places; but, passing these, it resumes again a straight and swift course.

 So the heart of the devotee is caught every now and then in the whirlpool of despondency, grief and unbelief; but this is only a momentary aberration and does not last long.

The truly religious man or woman she or he who does not commit any sin even, when he is alone, and when no man observes him, because he feels that God sees him even then.

 He, who finds a bag full of gold in a lonely and uninhabited house, and resists the temptation of appropriating it, he is a truly religious man. But he, who practices religion for the sake of show, through fear of public opinion, cannot be called truly religious. 

The religion of silence and secrecy is the true religion, but it is all sham and mockery when attended with vaunting and vanity.

Patram Pushpam

Do you know , The most misunderstood sloka of Bhagawad Gita is Chapter 9 verse 26. " .

Patram puspam phalam Toyama yomeya bhaktya prayacchati

Tadaham bhaktyupahrtam asnami prayatatmanaha. Check your scriptures and you will find the answer. My findings will be given later. Hari bol

 Y I . Bhagwad Gita chapter 9  verse 26.

Patram - Draupadi gave Bhawan Shri Krishna saag when she        

absolutely had nothing else to give.

Puspam- Gajendra found himself grabbed by an alligator in a lake . He couldn't free himself , he calls for the lord of the universe who came and saved him. Gajendra had absolutely nothing to give but a lone lotus flower which he gave to Bhagwanji.

Phalam- When Shri Rammji came to see Sabri, she gave him some fruits because she had nothing else to give. 

 

Toyam- King Ranti Deva gave Gave Bhagawan ji water because he had absolutely nothing else to give.

To all devotees give in name of God according to your financial standing. Jai ho

Lakshmi and Alakshmi

Why is Goddess Lakshmi always seen sitting next to Lord Vishnu’s feet?

The Indian way is subjective and symbolic while the western way is logical, objective, mathematical and conclusive. If a woman sits next to a man’s feet, we automatically deduce something is wrong there and question. Why? Because we automatically consider “Feet” as “derogatory”.

You have to be “logical”. You have to be “correct”. Things like “Equality” matter.

Lakshmi and Alakhsmi – Two sisters craving for Vishnu

Do you know that Lakshmi has an older sister, her name is Alakhsmi. She is the hindu goddess of misfortune and follows Lakshmi wherever she goes.

She is extremely jealous of Lakshmi because she does not have a husband. Her sole intention in life is to find a way to drive Lakshmi out of any household and capture the Vishnu living in that household. She has a dry shriveled up body, sunken cheeks, thick lips, and beady eyes and that she rides a donkey. She sometimes takes the form of an owl that is portrayed accompanying Lakshmi.

One day Lakshmi went enraged asked Alakhsmi –

“Why do you want my husband? Please leave me alone and let me enjoy his company”.

To this alakhsmi had said –

“I do not have a husband and I am not worshipped. I will follow you wherever you go”.

Lakshmi then said –

“Mrityu, god of death, decay, and degeneration will be your husband and she will dwell wherever there is dirt, ugliness, sloth, gluttony, envy, rage, hypocrisy, greed and lust.”

So it is Lakshmi who is sitting next to Vishnu’s dirty feet, because if it is dirty, Alakshmi will come and drive her out and claim her husband.

The symbolic representation

Like I said, Indian mythology is mostly symbolic and subjective. Here is the subjective truth.

Fortune and misfortune go hand in hand, just like Lakshmi and Alakshmi. When good fortune showers on you, misfortune sits quietly next to the entrance, waiting for an opportunity to come inside. That is Alakshmi, waiting for an opportunity to enter your house and drive out the Lakshmi.

Whenever your house is dirty, there is fight among parents, there is lust, hypocrisy among brothers, gluttony among women,  greed between son and father, women are dressed in dirty clothes, it is a sign of misfortune (Alakshmi) entering the house and driving Lakshmi away.

Hence, the Lakshmi in the house must wake up and prevent Alakshmi from entering. This is why you see the house is cleaned every morning, water is poured next to the main door, Agarbatties are lighted, people wear fresh new clothes in festivals. This is done to prevent misfortune (Alakhsmi) from entering the house.

The picture is just a symbolic representation of preserving order and has nothing to do with the relationship of man/woman. Vishnu is the keeper or lord of the house and Lakshmi is the one who ensures that the keeper is guarded from misfortune 

Shree Guru

Guru Gita : A Commentary by #SwamiSwaroopananda

#GuruGita #ShreeGuru and #HisDisciple

The Shree Guru, the one who has the highest status, is the one who gives us the highest knowledge. He is the one who gives us Shree Vidhya; Vidhya means knowledge.That teacher who gives us The knowledge; where all our ignorance comes to an end, and the one infinite reality is known is Shree Guru. In the knowledge of the infinite reality all limitations and finitude come to an end. And when all finitude comes to an end all our sorrows come to an end. All our bondage and transmigration come to an end. So one who gives us that knowledge is called as Shree Guru. 

Therefore, even the Upanishads say, that those who have observed carefully and have understood that even the heavenly world - gained through karma and through action - is limited; those who having developed detachment even from the heavenly pleasures and heavenly world, having observed that everything is changing and anything gained through action is always limited and want to know the truth and truth alone; those who having practised the various methods - the upasanas, meditations, and having controlled their mind developed qualities of calmness of mind - kshma, dhama, etc., Viveka - vairagya - discrimination and dispassion are ready to gain this knowledge from a Guru. The Mundako Upanishad highlights that such a person should approach a guru. Which Guru should such a person go to? It is here that it clarifies - “Shrotriyam Brahma Nishtam”- the Guru who is well versed in the scriptures. 

In Prasnopanishad and in Kenopanishad,  the Guru clearly says we cannot instruct you because this knowledge is not known by the speech. In Kenopanishad we are being told that which cannot be told. We are asked to experience that which cannot be experienced. The infinite cannot  be conceived by the intellect, you should transcend the intellect to know the infinite. Yet this art of teaching; this art of revealing is there only in the Upanishads. 

Even those who have realised - if they do not have the knowledge from the Upanishads they will not be able to reveal it. Thus Shrotriyam - not a pundit, not a scholar who can quote from the Upanishad from the Gita etc., - but Brahma Nishtam who himself is firm in the knowledge of the infinite, who is rooted in the infinite, one who has realised the infinite, from such a person one should approach and gain the knowledge. 

Gurum ena abi Gacheta. We should go to a teacher and not call the teacher to come to us. Guru Seva - This knowledge cannot be gained by any other means. We should go to the teacher with an attitude of service, with an attitude of readiness to serve; as what else can we offer, but our service. All wood, fruit, etc are only symbolic - of the fact that we are ready to serve. We should be ready to do anything with humility to get this knowledge, because through service comes humility; through service comes detachment; and it is in that humble service is this knowledge gained from the teacher. The Chandokya Upanishad clearly says “Acharyavan Purusho veda” - that one who has a teacher rather, one who has surrendered to the teacher, that person will know the truth.

#GuruPoornima #Salutations to the #GuruParampara #InHisService #AtHisFeet #AnOffering #UntoHim

#GuruGitaCommentary #Part4

Tomato

TOMATOES!!!🍅

A teacher asked her students to bring some tomatoes in a plastic bag to school.

🍅Each tomato was to be given the name of a person whom that child hates.

🍅So, the number of tomatoes would be equal to the number of persons they hate.

🍅On a pre-determined day, All the children brought their tomatoes well addressed.

🍅Some had two, some had three and some had five, some even had 20 tomatoes in accordance with the number of people they hated. 🍅The teacher then told them they had to carry the tomatoes with them everywhere they go for two weeks.

🍅As the days passed the children started to complain about the decay and smell of the tomatoes.

🍅The students who had many tomatoes complained it was very heavy to carry and the smell was too much.

🍅After a week, the teacher asked the students “How did you feel this week?”

🍅The children complained of the awful smell and heavy weight of the tomatoes, especially those who carried several tomatoes.

🍅The teacher said, “This is very similar to what you carry in your heart when you don’t like some people.

🍅Hatred makes the heart unhealthy and you carry that hatred everywhere. 🍅If you can’t bear the smell of spoilt tomatoes for a week, imagine the impact of bitterness on your heart as you carry it daily.”

🍅The heart is a beautiful garden that needs regular cleaning of unwanted weeds. 🍅 Forgive those who have angered you.

🍅This makes room for storing good things.

🍅Get Better, Not Bitter!!!

4 kinds of Devotee

NAME Four Kinds of Bhaktas?

chapter 7 of Bhagavd Gita explains about all these four types of devotees:-

Bhaktas or devotees of God are of four types. Arta, Jijnasu, Artharthi and Jnani.

Arta (the distressed):------

These are the people who are experiencing pain and suffering either at physical level or at mental level. They are very much upset with their lives and have no hope on it. In such a scenario when they are completely broken and shattered with grief from all sides, they still have faith in GOD and He is the only ONE from whose side Hope is yet not gone for them. 

They approaches GOD to get liberated from their pains and hence are called ‘Arta’ Although Artas are not high level of Bhaktas and their devotion to God is the result of their pain, It is still to be understood that in most difficult times of our life , it is not easy to have faith even in GOD. 

And hence if a person is able to keep his trust and faith in GOD even though in tough times- it is a good sign and the person itself is called as one of the devotees of GOD.

Arta is the distressed devotee who is suffering very much and who craves for the grace of God, in order to get himself relieved from pain and sorrow,Draupadi and Gajendra are examples of Arta-Bhaktas. 

When Dussasana dragged her before the court of the Kauravas and pulled her sari, Draupadi cried for Krishna in order to guard her respect. Gajendra called on Narayana when a crocodile was dragging him in water.

Artharti (Devotees with certain wishes) –----

These devotees approaches GOD with the desires of material wealth, kids, name and fame. Although devotion of such people towards GOD is for wealth and specific desires, they are also termed as a Bhakta as because of any reasons they are associated with Artharthi is the seeker of wealth, who longs for earthly possessions, money, land, etc., in order to enjoy a happy life, and who propitiates God to get His grace to amass wealthThe seeker after wealth craves for money, wife, children, position, name and fame. 

Sugriva and Dhruva were Artharthi-Bhaktas.

 Sugriva wanted to drive away Vali and get his kingdom. Vibhishana wanted to put an end to Ravana and get Lanka. Dhruva wanted a kingdom where his step mother would not trouble and ill-treat him.

.Divine.Jigyasu (Knowledge Seeker)------

These are the devotees who have faith in God and want to explore more about Him. They are just curious to know more about Divine and are very much inquisitive about BRAHMAN. They read scriptures and other literature from saints and try to figure out ways and means to discover greater depths of infinite GOD.Jijnasu is the enquirer. He is dissatisfied with the world. There is a void in his life. He always feels that sensual pleasure is not the highest form of happiness and there is yet pure eternal bliss unmixed with grief and pain, which is to be found within.

Uddhava was a Jijnasu. He was dissatisfied with the world and got wisdom from Sri Krishna. This is recorded in the Bhagavata.

Jnani (Self Realised)------

These are the devotees who have finally realized GOD and have true knowledge of Him, His creation and the entire cosmos. They understand Brahman and are liberated from all Karma specific boundations of life. Jnani is the wise, the sage who is satisfied with the Self, who is contented in the Self, who has no desires, who is freed from desires, who has fulfilled all desires, whose only desire is the Self; who considers his own Self as the All-inclusive God.The Jnani is a man of knowledge who has attained Self-illumination. Suka-Maharshi was a Jnani-Bhakta. He was a Brahma-Jnani of the highest type. He realised that everything was his own Self. He taught the Srimad-Bhagavata to Parikshit

Vaira Bhaktas----

.There is another type of Bhaktas, called Vaira Bhaktas. These Bhaktas are negative Bhaktas. They do not have positive devotion for God. They hate God and thus remember Him always. Hatred also requires a constant remembrance of the enemy. So these also are a kind of Bhaktas only. They attain salvation through Vaira-Bhakti. Kansa, Sisupala and others thought of the Lord constantly on account of their deep hatred for Him. Thus they attained Salvation.--SHIVOHAM

Character

What Is Character? Character is what a man is in the dark. Character is who you are when no one is looking. Character is measured by what you would do if you were never found out. Reputation is what men think you are. Character is what God knows you to be. Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it...the tree is the real thing. The best index to a person’s character is how he treats people who can’t do him any good, and how he treats people who can’t fight back. There is never a reason to compromise God’s standards in order to maintain God’s blessings.

Ponthanam Bhagavat

EVEN LORD SHIVA AND CELESTIALS LOVE TO LISTEN BHAGAVATAM 

Beautiful story from life of bhakta Poonthanam- MUST READ

Once there lived an ardent devotee of Lord Krishna by name Poonthaanam.

He worshipped Guruvayoorappan (Lord Krishna) with all his heart and soul.

People loved him for his beautiful Bhagavatam discourses.

There is a temple in North Kerala called Kottiyoor. The significant deity in the temple is Lord Siva. The temple was kept open only for a few days during a year.

There were no human activities in that place for the rest of the year.

Once Poonthaanam reached the Kottiyoor temple and had a bath in the holy river.

He worshiped the compassionate Lord Siva, felt happy, and stayed there for a few days.

He recited Bhagavatam everyday in front of the deity and several hundreds of people listened to his sweet discourse on the wonderful pastime in the 10th Canto 60th of Srimad Bhagavatam named “Lord Krishna Teases Queen Rukmini.”

The Lord decides to play with His beloved wife Queen Rukmini and wanted to listen to Her.

He playfully asks Her why She wanted to marry the Lord when She had better choices like King Sisupala, Salva, Jarasandha, etc.

Hearing this Queen Rukmini faints and Lord consoles Her.

This is the gist of the chapter.

Poonthaanam finished reading this part of the chapter and kept the bookmark at the end of the chapter so that he can continue reciting from the next chapter.

SURPRISE !! BOOKMARK FOUND AT THE BEGENNING OF THE SAME CHAPTER !!! AGAIN AND AGAIN

Next day, to his surprise, he found the bookmark at beginning of the same chapter.

So Poonthaanam read the same part for the second time.

This was repeated for the rest of the days.

It was the last day to close the temple for the year.

Poonthanam finished the discourse and was returning from the temple with the other devotees, but somehow left the Bhagavatam in the temple itself.

Having walked some distance suddenly he remembered that he forgot to bring the Bhagavatam with him.

He hurried back; crossed the river and reached the entrance to the temple, which was closed. He was all alone.

He could hear somebody reciting the same part of the chapter from Bhagavatam inside the temple.

As he looked through the keyhole he saw Lord Siva himself reading from Poonthanam’s Bhagavatam.

Mother Parvati and his other Bhoothaganas were listening.

Their eyes were filled with tears out of devotion.

Poonthaanam stood there motionless and heard the whole recitation.

SHIVA AND PARVATI APPRECIATE POONTHANAM

At the end Lord Siva asked Parvati devi, “Did you like the Bhagavatam recitation”?

Parvathi replied,”Yes, it was nice, but was not as good as Poonthaanam’s”.

Lord Siva replied, “Yes. That is true. I also like to hear Bhagavatam from Poonthaanam. That is why I placed the bookmark again and again at the beginning of the same topic every day.”

Hearing this Poonthaanam who stood outside was shaken up and uttered the holy name of Krishna loudly.

When he watched again, Lord Siva and Mother Parvati had disappeared from his sight.

MORAL OF THE STORY

This pastime clearly explains how all the living entities including the DEMIGODS love this great literature of BHAGAVATAM

Gita 3.13

Gita 3.13. . .(1)

यज्ञशिष्टाशिनः सन्तो 

मुच्यन्ते  सर्वकिल्बिषैः  |

भुन्जते ते त्वघं पापा ये पचंत्यात्मकारणात ||

'The good people, living on the remnants of yajna (यज्ञ), are freed from all sins; but those, on the other hand, who cook food (only) for themselves eat only sin.'

Whatever you eat after a sacrifice is called yajnashishta (यज्ञशिष्ट), the remnant of a yajna (यज्ञ). 

This yajnashishta (यज्ञशिष्ट) is also called prasaad (प्रसाद). 

Whatever is a prasaad (प्रसाद) is holy food; what is not prasaad (प्रसाद) has no elevating power for the human system. 

In the social context, you earn, you pay your taxes, what remains is your wealth to enjoy; by trying to avoid paying taxes through all sorts of tricks, society suffers; you also suffer. 

This idea we have to imprint upon the mind of everyone, that you can't get peaceful social order without paying for it. Tax is what we pay for making a stable society. 

Those who avoid paying taxes, and adopt all sorts of tricks for it, they are not citizens, they are only IN the nation, but not OF the nation, and not FOR the nation; they are not fit to live in an ordered society. 

They are fit to have a life of their own separately in some unpopulated island; but then, without human company, they will not often develop humanness.

 Kilbisha (किल्बिषा) means sin and evil.  

Then comes the statement: Bhunjate te tvagham pap ye pachanti atmakaranaat (भुन्जते ते त्वघं पाप ये पचन्ति आत्मकारणात). 

This is a very profound idea. 'One who cooks only for oneself (and eats separately without caring for others), eats only that much sin.'That is the language. 

Agham (अघम) means sin; pap (पाप) also means sin; ye pachanti (ये पचन्ति), 'those who cook'; atmakaranaat (आत्मकारणात), 'only for oneself'. 

I am cooking only for myself; I don't care for others. 

That attitude is extremely bad. Therefore, very often, in our traditional Hindu houses, they follow what is called bhuta-yajna (भूत-यज्ञ), the setting apart of a small portion of food after the cooking is over. 

That is given to any beggar, or birds. They keep it separate; only the rest they utilize. The idea behind it is what this verse expresses. 

In the Gita, the Mahabharata, and the Manu-Smriti this idea is expressed:

 Agham tu kevalam bhunkte ye pachanti atmakaranaat (अघम तु केवलम भुंक्ते ये पचन्ति आत्मकारणात). 'one who cooks for oneself, eats only that much sin'. 

That self-centredness is not appreciated at all. So, this is one important idea. Don't eat sin; eat virtue; 

FOOD BECOMES VIRTUE WHEN IT BECOMES A PRASAD (प्रसाद). You have given something to other people and you used for yourself what remained; that is beautiful. 

The yajna (यज्ञ) value is manifested there. This very teaching is given also by Isa Upanishad's (इशोपनिषद) first verse: tena tyktena bhunjitha (तेन त्यक्तेना भुन्जीथा), 'ENJOY LIFE THROUGH RENUNCIATION'. 

Then only you get the best of life. You care only for your own life; by that you will never enjoy the best of life.  So, in verses 14 and 15, you find mention of Chakram (चक्रम्) or ‘wheel of chain of life’.    

Source: 'Universal Message of the Bhagavad-Gita', Pub. Advaita Ashrama, Vol. 1, pp. 273-274)

Who is poor

A rich man looked through his window and saw a poor man picking something from his dustbin ... He said, Thank GOD I'm not poor.

The poor man looked around and saw a naked man misbehaving on the street ... He said, Thank GOD I'm not mad.

The mad man looked ahead and saw an ambulance carrying a patient ... He said, Thank GOD am not sick.

Then a sick person in hospital saw a trolley taking a dead body to the mortuary ... He said, Thank GOD I'm not dead.

Only a dead person cannot thank God. 

Why don't you thank GOD today for all your blessings and for the gift of life ... for another beautiful day.

*What is LIFE*?

To understand life better, you have to go to 3 locations :

*1. Hospital*

*2. Prison* 

*3. Cemetery*

🏥 At the Hospital, you will understand that nothing is more beautiful than HEALTH.

🔐 In the Prison, you'll see that FREEDOM is the most precious thing.

💐 At the Cemetery, you will realize that life is worth nothing. The ground that we walk today will be our roof tomorrow.

*Sad Truth* :  We all come with *Nothing* and we will go with *Nothing* ... Let us, therefore, remain humble and be thankful & grateful to God at all times for everything. 

🙏 Could you please share this with someone else, and let them know that God loves them?

Shankar Acharya search for needle

One night Sri Adi Shankaracharya, 

the great Advaita master, was desperately searching for something on the street outside his small hut. When his pupil returned from his errand, he saw this and curiously asked the Master, “Aacharya, what are you looking for here on the street at this hour?”

Shankaracharya  replied, “I lost my needle, I am looking for it.”

The pupil joined him in the search, but after searching for a while, he asked, “Can you try and recollect where you might have dropped it?”

Shankaracharya  said, “Of course, I remember. I dropped it near the bed in the hut.”

The pupil, utterly astonished at the strange answer, said,  “Aacharya, you say you lost it inside the house, then why are we looking for it outside?”

Shankaracharya  innocently replied, “There is no oil left in the lamp, so it is pitch dark inside the house. Hence I thought of searching for it outside, since there is enough street light here.”

While holding back his laugh, the pupil said, “If you lost your needle inside the house, how could you even expect to find it outside?”

Shankaracharya simply smiled back at the pupil and the pupil got the message behind the acharya's puzzling act. 

Isn't that what we do? We run to far away temples and walk up mountains to search for what we have lost inside ourselves. We are all seeking outside what we have lost inside us. Why? Just because it is pitch dark Inside. 

Silly, aren’t we?!

Light the lamp inside you and find your lost treasure right therein...

Bamboo

*SURRENDER*

This is a beautiful story about  Krishna 's flute..

Everyday Krishna would go in the garden and say to all the

plants, “I love you”.

The plants were very happy and responded saying “Krishna,

we love You too”.

One day Krishna rushed quickly into the garden very

alarmed.

He went to the bamboo plant and the bamboo plant asked,

“Krishna, what´s wrong?”

Krishna said “I have something to ask you, but it is very

difficult”.

The bamboo said “Tell me: if I can, I will give it to you”.

So Krishna said “I need your life. I need to cut you”.

The bamboo thought for a while and then said “You don´t have any other choice. You don’t have any other way ?”

Krishna said, “No, no other way”.

And it said “OK” and gave himself up.

So Krishna cut the bamboo n made holes in it, and each time, he carved the holes, the bamboo was crying in pain ...

Krishna made a beautiful flute out of it n this flute was with him all the time.

24 hours a day, it was with Krishna. Even the Gopis were jealous of the flute.

They said, “Look, Krishna is our Lord, but yet we get to spend only some time with him.

He wakes up with you, He sleeps with you, all the time you are with him”.

Gopis asked the bamboo, “Tell us your secret. What secret do you have, that the Lord treasures you so much ?”

And the bamboo said “The secret is that, i gave myself up, and he did whatever was right for me, in the process i had

to undergo a lot of pain.

And the Lord does whatever he wants with me, whenever he wants with me and however he wants with me. I have just become His instrument”.

So this is complete surrender: where God can do whatever

He wants with you,u whenever He wants, as He wants.

Trust Him completely and have faith in Him and always think you are in His hands ... what can go wrong ??

This is Samarpan or Surrender.

Woodcutter

🔨THE STORY OF A 🔨

🔨WOOD CUTTER🔨

Once upon a time, a very strong woodcutter asked for a job in a timber merchant and he got it. 

_____

The pay was really good and so was the work condition. For those reasons, the woodcutter was determined to do his best. His boss gave him an axe and showed him the area where he supposed to work.The first day, the woodcutter brought 18 trees.

___

“Congratulations,” the boss said. “Go on that way!

_____

”Very motivated by the boss words, the woodcutter tried harder the next day, but he could only bring 15 trees. ____

The third day he tried even harder, but he could only bring 10 trees.

____

Day after day he was bringing less and less trees.

____

“I must be losing my strength”, the woodcutter thought.

____

He went to the boss and apologized, saying that he could not understand what was going on.

____

“When was the last time you sharpened your axe?” the boss asked.

_____

“Sharpen? I had no time to sharpen my axe. I have been very busy trying to cut trees…”

😌Reflection:

Our lives are like that. We sometimes get so busy that we don’t take time to sharpen the “axe”.

__

In today’s world, it seems that everyone is busier than ever, but less happy than ever.

___

Why is that?

Could it be that we have forgotten how to stay “sharp”?

___

There’s nothing wrong with activity and hard work but we should not get so busy that we neglect the truly important things in life, like 

👉our personal lives, 

👉taking time to get close to our God the  Creator.

👉giving more time for our family,

👉taking time to read the Bible, spiritual material etc.

_____

We all need time

💥to relax,

💥to think and meditate on God's word. 

💥to learn and grow spiritually. 

🍃🌺🍃🌺🍃🌺🍃🌺🍃🌺

If we don’t take the time to sharpen the “axe”, we will become dull and lose our effectiveness.

😀🌺🌺😀🌺🌺😀🌺🌺😀

If you love your friends as I have loved you today, then SHARE to MOTIVATE them. Have a bless night fb family n friends sweet dreams