Women are remembered

Women in Hindu Religious Thought

To understand the position of women in Hinduism, one must understand the true essence of Hindu scriptures and be able to discriminate between what is religious philosophy versus what was merely social philosophy in the ancient times.  The social philosophy varies with time, but the religious ideals do not.  This point is critical since Hinduism has a large number of scriptures and lack of right understanding as to their content and hierarchy can result in distortion of the Hindu religious tradition.      Hindu scriptures re generally classified into two categories: Sruti (primary scriptures) and Smriti (secondary scriptures).   Sruti in Sanskrit means “that which is heard.”  Thus the Sruti scriptures are the eternal truths that the Vedic seers, called rishis, are said to have heard in their deep meditations.  These scriptures are not considered the works of the human mind, but an expression of what has been realized through intuitive perception. This category includes Vedas, Upanishads, Brahmasutra and the Bhagavad Gita.  Some sampradayas (religious traditions) consider their Agamas also as Sruti scriptures.  The Sruti scriptures are the primary scriptures of Hinduism and, as such, hold the highest authority.  Smriti in Sanskrit means “that which is remembered.”  Smriti scriptures are considered to be of human origin and include a large number of religious writings, such as Ramayana, Mahabharatta, Puranas, Manu Smriti, and Dharma Shastras.  Smriti scriptures are the secondary scriptures of Hinduism and are subordinate to the Sruti scriptures.  What is the purpose of the Smriti scriptures?  The primary scriptures of Hinduism (Sruti) are difficult to understand by the general masses. Furthermore, they only address the goal of human life (Self-Realization) and how to attain this goal with the spiritual code of conduct known asYama and Niyama.  Sruti scriptures are not concerned with the social philosophy that varies from time to time.  The Smriti scriptures were written later to explain and elaborate the Sruti scriptures, making them understandable and more meaningful to the general population. Smriti scriptures use real life stories, narratives, fables, myths and folklore to expound the highest truths contained in the Sruti scriptures.  Smriti scriptures were also written to delineate the social philosophy for the Hindu society in the ancient times.  Later, when the sectarian fever rose in India, many sects wrote more Smriti scriptures to promote their religious views. Some of these sects wrote their own scriptures in which they even compared deities and declared their own deities to be superior to others.  There are stories (such as Satyanarayana Katha) which even depict deities as being sometimes angry, revengeful, dictatorial, and power-thirsty.   What is the view of Hinduism’s highest scriptures (Sruti) on the position of women?  Religious scholars agree that Upanishads are the highest among even the Sruti scriptures.  The philosophy of all the Upanishads is summarized in four verses, which are called Mahavakyas (great utterances).  These are:  aham Brahmasmi (I am the spirit, i.e. atman), tat tvam asi (That thou art), prajnanam Brahma  (Brahman is pure consciousness) and ayam atma Brahma (this self is Brahman).  In different ways and by different words, all these four Mahavakyas simply confirm the fact that an individual regardless of religion, race, culture, gender, color, cast, creed or geographic location is atman clothed in a physical body.  The physical body we get is the result of our past karma.  What we are now is the result of our past practice and again practice makes us what we shall be.  The differences between individuals exist only at physical level.  There are no spiritual differences between man and woman.  The husband and wife are the two sides of the same coin.  They are the two manifestations of the same atman. For this very reason, Swami Vivekananda says, “The husband and wife are the two wings of a bird.”  This is the highest teaching of Hinduism and comes from its highest scriptures.  Hindu religious philosophy views marriage like a triangle where God is at the apex and the husband and wife are at the other two corners that farm the base of the triangle.  As long as the couple is at the base, there is great separation between them.  However, when they begin moving towards God together, the distance between them decreases.  The distance between then decreases to zero when they reach God and unite in Him forever in joy. If any one of its wings is inferior, weak or damaged, the bird will fail to fly.  The most important rite of the Vedic wedding ceremony is Sapatpadi.  Here the bride and bridegroom take seven steps together around the nuptial fire (Agni) and make the following seven wedding vows to each other:  “With God as guide, let us take, the first step to nourish each other, the second step to grow together in strength, the third step to preserve our wealth, the fourth step to share our joys and sorrows, the fifth step to care for our children, the sixth step to be together forever, and the seventh step to remain lifelong friends, perfect halves to make a perfect whole.”  The words “perfect halves to make perfect hole” is the final word of Hinduism on the relationship between husband and wife.  Thus Hinduism provides same religious rights and privileges to women as it does to men.  Neither is woman superior to man, nor is man superior to woman. Both are “perfect halves to make perfect hole.”   The following are quotes from other scriptures that further confirm the equality between men and women in all religious and spiritual aspects:  “Unite, O Lord, this couple like a pair of lovebirds.  May they be surrounded by children living both long and happy ”  Atharva Veda Samhita 14.2.64 “Let there be faithfulness to each other until death.  This may be considered as the summary of the highest law for husband and wife.”     Manu Smriti 9.101 “May our prayers and worship be alike, and may our devotional offerings be one and the same.”   Rig Veda Samhita 10.191.3 What the above scriptures tell us is this:  The marriage in Hindu religion is a life-long partnership between two lovebirds, called husband and wife.  The highest religion for these lovebirds is to be faithful to each other.  Neither is the husband god, nor is the wife goddess.  Both are the soul in bondage and their prayers and worship should be alike for their spiritual freedom, moksha.    Here is what Mahatma Gandhi tells us about women in general and husband-wife relationship in particular:    “To call women the weaker sex is libel; it is man’s injustice to women.”  Mahatma Gandhi “The wife is not the husband’s bond-slave but his companion and his help-mate and an equal partner in all his joys and sorrows---as free as the husband to choose her own path.”   Mahatma Gandhi   Baba Hari Dass, a well-known modern living saint reminds us that:  “Wife and Husband are like two equal halves of a soybean.  One half-alone will not grow.  If two parts are separated and planted in the earth, still they will not grow.  The bean will grow only when both parts are covered by one skin, which makes them one.”   If we study the ancient history, we find that women held top religious and social positions in the Vedic period.  There are references to women sages and saints in Vedas and Upanishads who were greatly revered for their religious and spiritual wisdom. During and following the epic period, the caste system (an ancient social philosophy) became rigid, which caused conflict within the society.  The women often became the victims of this internal social conflict as well as the violence caused by the foreign invaders. The protection of women thus became a pressing issue for the society and the men had to shoulder this responsibility.  The critical need to protect the women during the ancient period is clearly reflected in the following verse of the Manusmriti:  “Father protects (her) in childhood, husband protects (her) in youth, and sons protect (her) in old age.  A woman cannot be left unprotected.” (MS 9.3)  Thus, the husband became the sole protector (like god) of his wife.  This led to a social structure in which a wife was expected to cling to her husband for protection--in other words, worship him. This is why Ramayana says that the highest dharma of the woman is to worship her husband. The times have changed and the ancient social philosophy is irrelevant now.       Harmlessness is considered the highest morality in Hinduism (Mahabharatta Shantiparva 262.5.6). A Hindu is taught to advance the spirit of harmlessness by maintaining harmony in his own life, in the family and society, with the ultimate goal spiritual perfection through selfless work, meditation and yoga. Scriptures are a means to this end, but not the end in themselves. If the social philosophy delineated by the Sacred Law of the ancient times is not suitable now, it should be ignored, including those writings which expound the superiority of man over woman or vice versa, husband over wife or vice versa, or one deity over another. Hindus are permitted to exercise this choice by one of the Hinduism’s most dominant Smriti scripture, Manu Smriti, which declares:   “Let him avoid the acquisition of wealth and the gratification of his desires, if they are opposed the Sacred Law, and even lawful acts which may cause pain in future or are offensive...”   Manu Smriti 3.176  The greatness of Hinduism is that it teaches us to cling to wisdom and not to dogma. This is why the above verse says that we must avoid even the lawful acts (i.e., even scriptures) if they cause pain or are offensive. We know that Bhagvan Krishna narrated entire Bhagavad Gita to provide Hinduism’s highest spiritual knowledge to Arjuna.  But in the end, Krishna advises Arjuna to use his (Aarjuna’s) own wisdom and conscience to make his decision.  “I have given you the words of vision and wisdom more secret than hidden mysteries.  Ponder over them in the silence of thy soul, and then in freedom do thy will.”  BG 18.63   “In freedom do thy will” is what Hindu religious thought is all about.  We must always discriminate between what is right and what is wrong, and not follow the rules blindly.  The beauty of Hinduism is that it encourages the freedom of thought that no other religion in the world even comes close to.  .  In conclusion, woman has the same religious and spiritual freedom in Hinduism as man.  Like a man, she is the soul in bondage and the goal of her life is the same as that of man, spiritual perfection or moksha through selfless work, meditation and yoga.  Hindus have elevated women to the level of divinity.  They worship God in the form of Divine Mother.  However, the status of women in Hindu society has also been affected by factors other than the ideals set forth in the Vedas and Upanishads, such as cultural mores and the exploitation of the biological and psychological differences between men and women.  Therefore, on an individual and social level, complete and total equality of women is a goal that Hindu society (and other societies) is still striving for.  As Swami Vivekananda says, we must realize that man and woman are two wings of the same bird; that in order to truly soar to great heights, a man and woman must work in unison in order to achieve greater harmony in life. Manu Smṛiti says "Yatra naryastu pujyante ramante tatra Devata, yatraitaastu na pujyante sarvaastatrafalaah kriyaah". which means Women are honored where, divinity blossoms there, and where women are dishonored, all action no matter how noble remain unfruitful.  “Where women are honored, there the Gods are pleased.  But where they are not honored, no sacred rite yields rewards.”  Manu Smriti 3.56

This story is about a person working at an ice plant. It was almost the end of the day. Everyone had packed up to leave.

Namaste / Good Morning Everyone:- Do have a blessed day today...Hari Om

An inspiring story... Enjoy...

This story is about a person working at an ice plant. It was almost the end of the day. Everyone had packed up to leave.

Just then a technical snag arose and he went to check it out. By the time he finished it was late. The doors were sealed and the lights were off.

Trapped inside the ice plant the whole night without fresh air and light, an icy grave was almost sure for him.
Hours passed. Suddenly he found someone opening the door.

Was it a miracle?
The security guard entered with a flashlight and helped him come out.

On the way out the person asked the security guard, “How did you know that I was inside?” “Who informed you?”

The guard said, “Sir; this unit has fifty people. But you are the only one who says 'Good morning' to me when you arrive and 'Goodbye' in the evening. You had reported this morning, but did not go out in the evening. This made me suspicious, so I came in to check and found you locked inside. ”

Never had the person imagined that a simple gesture of greeting someone would be a lifesaver for him.

So remember to greet people with a warm smile when you meet them, for these are the real miracles in life.

Excellent msg

Excellent message and i have read it many times n it still is afresh pls read :)) It was their anniversary, and Aisha was waiting for her husband Rajiv to show up. Things had changed since their marriage, the once cute couple couldn't-live-without-each-other had turned bitter. Fighting over every little things, both didn't like the way things had changed. Aisha was waiting to see if Rajiv remembered it was their anniversary! Just as the door bell rang she ran to find her husband wet and smiling with a bunch of flowers in his hand. The two started re-living the old days. Making up for fights, then was d plan for champagne, light music And it was raining! It was perfect. But the moment paused when the phone in the bedroom rang. Aisha went to pick it up and it was a man. "Hello ma'am I'm calling from the police station. Is this Mr Rajiv Mehra's number?" "Yes it is!" "I'm sorry ma'am; but there was an accident and a man died. We got this number from his wallet; we need you to come and identify his body." Aisha's heart sank.!!! She was shocked! But my husband is here with me?" "Sorry ma'am, but the incident took place at 2 pm, when he was boarding the train." Aisha was about to lose her conscience. How could this happen?! She had heard about the soul of the person coming to meet a loved one before it leaves! She ran into the other room. He was not there. It was true! had left her for good!! Oh God she would have died for another chance to mend every little fight! She rolled on the floor in pain. She lost her chance! Forever! Suddenly there was a noise from the bathroom, the door opened and Rajiv came out and said "Darling, I forgot to tell you my wallet got stolen today". LIFE MIGHT NOT GIVE YOU A SECOND CHANCE. SO NEVER WASTE A MOMENT WHEN YOU CAN STILL MAKE UP FOR YOUR WRONGS!!! Let's start making amends. To parents To siblings To friends And many more. No one has a promised tomorrow. Have a wonderful Life with no regrets! SHARE this. This has to be one of the best messages!! Like Share

Lunch with God

LUNCH WITH GOD! (Must read this & share) A little boy wanted to meet God! He packed his suitcase with two sets of his dress and some packets of cakes! He started his journey, he walked a long distance and found a park! He was feeling tired, so, he decided to sit in the park and take some refreshment! He opened a packet of cake to eat! He noticed an old woman sitting nearby, sad with hunger, so he offered her a piece of cake! She gratefully accepted it with a wide look and smiled at him! Her smile was so pretty that the boy longed to see it again! After sometime he offered her another piece of cake! Again, she accepted it and smiled at him! The boy was delighted! They sat there all afternoon eating and smiling, but never said a word! While it grew dark, the boy was frightened and he got up to leave but before he had gone more than a few steps, he ran back and gave the woman a hug and she kissed him with her prettiest smile! Back home, when the boy knocked the door, his mother was surprised by the look of joy on his face! She asked him, "What did you do today that makes you look so happy?" He replied, "I had lunch with God!" Before his mother could respond, he added, "You know what? She's got the most beautiful smile I've ever seen in my life!" Meanwhile, the old woman, also radiant with joy, returned to her home! Her son was stunned by the look of peace on her face and asked, "Mom, what did you do today that made you so happy?" She replied, "I ate cakes in the park with God!" Before her son responded, she added, "You know, he's much younger than I expected!" Too often we underestimate the power of; a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around! Remember, nobody knows how God will look like! People come into our lives for a reason, for a season or for a lifetime! Accept all of them equally.. .. .. .. .. ..LET THEM SEE GOD IN YOU..!!

Attitude

Awesome msg!!! It's just d attitude tht matters.... A famous writer was in his study room. He picked up his pen and started writing: **Last year, I had a surgery and my gall bladder was removed. I had to stay stuck to the bed due to this surgery for a long time. **The same year I reached the age of 60 years and had to give up my favourite job. I had spent 30 years of my life in this publishing company. **The same year I experienced the sorrow of the death of my father. **And in the same year my son failed in his medical exam because he had a car accident. He had to stay in bed at hospital with the cast on for several days. The destruction of car was another loss. At the end he wrote: Alas! It was such bad year!! When the writer's wife entered the room, she found he husband looking sad lost in his thoughts. From behind his back she read what was written on the paper. She left the room silently and came back with another paper and placed it on side of her husband's writing. When the writer saw this paper, he found this written on it: **Last year I finally got rid of my gall bladder due to which I had spent years in pain. **I turned 60 with sound health and got retired from my job. Now I can utilize my time to write something better with more focus and peace. **The same year my father, at the age of 95, without depending on anyone or without any critical condition met his Creator. **The same year, God blessed my son with a new life. My car was destroyed but my son stayed alive without getting any disability. At the end she wrote: This year was an immense blessing of God and it passed well!! Moral : In daily lives we must see that its not happiness that makes us grateful but gratefulness that makes us happy.

Echo

A son and his father were walking on the mountains.Suddenly, his son falls, hurts himself and screams: "AAAhhhhhhhhhhh!!!" To his surprise, he hears the voice repeating, somewhere in the mountain:"AAAhhhhhhhhhhh!!!" Curious, he yells: "Who are you?"He receives the answer: "Who are you?"Angered at the response, he screams: "Coward! "He receives the answer: "Coward!" He looks to his father and asks: "What's going on?" The father smiles and says: "My son, pay attention."And then he screams to the mountain: "I admire you!"The voice answers: "I admire you!"Again the man screams: "You are a champion!"The voice answers: "You are a champion!"The boy is surprised, but does not understand. Then the father explains: "People call this ECHO, but really this is LIFE.It gives you back everything you say or do. Our life is simply a reflection of our actions. If you want more love in the world, create more love in your heart. If you want more competence in your team, improve your competence. This relationship applies to everything, in all aspects of life; Life will give you back everything you have given to it." YOUR LIFE IS NOT A COINCIDENCE. IT'S A REFLECTION OF YOU!

Put frog in water

Put a frog in a vessel of water and start heating the water. As the temperature of the water rises, the frog is able to adjust its body temperature accordingly. The frog keeps on adjusting with increase in temperature... Just when the water is about to reach boiling point, the frog is not able to adjust anymore... At that point the frog decides to jump out... The frog tries to jump but is unable to do so, because it has lost all its strength in adjusting with the rising water temperature... Very soon the frog dies. What killed the frog? Many of us would say the boiling water... But the truth is what killed the frog was its own inability to decide when it had to jump out. We all need to adjust with people and situations, but we need to be sure when we need to adjust and when we need to confront/face. There are times when we need to face the situation and take the appropriate action... If we allow people to exploit us physically, mentally, emotionally or financially, they will continue to do so... We have to decide when to jump. Let us jump while we still have the strength. Think on It !! I love this message every time I read..