Guest guest Posted June 18, 2006 Report Share Posted June 18, 2006 Dear Friends, For those who have had pets you all know how communicative animals can be. Animals are today widely used in healing, from dolphins to reassure expecting mothers to trained cats and dogs helping the disabled and traumatised. Recently I saw in the Discovery channel a giant whale being freed from the nets of a fishing trawler. The five men worked in great awe and fear as the huge being remained motionless, the eyes watching every move. After the whale was free it swam around and playfully nudged all the five in its own way of saying thanks. What a great event, like finding an alien in outer space !! My parents tell me of a toddler pursuing a cobra with a stick. The snake protested by occasionally standing tall but did not chase, hiss or bite. Similarly I have seen a small child find itself right in front of a huge galloping cow. Even as the mother screamed in terror, the cow stopped and playfully toyed with the child by placing it inbetween its huge horns before sauntering away. My uncle had a pet poodle which seemed to understand every word of what we said. When we commented it was listening it would sheepishly slink away. In India animals have religious significance. Near a temple devoted to Lord Shiva you would find bulls and snakes, the official animals of the Lord. Near places where Lord Rama or Hanuman is worshipped you would find monkeys in plenty. There is a temple devoted to rats in northern India. People offer food to the millions of teeming rats and eat the leftovers. Despite the rat population the area has never seen a plague. In southern India is a spot called Pakshiteertha, meaning religious place of the birds. Every evening two pigeons hone in on the temple, stay awhile and then fly away. This has been happening for centuries. Near temples of Goddesses where tantra is performed you would invariably notice dogs. In Puri, the abode of Lord Jagannath, was a majestic bull which refused to accept any food that was not offered to the Lord. I myself, like all other devotees, use to touch the forehead of the bull as a mark of respect and it used to nod sagely in return. After the bull passed away, the locals cremated it as they would a devotee. In my own town lives a bull which attends religious discourses. At first the people used to shoo it away but later they realised the bull meant no harm and only wished to listen to the name of the Lord. Now discourses in the area do not begin until the bull appears. Again in the temple of Lord Jagannath, a secret tantric ritual is performed where fish is offered to the Goddess Vimala. The fish is then disposed off outside the temple. A fierce black dog then appears out of nowhere to eat the fish preparation. No other dog dares to challenge it. This too has been happening for centuries. In the nearby town of Jajpur used to live a monkey which used to bathe in the temple tank every morning and sit in front of the deity. It was offered fruits by the devotees which it used to keep aside. It used to eat only after the deity was offered food. Needless to say, this monkey too received a decent cremation. Snakes appearing during temple inauguration ceremonies and staying the whole period are not rare in this part of the world. Nearby a pigeon appeared during the inauguration of a Jagannath temple by an Iskcon devotee which stayed in the sanctum sanctorum the full night. In Cuttack there is a Vaishnav ashram. The monk in charge used to treat a dog like an inmate. It was the last birth of a sinful person in a past life, he used to say. When the dog died, he arranged for the funeral and then invited the brahmins in the customary 12th day feast. The brahmins were furious and felt insulted. None came. But the feast went ahead regardless and hundreds of dogs attended. After the feast they just melted away. This incident is inscribed in all vaishnav temples as a miracle. It is said that domesticated animals are rewarded with a human birth in its next life. It is also said that there are highly intelligent Godly animals who lead the animal world. We all know the various animal births of the Buddha. In Ramakrishna circles the animals Swami Vivekananda loved and spent his last days with and the dog Kalia, a favourite of Swami Sivananda are legion. If you have visited the bael tree where Sri Ramakrishna practiced tantric rites under the watchful eyes of Bhairavi Brahmani, you cannot but notice the mongrels sitting around. Try fondling them, they will not shy away or snarl. You will notice devotees offering them biscuits. In Joyrambati we have the rolly polly cats, favourites of the Holy Mother. They will sit up and yawn when you finish your food, and after the pranam mantra will calmly and majestically walk towards the plates to finish the leftovers. You should also see the dogs as they come running when the monks call for them by name, food in hand. I wonder what happened to the fish which pecked at the feet of Sri Ramakrishna during a flood and which he rescued and set free. And what about the horses which pulled his carriage when he decided to meet the devotees? So the next time you meet an animal, treat it with respect. Here is a good article here (thanks to Soaring Hawk); How to communicate with animals. http://www.alaskawellness.com/may-june04/communicate.htm Regards, Jagannath. "Our ideal is not the spirituality that withdraws from life but the conquest of life by the power of the spirit." - Aurobindo. New Messenger with Voice. Call regular phones from your PC and save big. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 20, 2006 Report Share Posted June 20, 2006 Respected Sirs, I read your opinions with interest. Our heritage confirms evolution from an aquatic life (Matsa Avatara). But these animal incarnations also were blessed with full consciousness. However it is said that man was a special creation initiated by the Rishis by the banks of the river Saraswati. Regards, Jagannath. , Balakrishna Murthy <kbk_murthi wrote: > > Dear Sri Rajagopalan garu, > Namaste! > I would like to add a few lines to what you have said below. > > The Present human kingdom has come to its stage in the process of evolution, by receiving the light or Chaitanya from the Solar God, the Suryantarvarthi, the Central Sun and got elevated through the stages of Mineral Kingdom, Vegetable Kingdom, Animal Kingdom and finally the Human Kingdom. That is how getting into Human kingdom is a great boon offeed by God in the process of evolution. God gives the "awareness, discretionery power" to human beings at this stage only, not to the lower kingdoms. The other three kingdoms have no power of discretion by themselves, and hence Nature protects them and guides them. > > Let me stop here, as an addendum to what is said already, and not a new artivle. > with regards, Brother KBKM. > ________________________-- > > Rajagopalan <rajagopalan wrote: > Dear Jagannath Chatterjee ji, > > The subject virtually inspired me to part with the following info: > > Are there Animal Gods too? A deep insight into vedanta will reveal that > like humans, Animals are also a form of God.. > Not surprisingly Man(Woman) is a super animal !! > > A short story provides evidence.. > > Once a yogi was performing worship by chanting slokas. > For several times a day..for long hours..His pet Dog > was hearing this ..with keen interest..& longed to > have the ability to speak so that the dog can also recite the > Lords name.. In the next birth the Dog was born as a scholar & > wrote several verses on the praise of the God supreme.. > > a quote from vedanta.. > While the concept of oneness may be intellectually appealing, it is nevertheless > difficult to put into practice.It's no hardship to feel oneness with great and noble > beings or those we already love. It's also not too much of a stretch to experience > a sense of unity with the trees, the ocean, and the sky. But most of us balk at > experiencing oneness with the cockroach or the rat—let alone the obnoxious co-worker > whom we barely tolerate. Yet this is precisely where we need to apply Vedanta's teachings > and realize that all these manifold aspects of creation are united in and through divinity. > The Self that is within me, the Atman, is the same Self that is within you—no matter whether > the "you" in question is a saint, a murderer, a cat, a fly, a tree, or that irritating driver at the > four-way stop. > > Pranam > Rajagopalan > India Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 7, 2006 Report Share Posted July 7, 2006 A small correction in the letter from Sri Jagannath Chatterjee appearing below., which was posted some time back. The temple on the way to Mahabalipuram is "Pakshi teertham" - also known as "Thiru kkazhu kundram"--the Holy Hill of Kites. The birds are NOT pigeons but Kites.Two kites would land sharp at 12 nnon every day- to take prasadm two rice balls offered by the priest and fly away.They are supposed to fly in from Rameashwaram and after their lunch fly to Benares. Many have seen these kites on different occasions--very aged birds.I am informed recently that for the last twenty five years they are not coming - presumably because they aged or dead. There is an Itihasa behind the kite appearing at the spot Just for your understanding. I had received some interdsting feedback on the information of the letter which I will post later. Sundararajan Jagannath Chatterjee <jagchat01 > wrote: Dear Friends, For those who have had pets you all know how communicative animals can be. Animals are today widely used in healing, from dolphins to reassure expecting mothers to trained cats and dogs helping the disabled and traumatised. Recently I saw innudged all the five in its own way of saying thanks. /......../ Despite the rat population the area has never seen a plague. In southern India is a spot called Pakshiteertha, meaning religious place of the birds. Every evening two pigeons hone in on the temple, stay awhile and then fly away. This has been happening for centuries. Near temples of Goddesses where tantra is performed you would invariably notice dogs. . Beauty is His footprint showing us where He has passed - Aurobindo India Answers: Share what you know. Learn something new Click here Catch all the FIFA World Cup 2006 action on India Click here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 7, 2006 Report Share Posted July 7, 2006 Adhyatmitka Ratna, Sri Yaaga Vidya Praveena, Vedanta Visarada Dr P V Sesha Sai Aswamedhayaaji (www.ashwamedhayaagam.org E Mails: shodasisai (AT) hotmail (DOT) com, shodasisai , shodasisai (AT) rediffmail (DOT) com 3724, Spencer’s Street, # 221, Torrance, 90503 California, USA Phones Mobile: 310 293 9066 Land Line 310 921 6138 7th July 2006 I agree with Chi Sundara Rajan since I happened to see the birds sometime during 70s when I visited the place. These birds reach Pakshi Teertham only for Lunch time and not for the dinner time. There are many such places in India like the scorpian temple, the rat temple and so on.............Interestingly I have not found such mysterious events elsewhere on the other islands. Yours affly HARA HARA MAHADEVA DR P V SESHA SAI ASWAMEDHAYAAJI Sundara Rajan <yesyesrin (AT) (DOT) co.in> wrote: A small correction in the letter from Sri Jagannath Chatterjee appearing below., which was posted some time back. The temple on the way to Mahabalipuram is "Pakshi teertham" - also known as "Thiru kkazhu kundram"--the Holy Hill of Kites. The birds are NOT pigeons but Kites.Two kites would land sharp at 12 nnon every day- to take prasadm two rice balls offered by the priest and fly away.They are supposed to fly in from Rameashwaram and after their lunch fly to Benares. Many have seen these kites on different occasions--very aged birds.I am informed recently that for the last twenty five years they are not coming - presumably because they aged or dead. There is an Itihasa behind the kite appearing at the spot Just for your understanding. I had received some interdsting feedback on the information of the letter which I will post later. Sundararajan Jagannath Chatterjee <jagchat01 > wrote: Dear Friends, For those who have had pets you all know how communicative animals can be. Animals are today widely used in healing, from dolphins to reassure expecting mothers to trained cats and dogs helping the disabled and traumatised. Recently I saw innudged all the five in its own way of saying thanks. /......../ Despite the rat population the area has never seen a plague. In southern India is a spot called Pakshiteertha, meaning religious place of the birds. Every evening two pigeons hone in on the temple, stay awhile and then fly away. This has been happening for centuries. Near temples of Goddesses where tantra is performed you would invariably notice dogs. . Beauty is His footprint showing us where He has passed - Aurobindo India Answers: Share what you know. Learn something new Click here Catch all the FIFA World Cup 2006 action on India Click here Find out what India is talking about on Answers India. So, what’s NEW about the NEW Messenger? Find out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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