Ravindran Kesavan

<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:" /><o:p></o:p> Dear Darini, My story is an amazing one- even to me. I am a mystic. I had once a colossal Mystical experience which I attribute to <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-comKrishna</st1:place>’s grace primarily, though Goddess and Siva are the one who directly graced me with that mystical experience proper. It is colossal and I don’t intend to discuss it in its entirety here. I shall limit with the initial and rudimentary experience that has direct relevance to this threat theme – how I discovered <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> first. The rest of it though a more mind boggling in quality, will not be touched here. A small portion of this mind boggling experience I have discussed in the thread “Does free will exist?” from post 116 onwards. <o:p></o:p> Crowling age and Blue Light of the Heart My discovery of <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> happened at a very early age, at least from my crawling stage of life if not earlier from the womb. (I don’t remember my days in my mother’s womb now. However I have a vivid memory of an experience from my crawling stage.) Ever since I can recollect my experience from my earliest years onwards, I was aware of a very very tiny blue light in my heart. The blue light was extremely tiny of the order of a micro fraction of the thickness of a hair, but not dimmer. It was bright enough to very clearly see it. It was always there - never dimmed never vanished. Even when I went to sleep this light was shining in my heart. It never disappeared. (My awareness of this blue light of my heart never disappeared in my sleep) <o:p></o:p> (This is when I was crawling I dint yet acquired spoken language at that time. Obviously I have not heard or read of such a thing at that age. Much much latter in my college days, I read of this kind of description in Upanishad.) <o:p></o:p> Speaking age and <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place><o:p></o:p> When I grow up a little and started understanding speaking language, my grand mother used to tell me lots of Mythological stories -of Vishnu, of <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place>, of Siva, of Brahma, and of many other gods and demons. I instantly liked Vishnu among all gods, and more so <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place>. Vishnu and <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> appeared to me more charming to me. I liked child <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> more than Vishnu. I was in love with <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place>, a sort of childhood innocent friendship. I thought of Krishna more and more and when I went to sleep, from the blue light of my heart <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> popped up and played with me the whole night in my dreams. When I awaken from sleep, he would collapse and disappear in to that tiny blue light. Every day this continued. <o:p></o:p> I was in deep love - a sort of friendly love – with <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place>. I spoke to him in imagination during day time. I prayed to him. I remember clearly my only childhood prayer, my only demand to <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place>. My only prayer was to change me to a butterfly from being a worm. I have heard from my father that Butterflies come out of worms. Though I dint understood the full import of this prayer at that time I sensed intuitively at that tender age that I am like a worm and I wanted to be metamorphosed to a butterfly. <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> in my dream promised me to turn me in to a butterfly but much latter in my life. (And that happened much later in my life about 32 years of my age . It is a big story and Mind boggling one. I, in a mystical experience underwent a complete transformation comparable to the metamorphosis of the worm to butterfly, and obtained a. spiritual body with which I could travel to all the realms in the cosmos – to all havens of all gods including Gologa Vrintavan opf <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> . Some of the experience I have shared in my posting “Does free will exist” Post 116 onwards) <o:p></o:p> This is all before I went to school. I stated my schooling at the age of six. As I was attending many many tasks in the external world now the mind turned outward, the inner blue light of my heart started to fade during day time only to return when my mind turned in and rested during the time just before sleep. That is I was no more aware of the blue light continuously and only became aware of it when I went to sleep, or when my mind is in a restful state just a few minutes before sleep.. Of course <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> popped up as usual from the blue light when I dreamt. <o:p></o:p> Disappearance of Blue light and <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> <o:p></o:p> One day I narrated the mythological stories of my grand mother to one of my school friends I told the story of Vishnu and Siva, of how Vishnu is the most intelligent god. And how Siva gives boons to auras with out thinking and gets in to trouble and How Vishnu had to come and save the situation. I narrated the story of how Vishnu saved Siva from Basmasura who up on obtaining a boon of burning anything to ash just by touching tried to test that boon on Siva Himself. I presented Siva in bad light and was praising Vishnu with all the glory, as my grandmother used to do. <o:p></o:p> That day when I went to sleep I noticed the blue light was not there. And when I slept and dreamt, <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> did not come. All sort of bizarre and ordinary dreams appeared for the first time in my dreaming life. (So far I never had the so-called ordinary average dreams. I always had coherent dreams of happily playing with Krishna in a stunningly beautiful and blissful world) When I woke up I was very disturbed and I searched for <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place>. Day after day the blue light as well as <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> would never come. I Demanded prayed, pleaded. I became sad and cried. Nothing worked. <o:p></o:p> Near my house in a hillock there was a Lakshmi Narayana temple, whivch I used to visit once in a while. In my search for Krishna I went to that temple and prayed for the first time to Lakshmi to give me my <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> back. <o:p></o:p> That night when I dreamt, I saw Narada muni. He told me that Mother send me to tell me the news. <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> is suffering from a severe heart pain, because a crude ignorant (tamasic) bakta has hit him on his heart. . Besides the same foolish bhakta has spitted him on his face. Injured and insulted he is hiding in his secret place in his special heaven. I got angry and demanded to reveal him who that fool was? And I demanded Narada to take me to <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place>’s hiding place immediately. Narada refused to both of my demands and said that if I ever had a chance to see Kruishna again that only can happen when <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place>’s heart pain is gone and the spit from his face washed away from the same bhakta who is responsible for it. Then Narada advised me to go to a Siva temple and to wash Siva with water and put Vilva leaf. He said that this act will change the mind of the fool who committed blunders against <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place>, and he will become a wise ( satvic) bhakta. <o:p></o:p> Siva pooja and <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place>’s returning. <o:p></o:p> <o:p></o:p> Next day was some important religious day for siva – might have been Mahasivaratri or Sravana month otr some thing like that , I don’t remember exactly. My father along with few other religious people took me to a short excursion to a nearby tall, mountain. The mountain was really very high and one has to climb up with effort. At the top was a suyambu( natural formation) Linga. There was no temple or priest. People visited just performed their own worship. All the people worshiped the Linga with water and Vilva life. My father told me to do the same. I liked instantly the Linga so much and genuine bhakti and reverence entered my mind. I pored water and put Vilva with chanting of Lord’s mantra with a genuine reverence. Instantly my attitude changed to Lode Siva. <o:p></o:p> That day when I was about to slppe I saw the blue light shining with splendor again in my heart. And when I slept Krisna was there in my dream. I was over joyed and hugged him. And I asked him where was he all this while how is his heart pain? <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> said that it is gone and his face washed clean. I asked him who hit him on his heart and spit on his face He said that it was I. I thought he was joking and asked him to be serious. He told me “Seriously it is you .But don’t worry about it now. You will understand it better latter when you grow up. But one thing for now never speak ill of Maheswara. Never and never in your life you should commit that mistake. Thank Maheswara he did not mind your foolishness. He likes you very much.” I did not understand how and when I hurt <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place>’s heart and when I spit on his face. It used to trouble me for long now and then. But when ever I raised that issue <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> told me to wait and I will gat answers for all my doubts one day. Now I am not capable of Understanding. And he consoled me not to worry of that anymore, since I rectified it. (Much latter in my mystical experience I happened to see that through a mystical vision that Krishna resides in all creatures’ heart and Lord Siva resides in <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place>’s heart. Hence blasphemy of Siva is hitting the heart of <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place>. In another vision I witnessed the Visva rupa -Universal form - of Krishna in which all gods existed as faces of <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place>. There was a Siva face too. Hence speaking of Siva is like spitting on one of the Faces of Krishna. . But this I could only understand through a mystical vision. ) As time passed I grow up with thousand things in my mind and the blue light and <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> appeared less and less frequently. However <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> came promptly in my dream whenever I prayed before sleeping. Otherwise I dreamt of all sorts of bizarre things. <o:p></o:p> I will stop at hear as the thread is about discovery of <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place>. My further long story is about how I discovered Goddess by the initiation of <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> and Siva by the initiation of Godess, and the resultant grand Mystical experience and transformation. – A complete metamorphosis, which I asked for in my childhood prayer to <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place>. Since that is a long story and involves other gods and other themes I will not elaborate on them in this forum as the forum members may not be interested in it. Regards, K.Ravindran

Dear Ravikishore, As to genunekness or authenticity of the geometric chakra you need not bother much as most of the chakras solkd are prepared accurately. You can check this for yourself as there are pictures of it in books and internet. You can conform from the picture whether what you buy is correct or not. The problrem is not of making a geometric yantra. A yantra made commertially is after all a material object. Iy has to be instaled the spiritual powers . There are a host of goddesses living in Sri chakra. They will have to be instaled by avahabna and pranapradista if the chakra is to be worshiped , or is to be effective. There is no one in the commertial world equiped to do this as this can only be done by a very high guru of srividya. And as per my information from tantra, those who are initiated in Srividya will never part with it . It is a dictum that even if one is threatened with death one shold not reveal srividya. It is so sacret. No genune Srividya upasaka will dare to sell it for mony. Srividya can only be acquired in an initiation . And Srichakra can only be worshiped by an initiated person. Do you see the hitch? Those sold in the market are not the one instaled with the godddess power. No one uninitiated can install goddess in it. And those initiated who are capable of installing will not do it for a commertial purpose. Srichakra is the goddess herself. They will only give it to you in a spiritual initiation and that happens only when goddess desides to come to you. Even after initiation Chakra pooja is not done immediately. Only after certain maturity of upasana chakra pooja is alowed duly permitted by the guru. If you really want to worship srichakra seek a guru and get initiated and the guru will further direct you as to what to do. You can of course buy the chakra and keep it. It just will be a decoratice ornament with out any spiritual power. (Even that srividya upasaka will discourage as it is a highly revered object - not to be used as a decorative item) Regards, K.Ravindran

Dear V. Balachandran, Your Vision is very lofty and I share your vision. <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:" /><o:p></o:p> You don’t have to worry about negative people and forces that attempt to discourage you and you don’t have to waste your energy in fighting them. It is the fundamental nature that any spiritual attempt will be resisted by anti spiritual forces. If you know from your heart that you are doing the right thing you simply go ahead and do it with out bothering about what others think of it. <o:p></o:p> I am a psychologist by training and a teacher by profession and now aged 55. I had deep spiritual interest right from child hood and have tried various spiritual paths. I have profound marvelous mystical experience due to the result of worship of Lord Siva as my teacher. I know from my direct experience that how immeasurably great lord Siva is and what a grand Spiritual teacher he is, and how merciful he is. As a spiritual teacher he is truely truely grand and matchless. Ever since I have these grand experiences, I have been contemplating setting up of a world class Saivaite mutt, to preserve, study, research and practice and spread Siva sastras, and to support genuine Siva ascetics. As to my own motive for doing this is that , having known the unstatable greatness of Saivism I would like to spend my rest of my life as a pure Saivite ascetic, teaching and practicing the marvelous Siva’s technology of transformation of consciousness. <o:p></o:p> As to the benefit to the world, I know by direct experience, that proper Siva worship can do unparalleled good to beings – It liberates beings. Saivism and its esoteric spiritual practices are very effective in transforming the ordinary consciousness to a grand spiritual consciousness. <o:p></o:p> I have certain rudimentary ideas as to the agenda of such a mutt: <o:p></o:p> (1) To network among the living traditions and integrate the various Saivite traditions of ffice:smarttags" />India. These traditions include: i) Sidhanda Saivism of Tamilnadu started by Nandiswara and carried on to Tamilnadu by Trimular , continued by Appar, Sunderar, Sambandar, and Manikavachakar. <o:p></o:p> ii) Kashmir Saivism of Kashmir originated by Durvasa rishi and carried on by the four traditions: Pratyabignana tradition by Somananda , Krama tradition by Erakanadha , Kula tradition by Sumathinada, and Spanda tradition by Vasuguptanada. <o:p></o:p> iii) Vira saivism of Karnadaka initiated by Basaveswara <o:p></o:p> iv) Goraknada Saivism of <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com<st1:place w:st=" /><st1:place w:st="on">North India</st1:place>, initiated by Ghoraksha natha. <o:p></o:p> v) Pasupata Saivism initiated by Lakulisa. <o:p></o:p> (2) To collect preserve and research all the Saivite spiritual texts of various traditions. : A list of some of the texts are ; 28 Sivagamas ( the 10 Siva tantras or agamas of dualistic doctrine the 18monodualistic Rudra tantras or agamas ) and the 64 monistic Bhairava tantras; .Tirumantram of Triumular; Tirumurai of Nambiandar Nambi (Works of the Four great saints of tamilnadu Appar , Sundarar etc );, Sivagnana Bodham of Maikandar;Nandikesawar kasika of Nandiewara; Siva Drusti of Somananda; Pratyabhijanana of Utpaladeva; Sivasutra and Spanda karika of Kshemaraja; Paratrisika; Kulagnana of Machendranath; Pasupada Sutras of Lakulisa. (And there are many others). (3) To teach the system of Saivite doctrine and to propagate Saivism, as it is very effective system of spiritual transformation. . <o:p></o:p> <o:p></o:p> (4) To support ascetics so as to provide a class spiritual climate for single minded spiritual pursuit. To make a sanctuary of Mystics and ascetics. Of course these are some of my ideas. You can modify and contribute to this. The essential idea is to create a world class genuine spiritual centre. <o:p></o:p> <o:p></o:p> I am with you on this very holy and grand spiritual project. Do let me know your ideas on this. <o:p></o:p> Regards, K.Ravindran

Diego, Do not use herbes to rise kundalini with out a siddha uru of this part. It is very quick and hence also very risky. It is a full fledged technology. There are diseases and complications arising out of such medical method of transformation and are to be duely attended to by medical technology. For example it is stated that when the body undergoes transformation, many reaction will occur in stages. Each of these must be treated with approprate herbs as well as life style. At each stage the person will have to live in certain way. For example, at one stage the person need to live in the interior of a dark mud house, or underground pit, at another stage one need to lie down in ash etc. In each stage what food to eat, what herbe to be consumed etc are prescribed. It is an elaborate system. To be leaerned and practiced under a qualified guru of this system. However Alovira (Ordinary type) is safe. You can try if you feel like. Daily morning you need to eat fresh alovira gelly,duely washed in water (to remove it's offensive smell and liquid ) mixed with milk, suger, and honey. During this you must do some sort of kundalini practice like pranayama and meditation or mantra . It quickly raises kundalini. While alovira is safe medically and even is a prefered health food, kundalini raise with out your nerves made ready could lead to complication. Hense do purify your nadis before attempting rais of kundalini. Regards, K.Ravindran

Dear Ravikishore, Ideally Sri chakra is not to be bought. It should be drawn or carved by oneself or a realised guru of the srividya tradition or to be gained as a gift from guru who has worshiped for long. In any case even if you buy for convenience sake, It is to be rictuallistically instaled the prana (pranapradista) and devada ( Avahana) . This can be done only by a mantra sioddha of the srividya traditrion. If you are geting to srividya seek an authentic guru of this tradition and get initiated and worship the chakra. Unless given prermission by a guru, srichakra worship will not yield results. Sankara mutt is a place where this vidya is preserved, in guru lineage. K.Ravindran

In Tamil Siddha Texts describes the transformation of the ordinary human body in to a siddha body with all the siddhis by medicinal herbes . The procedure is extreeemly fast. Different herb has different time period of transformation. One herb named suger neem transformes the body in about 48 days giving the body all the eight siddhis anima lahima ect and immortality. Red alovira rises kundalini in about 48 days. Even ordinary alovira can raise kundalini in about a year's time. Vallarai if taken in a prescribed way developes omniscience. Siddha Medicine Appart from curing normal deseases , is a discipline of transforming the gross material mortal body in to non material immortal body of light. Legents say that there are many siddhas who have accomplished this feat of achiving immortal and invisible causal body by medical technology and are still living invisibly in the region called Chaturagiry. K. Ravindran

Dear Avinash, Ravana is born with ten heads. And in birth itself his father named him dasamuka due to this. The interpretations of him not having ten heads actually, and they symbolically represent his knowledge, is a rational interpretation. If this is true then we should advance the same rational interpretation to all mythological beings including gods. Four headed brahma then would simply mean actuially a one headed person with knowledge of four vedas , Six headed kartikeya really had no six head etc. If we were to take puranas as such - with out rationalizing - then we need to assume that Ravana was a ten headed being. Ravindran

Dear Amlesh, I aggree on that with you. But I should qualify my agreement. Vedas , one should remember is not a book dealing with material world. It's domain is spiritual truth. And on that it is suprub. Science does not and cannot deal with spiritual realm and hence has not moved not even 1 nanometer ( forget of milimeter). If we Keep in mind that Vedas are spiritual texts and words and discriptions of vedas have symbolic spiritual connotation and not to be interpreted literally in a material sense, there is no problem. But if we take words and description literally and impute material interpretation we go astry. If we are dealing with material world then veda is not to be consulted and Science should be resorted. If we are dealing with spiritual truths then Science text is not the appropriate one but Veda is appropriate. If we want to know god Science texts are useless. Vedic texts must be consulted But if we want to know the composition of water,(H2-O) then Science must be resorted Vedic description of Jala will not give us this material knowledge. Vedic cosmology is not to be confused with material universe . Veda doesnot deal with matter at all. Everything has a spiritual hidden connotation. For example Fire in veda is not the physical fire. It's esoteric meaning is Prana . Sun of the gayatri mantra is not the physical sun (Hydrogen converting to Helium). That sun of veda is the spiritual sun The splender of God . If we forget this fundamental principle and mix up the issues we go astry. Regards, K.Ravindran

Dear Guest, If you are interested in ganesa You may find this URL useful: http://www.saivism.net/sects/ganapatya.asp Regards, K.Ravindrtan

Dear Theist, That is interesting . Are you a flatner? If you are not joking or talking metaphorically, can you give the reason for your conviction that earth is flat? I am curious to know what could be the reasoning for a flat earth doctrine. Regards, K.Ravindran

Dear Ananta Sesa, It is well known now that Scientific cosmology is more correct than mythological cosmology. Many of the Scientific theories and facts are established beyong doubt,though many still remains to be proved. It is not wise to reject the established Scientific truths in favour of mythological views. Geocentric cosmology of the ancient age is proved to be wrong beyong doubt, just like flat earth is not true. Yet there are strong followers of the belief even now in Uk who believe eatrh is flat. They are called 'Flatners' Periodically they have seminors and discussions and the like on this theme. Regards, K.Ravindran

I had an interesting Discussion this week with some of my friends. One of them was discussion something about Ram's death. Another challenged him by asking where in Ramayana it is stated or described that Ram died. He continued : Did Matcha avadar die? did kurma die, Did narshima die? . And his theory is that even Krishna didnot die (as against the popular view that he was killed by an arrow of a hunter) . According to him , it was just a small accident and when the hunter realised his mistake and pleaded for forgiveness krishna consoled him and him and took leave of him by declaring that his task is finished and he is going. God knows what he ment by the words that his task is finished , and where he was going . Krishna may have just ment that his purpose of comming to forest is over and he is going back to his house (or somewhere else). His theory is that actually no awatars ever died. They cannot die as they were not ordinary mortals. They were God. His theory make sense. But is it true? What is the scriptual evidence? Is there any direct statement (Not indirect implication) or explicit discription in Purana or Itikasa that Krishna and Rama died actually? Can someone - who has read the actual itikasas in its original form - answer this question? K.Ravindran

Why God incarnates only in India? But first of all why assume that Avatars all came from India. Where is the evidence for this? It seems to be more of an assumption. Puranas were written in this region. But that doesnot mean the subject matter discussed in them are confined to this region. Puranic authers are Indians but stories are of the world. K.Ravindran

Ramakrishna Paramahamsa has many gurues in many traditions. He was an initiate of Dakshina Kali mantra , For advida he had Totapuri, For tantra sadanas he had Brahmani Vaishnavi, Even he is trained in muslim path with a sufi guru . He tested many religious paths . Everything awakened hios kundalini and let to the same realization. That is how he realised that all religions are means of god realization. Besides, Goddess Kali was his major guru. And He has grand Mystical experiences. What more qualification he require to be a spiritual master? He is a true Paramahamsa. K.Ravindran

Dear Kaisersose, No one goes to hell by doubting. (That principle - accept what is told with out doubting , and with out using your brain - is a con of preachers) . People go to hell by blindly accepting false doctrine. There was a preacher called Jim Johns in United states some time back. He started a cult called People's Temple. Many accepted followed him faithfully with out doubt. At the end one day he asked them all to commit suicide by drinking cyanide . They accepted and followed what is told to them and died in massess. See what is the end result of following your principle of accepting what is told ,with out doubting and withnout using brain? Regards, K.Ravindran

Deaer Sambya I second your conclution ,and supply the Vedic pramana for thae same : "Reality is one . Sears call it by varitey of names" - Rg Veda. Regards, Ravindran

Dear bart, I am happy to see that you are perceiving a possibility of a solution now more clearly. As I said earlier, your model is a worthwhile model and you muct give it a try. If it explains the spiritual religious insights in terms of Chaos theory concepts that would be a true advancement both in science and religion. As to soul, the official religious position is that it is the non material in the material body . It has the same essential nature as that of god the universal consciousness. It is consciousness but limited, in space time and causation (laws). There is consensus in almost all religion on its being spirit ( non material) and it is like god in substance. The difference between different religion and doctrines arises out of various explanetory schemas of the apparent difference between soul and god. To deal with these varoious versons let me introduce a third term 'World' in the discourse. Thus there are three categories in the discourse : World, Soul and God. Different doctrines deal with these three categories differently. Monist hold that there are no three things, or two thgings but One. There are different versions of monism depending on which one is assumed to be the fundamental category, assepted as the real One. Material monism assume that this one stuff is matter . Everything else is just byproducts of matter emerged out of matter. In this position Soul and god do not exist as only matter is a valied category. This is the position of Natural sciences of the present day. Spiritual monism , Of which Advida is the prime example, assumes that the One real stuff is pure spirit- One transendental consciousness .(ie. god in religious language) World does not exist in a real sense and is only an illusion - the transcendantal spirit's dream. Soul is nothing but the Trasnscendantal spirit under its own illusion. This doctrin could be stated crisply in the form of the famous dictum: " Bhrama satyam, Jagat mytya, Bhramo jivaihe na para" . ( Transcendantal Consciousness is real, World is an illusion, There is no difference between Transcendental consciousness and the soul) This is clasical advida position. God is dreaming . The dreaming god is the Soul. The dearm of god is the world. Dualism assumes that there is an essential difference between god and soul , that of god and world and world and soul. Versons with in differ in details, regarding the nature of the tree categories, but all of them agree thyere is an unbridgable gap between god world and soul. Vaishna dualism assumes God and world are fundamentally different . Soul is a created thing just like world by god, and can never be or become god. All that the soul can aim for at the best, and souls must aim for this best status, is to seek the company of god and live in the gods world in servitude and devotion to god . As to the world - god duality it is sharply stated in christianity that world is just the creation of god and is not god and hence cannot be worshiped . That is why idol worship, natrue worship, tree worship, animal worship are declared to be sin in Christianity, as idols and trees and animals are material and created things by god and not god himself. (If it were not the case , If monism is true, If stones and mountains , rivers, vegitation and creatures are all actually illysory appearence of god - if there is no duality between the creator and the creation - then one can worship anything as everything is god. ) In Vaishnava doctrin the world -god duality is fuzy and not that shapr as it is in Christianity. This is because, in Vaishnava philosoph which is not very unrelated from the general hinduism, World assumed to be the Body of god. Hense while there is still a difference between God proper (god's 'soul' - if you like) and god's body, this difference is not that sharp as in Christion dualism where apart from the fact that world is created by god there is nothing common between god and world - world has nothing to do with god. Hense a Vishnava justifies Idol worship Tulsi Worship and Cow Worship because while world and its things are different from god , nonless thess it is god' s body and is devine. God's body cannot be dispised as something evil and low. Whatever are the differences between religions, one thing is the common consenses amoung all of them : Soul is similer to god (If not one and the same ) and that both are forms of consciousness. I am in total agreement on one thinmg you said long ago. Whatever the shape of the Unified theory of physics going to be , it must incorporate coinsciousness in it to explain everything. Otherwise it cannot human behaviour and the theory itself. Because theory is not a mechanically determined product. It is the product of conscoious mind whatever that may mean. Otherwise Stephen Howking's question that why we are able to make right theory of the universe cannot be answered. If everything is determined in the universe including the theory itself, Then the distinction between true theory and false thery makes no sense as all trherories are deterministically evolved from the universe and are equally valid. Hense any attempt or any model that accounts for or contributive to our understanding of consciousness is a worthwild model presently. If your model could either explain consciousness itself of account for the consciousness-like behaviour of the material world through chaos theoritic formulation it could lead to a great leap in our knowledge. One observation in your formulation needs attention philosophically . It seems you need more ontological categoreries than conscouusness alone . You need space and time apart from consciousness, as you suggest that the world is a chaotic occilation pattern in continuous space time. Even if you assume along with Einstein that space and time are fundamentally one , as time is just the fourth geometric dimention , there by reduce the space time split you still need two categories : Conscviousness and Space-time. And my intuitive hunch is that you would need a third that accounts for the occilation itself - the energy or particle or string whatever. Enen if your theory is not monistic, in the sense of assuming only one ontological category, It could be still unifying mater and spirit and science and religion, and the variety of scientic theories wirth in physical sciences themself. Even if you have not reduced everything to one your model as it is still a worthwile. Regards, K. Ravindran

Dear Ravikishore, Tripura Tapini upanasid is on line in english in the following web sight : http://www.celextel.org/108upanishads/tripuratapini.html Bhavanopanisad is published by a number of bubl;ishers . You can get the details of bublishers from Google search. Regards, K.Ravindran

Dear bart, Going by direct experience Consciousness ityself seems to be the basic stuff the medium itself in which the disturbances waves and interference pattern develop that we call energy or matter. It is not the otherway round where universal conscoiusness is produced from material phinominon. Consciousness is the basic stuff. That is my position as a Mystic . However as a Scientist I am not sure. It may well be the case that consciousness - individual as well as the universal - are the product of some physical phenominon. After all what I have seen is an experience where my brain was involvred. (I saw that certain dormant brain program unfolding associated with the experience) . I cannot be certain that if I dint have a body and brain . I would have experienced those things. I still cannot conclude rationally that my experience is inspite of my brain. That is my rational self speaking. However my strong mystical intution is that I exist beyond my body and Transcendandal consciousbnerss is my abord if not my true state itself. My fear of death vanished as a result of this experience knowing that I am immortal and will be eternally present, though the body will go. But this is faith, not reason. Regards, K.Ravindran

Dear bart, That is possible. Regards, K.Ravindran

Dear Sapnarani, I tend to agree with Arasal on tantric worship, though there are people who differ on this. My source of interpretation is the original tantric texts of Siva or arrtibuted to Siva. Tantra deals with inner transformation and hence external meaning must not attributed to the procedures. For example, in tantra there is the sanction of five articles of worship otherwise prohibited : Madhu (Liquer) , Matcha (Fish) Mamsa (meat) Mudra (Parched Grains) and Maiduna (Sexual intercourse). But the tantra texts in special chapters reveal the inner significance of these prohibited things . For example Sexual union refers to the Kundalini sakti's union with Siva in the crown of one's head . Drinking liquior actually means internally drinking the nectur that flows as a result of the kundalinis reaching the crown centre. ( Kundalini triggers a inner substance from the crown that produces a yogic estascy and bliss.) Crematory refers to the eyebrow Centre . It is called Symbolically cremation ground because opening up this centre - the third eye of siva - burns up the illusory world - maya - and one sees only spiritual stuff - God - evertwhere. Sacrifices of animals ( including human animal) refers to sacrifice of our low animal tentencies - lust, greed, hate, ignorance, pride, and jelosy. Everything has internal meaning. The entire tantric worship deals with an inner transformation. Reading an external meaning only makes one go astray You need a guru to learn the correct methood of tantric worship. Regards, K.Ravindran

The Dasamahavidya of Goddess and Dasaavadara of visnu are intimately linked. They are the female and male manifestations of one and the same being. In this schema , Krishna is supposed to be the male manifestation of Kali. Regards, K.Ravindran

Dear Bija, You are not offensive. Spiritual realm is in fact very vast. It is true that only the grace of god can deliver the spiritual truth. And surrender to the devine is a condition to gain that grace. The entire mystical experience happened to me not because of any of my sadana. In fact nothing happened as long as I was struggling severly. But it happened in one day when I surrendered totally and unconditioally to goddess. I know what you are saying and can only second it and vouch for it, from my own experience. God is certainly personal. Regards, K.Ravindran

What I am saying here is out my Mystical seeing and not of scientific cosmology. Multiple universes are all sub parts of one single totality . The single totality is governed by a coherent set of initial laws. The Different (sub) universes - of which ours is just one of them - are all governed by different(possible fundamental local laws. By this I mean that there are universes with completely different fundamental forces ( baring one , which I think is gravity, but I am not sure) with differernt laws pertaining to them. There are actually a very huge possibility of these variations of forces and laws. The universe themselfe could be theoritically infinity but the type of universes , i.e., the possible laws governing them are finate but very huge. (Here I am not talking of the quantum mechanical interpretation of multiopple universes , where the forces and particle remainds the same but the possible way they actualise would be different. I am talking of the existence of entirely new particles and forces) When I am saying the universes themselves could be infinity, I am making the assumption that the total mass of the universe is not finate. This I am assuming from the fact that the transcendental Consciousness could conjure up matter from it with out reducing the quantity of consciousness in any way. That is, the law of concervation seems to not obey when consciousness conjure up mater. Therefore consciousciousness could conjure up as much of universes as it pleases. However as to the property of the matter - or particles - thus conjured up seems to be limited as they are all conjured up with the finate Phonemes .(of Sanscrit like devine language) The rules of conjuring up is also limited in number . However like the language with finate Phonemes and gramitical rules, infinite words and sentences could be made, The number of universes could be infinite. The limit of the total, cosmos is not spacial. In any case space has no meaning beyond the total cosmos - beyond the manifestation - itself as Space (and time ) is a product of the conjuring up and can only be foung with in the cosmos. The limit is the limit if the entities and laws of conjuring . Regards, K.Ravindran

Dear Justin, You are accurate in analysing me. I have a spiritual -material conflict. I am a Mystic by my experience and a scientist by training. I cannot rejcet science as I have seen it works. I cannot reject mysticism as I have a direct experience. I have an insight of my conflict too . In mystical trance all conflict disappears. Conflict appears only in the emprical realm, conceived with reason, and expressed in language. I dont have the matrial - spiritual conflict in the mystical state. In that state I directly see that everything is spiritual - everything is conscious and are manifestatioin of conscoiousness only . The material world emerged from and is sustained in God's consciousness. And hense there is nothing else but God. Hense I am a monist spiritually. But as soon as I am in the normal emprical consciousness conflicts appear. Of course I have a choice. I can reject emprical existence completely and choose to be pure Mystic. In that case My ideal choice should be to remain Silent. But If I choose to speak and discuss, then I need to put up with the duality, conflicts, and the nessary confusion(in the listerner's mind) that results out of using language which is essentially inadequate to capture the mystical truths. Or I can be a pure Scientist and use reason and emprical proof exclusively. In that case I will have to reject the mystical experience and religion as irrationality of the faulty undeveloped or damaged brain - as the primitive thinking or of madness. What I am actually atempting is to create a language , a system of reasoning in which both spiritual truths as well as scientific truths can be expressed coherently with out conflict and confusion. I dont know whether that is possible, right now. It is an attempt inspired by my mystical seeing that the emprical world is part of the Mystical reality and there there is no conflict. (This very earth is Goloka, if seen with a spiritual eye(insight) ) If that is the case why should we not able to state the truths of this world as well as of Goloka with a single coherent description? That is the attempt. Regards, K.Ravindran