deeptha_e

Are dreams indicative of spiritual progress? It has been 4 days since I started meditating - I do it for 20 minutes everyday. Last night I had a strange dream - saw many dazzling colors, which I've never seen till date in reality - infact I dont even know the names of these colors, but all I know is, they were extremely beautiful. Also, I could listen to some strange music, cannot say it was Carnatic, nor any classical type, I could not even identify the instrument. It gave me goose bumps. I have been feeling extremely drowsy ever since I had this dream, all I want to do is go to sleep.

I dont know what this means, but it was an exquisite experience, extremely beautiful. Is this because of the meditation that I recently started?

If you are familiar with Tamil language, please get a copy of Sri Vishnu Sahasranama vilakka urai by Sri U.Ve. V V Ramanujam Swami. This book explains the meaning of entire Vishnu Sahasranamam as per the incomparable commentary called "Bhagavad Guna Darpana" graced by revered Sri Parashara Bhattar (one of the Sri Vaishnavaite Acharyas).

 

Or you may also get backdated copies of the Geethacharyan magazine where say 5-6 thirunamams and Their meanings are listed in every issue.

 

Wish you all the best!

 

adiyEn

Thank you Sudharams, this was very valuable.

Guruji

I would appreciate if i can get a Vashikaran Mantra,n the ways to

chant it.

What if i do not have any pictures of the person i intend to

influence or make them love me?

is there any mantra that i can recite to get help n bidding/influence

for all people?

 

ANy mantra for me to have a magnetic personality,n way to do it?

 

ANy mantra to win n suceed in a court case n ways to do it?

 

ANy powerfull mantra to make money / gain financial

Dear Rajkmr02,

The one and only mantra for all that you've asked for is Vishnu Sahasranamam. The only thing is, do not read any mantra to attain a specific purpose, what happens is, this purpose gets bound to you, and you will not have the true freedom. Read any mantra / pray to God, just for the love of God, to feel close to Him, and give Him the power to take over you. It is not wrong to desire or wish for things, but, let tht not become your ultimately goal in life. Base all your desires on the foundation of God's love and surrender your desires also to Him. He will take over, and give you what is correct and what you can handle.

Thanks Deeptha Echampati

in this material world is that of a mother for her child. This type of Love is (almost) unconditional.

 

The reason I wrote almost is because it is also tainted with selfishness because that type of Love is only shown by a mother for her own child only.

 

The only true Love is one that is unconditional and unselfish.

 

Yes it may seem like we are very unfortunate to be born in Kali Yuga BUT... unlike the other Yuga we are given the chance to advance spiritually at a very fast pace.

 

In the previous ages to become spiritually advanced may seem easy to us in this age but the tapasya they had to undergo was very difficult and not possible in this age.

 

Just having bad thoughts in the previous ages meant the reaction (Karma) would be very heavy.

 

So in a way we are most fortunate to have taken birth in this age. This is so because the appearance of Yuga Avatar 500 years ago (Golden Avatar) Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu & the Chain of Gurus coming from that line.

They have given us the teachings which can help us reconnect and find our TRUE LOVE.

 

Hare Krsna/Krishna

 

Jay Sirla Prabhupada

Dear Yogesh,

Very true, a mother's love is unconditional, so unconditional that sometimes the love loses its sense for what is correct and what is wrong. Sometimes a mother's love could also damage other people's lives. It really depends on how good a person you are and how well you manifest your motherly love combined with goodness as a human being. In the name of motherly love, people sin and destory other's lives. I am expecting my 1st son in the month of April 2008, I am hoping I can give him the right type of motherly love which is pure and selfless, yet instilling good values in the boy. I need divine assistance and guidance for this.

I agree with what you've said about Kali Yuga, in this yuga one is sid to attain the Lord's lotus feet just by chanting his name with love. I think conviction is key here.

At Lord Sri Hari's feet

Deeptha

The Srimad Bhagavatham says saint Narada in His previous birth was the son of a Dasi lady, who was always envolved in the service of great saints. His sort of a service was more labor oriented. Because of staying with saints he developed a love for Lord Narayana. His mother passed away after a few months , think when Narada was 8 years old. He paid his respects to his mother, but without getting distort by her death, took it as a fine opportunity to travel within his own self. He set out in the quest for truth, in the desire to see God. In his 'paada yatra', he came across fiercely dense forests, wild animals and all sorts of scary creatures, however he was never scared. He had only one aim in life - to see the Lord. However after a while he was overcome by thirst, and he stopped by a still lake to take some water. After drinking, he felt refreshed and he sat to meditate on the divine feel of Sri Hari. After deep meditation, he could see the Vishwa Roopa for a minute. It is said that, his hair stood up, had goose bumps, and he was so overcome with joy, He cried with pleasure and longing. The moment passed, never to happen again. He tried recreating the moment, but it went in vain. Later, Akashaganga (a voice from the skies) told him he will take the life of a Chiranjeevi , an immortal always engaged in propogating the divine past times of Lord Sri Hari.

Sri Guru and His Grace

Chapt. Nine (Excerpt)

Srila Sridhar Maharaj,

Dear Beggar,

If Dritharashtra could see, it is because Lord Sri Krishna could be physically there and give him the blessing required to see the Lord Himself with the divine eye. But in today's age, I believe the process is not so easy, it requires a lot of hardwork and Sadhana - a true unfairness thrown at the face of people belonging to the age of Kali, longing to see the Lord. If in Dwapara Yugam a person longs to hear from the Lord, he is granted the boon sooner or later, because purtiy was at its peak then, but now, most of the people have distorted way of thinking and are always bent on winning the wrong way. Dealing with these people, and surviving with them is a great art by itself and in the process of survival of the 'fittest' we forget the Lord, and yet crave for Him - He seems to elude all the time.

I really wish God blesses us or atleast those who long for the divine vision with the divine eye, very soon ! I truly hope.

Dear Sopatel,

I am certainly not waiting for anybody to heal me - healing is a process handled by one's own self with the help from the Divine. Healing when it comes from an external source is never permanent. Yes one certainly need not give up human emotions to become one with God, I believe every human being was sent into your life for a special purpose, once the purpose is over, he / she will move out. It is best to be detached to this ultimate meaning of a person's arrival / departure from our lives.

I wish you all the best in your search for a person who will enhance the divine potential within you.

Dear HerServant,

Seeing the sufferings in today's world, I am convinced the Lord is going to make His appearance very soon. I am only hoping I'd be alive to see Him with my naked eyes. With regard to God sending people to instigate us to behave sinfully - I think the true test is when we can curb the sinful react and transcend to the plane of divinity inspite of hurt being hauled at our face. It is only then we truly wash off our karma and progress towards God.

I am truly longing to soak myself up in the love of God every waking moment of my life, however, the process is certainly very difficult and testing. It feels like I am climbing a sliding board smeared with grease from ground level, each time I fall perhaps with greater force than the previous. It is frustrating, however I dont plan on giving up. In this context, the great Srimad Bhagavathm is a divine catalyst. This great book is equal to Lord Sri Krishna Himself.

Life in the thought of God is a sweet pain, where you begin to feel the sweetness of God's love, yet not get enough of it.

At His feet.

Is human love a myth? I'm yet to find that one perfect love in a human being, be it husband, parents, friend. I am convinced a love that is healing is found only within yourself, the latent divinity with you , that we refer to as God's love. This is the only love that is fulfilling emotionally, and karmically. This love is healing - there is no room for betrayal and hurt. We almost always mistake a habit formation to be 'love'. At the end of it all, the emotions we feel towards other people is a result of our karmic bonding with them from previous births. Some people walk in to give us a good time, some people give us heartaches - mere instruments who execute our payback plans that we owe to the Universe. I really wish we could all go back to the Dwapara Yugam and can see Lord Krishna with our naked eyes.

Vrajavasi, I am happy to know that you are so involved with the greatness of Srimad Bhagavatham. I've started reading the book myself. It is very time consuming to read in Sanskrit, however I end up spending atleast 1 hour reading 1 chapter in a Skanda. As I dont understand Sanskrit, my mind wanders while reading the Sanskrit verse, however I do read the English translation of the same too. I want to know if it is OK to stick my just the English translation without having to read the Sanskrit verses. This way there will be continuity and also my mind will not wander around. Please advise.

Is it ok for ladies to chant or play the Sri Suktham / Durga Suktham on a musical instrument? I've recently learned Durga Suktham but a few people were advising me against chanting it without proper initiation.

The best form of prayer is chanting and reading up Lord's stories. For spiritually-not so advanced-mortals like us the most effective method of feeling closeness to God is reading about Him. The great Srimad Bhagavatham, churns the soul and brings out pure love for Maha Vishnu. Each moment of the day then becomes blissful, in the thought of God. It is tough to attain purity in the mind without associating oneself with God.

There is no greater form of prayer than total surrender to God - Kayena Vaacha Manase Indriyeya Bhudyaathmanaava Prakrithe Swabhavath karomi yagyath sakalam parasmai Sriman Narayanaayethi Samarpayami.

Total Surrender of senses, desires, natural traits and results of those traits - be it good or bad deeds and everything about you, lay it on the Feet of god, and belong to Him manasa vaacha karmana. This way unburdens you and also takes you to the ultimate place of peace and harmony - something that exists within your own self.

Wish I can soon get to this level for real! Deeptha Echampati

GokulKr,

Very nice post indeed. The points you've mentioned there, if well followed would lead to a life of total peace and joy. 'Strive to lead a life in which you will never hurt a fellow living being for any reason.' - very true. Wish people could really follow this to the word. Deeptha Echampati

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Very true - we can say the Waves belong to the Ocean, but does the Ocean belong to the waves? The converse is not true. Similarly, We belong to God, but God could never belong to us. We are but a part & parcel of the Almighty, but can never become Him.

However, Advaita preaches otherwise, personally, I am comfortable with the thought that I owe my being to God, but can never equal Him. Guess what is most important is one's belief system.

Though sometimes Advaita is sometimes misquoted among a lot of people, stating - We are equal to God, the Great Acharya, Adi Shankara Himself composed the Shatpadi Stotram on Maha Vishnu - This sloka contains the rasam of devotion and surrender.

Deeptha

Hello,

I am trying to pick a Vaishnava boy name for my baby son due on the 10th of April 2008. I did go though Vishnu Sahasranamam, and I found Visisht, could you please explain the meaning ? Some other names that caught my interest -

1. Sudarshan

2. Giridhar

3. Niyantha

4. Hayagreev

5. Srinidhi

6. Vishnu Srivats

Please do explain the sukshma of Niyantha, Hayagreev & Giridhar.

Also, is it a must to follow the Nakashatra naming protocol for Iyengars?

Thanks,

Deeptha Echampati

Thank you Sir,

I whole-heartedly agree with what you've written. My sense of despair comes in when I think of the Kali Yugam. We do not see Gurus / saints who are authentic, we do not get to see God with our naked eyes. So how do we know for sure we are proceeding on the right lines? In the Treta & Dvapara Yugam people could have easy access to saints / realized souls / could be lucky enough to see and interact with God directly. With the evil age of Kali, we see so much wickedness and ill-will all over (right from closest of relatives till the unknown), because of which human suffering is at peak, how do we know for sure God is reaching out, after all the sadhana we do for His love? Not that I doubt God's existence / love/ presence in the heart of a devotee, but it is just that it is frustrating for a person who is striving for perfection in love and feel the ultimate glory of God, to be unaware of what God's side of story is!

So does it all boil down to one fact? How you percieve a God to be without attributing any definitive boundaries for his qualities ?

Thank you - Deeptha Echampati

Dear Virendra,

I dont know what prompts you to post such a sad message on this forum. Whatever maybe the reason, I pray you find your peace and happiness soon, very soon. Dont allow doubts to bog you down, trust God implicitly and pray ardently. After all, every human being likes to feel loved, so it is foolishness to advise you to lead a loveless existence where you are led to believe God is not hearing your cry of pain. At the same, dont expect miracles - God is not a magician - He nutrues, loves, maintains, protects, but ultimately, your actions decide your future - good / bad, only you can tell. But trust God will be there at every stage to hold you though all the miseries / happy times. I pray you see only happiness in your life.

Prayers,

Deeptha Echampati

Both pain and pleasure is purely a result of one's own past actions be it this birth or the previous birth. Every one of us need to pay back dues - if we have accumulated good karma with good deeds and thoughts, we will see only positives in life, whereas the other will show us misery. However, one consolation is the process of pain and pleasure is really one and the same. Ultimately what counts is that our karma balance must come to a zero (similar to a credit card balance, you can get out of a deal with a credit card company only when the balance is a 0) - only then we prevent ourselves from the process of rebirth. So one must be happy to pay off a major bad karma , the more intense the pain the better it is for one's own soul advancement – dues get paid off sooner. Once done with the dues, automatically the pain will vanish. Same case with good karma - once done with the dues, one will stop rejoicing the fruits of good deeds. So ultimately both pleasure and pain should be viewed dispassionately. However, only the wise know that in the process of undergoing pain, prayers will definitely help. Prayers will not stop Karma from what it has to do; however, it will strengthen a person from within and detach the soul from the effects of karma and will attach to the divinity within oneself. So even though one goes through pain materially, the soul is untouched and peace is intact, the pain only becomes incidental and eventually it will zero out. Apart from this, it is wise to learn not to add on to negative karma, because someday sometime one will pay for it. It is ignorance to think we are equal to God without doing the required Sadhana (practice / penance). Diamond / Gold in the raw form is almost useless, one needs to polish / process to make useful jewels out of it. Divinity exists within everybody, but not everybody wants to realize this potential, they get stuck in the mundane world, chasing behind things which are not useful for the ultimate goal of life. We have to tap this divinity; this is possible only by Sadhana - which has different forms – Bhakthi (devotion), Dhyanam (meditating on the Absolute - the formless – basis of Advaita). Bhakthi seems easiest, love God intensely without desiring anything in return - He will hold your hand and lead you within your own self – the absolute truth which is right within you. By virtue of being present in a materialistic world one has to dispatch duties without getting overly carried away by the illusions that sometimes these duties could lead to.

This is my learning about Karma, please advise / let me know if my understanding is correct. I've read that God is only an observer, He lives in His own bliss, without getting attached to the material happenings of this world. But, then my question is, where does Bhakthi figure? So what about great stories like Gajendra Moksham, Draupadi Vasthraparanam etc ? Did God not come to the resuce of His ardent devotee? How come Kali Yugam gives us such different pictures, where one is lead to an utter state of chaos / confusion? How does one know in Kali Yugam that prayers are ultimately being heard? The longing in a devotee's heart? Does Guru play his role?

Too many questions, without many right answers that are convincing. Please help!

With Love,

Deeptha Echampati

What is the meaning of the Sanyasa Suktam? 'Who is entitled to read the Sanyasa Suktam ?

'om na karmana na prajaya dhanena tyagenaike amrtatvam anasuh

parena nakam nihitam guhayam vibhrajate yad yatayo visanti

vedanta-vijnana suniscatartha sannyasa yogad-yataya-suddha-sattvah '

These lines give me goose-bumps, I am sure there is a meaning for each of these 'Beejas'. I was wondering if Sannyasa Yogam is the highest tattvam? So what happens to people who are leading a materialistic life? Is liberation ever possible for these people?

- in the quest for knowledge,

Deeptha Echampati

Hello,

I am trying to find some typical Iyyengar names for my baby born who is due on the 10th of April 2008. Is there some place I can look ? A book ? A wesbite? I was trying to research the Vishnu Sahasranamam - found Visiht , quite like this name , could you please tell me the meaning? I am extremely excited at the prospect of reading and analyzing the Vishnu Sahasranamam atleast now, under the pretext of looking for a name! Any suggestions are most welcome.

I request the blessings of the elders in this forum for my baby boy. Hoping he will be a man of great virtue, knowledge and humility.

In the name of the Lord Srinivasa, Maha Vishnu

Deeptha Echampati