Guest guest Posted April 11, 2005 Report Share Posted April 11, 2005 Supriti wrote: I recently have been feeling discouraged because there are so many worship aspects of the Hindu religion and noticing how the Indian families in our satsang know so many things about worship and devotion and thinking how I could never begin to do things "right" - most of all, I don't know why things are done and my monkey mind still seeks to know why sometimes. ....I only wonder about what is right for a western woman who loves Amma dearly and wants to emulate Her. Blindly following the rituals of worship and devotion (as simple as bowing when entering the Ashram/temple/hall) which I forget to do sometimes makes me feel inadequate and then I feel discouraged. Has anyone felt this inadequacy and what have you done about it? What is this tiny atom doing but pretending? I want some boundaries to feel safe within about worship and devotion and now I have none. What is enough, what is ethical, what is stupid? Am I stupid to try? Is it all in the inner spirit and through meditation? What if I have trouble meditating, does that make me doomed. I meditate when I make pictures, collages and paint and write. Does this count? If no one sees me worship, do I still count? Dear Supriti ~ your questions are very good ones, and there is a very simple answer. Recently, I watched a film about Amma called "Light of Wisdom." The video is a montage of people asking questions and Amma answering, of scenes from some of Her tours, and, in a few cases, actors illustrating the question and answer. During one of the Q & A periods, a woman who had been raised and was still a practicing Catholic asked Amma, " how do I reconcile what I have been taught with the new information I am learning about you?" And actually, there were several answers, with Swami Amritarupananda translating. Speaking for Amma, he said (paraphrase): 1. no one has to change or give up their own religion; Amma accepts everyone 2. no one has to worry about becoming a Hindu; Amma is not asking us to do that 3. the most important thing is attitude Swami mentioned this third point several times, with Amma nodding and smiling. It seems to me, Supriti, that your attitude is pure, so whatever you do, whether it be meditation, puja, singing bhajans, etc., will be beautiful in the eyes of Amma. I think you are being a little too hard on yourself, which, having been Catholic myself, I understand only too well. I was what the Church called "scrupulous," which was not seen as a positive thing. It meant I was overly worried about doing everything "right," even to the point of crossing myself more than once if I felt I handn't done it right. Needless to say, this kind of watching over your every devotional action this way is enough to make a person nuts. So, please do not worry. Do what you are drawn to do in terms of devotional activities and know that each one is precious in the eyes of Amma. She is not holding a club over our heads, ready to smack us if we do it "wrong." And, being an artist myself, I would say, yes, doing your art does count as a meditative activity. Perhaps when you start you can just say something like, "I dedicate the fruits of working on my art to Amma." It is hard to be worried and devoted at the same time, believe me, I know. That is why I am not pushing our new satsang into anything they are not ready for. If all they want to do, for the time being, is watch videos of Amma, that is okay. Other activities will evolve eventually. I firmly believe this. And please do not worry about any difficulties with meditating. All of us, at some point or other, have difficulty staying with the focus, whether it be our mantra, following the breath, or some other way of meditation. Thoughts, feelings, even images will inevitably appear in our minds. I have learned the best thing to do is not to hold them or push them away, just simply let them float by like clouds and return to the meditation. By the way, I am adding Isabelle to the prayer list. May her passing be easy and find her in the welcoming arms of loved ones, angels, and God/dess. Jai Ma ~ Linda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 11, 2005 Report Share Posted April 11, 2005 Some thoughts: A pure heart and gentle mind is the absolutely best worship, no matter what you are doing....worship in the way that most inspires you! Unless your are really enthusiastic and enjoying the worship it will be a routine...So if you love art...of course it is profound worship! Ammachi, nierika@a... wrote: > > Supriti wrote: > > I recently have been feeling discouraged because there are so many worship > aspects of the Hindu religion and noticing how the Indian families in our > satsang know so many things about worship and devotion and thinking how I could > never begin to do things "right" - most of all, I don't know why things are > done and my monkey mind still seeks to know why sometimes. > > ...I only wonder about what is right for a western woman who loves Amma > dearly and wants to emulate Her. > > Blindly following the rituals of worship and devotion (as simple as bowing > when entering the Ashram/temple/hall) which I forget to do sometimes makes me > feel inadequate and then I feel discouraged. > > Has anyone felt this inadequacy and what have you done about it? What is > this tiny atom doing but pretending? I want some boundaries to feel safe > within about worship and devotion and now I have none. What is enough, what is > ethical, what is stupid? Am I stupid to try? Is it all in the inner spirit and > through meditation? What if I have trouble meditating, does that make me > doomed. I meditate when I make pictures, collages and paint and write. Does > this count? If no one sees me worship, do I still count? > > > > Dear Supriti ~ your questions are very good ones, and there is a very simple > answer. Recently, I watched a film about Amma called "Light of Wisdom." The > video is a montage of people asking questions and Amma answering, of scenes > from some of Her tours, and, in a few cases, actors illustrating the question > and answer. During one of the Q & A periods, a woman who had been raised and > was still a practicing Catholic asked Amma, " how do I reconcile what I have > been taught with the new information I am learning about you?" > > And actually, there were several answers, with Swami Amritarupananda > translating. Speaking for Amma, he said (paraphrase): > > 1. no one has to change or give up their own religion; Amma accepts > everyone > > 2. no one has to worry about becoming a Hindu; Amma is not asking us to > do that > > 3. the most important thing is attitude > > Swami mentioned this third point several times, with Amma nodding and > smiling. > > It seems to me, Supriti, that your attitude is pure, so whatever you do, > whether it be meditation, puja, singing bhajans, etc., will be beautiful in the > eyes of Amma. I think you are being a little too hard on yourself, which, > having been Catholic myself, I understand only too well. I was what the Church > called "scrupulous," which was not seen as a positive thing. It meant I was > overly worried about doing everything "right," even to the point of crossing > myself more than once if I felt I handn't done it right. Needless to say, this > kind of watching over your every devotional action this way is enough to make > a person nuts. > > So, please do not worry. Do what you are drawn to do in terms of devotional > activities and know that each one is precious in the eyes of Amma. She is not > holding a club over our heads, ready to smack us if we do it "wrong." And, > being an artist myself, I would say, yes, doing your art does count as a > meditative activity. Perhaps when you start you can just say something like, "I > dedicate the fruits of working on my art to Amma." > > It is hard to be worried and devoted at the same time, believe me, I know. > That is why I am not pushing our new satsang into anything they are not ready > for. If all they want to do, for the time being, is watch videos of Amma, that > is okay. Other activities will evolve eventually. > I firmly believe this. > > And please do not worry about any difficulties with meditating. All of us, > at some point or other, have difficulty staying with the focus, whether it be > our mantra, following the breath, or some other way of meditation. Thoughts, > feelings, even images will inevitably appear in our minds. I have learned the > best thing to do is not to hold them or push them away, just simply let them > float by like clouds and return to the meditation. > > By the way, I am adding Isabelle to the prayer list. May her passing be easy > and find her in the welcoming arms of loved ones, angels, and God/dess. Jai > Ma ~ Linda > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 12, 2005 Report Share Posted April 12, 2005 Dear Supriti, You cannot help missing observances that are completely new to you. If others sho have grown up with these customs may look upon you critically, please remember the hug of your Mother who loved you even though you knew nothing about these customs. If you ever had traveled to Kerala without going straight to Amritapuri and then straight out of the country on your return, you would have seen the most diverse society possible. Thanks to sales of silk and spices over centuries, Kerala has been able to support a multiplicity of ancient cultures which died out everywhere else in India. With little trouble, you can meet people who believe the exact opposite behaviors are the best way to behave. The contact with people from another culture is a chance to experience a different outlook. We are fortunate in that we can thus expand our minds minus the airfare. Remember though that all the people who look down on you for forgetting something they do automatically are HERE and not there, and furthermore, they probably have a score of relative who are anxiously trying to get visas to come here. The greatness of the U.S. is not only due to consumer goods and usually reliable electricity. Those things exist because of the qualities of Americans who insist on them. We may not be perfect but it seems everybody wants to live in our neighborhood anyway. Love your mother and all these fussy people too. Let all the rest of it roll off your back. Aikya Ammachi, nierika@a... wrote: > > Supriti wrote: > > I recently have been feeling discouraged because there are so many worship > aspects of the Hindu religion and noticing how the Indian families in our > satsang know so many things about worship and devotion and thinking how I could > never begin to do things "right" - most of all, I don't know why things are > done and my monkey mind still seeks to know why sometimes. > > ...I only wonder about what is right for a western woman who loves Amma > dearly and wants to emulate Her. > > Blindly following the rituals of worship and devotion (as simple as bowing > when entering the Ashram/temple/hall) which I forget to do sometimes makes me > feel inadequate and then I feel discouraged. > > Has anyone felt this inadequacy and what have you done about it? What is > this tiny atom doing but pretending? I want some boundaries to feel safe > within about worship and devotion and now I have none. What is enough, what is > ethical, what is stupid? Am I stupid to try? Is it all in the inner spirit and > through meditation? What if I have trouble meditating, does that make me > doomed. I meditate when I make pictures, collages and paint and write. Does > this count? If no one sees me worship, do I still count? > > > > Dear Supriti ~ your questions are very good ones, and there is a very simple > answer. Recently, I watched a film about Amma called "Light of Wisdom." The > video is a montage of people asking questions and Amma answering, of scenes > from some of Her tours, and, in a few cases, actors illustrating the question > and answer. During one of the Q & A periods, a woman who had been raised and > was still a practicing Catholic asked Amma, " how do I reconcile what I have > been taught with the new information I am learning about you?" > > And actually, there were several answers, with Swami Amritarupananda > translating. Speaking for Amma, he said (paraphrase): > > 1. no one has to change or give up their own religion; Amma accepts > everyone > > 2. no one has to worry about becoming a Hindu; Amma is not asking us to > do that > > 3. the most important thing is attitude > > Swami mentioned this third point several times, with Amma nodding and > smiling. > > It seems to me, Supriti, that your attitude is pure, so whatever you do, > whether it be meditation, puja, singing bhajans, etc., will be beautiful in the > eyes of Amma. I think you are being a little too hard on yourself, which, > having been Catholic myself, I understand only too well. I was what the Church > called "scrupulous," which was not seen as a positive thing. It meant I was > overly worried about doing everything "right," even to the point of crossing > myself more than once if I felt I handn't done it right. Needless to say, this > kind of watching over your every devotional action this way is enough to make > a person nuts. > > So, please do not worry. Do what you are drawn to do in terms of devotional > activities and know that each one is precious in the eyes of Amma. She is not > holding a club over our heads, ready to smack us if we do it "wrong." And, > being an artist myself, I would say, yes, doing your art does count as a > meditative activity. Perhaps when you start you can just say something like, "I > dedicate the fruits of working on my art to Amma." > > It is hard to be worried and devoted at the same time, believe me, I know. > That is why I am not pushing our new satsang into anything they are not ready > for. If all they want to do, for the time being, is watch videos of Amma, that > is okay. Other activities will evolve eventually. > I firmly believe this. > > And please do not worry about any difficulties with meditating. All of us, > at some point or other, have difficulty staying with the focus, whether it be > our mantra, following the breath, or some other way of meditation. Thoughts, > feelings, even images will inevitably appear in our minds. I have learned the > best thing to do is not to hold them or push them away, just simply let them > float by like clouds and return to the meditation. > > By the way, I am adding Isabelle to the prayer list. May her passing be easy > and find her in the welcoming arms of loved ones, angels, and God/dess. Jai > Ma ~ Linda > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 12, 2005 Report Share Posted April 12, 2005 --- Aikya Param <aikya wrote: > > Dear Supriti, > > You cannot help missing observances that are > completely new to you. > If others sho have grown up with these customs may > look upon you > critically, please remember the hug of your Mother > who loved you > even though you knew nothing about these customs. > > If you ever had traveled to Kerala without going > straight to > Amritapuri and then straight out of the country on > your return, you > would have seen the most diverse society possible. > Thanks to sales > of silk and spices over centuries, Kerala has been > able to support a > multiplicity of ancient cultures which died out > everywhere else in > India. With little trouble, you can meet people who > believe the > exact opposite behaviors are the best way to behave. > > > The contact with people from another culture is a > chance to > experience a different outlook. We are fortunate in > that we can > thus expand our minds minus the airfare. > > Remember though that all the people who look down on > you for > forgetting something they do automatically are HERE > and not there, > and furthermore, they probably have a score of > relative who are > anxiously trying to get visas to come here. The > greatness of the > U.S. is not only due to consumer goods and usually > reliable > electricity. Those things exist because of the > qualities of > Americans who insist on them. We may not be perfect > but it seems > everybody wants to live in our neighborhood anyway. > > > Love your mother and all these fussy people too. > Let all the rest > of it roll off your back. > BTW Christopher Columbus reached United States looking for India and part of India even he was planning to visit--Malabar Coast (Kerala). Om Avinash. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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