Guest guest Posted March 16, 2002 Report Share Posted March 16, 2002 Dear Arun you <<I do not think Rahu indicates all the Shadripus. It predominantly indicates Mada. The other planets depending on their disposition, denote other good and bad qualities, just as Rahu exhibits the negative Mada in addition to many good traits too. >> me Thank you very much for correcting my misunderstanding as Venkat has also done previously. This concept of Rahu is new to me and i did need some clarification. you <<It is Rahu that bestows Mada on individuals and gives one a feeling of superiority. All religious animosity and violence that we observe in the world stems from this delusion. Each individual who has progressed spiritually, following a certain path, taking a position on those other paths one has not tread, is not conducive to global harmony.>> me I agree. From the absolute level it is Maya Devi that with the permission of the Absolute, bestows delusion on the souls. Rahu is only her agent. Help is rewarded according to the inner intentions of each person. Among millions of those so called spiritual persons, perhaps one or two may really understand what real religion really means. you <<We all have to believe that Gopala, the embodiment of compassion will take care of His flock, whether He is addressed as Rama, Christ, Allah or with any other name. >> me I agree, but the problem is to know or to see who is Gopala? The spiritual master, the guru, is the divine agent of Gopala. The guru is not Gopala, the guru is the guide to Gopala. In the beginning of our spiritual path we are told to consider the Guru to be as good as Gopala. Later on, with more spiritual experience, we can appreciate the difference between the guru and Gopala. To the newcomer, there are some rules to see what is what, otherwise we may be cheated. If we are told that bananas are mangoes, we are in risk of going to the market to buy bananas instead of mangoes. We have to have the knowledge of what is what. Therefore, the Vedas are there to guide us in our spiritual search. However, the Vedas may be distorted to satisfy some selfish interests. That is why we should be cautious about delusions. One day, a so called guru fell from grace and he told his disciples that he was a good spiritual guide. His right hand side man told me later that in his days as a student, he experienced intoxication from alcohol and marijuana but that he was not used to LSD, which his guru was giving to his disciples as "an spiritual gift". This student told me that first he really thought that he was taking some "spiritual pills". However, he read Prabhupada's books saying that any intoxication takes away the spiritual path. At that point he blew the whistle and left that so called guru. One of my uncles, told me that in the 50's, there was a very "spiritual man" guiding people and therefore he was well respected. However, one day, that man ran away with the money of the institution and disappeared, leaving behind confusion and disappointment. I have heard of two so called gurus that were practising homosexuals. I do not have anything against homosexuals, that is their karma, but i believe that a real guru should not be a practising homosexual. There are 2 kind of gurus, one is a sanyass (celibate) and the other is a grihastra (married). But there are not gurus practising illicit sex life. In fact, illicit sex life is a point to consider if some one is a guru or not. I have heard as well about two cases where the guru claimed to be God. Many of their disciples left them once that claim was done, because that claim according to the Vedas was the evidence that the guru was not a guru. One day i was given a book that talked about the Vedas. I read the first page of that book and it was very interesting to see that it was about the Vedas. But at the bottom of the page, i read "This book was spoken by God himself". I closed the book and i did not read it any more. I can read the Bhagavad Gita, which was really spoken by God, but i do not read any other book that is claimed to be spoken or written by a mortal claiming to be God. Also, i would not read the Gita which has been translated or commented by a non-believer. In those cases the real meaning is distorted. you <<It is always good to have a set of ground rules in our efforts to grow spiritually. The discipline always pays off.>> me I agree. you <<Also, one has to dig deep at one location to reach the source of the spring of life. Digging at many different locations will lead to a lot of wasted effort.>> me I agree. you <<In my postings specifically addressed to you, I shall desist quoting from sources that you are not comfortable with,>> me Please, you are welcome to do so, perhaps others may like it or get some help from them, although i will not read them due to my past experiences. But i prefer your own intellectual postings which are very clear and helpful. you << even if I have confidence on their reliability based on my personal expereinces.>> me It is your path and not mine, I have many friends on your path and they have as good brains as you to offer, but i prefer not to walk that path for personal reasons which i would not disclose. The belief system is very difficult to understand and each soul walks in a path chosen by personal preference. The goal is the same for all. To me, there are 3 kind of students. One kind claim to be God and is harmful due to his leadership. Another also claims to be God but he/her is harmless because his/her belief system is in transition, and because all knowledge is dynamic instead of stagnant, eventually there is going to be a promotion towards sanity. The last kind of student believe himself/herself to be a servant of Gopala. I belong to this last class. Lots of love Natabara Das Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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