Lesson 2 - Answers

[Guest guest]

Jai Jai Shree Jagannath!

 

Om Guruve Namah!

 

Dear Gurudeva,

 

Please find my answers for Lesson 2. And kindly correct my

understanding.

 

Pranaam,

-Suresh.

 

1. Try to define the role of God in your life.

 

Ans: I am not sure how to understand this question. I will try

anyways. God is omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient. And so I

believe God is in everything we do and everything we are. I cannot

think of assigning a Role to God in my life. I would rather have a

role for myself in God's world of things as someone who would

continuously seek to know the truth/knowledge about God himself and

about the truth of Creation. I pray to God that he give me courage,

humility, knowledge and determination to continue my pursuit. May he

save me from succumbing to material desires and Shadripus.

 

2. What have you done in the past one year to come closer to

God?

 

Ans: I have been practicing Meditation for the past one year…and I

have recently d to Self Realization Fellowship's Lessons on

Mediation. I think, knowing God is possible by knowing oneself (Self

realization) better and delving deeper and deeper into oneself thru

meditation. So in that respect I think I am progressing a little bit.

One step at a time.

 

Also, me and some of my friends are thinking about setting up a non-

profit organization to try and help poor kids that go to school (in

terms of getting them food/clothes/books etc…) in a small way in

India. As well as help poor schools with better facilities if this

plan works out. Still in the planning stages, hopefully with God's

blessings we will be able to workout something soon.

 

3. Which statement is more relevant:

(a) God is all, or

(b) All is God

 

Both statements seem to be relevant. God is in Everything, Animate

and Inanimate. Also we can (should be able to) see Everything in God.

>From what Krishna says in Bhagawat Geeta (My knowledge in Geeta is

only what little I understand from what I listen to in a CD by

Ghantasala in Telugu), "All JeevaRasis are taken into me at

PralayaKaala (Ending of Kalpa) and again at KalpaAadhi (beginning of

Kalpa), all jeevaRasis are created by me", we may understand, GOD is

present before/after "ALL" is created/consumed.

 

So, I consider "God is ALL" as a more relevant statement (Even though

I do not disagree with the "fact" of the second statement).

 

3. How is the role of a Jyotish different from a priest?

 

Ans: True Jyothish and Priest must both be well versed in Shastras

and must live a life of sattwik nature. But the difference comes when

Jyothisha should be able to discriminate events/facts and present

them without emotional/partiality to the seeker, whereas a Priest's

role is more to do with being a media between Devotee and Almighty

and connect with the Devotee in more an emotional manner.