Guest guest Posted March 27, 2009 Report Share Posted March 27, 2009 Namaste, Karma Yoga is the most misunderstood of all- Gyanis & Bhaktas consider it " inferior " to their method, fit only for those not good enough to practice Gyan/Bhakti. Others say Karma Yoga is just blindly following Gods will. But as we discussed, & Jituji pointed out, it may take several years, if not lives, before we become advanced enough to understand & follow Gods will. In the Gita, Krishna didnt advise Arjuna to become a Gyani, say everything is Maya, & retire from the world. Neither did he ask him to become his Bhakta, & worship only Krishna, forgetting everything else. No, he advised him to fight, do his duty. Others say Karma Yoga is to follow the scriptures. Yet Krishna also warns against people who use the flowery language of the scriptures to follow their own hidden agendas. So how can the average man follow Krishnas path of Karma yoga? After all, we are not all lucky enough like Arjun to get a great Guru like Krishna? love, Shantnu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 27, 2009 Report Share Posted March 27, 2009 Om Shakti! Dear Shantanu you have started an excellent discussion with this topic. But I am not clear why and who portrays Karma Yoga as inferior to other three namely, Bhati, Gnana, and Raja Yoga. Also, It is not that we are " not fortunate enough like Arjuna to get Krishna as Guru " , but it is that we are " unfortunate that we can't recognize God coming to us as Guru " . Partially, it is our own scriptural knowledge, religious stigma that is responsible for our blindness to recognize. Among all Pancha Paandavas and Gauvravaas, how many had the realization that Krishna was a descent (Avataar) of the Supreme Universal Energy - GOD? Very few, especially only Arjunaa, who even falters and fumbles in his belief when his son Abhimanyu was sacrificed in tbe battle field. Easier said, rather difficult to recognize the Almighty coming in as Guru. But hopefully, let's continue this topic discussion further as it could help us uncover what we don't know already. At Mother's Lotus Feet, Shakti Thondan. --- On Fri, 3/27/09, shanracer <no_reply > wrote: Namaste, Karma Yoga is the most misunderstood of all- Gyanis & Bhaktas consider it " inferior " to their method, fit only for those not good enough to Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 28, 2009 Report Share Posted March 28, 2009 Shantnu ji, Namaste. Karma Yoga is of two parts. Karma and Yoga. Any kriya done with 'aham'kara is karma. Karma is wordly. Yoga is release. (I have appended an article I composed sometimes back at the end of this mail.) Now to your post. You wrote: >>>>> Karma Yoga is the most misunderstood of all- Gyanis & Bhaktas consider it " inferior " to their method, fit only for those not good enough to practice Gyan/Bhakti.>>>>>> Karma yoga is an integral part of all other systems of yoga. No true bhakta is possible without himself dedicating his all , including 'outcome of his actions- karma phala' to the Lord. Ditto for a gyani. Krishna, while talking about sankhya yoga in the second chapter of the Gita, devotes about four slokas for karma yoga starting from 'karmaNyevadhikaraste..(2/47 ) to karmajam ...(2/51). There is one school of thought that one should sacrifice the outcome. But to whom ? This is where the misunderstanding arises. If you read the appended article, it is logically impossible for a man to create a result to his liking. The results are simply outside his scope. The results are born according to a divine law of action and result. So, it is logically correct to dedicate the results to the source that governs it. That is to God. This is a way of cutting at the roots of ahamkara in the most subtle way. For this no sannyas or no initiation even is necessary. You also wrote >>>>>>> Others say Karma Yoga is to follow the scriptures. Yet Krishna also warns against people who use the flowery language of the scriptures to follow their own hidden agendas.>>>>>>> Karma Yoga is not explained in the Vedas as far as I know. The sloka you mean are 2/40, 41,42, 43, 44, and 45. The karma Krishna talks is the Vedic Karma of yagya as a means and an end for everything. There Krishna came down heavily saying 'those do vedic karmas with no other purpose higher than heaven'. So Moksha was not their purpose. Naturally Krishna denounced them since his sankalpa was to give a document for Moksha for the next thousands of years. you also wrote: >>>>> So how can the average man follow Krishnas path of Karma yoga?>>>>>>>> 1. First, by understanding that one cannot be without doing karmas for even a split second 2. karma done dispassionately is more meticulous- since it is God's work. Yoga: karmasu kousalam. 3. For one , who thinks serving his parents or wife or children as his duty and never expects anything in return, that itself is the . No separate is required. 4. If the act of sacrificing the result is difficult, think that the results are from God and give it to him. Whatever happens as a result, take them as his prasad. By doing this two great things happen. First you slowly kill the 'I " since the 'I " is bonded to the results only. Next, you develop an understanding of the karmas. 5. Swamy Ramsukhdas ji Maharaj says that the world as we see it is only the karma phala. Once they are removed, only the 'sat' - the unchanging ,remains. These are still words compiled from Gita. I am trying to understand these and trying to implement them tottering and miserably failing at each step. But it is also true that understanding the question is equal to half the problem solved. Hare Krishna Venkat ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++\ ++= What do Kriya, Karma and Karma Yoga mean ? <http://sanatanavenkat.blogspot.com/2008/03/what-do-kriya-karma-and-karm\ a-yoga-mean.html> Kriya, Karma and Karmayoga <http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_yhxoh42e1IM/R-DdeaUTSNI/AAAAAAAAA8g/CDQXI6HbE\ mk/s1600-h/hare+krishna.jpg> When one thinks of the words of Kriya, Karma and Karma Yoga one immediately thinks of Bhagavad Gita only. Nowhere does one find Karma Yoga so thoroughly analysed and explained as in the Gita. Any student of Sanatana Dharma (Hinduism) will want to know the real meaning of these terms. Before proceeding we need to know about the Prakruti or nature. Prakruti is defined as the combination of Kriya and Jata (or matter). These both have a beginning and an end. For example, the changes that happen in our bodies are kriyas . The material body is the matter. What is Karma ? Karma happens when there is an `ownership' to a Kriya. In a person's life many kriyas are continuously happening. But, the moment that person feels that they are his deeds, `Karma' is born. Here the `person' is the `Chetana- the Self' who is the very source who illumines the body (which is made up of Kriya and matter). River Ganga flows on her own and irrigates the land wherever she goes. This flow is a `Kriya'. Whether she destroys are irrigates, there is no Papa (sin) or Punya attached to its flow. A person's body grows from childhood to Youth and untimately to old age. This process is a `Kriya'. But when he thinks that `he' is getting old and changing, that moment a `Karma' is born. Karma is the marriage of the Self and the Kriya. To put it simply, the `I' feeling in a `Kriya' leads to a Karma. This is called the eternal bondage of the Self and Nature. The Ahankara or `I- feeling' is the source of all bondage. Because of this bondage , man forgot the real immense power inside him and came to identify himself with his body (and mind and intellect) which are a part of the nature. 'yagnyArthat karmano(a)nyatra loko(a)yam karma bandhana:' ( Gita 3-9 <http://www.geetasaar.com/Chapter%203/Chapter%203_09.htm> ) In this context, how shall we define Yoga ? Well, yoga is that process that strives to release the self from its bondage to the nature. When this process is focused on the actions going on in this world and helps man to get a release from these actions, it is called as karma Yoga. Karma is bondage. Yoga is release. Karma is centred on this world. Yoga is centred on 'Self' or God. Krishna says that man can never be without doing Karma (Gita 3-5 <http://www.geetasaar.com/Chapter%203/Chapter%203_05.htm> ). Even when he thinks he is idle and still. His body is changing per second, his mind is rushing into every possible direction. His intellect is also continuously analysing every thought. The wise distances these kriyas as that of the nature. He has realized that his real 'Self' is untouched by these kriyas. But , is there a message in all this for a common man ? There is. Only as long as the 'I' feeling remains in oneself, he will be bound to the world. The way to release from this is simple. First, he has divert all his karmas towards the welfare of the world at large. This is the first step. Here, the 'I' feeling is blunted. This leads to real Karmayoga. Karmayoga in turn destroys the bondage of the Self -' yagnyAcharata: karma samagram pravileeyate' (Gita 4-23 <http://www.geetasaar.com/Chapter%204/Chapter%204_23.htm> ). And finally the man realizes his eternal relation with ParamAtman. Karma yoga is one of the four Royal paths of realization as expounded in the Gita. Karma Yoga is a speciality of Sanatana Dharma and every modern Management exponent finds in it the ideal tool for defining work and result. Karma Yoga affirms emphatically that man has no right over the fruits of his actions. It is only in working that he has the right. This is being confirmed by almost every management guru now. Stephen R Covey, (of 7 habits of highly successful prople) writes this : " There is nothing such as success and failure, There are only results " . Krishna goes further saying that the 'I' feeling and the resultant expectation of the outcome of karma is what binds man to the world more and more. The only way out , therefore, is doing your duty regardless of the outcome. Even better, do it for others' sake. Still better, dedicate the whole work in the feet of the Lord. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++\ ++ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 28, 2009 Report Share Posted March 28, 2009 , Sakthi Thondan <sakthithondan wrote: > > Om Shakti! > Dear Shantanu you have started an excellent discussion with this >topic. But I am not clear why and who portrays Karma Yoga as inferior >to other three namely, Bhati, Gnana, and Raja Yoga. Also, It If you read the commentaries of Shankaracharya, & other " acharyas " , they state that path of Karma Yoga is inferior to that of Gyan. The 1st line of Isha Upanishad(one of the main) says in its very 1st line that Karma Yoga is necessary. Yet most traditional commentators like Shankaracharya dismiss it by saying thats its only for people not good enough for Gyan. They do the same for Gita. Most Indians Gurus & Swamis have divided the Vedas into 2 parts- Gyan Kanda for the elite, & Karma Kanda for everyone else. This means 90% of Vedas are useless. This fake & shallow division is undeserved, as many like Sri Aurobindo, Ganapati Muni, David frawley have shown. Unfortunately, as psychology has now shown, no one wants to associate with " ordinary " things, which means normal people, under the influence of these " Swamis " , also rejected 90% of the Vedas, which included things that would have been good for them. Thats where Tantra comes in. Many people say Tantra & Vedas are opposed, as Tantra accepts life, while Vedic knowledge is for renunciates. But this definition is based on a shallow reading of the Vedas, as has been done by most " Swamis " & " Shankaracharyas " . The original Vedas accepted life- almost all the Rishis were married & led family lives. The idea of renouncing the world is fairly new. The Tantric Gurus re-animated the original Vedic knowledge that had been lost/forgotten by those who shout loudly that Vedas are about renunciation, that the world is Maya/illusion etc. They didnt invent anything new- The Brihadaryanak Upanishad even accepts sex as a form of Yagya, yet when Tantrics say this, they are attacked as Non-Vedic! This is the background of what I was trying to say. luv, Shantnu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 28, 2009 Report Share Posted March 28, 2009 , apexpreci2000 <no_reply wrote: > > Shantnu ji, Namaste. > > Karma Yoga is of two parts. Karma and Yoga. Any kriya done with > 'aham'kara is karma. Karma is wordly. Yoga is release. (I have Thanks Venkatji & Shaktiji for sharing your answers. Another question is: Most people think serving others is Karma Yoga. But what about doing are daily jobs- working in boring/demanding jobs, travelling for hours daily(if you live in big cities), taking care of family etc. Is this Karma Yoga as well? I ask, as because the normal thinking is, you cannot find God by living in world, at some point you have to renounce everything. Even Bhaktas say that- when they say serve others, they usually mean feed the poor etc. But what about our normal day to day activity? A clerk in some office, facing anger of his customers, pressure from his boss- isnt he doing Gods job, hence Karma Yoga? Isnt he better than some Yogi sitting in the Himalayas, helping no one? After all, it is the ordinary people, working 9-10 hours a day, who are keeping the world running, so God can come & play here. They are the best Karma Yogis, as they are allowing God to express his beauty in the world. Yet we are told, these people will never find Moksha, till they put on colorful clothes, & call themselves Swamis, & run away to some Ashram in the jungle? Why is this? I am unable to understand, maybe the wise members can enlighten me? with love, Shantnu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 31, 2009 Report Share Posted March 31, 2009 , shanracer <no_reply wrote: > > > I ask, as because the normal thinking is, you cannot find God by >living in world, at some point you have to renounce everything. Even >Bhaktas say that- when they say serve others, they usually mean feed >the poor etc. Shantnuji, perhaps you are too harsh on the ancients. Sarvamatha also posted why Ramanajun had to run away from home. So did Buddha. But if you look at the lives of these people, they were quiet rigid. After the Mahabharata(3200BC), which was more like a World war, where armies from all the way of Persia, Afghanistan, parts of China/Tibet took place. Millions died, including the intelligent people(who at the time, were usually also warriors- people like Drona who where teachers & fighters). The dark age of Hinudiusm started, what is called traditionally Kaliyuga. This is when the knowledge of Vedas was lost, caste system became rigid. By time of Buddha(500BC) it was almost completely gone. Life had become mechanical & forced. Children were married at young age, they had no choice in their future. BTW, this was true throughout Asia- reads books about China/Japan, they had same problems. In such circumstances, running away from home was the only answer. Visionaries like Buddha were the true " hippies " of the time- they were rebelling against society & its dead rules. If they had stayed at home, the dead society would have killed them too & made them robots. The problem is, times have changed again, yet people want to do the same thing as Buddha was doing 2000 years ago, forgetting he was living in a differnt society. So I am also against those who run away from society, but we should not criticise those who did so in the past. As the saying goes, " Dont judge me till you have walked a mile in my shoes " . There have been many revivers, who have shown us how to live life in the modern world, like Yogananda, Ramakrishna, Sri Aurobindo. We should follow their example, & follow our own heart, & not worry about what others may have done 1000s of years ago. Just my thougths, Radha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 31, 2009 Report Share Posted March 31, 2009 > But what about our normal day to day activity? A clerk in some office, >facing anger of his customers, pressure from his boss- isnt he doing >Gods job, hence Karma Yoga? Isnt he better than some Yogi sitting in >the Himalayas, helping no one? Shantuji, I live a life like that. Tell me, how can I meditate in such circumstances? All day, I feel anry, irritated. When I get home, Im too tired to do anything but eat & sleep. I only get Sunday off, but have lots of housework todo then. Maybe you have more spiriutal power than me, but I feel I will never make any spiritual progress while I live in society. I wont run away from home, but I am waiting till my children grow up & get married, so I can leave society & give full time to meditation. So tell me Shantnuji, how can I live in society & still become enlightened? Unlike you, I dont have an advanced Guru who can teach me secret techniques. S Kumar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 31, 2009 Report Share Posted March 31, 2009 > Shantnuji, perhaps you are too harsh on the ancients. Sarvamatha also >posted why Ramanajun had to run away from home. So did Buddha. Radhaji, maybe I am. But my harshness is reserved for those who have made renouncing into an art, or worse, business. Leaving society, staying in jungles/Himalayas is a great approach, to get rid of socities attachment & hassles. However, it is at best only a temporary solution, not a panacea. Those who know about Ayurveda, may know that when disease becomes too strong, the patient is asked to live in Ashram(as most clinics were part of Ashrams), take purgatives & other cleaning methods which completely clean in internal body. The process can be very strong, which is why you have to live in Ashram under the guidance of doctors, & eat only speical foods/herbs. But once it is complete, you can go back to normal life. Retiring from world is like that- an extreme solution, when the disease of worldly attachment has become very strong. But this is only a temporary solution, & like Ayurveda, only for those who were living an unhealthy, unbalanced life in the 1st place. Ultimately, we have to return to world to test if our knowledge is real, or just a illusion. Thats why Im against those who preach running away to jungles is teh only approach. Such people are usually scared of life, & will take their problems to the jungles. with luv, Shantnu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 31, 2009 Report Share Posted March 31, 2009 , s_kumar_12345 <no_reply wrote: > > Maybe you have more spiriutal power than me, but I feel I will never >make any spiritual progress while I live in society. I wont run away >from home, but I am waiting till my children grow up & get married, so >I can leave society & give full time to meditation. Thats a good point Kumarji. Its easy for me to lecture others, without realising what their personal circumstances are. How do other member of the group- Aradhnaji, Thimmapaji, Jitendarji, Pyariji, aRifji,sohum, Swami, Shakti, Radha, Janfarah, Deepa, ulaganthan , plus any Ive forgotten- how do you respected members solve this problem? luv, shantnu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 1, 2009 Report Share Posted April 1, 2009 Dears, Waiting to reach a stage in our life to embark on spiritual progress is like taking it for granted that we will continue to live that long. For whatever God only known reason, we are blinded of our past karma by nature (Om! Sarithhiram Maraithhaai Po'tri Om - One of the Mantras in AadhiParaShakti 108 Naamavali, which essentially means " Om! I Praise Thee! One Who has hidden my past History! Om " ). The unfathomable fundamental truth is that we do not know our past karma. Many times, we are ignorant to not understand our present karma. This is where Karma Yoga comes to our big help. In all its essence Karma Yoga is all about doing our duty diligently and consciously. There is no need to wait for a moment in our life time for our spiritual progress. Arjuna when he lifted his bow and arrow and fought in the Kurukshetra warfield, while killing his own kiths and kins, was perfectly and diligently exercising his path to spiritual progress. For, he was doing his duty, but surrendering the effect of it at Krishna's Feet. We are with our families and children and our education, position, job, everything that we are surrounded by is due to our past karma. So, if we are in a family way and have children, by diligently and perfectly executing our family duty as a husband, as a father, as a brother, as a son, as a nephew, niece, friend, and all that different roles we play in our life, we are making progress in our spiritual path. Of all the billions of people on this planet earth, imagine how many are in this group. The fact that we are in this group discussing these things itself is a grand proof that our soul is guiding us and we are following it. The soul guides us based on our karma. As my Guru always says, " Pat at your Soul and listen to it. It has all the answers to you in this and other lifes. If you listen to your Soul, it will guide you. " Serve others without any selfish motives, Let your attitude to do your duty flow seamlessly without any frustrations, disappointments, happiness, Do your regular prayers wherever you are, Shower unconditional love on everyone without any sort of discrimination, Treat all equally, you will be progressing in spiritual consciouness. Escaping the society to going into forests, hiding in the mountain caves in seclusion is all for people who have reached that stage in their karmic cycle (not necessarily life cycle). For us since we are in the worldly life, yet yearning for spiritual progress, our Soul is already guiding us in that path. At Mother's Lotus Feet, Shakti Thondan To receive the Light of Supreme Power visit http://www.sakthiolhi.org Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 1, 2009 Report Share Posted April 1, 2009 OMNAMONARAYANAYA Shantnuji , and Sarwamathaji Karma is action or inaction that produces a material result -it roughly translates to DUTY Yoga is a state of being including sleeping Sleeping is both karma and yoga Running away from family is neither karma nor yoga. Running away from responsibilities of looking after wife /husband/children in need does not bring salvation because it negates duty towards the ones we volunteered to make our own Buddha left Yasodhara but Yasodhara did not complain. Sri Ramanujacharya left His Consort but she never complained In both these cases there is an implied permission from these noble Ladies. Ramakrishna Paramahamsa " married " Sharadadevi but neither ran away from each other.They performed their karma and practised yoga LORD SHIVA is different. HE stays in Himalayas because 1)His third eye closes an indescribable amount of light and heat which if opens blinds and burns everything and everybody 2)Gangadevi flowing from His head keeps His head physically and divinely cool. 3)Shiva has HOT BURNING poison in HIS throat and can not let it out to endanger us 4)HIS neck is an abode of deadly venomous snakes emitting hot poisonous secretions 5)Shiva lets His heat engulf the dead with the light and fire at funerals So much so only Shiva stays in Himalayas. Persons like me must try to get salvation while being in cities without proudly imitating Lord Shiva. Trying to be like Lord Shiva is ego. ijswamy ~SWAMY http://gjnanaswarup.spaces.live.com/blog/ --- On Tue, 3/31/09, shanracer <no_reply > wrote: shanracer <no_reply > Re: What is Karma yoga? Tuesday, March 31, 2009, 11:58 AM @ s.com, s_kumar_12345 <no_reply@.. .> wrote: > > Maybe you have more spiriutal power than me, but I feel I will never >make any spiritual progress while I live in society. I wont run away >from home, but I am waiting till my children grow up & get married, so >I can leave society & give full time to meditation. Thats a good point Kumarji. Its easy for me to lecture others, without realising what their personal circumstances are. How do other member of the group- Aradhnaji, Thimmapaji, Jitendarji, Pyariji, aRifji,sohum, Swami, Shakti, Radha, Janfarah, Deepa, ulaganthan , plus any Ive forgotten- how do you respected members solve this problem? luv, shantnu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 4, 2009 Report Share Posted April 4, 2009 Happy Rama Navami to all. Here is an excerpt from - Rama The Ideal Man: The Epic Adventure of a Hero Article of the Month - August 2002 The Path of the Karmayogi Ancient Indian philosophy stresses the path of karma. An interesting story from the Mundaka Upanishad illustrates the nuances of this principle: " Two birds sit on the same branch of the same tree. One eats, and the other looks on. " This simple story has a profound underlying message, opening up and laying bare an entire way of life, completely in harmony with the rhythms of nature. The two birds which perch on the tree are respectively the ego and the inner self. These two dwell in the same body. While the ego eats both the sweet and sour fruits of our existence, the inner self which realizes its true nature, watches in complete detachment. Rama sought out his wife with unmatched zeal and single-minded purpose. He who loved her like life itself bore the agony of separation for a year. Unable to reconcile himself to his loss he wandered in the forest like a man possessed. Accompanied only by his faithful brother Lakshmana, he managed to win the confidence of Sugriva, the monkey king at whose bidding the prodigious army of simians was made available to him. He fought a deadly battle where were lost thousands of lives, all to regain his charming and faithful Sita. Yet, finally having vanquished Ravana, did he rush out to embrace Sita? Or make haste to utter sweet words of love into her ears. No. Rather this is what he said to her: " It was not for mere attachment to you that I waged this grim battle but only in the discharge of the duty. " This supreme display of detached attachment was worthy of Rama, idolized as the ideal man. Never losing sight of his eventual purpose he nevertheless was not overtly attached to the result. On a practical level too this is a sensible strategy, considering that any decision we take during the course of our lives affects not ourselves but also those in our immediate environment. A healthy detachment is thus beneficial, nay essential for those who wish to take a comprehensive view of a situation. Too much obsession with the result of a particular undertaking sows the seeds of selfishness in our minds, blinding us to the interest of those near to us. It is hence not surprising that Rama was able to win the friendship of the monkey king Sugriva . A sound strategist, Rama secured Sugriva's friendship by helping him regain his lost kingdom, which rightfully belonged to him and had been unjustly appropriated. As a commander he was known to inspire the confidence of each and every individual who made up the army. If Rama, understandably tense at the loss of Sita, his most valuable possession, had focused solely on the final retrieval of his wife could he have applied the concentration required of a war strategist? The answer is no. Burdened by the import and weight of the result he wouldn't have been able to take the risks necessary to win any war. This is true as much as for the epic battle fought between Rama and Ravana, as it is for achieving success in any venture in life. Read more at: http://www.exoticindia.com/article/rama Jaya Sri Ram! Jaya Sri Radhe! , shanracer <no_reply wrote: > How do other member of the group- Aradhnaji, Thimmapaji, Jitendarji, Pyariji, aRifji,sohum, Swami, Shakti, Radha, Janfarah, Deepa, ulaganthan , plus any Ive forgotten- how do you respected members solve this problem? > > luv, > shantnu > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 4, 2009 Report Share Posted April 4, 2009 Dear Kumarji, Most of us are in the same boat as you are. We are caught in the hustle and bustle of life and cannot find time for meditation.The solitude of the forest appears attractive to us.But the thing is that the main hurdle is the mind.Wherever I go my mind will come with me even to a Himalayan cave or in a deep forest.A cave and the forest will have its own problems if the mind is not under control.The solution is to change my attitude.We are like passengers who while travelling in a train insist on carrying our luggage on our heads rather than putting it on the luggage rack where it belongs.The end result is stress,fatigue etc.The answer is to live in the world like a lotus leaf. I know it sounds cliched but it is the only answer. In Gita , Sri Krishna says, that He did not create the world but He became the world.He is in all men and is the controller of their words and actions.This is something we have to remember everyday and internalise.In all my day to day activities, I have to remember that He is the doer through me and through others.I have to slowly become more of an observer,who observes his own life and that of others.It may sound difficult but can be achieved through time.The world, where we live surrounded by so many relationships of all kinds and deal with so many situations, is the most perfect place designed for spiritual growth.Only we must learn to think of it as a learning place.Each relationship teaches us something.For example,If we have to live under the same roof with a person who has harmed or hurt us and yet learn to forgive and serve that person,we can gain spiritually so much from it.So dont think of running away from the world.The world around us is the Lord Himself, and so are we. Where can we run from Him?So let us stay where we are and become students in His vast university. Regards Rwitoja , shanracer <no_reply wrote: > > How do other member of the group- Aradhnaji, Thimmapaji, Jitendarji, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 6, 2009 Report Share Posted April 6, 2009 Namaste all. ----------- Karma Yoga, or Work as Worship " Your daily life is your temple and your religion. " (Kahlil Gibran) " Our daily activity is the anvil on which all the elements must pass and repass in order to be purified and refined. " (Sri Aurobindo) " Work done in the true spirit is meditation. " (The Mother) The word yoga is derived from the Sanskrit root 'yuj,' meaning 'to yoke' or 'join'. Thus, yoga is the science that yokes 'the finite' with 'the Infinite', or 'the finite spirit' with 'the Supreme Spirit'. Connecting ourselves with the universal will through work is known as Karma Yoga. Ancient scriptures call it the 'highest kind of yoga,' Karma yoga is a means for seeking divinity in action and life itself, and not in some far, beatific and abstract beyond. It is therefore the discipline for finding and uniting with the divine through our day-to-day actions, thoughts and works. Or it can be referred to as the way, which confers to our ordinary human actions a divine status. Truly, every act is sacred since we are not the doer but a higher reality is acting through us. We intuitively understand that everything comes from the divine and we have to offer it back to its source. When we realize this, then even the smallest aspect of our lives to which we usually do not pay any attention or care ceases to be trivial and insignificant; it becomes full of meaning and opens up a vast horizon beyond. According to Aurobindo: " What would you say if a temple, built according to the design of some great artist, were to boast: " Admire my merits; am I not beautiful, well-built, solid and durable? Truly I am worthy of all praise! " - just as if it were the author of its own perfections. We would find that very silly and ridiculous, and yet that is what we are doing constantly. Because we do not perceive the labor of the Sublime Worker, we ascribe the merit of the work to ourselves. " Karmayoga is the consecration of one's life to the divine. It is to work with the feeling that the divine force is working behind our actions and leading us at every moment. Indeed, if we have succeeded, it was probably because the divine forces were there to help us, otherwise we would not have been able to achieve even what we have. We must not forget our limitations. Man proposes, and some one else disposes. When we look upon work as worship, we offer up all the fruits of our work unto the divine. Our karma is offered as a sacred offering to the highest reality. Truly, this is the reason why the goddess Kali wears a girdle made up of severed hands; these signify the total sacrifice of the fruits of their karma by her devotees, offered at her feet in worship. ---------------- An excerpt from the nice article on 'Exploring Karma' at: http://www.exoticindia.com/article/karma , shanracer <no_reply wrote: > Karma Yoga is the most misunderstood of all- Gyanis & Bhaktas consider it " inferior " to their method, fit only for those not good enough to practice Gyan/Bhakti. > So how can the average man follow Krishnas path of Karma yoga? After all, we are not all lucky enough like Arjun to get a great Guru like Krishna? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 9, 2009 Report Share Posted April 9, 2009 , pyari_h <no_reply wrote: > " Your daily life is your temple and your religion. " (Kahlil Gibran) > > " Our daily activity is the anvil on which all the elements must pass and repass in order to be purified and refined. " (Sri Aurobindo) > > " Work done in the true spirit is meditation. " (The Mother) That was beautiful Pyariji! luv, Shantnu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 14, 2009 Report Share Posted April 14, 2009 Namaste all. I'd like to share the following interesting as well as informative article. Enjoy! Jaya Sri Radhe! ---------------- May I Answer That? Swami Sivananda Saraswati Question: How are life and meditation intertwined? There is no human being in the world who is not divine by nature. The divinity in individuals differs only in degree, but not in kind. Even the so-called atheist has a ray of divinity in him. No person is devoid of the three gunas - sattwa, rajas and tamas - in varying proportions. Whether one is a sceptic, atheist or nihilist, it is the sattwa that abides in one that helps to perform virtuous actions, which result in further actions of like nature, either in this or future births. While we perform rajasic and tamasic actions, we also perform sattwic actions according to the degree of purity and sattwa in us. No man in the world, be he a robber, thief or pirate, commits vicious actions alone. Every individual commits both virtuous and vicious actions in life. That is, everyone is prone to mixed actions as long as one is under the grip of Prakriti. When virtuous actions are performed, the mind naturally turns towards divinity, however slightly. Meditation is essentially the quality of sattwa. When life is made ennobling, one is sure to think of the sublime. The point that must be remembered is that sattwic actions are in themselves worship or meditation. Meditation need not necessarily mean sitting in a sequestered spot and thinking of Rama, Krishna, Jesus or Mohammed or pouring forth verbal or mental prayers. Actions that tend to purify the grossness of the individual are to be collectively treated as meditation. Life is thus meditation coupled with ignorance in the case of an ordinary individual. If meditation is deliberately taken up on the instructions of guru, one cannot but perform good and selfless actions so that life becomes more and more cheerful, enlightening and attractive. In the latter course, which is but a deliberate step, one evolves more quickly, while in the former course one moves forward with the pace of a snail. Thus, life and meditation are intertwined. Question: When divine grace is believed to do everything, why should one perform any sadhana? This is a wrong philosophy. God helps those who help themselves. God's grace will descend only on those persons who exert. The Lord's grace will descend in proportion to the degree of surrender. The more the surrender, the more the grace. You cannot expect the Lord to do self-surrender for you. Be up and doing. Strive. Plod. Persevere. The Lord will shower His grace upon you. Mira abandoned everything. She renounced kingdom, husband, relatives, friends and property. She remembered Krishna day and night. She shed tears of love. She sang His praise with single-minded devotion. She gave up food. Her body was emaciated. Her mind was ever absorbed in Krishna. Only then did Krishna shower His grace upon her. Question: I have been undergoing vigorous tapas and meditation for the last five years. With this, my troubles and difficulties are multiplying. I have even lost my job. What shall I do? Is this divine grace? It is said that the Lord gives food even to the frog that lives between the strata of rocks. Why has He failed in your case alone? This is a great wonder! Has He failed in His duty? This cannot be. He is all-merciful, all benevolent! Is it because He wants to develop in you the constructive qualities - courage, presence of mind, endurance, strong will, fortitude, more mercy and love - and make His instrument more fit for His divine lila? Yes, this must be the case. The struggling and sincere aspirant also gets more troubles and difficulties, because he has to march quickly on the path to reach the kingdom of supreme peace and unalloyed bliss. Princess Mira renounced the pomp and glory of the palace and walked in the burning sands of Rajputana. She starved on her way to Vrindavan. She slept on the ground. She lived on alms. The Pandavas underwent countless sufferings even when Lord Krishna was behind them. Our sufferings are nothing when compared to the persecutions undergone by the five Pandavas, Sri Rama and Mira. It is suffering that develops the will. It is suffering alone that moulds a person on the spiritual path. Be not troubled. Feel the Lord's grace and mercy at every step. All difficulties will melt away. Have perfect, unswerving faith in His grace. Question: How to put a permanent end to all doubts and questions? As one advances in spiritual sadhana and attains greater and greater degree of evolution day by day, by regular and unremitting practice of the yoga of synthesis, the clouds of doubts, delusion and interrogation disperse by themselves. As the sun rises, the mist disappears. Even so, as you progress on the spiritual path by the grace of guru and God, all the intricate problems of life and death dissolve themselves into the ever-abiding truth of existence. The only duty of man is to intensify the inner purity by graded, integral sadhana. Whenever doubts, troubles and the like arise, repeat your mantra. There is no room for doubts to crop up on the attainment of Self-realisation, as the seeker is no longer the seeker, but divinity itself. source: http://www.yogamag.net/sample.shtml Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 21, 2009 Report Share Posted April 21, 2009 Namaste all. Thought you might like this Youtube video ' A Good-Day' at: http://www.gratefulness.org/brotherdavid/a-good-day.htm Enjoy! Jaya Sri Radhe!! > > " Your daily life is your temple and your religion. " (Kahlil Gibran) > > > > " Our daily activity is the anvil on which all the elements must pass and repass in order to be purified and refined. " (Sri Aurobindo) > > > > " Work done in the true spirit is meditation. " (The Mother) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 29, 2009 Report Share Posted May 29, 2009 Namaste. Like to share a few inspiring quotes I received: What ever happened it has happened for your good. What ever is happening it is also for your good. What ever is going to happen it also is going to happen for your good. Do not worry that you have lost something. You have not brought anything, so you have not lost anything. You have not created anything, so you have not lost anything. What ever you have obtained, you have obtained from here. What ever you have given, you have given from here. What you are thinking as your own today, It is someone's yesterday. It will be somebody's tomorrow. Change is constant phenomenon of the world. Always follow 'Dharma' and 'Dharma' will save you. - Gita Jaya Sri Radhe! > Karma Yoga, or Work as Worship > > > " Your daily life is your temple and your religion. " (Kahlil Gibran) > > " Our daily activity is the anvil on which all the elements must pass and repass in order to be purified and refined. " (Sri Aurobindo) > > " Work done in the true spirit is meditation. " (The Mother) > > The word yoga is derived from the Sanskrit root 'yuj,' meaning 'to yoke' or 'join'. Thus, yoga is the science that yokes 'the finite' with 'the Infinite', or 'the finite spirit' with 'the Supreme Spirit'. Connecting ourselves with the universal will through work is known as Karma Yoga. Ancient scriptures call it the 'highest kind of yoga,' > > Karma yoga is a means for seeking divinity in action and life itself, and not in some far, beatific and abstract beyond. It is therefore the discipline for finding and uniting with the divine through our day-to-day actions, thoughts and works. Or it can be referred to as the way, which confers to our ordinary human actions a divine status. > > Truly, every act is sacred since we are not the doer but a higher reality is acting through us. We intuitively understand that everything comes from the divine and we have to offer it back to its source. When we realize this, then even the smallest aspect of our lives to which we usually do not pay any attention or care ceases to be trivial and insignificant; it becomes full of meaning and opens up a vast horizon beyond. According to Aurobindo: > > " What would you say if a temple, built according to the design of some great artist, were to boast: " Admire my merits; am I not beautiful, well-built, solid and durable? Truly I am worthy of all praise! " - just as if it were the author of its own perfections. We would find that very silly and ridiculous, and yet that is what we are doing constantly. Because we do not perceive the labor of the Sublime Worker, we ascribe the merit of the work to ourselves. " > > Karmayoga is the consecration of one's life to the divine. It is to work with the feeling that the divine force is working behind our actions and leading us at every moment. Indeed, if we have succeeded, it was probably because the divine forces were there to help us, otherwise we would not have been able to achieve even what we have. We must not forget our limitations. Man proposes, and some one else disposes. > > When we look upon work as worship, we offer up all the fruits of our work unto the divine. Our karma is offered as a sacred offering to the highest reality. Truly, this is the reason why the goddess Kali wears a girdle made up of severed hands; these signify the total sacrifice of the fruits of their karma by her devotees, offered at her feet in worship. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 12, 2009 Report Share Posted June 12, 2009 Namaste. In Brahma Vaivarta Purana, the following Sanskrit verse has been quoted several times in many chapters by various divine personalities: nA' bhuktaM kSIyate karma kalpa koTi zatairapi l avazyameva bhokttavyaM kRtaM karma zubhAzubham ll Meaning: The effects of actions (Karma) by any individual, good or bad will not be reduced even after millions of aeons. It is essential for that individual to bear those good or ill effects and only thus, through undergoing those good or bad experiences of his or her actions, the Karma is eliminated. Jaya Sri Radhe! > What ever happened it has happened for your good. > What ever is happening it is also for your good. > What ever is going to happen it also is going to happen for your good. > Do not worry that you have lost something. > You have not brought anything, so you have not lost anything. > You have not created anything, so you have not lost anything. > What ever you have obtained, you have obtained from here. > What ever you have given, you have given from here. > What you are thinking as your own today, > It is someone's yesterday. > It will be somebody's tomorrow. > > Change is constant phenomenon of the world. > Always follow 'Dharma' and 'Dharma' will save you. > > - Gita > > Jaya Sri Radhe! > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 26, 2009 Report Share Posted September 26, 2009 Karma yoga is nothing but to understand that a body which includes mind,intellect,physical body,material ego, etc make a body machine & One has to use it to upliftment of the universe so that godly blessing are flown throu it and life becomes meaningful for the machine. A machine doent have any attachment to what it does or produces. It produces what it is made for and yet doesnt counts on it. The operator of we machines is god and one has to surrender duality to him and follow what he want us to become. when one has a total surrender, he finds the god always leads to betterment. The same way one has to perform in the world and ones the work is over say goodbye. --- On Sat, 4/4/09, r_mukherj <r_mukherj wrote: r_mukherj <r_mukherj Re: What is Karma yoga? Saturday, 4 April, 2009, 12:53 PM Dear Kumarji, Most of us are in the same boat as you are. We are caught in the hustle and bustle of life and cannot find time for meditation.The solitude of the forest appears attractive to us.But the thing is that the main hurdle is the mind.Wherever I go my mind will come with me even to a Himalayan cave or in a deep forest.A cave and the forest will have its own problems if the mind is not under control.The solution is to change my attitude.We are like passengers who while travelling in a train insist on carrying our luggage on our heads rather than putting it on the luggage rack where it belongs.The end result is stress,fatigue etc.The answer is to live in the world like a lotus leaf. I know it sounds cliched but it is the only answer. Imber of the group- Aradhnaji, Thimmapaji, Jitendarji, India has a new look. Take a sneak peek http://in./trynew Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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