Stay True! Study and Preach!
Rishis exhort every Hindu to share Vedic Dharma with all
Advice to graduates to carry Vedic values into their new life in the world is given in the Taittiriya Upanishad. It elicits rousing commentary from the great Swami Chinmayananda.
It is clear that the present world's tribute to the glory that was of India is not the compelling glory of some rare beings, mighty in their own perfections and glorious in their worlds, but it is the loving reverence that an age feels towards a past generation that knew how to live the right values of life and bring the entire generation to enjoy a greater quota of intellectual poise, mental stability, physical health, social happiness, communal growth and national well-being. In order to create such a consummate scheme of things around and about us, among a people, it must be the duty of the educationists to see that they impart to the growing generation not merely some factual knowledge or some wondrous theories, but they also must instill into the growing generation ideals of pure living and train the children to live those in their individual life.
This section gives twelve immortal ideas of living and rules of conduct and insists an equal number of times that the student should continue his study of the scriptures and propagation of the immortal ideas of his glorious culture among the people all through his life. To believe that the Hindus are not missionary in their zeal for the propagation of their ideas in the world is not to understand at all the spirit of Hinduism. Our present idea that the spread of our culture and free discussions on the scripture is the special right of a few and that it should be addressed to only a few specially selected individuals is an absurd notion which has not the sanction of the Rishis, especially in our age. Here we find that the brilliant students are repeatedly commissioned, with twelve repetitions in just one small verse, to continue their study (swadhyaya) and to be preachers (pravachanam) throughout their lifetime.
For this missionary work the Hindu Rishis saw no necessity for organizing a special class of teachers. It was made every householder's duty! The householder was not asked to sacrifice his duties. Instead, while emphasizing the need for pursuing his duties, he is asked to keep continuously in touch with the scriptures and to preach that same truth to others.
The great qualities insisted on are: the practice of what is right and proper as indicated in the scripture (ritham); living up to the ideals that have been intellectually comprehended (satyam); spirit of self-sacrifice and self-denial (tapas); control of the senses (dama); tranquillity of the mind (sama); maintenance of a charitable and ready kitchen at home in the Seva of all deserving hungry fellow beings (guests-athiti, agni); practice of concentration and ritualism through fire worship (agnihotra), one's duty towards humanity, children, grandchildren and society (manusham, prajaha, prajanaha, prajati).
In the close of the section, three great masters have been quoted who had in the past declared the most important of the above. The section reads as though it is a manifesto upon the Hindu way of living in which every Hindu, striving to live up to his or her sacred culture, is charged to live true to his or her own intellectual convictions (satyam), in a spirit of self-denial (tapas), the study of his sacred bible (swadhyaya) and the spread of his culture among the peoples of the world (pravachanam).
The practice of what is right and proper, along with studying the texts oneself and propagating the truths therein; 'Truth', regular studies and preaching; penance, study and preaching; control of the senses, study and preaching; tranquillity, study and preaching; the 'maintenance of fire,' study and preaching; offering to fires in fire sacrifice, study and preaching of the Vedas; serving the guests, study and preaching; the performance of duties towards man, study and preaching; duties towards children, study and teaching of Vedas; procreation, study and preaching; propagation of the race, study and preaching--all these are to be practised sincerely. ¦Satyavachas, son of Rathitara, declares truth alone. Thapanitya, son of Paurusishti, declares penance alone. Naka, son of Mudgala, holds to study and preaching alone. That is penance, indeed, that is penance.
Krishna Yajur Veda, Taittiriya Upanishad 1.9
Swami Chinmayananda (1917-1993), Vedantist writer, lecturer, translator, dynamic spiritual leader and Hindu renaissance founder of Chinmaya Mission International
Wednesday, June 08, 2005
Visiting a Hindu Temple
http://www.hinduism-today.com/archives/2004/10-12/41-48_hindu_temple.shtml
October/November/December, 2004
INSIGHT
Visiting a Hindu Temple
A beginner's guide to the Joys of worship
The Hindu temple is a sacred space where man and God commune. It is the home of God and the Gods. Within these sacred abodes, priests conduct puja rites--presenting flowers, water, incense, lights, food and other choice offerings--to honor God and the Gods and invoke their presence and blessings.
In this Insight, we explore the experience of attending a temple, drawing from Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami's wisdom on the mysticism of Hindu worship. While basic customs described here are common to temples of all traditions, we focus mainly on the style of puja done in the temples of South India.
God and the Gods are real beings; they are not mere symbols or figments of imagination. If you could view the temple from the inner worlds, you would see a brilliant ray coming from the Third World right into the temple on the physical plane. This ray allows communication similar to a live video conference. The priest opens the connection by performing puja worship. When the puja is performed with loving devotion, the ray becomes strong and inner doors open from God's world to ours; the angelic helpers, called devas, hover around and through the temple, and blessings pour out to the devotees. A Hindu temple's devonic rays have the power to transform the course of karma, open inner doors to new opportunities, assuage long-held hurts and provide inner visions equaling the fullness of devotion.
Devotion in Hinduism is known as bhakti. it is an entire realm of knowledge and practice unto itself, ranging from the child-like wonder of the unknown and the mysterious to the deep reverence which comes with understanding of the esoteric interworkings of the three worlds. Hinduism views existence as composed of three worlds. The First World is the physical universe, the Second World is the subtle astral or mental plane of existence in which the devas, or angels, and spirits live, and the Third World is the spiritual sphere of the Mahadevas, the Deities, the Gods. Hinduism is the harmonious working together of these three worlds. Religion blossoms for the Hindu as he awakens to the existence of the Second and Third Worlds. These inner worlds naturally inspire in man responses of love and devotion and even awe. They are that wonderful.
Devotion in Hinduism occurs on many levels and at different cycles of time in the evolution of the soul. All forms of devotion are equally valid, and none claims itself as the only proper form of worship. There is devotion to the tribal Deities, to the scriptures, to the saints and to the satguru. But the most prevalent expression of worship for the Hindu comes as devotion to God and the Gods. In the Hindu pantheon there are said to be 330 million Gods. Even so, all Hindus believe in one Supreme Being who pervades the entire universe.
The many Gods are perceived as divine creations of that one Being. These Gods, or Mahadevas, are real beings, capable of thought and feeling beyond the limited thought and feeling of embodied man. So, Hinduism has one God, but it has many Gods. There are only a few of these Gods for whom temples are built and pujas conducted. Ganesha, Siva, Subramaniam, Vishnu and Shakti are the most prominent Deities in contemporary Hinduism. Of course, there are many others for whom certain rites or mantras are done in daily ceremony, often in the home shrine. These include Brahma, Surya, Sarasvati, Lakshmi, Agni, Chandra, Ayyappan, Hanuman, Mariyamman and others.
The Hindu traditionally adopts an Ishta Devata. This is a personal Deity chosen from the many Hindu Gods, often according to the devotee's family background or the feeling of closeness to one form of divine manifestation. It is the unique and all-encompassing nature of Hinduism that one devotee may be worshiping Ganesha while his friend worships Subramaniam or Vishnu, and yet both honor the other's choice and feel no sense of conflict. The profound understanding and universal acceptance that are unique in Hinduism are reflected in this faculty for accommodating different approaches to the Divine, allowing for different names and forms of God to be worshiped side by side within the temple walls. It may even happen that one may adopt a different personal Deity through the years according to one's spiritual unfoldment and inner needs.
The Hindu religion brings to us the gift of tolerance that allows for different stages of worship, different and personal expressions of devotion and even different Gods to guide our life on this Earth. Yet, it is a one religion under a single divine hierarchy that sees to the harmonious working together of the three worlds. These intelligent beings have evolved through eons of time and are able to help mankind without themselves having to live in a physical body. These great Mahadevas, with their multitudes of angelic devas, live and work constantly and tirelessly for the people of our religion, protecting and guiding them, opening new doors and closing unused ones. The Gods worshiped by the Hindu abide in the Third World, aided by the devas that inhabit the Second World.
It is in the Hindu temple that the three worlds meet and devotees invoke the Gods of our religion. The temple is built as a palace in which the Gods reside. It is the visible home of the Gods, a sacred place unlike every other place on the Earth. The Hindu must associate himself with these Gods in a very sensitive way when he approaches the temple.
Though the devotee rarely has the psychic vision of the Deity, he is aware of the God's divine presence. He is aware through feeling, through sensing the divine presence within the temple. As he approaches the sanctum sanctorum, the Hindu is fully aware that an intelligent being, greater and more evolved than himself, is there. This God is intently aware of him, safeguarding him, fully knowing his inmost thought, fully capable of coping with any situation the devotee may mentally lay at His holy feet. It is important that we approach the Deity in this way--conscious and confident that our needs are known in the inner spiritual worlds.
The physical representation of the God, be it a stone or metal image, a yantra or other sacred form, simply marks the place that the God will manifest in or hover above in His etheric body. It can be conceived as an antenna to receive the divine rays of the God or as the material body in or through which the God manifests in this First World. Man takes one body and then another in his progression through the cycles of birth and death and rebirth. Similarly, the Gods in their subtle bodies inhabit, for brief or protracted spans of time, these temple images. When we perform puja, a religious ritual, we are attracting the attention of the devas and Mahadevas in the inner worlds. That is the purpose of a puja; it is a form of communication. To enhance this communication, we establish an altar in the temple and in the home. This becomes charged or magnetized through our devotional thoughts and feelings, which radiate out and affect the surrounding environment.
Chanting and satsanga and ceremonial rituals all contribute to this sanctifying process, creating an atmosphere to which the Gods are drawn and in which they can manifest. By the word manifest, I mean they actually come and dwell there and can stay for periods of time, providing the vibration is kept pure and undisturbed. The altar takes on a certain power. In our religion there are altars in temples all over the world inhabited by the devas and the great Gods. When you enter these holy places, you can sense their sanctity. You can feel the presence of these divine beings, and this radiation from them is known as darshan. The reality of the Mahadevas and their darshan can be experienced by the devotee through his awakened ajna vision, or more often as the physical sight of the image in the sanctum coupled with the inner knowing that He is there within the microcosm. This darshan can be felt by all devotees, becoming stronger and more defined as devotion is perfected. Through this darshan, messages can be channeled along the vibratory emanations that radiate out from the Mahadevas, as well as from their representatives, the Second World devas who carry out their work for them in shrines and altars.
To understand darshan, consider the everyday and yet subtle communication of language. You are hearing the tones of my voice through the sensitive organ, your ear. Meaning comes into your mind, for you have been trained to translate these vibrations into meaning through the knowing of the language that I am speaking. Darshan is a vibration, too. It is first experienced in the simple physical glimpse of the form of the Deity in the sanctum. Later, that physical sight gives way to a clairvoyant vision or to a refined cognition received through the sensitive ganglia within your nerve system, the chakras. Through these receptors, a subtle message is received, often not consciously. Perhaps not immediately, but the message that the darshan carries, direct from the Mahadeva--direct from Lord Ganesha, direct from Lord Murugan, direct from Lord Siva Himself--manifests in your life. This is the way the Gods converse. It is a communication more real than the communication of language that you experience each day. It is not necessary to understand the communication immediately. The devotee may go away from the temple outwardly feeling that there was no particular message, or not knowing in his intellectual mind exactly what the darshan meant. Even the words you are now reading may not be fully cognized for days, weeks or even months. The depth of meaning will unfold itself on reflection.
Visiting a Hindu temple, receiving darshan from the majestic Gods of our religion, can altogether change the life of a worshiper. It alters the flow of the pranas, or life currents, within his body. It draws his awareness into the deeper chakras. It adjusts his beliefs and the attitudes that are the natural consequence of those beliefs. But the change is slow. He lives with the experience for months and months after his visit to the temple. He comes to know and love the Deity. The Deity comes to know and love him, helping and guiding his entire evolutionary pattern. Darshan coming from the great temples of our Gods can change the patterns of karma dating back many past lives, clearing and clarifying conditions that were created hundreds of years ago and are but seeds now, waiting to manifest in the future. Through the grace of the Gods, those seeds can be removed if the manifestation in the future would not enhance the evolution of the soul.
Devotees ask, "Why do we circumambulate the temple?" When we come to the temple out of the world, off the street, we are often shrouded by negative vibrations, which can actually be seen in our aura. Our nerve system may be upset, especially now, in the technological age, when we often suffer from stress and strain, the insecurity of so many changes and the rapid pace of life. In order to prepare ourselves to enter the sanctum sanctorum of the temple, the great mandapam inside, we walk clockwise around the temple very slowly. In this way we prepare our mind. We consciously drop off worldliness, letting the sufferings go, letting all disturbances leave our mind the best we can, and trying to reach deep inside of ourselves where peace exists eternally. We become as celestial as we can during the time we are walking around the temple, so that we can communicate with the celestial beings within the temple.
In a Hindu temple there is often a multiplicity of simultaneous proceedings and ceremonies. In one corner, an extended family, or clan, with its hundreds of tightly knit members, may be joyously celebrating a wedding. At another shrine a lady might be crying in front of the Deity, saddened by some misfortune and in need of solace. Elsewhere in the crowded precincts a baby is being blessed, and several groups of temple musicians are filling the chamber with the shrill sounds of the nagasvaram and drum. After the puja reaches its zenith, brahmin priests move in and out of the sanctum, passing camphor and sacred ash and holy water to hundreds of worshipers crowding eagerly to get a glimpse of the Deity. All of this is happening at once, unplanned and yet totally organized. It is a wonderful experience, and such a diverse array of devotional ceremonies and such an intensity of worship can only be seen in a Hindu temple. There is no place on Earth quite like a Hindu temple.
Esoterically, the Gods in the temple, who live in the microcosm, can work extraordinarily fast with everyone. There is so much going on that everyone has the sense of being alone. The weeping woman is allowed her moment of mourning. No one feels that she is upsetting the nearby wedding. No one even notices her. The temple is so active, so filled with people, that each one is left to worship as he needs that day--to cry or to laugh or to sing or to sit in silent contemplation in a far-off corner.
Like the Hindu religion itself, the Hindu temple is able to absorb and encompass everyone. It never says you must worship in this way, or you must be silent because there is a ceremony in progress. It accepts all, rejects none. It encourages all to come to God and does not legislate a single form of devotion.
Hindus always want to live near a temple so they can frequent it regularly. When we go to the temple, we leave with our mind filled with the shakti of the Deity. We are filled and thrilled with the shakti of the temple in every nerve current of our body. When we return to our home, we light an oil lamp, and that brings the power of the temple into the home. This simple act brings the devas in the Second World right into your home, where they can bless the rest of the family who perhaps did not go to the temple. Each Hindu temple throughout the world has its own rules on how to proceed and what to do within it. In some temples, in fact most temples in South India, all the men are required to take off their shirts and enter bare-chested. However, if you are in a business suit in the South Indian temple in New York, that's all right. You are not required to take off your shirt. Every temple has its own rules, so you have to observe what everybody else is doing the first time you go.
In the beginning stages of worship, a Hindu soul may have to wrestle with disbelief in the Gods. He may wonder whether they really exist, especially if his own intuition is obscured by assimilation of Western, existentialist beliefs and attitudes. Yet, he senses their existence, and this sensing brings him back to the temple. He is looking for proof, immersed in the process of coming to know the Gods for himself. He is heartened and assured by hundreds of saints and rishis who have fathomed and found close and enduring relationships with the Gods, and who then extolled their greatness in pages of scripture and chronicle.
The devotee stands before the sanctum and telepathically tells the Gods a problem, and with hopeful faith leaves and waits. Days or weeks later, after he had forgotten about his prayer, he suddenly realizes the problem has disappeared. He attempts to trace the source of its solution and finds that a simple, favorable play of circumstance and events brought it about. Had the Gods answered his prayer, or would it have happened anyway? He brings another prayer to the Gods, and again in time an answer appears in the natural course of his life. It appears to him that the Gods are hearing and responding to his needs. Trust and love have taken root. He goes on, year after year, bringing the Gods into his secular affairs, while just as carefully the Gods are bringing him into their celestial spheres, enlivening his soul with energy, joy and intelligence.
The Hindu looks to the Gods for very practical assistance. He devoutly believes that the Gods from their dwelling in the Third World are capable of consciously working with the forces of evolution in the universe and they could then certainly manage a few simpler problems. He devoutly believes that the Gods are given to care for man on the planet and see him through his tenure on Earth, and that their decisions are vast in their implications. Their overview spans time itself, and yet their detailed focus upon the complicated fabric of human affairs is just as awesome.
The Gods of Hinduism create, preserve and protect mankind. It is through their sanction that all things continue, and through their will that they cease. It is through their grace that all good things happen, and all things that happen are for the good. Now, you may wonder why one would put himself under this divine authority so willingly, thus losing his semblance of freedom. But does one not willingly put himself in total harmony with those whom he loves? Of course he does. And loving these great souls comes so naturally. Their timeless wisdom, their vast intelligence, their thoroughly benign natures, their ceaseless concern for the problems and well-being of devotees, and their power and sheer godly brilliance--all these inspire our love.
Worship is pouring all your energy into one-pointedly adoring the God or Goddess feeling your loving sincerity, the Diety responds with life changing blessings
Approaching the Temple
Temple Manners
Remove your shoes before entering. Be respectful of God and the Gods at all times, as if approaching the benevolent leader of a great realm. Bring your problems, wishes or your sorrows but leave improper manners outside as you enter this holy sanctuary. Do not enter the shrines without invitation. Do not sit with your feet pointing toward the Deities, the guru or another person. Hugging and other demonstrations of affection between adults are not appropriate. Refrain from gossip and worldly talk. Treat the priests with respect.
Look and Feel Your Best
You will want to look and feel your best when you go to the temple, God's home. Prepare yourself by bathing and putting on clean clothing. Traditional dress is best - saris or punjabis for ladies, long dresses for girls, and kurta shirt and dhoti or pants for men and boys. But any nice, modest clothing suitable for sitting on the floor is acceptable.
Prepare Mentally; Bring a Gift
Prepare your mind by thinking about God in anticipation of your visit. Bring an offering, such as fruits and flowers. Prostrate and walk around the temple where possible. Hands pressed together in namaskara, greet the Deities at their shrines, starting with Ganesha, and present your offerings. Inwardly feel God's uplifting presence, called sannidhya.
Prostrate to the Deity
Prostrating is a traditional expression of worshipful surrender and adoration. The form of prostration differs for men and women. Men perform a fully prone pose, called ashtanga pranama, in which hands, chest, forehead, knees and feet touch the ground. Women perform a kneeling pose, panchanga pranama, in which hands, head and legs touch the ground.
Worship Wholeheartedly
Ardent worship takes many forms in a temple. You can be immersed in the joys of devotion, in prayerful communion, seeking solace for a loss, singing hymns, chanting mantras or celebrating a rite of passage. Meditation is appropriate, especially after the puja, and emotion is not out of place. God will receive your devotion, however you offer it.
There are three worlds of existence: the gross plane where souls live in physical bodies; the subtle plane, where souls reside in astral bodies; and the causal, divine plane of God and the Gods.
Attending the Puja Ceremony
Conducted by a trained priest called a pujari, a Hindu worship service or puja, literally "adoration," is similar to a grand reception for a king. Pujas can last from ten minutes to several hours, but all follow one basic pattern. First, the pujari purifies himself, the sacred implements and the place of worship. He chants in Sanskrit the time, place and nature of this particular puja. Through hand gestures (mudras) and chants, he beseeches the Deity to come and dwell in the image. Ringing a bell and chanting mantras and hymns from the ancient Vedas and Agamas, the pujari then offers precious substances to the Deity, including water, uncooked rice with turmeric powder, holy ash, sandalwood paste and kumkum. Sometimes water, sesame oil, turmeric water, saffron, milk, yogurt, ghee, honey, lime juice, vibhuti, sandalwood paste, panchamritam (mixture of five fruits), coconut water and rosewater are poured over the Deity in a ritual bath called abhishekam. Devotees are seated during most of the puja, in some traditions, men on the right and women on the left. After abhishekam, the Deity is dressed in new clothes and beautifully decorated with flowers. At this point, devotees may sing devotional songs. After decorating the Deity, the pujari offers incense, oil lamps and food. He offers flowers while chanting 108 names of the God. At the high point of the puja, a large, sacred lamp is waved before the Deity and the temple bells are rung loudly as God sends His power through the holy image of Himself. When the lamp is lowered, everyone prostrates to the Divine. The lamp is then carried out to bless the worshipers, who often leave a donation on the tray (or later in the temple offering box). Finally, depending on the tradition, sacraments such as holy ash, holy water, sandalwood paste, kumkum, fruit, sweets and flowers are passed out to bless all present. These include a portion of the offerings - flowers, cooked food and more - brought by devotees. Devotees may then sit in meditation, basking in the blessings invoked by the puja.
Partaking of the Sacred Flame
The sacramental lamp which has just been offered at the high point of the puja is sometimes passed among the devotees. The devas can see and bless you through this flame as it lights up your face. Sometimes you, too, can glimpse into their world. When the priest comes to you with the lamp, hold your hands a few inches apart with your palms down. Reach out and pass both hands devoutly over the flame. Then bring your hands back, turn your palms toward your face and touch your eyes with your fingertips to receive the Deity's blessings. At Lord Vishnu's shrine, the priest may bring out the silver or gold crown of the Deity and lightly touch it to the head of each devotee as a personal blessing.
Receiving Holy Ash & Water
A sacrament offered in many temples is holy ash, vibhuti, by burning dried cow dung cakes with ghee, flowers, yogurt and and other ingredients. It symbolizes the purity we attain by burning the bonds of ego, karma and maya to reveal the soul's natural goodness. The priest will put a pinch of ash into your right palm. (Accept all offerings with your right hand.) Transfer the vibhuti into your left palm, then apply it to your forehead using your right hand, generally three broad stripes for men, one short stroke for ladies. Next, a small spoonful of holy water, or tirtham, is placed into your cupped right hand, which you then sip, afterwards touching the right palm to the crown of your head.
Accepting Other Sacraments
Chandanam, or sandalwood paste, is a traditional precious substance, valued for its wonderful scent. A small dab is placed in your hand by the priest, which you transfer to your left palm with a wiping motion. Dip your right-hand ring finger into the paste and apply it with a small circular motion between the eyebrows. Kumkum, a red powder, is next. The priest will either place a small pinch in your right hand or invite you to take some from the container which he holds for you. Apply the kumkum on top of the sandalwood, creating a dot, bindi, which represents the third eye of spiritual seeing.
Internalizing Your Worship
The bhakti of uncompromising surrender, prapatti, to the God during a temple puja awakens the amrita. The amrita is the sweet essence from the sahasrara chakra. It is the binding yoke to the Divine. Sit down in the lotus posture after the puja and internalize all the feeling that you had for the God during the worship. Draw into yourself the pranas you feel around your body. Then draw those energies up the spine into the head. This is done with the mind and with the breath. Devotees who want to awaken the higher chakras and sustain that awakening on the safe path will throw themselves into becoming uncompromising bhaktars.
Invoking Special Blessings
An archana is a short puja for an individual, usually done after the main puja. It is a way of asking God for something specific, such as success in school or business, or to express thanks for good fortune. Inform the priest that you want an archana. You should bring fruit and flowers, as well as the archana fee, on an offering tray, which can also have a coconut, incense, kumkum, camphor and sandalwood paste. As you stand before the shrine, the priest will ask your name, gotra (family lineage), and nakshatra (birthstar). During the archana, pray for your special needs. Afterwards the priest will return part of your blessed offerings to take home.
Celebrating Rites of Passage
A central part of every Hindu's life, samskaras are sacred rites of passage. You can arrange for a samskara with the temple priest. There is a charge for these rites, which usually include a puja and homa, or fire ceremony. The priest will set an auspicious time, explain how to prepare and what to bring, as well as what you do during the ceremony. The principal samskaras held in temples, homes or halls are: name-giving (11 to 41 days old for a child, or anytime for an adult entering Hinduism); first solid food (6 months old); ear-piercing (1, 3 or 5 years old); head shaving (1 to 4 years old); first learning (4 years old); initiation into Vedic study (9 to 15 years old); marriage and funeral.
Religion is the harmonious working together of the three worlds. This harmony can be created through temple worship, wherein the beings of all three worlds can communicate.
Free Will and Surrender to the Divine
As we come closer to the wonderful Gods of Hinduism, we come to love them in a natural way, to be guided by them and to depend on them more than we depend on ourselves. The exuberant enthusiasm so prevalent in the West, of holding to an existential independence and expressing an autonomous will to wield the direction of our lives, loses its fascination as we mature within the steady radiance of these Gods and begin to realize the divine purpose of our Earthly sojourn.
One might ask how the Hindu can become so involved in the love of the Gods that he is beholden to their will. Similarly, one might ask how does anyone become so involved and in love with his mother and father, trusting their guidance and protection, that he is beholden to them? It works the same way. Where you find the Hindu family close to one another and happy, you find them close to the Gods. Where they are not close, and live in a fractured or broken home, the Gods will unfortunately have been exiled from their lives. They will not be invoked, and perhaps not even believed in.
Many think that the ultimate devotion, called prapatti in Sanskrit, means giving up their willpower, their independence and their judgment. This is not the meaning of prapatti at all. Not at all. I shall give an example. People who are employed by others work with full energy and vigor, utilizing all their skills on the job, day after day after day, year after year after year. They give of their talents and energies freely, but they do hold back some of the energies and fight within themselves. This is called resistance. That resistance is what they have to offer on the altar of purification. Getting rid of resistance, to be able to flow with the river of life, is what prapatti is all about. Prapatti is freedom. This truly is free will. Free will is not an obstinate will, an opposite force invoked for the preservation of the personal ego. This is willfulness, not free will. Free will is total, intelligent cooperation, total merging of the individual mind with that of another, or of a group. . In religious life, we must have prapatti twenty-four hours a day, which means getting rid of our resistance.
There are various forms of free will. There is free will of the ego, or the instinctive mind, there is free will of the intellect that has been educated in dharma, and there is free will of the intuition. For many, free will is an expression of the little ego, which often entangles them more in the world of maya. For me, true free will means the dharmic will that is divine and guided by the superconscious. In reality, only this kind of will makes you free.
You might ask how you can love something you cannot see. Yet, the Gods can be and are seen by mature souls through an inner perception they have awakened. This psychic awakening is the first initiation into religion. Every Hindu devotee can sense the Gods, even if he cannot yet inwardly see them. This is possible through the subtle feeling nature. He can feel the presence of the Gods within the temple, and he can indirectly see their influence in his life.
Pray first to Ganesha. When in the temple, take every opportunity to serve in simple ways, sweeping the floor, polishing the brass, making flower garlands.
During the puja, focus on the acts of worship, rather than letting your mind wander. Learn the inner meaning of what the priest is doing and follow along.
Go into the temple as you would approach a great king, a governor, a president of a great realm, anticipating, with a little trepidation, your audience with Him.
http://www.hinduism-today.com/archives/2004/10-12/41-48_hindu_temple.shtml
October/November/December, 2004
INSIGHT
Visiting a Hindu Temple
A beginner's guide to the Joys of worship
The Hindu temple is a sacred space where man and God commune. It is the home of God and the Gods. Within these sacred abodes, priests conduct puja rites--presenting flowers, water, incense, lights, food and other choice offerings--to honor God and the Gods and invoke their presence and blessings.
In this Insight, we explore the experience of attending a temple, drawing from Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami's wisdom on the mysticism of Hindu worship. While basic customs described here are common to temples of all traditions, we focus mainly on the style of puja done in the temples of South India.
God and the Gods are real beings; they are not mere symbols or figments of imagination. If you could view the temple from the inner worlds, you would see a brilliant ray coming from the Third World right into the temple on the physical plane. This ray allows communication similar to a live video conference. The priest opens the connection by performing puja worship. When the puja is performed with loving devotion, the ray becomes strong and inner doors open from God's world to ours; the angelic helpers, called devas, hover around and through the temple, and blessings pour out to the devotees. A Hindu temple's devonic rays have the power to transform the course of karma, open inner doors to new opportunities, assuage long-held hurts and provide inner visions equaling the fullness of devotion.
Devotion in Hinduism is known as bhakti. it is an entire realm of knowledge and practice unto itself, ranging from the child-like wonder of the unknown and the mysterious to the deep reverence which comes with understanding of the esoteric interworkings of the three worlds. Hinduism views existence as composed of three worlds. The First World is the physical universe, the Second World is the subtle astral or mental plane of existence in which the devas, or angels, and spirits live, and the Third World is the spiritual sphere of the Mahadevas, the Deities, the Gods. Hinduism is the harmonious working together of these three worlds. Religion blossoms for the Hindu as he awakens to the existence of the Second and Third Worlds. These inner worlds naturally inspire in man responses of love and devotion and even awe. They are that wonderful.
Devotion in Hinduism occurs on many levels and at different cycles of time in the evolution of the soul. All forms of devotion are equally valid, and none claims itself as the only proper form of worship. There is devotion to the tribal Deities, to the scriptures, to the saints and to the satguru. But the most prevalent expression of worship for the Hindu comes as devotion to God and the Gods. In the Hindu pantheon there are said to be 330 million Gods. Even so, all Hindus believe in one Supreme Being who pervades the entire universe.
The many Gods are perceived as divine creations of that one Being. These Gods, or Mahadevas, are real beings, capable of thought and feeling beyond the limited thought and feeling of embodied man. So, Hinduism has one God, but it has many Gods. There are only a few of these Gods for whom temples are built and pujas conducted. Ganesha, Siva, Subramaniam, Vishnu and Shakti are the most prominent Deities in contemporary Hinduism. Of course, there are many others for whom certain rites or mantras are done in daily ceremony, often in the home shrine. These include Brahma, Surya, Sarasvati, Lakshmi, Agni, Chandra, Ayyappan, Hanuman, Mariyamman and others.
The Hindu traditionally adopts an Ishta Devata. This is a personal Deity chosen from the many Hindu Gods, often according to the devotee's family background or the feeling of closeness to one form of divine manifestation. It is the unique and all-encompassing nature of Hinduism that one devotee may be worshiping Ganesha while his friend worships Subramaniam or Vishnu, and yet both honor the other's choice and feel no sense of conflict. The profound understanding and universal acceptance that are unique in Hinduism are reflected in this faculty for accommodating different approaches to the Divine, allowing for different names and forms of God to be worshiped side by side within the temple walls. It may even happen that one may adopt a different personal Deity through the years according to one's spiritual unfoldment and inner needs.
The Hindu religion brings to us the gift of tolerance that allows for different stages of worship, different and personal expressions of devotion and even different Gods to guide our life on this Earth. Yet, it is a one religion under a single divine hierarchy that sees to the harmonious working together of the three worlds. These intelligent beings have evolved through eons of time and are able to help mankind without themselves having to live in a physical body. These great Mahadevas, with their multitudes of angelic devas, live and work constantly and tirelessly for the people of our religion, protecting and guiding them, opening new doors and closing unused ones. The Gods worshiped by the Hindu abide in the Third World, aided by the devas that inhabit the Second World.
It is in the Hindu temple that the three worlds meet and devotees invoke the Gods of our religion. The temple is built as a palace in which the Gods reside. It is the visible home of the Gods, a sacred place unlike every other place on the Earth. The Hindu must associate himself with these Gods in a very sensitive way when he approaches the temple.
Though the devotee rarely has the psychic vision of the Deity, he is aware of the God's divine presence. He is aware through feeling, through sensing the divine presence within the temple. As he approaches the sanctum sanctorum, the Hindu is fully aware that an intelligent being, greater and more evolved than himself, is there. This God is intently aware of him, safeguarding him, fully knowing his inmost thought, fully capable of coping with any situation the devotee may mentally lay at His holy feet. It is important that we approach the Deity in this way--conscious and confident that our needs are known in the inner spiritual worlds.
The physical representation of the God, be it a stone or metal image, a yantra or other sacred form, simply marks the place that the God will manifest in or hover above in His etheric body. It can be conceived as an antenna to receive the divine rays of the God or as the material body in or through which the God manifests in this First World. Man takes one body and then another in his progression through the cycles of birth and death and rebirth. Similarly, the Gods in their subtle bodies inhabit, for brief or protracted spans of time, these temple images. When we perform puja, a religious ritual, we are attracting the attention of the devas and Mahadevas in the inner worlds. That is the purpose of a puja; it is a form of communication. To enhance this communication, we establish an altar in the temple and in the home. This becomes charged or magnetized through our devotional thoughts and feelings, which radiate out and affect the surrounding environment.
Chanting and satsanga and ceremonial rituals all contribute to this sanctifying process, creating an atmosphere to which the Gods are drawn and in which they can manifest. By the word manifest, I mean they actually come and dwell there and can stay for periods of time, providing the vibration is kept pure and undisturbed. The altar takes on a certain power. In our religion there are altars in temples all over the world inhabited by the devas and the great Gods. When you enter these holy places, you can sense their sanctity. You can feel the presence of these divine beings, and this radiation from them is known as darshan. The reality of the Mahadevas and their darshan can be experienced by the devotee through his awakened ajna vision, or more often as the physical sight of the image in the sanctum coupled with the inner knowing that He is there within the microcosm. This darshan can be felt by all devotees, becoming stronger and more defined as devotion is perfected. Through this darshan, messages can be channeled along the vibratory emanations that radiate out from the Mahadevas, as well as from their representatives, the Second World devas who carry out their work for them in shrines and altars.
To understand darshan, consider the everyday and yet subtle communication of language. You are hearing the tones of my voice through the sensitive organ, your ear. Meaning comes into your mind, for you have been trained to translate these vibrations into meaning through the knowing of the language that I am speaking. Darshan is a vibration, too. It is first experienced in the simple physical glimpse of the form of the Deity in the sanctum. Later, that physical sight gives way to a clairvoyant vision or to a refined cognition received through the sensitive ganglia within your nerve system, the chakras. Through these receptors, a subtle message is received, often not consciously. Perhaps not immediately, but the message that the darshan carries, direct from the Mahadeva--direct from Lord Ganesha, direct from Lord Murugan, direct from Lord Siva Himself--manifests in your life. This is the way the Gods converse. It is a communication more real than the communication of language that you experience each day. It is not necessary to understand the communication immediately. The devotee may go away from the temple outwardly feeling that there was no particular message, or not knowing in his intellectual mind exactly what the darshan meant. Even the words you are now reading may not be fully cognized for days, weeks or even months. The depth of meaning will unfold itself on reflection.
Visiting a Hindu temple, receiving darshan from the majestic Gods of our religion, can altogether change the life of a worshiper. It alters the flow of the pranas, or life currents, within his body. It draws his awareness into the deeper chakras. It adjusts his beliefs and the attitudes that are the natural consequence of those beliefs. But the change is slow. He lives with the experience for months and months after his visit to the temple. He comes to know and love the Deity. The Deity comes to know and love him, helping and guiding his entire evolutionary pattern. Darshan coming from the great temples of our Gods can change the patterns of karma dating back many past lives, clearing and clarifying conditions that were created hundreds of years ago and are but seeds now, waiting to manifest in the future. Through the grace of the Gods, those seeds can be removed if the manifestation in the future would not enhance the evolution of the soul.
Devotees ask, "Why do we circumambulate the temple?" When we come to the temple out of the world, off the street, we are often shrouded by negative vibrations, which can actually be seen in our aura. Our nerve system may be upset, especially now, in the technological age, when we often suffer from stress and strain, the insecurity of so many changes and the rapid pace of life. In order to prepare ourselves to enter the sanctum sanctorum of the temple, the great mandapam inside, we walk clockwise around the temple very slowly. In this way we prepare our mind. We consciously drop off worldliness, letting the sufferings go, letting all disturbances leave our mind the best we can, and trying to reach deep inside of ourselves where peace exists eternally. We become as celestial as we can during the time we are walking around the temple, so that we can communicate with the celestial beings within the temple.
In a Hindu temple there is often a multiplicity of simultaneous proceedings and ceremonies. In one corner, an extended family, or clan, with its hundreds of tightly knit members, may be joyously celebrating a wedding. At another shrine a lady might be crying in front of the Deity, saddened by some misfortune and in need of solace. Elsewhere in the crowded precincts a baby is being blessed, and several groups of temple musicians are filling the chamber with the shrill sounds of the nagasvaram and drum. After the puja reaches its zenith, brahmin priests move in and out of the sanctum, passing camphor and sacred ash and holy water to hundreds of worshipers crowding eagerly to get a glimpse of the Deity. All of this is happening at once, unplanned and yet totally organized. It is a wonderful experience, and such a diverse array of devotional ceremonies and such an intensity of worship can only be seen in a Hindu temple. There is no place on Earth quite like a Hindu temple.
Esoterically, the Gods in the temple, who live in the microcosm, can work extraordinarily fast with everyone. There is so much going on that everyone has the sense of being alone. The weeping woman is allowed her moment of mourning. No one feels that she is upsetting the nearby wedding. No one even notices her. The temple is so active, so filled with people, that each one is left to worship as he needs that day--to cry or to laugh or to sing or to sit in silent contemplation in a far-off corner.
Like the Hindu religion itself, the Hindu temple is able to absorb and encompass everyone. It never says you must worship in this way, or you must be silent because there is a ceremony in progress. It accepts all, rejects none. It encourages all to come to God and does not legislate a single form of devotion.
Hindus always want to live near a temple so they can frequent it regularly. When we go to the temple, we leave with our mind filled with the shakti of the Deity. We are filled and thrilled with the shakti of the temple in every nerve current of our body. When we return to our home, we light an oil lamp, and that brings the power of the temple into the home. This simple act brings the devas in the Second World right into your home, where they can bless the rest of the family who perhaps did not go to the temple. Each Hindu temple throughout the world has its own rules on how to proceed and what to do within it. In some temples, in fact most temples in South India, all the men are required to take off their shirts and enter bare-chested. However, if you are in a business suit in the South Indian temple in New York, that's all right. You are not required to take off your shirt. Every temple has its own rules, so you have to observe what everybody else is doing the first time you go.
In the beginning stages of worship, a Hindu soul may have to wrestle with disbelief in the Gods. He may wonder whether they really exist, especially if his own intuition is obscured by assimilation of Western, existentialist beliefs and attitudes. Yet, he senses their existence, and this sensing brings him back to the temple. He is looking for proof, immersed in the process of coming to know the Gods for himself. He is heartened and assured by hundreds of saints and rishis who have fathomed and found close and enduring relationships with the Gods, and who then extolled their greatness in pages of scripture and chronicle.
The devotee stands before the sanctum and telepathically tells the Gods a problem, and with hopeful faith leaves and waits. Days or weeks later, after he had forgotten about his prayer, he suddenly realizes the problem has disappeared. He attempts to trace the source of its solution and finds that a simple, favorable play of circumstance and events brought it about. Had the Gods answered his prayer, or would it have happened anyway? He brings another prayer to the Gods, and again in time an answer appears in the natural course of his life. It appears to him that the Gods are hearing and responding to his needs. Trust and love have taken root. He goes on, year after year, bringing the Gods into his secular affairs, while just as carefully the Gods are bringing him into their celestial spheres, enlivening his soul with energy, joy and intelligence.
The Hindu looks to the Gods for very practical assistance. He devoutly believes that the Gods from their dwelling in the Third World are capable of consciously working with the forces of evolution in the universe and they could then certainly manage a few simpler problems. He devoutly believes that the Gods are given to care for man on the planet and see him through his tenure on Earth, and that their decisions are vast in their implications. Their overview spans time itself, and yet their detailed focus upon the complicated fabric of human affairs is just as awesome.
The Gods of Hinduism create, preserve and protect mankind. It is through their sanction that all things continue, and through their will that they cease. It is through their grace that all good things happen, and all things that happen are for the good. Now, you may wonder why one would put himself under this divine authority so willingly, thus losing his semblance of freedom. But does one not willingly put himself in total harmony with those whom he loves? Of course he does. And loving these great souls comes so naturally. Their timeless wisdom, their vast intelligence, their thoroughly benign natures, their ceaseless concern for the problems and well-being of devotees, and their power and sheer godly brilliance--all these inspire our love.
Worship is pouring all your energy into one-pointedly adoring the God or Goddess feeling your loving sincerity, the Diety responds with life changing blessings
Approaching the Temple
Temple Manners
Remove your shoes before entering. Be respectful of God and the Gods at all times, as if approaching the benevolent leader of a great realm. Bring your problems, wishes or your sorrows but leave improper manners outside as you enter this holy sanctuary. Do not enter the shrines without invitation. Do not sit with your feet pointing toward the Deities, the guru or another person. Hugging and other demonstrations of affection between adults are not appropriate. Refrain from gossip and worldly talk. Treat the priests with respect.
Look and Feel Your Best
You will want to look and feel your best when you go to the temple, God's home. Prepare yourself by bathing and putting on clean clothing. Traditional dress is best - saris or punjabis for ladies, long dresses for girls, and kurta shirt and dhoti or pants for men and boys. But any nice, modest clothing suitable for sitting on the floor is acceptable.
Prepare Mentally; Bring a Gift
Prepare your mind by thinking about God in anticipation of your visit. Bring an offering, such as fruits and flowers. Prostrate and walk around the temple where possible. Hands pressed together in namaskara, greet the Deities at their shrines, starting with Ganesha, and present your offerings. Inwardly feel God's uplifting presence, called sannidhya.
Prostrate to the Deity
Prostrating is a traditional expression of worshipful surrender and adoration. The form of prostration differs for men and women. Men perform a fully prone pose, called ashtanga pranama, in which hands, chest, forehead, knees and feet touch the ground. Women perform a kneeling pose, panchanga pranama, in which hands, head and legs touch the ground.
Worship Wholeheartedly
Ardent worship takes many forms in a temple. You can be immersed in the joys of devotion, in prayerful communion, seeking solace for a loss, singing hymns, chanting mantras or celebrating a rite of passage. Meditation is appropriate, especially after the puja, and emotion is not out of place. God will receive your devotion, however you offer it.
There are three worlds of existence: the gross plane where souls live in physical bodies; the subtle plane, where souls reside in astral bodies; and the causal, divine plane of God and the Gods.
Attending the Puja Ceremony
Conducted by a trained priest called a pujari, a Hindu worship service or puja, literally "adoration," is similar to a grand reception for a king. Pujas can last from ten minutes to several hours, but all follow one basic pattern. First, the pujari purifies himself, the sacred implements and the place of worship. He chants in Sanskrit the time, place and nature of this particular puja. Through hand gestures (mudras) and chants, he beseeches the Deity to come and dwell in the image. Ringing a bell and chanting mantras and hymns from the ancient Vedas and Agamas, the pujari then offers precious substances to the Deity, including water, uncooked rice with turmeric powder, holy ash, sandalwood paste and kumkum. Sometimes water, sesame oil, turmeric water, saffron, milk, yogurt, ghee, honey, lime juice, vibhuti, sandalwood paste, panchamritam (mixture of five fruits), coconut water and rosewater are poured over the Deity in a ritual bath called abhishekam. Devotees are seated during most of the puja, in some traditions, men on the right and women on the left. After abhishekam, the Deity is dressed in new clothes and beautifully decorated with flowers. At this point, devotees may sing devotional songs. After decorating the Deity, the pujari offers incense, oil lamps and food. He offers flowers while chanting 108 names of the God. At the high point of the puja, a large, sacred lamp is waved before the Deity and the temple bells are rung loudly as God sends His power through the holy image of Himself. When the lamp is lowered, everyone prostrates to the Divine. The lamp is then carried out to bless the worshipers, who often leave a donation on the tray (or later in the temple offering box). Finally, depending on the tradition, sacraments such as holy ash, holy water, sandalwood paste, kumkum, fruit, sweets and flowers are passed out to bless all present. These include a portion of the offerings - flowers, cooked food and more - brought by devotees. Devotees may then sit in meditation, basking in the blessings invoked by the puja.
Partaking of the Sacred Flame
The sacramental lamp which has just been offered at the high point of the puja is sometimes passed among the devotees. The devas can see and bless you through this flame as it lights up your face. Sometimes you, too, can glimpse into their world. When the priest comes to you with the lamp, hold your hands a few inches apart with your palms down. Reach out and pass both hands devoutly over the flame. Then bring your hands back, turn your palms toward your face and touch your eyes with your fingertips to receive the Deity's blessings. At Lord Vishnu's shrine, the priest may bring out the silver or gold crown of the Deity and lightly touch it to the head of each devotee as a personal blessing.
Receiving Holy Ash & Water
A sacrament offered in many temples is holy ash, vibhuti, by burning dried cow dung cakes with ghee, flowers, yogurt and and other ingredients. It symbolizes the purity we attain by burning the bonds of ego, karma and maya to reveal the soul's natural goodness. The priest will put a pinch of ash into your right palm. (Accept all offerings with your right hand.) Transfer the vibhuti into your left palm, then apply it to your forehead using your right hand, generally three broad stripes for men, one short stroke for ladies. Next, a small spoonful of holy water, or tirtham, is placed into your cupped right hand, which you then sip, afterwards touching the right palm to the crown of your head.
Accepting Other Sacraments
Chandanam, or sandalwood paste, is a traditional precious substance, valued for its wonderful scent. A small dab is placed in your hand by the priest, which you transfer to your left palm with a wiping motion. Dip your right-hand ring finger into the paste and apply it with a small circular motion between the eyebrows. Kumkum, a red powder, is next. The priest will either place a small pinch in your right hand or invite you to take some from the container which he holds for you. Apply the kumkum on top of the sandalwood, creating a dot, bindi, which represents the third eye of spiritual seeing.
Internalizing Your Worship
The bhakti of uncompromising surrender, prapatti, to the God during a temple puja awakens the amrita. The amrita is the sweet essence from the sahasrara chakra. It is the binding yoke to the Divine. Sit down in the lotus posture after the puja and internalize all the feeling that you had for the God during the worship. Draw into yourself the pranas you feel around your body. Then draw those energies up the spine into the head. This is done with the mind and with the breath. Devotees who want to awaken the higher chakras and sustain that awakening on the safe path will throw themselves into becoming uncompromising bhaktars.
Invoking Special Blessings
An archana is a short puja for an individual, usually done after the main puja. It is a way of asking God for something specific, such as success in school or business, or to express thanks for good fortune. Inform the priest that you want an archana. You should bring fruit and flowers, as well as the archana fee, on an offering tray, which can also have a coconut, incense, kumkum, camphor and sandalwood paste. As you stand before the shrine, the priest will ask your name, gotra (family lineage), and nakshatra (birthstar). During the archana, pray for your special needs. Afterwards the priest will return part of your blessed offerings to take home.
Celebrating Rites of Passage
A central part of every Hindu's life, samskaras are sacred rites of passage. You can arrange for a samskara with the temple priest. There is a charge for these rites, which usually include a puja and homa, or fire ceremony. The priest will set an auspicious time, explain how to prepare and what to bring, as well as what you do during the ceremony. The principal samskaras held in temples, homes or halls are: name-giving (11 to 41 days old for a child, or anytime for an adult entering Hinduism); first solid food (6 months old); ear-piercing (1, 3 or 5 years old); head shaving (1 to 4 years old); first learning (4 years old); initiation into Vedic study (9 to 15 years old); marriage and funeral.
Religion is the harmonious working together of the three worlds. This harmony can be created through temple worship, wherein the beings of all three worlds can communicate.
Free Will and Surrender to the Divine
As we come closer to the wonderful Gods of Hinduism, we come to love them in a natural way, to be guided by them and to depend on them more than we depend on ourselves. The exuberant enthusiasm so prevalent in the West, of holding to an existential independence and expressing an autonomous will to wield the direction of our lives, loses its fascination as we mature within the steady radiance of these Gods and begin to realize the divine purpose of our Earthly sojourn.
One might ask how the Hindu can become so involved in the love of the Gods that he is beholden to their will. Similarly, one might ask how does anyone become so involved and in love with his mother and father, trusting their guidance and protection, that he is beholden to them? It works the same way. Where you find the Hindu family close to one another and happy, you find them close to the Gods. Where they are not close, and live in a fractured or broken home, the Gods will unfortunately have been exiled from their lives. They will not be invoked, and perhaps not even believed in.
Many think that the ultimate devotion, called prapatti in Sanskrit, means giving up their willpower, their independence and their judgment. This is not the meaning of prapatti at all. Not at all. I shall give an example. People who are employed by others work with full energy and vigor, utilizing all their skills on the job, day after day after day, year after year after year. They give of their talents and energies freely, but they do hold back some of the energies and fight within themselves. This is called resistance. That resistance is what they have to offer on the altar of purification. Getting rid of resistance, to be able to flow with the river of life, is what prapatti is all about. Prapatti is freedom. This truly is free will. Free will is not an obstinate will, an opposite force invoked for the preservation of the personal ego. This is willfulness, not free will. Free will is total, intelligent cooperation, total merging of the individual mind with that of another, or of a group. . In religious life, we must have prapatti twenty-four hours a day, which means getting rid of our resistance.
There are various forms of free will. There is free will of the ego, or the instinctive mind, there is free will of the intellect that has been educated in dharma, and there is free will of the intuition. For many, free will is an expression of the little ego, which often entangles them more in the world of maya. For me, true free will means the dharmic will that is divine and guided by the superconscious. In reality, only this kind of will makes you free.
You might ask how you can love something you cannot see. Yet, the Gods can be and are seen by mature souls through an inner perception they have awakened. This psychic awakening is the first initiation into religion. Every Hindu devotee can sense the Gods, even if he cannot yet inwardly see them. This is possible through the subtle feeling nature. He can feel the presence of the Gods within the temple, and he can indirectly see their influence in his life.
Pray first to Ganesha. When in the temple, take every opportunity to serve in simple ways, sweeping the floor, polishing the brass, making flower garlands.
During the puja, focus on the acts of worship, rather than letting your mind wander. Learn the inner meaning of what the priest is doing and follow along.
Go into the temple as you would approach a great king, a governor, a president of a great realm, anticipating, with a little trepidation, your audience with Him.
Quotes & Quips
"The mind is so hard that an atomic bomb will not make a dent in it, but meditation will.
Swami Ashokananda (1893-1969), monk of the Ramakrishna Order and accomplished teacher of Vedanta in the West
"The Blind Men and the Elephant,
the American poet John Godfrey Saxe (1816-1887) is based on a famous Indian parable. It provides a metaphorical explanation as to why the descriptions in the world's religions of the one Supreme Being they all worship can so radically differ:
It was six men of Indostan
To learning much inclined,
Who went to see the Elephant
(Though all of them were blind),
That each by observation
Might satisfy his mind.
The First approached the Elephant,
And happening to fall
Against his broad and sturdy side,
At once began to bawl:
"God bless me! but the Elephant
Is very like a wall!
The Second, feeling of the tusk
Cried, "Ho! what have we here
, So very round and smooth and sharp?
To me 'tis mighty clear
This wonder of an Elephant
Is very like a spear!
The Third approached the animal,
And happening to take
The squirming trunk within his hands,
Thus boldly up he spake:
"I see, quoth he, "the Elephant
Is very like a snake!
The Fourth reached out an eager hand,
And felt about the knee:
"What most this wondrous beast is like
Is mighty plain, quoth he;
"'Tis clear enough the Elephant
Is very like a tree!
The Fifth, who chanced to touch the ear,
Said: "E'en the blindest man
Can tell what this resembles most;
Deny the fact who can,
This marvel of an Elephant
Is very like a fan!
The Sixth no sooner had begun
About the beast to grope,
Than, seizing on the swinging tail
That fell within his scope.
"I see, quoth he, "the Elephant
Is very like a rope!
And so these men of Indostan
Disputed loud and long,
Each in his own opinion
Exceeding stiff and strong,
Though each was partly in the right,
And all were in the wrong!
Moral: So oft in theologic wars,
The disputants, I ween,
Rail on in utter ignorance
Of what each other mean,
And prate about an Elephant
Not one of them has seen.
On the pathway of spiritual excellence, words that discourage and those that publicize faults of others are lethal poisons. His Divine Holiness Pramukh Swami Maharaj, spiritual head of Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha
Hinduism today is a religion of today and tomorrow. It is not just a religion of history books and yesterday. Our religion gives us strength today. It is a religion which worships one Supreme God, with vast scriptures that prescribe the worship and illumine our minds with knowledge about the one Supreme God. Never forget this. Never forsake your Vedic Hindu Dharma, but fulfill it, and you will be rewarded, generation after generation after generation. Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami (1927-2001), founder of Hinduism Today
Avoidance Of Fraud
Tirukural 281: He who wishes not to be scorned by others guards his own mind against the slightest thought of fraud.
Tirukural 283: A fortune amassed by fraud may appear to prosper but will all too soon perish altogether.
Tirukural 285: Benevolent thoughts and kindly feelings flee from those who watch for another's unwatchfulness to swindle his property.
Tirukural 286: Those who walk deceit's desirous path cannot hope to work wisdom's measured way.
"The mind is so hard that an atomic bomb will not make a dent in it, but meditation will.
Swami Ashokananda (1893-1969), monk of the Ramakrishna Order and accomplished teacher of Vedanta in the West
"The Blind Men and the Elephant,
the American poet John Godfrey Saxe (1816-1887) is based on a famous Indian parable. It provides a metaphorical explanation as to why the descriptions in the world's religions of the one Supreme Being they all worship can so radically differ:
It was six men of Indostan
To learning much inclined,
Who went to see the Elephant
(Though all of them were blind),
That each by observation
Might satisfy his mind.
The First approached the Elephant,
And happening to fall
Against his broad and sturdy side,
At once began to bawl:
"God bless me! but the Elephant
Is very like a wall!
The Second, feeling of the tusk
Cried, "Ho! what have we here
, So very round and smooth and sharp?
To me 'tis mighty clear
This wonder of an Elephant
Is very like a spear!
The Third approached the animal,
And happening to take
The squirming trunk within his hands,
Thus boldly up he spake:
"I see, quoth he, "the Elephant
Is very like a snake!
The Fourth reached out an eager hand,
And felt about the knee:
"What most this wondrous beast is like
Is mighty plain, quoth he;
"'Tis clear enough the Elephant
Is very like a tree!
The Fifth, who chanced to touch the ear,
Said: "E'en the blindest man
Can tell what this resembles most;
Deny the fact who can,
This marvel of an Elephant
Is very like a fan!
The Sixth no sooner had begun
About the beast to grope,
Than, seizing on the swinging tail
That fell within his scope.
"I see, quoth he, "the Elephant
Is very like a rope!
And so these men of Indostan
Disputed loud and long,
Each in his own opinion
Exceeding stiff and strong,
Though each was partly in the right,
And all were in the wrong!
Moral: So oft in theologic wars,
The disputants, I ween,
Rail on in utter ignorance
Of what each other mean,
And prate about an Elephant
Not one of them has seen.
On the pathway of spiritual excellence, words that discourage and those that publicize faults of others are lethal poisons. His Divine Holiness Pramukh Swami Maharaj, spiritual head of Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha
Hinduism today is a religion of today and tomorrow. It is not just a religion of history books and yesterday. Our religion gives us strength today. It is a religion which worships one Supreme God, with vast scriptures that prescribe the worship and illumine our minds with knowledge about the one Supreme God. Never forget this. Never forsake your Vedic Hindu Dharma, but fulfill it, and you will be rewarded, generation after generation after generation. Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami (1927-2001), founder of Hinduism Today
Avoidance Of Fraud
Tirukural 281: He who wishes not to be scorned by others guards his own mind against the slightest thought of fraud.
Tirukural 283: A fortune amassed by fraud may appear to prosper but will all too soon perish altogether.
Tirukural 285: Benevolent thoughts and kindly feelings flee from those who watch for another's unwatchfulness to swindle his property.
Tirukural 286: Those who walk deceit's desirous path cannot hope to work wisdom's measured way.
FROM THE VEDAS
http://www.hinduism-today.com/archives/2005/1-3/16-17_vedas.shtml
Love and Be One with God
The Rishis paint a picture of the Supreme Lord of All
translations by raimundo pannikar
Though 20th century Western scholarship has focused on the impersonal monism of the Upanishads, the Vedas are filled with theistic devotion, known as "bhakti." The modern academic classification of the bhakti movements as a latter day phenomenon belie Hinduism's holistic historical reality--the mystical vision of the immanent-transcendant Absolute and the heartfelt personal relationship with God as our Lord, are seamlessly interwoven in the Hindu heart and mind.
On all sides eyes, on all sides faces, on all sides arms, on all sides feet, He, God, the One, creates Heaven and Earth, forging them together with arms and wings. He who is source and origin of the Gods, the Lord of all, Rudra, the mighty sage, who produced in ancient days the Golden Germ--may He endow us with purity of mind! Without beginning and end is He; in the midst of chaos He is and brings forth all things. Creator is He, and sole pervader, of manifold forms. When a man knows God, He is freed from all fetters.
Svetasvatara Upanishad III, 3-4; V, 13
Of lords the Lord Supreme, of kings the King, of Gods the God, Him let us worship--the transcendent Lord of all worlds and wholly worthy of worship. In Him exists neither action nor organ of action; no one is found His equal or superior to Him. His supreme power is revealed in manifold forms; inherent to His nature is the working of His strength and wisdom. None in this world is His master, none His commander. He has no distinctive sign; He is the Cause. Himself unruled, ungenerated, He rules the sense organs. He is the Creator of all, the knower of all things, the source of the Self, the Knower, the Author of time, possessor and master of all the qualities, omniscient, the Lord of both Nature and Spirit, the cause of liberation from this world's cycle and the bondage of earthly existence.
Identical with it, immortal, by nature the Lord, omnipresent and wise, the guardian and eternal ruler of the world is He. No other Ground can be found. In Him who in days of old created Brahma and imparted to Him the Veda, in this God, who is illumined by His own intelligence, I take refuge, longing for liberation &.In Him who is undivided, inactive, peaceful, irreproachable, free from blemish, the supreme bridge to immortality, who resembles a fire whose fuel is wholly consumed.
Svetasvatara Upanishad VI, 7-9; 16-19
The sound that is uttered in the beginning of the Veda, the sound that is also established at its end, that which is beyond its absorption in Nature--that is the supreme Lord. [We adore] the God with a thousand heads, with an all-seeing eye, who grants peace to all, Narayana, universal God, supreme Word, imperishable, on every side supreme, eternal, Narayana, universal Lord. All this universe exists vivified by the Person. [We adore] the Master of all, the Lord of the soul, eternal, benevolent, immobile, Narayana, the mighty one to be known, the Self of all, the supreme goal. Narayana, Light supreme, the Self, Narayana the Supreme, Narayana, supreme essence of Brahman, Narayana, the Supreme! Narayana is both the supreme meditator and meditation itself, Narayana, the Supreme. Whatever moves in this universe, whatever is either seen or heard, whatever is inside or outside--all is pervaded by the Lord. He is therein established. This is the Lord of all, the Knower of all, the inner controller. This is the source of all, the beginning and end of all beings.
Mahanarayana Upanishad, 233-245
Commentary by Raimundo Panikkar
Salvation is not achieved by human effort alone, nor is it a spontaneous act of divine grace, as later theologies declare, but it is rather a unique act in which "God " and "Man " --for we cannot dispense with these two at this stage--coincide. To recognize the Lord is to be saved, certainly; but, in order to recognize Him, not only do I have to be united with Him but also He has to disclose Himself to me, so that it has little meaning to discuss at this point whence the initiative comes. The Upanishads constantly remind us that the universe, Men and the Lord are both united and separate; they are interrelated, but the link, being unique, cannot adequately be expressed by a simile.
The Upanishads proffer an invitation to a higher life of contemplation, to the enormous and risky adventure of finding the Lord, who can neither be spoken of nor identified with any objective or subjective reality.... The Upanishads attempt to resolve the dilemma by propounding the way of Self-Realization, the personal discovery of the hidden treasure. The Lord is within and without, personal and impersonal, moving and unmoving, "Being and Nonbeing." He is the Lord precisely because he is not limited by any one pair of opposites.
Raimundo Panikkar, 83, holds doctorates in science, philosophy and theology. His anthology, The Vedic Experience, excerpted above, is the result of ten years in Banaras translating with the help of Vedic scholars.
The Vedas are the divinely revealed and most revered scriptures, sruti, of Hinduism, likened to the Torah (1,200 bce), Bible New Testament (100 ce), Koran (630 ce) or Zend Avesta (600 bce). Four in number, Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharva, the Vedas include over 100,000 verses. Oldest portions may date back as far as 6,000 bce.
http://www.hometown.aol.com/mmenon9018/myhomepage/faith.html
http://www.mkgandhi.org/
http://www.hinduism-today.com/archives/2005/1-3/16-17_vedas.shtml
Love and Be One with God
The Rishis paint a picture of the Supreme Lord of All
translations by raimundo pannikar
Though 20th century Western scholarship has focused on the impersonal monism of the Upanishads, the Vedas are filled with theistic devotion, known as "bhakti." The modern academic classification of the bhakti movements as a latter day phenomenon belie Hinduism's holistic historical reality--the mystical vision of the immanent-transcendant Absolute and the heartfelt personal relationship with God as our Lord, are seamlessly interwoven in the Hindu heart and mind.
On all sides eyes, on all sides faces, on all sides arms, on all sides feet, He, God, the One, creates Heaven and Earth, forging them together with arms and wings. He who is source and origin of the Gods, the Lord of all, Rudra, the mighty sage, who produced in ancient days the Golden Germ--may He endow us with purity of mind! Without beginning and end is He; in the midst of chaos He is and brings forth all things. Creator is He, and sole pervader, of manifold forms. When a man knows God, He is freed from all fetters.
Svetasvatara Upanishad III, 3-4; V, 13
Of lords the Lord Supreme, of kings the King, of Gods the God, Him let us worship--the transcendent Lord of all worlds and wholly worthy of worship. In Him exists neither action nor organ of action; no one is found His equal or superior to Him. His supreme power is revealed in manifold forms; inherent to His nature is the working of His strength and wisdom. None in this world is His master, none His commander. He has no distinctive sign; He is the Cause. Himself unruled, ungenerated, He rules the sense organs. He is the Creator of all, the knower of all things, the source of the Self, the Knower, the Author of time, possessor and master of all the qualities, omniscient, the Lord of both Nature and Spirit, the cause of liberation from this world's cycle and the bondage of earthly existence.
Identical with it, immortal, by nature the Lord, omnipresent and wise, the guardian and eternal ruler of the world is He. No other Ground can be found. In Him who in days of old created Brahma and imparted to Him the Veda, in this God, who is illumined by His own intelligence, I take refuge, longing for liberation &.In Him who is undivided, inactive, peaceful, irreproachable, free from blemish, the supreme bridge to immortality, who resembles a fire whose fuel is wholly consumed.
Svetasvatara Upanishad VI, 7-9; 16-19
The sound that is uttered in the beginning of the Veda, the sound that is also established at its end, that which is beyond its absorption in Nature--that is the supreme Lord. [We adore] the God with a thousand heads, with an all-seeing eye, who grants peace to all, Narayana, universal God, supreme Word, imperishable, on every side supreme, eternal, Narayana, universal Lord. All this universe exists vivified by the Person. [We adore] the Master of all, the Lord of the soul, eternal, benevolent, immobile, Narayana, the mighty one to be known, the Self of all, the supreme goal. Narayana, Light supreme, the Self, Narayana the Supreme, Narayana, supreme essence of Brahman, Narayana, the Supreme! Narayana is both the supreme meditator and meditation itself, Narayana, the Supreme. Whatever moves in this universe, whatever is either seen or heard, whatever is inside or outside--all is pervaded by the Lord. He is therein established. This is the Lord of all, the Knower of all, the inner controller. This is the source of all, the beginning and end of all beings.
Mahanarayana Upanishad, 233-245
Commentary by Raimundo Panikkar
Salvation is not achieved by human effort alone, nor is it a spontaneous act of divine grace, as later theologies declare, but it is rather a unique act in which "God " and "Man " --for we cannot dispense with these two at this stage--coincide. To recognize the Lord is to be saved, certainly; but, in order to recognize Him, not only do I have to be united with Him but also He has to disclose Himself to me, so that it has little meaning to discuss at this point whence the initiative comes. The Upanishads constantly remind us that the universe, Men and the Lord are both united and separate; they are interrelated, but the link, being unique, cannot adequately be expressed by a simile.
The Upanishads proffer an invitation to a higher life of contemplation, to the enormous and risky adventure of finding the Lord, who can neither be spoken of nor identified with any objective or subjective reality.... The Upanishads attempt to resolve the dilemma by propounding the way of Self-Realization, the personal discovery of the hidden treasure. The Lord is within and without, personal and impersonal, moving and unmoving, "Being and Nonbeing." He is the Lord precisely because he is not limited by any one pair of opposites.
Raimundo Panikkar, 83, holds doctorates in science, philosophy and theology. His anthology, The Vedic Experience, excerpted above, is the result of ten years in Banaras translating with the help of Vedic scholars.
The Vedas are the divinely revealed and most revered scriptures, sruti, of Hinduism, likened to the Torah (1,200 bce), Bible New Testament (100 ce), Koran (630 ce) or Zend Avesta (600 bce). Four in number, Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharva, the Vedas include over 100,000 verses. Oldest portions may date back as far as 6,000 bce.
http://www.hometown.aol.com/mmenon9018/myhomepage/faith.html
http://www.mkgandhi.org/
The following is an extract from "Hinduism Today", at their online site. A very basic article on a way of life thats called Hinduism.
http://www.hinduism-today.com/archives/2005/1-3/41-48_primer.shtml
January/February/March, 2005
TEACHER'S TOOLBOX
A Hindu Primer
Practices, Beliefs And Attitudes To Teach Our Children
Loving Hindu parents worldwide, of various lineages, have called for a common religious code to teach their sons and daughters. They have asked, "What is the minimum I must do to dispatch my duty to my religion and my children?" In response, we have assembled this "Insight" with hard copy illustrations by artist A. Manivel. It contains 1) an overview of Hinduism; 2) nine basic beliefs; 3) Hinduism from A to Z; 4) five essential precepts; 5) five corresponding observances; and 6) five parenting guidelines. The modern Hindu child raised up with these principles and practices will be a fully functioning human being, one who is tolerant, devotional, fair, fearless, obedient, secure, happy, selfless, pure and traditional. As you will see, these are sophisticated sections, written for parents and teachers, to be stepped down and elucidated for specific age groups. We apologize that, in our brevity, we have inevitably blurred over subtleties in the rainbow of Hindu views.
A Bird's Eye View Of A Family Of Faiths
Hinduism is our planet's original and oldest living religion, with no single founder. For as long as man has lived and roamed across Earth's land and water masses, breathed its air and worshiped in awe its fire, the Sanatana Dharma has been a guide of righteous life for evolving souls. It is important to note that today Hinduism has four main denominations: Saivism, Shaktism, Vaishnavism and Smartism, each with hundreds of lineages. They represent a broad range of beliefs, sadhanas and mystic goals.
While Hindus believe many diverse and exotic things, there are several bedrock concepts on which virtually all concur. All Hindus worship one Supreme Reality, though they call it by many names, and teach that all souls will ultimately realize the truth of the Vedas and Agamas. Hindus believe that there is no eternal hell, no damnation. They concur that there is no intrinsic evil. All is good. All is God. In contrast, Western faiths postulate a living evil force, embodied in Satan, that directly opposes the will of God.
Hindus believe that the universe was created out of God and is permeated by Him--a Supreme Being who both is form and pervades form, who creates, sustains and destroys the universe only to recreate it again in unending cycles. Hindus accept all genuine spiritual paths. Each soul is free to find his own way, whether by devotion, austerity, meditation, yoga or selfless service (seva). Hinduism's three pillars are temple worship, scripture and the guru-disciple tradition. Hinduism strongly declares the validity of the three worlds of existence and the myriad Gods and devas residing within them. Festivals, pilgrimage, chanting of holy hymns and home worship are dynamic practices. Family life is strong and precious. Love, nonviolence, good conduct and the law of dharma define the Hindu path. Hinduism explains that the soul reincarnates until all karmas are resolved and God Realization is attained.
Hindus wear the sectarian marks, called tilaka, on their foreheads as sacred symbols, distinctive insignia of their heritage. Hinduism is a mystical religion, leading devotees to personally experience its eternal truths within themselves, finally reaching the pinnacle of consciousness where man and God are forever one. They prefer cremation of the body upon death, rather than burial, believing that the soul lives on and will inhabit a new body on Earth.
While Hindus have many sacred scriptures, all sects ascribe the highest authority to the Vedas and Agamas, though their Agamas differ somewhat. Hinduism's nearly one billion adherents have tens of thousands of sacred temples and shrines, mostly in India, but now located around the world. Its spiritual core is its holy men and women--millions of sadhus, yogis, swamis, vairagis, saints and satgurus who have dedicated their lives to full-time service, devotion and God Realization, and to proclaiming the eternal truths of the Sanatana Dharma.
Nine Beliefs of Hinduism
1. Hindus believe in the divinity of the Vedas, the world's most ancient scripture, and venerate the Agamas as equally revealed. These primordial hymns are God's word and the bedrock of Sanatana Dharma, the eternal religion which has neither beginning nor end.
2. Hindus believe in a one, all-pervasive Supreme Being who is both immanent and transcendent, both Creator and Unmanifest Reality.
3. Hindus believe that the universe undergoes endless cycles of creation, preservation and dissolution.
4. Hindus believe in karma, the law of cause and effect by which each individual creates his own destiny by his thoughts, words and deeds.
5. Hindus believe that the soul reincarnates, evolving through many births until all karmas have been resolved, and moksha, spiritual knowledge and liberation from the cycle of rebirth, is attained. Not a single soul will be eternally deprived of this destiny.
6. Hindus believe that divine beings exist in unseen worlds and that temple worship, rituals, sacraments as well as personal devotionals create a communion with these devas and Gods.
7. Hindus believe that a spiritually awakened master, or satguru, is essential to know the Transcendent Absolute, as are personal discipline, good conduct, purification, pilgrimage, self-inquiry and meditation.
8. Hindus believe that all life is sacred, to be loved and revered, and therefore practice ahimsa, "noninjury."
9. Hindus believe that no particular religion teaches the only way to salvation above all others, but that all genuine religious paths are facets of God's Pure Love and Light, deserving tolerance and understanding.
Hinduism A to Z, a fun, illustrated alphabet designed as twenty-six mini-lessons on Hindu thought and culture
A is for Aum, the three-syllabled mantra that repre-sents the Sacred Mystery in sound and vibration.
B is for bhakti, deep devotion and love for the Divine which softens even hearts of stone.
C is for culture, the beauty of Hindu music, fine arts, drama, dance, literature and architecture.
D is for dharma, which is righteousness, cosmic order and duty, leading us on the right path.
E is for Earth, our lovely blue planet, which we treat as sacred, protecting all its wonderful creatures.
F is for family, the precious cornerstone of Hindu life, culture, service and tradition.
G is for guru, our enlightened master who, knowing Truth himself, can guide us there.
H is for hatha yoga, healthful physical science for vitality, energy balancing and meditation.
I is for India, Bharata, Mother land to one-sixth of humanity, holy land for Hindus everywhere.
J is for japa, repetitive, prayerful mantras which quiet emotion and empower the mind.
K is for karma, the law of cause and effect by which we determine our experience and destiny.
L is for lotus, the heart's inner shrine, where God dwells, ever serene, ever perfect.
M is for mauna, not talking, the inner silence known when words, thoughts and actions are stilled.
N is for nonattachment, the art of living the simple life, without too many needs or desires.
O is for open mindedness, the Hindu's tolerant freedom of thought, inquiry and belief.
P is for puja, mystic worship of the Divine in our home shrine and holy temples and places.
Q is for quest, seeking to know, "Who am I? Where did I come from? Where am I going?"
R is for reincarnation, our immortal soul's journey from birth to rebirth. We do not fear death.
S is for samskaras, sacraments sanctifying life's passages: name-giving, marriage, death and more.
T is for tilaka, forehead marks worn in honor of our unique and varied lineages.
U is for utsava, our many home and temple festivals, full of bhakti, fun, feasting and family sharing.
V is for Vedas, our oldest and holiest book, the word of God recorded in 100,000 Sanskrit verses.
W is for wealth (artha), one of life's four goals, along with love, dharma and enlightenment.
X is for xerophily, the ability of certain plants and animals to thrive in India's hot, arid plains.
Y is for yoga, union of the soul with God which brings release from worldly bondage.
Z is for zeal, the fervor with which we perform service, go on pilgrimage and greet our holy religious leaders.
Five Precepts
THE MINIMAL HINDU BELIEFS. BY TEACHING THESE TO SONS AND DAUGHTERS, PARENTS WORLDWIDE PASS ON THE SANATANA DHARMA TO THEIR CHILDREN.
1. God Is All in All
The dear children are taught of one Supreme Being, all-pervasive, transcendent, creator, preserver, destroyer, manifesting in various forms, worshiped in all religions by many names, the immortal Self in all. They learn to be tolerant, knowing the soul's Divinity and the unity of all mankind.
2. Holy Temples
The dear children are taught that God, other divine beings and highly evolved souls exist in unseen worlds. They learn to be devoted, knowing that temple worship, fire ceremonies, sacraments and devotionals open channels for loving blessings, help and guidance from these beings.
3. Cosmic Justice
The dear children are taught of karma, the divine law of cause and effect by which every thought, word and deed justly returns to them in this or a future life. They learn to be compassionate, knowing that each experience, good or bad, is the self-created reward of prior expressions of free will.
4. Liberation
The dear children are taught that souls experience righteousness, wealth and pleasure in many births, while maturing spiritually. They learn to be fearless, knowing that all souls, without exception, will ultimately attain Self Realization, liberation from rebirth and union with God.
5. Scripture and Preceptor
The dear children are taught that God revealed the Vedas and Agamas, which contain the eternal truths. They learn to be obedient, following the precepts of these sacred scriptures and awakened satgurus, whose guidance is absolutely essential for spiritual progress and enlightenment.
Five Practices
THE MINIMAL PRACTICES (ALSO KNOWN AS PANCHA NITYA KARMAS) TO NURTURE FUTURE CITIZENS WHO ARE STRONG, RESPONSIBLE, TOLERANT AND TRADITIONAL
1. Worship
The dear children are taught daily worship in the family shrine room--rituals, disciplines, chants, yogas and religious study. They learn to be secure through devotion in home and temple, wearing traditional dress, bringing forth love of the Divine and preparing the mind for serene meditation.
2. Holy Days
The dear children are taught to participate in Hindu festivals and holy days in the home and temple. They learn to be happy through sweet communion with God at such auspicious celebrations. Utsava includes fasting and attending the temple on Monday or Friday and other holy days.
3. Virtuous Living
The dear children are taught to live a life of duty and good conduct. They learn to be selfless by thinking of others first, being respectful of parents, elders and swamis, following divine law, especially ahimsa, mental, emotional and physical noninjury to all beings. Thus they resolve karmas.
4. Pilgrimage
The dear children are taught the value of pilgrimage and are taken at least once a year for darshan of holy persons, temples and places, near or far. They learn to be detached by setting aside worldly affairs and making God, Gods and gurus life's singular focus during these journeys.
5. Rites of Passage
The dear children are taught to observe the many sacraments which mark and sanctify their passages through life. They learn to be traditional by celebrating the rites of birth, name-giving, head-shaving, first feeding, ear-piercing, first learning, coming of age, marriage and death.
Five Parenting Guidelines
BEHAVIORAL PRINCIPLES TO LIVE BY TO NURTURE CHILDREN AND TEACH THEM, VERBALLY AND BY EXAMPLE, TO FOLLOW THE PATH OF DHARMA
1. Good Conduct
Loving fathers and mothers, knowing they are the greatest influence in a child's life, behave the way their dear children should when adults. They never anger or argue before young ones. Father in a dhoti, mother in a sari at home, all sing to God, Gods and guru.
2. Home Worship
Loving fathers and mothers establish a separate shrine room in the home for God, Gods and guardian devas of the family. Ideally it should be large enough for all the dear children. It is a sacred place for scriptural study, a refuge from the karmic storms of life.
3. Talking about Religion
Loving fathers and mothers speak Vedic precepts while driving, eating and playing. This helps dear children understand experiences in right perspective. Parents know many worldly voices are blaring, and their dharmic voice must be stronger.
4. Continuing Self-Study
Loving fathers and mothers keep informed by studying the Vedas, Agamas and sacred literature, listening to swamis and pandits. Youth face a world they will one day own, thus parents prepare their dear children to guide their own future progeny.
5. Following a Spiritual Preceptor
Loving fathers and mothers choose a preceptor, a traditional satguru, and lineage to follow. They support their lineage with all their heart, energy and service. He in turn provides them clear guidance for a successful life, material and religious.
http://www.hinduism-today.com/archives/2005/1-3/41-48_primer.shtml
January/February/March, 2005
TEACHER'S TOOLBOX
A Hindu Primer
Practices, Beliefs And Attitudes To Teach Our Children
Loving Hindu parents worldwide, of various lineages, have called for a common religious code to teach their sons and daughters. They have asked, "What is the minimum I must do to dispatch my duty to my religion and my children?" In response, we have assembled this "Insight" with hard copy illustrations by artist A. Manivel. It contains 1) an overview of Hinduism; 2) nine basic beliefs; 3) Hinduism from A to Z; 4) five essential precepts; 5) five corresponding observances; and 6) five parenting guidelines. The modern Hindu child raised up with these principles and practices will be a fully functioning human being, one who is tolerant, devotional, fair, fearless, obedient, secure, happy, selfless, pure and traditional. As you will see, these are sophisticated sections, written for parents and teachers, to be stepped down and elucidated for specific age groups. We apologize that, in our brevity, we have inevitably blurred over subtleties in the rainbow of Hindu views.
A Bird's Eye View Of A Family Of Faiths
Hinduism is our planet's original and oldest living religion, with no single founder. For as long as man has lived and roamed across Earth's land and water masses, breathed its air and worshiped in awe its fire, the Sanatana Dharma has been a guide of righteous life for evolving souls. It is important to note that today Hinduism has four main denominations: Saivism, Shaktism, Vaishnavism and Smartism, each with hundreds of lineages. They represent a broad range of beliefs, sadhanas and mystic goals.
While Hindus believe many diverse and exotic things, there are several bedrock concepts on which virtually all concur. All Hindus worship one Supreme Reality, though they call it by many names, and teach that all souls will ultimately realize the truth of the Vedas and Agamas. Hindus believe that there is no eternal hell, no damnation. They concur that there is no intrinsic evil. All is good. All is God. In contrast, Western faiths postulate a living evil force, embodied in Satan, that directly opposes the will of God.
Hindus believe that the universe was created out of God and is permeated by Him--a Supreme Being who both is form and pervades form, who creates, sustains and destroys the universe only to recreate it again in unending cycles. Hindus accept all genuine spiritual paths. Each soul is free to find his own way, whether by devotion, austerity, meditation, yoga or selfless service (seva). Hinduism's three pillars are temple worship, scripture and the guru-disciple tradition. Hinduism strongly declares the validity of the three worlds of existence and the myriad Gods and devas residing within them. Festivals, pilgrimage, chanting of holy hymns and home worship are dynamic practices. Family life is strong and precious. Love, nonviolence, good conduct and the law of dharma define the Hindu path. Hinduism explains that the soul reincarnates until all karmas are resolved and God Realization is attained.
Hindus wear the sectarian marks, called tilaka, on their foreheads as sacred symbols, distinctive insignia of their heritage. Hinduism is a mystical religion, leading devotees to personally experience its eternal truths within themselves, finally reaching the pinnacle of consciousness where man and God are forever one. They prefer cremation of the body upon death, rather than burial, believing that the soul lives on and will inhabit a new body on Earth.
While Hindus have many sacred scriptures, all sects ascribe the highest authority to the Vedas and Agamas, though their Agamas differ somewhat. Hinduism's nearly one billion adherents have tens of thousands of sacred temples and shrines, mostly in India, but now located around the world. Its spiritual core is its holy men and women--millions of sadhus, yogis, swamis, vairagis, saints and satgurus who have dedicated their lives to full-time service, devotion and God Realization, and to proclaiming the eternal truths of the Sanatana Dharma.
Nine Beliefs of Hinduism
1. Hindus believe in the divinity of the Vedas, the world's most ancient scripture, and venerate the Agamas as equally revealed. These primordial hymns are God's word and the bedrock of Sanatana Dharma, the eternal religion which has neither beginning nor end.
2. Hindus believe in a one, all-pervasive Supreme Being who is both immanent and transcendent, both Creator and Unmanifest Reality.
3. Hindus believe that the universe undergoes endless cycles of creation, preservation and dissolution.
4. Hindus believe in karma, the law of cause and effect by which each individual creates his own destiny by his thoughts, words and deeds.
5. Hindus believe that the soul reincarnates, evolving through many births until all karmas have been resolved, and moksha, spiritual knowledge and liberation from the cycle of rebirth, is attained. Not a single soul will be eternally deprived of this destiny.
6. Hindus believe that divine beings exist in unseen worlds and that temple worship, rituals, sacraments as well as personal devotionals create a communion with these devas and Gods.
7. Hindus believe that a spiritually awakened master, or satguru, is essential to know the Transcendent Absolute, as are personal discipline, good conduct, purification, pilgrimage, self-inquiry and meditation.
8. Hindus believe that all life is sacred, to be loved and revered, and therefore practice ahimsa, "noninjury."
9. Hindus believe that no particular religion teaches the only way to salvation above all others, but that all genuine religious paths are facets of God's Pure Love and Light, deserving tolerance and understanding.
Hinduism A to Z, a fun, illustrated alphabet designed as twenty-six mini-lessons on Hindu thought and culture
A is for Aum, the three-syllabled mantra that repre-sents the Sacred Mystery in sound and vibration.
B is for bhakti, deep devotion and love for the Divine which softens even hearts of stone.
C is for culture, the beauty of Hindu music, fine arts, drama, dance, literature and architecture.
D is for dharma, which is righteousness, cosmic order and duty, leading us on the right path.
E is for Earth, our lovely blue planet, which we treat as sacred, protecting all its wonderful creatures.
F is for family, the precious cornerstone of Hindu life, culture, service and tradition.
G is for guru, our enlightened master who, knowing Truth himself, can guide us there.
H is for hatha yoga, healthful physical science for vitality, energy balancing and meditation.
I is for India, Bharata, Mother land to one-sixth of humanity, holy land for Hindus everywhere.
J is for japa, repetitive, prayerful mantras which quiet emotion and empower the mind.
K is for karma, the law of cause and effect by which we determine our experience and destiny.
L is for lotus, the heart's inner shrine, where God dwells, ever serene, ever perfect.
M is for mauna, not talking, the inner silence known when words, thoughts and actions are stilled.
N is for nonattachment, the art of living the simple life, without too many needs or desires.
O is for open mindedness, the Hindu's tolerant freedom of thought, inquiry and belief.
P is for puja, mystic worship of the Divine in our home shrine and holy temples and places.
Q is for quest, seeking to know, "Who am I? Where did I come from? Where am I going?"
R is for reincarnation, our immortal soul's journey from birth to rebirth. We do not fear death.
S is for samskaras, sacraments sanctifying life's passages: name-giving, marriage, death and more.
T is for tilaka, forehead marks worn in honor of our unique and varied lineages.
U is for utsava, our many home and temple festivals, full of bhakti, fun, feasting and family sharing.
V is for Vedas, our oldest and holiest book, the word of God recorded in 100,000 Sanskrit verses.
W is for wealth (artha), one of life's four goals, along with love, dharma and enlightenment.
X is for xerophily, the ability of certain plants and animals to thrive in India's hot, arid plains.
Y is for yoga, union of the soul with God which brings release from worldly bondage.
Z is for zeal, the fervor with which we perform service, go on pilgrimage and greet our holy religious leaders.
Five Precepts
THE MINIMAL HINDU BELIEFS. BY TEACHING THESE TO SONS AND DAUGHTERS, PARENTS WORLDWIDE PASS ON THE SANATANA DHARMA TO THEIR CHILDREN.
1. God Is All in All
The dear children are taught of one Supreme Being, all-pervasive, transcendent, creator, preserver, destroyer, manifesting in various forms, worshiped in all religions by many names, the immortal Self in all. They learn to be tolerant, knowing the soul's Divinity and the unity of all mankind.
2. Holy Temples
The dear children are taught that God, other divine beings and highly evolved souls exist in unseen worlds. They learn to be devoted, knowing that temple worship, fire ceremonies, sacraments and devotionals open channels for loving blessings, help and guidance from these beings.
3. Cosmic Justice
The dear children are taught of karma, the divine law of cause and effect by which every thought, word and deed justly returns to them in this or a future life. They learn to be compassionate, knowing that each experience, good or bad, is the self-created reward of prior expressions of free will.
4. Liberation
The dear children are taught that souls experience righteousness, wealth and pleasure in many births, while maturing spiritually. They learn to be fearless, knowing that all souls, without exception, will ultimately attain Self Realization, liberation from rebirth and union with God.
5. Scripture and Preceptor
The dear children are taught that God revealed the Vedas and Agamas, which contain the eternal truths. They learn to be obedient, following the precepts of these sacred scriptures and awakened satgurus, whose guidance is absolutely essential for spiritual progress and enlightenment.
Five Practices
THE MINIMAL PRACTICES (ALSO KNOWN AS PANCHA NITYA KARMAS) TO NURTURE FUTURE CITIZENS WHO ARE STRONG, RESPONSIBLE, TOLERANT AND TRADITIONAL
1. Worship
The dear children are taught daily worship in the family shrine room--rituals, disciplines, chants, yogas and religious study. They learn to be secure through devotion in home and temple, wearing traditional dress, bringing forth love of the Divine and preparing the mind for serene meditation.
2. Holy Days
The dear children are taught to participate in Hindu festivals and holy days in the home and temple. They learn to be happy through sweet communion with God at such auspicious celebrations. Utsava includes fasting and attending the temple on Monday or Friday and other holy days.
3. Virtuous Living
The dear children are taught to live a life of duty and good conduct. They learn to be selfless by thinking of others first, being respectful of parents, elders and swamis, following divine law, especially ahimsa, mental, emotional and physical noninjury to all beings. Thus they resolve karmas.
4. Pilgrimage
The dear children are taught the value of pilgrimage and are taken at least once a year for darshan of holy persons, temples and places, near or far. They learn to be detached by setting aside worldly affairs and making God, Gods and gurus life's singular focus during these journeys.
5. Rites of Passage
The dear children are taught to observe the many sacraments which mark and sanctify their passages through life. They learn to be traditional by celebrating the rites of birth, name-giving, head-shaving, first feeding, ear-piercing, first learning, coming of age, marriage and death.
Five Parenting Guidelines
BEHAVIORAL PRINCIPLES TO LIVE BY TO NURTURE CHILDREN AND TEACH THEM, VERBALLY AND BY EXAMPLE, TO FOLLOW THE PATH OF DHARMA
1. Good Conduct
Loving fathers and mothers, knowing they are the greatest influence in a child's life, behave the way their dear children should when adults. They never anger or argue before young ones. Father in a dhoti, mother in a sari at home, all sing to God, Gods and guru.
2. Home Worship
Loving fathers and mothers establish a separate shrine room in the home for God, Gods and guardian devas of the family. Ideally it should be large enough for all the dear children. It is a sacred place for scriptural study, a refuge from the karmic storms of life.
3. Talking about Religion
Loving fathers and mothers speak Vedic precepts while driving, eating and playing. This helps dear children understand experiences in right perspective. Parents know many worldly voices are blaring, and their dharmic voice must be stronger.
4. Continuing Self-Study
Loving fathers and mothers keep informed by studying the Vedas, Agamas and sacred literature, listening to swamis and pandits. Youth face a world they will one day own, thus parents prepare their dear children to guide their own future progeny.
5. Following a Spiritual Preceptor
Loving fathers and mothers choose a preceptor, a traditional satguru, and lineage to follow. They support their lineage with all their heart, energy and service. He in turn provides them clear guidance for a successful life, material and religious.
Tuesday, June 07, 2005
"Life is a continuous process of new beginnings. The past is just that. The past."
Ideally i guess the above is true. Came up with this line just a few minutes ago. Its like that corny song in the movie Lion King. Circle of Life. There will always be ups and downs. The birth. The aging. The death. The regeneration. A continuous sequence of new beginnings. Even within ones life, the new beginnings is apparent. One moves on in life. The past is just that. A memory to be cherished, or a nightmare to be forgotten, etc. Different. The beauty of life. Or is it the curse of life. Nothing constant. The only certainty being death.
My Immortal by Evanescence on the deck now. Beautifully haunting sad song. After a year or more, its still an interesting listen.
I'm so tired of being here
Suppressed by all my childish fears
And if you have to leave
I wish that you would just leave
'Cause your presence still lingers here
And it won't leave me alone
These wounds won't seem to heal
This pain is just too real
There's just too much that time cannot erase
[CHORUS:]
When you cried I'd wipe away all of your tears
When you'd scream I'd fight away all of your fears
I held your hand through all of these years
But you still have
All of me
You used to captivate me
By your resonating life
Now I'm bound by the life you left behind
Your face it haunts
My once pleasant dreams
Your voice it chased away
All the sanity in me
These wounds won't seem to heal
This pain is just too real
There's just too much that time cannot erase
[Chorus]
I've tried so hard to tell myself that you're gone
But though you're still with me
I've been alone all along
[Chorus]
Ideally i guess the above is true. Came up with this line just a few minutes ago. Its like that corny song in the movie Lion King. Circle of Life. There will always be ups and downs. The birth. The aging. The death. The regeneration. A continuous sequence of new beginnings. Even within ones life, the new beginnings is apparent. One moves on in life. The past is just that. A memory to be cherished, or a nightmare to be forgotten, etc. Different. The beauty of life. Or is it the curse of life. Nothing constant. The only certainty being death.
My Immortal by Evanescence on the deck now. Beautifully haunting sad song. After a year or more, its still an interesting listen.
I'm so tired of being here
Suppressed by all my childish fears
And if you have to leave
I wish that you would just leave
'Cause your presence still lingers here
And it won't leave me alone
These wounds won't seem to heal
This pain is just too real
There's just too much that time cannot erase
[CHORUS:]
When you cried I'd wipe away all of your tears
When you'd scream I'd fight away all of your fears
I held your hand through all of these years
But you still have
All of me
You used to captivate me
By your resonating life
Now I'm bound by the life you left behind
Your face it haunts
My once pleasant dreams
Your voice it chased away
All the sanity in me
These wounds won't seem to heal
This pain is just too real
There's just too much that time cannot erase
[Chorus]
I've tried so hard to tell myself that you're gone
But though you're still with me
I've been alone all along
[Chorus]
Wednesday, May 18, 2005
A friend's mother passed away last morning. They arranged for the cremation this afternoon. Could not make it yesterday but made an effort to visit earlier this morning. It is so depressing attending funerals. Theres a memory rush of the events in december when dad passed away. Death of a loved one is never something easy to accept or forget. And yet painful to remember. Teary eyed people within the house. Children and family members. Know most of them. Saw two of the sons and conveyed condolences. Seems the lady was not well for a few days.
There were a few family friends out in the compound of the house. Spent time there talking to them. One of them had just returned from a 30 day trip to southwest India, Kerala. Lucky him. He enjoyed the trip. As did I when i went there back in 1997. Can only hope will be able to go gain preferably next year. Its such a beautiful place.
Left the place by noon and was back at the office by 2 plus.
Kirtisha has been well. But shes still struggling to finish up her antibiotics. Regret starting the course for her. The medicine stinks. And she cries when she is forced to take it. Dhivijah however wasnt in a good state yesterday. She was vomitting a few times. Mom called, and i went home earlier to help take care. Brought her to the clinic ..more medication. Well, shes better today. Its always tough when kids are unwell.
Not so sure why am feeling very lethargic this evening. Supposed to meet up with the guys later tonite for dinner and drinks. Lets see how it goes.
There were a few family friends out in the compound of the house. Spent time there talking to them. One of them had just returned from a 30 day trip to southwest India, Kerala. Lucky him. He enjoyed the trip. As did I when i went there back in 1997. Can only hope will be able to go gain preferably next year. Its such a beautiful place.
Left the place by noon and was back at the office by 2 plus.
Kirtisha has been well. But shes still struggling to finish up her antibiotics. Regret starting the course for her. The medicine stinks. And she cries when she is forced to take it. Dhivijah however wasnt in a good state yesterday. She was vomitting a few times. Mom called, and i went home earlier to help take care. Brought her to the clinic ..more medication. Well, shes better today. Its always tough when kids are unwell.
Not so sure why am feeling very lethargic this evening. Supposed to meet up with the guys later tonite for dinner and drinks. Lets see how it goes.
Monday, May 16, 2005
Its been a not so good weekend. The kids have been down with fever. As usual its tough taking care of them. Thankfully they rarely fall sick. Kirtisha got the viral fever first and it was bad for 2 days. She's ok now, and hopefully on the road to full recovery. Dhivijah on the other hand had a slight viral fever and was given medication early. Perhaps that helped and she coped very well with the infection.
Work has been a bit busy. Interviewed a young chinese fresh graduate on saturday. She was interesting. A smart and eloquent person. A bit rough but the potential to do well in her career. Have made an offer to her to join us and she's supposed to start on the 1st of June. On the other hand, an experienced guy is also set to join us from a competitor firm on the 1st of June too. He however will be here for a month before he is sent to be attached to a branch office with a view to subsequently run it. We're hoping that he is the right choice for this posting.
There seems to be a problem entrenched in the office whereby the officers arent bothered about business development and meeting up with clients and bankers. Need to work on this in the days to come.
Theres an early morning meeting at the Land Office tomorrow. 9am of all times. Hope i wont be late. The client will be waiting.
Time to hit the road. Too many things in the mind but too little time to express them here, or to even implement in the real world. Nite2 world.
Work has been a bit busy. Interviewed a young chinese fresh graduate on saturday. She was interesting. A smart and eloquent person. A bit rough but the potential to do well in her career. Have made an offer to her to join us and she's supposed to start on the 1st of June. On the other hand, an experienced guy is also set to join us from a competitor firm on the 1st of June too. He however will be here for a month before he is sent to be attached to a branch office with a view to subsequently run it. We're hoping that he is the right choice for this posting.
There seems to be a problem entrenched in the office whereby the officers arent bothered about business development and meeting up with clients and bankers. Need to work on this in the days to come.
Theres an early morning meeting at the Land Office tomorrow. 9am of all times. Hope i wont be late. The client will be waiting.
Time to hit the road. Too many things in the mind but too little time to express them here, or to even implement in the real world. Nite2 world.
Thursday, May 05, 2005
Its the 5th of may 2005....05-05-05.
Took mum to the hospital for a checkup. She's reluctant to go for the op. Cant blame her.
And as usual driving back, tend to meet same old inconsiderate drivers. Drivers who dont know the meaning of giving way..beri laluan. Drivers who think to give way, is tantamount to surrender of human rights, or loss of ego or water face.
Drove out of lane into a slow moving 2 lane..and the car behind was trying so hard to prevent me from merging into the main road! Even though there were oncoming traffic that would have whacked me head-on!!! Naturally i had to manouevre such to merge into the traffic flow and move on. Surprisingly the old man behind had a grudge and was tailgating for a long time. When it was expanding into a dual carriageway, naturally i lowered the gear and sped off. Guess what! He tried to do the same, trying to overtake me!!! Thankfully, i had reached my junction and slipped off the main road. And the old man had the cheek to look back as he sped pass, attempting to say something! Duh big time.
The alltime classic nutcase is still the type that drives very slowly on the right lane and refuses to move to the left even when if they know youre trying to pass. And when you do attempt to overtake from the left, they attempt to go faster, as though theyre in a race. Its sad actually.
Reading the papers this morning at the hospital was tough. The story about the husband and kid sending the wife onto an express bus and then speeding off along the highway and meeting an accident. And the wife sees the car as the bus passes by, calling the husband and he says his legs are stuck. And within seconds, the line is cut. By the time she alights from the bus and attempts to hitch a ride back to the car... she finds out that there had been a fatal accident. A vehicle slammed onto the car and the car catches fire, both perishing in the car. Its gut wrenching. Its so very sad. To lose a loved one like that. Felt so sorry for the lady. An ultimate nightmare.
Depressing, thinking about it. Best to log off now. Nite2 world.
Took mum to the hospital for a checkup. She's reluctant to go for the op. Cant blame her.
And as usual driving back, tend to meet same old inconsiderate drivers. Drivers who dont know the meaning of giving way..beri laluan. Drivers who think to give way, is tantamount to surrender of human rights, or loss of ego or water face.
Drove out of lane into a slow moving 2 lane..and the car behind was trying so hard to prevent me from merging into the main road! Even though there were oncoming traffic that would have whacked me head-on!!! Naturally i had to manouevre such to merge into the traffic flow and move on. Surprisingly the old man behind had a grudge and was tailgating for a long time. When it was expanding into a dual carriageway, naturally i lowered the gear and sped off. Guess what! He tried to do the same, trying to overtake me!!! Thankfully, i had reached my junction and slipped off the main road. And the old man had the cheek to look back as he sped pass, attempting to say something! Duh big time.
The alltime classic nutcase is still the type that drives very slowly on the right lane and refuses to move to the left even when if they know youre trying to pass. And when you do attempt to overtake from the left, they attempt to go faster, as though theyre in a race. Its sad actually.
Reading the papers this morning at the hospital was tough. The story about the husband and kid sending the wife onto an express bus and then speeding off along the highway and meeting an accident. And the wife sees the car as the bus passes by, calling the husband and he says his legs are stuck. And within seconds, the line is cut. By the time she alights from the bus and attempts to hitch a ride back to the car... she finds out that there had been a fatal accident. A vehicle slammed onto the car and the car catches fire, both perishing in the car. Its gut wrenching. Its so very sad. To lose a loved one like that. Felt so sorry for the lady. An ultimate nightmare.
Depressing, thinking about it. Best to log off now. Nite2 world.
Thursday, April 28, 2005
Its the 28th of April 2005. One third of the year is almost over. How time flies. Its time to submit tax forms, and ive only a day to do it. Damn. Procastinate again. Serves me right :)
April is also the time of Dhivijah's birthday. Her 4th birthday fell on 6th of April. A bittersweet day. For days she had been asking about it. When will be her happy birthday day she would ask. The day came, and passed by. Tradition has it that we're not to celebrate anything for a year. So she misses one party. She was wondering why there was no cakes and blowing of candles. We tried our best to distract her and got her new clothes and toys. Naturally, Kirtisha got the same too!
We had the directors meeting last week. 2004 was a good year for all. We declared further bonuses for staff. And now we worry about 2005. :)
Tempted to write perceptions on the market, but that would mean i will be typing for many paragraphs. And i dont have that much of time left for the night.
The MOM group just got together two weeks ago. It was hillarious. What started out as a 16 or 17 member group of different backgrounds, guys and ladies, has now evolved into a smaller bunch of 12 people. The occasion of the meetup was to celebrate and to honour one of us. He had reached the pinacle of his career perhaps, heading the Malaysian professional body of his profession.
And the gift we got him? Nothing ordinary. Something out of this world. We had hoped for an inflateable doll, but only managed to get an inflateable cow. We named her Cathy..LOL.
Subsequent to the meetup, everyone has been roped back into the email list, and now there is much activity online. Many are communicating via emails now, including a few who had migrated to KL in the past few years. Theres even talk of organising get-togethers at KL! Now, i must find that list of do's and dont's of the group. Theres even a long list of rules to obey. Its somewhere in the office. Need to find it.
OK, this should be it for now.
April is also the time of Dhivijah's birthday. Her 4th birthday fell on 6th of April. A bittersweet day. For days she had been asking about it. When will be her happy birthday day she would ask. The day came, and passed by. Tradition has it that we're not to celebrate anything for a year. So she misses one party. She was wondering why there was no cakes and blowing of candles. We tried our best to distract her and got her new clothes and toys. Naturally, Kirtisha got the same too!
We had the directors meeting last week. 2004 was a good year for all. We declared further bonuses for staff. And now we worry about 2005. :)
Tempted to write perceptions on the market, but that would mean i will be typing for many paragraphs. And i dont have that much of time left for the night.
The MOM group just got together two weeks ago. It was hillarious. What started out as a 16 or 17 member group of different backgrounds, guys and ladies, has now evolved into a smaller bunch of 12 people. The occasion of the meetup was to celebrate and to honour one of us. He had reached the pinacle of his career perhaps, heading the Malaysian professional body of his profession.
And the gift we got him? Nothing ordinary. Something out of this world. We had hoped for an inflateable doll, but only managed to get an inflateable cow. We named her Cathy..LOL.
Subsequent to the meetup, everyone has been roped back into the email list, and now there is much activity online. Many are communicating via emails now, including a few who had migrated to KL in the past few years. Theres even talk of organising get-togethers at KL! Now, i must find that list of do's and dont's of the group. Theres even a long list of rules to obey. Its somewhere in the office. Need to find it.
OK, this should be it for now.
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