moon of Jyeshta

Udakumbh-ambu Daanam ca
Taala-wrintam sa Chandanam
Trwikrmasya prityartham
Daatavyam Jyeshta maasitu

- Nirnaya Sindhu 

Pitchers of water,  
Palm leaf hand fans
and gifts of sandal 
- please Trwikrma 
in this month of Antares 

moon of Wishaka

When he came, he was holding a flower.

Time passed.
And the Buddha said nothing.
He just looked at the flower.

Crowd grew restless.

And Mahakashyap could restrain himself, no longer.
He laughed.
The Buddha beckoned him over, handed him the flower.

To me, if all scriptures of the Buddha disappear - nothing is lost.
Only this anecdote should not disappear.

-OSHO, A Lotus For You
The Speaking Tree, Bengaluru, May 3, 2015.

earth, moon at Spica

Letting go of concepts, . . .

Silence begins

Then knowledge from the third level dawns

It is called Rithambara knowledge,

from beyond the intellect

Everyone has this ability.

- Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Sacred space, The speaking tree, Bengaluru 
February 7, 2016.

nine nights of spring

Buddha compares Dharma to a boat, that ferries individuals  across currents of life and death, to the banks of  nippana or moksha.

Buddha says that each one has to build one's own boat - with twelve raw materials.

Ariya astanga marga or noble eight-fold path. And Brahma Vihara or four divine qualities of Karuna, Maitri, Mudita and Upeksha - friendliness, compassion, joy and equanimity.

- The Speaking Tree, Bengaluru, April 3, 2016.
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Adweshta Sarva Bhutanam, Maitraha, Karuna eva ca . . . . Yo madbhakta ha sa mey priya ha

One who hates not any life-form, who is friendly, compassionate, . ..  such a devotee,  is dear to me.
 - Chapter 12,  Verse 13

Holy Wednesday - fast friend and tireless romantic

Indic dharmas too say,  that  'God is love'.
But that does not mean everyone escapes consequences of their actions and intents, in this world.

Instead, the Divine offers a new birth; with opportunities for purification and transcendence.

His compassion and love for the jiva, or living individual self, finds expression in offering appropriate support for evolution.
In this sense He is seen as a fast friend and a tireless romantic.

Once, a white woman asked me for proof of this reincarnation theory.
I didn't argue.
I gave her an assignment.
I asked her to collect data of all newly borns, in a nearby hospital.
A pandit who could speak English, accompanied her.
Soon, she presented her report.

And she said,
"One baby looked enormous, one looked thin and weak, one was well proportioned, one just put me off. One was born in a luxurious ward. Another was born amidst untold difficulties to an utterly poor woman."

And I spoke, 
"Let us leave speculations about what  happens after death. Now you have seen and documented for yourself, the beginnings of many lives. Why are they diverse and disparate. Rich, disproportionate, poor, healthy, proportionate, weak. If one goes by the argument of just one birth for every individual self, then God is not being fair, to this sample of your study. It indicates a God, who is unloving, non- compassionate, un - intelligent and erratic. Apart from the theory that rebirths are articulated by the fruits of past deeds, what can possibly be the explanation that satisfies?"

She happily agreed , and left with a smile.

- Shri Chandrashekarendra Saraswati, Kanchi

Holy Tuesday - A white man

Semitic religions do not speak of Karma theory.
'Cause and effect' consequences are not articulated.
Nor do they speak of reincarnation of a living self.

Indic dharmas say that virtuous and vicious deeds produce fruits that accrue to the doer.
 And the 'effects' may not be produced immediately.
A living self may experience the fruits of his deeds in another life.

White people take strong objection to this.
Generally, their contention is that one needs to live only this present life.
And after death, one stations oneself somewhere, till judgement day.
After judgement, this lived self is evaluated and sent either to eternal paradise or eternal damnation.

These days, I am visited by many white people.
Now this man was an author of many books -  and he jovially shared his experience.
He could not come to terms with a contradiction in the Bible which says, 'God is love', and also speaks of  'eternal damnation'.
He approached a priest in church.
And received reply, 'Presence of eternal hell is real; but it is always empty.'

Coming to think of it, God cannot send anyone to hell - for He is love.
And rebirths are ruled out.
So all can be sent only to heaven.

Jokes apart, if one looks at it honestly, this can only lead to chaos, to anarchic attitudes.

- Shri Chandrashekarendra Saraswati, Kanchi

Holy Monday - Persian dharmas

'There is no need to go in great search of the Self. 
It is above, below, aft and fore, to the left and right. 
Begin with purity of food. 
In due time, purity of consciousness will happen.
Contemplation will follow.
And soon enough, one will experience absorption in the Self,." says Sanat Kumara in Chandogya Upanishad.

'He is Skanda!
He is Skanda!,'  
proclaims the Upanishad.


Chandogya Awastha has morphed into 'Zenda Avesta' of the Zorastrians.
Paarsi dharma is alll about fire worship.
Someone who hailed from Sau-rashtra region, is it's founder.
Saurashtrar became Zororhushtra.

'Saura' indicates the Sun.
Sun, fire and poetic meter Gayatri, are special forms of Shambu, says Sancara in  'Prashna-uttara-ratna - malika'.

'Skanda is  the flame of consciousness, that dispels darkness,' says Chandogya Upanishad..

Vedic dharma is fundamentally a fire worshipper's path.
The very first word in the Vedic scripture is 'Agni' or fire.
Everyday fire rituals at home, are known as Oupasana.
And these daily rituals, are common, to all hues of people.

- Shri Chandrashekarendra Saraswati, Kanchi