Everyday Geeta

October 28, 2012 Pujya Swami Swaroopanandaji kicked off a very interesting series of talks in Singapore. Titled, " 14 Spiritual Laws of Success ", the talks started on Friday October 25 at the RELC Auditorium in Singapore. The talks go through till October 30th. The first two laws directly relate to Chapter 2 of the Bhagavad Geeta. They succinctly encapsulate Śrī Kṛṣṇa's teaching in verses 2-11 to 2-28. The first law according to Swamiji is the Law of Eternity. The Self is Eternal, undying. Swamiji quoted Geeta 2-20: न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचिन् नायं भूत्वा भविता वा न भूयः | अजो नित्यः शाश्वतोऽयं पुराणो न हन्यते हन्यमाने शरीरे ||२-२०|| na jaayate mriyate vaa kadaachin.h naayaM bhuutvaa bhavitaa vaa na bhuuyaH . ajo nityaH shaashvato.ayaM puraaNo na hanyate hanyamaane shariire .. 2-20.. He is not born, nor does He ever die; after having been, He again ceases not to be; Unborn, Eternal, Changeless and Ancient, He is not killed when the body is killed. According to Swamiji, t...

October 26, 2012 The song "Sansaar se Bhaage Phirte Ho" from the movie Chitralekha (1964) has many overtones of Arjuna's predicament at the start of the Bhagavad Geeta. I say this even though it is clear that this song is sung by a courtesan, Meena Kumar. She addresses this to a Yogi (Ashok Kumar) who, even while he desires Meena Kumari, struggles to reject her. Sahir Ludhianvi's lyrics are soulful and on reflection reveal very subtle layers of meaning. For the lyrics, click here. Some of the standout lines are: इस लोग को भी अपना ना सके उस लोक में भी पछताओगे सन्सार से भागे फिरते हो... is log ko bhii apanaa naa sake us lok me.n bhii pachhataa_oge sansaar se bhaage phirate ho (When) you can't accept the challenges of this world / the other will be filled only with regrets / You who run away from this world. ये भोग भी एक तपस्या है तुम त्याग के मारे क्या जानो अपमान रचेता का होगा रचना को अगर ठुकराओगे सन्सार से भागे फिरते हो ye bhog bhii ek tapasyaa hai tum tyaag ke m...

October 24, 2012 तद्विद्धि प्रणिपातेन परिप्रश्नेन सेवया | उपदेक्ष्यन्ति ते ज्ञानं ज्ञानिनस्तत्त्वदर्शिनः ||४-३४|| tadviddhi praNipaatena pariprashnena sevayaa . upadekShyanti te GYaanaM GYaaninastattvadarshinaH .. 4-34.. Know that (the Supreme Truth) by prostration (to a Guru), through questioning, and service, the "wise" (i.e. the Guru) who have realised the Truth will instruct you in (that) Knowledge Today is Dussehra or Vijayadashami . This is the perfect day to recommit ourselves to the study of the Bhagavad Geeta. In India, traditionally, students offered दक्षिण (dakshiNa - gifts) to their teachers as a token of their gratitude. For students of the Geeta, my personal recommendation would be to head to the e-course conducted by the Chinmaya International Foundation . As the course brochure says: This course indeed offers the crystallised, experiential wisdom and insightfulness of Swamiji, with great depth and clarity, delivered with simplicity and accessibility. It bears...

October 21, 2012 Following up after a long time on my break for glory series , here is a beauty courtesy of NASA's Picture of the Day website. Geeta 7-7 provides a beautiful link to this verse: मयि सर्वमिदं प्रोतं सूत्रे मणिगणा इव ||७-७|| mayi sarvamidaM protaM suutre maNigaNaa iva .. 7-7.. All this is strung in Me, as clusters of gems on a string Hari Om and Namaskaar until the next post

October 15, 2012 Love this note  (sourced from Upanishad Ganga 's Facebook page) by Pujya Guruji Swami Tejomayanandaji. The note succinctly captures the essence of the quest as outlined in the Upanishads and the Bhagavad Geeta. Loosely translated: Om Upanishad Ganga: The Search for Truth The Attainment of Supreme Joy! Of course, I am not the master of brevity. Rush now, to watch one of the many episodes of Upanishad Ganga . Hari Om and Namaskaar until the next post

October 14, 2012 I can't recall the number of times when people have looked at me oddly when I say that I study the Geeta. I simply point out that if Arjuna needed Śrī Kṛṣṇa's teaching at the beginning of the Kurukshetra war, there isn't much doubt that I need it. My life is certainly much less stressed than the indications given by Arjuna in Chapter 1. Besides this, there are numerous ways of addressing this and today I have one more answer. The authority of a Harvard Business Review (HBR) blogger! I first saw the reference to this post in this Hindu Press International post . According to Bregman: Peter Bregman in a post titled, " If You're Too Busy to Meditate, Read This ", holds forth on the benefits of meditation. Meditation brings many benefits: It refreshes us, helps us settle into what's happening now, makes us wiser and gentler, helps us cope in a world that overloads us with information and communication, and more. But if you're still lookin...

October 14, 2012 This is how the Bhagavad Geeta comes together for me....

October 2, 2012 Today, October 2, is Mahatma Gandhi's birthday. mkgandhi.org is an excellent resource for all manner of information on this great man. They publish an online magazine on Gandhiji, his life and his philosophy. The October 2012 contains the text of a speech by Shri Arun Bhat in which Shri Arunbhai says: Prayer was Gandhi’s strength and his shelter. A friend had given me a picture of Bapu, that of Gandhi sitting in prayer. It looks as if prayer itself is sitting in the form of Gandhi. A one liner captions the picture, “I can live without food for many days but cannot survive a second without prayer.” His life itself was a prayer. On this day, it is best to let Śrī Kṛṣṇa himself describe this remarkable politician sage (rājaṛṣi) who considered the Geeta to be like "a mother". अहिंसा सत्यमक्रोधस्त्यागः शान्तिरपैशुनम् | दया भूतेष्वलोलुप्त्वं मार्दवं ह्रीरचापलम् ||१६-२|| तेजः क्षमा धृतिः शौचमद्रोहो नातिमानिता | भवन्ति सम्पदं दैवीमभिजातस्य भारत ||१६-३|| ahi.n...