Crime, Atrocity and Horror.

Every News site, newspaper, TV channel, Twitter and Facebook constantly feeds us stories of crime, atrocity and horror.

There are many celebrities and wannabes who forward, comment and spread these stories with an unprecedented enthusiasm.

Last year, a journalist of at best controversial and dislikable antecedents who had a number of enemies close and distant, was gunned down at her home, in the front porch.

Celebrities from actors to musicians and politicians tried to make media capital out of it, with fingers pointing in all directions. That filled many TV channels for nearly 10000 cumulative hours. Until the next story.

The trouble is that the media stoked up frenzy, anxiety and Horror but most of the reports are often far from the truth, however distasteful. And the law enforcement agencies are busy talking to the media  rather than investigating the crime.

I feel our morbid preoccupation with crime, atrocity and horror in this manner shows our puerile personalities, secretly glad that we aren't facing that kind of crap in our own lives, and yet gossipy about others' misfortunes.

Most of these misfortunes are due to a society without values or checks and balances. Immigration, a society that is the melting pot of languages and cultures with huge economic pressures and feudalistic exploitations, with neither law and order nor social values to check such events.

And we have to firmly switch off from all this deluge of badness stories. Or we will ourselves become victims of mental derangement and instability.

And let's hope and pray that the law enforcement agencies do their bit as well as it is needed.

Have a nice day away from crime, atrocity and horror!

We need a new God.

(visual *)
Don't you think we are done with all the different types of God that so many religions and denominations push on us?

Is it not high time we have a God whom everyone respects  or at least recognises?

A God that people will instantly understand. A God whom no one can control or manipulate. A God who is the same to all. Who is watching over us 24/7?

A God who gives to all the most precious resource. Day after day. Night after night. Every minute and every second.

That God  I give you now.
The God o'clock !

The God o'clock is equal to all. Except those who go around without a sense of time. Which is only zombies.

And from the moment of birth (recorded on the birth certificate) till death (recorded again) to anniversaries and Jayantis and Aradhanas and everything else.

God o'clock .

This God can be worshipped in many forms. From sundials to atomic clocks- desk, wall, wrist, pocket, and even fitbit ones.

One can keep this God in one's pocket, or wrist, next to one's heart, at the waist, or hang around one's neck in a locket.

Every youth and everyone else too looks at this God all the time. On their cell phones that is.

Whether it is school, movies, buses, trains,  planes, on TV screens, on desks, or simply in one's bed chamber, this God is around. Always watching. Never stopping. Never holding back. Never hoarding.

God o'clock.

With two or three hands, 12 eyes, or just blinking 3 eyes, sounding tick tock from his damaru. All the time.

Every clock is an image of God.

Worship Him/Her/It with all your heart and soul and mind. It is never too late to do this.

Believe. And you will win.

Krishna says "Kaalosmi".

Shiva is called Mahakala.

Devi is Kaali. Samaya.

And so on.

Only when you merge with God o'clock you will go beyond time.

At that place and time (here I go again), you don't look at this God as an outsider. You're one with God. And Time doesn't matter. Any more.

Have a good time! May God o'clock be with you.

(* visual: taken from Flipkart)

Narada Bhakti Sutras - Swami Vivekananda

Taken from here:

http://www.ramakrishnavivekananda.info/vivekananda/volume_6/notes_of_class_talks_and_lectures/narada-bhakti-sutras.htm

NARADA-BHAKTI-SUTRAS

(A free translation dictated by Swamiji in America)

CHAPTER I

1. Bhakti is intense love for God.

2. It is the nectar of love;

3. Getting which man becomes perfect, immortal, and satisfied for ever;

4. Getting which man desires no more, does not become jealous of anything, does not take pleasure in vanities:

5. Knowing which man becomes filled with spirituality, becomes calm, and finds pleasure only in God.

6. It cannot be used to fill any desire, itself being the check to all desires.

7. Sannyâsa is giving up both the popular and the scriptural forms of worship.

8. The Bhakti-Sannyasin is the one whose whole soul goes unto God, and whatever militates against love to God, he rejects.

9. Giving up all other refuge, he takes refuge in God.

10. Scriptures are to be followed as long as one's life has not become firm;

11. Or else there is danger of doing evil in the name of liberty.

12. When love becomes established, even social forms are given up, except those which are necessary for the preservation of life.

13. There have been many definitions of love, but Nârada gives these as the signs of love: When all thoughts, all words, and all deeds are given up unto the Lord, and the least forgetfulness of God makes one intensely miserable, then love has begun.

14. As the Gopis had it —

15. Because, although worshipping God as their lover, they never forgot his God-nature;

16. Otherwise they would have committed the sin of unchastity.

17. This is the highest form of love, because there is no desire of reciprocity, which desire is in all human love.

CHAPTER II

1. Bhakti is greater than Karma, greater than Jnâna, greater than Yoga (Râja-Yoga), because Bhakti itself is itsresult, because Bhakti is both the means and the end (fruit).

2. As a man cannot satisfy his hunger by simple knowledge or sight of food, so a man cannot be satisfied by the knowledge or even the perception of God until love comes; therefore love is the highest.

CHAPTER III

1. These, however, the Masters have said about Bhakti:

2. One who wants this Bhakti must give up sense enjoyments and even the company of people.

3. Day and night he must think about Bhakti and nothing else.

4. (He must) go where they sing or talk of God.

5. The principal cause of Bhakti is the mercy of a great (or free) soul.

6. Meeting with a great soul is hard to obtain, and never fails to save the soul.

7. Through the mercy of God we get such Gurus.

8. There is no difference between Him and His (own) ones.

9. Seek, therefore, for this.

10. Evil company is always to be shunned;

11. Because it leads to lust and anger, illusion, forgetfulness of the goal, destruction of the will (lack of perseverance), and destruction of everything.

12. These disturbances may at first be like ripples, but evil company at last makes them like the sea.

13. He gets across Maya who gives up all attachment, serves the great ones, lives alone, cuts the bondages of this world, goes beyond the qualities of nature, and depends upon the Lord for even his living.

14. He who gives up the fruits of work, he who gives up all work and the dualism of joy and misery, who gives up even the scriptures, gets that unbroken love for God;

15. He crosses this river and helps others to cross it.

CHAPTER IV

1. The nature of love is inexpressible.

2. As the dumb man cannot express what he tastes, but his actions betray his feelings, so man cannot express this love in words, but his actions betray it.

3. In some rare persons it is expressed.

4. Beyond all qualities, all desires, ever increasing, unbroken, the finest perception is love.

5. When a men gets this love, he sees love everywhere he hears love everywhere, he talks love everywhere, he thinks love everywhere.

6. According to the qualities or conditions, this love manifests itself differently.

7. The qualities are: Tamas (dullness, heaviness), Rajas (restlessness, activity), Sattva (serenity, purity); and the conditions are: Ârta (afflicted), Arthârthi (wanting something), Jijnâsu (searching truth), Jnâni, (knower).

8. Of these the latter are higher than the preceding ones.

9. Bhakti is the easiest way of worship.

10. It is its own proof and does not require any other.

11. Its nature is peace and perfect bliss.

12. Bhakti never seeks to injure anyone or anything not even the popular modes of worship.

13. Conversation about lust, or doubt of God or about one's enemies must not be listened to.

14. Egotism, pride, etc. must be given up.

15. If those passions cannot be controlled, place them upon God, and place all your actions on Him.

16. Merging the trinity of Love, Lover, and Beloved, worship God as His eternal servant, His eternal bride — thus love is to be made unto God.

CHAPTER V

1. That love is highest which is concentrated upon God.

2. When such speak of God, their voices stick in their throats, they cry and weep; and it is they who give holy places their holiness; they make good works, good books better, because they are permeated with God.

3. When a man loves God so much, his forefathers rejoice, the gods dance, and the earth gets a Master!

4. To such lovers there is no difference of caste, sex, knowledge, form, birth, or wealth;

5. Because they are all God's.

6. Arguments are to be avoided;

7. Because there is no end to them, and they lead to no satisfactory result.

8. Read books treating of this love, and do deeds which increase it.

9. Giving up all desires of pleasure and pain, gain and loss, worship God day and night. Not a moment is to be spent in vain.

10. Ahimsâ (non-killing), truthfulness, purity, mercy, and godliness are always to be kept.

11. Giving up all other thoughts, the whole mind should day and night worship God. Thus being worshipped day and night, He reveals Himself and makes His worshippers feel Him.

12. In past, present, and future, Love is greatest!

Thus following the ancient sages, we have dared to preach the doctrine of Love, without fearing the jeers of the world.

Nataraja!

We need to understand the iconography of deities always at three levels: 1 Mythology 2. Metaphysical symbolism 3. Aesthetics. There is perhaps no end to possible interpretations of such a glorious image!

I quote two beautiful sources. The first is from Ananda Coomaraswamy, the authority on Shiva and iconography. From his book, The Dance of Shiva, 1918:

The second I scanned from my copy of E.B.:

Legend ( provided by Rshankar of Rasikas.org):

The iconography of Siva as natarAja is rather complex and here's some of what I've understood.

Siva is depicted as holding a battle axe (mazhu), a deer (mAn), a ball of fire, and a damaru in his hands, with a cobra for a garland, and tiger-skin as his lower garment.

All of these were invoked from the sacrificial fire by the 3000 (tritIya sahasra) ascetics (dIkshta) of the taDavana of cidambaram and thrown at the sky-clad (digambara - in other words, naked) youth that had the rishi-patnis following him. They did not realize that it was Siva who had come to teach them the error of their ways. He grabs the cobra and uses it as a garland, the deer with sharp horns is tamed and held in his hand, as are the battle-axe, the ball of fire, and the damaru - as Siva rattled the damaru, all the languages of the world emerged (vAcikam sarva vAngmayam), and he kills the tiger, skins it, and covers his lower body. The final assault from the ascetics comes in the form of an evil dwarf called muyalakan - Siva subdues him and dances on his back - and as he does that, the amazed ascetics realize their folly and lose their ego and ignorance and become enlightened- so the dwarf symbolizes ignorance and by dancing on him, Siva destroys ignorance.

Another aspect to the iconography is the reference to the five elements (panca bhUta):

He holds the fire

The gangA symbolizes water

His long locks capture the wind/air

His feet are on the dwarf who rests on the earth

The moon symbolizes the sky/ether.

Tagore: That heaven of freedom

Inspired by Tagore

Where the life is without sneer
and the head is held high;

Where bandwidth is free;
Yet the world has not been
Taken up by FB YT Whatsapp entirely,
Feeding narrow benumbed minds;

Where words come out from the voices of humans;

Where tireless eye stretches its gaze towards real life;

Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way;
Into the dreary desert waste of mobile habit;

Where the mind is led toward a real me;
Into life-sustaining thought and action;

Into that heaven of digital freedom,
My Father,
let my country awake.

Mahakavi Bharati

Beautiful article in Vijayavani. 
Translation
Title: His poems inspire patriotism across generations
Subheading: Sri Subrahmanya Bharati strove day and night to instill patriotism in fellow citizens. It was ironical that towards the end he could not even feed his own wife and children. When his second daughter was struggling between life and death, he could not pay the doctor's fees, and spent the entire night chanting, "Om Shakti Om Shakti".The author is Dr Bapu Krishnamurthy, a senior journalist.
----
The Congress conference happened in Dec. 1906 in Calcutta. Prior to that, Swami Vivekananda, Bipin Chandra Pal, and other monks of Ramakrishna Order had stirred up the spirit of Swadeshi, Swaraj, and Swadharma, in Madras Presidency. As a result, to take part in the Congress conference, a big group of hot-blooded youth from Madras had arrived. Among them, a 24 year old young man moved about mercurially, all over the meeting, discussing with the leading lights the idea of swadeshi (self-rule). But he had an important agenda, too. To go meet an eminent lady on Bose Para Lane.

When he entered her residence, he saw her sitting at her desk, writing something. He was surprised. What a radiant figure! Emotionally, he prostrated on the floor, with teary eyes. He was trembling as he stood by her side, with folded hands. He was speechless. She herself looked at him with a smile. "From where have you come, child?"

"I have come from Madras. My name is Subrahmanya Bharati. Till now, I worked for a Tamil magazine, Swadesha Mitran. The owners couldn't brook my pungent writings against the British. They asked me to tone it down. Therefore I quit. Now Mandyam Tirumalachari and Mandyam Srinivasachari, two gentlemen, have started for my sake a magazine called India. Swami Vivekananda is my God. Therefore I have used his famous words, "Uttishthata, Jagrata, Prapyavarannibodhata" as our motto in the India magazine. "

That divine lady was intently watching him and listening to his words." Child, what a radiance fills your eyes! Goddess Shakti has blessed you fully. You shall have a major role in India's struggle for freedom". The young man was thrilled, and shed tears.

That divine lady was Sister Nivedita. That youth of great emotional sensibility was the Tamil Maha Kavi, Patriot, one of the Tamil Trinity of Freedom Struggle, Subrahmanya Bharati! 

"Child, keep your mind unfettered at all times. Abandon uncivilised divisive ideas of party, regionalism, and caste, and serve the country. Install on the throne of your heart the high ideal of patriotism, love of your land. Then your name will be etched in golden letters on the pages of history", said Nivedita.

"Bharati, are you married?" 
"Yes, and I have a daughter, too". "Then why didn't you bring your wife to the Congress conference?" "Our custom does not permit taking women to public places, madam". There was anger in Sister Nivedita's response. "How can society's one half keep the other half in chains and hope to achieve freedom? Don't keep you wife confined to a corner. She is your ardhangi (other half). Worship her like a goddess. Is your land not the blessed soil on which they worshipped women as goddesses?"

When Bharati was taking his leave, Nivedita took out an old dry leaf from her bag. She said, "This leaf is from the Himalayas, I gathered during my travels. Keep this as a memento from me. Don't lose it".

Bharati preserved that leaf as a priceless treasure all his life. Whenever he looked at that leaf, he would connect with that divine lady of his inspiration, and would be rejuvenated in his endeavours.Talent blossomed early:
Ettayapuram in Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu was his birthplace. The region was under a zamindar. Chinnaswamy Iyer, a smarta brahmana was the father. Mother's name was Lakshmi. Their son was Subrahmanya Iyer. He was called by everyone Subbiah. He was born on December 11,1882.

Virtually a king in that small region, the Ettayapuram zamindar Raja Jagavira Rama Ettappa Nayackar was looked upon with respect by the people. He was a man of culture and loved literature. The 15 year old Subbiah was much loved by him. One day there was a meeting of literateurs in the Raja's assembly. The wise men were discussing at length the subject of the education system. The boy Subbiah who entered in the middle spoke extempore on the education system with great lucidity. His speech mesmerised the assembly. A senior scholar exclaimed, "Child, Goddess Saraswati dwells on your tongue! You are indeed "Bharati", boy! " And blessed him heartily. 
*(The word Bharati in Hinduism denotes Saraswati as well as people endowed with great learning). From that day, Subbiah became Subrahmanya Bharatiyar. 

Subrahmanya Bharati's entry into journalism was through the Congress functionary and moderate Subrahmani Iyer's Swadesha Mitran journal. Lacking neither ideas nor passionate feelings, Bharati employed his pen as a destructive weapon against all adversaries. That was the period of the historic Bengal Partition. The national political scenario changed forever. 

As he was covering the Congress conferences, Bharati developed deep expertise in the area of national politics and its goings-on. His thinking gained crystallisation. In 1905, when Gokhale presented the approach of moderates in the Varanasi Congress convention, it irked Bharati no end. A worshipper of Shakti, he was greatly opposed to the pacific moderates. In 1907, he participated actively in the Congress convention in Surat along with V O Chidambaram Pillai and sided with Tilak in the exchanges. 

When a Poet Laureate ignited Patriotic Fervour:

A serendipitous turn came that transformed the journalist Bharati into a Tamil Maha Kavi. He thought there should be a book of poems that stirred patriotic fervour. An invitation went out to writers to send in poems to Swadesha Mitran. Unfortunately, not a single entry was received. He was deeply disappointed. In those days, singing and writing such poems of patriotism was sacrilege. Had not the British banned "Vande Mataram" ? 

In this state of affairs, Bharati decided to launch his own book of poems, that would whip up patriotism and set ablaze nationalistic fervour. But who would publish such a book? 

A young publisher, Natesan, suggested that a senior congressman, V. Krishnaswamy Iyer, might offer financial help. But Bharati was deeply sceptical, as he had demolished that man in his writings. However, on Natesan's insistence, he went to Iyer's residence and recited with his customary passion the poem, "Vande Mataram". Iyer, who was greatly opposed to Bharati and his writings, was surprisingly stirred and inspired. He readily agreed to sponsor the book and gave the required funds. 

Thus his book of poetry, "Janma Bhoomi" was published in 1909. Each poem in that anthology started dancing on everyone's tongue. Meanwhile, his poems spread like wild fire and instilled strongly in people across Tamil Nadu feelings of national fervour, the idea of freedom, awareness about one's bounden duty, democratic values. Thus they touched everyone's heart transformationally, stirring them to active participation in the freedom struggle. There would be no meeting, march, or agitation, without the singing of his poems. These Indian nationalist poems set fire to the Imperial seat of power. 

The government decided to arrest him and the news reached him through his friends. They ensured he moved to Pondicherry, a French colony, in 1908. Hiding the pen- Incognito:
Following him, the Mandyam brothers' printing press went to Pondicherry and so did the magazine India. Bharati's writings resumed with heightened vigour. The "Company" government relentlessly pursued like a ghost, deploying spies there and tried to arrest him. India magazine folded up. The rain of fire filled with Mahakavi's writings ceased. 

Bharati was despondent. By mid 1910, he reached a point when he could not provide even a single meal per day to his wife and children. Reading his diaries of around 1915, and the stories therein of his terrible poverty, is heart-rending. When his second daughter contracted illness and lay battling between life and death, Bharati was unable to afford the doctor's fees and spent the entire night chanting, "Om Shakti Om Shakti". 

In this desperate condition he wished to move back to Madras. But the police arrest warrant was still out for him. Somehow he gathered courage, left the haven of the French colony, and entered India through Cuddalore. The police arrested him and put him in the Cuddalore sub-jail. Swadesha Mitran magazine's A. Ramaswamy Iyengar contacted the Police General in Madras and worked out a compromise for his release. 

In 1920, Bharati rejoined Swadesha Mitran at Ramaswamy Iyengar's invitation and saw a somewhat better life. 

Then he lived in Triplicane, near Parthasarathy temple. One evening, he went to the temple. He took coconut, jaggery and plantains in his hands and went to feed the elephant. Perhaps provoked by someone, the elephant got into a rage and smashed him with its trunk. Bharati fell at the animal's feet. Just as the elephant was about to trample him, his close disciple Kuvalaya Kannan, who was with him, rushed forward and pulled away the guru who was unconscious and carried him home. 

Bharati recovered somewhat and started going to Swadesha Mitran office to write, again. Maybe because of the elephant's blow he had suffered, he fell ill soon. He became semi-conscious. He made his final journey in peace in the predawn hours of 12th September, 1921.

Only twenty percent of his poems are patriotic songs. But till today, he is known as Desha Bhakti Kavi. Just see this sample stanza:

Vande Mataram! 
Be it that victory comes, 
Be it that death and defeat come, 
We shall all stand as one, 
And proclaim
Vande Mataram! 
Vande Mataram



-Vijayavani Kannada Newspaper 15.2.2018 by Dr Bapu Krishnamurthy

Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam - Original shloka in Maha Upanishad

The Prime Minister underpinned his address to the WEF at Davos  3 days ago with the quote:
Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam

Many people would be curious to know the origin of these words. I did some research.

There is Hitopadesha, a series of stories of moral import and wise sayings in Samskrita, traced to the 9th Century CE. The shloka that occurs there is :

ayaṃ nijaḥ paroveti gaṇanā laghucetasām |

udāracaritānām tu vasudhaiva kuṭumbakam || I.69

See this text in the original:

Someone has been saying this is a hoax, because in the story the words are spoken by an evil person. This interprepation is laughable, since the very reason the evil person resorted to highlighting this idea in his argument  was because it had universal moral appeal. And when a moral idea is held up by a moral person who stands for truth, it is a powerful motivator. 

However, as I continued my research, I discovered that the shloka occurs in an Upanishad of greater antiquity. As we know, Upanishads are all spiritual texts that deal with the idea of the Soul, Cosmic Soul, Truth, and pursuit of truth.

The Maha Upanishad is referenced in Wikipedia here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maha_Upanishad

The shloka, as it occurs in that work, is as follows:

The translation, in the book Maha Upanishad by Dr. A. G. Krishna Warrier, published by The Theosophical Publishing House, Chennai,  is as follows:

Only small men discriminate saying: One is a relative; the other is a stranger. For those who live magnanimously the entire world constitutes but a family.

I find an echo of the same idea throughout the Bhagavadgita. Particularly, this shloka describes the perfect yogi as one who is equal in relationship to everyone in his circle:

Bg 6.9

suhṛn-mitrāry-udāsīna- madhyastha-dveṣya-bandhuṣu

sādhuṣv api ca pāpeṣu sama-buddhir viśiṣyate

Swami Chinmayananda's Translation:

 He who is of the same mind to the good-hearted, friends, enemies, the indifferent, the neutral, the hateful, relatives, the righteous and the unrighteous, he excels.

The import in this idea is:

One should develop the strength, maturity and cheerfulness to recognise the interconnectedness of the entire world as one large family. This will only build a more positive society and global good.

Hari Om Tat Sat