Ahimsa 101

[Guest guest]

The door opens...in floats Professor Sri Enlightenment...Sri

Enlightenment says..."Now, class, welcome back to Ahimsa 101"BEing

that he is enlightened, he is, of course, dripping with bliss and

peace.Until he looks over and sees Lady Joyce asleep at her

desk.Then, to make matters worse, she starts to talk, no sing, in her

sleep!"Bhoomimangalam,Udakamangalam...May there be tranquility on

earth, on water"...bhoom bhoom bhoomOh my! Now she is starting to air

play the drums onto her desk with her hands!!!Kerplop! goes the finger

of Sri E on the top of her tousled headUp pops her head...She opens

one eye , and says with a sigh"What did you say? Oh, you asked

me...Are you asleep? Or was that a dream, a sweet dream

:-)"Suddenly, Lady Joyce says..."Who Am I? What Am I? WHERE am

I?"She opens both eyes wide, looks around and sees Tony and Patt,

snickering in the corner."Uh oh, I mean Um, I mean, OM Shaantih,

Shaantih, Shaantih!!!"Sri speaks again "Lady Joyce...you asked a

question and we have not heard from you...other than some mumbo jumbo

about tranquility and booming..

two members of the satsanga responded...Is there some problem with

your understanding? Perhaps I can help you..."Lazy, I mean, Lady

Joyce, who had been sleeping quite soundly is now quite awake.She

clears her throat, gulps, blushes, smiles sweetly, and

says..."Well, you see, Sri, I lost my train of thought there, for a

few days. Cookies,mmmmmm, cookies..."" I think. I Am. Yes, I Am

That!!!" That should make him happy, she thinks to herself."That's

very nice Lady Joyce, but we are talking about Ahimsa and your

question", Sri E says...You can run but you cannot hide, she thinks

to herself

:-)"Oh,

yes, Sri E! Thank you for your guidance, direction, and

correction...Oh, Sadguru...I will do whatever you tell me to..."SRI

begins to frown..."Lady Joyce, the question..."

Lady Joyce speaks. "Oh yes, Sir, I mean Sri, now I remember...I

wrote..."I am wondering if anyone can enlighten me as to what they

might consider the Christian corollary to the virtue of Ahimsa?I want

to connect the two paths if I can, as to a unified goal of peaceand

nonviolence.Namaste, Tony, you wrote...> 'Thou shalt not kill', is a

good enough place to start.> If one reads the commandments one will

find they are really about> Ahimsa. If one reads Jesus speaking

about loving thy neighbour andturning the other cheek when struck,

that is Ahimsa.Om Sakti, altar boy!!! Do you remember me?I was one

of the miscreants who stood in the back of the church...the priest

would always yell, I mean, tell us to come in and sit down.True

confession- as soon as he turned his back I would leave thechurch and

wander around for an hour. Then I would go home looking all holy.You

got the scoop on that confession, Tony!!!Although I strayed from the

Church at a rather young age :-),I remember and honor enough of the

religion in which I was raised,to have thought of do unto others and

turn the other cheekDo unto others is a scary proposition given the

twisted karma of some soulswhose idea of doing unto others as you

would have them do unto youcan include downright mayhem!!! I saw

this one go through the wringer overon the L-list. But, you are

right, I think the intention was a peaceful one.Turn the other cheek

to me represents reaction, not action.It represents the spirit of

ahimsa, not the articulation of theconcept itself, but examples, I

guess, what are known as parable.Like you said, part of Ahimsa, not

the core code of behavior.Back to the definition fo Ahimsa...if you

will...First I will quote Harshaji...who started me on this in the

first placeBack in early December, this post on Ahimsa from

Harshaji..."We are reminded that in all the yogic traditions

andscriptures, above all other virtues, nonviolence isgiven the

highest place. Patanjali's yoga sutras, forexample, mentions Ahimsa

above all others yamas(restraints or rules of conduct).Sri Ramana

often pointed out that for a yogi, Ahimsa(the state of non harming)

is always the firstprinciple to abide by. The notion of Ahimsa has

deepmeaning and is not a gimmick. Peace cannot be obtainedby enjoying

victory over others. This is a spiritualand psychological truth. Those

who win by takingthings from others by force or create fear in

otherscannot help but harbor fear in their unconscious thatthe same

can happen to them. Those who treat otherswith kindness, respect,

amity, and love, and givefreely of their gifts gradually purify

theirconsciousness and become free of hatred and enmity.They are like

deep valleys into whom the grace of theDivine pours forth. - Sri

Harshaji-

--Now,

having quoted Harshaji, I can go on (and on and on...)BTY, I am glad

you brought the one below up, Tony.I want you to know that I heard

you (and others, too :-)No more meat will I eat...LOL...> There are

a lot of chapters in the Bible with references to a> vegetarian

diet.> In the New Testament James the brother of Jesus and head of

the> Christians in Jerusalem is referred to as a vegetarian, as many

with> an Essene background were. That is part of Ahimsa.......Om

Sakti...Tony.OM Sakti, Tony. LOL to you...Now, Dear Patt...you made

me go splat!!!There is no reason for me to fightBecause you are so

right.You wrote...>For me, when i threw myself deeply into each

teaching, dropping all>concepts of other teachings, I found myself

being brought to theRealization of Oneness through each "path".

Trying to compare>the similiarities and differences seemed like

another shot at>using the mind to 'understand' rather than allowing

the Truth to be>revealed.You say that so beautifully. I just had to

tell you that.>Actually, I ran away from Christianity into Eastern

studies and for the>first time understood what the Christian

teachings were saying !! :)Ah, yes!!! Ahimsa, that is what the

Christian teachings are saying.I agree! I agree! I agree! Oh, Sri

E,That's It...I think Christ was a yogi!See, the Truth shall set you

free.>with love and great JOY,JoycePS. Sri E...this is what I was

singing in my sleep, Sir, I mean

Sri...MANGALAMBhoomimangalam,UdakamangalamMay there be tranquility on

earth,May there be tranquility on waterAgnimangalam, VaayumangalamMay

there be tranquility in fire,May there be tranquility in the

wind,Gaganamangalam, SooryamangalamMay there be tranquility in the

skyMay there be tranquility in the sunChandramangalam,

JagatmangalamMay there be tranquility on the moonMay there be

tranquility on our planetJeevamangalam, DehamangalamMay there be

tranquility in all living beingsMay there be tranquility in the

bodyManomangalam, AatmanmangalamMay there be tranquility in the mind

andMay there be tranquility in the spiritSarvamangalam

BhavatuSarvamangalam BhavatuSarvamangalam BhavatuMay that

tranquility be everywhere and in everyone.BY Ravi Shankar, Chants of

India