asking the Lord

[Guest guest]

Mr. Sumanth Kaushik writes:

>Out of curiosity, why is it "wrong" to ask for

>material benefits from Sriman Narayana? Whereas it

>it maybe silly to ask something so trivial, when

>there is something more grand (i.e. moksha), why is

>it so objectionable to ask Narayana for say, a car?

>After all, when we are children, we ask our parents

>for so many things. At times, our parents give

>us what we ask (out of purely a love for us), and

>at other times, they do not (presumably for our

>"own good").

>Therefore when do not resist from asking our parents

>for material pleasures, on what logical grounds should we resist

>from asking Sriman Narayana for worldly pleasures?

>Is He not as dear to us as our own mother and father?

>If we can take liberties with our parents, can we not

>do so similarly with Narayana who resides in our hearts?

 

 

While asking the Lord for material and spiritual benefits may be alright

(albeit selfish and egoistic) in non-ritualistic traditions as Protestant

Christianity (I know many Protestant churches that have special worships on

the Sundays that our football team is playing), it proves to be detremental

to spiritual growth in ritualistic traditions like the ones that comprise

Hinduism. This is because most people would tend to be more focused on the

ritual and its fruits than on the particular Deity. Take for example the

popularity of Sri SatyaNarayana Pooja in the US. I am sure that we can all

think of a number of examples where families performed this ritual to get a

job or a promotion, for the blessings of a child, or to celebrate their

purchase of a new home. It is ironic that many of these families seem to

think little about the Lord, Sampradayam or philosophy at times other than

these rare occassions.

 

The performance of rituals in this mood seems to be reflective of the Vedic

Age of the Brahmanas, where the gods were viewed as being "appeased" with

various offerings such that they would bestow material and spiritual

benedictions upon the offerers of the sacrifice.

 

This approach is clearly contradistinctive to our philosophy, which holds

that the Lord is our ultimate Benefactor, who Loves and Cares for each and

every cetana, whether or not that cetana cares for Him in return. Indeed,

the Lord's Desire to Protect and Save us is immeasurably greater than our

desire to be saved. It follows then, that all the benefits that we receive

are the result of His Boundless Grace, and are provided solely by His Love

for us, and not through any propitiation on our part. Ours is just to

accept such Grace with awe and humility. Do we have to ask our parents for

their unconditional love? Would it right for us to do so?

 

Daasanu Daasan,

 

Mohan

[Guest guest]

Sri Mohan wrote:

>It is ironic that many of these families seem to

>think little about the Lord, Sampradayam or philosophy at times other than

>these rare occassions.

 

Only the performers will know what effect rituals produce on

them irrespective of the goal of those rituals. I don't think

we should suspect the sincerity of devotion just because

someone is seeking some worldly reward.

 

 

>

>The performance of rituals in this mood seems to be reflective of the Vedic

>Age of the Brahmanas, where the gods were viewed as being "appeased" with

>various offerings such that they would bestow material and spiritual

>benedictions upon the offerers of the sacrifice.

>

>This approach is clearly contradistinctive to our philosophy, which holds

>that the Lord is our ultimate Benefactor, who Loves and Cares for each and

>every cetana, whether or not that cetana cares for Him in return. Indeed,

 

 

Could anyone name some of these sages who belong to the

"Age of the Brahmanas"? Would Vasishta and Veda Vyasa be

among them? Does our sampradayam hold these sages in an

unfavorable light that Sri Mohan Sagar's above statement

seems to imply? If my reading of the ithihaasaas is

correct many of the heros of our tradition such as

Yudhishtira and Arjuna performed these rituals. Why,

even Lord Sri Rama performed Asvamedha Yaga. I don't

think any of our poorvacharyas or the present day acharyas

would say that these vedic sages are not a part of our tradition.

Further, IMO, it is counter productive to think that our present

day practices are enlightened compared to the practices of

vedic times.

 

>

>the Lord's Desire to Protect and Save us is immeasurably greater than our

>desire to be saved. It follows then, that all the benefits that we receive

>are the result of His Boundless Grace, and are provided solely by His Love

>for us, and not through any propitiation on our part. Ours is just to

>accept such Grace with awe and humility.

 

I think no one in this group will deny that mOksham _should_ be the

only goal and that the Lord is just waiting to bestow it upon us, if

only we ask or if only we accept His grace. But that is not the

question here. For whatever reason, call it karma if you must,

we all have desires. Some desires seem enlightened such as

universal love and peace among nations, and others seem mundane

such as Rolls Royce car or a coveted job in the Silicon Valley, or

admission in top rated universities. But, in comparison to mOksham,

all these desires are insignificant, irrespective of how enlightened

some may seem.

 

Given that we experience a need for material gratification it is better

to ask for it from the Lord and accept whatever we get. The important

issue is not whether we should or should not ask, but how we should act

when our prayers are answered or not answered. Sincerity in asking and

accepting the outcome, favorable or unfavorable, as the Lord's will

is much more relevant to our daily lives than the theoretical question

of whether or not we must ask. Only a pure sanyaasee is free from

any material desires. Just think what you will do if one of your

loved ones has cancer, God forbid.

 

In any case, how many in this world seek mOksham exclusively with

unwavering vairagyam? Not many. Even Sri Krishna says something

to this effect in Sri BG. Given that the vast majority of us are

swayed at least at some point in our lives with material desires,

it is imperative that these desires are channelled into spiritual

ways. I think it is counter productive to put down prayers for

material gains as unenlightened. If our ascent to bhakthi for the

sake of only mOksham is a ladder, would anyone say that only the

last step in the ladder is important or enlightened and all the

other steps should be removed?

 

When the panca paaNdavaas performed Rajasooya yaagam Sri Krishna

did not tell them it is foolish to perform these yaagaas.

As a matter of fact he participated in it and accepted the

first mariyaadhai thus encouraged them in those rituals. Not

until Arjuna was ready did He give him Sri BG.

 

 

 

> Do we have to ask our parents for

>their unconditional love? Would it right for us to do so?

 

The question is not whether we doubt the Lord's love.

Given that we are convinced of our Lord's unconditional love

what is wrong in asking for a little "candy" as Sri Suman

Kaushik says?. No doubt the candy is worthless, but what

is wrong in asking for one if you have a keen desire for it?

Yes, yes, we should not have desire for such worthless

stuff, but unfortunately I have a desire for a nice piece of

candy. What should I do? Is it not better to ask Him than

to simply grab one?

 

 

Thanks, Dileepan