Guest guest Posted February 14, 1999 Report Share Posted February 14, 1999 Namaste, Shree Sadaananda's account was an eye opener. It was also reassuring. It was an eye opener because it showed me the vast body of knowledge and wisdom that I can avail myself of through this medium. It was reassuring because it exalted the path of inquiry as an act of surrender in itself. If I am allowed to take the liberty of discussing personal struggles in the quest for truth, I would like to write about some of my feelings. I trust that there are others in a similar situation. Being too rational to submit myself to an unquestioning creed of surrender, I was yet not too cynical to dismiss the notion of an absolute truth. I saw myself as someone on the path of "inquiry". At times I doubted if it was a mere intellectual curiosity. Here was my answer -through your postings- both revealing and humbling at the same time. I have recorded my thoughts in the form of a poem: Surrender I surrender, To the words of the wise For showing me the way To the kinship of spirit For lighting my path today I surrender, To my will for giving me the choice To speech, for giving me a voice. I surrender, To light, for helping me see To sound, for words passed on to me. I surrender, To life, and all those before me Its foolish greed and empty pride Gave me the hint to see. I surrender, To a silence, where words resound in emptiness To a vision , where sight reflects in darkness To a freedom, where no choice has a purpose As notes in a song bow to the melody they render, To that life beyond my every life, I surrender. pranams, Vijayakumar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 16, 1999 Report Share Posted February 16, 1999 >"y viswanath" <yviswanath > >Dear Sadananda, > >The question arises for most people sometime in their lives, but we >simply have no seriousness, energy or drive to pursue it to the end. I >have been searching for several decades to see whether there are any >records of any Being who has described His struggles on His way from an >ordinary man to Moksha/Nirvana/.... And how they were actually overcome. >Otherwise, even the above stanza has to be accepted on faith with no >real life example. I found very little of Christ's struggles recorded >in the scriptures. There is a bit about the Buddha's conflicts but not a >whole lot. None on Sankara that I know of. Hardly any on Ramana either. >The list goes on. It could be that some did not record their >experiences. Perhaps the organized religions that followed many of these >people did not think it was important, or destroyed them for fear of >their founder being perceived as a bit less than God! Anyway, I did come >upon the recorded struggles of Krishnamurti. If there is interest, I >will post some of them since they are long out of print. I hope that >anyone who knows of similar records would point me. > >Regards, > >---Viswanath > Viswanathji - Namaste. There is a saying that the path of the bird or the path of the river is difficult to follow. Each person starts some where in their evolutionary ladder and proceeds from there to reach the top. The story of Ramakrishna paramahamsa is different from the story of Narendra who ended up as the gigantic personality of Swami Vivekananda. There is book on "Iswara Darshan' - it is a autobiography of Swami Tapovan Maharaj, who was a famous saint and teacher of Swami Chinmayanandaji. He has chronologically described his path. J.K biography is written by Mary Luttens? She gives His struggles. Please read the story of Peace pilgrim, the American lady who waked 25,000 miles. one can grasp her simplicity and her path to pinnacle through her own experiences. Story of Paramahamsa Yogananda is different. Everyone has to fight his own obstacles to progress and I do not think there is a unique path for all these - or unique experiences. Each mahatma has to struggle in his own way. I am sure you have seen or heard of "Ammaji" - who comes to this country every year. There is a beautiful biography of her by one of her disciples. When I read it, I could not stop crying. It is a moving story. When asked, of course, she laughs about it with her characteristic smile. She is what she is today, because of those hurdles she faced. Courage of that innocent fishergirl is amazing. My humble prostrations to her. I suggest everyone to read that book. What we can learn from their life histories is the strong desire to proceed further inspite of the obstacles. Actually I donot consider these as obstacles, they are only the tools the nature provides to make the mind mature and make it purify provides the disciple is willing to learn. Although JK story provides one story, I donot think he himself endorsed that path as necessary for another one to reach the top. In fact he abolishes the clout around him - saying that "truth is a pathless land". Please do post what you think benefit to others. What I think is needed is an earnestness and desire to proceed inspite of ones obstacles - titiiksha and mumukshutvam. The rest Lord himself takes care of. Hari Om! Sadananda K. Sadananda Code 6323 Naval Research Laboratory Washington D.C. 20375 Voice (202)767-2117 Fax:(202)767-2623 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 16, 1999 Report Share Posted February 16, 1999 >Jyothi Vijayakumar <nandini>Surrender > >I surrender, >To the words of the wise >For showing me the way >To the kinship of spirit >For lighting my path today > >I surrender, >To my will for giving me the choice >To speech, for giving me a voice. > >I surrender, >To light, for helping me see >To sound, for words passed on to me. > >I surrender, >To life, and all those before me >Its foolish greed and empty pride >Gave me the hint to see. > >I surrender, >To a silence, where words resound in emptiness >To a vision , where sight reflects in darkness >To a freedom, where no choice has a purpose > >As notes in a song bow to the melody they render, >To that life beyond my every life, I surrender. > >pranams, >Vijayakumar > Beautiful Vijayakumar. What we surrender in advaita is our false notions. We cannot surrender that unless we know the truth. There is a catch 22 situation. Hence Lord's blessing is invoked. Bhagavaan Dattatreya in Avadhuuta Giita says in his very first sloka: "Iswaraanugraha eva pumsaam adviata vaasana" - Even to have that inquiry mind one has to be blessed with many lives of good merits. Bhakti, involving ones surrender, Bhagawaan Shankara defines in VevekachuuDaamani as: mokshakaaraNa saamaagryaam bhakti reva gariiyasi| swaswaruupaanu sandhaanam bhatirityabhideeyate|| Of all the paths for liberation, Bhakti is the supreme. What is that Bhakti? - swaswaruupa anusandhaanam - meditation on ones own nature is defined as Bhakti. He futher adds: swaatmaanubhava sandhanam bhaktirithyapare jaguH|| - Others say that the true bhakti is ones own experience of oneself. Bhagavaan Ramana emphasies this second aspect in his Sat Darshan in his very first sloka where he wants to think of the Lord before starting his book. But then he questions how can I think of the Lord who is beyond the thoughts. All one can do is be free from thoughts or just be in ones-being - aatmaanubhava sandhaanam. sat pratyaaH kinnu vihaaya santam hRidyeshu cintaa rahito hRidaakyaH| katham smaraamaH tamameya mekam tasya smRitiH tatra dRiDaiva nishhTaa|| I want to contemplate on the Existence principle that is beyond the thoughts, in ones own inner core of ones persanality. How can I think of that one which is beyond the thoughts? All one can do is be established firmly in that - This itself is a prayer from a JNaani. But to have a such a prayerful attitude in the mind, ones mind should be free from attachments. That is the reason why Krishna emphasizes the Yoga shhaastra. Even to do an inquiry, one needs a proper frame of mind. It is very difficult to do an inquiry or aatma vichaar unless mind is already purified enough to sit down and contemplate. Otherwise without our knowledge mind runs into wool-gathering. To purify the mind, the bhakti and karma and JNaana yogas will help. Hari Om! Sadananda Hari Om! Sadananda K. Sadananda Code 6323 Naval Research Laboratory Washington D.C. 20375 Voice (202)767-2117 Fax:(202)767-2623 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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