BhArata SamBhavam - Vishwamitra and vrittis!a

[Guest guest]

Namate Neelakantanji, Adiji and Sunderji,

 

 

Neelakantanji wrote:

>Parashurama and Drona were great brahmin warriors.

>And there were kings like Janaka who taught atma vidya

>to others including brahmins.

 

I did not know that! Thank you. I thought the boundaries between

castes in Vedic days were very sharp. Now you tell me that they were

much more flexible. I am glad to hear that. Sharp boundaries are a

perversion. It is aptitude that counts.

 

However, there is the potential for ignorance and error in all

political systems, even democracy. In democracy, the danger is that

we think we are as good as anybody and fail to realize our

limitations. Not that I am against democracy! :-)

 

 

So Adiji, you don't see pride as a weakness that particularly

afflicts intellectuals, including those who claim to have wisdom and

superior spiritual understanding? I do. This shows that we humans

do value our intellect very much and are very sensitive about it.

This is both good and bad. Good, because the life of the intellect

is much better than a life that merely gratifies the body. Bad,

because feeling smart can lead to a very deep pride that is difficult

to eradicate. Many self-proclaimed gurus have this pride, even if

they are good at concealing it. But above all, realization requires

the transcendence of the intellect, so it is a stumbling block even

if we are modest.

 

Well, others have commented on this topic, but Sri Sunderji has

expressed regret that we have strayed from the month's topic, so I

will stop here. Frankly, I think it was a mistake to have so many

messages with the subject 'pUrNamadah pUrNamidam', because it ended

up looking like a big homogeneous mass of messages, and if one lost

track it was difficult to jump back in. We should stick to the

month's topic, of course, but a variety of threads revolving around

that topic may be more digestible.

 

Hari Om!

Benjamin