Balancing life through Vedanta -3: Summary of Swami Ishwarananda's lecture

[Guest guest]

Namaste

 

[The following is my brief summary -- errors of fact,

slips of content and faults of logic are all mine -- of

the third lecture of a series of five lectures by Swami

Ishwarananda. The third lecture (19th April) was titled:

Empowering with Emotions. I have omitted some of his quotations

from Upanishats and other Vedantic works.]

___________

Empowering with Emotions.

 

Feelings and emotions are expressed in the heart, not in the brain.

This is not the physical heart that doctors are familiar with. It is

the spiritual heart.

 

The Bhagavad Gita talks of three different moods. When you are calm

and peaceful, as in the beginning of the day, or in meditation, or

in front of the altar (when you have no demands and are not asking

for anything) or in the company of the noble, you are said to be in

the satvic mood. That is when and where we see the vision of one-

ness. When we are in the company of a child, for instance, we don't

expect anything from the child , we are in that satvic peaceful

mood.

On the other hand, very often the mind is agitated, ambitious with

the vision of diversity. It tries to get the maximum of the

happening around. It is full of opinions, prejudice and judgment –

all born out of strong likes and dislikes. That is when you are in

the Rajasic mood.

The third mood is a narrow vision of self-centredness, everything

dormant with the satiation of the senses or sensuousness. That is

known as the tamasic mood.

 

Whatever is the dominant mood of the three, that gives the

character to your personality at that point of time.

 

A devotee asked me: `Swami, what is a good auspicious time for

Puja?'. Well, do you ask such a question when a negative thought

arises? When you get angry do you think about whether it is an

auspicious time or not? Then why do you ask such a question only for

Puja? The moment you thought of Puja, that is the good time, for by

your very entertainment of that thought, you have shown that you are

in a satvic mood then. Karna, well-known for his spirit of charity,

used to give even with his left hand, -- though giving with the left

hand is prohibited by shastras -- when the thing to be given was on

his left side; because he would say, by the time one transfers the

thing to one's right side, the mind may undergo a change!

 

All the three moods are empowered by emotions, positive or negative.

Emotion is that motion which takes place in your heart. It is an

expression of the heart, an expression which is beyond the purview

of the brain.

It is the head that thinks; the heart feels.

It is from the head that association arises; but the attachment is

from the heart.

Head accepts, Heart surrenders.

Determination is from the head; Devotion is from the heart.

It is the head that respects, but it is the heart that reveres.

As Pujya Gurudev has said, Faith is a belief in something that you

do not see, but the result of the belief is, you see what you have

believed in. Indeed Faith makes a belief come true. It is not enough

to understand philosophical concepts. You have to stand under them.

When the head and heart go together like this, you are said to be

a `yukta'.

 

Religion preaches faith. It is faith that makes you feel the

presence of God. It is like a mother's feeling for her child. When

she has several children whom does she feel for most? The answer is

not the youngest or the oldest, not the male child or the female

child, but it is that child of hers who has not come home yet. And

that is how you should feel for God and the world which is His own

expression. It is the spiritual heart that is the abode of

God. `Ishvaras-sarvabhUtAnAM ... (Gita 18-61)' says this very

precisely. The word `hRRidayaM' itself breaks into `hRRit' (Truth)

and `ayaM' (This). This spiritual heart is the core of our

personality.

 

It is when you feel for a cause (from the heart) that you work for

it, sacrifice your all and dedicate yourself.

Empowered by the emotion of Life, Mother Teresa became the foremost

among the humane.

Empowered by the emotion of universal brotherhood, Vivekananda

became the messiaH of the Master.

Empowered by the emotion of freedom did Mohandas Gandhi renounce the

lawyer profession and become a Mahatma.

Empowered by the emotion of Devotion, Ramakrishna Paramahamsa spent

all his time at the altar of Mother Goddess.

Empowered by the emotion of humanitarian culture and tradition

Swami Chinmayananda spent 42 years of his life spreading the

knowledge of the scriptures.

 

Thus the empowering of emotion is a power that expresses itself in

sincere and selfless action. In spiritual parlance this emotion is

toward the experience of God. Emotion of the mind is the link

between God and man. The integrated personality who has thus

integrated head and heart (and is therefoere a yukta) gets the

intellect which moves towards the bhAvanA that rewards you with

Peace and Ultimate Bliss. Recall *nAsti buddhir-ayuktasya na

cAyuktasya ...* (B.G. II – 66). We shall look at some answers

inspired by the teaching of the Buddha, to questions pertaining

to this line of thought.

 

Q. Does not love create pain and dejection when love is not

reciprocated?

 

A. Without love there cannot be enlightenment. Only by opening of

the heart through love is enlightenment possible. Love is not lust

and attachment. It is not discrimination or prejudice. Highest form

of Love is devotion. The opposite of Love is not hatred. Hatred is a

distorted form of Love. In fact all of them – lust, attachment,

discrimination, prejudice – are distorted forms of Love. The

opposite form of Love is fear. Fear is about losing what you have.

Recall B.G. 12 – 13. (*adveShTA sarva-bhUtAnAM ... ) Love is

actually Maitrii and KarunA. Maitrii adds happiness to another

through Love. KaruNA is alleviating the suffering of another through

Love.

 

Q. I love my country, my family, my people. Is it not enough for

enlightenment?

 

A. When you restrict your love you are not enlightened. The causes

for this restriction or limitation is the feeling of `I' and `Mine'.

For a real saint there is no stranger. When you are stranger to your

Self you estrange all others! The great devotee Sabari was asked by

Rama : "How did you know that I am Rama whom you have been longing

to see? You are showering all your hospitality and affection on me

without even knowing who I am". And Sabari replies: "I offer this

same hospitality and affection to everybody who comes to my hut. It

so happens, from your statement, that you are the real Rama. But I

have been treating every one who comes here, as Rama"!

 

It is Rumi who wrote: "With love you cannot bargain. Choice is not

yours. Love is a mirror which reflects only your essence if you have

the courage to look into its face".

 

Pujya Gurudev used to say: "When one is in Love, he looks at the

world from the eyes of his beloved, rather than from his own" . A

devotee of God therefore looks at the world from the eyes of His

Lord. And thus arises his vision of the whole world as one family.

*vasudhaiva kutumbakaM*. Love expands the vision and finally

envelopes the entire heart.

 

Q. How are we to love every one without attachment and

possessiveness?

 

A. Yes. That is Love without expectation. Such a love, devotion

cannot be taught. It has to be absorbed in the company of devotees

and sAdhus. The rituals and external symbolisms of love are all

actions that pertain to the head. But this Love has to be a feeling

from the heart. Love like a child. *unmattavat bAlavat* is the

maxim: It means like a child mad after something. But in the name of

love don't enslave your object of love. There is a saying in

Sanskrit:

 

*lAlayet pancha varShANi dasha-varShANi tADayet /

prApte to ShoDashe varShe putraM mitravad-Acharet //*

 

A child has to be fondled until it reaches five years of age. For

ten years thereafter the child should be disciplined. Once the son

has reached the sixteenth year he should be treated as afriend.

 

Generally, the rule is: Love, not because of something you expect in

return, but in spite of any return that you get. Always respect the

person whom you love. When this fails, even the modern style

of `living together' fails. Instead of living together you must live

for each other.

 

Q. Limited love brings pain. Does Compassion also bring pain?

 

A. The two are different. Compassion empowers to serve. A person

empowered by love and compassion is self-motivated.

 

Love obstructed gives rise to anger.

Love deprived makes one jealous.

When Love is self-centred it becomes greed.

When love is at the physical level, it is lust.

Love the members of the family for companionship.

Love your friends for the care and concern that they show.

Love strangers for their friendliness.

 

Keep enlarging this circle of love to all of humanity. Then there

will be no pain.

_____

 

PraNAms to all advaitins on the list and to Swami Ishwarananda.

profvk

[Guest guest]

Namaste,

 

thank you also for this words from Swami Ishwarananda...

 

yesterday there were words about "meditation and life"....today it

concerns partly the "heart chakra"....emotions....different types

of "love"

 

i believe that if there is the Love to "God" rising....the

preparation for meditation-practice is given...

 

means....This love to "God"....the "Self"...."Brahman".....is

necessary to practice meditation.....

i don't believe that anybody could meditate deeply without this Love.

 

so the many emotions one can have.....for many different

reasons.......can be "channeled" to the Self.......

to reach calmness (mind) again.....and again....

 

maybe after some time....this "practice" fill up daily life and more

harmony with everything appear....in every action and work which is

done....

 

"life" is entering constantly into the body-mind-intellect.....and

also is flowing out of the body-mind-intellect......the BMI is in

constant influence with everything around....in this space and

time....of mind.....

 

.....it's about to get perfect harmony in this mind....

perfect harmony with All of the appearing world....

 

i imagine....when this flow of energy (Love) through BMI is doing

fine.....and depends, maybe also by the help of meditations.....

 

....when this exchange of love with Self....of ourself....with the

Self.....become more and more intensiv.....

 

....there is this Love mainly.....remaining.....just this Love is

there.....

 

....life become love....love become life......

 

meditation....love....life......become ONE

 

in this Oneness ....the mind disappear.....the ego disappear......

and so...also Karma

 

without mind.....consciousness appear.....in fact, consciousness is

always there.....but covered by a moving mind

 

 

"Balancing life through Vedanta"....

 

thank you for your message

 

wish you all a nice weekend....

see you everywhere....

 

Marc

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

advaitin, "V. Krishnamurthy" <profvk>

wrote:

>

> Namaste

>

> [The following is my brief summary -- errors of fact,

> slips of content and faults of logic are all mine -- of

> the third lecture of a series of five lectures by Swami

> Ishwarananda. The third lecture (19th April) was titled:

> Empowering with Emotions. I have omitted some of his quotations

> from Upanishats and other Vedantic works.]

> ___________

> Empowering with Emotions.

>

> Feelings and emotions are expressed in the heart, not in the

brain.

> This is not the physical heart that doctors are familiar with. It

is

> the spiritual heart.

>

> The Bhagavad Gita talks of three different moods. When you are calm

> and peaceful, as in the beginning of the day, or in meditation, or

> in front of the altar (when you have no demands and are not asking

> for anything) or in the company of the noble, you are said to be in

> the satvic mood. That is when and where we see the vision of one-

> ness. When we are in the company of a child, for instance, we

don't

> expect anything from the child , we are in that satvic peaceful

> mood.

> On the other hand, very often the mind is agitated, ambitious with

> the vision of diversity. It tries to get the maximum of the

> happening around. It is full of opinions, prejudice and judgment –

> all born out of strong likes and dislikes. That is when you are in

> the Rajasic mood.

> The third mood is a narrow vision of self-centredness, everything

> dormant with the satiation of the senses or sensuousness. That is

> known as the tamasic mood.

>

> Whatever is the dominant mood of the three, that gives the

> character to your personality at that point of time.

>

> A devotee asked me: `Swami, what is a good auspicious time for

> Puja?'. Well, do you ask such a question when a negative thought

> arises? When you get angry do you think about whether it is an

> auspicious time or not? Then why do you ask such a question only

for

> Puja? The moment you thought of Puja, that is the good time, for

by

> your very entertainment of that thought, you have shown that you

are

> in a satvic mood then. Karna, well-known for his spirit of charity,

> used to give even with his left hand, -- though giving with the

left

> hand is prohibited by shastras -- when the thing to be given was

on

> his left side; because he would say, by the time one transfers the

> thing to one's right side, the mind may undergo a change!

>

> All the three moods are empowered by emotions, positive or

negative.

> Emotion is that motion which takes place in your heart. It is an

> expression of the heart, an expression which is beyond the purview

> of the brain.

> It is the head that thinks; the heart feels.

> It is from the head that association arises; but the attachment is

> from the heart.

> Head accepts, Heart surrenders.

> Determination is from the head; Devotion is from the heart.

> It is the head that respects, but it is the heart that reveres.

> As Pujya Gurudev has said, Faith is a belief in something that you

> do not see, but the result of the belief is, you see what you have

> believed in. Indeed Faith makes a belief come true. It is not

enough

> to understand philosophical concepts. You have to stand under them.

> When the head and heart go together like this, you are said to be

> a `yukta'.

>

> Religion preaches faith. It is faith that makes you feel the

> presence of God. It is like a mother's feeling for her child. When

> she has several children whom does she feel for most? The answer is

> not the youngest or the oldest, not the male child or the female

> child, but it is that child of hers who has not come home yet. And

> that is how you should feel for God and the world which is His own

> expression. It is the spiritual heart that is the abode of

> God. `Ishvaras-sarvabhUtAnAM ... (Gita 18-61)' says this very

> precisely. The word `hRRidayaM' itself breaks into `hRRit' (Truth)

> and `ayaM' (This). This spiritual heart is the core of our

> personality.

>

> It is when you feel for a cause (from the heart) that you work for

> it, sacrifice your all and dedicate yourself.

> Empowered by the emotion of Life, Mother Teresa became the foremost

> among the humane.

> Empowered by the emotion of universal brotherhood, Vivekananda

> became the messiaH of the Master.

> Empowered by the emotion of freedom did Mohandas Gandhi renounce

the

> lawyer profession and become a Mahatma.

> Empowered by the emotion of Devotion, Ramakrishna Paramahamsa spent

> all his time at the altar of Mother Goddess.

> Empowered by the emotion of humanitarian culture and tradition

> Swami Chinmayananda spent 42 years of his life spreading the

> knowledge of the scriptures.

>

> Thus the empowering of emotion is a power that expresses itself in

> sincere and selfless action. In spiritual parlance this emotion is

> toward the experience of God. Emotion of the mind is the link

> between God and man. The integrated personality who has thus

> integrated head and heart (and is therefoere a yukta) gets the

> intellect which moves towards the bhAvanA that rewards you with

> Peace and Ultimate Bliss. Recall *nAsti buddhir-ayuktasya na

> cAyuktasya ...* (B.G. II – 66). We shall look at some answers

> inspired by the teaching of the Buddha, to questions pertaining

> to this line of thought.

>

> Q. Does not love create pain and dejection when love is not

> reciprocated?

>

> A. Without love there cannot be enlightenment. Only by opening of

> the heart through love is enlightenment possible. Love is not lust

> and attachment. It is not discrimination or prejudice. Highest form

> of Love is devotion. The opposite of Love is not hatred. Hatred is

a

> distorted form of Love. In fact all of them – lust, attachment,

> discrimination, prejudice – are distorted forms of Love. The

> opposite form of Love is fear. Fear is about losing what you have.

> Recall B.G. 12 – 13. (*adveShTA sarva-bhUtAnAM ... ) Love is

> actually Maitrii and KarunA. Maitrii adds happiness to another

> through Love. KaruNA is alleviating the suffering of another

through

> Love.

>

> Q. I love my country, my family, my people. Is it not enough for

> enlightenment?

>

> A. When you restrict your love you are not enlightened. The causes

> for this restriction or limitation is the feeling of `I' and

`Mine'.

> For a real saint there is no stranger. When you are stranger to

your

> Self you estrange all others! The great devotee Sabari was asked

by

> Rama : "How did you know that I am Rama whom you have been longing

> to see? You are showering all your hospitality and affection on me

> without even knowing who I am". And Sabari replies: "I offer this

> same hospitality and affection to everybody who comes to my hut. It

> so happens, from your statement, that you are the real Rama. But I

> have been treating every one who comes here, as Rama"!

>

> It is Rumi who wrote: "With love you cannot bargain. Choice is not

> yours. Love is a mirror which reflects only your essence if you

have

> the courage to look into its face".

>

> Pujya Gurudev used to say: "When one is in Love, he looks at the

> world from the eyes of his beloved, rather than from his own" . A

> devotee of God therefore looks at the world from the eyes of His

> Lord. And thus arises his vision of the whole world as one family.

> *vasudhaiva kutumbakaM*. Love expands the vision and finally

> envelopes the entire heart.

>

> Q. How are we to love every one without attachment and

> possessiveness?

>

> A. Yes. That is Love without expectation. Such a love, devotion

> cannot be taught. It has to be absorbed in the company of devotees

> and sAdhus. The rituals and external symbolisms of love are all

> actions that pertain to the head. But this Love has to be a feeling

> from the heart. Love like a child. *unmattavat bAlavat* is the

> maxim: It means like a child mad after something. But in the name

of

> love don't enslave your object of love. There is a saying in

> Sanskrit:

>

> *lAlayet pancha varShANi dasha-varShANi tADayet /

> prApte to ShoDashe varShe putraM mitravad-Acharet //*

>

> A child has to be fondled until it reaches five years of age. For

> ten years thereafter the child should be disciplined. Once the son

> has reached the sixteenth year he should be treated as afriend.

>

> Generally, the rule is: Love, not because of something you expect

in

> return, but in spite of any return that you get. Always respect

the

> person whom you love. When this fails, even the modern style

> of `living together' fails. Instead of living together you must

live

> for each other.

>

> Q. Limited love brings pain. Does Compassion also bring pain?

>

> A. The two are different. Compassion empowers to serve. A person

> empowered by love and compassion is self-motivated.

>

> Love obstructed gives rise to anger.

> Love deprived makes one jealous.

> When Love is self-centred it becomes greed.

> When love is at the physical level, it is lust.

> Love the members of the family for companionship.

> Love your friends for the care and concern that they show.

> Love strangers for their friendliness.

>

> Keep enlarging this circle of love to all of humanity. Then there

> will be no pain.

> _____

>

> PraNAms to all advaitins on the list and to Swami Ishwarananda.

> profvk