Guest guest Posted June 28, 2005 Report Share Posted June 28, 2005 Dear Advaitins I have had the good fortune of reading about the lives and some of the teachings of Sri Ramakrishna PArahamsa- Eastern India, Bhagwan Ramana Maharshi- Southern India and Shirdi Saibaba- Western India. My apologies in the first place for ascribing a place or geographic location to such great mahapurushas. However, accepting my limitations, there is this desire to study the life and teachings of a saint set in the northern Indian Environs - preferably in the last two centuries. Any suggestions from the group - do feel free to mail me off-list will be gratefully appreciated Many namaskarams Sridhar Aravamudhan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 28, 2005 Report Share Posted June 28, 2005 advaitin, "asridhar19" <asridhar19> wrote: > However, accepting my > limitations, there is this desire to study the life and teachings of a > saint set in the northern Indian Environs - preferably in the last two > centuries. > Any suggestions from the group - Namaste, Sridhar-ji Here are two names for you: Swami Narayan (1781 -1830): Hailing from Gujarat, he became a sannyasi at the age of 12, was thereafter known as Sahajananda Swami and was accepted as a divine incarnation at 24. He fought sati, infanticide and other questionable practices in the name of religion. Swami Dayanand Saraswati (1824 - 1883) who founded the first formal successful movement against the western political and cultural impact, in the form of the Arya Samaj. With his slogan, 'Back to the Vedas' and his monumental work 'satyArtha prakAsh', he paved the way for the reformation of Hinduism through a return to its roots. PraNAms to all advaitins. profvk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 28, 2005 Report Share Posted June 28, 2005 advaitin, "V. Krishnamurthy" <profvk> wrote: > advaitin, "asridhar19" <asridhar19> > wrote: > > However, accepting my > > limitations, there is this desire to study the life and teachings > of a > > saint set in the northern Indian Environs - preferably in the last > two > > centuries. > > Any suggestions from the group - > > Namaste, Sridhar-ji > > Here are two names for you: Namaste, Two more names for the list: Lahiri Mahashaya (Sw. Yogananda's parama guru) http://www.fortunecity.com/victorian/duchamp/158/lahiri.html Swami Sivananda (Founder Divine Life Society) http://www.dlshq.org/ Regards, Sunder Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 28, 2005 Report Share Posted June 28, 2005 Mention of Swami Dayananda Sarswati brings back some fond memories. Both my grandparents were Arya Samajis. I started reading Satyartha Parkash very early in childhood and had read most of it by the time I was 12. Swami Dayananda's life story is very interesting. His Guru was blind and a strict disciplinarian. Swami Dayananda turned out to be a great Hindu reformer of the 1800s. He was also a powerful personality and an effective debater and a huge critic of other religions and ways of thinking which earned him some enemies. This is not the place to go into details but as many know at the end of his life Swami Dayananda was poisoned in a very bad way and it took him a month or so to die and he suffered badly. He forgave the person who had done it and gave him some money to make his escape. Swami Dayananda emphasized strict discipline and Brahmacharya (very big on brhamacharya with a lot of detailed explanations which really fascinated me as a child!). I enjoyed reading the Satyartha Parkash very and in my innocence often wondered why it was not followed to the letter. For example (and I still remember this), Swami Dayananda felt that the best marriage was between a 48 year old brahmachari boy and 24 year old brahmachari girl as that would produce the healthiest children. I think the next best category he felt was a 36 year old brahmachari boy and around a 20 year old brahmacharini girl. The third and the lowest category of marriage was between a 25 year old brahmachari boy and 16 year old brahmacharini girl. Well, I really took that to heart. When my grandparents started arranging marriages of all my uncles in their early 20s, I was horrified. According to Swami Dayananda this was even lower than the lowest category of marriage. I tried to persuade my grandfather that my uncles should all wait until their late forties to get married according to instructions given in Satyartha Parkash by Swami Dayananda. A 48 year old brahmachari boy and a 24 year old brahamacharini girl. Well, predictably, everyone laughed at me. Especially my uncles as none of them were eager to wait much longer to get married. I don't think any of them had actually read the Satyartha Parkash! I saw my grandfather reading it once in a while but he might have skipped a few sections. I literally read the whole thing but found that my immediate family was not ready for gems it contained. In hindsight, it all strikes me as funny. Swami Dayananda had very high expectations as outlined in Satyartha Parkash. Most Aryasamajis probably find it hard to live up to them. _____ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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