What is the actual meaning of being PRACTICAL in life?

January 16, 2010

What is the actual meaning of being " PRACTICAL " in life?

shikha

----------------------

GITA TALK GROUP GUIDELINES for RESPONDER: PLEASE -

1. Only responses that further clarify Gita message will be posted.

2. Quote Gitaji/scriptures wherever possible.

3. RESPECT all Sadhaks. Limit personal feelings, opinions, beliefs etc. to the

extent that they further help in understanding the Gita shlokas

4. Be BRIEF, RELEVANT (stay with the subject being discussed 0nly)

5. Do not include links to the other sites; personal information (Ph #, address

etc) or personalize message to particular person

6. All responses may not be posted.

7. Please keep in mind novices, youth, westerners, non-sectarian audience. Limit

the use to Sanskrit words and provide English word bracketed.

GITA TALK MODERATORS

Ram Ram

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January 18, 2010

What is the actual meaning of being " PRACTICAL " in life?

shikha

----------------------

Namaste.

Let's start with the conventional and acceptable meaning of the word

" PRACTICAL. " . From one of the online dictionaries: Of, involving, or concerned

with experience or actual use; not theoretical; of or concerned with ordinary

affairs, work, etc; being such for all useful or general purposes; capable of or

suitable to being used or put into effect; useful; level-headed, efficient, and

unspeculative.

In addressing the question more specifically, " being PRACTICAL in life " means

one is grounded in the real world, in reality, facing and handling with real

issues and problems, and being able to adapt and interface effectively in a

variety of situations.

In the context of GITA, the teachings of Bhagavan are intended for us to be

" PRACTICAL in life " - in the everyday world we face - work, family, society,

leisure and recreational activities, inflation, traffic, health, love etc.

GITA does not ask us to escape the real world (of course, you can do that also,

and it is indeed beneficial to take a break regularly from the mundane world).

GITA does not require us to forget our jobs, family, and friends, and go into a

secluded lifestyle; you need food, money, and other material resources to live

in this world, unless you have attained such a level of enlightenment that have

risen above the mundane world. This is our objective and goal but before we

reach there we have to be PRACTICAL in life.

Many sadhaks become confused and deluded into thinking that GITA (and our other

treasured Hindu scriptures) are incompatible with " being PRACTICAL in life. "

Totally wrong!

GITA does not provide detailed instructions to the minutest level to handle

every single issue in being PRACTICAL; this would be highly impractical since

such a GITA would contain millions of pages or an infinite length. However, GITA

provides broad guidlines, and in some cases, specific instructions, in being

PRACTICAL in life.

Here is a extract from a very useful essay on the The Art of Being Practical:

" Action in this life is a must. Since action is called practice, persons

who live on Earth have to be practical. This means that you cannot spend all day

sitting down in a chair, passing the time imagining, worrying, and thinking, and

in doing so, forgetting to use your body for performing those actions that need

to be done.....

The whole life for a human being is how to survive: man has to be aware of

this and be practical. If we are not deluding ourselves, we see why it is

necessary that a person with knowledge has to be practical, and why he should

not be sitting somewhere in a cave only having an idea of karm: that it is not

action.

You are equipped with that knowledge and enlightenment which tells you that

your life cannot be shut off: you should do those things that are useful for a

human being to conduct. So if your knowledge gained over here or gained anywhere

in the world does not inspire you to be practical, then it will not be called

practical knowledge.

A human being, with a sense of inquiry to know more, will continue asking and

asking and asking questions. But just asking questions and getting answers for

whole days or whole months or whole years on end, will not allow you to be

practical. And if you are not practical, you cannot sustain your life.

So we are all engaged constantly in work which is practical. You call

yourself down to earth. I use the phrase 'be practical.' If you are on Earth, it

is essential to have the knowledge as to how to perform action, or karm.

Through seeing the nature of practicality, you have come to know that

which those people, busy in practical life, will never know—the Source of all

your work. "

GITA contains numerous instructions on being PRACTICAL in life. Seek, dive into

GITA, and ye shall receive wisdom.

Ram Ram

Deosaran Bisnath

---------

Shree Hari Ram Ram

Shikha! This word " practical " do not get trapped in the vicious circle of this

word. The one speaking is only taking the support of this word to convince his

mind;

Within you is Ishvar (God) (Gita 15:15 and 18:61). Listen to that. Every moment

He is guiding you, whether you listen to it or not. Besides that do not listen

to the mind, nor the intellect, nor anyone else. Try doing this and see. You

will not be able to forget this for the rest of your life. So be it.

Vineet Sarvottam

There is no question of being particular in the observance of scriptural

practices.Generally we have to follow our scriptures and ritualistic rules an d

in case of doubt we have to follow the actual custom going on This is the

practical way of life for Hindus

All religions firmly believe in their scriptures and what their founders have

said.No body disregards their teachings In Bhagavat Geeta lord Krishna please

follow me and act as I have said in this Bhgavata Gita.

This is what I think

Truly yours

Shankerprasad S Bhatt

-------

Dear Sadhakas,

Hare Krishna.

This is in reference to a question from a sadhaka.

Practical means that which can be put into practice, not theory nor speculation.

With reference to Bhagavad Gita, what is practical for this age, is chanting of

the Holy Names.

Lord Krishna says in Gitaji,

" Yajnanam japa yajnosmi. "

(Gitaji, 10,25)

Which means ,

'Of sacrifices I am the chanting of the Holy Names(Japa).

For this kali yuga what is practical is the chanting of the Holy Names.

" Hare Krishna Hare Krishna,

Krishna Krishna Hare Hare,

Hare Rama Hare Rama,

Rama Rama Hare Hare. "

This Hare Krishna Maha Mantra is pure, simple and Holy. This can be chanted at

any time and at any place. This is very practical.

Chanting of the Ashtakshari mantra ( O Namo Narayanaya) is also practical, pure,

simple and Holy.

Devotional service in form of chanting is strongly advised for this age.

Let us chant and advance spiritually.

Thank You

Hare Krishna.

Prasad.A.Iragavarapu, M.D

-----

What is the actual meaning of being " PRACTICAL " in life? you ask, shikhajee

..........

asking whom ?

when narinder asked Krishna, " Govinda what is the True meaning of Life?( being

Practical in Life ) " ,

Govinda only smiled ................

and so great a Compassion there was in His smile ...................

" the meaning of Life true ............. is the meaning that narinder imparts to

his life ..... it does not come from outside,

" Be True to yourself ................. for in being true to yourself, you shall

grow ..............

" seek not the Practical meaning from others .................. seek it only

from within ............. Meditate, narinder, Meditate .........

" the Satguru shows you only the Way ................. how to break your

dependence on the ' other' .............

" and seek all the answers from the self ..............

" he leads you inside ............... " ..........the Natkhat smiled

..................

The Practical meaning of Life, then, is to live in such a way that the self

abides in the Now

joyfully playing as Existence wills it to play .............and,

The whole of the Song Celestial shows you the Way.................... or, yet if

you must ask ...........

Chapters 17, and 18 , if you like, or ........

the first two angs of Patanjali's ' Ashtang Yoga' ( yama and niyama ),supported

by asana and pranayama ,

spell out for some narinder, some shikha

the Most PRACTICAL Way ........................

AUM

narinder bhandari

-------------

The use of word " Practical " is generally means " some kind of compromise with

principles/truth/wisdom of life " ....

It is like saying we cannot observe the wisdom part totally......only this

much....since the world is so and so....

This knowledge is not for us....

This kind of behaviour is generally because of the lack of clear understanding

of spiritual knowledge, truth....

We keep on doing this unless our conviction on the truth develops........and

that bring amazing results....

until then, we are just happy with being practical...and keep on

struggling.....Wonderful Game of life...

Sushil Jain

-------------

If we are able to put in to practice what ever we read in holy books then it

becomes practical other wise it is theoretical .People call it dantha vedantha

(vedantha limited to speech)

Badri Narayana Miriyal

-------------

Dear Sadhakas, Namaste!

To me, being practical means to remain anchored in Peace and Harmony while

engaging body-mind as tool to serve family, society and whoever may need help!

To do this one may need to pursue suitable means to earn income from a

profession which one loves to do.

The same thing is called to realize one's true nature which enables one to

remain anchored in it and offer body-mind to serve!

There cannot be anything more practical!

Namaskar................Pratap Bhatt

-----------------

There is just one meaning of the expression of being " Practical " : (a)to think

of, to pursue and act to achieve such results/ objectives that have the high

probability of being realized in a given time with the realizable value of

objectives being pursued being greater than or equal to the value of sacrifices

or costs to be incurred, and (b) not to think of, pursue and act to achieve such

objectives or results that have no chance or very little chance of being

realized and/ or the the realizable value of the objectives being pursued being

less than the value of sacrifices or costs to be incurred to achieve the

objectives. " In simpler terms, being practical means to pursue objectives that

one can reasonably expect to achieve without having to suffer sacrifices and

costs that is worth more than the value realizable on achieving the objectives.

Thus one is not being practical if one thinks he can build castles in the air

or commit a theft and murder in broad daylight and not being caught and punishes

severely or trying to become a physicist without studying physics and

mathematics, or trying to pursue an objective of simultaneously(all at the same

time) becoming a renowned heart transplant surgeon, a practicing chartered

accountant partner in a financial audit firm and the National Security Adviser.

Nor is it possible to pursue an objective of being honest and yet become a

leader of a group of dishonest persons.

But there are broadly two interpretations to this meaning. One, the objectives

being pursued are worldly, sensual and material in nature. The second

interpretation is to realize that all pursuit of material, sensual and worldly

objectives are in vain and driven by the ego, mind and senses over which one has

not been able to exercise control, is a life of illusion and therefore to shun

such a life to pursue a life dedicated to the realization of the Self or God.

From the stand point of each interpretation, both are practical. But those who

adopt the first interpretation will consider the second interpretation-based

life as impractical. Similarly, those who have adopted the second interpretation

would consider the activities of others as illusion-driven and hence

impractical. This is not to suggest that the achievement of the objective of

realization of the Self and becoming desire-less, ego-less and equanimity-filled

has anything more than close to zero rate of success. At the same time, those

who pursue this objective and derive satisfaction of merely being in the path to

realize the objective cannot be said to be impractical because their evaluation

of the experience enjoyed in the process seem to be much higher than the

sacrifices they make in the process. The same may be said of the people who

wants to remain honest, or become a painter or poet because they value their

remaining honest and/or being in a creative process more than the material

sacrifices they might make in the process.

In the above general framework, almost everything that different persons think.

pursue or act is practical, provided, however, these different persons have done

their calculations consciously before hand to justify to themselves what they

are thinking, pursuing and acting, instead of rationalizing or regretting their

behavior after words. Of course, those who change their behavior after

consciously calculating and assessing the values of the results of their earlier

behavior are also practical. In essence, almost everything is practical

depending on what one chooses for himself consciously with whatever information

and analytical abilities and foresight one possess. What is practical to one may

not be practical to another. There is nothing universally practical.

Basudeb Sen

------------------------

Dear Shikha,

Ram Ram.

You have to tell the context in which you are asking. There are 1 billion people

in India and they may use this word differently.

Obviously, this is not related to Gita. I don't even know if you live in India.

For many Hindus, " PRACTICAL " means that they don't need to follow their own

religion. It means that they can give up their tradition and eat meat, eggs or

beef.

It may mean that they can engage in cheating, fraud etc if that is convenient.

For me, " PRACTICAL " means is to apply the principles of Sanatan Dharma according

to time, place, circumstance and worthiness of indidual.

For example my 9 year old son and 7 year old daughter, do jap, yog and pranayam

regularly. They chant 1 mala of Hare Ram ... mantra everyday.

We do prayer at night and recite 'brahmarpanam brahma havih ... " before eating

food. They don't eat meat or eggs and may rarely eat onions or garlic.

They go to Hindu Sunday School where they learn about their dharma and associate

with other Hindu kids.

After giving all this knowledge to my daughter, being PRACTICAL to me means that

I would give her freedom. She will have freedom to choose what kind of clothes

she can wear and

I will respect if she has a boyfriend. Same applies to my son.

PRACTICAL means that I don't expect my daughter to be chaste as expected in

other yuga of Vedic religion. In Kali-yug, chastity does not apply.

I will be uncomfortable if they start eating meat. We are very clear about it.

Few weeks ago, my wife asked kids to eat spaghetti at school. My daughter found

out that spaghetti had eggs.

She freaked out and refused to eat. School had to especially get vegetarian food

without eggs for her.

My wife worked in child care center for few months. One 4 year old Indian girl

came up scantily clad Indian dress. Even non-India preschool teachers felt

weird. My wife asked her where she got that dress.

The girl replied that her grandmother from India got that dress. This is not

PRACTICAL.

Regards,

Gaurav Mittal

------------------

Sadara pranam!

I will give an example what is " practical " in today's world not feeling guilty

of Gita's teaching.

In Gita, it tell not to eat any food a day late after cooking. It actually

classified it as " amedyam " in exact words, meaning not for any human

consumption.

But we the followers of Gita also understand that this holy book is written at a

time refrigerators were not used. Now we use it at all middle class households

and we preserve the balance of food there for consumption later same day or a

second day. This to me ideal as otherwise we may waste that food which is a

bigger moral crime.

So keeping food in Fridge for second day use may be literally against the text

in Gita but not in spirit.

Rammohan

GITA TALK GROUP GUIDELINES for RESPONDER: PLEASE -

1. Only responses that further clarify Gita message will be posted.

2. Quote Gitaji/scriptures wherever possible.

3. RESPECT all Sadhaks. Limit personal feelings, opinions, beliefs etc. to the

extent that they further help in understanding the Gita shlokas

4. Be BRIEF, RELEVANT (stay with the subject being discussed 0nly)

5. Do not include links to the other sites; personal information (Ph #, address

etc) or personalize message to particular person

6. All responses may not be posted.

7. Please keep in mind novices, youth, westerners, non-sectarian audience. Limit

the use to Sanskrit words and provide English word bracketed.

GITA TALK MODERATORS

Ram Ram

------------ --------- --------- --------- --------- ---------

Post message:

Subscribe: -

Un: -

January 23, 2010

What is the actual meaning of being "PRACTICAL" in life?shikha----------------------NEW POSTINGDear Sadhakas, Namaste!To me, being practical means to remain anchored in Peace and Harmony while engaging body-mind as tool to serve family, society and whoever may need help! To do this one may need to pursue suitable means to earn income from a profession which one loves to do.The same thing is called to realize one's true nature which enables one to remain anchored in it and offer body-mind to serve!There cannot be anything more practical! Namaskar................Pratap Bhatt ---------Shree Hari Ram Ram Shikha! Do not get trapped in the vicious circle of the word PRACTICAL. The one who uses this word is using it only as a support to satisfy his mind. The God that is present within you (Gita 15:15 and 18:61) listen to Him. He is guiding you every moment in time, whether you listen to him or not. Besides that do not listen to your mind, or you intellect, nor any one else. Do it and see for yourself then for this entire life you will not be able to forget this. So be it. Vineet Sarvottam ---------- There is no question of being practical in the observance of scriptural practices.Generally we have to follow our scriptures and ritualistic rules an d in case of doubt we have to follow the actual custom going on This is the practical way of life for Hindus All religions firmly believe in their scriptures and what their founders have said.No body disregards their teachings In Bhagavat Geeta lord Krishna please follow me and act as I have said in this Bhagavata Gita. This is what I think Truly yours Shankerprasad S Bhatt---------There are not two worlds, material and spiritual.There is only one world and that is material, what we are calling 'practical'.One who is not aware uses material things for his fulfilment.One who is aware (spiritual) uses material things with a sense of abandonment, which is not disinclination Y V Chawla -------------Hi,Being "PRACTICAL" means what goes in ones' life , how that person takes each situation in his life, how does he or she faces his difficulties or happiness. Sometime the person is surrounded by minor problem but that person feels he is in a terrible situation, not only he is disturbs but he makes his surrounding also disturb. But there are also some people who are in real big problem but they assure others that not to worry as the things are not so bad as it seems to be.They also assure them the things are working positively for them. So it depends on person to person how does one work on his life. This is what i call practical working on our self. There is no other way if we want to work spiritually . The word Practical is very simple to understand, it means to work on your daily thoughts, situation etc. S. R Amin" ----------------Namaste.Let's start with the conventional and acceptable meaning of the word"PRACTICAL.". From one of the online dictionaries: Of, involving, or concernedwith experience or actual use; not theoretical; of or concerned with ordinaryaffairs, work, etc; being such for all useful or general purposes; capable of orsuitable to being used or put into effect; useful; level-headed, efficient, andunspeculative.In addressing the question more specifically, "being PRACTICAL in life" meansone is grounded in the real world, in reality, facing and handling with realissues and problems, and being able to adapt and interface effectively in avariety of situations.In the context of GITA, the teachings of Bhagavan are intended for us to be"PRACTICAL in life" - in the everyday world we face - work, family, society,leisure and recreational activities, inflation, traffic, health, love etc.GITA does not ask us to escape the real world (of course, you can do that also,and it is indeed beneficial to take a break regularly from the mundane world). GITA does not require us to forget our jobs, family, and friends, and go into asecluded lifestyle; you need food, money, and other material resources to livein this world, unless you have attained such a level of enlightenment that haverisen above the mundane world. This is our objective and goal but before wereach there we have to be PRACTICAL in life.Many sadhaks become confused and deluded into thinking that GITA (and our othertreasured Hindu scriptures) are incompatible with "being PRACTICAL in life."Totally wrong!GITA does not provide detailed instructions to the minutest level to handleevery single issue in being PRACTICAL; this would be highly impractical sincesuch a GITA would contain millions of pages or an infinite length. However, GITAprovides broad guidlines, and in some cases, specific instructions, in beingPRACTICAL in life.Here is a extract from a very useful essay on the The Art of Being Practical:"Action in this life is a must. Since action is called practice, personswho live on Earth have to be practical. This means that you cannot spend all daysitting down in a chair, passing the time imagining, worrying, and thinking, andin doing so, forgetting to use your body for performing those actions that needto be done.....The whole life for a human being is how to survive: man has to be aware ofthis and be practical. If we are not deluding ourselves, we see why it isnecessary that a person with knowledge has to be practical, and why he shouldnot be sitting somewhere in a cave only having an idea of karm: that it is notaction.You are equipped with that knowledge and enlightenment which tells you thatyour life cannot be shut off: you should do those things that are useful for ahuman being to conduct. So if your knowledge gained over here or gained anywherein the world does not inspire you to be practical, then it will not be calledpractical knowledge.A human being, with a sense of inquiry to know more, will continue asking andasking and asking questions. But just asking questions and getting answers forwhole days or whole months or whole years on end, will not allow you to bepractical. And if you are not practical, you cannot sustain your life.So we are all engaged constantly in work which is practical. You callyourself down to earth. I use the phrase 'be practical.' If you are on Earth, itis essential to have the knowledge as to how to perform action, or karm.Through seeing the nature of practicality, you have come to know thatwhich those people, busy in practical life, will never know—the Source of allyour work."GITA contains numerous instructions on being PRACTICAL in life. Seek, dive intoGITA, and ye shall receive wisdom.Ram RamDeosaran Bisnath---------Shree Hari Ram RamShikha! This word "practical" do not get trapped in the vicious circle of thisword. The one speaking is only taking the support of this word to convince hismind;Within you is Ishvar (God) (Gita 15:15 and 18:61). Listen to that. Every momentHe is guiding you, whether you listen to it or not. Besides that do not listento the mind, nor the intellect, nor anyone else. Try doing this and see. Youwill not be able to forget this for the rest of your life. So be it.Vineet SarvottamThere is no question of being particular in the observance of scripturalpractices.Generally we have to follow our scriptures and ritualistic rules an din case of doubt we have to follow the actual custom going on This is thepractical way of life for HindusAll religions firmly believe in their scriptures and what their founders havesaid.No body disregards their teachings In Bhagavat Geeta lord Krishna pleasefollow me and act as I have said in this Bhgavata Gita.This is what I thinkTruly yoursShankerprasad S Bhatt-------Dear Sadhakas,Hare Krishna.This is in reference to a question from a sadhaka.Practical means that which can be put into practice, not theory nor speculation.With reference to Bhagavad Gita, what is practical for this age, is chanting ofthe Holy Names.Lord Krishna says in Gitaji," Yajnanam japa yajnosmi. "(Gitaji, 10,25)Which means ,'Of sacrifices I am the chanting of the Holy Names(Japa).For this kali yuga what is practical is the chanting of the Holy Names." Hare Krishna Hare Krishna,Krishna Krishna Hare Hare,Hare Rama Hare Rama,Rama Rama Hare Hare. "This Hare Krishna Maha Mantra is pure, simple and Holy. This can be chanted atany time and at any place. This is very practical.Chanting of the Ashtakshari mantra ( O Namo Narayanaya) is also practical, pure,simple and Holy.Devotional service in form of chanting is strongly advised for this age.Let us chant and advance spiritually.Thank YouHare Krishna.Prasad.A.Iragavarapu, M.D-----What is the actual meaning of being "PRACTICAL" in life? you ask, shikhajee.........asking whom ?when narinder asked Krishna, " Govinda what is the True meaning of Life?( beingPractical in Life ) ",Govinda only smiled ................and so great a Compassion there was in His smile ..................." the meaning of Life true ............. is the meaning that narinder imparts tohis life ..... it does not come from outside," Be True to yourself ................. for in being true to yourself, you shallgrow .............." seek not the Practical meaning from others .................. seek it onlyfrom within ............. Meditate, narinder, Meditate ........."the Satguru shows you only the Way ................. how to break yourdependence on the ' other' ............." and seek all the answers from the self .............." he leads you inside ............... " ..........the Natkhat smiled.................The Practical meaning of Life, then, is to live in such a way that the selfabides in the Nowjoyfully playing as Existence wills it to play .............and,The whole of the Song Celestial shows you the Way.................... or, yet ifyou must ask ...........Chapters 17, and 18 , if you like, or ........the first two angs of Patanjali's ' Ashtang Yoga' ( yama and niyama ),supportedby asana and pranayama ,spell out for some narinder, some shikhathe Most PRACTICAL Way ........................AUMnarinder bhandari-------------The use of word "Practical" is generally means "some kind of compromise withprinciples/truth/wisdom of life"....It is like saying we cannot observe the wisdom part totally......only thismuch....since the world is so and so....This knowledge is not for us....This kind of behaviour is generally because of the lack of clear understandingof spiritual knowledge, truth....We keep on doing this unless our conviction on the truth develops........andthat bring amazing results....until then, we are just happy with being practical...and keep onstruggling.....Wonderful Game of life...Sushil Jain-------------If we are able to put in to practice what ever we read in holy books then itbecomes practical other wise it is theoretical .People call it dantha vedantha(vedantha limited to speech)Badri Narayana Miriyal-------------Dear Sadhakas, Namaste!To me, being practical means to remain anchored in Peace and Harmony whileengaging body-mind as tool to serve family, society and whoever may need help!To do this one may need to pursue suitable means to earn income from aprofession which one loves to do.The same thing is called to realize one's true nature which enables one toremain anchored in it and offer body-mind to serve!There cannot be anything more practical!Namaskar................Pratap Bhatt-----------------There is just one meaning of the expression of being "Practical": (a)to thinkof, to pursue and act to achieve such results/ objectives that have the highprobability of being realized in a given time with the realizable value ofobjectives being pursued being greater than or equal to the value of sacrificesor costs to be incurred, and (b) not to think of, pursue and act to achieve suchobjectives or results that have no chance or very little chance of beingrealized and/ or the the realizable value of the objectives being pursued beingless than the value of sacrifices or costs to be incurred to achieve theobjectives." In simpler terms, being practical means to pursue objectives thatone can reasonably expect to achieve without having to suffer sacrifices andcosts that is worth more than the value realizable on achieving the objectives.Thus one is not being practical if one thinks he can build castles in the airor commit a theft and murder in broad daylight and not being caught and punishesseverely or trying to become a physicist without studying physics andmathematics, or trying to pursue an objective of simultaneously(all at the sametime) becoming a renowned heart transplant surgeon, a practicing charteredaccountant partner in a financial audit firm and the National Security Adviser.Nor is it possible to pursue an objective of being honest and yet become aleader of a group of dishonest persons.But there are broadly two interpretations to this meaning. One, the objectivesbeing pursued are worldly, sensual and material in nature. The secondinterpretation is to realize that all pursuit of material, sensual and worldlyobjectives are in vain and driven by the ego, mind and senses over which one hasnot been able to exercise control, is a life of illusion and therefore to shunsuch a life to pursue a life dedicated to the realization of the Self or God.From the stand point of each interpretation, both are practical. But those whoadopt the first interpretation will consider the second interpretation-basedlife as impractical. Similarly, those who have adopted the second interpretationwould consider the activities of others as illusion-driven and henceimpractical. This is not to suggest that the achievement of the objective ofrealization of the Self and becoming desire-less, ego-less and equanimity-filledhas anything more than close to zero rate of success. At the same time, thosewho pursue this objective and derive satisfaction of merely being in the path torealize the objective cannot be said to be impractical because their evaluationof the experience enjoyed in the process seem to be much higher than thesacrifices they make in the process. The same may be said of the people whowants to remain honest, or become a painter or poet because they value theirremaining honest and/or being in a creative process more than the materialsacrifices they might make in the process.In the above general framework, almost everything that different persons think.pursue or act is practical, provided, however, these different persons have donetheir calculations consciously before hand to justify to themselves what theyare thinking, pursuing and acting, instead of rationalizing or regretting theirbehavior after words. Of course, those who change their behavior afterconsciously calculating and assessing the values of the results of their earlierbehavior are also practical. In essence, almost everything is practicaldepending on what one chooses for himself consciously with whatever informationand analytical abilities and foresight one possess. What is practical to one maynot be practical to another. There is nothing universally practical.Basudeb Sen------------------------Dear Shikha,Ram Ram.You have to tell the context in which you are asking. There are 1 billion peoplein India and they may use this word differently.Obviously, this is not related to Gita. I don't even know if you live in India.For many Hindus, "PRACTICAL" means that they don't need to follow their ownreligion. It means that they can give up their tradition and eat meat, eggs orbeef.It may mean that they can engage in cheating, fraud etc if that is convenient.For me, "PRACTICAL" means is to apply the principles of Sanatan Dharma accordingto time, place, circumstance and worthiness of indidual.For example my 9 year old son and 7 year old daughter, do jap, yog and pranayamregularly. They chant 1 mala of Hare Ram ... mantra everyday.We do prayer at night and recite 'brahmarpanam brahma havih ..." before eatingfood. They don't eat meat or eggs and may rarely eat onions or garlic.They go to Hindu Sunday School where they learn about their dharma and associatewith other Hindu kids.After giving all this knowledge to my daughter, being PRACTICAL to me means thatI would give her freedom. She will have freedom to choose what kind of clothesshe can wear andI will respect if she has a boyfriend. Same applies to my son.PRACTICAL means that I don't expect my daughter to be chaste as expected inother yuga of Vedic religion. In Kali-yug, chastity does not apply.I will be uncomfortable if they start eating meat. We are very clear about it.Few weeks ago, my wife asked kids to eat spaghetti at school. My daughter foundout that spaghetti had eggs.She freaked out and refused to eat. School had to especially get vegetarian foodwithout eggs for her.My wife worked in child care center for few months. One 4 year old Indian girlcame up scantily clad Indian dress. Even non-India preschool teachers feltweird. My wife asked her where she got that dress.The girl replied that her grandmother from India got that dress. This is notPRACTICAL.Regards,Gaurav Mittal------------------Sadara pranam!I will give an example what is "practical" in today's world not feeling guiltyof Gita's teaching.In Gita, it tell not to eat any food a day late after cooking. It actuallyclassified it as "amedyam" in exact words, meaning not for any humanconsumption.But we the followers of Gita also understand that this holy book is written at atime refrigerators were not used. Now we use it at all middle class householdsand we preserve the balance of food there for consumption later same day or asecond day. This to me ideal as otherwise we may waste that food which is abigger moral crime.So keeping food in Fridge for second day use may be literally against the textin Gita but not in spirit.RammohanGITA TALK GROUP GUIDELINES for RESPONDER: PLEASE -1. Only responses that further clarify Gita message will be posted.2. Quote Gitaji/scriptures wherever possible.3. RESPECT all Sadhaks. Limit personal feelings, opinions, beliefs etc. to theextent that they further help in understanding the Gita shlokas4. Be BRIEF, RELEVANT (stay with the subject being discussed 0nly)5. Do not include links to the other sites; personal information (Ph #, addressetc) or personalize message to particular person6. All responses may not be posted.7. Please keep in mind novices, youth, westerners, non-sectarian audience. Limitthe use to Sanskrit words and provide English word bracketed.GITA TALK MODERATORSRam Ram------------ --------- --------- --------- --------- ---------Post message: Subscribe: - Unsubscribe: -