RE: MODERATE -- mlranganathan2001@... posted to

[Guest guest]

Dear Bhaagavatas

This is one of the frequently asked questions.

When we wear holy marks on our forehead, this would remind fellow Bhaagavatas observing us about the holy feet of our Lord and generate a feeling of devotion and vice versa.

 

But, why should the Lord sport the same on his forehead?

 

This is in order to show how we should wear the holy marks.

 

In Bhagavad Gita, Lord KrishNa explains why He observes "karmas" though He is not bound by any rules.

 

"Yad aacharanti SrEshTaa: tath tadEva itarE janaa:/

sa yath pramaaNam kurutE lOkas tad anuvartatE//"

(BG Ch.III.21)

na mE partha! asti kartavyam trishu lOkEshu kinchana/

naanavaaptamavaaptavyam varta yEva cha karmaNI//

(BG. Ch. III.22)

 

He proceeds to say that if he does not observe, lesser folks would follow this example and give up performing karmas.

 

yadi hi aham na vartEyam jaatu karmaNyatandrita:/

mama vartmani anuvartantE manushyaa: paartha!Sarvasa:// (BG. Ch. III.23)

 

The implication is that we have a tendency to copy only any lapses and that we are experts in making the rules of exceptions, if any!

 

"PuNDra DhaaraNam" is a “Vaideeka Karma”. To remind us folks of this integral part of nitya karma anushTaanam, the Lord sets an example for us to follow.

 

We also see how Sage Viswaamitra wakes up Rama reminding him that he has to perform “nitya karma anushTaanam” though he declared earlier that he knew Rama as not only mahatma but also the paramaatma Himself.

“Aham vEdmi mahaatmaanam raamam Sathya parakramam”

 

He wakes him up saying:

Kousalyaa supraja Rama! Poorvaa Sandhya pravartatE/

UthishTa nara saardula! Kartavyam Deivam ahnikam//

 

We may recall how in Badrikaasramam, the Lord took the dual form of Nara and NaaraayaNa to illustrate how a deserving Sishya and a qualified Guru should conduct themselves. He thus sets examples for our benefit.

 

We are smarter than Bhagavaan Himself in that we outwit him by refusing to follow his examples of adherence to Saastraic injunctions!

 

These are some of the reasons that come to mind. Scholars doing deeper research in such matters may wish to add their comments.

Dasoham

Anbil Ramaswamy

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Wed, 27 May 2009 13:22:31 +0000-accept-ReXAEsVYDQXnQjbQ5WggYEs To: -owner Subject: MODERATE -- mlranganathan2001 posted to Hello, A message has been sent to the group from mlranganathan2001 The message summary:--------------------FROM: mlranganathan2001 DATE: Wed, 27 May 2009 13:22:20 -0000 SUBJECT: Query on Urdhvapundram Dear Bhagavathas, The following question has been lingering on my mind for a long time... We state that Thiruman represents Sriman Narayana's sri padam and Srichoornam, MahaLakshmi. In that case, why do we apply this in temples on Perumal himself? Does this mean that Thiruman and Srichoornam signify something else also? -------------------- A complete copy of this message has been attached for your convenience. This message requires your approval for one of the following reasons:* Your group is set to moderate all messages from this user, OR* Your group is set to moderate messages from all users To approve or reject this message using the web, please visit:/pending?view=1 & msg=11930 To approve this message using email, reply to this message. You do not need to attach the original message, just reply and send. To reject this message using email, forward this message to -reject-zGXooj9zMKThFdXBYoO1m8w NOTE: The pending message will expire after 14 days. If you do not take action within that time, the pending message will be automaticallyrejected. does this to maintain a high quality ofservice for our users. Thank you for choosing . Regards, Customer Care