Insure and Be Secure

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Srimate SrivanSatakopa Sri Vedanta Desika Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:

 

 

 

" Insure and Be Secure! "

 

 

 

One of the most difficult jobs in the world is selling insurance. If

you ask insurance agents, they would tell you how hard it is to convince anyone

to insure themselves, for, almost everyone believes themselves to be permanent

residents of this planet, refusing to acknowledge even to themselves that they

have to leave some day or the other. Sri Krishna might have proclaimed " JAtasya

hi dhruvO mrityu: " ( those who are born must indeed die someday), everyday we

might see people, some of them our relatives, friends or acquaintances, passing

away, never to be seen again, we might see crematoria or graveyards on our way

to work, standing as stark reminders of where our ultimate destination is--- we

might see all these signals of life's impermanance: however, the realisation,

that we too are subject to the inexorable laws of nature, somehow escapes us or

we just shut our eyes and minds to the possibility, ostrich-like.

 

 

 

And in our society, it is considered inauspicious to talk of death,

though it is something we encounter in some form or the other every day, be it

the demise of a relative, a friend, a mere beggar on the roadside or of just a

cockroach or a rodent. We rear back at the mere mention of the word, unwilling

to face the phenomenon even when it stares us in the face. The Yaksha Prasna of

Mahabharata narrates, inter alia, a question addressed by the Yaksha to

Dharmaputra- " Which is the most surprising thing in this world? " . YudhishttirA's

reply is an eye-opener for every one of us. When a dead body is being carried

away for disposal, a passerby comments, " What a pity! " , little realising that he

too is destined to go the same way, some day or the other, sooner or later.

This, says Yudhishttira, is the most astonishing thing in the world. This is

what makes the salesman's job so hard, for, he has to commence his spiel with a

reminder that we too are mortal and must pass off some day. He might talk

euphemistically of " the unthinkable " happening, but what he means, in precise

terms, is the end of life. Thus, in the process of selling insurance, he has two

difficult tasks-the first is to convince people that they are indeed subject to

mortality and destined to pass over like every body else, and, secondly, to make

them see the necessity to provide for such an eventuality.

 

 

 

It might interest us to know that Insurance is hardly a modern invention and has

been in vogue since long, perhaps not in the form we have come across, but all

the same incorporating the same concept. The difference between the current day

indemnities and the ancient ones is that the former provide only financial

compensation in the event of the risk materialising-they cannot provide any

other form of recompense. All types of insurance, be it medical insurance, life

insurance, vehicle insurance, property insurance or burglary assurance, are

aimed solely at providing monetary compensation in the event of loss.

 

 

 

There is a unique form of Insurance which our Acharyas have long held out to us,

which has any number of unique features which our modern day companies can never

hold a candle to. For an extremely negligible premium, this contract offers us

not only the pot of the gold at the end of the rainbow, but the rainbow itself.

If you are interested in this priceless product, please read on.

 

 

 

Prapatti or Sharanagati is the name of this product, which offers us a wonderful

contract of assurance. There are any number of unique charactreristics, which

distinguish this Policy from others of its ilk-

 

1) The insurer is not some fly-by-night operator or someone of limited

financial strength, who may or may not be able to honour his obligation, but the

Supreme Lord Himself. There is thus no fear of contractual obligations not being

honoured at maturity.

 

2) Unlike the ordinary life policy which offers just monetary compensation

but cannot prevent death, this policy of Prapatti can indeed make us immortal.

Even if this body comprised of the five elements falls in course of time, this

policy enables our soul to realise and reaffirm its eternality in the service of

the Lord.

 

3) No Insurance policy, per se, can bring us happiness. Even if it were to

afford us some pleasure due to the moneys it brings along, this is at best

ephemeral and puerile. Prapatti, on the other hand, offers us unalloyed and

undying bliss, immeasurable and matchless.

 

4) When we to life insurance (especially a whole life policy), it

does nothing for us, the insured, and provides only for a lump sum payment to

our nominee. Thus, though we pay the premium life long, we ourselves derive no

benefit from it. The policy that the Sampradaya offers, however, ensures that we

ourselves benefit immensely, while conferring incidental profits on our near and

dear.

 

5) Insurance policies necessitate recurring payment of premia over long

periods of time. Prapatti, however, calls for an inexpensive, single-time

payment, in the form of Bharasamarpanam, which calls not for astronomical

amounts of money, but only for the correct attitude of mind.

 

6) Insurance is a contract of utmost good faith( " uberima fidae " ), requiring

the insured to disclose all pre-existing illnesses and all material developments

in the future too. Otherwise, claims under the policy may not be settled. In the

case of Prapatti, however, though an undertaking of good conduct is obtained at

the time of entering into the contract, even if the same is violated, the Lord

overlooks the transgression or levies some minor penalty, with the assured

benefits remaining unaffected.

 

7) When the eventuality occurs, the insurer has to be notified of the

occurrence and the benefits under the policy claimed by the nominee after a lot

of procedural hassles. No insurer keeps track of who dies when, nor does he

hasten to award the insurance moneys, unclaimed. In the case of Prapatti,

however, once the mortal coils are shed, the Lord Himself rushes in to carry the

soul with Him to the Promised Land ( " aham smarAmi mat bhaktam, nayAmi paramAm

gatim " ), with no other effort required on the part of the assured or their

dependants.

 

8) There are now any number of players in the mundane insurance industry,

all competing with one another for a share of the cake. In the case of eternal

benefits, however, the Lord remains the sole insurer, with absolutely none to

compete with Him, none capable of conferring the benefits that He can ( " MOksham

icchEt JanArdanAt " , " apavarga pradO Hari: " etc.).

 

9) Insurers are selective about the individuals they cover and do not

extend life cover to people suffering from chronic or major diseases, for fear

of having to settle early claims not commensurate with the premia received.

However, the Lord extends assurance to all and sundry, irrespective of whether

they are sick or healthy, rich or poor, exalted or underdog, good, bad or

ugly-He is game to accepting proposals from even the wilest of people, provided

they are made with sincerity- " Viditam bhuvanE VibhishaNO vA yadi vA Ravana iti

udIritam tE " .

 

10) If you read the policy documents issued by mundane insurers, you will find

the fine print containing so many restrictive clauses and loopholes, enabling

the insurer to wriggle out of his commitment. On the other hand, once the Lord

approves a contract of Prapatti, He adheres to His part of the bargain, come

what may. His is an unconditional assurance, a categorical declaration of

intention to protect and deliver us from sin and stigma- " aham tvA sarva pApEbhyO

mOkshayishyAmi, mA sucha: "

 

11) An important difference between the two types of assurances, earthly and

eternal, is the mode of canvassing potential rs. While the former

relies on advertisement in the visual and print media, apart from engaging an

army of agents, canvassing for the latter type of insurance that the Lord

provides, is done purely through word of mouth, by the angelic brigade of

Azhwars and Acharyas, extolling the priceless policy and the Inimitable Insurer.

 

12) While insurance contracts are entered into only during the companies'

working hours and at specified places where they have offices, Prapatti is a

policy issued anytime, anywhere, to anyone. The Sun never sets in the Lord's

offices and their working hours are unlimited. He remains prepared for an

emergency call anytime, anywhere and from anyone,( " PAtu praNata rakshAyAm

viLambam asahan iva " ) be it an embattled elephant fighting for its life or a

Pandava princess struggling to save her modesty from being outraged.

 

 

 

With all these going for it, is not the Lord's policy infinitely superior to the

indemnity offered by any other mundane assurer? All of us must have definitely

taken out life policies, to cover eventualities; but how many of us have

obtained the type of assurance only the Lord can provide? And for those who are

yet to join the Society of Surrendered Souls and secure their eternal welfare,

the Lord's doors are always open. All they have to do is to contact their

Acharya and through him, perform Prapatti at the Lord's lotus feet and be

blessed with a cast iron policy of assurance. For this, there are no hidden

charges, no marked-up prices or fake discounts, no promotional gimmicks nor any

" festival offers " -it is a simple contract, transparent to the core and with no

doubts as to its enforeceability.

 

 

 

What are you waiting for? Rush today to your Acharya, to Insure and Be Secure.

 

 

 

Srimate Sri LakshmINrsimha divya paduka sevaka SrivanSatakopa Sri Narayana

Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:

 

Dasan, sadagopan