what is Maya??

[Guest guest]

Shree Ramanujam has asked a very important question which even Narada too

asked Sri Krishna: What is Maya? The Lord said that before he tells him what

Maya is, please bring some water because he was thirsty. So Narada went to get

water for the Lord. He spotted a house nearby and went there and knocked at the

door. Out came a beautiful girl. Before even Narada could ask for water, he

got so much enchanted by her beauty that he forgot everything as to why he came

there, and fell very madly in love with her. He asked girl's hand from her

father. The couples settled down in the same house and became the owners of a

large estate. Soon three children were born to them, one after the other. When

everything was going so good for Narada, a terrible flood broke out, and many

houses, trees, cattle, etc., were washed away. Narada and his family were in

imminent danger of meeting the same fate. He took one child on his shoulders,

holding another by his left hand, while held his wife by his right hand. The

wife

held the third child by her right hand. So all ran for their lives. But flood

water was too swift, and slowly Narada began to loose the grip of his child;

the one on the shoulders too fell and swept away. Soon the wife too lost the

grip of the child, and soon she too became the victim of the terrible waves. So

Narada was now all alone. By this time flood water subsided, and Narada sat

down in great sorrow and all alone. Just at that time, he felt the tap of hand

on his back. As he looked up, it was the Sri Krishna. He asked him, " Narada,

where is my water. I have been waiting for you for full one hour. " This is

Maya. The story that I gave here is based on Swami Vivekananda's talk on Maya

more than 100 years ago. It is published in Swamiji's Complete Works, volume, 2;

it also published in a smaller book entitled Jnana Yoga. From this one

understands what Maya is. When one considers that what is unreal as Real, and

that

what is Real as unreal, one is under the influence of Maya. Maya is cosmic

ignorance. When we become attached with the things of the world and consider

them

as real, we suffer. Because these sense objects are transitory and getting

attached to them leads to all suffering. God or the Self within us and in

everything alone is Real and permanent; the purpose of our life is to realize

the

Self. The Self alone is the source of Bliss, worldly things cannot make anyone

happy. How to overcome this Maya? By cultivating renunciation, dispassion and

discrimination one can go beyond Maya and become free here and now. Sri

Ramakrishna always used to advice everyone to renounce " woman and gold " , meaning

lust

and greed to realize God.

Umesh

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Greetings

Maya is a level of consciousness. It is a mode of

thinking. When we become God conscious, we are given

the ability to escape maya.

-Stephen

 

--- ramarulez <ramarulez wrote:

> Pranams to all,

> what is maya?? Is it the bad

> thought that creeps in

> to our mind? or wavering of thought ?

>

> How to conquer it?

>

> Pranams

> Ramanujam

>

>

>

 

 

=====

What man makes let man prescribe. What God makes let God prescribe.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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