Guest guest Posted April 5, 2005 Report Share Posted April 5, 2005 Hello Tomikin, You sound like a man whose path is difficult. I, too, have wandered about a bit and found no peace. Vivekananda was a revelation to me too, and I had a difficulty much like your own and started wandering again ! Somehow I have found myself back with Vedanta again, and part of my soul is singing ! I hope that doesn't sound too silly, but it's the best way I can explain what I feel. With regard to the different practices of different people I am sure I just read within the last few days something by either Vivekananda or Sri Ramakrishna to the effect that there are so many religions to accommodate the different needs of people at differing stages on their journey. The best action seems to be to take what you can an grow with it, but not to bother with what seems unnecessary to you, as you probably just don't need that any more.........but someone else does, so don't be too hard on them. Being sceptical is good.........for you ! It's not obligatory on everyone. May you and I find Truth together. Ian Nothing exists except The One. That One is the Supreme Brahman............Sri RamakrishnaWhatever you WanadooThis email has been checked for most known viruses - find out more here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 5, 2005 Report Share Posted April 5, 2005 Ian, Thank you for articulating your thought for Tomikin. I too think that it is good to be doubtful. In Ramakrishnna's life we find numerous examples of how most of His direct devotees (household and sanyasi) were doubtful to accept Him as a Guru (of course there were exceptions like Girish).But.... we must be careful so we do not stretch the limit of anything. We must have the Goal in mind. The goal is to find peace and not be the utmost doubtful being... I have found a perfect example of Guru in Sri Ramakrishna's life and how He dealt with it. My personal experience also has been that the real Gurus always point to (surrender to) Ramakrishna when the disciples try to worship them as Guru. Also, Advaita Vedanta is the branch of Vedanta which deals with this issue perfectly. In that Brahman is manifested as everything and there is no two. In that scenario who is the Guru and who is the student? It is all one! This is the most easy path to describe and the most difficult path (but not impossible) to follow. Though I was brought up in India, I have had the same experiences as Tomikin and you. I feel lucky to be exposed to many different religious ideas and philosophies in the west. I am extremely fortunate to be exposed to Vedanta from a young age. It has given me a sense of harmony among chaos and fufillment amidst hollowness. Om Peace, Peace, Peace. Amit. God is One, people call Him by different names. - Rig Veda. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 5, 2005 Report Share Posted April 5, 2005 Hello Ian and Tomkin, It was a very good discussion. Well what a man can do is search and research. And the end what one attains is a ? to others. So the other takes the path of the one and starts a new search for the truth. Which we all have been doing for thousands of years. So like you said , self realization is the only way. To be truthfull to onself and to be greatfull to god and to be helpfull to mankind is what the vedantha teaches us. I have always found peace and power in the words of Swamy Vivekananda and Shri Ramakrishna. Like they say what we and humans have to do is to stop criticising others point of view and just follow the right path. Be a good Hindu, Cristian or Muslim or who ever yu are and take your own way in search of the supreme. I have always had a question about myself which probably even you all might have ( Who am I and where am I going and where I come from) which is the ultimate truth of Mankind. Let us all be one and start the search. " Karmanye wadikaarasthe Maa phaleshu Kadachana " Lets Do our duties as Humans, not think about the returns and leave the rest to the one above.Thank you for your enchanting words.God Bless all. Ashwin Messenger Show us what our next emoticon should look like. Join the fun. http://www.advision.webevents./emoticontest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 6, 2005 Report Share Posted April 6, 2005 Ramakrishna , " Amit Chatterjee " <chatterj_amit> wrote: > > > Ian, > > Thank you for articulating your thought Namaste, One of the `sweetest' descriptions of such a person is given in Ch. 116 " Saint: An Appraisal " , of the book, New Dimensions of Yoga, by Yogi Raushan Nath, [publ. 1964, repr. 2000; Jay Cee Publications, New Delhi]. " … .To a weary traveller on the spiritual path, a saint is what a green oasis is to the traveller in the waterless desolation of a desert. He serves as a flaming beacon to many a lone seeker still groping in the dark. His achievements in the spiritual field reassure and help an aspirantto build up his confidence and morale. " A saint's compassionate heart feels for those who suffer: his life shows what God's grace is like. In him divine benevolence is beautifully mirrored. God as Light peeps through his heart and speaks through him to break the monotony of man's groping in the dark. " God fashions a saint from the aspirations, the ideals and the pious wishes of men and gives something of Himself, too. The saint lives what others aspire to. He paves the way to the Heavens by his spirit of service, sacrifice and devotion. And he lights the Path by his love for God. Men endeavour with greater confidence and feel inspired when they see that it is one of them who sought and realized God. They flock to him with pride. " This is what would go into the making of a saint: " He should think, breathe and live Dharma. He should restrain, then control all his senses. He should eat in moderation and sleep according to necessity. A saint watches his thoughts, feelings and deeds and is guided by inner Light. At peace with the world and at rest in himself, he does his allotted job in earnestness and with sincerity. He is kind and pleasnt to talk to. He loves justice and is considerate towards all. He is always helpful to the needy and does not take undue advantage of the ignorance or the weakness of others. He speaks only when he must, and that too, to the pointand with the consciousness of its implications. He does not indulge in backbiting, idle gossping and avoids falsehoods. He soothes the frayed tempers rather than create strife. He shares with others what he has and doesn't covet what is not his legitimately. He returns evil with good. He hears no evil, thinks no evil and does no evil. He does not parade ostensibly his honesty, nor does he ridicule others. He is honest and doesn't regret being so, nor does he grumble. He is patient and charitable towards others' shortcomings and failings. He believes: men err but are capable of correcting themselves. A saint helps man to improve himself: he does not merely condemn. For the errent soul he prays:'God! Give them Thy Light to see.' And he inspires them to mend their ways. People's welfare and their spiritual well-being is his concern and he doesn't shirk his responsibility. Instead of himself praying to God for his needs, he does good to others and they pray in thankfulness to the Lord for his well-being. Good done to the distressed invokes a prayer in their hearts. That is the way a saint would pray. In a saint humanity triumphs over inhumanity of the evil world. It ever shines and stands out as one of his essential qualities. To him love of man and respect for human dignity are the articles of his faith. Nothing is so stimulating to him as a dedicated life. He is eager to help. A saint should not hate nor look down upon a man given to evil ways. He should not ignore him as someone unworthy of his attention. The man is ill and poses a challenge to him. A saint should nurse him back to health. He is to act and look dignified and keep up the high traditions of selfless service, honor and good name of the noble saints of all times. He forgives others readily and bears no malice. He is contented with what he gets for his hard, honest work and strives for more if that falls short of his necessary needs. To a child he is a benevolent helper; to a young man a good friend and to an old man a patient, understanding companion. ………He is blissfully lost in the love of God. And he enjoys an uninterrupted peace of mind. He never refuses to live. His response to the urgent calls made on him by the sense-organs is conditioned by Dharma. He is quiet, tender, obliging, patient, simple and frank. He is humble. But he alive to a sense of honor and is mindful of his self-respect. He does not like hypocrisy. He is neither treachorous nor revengeful nor arrogant and quarrelsome. He is not self-opinionated, conceited and impervious to reason. He has a fine spirit of accommodation and adapts himself easily to the prevailing circumsatances. He doesn't, however, endure unrighteous oppression and doesn't hesitate to lay down his own life even to resist it. His silence is more eloquent than speech. In him the questing human mind finds an answer to many abaffling question. His talk is wise and it enlightens. Higher truths of life are eager to express themselves in life. Providence seeks him out to be the instrument of many a noble deed. …….From the mixture of good and bad in the world, the good crystallizes into purity of thought, nobility of character—into saintliness—into a saint. A saint is a fine crystal of the good in man. A saint is divinty come to life in man. A saint epitomizes all that is good, novel, manful and godlike in life. Godliness: he oozes it, drips it and spreads it around. He is God-fearing, humane and humble. He is human, manly and manful. In him manhood bursts forth into the blossom of divinity. He is great because he gladly shares his experience, knowledge and spiritual greatness. He inspires and elevates. " I may go on writing words of praise for him, but it is desirable that I should step aside so that the saint can come and pray unto the Lord: " Give me the courage of conviction, strength of character and true human spirit. I seek Thee, Thy Grace and human heritage : Brotherhood of Man and the aspiration for Higher Values. " Aspirant! May the Lord grant him that and make him worthy of the faith, devotion and love of those who seek his guidance. OM! " Regards, Sunder Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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