Re: Hindu Religious Pollution in AM

~ Baba ~

Re: HINDU RELIGIOUS POLLUTION IN AM

(Note: This letter is in follow-up to an earlier posting - excerpts of which are appended below. A link to read entire letter is also available below. - Eds)

Namaskar.
It seems that the dogma of celebrating mahaprayan divas is extending its steps in those who have not eliminated Hindu dogmatic rituals of shraddha and not understood the Caryacarya rules given by Rev. Baba.

It is very common thinking for people to follow the example set by seniors or sadhus / pandits of the society. Our acharyas and avadhutas - by their acts / behavior / and deeds i.e. conduct -  are the guiding factors to not only margiis but also the general people. Hence the general people start following them without any consideration of right or wrong as they have blind faith in Sadhus to be always true.

This should be opposed and truth should be discussed before all. There is no place for dogma in Ananda Marga. There are clear directions in Caryacarya about what should be done and what should not be done as a shraddha of the deceased .

As far as distribution of blankets and other edible things are concerned, they are also prohibited on the name of so-called mahaprayan, but it can be often done as narayan seva, i.e. providing full diet to the needy person with full honor and love, as we serve to our near and dear. But this narayan seva must be done on a different occasion - not on the death day or annual death day ceremony etc - otherwise that will be like following Hindu dogma, punya tithi (annual commemoration).

If this dogma of distributing blankets and food during shraddha ceremony is introduced and supported by our WTs in Ananda Marga, the day is sure to come when the WTs will become the professional pandits like Hindu priests. It is shameful.

Respectfully,
T.R. Sukul

To: ananda-marga-universal-forum-3@yogasamsthanam.net
Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2013 11:37:35 -0000
From: Dr. Veda Prakash
Subject: Hindu Religious Pollution in AM

HOW PRIESTS FILL THEIR BELLY

WITH FOOD OFFERED TO THE DECEASED

"A priest may say that your father will die only once, and so after his death you should arrange for a sufficient quantity of food-stuffs, a sufficient quantity of edibles, a sufficient quantity of clothes, etc., for him. And that has been done in India for about five thousand years, since the time of the Atharva Veda. And people have generally offered rice and sesame, also honey and ghee, to be consumed by that person who has left the world."

"Regarding these things, Maharshi Charvaka (he lived in India about 2500 years ago, during the time of Lord Buddha. He was a bit senior to Lord Buddha. Charvaka’s disciple, Ajit Kusum, was a contemporary of Lord Buddha) said “If you are in a room, and another man is in the courtyard a few yards away, and you offer rice and sesame for that man, he won’t get that rice and sesame, and his hunger won’t be satisfied. And if a man is in another world, Aparaloka, and you are offering rice and sesame for him, will he get them? Is it reasonable? No, no. All these things are exploitation by the privileged class.”"

"After offering rice, sesame, clothes, etc., what do you find? The rice is consumed by the purohita in his house. Go to his kitchen, and all that rice is being consumed by his family. That dhuti which is being offered by you for your late father is being used by the purohita, and the sháŕii by the purohita patnii; and the gamci, the towel, if it is surplus, is sold in the market. And the utensils are also sold in the market. So your deceased father, your parents, who are now inhabitants of Aparaloka, won’t get anything."

"And the second thing you will see, or you will feel, is that they do not require these things. The microcosm, or unit spirit, does not require any food or clothes or sesame or utensils. All these ideas are scoundrels’ philosophy. And they have been doing this type of exploitation for the last five thousand years, since the time of the Atharva Veda." (1)

BABA'S DHARMIC DIRECTIVE:

HOW TO ATTEND SHRADDHA CEREMONY

Baba's instructions in Caryacarya for performing the shraddha ceremony are very simple and straightforward. There is the recitation of the mantra followed by a sharing of water, and that is the entire ceremony.

Instead of Baba's given system, see what is happening nowadays.

COMMON OCCURRENCE NOWADAYS:

OFFERINGS TO THE PUBLIC

These days several dogmatic trends have made their way into our Ananda Marga shradda (death) ceremonies - aka shra'ddhanustha'nas. Here following is a critical point that we see again and again - plus other issues are brought to the fore as well.

So that the deceased does not suffer in the cold or become hungry in heaven, family members engage in the mass distribution of blankets and clothing (see attached photos) - as well as food distribution (narayan seva). They think their offerings will actually reach to their dear one in heaven.

Yet Baba has strictly forbidden such things in our Ananda Marga system. Our shraddha ceremony is to be performed in a simple, dignified, and respectful manner, without any ostentatious, pompous display or costly arrangements, as happens in Hindu dogma. In our Ananda Marga, the occasion of death is a time to offer the departed soul to the all-merciful Parama Purusa. There is no scope in such a ceremony to offer material goods to the deceased. Yet that has suddenly been undermined by the presence of Hindu dogma.

Hindus think that by offering food and blankets then their deceased relative in heaven will get the virtue (punya) of that offering. Such persons actually believe they can enhance the stature and comfort of the deceased through this ritual. They think that blankets given to the poor will be automatically transferred to their loved one in heaven - thus the deceased will be warm. This is their motivating rationale.

Now in our Ananda Marga that same approach has been taken - tragically.

TO READ PROPER LETTER IN FULL CLICK BELOW LINK

http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/2013/12/hindu-religious-pollution-in-am.html