Baba
Marriageless society
Namaskar,
These days the trend of living in the west - and wherever materialism is in vogue - is moving towards the matriarchal system. Due to the libertine way of living, women alone raise most of the children; and, more and more kids are using their mother's family name, as they do not know who their father is.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
There is a crisis going on - and it is only worsening as the libertine ways of capitalist materialism leapfrog from one place to the next. And no longer is this issue limited only to the west. It is spreading - fast.
Girls: emotional scarring & psychological pain
Unfortunately, that is what happens now in materialistic societies - especially in the west. The girl searches alone for a spouse. And in that process, women repeatedly give in to the sensual desires of men, and most often end up pregnant, and not married. Or they end up in one relationship after another - hoping to find marriage - yet watching the man walk away each time. That leaves the female with emotional scarring and psychological pain. The counseling centers in the west are filled with such victims.
The answer then is to create a system where the well-wishers of the girl and boy gather and talk. It is a collective process where society takes responsibility for the safety, comfort, dignity, and happiness of the girl - and boy. By this way, the bride-to-be need not allow her body to be exploited by libertine males. By this way, there will be no child out of wedlock - lacking a father. And by this way, the physical, emotional, psychic, and spiritual needs and safety of the girl and her offspring are at the forefront.
And as a Marga collective, we can think how to best implement and oversee a marriage system where there is a support network to help girls and boys of age marriage, without jeopardising themselves in any way. Because without such a system, the way things are going now, it is only from bad to worse.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Please read the following as it is evident how the present-day libertine approach is sending society back to the stone ages.
Statistics of this present era
First, here are some statistics for your review:
- Approximately 84% of custodial parents are mothers;
- 45% of the women are currently divorced or separated;
- 34.2% of the women have never been married;
- Unmarried mothers gave birth to 4 out of every 10 (40.7%) babies born in the United States, a share that is increasing rapidly wherever materialism is in vogue;
- 11,000 babies are born daily in the US; at minimum, 4,500 babies are born out of wedlock - without a father. This trend is on the rise.
The situation is dire, and what is happening now in the west will soon be happening in the east - as the eastern world is fast copying all of the western social trends.
The irony of all this is that in this ultra-modern era we are fast falling into the ways of those prehistoric humans. Those early humans led libertine lives and now the same thing is going on. It is most ironic that we think of those early humans as being uncivilised and we think of ourselves as being highly civilised, yet on this key point of promiscuity and child rearing, we share the same negative ways.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Unmarried boys & girls produce offspring
Thus, are we - the present day humans - civilised? That is what we should all consider when reading this letter and reviewing Baba's teachings.
What was so rampant 8000 yrs ago is going on today in so-called developed countries. This "loose" lifestyle has become the accepted norm; it is the fashion. Unmarried boys and girls are sleeping together and producing offspring. Thereafter, males are not taking responsibility for the children. To understand this fully, we must review the history. Then we can properly evaluate how far we have progressed: Are we civilised or not.
We have to be alert to the fact that as fast as the selfishness of capitalism is growing, the libertine way of life is spreading all around. Today, so many children are born out of wedlock, and many will never meet their father. In a decade, almost all will be born without a father. This negative trend is only increasing.
The general society is undergoing the disastrous consequences in the form of skyrocketing crime and so many other social ills. Because of a lack of parental love, such children cannot grow properly. Now is the time we should start mass education on an arranged marriage system - per our Ananda Marga ideals.
Hearing this, some may be thinking, "Arranged marriages - That will bring us back to the stone age!" When in fact, the opposite is true. If we fail to provide structured support to women in the marriage process, society will continue to tailspin into that era of old - the libertine animal system that was in prior to Lord Shiva.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Why our Ananda Marga supports arranged marriages
In Ananda Marga, Baba guides us that we are to maintain the dignity of women. Helping women arrange a marriage will create a stable and dependable future for them - and their offspring. It is a win-win situation. And it helps protect men as well, as it saves them from degeneration.
Here arranged marriage does not mean that the bride-to-be cannot select their spouse. It does not refer to those archaic weddings of some areas where the bride and groom would not even recognise each other if they saw one another on the way to the wedding. Rather, it refers to a rational approach where both have met, spoken, and chosen to marry one another.
Furthermore, it is a pathway toward marriage where those watching for the welfare of the girl - her guardians and parents - should help in the process of meeting a suitable spouse. In due course, naturally the boy and girl (or young man and young woman) will meet and talk to see if they feel comfortable with one another. And ultimately, the prospective bride and groom will have the final say. So arranging the marriage means that the girl need not be on her own to find a spouse. It does not mean that females will be forced into marriages against their will.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Libertine life: children suffer the most
Best is to propagate Baba's teaching; due to a blatant lack of knowledge all this is happening.
"Long ago there used to be a popular and interesting folktale. In very ancient times, as with other animals, there was no custom of marriage among human beings. As far as it can be ascertained, this situation certainly continued until the middle of the Rgvedic age and likely until towards the end of that age. It was said during that time that there was once a five-year-old boy, the son of a certain sage, who became perplexed when he saw his mother going off with another man and asked his father why his mother was going off with that other fellow like that.
The sage answered his son: “That’s the rule. Any woman can stay with any man whenever she likes. She can also leave him whenever she likes. In the same way, any man can go off with any woman at any time.”
The sage’s son asked: “Then what will I do?”
The sage replied: “Children who are breastfeeding will stay with their mother. Once they become too old for that they can stay wherever they like. Wherever they stay they have to make arrangements for their food in exchange for labour.”
“But that’s no good!” the sage’s young son exclaimed. “No good at all.” (1)
Conclusion
The Ananda Marga marriage system is for society building. Marriage is a means for raising a family; it is not just for lower vrttis etc. Child rearing is an essential aspect of any healthy society. So the Ananda Marga marriage system focuses on the welfare of the child; children are not a mere by-product of lust etc. Our approach is that marriage is for the proper nurturing and growth of the child. So they develop into great citizens and sadhakas.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
So long as children are born out of wedlock and fathers are remiss in their responsibilities, as a society we are inviting so many problems. Such children cannot grow properly without proper maternal supervision, care and love. Due to financial pressures, a single mother cannot manage the demands and rigors of parenthood all by herself - in which case children are the big losers. They will come into this world devoid of the requisite love, attention and support to grow properly. And the tragedy is that this situation is on the rise - it will not be long before we are a mirror image of what was going on 8000 years ago.
The cause of libertine life in the prehistoric era was ignorance and today the cause is selfishness, but the result is the same. When all's said and done, it is the children who suffer most. And that has a most disastrous effect on society. Now is the time we need to implement Baba's teachings and ideals. Otherwise society will continue to suffer terribly. The time has come we should start mass education on the importance of a marriage system - per our Ananda Marga ideals.
Namaskar,
in Him,
Padma
(Paula Evans)
~ In-depth study ~
Ananda Marga philosophy states, "In most cases, it was generally seen that the father did not bear the responsibility for the maintenance of their offspring or any other kind of responsibility towards them. All responsibility fell on the mother’s shoulders. For this reason wicked men used to put straightforward-natured women into extreme difficulty. The womenfolk used to spend their time under great duress. If not all, at least most of the men did not shoulder any responsibility for their offspring. Most of them were libertine. This is not to say that there were not any libertine woman, but the number of such women was less. Moreover, the affection they felt towards their children was a very strong bond of attachment which they could not easily break. This situation among humans, which was similar to that of animals, had been going on for approximately one million years, that is, human beings appeared about one million years ago."
"The women of that day stood at Shiva’s door and said: “O Sada'shiva, save us from this beastly, distressful condition. There is no man or woman strong enough today to lay down rules in this matter and to put them into practice with a firm hand.” Shiva’s heart melted; he understood their pain. He introduced the custom of marriage and firmly fixed the rights and responsibilities of the father. For the first time human beings felt the contact of a peaceful environment in social life."
"Still some wicked-natured men remained and some libertine women as well. Then, with the help of his followers, Shiva obliged those wicked men to marry by punishing them with the rod and rope. Just as there were libertine men, there were also some libertine women. This libertine group became greatly frightened of Shiva." (2)
As a result of which many children died in early infancy
Here are Baba's further teachings on this point of a libertine society.
Ananda Marga philosophy says, "At the beginning of evolution, humans used to lead libertine lives without any consideration for family obligations, but they gradually developed a family instinct. However, that family instinct was no different from that of the elephants, lions, pigeons, etc. Due to this inborn instinct, males and females arrived at a loose, but workable compromise regarding family life. But in that there was no sense of responsibility born out of a developed conscience; rather, due to their loose relationships with each other, one person used to desert another and go anywhere he liked. The number of such libertines was very high, and they used to disturb the peace and harmony of the so-called family members and become the cause of many serious quarrels."
"The male libertines would not take responsibility for their offspring. They used to wander freely, and as a result, the entire responsibility for raising the children in their infancy would devolve on the mothers. But it was not possible for the mothers alone to bear the responsibility of maintaining the children, as a result of which many children died in early infancy. Those who survived felt themselves to be in a sea of troubles after they were weaned from their mother’s breast milk. Then they would be deprived of their mother’s love, since she had to take care of the next baby. Those were the days of the prehistoric humans. One should remember that even in those prehistoric days, some portion of the Vedas was composed, chiefly by the so-called family people. The life of the libertines was just like that of the animals." (3)
References
1. Shabda Cayanika - 2, Disc: 10
2. Shabda Cayanika - 2, Disc: 10
3. Namah Shivaya Shantaya, Disc: 9, Shivokti-3
== Section: Important Teaching ==
How fictitious quotes are manufactured
Namaskar,
Here is a guideline for citing quotes from Baba’s books and the benefits
are two-fold: (a) It will be easier to cross-check and confirm those
quotes, and (b) it will prevent the manufacturing and circulation of
fake quotes.
Page # also needed for non-English publications
#1: When citing any quote from Sadguru Baba, then the (a) book
title, (b) name of the chapter, and (c) page number must be given. So
readers can quickly search and confirm the veracity of the quote.
#2: For quotes that are in the English Electronic edition of Baba’s books it is completely different - the chapter name is enough.
Who is the responsible party
#3: The onus lies on the person who circulates the quote.
Initially they should provide all the information, and it is their duty
to provide further clarification to those readers who request it.
Paving the way for dogma in the name of Baba
#4: Remember, the first step of the ruination of Baba’s teachings
occurs when people spread quotes in the name of Baba without fully
citing the source of that quote. If this type of loose approach
continues then every Tom, Dick, and Harry will start writing their own
mental feeling and stick Baba's name as the signature.
#5: By this way, in the name of Baba, little by little, all those
dogmas which are condemned by Ananda Marga philosophy like idol
worship, caste marriage, and gay marriage will slowly gain traction.
Step by step, those bogus quotes will state that these dogmas are very
good and approved by Baba. Until ultimately we will wake up one fine
morning and read: “Meat-eating is very good for Ananda Margiis - Shrii
Shrii Anandamurti.”
#6: Today this may look or sound outlandish but history proves
that this is the way distortion happens. For instance, if you pick up
Lord Krsna’s teachings you will find that the caste system is
appreciated. It was only when Baba clarified this matter the it became
clear that Lord Krsna did not appreciate the caste system. Rather Lord
Krsna opposed the caste system but devious followers put their dogmatic
views in Lord Krsna’s name.
#7: The aforementioned parameters will help greatly in protecting and safeguarding the authenticity of Sadguru Baba’s teachings.
Conclusion
Distributing quotes without a complete and proper citation or reference
is a very negative trend. It opens the door for false lines to get
printed in Baba's name. And It paves the way for the adulteration of
Sadguru Baba's teachings. History bears testimony how the doctrines of
various social thinkers, spiritual leaders, and Mahasambhutis has been
polluted and destroyed in this way. We should not let this happen with
Sadguru Baba’s teachings as well.
In Him,
Advatiiya
== Section: Prabhat Samgiita==
बाबा! मेरा तुम्हारे साथ अलौकिक सम्बन्ध है
(जो साधना का 6th पाठ नहीं करता, वह यह प्रभात संगीत नहीं समझ सकता )
प्रभात सङ्गीत 4504 तोमार भालोबासा बूझे, निजेके खुंजे पेयेछी...
भावार्थ
हे परमपुरुष बाबा ! तुम बहुत दयालु हो। तुम्हारा प्यार पाकर मैं अपनी यह सच्चाई जान सका कि मैं तुम्हारा हूँ । तुम्हारी कृपा से मैं यह अनुभव करता हूँ कि मैं केवल यह भौतिक शरीर नहीं हूँ मेरा तुम्हारे साथ अलौकिक सम्बन्ध है। हजारों साल से तुम मेरे साथ रहते हुए मेरी देखरेख करते रहे हो। इसके पहले मैं नहीं जनता था कि मैं कौन हूँ , मैं बहुत अँधेरे में था । मैं सोचता था कि मैं तो केवल यह शरीर ही हूँ और मेरा जीवन इसके जन्म से ही शरू हुआ है। मैं हमेशा दुखी रहकर अपने भविष्य के प्रति निराशावादी हो गया था। पर अब तुम्हारी कृपा से अपने हृदय में तुम्हारे प्रेम का अनुभव करता हॅूं। मैं अनुभव करता हूँ कि मैं हमेशा तुम्हारे चरण कमलों की शरण में हॅूं। तुम्हारी कृपा से अब मैं समझ गया हॅूं कि तुम मुझे बहुत प्रेम करते हो और चौबीसों घण्टे मेरे पास रहते हो। तुम्हारी कृपा से मैं यह जान गया हॅूं कि मैं कहाँ हॅूं; मेरा जीवन सार्थक हो गया है। हे प्रभु ! तुम मेरे जीवन के ध्रुव तारा हो। मैं तुम्हारी ओर चला आ रहा हूँ।
बाबा ! जब मैं अपने सांसारिक काम में थककर चूर हो जाता हॅूं और ख़राब बातें मेरे मन की शान्ति को नष्ट करने लगती हैं तथा निराशा के बादल घेर लेते हैं, तब उन अन्धेरे क्षणों में, इन समस्याओं से बचने के लिए मैं तुम्हारे दिव्य प्रेम का ही सहारा लेता हॅूं।
हे मेरे प्रभु ! मेरे बाबा ! मेरा मानसिक आकाश , मेरी वायु , मेरी सांसें, मेरा अस्तित्व, मेरा सब कुछ, तुम्हारी घुँघरु की मधुर तान और लय के अनुसार नाच रहा है। तुम्हारी सम्वित शक्ति से मेरा धीरज बँधता है और मेरी आशाएं पूरी होती हैं।
दिव्य प्रकाश के संसार से कोई अज्ञात जादूगर देवदूत मुझे इशारा कर रहा है; हे मेरे प्यारे परमपुरुष बाबा ! तुम ही वह अप्सरा अर्थात देवदूत हो। तुम्हारी कृपा से यह सत्य मैं अपने अनुध्यान में समझ गया हॅूं।
बाबा ! तुम्हारा प्यार पाकर मैं अपनी यह सच्चाई जान सका कि मैं तुम्हारा हूँ ।
References
1. Hindi purport translated by Dr. T.R. Sukul from original English purport by Ananda Marga Universal.
2. Sadguru Baba says (in GD, Delhi, 26 Feb 1984) that when writing a Prabhat Samgiita purport then very simple words should be used so that the common mass may understand. The above Hindu purport has been written according to that guideline.
== Section: Important Teaching ==
Which is worst capitalism or communism?Prout philosophy: “Question – Which is more psychological, capitalism or communism?”
“Answer – As compared to communism, capitalism is more psychological, although both are defective and cannot be supported. In communism there is hardly any scope for the free and unbarred expression of mind, and due to extreme regimentation the flow of the mind is checked by numerous social, economic and political constraints. In capitalism no such checks exist in theory, but in practice there are checks.”
“Question – What are the psychological defects of the commune system?”
“Answer – In the commune system, society is reduced to a production-distribution centre under a regimented system of control based upon production teams. Such a suffocative and mechanized living system fosters a materialistic outlook and produces atheistic leadership. The workers cannot feel oneness with the job, nor do they have the freedom to express their individual potentialities. If farmers feel they own the farm they will get a better outturn. If people are allowed unbarred psychic and spiritual freedom, human society will achieve greater psychic and spiritual progress.” (1)
Reference
1. Prout in a Nutshellm- 12, Questions and Answers [on Society] – 2
