Ananda Marga Has Move Forward A Lot

Baba

ANANDA MARGA HAS MOVED FORWARD A LOT

Namaskar,
This following posting provides us a window into the past: How margiis were communicating on the email networks more than a decade ago.

When you read it you will find that this issue deals with one margii's lack of strictness in Ista. The margii wrote in a special way which we do not see nowadays.

So this letter is very interesting and shows how our Ananda Marga society has moved ahead, through a lot of ups and downs. The standard is far, far improved now.

After reading you will taste the special colour how people were writing those days, i.e. ten years ago. This below posting stands as on record as a historical document for how the people moved ahead through clash and cohesion.

HOW HISTORY WAS WRONGLY WRITTEN

Before reading the below letter, we should examine and embrace the spirit of Baba's guideline about how history should be written.

Baba says, "Let us see how people write history or get it written. In most cases history is written in the interest of a particular vested interest. History books are selected in order to establish the glory of a particular era. For example, the heroic tales of the chivalry of the Kśatriyas era, their war-strategies, etc., form the main basis for the writing of the history of the Kśatriya era. History books are filled with eulogies of the bravery and chivalry of the Kśatriyan rulers. Similarly, the history of the Vipra era is full of praises for the glorious deeds of the Vipra leaders, and the history of the Vaeshya era contains an abundance of stories about the glories of the Vaeshyas. While studying such biased history, the readers lose both interest and patience. Besides that, the study of this sort of so-called history injects some kind of dogma in the readers mind, and consequently chokes the development of a spontaneous human intellect." (1)

HISTORY SHOULD DEPICT LIVES OF THE COMMON PEOPLE

   Baba says, "I suggest that in the writing of history there should be a radical change. The history written so far is a history of kings and monarchs. It should be thoroughly overhauled and completely rewritten – rewritten in the interest of humanity and the universal well-being of the human race. If the chronicles of history merely describe who succeeded to the throne and when, who plundered the neighbouring countries or kingdom, and who became a minister, they will be of no importance whatsoever, nor, indeed, of any interest to the common masses. If human beings are to profit from the study of the annals of history, they must reflect the weal and the woe, the hopes and aspirations of the masses."
   "The annals of human history should show which communities brought about which amount of progress and prosperity in which area of social life and in which part of the world – only such significant events are worthy of being recorded. History should also maintain special records of the trials and tribula tions which confronted human beings, how those trials and tribulations were overcome, how human beings tackled the numerous obstacles to effect greater social development, and so on. Only such history would I call the complete history or complete cultural history of the human race." (2)

Keeping the above teachings on history in mind, here following is that letter of 10+ years ago:

From: martin_gillian
To: am-global@earthlink.net
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2003 00:42:16 +0800
Subject: One Pointedness on Ista

"ALLAH CERTAINLY WORKS IN MYSTERIOUS WAYS"

Namaskar,
One dharmic point clicked in my mind. In addition to this list I am a regular reader of other mailing lists also. And just a few days back on 23 March [2003] I received one letter titled "Who's responsible?" from one of those lists [margii-mail]. And when I read this following sentence which I am quoting here below then what seemed like an endless array of questions came in my mind.

Here is the line which I am referring to from that letter:

"Allah certainly works in mysterious ways."

After reading this word "Allah", which is usually used by Islamic or Muslim people, then I was thinking why this term "Allah" has been used on Margii-Mail. And why it has been written that "Allah works in mysterious ways". Why they did not use the term 'Parama Purusa', or 'God'. Why did they use the term Allah?

According to my understanding, as a principle the aforesaid list is dedicated for the propagation of Marga ideology. Then why the phrase "Allah certainly works in mysterious ways" has been posted to this list. What can be the reason?

All these questions and counter-questions sprouted in my mind.

I SPEAK WITH RECTOR DADA ABOUT THIS

Then the evening before yesterday my rector Dada arrived at my house according to his pre-planned schedule.

And paying my namaskar and asking about his whereabouts and welfare, then when he was in a relaxed mood I placed my query.

I asked, 'In margii-mail, are all the writers Margiis, or are some believers of Islam?'

Dadaji told, 'As I am aware all members of margii-mail are margiis. Because you have to get permission / recommendation from your SOS in order to join. But tell me why you are raising such question as this'.

I replied, 'Excuse me, Dadaji. One margii wrote a letter and expressed his faith in Allah. First I thought that he may be an Islamic believer, then I thought that how it can be?'

I continued, 'After thinking more I thought this letter is in the English language-- it is not in  Arabic or Urdu. Because if the whole letter is written in Urdu or Arabic or Persian then when writing about God, then naturally the name "Allah" would have come. But when entire letter is in English and God is referred to as Allah then this gives completely different feeling'.

'It gives the feeling that in some corner of this margii's mind, surely some faith towards Allah is there. Most probably. Otherwise he would not have used this term.'

Dadaji replied, 'Your point is valid. It is just if anybody says by the grace of goddess mother Chath or Chandi, then one can reach to conclusion that he is a believer of mother goddess Chat or Chandi'.

MUST NOT EVEN JOKE IN THIS WAY

I asked, 'Dada do you think he was making joke on this point of Allah?'

Then Dada replied, 'No according to Ananda Sutram Baba's teaching dharma should always be practiced. "Always" means even jokes and humour and all expressions in 24hrs. So such type of loose terms should not be used. It would have been better if he would not have made such expression which is ideologically incorrect, or against the flow of Ananda Margiis.'

STRICTNESS IN ISTA A MUST

Dada continued: 'Baba has given us 16 Pts, strictness in Ista and Adarsha, non-compromising love for Baba, so in our casual speaking also we should not make jokes which go against these vital points of our conduct rules'.

Then Dadaji told that in Subhasita Samgraha BABA tells an important story about maintaining one pointedness on Ista.

Baba says, "In this regard, the story of Hanuma'na is very instructive. Someone asked him, 'Hanuma'nji, you are always repeating 'Ra'm, Ra'm' and never uttering the name of 'Na'ra'yan'a.' What is the matter?' Hanuma'n said that although he knew that Ra'ma and Na'rayana are one and the same, even then he accepted Ra'ma as his only Lord. "Srinatha Janakinathe ca'bhede parama'tmani."

Baba further explains in the same discourse,

"Remember that for you there is only one name of the Supreme Entity and not many...Hence, it is clear that for the sake of psycho-spiritual progress one-mindedness is very necessary. Para' needs only one idea and no confusion. There should be one aim, one way and one name to guide a person on the way. None of these should be two in number." (3)

Dada explained, 'From this story it is clear that Baba's instruction to us Ananda Margiis is that we follow strict vigilance with regard to the singularity of Ista."

IMPORTANT TO SHARE WITH ALL

After talking with my rector Dada my mind was clear and I thought that this is one good point to be raised for our common margii family. So it is with that feeling in my mind I am passing this whole tale to you with the desire to have some feedback.

Here also I would like to share that as Ananda Margiis, Baba has given us great responsibility which we have to discharge accordingly. In order to move ahead, obeying His guideline is highly essential for all around development.

Namaskar to one and all,
Mahesh
[Old letter of 2003 ends here.]

REFLECTION ON ABOVE LETTER

Nowadays, our various Ananda Marga email forums are more focused and pointed on Baba's divine guidelines and we do not see such types of letters anymore where one is raising the name of Allah in this peculiar manner. Now, the various forums review and discuss organisational, ideological, and devotional topics. So the standard has improved a lot.

In Him,
Sulocan


REFERENCES
1. AFPS-4, What Should History Be Like?
2. AFPS-4, Let History Be Rewritten
3. SS part 19

PRABHAT SAMGIITA

"Pra'n'e ceyechi toma're, tumi ki deve na' dhara'..." (P.S. 4694)

Purport:

O my Lord, I long for You in my heart - please come in my heart. Won't You please grace me and allow Yourself to be held; will You not allow me to hold You. The same flow which I feel my heart is also resonating through the delicate strings of my viina.

O' Parama Purusa, so many days and nights, so many prahar [1], and so many dates have gone in waste. Baba, so many months, spans of time, years, and ages have passed. Even after learning so many rules and regulations, and so many do's and don'ts from the scriptures - in spite of that I lost the path. 

O ' Dearmost, today, by Your grace I understand this eternal truth: That You can only be bound by love and devotion. All the fixed rules and established systems of the tunes and melodies will go in vain. By that way I will not get You. I can only get You by yearning and longing. Only with devotion can I get You.

O' Parmama Pursua Baba, I long for You in my heart. In my each and every action I want You to be present. I want to feel You all the time. Baba, please grace me so that You are always along with me. Baba, please be gracious...


END NOTES FOR PRABHATA SAMGIITA #4694:

[1] Prahar: Each day is broken up into eight segments or eight periods. And these periods are known as 'prahar'. In that way, each prahar is three hours length in duration. Here Baba explains more about prahar and various other segments of time.

Baba says, "The verbal root 'mas' means 'to measure'. By adding 'ghain' to 'mas' we get ma'sa whose etymological meaning is 'a measurement of time' or 'a period of time'. Thus ma'sa in this sense means 'era', 'lunar year', 'lunar month', 'lunar day', 'solar year', 'solar month', 'fortnight', 'week', 'solar day' or ahora'tra (from sunrise to sunrise), prahara (three hours), hour, minute, second, fraction-of-second and so forth -- all of these." (Shabda Cayanika-2, Disc: 13)

Carrying Weapon

Baba

CARRYING WEAPON

Namaskar,
Most everyone has heard that Didis are required by Baba to carry a trishul (trident). It is part of their uniform.

Everyone also knows that Baba’s each and every order bears great significance. To what degree all our Didis are following this code – only they can truly say. I do know that my Didi does indeed carry hers. She and I have discussed why and then I did more research by talking to others and here is a summary for your review.

I would appreciate if others – especially more Didis – would share their comments on this subject.

EQUAL IN ALL RESPECTS, BUT...

As we know, women have been enjoying greater social equality around the globe, but still there remains lots of work to be done in this arena. Regarding, in-born or innate qualities and potential, women and men are equal in the more subtle spheres. We know that males and females can equally progress on the spiritual path. A person’s progress is more a function of an individual’s commitment to sadhana than any biological difference. So in the more subtle spheres, there is no real gender
difference. And that is Baba’s teaching.

Baba says, "According to Ananda Marga, women have equal rights in each and every sphere, so why shouldn’t they also have the right to attain salvation?..So on behalf of the philosophy of Ananda Marga, and also on behalf of the cult of Tantra, I hereby announce that males and females, who are the boys and girls of Parama Purus’a, the sons and daughters of Parama Purus’a, have an equal birthright to attain salvation." (1)

However, we also know that Baba does indeed point out differences between men and women. In some respects men are more developed and in other regards women are more developed. And along the way, there are always exceptions to the rule or general trend.

Baba says, "The number of cells in a female body is a little smaller than the number in a male body. Again, from the viewpoint of sentimentality, the number of nerve cells in a woman’s body is a little greater than that in a man’s. That is why in areas needing intelligence, knowledge and rationality men progress rapidly, and in areas where success depends on sentimentality, women progress very swiftly. Through the dispensation of God, men’s deficiency is balanced by women’s sentimentality, and women’s deficiency is balanced by men’s resoluteness and subtle propensive propulsion. And this is why in the sphere of education, both men and women must be afforded equal opportunities. Otherwise society will become crippled, and its all-round well-being cannot be achieved." (2)

So clearly according to Baba there is a some difference between men and women in the psychic sphere. Certainly there is always the possibility for exceptions. But in general, each gender has their own strengths and taken together, society is balanced.

Perhaps the most notable difference though comes in the more crude sphere – on the physical plane – as the glandular system of men and women are quite different. In particular Baba points out how the physical might of men is more. That is the general rule though always there are a few exceptions.

Baba says, "As the physical strength of women is less than that of men, the latter should always endeavour to save the prestige of women." (3)

Baba says, "Generally, males have got much more stamina, courage...than females. Females have less courage, stamina." (4)

So while in the most subtle sphere men and women enjoy an equal birthright, in the more crude spheres there are stark differences between men and women - taking into account the possiblity for exceptions. And one certain difference is that men are physically stronger.

SITUATION OF WOMEN AROUND THE WORLD

 

Domestic violence continues to be a huge issue around the globe. So many women become victims both in and out of their own homes – in the west and in the east. Although women enjoy more social freedom in the west, still abuse against women runs rampant.
Mostly because we are physically weaken than men. Much of this is also due to women being projected as objects of sexual gratification in this male-dominate world. The movies, the media, the advertising all point in this direction. Women are grossly objectified.

And in this era of extreme materialism, so many attacks occur against women – both inside and outside their home.
Tragically, women are not entirely safe within the walls of AMPS. While most in AM are very good, but a few fake margiis have been known to create problems. More can be told about this by others. Or write me for details about this.

POINT OF TRIDENT

My main point is this use of trident. Baba’s directive that Didis carry a trident bears great significance in today’s world and is probably related with the fact that Didis are supposed to travel in pairs - for reasons of safety - at least most of the time.

Women are susceptible in this world – due to our limited physical strength. If all the men and women were enlightened, the world would be much safer for us. But that is not the case. ==some== men are still dominated by animal propensities and that leads to so much abuse against women.==and vice-versa

Point being, our esteemed Didis must not fall prey to this and become victims. Baba’s clear-cut message is that Didis should be prepared and one such step of preparation is carrying a trident, not using provocative dress etc. When using provocative dress then anti-social elements feel that you are inviting them. Indeed, dress has a big effect. If the police come without their official dress then people will not take them seriously. Similarly, provocative dress gives one signal etc, that is why one's dress should always be sentient.

OTHER STEPS DIDIS CAN TAKE

If we use our rational minds, we can think of other steps that Didis and margii women can take. When sexual crimes and domestic violence are occurring at such high levels, then every female must always be alert and take precautions. We always have to think if we are in a safe position or not. This precautionary measure will help prevent so many cases of abuse.

Even then our Didis are always traveling and they may get caught in a bad situation, or at the very least one that is unenviable. So they should be ready and prepared.

Beyond carrying a trishul, it is not a bad idea for our Didis and margii sisters and all women to learn basic elements of self-defense. Martial arts like judo and karate will help reduce the susceptibility of women.

We will no longer feel like victims.

As a mother I have enrolled my 10 and 12 year old daughters in Tae Kwon Do classes. Such classes not only improve their agility but help them develop self-confidence and courage.

Basically, I wish them to feel prepared without scaring them into thinking they live in a violent world. So we emphasize the positive side.

Of course martial arts are not a replacement for sadhana. Our aim is not to become a black belt. We are sadhakas. But given today’s topsy-turvy world, we have to be prepared.

And I feel that preparation extends to our Didis as well. And that is what I have been told about why Baba has included the trident as a mandatory aspect of a Didi’s uniform. It is a tool for safeguarding our lady acaryas. Then it is their own prerogative if they wish to learn some type of systematic method of self-defense as well. I would highly recommend it.

In this present era, self-defense has become a need for all women. And Baba Himself recognises this by requiring Didis to carry a trishal.

DIDIS REQUIRED TO CARRY A TRISHUL

By Baba’s grace I feel in my heart that He deeply cares for all His children. He is watching and guiding us. His every teaching is important and bears significance, including that of Didis being required to carry a trishul. I hope this matter is not being neglected. Rather we should use it as rallying point to prepare our margii sisters (including Didis) for how to live in this world. No one should be susceptible or victimised.

Namaskar,
in the service of Divine Father,
Tara


REFERENCES
1. An Equal Birthright
2. Yoga Psychology
3. Caryacarya-1, ‘The Social Relationship Between Men and Women’
4. Yoga Psychology

PRABHAT SAMGIITA

"Tiirthe tiirthe ghuriya' kla'nt hoye esechi dva're..."   (Prabhata Samgiita 4112)

Purport:

O' Divine Entity, after wandering around the globe in various holy lands in search of You, I am completely tired. In this exhausted state I have reached Your alter. Baba, be gracious, please do not turn Your face away; please do not become unhappy, angry, or furious with me. Please open the door and allow me to come inside.

O my Lord, look towards me; my whole body is completely tired and exhausted. My feet are full of dust. Wandering around in the sun, my whole body has become completely hot and sweaty. I am totally tired and exhausted.

O' Parama Purusa, now I feel in my heart and repent how my whole life has been wasted. I was tied up in the noose of dogma. Just I was performing various rituals, wandering in holy lands, moving from one tiirtha to another tiirtha, from one Baba's Quarter to another Baba's Quarter, in search of You. By Your grace, now I understand that You are residing in my heart - smiling.

O' Parama Purusa Baba, I am surrendering to You. Please accept me as Yours. Do not leave me to wander from one dogmatic pilgrimage to another - involved in various rituals. The path which I was traveling was dark & full of hopelessness. I wasted a lot of money, time, and energy; nothing was gained. Now I am too tired. I want Your divine direction.

In spite of moving on the negative path, by Your grace in the garden of my mind some flowers have bloomed for You. I want to offer those flowers at Your lotus feet. The creepers of hope are swinging and the feeling is coming that You will allow me.

Baba, O' my Lord, You have graciously given me the longing for You in my heart. Now please grace me by allowing me to come close to You and touch Your feet. Baba, I am Yours and You are mine. I am surrendering everything unto You. Please accept me...

More About Dada M Story

Baba

MORE ABOUT DADA M STORY

Namaskar,
Many are aware that Dada M recently met with the President of Ireland. And while Dadaji certainly did have a seating with a head of state, we should put this in perspective.

PRE-1971 DAYS IN INDIA:

AVADHUTAS REGULARLY RECEIVED BY HIGH OFFICIALS

Let us not forget that early on Dada Ramanandji flew with Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and her entourage on her official plane (reference “Ashutosh Baba” book). This was not an isolated case - rather a common phenomenon. High ranking leaders and officials felt honoured to receive avadhutas. Not only that, so many Dadas were regularly mixing and communicating with high government officers. Plus those very political leaders were present at the 1971 Ranchi Ananda Purnima DMC - more than 20 IPS (Indian Police Service) and IAS (Indian Administrative Service) attended that DMC. And thousands of very high ranking officers were initiated and became Ananda Margiis. Our Dadas were regularly associating with and being received by high officials to do pracara work, receive checks for relief efforts, accept award certificates etc. That was the way things were moving in the pre-1971 era.

WHEN PROUT BEGAN CONTESTING ELECTIONS

THEY TREATED US AS SWORN ENEMIES

Those days Mrs. Gandhi and so many high-ranking Indian officials and leaders were seeking supporters. Their strategy was that Ramananda and all of Ananda Marga should vote for Mrs. Gandhi and become her cadre. So they thought the growth of Ananda Marga would go in their favour. When Prout started contesting elections, i.e. once those leaders realised that Prout would have its own competing political platform then the relationship was quickly severed. They become terrified. From that moment forward, Mrs. Gandhi and those high-ranking officials treated all Proutists as sworn enemies and did all kinds of harassment against us to destroy the entire Prout movement and Ananda Marga. In due course they put everyone in jail including Baba, where they poisoned Him. We all know this dark history.

COMMUNISTS & RSS ALSO TURNED ON US

The Indian communists were also supporting Prout and verily so many communist cadres joined AM - including Vijayanandji and so many other avadhutas. But when those same communist leaders understood our stand then fight broke out. And the rest is history. And similar was the case with RSS (a Hindu fundamentalist group) in India.

BE READY FOR SAME TO HAPPEN OVERSEAS - IN DUE COURSE

A corresponding course of events will happen overseas where Prout is still in its infancy. At present, these overseas political leaders still think that Proutists are their cadres, but the moment overseas Proutists start contesting for political seats then the scene will change. When those leaders realise what Prout is, then all will be in jail. After being jailed if Proutists stand tall, then Prout will remain.

WHEN PROUT IS POWERFUL OPPOSITION IS A MUST

The President of Ireland is communist-minded and he too is actively seeking supporters and sympathizers. The moment he realises that Prout will offer an independent political alternative and become his rival party, then we should all watch and see how he behaves. Will he still invite and host Proutists - like Dadaji - for small group sessions? History tells us otherwise.

NOW OVERSEAS LIKE PRE-1971 DAYS IN INDIA

At present, the relationship between Maheshvarananda and the President of Ireland is akin to those pre-1971 days in India when Ramananda and many Dadas were having initial contact with Mrs. Indira Gandhi and countless high-ranking political leaders. But we all know how that scene drastically and dramatically changed. One should not forget this old and known history. We should be ready to face that phase. To bring Prout to the people, the path will not be a bed of roses. Ultimately, we will be victorious.

Namaskar,
in Him,
Yogeshvara

***************************************
Like New Born Baby and Mother

Baba says, "It is a law of nature that nature provides a mother with sufficient breast milk to feed her newly-born baby. In the same way, nature provides sufficient resources like food and other essential requirements for all human beings. Human beings need only utilize these resources in a proper way. Shortages of food and space cannot be blamed on nature. These
problems have been artificially created by the folly of human beings." (PNS-13, p.45)

***************************************

PRABHAT SAMGIITA

"Bhul kare du're thekechi tumi bhul bheunge dio..." (Prabhata Samgiita #1827)

Purport:

O' Divine One, due to my own defects I am not able to get close to You. Because of not following Your dharmic guidelines, my progress is hindered and I am just keeping myself away from You. Please grace me and remove all my shortcomings and weaknesses, and bring me in Your closest proximity. Please be gracious and take me in Your lap. O' Lord, in my life I have received an abundant amount of love from You; You have graced me so much. Now I am offering my love to You - please grace me by accepting it.

O' Parama Purusa, in the sky there is a deep blueness and my tender heart is full of love for You. I do not want my love to remain hidden & secluded in my little heart. Please allow the reddish glow of my heart - i.e. my love - to merge in the vastness of the distant blue sky. Please let my love reach up to the highest realm - reach up to You.

O' Supreme Entity Baba, when I sing the song and ideate on You there is a deep feeling of longing in my heart. You have graciously given the tune and in that way I sing for You. Baba, may my heart's inner longing be goaded & pointed exclusively toward You. Baba, O' Parama Purusa, by Your grace, I should always contemplate and think of You; my life should revolve and dance around You. My life should be successful, please grace me...

V. is Fish-Eating Monk

  Quiz: Fish-Eating So-Called Great Monk

Intro: Kindly read the below quote from Baba's teachings. At the end of the quote a question has been posed. If your answer to the question is correct then it means you read Baba's books carefully; and, if your answer is wrong or you do not know the answer, then it signifies that you need to pay more attention when reading Guru's teachings. After all, if sadhakas are not diligent in studying Baba's books then who is going to read them - non-margiis?


"Many persons were born in the past who shed copious tears for suffering humanity. But strangely enough, after their eloquent speeches were over, they sat down comfortably at a dinner table and treated themselves to a delicious meal of hilsa and kaimách fish – as if those fish had not suffered pain and death. This human sentiment has expressly violated the interests of non-human creatures, but its proponents have found nothing wrong with it."

"Once I read in a certain book that a "great" saint used to live only on locusts dipped in honey. That saint did not seriously consider that those little locusts also had vital life force throbbing in them."

"Obviously human beings will have to behave rationally; they must maintain their existence while adjusting with the external environment. It is true that living creatures are the food for other living beings (jiivah jiivasya bhojanam); and indeed, the vegetables that we eat every day also have living cells in them. But regarding food, I have expressed my opinion in some of my books." (Liberation of Intellect - Neo-Humanism, Disc: 1)

Quiz: What is the name of the "great" monk who used to sit down to eat fish - utterly oblivious and / or callous to the pain and harm experienced by the fish?

Answer: Swami Vivekananda is the monk that Baba is talking about in the above paragraph. He is the one who was eating fish.

(Proof of the above answer in the articles below.)

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"Who can understand a spiritual Master’s ways? With the ordinary human mind, we can never, never know the Master’s ways. They are inscrutable.

Sri Ramakrishna would tell one person, “Go and eat meat. Nothing will happen.” To another person, he would say, “All restlessness will enter into you if you eat meat. You must never eat meat!” If the first person ate meat, his consciousness would not be disturbed in the slightest. If the second person ate meat, the restlessness of the animals would enter into him instantly and take him into the abysmal abyss of his consciousness.

After he realised God, Swami Vivekananda used to eat meat and fish. His fellow brother-disciples and other critics used to say, “O my God, he is eating meat! He has definitely fallen.”

Swami Vivekananda would answer, “When I was poverty-stricken, you did not give me even one rupee. Such kind-hearted people you were! Now I am in a position to eat meat and you are criticising me mercilessly. Is eating meat taking away my spirituality? Am I descending? You are such well-wishers! Where was your sympathy when I was without money for weeks on end?”

Sri Aurobindo used to eat chicken quite regularly for a year, even when he was in his high, higher, highest consciousness. Nothing affected him. And while he was writing his magnum opus, The Life Divine, his servant used to come to him with a very large Burmese cigar. Sri Aurobindo would smoke to get inspiration. This is all written in official books on Sri Aurobindo’s life.

Another great Master of the highest heights, Sri Ramakrishna, used to smoke a hookah frequently before he entered into his highest meditation. In most cases, if people smoke, they cannot raise their consciousness even an iota. Even if someone is smoking next to another person who does not smoke, it is all finished for the non-smoker! That person will not be able to go higher at all.

In Lord Buddha’s case, a man gave him poisoned meat and then the Buddha died. As he was dying, when someone asked him about the man who had poisoned him, Lord Buddha said, “Forgive him! Forgive him! He has not done this intentionally.” (Courtesy of Sri Chinmoy Reflections)

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"There is one story about Swami Vivekananda, he says, travelling down the Padma river in 1899. A fisherman offered him 16 hilsas – presumably the large ones – for Rs 1, adding four more free. Vivekananda then stepped ashore to look for pui saag, a type of green, together with which he would cook the ilish dish. A villager had pui at home, but wanted to be accepted as Vivekananda’s disciple in return for parting with it. Swamiji agreed. All for the hilsa." (Courtesy of Business Today)

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“Vivekananda once told his disciple Sarat Chandra that ‘one who cannot cook cannot be a great monk’. His disciple, native of East Bengal, had once cooked Vivekananda a ‘Bangal’ platter of ‘rice, munger dal (lentils), koi macher jhol (koi fish curry), maccher tak (tangy fish) and maccher shuktuni (bitter fish with vegetables)’. Vivekananda, after eating, said he had never tasted anything like it before.

The act and joy of eating stayed with the spiritual master till his last moments on Earth.

Mukherjee in his book “The Monk as Man: The Unknown Life of Swami Vivekananda”, reveals how a few days before his premature death at the age of 39 from ill health, Vivekananda was found ‘gleefully eating chanachur (a hot and spicy mix of chickpeas and nuts) from a saal leaf at Ahiritola in northKolkata on the bank of Ganges’.

Vivekananda, on July 4, 1902, had a lunch of ‘hilsa’ fish curry, rice, fried vegetables and a tangy dip (ambol). At 9.30 p.m., after a day of prayer, banter and meditation, he died of a heart attack, says the book. (Courtesy of Merinews)

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The Monk As Man:
The Unknown Life of Swami Vivekananda

By Samkara

" For Swami Vivekananda, hilsa was as necessary to Indian spinach as a lock to a key..."

http://books.google.com/books?id=TfP5kBxkZaAC&pg=PA138&lpg=PA138&dq=vivekananda+machh&source=bl&ots=uy73GC1yZr&sig=ee74F3Os3CUZ2jzQPq0tMKXjJOE&hl=en&sa=X&ei=0xb-UpHGG_Ll0AHHxIDYAQ&ved=0CCcQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=vivekananda%20koi%20hilsa&f=false

 Note: If you have any problem with this let us know. 

Inundated this universe with flood of Divine effulgence

Baba

PRABHAT SAMGIITA

PS Intro: In this song, Parama Purusa Himself is directly talking with the  devotee, however He has appeared in the form of one 'parii'-- (angel).

"Rauniin parii elo jiivane, bha'loba'sa' d'hele dilo bhuvane..." (P.S. 2757)

Purport:

  The Angel with panoramic colours has graciously taken advent in life: It has saturated and inundated this whole universe with love. Now nobody is alien; nobody is distant; everyone is close-- my own kith and kin.

  The new dawn has come. Now the vast and meagre are sitting together on one seat. There is no difference between high and low. The divine Angel has captivated everyone's heart. It has coloured everyone with its own divine colour. The Angel is showering its smile with boundless affection upon one and all and narrating the tale of divinity.

   The Angel has inundated this entire universe with the flooding of divine effulgence - wiping away all cimmerian darkness. And it proclaims that, 'I am watching over one and all with love and care. I am eternally along with each and every one through my ota and prota yoga. I will always remain with you.' It also says, 'Bear in mind that humanity will be victorious and the staticity will be destroyed'.

  The divine Angel furthermore proclaims, 'O human beings, keep your mind free from all complexes. Do not consider who is "high" or who is "low". Do not think that any unit entity is lowly. Always remember that the collection of all the units is the Cosmic. No one is outside; everyone is part of the singular divine Entity. O human beings, throw away your heavy load of samskaras, wipe away the stain of the past, and surrender your heart to the Divine Entity-- Parama Purusa. Victory is yours'...


Note: In the above Prabhat Samgiita, this parii - this divine angel - is  none other than Parama Purusa Baba Himself.

Paralyzed during Eating Competition + More

Baba

This email contains two sections:
1. Posting: Paralyzed After Choking During An Eating Competition
2. Posting: It is Sinful to Blame Baba - 3


Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2014 11:21:33
To: ananda-marga-universal-forum-1@yogasamsthanam.net
From: sanjay45@xfini....
Subject: Paralyzed After Choking During A Competition

PARALYZED AFTER CHOKING

DURING A EATING COMPETITION

Namaskar,
Following is an example of a man who destroyed his body and ended up in coma after gorging in an eating contest.

This way of living is a misuse and abuse of one's human potentiality. One has been blessed to receive a human body and it should be used for following bhagavad dharma.

Nowadays in this dark era of extreme materialism, many use their human body as tool of indulgence. This is the sad reality. And when that indulgence is directed towards food, they will literally eat themselves to death and destruction. In that case food becomes a mechanism for ruining their own life. It is quite shocking.

IT AFFECTS THEIR NEXT LIFE ALSO

The story does not end there. According to their inherent desire they will again take birth. But it will not be as a human being, but as a pig, bear, bull or some other degraded being, or worse than that. Tragically, that is how one will have to face the consequences.

Read below the tragic example as well as Baba's divine teachings that dictate that those who misuse their human body will take birth in a lesser form in their next life. They will have to suffer the reactions of their misguided desires and lowly thoughts.

When you desire something animalistic then you will get the body of that animal or bug etc. One will be reborn as an animal because the human body is unfit to satiate their chosen desire. For instance, in this example below, a married man and father ruined his existence after eating and ultimately choking on large quantities of sweets that he had stuffed into his mouth. In his next life he may be reborn as a pig or hippopotamus since a human body was incapable or satisfying his desire in that way.

This is an the extreme example - no doubt. But in day to day life, most members of the general society do not use their human body in the right manner for  the right cause. Mostly they desire something mundane. That is why, when the moment arises most will not get a human body - let alone moksa.

REAL LIFE EXAMPLE:

EATING CONTESTANT CHOKES & LANDS IN COMA

A Canadian father ended up becoming paralyzed after choking during a competitive eating contest to celebrate the Hindu festival of Diwali.

Samaljit (Sunny) Aulakh has been laid up in a hospital bed unable to speak or walk since November. He can barely move his head.

The 36-year-old father of one fell to the floor after he choked on an Indian sweet.

He got up on stage to participate in an eating contest involving gulab jamuns, soft doughy Indian sweets.

‘They called him the winner, and once he stood up, I guess he was choking on the food, which caused him to pass out and have a stroke, and from the stroke he now has brain damage,’ niece Inderjeet Daleh told CBC News.

His 10 year old son, Pawan, watched as the first ambulance arrived.

‘After my dad ate, he stood up and I think he felt dizzy and he fell down...I felt very scared and I started to cry,’ Pawan said.

‘I see him, he’s all bluish and he can’t breathe properly,’ added wife Kamal Aulakh.

Aulakh’s family said a second ambulance with equipment to clear his trachea had to be called for help.

He eventually ended up in a coma for ten days.

(Courtesy of manipalworldnews.com)

NOW APPLY BABA'S BELOW TEACHINGS TO THE ABOVE EXAMPLE

The above example does not exist in isolation. One's thoughts and actions affect not just the present but their future as well. Here following are Baba's teachings that clearly apply to all those who indulge in eating contests - as well as those plunged in other poor habits and lowly thinking.

YOU GET A BODY ACCORDING TO YOUR DESIRE

Yádrshii bhávaná yasya siddhirbhavati tádrshii.

"According to one's desires one gets the fruits thereof. If somebody is a voracious eater and always hankers after food then it is quite likely that after the death of his physical body he may get the body of a pig in the next life. Suppose somebody wants to be a runner like a deer then it is not impossible that he will eventually get the body of a deer after the death of this present human structure." (1)

"One acquires a physical body according to the nature of one's sam'skáras. A human being who behaves like a goat or a dog may be born as a goat or a dog in the next life, because such an animal body is the proper base for the congenial expression of the latent saḿskáras. Hence it is not at all impossible for a human being to be reborn as a hog, a worm, a tree, or even a piece of stone. One's destiny will be decided according to the nature of one's karma – this is an infallible law. In this regard, neither Paramátma nor Prakrti can do anything to help. But Parama Brahma out of His Infinite grace, will reconvert these “Ahalyás” (those converted into stone as a result of crude actions) into glorious human beings in the process of pratisaincara [the introversive movement of the Cosmos], and provide opportunities for their movement towards the most exulted life." (2)

"According to human longings and desires or according to human propensive pursuit, their minds take form i.e., they will gradually acquire the like Saḿskáras or reactive momenta. They first see within themselves what they aspire for and then let their minds flow towards it. Thereafter the external organs i.e., hands and feet, etc., set about achieving it. And so it is generally seen that the desires that they had been giving indulgence to throughout their lives, come hurtling over to them in a condensed form at the last hour, i.e., their mind-stuff takes the like mental form for the last time in order to shape itself into a fitting medium of the like Saḿskáras. Even during the life-time as well it is seen that the mind-stuff of a drunkard, which imbibes within it an indomitable desire or Saḿskára for wine, turns into a vantage ground for undergoing the next Saḿskáras or momenta of pleasure and pain. That is to say, such a person gets scent of the wine shop by the sheer propulsion of his acquired mental propensity, if he happens to go to a new and unfamiliar place. A man who has cultivated dog-like or swine-like desires all his life, dies with the same dog-like or swine-like frame of mind. Thereafter with the help of Prakrti’s Mutative force he acquires the form of a dog or swine in order to undergo the dog-like or swine-like Saḿskáras. The great ascetic, King Bharata, died thinking of a fawn, and that was why it is written in the Puráńas (Indian mythologies) that he had to take the body of a deer at his next birth." (3)

INDULGING IN MEANING THOUGHTS

IS CAUSE OF BEING REBORN AS LOWER SPECIES

"Indulging in mean thoughts only engenders crude vibrations in the Citta, as the result of which you will have to take rebirth in lower species in order to suffer the lowly Saḿskáras created by those crude vibrations. Thus you must arouse higher vibrations in your Citta. Even a man of King Bharata’s calibre had to take rebirth as a deer because at the time of his death he was deeply anxious about a fawn. Thus regardless of what you are at present or what you may possibly become in the future, do not digress from the ideal of the Great in any circumstances: do not stray even a step away from the path of realization of Absolute Bliss. Ananda Marga or the path to eternal bliss is the only path for you." (4)

According to Baba's above directive, those from the eating contests in the case studies will be reborn into that thing which they were thinking about. If at the time of death they were thinking about a bug, insect, or Indian sweet, then after their death they will take that shape and form in their next life. That is the simple formula.

DEGRADATION IS IMPOSSIBLE

IF PARAMA PURUSA IS THE GOAL

"No matter what circumstances you are in, never lose sight of the Infinite One. Degradation is impossible for those who have accepted the Supreme Being as the Ideal of their lives." (5)

Namaskar,
in Him,
Sanjay

Note 1: INFINITE LONGING, LIMITED BODY

The question arises, "Why do human beings do like this?" The response is that they are trying to satisfy their infinite desire with material indulgence. Their desire is to take an infinite amount of food, but alas the body is limited, so they die. Infinite desire can only be satiated by the realisation of Parama Purusa. So long as we are not teaching dharma sadhana to all, this problem will continue.


REFERENCES
1. AV-2, The Difference between Macrocosm and Microcosm
2. AMIWL-7, Form and Formless
3. SS-2, Intuitional Science of the Vedas - 3
4. SS-3, Vibration, Form, & Color
5. SS-3, Vibration, Form and Colour

== Next Letter ==

Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2014 07:25:52
To: ananda-marga-universal-forum-1@yogasamsthanam.net
From: Hari Sharan
Subject: It is Sinful to Blame Baba - 3

RE: IT IS SINFUL TO BLAME BABA BY STATING HE GIVES TESTS,

HARASSES, & CREATES PROBLEMS & PUTS THORNS ON THE PATH - #3

Namaskar,

Ananda Marga Scripture says, “Karttrtva karma karmaphala ["Doership, action, result of the action"]. Human beings do the actions, and the results come according to the law of nature — the Lord has nothing to do with it. So when people are in trouble, they say: “Oh God, what have You done to me? What put this into Your mind?” But the fact is that Na’ra’yan’a, God, has done nothing, and had nothing in His mind. You have done something and are suffering the consequences. You are in trouble and you are crying out. Many people are like this. But Na’ra’yan’a has done nothing. As you have sown, so you now reap. This is the plain truth.” (Discourses on Krsna & the Giita, “You Have the Right to Action Only”)

Some people unfortunately do not like to admit their own sins and faults. And in due course when they face the samskara (consequence or reaction), they blame God, i.e. Parama Purusa Baba, for their wrongdoing – thereby committing sin. That is the central idea of the above teaching.

In 1970, Dadaji lost faith in Baba because of his own bad samskaras of the past. That time he was very frustrated and he started blaming Baba & accusing Him: “He (Baba) confused my mind and that is why I lost faith in Him.” But, falsely accusing and blaming Guru in this way is sinful. Yet, that is what Dada Tapershvaranandji did in his book. True bhaktas do not blame God for the suffering which they faced for their own sins. That is the essence of the above cited Ananda Marga scripture.

Please write your thoughts.

Namaskar,
In Him,
H. Sharan

Quiz: Monk Eats Locusts?

Baba

Quiz: Locust Dipped in Honey

Ananda Marga philosophy states, 

"Many persons were born in the past who shed copious tears for suffering humanity. But strangely enough, after their eloquent speeches were over, they sat down comfortably at a dinner table and treated themselves to a delicious meal of hilsa and kaimách fish – as if those fish had not suffered pain and death. This human sentiment has expressly violated the interests of non-human creatures, but its proponents have found nothing wrong with it."

"Once I read in a certain book that a "great" saint used to live only on locusts dipped in honey. That saint did not seriously consider that those little locusts also had vital life force throbbing in them."

"Obviously human beings will have to behave rationally; they must maintain their existence while adjusting with the external environment. It is true that living creatures are the food for other living beings (jiivah jiivasya bhojanam); and indeed, the vegetables that we eat every day also have living cells in them. But regarding food, I have expressed my opinion in some of my books." (Liberation of Intellect - Neo-Humanism, Disc: 1)

Quiz: What is the name of the "great" saint who used to live only on locusts dipped in honey??

ANSWER:

St. John the Baptist

John the Baptist is described as wearing clothes of camel's hair, living on locusts and wild honey.(Courtesy of Wikipedia)

Other Side of the Olympics

Baba

This email contains 3 sections:
1. Posting: Other Side of the Olympics
2. Comment: Re: Why One Must Not Kill Oneself In Any Situation
3. Prabhat Samgiita #421

== Main Posting==

Subject: Other Side of the Olympics
Date: Sun, 9 Feb 2014 05:02:35
To: anandamargauniversal
From: NITYESH

OTHER SIDE OF THE OLYMPICS

Namaskar,
There is another side to the present-day glitz and glamour of the Olympics, one which is not commonly known.

HUGE COST INVOLVED ~ RUSSIA SPENT 50 BILLION

In this capitalist era, hosting the Olympics means investing billions and billions into stadiums, airports, skating rinks, swimming pools, ski jumps, ritzy hotels fancy venues, and so many grandiose structures. Some estimate that to host the 2014 summer games, Russia spent $50+ billion.

HUGE MONEY SPENT ON OLYMPICS

WHILE THE COMMON PEOPLE SUFFER

Yet in the face of this gigantic display of wealth known as the Olympics, Shrii PR Sarkar offers a unique Proutistic assessment of the scene.

"While money has been spent lavishly for the construction of beautiful places of worship, money has never been arranged for food, clothing, housing, education and medical care for the welfare of the poor. While for four full years all the state revenues of Orissa were spent for the construction of the Konark temple, during that period not a penny was spent for human welfare. Needless to say, the history of all countries is replete with such examples." (Ráŕh: The Cradle of Civilization, chapter 6)

If we review Shrii PR Sarkar's above teaching with the idea that we are in the vaeshyan era where the money has been spent on Olympic stadiums etc at the request of corporate sponsors, then we can see how the vast spending associated with the Olympics spending spree is parallel to what Shrii PR Sarkar is warning about above with the Konark temple.

Public money should be used for the well-being of the people and not for extravagant projects that  have no bearing on the lives of the common people. If the general populace is not getting their basic needs fulfilled, there is no question of spending huge public money on things like the construction of the Konark temple and the Sochi Olympics. That is the Prout teaching.

Today we see that $50 billion has been spent in preparing for the Olympics, huge money has been spent on gargantuan construction projects, and big investments are made for finding and training elite athletes etc, amidst it all the common people are suffering.

LIVED FOR YEARS WITHOUT RUNNING WATER

"A new $635 million highway on the outskirts of Sochi runs by a crumbling apartment block with a red “SOS!” banner on its roof. The residents of 5a Akatsy street have lived for years without running water or a sewage system. And construction for the 2014 Winter Games has made their lives more miserable: The highway has cut them off from the city center. Even their communal outhouse had to be torn down because it was found to be too close to the new road and ruled an eyesore." (Courtesy of TribLive)

The local residents are suffering in the psychic realm and in the physical realm. There is no freedom of thought, civil liberties, or freedom of expression in Russia. It remains a suppressed state where still many of its citizens are lacking in the daily necessities, despite Russia's economic boom and oil wealth.

And just like with past Olympic cities, from Montreal (1976) to London (2012), after the games, all those grand stadiums will fall into dis-use, standing there needlessly, completely empty, wasting billions of public dollars as the cities go into debt, while still the minimum necessities of the people are not met.

OLYMPICS IS POMP AND SHOW OF CAPITALISM

RIDING ON THE BACKS OF THE POOR

Here again if we read Shrii PR Sarkar's below quote in the eyes of the vaeshyan era, we can see the audacity of what is happening with today's Olympic presentation.

Shrii PR Sarkar says, "Those who worship a marble deity in the dark corner of a temple and neglect the poor multitudes – who are themselves an embodiment of God – gain nothing in this life nor for the life
hereafter. The neglect of a person who is the embodiment of God is tantamount to neglecting God Himself. A truly righteous person realizes that God does not confine Himself to the temple, but manifests Himself in His creation." (AFPS-2)

Thus those who stand in awe of all the Olympic stadiums, and those who have lost sight of what the Olympics should be all about, they have forgotten their inner self and become a tool of capitalism. The Olympics should be a celebration of the human spirit, and not the pomp and show of capitalist wealth. Yet that is what the Olympics has become. But Shrii PR Sarkar warns us about become a pawn of the Olympic menagerie.

BASIC HUMAN VALUES GROSSLY OVERLOOKED IN RUSSIA

Yet through it all, even the most basic human values are grossly overlooked in Russia. Crackdowns against innocent citizens is a daily occurrence. People are seen as tools of the government not living, breathing entities who have an inquiring mind and a thirst for the limitless.

So here we can only think that in the eyes of Prout, this Olympics, like so many others, is also a shocking display of misused public wealth. As it overlooks the welfare of the common people and suffering humanity and instead tries to dazzle and allure the world with its superficial glamour etc.

THE SO-CALLED OLYMPIC SPIRIT:

JUST AN ELITIST SPECTACLE

Just as Shrii PR Sarkar has given kaoshikii and tandava for the practice and betterment of all, the real ideal of the Olympics is to inspire everyone to engage in sports and try to go beyond what they think they can do.

Unfortunately, the capitalist model has taken the Olympics to such an elitist strata, that only the most talented athletes participate and the rest of the world grows obese watching from the couch. The standard is so high due to huge money, corporate sponsorships, steroids, and year-round training, that for the common people the idea of participating is a dream. Plus, most of the top athletes who try to participate get hurt or even killed while training and never even perform in then Olympics. So here is another angle of vision of how the Olympic spirit just spells disaster for the people. They have been reduced to paying spectators and overweight consumers, nothing more.

THE OLYMPICS DOES NOT BRING PEACE

Some attest that the Olympics bring peace and amity. Let's take a closer look to see if this or not. In 1936, Nazi Germany hosted the Olympics in Berlin and shortly thereafter World War II began. Throughout the Cold War period, nations like the US and USSR participated in countless Olympics, but that never eased political or military tensions. Likewise India and Pakistan have been participating in the Olympics and Commonwealth Games for years, all the while they have remained antagonistic towards one another. As Ananda Margiis, we should bear in mind that peace only comes with the eradication of exploitation. So long as there is exploitation there will never be peace, regardless of a country's involvement in the Olympic games or not.

SOLUTION FOR HOLDING OLYMPICS

Various international organisations like the United Nations etc do not build new offices every time they hold a meeting. Rather they return to the same venue again and again. The same should be done with the Olympics. There can be 4 fixed sites around the globe. The Olympics can simply rotate through those 4 venues, returning to the same site every 16 years. That way each facility can be of a premium standard and well maintained. An international board will manage the sites and distribute profits to all nations. During "off years" when the Olympics is not being held at a particular site then that location can be used for the Asia games or other competitions. This will bring regular use and income to each site. It will not be like the way things are now where an entire Olympic sporting complex is built for the Olympics, only to sit unused and fall into disrepair as soon as the games are over.

COMMON PEOPLE WHOLLY OVERLOOKED

As the capitalist presses and media around the globe are gloating over the magnificent display of the Olympics, the needs and thoughts of so many suffering people are wholly overlooked in the practical plane. When the Olympics are gone the resident of Sochi will be a forgotten people, and their present woes will just continue.

Only Prout is the real voice of the people. Proutists speak for those who are speechless. So it is the duty of writers in all corners to stand up for the suffering humanity, while the various governments foolishly spend all their public on Olympic pomp and show, overlooking the needs and rights of the people.

Because the way things are now, the Olympics present a glamour show to the world, while it commands all public monies and funds.

This is the side of the Olympics that is mostly unknown.

PROUT IS FOR THE WELFARE OF THE PEOPLE

Our Prout philosophy aims for the welfare of the people. As Proutists, in this Olympic season, we are to always carry this ideal to the masses and work for their upliftment.

Shrii PR Sarkar says, "There will be no more suppression, repression and oppression. Let the mind develop according to its longings; let the mind be free. Let there be a human society of coordination and cooperation. This is the last stage. We are waiting for the rising sun with crimson rays. Even now the crimson rays are a bit visible. These crimson rays are the rays of PROUT." (PNS-17)

Namaskar
In Him,
Nityesh

Note 1: SOCHI OPENING CEREMONY

With the grand Opening Ceremony in Sochi Games being marveled at by all, and with literally billions watching the Olympic events, the 2014 games in Sochi (Russia) are front and center.

“With lights, floats and flying, Russia kicked off the opening ceremony in Sochi as the world turns its attention to the costliest Olympic Games in history.” (Courtesy of CNN)

The Sochi games have became the new poster child of this modern-era Olympics phenomenon where huge money is spent in order to impress the world.

Note 2: LINK TO PRIOR LETTERS ON EXTRAVAGANCE AND CONTRADICTION OF OLYMPICS

#1: http://am-global-01.blogspot.com/2013/01/big-questions-about-world-events.html

#2: http://am-global-01.blogspot.com/2013/02/misuse-abuse-of-public-funds-2.html

== NEXT SECTION ==

Subject: Re: Why One Must Not Kill Oneself In Any Situation
Date: Sun, 9 Feb 2014 08:55:49 GMT
From: Vyasa
To: anandamargauniversal

Re: Why One Must Not Kill Oneself In Any Situation

BABA

Namaskara.

Good article on euthanasia. In U.S.A., there is a lot of news whereby people "accidentally" kill themselves because they were trying to get high by shooting up with heroin and die of an overdose even if they weren't suicidal. I get a lot of patients who survive such instances after they woke up from unconsciousness and a semi-comatose stated while in the hospital. They told us they were just trying to "catch a buzz."

Baba Nam Kevalam

Vyasa

Note 1: LINK TO INITIAL LETTER ON THIS TOPIC

http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/2014/02/why-one-must-not-kill-oneself-in-any.html

PRABHAT SAMGIITA #421

PS Intro: This is one special type of song where Parama Purusa explains to the devotees what He does - how He carries out His liila.

"A'gun jva'la'te a'si niko a'mi, diipa'valii jva'li man ma'jhe..."  (Prabhata Samgiita #421)

Purport:

I, Parama Purusa, do not come to light a burning fire in the heart. I come to light the lamp of devotion in the heart-- for that I come. I fill the mind with divine effulgence - devotion, not fire [1]. Even on the rough & jagged path I pour divine sweetness - I make even the dry heart full of devotion. In those trees that do not flower, I decorate them with flowers.

I change the degrading personality into a divine one. I fill them with the beauty of devotion. To the dry heart I bring the warmth of love and devotion. I give them inspiration to move towards divinity. In this way I bless. Through the melody and rhythm of song and dance, silently I fill the remote corner of the heart with love. Indeed I fill the entire universe with devotion through song, dance and music - Prabhat Samgiita. I do not come to ignite the heart with yearning; rather I fill the heart with devotion.    

To those hearts that are frustrated, sunken, and lost, I give them the strength for their forward movement. I fill them with bliss so they can forget their pain and misery and become ensconced in divinity. I remain with everyone through My ota and prota yoga. I make everyone aware of this by My actions. I express this truth in all My work so that human beings can realise that Parama Purus'a is with them.    

I take advent on this earth to fill the heart with devotion...


End Notes For Prabhat Samgiita #421:

[1] Fire: Here fire means that devotees always lovingly accuse Parama Purusa that 'I am crying for You yet You just set my heart on fire, with no relief in sight'. But Parama Purus'a explains that it is not like that; rather He comes with the explicit motive to fill the mind with devotion... 

Photos From Girls Prout Procession in Tatanagar

Here are pictures from the recently held Girls Prout procession on 22 January 2014 in Tatanagar. For more information please read this posting: Female Exploitation.

Child Slavery #2 + RE: OUTLANDISH

Baba

This email contains two distinct letters:
1. RE: Outlandish Claim by Dada K
2. Child Labor and Slavery #2


Date: Sat, 25 Jan 2014 09:46:17 +0200
From: Amrit Lalloo <amrit.lal...com>

RE: OUTLANDISH CLAIM BY DADA K

Namaskar,

I heard many fake Baba stories but this one by Kalyaneshvarananda takes the cake, else, he must be joking?

I don't for once believe Ac. Kalyaneshvarananda 's outrageous story about " Baba asking Ramanandajii to meet RSS chief in Nagpur and propose if AM and RSS can work together to fight with common enemies as they are very powerful and that Baba instructed us not to speak anything against RSS, although they may criticize AM."

Who are the common enemies of both AM and RSS ? Is not dogmatic RSS a "common enemy?" 

This is a "once upon a time story." It is akin to Baba asking CPIM to work together with AM to destroy capitalism (see note 1).

This bogus story completely undermines Baba and his mission. It is the most ridiculous story ever told. All be it,

wise Kalyaneshvarananda is the PRS of the Kolkotta faction. This is the calibre of our so-called leadership.

Hiding my head in shame,

Amrit


Note 1: In India and in many places, the communists are in bed with the capitalists. For show, communists abuse capitalists to collect votes from the poor, but internally they are very close. This is quite prevalent - especially in India. Here we should keep in mind that both capitalists and communists are materialists.


From: Dada Kalyaneshvarananda
Date: Wed, 15 Jan 2014 13:20:37 +0530

Namaskar.

I wish to add a few points for dear Tarak's information.

1.In India RSS is supposed to represent Hindu interests. Once Baba asked Ramanandajii to meet RSS chief in Nagpur and propose if AM and RSS can work together to fight with common enemies as they are very powerful. I was present in that meeting in 1968 along with a few margiis. We met the then chief Mr. Golwalkar, who was a bright person, but did not agree with the proposal for their own reasons. But Baba instructed us not to speak any thing against RSS, although they may criticize AM.

2. Like Ac. Raghunath and many others, several good margiis were once RSS strong cadre. They came to AM for Sadhana and were charmed by Baba's personality. One such person was Shri V. M. Deshapande who later settled down in Mumbai. He had many friends in RSS and they always used to chide him that why AM does not call itself Hindu. He would answer them logically, but sentimentally his friends were never satisfied. He was also not understanding that most of the Shlokas Baba explained in His Pravacans are either from Vedas or Upanisadas or Giita or Shiva's treatise, which Hindu's consider as their heritage. Astanga Yoga is also considered as Hindu heritage by Hindu religion. Once Baba went to Ahmedabad where Vinayak Deshpande was working as Income Tax Officer. Without any reference, Baba said in a field walk, Vinayak, do you know that Ananda Marga is pure Hinduism. Vinayak Deshpande felt relieved of a great tension.

3. More than 99% margiis and workers in AM in India come from Hindus. Because Hindu was never been a religion- the Persians named the civilization beyond river Sindhu (Indus) as Hindu, as in Persian the word Sindhu is pronounced as Hindu. When militant Islam entered India, to combat it, the Hindus unconsciously been addressed and was accepted as a religion.

There are several dogmas in Hinduism -the biggest being the casteism. Baba asked us to fight with it through intercaste marriages, which are now so common in AM.

Ac. Kalyaneshvarananda Avadhuta

(To read earlier letter on this topic see link appended below.)

====

Date: 25 Jan 2014 13:32:58 -0000
From: "jayashrii"
To: ananda-marga-universal-forum-1@yogasamsthanam.net
Subject: Child Labor and Slavery #2

CHILD LABOR AND SLAVERY #2

Namaskar,
This is an issue of exploiter and exploited.

TO GRATIFY THEMSELVES THE RICH CHEW THE HUMAN BONE,

AND SUCK HUMAN BLOOD

"These days, a person who possesses wealth is respected and revered whereas a person without money is a person honoured by none. The poor, whoever they may be, have to woo the rich just for the sake of earning their livelihood. Human values have become meaningless, for human beings have become the means for the rich to earn money. The rich, having purchased the human mind with their money, are busy playing a game of chess with the other members of society. Bereft of everything, people toil round the clock to earn a mere pittance. Today the motto of people is, “I have to send some food particles into the apathetic stomach after somehow taking a dip in the muddy water amidst hyacinths.”"

"Those who are at the helm of society, constantly suspicious of others, forever count their losses and profits. They have no desire to think about the plight of humanity. Rather, to gratify themselves they are ready to chew the human bone, and suck human blood. For the self-centred there is no place for feelings of mercy, sympathy or camaraderie. The railway stations and market places are full of half-clad beggars and lepers desperately stretching out their begging bowls, earning their livelihood in the only way they know. They are fortunate if anyone contemptuously flings them a copper coin. The old blind beggars sitting all day long on the steps of a bridge automatically lift their bowls whenever anyone walks past. But their hungry pleas fall on deaf ears. On the other side of the social coin, sumptuous dishes are being prepared to entertain the rich dignitaries. These contrasts ridicule the present human society."

"Today, those who occupy high posts are also respected. Dignity is attached to post or rank. A station master will take great pains to prepare the railway minister's visit, but will never trouble himself with the inconveniences faced by the ordinary passengers. Luxurious houses are built for high-ranking officers while the poor live in shanty towns, barely protected from the elements. I don't say that large houses should never be built, but that everyone should be provided the minimum requirements. “I admit that both rice and tasty dishes are necessary for people, but I shall not demand a sumptuous dish from the goddess of food until I see that India [the entire world] has been overflooded with an abundance of rice.”" (AFPS-2, Social Values and Human Cardinal Principles)

India’s child maids face slavery, abuse and sometimes rape
By Simon Denyer

NEW DELHI — She was just 14 years old when she was picked up from her poor village in eastern India and promised good wages as a maid in New Delhi. Instead, she was forced to work for free as a virtual slave in a wealthy middle-class household.

When she plucked up the courage to complain to the “placement agent” who had found her the job, “he beat me and then he raped me,” the girl, now 17, said in an interview in this capital city. “He said if I ever tried to run away from home, he would kill off my family and burn down my house.”

Every year, hundreds of thousands of girls are trafficked from rural India to work as domestic servants in middle-class homes in India’s fast-growing urban areas. They are expected to work at least 15 hours a day for food, lodging and salaries well below the legal minimum monthly wage of about $125. Many end up cut off from their families, abused and treated like slaves. Some are sexually assaulted.

India erupted in outrage at the gang rape last month of a young woman on a moving bus in New Delhi. But in the same city, experts say, a vast network of child trafficking and abuse operates with society’s implicit sanction and official apathy. As India strives to become a modern and developed nation, the problem serves as a reminder of the exclusion of a vast swath of the population from the benefits of a rising economy and the broad indifference of many middle-class Indians to the rights of the poor.

“The trafficking of young children, especially girls, under the garb of placement agencies is the biggest organized crime in India today. And the worst part is, it is right there in the open, in our homes, and yet invisible,” said Bhuwan Ribhu of the child rights group Bachpan Bachao Andolan.

One of the six suspects in the gang-rape case, a purported 17-year-old, was himself trafficked at age 11 from a poor village in northern India to a life of child labor in the capital, where he worked in a roadside restaurant and as a bus driver’s assistant, police have said. He soon lost touch with his parents.

Law widely flouted

Many middle-class Indians believe they are helping poor families by giving their children work. But according to municipal law in New Delhi, which has enacted some of India’s strictest child labor laws, they should be jailed. Employing people younger than 18 in a hazardous job, as domestic service is defined, has been a non-bailable offense since 2009.

But the law is widely flouted, said Ribhu, who added that on rare occasions police carry out “rescue operations” of underage servants after complaints from parents or activists.

“Almost all of the domestic maids are either minors, or started work as maids before they were 18,” Ribhu said.

There has never been a systematic attempt to determine the scale of the problem. The government says 5 million children are employed in India, but activists say the real number could be 10 times that. A senior official at India’s Home Affairs Ministry, which oversees the police, estimated that as many as 4 million children work in domestic service nationwide and that up to 4,000 placement agencies operate in New Delhi and its suburbs alone.

But the official, who insisted on anonymity to speak candidly, said it was often hard to get his fellow bureaucrats to take the issue seriously because so many of them employ children at home.

A tool of control

Sometimes, placement agencies demand a one-time fee for supplying servants, a sum often docked from the girls’ wages by their employers. Other times, the employer pays the wages directly to the placement agency, which might give a portion of that money, or none at all, to the girl.

One 18-year-old interviewed, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to avoid retribution from former employers, said she received no money for four years of work as a maid for doctors and businesspeople. Another, whose statement forms part of a court case filed by activists in an attempt to force New Delhi authorities to regulate the industry, said in her testimony that she was paid $45 a month but was essentially imprisoned for years and never allowed to telephone her family.

When she complained to the placement agent, she said, he raped her. Ribhu said traffickers often use rape — which can ruin a young woman’s marriage prospects by robbing her of her “honor” — as a tool of control.

“I could not bear the pain and fell unconscious,” she said. “When I awoke, I found myself in a pool of blood. When I came out crying, he told me he would sell me off and never send me home if I didn’t keep quiet.”

The Washington Post generally does not name rape victims.

Activists have made progress only by taking such cases to Indian courts. New Delhi’s high court has led the way by ordering authorities to raise the minimum age for domestic service and requiring placement agencies to be registered. But the fine for failing to register ranges from just 50 cents to $5, and monitoring of registered agencies is nonexistent, activists say.

After two years of unpaid work, and after being raped on two occasions by her placement agent, the 17-year-old girl from eastern India was rescued by a Bachpan Bachao Andolan activist who was working undercover at New Delhi’s railway station.

The girl was at the station because the trafficker had promised to take her home to her village but had secretly bought tickets to the teeming commercial capital, Mumbai, where he apparently intended to sell her off into a life of further slavery or prostitution.

A year later, the girl is still in New Delhi, hiding from the trafficker. Small and shy, with her hair tied back in a bun and covered in a patterned scarf, she has an unassuming manner that masks a determination to see her tormentor put behind bars.

“The first thing I want is that man should be punished for what he did to me,” she said. “Then I want to see the money I am owed in my hand. The third thing is to go back home safe and sound.” (Courtesy of The Washington Post)

THEY ARE ENEMIES OF SOCIETY

Here again is Baba's point that on such issues Prout has its own stand.

"All natural resources are meant to be used for collective welfare. No one has a monopoly over these resources. Some people argue, “When others by their manual labour earn money to provide themselves with food and clothing, why should I not be considered a member of the toiling masses when I earn by my intellectual labour?” In reply I will only say that by dint of intellect you may acquire as much of the boundless wealth in the intellectual or psychic realms as you like. Nobody can object to this. But if the intellect is used to appropriate limited mundane resources such as houses, land, food, clothing, money, etc., will this not deprive hundreds of thousands of people of their basic necessities? You may certainly earn your living by using your intellect, but your salary should be commensurate with the needs of your family, plus sufficient extra to take care of future contingencies, and not a penny more."

"It must always be remembered that the value of money lies in its proper use. If more money is accumulated than necessary, it loses its value due to lack of use. To the extent that you keep money idle and valueless, you become responsible for the injustices done to ragged, hungry people. You will have to give value to your accumulated money by utilizing it to provide opportunities for others. So in my opinion, those who do not know how to make good use of money, which is a medium of exchange for mundane resources, are enemies of society." (Human Society-1, Social Justice)

Namaskar,
In Him,
Jayashrii

(To read earlier letter on this topic see link appended below.)

Note 1: LINK TO EARLIER LETTER ON KALYANESHVARANADNA

http://anandamarganewsbulletin.blogspot.com/2014/01/greedy-priests-marriage-tax-part-3-two.html

Note 2: LINK TO EARLIER LETTER OF EXPLOITATION OF DOMESTIC ASSISTANTS

http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/2014/01/other-side-of-story-slavery.html

Re: Why Dry Sadhana

Baba

Namaskar,

Today I really got a wonderful teaching by this mail. It is extremely educative as well as informative about sadhana.

I will discuss this teaching in my unit among all margiis on Sunday D.C. followed by this we will inspire all margiis old or new to revise all their lessons.

In connection with this I am thinking to prepare a complete database of the brothers and sisters of the  bhukti where we can  keep track about no. of lessons taken, name of acharya, their contact no, email id, profession. Plus we will keep a separate database for the minor brothers and sisters so that we can program accordingly to make separate groups to frame their life as per Ananda Marga ideology.

In Him,
Anandam


On 01/23/2014 11:24 PM, Ananda Marga Universal wrote:

From: "Ananda Deva" divinebliss@ecco---
To: ananda-marga-universal-forum-3@yogasamsthanam.net
Subject: Why Dry Sadhana
Date: Thu, 23 Jan 2014 21:32:43

Baba

WHY DRY SADHANA

MUST KNOW THE MEANING OF THE MANTRA

1. Without knowing the meaning of one's ista mantra, mantra caetanya (awakening of the mantra) will not be achieved. That means one's mantra will not vibrate their being or become "live".

2. In that case, proper ideation will not come.

3. Instead, the mantra will remain dry - as if one is just involved in some parrot type of repetition.

4. The sadhana mantra is in Sanskrit, and if one does not know the meaning of the Sanskrit mantra then it will not work. For example, if English speaking people who do not know Hindi are told to repeat niibu', then saliva will not be generated in their mouth. But if the same English speaking person is told the meaning of niibu' is lemon, automatically their mouth will produce saliva. Because they know the meaning of that particular word: niibu'. The overall point is that knowing the meaning of a word or phrase is necessary to achieve the desired result. One must know the meaning of the mantra.

5. In our Ananda Marga sadhana system, there are many different ista mantras, and the meaning varies from one to another.

6. Each and every sadhaka must know the meaning of their own ista mantra.

BETTER NOT TO LEARN FROM QUACK ACARYAS

Unfortunately, there are many acaryas who themselves are unaware about all these points because they give more emphasis and importance to earning money than doing sadhana. Not only that, they do not like to admit or accept their deficit, so they just continue to misguide others by giving false answers and wrong teachings. In this regard, margiis should be careful and alert.

At the same time, when you see an acarya sincerely involved in sadhana and spiritual life then you should learn from them.

It is just like if you want to win a court case, then you do not hire xyz persons like a potato-seller or fruit seller etc. Rather one should seek out a trained attorney. And if you want to be cured of a disease, then do not consult a bicycle mechanic; rather one should find a doctor. Same is the case with learning sadhana: Seek out an acarya deeply involved in meditation.

Note: If anyone has any confusion about their ista cakra or ista mantra then they should not start haphazardly guessing and practicing it in the wrong way. Because that will be harmful. In that case, best is to communicate with a proper acarya.

To Read the Full Letter Click Here