Tat Tvam Asi | तत्त्वमसि

Disciple: Once a great man said that a God who is pleased when we pray and displeased when we don’t, doesn’t exist. Guru (laughing): Many great men have said this. Disciple: I feel that people are often being misguided. I think meditation is needed more than prayer. If only a few plants flower, would we praise the gardener (religion)? Guru: There is no God as such, who pleases when you pray and not when you don’t. We don’t have any such Gods (smiling). But does that mean you should not pray? When you pray, do upasana , meditate, sing bhajans and kirtans , etc. you attain Chittha - shuddhi (purity of mind). And when your mind becomes pure, your self-consciousness grows, naturally enabling you to feel Eeswara-anugraha (immortal bliss). This is how we perceive God. So, prayer is mandatory. There are people who think dhyana  (meditation) is everything. Sitting in Padmasana and closing your eyes is not meditation. Meditation is not something that you should do; it's that whic...

Disciple: When I read the Quran, I felt that Quran and Islam are only for the Arabs. My claim is based on the given verses (interpretations given): ---------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------- 41.3 (Fussilat):   كِتَٰبٌ فُصِّلَتْ ءَايَٰتُهُۥ قُرْءَانًا عَرَبِيًّا لِّقَوْمٍ يَعْلَمُونَ Yusuf Ali: A Book, whereof the verses are explained in detail- a Qur'an in Arabic, for people who understand (Arabic) Maududi: A Book whose verses have been well-expounded; an Arabic Qur'an for those who have knowledge. [obvious that the book was written for native Arab speakers - people of Arabia] ---------------------------------------------- 41.44 (Fussilat):  وَلَوْ جَعَلْنَٰهُ قُرْءَانًا أَعْجَمِيًّا لَّقَالُوا۟ لَوْلَا فُصِّلَتْ ءَايَٰتُهُۥٓ ۖ ءَا۬عْجَمِىٌّ وَعَرَبِىٌّ ۗ قُلْ هُوَ لِلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ هُدًى وَشِفَآءٌ ۖ وَٱلَّذِينَ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ فِىٓ ءَاذَانِهِمْ وَقْرٌ وَهُوَ عَلَيْهِمْ عَمًى ۚ أُو...

Disciple: How does our family setup influence our culture? Guru: It is our family setup that sustained our culture. This family setup is that which still keeps up our culture – the Hindu culture. When the other ancient civilisations ruined and vanished with time, the Hindu culture didn’t. Think son, what harsh circumstances have our culture endured! How the Bharateeya way of life, the Hindu culture sustained through all evils is a lesson for humanity. There are two ways in which a culture decays: one, gradual ruin due to lack of defence; and the other, destruction by enemies - especially due to the invasions of chauvinistic narrow-minded cults over broad-minded and tolerant civilizations. Only when one recognizes the adversities and hardships our age-old Sanskruti (culture) has come through, like the violent onslaught of Islam, soft conversion and inculturation of Christianity, etc. will she appreciate the momentousness of our family system. Ours is a culture that breast-feed ideals...

Disciple: Our Shastras say that Eeswara (God) is formless and that Eeswara will never take birth. Guru: Yes. Disciple: Then who are our Lord Shiva, Lord Vishnu, Maa Parvati and others? Guru: They are Devatas (deities). All of them are deities. Through them, we seek Eeswara (God). We perceive our deities with three gunas (qualities) – Sattva, Rajas and Tamas - and three vyavaharas (behaviours) – Srushti, Sthiti and Samhaara . Yaska Maharshi, in his Nirukta says: महाभाग्यात् देवताय एकात्मा बहुधा स्तुयते | एकस्यात्मनो अन्ये देव: प्रत्यंगानि भवन्ति || Mahabhagyad-devataya eka atma bahudha stuyate | ekasya atmano anye devah pratyangani bhavanti || [From the greatness of the Deity, the one Soul is celebrated in many ways. The different gods are all members of the one Soul. ] Remember, aspire for attaining the ultimate through Devatas .  Hari Om! ॐ Chidanandam ॐ 

Disciple: I’m a farmer. To control weeds and rodents, I use pesticides. I’m aware that I’m killing a lot of organisms. Will such necessary harm ( avasya-himsa ) be counted as a sin ( paapa )? The very thought of this tortures me. How can I feel better? Guru: An absolutely significant question indeed. The point is to refrain from harming others. The kind of pests that concern you, the pesticides you use, etc. depends on your circumstances. In practice, what you can do is to try not to harm other beings. You can use innocuous natural pesticides. You can promote ecological balance. When you have rat snakes, rodents are controlled. The natural balance is the ideal solution, always. Anyhow, use of noxious chemical fertilizers is highly discouraged. We have already learnt a lesson from the lethal Endosulfan. Generations are still suffering from its aftermath. So, let us have a clean future. On the other hand, if you are of the opinion that natural fertilizers are neither effective nor p...

Disciple: How can I make a positive change in others? Guru: Realize that you cannot change anyone in this world. If you are thinking that you can change someone, you’re wrong. I can only change one person in this world – me. Be it by advice, scorn, teaching or punishment, I cannot change anyone else in this world. If you believe the opposite, time will teach you. The only person you can change is you. So, brace yourself! Accept the good from everyone. Change yourself! The second verse from the Eleventh Anuvaka of Taittiriya Upanishad says: यान्यनवद्यानि कर्माणि | तानि सेवितव्यानि | नो इतराणि | यान्यस्माकं सुचरितानि | तानि त्वयोपास्यानि | नो इतराणि || २ ||  Yani anavadyani karmani | tani sevitavyani | no itarani |  Yani asmakam sucharitani | tani tvayopasyani | no itarani || 2 || [As you gain more freedom, you also have more responsibilities. You will be responsible for the consequences of your actions. Only noble and virtuous actions should be followed and not ...

Disciple: In a Q&A session with an eminent Muslim scholar, I came to hear the following argument: In the Bhavishyapurana, there are references that after 4000 years, a man named Muhammed would come and he should be given due respect and reverence. Is this true? What is Guru’s take on this? Guru: The fundamental basis of the Sanatana-Dharma-Shastra is the Vedas. Vedas have 4 parts [Samhitas, Aranyakas, Brahmanas and Upanishads], 6 Angas [Shiksha, Kalpa, Vyakarana, Nirukta, Jyotisha and Chandas] and 5 Upavedas [Ayurveda, Dhanurveda, Sthapathya-veda, Gandharva-veda and Arthashastra]. Since the complex concepts in the Vedas are unfathomable for common people, they have been explained with the help of stories (in ‘Puranas’) and biographies (in ‘Itihasas’/epics). Hence, the Vedas and their allied scriptures are considered as the primary sciences and the Itihasa-Puranas as secondary. Now, among the Puranas, the 18 Maha-puranas command primary status. The Bhavishya-purana in questio...