Author: Tavamithram Sarvada

Is your CUP HALF-FULL or is it HALF-EMPTY? Are people in general continuously LIVING or are they steadily DYING?

The hard, bitter, undeniable and unavoidable truth about life is, death. It is the only event that one can be sure of taking place someday or the other. Just as all rivers rush towards the ocean, the course of every being from the moment they are born is set towards their certain physical death.

The process of dying begins right from the first breath and heartbeat one is gifted with in a new sojourn or lifetime on the planet.

All living beings are constantly on a crescendo towards that climax moment of the physical death of their perishable bodies. However, since the Atman or the Self is imperishable, physical death signifies merely the end of one brief leg of the grand Karmic voyage of their True Self within them. The only good and sensible thing that one can do with life is, to LIVE IT! People who have celebrated life and have lived it to the fullest, relish the crescendo of life as well as its climax moment, while those who have been sad, discontent, selfish, egoistic, angry or bitter all through their time on earth, don’t.

Disregarding this vital truth of life or treating this great law as something scary, bad, inauspicious, ugly or unlucky; gives rise to confusion, fear, disenchantment, mental delusion and many other such negative and intellectually blinding qualities in people.

On the other hand, what is actually needed is the coming to terms with the perennial presence of the shadowy companion called death next to oneself, not being afraid of this most important and greatest yet truly unavoidable fact of life, and being thankful for every moment of one’s life for the simple reason that this ‘companion’ continues to be only a shadow and not a manifested reality, which could either put a person on a hot pyre or send them six feet under the ground. Just as a person with a positive mindset sees a cup half full rather than half empty, respecting this great truth and being grateful for the LIVING HALF of the reality of life, that technically speaking, could end any time, however wealthy, powerful, knowledgeable or good looking one may be; can help one focus on the magical, beautiful and magnificent LIVING HALF of the reality of life rather than on allowing the subconscious fear caused by the DYING HALF of this reality, to control their general behaviour, character and whole life.

Until one is alive, conscious, healthy, has a sane mind, has food to eat, gets enough water to drink, has decent clothes to wear, has a roof over the head, and does not have to manage any physical condition such as a disease or injury in order to stay alive; they could, without a doubt, believe that LIFE IS REALLY GOOD.

It is the beautiful and adventurous journey between the first and last breaths in a person’s lifetime that is called life, and as far as the basic needs for this journey are met with, WHY WORRY, QUARREL, FIGHT or COMPLAIN, AND WHY NOT ENJOY EVERY MOMENT OF THE MOST FORMIDABLE JOURNEY EVER?

There were times in my life when I battled grave health conditions due to serious injuries I had in major motorcycle accidents that were quite graphic in nature to be described here. Even in such situations, the moment I realised that I was still conscious, I only thanked my stars for the favour and thought to myself how lucky I was because I not only knew in advance that my grand final moment could be around the corner, but I was also going to be awake and conscious to experience it! However, thanks to my destiny and to the work I presume I am yet to complete in this lifetime of mine, my ‘CUP’ continues to be HALF FULL and I still exist as I write this post.

Life is indeed the greatest gift. There cannot be anything more superior to this Divine gift. Worrying or being unhappy, amounts to being ungrateful despite being blessed with the greatest Divine Karmic gift. There certainly are many people who undergo great challenges in life as compared to the affluent ones who lead comfortable lives. But however difficult, challenging or painful a situation one may be in, the one thought that can instantaneously make them feel better and truly motivate them to keep going is “It could have been worse.”

Attachments with wealth, position and people are senseless because all kinds of attachment have an end. People will come and go, so will material possessions and also our bodies. What remains with us or rather, with the True Self in us, is our Karma until it is either balanced or neutralised by understanding the ultimate Truth resulting in Self Realisation (SBG 18:66).

Everyone and all life forms are Divine. People should never degrade themselves by giving into thoughts that make them feel anything below this default status of Divinity that all living beings naturally enjoy. It is important to continue to be humble seekers and not be tied down to dogmas or organised religions that paralyse one’s mind and intellect, and stop their further intellectual, spiritual as well as Karmic evolution.

Forget worries and problems. They will come and go just as the heat and cold in summer and winter (SBG 2:14) Do not let sadness, that arises from being dumped or cheated by someone, from losing wealth or property, for taking too long to achieve your goals or because you are not happy with yourself, affect you and rob you of your MOST VALUABLE NOW. Nothing or no one is worth worrying about and wasting the NOW for.

The greatest reason for celebrating every moment of life is for being alive. Happy people achieve all that they want whereas sad people don’t do so. Hanging around with negative people or reading negative posts on astrological blogs are sure to flood your life with loads of negativity which could take you hundreds of lifetimes to erase from your Karma.

Therefore, be happy and make others happy. I can tell you from experience that it is not difficult at all. Try it and you will soon be obsessed with this beautiful way of experiencing your life which is the most valuable blessing you enjoy every moment of your stay on the planet.

Enjoy life. Love it. Celebrate it. Relish every moment of it.

DON’T WORRY, BE HAPPY.

Jai Shri Krishna

Gratitude is a noble virtue that carries along with it great physical as well as spiritual energy. All of us have received something or the other from people. To begin with, it was our births that our parents gave us, for which, most of us are deeply grateful and indebted to them.

I am extremely grateful to my incredibly wonderful parents for the greatest gifts that they blessed me with, such as, my genes, my great health, their unconditional love, the excellent upbringing and education they gave me, their superlative guidance and the total freedom that I always enjoyed. My sincere gratitude also goes to all my phenomenal teachers and terrific friends who graced my life and continue to do so until now.

However, I must add that I offer my special thanks to all those people, who existed in my life right since the time my memory can recall, who ridiculed me, let me down, insulted me, called me names, made personal remarks about me, planned conspiracies against me behind my back or even physically attacked me. That is because I very well know and realise that I gained extraordinary energy from their deeds which functioned as the energy that propelled me forward and brought me so far in life that sometimes it makes me wonder if I even deserve all that I have been blessed with.

Every downfall, insult, setback or incident of being abandoned by near and dear ones, are times when people need to sit down, think, introspect and assure themselves that a firm foundation is being laid for something great to come. Think of the kinetic energy that a simple rubber band amasses when pulled back by stretching it. Take the example of flying machines. How can an aircraft generate thrust that is needed by it to take off and fly and how can a rocket lift-off if they had no energy in the form of fuel stored in them? It is the same case with humans too. It goes without saying that in order to achieve things in life, one needs to be physically strong but what is more important is a healthy and strong mind with deep determination and great mental energy. And this energy or ‘rocket fuel’ can be easily drawn from all the setbacks, insults and discouragement that one receives from others.

The passion in oneself to prove a point or to prove someone wrong is nothing but highly volatile and tremendously powerful high octane fuel.

However, please do bear in mind this important teaching of Bhagavan Krishna to Arjuna:
SBG 2:48 You have to be established in Yoga, O Arjuna. You have to do your duty without any attachment to its success or to its failure. This kind of equanimity is known as Yoga.

Jai Shri Krishna

Studying the Srimad Bhagavad Gita and perceiving the Divinity in You

WHO IS KRISHNA? WHERE IS KRISHNA?

UNDERSTAND THE GOD CONCEPT AS PER ADVAITA VEDANTA, ATTAIN FEARLESSNESS AND BECOME UTTERLY SELF CONFIDENT.

(Note: This is a serious topic and it directly targets the fallacious god concept that most Sanatanis (Hindus) have and also the impression that others have about the Sanatana Dharma.

You may decide to either watch the entire video or read the transcript of the video. In the latter case, I would suggest that when you read the transcript of the video for the first time, you may do so by skipping the Shlokas from The Srimad Bhagavad Gita that appear in italics and come back to them once you have completed reading the post.) 

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The video is 23:29 minutes long and in case you do not have the time or the patience to watch it, please do exit the page. Thank you. 

Transcript of the video:

When you are agitated, stressed, tensed, afraid, angry or simply worried, and you go to a friend for advice, the first thing they would tell you to do would be to CALM DOWN.

Calming down means calming the mind. A calm mind does its job of thinking clearly.

A sane and conscious mind is necessary for a person, whoever they might be or however powerful and rich they might be, to know, realise and experience who or what they think they are. A person who has their mind under their control is powerful and cannot be defeated.

That is one of the main reason why organised religions which are used mainly to control the masses, are designed in such a way that through the fear of hell and the greed for heaven that they convince people with, they take complete control of their follower’s minds and make them their mental as well as physical slaves forever. Organised religions do not permit the asking of questions. If you are a member of a cult, you either do or die but never ask how and why.

The Srimad Bhagavad Gita, on the other hand, encourages seekers to ask questions and it teaches them different ways to not just control their own mind but also to master it. Achieving Serenity of the Mind is the highest goal of true philosophy because that is when a person can clearly experience the Divine SELF in them. A calm mind ensures serenity of the Self and that makes life beautiful, enjoyable and blissful. A calm mind is not affected by destructive thoughts or emotions.

Divinity exists everywhere but an untamed mind blocks a person from realising their own Divinity.

Shlokas from The Srimad Bhagavad Gita.

Krishna says
SBG 18:53 A person who has given up egoism, false strength, arrogance, anger, desire and covetousness; is free from possessiveness and is always peaceful; is fit to attain Brahman or Super-Consciousness.
SBG 18:54 Becoming one with Brahman, serene in the Self, he neither grieves nor desires. He is the same to all beings and he attains supreme devotion unto Me.
SBG 18:55 It is only through love and devotion that a person can know Me truly. Knowing me thus, he enters into Me at once.
SBG 18:56 My devotees, though engaged in all kinds of works, take refuge in Me. They, therefore, receive My Protection and Grace and attain the Highest and Eternal Abode of Moksha.
SBG 18:57 Using the Yoga of your intellect, dedicate all your actions to Me, have Me as your highest goal, devote yourself intensely to Me and you will always be under My protection. Be fully conscious of Me, always.

Learn to master your mind. Make your mind work for you and not against you. Whatever be your problem it is only when your mind is calm that you will be able to find solutions.

SBG 6:06 The mind is the greatest friend of the one who has conquered it; but of the one who hasn’t, the mind is the greatest enemy.
SBG 6:07 The one who has conquered the mind has already reached Superconsciousness. Such a person has crossed all dualities such as cold and heat; pleasure and pain; honour and dishonour; and is always balanced, peaceful and steadfast in devotion.
SBG 6:33 Arjuna said: This Yoga of equanimity taught by You, O Krishna, I do not see its steady continuance, because of restlessness of the mind.
SBG 6:34 The mind is certainly restless, turbulent, strong and unyielding, O Krishna! I think it is extremely difficult to control it just as the wind is.
SBG 6:35 Krishna said: Undoubtedly, O mighty-armed Arjuna, the mind is difficult to control and restless but it can be restrained through practice and dispassion.

What is the first step to handle a serious problem?

Well, begin by coming to terms with the situation, at least temporarily. Coming to terms with a situation can straightaway calm your mind. When your mind is calm and has not been hijacked by emotions such as lust, fear, anger, hatred or jealousy, it can think intelligently, come out with sensible solutions, and allow you to know that what you are looking for is within you.

People who have studied The Srimad Bhagavad Gita and know what Advaita Vedanta or Nondualism is, are aware of the fact that their person is a combination of their physical body, their senses, their mind, their intellect, and their SELF which is nothing but embodied Divinity, along with their Gunas or nature that they carry from one Janma to another.

In fact, there is no compulsion for anyone to go to a temple or to a prayer hall in order to show their respect for Divinity, simply because Divinity exists right within them.

Scriptures of organised religions based on good and evil, are aimed at making their followers believe that there is ‘Someone up there’. Their philosophy is based on a personal god who is separate from nature. But The Srimad Bhagavad Gita teaches you that you are that same eternal and indestructible Divine SELF that exists everywhere. Organised religions separate their followers from god and in some cases, likening god with others can also attract the death penalty!

All organised religions teach people that their god above in the sky, is always watching you, notes down all your actions, listens to your prayers, will reward you for your good deeds and punish you for your bad actions, and if you don’t follow him, will torment you in hell forever.

Those who study Dharmic scriptures such as the Vedas, the Upanishads and certainly The Srimad Bhagavad Gita; learn the Advaita Vedanta and Universal Oneness. It is called RATIONAL PHILOSOPHY.

The Srimad Bhagavad Gita teaches nondualism which means that you and god are not separate and that it is the SELF in every being that is God, Brahman or Krishna. When you pray or meditate, you do so by concentrating on the Supreme Grand System or Brahman of which we are all a part.

SBG 12:01 Arjuna said: Those devotees who are ever steadfast and worship You, and those also who worship the Imperishable and the formless Absolute—which of them are better versed in Yoga?
SBG 12:02 Shri Bhagavan Krishna said: Those who, fixing their minds on Me, worship Me, ever steadfast and endowed with supreme faith, I regard them as the best of Yogis.
SBG 12:03 Those who worship the Imperishable; the Indefinable; the Unmanifested; the Omnipresent; the Unthinkable; the Eternal; the Formless and the Immovable;
SBG 12:04  and have their senses controlled, possess a balanced mind, and are engaged in the welfare of others; certainly come to Me.
SBG 12:05 Those whose minds are set on an unmanifested and impersonal Absolute Power, face difficulties in reaching the goal. This is because people always identify with the body and when there is no perceptible form, it is difficult to perceive.

Those who do not understand this Divine Truth or do not wish to understand it, are the ones who either blame a cruel god and also the magnificent planets for difficult situations in their lives. Such people live and die at the feet of godmen, god women, swamis, babas and end up spending a few hundred miserable Janmas before they begin to realise their idiocy.

SBG 10:20 I am the Self, O Gudakesha (Arjuna), situated within all living entities. I am the origin, the middle and also the end of all beings.
SBG 10:41 Whatever there is that is glorious, prosperous and powerful, you should know that to be a manifestation of a part of My Splendour.
SBG 13:02 You should know that the Kshetrajna or the embodied Self in all bodies or Kshetras is Me, O Arjuna. Knowing about the Kshetra and the Kshetrajnas is called knowledge.

The Musk deer

The musk deer is a beautiful animal that carries close to his navel, a musk scent gland that gives out a ravishing fragrance which is used by humans in manufacturing perfumes. The poor stag that is ignorant of his scent gland, is extremely fascinated by the fragrance and he starts searching for its source. He spends his whole life trying to find out where the fragrance is coming from and dies without ever realising the truth.

All he had to do was to bend a little bit and look within himself and he could have easily succeeded in knowing that he was the source of the enchanting redolence. Instead, he spent his whole frustrated life wandering in search of something that was within him. True spiritual wisdom is understanding that you are Divine and that the SELF in you is none other than Krishna Himself. If you look for Him outside of you, you might only end up like the musk deer. Delve into yourSELF and you will find Krishna. Remember that a clouded mind prevents a person from perceiving their own Divinity.

The mind which is not under control harbours negative emotions such as lust, anger, jealousy and fear; builds ego, the idea of being separate from the rest of nature, feelings of inferiority or of superiority; and gives people the sense of entitlement. When things do not go well with them, their untamed mind blocks their rational thinking and makes them believe that it is some force outside of them such as that from gods or from planets, that is harming them.

Divinity is omnipresent. It is the same everywhere. There is nothing that is less divine or more divine. When you realise that you are Divine, you will have nothing to fear or worry about.

Your understanding of your Divinity will strengthen your conviction of the fact that nothing unbearable shall ever happen to you.

Therefore, never forget that before you begin to create or achieve something or solve a problem, the most important tool you need is a calm mind.

Recognise the Divinity in you and start with a calm and composed mind. Everything else will automatically fall in place.

SBG 11:55 The one who is engaged in doing My work and considers Me The Supreme Goal; is free from contamination of the mind with previous activities and doubts; is free from attachment; has no enmity towards any creature, and is friendly with every living entity; certainly comes to me O Arjuna.

Whatever people do is with the ultimate goal of achieving a particular state of mind. Think about it. Why are wars fought? Why are various kinds of crime committed? Why do people lie or cheat? Why do people con others? Why do people trick you into relationships? It is all because those who commit those acts want something that would make them either happy or less sad. Why do they help others? It is simply because it makes them happy and happiness is a state of mind. It always boils down to pleasing one’s own mind. How ridiculous can it be to waste one’s whole life trying to please and satisfy their mind that is in fact supposed to be their slave and not master!

Various gurus and swamies started their own sects and subsects in order to rule over people. They distorted contents from Dharmic scriptures and for centuries, they have been misleading ignorant people. The 33 different aspects of nature represented by 33 Devas or त्रायस्त्रिंश – traayastrimsha, were changed to 33 ‘crore’ deities! 33 ‘crore’ means 330,000,000 (three hundred and thirty million) and assuming that you have a counting rate of 1 per second, it would take approximately 3820 days or little less than eleven years to count one to three hundred and thirty million! And they say we have 330 million gods! What a load of nonsense! Take for example the story of Krishna. Instead of preaching about qualities such as fearlessness, valour, truthfulness, principles and social responsibility, that Krishna taught, some gurus took off tangentially on the Krishna and Radha story and made Him some kind of a God of romance! They conveniently overlooked the following teachings that He gave Arjuna!

SBG 2:02 The Supreme Bhagavan said: O Arjuna, where, in this hour of crisis, did these qualities like weakness, which are unbecoming of honourable men, come from and take over you? Such qualities will prevent you from reaching higher levels in life and will also ruin your honour and get you a bad reputation.

SBG 2:03 Do not give in to cowardice, which is not manly and does not suit you. Shed this weak-heartedness and get up, O destroyer of enemies.

SBG 2:31 Considering your duty as a Kshatriya, you should not falter as there is no greater work for you than a battle which protects Dharma (righteousness).

SBG 2:32 O Paartha (Arjuna), glad are those Kshatriyas who get a chance to fight such a battle which has come on its own and will open the gates to heaven.

SBG 2:33 If you don’t fight this battle of Dharma (righteousness), you will be a sinner by failing in your duty and it will cause the loss of your standing as a warrior.

SBG 2:37 Either you will be killed in the battle and you will reach celestial abodes or, you will win this battle and enjoy the kingdom on earth. Therefore arise and fight with resolution. Shloka 2:37 of the Srimad Bhagavad Gita teaches that when a person has COME TO TERMS WITH THE INEVITABLE RISK OF DEATH THAT LURKS around them all the time, the result will be SHEER FEARLESSNESS

SBG 2:38 Fight the battle treating alike pleasure and pain, gain and loss as well as victory and defeat. By doing so, you will not sin.

Let us get things straight. As per Dharmic scriptures, there are neither 330 million gods nor even one single god sitting up in the sky! The entire system is personified as Brahman or Krishna and the various deities or devas are the different forms and manifestations of the Supreme Energy. The SELF or JIVATMA in people is the same Divine Energy that exists everywhere and the bodies that beings ‘live’ in are impermanent and perishable. Another important thing is that planets don’t and can’t control your lives! Get over it, please! If you want to change the pattern in your life, you will have to make changes in your thoughts, words an deeds. There is no other way.

Instead of complaining about things and forcing yourself to believe that planets are out to destroy you or ‘god is testing you’, please begin to think more rationally and free yourselves from the web of destructive thoughts from your own mind which can dump you into a quagmire of depression and anger caused by self-pity. Invest about three to four hours of your time reading the translation of  The Srimad Bhagavad Gita – which is the greatest Mind Management Manual ever, and you will realise what an ancient yet highly intellectual and most advanced philosophy it teaches apart from making you realise your own divinity. You will also realise how much of your precious time you wasted on analysing your natal chart which is merely a ‘Karma Diagnosis’ method that can do nothing more than revealing to you the Karmic pattern your life may tend to follow unless you stepped in and made course corrections.

Master your mind and keep it calm, always. The mind is where everything begins, exists and ends. Taming the mind is the only way you will be able to use it to the fullest and work towards achieving all your goals.

May Peace reign in your Heart, Mind and Soul.

OM Shantih Shantih Shantihi

Krishnam vandé Jagad Gurum

Namaste.

Many people believe that troubles in life are a result of Karmic retribution. Well, it is quite understandable that past Karma could be a cause for not only the bad times that one experiences in life but also for the good ones, but calling it ‘retribution’, goes against the very principle of ‘Cause and Effect’. The term ‘retribution’ is defined as “a punishment for a crime, especially punishment which is carried out by someone other than the official authorities.” It means that retribution is a punitive action carried out by a ‘doer’, or by someone or some entity. A lot of people usually believe the ringed planet Saturn to be the one that causes troubles in their lives. The planet is blamed when jobs are lost, businesses crash, accidents happen or even when a spouse or loved one decides to leave. Until people continue to be convinced that there is an external force causing challenging situations in life, neither can they achieve peace of mind nor can they plot a clear path towards a higher state of spiritual and Karmic evolution.

Can you imagine singling out one single-celled bacteria in a remote corner of your stomach, knowing it by its first name, and causing it to suffer or die by sending a dose of an anti-bacterial drug specifically aimed at it only because you want to punish it for being a part of a ‘team’ that had caused you a stomach ache some time ago? That is how far-fetched imagining that planet Saturn is out to destroy your career or family is! THERE IS NOTHING CALLED KARMIC RETRIBUTION. Such absurd ideas are similar to the concept of a personal ‘god’ residing in heaven, of Satan, of sin, hell, eternal damnation or purgatory, propounded by certain organised religions. They stem from a lack of rational thinking and ignorance of the timeless Advaita Vedanta and the priceless teachings of Dharmic scriptures, particularly the Srimad Bhagavad Gita.  The Dharmic philosophy is absolutely scientific, rational, and logical.

Karma is not recorded in some ‘Divine or heavenly server’ with the planet Saturn managing the system. How ridiculous can it be to think of something like that? A person’s Karma is recorded in his or her own mind in the form of general nature, character and attitude, which are called Gunas. The mind, which does not have a physical form but is a particular pattern of the flow of one’s thoughts based on one’s nature, is carried by the Atman or life force, when it leaves one body at the end of a Janma and enters into a new one (SBG 15:08) It is the Gunas that cause action which either balances previous Karma or add more to it. Based on the ‘Cause and Effect’ principle, all of us attract both ‘good’ as well as ‘bad’ into our lives. We might not do it consciously, but deep within our minds, the processes of attracting and repelling are constantly taking place. The ancient system of Vedic Astrology reveals the patterns that take place in people’s lives. A person’s mind, which has been conditioned to attract or repel certain aspects of their life continues to do so over large periods of time through multiple Janmas until he or she is ‘woken up’ by the mounting effects of doing so. That is when self-realisation happens. The Sadé Sati is one such period. This pattern is indicated by the seven and a half year course that Saturn takes to transit through the 12th, 1st and the 2nd houses from the natal moon of one’s chart.

Digging into one’s natal chart, waiting for the Sadé Sati period to end without working on oneself, logically speaking, can get no positive results. Remember, “If I continue to be what I have always been, I will continue to get what I have always got.” An idle mind can only add more negative energy to a person’s life. It is lamentable to see educated people actually cursing planet Saturn, believing that it is the planet that is causing them troubles in life, not getting them a good job or not helping them find a good life partner! Entertaining such vacuous ideas in the mind can surely have one effect, and that is of DELAYING the beginning of a (positive) change in your life.

The first few steps that I would suggest to people who feel they have been affected by Sadé Sati or by any other ‘unfavourable’ planetary period would be to put everything aside, to go to the ‘Bhaja Govindam‘ page, read and understand the philosophy of life explained in it in such a crisp and direct manner; and then read the Srimad Bhagavad Gita (only the translation with no detailed and also boring explanations and interpretations!) followed by three of my posts given below:

• Bhaja Govindam http://bit.ly/bhaja_govindam
• Srimad Bhagavad Gita http://bit.ly/tvmgita
• Why me? http://bit.ly/why-me-
• Bitter First, Sweet Later http://bit.ly/bitter-first-sweet-later
• The Prisoner’s Dilemma http://bit.ly/prisoners_dilemma

It would be of great importance to completely remove the thought of being a victim of some ‘planet’s cruelty’, of Karmic retribution, of someone’s curse or of some witchcraft performed against you by one of your adversaries or enemies. Such a thought of victimhood promotes the swelling of ego through the feeling of entitlement, and it increases self-pity to dangerous levels.

The cause for both good as well as bad events in your life is within you. It normally takes some time to understand this and to actually carry out a major corrective procedure in one’s personality. If changes have still not happened in your life, it could only mean that your Gunas have not fully changed yet and not that planet Saturn, Rahu or Ketu have not ended their project to destroy you! In astrological parlance, Saturn is called a ‘tough taskmaster’ which is, in fact, a metaphor that helps people develop a no-compromise, no excuses or no-nonsense attitude when it comes to self-improvement.

I know a lot of people who have been through extremely gruelling situations in the last few years of their Sadé Sati but are in fact immensely thankful for all that happened. They have offered complete Sharanaagati to the Supreme Omnipresent Brahman or Krishna, and have succeeded in ‘resetting’ their Karmic course. Take a look at the Shloka 18:66 of the Srimad Bhagavad Gita: “Giving up all your ideas of righteousness or religion, take complete refuge in Me. I will liberate you from all sinful reactions. Do not fear.” This Shloka means that when a person clears his or her mind of fallacious ideas of life, happiness, wealth and success; and learns Karmayoga, as well as the non-dualistic philosophy, taught by Krishna, all their past negative Karma will be erased. It only shows that it is never too late and that there is always a possibility to set things right.

The gratitude of the people that I talked of above, for the trying period they have been going through which included, shocking downfalls, insults, loss of position and wealth, being let down or being abandoned by those whom they trusted with their life, and other arduous events; is mainly because they have now found their true Self which is nothing but sheer Divinity or Krishna residing within them, and this knowledge is powerful enough to help them comfortably steer their way in their journey of destiny. One of those lucky people happens to be me.

Jai Shri Krishna

The prisoner’s dilemma, which is a paradox in decision analysis, is one in which two people acting in their own interests, do not lead to ideal results. It is typically a situation of two sides that protect each other at the expense of the other. Both participants end up in a worse situation than the one that they would have been in, had they worked together sensibly in the process of decision making.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt said, “Men are not prisoners of fate, but only prisoners of their own minds.” It is the case with a lot of people but since this post is about Vrischikans (people with natal moon in Scorpio), it would be better to limit it to discussing about people born under the Vrischika Rashi.

There are numerous websites and blogs in which astrologers and others claiming to be experts in astrology, write their ‘predictions’ about the fate of Vrischikans who are currently in the third phase of Sadé Sati. Vrischikans sharing their experiences is one thing, but giving each other ridiculous suggestions is another. Some Vrischikans publicly post their suggestions to fellow Vrischikans, saying things like they should feed crows on Saturdays or donate a black bed sheet to a beggar on Tuesdays! This situation of people is something similar to that of two prisoners embroiled in a typical prisoner’s dilemma. Whatever they do usually does not yield an optimal outcome. A Vrischikan who writes such strange posts, on one hand, does such things falsely believing that they are helping themself by being ‘good’ to others but on the other, they are subconsciously trying to take on a ‘wailing’ or ‘brooding companion’ in order to avoid feeling lonely in their act of complaining against ‘bad planets’, an unkind God or about any other force that causes bad luck! Both are sure to get them zero results if not negative results.

Another unfortunate fact is that a lot of Vrischikans believe that the moment their Sadé Sati comes to an end, their life would completely change and turn into a bed of roses. Others, break their heads trying to figure out the ‘remedies’ that they would need to perform in order to change their life for the better. However, the truth that can be gleaned from the teachings of Bhagavan Krishna, is that one’s life is determined by their own Karma and that the only way to change one’s life for the better, is through righteous thoughts, words and deeds.

It is interesting to note that three Indian politicians named below are all Vrischikans and despite their being under Sadé Sati, none of them seems to be suffering from penury, joblessness, sickness or any other such major problem that many Vrischikans face. Their respective destinies, thanks to their respective past Karma, have placed them in their respective positions, and all the three are currently on the electoral fray. The victor will be known soon. It is going to be a balance of past Karma and current acts of righteousness. Time will show us the real winner.

The three Vrischikans are:
Honourable Narendra Modiji
Rahul Gandhi
Priyanka Gandhi

Now, how about imagining a situation in which all the three Vrischikans mentioned above, visited the same website or blog in order to read their astrological predictions? Please do think about such a situation and try to understand how futile and silly it is to read and believe generalised predictions.

Most Vrischikans must be aware that President Trump of the most powerful nation in the world, is also Vrischikan.

Please stop blaming, punishing or belittling yourselves. You strong people have already been through the tough period of attaining self-realisation. Get out of situations that make you think pessimistically. It is high time now. Rise and ensure that whatever you do, is useful not only to you but also to others.
SBG 3:20 “Even Janaka and other kings attained perfection through action. Your actions should be for the benefit of the world.”
Doing as said in the above Shloka, is a sure way to ‘reap the harvest’ of the gruelling Sadé Sati period that you have been going through. Your greatest success would be to have mastered the art of controlling your own mind. Do not forget that the only ‘thing’ that a human being can ever completely control is his or her own mind and it is the mind where all troubles and also happiness stem from and exist in.

Start preparing yourself to embrace positive changes in your life by being positive, thinking positive and doing positive things. In case you have not done it yet, spend the next three to four hours and complete reading the English translation alone of the Srimad Bhagavad Gita. Read and understand The Five Pearls. With all humility, gratitude, faith, sincerity and positivity, start preparing your storyboard for the rest of your life. Remember to add the element of altruism in whatever you think or do. A great future awaits people with a clean Karmic evolution status.

Bhagavan Krishna said, (SBG 18:57) “Using the Yoga of your intellect, dedicate all your actions to Me, have Me as your highest goal, devote yourself intensely to Me and you will always be under My protection. Be fully conscious of Me all the time.”

Have a great and fulfilling life ahead.

Stay blessed.

Jai Shri Krishna

Please note:

Complaining about difficulties in life is something that is quite common among people. I can understand when ‘spiritually poor’ people who are mental slaves of some organised religion, or those who have been brainwashed by God vendors or soul traders do it, but it is painful to see Sanatana Dharmic people upset, complaining, fretting, fuming and cursing god or their fate, due to challenges that they face in life. This only indicates that they haven’t the faintest idea about the natural Cause and Effect principle and about the Advaita Vedanta Philosophy.

The very fact that you are a Sanatana Dharmi (Hindu), is sufficient to show that you already are a greatly blessed soul! It must have taken you hundreds of Janmas or lifetimes of collecting positive Karma to reach this  stage! The Sanatana Dharma is a way of life in which asking questions is not only ‘permitted’ but also encouraged. As a matter of fact, the word ‘permitted’ is actually not the right one to be used here, because as per age old traditions of the Sanatana Dharma, there is no such concept of things being permitted or not being permitted, like they are in many man made and organised religions of which, commandments are written in a book; and the head is a jealous and angry god who punishes innocent people for eternity for not respecting him! You could simply punch in ‘jealous god’ on a Google search bar and you will find relevant verses from the holy book of a major organised religion.

Those Dharmic people who wish to find out how dangerous other religions that claim to be loving and peaceful are, might want to try searching on the internet for ‘blasphemy laws in world religions’, and they will surely end up feeling blessed and also extremely grateful for not being a part of such cults.

The very fact that one is born into a Dharmic family indicates their excellent ‘Karmic past’ and their high level of Karmic evolution. Being in a system that promotes thinking and philosophical pursuit, paves the way for further Karmic evolution which is the way towards the ultimate goal of all Jiivaatmas.

Experiencing, learning, growing and evolving, are eternal parts of Dharmic way of life taught by our great ancestors. The Jagadguru or the Guru of the Universe, Shri Bhagavan Krishna said to Arjuna:  (SBG 4:34) “Acquire knowledge through reverence to teachers who have known the Truth, serve them and ask them questions until all your questions are answered. The wise who know the Truth will teach it to you.”

The Rig Veda goes as far as posing logical and also skeptical questions even about the very beginning of existence or what is known as the creation of the universe. The 6th Shloka of the Nasadiya Sukta, asks how any god/deity could possibly know about the beginning of existence when they too would have appeared only after the beginning of everything and therefore they could not have been a witness to the event! That is absolute freedom and critical thinking guided by reason! Unfortunately on the other hand, there are some organised religions in which, the punishment for people who dare to ask questions, is public execution either by stoning, hanging or beheading. Try asking yourself who or what could have saved you from a miserable birth into a family that follows a grotesque religion like that. The right answer to that question would be that it was certainly not the stars, the planets or God that granted you your birth in a Dharmic family, but it was none other than you, thanks to your own good past Karma, that achieved it!

Regrettably, despite belonging to the most scientific, rational, nondualistic and only credible philosophy in the whole world, some foolish people get upset and angry with ‘god’ or with their fate when they don’t get what they want; and believe that god is ‘testing’ them when they face tough situations in life. In fact all those unintelligent ideas emanate from the lack of a basic understanding of the Advaita Vedanta philosophy, or rather,  not understanding that God and I are one; and above all, because of being lazy to read the Srimad Bhagavad Gita which requires hardly three or four hours to complete.

The mind when not controlled or harnessed is of no use to anyone, but it unleashes a chain of reactions that lead a person deeper and deeper into abysmal ignorance and perpetual intellectual darkness, gloom and obscurity.

It needs to be understood that:
i.   the mind is nothing but a formless flow of thoughts configured in a particular way
ii.  the configuration of the mind, which is the interface between the Atman, the senses and the organs of the body; depends on the strength of the individual Gunas of a person which can be readjusted any time with the help of knowledge acquired through inquiry-based learning, by devoutly following a developed philosophy system, or from a learned and well experienced person that one may call a teacher. 
iii. the ego is a result of dualistic thinking or separating oneself from nature. It comes from a mind that has not been harnessed and leads a person to believe that they are superior to others and that they deserve more.

Most religions teach mind control through force. They have strict rules which are documented in their religious books and enforced by the clergy which works for the rulers of the land. They do not allow thinking, reasoning and analytical questions. Blasphemy and apostasy are ruled out using threats of capital punishments. They greatly revere the one or more books that belong to their religion. On the other hand, in the case of the Sanatana Dharma, there are entire libraries of ancient scriptures which could take more than a whole lifetime to read, interpret and comprehend. The good news, however, is that the Srimad Bhagavad Gita, which is known as the nectar of all the Upanishads, is a great point to start, and that the knowledge derived from it, should greatly help in mastering the art of mind management, that will help the seeker live a happy, successful and fulfilling life.

When proper mind management techniques are learned, anyone undergoing mental stress, can easily change the state of their mind within a matter of minutes if not seconds. Realising the Omnipresence of God, who is personified as Bhagavan Krishna, also means that He is present within you. You do not have to go to agents or soul traders to look for Him. Remove ridiculous ideas from your mind that planets are ruining your life or that God is ‘testing your faith’. The entire system we call as the Supreme Bhagavan Krishna, can only love, protect and maintain order in the entire system and will never trouble it or ‘test’ it. SBG 3:24 (Krishna said) “If I ever stopped being engaged in my action, these worlds will perish….”

You and only you are responsible for your present and also for your future. Be judicious in your thoughts, words and deeds through which you are constantly and continuously creating your own future. Do a good job designing your future. According to what I call the 60-20-20  principle, 60% of your destiny has already been created by the Karma that you have brought forward from your previous Janma into your current one, 20% has been created by what you did in the current Janma until this moment, however, the remaining 20% is still open for you, which you can use in order to ‘outweigh’ your past negative Karma and create new positive Karma. 

In order to help people develop the habit of looking into themselves to find answers to their questions, instead of wasting their precious time going behind babas and other such ‘God vendors’ who can do nothing to reduce past negative Karma of people, I recommend going through the articles and videos of important Dharmic scriptures, with simple and easy to understand explanations, that I post on this site regularly. This should enable people to get a better understanding of the principle of Cause and Effect and of the Advaita Vedanta Philosophy, so that they can elevate themselves intellectually from lower levels of spirituality that they have been pushed into, thanks to contaminated and apocryphal ideas spread by organised religions through the general education system in India, which is heavily influenced by ‘Macaulayism’; as well as by godmen and godwomen, who talk nonsense on YouTube and on other channels only in order to grow the number of their followers and get richer.

Please take some time and go through the videos given below in the exact order that they have been placed on this page. Once you complete watching the four videos, please read the English translation of the Srimad Bhagavad Gita (read it again even if you have read it already) and follow it by reading the post on Karma.

Remember, solutions to all problems in life can come only from a calm, balanced and well managed mind. Go to Chapter 6 of the Srimad Bhagavad Gita in order to read and understand some simple but important mind management tips given to Arjuna by Bhagavan Krishna.

May you all be blessed with great health, joy, freedom, prosperity and peace of mind.

 Jai Shri Krishna

1. The Nasadiya Sukta that raises questions about the beginning of existence

2. The Manduklya Upanishas that explains the four states of consciousness

Mandukya Upanishad – You are DIVINE

3. The Ishavasya Upanishad that shows you are a part of the complete whole

4. Four Shlokas from the Kat-hopanishad which uses the analogy of a chariot to explain the different elements that make an individual

5.  Click here for Bhagavad Gita Resources

Bhagavad Gita Resources

6. Srimad Bhagavad Gita – A Run-Through

7.  Click here : Karma

Namaste.

History has it that entire civilisations were wiped out through mass slaughter; millions of people were killed in the name of religion, god or some book that was said to contain the word of god; barbaric dictators ruled over vast lands that were abundantly blessed by mother nature; and great demographic changes were caused by invading marauders, plunderers and invading usurpers. The actions done by people of the past have shaped the present.

An action is performed by someone on someone or on something and it also usually has another factor involved in it, namely, a ‘facilitating agent’. The ‘facilitating agent’ could be a situation caused by an act of nature or it could also be a person or a group of persons, who, either did something to facilitate the act, or did nothing to stop the act from being committed.

Committing Adharma, knowingly, standing by those who commit Adharma, and also not doing anything to stop Adharma, cause the same amount of negative Karma. Looking away when you can do something also creates negative Karma which one will have to settle over the following few Janmas.

Remember:
धर्मो रक्षति रक्षितः
dharmo rakshati rakshitaha
Protect Dharma and Dharma will protect you.

Indians, please vote wisely. The simple action you take now will have a direct and permanent impact on the future of India, on the Sanatana Dharma, on your own safety, on the freedom that people of all faiths currently enjoy in India, and on the well-being of all your own future generations.

Jai Shri Krishna

Click on the images below (English or Hindi) in order to open and read a brief story about Stalin’s principle of governance that a particular ruthless dictatorial dynasty has been following in their way of treating Indians ever since India attained independence.

The Honourable past President of India, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, was one of the most amazing Indians to have walked on the planet in recent times. Despite his extremely simple background, it was perhaps his past Karma that led him to wonderful people that included those of great wisdom, and made him an outstanding teacher, aeronautical engineer, aerospace scientist, the 11th President of India, and above all, a distinguished, highly spiritual, Karmayogi and yet a thoroughly kind, down to earth and modest human being.

Below is an amazing, awe-inspiring and highly motivating talk by the honourable past President of India. It is a video of the full speech of Dr. Kalam in the Tamil language, that he gave at the Sivananda Saraswathi Sevashram in Kattankulathur, which is close to Madras.

Those who do not understand Tamil, might want to click on ‘Settings’ below the video and turn on ‘Subtitles’ in English.

Below is a gist of the speech and its essential points

Dr. Kalam begins by narrating an incident that happened when he was a student of the 5th grade. He talks about his teacher called Sivasubramaniam Iyer, who one day, taught him and his classmates about how birds fly. The teacher drew images of birds on the blackboard and explained to them the basic principles of flight. He noticed that thirty out of the forty students did not understand the lesson and therefore, he took his students along with the young Dr, Kalam to the nearby beach on the small island of Rameswaram in the southernmost tip of India where they lived.  He asked the students to observe birds that were flying in the sky and said that the flapping of the wings by birds caused lift which enabled them to fly. That was the day Dr. Kalam decided that he would study aeronautical science later on in life.

Time went by and Dr. Kalam graduated in physics and also completed his master’s degree ín aeronautical engineering in Madras. In order to fulfill one of his greatest ambitions in life, he then went to Dehradun for an interview for pilot officers, that was held by the selection board of the Indian Air Force Academy. The process lasted for four days and nights during which, he took part in sports activities, debates, discussions, etc. There were 250 applicants for eight posts of pilot officers. The board selected nine candidates and Dr. Kalam was the ninth one. He was taken in as a standby just in case someone among the eight failed the medical test. However, as the eight others were cleared,  the young Dr. Kalam was out of the race.  He felt dejected and upset because all the hard work he had put in, did not get him the seat at the academy. It was his big dream to become a fighter pilot in the Indian Air Force and that dream of his was shattered to bits.

On the way back home in southern India, Dr. Kalam stopped at Hrishikesh and bathed in the Ganges. He then went to the Sivananda Ashram also located in Hrishikesh.  When he entered the Ashram, he saw Swami Sivananda seated and giving a discourse on the Bhagavad Gita to a large gathering of people. At the end of the discourse, a person from Europe who was present in the gathering, and Dr. Kalam were asked to meet Swami Sivananda. Swamiji asked him what the matter was because he looked so upset. Prof. Kalam told Swamiji about his not having made it through the selection process of the Indian Air Force Academy and that he was heartbroken and crestfallen.

Swamiji opened a copy of the Srimad Bhagavad Gita and read out to him some Shlokas from the 11th chapter which is about the Vishvaroopa Darshan of Krishna. Swamiji said that Krishna asked Arjuna, who was filled with self-doubt and despondency, to fight all adversities and to learn to defeat his defeatist tendency. 

Dr. Kalam compares this teaching with Thirukkural #623

இடும்பைக்கு இடும்பை படுப்பர் இடும்பைக்கு
இடும்பை படாஅ தவர்.
(idumbaikku idumbai paduppar idumbaikku idumbai padaa adhavar) (Kural 623)
Literal translation: “Those who give sorrow to sorrow, when in sorrow, never suffer from sorrow”
The couplet means that “Those who neither shake nor become weak when affected by sorrows but fight them fiercely, can easily win over them and drive them away.”

This impressed and inspired the young Prof. Kalam to such an extent that apart from achieving better clarity in life, he went on to become one of the top Indian scientists and later on, the most beloved President of the great Indian nation.

Dr. Kalam ends his inspiring speech with Thirukkural #595

வெள்ளத் தனைய மலர்நீட்டம் மாந்தர்தம்
உள்ளத் தனைய துயர்வு.
(vellath thanaiya malar-neettam maandhargam
ullath thanaiya thuyarvu) (Kural 595)
The couplet means that, “The height of the stalk of an aquatic flower is determined by the depth of the water in which it exists. Similarly, a person can rise as high as their zeal is.”

The deep knowledge that Dr. Kalam had of the Srimad Bhagavad Gita, helped him live an absolutely blemishless and Karmically rewarding life as an extraordinarily fine human being.

May his teachings, which are practical and easy to comprehend as well as follow, continue to inspire people, generation after generation.

Jai Shri Krishna

SBG 9:27 Whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you offer in sacrifice, whatever you give, whatever you practise as austerity, O Arjuna, do it for Me and as an offering unto Me. 

SBG 9:28 By doing so, you will be freed from the bonds of action that result in good and in bad. By being free and with your mind guided by the principle of the Yoga of renunciation, you will attain Me.