Author: Tavamithram Sarvada

The Three Vital Truths about one’s Karmic Journey

Namaste.

My inbox has been receiving too many mails from people with requests for detailed astro-analyses of their natal charts. It has been happening despite mentioning in many of my posts that this is not an astrological site but a place where one can learn about the Sanatana Dharma; Karma; important Dharmic Scriptures such as some of the Upanishads, The Srimad Bhagavad Gita and above all, about Krishna; which will teach them to manage their mind better and achieve great success in their material as well as in their spiritual journeys.

I must however state that when people contact me for guidance or for general counselling, I do take some help of my knowledge of Vedic Astrology by taking a quick look at the person’s natal chart but I do that with the sole objective of getting a general idea of the person’s past Karma. This is because it helps in planning a course correction in the current Janma of the person.

Most people, who until they do well in life, are totally convinced that they are very smart, intelligent and good at their work and that is why they are doing well. However, when things begin to fall apart and appear to go out of control, they realise that they can’t even get hold of the reins of their life, let alone knowing where to look for them, and they begin looking outward for answers. When they reach this stage, a distorted or weak ‘God concept’ leads them into fear, depression, bitterness, self-pity, anger, etc. An incorrect ‘God concept’ forces them to think that God is ‘testing them or punishing them’ for their sins. Such ideas stem from foreign cults that propound that God and creation are separate which is not the case in the Sanatana Dharma.
SBG 13:15 The Supreme Truth exists both inside and outside of all moving and non living beings. The Supreme Truth appears far to the ignorant and near to those of knowledge.
SBG 13:27 The person who truly sees is the one who sees the Supreme Bhagavan, existing equally, the unperishing within the perishing.

There are Three Vital Truths about one’s Karmic Journey that people need to remember when it comes to managing different kinds of crises in life:

1. Whatever happens in your life, whether pleasant things or challenging situations, are caused by you and no one else. The ‘you’ in this statement refers to the combination of the three Gunas in you which along with your mind, body and Self make the person who you are. The mind and the senses are carried by the Atman along with it from Janma to Janma (SBG 15:08).

2. A Vedic Astrological chart is merely a tool that helps in taking a peek into your Karmic pattern. The gigantic planets hurtling through space DON’T harm you or do good to you, but their positions on your chart are used to decode the stage of Karmic evolution you are in.

3. The way to offset or outweigh past negative Karma is through new positive Karma. However, as per Shloka 18:66 of the Srimad Bhagavad Gita, Krishna (the personification of the ‘whole’, has promised that by total Sharanaagati to Him, all negative past Karma can be wiped out.

Bearing in mind the three truths given above and taking some time to study more about the Advaita Vedanta through the Srimad Bhagavad Gita, The Ishavasya Upanishad, etc. can greatly help you in coming out of the “I” mess that most people are stuck in and also help you avoid wasting time at the feet of babas and swamies who love basking under all the attention their followers give them apart from amassing the wealth that they are gifted with by them.

Material success and the wealth that comes along with such success, are certainly important but they are nothing but extremely tiny parts of the entire experience that a Jivatma undergoes through the numerous Janmas it takes as living beings. People who are selfish and think only about their own material wealth and comforts during a lifetime can certainly achieve all of that however, in the Janma that follows, it translates as negative past Karma which starts a new cycle of trials and tribulations that life throws towards them (SBG 9:24) All past thoughts, words and deeds of a person determine the present and those of the present determine the future. There might be people who are under the influence of pseudo-westernisation, of abrahamic cults or of so called ‘rational thinkers’ groups’ that do not agree with this but they too will learn in due course of time. The problem is that it could take them many more challenging Janmas or lifetimes.

Based on my personal experiences and findings (remember I am not a baba or a swamy), I give below my suggestions to people a. who are perturbed and unhappy due to difficulties in life, b. who are worried about impending challenges and also c. those who are brooding over unpleasant things of the past.

The suggestions given below should help you clear your mind and prepare yourself for positive inputs about the Sanatana Dharma which will propel you up on the ladder of your Karmic evolution:

1. Read and understand the Three Vital Truths about one’s Karmic Journey given above.

2. Read and understand ‘The Three Priceless Gifts’ https://tavamithramsarvada.wordpress.com/thoughts/ Entry dated 31.5.2018

3. Personify Krishna in the form of your choice and make a detailed mental image of Him and visualise yourself either at His Feet or even seated next to Him having a conversation with Him. It is absolutely essential that you actually ‘see’ Him in your mind. Humans find it difficult to perceive something that does not have a clear physical form. (SBG 12:05)

Once this is done, your mind will be clear of unwanted clutter and mental chatter and you will have a direction to look in apart from having a single point to focus upon. The thoughts of a person with no single point of focus are branched and indefinite (SBG 2:41)
Attaining this state of mind indicates that you will be able to perceive things more clearly and will be ready to make the major course correction in your life you have been waiting to do.

Every day is the first day of the rest of your life. May you make the right choices today that will create a bright future for you and for your loved ones.

Jai Shri Krishna

Namaste.

Recently a forty-something person born in a Dharmic (Hindu) family wrote to me saying that he did not like Krishna but adored Shiva. He said he did not like Krishna because he felt ‘Krishna plays with words, tries to follow Dharma and breaks laws’! He added that he believed that ‘Shiva is pure’. His lack of basic knowledge about the Santana Dharma even after his four decades as a Sanatani (Hindu) on the planet, instantly prompted me to create a new page with an index to some posts of mine regarding the Sanatana Dharma. It needs to be understood that the prime causes of the misconceptions that people born in Dharmic families have in their mind are threefold:
a. The improper or insufficient spiritual education that they received from their family and teachers.
b. The influence of the wrong ‘Sky-daddy God concept’ taught in missionary schools.
c. The sway that babas, swamies, gurus, matas, etc., who create their worlds of followers, have over them. They present themselves as avatars, lead people away from the path of Dharma and thrive as ‘ living Gods’.

People born in Dharmic (Hindu) families which are not converted to foreign religions need to take a moment to think about the amount of courage and determination their own ancestors must have had in order to resist temptation as well as fight fear due to the pressure from the then rulers when India was not free. Had even one of them converted, all the generations of people, that followed, who are now Dharmic (Hindus), would not have been Dharmic (Hindu), but would have been mental and physical slaves of some convoluted foreign organised religion.

The least Sanatana Dharmic (Hindu) people can do for their amazing ancestors is to learn, respect and preserve the traditions they followed. It is the Sanatana Dharma (Hinduism) that they preserved, nurtured and left behind that has made the Dharmics (Hindus) what they are today and have given them the freedom to think and to live life the way they want.

Bhagavan Krishna said to Arjuna in the Srimad Bhagavad Gita, (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.” What He meant was, acquire knowledge from learned, wise, older and more experienced people but keep going ahead to discover the Divinity in you instead of settling down as a devotee at the feet of some god man or god woman who is also another mortal like you. In short, Bhagavan asked Arjuna to be a seeker until he reached the final goal of Super-Consciousness, Moksha or simply attaining Krishna.

The Sanatana Dharma, although ancient, is the most rational and advanced philosophy. There is no ‘sky daddy’ who punishes his own creation when they don’t listen to Him, no messengers, no satan, no hell, no evil guys to beat you up with red-hot spiked iron rods and boil you in oil for eternity, no heaven, no damsels in the heaven, no resurrection, no day of judgement and none of such other things that organised religions force their followers to believe in. You can start studying the Sanatana Dharma by reading scriptures such as Itihaasaas, Puranas and Upanishads and finally reach the stage of Super-consciousness. You are also absolutely free to decide whether you would need multiple Janmas (lifetimes) to reach the final goal, or if you would like to do it during the current one.

As compared to organised religions, the best part of the Sanatana Dharma, which was neither started by nor named after any individual, is that there is no compulsion to believe in anything at all. Being a nature loving, modest and sincere seeker should do.

Go to the new Index page on posts regarding the Sanatana Dharma (Hinduism)

Jai Shri Krishna

Living in the NOW

The past is non-existent. Apart from the knowledge, which is nothing but retained memory of the things learned and the experiences gained, the past is not of much use. Dwelling in the past can only devour the fleeting present which slips by even without one experiencing it. However, pleasant memories from the past do have the power to motivate people to live the present in a manner better than they did in the past.

Every day, every sunrise or every moment, can be a new beginning of a blessed future. Waking up in the morning, which is a Supreme Divine Blessing and privilege denied to many, is the first great opportunity of the first day of the rest of one’s life. May everyone accept this priceless divine gift with all humility, gratitude, awe and reverence.

“We have two lives
and the second begins when you realize you only have one.”

MY SOUL HAS A HAT by Mário de Andrade

8. Don’t waste your time on scouring the internet to find general predictions for your Rashi or moon sign. If general predictions were to be true, shouldn’t all Vrischikans have been Indian Prime Ministers as Mr. Narendra Modiji the Prime Minister of India is? Modiji is Vrischikan by Rashi and also by Lagna and the most important point to be noted is that it was just after the start of his Sadé Sati that he became the Prime Minister of India the largest democracy of the world. Why didn’t he undergo  the kind of ‘sufferings’ that many Vrischikans feel they went through? Why didn’t he go jobless or go broke and not have enough money for food like some people who claim to be affected by the dreaded seven and half year period did? Well, as I have written quite often on this site, the Sadé Sati is not a period of punishment but that of ‘Karma Balancing’ that happens about two or three times in a person’s life time. A person who has high positive Karma reaps its benefits while others who have more learning to do, undergo challenges which teach them what they need to learn in order to perfect themselves. It is a period during which a native, who needs to learn and improve, feels they are under pressure to right their historical or rather Karmic wrongs by creating more positive Karma in order to ‘outweigh’  their existing negative past Karma that could be the cause of all the challenges they face. It is just a phase of self improvement and not of any divine retribution like many people are told to believe.

गुरुर ब्रह्मा गुरुर विष्णु गुरु देवो महेश्वरः
गुरु साक्षात परब्रह्म तस्मै श्री गुरवे नमः

Transliteration:
Gurur Brahma Gurur Vishnuhu
Guru Devo Maheswaraha
Guru Saakshaat Parabhrahma
Tasmai Sri Gurave Namaha

Translation:
Guru is Brahma, Guru is Vishnu,
Guru is Maheshwara (Shiva),
Guru is the Supreme Self Itself
Prostration unto the Guru

Namaste.

A sunrise is one of the most magnificent natural events that one can witness. During my visit to the south of India, I was blessed with such an opportunity to watch the dawn of the 23rd of July 2018 over the Bay of Bengal.

According to Dharmic scriptures and traditions, Aditya or Surya the sun, is revered to be the One that represents the visible form of the Divine. It is believed that worshipping the sun can help one in building immense mental as well as physical strength in them.

It is an exhilarating experience to chant or listen to the chanting of the powerful Aditya Hridayam Mantra [ https://tavamithramsarvada.wordpress.com/aditya-hridayam/ ] whilst witnessing sunrise. The energy, the hope, the power, the courage, the sheer optimism it fills the heart and soul with, are simply remarkable. However stressful the state of mind of a person may be, due to whatever troubles they might be facing in life, spending those few golden, invaluable, magical and awe inspiring moments witnessing a sunrise along with the power of the Aditya Hridayam Stotra, can simply crush and destroy all negative thoughts in them giving way to an experience of Divine Bliss, positivity, courage, grit and the buring desire to brave all odds and emerge successful.

Apart from the Aditya Hridayam Mantra, the last three of the 18 verses from the Ishavasya Upanishad [ https://tavamithramsarvada.wordpress.com/ishavasya-upanishad/ ] are also extraordinarily intense. They are as follows:

16. O Pushan the nourisher, O lonely Traveller of the heavens, O Regulator of everything, O Sun – the son of Prajaapati, gather up Your effulgence in order for me to see Your glorious form. The Highest Purusha who dwells in You, that I am.

17. May the vital force in me merge with the all-encompassing Praana or cosmic energy and may this body be burned to ashes. Om! O Agni! O Supreme One!
O mind, remember the righteous deeds which were done! O mind!

18. O Agni – the Bright Being, lead us to the right path to enjoy the fruits of our actions. Remove from us delusion and sin. We offer You in salutation again and again, our words of adoration for You.

May the Divine Grace of the Supreme Being descend upon everyone and may the world be filled with peace, happiness and prosperity.

Jai Shri Krishna

People who have studied the Srimad Bhagavad Gita understand that it is attachment that gives rise to negative feelings such as sadness, dejection, anger, jealousy, hatred, etc. Being attached to the results of one’s work, affects one’s concentration and efficiency. It also causes tremendous pain to people when they don’t succeed in achieving their goal.

One of the Margas or paths that one can take in order to attain the ultimate goal is the Karma Marga or the path of rightful action with no attachment to the results of one’s work. This is a sure way to maintain mental balance even in the most difficult of situations.

Bhagavan Krishna explained to Arjuna about the importance of being a Karmayogi and also taught him the way to become one.

Many people who don’t understand Karmayoga ask, “How can one do work without thinking of the end or aiming at the result?” Such a question is the result of not following carefully Krishna’s Teachings Who says that a ‘doer’ must certainly be fully focused on their target!
SBG 2:41
“In this path, O Arjuna, there is a single point of focus and determination. The thoughts of the undecided are branched and are infinite.”

However, being attached to the results of one’s work, leads a person to lose focus and start thinking of all the benefits one would get on attaining success. Instead of concentrating on the work in hand, they begin dreaming of things that they would gain if they succeeded, and worry about the troubles they would face if they lost, when both scenarios don’t even exist. This not only dilutes their focus, but it also ruins the quality of their work and pushes them towards mediocrity.

I have made this 17 minute video on Karmayoga and “Doership” which I hope will help people better understand one of the most important Dharmic principles of performing work to the best of one’s ability but with no attachments, whatsoever, to its results.

May everyone stay blessed.

Jai Shri Krishna

About verse 1:25 of the Srimad Bhagavad Gita

Many of us have surely had situations in life, when we felt that there was something deep in our mind that disturbed us but we did not know what it was. We would break our heads trying to figure out the cause of the uncomfortable feeling that was bothering us but we would rarely succeed in doing so on our own. When such situations became unbearable, we usually go to elders, friends or professionals for counsel so that they could help us feel better.

What about people who have consumed some toxic substance?  The common treatment for people who have either accidentally or deliberately ingested something poisonous and want to be saved from certain death is inducing vomiting in them. An emetic agent, usually in the form of a liquid, is administered to the patient and this causes them to throw up resulting in the removal of the poison from their body.

What happens when a person’s mind is ‘poisoned’ due to the influence of detrimental thoughts? How does one clear the mind and calm it?

Hrishikesha, which is one of Bhagavan Krishna’s names, means controller of the senses. Krishna very well knew the mind of Arjuna and could perceive Arjuna’s hidden mental delusions due to his ego and his attachment with his cousins and others. Those emotional feelings of Arjuna, were strong enough to veil his intelligence and render useless all his knowledge, his abilities, his capability to make right decisions and his enormous experience as a fearless warrior.

The short sentence uttered by Bhagavan Krishna – verse SBG 1:25
“पार्थ पश्यैतान्समवेतान्कुरूनिति”
“paartha pashyaitaan samavetaan kurunithi.” means, “O Partha (Arjuna), look at the Kurus gathered here.”

That was it. It was just one simple sentence. If Krishna had wished, He could have also said “Look at the Kauravas, the sons of Dritarashtra, O Arjuna”, which could have actually resulted in infuriating Arjuna. Why did Krishna choose to use the name “Kurus” which was the name of the entire dynasty that consisted of both the Kauravas, which included Duryodhana, Dushasana, their 98 brothers and one sister Dushala; as well as the Pandavas? Bhagavan Krishna most probably intended to solidify the feeling of attachment due to kinship which existed in the mind of Arjuna, that was his main weakness, so that it would be easier to be removed through His Divine Discourse that would follow.

That sentence of Bhagavan Krishna, was certainly an ’emetic agent’ that He used, in order to help Arjuna in ‘throwing up’ his weaknesses that had their roots in his ego, in his attachments and in his lack of clarity.

Never neglect something that is constantly disturbing your mental peace, but try to get to the bottom of your mind, find the thing that is disturbing you and throw it out of your system.

SBG 18:66 “Dump all your confusing ideas about righteousness and religion, and take complete refuge in Me. I will free you from your past Karma. Do not fear.”

PS: Attachment is a huge weakness and a great hindrance in spiritual advancement. 
Loving someone and being attached to them, are two entirely different things. Loving someone (truly) means wishing the loved one good. It has nothing to do with possessing them or having them with you in your presence all the time.

Stay blessed, healthy and happy.

Jai Shri Krishna‌

You: Why me?

Voice from the sky (It’s actually from your own mind): Well, it’s nothing personal my dear but it’s just a little bit of Karmic balancing that is currently taking place in your life.

Read and understand what is said below and you will be fine soon.

Om Namo Bhagavathe Vaasudevaaya

1. Every moment of life is a Divine Blessing. We know very well that anything can happen anytime.
2. We are constantly moving towards the Supreme Goal.
3. One Janma is a minuscule part of our journey, let alone a day, a month or a year during this lifetime, which are nothing but extremely tiny fragments of time.
4. No one, no planet and no God is ‘punishing’ us for anything. The philosophy of the Sanatana Dharma is far more intellectually and spiritually advanced than man-made politically motivated organised cults that teach their followers to believe in a ‘sky daddy’ who tortures his own creation by causing them serious troubles just because they lied, stole, cheated, drank alcohol or did not believe in Him!
5. The only Truth is the Supreme Brahman, whom we personify as the Supreme Bhagavan Shri Krishna.
6. We came with nothing, and therefore nothing belongs to us.
7. We can be absolutely sure that nothing or no one belongs to us.
8. Nothing or no one can stay with us forever.
9. Whoever or whatever we believe we have with us, or think we ‘own’, will separate from us some day, at least on the day we breathe our last.
10. Everyone and everything we have in life are Divine Blessings.
11. We are neither superior nor inferior to anyone else or to any other being.
12. Our love for Krishna or for others in our life is fake when there are conditions and the feeling of possessiveness attached to it. Unconditional love is the only way to eternal happiness.
13. We are just like any other living being and therefore, our feeling of entitlement which is a result of our ego that stems from Maya or illusion, is meaningless and is one of the major causes of all frustration and mental agony that we suffer from.
14. It is silly on our part to be worried of what others would think about us when those people, whoever they are, have more important things to do than think about us.
15. When we take long flights, our aircraft does fly through turbulent weather.
16. The captain of our plane is the Supreme Bhagavan Krishna who made the aircraft; controls the earth, its atmosphere as well as the entire universe. We had rather obey Him and leave our safety as well as our well-being to Him rather than unnecessarily worry and miss enjoying the flight.
17. With Krishna, The Ultimate and Supreme Being as my commander, I have nothing to fear.
18. We need learned and experienced people to help us learn the way to mentally connect with Bhagavan Krishna but once we make our mental connection, we do not need agents or others to commune with Him.
19. We know for sure that once we go to Him, He will delete (CTRL+ALT+DEL) all our past negative Karma and protect us. (SBG 18:66)
20. “Nothing unbearable will ever happen,” is a powerful statement that I heard from one of my teachers, Prof. Dasharatharam.
21. We promise to Love Krishna, Adore Krishna, Obey Krishna and Serve Krishna, UNCONDITIONALLY. (SBG 9:13)

Haré Rama Haré Rama Rama Rama Haré Haré

Haré Krishna Haré Krishna Krishna Krishna Haré

Now smile, be peaceful, happy and above all, thankful.

All will be fine.

Jai Shri Krishna