Vedanta Sandesh - Nov 2012

Monthly eMagazine of the International Vedanta Mission Year 19

Issue 5

Opw! 3123

Starting ‘Yoga Vasistha’ Series

Monthly eMagazine of the International Vedanta Mission Oct 2012 : Year 19 / Issue 4 Editor: Swamini Samatananda Saraswati

Js;’p izs;’p euq’;esr& LrkS lEijhR; fofoufDr /khj%A Js;ks fg /khjks·fHk izs;lks o`.khrs izs;ks eUnks ;ksx{ksekn~o`.khrsAA Both the good and the pleasant present themselves to a man. The calm soul examines them well and discriminates. Yea, he prefers the good to the pleasant; but the fool chooses the pleasant out of greed and avarice.

Published by International Vedanta Mission http://www.vmission.org.in vmission@gmail.com

In This Issue

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Message of P. Guruji Atma Bodha Letter Gita Reflections Jivanmukta Yoga Vasistha Story Section VM News VM Activities Album VM Programs

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5 6-7 9 10-11 13 14-15 17 18 19 20-21 23

from Poojya Guruji The ‘Hindu-Good-News’ The message of Vedanta is class apart. It is amazing, it is liberating. It truly gives respect & dignity to one & all, in a way no one ever has. It reveals that you & I, including every being & thing in the world is basically divine. We are all basically Brahman, the one infinite divinity, who is just not aware of his/her truth. So all it takes a person to be really free is just some knowledge. No saviours, no actions, no yoga, or for that matter any duality based practices of various devotional practices. Just pure & simple knowledge of 'You are That'. This knowledge is no doubt extremely subtle but lets not forget, it is just pure & simple realization & awakening to the truth - by valid Sravana, deep Manana & Dhyana. Thats the 'Hindu-Good-News' - as Rajiv Malhotra, the US based Indian philanthropist, and a so called cross-cultural ambassador would like to call it, tongue-in-cheek style :) The message of Vedanta stands in stark contrast with other religious thoughts, wherein we need a saviour to motivate us to follow a set rules of common sensical values & sanity. The belief of the sin-in-the-garden-of-eden theory is specially so childish and rather degrading that it should be rubbished straight away by any right thinking person. First sex, the loving union of our parents for our procreation is termed as sin, thereafter the whole innocent progeny is eternally damned as sinners, then we have a virgin-born obliging saviour who suffers to just redeem us from a so called sin, which none of us has really commited, and which in the first place is no sin at all. Then we have the hordes of seminary products coming out to tell us the 'Good-News' that HE is coming to redeeem us soon. All so childish, just to tell us things like that we need to love our neighbours. Religious values are always basically good but just to communicate some good values with such levels of stories is an insult to all right-thinking people. We dont even tell our children such level of stories to follow any good values. The world needs Vedanta, all thinking, selfrespecting people need the darshan of Vedanta, which starts with sensible diagnosis of human problem and culminates in awakening to the infinite divinity of our own self. In other thoughts even in their so called heaven such luxury is not imaginable. They continue to remain seperate from their God whom they loved & believed all their lives. God is just a host of all such virtuous 'guests', and inspite of all the gyana of their saviour they are not truly freed from the curse of eternal damnation - they continue their separate limited existence & identity.

The fundamental thing to be understood is that freedom or liberation is never ever possible by any karma whatsoever. Following someone, believing someone, praying etc is never the way to moksha. Belief’s and worship etc are all for channelizing the energy of ignorant ones so that they can get the inner strength & capacity to enquire deeply. Then it is just a matter of some fundamental realizations. This is way of the self-respecting ones.

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Swamini Samatananda

Atma is the very ‘Self’ of everything The previous sloka and the following one too describes the vision of a Yogi, who has attained direct knowledge . In the previous sloka the Acharya revealed that an enlightened person sees the whole creation in himself as an expression of his very own self and sees himself pervading the entire creation.

In the following sloka the Acharya explains that the entire universe is nothing other than the Atman. The Self alone manifests as the multiplicity of this entire creation. The whole creation is borne of the Self, is sustained in the Self and dissolves back into the Self.

48 Aatmaivedam jagatsarvamaatmanah anyat na vidyate Mridoyadvat ghataadini swaatmaanam sarvam eekshate Aatmaiva:verily aatman; idam jagatsarvam: the entire universe; aatmanah: othet than aatman; anyat: another; na vidyate: does not exist; mridaha: of clay; yadvat: like which; ghatadini: pots and so forth; swaatmaanam: as his own self; sarvam: all; eekshate: sees.

The entire universe is verily the Atman. There is nothing at all other than the Atman. He sees everything as his own self, as one sees pots and the like as none other than clay.

Atmaivedam jagatsarvam When one looks at the world and when one thinks of the Self, at the surface level there appears to be a duality between the two. The Self and the universe appear as two different spectrums, one being living and the other the objective world, being inert. As long as one percieves the Self and the world at the level of names and forms there will be a relative duality. It is true that there is a multiple variety of beings at the level of names and forms.

Each form is unique in its own way, in its appearance, in its attributes, its utility etc. A man is different from a woman, an animal is different from a bird, a tree is different from a flower. Not only this we see a variety of differences in the same community itself. One flower is different and unique from the other. So, undoubtedly the world of names and

forms is magnanimous in its multiplicity. But, this is where our Vedic Scriptures and the Rishis of yore have had an insight into the reality of the multiple names and forms.

Everything in the world, all the people, all the objects, nature , everything that we can concieve is beautiful, different and unique but in and through all this multiplicity lies a divine substratum of unity that is all pervading, one without a second and that alone being the very nature of Myself. I am the life principle that is ever-existent at all times, all pervading and blissful in nature. This nature of the Self is the nature of everything living or non-living. Therfore I alone express as the whole cosmos and I alone pervade everything. In this sloka the Acharya thus says Atma eva idam jagat sarvam-the entire universe is nothing but the Atman.

Vedanta Sandesh

identifies with that which appears to be seen on the outside. Mud is the permanent reality and Pots are impermanent. On destruction, they again merge into the mud.

Likewise, all names and forms in the universe are impermanent and changing. They all come from the same Atma which is all pervading and eternal. All names and forms dissolve into the same Atma.

I alone manifest as this vivid picture of the cosmos.

Atmanah anyat na vidyate: The Revered teacher further goes on to say there is nothing at all other than the Atman or the Divine Self. If at all we see and experience the world of matter it is like waves and bubbles playing as an expression of the water’s ecstasy. All sorts of play, of high and low tides, of small and big waves, of bubbles big and small, all this is an expression of the blissful nature of water, which revels in its ecstasy and effortlessly and playfully manifests in all these forms and yet its wholeness, its blissfulness is unaffected by anything at all. Everything comes and goes, the life of a wave is of a few moments but the reality of water remains as it is. Water alone is. A person standing at the shores can identify himself with the play of the water as high and low tides, big and small waves and feel elated or disheartened or a person may identify with water itself which appears to take the form of waves. This is the freedom of a person. Likewise nothing other than the Atman exists as real in this entire creation. Atman alone is. It is the ignorant ones who identify with the manifested names and forms as real and keep searching for bliss in the world of objects and keep swinging to & fro from joy.

Swaatmanam sarvam eekshate Two different kinds of people view the world in two different ways. People of knowledge and people with ignorance. The ignorant one’s see the world at the level of manifestation alone. Different names and forms, human beings, animals-birds, plants, the stars, the five different elements, all this realm of plurality constitutes the world for them and this alone is Real for the ignorant ones. Here the acharya speaks of the unique vision of People of wisdom. A person who has directly seen the Reality of the world and the Self sees the unity between the Self and all the plurality of names and forms. The Atman is the substratum of all existence and it is one without a second.

The Atman is the ‘I’ the very nature of myself. I alone pervade all existence, everything is born of me, is sustained in me and is dissolved in myself too. In other words the Atman being the common substratum of all living and nonliving existence it alone pervades everything and the Atman alone manifests as this beautiful variety of the world. This vision is the very goal of Vedantic knowledge. A non-fragmented vision towards one and all. Bhagwan Sri Krishna explains this same import in Gita chapter 6 while explaining about a yogi: Aatmaupamyena sarvatra samam pashyati yorjuna sukham vaa yadi vaa duhkham sa yogi paramo mataha.

“Who so, by comparison with himself, sees the same everywhere, O Arjuna, be it pleasure or pain, he is deemed the highest Yogin.”

Mrido yadvat ghataadini The Acharya explains the truth of onness of everything in the universe with the example of clay and the various forms of clay. The different shapes of Pots, big and small, pots, flower vases, toys, utensils, which the potter makes are all made out of the same mud. The Potter sees the same mud in all the pots with different names and forms. While people with superficial vision see the pots with different names and forms but fail to see that all of them are made of the same mud only. So also a yogi of perfect kowledge sees one substratum the Atman as the soul of all different names and forms but an ignorant mind

Ejqbxbmj!Hsffujoht Best wishes to all for an enlightening and joyful Dipawali.

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The Three Ants(The Madman by Khalil Gibran)

Three ants met on the nose of a man who was lying asleep in the sun.

And after they had saluted one another, each according to the custom of his tribe, they stood there conversing.

The first and said, “These hills and plains are the most barren I have known. I have searched all day for a grain of some sort, and there is none to be found.”

Said the second ant, “I too have found nothing, though I have visited every nook and glade. This is, I believe, what my people call the soft, moving land where nothing grows.”

Then the third ant raised his head and said, “My friends, we are standing now on the nose of the Supreme Ant, the mighty and infinate Ant, whose body is so great that we cannot see it, whose shadow is so vast that we cannot trace it, whose voice is so loud that we cannot hear it; and He is omnipresent.”

When the third ant spoke thus the other ants looked at each other and laughed.

At that moment the man moved and in his sleep raised his hand and scratched his nose, and the three ants were crushed.

Vedanta Sandesh

Clubbing Gyana & Karma Letter of the Month

‘The

root

cause of all fears, insecurity etc. for all humans all over the world, is basically something

very

deep. It concerns the ignorance of the truth of ourselves and the world.’

- Poojya Guruji

Hari om A..., Thanks for your kind mail. I was happy to go through it.

VM is not only my Mission, but it is equally the mission which inspires all of us, and that is what binds us together and makes the team. I have been trying my best to reveal the profound and liberating teachings of Vedanta to all of you for last two decades. It is great that the Mumbai Chapter of Vedanta Mission is celebrating the 20th anniversary with great enthusiasm & gratitude. Lets focus very nicely on pure Vedantic teaching without ever compromising or even diluting it. May that alone be our common prayer.

If you go deeply into the teachings of Vedanta, then it is very clearly stated that ‘SelfKnowledge’ requires complete & unfragmented attention, and that also with profound humility and without ego. Social work is undertaken by the ego, the individuality, which is technically called as a ‘fragmented state of mind’ wherein the Seer and the Seen (Dryshta & Dryshya) and taken as basically different from each other, then alone Karma is possible. A student of Vedanta is one who wants to know the one unfragmented truth, thus the unanimously accepted principle of Vedanta is to first keep aside all ego and also the burden of doing any Karma whatsoever, at least temporarily, and give complete attention to Atma-Gyana, otherwise we will tend to continue our studies without ever getting anywhere. The proposition wherein we think that Atma-Gyana can coexist with Good-Karma’s is technically called ‘Samuchaya Vada’ and is very strongly rejected by all our Vedantic scriptures and subsequent Acharyas. Even in the recently concluded Ram Gita Camp, Bhagwan Sri Ram tells Laksman very clearly that if you really want to go beyond ego then keep aside ‘all’ karma and give complete attention to Atma-Gyana. Now this is what Vedanta is all about, and here we have my disciples trying to club these two incompatible things together just to garner some funds. We respect social service, but only when done with complete heart & soul and also without ego. Ego is the cause of all ills in the world today, so one has to first remove this thorn and then alone think of doing anything for others, till that time the person is basically diseased. In fact all such problems of the society are because of such egoistic & fragmented people. To efface the ego, which is basically our erroneous identity, we require Atma-Gyana, and for Atma-Gyana, we ‘should’ have the wisdom of keeping our ego & karma aside - till we really know ourself. Thereafter such an enlightened man will be ready for anything whatsoever without any problem.

Blessings & Best Wishes, Lots of love & om, Guruji

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Death is inevitable to all that is born

Jaatasya hi dhruvo mrityuhu

Swamini Samatananda

The truth about the Self revealed in the Vedas is that the Self is eternal, unfleeting, blissful and the very life principle. The Vedas are the authentic source of the truth of life and hence the authority of the Vedas is unquestionable. They reveal that which has been directly seen by great Rishis of the Vedic age and thereafter too a number of Mahatmas have directly seen this truth and realized the Self as the divine supreme being. These Men of wisdom have then compassionately passed on the knowledge to mankind since time immemorial. Yet it is the glory of the wrong understanding of the Self that in spite of the scriptures revealing this truth and the realized ones making countless efforts to show us this truth, man continues to identify with that Self which is an imaginary entity based on the physical expression of the body, mind and intellect.

As a fruit of such wrong convictions of the Self Man continues to suffer in the name of death, rebirth, decay and diseases.

As all of us Arjuna too identifies with the body and sees the Self as the one who is born and the one who is going to die. As a consequence he is shattered with the very thought of the death of so many warriors and that too his own kinsmen. In such a situation in the second chapter of the Gita Bhagwan Sri Krishna logically explains to Arjuna and says, “Ok Arjuna! If you think the Self dies and the Self is born let us for a while accept this, that I am born and I will die. Even in that case there is no reason to grieve, because birth and death are then the facts of life. Everything that is born will die one day, and all that dies is reborn again. So there is no reason to grieve. Majority of people who are prey to ignorance and misapprehension about the Self continue to suffer the pains and fear of the Self dying. Let us explore this fact as Lord Krishna explain it logically in the Gita.

The Real Self is eternal and beyond time: The true nature of the Self is eternal, that which is pure existence. The Self is beyond the realms of time. It transcends that which we experience as the past, present and future. Time is a product of the mind, which has an existence to bring about a convinience of living at the level of the body and the mind. The phyical body and the mind traverse their journey into time. We celebrate the birthday of the physical body and so also remember the death of the physical body. The Atman is the substratum that was present even before the birth of the body, it sustains the body in the present and will be there after the death of the body. The Self is never born nor does it ever die.

The body goes through a graph of six inevitable changes: Right from conception to death a living being goes through six inevitable changes-coming into the mother’s womb, taking birth in the world outside, slowly grows up, matures, decays and dies. These are inevitable and all living beings must go through this. This is a fact of life at the level of the body. Life for everyone one

VedantaSandesh Sandesh- Mar - April 2009 Vedanta 2012

Vedanta Sandesh

expresses in this wave like pattern., wherein every pattern has its own grace. If a new born baby is beautiful, divine and pure, youth is full of energy then old age too reflects a wealth of experience, knowledge and grace of maturity. Even the mind and the intellect continuously change. A person who identifies with the body and sees it as real must see this fact of life and in that case too there is no reason to grieve because life and death are inevitable for all those who are limited in the realm of time.

A man of complete and direct knowledge too lives in the same world as any common man. But it is his state of mind that makes his conduct and interaction with the outside world unique and divine - Gita Chap 2

Lessons from life and death: If at all birth and death are true for the ignorant ones then too life and death teach us some significant lessons. When we are blessed with life let us live it with a holistic vision of being a part of a huge cosmic family whose head is God himself. Let us live life to the fullest, serving the Self and the others with love, sensitivity, creativity, enthusiasm and intelligence. If the cycle of life and death exists for us then surely it must function on the basis of our actions, meritorious or unmeritorious. If life, death and then life agian have to cntinue then let us perform actions that will make my journey ahead a blessing and here too may my life be a blessing for one and all.

Death too is a blessing as it provides a new lease to life. A new attire of life with renewed energy and opportunities to grow. Life and death both open the doors for each other.

Life and death are the very nature of anything that manifests within the realms of time. If this is the truth of the physical body then it is only wise to accept this fact and relate with the body and mind accordingly. it is only foolish to have false expectations that may the body live for ever. It is only when we do not accept this fact of life that we are in for shocks and pain. Death is not a hit by God on my self and my people alone, but this is the truth of all manifested beings. Accepting this truth alone frees one of un necessary grief and pain.

Transcending from the bondages of life & death is liberation: Ultimately being able to see that reality of the Self which is beyond the limitations of time and space, beyond the realms of birth and death is the goal of human life.

Birth & death by themselves do not give pain, but the wrong identification with the body as the Self brings about the pain of attachment towards the body and the pain of having to leave it. It brings about a sense of limitation and contant seeking. Seeing the truth of the Self as timeless, self effulgent and blissful liberates a person of all sense of limitation and seeking. Manifestation of life and then death is as imaginary as seeing a dream. Liberation is to wake up from the imaginary dream world and see the true nature of the Self.

Life and death infact are a great blessing to raise some significant questions about the reality of the Self and of this world.

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Quotes “You've gotta dance like there's nobody watching, Love like you'll never be hurt, Sing like there's nobody listening, And live like it's heaven on earth.” -William W. Purkey “Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” -Oscar Wilde “If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything.” -Mark Twain “I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” -Maya Angelou “To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.”

-Oscar Wilde “If you judge people, you have no time to love them.” -Mother Teresa “It takes much bravery to stand up to our enemies but we need as much bravery to stand up to our friends.” -J.K. Rowling.

“Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.”

-Confucius When the mind is weak, a situation becomes a problem, when the the mind is balanced it becomes a challenge and an opportunity.

Vedanta Sandesh

Wandering in Himalayas Vision of a Jivanmukta

5 Excerpts from the Travel Memoirs of Param Poojya Swami Tapovanji Maharaj

The Vedas say: When a mortal’s desires are destroyed root and branch, he becomes immortal. Even in the earthly body he becomes one with Brahman.

But the conquest of esires is not easy. Only the devotees of Jnana can overcome desire. A man may fast and leave aside his food untouched, but his mind will still revert to the thought of food. By force of will, he may keep away from worldly enjoyments, but his mind will still remain attached to such pleasures. Infact, until a man fully realizes the Self, his mind cannot be completely free from desire. He who seeks to conquer desire, except through the realization of the Self is verily attempting the impossible. There is nothing as holy as knowledge. There is nothing so great, so divine.

In 1920, I passed some time in Rishikesh as a Brahmachari. In those days, I met and talked to many Mahatmas deeply learned in the Vedas-men who had detached themselves completely from the world, who had conquered desire and realized the Self. Many of them were very old, and now I find them no longer here.

Their chief abode in those days was a small, thickly wooded island called Jhati, sorrounded on all sides by the sacred Ganga. Now even that island is almost gone, owing to the fluctuations in the course of the river. In this way, and in several other ways the number of the holy men, who once inhabited Rishikesh has dwindled and is still dwindling, but there was a time when their number was considerable.

Just one look at them could lift up a man’s soul, far more than the reading of several holy texts and numberless commentaries. To cite one instance, there was the mahatma who oblivious of all sense of danger, went on repeating “Shivoham, Shivoham” (“I am the blissful self”), as he was being carried away by a ferocious tiger. If listening to his story can invoke courage in the heart of the hearers and raise them to high levels of thought, how much more effective should have been the sight of that holy person!

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Overview of Yoga Vasistha

1 Summary of the eternal teachings of Guru Vasistha to Sri Ram

Yoga Vasistha is a highly reverential scripture of Advaita Vedanta, but surprisingly not very commonly known. It comprises the entire teachings of Guru Vashistha to his disciple Sri Ram. Bhagwan Sri Ram is highly revered in Hinduism, all the devotees sing his glories, there are hundreds and thousands of his temple all over the country & the world. Devotees emulate his life, are inspired by his steadfastness in dharma, and keep him in their hearts by his fame of being maryada-purushotama. He was an embodiment of ananda, intelligence, profound strength and above all dharma.

Every disciple is a creation of what his teachers taught him, so those who really want to know what made Sri Ramji what he was - then one should go into this profound scripture called 'Yoga-Vasistha'. It reveals the vision which was always there in the heart of Sri Ram, as revealed so lovingly and painstakingly to him by his Guru. It has been written by the author of Ramayana itself - Sage Valmiki. It contains 32,000 shlokas and after Mahabharata is the next longest text. It includes numerous short stories and anecdotes which are used to help illustrate its message of 'Brahma Satyah Jagat Mithya' and 'Ayam Atma Brahma'. It is a complete compendium of the various principles of Vedanta philosophy pertaining to self-realization, creation theory, the role & place of karma and other sadhanas etc. It is a scripture for Moksha. Other names of this text are Maha-Ramayana, Purva-Ramayana, Arsha Ramayana, Vasistha Ramayana, Yogavasistha-Ramayana and Jnanavasistha.

The knowledge of the truth of life is given only to those who have become free of the fascination and attachment to the world around. Detached people alone can objectively analyse everything without bringing in their likes & dislikes. Those whose minds are contaminated with likes & dislikes can never enquire properly and therefore can never see the truth, because they are already conditioned by the notion as to what is that which really matters. Just as a cup which is already full, cannot be further filled up, so also all such conditioned people can never know the truth of life and themselves. Detachment is the gateway to objective enquiry, and as luck would have it, once, Ram after coming back from a long pilgrimage was very disillusioned and disturbed on seeing the pains, problems and sufferings of people all over. He detached himself from all the pleasures an comforts of his palace and was very quiet, thinking & deliberating about what is life all about and why is the sufferings there in life. He wanted deep factual answers of the truth of man and his mind. His parents were very disturbed seeing such a state of their son, and after doing everything in their hands failed to cheer him up, they finally approachd their Gurudev Rishi Vasistha and shared the problem. The great teacher understood the real problem and saw his Vedanta Sandesh

Introduction to Yoga Vasistha

deep and sincere inquisitiveness, and asked his parents not to worry. He was rather happy because all this showed that the young man was ready for going deep into the truths of life. He assured them that he will handle the problem. Ram was sent to the ashram of Vasistha and it was there this upadesha was given to him, and out of this teaching was metamorphosed the real Ram. Yoga Vasistha is divided into six parts: dis-passion, qualifications of the seeker, creation, existence, dissolution and liberation. In the process of its teachings it reveals that there are seven Bhoomikas in anyone’s spiritual process. They are: 1. Subheccha (longing for the Truth) 2. Vichara (right inquiry) 3. Tanumanasa (attenuation – or thinning out – of mental activities) 4. Sattvapatti (attainment of sattva, "reality") 5. Anasakti (unaffected by anything) 6. Pararthabhavani (sees Brahman everywhere) 7. Turiya (perpetual samadhi) There are some old sanskrit commentaries available on Yoga Vasistha: - Vasistha Ramayana-Candrika by Advayaranya - Tatparya Prakasa by Ananda Bodhendra Sarasvati - Bhasya by Gangadharendra - Pada Candrika by Madhava Sarasvati Yoga Vasistha was translated into English by Swami Venkatesananda, Swami Jyotirmayananda, Vidvan Bulusu Venkateswaraulu and Vihari Lal Mitra, while there are lots of translation in Hindi and other Indian languages.

Some Quotes from Yoga Vasistha: - "The great remedy for the long-lasting disease of samsara is the enquiry, 'Who am I? To whom does this samsara belong? " - "Nothing whatsoever is born or dies anywhere at any time. It is Brahman alone, appearing in the form of the world."

- "O Rama, there is no intellect, no consciousness, no mind and no individual soul (jiva). They are all imagined in Brahman."

- "That consciousness which is the witness of the rise and fall of all beings – know that to be the immortal state of supreme bliss."

- "Knowledge of truth, Lord, is the fire that burns up all hopes and desires as if they are dried blades of grass. That is what is known by the word samadhi – not simply remaining silent."

- "The moon is one, but on agitated water it produces many reflections. Similarly, ultimate reality is one, yet it appears to be many in a mind agitated by thoughts."

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Seven Steps to Holistic Living

Goal Of Life Life has infinite possibilities. Explore it fully. Make the best of your life, by aiming to live it fully, both in the objective field and also in the subjective realm. Do not miss out on any of the opportunities available to you. Aim for all the four goals of life-Dharma, Artha, Kama & Moksha.

Vedanta Sandesh

Markandeya Story Section on p u e Onc me ... a ti

Mrikandu was a great rishi. Marudvati was his wife. For a long time they had no children.

The rishi prayed to lord Siva. Lord Siva appeared to him, and said, "I am pleased with you, Mrikandu. Tell me, do you want a hundred sons, who will live for a long time, but will all be foolish? Or, do you want one very intelligent son, who will live for only sixteen years?"

The rishi at once said, "Lord, give me that one intelligent son."

Lord Siva said, "Good! You shall have him."

Soon the rishi got a son. He named him Markandeya. The boy grew to be very intelligent and handsome. The rishi invested him with the sacred thread. Markandeya learnt the Vedas and Sastras, easily. Everyone liked him.

As the boy was getting on to be sixteen, Rishi Mrikandu became sadder and sadder. One day Markandeya asked his father: "Father, why do you look so sad?" The rishi said, "Son! What shall I say? When Lord Siva gave you to me, he said you would live only sixteen years. You are now about to reach that age. How can Iand your mother bear to lose you as we will at the end of this year?" Markandeya said, "Father! Is that the reason? Lord Siva is very kind to His devo- tees. You yourself told me that. He has saved many from death before. I have read about it in the Puranas. I shall therefore worship Lord Siva day and night from today. I am sure, He will save -me too! " Rishi Mrikandu was very happy to hear his son say this. He blessed his son.

Markandeya built a Siva-Linga at a spot on the sea-shore. He started worshipping Lord Siva morning, noon and night. He sang bhajans, and often danced in joy.

On the last day, Markandeya was about to sing bhajans, when Yama, the Lord of Death, came to him. Yama rode on a buffalo. He held a noose in his hand. He spoke to Markandeya, "Stop your bhajan! You boy! Your life in this world is over. Be ready to die."

Markandeya was not afraid. He clung to the Siva-Linga as one clings to one's mother.

Yama threw his noose round the boy's neck, and pulled him along with the Siva- Linga.

Then the Siva-Linga burst open and Lord Siva came out of it and said, "Yama, Please spare this child. I am pleased with his devotion. He is now blessed with a long life.

Markandeya then prayed to Lord Siva more fervently than ever. He came home, and fell at the feet of his parents. They embraced him, and wept with joy. Markandeya became a great rishi, and lived very long.

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Wfeboub!Njttjpo ' Wfeboub!Btisbn Ofxt

Vedanta Sandesh

Hjub!Hzbob!Zbhob-!Mvdlopx; A week-long Gita Gyana Yagna by Poojya Swamini Amitanandaji was conducted at Hari om Mandir, Lucknow from 7th to 13th Oct 2012. The subject-matters of the morning and evening Discourse series were Gita Chapter 15, and Panchadasi Chapter 10 (Natakdeep Prakarana).

In her 15th chapter discourses Poojya Swaminiji revealed how Bhagwan Sri Krishna reveals the cause and effect of Samsara tree. She said that the root of this tree with all its diversity, joys & pains is basically divine, and it is just its ignorance which brings all the projections and all subsequent seekings. So one needs to awake to the Purushottam Tattva and make the best of their lives. In Panchadasi the Witness consciousness was explored till it culminates into one, non-dual divinity. On the last day was a Bhandara, very lovingly offered by the Mandir authorities.

Tbozbt!Ebz!Dfmfcsbujpot!pg!Qppkzb!Hvsvkj; Poojya Guruji Sri Swami Atmananda Saraswatiji was given Sanyas by Param Poojya Gurudev Brahmaleen Swami Chinmayanandaji on 10th Oct 1988 at his Sandeepany Himalaya Ashram at Sidhbari. Since then this day is very piously celebrated by his disciples & devotees with gratitude & blessedness.

A special program was organized at Vedanta Ashram to celebrate this occasion with a get together of devotees & disciples. There was a special ‘Flute Recital Program’ presented by the well-known Flute artist of Indore, Sh Salil Date and his son. Salil presented more than a dozen immortal bhajans & songs on his flute. This was followed by a Bhandara - free langar prasad for all.

28ui!Wfeboub!Btisbn!Ebz!Dfmfcsbujpot; Vedanta Ashram was established on the pious occasion of Dasshera in 1995, and since then Dasshera has an added significance for us here at Ashram. We have a tradition of having Shiv Puja on that day by children, as such a very nice puja was organized and conducted by Balvihar children in the morning, and in the evening there was a Bhajan Program followed by Ravana-Dahan Progrm. This was the first time we had such a program.

The effigy of Ravana was made in-house and it was all great fun & frolic.

Pomjof!Tbutboh!Qsphsbn; The weekly Online Satsang Program which started last month is going on in full swing. Poojya Guruji is giving elaborate talks on Sadhana Panchakam of Bhagwan Sri Adi Sankaracharya. First there is an hour long discourse - in Hindi, and this is followed by live question & answers. Due to net connectivity issues there have been some changes yet the program continues unhindered. A new rich online resource is being created in this process, which is being appreciated by many people all over the world.

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Vedanta Sandesh

Check out the detailed Photo Albums of the various functions on VM News Blog at : http://vmissionews.blogspot.com/

Oct 2012

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20 Years of Vedanta Mission Vedanta Mission started in Mumbai in 1992 with a grand Gita Gyana Yagna at Patwardhan Park. The organizer was an old devotee of Poojya Guruji Sh Mangaram Wadhwani, who has since expired.

Thereafter there were series of GGY at Arya Vidya Mandir, and it was at that time the foundation of VM, Mumbai was laid.

Its been a long journey since and many Gita Gyana Yagnas, Sadhana Camps, Seminars, Workshops, Study Groups, Cultural Programs etc have been organized since then. A Charitable Trust was formed - Indian Cultural Foundation. A core group of devotees have been managing the activities with great devotion & enthusiasm.

VM Mumbai has decided to ceelebrate the occaion with all enthusiasm it deserves. In Dec 2012 special celebrations are being organized, which include: 1. Organizing a grand cultural event ‘Sufiyana’ at Maniksabha Gruh 2. Organizing a grand Gita Gyana Yagna at Vivekananda Auditorium at Ramkrishna Mission Ashram Complex.

3. Releasing of a Souvenir Special fund drives are being organized, special brochures are being published and effforts are being made to involve as many people as possible. For more information pl contact: Indian Cultural Foundation c/o Elite Builders, 12th Road Khar (W), Mumbai Email: indcul.foundation@gmail.com / Mb: 9820027141

Vedanta Sandesh

Forthcoming Gita Gyana Yagna, Lucknow: A week-long Gita Gyana Yagna by Poojya Swamini Samatanandaji will be conducted at Hanuman Setu Mandir, Lucknow from 17th to 23rd Nov 2012. Poojya Swaminiji will conduct discourses on Kathopanihad - Ch-1-valli 1, and Gita Chapter-1 in the morning & evening.

Gita Gyana Yagna, Bhavnagar: A week-long Gita Gyana Yagna by Poojya Swamini Amitanandaji will be conducted at Sri Ramdas Ashram at Bhavnagar from 23rd Nov to 1st Dec 2012. The texts of discourses will be Gita Ch-15 and Natakdeep Prakarana of Panchadasi.

‘Sufiyana’ Cultural Program, Mumbai: On 9th Dec a big Cultural Event will be orgnaized at Manik Sabhagruh Hall, Bandra by the Indian Cultural Foundation, Mumbai, the parent Trust of Vedanta Mission, Mumbai. Folk singers like Mir Mukhtair Ali and Parvathy Baul etc have already given their consent to participate.

Gita Gyana Yagna, Mumbai: A week-long Gita Gyana Yagna by Poojya Guruji Swami Atmanandaji will be conducted at Ramkrishna Mission Hall, Khar, Mumbai from 10th to 16th Dec 2012. This will be just after the Sufiyana Program at Maniksabha Gruh on the 9th.

Gita Jayanti Celebrations, Indore: This year Mokshada Ekadashi i.e. Gita Jayanti is on 23rd Dec. Special mega functions are organized at Indore from 20th Dec onwards on the occasion. Poojya Guruji and other Ashram Mahatmas are special speakers on the occasion at Agrasen Dham and Gita Bhavan.

Gita Gyana Yagna, Ahmedabad: A week-long Gita Gyana Yagna by Poojya Swamini Amitanandaji will be conducted at Ramkrishna Kendra, Ahmedabad from 23rd to 29th Dec 2012. Poojya Swaminiji will conduct discourses on Gita Chapter-15 and Panchadasi Chapter-10 in the evening and morning sessions respectively.

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Visit International Vedanta Mission at http://www.vmission.org.in/

Vedanta Mission News Blog: http://vmissionews.blogspot.com/

Om Tat Sat