LOOKING FOR LOVE IN TOO MANY PLACES

    I did write on Mahabharat and mysticism  and I would like to do it more . But for a change of pace I am writing one on moral  message.

     One of these day a Guru was asked by his disciple that Sir we have so many religions and we all go to different places like Hindu Temple , Muslim Mosque  and Christian Church. So where can I find REAL GOD ? The student expected the answer from this Hindu Guru that it will the Hindu Temple or the explanation of Hindu Gods . But the Guru told him that he will answer it sometimes later. Few days passed by and the the Guru had not answered the questions, Then one evening the student came to the hermitage  and saw his Guru looking for something under a street light. The sune had set and there was some darkness . The hermitage had electrical outage  and there was no light in the home. The student aske 'Sir what are you looking for?' The Guru looked up and answered . ' I lost a key and I am looking for it.' The student also started looking for it but asked ,"Sir where did you see it last?" The Guru answered 'I think I lost it when I was trying keep it on my desk in my study when we lost the power.' The student asked 'so you lost it in the house , so why are you looking for it here on the streets?' The Guru answered,''How can I look at the lost key in the house when there is no light, There is street light here  and so there is a light and I can see and so I am looking for ghe keys that I lost in my study. 'The student thought that the Guru has lost his marbles but then he saw the smile on the face of the Guru. Guru stated "You are looking for the God in Temple or Mosque or the Church when it is IN YOUR HEART. So tell me why do you do it?"

    The student got the answer to his own questions. 

MAHABAHARAT AND MYSTICISM -2

    As I stated in my last blog ,that I would like to write on Mysticism in Mahabharat, I wanted to make one thing clear that, it does not mean that Mahabharat actually happened or not . I do believe that it did  and there are planetary positions described in Mahabharat that can predict the exact time as to when it happened .One of them is star duel of  VASISHT AND ARUNDHATI which rotate around each other -so called binary stars. MIZAR is VASISTHA and ALCOR is ARUNDHATI .This is in URSA MAJOR. But what I want to talk about is the stories in Mahabharat that sometimes makes no common sense or common sense explanation. In my last blog I tried to explain the birth of DRNA  ns why his son ASHWATHMA IS IMMORTAL .In this one I want to tell about the Bishma and his death.

   As the story goes, There was a king called Shntanu  and he saw a beautiful girl on the banks of river Ganga - so called Ganges in English .He fell in love with her and wanted to marry her and she did agree with a condition that when she has children, they will be hers and he cannot   question her behavior with them . If he does that she will leave him - so called divorce ?He agreed  and they got married and she had a child and she carried it to the river Ganga  and drowned it . Shantanu could not question this as otherwise she would leave him. ( I am sure modern dat psychiatrist would call this postpartum depression) She was pregnant again and again delivered second child and dos same - drowned it. This continued for 7 children and then when the eighth was born -King Shantanu stopped her  and she told him that he broke his promise and so she will leave him and left him  and became on with the Ganga the river. The eighth child was BHISMA and was left to be not killed or drowned . 

   The King was not very happy and then one day he came across a fisherman's daughter ,named Satyawati  and fell in love with her .But she would not marry him as her son  could not become the King as Shnatanu had a son Bhishma. So Shantanu kept his desire  and love for Satyawati to himself . In due course if time Bishma came to know and approached Satyawati  and she told him her concerns . So he promised her that he would renounce the rights to the throne, Satyawati was not happy as she told him that he may ot but his son could be the next king. So Bisham took a oath that he will NEVER MARRY, so there is no question of having kids.( they did not consider out of wedlock kids!!)When Shantanu came to know of this oath he was sad and gave a boon to Bhishm that he will have ISCHHAMARAN- he will be in position to leave his body or dye on his terms- time. 

    Fast forward to  the war. When Bhishm was struck by arrows and fell down ,Arjuna built a bed of arrows for him to rest. At that time the time was such that the Sun was moving southward so called DAKSHINAYAN  -( This is the time when the Sun makes transition in the Zodiac sign of cancer or KARK .This happens on JULY 16TH-period between Summer solstice and Winter solstice) this is not a good period to dye . So Bhishm did not want to leave the body and  he wanted till the Sun started it's movement towards NORTHWARD or UTTARAYAN. 

   So there are many mystical things in this story . One is How can Ganaga the holy river would drown her 7 kids. How can with boon Bishma can have power to have control over time of death. And the one that I will address today is HOW COULD TIME OF DEATH  WOULD DECIDE WHAT HAPPENS AFTER DEATH AND NOT WHAT YOU DID YOUR ENTIRE LIFE. How can movement of the Sun make a difference. The answer is complicated.

   The King Shantanu represents PARABHRAHM or the God the Father. The Ganga represents CHITANYA or Maha Prakruti or Holy Ghost. But her bahavior will be explained in my next blog But for now The Bhishma . He had ISCHHA MARAN . The Bhshma represents UNVERSAL EGO or AHANKAR. As one can imagine  only You can kill your own Ego. If I have ego Only I can get rid or it. So in that sense the Ego is under self control and Ego is attachment to the physical and astral or subtle body . So one has to give up that attachment  and that is the DEATH in real sense. When ordinary people dye, only thing happens is death of physical body  and the ego with astral or subtle  and causal body etc are still there.

   The movement of the Sun as southward and northward is in the sky  and that is astrological phenomena. I don't think that the movement of SUN in sky will determine what kind of life after death or my next life I will get. So when they talk about the TRAVEL of soul after death in different paths they are talking about our attention to the physical body and the so called light and darkness as determined by our attachments to different parts .As  mentioned in past we have several Chakras  and lower level ones are PROCREATION. EXCRETION AND HUNGER etc. The detachment with these happens gradually and then we have some higher ones like Heart . The sexual attractions is lower level and love with heart is at higher level . So Northward movement or movement towards spiritual Eye is better . So if at the time of death we are attached to the lower  level functions of physical body , then that is DAKSHINAYAN  and we will have harder tome .But if we have love for God or some spiritual achievements then that is UTTARAYAN northward - upper part of body -Chakra - then we will have better chance of different path and life . 

MAHABHARAT AND MYSTICISM

    I thought I will write about some if the characters in Mahabharat and mysticism. If one reads the Bhagwat Geeta chapter 1  and first few verses , he will notice that there appears to be not much of message in them - at least that is what most of the  writers who interpreted it. In the verses there is mention of many characters and one may not even know all of them. In one of them there is mention of DRNA or also known as DRONACHARY to convey that he was the teacher of the Kaurava  and Pandawas.  So I will write on DRONA. 

   Anybody who has read Mahabharat, is aware of Drona. He was the teacher appointed by Bhishma to teach the Kaurava  and Pandava princes. So he became Dronachary .He was son of Rhrushi Braradwaj.But his birth is a very mystic. Bharadwaj looked at Apasara GRRITACHI  and he had sperms dropped in a DRONA or a bowl made out of dry leaves. From those sperms a child was born  and that was called DRONA as he was born in DRONA .There was no sexual intercourse. He became expert in using many weapons and then he was seen by Bhishma  and became the teacher. His son was named ASHAWASTHAMA  and he is AMAR or has no death. He learned with his father  and he was friends with a another student named Drupada who was a prince of Panchal .Drupada had told Drona that when he becomes King, he will help Drona who happens to be poor. After many years Drupada became king  and Drona continued to be poor  and so he goes to King Drupada  and Drupada shuns him and does not help. So then in future Drona tells Arjuna to  capture Drupada and bring him in. Arjuna had a war and he defeats Drupada and then brings him to his teacher - Guru Drona. Drona takes away half of the kingdom which was norther part and gave him southern half. 

    Defeated Drupada goes back and does Yadnya and a son is born and he is called DRUSTHDHUMNYA ,who in the war kills Drona.In mystic way Drona represents SAUSKARA or impressions from past habits and these will never die as we continue to do more Karmas in every day of every life  and so the impressions of theses Karma continue to accumulate  and their effects are shaping our life and next life. When we are have not perfected our meditation and dispassion, we are affected by our Sauskaras  and  we are friends to them .When we are young we don't mind smoking drinking having parties  and many other habits that come from our past actions and their impression. But then as we grow older  and realize the responsibility of our life as married  and as family man/ woman- we give up theses habits. So theses impressions from previous actions or Karma come back and want us to do things that we did on past we shun them. and sometimes they come with vengeance. So DRONA represents impressions from previous Karmas  and Drupada represents mature devotee who has dispassion for material world. And so Drupada - dispassion of material world-shuns Drona which is memory of our past habits - action  and preachment to material pleasures. But then one of these days theses impression and attachment to material pleasures win over dispassion  and we lose the control over higher Chakras- so called North part of our BODILY KINGDOM . We continue to have some control over lower Chakras. This the war  and victory of DRONA over DRUPADA  and losing north half of kingdom . 

    The past life actions are mixed and will leave impressions that will lead us to do or have good and bad tendencies .so, Drona was guiding or teaching good - Pandawas and Bad - Kaurawas. The past life impressions are never completely gone or never die. So ,Drona's son ASHWATHAMA is immortal or never dies. With meditation and sense organ control one can have mastery over our tendencies but once in a while the impressions will come and beg yo to do bad things just like our younger life friends - go to a bar or indulge in drugs or smoking . Drona did same thing to Drupada. When we try to shun them they come with stronger force  and vengeance. And we lose the fight. But with years of practice we still retain control over lower CHAKRA - representing procreation and excretion but not the higher ones . So Drona 'gave back' southern half to Drupada  after he defeated him. 

    This is the explanation for Drona and Drupada  Hope you understand this part and enjoy it.