MEANING OF PURNAM ADAH-----

                                                     ॐ पूर्णमदः पूर्णमिदं पूर्णात्पुर्णमुदच्यते

पूर्णश्य पूर्णमादाय पूर्णमेवावशिष्यते ॥
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥

Om Puurnnam-Adah Puurnnam-Idam Puurnnaat-Purnnam-Udacyate
Puurnnashya Puurnnam-Aadaaya Puurnnam-Eva-Avashissyate ||
Om Shaantih Shaantih Shaantih ||

        This is the SHANTI MANTRA from ISHA UPANISHAD . The Mantra is interesting and many of us - Hindus know this and do chant it . The meaning is great and makes us understand the philosophy of the Vaidic Religion. For the people who are not familiar with such philosophy this becomes problem . The meaning is

 THAT IS COMPLETE -INFINATE  AND THIS IS IS COMPLETE - ,WHEN ONE ADDS THIS COMPLETE TO THAT COMPLETE IT IS COMPLETE  AND WHEN ONE TAKES OUT THIS COMPLETE FROM THACOMPLETE IT REMAINS COMPLETE .

       So one in a mathematical mind may be confused . If one takes out something from something how can it remain same - or complete  and when one adds something  how can it remain same? The answer is in the thought process The answer lies in the concept of the origin of PHYSICAL Universe. The Physical Universe arose or started from the BRHAMAN- which is complete and infinite . IT does not have the limitations of DESH - KAL - VASTU -Location-Time- IDENTITY . If I am sitting in this chair then I am not somewhere else. This is limitation of SESH or Location. I will change in my appearance with time - get older This is limitation of Time  and lastly I am ME  and not someone else ,This is limitation by IDENTITY .The Brahman does not have these limitations and so when the physical universe started or originated from the BRAHMAN , that COMPLETE -THE BRAHMAN WAS NOTV REDUCED . So this universe looks vast and infinite  and started from THAT Brahman which is vast  and Infinite . But when the Universe started the BRAHMAN remained complete or Infinite . When the universe is dissolved at the time of PRALAY the BRAHMAN still remains same - complete or infinite .This is the meaning that I understand . 

MEANING OF MORNING SHLOKA - PRAYER

                                                            कराग्रे वसते लक्ष्मी

                                                            करमध्ये सरस्वती 

                                                          करमूलेचु गोविन्दम् 

                                                          प्रभाते कर दर्शनम् |

    This is a morning shloka that we were taught to say in the morning. We were never taught the real meaning of this prayer . The simple meaning is that 

The Goddess Lakshmi is at the tip of fingers and Goddess Sarasvati is in the middle of hand  and the Govinda - Lord Krishna is at the base of this  and so look at the hand in the morning .

  This is the word by word meaning  and that really does not make lot of sense. So I thought of explaining the meaning of this Shloka. Again this is my explanation and I hope you will like it. The first part of this Shloka is THE GODDESS LAKSHI IS AT THE TIP OF THE GINGERS. The Goddess Lakshmi is the Goddess of money or wealth. We pray her for having more wealth . If you have seen the picture of Lakshmi she has gold coins dropping from her hands . So it is stated that she is at the tip of the finger . What does this exactly means ? We have fingers  and they move like no other animal's fingers can move. We have thumb and that has a movement called Opposition - it can be moved in such a way that thumb can be touching any finger. This is not possible for Dog or Cat or any other animal except may be little bit in chimpanzee.  If we could not do this movement of the thumb, then we could not hold a pen or a knife or a paint brush or any tools for surgery or any skillful work . So when we USE it - pen weapon- scalpel etc then we can do out duty or the job , which earns us money or livelihood. So the tip of fingers are the one that earn us the money. So that is Goddess Lakshmi  and she is at the tip of fingers.

    The next one is that the Goddess Sarasvati is in the middle of the hand . Again it does not make sense . But if we look at our hand we see cord or tendons, which actually control the movement of the fingers . So if we are doing a painting or a surgery the finer movements are controlled by theses tendons. So the how to and how far  and how precisely move the fingers is due to the tendons  and that Knowledge is nothing but due to Goddess Sarasvati who is in charge of knowledge. So the Sarasvati is in the middle of the hand .

   Now the next line . The Lord Krishna or Govinda is at the root of this or is the base of this. I am sure now it is clear to you that the entire process is possible ONLY DUE TO THE GOD or Lord Krishna . The meaning of MOOL is the root  and so we can see that we could not do anything if the physical body did not have God or reflection of the God Dead person can not do any movements of the fingers . So we need God or Brahman or Consciousness. 

   AND so we should look at it and contemplate on that Lord -God when we wake up in the morning - look at the hand . 

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.

SEETA THE SHAKTI

     Most of us know SEETA  as Lord Rama's wife  and se had somewhat secondary role  and we may not know the origin of Seeta. We knew that Seeta was King Janak's daughter and Lord Ram went to King Jana and in the Swayamvar he picked up the SHIV DHANUSHYA  and that is how he got married to her. We also know that King Janak  received her from a farmer. The farmer was working in farm and he found a box and the box contained a small girl and so he took her to King Jnak and he adopted her and when she greo up and baceme of age for the marriage the King announced the Swayamvar and invited many kings . The contest was to put an arrow on the Shiv  Dhanushya.- the Bow received from Lord Shiv. Seeta was playing with this Bow and when the many Kings tried to pick it up, no one could even lift it  and not even Ravan..And then Lord Ram came and easily picked it up and when he was putting the arrow the Dow broke and then the Parshuram came in. He was extremely angry. But that is  a another story.

    I wanted to to tell the origin of Seeta. There was a king named Padmaksha  and he worshiped Lakshmi  and then she appeared he asked her to be born as his daughter . Lakshmi told him that he has to ask to Lord Vishnu. So he did that and Lord Vishnu agrees  and he had a daughter called Padmavati. Ravan came to know about Padmavati and decided to attack King Padmaksha.So, Padmavati jumped in a fire and committed suicide . Ravan found 5 diamond in the ashes. He put them in a box and kept in in his house near Devhara, His wife Mandidari could not even move it, she opened it and found a very small girl in it. She told Ravan to get rid of it and warned him that if he does not do so that girl will destroy entire Rakshsa society.. With great effort he took it in a plane and berried it in a farm in city called Mithila. And then in future a farmer found it when he was preparing the land for sowing and he took it to the King Janak. She was the Goddess of Power The Ravan could not move the small box that she was in and then the Bow that many kings who could not even pick up she was playing with as a small child.

IMPORTANCE OF NAMA-KIRATANAM

   One of the things that we are asked to do when we worship God, is to do JAPA or repeating the name of Lord or chant BIJAMANTRA of out favorite God- ISTADEVATA . So Ishta-devata is the God that we develop some personal relationship.and we feel that it responds to our devotion.Ishta devata is SAGUN GOD, the God with form. The God is with no form but we for our own understanding  have a form. We have difficulty with formalness God for worshiping. Even the Abrahamic religions have some for to worship -Cross or Mary or praying in some direction where Macca is located  and then KABA etc. So we tend to repeat the name or a specific Mantra so many times - 108 is standard number. This story is related to the importance of this repetition. 

     When Seeta was abducted by Rvana, he knew that Lord Rama will come to fight . He needed all the help that he could get. So he woke up Kumbhakarna - who was his brother and used to sleep all the time. 

     When Kumbhakarna woke up and Rvana told him as to what he had done , he was mad and cursed Ravana  and was not very happy. So he asked Ravan if after abducting Seeta,has he been successful in getting Seeta ? Ravana answered No . So then Kumbhakarna suggested Ravana to play trick and change himself in to look alike of Lord Rama. The Ravana answered, "For me to change myself in to a different looking person, I have to concentrate on that appearance and get it in my heart. So when I tried to concentrate on the Lord Rama , i feel like I don't want anything . I don't even care about BRAHMADYAN . When I look at my own wife Mandodari , she looks like my mother to me - so thinking about Seeta in any other way is impossible.'

     So this is the principle of chanting or Japa  and when we do that we develop a relationship with the Lord  and that helps us in day to day behavior.