DOCSLIB.ORG

Babas Grace.Pdf

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Babas Grace.Pdf BÁBÁ’S GRACE Spiritual Discourses by Shrii Shrii Ánandamúrti Copyright © 2006 Ánanda Márga Publications Ánanda Márga Pracáraka Saḿgha (Central) All rights reserved www.anandamarga.org Contents Introduction 4 Short Sanskrit Pronunciation Guide 6 1 The Lord’s Play 7 2 The God of Human Beings 9 3 Mantra Caetanya 14 4 Vibration, Form and Colour 23 5 Rudra 42 6 Spiritual Practice and the Cosmic Science (Sádhaná and Madhuvidyá) 46 7 Parama Puruśa and His Creation 51 8 The True Devotee 61 9 The Intuitional Science of the Vedas – 3 62 10 Yajina̭ and Karmaphala 76 11 He is Everywhere 85 12 The Divine Will 88 13 You Live According to God’s Desire 90 14 Dagdhabiija 92 15 Parama Puruśa 95 16 Occult Powers or Parama Puruśa? 101 17 Brahma Krpáhi Kevalam 103 18 God is with You 106 19 Your Personal Relationship with God 107 20 Properly Utilize Yourself to Reach God 109 21 The Bliss of the Devotee 110 22 Knowledge and Progress 112 23 Safeguards Against the Defects of Jinána and Karma 117 24 Longing for the Great 121 25 Máyá and Mokśa 125 26 One and Zero 128 27 Bhaktitattva 129 28 Movement Towards Perfection is Dharma 139 29 Desire and Detachment 140 30 The Lord’s Feet 152 31 Stages of Samádhi 154 32 Self-Transcendence 158 33 Niiti and Dharma 160 34 The Sound of God 168 35 Astitva and Shivatva 170 36 The Call of the Supreme 176 37 I Am Yours 182 38 Surrender 183 Glossary 185 Introduction Shrii Shrii Ánandamúrti is the spiritual guide for millions of spiritual aspirants all over the world. He is called Bábá, which means “beloved”. From His early childhood, men and women of all ages have been drawn to Him by the power of His love. Living an ordinary life, as a child, as a schoolboy, as a railway officer in a small town in India, at the same time He taught many sincere seekers how to realize the Truth within themselves. Soon the number of His disciples was multiplying so rapidly that He began to train others to teach the practices of self-realization; and thus the organization Ánanda Márga, the Path of Bliss, was founded, and spread rapidly all over the world. Those who follow His teachings find their lives transformed; the confining walls of their egos dissolve and an all-embracing cosmic feeling begins to fill their hearts. They begin to look on all people as brothers and sisters, as the manifestations of the Supreme. They want to serve those manifestations. They cannot bear to see others in pain, and they want to share with all the bliss which they themselves enjoy. From Hong Kong to Buenos Aires to New York, many people are working tirelessly in the service of humanity, motivated by His indescribable love. In these discourses Baba speaks of the journey of the Soul. The journey begins with Abso- lute Consciousness, the pure essence, Parama Puruśa, God. Due to the force of the Cosmic Energy, Prakrti, that Supreme Essence is transformed into this vibrational, manifested world, into “crude” matter. And then the return journey home begins. The creation, drawn by that supreme attractive force of the Cosmic Nucleus – the power of love – gradually evolves again into subtler and subtler entities, with higher and higher expressions of con- sciousness: unicellular organisms, plants, animals, higher animals, and finally man, the most evolved manifestation of that Consciousness. At a certain point in his evolution, there awakens inside of man a desire to know himself, to know his purpose in life. When this desire awakens, he is ready to begin sádhaná, the “effort of completion,” the practices of meditation by which he will accelerate his evolu- tion and hasten his journey home to the pure Consciousness from which he came. When this desire awakens in him, his guide appears, the teacher who will lead him forward on the path of realization. Guru means “dispeller of darkness,” and the Master does exactly that; with His own divine powers, He clears the clouds from His beloved disciples’ minds. He helps them transcend all their negative tendencies so that their true nature – divine perfection – may shine forth from within. For the Guru is verily the perfect expression of that Supreme Consciousness. It is God who in the form of the Guru is drawing His beloved children to Himself. As the disciple progresses more and more on the path of realization, as his perfect nature flowers more and more within him, he feels the pervasiveness of love – God’s love, the Guru’s love, love within himself – and in ecstasy he sees love every- where. God, the Guru, his innermost self, and all creation, all become one. 4 The devotee reaches this sublime state by His Grace alone. For the devotee, His Grace is all. Note: The author’s use of the word “man” is usually intended in the general sense, i.e. “human”, and the use of him or his or he, etc. (lower case) similarly refers to both genders. 5 Short Sanskrit Pronunciation Guide Sanskrit is the language of the terminology (and mantras) of Ánanda Márga practice and philosophy. A short guide to Sanskrit pronunciation using Roman Saḿskrta (Sanskrit) script is given below. • a is pronounced as the “u” in “us” • á is pronounced as the “a” in “father” • i is pronounced as in “bit” • ii is pronounced as the “ee” in “beet” • u is pronounced as in “put” • ú is pronounced as the “oo” in “boot” • e is pronounced as in “net” • ae is pronounced as the “a” in “made” • o is pronounced as in “top” • ao is pronounced as the “o” in “owl” • ḿ is pronounced as the “ng” in “sing” • n ̭ is pronounced as a nasal sound at the back of the throat • t,́ d́, and ń are pronounced with the tongue at the top of the mouth • c is pronounced as the “ch” in “child” • ph is pronounced as the “f” in “father” • sh is pronounced as in “she” • all other consonants followed by an “h” are aspirated (i.e. the original sound of the consonant followed by a “ha” sound) • s ́ is pronounced between “sh” and “s” • y is pronounced as “j” at the beginning of a word and “ia” in the middle or at the end of a word • v is pronounced as “v” at the beginning of a word and “w” in the middle of a word • jiná̭ is pronounced “gyá”, as in jinána̭ (pronounced “gyána”) 6 The Lord’s Play There is a single entity, or personality, in this universe. Apparently you are many, but fun- damentally you are one. The one is manifested in the many. The word khila in Sanskrit means a “latch”. Akhila therefore means “that which cannot be contained or closed”, that is, this universe. The creation of this universe – the substance of this universe is one, though the creation is manifold. Why this creation of one into many? The reply is only with the Creator, the Supreme Lord. Philosophers try to answer this ques- tion but fail; how far can a microcosmic brain with its small nerve fibres go? Even if an individual utilizes all his or her mental powers, that individual will not succeed in an- swering. The devotee’s approach to this question is, however, different. The devotee enters God’s mind, mingles his or her mind with that of the Supreme Being, and knows some of the secrets of God’s mind from within. The devotees say God is Supreme. They sing His glory and defend all His actions. That is why God says, “My devotees are greater than Myself.” A common person says, “Oh, God, we are tired of your liilá. What is the need of it? We are all suffering and you call it a play.” The devotee, however, defends God with this: “My Lord was utterly alone before the crea- tion. A person becomes mad if he or she is alone in a big vacant house. God was restless before the creation. He could neither love, nor feel angry with, anyone. So creation was a compulsion. He has created all these forms by multiplying Himself. When God was alone, He had the power to see, but there were no objects to be seen. Now that He has started the creation, He sees whatever He thinks. If we are His own forms and feel a little restless- ness in His creation, we are blessed, for we are saving our Lord from the restlessness of utter loneliness.” This is the way a devotee looks at the secret of creation. We are all part of that Supreme Being – He is playing with Himself in all our forms. This is a divine play. He is playing hide-and-seek with Himself. Search Him in your little “I” feeling and you will find the King of kings there. In fact, the name of this search is sádhaná. If you do not go within, do you want to go out? But where will you go, since He is every- where in this universe and surrounds this universe? You cannot go outside of Him. He is there within and without – in your small “I” as well as in this big universe. He alone is a Single Entity pervading all forms. By thinking of Him one becomes free from all kinds of bondages such as fear, etc.; and one who is free from bondages is He Himself. Knowing Him is being Him. This is the way of establishing oneself with Him, of becoming the Single Entity – by transcending the many forms.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • New Age in Norway 307
    New Age in Norway 307 Chapter 38 New Age in Norway New Age in Norway Ingvild Sælid Gilhus New Age up to the 1970s The background of the New Age in Norway was, like in other countries, the countercultural movement of the late 1960s, characterised by political radical- ism, the anti-war movement, hippie culture, the use of psychoactive drugs, pop music, a growing ecological awareness, and an interest in Asian religions. In the early 1970s, New Religious Movements of Asian provenance such as Hare Krishna (ISKCON), Ananda Marga, the Divine Light Mission of guru Maharaji Ji, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi’s Transcendental Meditation as well as the Western, sufi-inspired Eckankar and the Christian-inspired Children of God had representatives in Norway. Through information meetings and courses, for instance at the universities, the representatives of these movements contrib- uted to increase the general awareness of Eastern religions and to nourish countercultural religious syncretism and alternative spirituality in Norwegian youth culture. In the 1970s there existed several distribution centres for alternative thought and lifestyle, including religious ones. Most important among them were the countercultural work communes in Hjelmsgata 1 in Oslo and on Karlsøy in Troms. In 1976 Karma Tashi Ling, a centre for Tibetan Buddhism, was opened in Oslo. It attracted people from countercultural milieus as well as Buddhists. Magazines and periodicals were important vehicles for alternative thought in the 1970s when thirty-six different titles, most of them short-lived, were pub- lished (Ahlberg 1980: 221). The most important were Vibra (appearing in 1969), Gateavisa (the Street Paper, published 1970-), Vannbæreren (Aquarius, 1974– 78), Arken (1978–1989) and Josefine (1971–1977).
    [Show full text]
  • Ananda Katha
    ANANDA KATHA BY NAGINA PRASAD CONTENTS Introduction 1 Chapter One October 1953: My friend Chandranathji and my vision of Baba. Baba sends His blessings and accepts me as a disciple. My initiation in November 1953 2 Chapter Two I am persecuted by my boss. Baba explains the real meaning of ahim’sa and the importance of iis’t’a mantra. 9 Chapter Three Jamalpur and the tiger’s grave. 11 Chapter Four Baba explains the meaning of varn’aghdana and warns against mean mindedness. The downfall of my persecutor. 15 Chapter Five February 1954: I get a sympathetic boss and am transferred to Begusarai. Manan Prasad miraculously loses weight. 19 Chapter Six Rainy Season 1954: My boss Asthanaji takes initiation and Baba appears before him. 22 Chapter Seven September 1954: Baba gives me the boon of only getting demotion when I myself desire it. My daughter dies and is miraculously resurrected and my wife takes initiation. 26 Chapter Eight The sufi saint Dattaji and his prophecy about Baba 30 Chapter Nine Winter 1954: Baba solves my difficulties in meditation and explains how His assistance is given from a distance. Shyam Charan Lahiri becomes ‘Vajra Bhairav’ at the tiger’s grave. Baba’s disciples of His previous lives. The ‘white lady’. The power and use of iis’t’a and guru mantras. Bindeshwariji’s daughter is initiated and her life is extended. My methods of pracar. 33 Chapter Ten November 1954: Demonstrations. Sunday 7th: Samadhis Sunday 14th Savikalpa and Nirvikalpa samadhi. Sunday 21st: Demonstration of death. Sunday 28th: Nirvikalpa samadhi. 42 Chapter Eleven Deep Narayanji and Vishvanathji are initiated and I try to feed Harisadhanji.
    [Show full text]
  • SWAMI YOGANANDA and the SELF-REALIZATION FELLOWSHIP a Successful Hindu Countermission to the West
    STATEMENT DS213 SWAMI YOGANANDA AND THE SELF-REALIZATION FELLOWSHIP A Successful Hindu Countermission to the West by Elliot Miller The earliest Hindu missionaries to the West were arguably the most impressive. In 1893 Swami Vivekananda (1863 –1902), a young disciple of the celebrated Hindu “avatar” (manifestation of God) Sri Ramakrishna (1836 –1886), spoke at the World’s Parliament of Religions in Chicago and won an enthusiastic American following with his genteel manner and erudite presentation. Over the next few years, he inaugurated the first Eastern religious movement in America: the Vedanta Societies of various cities, independent of one another but under the spiritual leadership of the Ramakrishna Order in India. In 1920 a second Hindu missionary effort was launched in America when a comparably charismatic “neo -Vedanta” swami, Paramahansa Yogananda, was invited to speak at the International Congress of Religious Liberals in Boston, sponsored by the Unitarian Church. After the Congress, Yogananda lectured across the country, spellbinding audiences with his immense charm and powerful presence. In 1925 he established the headquarters for his Self -Realization Fellowship (SRF) in Los Angeles on the site of a former hotel atop Mount Washington. He was the first Eastern guru to take up permanent residence in the United States after creating a following here. NEO-VEDANTA: THE FORCE STRIKES BACK Neo-Vedanta arose partly as a countermissionary movement to Christianity in nineteenth -century India. Having lost a significant minority of Indians (especially among the outcast “Untouchables”) to Christianity under British rule, certain adherents of the ancient Advaita Vedanta school of Hinduism retooled their religion to better compete with Christianity for the s ouls not only of Easterners, but of Westerners as well.
    [Show full text]
  • Tools to Change the World
    TOOLS TO CHANGE THE WORLD Study Guide based on the Progressive Utilization Theory (Prout) Level 1 Dada Maheshvarananda and Mirra Price, M. Ed., Ed.M. Proutist Universal Copenhagen Copyright 2019 by © Proutist Universal: Copenhagen All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions ISBN: 978-87-89552-00-2 Cover Design: Jagadiish Gorg Azzopardi All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, without permission of the publisher except for brief quotations. Proutist Universal 30 Platanvej, 1810 Fredriksberg Copenhagen, Denmark ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We would like to express our gratitude to the many people who have contributed to this Prout Study Guide and to its predecessors. We especially want to thank Mark Friedman and Dada Nabhaniilananda, whose work we have reprinted. We are grateful to all who offered suggestions on the modules: Didi Ananda Devapriya (Romania), Ron Baseman, Ole Brekke and Kathrine Sumati Brekke (Denmark), Alex Jackimovicz, Sid Jordan, Kathleen Kesson, John Linkart, Sloan McLain, Mal- colm McDonell (Australia), Matt Oppenheim, Georgia Perry, Charles Paprocki, James Quilligan, and Karl Robins. It has been extremely helpful that a few people—Howard Nemon, Didi Ananda Ruchira, Nina Shapiro, and Bruce Dyer (New Zealand)—have conducted field test study groups and have given feedback. Dada Maheshvarananda would also like to express his gratitude to the staff of the Prama Institute and Wellness Center near Asheville, NC for allowing him to write in peace in their healing environment. Dear readers, we also welcome your critical suggestions about how to improve this project.
    [Show full text]
  • Fire in Our Eyes, Flowers in Our Hearts
    Fire in Our Eyes, Flowers in Our Hearts Tantric Women Tell Their Stories Fire in Our Eyes, Flowers in Our Hearts Tantric Women Tell Their Stories Edited by Jennifer Jayanti Fitzgerald & Marcus Bussey Published by Gurukula Press PO Box 879, Maleny, Queensland, 4552, Australia [email protected] © Marcus Bussey 2007 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by information storage or retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the pub- lisher or editor. National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication data: Fire in our eyes, flowers in our hearts : Tantric women tell their stories. 1st ed. ISBN (PDF) 978-0-646- 46969-0. ISBN (hardcopy) 978-0-646-47102-0. 1. Ananda Marga (Organization). 2. Feminist spirituality – Social aspects. 3. Women in Tantric Buddhism – Australia. I. Fitzgerald, Jennifer Jayanti. II. Bussey, Marcus. 294.3442 Cover design by Victor and Chiara Bussey. Title page and cover (‘Shakti’) artwork by Marjorie Bussey. Art within text by Alison Bussey. Back cover image by Premasargar (http://premasagar.com), ‘At The Feet of an Ancient Master’ (Roshnii meditating in an old Bombacaceae tree in Bangalore, India). Ordering information: www.futuresevocative.com In this Book Acknowledgements ix Preface x Jayanti’s preface xiv How to read this book xvii PROLOGUE ‘Turn and Face the Light’ by Jennifer Jayanti Fitzgerald 3 PART ONE: Finding Our Way I ‘My Path Finds Me’ by Gaotamii Pfeiffer
    [Show full text]
  • 1976-01 Harbinger Ne
    DFTS-05898 -. - TITJ 51Sl EIEJ , ......'S 1000 DAYS...._DAYS___ __ _____ .... TITl s;Sl Shrii Shrii Anandamurtijii, known by millions around the world as Ba'ba', has D. passed his lOOOth day of fasting in Bankipur Jail in Patna, India on December 26, 1975,1975. AlAI He has been fasting on two cups of Horlicks liquid per day in protest of harsh H,y, and cruel treatmenttreatment to Himself and His followers who have been imprisoned for more L,L< thanthan four years in Patna, India, awaiting trial on charges which are based on the 0;o; testimonytestimony of one witness who has a severe grudge against Him.Him, Unless His four 0;o; demands are met, He has firmly stated, He will not discontinue the fast.fast, Those demands are: la. Restoration of facilities for receiving His meals from His home. b.b, Seeing visitors from His family and friends.friends, c.c, Bring back His four co-accused toto this jail and allowing them to visit with Him 2.2, Withdrawal of the false cases against Ananda Marga workers,worker •• 3.3, Unconditional release of falsely accused workers,workers. 4.4, A judicial inquiry into thethe alleged poisoning attempt made on His life February 1212,1 1973,1973. Recently we have received word from Ba'ba' thatthat the atrocities against Him by thethe Indian autboritiesauthorities are continuing full force.force, In a .piritualist'sapiritualist's life, meditation is more important than food, sleep or even life itself.itself, It seems from His recent letter of complaint that even our Ba'ba's meditation is disturbed.disturbed, The
    [Show full text]
  • Freedom of Religion and the Indian Supreme Court: The
    FREEDOM OF RELIGION AND THE INDIAN SUPREME COURT: THE RELIGIOUS DENOMINATION AND ESSENTIAL PRACTICES TESTS A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE DIVISION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI‘I AT MĀNOA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN RELIGION MAY 2019 By Coleman D. Williams Thesis Committee: Ramdas Lamb, Chairperson Helen Baroni Ned Bertz Abstract As a religiously diverse society and self-proclaimed secular state, India is an ideal setting to explore the complex and often controversial intersections between religion and law. The religious freedom clauses of the Indian Constitution allow for the state to regulate and restrict certain activities associated with religious practice. By interpreting the constitutional provisions for religious freedom, the judiciary plays an important role in determining the extent to which the state can lawfully regulate religious affairs. This thesis seeks to historicize the related development of two jurisprudential tests employed by the Supreme Court of India: the religious denomination test and the essential practices test. The religious denomination test gives the Court the authority to determine which groups constitute religious denominations, and therefore, qualify for legal protection. The essential practices test limits the constitutional protection of religious practices to those that are deemed ‘essential’ to the respective faith. From their origins in the 1950s up to their application in contemporary cases on religious freedom, these two tests have served to limit the scope of legal protection under the Constitution and legitimize the interventionist tendencies of the Indian state. Additionally, this thesis will discuss the principles behind the operation of the two tests, their most prominent criticisms, and the potential implications of the Court’s approach.
    [Show full text]
  • Historical Timeline of Hinduism in America 1780'S Trade Between
    3/3/16, 11:23 AM Historical Timeline of Hinduism in America 1780's Trade between India and America. Trade started between India and America in the late 1700's. In 1784, a ship called "United States" arrived in Pondicherry. Its captain was Elias Hasket Derby of Salem. In the decades that followed Indian goods became available in Salem, Boston and Providence. A handful of Indian servant boys, perhaps the first Asian Indian residents, could be found in these towns, brought home by the sea captains.[1] 1801 First writings on Hinduism In 1801, New England writer Hannah Adams published A View of Religions, with a chapter discussing Hinduism. Joseph Priestly, founder of English Utilitarianism and isolater of oxygen, emigrated to America and published A Comparison of the Institutions of Moses with those of the Hindoos and other Ancient Nations in 1804. 1810-20 Unitarian interest in Hindu reform movements The American Unitarians became interested in Indian thought through the work of Hindu reformer Rammohun Roy (1772-1833) in India. Roy founded the Brahmo Samaj which tried to reform Hinduism by affirming monotheism and rejecting idolotry. The Brahmo Samaj with its universalist ideas became closely allied to the Unitarians in England and America. 1820-40 Emerson's discovery of India Ralph Waldo Emerson discovered Indian thought as an undergraduate at Harvard, in part through the Unitarian connection with Rammohun Roy. He wrote his poem "Indian Superstition" for the Harvard College Exhibition of April 24, 1821. In the 1830's, Emerson had copies of the Rig-Veda, the Upanishads, the Laws of Manu, the Bhagavata Purana, and his favorite Indian text the Bhagavad-Gita.
    [Show full text]
  • The Encyclopedia of New Religions Bibliography
    The Encyclopedia of New Religions Bibliography The following bibliography has been constructed to enable readers to explore selected topics in greater depth. Rather than present a long uncategorized list, which would have been unhelpful and potentially confusing, the classification of literature mirrors the format of the book. (Classifying new religions and spiritualities is a notoriously difficult problem, and it should not be thought that groups that have been bracketed together do not have important differences.) In a few instances a movement may be relevant to more than one section; hence readers are advised to look in other sections if they cannot instantly locate the sought material. Anyone who compiles a bibliography on new spiritualities has to make choices, since there is a vast array of literature available. While endeavouring to include a good range of material and viewpoints, we have omitted material that we consider to be badly inaccurate or misleading. However, some religious movements have been virtually neglected by writers and hence the material indicated below is the best available. For some groups there is virtually no literature apart from their own writings. While we have aimed to incorporate material on the grounds of accessibility, quality, up-to-dateness, popularity and prominence, inclusion here does not necessarily imply endorsement by the editor or individual authors. At the end of each section a selection of websites has been provided. However, it should be noted that, whilst these were all available at the time of writing, and whilst we believe them to be relatively reliable, unlike books, websites can literally disappear overnight.
    [Show full text]
  • Strategies of the New Hindu Religious Movements
    Sustainability 2010, 2, 3500-3519; doi:10.3390/su2113500 OPEN ACCESS sustainability ISSN 2071-1050 www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability Article Education for a Sustainable Future: Strategies of the New Hindu Religious Movements Martin Haigh Department of Anthropology and Geography, Oxford Brookes University, Gipsy Lane Campus, Headington, Oxford, OX3 0BP, UK; E-Mail: [email protected]; Tel.: +44-1865-483785; Fax: +44-1865-483937 Received: 10 October 2010; in revised form: 8 November 2010 / Accepted: 10 November 2010 / Published: 17 November 2010 Abstract: Increasingly, sustainability is conceived as a crisis of the human mind and the key challenge for pro-sustainability education is developing sufficient motivation in learners. The spiritual aspirations of religious communities contain sufficient motivational force, which may be deployed for effective sustainability education. This paper explores the approaches to sustainability and sustainability education of some internationally-oriented Hindu religious movements. These include the rural education initiatives of Gandhian Sarvodaya, which emphasizes non-harming, self-reliance and personal ethics, ISKCON, which emphasizes devotional service, P.R. Sarkar‘s Ananda Marg, which emphasizes cooperative enterprise, the Tantric body re-imagined at the social scale, and Swami Vivekananda‘s Sri Ramakrishna Order, which emphasizes karma yoga, spiritual development through service to the God in each human. It also describes the British Hindu contribution to the UNDP/ARC‘s multi-faith sustainability initiative ―Many Heavens, One Earth‖; which is the ―Bhumi Project‖ and its two main campaigns, Green Temples and Compassionate Living. Keywords: community education; NGO; Hinduism; faith-based environmentalism; Sarvodaya; Gandhi; Vivekananda; PROUT; ISKCON; Ananda Marg; Karma Yoga; Bhakti Yoga; Bhumi Project 1.
    [Show full text]
  • New Hindu Religions in Brazil: the Hare Krishna Movement
    chapter 17 New Hindu Religions in Brazil: The Hare Krishna Movement Silas Guerriero Introduction Brazil has never experienced a significant wave of immigration either from In- dia or from any other area where devotion to Hindu gods predominates, yet aspects of Hindu godliness can be clearly identified in the national religious landscape: celibate devotees who wear the saffron-colored dhoti dance and sing mantras, followed by women in colorful saris with the red dot in their foreheads, the bindi, pull ropes attached to a wooden carriage with Jaghanata perched on top. Those are scenes from the well-known Hindu ritual of Ratha- yatra, largely practiced in India. But now they also take place in Brazil, and the participants are Westerners who for the most part have never been to the East. What do these rituals have in common with the great festivals in India? Devotees of the Hare Krishna movement truly believe that they are peforming ancient practices devotion to Lord Krishna, without modification; but is the movement a manifestation of Hindu godliness per se, or has the process of importation and translation resulted in deep ruptures in some of Hinduism’s symbolic meanings? All religions and new religious movements are deeply influenced by the ex- isting cultural and social aspects of their location; the tension between tradi- tional religious heritage and the cultural conditions of the society in which this heritage is lodged is ever-present in the background, and adaption to new environments leads to cultural hybridity. This process leads to disruptions with a religion in its original form, and the Hare Krishna Movement or iskcon (In- ternational Society for Krishna Consciousness) is a paradigmatic case.
    [Show full text]
  • Ananda Marga Dharmacakra (Group Meditation) & Discourses of Shrii
    Ananda Marga Dharmacakra (Group Meditation) & Discourses of Shrii Shrii Anandamurtii on the Shlokas of Dharmacakra Every week, usually on Sunday evenings, Ananda Marga groups in different locations hold group meditation, called 'Dharma Cakra', the 'Circle of Dharma'. Group meditation is very important for maintaining inspiration for spiritual practices. It also creates deep unity among participants and raises the spiritual vibration. Dharma Chakra begins with some spiritual or devotional songs followed by kiirtan (spiritual chant and dance), then silent meditation. Before meditating the following mantra is repeated collectively: SAM'GACCHADVAM' SAM'VADADHVAM' SAM'VOMANAM' SI JANATAM DEVABHAGAM' YATHA' PURVE SAM'JANA'NA' UPA'SATE SAM'ANI VA' AKUTI SAMA'NA HRDAYANI VAH SAMA'NAMA'STU VOMANO YATHA VAH SUSAHA'SATI The meaning is: LET US MOVE TOGETHER LET US SING TOGETHER LET US COME TO KNOW OUR MINDS TOGETHER LET US SHARE, LIKE SAGES OF THE PAST THAT ALL PEOPLE TOGETHER MAY ENJOY THE UNIVERSE UNITE OUR INTENTIONS LET OUR HEARTS BE INSEPARABLE OUR MIND IS AS ONE MIND AS WE, TO TRULY KNOW ONE ANOTHER, BECOME ONE. This shloka (verse) is sung three times before beginning the actual meditation. It is from the Rk Veda, composed 15,000 years ago. At the end of meditation the following mantra is repeated: NITYAM' SHUDHAM' NIRABHASAM' NIRAKARAM' NIRANJANAM NITYABODHAM' CIDANANDAM' GURUR BRAHMA NAMAMYAHAM This means: ETERNAL, PURE, INDESCRIBABLE ENTITY FORMLESS, WITHOUT BLEMISH OMNISCIENT, BLISSFUL CONSCIOUSNESS TO GURU-BRAHMA, SUPREME CONSCIOUSNESS, I PAY MY SALUTATIONS. This can be followed by what is called Guru Puja, a process of mental surrender of the colours, or attachments, of the mind.
    [Show full text]