THE DIVINE LIFE Vol. LXXII JANUARY 2014 No. 10 KATHOPANISHAD CHAPTER II VALLI ii Añ` {dò§g_mZñ` earañWñ` Xo{hZ…Ÿ& Xohm{Û_wÀ`_mZñ` {H$_Ì n[a{eî`VoŸ& EVÛ¡ VV² Ÿ&&4Ÿ&& 4. When this Atman, who dwells in the body, de parts from the body, what remains then? This ver ily is That. 2 THE DIVINE LIFE JANUARY 2014 {edmZÝX ñVmoÌ‘² SIVANANDA STOTRAM (Sri Swami Jnanananda Saraswati, Sivanandanagar) (Continued from the previous issue) AVZwVZwÚw{Vg§¶wV gÝ‘V gÝVVgo{dV^yVnVo {OVgH$bopÝж gmÝБwXmdh MÝÐg‘mZZ ‘mݶ‘Vo & ZVOZg§M¶ajUXr{jV dr{jVZm{eVnmnVVo {ed H$éUmb¶ nmb¶ ‘m§ {lV‘m{lVdËgb bmoH$Jwamo &&9&& 9. O world-teacher Siva, thy face is like the full-moon, thy body shines with a divine brilliance. Thou possessest a praiseworthy intellect and thou hast all thy senses under complete control. Thou art constantly engaged in the worship of Lord Siva. Thou art wedded to the noble task of protecting the humble and the meek and destroying the multitude of sins by a single glance. Thy sole delight is in giving joy to all. O ocean of mercy that art gracious to those who look up to thee for succor, save me thy humble suppliant. AdZV^º$narV {Zarh nar{ï>nam¶U nyÁ¶‘wZo ^wdZew^mdh ^m{fVVmo{fV‘mZwfg§M¶ gy{º$IZo & ZdZdnwñVH${Z{‘©{VVËna H$ënVê$n‘ YݶOZo {ed H$éUmb¶ nmb¶ ‘m§§ {lV‘m{lVdËgb bmoH$Jwamo &&10&& 10. O world-teacher Siva, O adorable sage, thou art desireless but thy sole purpose in life is to work out the welfare of the world. Thou art always surrounded by a multitude of humble, admiring devotees. Thou art full of wise saws and thou delightest man-kind by thy enchanting talks. Thy time is fully engaged in the production of new books for the service of humanity. Blessed indeed is thy life. O ocean of mercy thou art gracious to those who look up to these for succor, save me thy humble suppliant. (To be continued) JANUARY 2014 3 4 THE DIVINE LIFE JANUARY 2014 MAKE A BEGINNING—START FROM TODAY (H.H. SRI SWAMI SIVANANDAJI MAHARAJ) Upon the substratum of Timeless inner foes like egoism, hatred, greed, Eternity Maya in Her own mysterious ambition, pride, selfishness. Crush these baffling manner marks time. In the down and develop equal vision, ceaseless onward flow of Time definite forgiveness, mercy, universal love. Then all periods have become distinct and divided outer war will end in a moment. A New Era into centuries, decades, years, months, will be ushered in. Darkness will pass and etc. They have acquired a force and a new dawn will light up Humanity. significance through long convention. All over the world the old year has just now The loving Lord has given you a passed out and a New Year has priceless gift a shining year, pure and clear commenced. Through age long association as crystal, a year teeming with of ideas this time has come to have a opportunities of perfecting yourself as well peculiar efficacy for all beginnings, fresh as working to help and elevate all those endeavours, new resolves and turning over around you. Struggle hard every moment a new leaf. It is the most propitious time. to get nearer to the Ideal. Every step you Make full use of this psychological take, through every act you do, you must moment. Do not lose this opportunity. move towards Freedom, towards Truth, Die to your old lower self. Be born into towards Light. a newer life in the spirit. Sever once for all Make it a point to radiate love. your connection with the little ego. Become a centre of spirituality through a Whatever be the slips, failures, regulated life of combined selfless activity disappointments and mistakes of the past and earnest prayer. Constantly have the year, forget them all. Never mind them. All name of God in your lips. Inspire and is for the best. Be courageous in faith elevate everyone you come into contact because there is always a glorious with by proclaiming to them the message resurrection after each crucifixion. of unity of all life, in the oneness of the Self. Spotless and untouched lies the year before you. Resolve to stick to a life of Console the distressed with help, cheer up spotless moral purity, of chastity, physical the depressed with hope. Infuse new and mental. Resolve to manifest Truth in vigour into the timid and the faltering in thought, word and deed. faith. The external world is plunged in On the threshold of the New Year unrighteousness, hatred and warfare convert yourself into a herald of Divinity. because you have neglected to carry on the Lead a Divine Life of Love, service, inner war with the vicious lower self. You devotion, discipline and wisdom. May the have surrendered to this inner enemy. New Year witness you develop into a Commence the spiritual warfare with the perfect and ideal being! JANUARY 2014 THE FOUNTAIN SOURCE OF SPIRITUAL KNOWLEDGE 5 THE FOUNTAIN SOURCE OF SPIRITUAL KNOWLEDGE* (The gist of Sri Swami Chidananda’s lecture at the re cent cele brations of the Pearl Jubi lee of the Sivananda Publi ca tion League) By celebrating the Pearl Jubilee of the We would obtain a glimpse of the Sivananda Publication League, we are in uniqueness of the service rendered by fact celebrating the completion of more the League, if we glance through some of than twelve years of Sri Swami the letters that are received almost daily Sivanandaji’s unique service to by Sri Swamiji Maharaj. humanity. It is this service that has “My life has been transformed by taken the shape of the Sivananda your book.........” Publication League. The League is the lustre and radiating power of Sri Swamiji I have been rescued from suicide by Maharaj, and is an essential part of the your reassuring volume." Sage, just as heat is inseparable from “A life of disease, suffering and fire, whiteness from milk. The League is wretchedness has ended and a life of but the manifest dynamism of his sunshine and joy has commenced when I super-mundane wisdom and divine went through your wonderful book.........” experience. —these are some of the expressions During this period the Sivananda that we often come across in the letters Publication League has placed, in the received by Sri Swamiji Maharaj daily. hands of the public all over the world the precious spiritual nectar that has THE MESSAGE OF COURAGE continuously sprung up from the fountain-source of spiritual knowledge, The mistaken notion is entertained Sri Swamiji Maharaj. Each book has by many that it is the teaching of religion been, as it were, a clarion call to higher that has been responsible for life. “Oh man, you have taken birth here, ‘backwardnes’ of the Indian nation. not to waste your life in worthless sensual Anyone who peruses the works of Sri pleasures, but to realise the Self, to realise Swamiji Maharaj would not fail to notice that you are in truth the all-blissful Atman, that the one distinct note that runs beyond the reach of sorrow, grief and through all of them is the exhortation to delusion.”—this has been the clarion call be bold, to be courageous, to be fearless. that Sri Swamiji Maharaj has sounded Bhakti Yoga has been regarded by even and this call has been relayed by the some religious preachers as one that Sivananda Publication League during makes the practitioner effeminate. In his the past more than twelve years. ‘Practice of Bhakti Yoga’ Sri Swamiji *From Forest University Weekly, 14th June, 1951 6 THE DIVINE LIFE JANUARY 2014 Maharaj has shown how this Bhakti Sivananda Publication League has Yoga calls for as much strength, courage ‘stepped into the breach’ as it were and and self-discipline as any other. He says: fulfilled the vital role. “Only when you powder the bones of your National leaders all over the world body, extract oil out of this powder, and have cried themselves hoarse that burn the lamp of love at the altar of your humanity is being led astray into the Beloved, does He grant you His Supreme bye-lanes of materialism and so many Vision”. The effeminate man has no place god-less isms, and that this deviation here. It would be apparent from every from the royal road of faith in God can one of Sri Swamiji’s works that the only spell the ruin of mankind. But it has practice of religion as conceived of by Sri been given to very few saints of intuitive Swamiji Maharaj can only make every wisdom to come forward with a positive, man more manly, more courageous, practical and ideal solution to this stronger and braver. problem. The sage is familiar with the Pratipaksha Bhavana method—if you TOWARDS NATIONAL AND wish to get over an evil, supplant it by its INDIVIDUAL WELFARE own opposite goodness. Thus we find Sri The unique value of this Swamiji Maharaj adopting this positive spiritualising mission which the and direct method of combating the Sivananda Publication League is numerous godless ideologies with the carrying on is, it is filling a great void in mighty counter-force of divine life. In the cultural evolution of our race and every one of his books he has brought nation, which void is ignored by the out clearly the dangers of godless majority of people as not worth attending ideologies and has at the same time to. But this sage of distinct vision clearly placed before the people the most perceives that the one important duty, if glorious life divine that would lead this great nation is to continue glorious, mankind to peace, plenty and prosperity is to keep brightly alive the spiritual and every individual to eternal Bliss.