An Appeal about Bhagavatgeeta

An Appeal about Bhagavatgeeta

https://ramamohanraocheruku.blogspot.com/2017/02/anappeal-about-bhagavatgeeta.html

At the outset let me thank to all those who ‘In response to my yesterday's post expressed their like to read the posts’ on an ongoing basis. I endeavor to cater to their needs to the best of my ability though I know I am only a speck in the ocean. Among the responses I found Sri Hulikunte Sundara Ram's comments are to be shared. Hence I am doing it.

Hulikunte Sundara Ram: ‘ఆచరణ’: Yes, We read, we listen, we forget. If we can follow an atom of what comes to our knowledge, we can say we have done a great Job. I apeal to all readers to read Shri Cheruku Rama Mohan Rao's writings on the' గీతా ప్రాశస్త్యము ', and try to follow what he highlights on the subject. It is not difficult never feel: अर्जुन उवाच |

योऽयं योगस्त्वया प्रोक्त: साम्येन मधुसूदन |

एतस्याहं न पश्यामि चञ्चलत्वात्स्थितिं स्थिराम् || 33||BG 6.33: Arjun said: The system of Yog that you have described, O Madhusudan, appears impractical and unattainable to me, due to the restless mind.

चञ्चलं हि मन: कृष्ण प्रमाथि बलवद्दृढम् |

तस्याहं निग्रहं मन्ये वायोरिव सुदुष्करम् || 34|| BG 6.34: The mind is very restless, turbulent, strong and obstinate, O Krishna. It appears to me that it is more difficult to control than the wind. Read what Krishna says: श्रीभगवानुवाच |

असंशयं महाबाहो मनो दुर्निग्रहं चलम् |

अभ्यासेन तु कौन्तेय वैराग्येण च गृह्यते || 35BG 6.35: Lord Krishna said: O mighty-armed son of Kunti, what you say is correct; the mind is indeed very difficult to restrain. But by practice and detachment, it can be controlled. असंयतात्मना योगो दुष्प्राप इति मे मति: | वश्यात्मना तु यतता शक्योऽवाप्तुमुपायत: || 36||G 6.36: Yog is difficult to attain for one whose mind is unbridled. However, those who have learnt to control the mind, and who strive earnestly by the proper means, can attain perfection in Yog. This is my opinion.

With this once again apeal readers to welcome and wish C.R.M.Rao who has embarked on a service (Spiritual) to humankind.

This is little note I dared to add to what shri Sundara Ram had written.

I feel immensely happy for the response given by all and especially by Sri Hulikunte Sundara Ram. I know I am incompetent but I am more anxious to bring the glory of our great ancestors to the youth or so to say to the followers of this great Sanathana Dharma so that they can know it and go further deep into the work which had inspired so many great and noble laureates of the world. 'Bhagavatgeeta is a subject in the curriculum of several renowned Universities of the world.. Unfortunately our country's generation do not pay any heed to it nor had the Governments that ruled in the past took any interest in making it popular for the good of the nation and the youth.

Kthopanishad says like this which was the message preached by Swamy Vivekananda all the time. It goes like this:

उत्तिष्ठत जाग्रत प्राप्य वरान्निबोधत ।

क्षुरस्य धारा निशिता दुरत्यया दुर्गं पथस्तत्कवयो वदन्ति ।।

(कठोपनिषद्, अध्याय १, वल्ली ३, मंत्र १४)

Arise! Awake! Approach the great and learn from them .

Like the sharp edge of a razor is that path, so the wise or the great people say −hard to tread and difficult to cross but not impossible. Try and try till you succeed. Attaining the knowledge is the ultimate.

Swasthi.

Talisetti Venkata Subba Rao Good idea

Sudhakar Yv Sir there is thing which is called SUBCONSCIOUS mind it will take care, that will pack it in side and will do the needful let us put in our efforts ఫలితం భగవంతుడికి వదలండి. మీ ప్రయత్నం ఫలితాన్నిస్తుంది

Kaladhar Kakarla ''Do Thy Duty; Fruit is not thy concern'', I wish this message would be highlighted in your effort, designed by God, to justify the eternal value, and the universal value of the GITA.

Abburi Nagabose Do your duty and don't bother or expect about the outcome. Have faith in God and trust the God. God will take care of all who have immense faith in Him

Hulikunte Sundara Ram Thank you sir for your acknowledgement. You can also use Speaking tree platform, which is more on spirituality.

Sastry Vemuri Sir, your effort is very very useful as good as making for Hindus Bhagavatgita is more important first than Puranas which one may later study to learn the need to understand through examples of God in various forms proved the aspects of Bhagavatgeeta …See More

Hulikunte Sundara Ram replied

·Hulikunte Sundara Ram Yejurveda has 15 sutras by apastamba, Agastya etc, today we can hardly 9 have survived including that of Koundinya. Sir I. Humbly submit, that if I have erred correct me. I stand corrected. Regards

Satyanarayana Devaku I am not able to understand why anyone should work without expecting any good result. Please clarify sirs

Hulikunte Sundara Ram We work to maintain the physical body on the returns we get from it. We know we get returns, it is sure and definite. The main point is that, the work we do should be done with full heart, concentration and wth happiness. While working if we think of the returns we lose concentration, work gets spoiled and we lose happiness. We lose work satisfaction. We start worrying.

Sri Krishna says'Karmanye va adhikaraste....., in spirtualiy it means that our present destiny, lifestyle, is based on previous birth, what we do ,our nature (trigunas)are dependent on our birth. Hence what work comes to you do it sincerely. Since the result (destiny) is already fixed do not worry about it.

Generally, can we expect what happens tomorrow? No is it not. Hence live in the present without losing the charm of life and its happiness. Enjoy doing work. Do not worry about its returns.

Hulikunte Sundara Ram This message is for Satyanarayan Devaku.

A fitting reply by a Britisher to fellow Britishers who tried to tarnish the image of Bharat

A fitting reply by a Britisher to fellow Britishers who tried to tarnish the image of Bharat

https://ramamohanraocheruku.blogspot.com/2017/02/a-fitting-reply-by-britisher-to-fellow.html

अयं बन्धुरयं नेति गणना लघुचेतसां '

उदारचरितानां तु वसुधैव कुटुम्बकं

Ayam bandhurayam neti ganana laghuchetasam udāracaritānām tu vasudhaiva kuṭumbakam

The concept originates in the Vedic scripture Maha Upanishad (Chapter 6, Verse 72):

Only narrow men discriminate saying: One is a relative; the other is a stranger. For those who live magnanimously the entire world constitutes but a family.

This is the essence of the messages envisaged by our greater than the greatest Rishis in several scriptures consolidated in the said Upanishad.

We never heckled any nation nor had any intention to invade them. On the contrary the Bharatiyas migrated or invited all over the world to spread our Vedic culture. In places like Egypt, Rome, Greece Japan, China Arabia etc. we spread our culture without any force. May be the locals after the spread of Christianity slain the contributors to their culture. This fact is proved by several archaeological DiscoveriesWorld wide. This proves along with several supporting scriptures as above that we the Bharatiyas are peace lovers from the time long long before the Buddhism, Jainism. Even Christianity tries to defend in the same ways but there crusades negate such claims.

The following is transmitted to me by Smt. Challa (Jonnavitthula) Sailaja and I am posting this on my wall to facilitate the people interested to read such postings.

As usual the Whites (the British) trolled India's achievement of launching 104 satellites but they were put in place by one amongst them!!

First, just read the trolls on British social media:-

Volsted Gridban: Send up all the rockets you want, you still don't have a pot to piss into. End your poverty first.

Gobshyte: Why all the fuss, it’s easy to put a satellite into space ...I mean it’s hardly rocket science is it?

Matt Daley: No money to carry on the struggle against public defecation, cholera, starvation and Endemic Street begging, then?  Ah well, nice to see India has its priorities right once again!

Now, read the Rejoinder given by another fellow British:-

Peter Aremone:

Dear Condescending (showing an attitude of patronizing superiority) Brits,

It is great to see you loathing and moaning in hatred against India's achievements, not too long ago you took pride in calling yourself the No.1 Enslaver of the planet & built your ENTIRE wealth on the massacre & loot of tens of millions of Indians. Turning the richest, most educated nation on Earth back then into a cesspool of poverty, death, hunger & illiteracy while fattening yourselves & your children.

Now without colonizing any nation, India is back in the game purely by her own merit & hard work, while you, the British are stuck with your school going daughters being groped, molested & chewed like chicken kebabs by Pakistani gangs whom you prefer to appease while abusing India & Indians who are the highest educated people in UK & also the ones who qualitatively pay the most tax & are least likely to live on welfare than ANY other ethnicity including the White ethnicity.

Regarding Aid to India, if India merely asks back its wealth, Britain will have to toil for 50 years merely to pay India back its stolen wealth (without interest), yet India has told UK to its face to stop giving aid which mostly goes to shady criminal activities by Christian missionaries.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/india/9061844/India-tells-Britain-We-dont-want-your-aid.html

As India rises Scientifically & Technologically, Britain has fallen way beneath the feet of Germany in terms of Technology & Science, a nation that was razed to the ground after losing WW2 (rightly so).

And I hope you have the honesty to admit that while India's rocket puts mostly the European countries satellites in the space cheaply as these so called developed countries, are unable to do it themselves!

Is the UK capable of doing even half of this?

India's space program also helps alleviate poverty by being the only profitable space program on Earth currently as well as launching people oriented satellite projects that help poor farmers, poor fishermen, miners, students, scientists, professionals.

The materials engineering innovations by India's ISRO (Indian Space Research Organization) provides state of the art Prosthetic limbs FREE OF CHARGE to millions of Handicapped human beings not just in India but other poor nations as well -- while UK sits on its fat posterior with an ever fattening population whilst a failing economy with NO space program at all to speak of to spearhead innovation & STEM education in UK.

Remember dear Brits, India's TATA is the largest private employer in the UK & India is the 3rd largest investor in UK - India is actually providing jobs to millions of Brits whilst NOT looting you, NOT plundering you, NOT colonizing you DESPITE you having done worse on tens of millions of Indians.

If you have any self-respect, you will congratulate India for its meritorious by achievement & try do something yourself off it, or else it is better to be quiet & let others think you are not stupid than open your mouth & allay all doubts.

swasthi

Oldest Quran may be older than Muhammad – Paul Vale

Oldest Quran may be older than Muhammad –Paul Vale

https://ramamohanraocheruku.blogspot.com/2017/02/oldest-quran-maybe-older-than-muhammad.html

In what could prove something of a pot hole for current readings of Islamic history, a carbon test carried out on a Quranic manuscript recently discovered in England reveals the book is likely older than Muhammad, the founder of the Islamic faith.

The test used a piece of the ancient parchment, which was discovered in Birmingham University Library in July, with scientists dating the tome from between 568 and 645 AD.

Islamic scholars believe Muhammad lived between 570 and 632 AD, meaning the text was compiled either before the Prophet’s birth or during his childhood.

Speaking to The Times, professors David Thomas and Nadir Dinshaw, of the University of Birmingham, said that Muslim tradition states that Muhammad “received the revelations that form the Quran … between the years AD 610 and 632, the year of his death.”

“At this time, the divine message was not compiled into the book form in which it appears today,” said Thomas. “Instead, the revelations were preserved in ‘the memories of men.’ Parts of it had also been written down on parchment, stone, palm leaves and the shoulder blades of camels,” he added.

“Caliph Abu Bakr, the first leader of the Muslim community after Muhammad, ordered the collection of all Qur’anic material in the form of a book. The final, authoritative written form was completed and fixed under the direction of the third leader, Caliph Uthman, in about AD 650.”

Also speaking to the newspaper, Keith Small, a librarian at the Bodleian in Oxford, urged caution as the carbon testing only used parchment rather than the ink from the book. He said: “If the dates apply to the parchment and the ink, and the dates across the entire range apply, then the Quran—or at least portions of it—predates Muhammad, and moves back the years that an Arabic literary culture is in place well into the 500s.”

Small added: “This would radically alter the edifice of Islamic tradition and the history of the rise of Islam in late Near Eastern antiquity would have to be completely revised, somehow accounting for another book of scripture coming into existence 50 to 100 years before, and then also explaining how this was co-opted into what became the entity of Islam” by around AD 700.” – HuffPost UK, 2 September 2015

>>Paul Vale is a New York-based multimedia journalist writing for

The Huffington Post across news, politics and international. <<

 

 

 

BHISHMA -- A HEALTHY CRITICISM

Vvs Sarma

February 17, 2014 at 5:00pm · 

Vinjamuri Venkata Apparao writes

Understanding Bhishma: The Later Days....
The Kurukshetra

After protecting/serving the race and kingdom of Kurus for so many years, he should have retired at the time of the War. But, he did not. Instead, he accepted the spot of the commanding officer of the Kaurava defence.
Picture : Arjuna and Bhishma in their war chariots attacking one another from opposing sides.
Understanding Bhishma: The Later Days
This archaic battle scene, taken from the epic Mahabharat, depicts Arjuna and Bhishma in their war chariots attacking one another from opposing sides. Charioted horses await below, while a group of horsemen, sounding a trumpet and drum, stand in the top right corner.

Why did he join the Kauravas? Well, agreed that he had promised his father, King Shantanu to guard the kingdom of Hastinapur. But, here in this case, no matter whether the Pandavas won or the Kauravas, a Kuru son would have ascended to the throne. In any circumstance, there was no threat to the Kuru realm from outsiders. If not a retreat, Bhishma should have at least remained neutral just the way Balram, Lord Krishna’s elder brother did. He could have then come back again to serve the Hastinapur throne, once the War was over.

The Dilemma
Bhishma’s heart always belonged to the Pandavas, though he felt it was his duty to serve the Kauravas. Still, he refrained from supporting the Pandavas openly.

The verses in the Bhagavad Gita dictate,

“Yadyad Acharti Shrestha
Tadtad eve taro jana
sa yet parmanam kurute
lokas tad anuvartate”

It means, whatever a great man does, is followed by others. The standard laid by Bhishma, would be followed by the world.

If only Bhishma had avoided the War, his example would have been then followed by others like Drona, who was indebted to him. In the nonattendance of these two experienced and brave warriors, there could have been two possibilities, both good. One, the war would have been far less destructive and two, maybe there might have been no war, at all. These two towering personalities invited support from other people as well to the Kauravas.

Reply – VVS Sarma

Apparao garu posed an important question about the character of Bhishma and his decision to lead the Kaurava side in the Mahabharata war against the Pandavas, knowing fully well that the Pandava side is the one upholding dharma and Sri Krishna, whose aim is to re-establish Dharma in the world, is on their side protecting them.

1. Mahabharata is not just an episode of ancient Indian history, a great war fought for sovereignty on India and the throne of Hastinapur between the cousins, Kauravas and Pandavs. It is Itihasa, Purana, Dharma Sastra, Moksha Sastra and Pancama Veda. It has to be looked at as a saga of creation. It has to be looked at three levels: Adhi-bhautika, Adhi Daivika, and Adyatmika .
2. As such as it should have – sarga, pratisarga, manvantara, vamsa and vansanu carita
- As vamsanu charita it deals with the history of Kuru Vamsa, Yaduvamsa,
- It has history of Rishis such as Vyasa, Parasara, and has history of Kings and ancestors of the kings over scores of generations – This vamsa
- As per time scale it is transition of yugas – Dwapara and Kali – in Vaivasvata Manvamtara .***** This is all at the bhautika plane.
3. Most characters have connection with higher worlds or lokas.

Bhishma is from Vasu loka. His mother is divine river Ganga. He has come down to earth on account of a curse in a higher loka and the other Vasus got away with a small journey to earth between birth and death and Bhishma being the prime culprit had to spend a long time an earth in sorrowful circumstances.

It was a time when gods and sages of higher lokas were freely wandering in the Bhuloka interacting with humans.
4. Dhritarashtra is a Gandharva and he and Pandu were born through Vyasa, a Rishi and an incarnation of Vishnu, Sakuni is Dwapara and Duryodhana is Kali. Karna is son of Surya. Pandavas are sons of Yama, Vayu, Indra and the Aswins.
 5. Sri Krishna is an incarnation of Maha Vishnu who descended on his own to establish dharma in a society where the rulers deviated from dharma and the whole country had to suffer.
6. Bhishma knew dharmas well but he was a mute witness to adharama perpetrated at Kaurava court like the insult and indignity meted out to Draupadi.
7. Santanu committed adharma when he extracted promises from Devavrata for satisfying his own lust to Satyavati bypassing the prince who was most eligible for the throne.
8. Bhishma was wrong in abducting Amba and sisters for his incompetent brother Vicitravirya. , clearly against the concept of Svayaamvara.
9. Bhishma therefore wanted to atone for his sins by fighting on the adharma side and to complete his karmic liability by spending 49 days on the bed of arrows. It was time for him to go back to his loka.
In summary, Bhishma had no option at that stage other than fighting on Kaurava side. He did not hesitate even to reveal how he could be subdued in war. Sikhandi was manifestation of his own karma-phala.

Just as AP has to be divided, the Mahabharata war had to be fought then. It was beyond humans and it was divine plan. The following is the operating truth

sri-bhagavan uvaca
kalo 'smi loka-ksaya-krt pravrddho
lokan samahartum iha pravrttah
rte 'pi tvam na bhavisyanti sarve
ye 'vasthitah pratyanikesu yodhah

The Supreme God said: Time I am, the great destroyer of the worlds, and I have come here to destroy all people. With the exception of you [the Pandavas], all the soldiers here on both sides will be slain.

Sare Jahan se accha

Sare Jahan se accha

The need of the hour is History, a sense of our past, our heritage and our culture. We need to look at our country through our own eyes. Satguru Sivananda Murty  Garu

Keeping the visionary’s words in mind,

Top of Form

Bottom of FormI would like to introduce you the song ‘sare jahan se accha’, which of course you know it as a patriotic song, its origin and a little about its author Jenab Mohammad Iqbal.

Iqbal was a lecturer at the Government College, Lahore. Probably on 16th August 1904 he was invited by a student Lala Har Dayal to preside over a function. Instead of delivering a speech, Iqbal sang Saare Jahan Se Achcha, the day on which it first came to light. The song, being called as tarana-e-hind, in addition to embodying yearning and attachment to the land of Hindustan, expressed "cultural memory" and had an elegiac quality. In 1905, the 27-year-old Iqbal viewed the future society of the subcontinent as both a pluralistic and composite Hindu-Muslim culture. Later that year he left for Europe for a three-year sojourn that was to transform him into an Islamic philosopher and a visionary of a future Islamic society.

As I remember it has 9 stanzas of which the 5^th one goes like this:

Ai āb-i rūd-i Gangā! Wuh din haiṉ yād tujh KO?
Utrā tire kināre jab kārwāṉ hamārā

O the flowing waters of the Ganges, do you remember that day
when our caravan first disembarked on your waterfront?

Try to recollect the day, whether we had, where we the followers of Sanatana dharma along with the Muslims disembarked our caravan on the banks of Ganga. One more thing is he uses in one stanza, with which you are conversant. ‘Hindi hai ham vatan hai hindusitan hamara’. ‘Hindi’ hear means people of Hindustan, like Gujarati for Gujarat, Bengali for Bengal, Bihari for Bihar etc. No ambiguity in this. The next one is ‘Hidusitaan hamara’. The word hamara denotes ‘Ours’. Is it the entire population of India put together or because it is written by Mr. Iqbal who is a Muslim by birth have we to take it as to be Muslims’?

As regards the word ‘Hind’ and ‘hindu’ please go through the passage here under.

The fact is that the BOTH the words "Hindu" and "India" have foreign origin. The word "Hindu" is neither a Sanskrit word nor is this word found in any of the native dialects and languages of India. It should be noted that "Hindu" is NOT a religious word at all. There is no reference of the word "hindu" in the Ancient Vedic Scriptures.

It is said that the Persians used to refer to Sindhu as the Indus River, as the pronounce ‘HA’. Indus is a major river which flows partly in India and partly in Pakistan. However, the Persians could not pronounce the letter "S" correctly in their native tongue and mispronounced it as "Ha" for “Sa”. Thus, for the ancient Persians, the word "Sindhu" became "Hindu." The ancient Persian Cuneiform inscriptions and the Zend Avesta refer to the word "Hindu" as a geographic name rather than a religious name. When the Persian King Darious 1 extended his empire up to the borders of the Indian subcontinent in 517 BC, some people of the Indian subcontinent became part of his empire and army. Thus for a very long time the ancient Persians referred to these people as "Hindus". The ancient Greeks and Armenians followed the same pronunciation, and thus, gradually the name stuck.

Here I tell one more thing. Sanskrit is indeed ‘Deva Bhasha’ which has segregated the alphabets in groups like Vowels, Consonants, the group spelt by throat, by teeth, by lips by nose etc. which we can never find in any languages of the world other than in India. More over our letters are called ‘Akshara. While the explicit meaning is ‘from A to KSHA’ the esoteric meaning is which will never be putrefied. While ‘Kshara’ is to ‘Perish’, ‘Akshara’ represents ‘Eternal’ ‘Perennial’ ‘Perpetual’. You think how great our great sages are.

Again coming back to the point, In 1910, Iqbal wrote another song for children, Tarana-e-Milli (Anthem of the Religious Community), which was composed in the same metre and rhyme scheme as Saare Jahan Se Achcha, but which renounced much of the sentiment of the earlier song. The sixth stanza of Saare Jahan Se Achcha (1904), which is often quoted as proof of Iqbal's secular outlook:

Maẕhab nahīṉ sikhātā āpas meṉ bair rakhnā

Hindī haiṉ ham, wat̤an hai Hindūstāṉ hamārā

Religion does not teach us to bear ill-will among ourselves

We are of Hind, our homeland is Hindustan.

Contrasted significantly with the first stanza of Tarana-e-Milli (1910) reads:

Cīn o-ʿArab hamārā, Hindūstāṉ hamārā

Muslim haiṉ ham, wat̤an hai sārā jahāṉ hamārā

Meaning,

 Central Asia and Arabia are ours, Hindoostan is ours

We are Muslims, the whole world is our homeland.

Iqbal's world view had now changed; it had become both global and Islamic. Instead of singing of Hindustan, "our homeland," the new song proclaimed that "our homeland is the whole world." Two decades later, in his presidential address to the Muslim League annual conference in Allahabad in 1930, he supported a separate nation-state in the Muslim majority areas of the sub-continent, an idea that inspired the creation of Pakistan.

Now I leave you the decision about the song and the patriotism