Quote from the true charm and power of Vedanta
The MYSTIRES OF YOGA
From very ancient times the general mass of the people in all countries has associated religion with mysteries, miracles, and supernatural phenomenon. In early days people believed that evil spirits wee the cause of all diseases, and priests were often summoned to exercise the Devil. Even today there are persons everywhere, who will seek the help of priests, Sannyasins, or Yogis for the cure of physical ailments. This practice is common not only among the ignorant but extends to the educated classes. Even rationalists and those who are proud of their practical wisdom sometimes fall back on supernatural remedies as a last resort, when all other efforts have failed. There is also a tendency, especially among the rich to seek the advice of those professing religion on short cuts to worldly success. Many of them visit Sadhus simply for the purpose knowing, if possible, what further material rewards the future holds for them; to them; Religion and Astrology mean the same thing! In the west a large number of person who are ignorant of the real conditions in India still think of Hinduism in terms of astrology or Palmistry; for them every Indian they meet in a train or on board a ship is a potential fortune-teller!
Is it then a matter for any wonder if there are adventurers, everywhere, ready to take advantage of this “mystery mongering” Propensity often majority of men and women? In almost every country these charlatans ply a flourishing trade in the name of Religion. There is the story of the “Swami “in a large American city who among this various courses of Instruction advertised also; “Course of ten lessons for the attainment of Nirvana-Ten Dollars “! When upbraided by a fellow Indian for practicing such a hoax, the ‘swami” tried to justify his action by saying that after a long and fruitless search for all honest job, he had at last hit upon this device because he saw no harm in trading on the credulity of fools!
Where all can savour the joy of being alive
By Daisaku Ikeda
While Covid continues in one way or another to impact all sectors and aspects of society, the nature of that impact differs significantly depending on the conditions in which people find themselves.
Our real priority now is to face head-on the issues the pandemic has
exposed, such as the need to rebuild the economy and livelihoods and reweave
the social fabric so that it can support people’s lives in the years and
decades to come. In considering this challenge, it is worth mentioning the
words of UN Secretary General António Guterres last June: “We heal together
when we all get the care we need.”
Here, I sense a commonality of spirit with the way of life that is the
ideal of the Soka Gakkai International – a commitment to realising dignity and
happiness for both oneself and others. The teachings of Mahayana Buddhism
include an episode that resonates with this worldview and sensitivity to life.
On one occasion, Vimalakirti, a disciple of Gautam Buddha deeply respected
for the way he interacted with people in various conditions of life with no
sense of difference or distance, fell ill. Learning of this, Shakyamuni had
some of his followers visit Vimalakirti. They asked Vimalakirti how he had
fallen ill.
Vimalakirti replied: “Because all living beings are sick, therefore, I am
sick,” and offered the following analogy to fully communicate what he meant:
“It is like the case of a rich man who has only one child. If the child falls
ill, then the father and mother too will be ill, but if the child’s illness is
cured, the father and mother too will be cured.”
As it turns out, Vimalakirti was not actually suffering from any specific
illness. Rather, his empathy – his feelings of shared pain that could not be extinguished
so long as others suffered without relief – manifested itself in the form of
illness. For Vimalakirti, this sharing of pain with those in distress was
evidence that he was continuing to live as his authentic self. He was attuned
to the vital truth that our individual security cannot be realised in isolation
from the conditions of privation faced by others.
When we consider the Covid crisis in the light of this Buddhist
perspective, it naturally leads us to question what it means to live in happiness
and health at a time when so many people throughout the world are being
severely impacted by illness and its accompanying effects.
This year marks seven years since the adoption by the UN of the
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In order to accelerate the recovery from
the pandemic, it is important to flesh out the core spirit of the SDGs – the
determination to leave no one behind – by adding a further vision of building a
society where all can savour the joy of being alive. The feelings of relief and
even joy that well up in a person who is aided in passage to safe haven after
having been caught in the undertow of life’s trials and having given in to
despair.
We must aim to construct a society in which such feelings – the palpable
sense that it is, indeed, good to be alive – are shared by all.
The writer is honorary president of
the Soka Gakkai and founder of the Soka schools system
IF HE EXIST
I drive joy there was a doctor in
Benaras who spent 7 minutes in the morning and evening for mediation on God.
Knowing this, his colleagues and friends laughed at him. One day they argued
that he was wasting 7 precious minutes on something, which he had been misled
into believing. The doctor replied, “Well, if God does not exist, I agree that
I am wasting 7 minutes a day. But, if He exists? I am afraid you are wasting
your entire lifetime. I prefer to waste 7 minutes rather than a lifetime. Why
should you grudge me the 7minutes joy that I derive 4m.-
ILLUSTRATED REVIEW : 7th heaven moment Totnham
Son 7 scored a goal,, Mancities no 7 scored a goal, in ipl LSG won scoring 176/7
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