77. Lanka, Our Own Kingdom of Desires
Mandodari, the daughter of Maya, married Ravana. As part of this marriage Maya constructed for them a majestic fortress on the island of Lanka. It was greater than anything that existed on Earth. Decked with gold, silver, and precious jewels, even the fortress walls shone resplendently. The oceans surrounding the island kissed the Kingdom’s golden […]
76. The Nature of Ravana’s Desire
By means of a Brahmana’s curse, the once virtuous King Pratabhandu was reborn as the terrible demon King Ravana. Ravana had two brothers, Kumbhakarana, who was a powerful giant, and Vibhishana, who was Ravana’s minister. All though each of them performed exactly the same yogic austerities and various kinds of penances, due to their individual natures, they […]
59.A. Seeing Rama Everywhere
After realising Shri Rama was the supreme reality embodied in human form, Sati initially felt uncomfortable but then felt as if all worries and burdens had been lifted from her shoulders. ‘Why did I ever question the words of Shiva?’ She asked her self silently, as she turned to leave the forest, through the grace […]
58.A. The Story of Sati and Shiva
Continuing our journey through the Manas, we see through the eyes of Lord Shiva, who speaks of Shri Rama. Of course, in reality there is no difference between the too, but the Ramcharitmanas is the tale for expression of Love for Rama, it is a devotional text intoxicated upon on Rama, and therefore even Lord […]
38.A. Yajnavalkya Is Asked, Who Is Rama?
Rama is beyond comprehension. Rama is God, the ground of reality, Rama is the Brahman of the Upanishads, yet at the same time was a prince who lived in the city of Ayodhya. How is this even possible? God is immeasurable, is there anything he cannot do? Whether we meditate upon the vast, inconceivable Brahman, […]
What is Enlightenment?
The word enlightenment is used in a variety of contexts. From the perspective of the Upanishads, we have a very good word to describe the nature of enlightenment. The word is satchitananda. The word satchitananda is a composition of the three attributes to enlightenment. The first, sat, means truth. This is is the truth of the cosmos. The truth […]
Are You Centred?
Are you Centred? Life shoots a multitude of arrows at us on a daily basis. Just missed the train, stuck in traffic, the boss is angry with us, an argument with a loved one. Constantly we are given the opportunity to lose our peaceful, centred state. We have options… We can allow our selves to […]
The Qualities of Devotion
Namaste, One who performs deeds with me in mind, considers me as supreme, becomes my devotee, does not become attached to things and has hatred for no other living being will surely come to me. Bhagavad Gita 11.55 This verse of the Gita offers Krishna’s thoughts on the qualities of a devotee who reaches the […]
What is Sanatana Dharma?
Namaste, Here is Bhisma’s definition in the Mahabharata. Not harming, truthfulness, remaining free from anger, and charity, are the four practices you must adhere to, Ajatasatru. This is the Sanatana Dharma. In this verse, we have another delineation of Sanatana Dharma, this time given to King Yudhishthira by Bhishma, his sagacious grandfather, just before the […]
How To Meditate Like Christ
Namaste, I hope you had as wonderful Christmas Day with your friends and families as I did with mine. The following is an excerpt from the book: Chants of a lifetime, by Krishna Das. One day a Canadian man arrived for his first visit with Neem Karoli Baba (Maharaj-ji). He didn’t know much about Maharaj-ji […]
