Newsletter October 03, 2012

Newsletter Archives

 

Upcoming Events

Swami Travels to North Carolina - Oct. 06 - 07

Swami Yogatmananda will be visiting Greenville & Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina on Sat. Oct 06 - Sun. Oct. 07 to conduct Vedanta classes. He will return on Mon. Oct. 08.

 

On Sun., Oct 07, at 5:00 PM, Pravrajika Gitaprana, from Vivekananda Retreat, NY, will conduct the Sunday Service on ‘Mother Worship’.

 

On Tuesday, October 09, the birth anniversary of Swami Abhedananda, a direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna, will be observed in the morning with a chant and in the evening with a song, biography reading and Prasad.

 

Sitar-Tabla Fusion Concert – Sat. Oct. 13

On Oct. 13, from 6:00PM – 7:30PM, there will be a sitar-tabla ‘fusion’ concert (east/west rhythms) in the lower level (LL) of the Vedanta Society. Light refreshments follow. All are welcome. A $15.00 donation is suggested.

 

Spiritual Retreat - Sat. Oct. 27, 9:30 am - 7:00 pm

Main Speaker: Swami Ishtananda, Vedanta Society, St Petersburg, Florida

Subj: Dealing with EGO

Prior registration required. Registration Fee $20.00 per person (For online registration: $21 per person)

For more information and to download registration form OR Online registration: http://www.vedantaprov.org/spiritualretreat.html

 

Weekly Programs

Friday, Oct. 05	7:00 PM: Aarati (devotional music) & meditation 7:30 – 8:30 PM: Study Class on Bhagavad Gita, Ch. 15
Saturday, Oct. 06	8:30-10:30AM: Karma Yoga (cleaning & other works) 11:00AM - 12.00 noon: Guided Meditation and Prayer-music 7:00 – 8:00PM: Aarati (devotional singing), a short reading from Sri Sarada Devi The Great Wonder and meditation
Sunday, Oct. 07	5:00PM – 6:00PM: Pravrajika Gitaprana, from Vivekananda Retreat, NY, will speak on ‘Mother Worship’. 6:00PM – 7:00PM- Soup Supper 7:00 – 8:00PM – Aarati (singing, a reading and meditation)
Tuesday, Oct. 09	7:00 PM: Aarati (devotional music) & meditation 7:30 – 8:30 PM: The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna class, Ch. 44 (Pg 838)

 

Daily Programs

Morning :	5:45 – 6:45 AM: Meditation 6:45 – 7:00 AM: Chanting followed by a short reading from The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda
Evening :	7:00 – 7:15 PM: Aarti (devotional music), with a short reading from Swami Chetanananda's book: ‘Mahendra Nath Gupta ‘M’ 7:15 – 8:15 PM: Meditation

 

Weekly Classes

(All classes given by Swami Yogatmananda, unless otherwise stated.)

Bhagavad Gita - Sept. 28, Friday

Ch 15 Verses 2-4:

In the beginning of the fifteenth chapter, the world has been compared to a banyan tree with an infinite number of branches coming down and taking root the soil.  The branches are multiplying endlessly and seem to be without end, just as our mundane worldly existence drags on without end unless we achieve realization of God.  The roots of the tree--our worldly bondage--have gone so deep; it’s very difficult to get rid of them.  Like pulling a persistent weed, our efforts to remove these entangled roots only make them come back with more ferocity.  We may try to free ourselves from one form of bondage, only to get caught up in another.  Liberation from bondage can only be achieved with non-attachment; this is the sword which, when held firmly, can effectively fell the tree of the world.  After cutting our attachment to the world with the sword of detachment, we should seek realization of our true, divine Self with a burning intensity.   If we can cultivate a burning desire for realization, we shall surely achieve it.  Upon reaching this ultimate goal we will be liberated from the cycle of birth and death, since, having gained knowledge of the Self, all of our desires will be completely satisfied and, wanting nothing more, there will be no need for us to take up a body.

 

Looking at a Hologram - Sept. 30, Sunday

If the negative of a photograph is cut in half and then developed, we only see half of the image. If a hologram record is cut, we still see the entire image.  Every part of a hologram contains the whole. Karl Pribram, a neuroscientist, and also a spiritual thinker, whose work on interface between mind and brain is hugely respected,  has described the neuron functions in the brain also as holographic in character. Physicist David Bohm wrote Wholeness and the Implicate Order in a similar vein. Pribram states that the brain-images are like holograms. Our perception works like a hologram, in that if we see any object, say a ring, it brings a whole set of images to us, like when Hanuman brought Rama’s ring to Sita. Even though the images of various objects/persons coming to us through the senses are fractured/partial pieces of reality, brain-mind can build around it the missing aspects to make a fuller image. If we have the perfect holographic reader, then we can see a person or object as WHOLE -the divine. Even if the image is cut in half, it is still the divine. When we develop a reader of a hologram in us, then we see Brahman everywhere. An example is when Sri Ramakrishna saw someone walking on grass and felt this on his body. The I in my neighbor and the I in me is the same, so the bible says: “Love thy neighbor as thyself.” Every perception is really of the WHOLE, The Perfect, The Brahman. To be able to realize this, we must do spiritual practice, which can consist of associating God with everything in every moment.

 

The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna class – Oct. 02, Tuesday

Sri Ramakrishna, as seen from our time-scale, is not too far away from giving up His physical body as the purpose of that form was gradually getting over. His body was suffering from the disease but He was ever blissful. One must learn a lesson from this. Old age and sickness are inevitable in a human body. One should not identify him/herself as the body but try to be in touch with the divine - the core of all of us.
Sri Ramakrishna was asking 'M' the reason for this illness? The illness was to show some resemblance between the common people and Sri Ramakrishna -  He thus becomes approachable for us. If there is no common sharing platform between the teacher and the taught then it is difficult to follow the teachings. To reinforce M's reasoning, Master gave example of Rama, who though being an incarnation, was grief-struck at the loss of His wife Sita. 'M' gave some parallels from Jesus's life too. He told Master how Jesus cried with Mary and Martha at the loss of their brother. Master asked 'M' to share any more commonalities between Him and Jesus. ‘M’ mentioned that like Jesus, Master never enforced any particular practices (like fasting) on his devotees. M shared a story from Jesus's life which narrates the importance of being in the company of God than following the rituals. Spiritual practices are meant for taking one closer to the Lord but when one is already with the Lord then rituals and practices become insignificant. Sri Ramakrishna, like Jesus, encouraged youngsters who are untouched by lust and greed to embrace spiritual life. Like Jesus Christ, Master too proclaimed His oneness with the Divine.
Such common features prove that incarnations of God, irrespective of time and place, preach the same principle for the welfare of mankind. As long as one is ready to whole-heartedly walk on that path he/she is sure to reach the Ideal.