Newsletter November 07, 2012

Newsletter Archives

 

Upcoming Events

Music Concert: Sun. Nov. 11, from 6 - 7:30 PM (after the Sun service 5-6PM) Famous vocalist of Indian Classical music, Shuchita Rao will sing devotional music. She will be accompanied by Rajash Pai on Tabla and Ravi Torvi on harmonium.

 

Weekly Programs

Friday, Nov. 09	7:00 PM: Aarati (devotional music) & meditation 7:30 – 8:30 PM: Study Class on Bhagavad Gita, Ch. 15
Saturday, Nov. 10	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, Nov. 11	5:00 – 6:00PM: Swami Yogatmananda will speak on 'Investing Wisely' 6:00 – 7:30PM- Music Concert; see details above.
Tuesday, Nov. 13	7:00 PM: Aarati (devotional music) & meditation 7:30 – 8:30 PM: The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna class, Ch. 44 (Pg 842)

 

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

 

Past Events

Swami Yogatmananda Returned on Monday, Nov. 05, after a trip to Ramakrishna Vedanta Society of North Carolina, Durham on the weekend. He gave a retreat on Isopanisad, addressed the memorial service arranged for deceased Rev. Swami Swahananda and conducted some devotional chants.

 

Synopsis of Last Week's Classes

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

Bhagavad Gita - Nov. 02, Friday

Ch. 15 Verses 11-15: The central theme of Vedanta is to discover our true, infinite dimension of ourselves. The indweller, the  purusha, is infinite and is not limited by the body, and therefore “goes” from body to body. In order to directly perceive the indwelling Self, one has to acquire the requisite tool of perception, namely the eye of knowledge, by which we rid ourselves of the delusion that causes us to see the fleeting as real and permanent. It is necessary for each of us to change our understanding so that it matches the truth. Acquiring the knowledge of the truth should be one’s highest goal because it alone is unchanging—it alone brings ultimate satisfaction in one’s life.  All that we are looking for we will actually receive, culminating in a fruitful end to our diligent search. The Lord emphasizes that not only should we make diligent efforts to acquire the truth, but we must also not waste energy searching for it where it is not. Therefore, we must practice control. Control means ridding ourselves of the “holes” of sense pleasures through which our efforts get wasted. To further drive home the importance of spiritual knowledge, the Lord emphasizes that all things depend on God and God alone: the Lord wants us to remember that the divine reality is the illuminator of everything, pervading in and through the entire universe; He has become the water to support the plants and animals and everything in the created universe, and that even our metabolic and respiratory functions are possible because of Him alone. The Lord is seated in the hearts of all beings. Here “heart” means awareness or consciousness. Lord is seated within each spark of consciousness. The Lord, the indwelling Self of all, is the unchanging factor that provides a common platform where past and present are kept, thus enabling the functioning of memory. The Lord is the knower and maker of the Vedas. By diligently seeking the Self which pervades the whole of existence, we can achieve what all of the scriptures are really aiming at: the knowledge of the true and infinite dimension of ourselves.

 

Where Am I? - a talk by Swami Tyagananda – Nov. 04, Sunday

Serious spirituality (the only path to joy and happiness) begins with the question: Where am I? Spiritual seekers feel like misfits in the world. Those who are fully adjusted, in the animal or human world, don’t evolve. People who bathe in the Ganges to wash away their sins are only purified if their mind is on God. We often do spiritual practice with our minds on other things. Planning what to do after meditation, is not meditation. We need to know that we could be enlightened at any moment. In addition to sitting, there must be love. There is a three-tiered approach to finding out where we are: the long range, the medium range and the close range views. In the long range view, we may see that we are insignificant compared to the universe. We can ask: What is the meaning of my life? How does it fit into the vast canvas of the universe? We need to read spiritual passages and chant spirituals hymns regularly, and do a review, at least yearly, of where our life has been and whether what we are doing will get us where we want to go. We must not let go of any reminder of God in our lives. In the medium range view, we can set a goal for the day in the morning, and review the day before bedtime to find out how to rectify any mistakes we have made. We learn more by making mistakes, but they must not be the same mistakes over and over again. The world is in such bad shape because people tell others what to do instead of changing themselves. The close range view entails how to be mindful and alert in every moment. If we find it difficult to fit God into our life, then we have a problem. I come into the world with nothing and leave it with nothing, so all of our relations and possessions belong to God. God entrusts them to us so we take good care of them because they belong to God. If we see our work as being done for God, then we won’t feel stressed like when we do work for ourselves on the weekend. Everyone breathes in and out, so being mindful of the breath is not just a Buddhist practice. We can bow down and surrender to God every day. Then, when we know where we are, we will be ready to deal with the question: Who am I?

 

The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna class – Nov. 06, Tuesday

Girish Ghosh was visiting Master. He was drunk. He was insisting Sri Ramakrishna to let him have the opportunity to serve Him for one more year. Master warned him of other people's dislike as his behavior was outside the acceptable norms. Girish was least bothered about all such things. Sri Ramakrishna disliked the idea very much when Girish said 'your wish and God's wish is one and the same.' Master was not ready to identify Himself with God in that state of mind. ‘I am a devotee of Krishna, not Krishna Himself’, he said.
Girish was still under the influence of the drink. He was blabbering in that state. He said the advent of Sri Ramakrishna is for the salvation of Bengal. M (under the name ‘a devotee’) mused that it is not limited to Bengal alone but for the salvation of the whole world. Girish prayed to the Master and asked for purity. Though Girish's outward behavior was not good, he was pure from inside and had tremendous faith and devotion. He was the one who proclaimed the Master as an incarnation of God. He always saw Him as Purnabrahma without any doubt. Such faith and devotion made him pure. Master could see that inner purity. In spite of all his bad habits, his burning faith in Sri Ramakrishna and his deep devotion made him so pure from within.
After the Master's mid-day meal and a little rest devotees gathered in His room again. Now the conversation turned towards Guru and Ishta. Girish said, he likes the Guru. Even as per the scriptures it is advisable to hold on to Guru, who is the guide on the spiritual path and who will take us closer to our ideal. Otherwise such an high ideal is imperceptible to our ignorant minds. That becomes perceptible through Guru. This idea will be discussed in detail in the next class.