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Newsletter January 27, 2016
Notice:
This Thursday, Jan. 28 and following Thursdays for continued time (unless cancellations due to snowstorm etc.) there will be showings of the DVD series ‘GREAT COURSES’ from 8:00PM -8:45PM, immediately following the evening meditation. 7:00PM singing Aarati, short reading & meditation will proceed as usual. All welcome.
Updates:
1) In a new post on our blog, Swami Yogatmananda reflects on the life of Prof. Mathew Pugh:
http://vedantaprovidence.blogspot.com/2016/01/professor-mathew-pugh.html
2) Check out some new Sunday Service lectures Videos (from Nov. & Dec. 2015) posted on our webiste here:
http://www.vedantaprov.org/lectures.html
Upcoming Events
Swami Vivekananda Puja/Worship Day – Sun. Jan.31, 11:00AM –7:00PM
11:00 am: worship-ritual, 12:30 flower-offering & Prasad-lunch
2:30-4:00 pm Video;
5:00-6:00 pm: ‘Symposium’ on Swami Vivekananda
6:00-7:00 pm: Shiva Samkirtanam and Aarati
7:00 pm: Supper-prasad
All are welcome to any/ all of the events.
Weekly Programs (in addition to Daily Programs given below)
| Friday, Jan. 29 |
7:00 PM: Aarati (devotional music) & meditation 7:30 – 8:30 PM: Study Class by Swami Yogatmananda on Jnana Yoga (based on the book of Swami Vivekananda) |
| Saturday, Jan. 30 |
8:30 – 10:30 AM: Karma yoga/cleaning 7:00 - 8:00 PM: Aarati (singing, a short reading) & Meditation |
| Sunday, Jan. 31 |
11:00AM –7:00 PM: Swami Vivekananda Puja/Worship Day; See details above. 5:00 – 6:00 PM: Symposium on Swami Vivekananda; various speakers
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| Tuesday, Feb. 02 |
7:00 PM: Aarati (devotional music) & meditation 7:30 – 8:30 PM: Study Class by Swami Yogatmananda on 'The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna', Ch 50, pp 953 |
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, Vol. 6' 7:00 – 7:25AM – A short ritual worship/Puja. Open to all. |
| Evening : | 7:00 – 7:15 PM: Aarti (devotional music), with a short reading from 'Swami Brahmananda: As We Saw Him: Reminiscences of Monastic & Lay Disciples' (compiled/edited by Swami Atmashraddhananda) 7:15 – 8:00 PM: Meditation |
Past Events
Salutations! –Sat. Jan. 23
The birth anniversary of Swami Turiyananda, a direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna, was observed on Sat. Jan. 23 with a chant in the morning, and with a song, a biography reading and prasad in the evening.
Synopses of Last Week's Classes
(All classes given by Swami Yogatmananda, unless otherwise stated)
Study Class on 'Jnana Yoga’- Jan. 22, Friday
The third chapter, “Maya and Illusion,” begins by presenting a history of the “theory” of maya, one of the pillars on which the Vedanta philosophy rests. Although at the start of his lecture he introduces maya as a theory, he will later explicate how it is, “a statement of fact.” (It is interesting to note that when Swamiji was presenting these Jnana Yoga lectures in London, he, by necessity, was developing important terminology of Vedanta philosophy into English, in order to communicate with his British audience.) Just by calling this theory or phenomenon “maya,” by giving it a name, it immediately feels less mysterious and more knowable to us; such is the power of names. However, Swamiji warns us to be patient and not jump to conclusions in our study of what maya really is. Maya is sometimes translated as “illusion” or “magic, including in some of the oldest references to maya, such as, “Indra, through his Maya, assumed various forms.” The theory of maya was manipulated a little by the Buddhists, into something akin to idealism, the theory that everything in this world is just an idea that we project. This line of thought gives people the impression that the world is an illusion, and this is closest to maya’s common meaning now. The meaning of the word evolved over millenia. We should keep in mind that, although in the ancient literature, details about the nature of reality and maya may seem incorrect when held against our modern scientific knowledge, the essential principles still hold up. The ancient sages wanted to know the Truth of existence; hence, they were interested in principles and did not bother too much about the particulars of the world, which they understood to be unreal.
Sunday Talk - 'Three Body Package – 2 ' – Jan. 24, Sunday
In this talk, we will follow the Mandukya Upanishad. Brahman transcends and envelops everything. There is the individual and the cosmic universe. The Self has four aspects, the three bodies and the unchanging Reality. The gross body and the subtle body each have 7 limbs and 19 mouths. In the subtle body, they are dream limbs. The gross body appears when we are awake. The subtle body is perceived in dreams. The causal body appears when we are asleep and have no desires and no dreams. In the causal body, all programs are congealed as a tree in a seed. The causal body is more versatile, powerful and pervasive, than the subtle body, which is more so than the gross body. Our purpose is to transcend these bodies. The bodies are instruments, and the Self is none of them. Lord Krishna said that we don’t see this unless we have developed our vision. The proof is in experience. Love is the opposite of desire.
Study Class - 'The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna' - Jan. 26, Tuesday
Rakhal, a close disciple and spiritual son of Sri Ramakrishna, said that in his initial days, he used to feel jealous of others who visited the Master. He thought that he had proprietary right over Sri Ramakrishna and no one else should have this access. He used to think that due to his love he alone could rightly take care of Sri Ramakrishna. This is a common mistake; we usually think that we are always right. Sometimes, in the heart of hearts we know that we may not be doing the right thing. Yet, we use our intelligence to show that we are doing right. This happens because, our true Self is perfect and it cannot be wrong. But we erroneously superimpose this body-mind complex on Self and we think that this body-mind is not wrong.
Removing this jealousy was an important step in Rakhal’s spiritual progress. He later realized that Sri Ramakrishna is a world-teacher. Jealousy is a great obstacle in our spiritual progress too. We think that our Guru (spiritual guide) is superior to others. The word Guru alludes to divine teachership that comes from a divine source. Just as faucets do not generate water of their own but are connected to a common reservoir of water which is the true source. One’s Guru, in essence, is the Guru of all mankind. Rakhal’s life is a great lesson for us so that we may cultivate this broad understanding of the concept of Guru and remove any jealousy towards others.
A couple of visiting girls sang a song that shows the agony of our life. We endlessly work while wanting to rest. We can’t stop living even when we cast away the body because, we take a new body and start living again. We do not know why we are living. We keep repeatedly experiencing the smiles and tears in life. It is only when we start wondering why we are living, that we become introspective and take initial steps towards making spiritual progress.