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Newsletter Nov. 23, 2016
!!! HAPPY & HEALTHY THANKSGIVING TO ALL !!!
You are welcome to contribute your thoughts about this event on:
Vedanta Society's Blog - http://vedantaprovidence.blogspot.com or
Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/Vedanta.Providence
Upcoming Events
Visiting Swami's Lecture – Thurs. Nov. 24, 7:30 PM -8:30 PM
Swami Devapriyananda, from Belur Math India, will be meeting devotees at Vedanta Society from 7:30pm -8:30pm to hold ‘satsang’: will answer any spiritual questions presented. Supper will follow. All are invited.
CT Vedanta Monthly Satsang – Sat. Dec. 03, 3 PM– 6 PM
The monthly gathering of the Vedanta Society of Connecticut will be held at 100 Cherry Brook Rd, Canton, CT.
Topic of discussion: 'Bhagwat Gita Musings 2: Using Intelligence'.
All are welcome.
Memorial Service - Sun. Dec. 04, 11:00 AM –1:00 PM
Triveni Popat, a long time devotee of Vedanta Societies of Providence and Boston, died early Sunday morning Nov. 06. She was a lifelong student of Vedanta, and remained active in the Vedanta Centers until late in life.
Family and friends are invited to attend a memorial service to honor her life, at Providence Vedanta Society, on Sun. Dec. 04 from 11:00am –1:00pm. Her family and Vedanta Society encourage everyone to share a memory, story, anecdote, song of/for Triveni. For complete obituary and life history, please see:
http://www.dyer-lakefuneralhome.com/sitemaker/sites/DYERLA1/memsol.cgi?user_id=1873842
Weekly
Programs (in addition to Daily Programs given below)
| Friday, Nov. 25 |
7:00 PM: Aarati (devotional music) & meditation 7:30 – 8:30 PM: Jnana-Yoga Study Class by Swami Yogatmananda |
| Saturday, Nov. 26 |
8:30 – 10:30 AM: Karma Yoga/Cleaning 7:00 - 8:00 PM: Aarati (singing, a short reading) & Meditation |
| Sunday, Nov. 27 |
5:00 – 6:00 PM: Lecture: ‘NO; Thanks’, by Swami Yogatmananda 7:00-8:00 PM - Meditation |
| Tuesday, Nov. 29 |
7:00 PM: Aarati (devotional music) & meditation 7:30 – 8:30 PM: Study Class by Swami Yogatmananda on 'The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna', Ch 51, pp 970 |
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. 7' 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 'THE STORY OF AN EPOCH: Swami Virajananda and his Times', by Swami Shraddhananda 7:15 – 8:00 PM: Meditation. Open to all. |
Update: Videos of some past Sunday lectures (up to Oct. 2016) have been added to the 'Lectures Archive' in Vedanta Society's website. You can access them here:
http://vedantaprov.org/lectures.html
Synopses of Past Classes
(All classes given by Swami Yogatmananda, unless otherwise stated)
Study Class on 'Jnana Yoga' - Nov. 18, Friday
Class #39:
The Vendantic concept of “evolution” is the process by which we rid ourselves of our clinging to time, space and causation; time-space-causation limit us and hamper the full expression of our true nature, which is Infinite. At the time when Swami Vivekananda gave the Jnana Yoga lectures, Darwin’s theory of evolution was a hot topic. Swamiji was one of the few religious leaders who accepted this theory, but he thought it should be pushed further. Missing from Darwin’s account: Just who is evolving? And what is the goal of evolution? A goal is what provides meaning to the idea of progress. First, as to who is evolving, the physical substance of a living thing is material and matter itself does not change. It is the non-material entity, or the soul, that is making species evolve so that the potential divinity is manifested. Second, the fact that evolution involves a struggle for existence (“survival of the fittest”) hints that the ultimate goal is Existence itself, the existence that is beyond the limitations of time, space and causation. Indeed, according to Vedanta, realization of the self as the Divine, or sat-chit-ananda (existence-knowledge-bliss), is the goal of evolution. As individuals, we are all at different phases in our process of evolution, and we should respect the unique progress of others.
Sunday Lecture - 'Where Do I Go When I Sleep?’– Nov. 20, Sunday
The Mandukya Upanishad lists four states: 1) the waking state, 2) dreaming, 3) deep sleep, and 4) The Real Being, upon which the other states are superimposed. The “I” is there in deep sleep, because I wake up as the same person who went to sleep. In the waking state, I am in the body and perceive the gross universe. In dreaming, I have a body and perceive the subtle universe. In the fourth state, I am everywhere. The Mandukya Upanishad lists 7 limbs and 19 mouths. The limbs include the head, the eyes, the breath, the body, the lower organs, and the feet. The eyes represent all the senses and the feet represent all the organs of action. The mouths include the 5 sense organs, the 5 motor organs, the 5 pranas, or forces associated with the organs, and the 4 aspects of mind. We are consuming the world in the waking and dream states. There is no consuming, no problems, and no limbs and mouths in deep sleep. Deep sleep and the real being are both free from pain and full of happiness. In deep sleep, we are not aware of anything, while in the Real Being state, we are aware of everything.
I do not go anywhere, as it is everywhere, it does not change. Only the states of manifestation change. When Rama asked Valmiki where he should live, Valmiki asked Rama to tell him any place that he was not.
Study Class - The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna - Nov. 22, Tuesday
Page 969-70; April 22, 1886
Ordinarily the condition of the body governs the status of the "I". This happens due to the strong identification with the body. The attributes of the matter are superimposed on the spirit due to ignorance. This forces one to perceive the body and the spirit as same entity.
Hirananda asked Sri Ramakrishna - why does a devotee of God suffer? It is our common misunderstanding that a devotee of God should not suffer from any bodily ailments. It is always questioned that good people - the devotees of God should not suffer from any bodily or mental discomforts. It is a general expectation that a devotee of God should experience only good things. But actually everything happens in the world as per the law of Karma. The happiness or misery are the effects of our actions - Karmas in the past. A positive way to look at the sufferings of the devotees is: the sufferings help in wearing out the Karmas. Sri Ramakrishna gave another perspective to look at this. According to that, the body alone suffers. It does not have any impact on the "I" as such. One needs to shift the mind away from the bodily pains. The same technique can be applied to dis-identify the body from "I". Hence the separation of body and mind from the "I" is essential to deal with the worldly problems. This principle is very clearly demonstrated in the lives of incarnations. Not only that but they also take the burden of the sins of humanity and relieves them from the cycle of birth and death.