Inner Journey

A few terms and their meanings are briefly given here for quick reference:
Purusha-artha: The way  to attain Purusha is of four steps:This is also the way to lead a divine life:Dharma, Artha, Kama & Moksha. Dharma is righteous behaviour --to earn money,to live with fellow citizens and so on;Artha refers to worldly activities and prosperity;attain worldly glory by following Dharma or through Dharma;it is perfectly alright to seek wealth & prosperity for a householder,but by dharma only or righteous activities; Kama--enjoying pleasures and passion---within the bounds of Dharma & artha;The last means is that of Moksha---liberation,from earthly bonds--through renunciation/detachment---after following Dharma,using Artha and enjoying Kama----Such is the process advocated in Hinduism.
Ashramas: The term 'ashram ' means a hermitage.The term 'ashrama' includes the stages of life.Again there are four successive stages;
Brahmacharya: student life,stays with a teacher in a hermitage;serves the teacher with daily chores;studies art and literature,scriptures ;follows strict celebacy;
Grihastha: literally householder [Griha-house]; marries,brings up a family;serves parents,holy men, itenerant monks,guests; earns money and spends for these purposes and common causes like temples,dharamshalas[free boarding houses],cow sheds,schools and hospitals..
Vanaprastha:literally, entering the forest; The person,after the responsibilites of family are over] leaves the city, becomes a forest dweller[hermitage] with his wife, cut off from bustle of life; becomes a recluse or serve the society from a distance;teaching and training others;[The present web-host  is in that stage only!]
Sannyasi: a renunciate,totally cut off from worldly life;given to silence and meditation for the most part;serves as advisor to kings/merchants; or simply goes into isolation in some caves;reduces food ,sleep and activities; totally severs connection with kith and kin;no possessions--not even books.
Three Gunas: called trigunas, they are : Sattava, Rajas and Tamas.The word 'guna' means quality or attribute. This refers to three personality types which exert influence on our activities,behaviour and attitudes.Sattva guna is full of virtue,softness,patience,endurance and deeper meaning.Sattvic people are non-violent,sympathetic,compassion,peace lovers and so on.Satvic behaviour is of divine nature.
Rajasic guna is full of activity,passionate and result-oriented.A rajasic person is a man of action,kingly and commanding.He  or she must be a good organiser and leader of men.
Tamasic guna represents passive nature, lethargic and indolent, may be inconsiderate to others,brutal behaviour..
No one is always  100% sattvic.The other two gunas may be exhibited in part and a person may be sattvic in speech and rajasic in action. Therefore we say that sattvic nature should be cultivated and one should convert tamasic tendencies to rajasic and then to sattivic nature.Much has been witten about the three gunas in Bhagavad Gita and other scriptures..To illustrate, the devotional methods can be according to the three gunas thus: Sattvic--quiet mental prayer and meditation; rajasic devotion or bhakthi--singing and dancing,taking out pocessions,elaborate rituals in temples;tamasic --just listening to hymns,following processions,giving money without participation.
A saintly person seeking liberation or moksha goes beyond the three gunas or triguna-deetam.
Ashtanga Yoga: Yoga of eight parts or limbs-[ashta-eight anga -parts].
The eight parts are : yama, niyama,[don'ts, and do's] asana, pranayama,pratyahara,dharana,dhyana,samadhi.This yoga system, a comprehensive training plan was developed by  Yogi  Patanjali through his yoga sutras or aphorisms. Patanjali belonged to 1st or 2nd century AD.[later to Upanishads and the Gita]
Yama or don'ts are:Yamas are abstention from harming others,from falsehood,from theft,from celebacy,and from greed.
Niyamas are observances or do's: purity,contentment,austerity,study and devotion to God.
Prana--Prana means life-force or energy,exhibited thriough nervous energy or metabolism in the body.The breathing process induces the prana ;it is not prana as such. Pranayama is control of prana,through breath control  and other means.
Dwandas: Pairs of opposites such as pain and pleasure,heat and cold,likes and dislikes [ragha &dwesha]....
A sage goes beyond the dwandas....dwanda-teetam.
Four states:The mind operates in four states;The waking state [jagrat];the dream state[swapna]deep sleep[susupti] and the awakened [turiya]...The translation of 'turiya' as awakened is my own translation and is not accurate.In dream state, mind creates its own pictures and satisfies itself.In deep sleep,the mind is switched off,but the Self becomes the witness or watchman,but our mind is not awakened...In Turiya, the mind and the Self are operative.Note that the Self operates in all the four states;it is permanent;the mind cannot perceive that in waking and dreaming state,while in deep sleep it shines unknown to the mind....
Eight bandhas : Bonds: hatred,shame,family pride,social conventions,fear,prestige,pride of caste and egotism....[According to Sri Ramakrishna:"Even  the sacred thread is a fetter--it is token of egotism and makes one feel that one is a Brahmana [twice-born or dwija] and is superior to all."]
   Please visit my other website too:    Sages and Saints of India

THe Absolute, the Brahman of Vedanta is diificult to describe in words....How can you limit the Infinite with mere words? ...How can you talk about the Attribute less Being in human terms?.....
The ancient Rishis [seers] of India gave three words to delineate three aspects of Brahman...these three aspects also indicate three 'gunas' of brahman or three ways of experiencing this Brahman...
'Sat' is Truth or Existence ----the existence behind all the changing,unreal names and forms,beyond the physical and mental  creations.....Jnanis talk of existence all the time,the Real behind the Unreal,the ephemeral...Sat also is true.  or real.
'Chit'  is consciousness -----cosmic or divine consciousness....Consciousness is a very useful word in the spiritual circuits---You can keep  'talking' about it  for hours,our earthly life includes consciousness at every moment ; we feel or experience consciousness in many ways ,but they are fleeting..when you do altuistic things, there is a tinge of divine consciousness for a few moments..When we see a beautiful scene or picture or listen to great music, we are uplifted and have a glimpse of bliss.]such experiences reinforce our behaviour.But the cosmic/divine consciousness must be thousand times what we experience in daily life ,mundane life......Take any spiritual book of modern times,---remove or strike off the word  'consciousness'---it will become empty...modern day 'New age" gurus use the word 'consciousness' like politicians use the word 'peace'.......Yogis pitch on the concept or attitude of Consciousness.'Chit' is to yogis, what is 'Sat' to Jnanis.!
'Ananda" is Bliss, Joy, ineffable joy, eternal joy----the happiness of the Infinite! For many , Ananda aspect is easy to understand---Why? because we ,all the time ,seek happiness from childhood...[As Sankara says--childhood is spent in seeking toys,youth in seeking the opposite sex,mature period in seeking money/fame.].The worldly happiness is fleeting----Divine bliss or joy is permanent..we seek joy  and pleasure in earthly things,called small joys;when we taste divine bliss, the joy of earthly things became insipid, tasteless.
  Singing bhajans, dancing in ecstasy,reading poems,worship of Gods ---all give the taste of 'ananda' or bliss...therefore 'Ananda' is the the experience of a great Bhakta or devotee.[In recent times, Joseph Campbell who studied mythology in an academic setting,ended up talking about BLISS as the description of God! He was much influenced by Hindu mythology and his contact with Hindu monks of Sri Ramakrishna Order [Mission].]
Note that the three--word name: Sat-chit-ananda is only a symbol or word-description....this is not every thing...it is limited,suited to our penchant for words...go beyond these words to experience Brahman.

The three great Acharyas ---Adi Sankara [788-820 AD] ,Sri Ramanuja [1027-1147 AD] and Sri Madhwa [1238-1317AD]  expounded the three systems of philosophy---advaita[monism],Vishist-advaita[qualified monism] and dwaita[duality] respectively.These systems were known before and practised by saintly persons.The acharyas or preceptors gave philosophical basis or foundation with their interpretations of Upanishads/Brhama Sutras and the Gita for their respective philosophies.
   Sankara's advaita [non-dualtiy] and Madhwas's duallity are exact opposite of each other.All the acharyas, born in the south peninsular India, travelled to the North and  gathered rare manuscripts of the Brhama sutras and other texts in Benaras,Kashmir and Nepal regions .and wrote their learned commentaries [bashyas] to establish their tenets.While Sankara dwelt a death blow to Buddhism in India through his argumentations,Sri Ramanuja subdued the jains in the southern states.
 Sankara's advaita maintains that Brhaman alone is Real, all others are unreal or illusory;further the Atman ,housed in a human or animal body ,is identical to Paramatman or Supreme Being which alone exists.A Jiva soul can experience its identity with the Brhaman and merge with That or Brahman for Brahman alone exists.
 Sri Ramanuja's Vishsist-advaita states that our soul is identical to Brahman is essence ,but is a separate part.The human soul can aspire to be close to the Brahman or the Supreme but maintains separate identity;can never become one with the Brahman.This philosophy gives much emphasis to Bhakti [devotion] and the path of surrender to the Supreme.Personal theism is encouraged for the seeker.Sri Ramanuja emphasized worship of idols [archa-avatar] and is responsible for building of hundreds of temples in South India and a few in the North.He also instituted mathas for smooth running of these temples and performance of daily rituals and annual festivals.
Sri Madhwa is at varience with Adi Sankara  on all counts.Human and animal souls are different from that of the Supreme and remain separate for ever.Human souls can be classified into three groups.In one group,the souls remain close to the Lord [Krishna or Narayana] for ever.In the second  group are souls which can reach heaven and then return to earth ,according to past acts or karmas and merits.Then there ae souls for ever condemned to bad deeds and treatment in hell.Only through Bhakti to supreme being we can experience bliss.
 The three philosophies are three different viewpoints--that is all.The Supreme Reality cannot be experienced through mind and intellect..period.therefore these viewpoints are intellectual arguments,though nicely supported by their commentaries on Upanishads and Sutras.Note that all the three acharyas and their latter derivatives like Nimbarka and Vallabha, take the Mahavakyas from the Upanishads like ['Tat Tvam Asi'] You are that] and cleverly twist their meaning to suit their standpoint.This is all intellectual exercise ---nothing more than that.It is like a lawyer who interprets the constitutional laws to suit a particular case in the court.The statements are dual in nature [with subject,object and verb] and therefore in the realm of duality only.
I am not taking any sides and support one of the acharyas,at the expense of  others.These philosophies and arguments are unnecessary diversions for a yogi or jnani or bhakta--much of it is a waste of time in your short life.
The greatness of the acharyas lies elsewhere.They revived the Hinduism with tenets/doctrines..They battled against proponents of other religions [Buddhism and Jainism] and against foreign invaders who desecrated Hindu temples.They built mathas [monasteries] ,seminaries, built scores of temples , established temple ritual and orders of monks.They did write commentaries [bhasyas] and granthas[texts] for followers,mostly in Sanskrit..They travelled throughout India and established maths and schools[seminaries] in many places.They did convert marginalised.outcaste  people into Hindu faith [with the exception of Sri Madhwa] and increased the Hindufold.
Several legends ascribe large number of miracles and psychic abilities to these three acharyas.
  Their significance became restricted by the deluge of Bhakti cults which inundated India. In that process, hundreds of saints came on the scene with their simple hymns and prayers in local dialects. The emphasis on philosophy [Vedanta, as such] became confined to upper castes and a few traditional [sampradaya] schools.The mathas continue their traditional work

The Hindu seers identified five sheathsor Koshas or personality layers to depict humans.[This is somewhat similar to Abraham Maslow's 'hierarchy of needs'.]1 Annamaya: physical body governed by food,nutrition and exercise.This is the foundation for long life
2 Pranamaya: physiological sheath: involves breathing,metabolism and nerve currents---controls life forces or prana in the body and mind or the energy sheath;develops with pranayama;ensures healthy life.[Five types of pranas are identified.]
3 Manomaya: mental sheath;psychological;governed by thoughts,imagination, learning--gives intellectual pleasures;helps to understand the world around us and interact with others, develops with satsaangha;
4 Vijnanamaya: knowledge sheath ;to gain spiritual knowledge through Viveka and Vairagya;spiritual practices or sadhana;development of consciousness;develops with japa,meditation.
5 Anandamaya: Blissful sheath;spiritual experiences or anubhava---the highest;
The five sheaths are one encompassing the other from the gross [annamaya] to the subtle.
It is obvious that most people live only in the first two Koshas, occassionally touching the third or fourth.Most yogis and gurus concentrate on the first three sheaths only for large body of clients.

Pravriti marga or path of outward life, is one of worldly activity,yet tending towards spiritual.Nivritti marga or inward path is one of contemplation,introspection and deep thinking.Hindu philosophy accepts both paths as valid.Pravritt appeals to Bhakti yoga and karma yoga and social work.Nivritti appeals to Raja Yoga and Jnana Yoga,,,the path of meditation .Renunciatiation is the path of Nivritti while devotion [with chanting,singing bhajans and kirtans is the path of pravritti.... while acknowleding both the paths,Hindu saints did not treat one as superior to another....both are equally valid....Many householders follow pravritti marga as their situation demands...they may graduate to Nivritti at a later date and become renunciate or continue as householders....Nivritti meant going to woods,caves and isolated paths.....Some lineages, like that of Nisargadatta Maharaj, Navanatha tradition, have been householders,but following inner renunciation...Lahiri Mahasaya was a householder saint.Both the margas have been developed to suit different traditions or sectarian views.Much depends on when a person develops detachment or 'vairagya'  from worldly life.
Therefore it is safe to say that Hinduism does not always  speak of sannyas or monkhood.In fact the tendency of taking to monkish life at a young age was deprecated...one should experience life with joys and sorrows,trials and tribulations before giving it up.The cases of Adi Sankara and Bhagavan Ramana taking up sannyas at a tender age are exceptions..[Buddhism and Jainism did encourage sannyas at a young age, but they did not become popular in India fora variety of reasons.]
In simpler terms, kum-kum or saffron which women apply to their forehead, is a symbol of pravritti, accepting life,working for welfare & prosperity, used in Goddess worship...While sacred ash [udhi,.vibhudi] is a symbol of renunciation,ascetic life  with austerities..These two have been used in different temples and pujas or worship with these two aspects in mind.While Kum-kum reminds us of Lakshmi,Parvati and Vishnu for worship, ash reminds us of Lord Shiva who was a yogi and renunciant clad in tiger skin, leading an austere life in the Himalayas.

In Hinduism and Buddhism, purification of the mind is stressed.A mind purified by Japa/meditation/karma yoga, becomes a perfectly reflecting clear mirror to reflect Cosmic Consciousness or Paramatman or Purushottaman.
A smudged mirror cannot reflect at all.Likewise, our mind impure with thoughts of lust,anger and greed ,cannot reflect the Soul or Paramatman.This is the basic approach in spiritual sadhana...another anology is a calm lake,unruffled by wind and waves on the surface.A purified mind is like a calm lake which can reflect the moon shining above.
It is amazing how regular practice of Japa can clean the mind...Nama Japa is the easiest method...Countless saints have attained the Lotus feet of the Lord or realized Self by only chanting. Yogi Ramsurat Kumar and his Guru, Saint Ramadas [Papaji] exhorted people just to keep chanting the name of Lord Rama.!Compared to Jnana marga or Self-enquiry, Japa is far easier.Dont consider Japa as a pedestrian approach and fit for old ladies....

The bedrock of Hindu culture is 'Respect for the Elders"...Mother and father are to be worshipped--whether they are rich or poor,educated or illiterate.The upanishadic saying: "Mathru Devo Bhava.Pithru Devo Bhava, Acharya Devo Bhava,Ahiti devo Bhava"  ---Mother is an aspect of God .......
Is the guiding principle for social life....Mother shows the father;the father shows the teacher;the teacher will show the Supreme Reality or God...Guests are to be treated with respect and courtesy...Hospitality is the high note of Indian life...
It is true that much of these are fast disappearing in India,due to materialistc influences of the modern west,wherein every action is counted in terms of money---with budgeting,estimating and book-keeping!In most villages ,even today,these cultural aspects are alive and strong.The sacrifice one makes for one's parents is highest in India,more so among the poor villagers.

We have to control the intake of various impressions with the senses.Sense-control is most important for the seeker.Swami Sivananda averred that tongue [taste] is the most difficult to control---in term s of food we take and the talking we do! The term 'AHARA" meaning food used in the scriptures is often misinterpreted to mean only food or taking 'right food'.Acharyas took it to mean actual food fed through the mouth...In a larger sense,the ahara means the foods we take through various senses---what we see, what we hear,what we smell and so on.Control these,not just the food eaten through the mouth!!