Global Vedanta Spring 2009

Voice of the Worldwide Vedanta Movement

Spring 2009 Vol. XIV, No. 2

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In this Issue: • The Swami and Thomas • "Good Vibrations"— A Reconsideration • The Philosopher Dog's Advice to His Grandpuppies and more…

Editor-in-chief Swami Bhaskarananda Editors Allen R. Freedman Stafford Smith Editorial Assistant Devra Freedman Production/Design/Artwork Charles Mathias Brahmachari David Kathleen Teague Scott Wirth Advertising/Business Assistant Swami Avikarananda Editorial and Business Offices 2716 Broadway East Seattle, WA 98102-3909 Phone: 206-323-1228 Fax: 206-329-1791 E-mail: global@vedanta-seattle.org

spring 2009 vol. xiv, no. 2

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Global Vedanta (ISSN 1089-6902) ©2009 Viveka Press. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any portion of Global Vedanta without the express written permission of the publisher is prohibited. ­The opinions expressed by the contributors are not necessarily those of the publisher. Global Vedanta is published quarterly for us $12.00/year in the U.S.A.; us $14.00/year in Canada & Mexico; us $18.00/year in all other countries.

Viveka Press, the publisher of Global Vedanta, is the publishing arm of the Vedanta Society of Western Washington, a non-profit corporation founded in 1941. The Society gratefully accepts tax-deductible contributions and bequests to assist its efforts to publicize various aspects of Vedanta with special emphasis on its teaching of the harmony of all religions. All editorial and pre-press work on Global Vedanta is provided on a voluntary basis.

The Swami and Thomas The Difference a Letter Makes “Good Vibrations”—A Reconsideration The Philosopher Dog’s Advice to His Grandpuppies Is Vedanta Hinduism?

Departments 1 10 11 14 17 17

Letters Humor—The Spice of Life Poets’ Corner Vedanta News from Around the World Book Review About the Contributors

Cover: Springtime in Seattle, Washington.

President Swami Bhaskarananda Photograph of a camellia by Allen Freedman.

Board of Directors Chairman Mr. Stafford Smith Vice-Chairman Dr. Anadijiban Das Treasurer Dr. Allen R. Freedman Secretary Mr. Charles S. Wirth Directors Swami Avikarananda, Mrs. Rita Das, Mr. John E. Flynn, Swami Manishananda, Mr. Charles Mathias, Dr. Parthasarathi Mukhopadhyay, Br. Pavitrachaitanya, Dr. Usha Sankrithi Emeriti Dr. Santosh Kumar, Dr. Darbari Lal Sharma

About Contributing to Global Vedanta

LETTERS It is always a joy to find a picture of someone I have known in the past, such as Swami Vandananda and/or Pravrajika Bhaktiprana of the Hollywood Center.

They bring back such lovely memories.

—Erna Dixon, Gananoque, ON, Canada

Just to let you know that the Winter 2008-09 issue was very enjoyable. The article on the “First Anniversary CelebraVol. xiv, No. 2

tion...” was particularly charming. Just wondering if a copy of Tagore’s speech is still retrievable from the archives and if so, it would be worthwhile to publish that in a future issue of Globa Vedanta.

—Gautam SenGupta Renton, WA, USA

(Thanks for your suggestion. We shall surely try to procure the text of Tagore’s speech. –ed.)

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Global Vedanta will gladly consider articles, poetry, humor, etc. submitted for publication. The subject matter should be religious, cultural, or educational, and must appeal to a general and broad-minded readership.

Articles should be entertaining and yet substantial, and be within 1500 to 1700 words in length (not exceeding 2000 words in any event). Articles accepted for publication may require a release signed by the author and, unless prior arrangements are made, no materials submitted to Global Vedanta can be returned.

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the swami and thomas by swami bhaskarananda

(An imaginary dialogue between a Swami and a gentleman named Thomas at a branch center of the Ramakrishna Order in the United States of America.)

Topic: Does God really exist?

Swami: Good morning, Thomas. Thanks for coming to see me. How can I help you?

Thomas: Well, if you permit, I would like to share some of my thoughts with you.

Swami: Sure. Go ahead.

Thomas: Before I start, I must tell you that my real name is James, but I’ve changed it to Thomas because it suits my persona. In the New Testament Thomas is known as Doubting Thomas, because he doubted the possibility of Jesus’ resurrection. I have a lot more doubts than he had. And I’ve come to talk to you about them.

Swami: What are your doubts?

Thomas: In the first place, I doubt the very existence of God. What’s the proof that God exists? How can I believe in a God whom I can’t see, feel or know with the help of my senses?

Aside from that, how many people have actually perceived God? I’m sure that those who claim they’ve seen God are either hallucinating or lying.

Swami: Don’t you believe in the existence of your own ancestors who lived hundreds of years ago? You surely do, because had they not lived then, you wouldn’t be here now. They are the sources from which you have come. They are not perceptible, yet you can’t deny their existence.

Similarly, if you try to trace the earliest source of anything or anyone existing in this world, you will end up with some imperceptible source.

For example, when you try to trace the source of a tree you know that its source must have been a seed. What’s the source of that seed? It must be a fruit. Then again, what’s the source of that fruit? It’s another tree.

In this manner, if you go backward in time you must arrive at the 2

first source. But you can’t be sure whether that source was a seed, a fruit, or a tree. Thus it remains an unperceived, unknown source to you.

Yet, you can’t deny that it must have existed, because you have seen a tree, a seed, and fruit.

They couldn’t have come from a non-existent source, because something can never come out of nothing.

Similarly, this world must have come f rom a source, even though that source may be imperceptible and unknown to you. Some people call that source God—the primordial

That it is possible you’ll understand when you refer to your own dream experience. As soon as you fall asleep, you create a dream world full of innumerable dream persons, objects and things. In that dream world only you, the dreamer, are real, nothing else is. It’s you who have become the dream world. Yet you will only be able to realize this fact after you wake up.

Similarly, God has become this manifold world by His power of magic. The only difference is that while you are in your dream world

Charles Mathias

source of everything that exists in this world.

Thomas: Yes, now it makes sense to me that there is a God. But there are innumerable kinds of living beings and nonliving objects in this world, so it seems that there must have been many Gods, each one differing from the other.

Swami: According to Hinduism or Vedânta, there is only one source of everything that exists in this world. The scriptures of Vedânta say that the one and only God by His magical power has become this manifold world.

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you don’t realize that the dream world is not real, and you, the dreamer, have created everything that exists in your unreal dream world. In that world you have created both good and evil.

You have created everyone, some of whom are good, some bad. Forgetting your true identity as the dreamer— the creator of your dream world—you interact with those dream people and objects thinking that they are different from you. But are they really different from you? They are no other than yourself since it is you who became your dream world. spring 2009

So also this world created by God’s power of magic or Mâyâ is like God’s dream. In this context you have to understand that God can never really sleep like us, nor can He really dream. When you fall asleep you become ignorant of the world that you experience during your waking state. God does not have any such ignorance because He is omniscient.

Nevertheless, for the sake of your understanding, I am referring to this as God’s dream.

It is He who has become everything in this world. That’s why the theistic religions of the world say that God is omnipresent. Vedânta says that everything that exists in this world is divine.

As individuals you are all divine whether you are aware of that or not. Just as in your dream world the dream persons that you create do not know that they are no other than yourself, similarly, you don’t know that you are God. In this connection, I recall one incident in the life of Sri Ramakrishna.

One person who had come to see this most renowned 19th century saint of India, asked him, “Our scriptures say that God dwells in everything. Then why do I not know that I’m God?” To him Sri Ramakrishna said, “Whether you know it or not you are God!” But there is a vital difference between our dream and God’s dream.

W hile dreaming, as long as our dream lasts, the dream world is very real to us. But God, who is omniscient, is always aware of the fact that this world created by His power of magic is not real. It’s like a motion picture to Him. He enjoys watching it, because He is always aware that whatever is happening in this world movie is not real.

It is like what happens to you when you watch movies. Let me suppose you are watching a sad movie, and you react to what’s happening in the movie by crying. One might think that you are suffering at that time. But even when you are shedding tears, you are experiencing an underlying joy.

You are experiencing that joy, because

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you know that what you are watching is not real. Had the movie been real you wouldn’t be experiencing joy, you would only be suffering.

While watching this world movie, God knows that it’s He who has been playing all the roles of whatever exists in it—either animate or inanimate.

According to Vedânta, this world is God’s play, Leelâ. The joys and sorrows of this world are not real to Him. They are all His play.

Yet God reacts to what’s happening in the world movie just as you do while watching a movie. God feels compassion for those human beings who are suffering, because they are not aware of their inheritance—their blissful, divine nature. This is why God sometimes manifests Himself in human form packed with divine consciousness. Such manifestations are called Divine Incarnations or Avatâras.

As the saying goes, God’s descent on earth is for the ascent of human beings. Out of compassion, the Divine Incarnations suffer at the distress of human beings. Yet the Divine Incarnations are always aware of the unreality of this world.

Divine Incarnations, who are always aware that they are God, are also the spokespersons of God. In this context let me tell you again something about that 19 th century Indian saint Sri Ramakrishna. He is now considered not just a saint, but a Divine Incarnation by millions in India and abroad. Vedânta or Hinduism has a scripture called Srîmad Bhâgavatam. This scripture mentions all the signs and symptoms of a Divine Incarnation. Judging by those signs and symptoms, Sri Ramakrishna was declared a Divine Incarnation by several foremost 19th century scholars of Hindu scriptures in Bengal.

When Sri Ramakrishna’s mother died, he was overwhelmed with grief and began to sob. Then someone, who had read the Hindu scriptures, said to Sri Ramakrishna, “Why are you crying? The scriptures say that nothing in the world is real. Everything is the product of God’s power of magic!”

At this Sri Ramakrishna respondGLOBAL VEDANTA

ed by saying, “My mother has died, if I don’t weep now, when will I weep?”

I have already told you that Divine Incarnations are spokespersons of God. These words of Sri Ramakrishna are proof that the Divine Incarnations react to what happens in this world, even though they are always aware of the unreality of this world.

Then again, the proof that they are always aware of the unreality of the world is proved by another statement by Sri Ramakrishna. He once said, “Had I known that this world was real, I would have covered my ancestral village Kamarpukur with plates of gold!”

Thomas: Swami, after hearing all that you have said, I admit that I can’t deny anymore the existence of God as the source of this world. But the idea that this world is not real just doesn’t make sense to me. Had this world been not real, you and I wouldn’t be real, and our conversation wouldn’t be real either.

Swami: Here we are talking about two different perspectives of the world— God’s perspective and your own perspective. From God’s perspective this world is not real, but from your perspective its reality cannot be denied as long as you have body-consciousness. As long as you consider your body to be real, the world has to be real to you, and you have to act accordingly. Otherwise, it will be hypocrisy on your part. As long as you have body-consciousness, to you the world has to be real, God—the source of this world—has to be real, the Divine Incarnations have to be real, and the scriptures and the spiritual instructions contained in them must also be real.

Thomas: Thank you Swami for your help in resolving some of my doubts. I still have a few more doubts. Will you kindly help me to resolve them? For that will you permit me to see you another time?

Swami: You are most welcome to see me any time that is convenient for both of us. Bye for now.

3

the difference a letter makes

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n a recent trip to India I was shown a newly published book, a huge volume1 of nearly 800 pages, consisting of numerous reminiscences, mostly brief anecdotes, of the late Swami Ranganathananda, the 13th president of the Ramakrishna Order. As a vigorous world traveler and lecturer on Vedanta for many years before his assumption of the presidency, there must be still thousands of the swami’s acquaintances around the world with reminiscences to relate, which do not appear in that book. The following is my humble offering: I had met Swami Ranganathananda several times in Canada and the U.S. and I think we knew each other pretty well. Among the things I remember are: once he sang arati at our home in British Columbia sometime around 1970; he gave the nickname “Ravi” to our younger son; and he interpreted my wife’s name, Devra (which derives f rom “bee” in Hebrew), in Sanskrit (using an obscure form) as “in a condition to become a devi.”

But this article is not about those earlier meetings; it’s about a brief encounter in Hyderabad in the early spring of 1981.

I thought I had planned well for a brief tour of some of the Ramakrishna Order centers in South India. I had sent letters to the heads of the centers I planned to visit, including with them a copy of a letter of introduction from a swami in the U.S., indicating my arrival time, how long I planned on staying, etc. The Ramakrishna Math in Hyderabad, where at that time Swami Ranganathananda was the head, was to be one of my first stops.

I very much looked forward to meeting the swami again.

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The Monk Without Frontiers/Reminiscences of Swami Ranganathananda, Advaita Ashrama, Kolkata, 2008

by allen R. freedman

It was early evening when the plane landed in Hyderabad. The other passengers and I were walking in a line towards the terminal. Then I saw a crowd of people with Swami Ranganathananda standing

Calcutta right now,” he replied.

“Oh.” Well, at least the crowd made sense now. They had been assembled to board a plane for Calcutta.

The swami said, “Stay at the ashram.”

“OK.” I waved again and proceeded to the baggage claim area. I was sad that I would not get to visit with Swami Ranganathananda during my stay in Hyderabad.

Waiting for my suitcase to appear in baggage claim, I suddenly heard my name called out. I turned around and there was Swami Ranganathananda standing in front of me. He was accompanied by one of his party and an airport guard who continually repeated, “Please sir, we must go. Please sir, we must go.”

We exchanged a few words regarding my travel plans. Then he asked for a piece of paper.

Luckily, I had a notebook in my carry-on bag. I opened it to a blank page and handed it and a pen to the swami.

With the guard and now his own companion urging him Swami Ranganathananda to return to the boarding area, 1908 – 2005 he frantically scribbled someat the front of it. I thought, “Wow! What thing on the page. I didn’t read it but did a reception! He didn’t have to do that. I notice his signature at the bottom. He could have made my way to the ashram said, “Show this to Swami —.” (I have myself. And so many people!” forgotten the name.) Then he turned and I waved to him and he saw me and started to walk away with the two other waved back with a quizzical expression. men. I called out, “How much should the I broke out of the line to approach the taxi fare be to the ashram?” swami and the huge welcoming commitWithout hesitation he said over his tee. Instantly, an airport security guard shoulder, “Fifteen rupees,” and then he jumped in front of me, arms extended to was gone. both sides, “Please sir, stay in line, enter I got my bag and went outside where, the terminal.” as expected, I was met by a bevy of taxi Still about 20 feet away f rom the drivers eager for business. I said, “Raswami, the rest of this conversation took makrishna Math. How much?” I think place over the shoulder of the guard who the lowest number I heard was 60 rupees. was trying to get me to move along. I said, “But I just spoke with Swami Rangana“I’ve come for a visit. I sent you a letter.” thananda and he said the fare should be “I didn’t get any letter. I’m going to 15 rupees. Look, here is his signature.” I GLOBAL VEDANTA

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pointed to his signature in the notebook.

The taxi driver who was standing closest to me looked at the signature and called back to his colleagues, “Ho!, Ranganathananda!” I heard his name uttered by some of the drivers and then, to my great surprise, several of them offered the ride for 15 rupees! Evidently, the name carried some weight in Hyderabad.

It was the waning minutes of the twilight hour as the taxi pulled into the math compound. Three monks were standing by the office door. I got out and asked the driver to wait a few minutes. My idea was that if for some reason I was not able to stay at the math, I would go in that same taxi to a nearby hotel and get a room. I approached the monks and discovered happily that one of them was the swami I was supposed to see.

Addressing him, I explained who I was, that I had sent a letter that was not received, that I had just met Swami Ranganathananda in the airport, and that he went to great trouble to come out of the boarding area and write this note for him. Then I presented the notebook opened to the page with the note.

The swami took the notebook and read the note. Then he seemed to just stare at the note. He stared at it for a long time.

Finally, I said, “Is there a problem?”

The swami said, “It says here to accommodate you in the hostel.”

“Yes?” I replied, questioningly.

“We don’t have a hostel,” was the surprising answer from the swami.

At this point the driver, losing money by the second, asked for his fare. I said, I think in a slightly irritated tone, “Just wait!”

I took the notebook back from the swami and read the note for the first time.

Indeed, the writing was scribbled, but the words were easy enough to make out. It read: Please accommodate Mr. Freedman in hostel Ranganathananda.

“Why would Swami Ranganathananda say to accommodate me in a hostel when you don’t have a hostel?” I asked.

The swami replied incredulously, “I don’t know.” His thought must have been, Vol. xiv, No. 2

however, “Is this guy a rogue and a cheat or what?”

I said, pointing to the notebook page, “But he signed the note, this is his signature, isn’t it,” The swami acknowledged the signature, but his thought must have been, “… and an expert forger to boot!”

“Well, what should I do?” I asked, fully expecting to get back into the taxi and head for a hotel. At least this would relieve the driver of his fidgeting which was becoming more intense as the minutes passed.

The swami remained quiet for sometime. Then, suddenly, he asked a worker to move

my bag to a certain room and told me I could stay in the math. I probably will never know the basis upon which that swami made his decision. I like to think that it was just a small manifestation of Sri Ramakrishna’s infinite compassion that permeates the whole of the Ramakrishna Order.

The taxi driver was paid his 15 rupees plus a generous tip for waiting and he sped off.

After dinner, I retired to my room determined to get to the bottom of this mystery of the note. I placed the notebook on a desk that had a small lamp. I began staring at the note. Knowing that Swami Ranganathananda could not possibly have written what we think the note says, I tried to concentrate on its true meaning.

I think I concentrated rather deeply on that note. It would be good if I were able to reach a similar level of concentration in my spiritual practice!

Finally, around 2:30 or 3:00 AM, it struck me. Since the Swami had written “hostel” and there was no hostel the key must be in that word. Shortly after this thought the true meaning jumped off the page: In hostel the o was not an o, but an a with the final loop failing to make enough of a descent necessary to assure an a.

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A bump in the cursive between the t and the l, which we had been interpreting as an e, was not an e, but just that, a meaningless bump. And the l at the end of the word was not an l, but an oversized e. With these revelations the note reads (properly punctuated and capitalized by me): Please accommodate Mr. Freedman.

In haste, Ranganathananda After this I slept well, knowing that I would be able to vindicate myself in the morning and remove any lingering doubts the swami in charge of the ashram might have about my character.

In the morning I entered the breakfast room, notebook in hand, and found the swami already eating.

I approached him saying, “Maharaj, I have solved the mystery. The word here is not hostel but haste. You see, Swami Ranganathananda was in a great hurry when he wrote this note. So it says, ‘In haste, Ranganathananda.’ ” The swami glanced at the page for, I estimate, less than half a second, certainly not long enough to check out my theory, and turned back to his breakfast without a word. It was as if he said, “I made my decision last night, problem solved!”

Sayings of Swami Vivekananda Religion is realisation; not talk,nor doctrine, nor theories, however beautiful they may be. It is being and becoming, not hearing or acknowledging; it is the whole soul becoming changed into what it believes.

Truth does not pay homage to any society, ancient or modern. Society has to pay homage to Truth, or die.

What good is it, if we acknowledge in our prayers that God is the Father of us all, and in our daily lives do not treat every man as our brother?

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“Good vibrations”—a reconsideration

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by stafford smith

thias

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and stereotypes lie hidden some valuable insights into how America might navigate its present predicament.

In the context of long term social utility, the most important legacy of the hippy movement was its efforts to challenge the dominant materialistic culture. These took many diverse forms—a back to the land movement, organic farming, traditional arts and crafts, respect for native cultures, environmentalism, sustainable energy sources, alternative schools and a wide-ranging interest in mystical and earth-centered religions.

Much of this, of course, turned out to be impractical and of short duration. As young couples married and had children the ability of many to survive at the lower end of the economic scale vanished as they found themselves forced to return to mainstream occupations and lifestyles—occasionally with a vengeance, but more often in a low key manner adjusted to a more modest level of material existence.

As America’s debtfueled consumption binge unwinds, and the environmental consequences of this extravagance become apparent to even the dullest and most devoutly conventional minds, many of the lifestyle values that characterized the hippy movement are slowly coming back into fashion.

On a less tangible level, there was also a social side to the countercultural phenomenon that merits exploration. As the title of this piece suggests, in the Sixties the term “good vibrations” became a convenient code phrase for defining a social environment in which uplifting and joyful feelings were prevalent. It further implies that the process of interaction within a group has an identifiable characteristic dynamic, thus contradicting the notion, often encountered in Western society, that human beings are essentially discrete entities winding their lonely way through the immeasurable universe in self-contained capsules.

Although the terminology differs, this interactive dynamic should be recognizable to students of Vedantic literature. The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna contains numerous descriptions of positive group experiences engendered by the Master’s powerful spiritual states. Typical of them is the following entry from the chapter on the religious festival at Panihati: “The crowd seemed to become infected by the Master’s divine fervour and swayed to and fro, chanting the name of God, until es Ma Charl

n America, amidst the current swirling chaos of financial distress and political change, observers are beginning to discern a decline in the bitter cultural wars that have defined domestic discourse for decades. One obvious reason is that the personal experience of economic hardship tends to sharpen one’s sense of priorities. Becoming strenuously exercised over gun rights, stem cell research or the presence of gay people in the military is ultimately an indulgence—one really doesn’t have time to fret over such secondary matters if there is no food on the table. New York Times columnist Frank Rich, in a March 15, 2009 opinion piece, put it like this: What has happened between 2001 and 2009 to so radically change the cultural climate? Here, at last, is one piece of good news in our global economic meltdown: Americans have less and less patience for the intrusive and divisive moral scolds who thrived in the bubbles of the Clinton and Bush years.

Culture wars are a luxury the country...can no longer afford.

A second factor may be that the newly elected president, Barack Obama, is the first American leader to emerge from a new generation that did not participate in the ideological battles of the Sixties and early Seventies, when the hugely controversial Vietnam War and the resultant countercultural youth movement split the country into warring camps.

Being unencumbered by a personal history from this era, Obama is blessed with the ability to communicate with individuals on both sides of the cultural divide.

In this moment of crisis, a respite in the cultural wars may also provide America an opportunity to step back from these long decades of unproductive conflict and sift through the rubble of the Sixties to see whether anything useful can be salvaged. Like most youthful exuberances the countercultural—or hippy—movement was beset by extreme behaviors and absolutist convictions, making it easy for critics to dismiss it altogether.

Most fundamentally, the young leaders of the movement lacked the maturity and wisdom to adequately manifest its stated higher aspirations. But even so, perhaps after more careful examination we may discover that beneath the facile caricatures

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the very air seemed to reverberate with it. Drums, cymbals and other instruments produced melodious sounds. The atmosphere became intense with spiritual fervour.”

This is nothing other than an example of “good vibrations,” albeit on a very high level. Taking the matter a step further, in the Vedantic analysis the ecstatic group experience related above would be described as one in which sattva guna, the principle of harmony, predominates. And as harmony implies an easy and natural convergence of energies, one also may conclude that a defining social characteristic of sattvic group interaction is trust. This idea was clearly expressed by the Holy Mother Sarada Devi in her famous parting message, where she advised devotees to overcome the egoistic barriers of social separation: Learn to make the whole world your own. No one is a stranger. The whole world is your own.

As other examples demonstrate, the beneficial influence of “good vibrations” does not require an outward display. It may be present in a subtle form unaccompanied by any obvious public manifestation. Swami Brahmananda, one of the greatest disciples of Sri Ramakrishna and the first president of the Ramakrishna Order, was famous for his ability to alter the dynamic of a group through his simple presence. The following passage f rom The Disciples of Ramakrishna (Advaita Ashrama, Mayavati, 1943) describes this phenomenon: His presence was enough to solve many complex problems which had troubled people for many, many weary years. Innumerable persons had such experiences. ....Once there was so much disaffection amongst the members in a certain centre that the whole atmosphere was vitiated. When all other remedies failed Swami Brahmananda was approached and persuaded to visit the centre. When he went to the place he did not at all inquire into the grievances of the individual members. His presence created such a great wave of spiritual enthusiasm that all petty problems were automatically resolved.

So what does all this have to do with global economic collapse and a groggy hangover from the last great unbridled

celebration of American consumption?

Here, briefly, is the connection. America is a collectivity of immigrants from all over the world who, because of mutual unfamiliarity, have little history of trusting one another. Moreover, materialistic

we may not all produce the impact of a Swami Brahmananda, monastics and serious devotees who have attained a level of detachment from the inevitable misfortunes of the material world nonetheless can have a beneficial influence.

Such individuals can provide a powerful demonstration of the capacity of the human mind to free itself from the bondage of maya. If instead of constant distraught and compulsive chatter about subprime mortgages, plunging stock markets and burgeoning government deficits, people encounter peacefulness, kindness and unfailing good cheer—coupled with an opportunity for spiritual instruction on how to achieve this calm state of mind—they will be inspired to emulate this compelling behavior in the same way that iron filings are drawn to a magnet.

A Vedanta center can help alleviate social anxiety and distress by providing a protected oasis where the seeds of inner peacefulness can germinate and thrive.

The ultimate test of national greatness is not how gloriously a country exploits the easy times but how well it responds to difficulty and misfortune. In a time of crisis, a nation which expends more energy on searching for scapegoats than for solutions will be incapable of success.

If America is to reverse what increasingly seems to be a major downward spiral, it will need an infusion of social trust and comradeship birthed by and radiating out f rom centered and dispassionate minds. Call it preponderance of sattva; call it “good vibrations”. But however you choose to frame it, Americans need to create an atmosphere of cooperation and confidence—faith in themselves, faith in their fellow citizens and faith in the Compassionate Mother, who will guide and support them as they venture into the unknown. Perhaps, on further reflection, those crazy hippies were on the right track after all.

The Vedanta Societies of North America are well-positioned to play a constructive part in repairing the fabric of social trust in a time of turmoil. The role of a positive example can be instrumental in dispelling fear and uncertainty.

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societies are built on a foundation of individual greed in which the participants intrinsically view themselves as separate and atomistic. Desire, when frustrated, generates anger. Economic collapse means above all the frustration of material desires. In a society already atomized and generally lacking in strong social bonds, the impending economic crisis will result in an increase in anger and desperation, bringing in its wake dysfunctional public policy responses as well as higher incidences of antisocial and even violent behavior.

The only effective way to counteract this trend is to encourage and foster feelings of trust so that they may become strong enough to overcome fear and anger. If fear and anger can be subdued, then public discourse can focus on how to fix the problems, rather than simply providing a stage for performance of an unsatisfying mass therapy for the disgruntled and confused.

The Vedanta Societies of North America are well-positioned to play a constructive part in repairing the fabric of social trust in a time of turmoil. The role of a positive example can be instrumental in dispelling fear and uncertainty. While GLOBAL VEDANTA

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the philosopher dog’s advice to his grandpuppies

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philosophy of Vedanta, the great religion of India. I personally relish and enjoy listening when they read Vedanta books.

I especially like Global Vedanta, a quarterly journal of the Ramakrishna Order. Of course my favorite article is entitled The Dogs of Belur Math.

My mother mastered the art of listening in her early days and taught it to me. We learned many things while lying under the dining room table, keeping our ears open as family members discussed events or read aloud from various books. We gradually came to understand as true what the Sicilian dogs have been proclaiming for centuries—that under-thetable activities add wealth and richness to life without being taxing.

That was long ago, before computers and a host of electronic toys all but killed the practice of families reading aloud. In those good old days when the term “mega-bite” came up in conversation, everyone eyed us dogs with either a benign or an unkindly glance, depending on which end of the bite one’s loyalties and sympathies lay.

That was a good lesson. I learned that one’s actions are often met with both praise and blame—it is just in the nature of things. I miss those evenings of family reading. They are only occasional now and not habitual as before. I feel like barking when I think about those glory days of my early life. But then my Vedantic realism kicks in and I keep quiet. I am well aware that nowadays the byte is truly larger and more powerful than the bark.

Many pearls of truth were gleaned from the family readings as I was gradually being transformed into a philosopher dog. One is the Vedantic teaching that pleasure and pain, enjoyment and suffering, health and illness, prosperity and penury, are all necessary pigments in the greater, more sublime picture of life. These arl

es

M

ath

ias

allowed inside where the opportunity to listen to human conversation and reading is available. This indoor privilege has continued for generations because we are well-liked. The men are truly fond of us because we don’t shop.

The women of this farm love us because they are naturally disposed to think we are cute and cuddly. But an additional reason is we don’t react negatively to the color

Ch

P

lato said, “A dog has the soul of a philosopher.” As a dog of long standing (I also sit and lie down) I’m not sure I see it that way. Maybe our distant mutt ancestors of ancient Athens were of higher pedigree or perhaps Plato had a dyslexic moment and wrote dog instead of god. He eloquently puts forth the need for a philosopher king to be the ruler of society. But a philosopher dog as ruler and leader? Let’s not go there. I’ve become a realist in my old age. But this I am sure of, that we can be loyal.

Please remember that it was one of us that was so loyal to Yudhisthira, that ancient king of India. Also, we can adopt a code to live by. If that qualifies us as philosophers, then so be it.

Time has a way of easing the burden of detail from the mind of one who has endured many winters and feels no more the youthful rejuvenation that springtime infuses into the paws of a young tyke.

I really can’t remember if I’ve already been fed tonight. That is a detail a younger mutt would be all-consumed by. If my daily, obligatory chasing of the family cat has been executed yet, I only know by the presence or absence of lingering pain in my wornout legs. But even an old cur like myself remembers what brought me to accept Vedanta as my guiding philosophy of life, and become in my own humble estimation a philosopher dog.

I invite all you pups to come closer, rest and warm your fur near the open fire, have a complimentary milk-bone from my personal stash, and indulge this grey-muzzled mutt with your attention for a spell. A few words from an aged philosopher dog will not hurt you. What I have to say is true, but please don’t hound me for too many additional details.

As you grow older you will come to see that we dogs are the privileged animals on this farm that is our home. We are

by swami manishananda

pink like their husbands do. Let them wear pink curlers, what do we care? Now, listen up pups, none of you should tell any of the women that we are to a great extent colorblind. And the children love us because we never tell them to go to bed early or not to get dirty while playing.

The children also appreciate our presence under the dining room table, especially at mealtime when they secretly slip us tasty morsels on which they would gag.

We are fortunate that our human masters here are very universal in their outlook regarding philosophy and religion. Such a wide variety of books and magazine articles are read here. They know how to cultivate more than just the earth. I sensed early on that our masters were much inclined toward the universal GLOBAL VEDANTA

spring 2009

pairs of opposites impress on the mind that this is a relative world and one should not expect absolute happiness here. One should seek ultimate joy in the Supreme Being that dwells in the hearts of all.

We should gradually evolve from a dogcentered life to a God-centered one. I had to learn to think outside the doghouse to understand this. The difficulty I faced was this—I could not always translate those noble thoughts entirely into action. That being the case, my exploits invariably led me back into the doghouse. Somehow this cycle had to be broken. The process of being housebroken was painful enough, but the challenge of being a housedog always in the doghouse but trying to think outside the doghouse was even rougher.

Nobody said the life of a philosopher dog was going to be easy!

It’s strange who and what inspire us to examine our present state and to try to dig out some meaning. Even as natural diggers, it is generally not “meaning” that we canines are after, unless it is somehow connected with our olfactory organ. But in my case, the suffering I experienced from insecurities and feeling a lack of selfworth forced me to dig deep for genuine, odorless meaning. And along with meaning and a deepening of the spiritual sense came discrimination regarding worldly scents. I came to understand that knowing and nosing are not the same. But when combined and properly directed they are unbeatable. So I urge each of you pups to develop a nose for knowing, especially to know yourself.

One night, as I occupied my favorite spot under the large dining room table where the nightly readings occurred, my ears perked up when I heard the mistress of the house announce, “Tonight we are going to read Mark Twain’s short story A Dog’s Tale.”

The feelings and reactions that passed through me when she commenced reading are distinctly furrowed in my memory.

With a clear and serious voice the mistress of the house intoned, “My father was a St. Bernard, my mother was a collie, but I am a Presbyterian. This is what my mother told me ….” Wow! This dog really knew who he was. He was a Presbyterian! Bravo! Will someone please yelp AMEN! Some months later our farm family read the Bhagavad Gita and my underVol. xiv, No. 2

standing of self-knowledge grew. Many happy hours passed lying under the dining room table hearing those immortal words of Sri Krishna and learning that self-knowledge is more than just identifying with a particular religious denomination—it is realizing your own true, infinite divine nature. Bravo! Someone please yelp ATMAN! I had to chew on those grand utterances of Sri Krishna until the marrow of the ideas strengthened my powers of understanding. Now listen up pups. We dogs are relentless chewers, and table legs are almost impossible to resist. But, if you want to become a philosopher dog and take advantage of under-the-table privileges, you will have to renounce table legs.

During one period of my youth I suffered greatly from an identity crisis. You will come to learn that growing up on a farm makes it doggone hard to know who you are at times. There are so many different creatures all trying to establish their presence and manifest their individuality on a few acres of land. It can be very confusing! As a pup I wanted to be a cat so badly that I convinced myself for a time that in truth I was a cat. Cats always have ample time to ignore, but seldom are in the mood to adore. And that disposition suited me very well until canine impulses kicked in and I just had to wag my tail.

But constant adoring gets old even for a young dog. We do it to get food and a little affection, and have learned that pleasing our owners with a cute and graceful wag of the tail does wonders for our standard of living. But dog-gone-it, enough is enough! That can’t be the goal of life, especially for a philosopher dog.

Well pups, the hour is advancing and your mothers will be getting restless if you don’t show up soon for bed. I’ve rambled long enough for one night, but we’ll meet again when the opportunity arises. For now, I bid you good-night and may you have inspiring dreams of Plato, Spinoza, Shankara, Kant and other great philosophers. But more importantly, dream about your own infinite potential. Dream that one day you too will join the exalted line of philosopher dogs that this farm has never been without.

GLOBAL VEDANTA

books from

viveka press

available from The Vedanta Society of Wester n Washington (most can also be obtained from AMAZON .COM) Life in Indian Monasteries—$14.95 The Philosophical Verses of Yogavāsishtha—$9.95 Meditation, Mind and Patanjali’s Yoga—$14.50 The Essentials of Hinduism—$14.50 Reminiscences of Swami Brahmananda—$14.95 Journey From Many to One—$15.95

Special offer: FREE SHIPPING to USA addresses on orders of two or more Viveka Press titles.

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9

HUMOR—THE SPICE OF LIFE

Treat a man as he appears to be, and you make him worse. But treat a man as if he were what he potentially could be, and you make him what he should be.

—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Cherokee Wisdom

One evening, an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said, “My son, the battle is between two ‘wolves’ inside us all. One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

“The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.”

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, “Which wolf wins?”

The old Cherokee simply replied, “The one you feed.”

Politicians and diapers have one thing in common. They both should be changed regularly and for the same reason. ji It’s easier to fight for ones’ principles than to live up to them. ji Atheism is a non-prophet organization.

The Crash

John was out for a walk when he heard a great crash behind him. He turned around and saw a “New York’s Super Soft Drinks” delivery truck overturned, with soda pop flowing out everywhere on the street. The driver seemed to be all right but was wailing, “Woe is me, woe is me,” nevertheless. A large crowd gathered around.

The man himself then took off his cap and placed it on the ground next to the driver. And taking a $20 bill out of his wallet, he put it in the hat. “Well,” he tells the crowd, “what are you waiting for?!

Help this poor man out. It will do your soul good.”

The crowd surged forward and very soon the hat was overflowing with money.

The man picked up the cap and gave it to the driver. “Here, my good man, this will go a long way to help you out of trouble.

Take this back to your company’s office and give it to your boss.”

As the man walked away, John said to the driver, “What a selfless act! I’d like to write to the newspapers about this. Have you ever seen him before? Do you know him?”

“Sure,” said the driver, “that’s my boss!”

Quips He can compress the most words into the smallest ideas better than any man I ever met.—Abrahman Lincoln ji All are lunatics, but he who can analyze his delusions is called a philosopher.— Ambrose Bierce ji Never test the depth of the water with both feet. ji It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others. ji If you tell the truth you don’t have to remember anything. ji If you lend someone money, and never see that person again, it was probably worth it. ji Never ask a barber if he thinks you need a haircut. ji Sometimes the majority only means that all the fools are on the same side. ji 10

Charles Mathias

John asked the driver, “Are you all right?”

“No, I’m not hurt, but my boss is going to deduct the loss of all this soda pop from my paycheck. I’ll probably go bankrupt.”

Then from the crowd one man stepped forward and implored the crowd, “Did you hear this poor man? He’s going to owe a lot of money that he doesn’t have, because of this accident. He will have to go into debt, and might even go bankrupt and starve to death. We can’t let this happen. We must help him.”

GLOBAL VEDANTA

Love Endures Bill and Mary had been married years over 50 years. For the last couple of years their daughter Jane noticed that her father always called her mother by endearing names such as “honey, sweetheart, and darling,” instead of her actual name.

Deeply touched at seeing how much he still loved her mother, and finding him alone one day, Jane told her father, “Dad, I’m so moved and thrilled to see that after spring 2009

all these years together, you still care so much about Mom and call her by such loving, sweet names.”

But her father, looking sheepish, replied, “Well… you see... I forgot your mother’s name about two years ago.”

The Witness

POETS’ CORNER

The Mango Grove

The gods must laugh while we count, in the chill of conscious ignorance, the last spark of candle power, effused perhaps, by some doubtful sun eternities away; even while time devours our days relentlessly.

Mr. Jackson is testifying in court as a witness to a burglary. He is an elderly Do gods smile or do gods weep, gentleman and the defense lawyer is trythat generations labour ing to take advantage of that fact. to cast a noose about the sun, “You say that you saw my client comcatch the moon in a net, mit this burglary?” asks the lawyer. and measure, weigh, evaluate, “Yes,” says Jackson, “I very clearly saw the immense immeasurable, him snatch the items.” till all the wonder is “But Mr. Jackson,” counters the lawyer, dragged into the known— “this crime took place at night. Are you forgetting, so easy forgetting absolutely certain it was my client?” all our proud knowledge ends in death.

Mr. Jackson points at the defendant.

All facts end in death.

“Yes, I definitely saw that man do it.”

All our gathering “But you are over 80 years old, Mr. ends in death.

Jackson. Your eyes are probably weaker What use are facts, now than when you were a young man. when the reaper comes?

Just how far can you see at night?”

All gathering knots the net “I can see the moon, how far is that?” even while time devours our days relentlessly; replies Mr. Jackson. time devours our days relentlessly; time devours, our days, The Stick Up relentlessly.

Late one night in Washington, DC, The gods laugh, knowing a thief dressed in black jumped into the how sweet, path of a well-dressed man and stuck but so easily forgotten, a gun in his ribs. “Hand over all your the dynamic faith of not-knowing. money!” he shouted.

They cast reasoning to the winds Outraged, the man shouted back, “You in the blissful ignorance of innocence, can’t do this—I’m a U.S. Congressman!” for the gods are overjoyed, “In that case,” demanded the robber, in a blissful insecurity “give me back MY money!” no knowledge can match, being gods.

More Quips Here in the mango grove Some people get lost in thought, bebe then as gods; cause it is such unfamiliar territory. abandon all; ji laugh dance and sing The quickest way to double your eating the fruit. money is to fold it in half and put it back Let the calculators in your wallet. count the leaves, weigh the twigs — Will Rogers measure the trees, ji while the godlike, eating mangoes, If you find yourself in a hole, stop diglaugh dance and sing, ging. because — Will Rogers time devours our days.

Vol. xiv, No. 2

On a Chilly Winter Morning

A sky of sapphire, Like a gem, Stained grey with clouds, Harnesses life above us, In the distance, A crow takes flight, Cawing, Breaking the silent spell of morning.

Crisp drafts fall upon us, The sign of winter’s rule, The smell of pollen lingers in the air, As spring peeps its head, Through the winter’s shield, Silver Firs take turns swaying majestically, Their full limbs, thick with greenery, Looking down at the other evergreens, as if inferior, They stand, Chests heaved with pride, While others, Look scattered about as if by accident, Lie lifeless, Thin, spindly limbs, Hanging mid air, Braving through the violent Seattle winter, Hoping its nearly over, A robin, Perches her tiny claws on one of these limbs, Precariously it shakes, Chirping wholeheartedly, The robin summons an entire fleet of fowl, Causing havoc, as they struggle, To fit themselves upon the helpless tree, An airplane coasts blissfully, Across the smooth sky, Now streaked orange with the first rays of sunlight, On a chilly winter morning.

Om Chatterji

Russell Atkinson

GLOBAL VEDANTA

11

is vedanta hinduism? by swami bhaskarananda

[This article was first published in the Society? Were the words Vedanta and second issue of Global Vedanta (Vol. I, No. Hinduism identical to him, or were they 2, September, 1996). It is reprinted here, different? Let us try to find out. with very slight editing, at the request of In his lectures, Swami Vivekananda some readers of Global Vedanta.–ed.] clearly expressed his dislike for the way n an interfaith dialogue organized the word Hindu is used today. The word by a Vedanta Center in the United Hindu is a distorted pronunciation of the States, two speakers spoke on Ve- word Sindhu, a river which formed the danta. One of them claimed that Vedanta boundary between ancient Persia and Inwas no other than Hinduism, while the dia. The English name of the river Sindhu other insisted that Vedanta was certainly is Indus. The Persians, for some unknown not Hinduism; rather, it was the universal reason, gradually started using the word religion of the future. Later, a univer- Hindu to mean the people living on the sity professor who had come to represent other side of the river. The ancestors of the Christianity commented, “To me, it ap- Hindus did not call themselves by that pears that Vedanta has an identity crisis!” name, nor did they know the word Hindu.

The professor was not completely They knew themselves as Aryas, and wrong. It is true that the word “ Vedanta” called their religion Sanatana Dharma— is frequently misunderstood or the Eternal Religion. understood to mean difDuring Muslim rule in ferent things by many India, the word Hindu Vedanta followers in was adopted by the the West. I have descendants of the heard many of Aryas to differenthem say, “We tiate themselves a r e Ve d a n from the tists. We are Muslims.1 not Hindus!”

In course S o m e s a y, of time the “ Ve d a n t a Europeans is the phicreated the losophy of word Hinmonism. duism to We accept mean the Ve d a n t i c religion of monism, we the Hindus. certainly Underdon’t belong s t a n d a b l y, Swami Vivekato Hinduism!” nanda objected Considering to his ancestors these conflicting and his ancestral reviews, it seems it is ligion being branded time for us to deterwith the name of a river. mine what Vedanta really Nevertheless, he said, means.

Swami Vivekananda “There may not be any It was Swami Vive1863 – 1902 harm in using the word kananda who first popularized the term Vedanta in the West. [Hindu]…but…it lost its significance, What was his understanding of the word for you may mark that all the people who Vedanta when he introduced it here? In what sense did he use this term when he 1. Swami Vivekananda, The Complete Works of founded a religious association in New Swami Vivekananda (Calcutta: Advaita Ashrama, 1955) vol. III, page 118.

York, in 1894, and named it the Vedanta

I

12

GLOBAL VEDANTA

live on this side of the Indus in modern times do not follow the same religion as they did in ancient times. The word, therefore, covers not only Hindus proper, but Mohammedans, Christians, Jains, and others who live in India. I, therefore, would not use the word Hindu. What word should we use then? The only other words which we can use are either the Vaidiks—followers of the Vedas—or better still, the Vedantists—followers of the Vedanta.” 2 Had he had a choice, Swami Vivekananda would surely have substituted the words Vedantist and Vedanta for Hindu and Hinduism. Unfortunately, he did not have that choice in India. The words Hindu and Hinduism had become so deeply entrenched there that they could not be dislodged.

But he wanted to give the words Vedanta and Vedantist a try in the West.

He named the first Hindu organization founded by him in New York in 1894 the Vedanta Society and started referring to Hindus as Vedantists. This precedent set by him has been followed by other Swamis of the Ramakrishna Order in the West. All the Ashramas started by them in Europe and the Americas are called either Vedanta Centers or Vedanta Societies.

Yet the question remains why Swami Vivekananda chose to replace the term Hinduism with the word Vedanta, and not with Sanatana Dharma. To understand why, we have to look at the period during which Swami Vivekananda grew up in India. During that time two powerful reform movements in Hinduism—the Brahmo Samaj and the Arya Samaj—challenged the conservative Hindu group called the Sanatanis (a name derived from Sanatana Dharma). The challenge of these two reformist churches reduced the Sanatanis to just another large sect of Hinduism defending itself. The name Sanatana Dharma could not therefore be a happy choice for Swami Vivekananda.

This kind of fragmentation of Hinduism into more and more newer sects, 2. Ibid., page 118.

spring 2009

3. Ibid., page 228.

Vol. xiv, No. 2

divinity of all souls.

Swami Vivekananda was also aware of a special quality of Hinduism—its ability to assimilate religious ideas coming from various sources, foreign or indigenous.

This trait of Hinduism was obviously generated, among other things, by the Vedic statement—“One [God] only exists, the sages call That by various names.” It is this spirit of assimilation which made Gautama Buddha an Avatara of Hinduism.

But at a much later period in Indian history, owing to a false sense of superiority, Hindus invented the derogatory word “mlechchha,” meaning a foreigner, a non-Aryan, or a barbarian. From then onwards, mlechchhas and their cultures were carefully shunned by the Hindus.

In Swami Vivekananda’s opinion, this destroyed Hinduism’s ability to assimilate newer ideas coming f rom foreign sources. According to him the decadence of H i n d u i s m p ro b a b l y started the very day the word mlechchha was invented.

The advent of Sri Ramakrishna, however, gave a new direction to Hinduism.

Long before him Lord Krishna had tried to harmonize the different spiritual disciplines of Hinduism. Other godmen, like Sri Chaitanya, had tried to remove caste-based differences. But among the Hindu saints, Sri Ramakrishna was the first to accept all the different faiths of the world as so many paths leading to the same Spiritual Goal. And in so doing he reactivated the lost assimilating power of Hinduism. The followers of Sri Ramakrishna now look upon Jesus as an incarnation of God, and adore and worship him along with other Hindu deities. It is this revitalized Hinduism Swami Vivekananda called Vedanta—a religion with the power to assimilate all valid forms of spirituality, no matter from which source, and make them its own.

Charles Mathias and Bhaskar Puri

no matter with what noble intent, obvi- speaks of the essential divinity of all souls. ously did not please the great Swami. He The Vishishtadvaita school of Ramanuja wanted to remedy this harmful and divi- also accepts the divinity of all souls (every sive sectarianism by drawing attention to individual soul being an integral part the common scriptural basis of all Hindu of Paramatman or God). Anandatirtha sects—the Vedas.

(Madhvacharya) of the Dvaita school He admitted that it was very hard also accepts the divinity of every soul, asto find a common name for Hinduism, serting that each soul is a part of God or because “this religion is a collection, so to Paramatman. speak, of various religions, of various ideas, Other than the above three subschools of various ceremonials and forms, all gathered Did together almost without I Start all a name, and without a this?

I thought church, and without an Vedanta would be organization. The only non-sectarian! point where, perhaps, all our sects agree is that we all believe in the scriptures—the Vedas.”3 The Vedas are divided into two parts: (i) the Performance Part (Karma-Kanda), mostly containing details about the performance of various rituals, and (ii) the Knowledge Part ( Jnana-Kanda), containing the most lofty and sublime teachings of the Vedas. These sublime teachings are of Vedanta philosophy there are various mainly contained in the sections called other subschools such as (1) Bhaskara’s the Upanishads or Vedanta. Vedanta most school Bhedabheda-vada, (2) Baladeva’s eloquently speaks of the perfection and school of Achintya-bhedabheda-vada, (3) divinity of the soul.

Nimbarka’s school of Dvaitadvaita-vada, The Vedantic teachings have always etc. All of these schools accept that each been considered the highest authority soul, being a part of either God or Brahby all the great teachers of Hinduism— man, is divine. whether dualist, qualified monist, or Some Vedantists in the West think that monist. In spite of their differences, all Swami Vivekananda wanted to teach only Hindu sects are rooted in the Vedantic Advaitism or monism there. They tend teachings which form the common basis to think that wherever he used the word of Hinduism. This is why Swami Vive- Vedanta he used it to mean Advaitism. kananda wanted to rename Hinduism, But Swami Vivekananda says, “I do not Vedanta. mean to preach Advaitism, or Dvaitism, The word Vedanta has another mean- or any ism in the world. The only ism that ing. It is also the name of a school of we require now is this wonderful idea of Hindu philosophy consisting of three the soul—its eternal might, its eternal main subschools: (i) Advaitism (monism), strength, its eternal purity, and its eternal (ii) Vishishtadvaitism (qualified monism), perfection.” 4 and (iii) Dvaitism (dualism). All of these Swami Vivekananda came to the three subschools accept the divinity of West to preach this essential teaching of the soul. The Advaita school of Shankara Hinduism—the Vedantic message of the 4. Ibid., page 242.

GLOBAL VEDANTA

13

VEDANTA NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD INDIA

Consecration of Sri Ramakrishna Temple at Ramakrishna Math, Barisha, in Kolkata. On February 9th, Swami Atmasthananda, President of the Ramakrishna Order, consecrated the Sri Ramakrishna Temple at the Barisha Math with its newly installed marble image of Sri Ramakrishna. Swamis Atmasthananda, Smaranananda, Prameyananda and Prab-

well-attended public meeting held in the afternoon.

The Rajkot Ashrama celebrates the birthday of Sri Ramakrishna with great festivity. Attended by monks, devotees, local schools and many visitors, the

New monks’ quarters and guesthouse Mayavati

Musical program, Rajkot

Universal Temple, Barisha

hananda addressed the public meeting organized on this occasion. About 450 monastics and more than 16,000 devotees attended the function.

Belur Math celebrates Sri Ramakrishna’s birthday. Sri Ramakrishna’s birthday was observed in Belur Math on February 27th with due solemnity and grandeur.

Thousands of devotees attended the event consisting of worship, devotional singing,

celebration began at dawn with mangalaarati, worship, meditation, and chanting of Vedic mantras and hymns. The other programs consisted of a colorful procession, a fancy dress competition for school students, a drama on the life of Sri Ramakrishna and devotional music. A public meeting on the life and message of Sri Ramakrishna was also held.

Many thousand devotees attended the event.

The charitable dispensary of the Rajkot Ashrama inaugurates its upgraded and renovated cerebral palsy and physiotherapy department. On April 3rd, Swami Vagishananda, President, Ramakrishna

Swami Smaranananda, Vice-President of the Ramakrishna Order, consecrated the newly built monks’ quarters and guesthouse of the Advaita Ashrama at Mayavati on March 19th.

Sri Sarada Math has a new President.

Pravrajika Bhaktiprana, who is 89 years

Pravrajika Bhaktiprana

old, took over as the fourth president of Sri Sarada Math and Ramakrishna Sarada Mission in Dakshineswar, on Thursday, April 2, 2009. She succeeds Pravrajika Shraddhaprana, who passed away in February.

BANGLADESH

New Physiotherapy Center, Rajkot

Sri Ramakrishna’s birth anniversary Belur Math

Vedic chanting, etc. Cooked Prasad was served to about 29,000 devotees. Swami Prabhananda, General Secretary of the Ramakrishna Order, presided over the 14

Math, Mumbai, inaugurated the upgraded and renovated Ma Sarada Physiotherapy and Cerebral Palsy Rehabilitation Center of the charitable dispensary of Sri Ramakrishna Ashrama, Rajkot. Monks of the Ashrama, devotees, doctors, paramedical professionals, some children with cerebral palsy and their family members were present at the ceremony.

New monks’ quarters and guesthouse at the Mayavati Ashrama consecrated.

GLOBAL VEDANTA

Ramakrishna Mission, Dinajpur, Bangladesh, observes Sri Ramakrishna’s birth anniversary. From February 27th to March 2nd, the Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama in Dinajpur organized a four-day celebration of Sri Ramakrishna’s birthday, which was attended by numerous devotees and friends. On 27th March there was special worship of Sri Ramakrishna.

During the following four days of the celebration there were meetings on various religious and socio-religious topics in which several speakers spoke, including Swamis Vamanananda and Bhaktipraspring 2009

dananda; Dr. Balaram Roy; Dr. Jitendra Nath Sarkar; Dr. Asit Ray and Prof. Janab Masudul Haque. Swami Vamanananda, the President of Ramakrishna Math, Baranagar, (West Bengal), was the guest speaker from India. The musical programs held during the celebration consisted of Ramayan Gan and songs by eminent TV artistes and other musicians.

THAILAND The newly formed Ramakrishna Vedanta Society of Thailand organizes an event to honor a visiting Swami of the Ramakrishna Order. To honor the visit of Swami Shantatmananda, the swamiin-charge of the Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama, New Delhi, the Ramakrishna Vedanta Society of Thailand held a series of religious meetings with the Swami every evening from February 17th to 20th.

In those meetings the Swami delivered illuminating discourses on various aspects of spiritual life. His visit gave a new impetus to the society’s efforts to spread the messages of Sri Ramakrishna, the Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi and Swami Vivekananda in Thailand.

Swami Shantatmananda (second from left) with interfaith speakers in Thailand

The Swami also participated as a speaker in an interfaith event held in Bangkok.

buses and cars.

Pilgrims, who come from a long distance away, have to walk sometimes for two days and nights to come to this place of pilgrimage. And every year the Ramakrishna Mission in Mauritius provides facilities for pilgrims to stay overnight in the Ashrama, and entertains them with juice, soft drinks, tea and other snacks.

Birth anniversary of Sri Ramakrishna celebrated in Mauritius. On Sri

CANADA

Sri Ramakrishna’s birth anniversary Mauritius

Ramakrishna’s birthday Swami Krishnarupanada, head of the Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama in Mauritius, performed a worship in the morning at the Ashrama’s temple in Vacoas. About 300 devotees attended the celebration.

It was followed by a short talk on Sri Ramakrishna. All devotees were served Prasad after the program.

In the evening, following the devotional songs, Swami Krishnarupananda gave an illuminating discourse in English on Sri Ramakrishna the Embodiment of Dispassion.

AUSTRALIA

Birth anniversary of Sri Ramakrishna observed by Sarada Math. The Ramakrishna Sarada Vedanta Society of New South Wales observed the public MAURITIUS celebration of Sri Ramakrishna’s birthShivaratri celebrated in Mauritius. day on March 8th with Vedic chanting, The Ramakrishna Mission, Mauritius, a symposium on Sri Ramakrishna, deobserved the worship of Lord Shiva votional songs and a talk by Pravrajika throughout the night of February 23rd. Ajayaprana.

Around 300 devotees attended the worship.

SWITZERLAND Two days before the Shivaratri festival, pilgrims from all over the island arrived at Sri Ramakrishna’s birth anniversary the sacred lake Grand Bassin (also known held in Geneva. A public celebration to as Ganga Talab), which is situated in the commemorate the birthday of Sri Racenter of the island, either on foot or by makrishna was organized by the Centre Vol. xiv, No. 2

Vedantique, Geneva, at its premises on Sunday, March 29th. The event began with Arati, which was followed by the singing of devotional songs in Bengali and Hindi, readings from The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, a talk in French on The Spiritual Basis of Solidarity by Frederik de Cock, Co-President, Millénium Solidarité, and a theatrical performance by some local young men and women. At the end, some 80 persons, who attended the event, were served supper.

GLOBAL VEDANTA

The Vedanta Society of Calgary celebrates the birthday of Sri Ramakrishna.

On March 7 th, The Calgary Vedanta Society observed the birth anniversary of Sri Ramakrishna with a special worship performed by Swami Kripamayananda, head of the Vedanta Society of Toronto.

Many devotees attended the event.

The birthday of Sri Ramakrishna observed in Vancouver BC, Canada. The Vivekananda Vedanta Society of British

Worship of Sri Ramakrishna Vancouver, Canada

Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, held a worship in commemoration of the birthday of Sri Ramakrishna on Thursday, February 12th. Swami Shantarupananda, head of the Vedanta Society of Portland, performed the worship.

UNITED STATES The Vedanta Society in Berkeley observes Shivaratri. On February 23rd, throughout the entire night, a special worship of Lord Shiva was performed by Swami Aparananda, head of the Berkeley Vedanta Society. In addition to the worship, there was a program of meditation, music, scriptural chanting, and the reading of sacred texts. Many devotees 15

participated in the celebration.

Shivaratri celebrated by the Vedanta Society of Sacramento. The celebration, held on February 23rd, consisted of meditation, worship, devotional singing, food offering, Arati, flower offering by devotees, holy chants, and distribution of Prasad. On February 22nd, Sunday, there was a discourse on Myths, Legends and Lord Shiva.

The Vedanta Society of Northern California celebrates Shivaratri in San Francisco. On February 23rd, a worship of Lord Shiva was performed at the Society’s spacious temple. It was followed by flower offering by devotees and devotional singing. Refreshments were served to those who attended the event. From 10:00 to 11:00 p.m. there was chanting from the scriptures and meditation.

The Vedanta Society of Western Washington in Seattle observes Shivaratri.

The evening worship of Lord Shiva was followed by devotional singing, flower offering by devotees and the distribution of Prasad. Fifty-six devotees attended. On Sunday, February 22nd, a talk was given by Swami Bhaskarananda on the topic: From Rudra to Shiva.

and teachings. In spite of snow, over 100 devotees attended.

Birthday celebration of Sri Ramakrishna Providence

The Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center of New York observes the birthday of Sri Ramakrishna. On February 27th, Friday, more than 100 devotees assembled in the Chapel to meditate and offer flowers.

Sri Ramakrishna’s birth anniversary Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center New York

Shivaratri, Seattle, Washington

The Vedanta societies in Portland, Hollywood, Boston and Greater Chicago also observed Shivaratri with worship, music, flower offerings and talks.

The Vedanta Society of Providence celebrates the birth anniversary of Sri Ramakrishna. The celebration began in the early morning of March 1st with meditation and holy chanting. It was followed by the worship of Sri Ramakrishna, holy readings and devotional singing. After lunch, a video on the life of Sri Ramakrishna was shown. Later, in a symposium on Sri Ramakrishna, two students from Brown University and a professor from Johnson and Wales University discussed Sri Ramakrishna’s life 16

Following that, there was Vedic chanting and devotional songs by the Center’s choir. Then the devotees offered their prayers and flowers to Sri Ramakrishna, Holy Mother and Swami Vivekananda.

The evening program concluded with refreshments served to all.

On March 1 st, Sunday, about 215 people braved a snowfall to attend the Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center’s most important annual celebration, the Special Service in commemoration of the birthday of the Sri Ramakrishna. The photograph of Sri Ramakrishna was decorated with beautiful flower arrangements. The program consisted of Vedic chants and devotional songs by the Center’s choir, as well as a talk by Swami Yuktatmananda on Sri Ramakrishna and His Message for Today. Those who attended the event were served a full-course luncheon.

The Vedanta Society of St. Louis observes Sri Ramakrishna’s birth anniversary. On February 27th, Friday, the GLOBAL VEDANTA

function began in the early morning with meditation and chanting, as well as holy reading, and flower offering by devotees.

Swami Chetanananda touched the relics of Sri Ramakrishna, Sri Sarada Devi the Holy Mother, Swami Vivekananda and some other disciples to the heads of the devotees. Prasad was served to all.

On March 1st, Sunday, Swami Chetanananda worshipped Sri Ramakrishna in the chapel, gave a brief talk on Sri Ramakrishna, and the Vedanta choir sang some devotional songs. At the end Prasad was served to the devotees.

Vedanta Society of Sacramento observes Sri Ramakrishna’s birthday. On February 27th, Friday, the society celebrated the occasion with meditation, worship, devotional singing, food offering, Arati, flower offering by devotees, holy chanting and Prasad.

On March 1st, Sunday, there was a talk on Sri Ramakrishna and Modern Man by Swami Prapannananda.

The Vedanta Center of Greater Washington, DC ( a sub-center of the Vedanta Society of Southern California) celebrates Sri Ramakrishna’s birth anniversay.

On February 28th, Friday, the Vedanta Center held the birth anniversary of Sri Ramakrishna at a nearby high school auditorium. About two hundred and

Worship of Sri Ramakrishna Washington, DC

fifty devotees attended. The celebration included a formal worship, youth group program, devotional singing and flower offering by devotees. At the conclusion of the program all were served Prasad.

The Vedanta Society of Berkeley celebrates the birthday of Sri Ramakrishna. On Friday, February 27th, Swami Aparananda conducted a formal worship.

Then there was music and chanting by the members of the Convent and Monastery of the San Francisco Vedanta Society, as well as reading of sacred texts, and flower spring 2009

offerings by devotees. The celebration culminated with the distribution of Prasad.

Swamis Prabuddhananda and Vedananda of the San Francisco Vedanta Society also attended the event.

Sri Ramakrishna’s birthday celebrated at the Vedanta Society of Northern California in San Francisco. On March 7th, Saturday, this Society observed Sri Ramakrishna’s birth anniversary through a program consisting of formal worship, devotional singing, reading from the life and teachings of Sri Ramakrishna, and flower offering by devotees. The program concluded with the distribution of Prasad.

The attendance was around 176.

The Vedanta Society of Western Washington in Seattle observes Sri Ramakrishna’s birth anniversary. On February 27th, Friday, the Vedanta Society celebrated Sri Ramakrishna’s birthday through a program consisting of ceremonial worship, devotional singing, flower offering by devotees and the distribution of cooked Prasad. Eighty-two devotees attended.

On S unday, Marc h 1 st , S wami Bhaskarananda gave a talk on the subject: Sri Ramakrishna, Master of Disguise.

The following Vedanta societies as well as sub-centers in America also celebrated Sri Ramakrishna’s birthday with worship, flower offering, devotional music and talks: The Vedanta societies in St. Petersburg, Hollywood, San Diego, Greater Chicago, New York, Boston, Portland and Kansas City.

Note to Vedanta Centers around the world: Your news items are welcome and encouraged. You may submit them by email to: global@vedanta-seattle.org

For more effective news coverage please attach one or two high resolution pictures to your email message.

Vol. xiv, No. 2

Book Review

Contributors

Russell Atkinson is a poet and member of the Ramakrishna-Sarada Vedanta Society of Sydney, Australia.

Swami Bhaskarananda is the editor in chief of Global Vedanta and the president of the Vedanta Society of Seattle, U.S.A.

Om Chatterji is a young man who lives with his parents in Sammamish, Washington.

A Concise Encyclopaedia of Hinduism Set of 3 volumes

by Swami Harshananda Total 1970 pages Publisher: Ramakrishna Math, Bangalore, India 1st edition (April, 2008) ISBN-13: 978-8179070574 Hardback Price: Indian Rs. 1500.00 (US dollar price varies) Reviewed by Swami Bhaskarananda This is a monumental work by Swami Harshananda, a senior monk of the Ramakrishna Order in India. He started doing the stupendous task of writing this encyclopaedia of Hinduism in the year 1975. The task was completed by the swami in 2007 after 32 years of hard work.

This three-volume encyclopaedia containing 1970 pages has turned out to be a veritable gold mine—a wonderful source of information about Hinduism. Unlike some other books in this category, the font size used in the book has rendered it easily readable.

The topics covered include religion, philosophy, mythology, rituals, scriptural works, festivals, places of pilgrimage, astrology, iconography, Sanskrit language and literature, temples, religious institutions and biographies of saints and religious teachers.

Any one interested in knowing about the four Vedas, the Upanishads and the Puranas will be greatly helped by this encyclopaedia.

I consider this three-volume encyclopaedia a must-read for everyone interested in Hinduism.

GLOBAL VEDANTA

Allen Freedman, Ph. D. is a mathematician and devotee of the Seattle Vedanta Society. He is a member of the Global Vedanta editorial team.

Swami Manishananda is a monk attached to the Vedanta Society of Western Washington.

Charles Mathias, a devotee of the Vedanta Society in Seattle, is a gifted cartoonist and writer. Most of the cartoons and pictures contained in this issue of Global Vedanta are his contribution.

Stafford Smith is a member of the Global Vedanta editorial team. A graduate of Harvard Law School, Mr. Smith is a retired land-use hearing examiner for King County in Washington State.

Sayings of Sri Sarada Devi

What little intelligence man possesses! He may require one thing but he asks for another. He starts to mould an image of Siva and often ends by making that of a monkey.

It is best therefore to surrender all desires at the feet of the Lord. He will do whatever is good for us.

But one may pray for devotion and detachment. These cannot be classed as desires.

Never fear. He is ever looking after you. Do His work and practice sadhana. A little work daily drives away idle thoughts from the mind.

Many people seek God only after disappointment in other spheres. But one who from childhood can place one’s heart at the Master’s feet, like a fresh flower, is blessed indeed.

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