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CONTENTS
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE NEED FOR SPIRITUAL REGENERATION(H.H. SRI SWAMI SIVANANDAJI MAHARAJ) Our forefathers would be considerably amused at many of the maladies that afflict humanity today, e.g., inflation, black-marketing, bootlegging, gun-running, et hoc genus omne. These Frankenstein monsters, threatening to destroy us before long, are our own creation as they are merely the inescapable effects of our lapse from a spiritual outlook upon life and the adoption of a purely materialistic philosophy of living. These and myriad of other similar problems have their origin in a love of luxurious living and are the products of a foolish mania on the part of every nation to raise its so-called standard of living over that of its neighbours. The economic-blockades, the armament-races and the atom-bomb imbroglios are all the resultants of human vanity, greed, jealousy, mutual suspicion and hatred; and as each nation wants to be on the safe side by multiplying its power of destruction, there is a regular scramble and competition for becoming the most ruthless and the most destructive power! ‘Is there no remedy for this’ has been on every one’s lips for over a generation now; but no one has the courage and the faith for taking the practical steps necessary for stopping the rot, irrespective of the cost or the consequences. Each nation wants the other nations, each man all other men, to take the initiative; and so the merry game goes on unabated. The vicious circle has to be broken by someone; and why not let it be done by ourselves rather than by others? The minimum essentials of the change that has to be brought about should be clearly visualised and consciously and conscientiously pursued by everyone according to his capacity. The first step to be taken is to change the angle of vision of life. All materialistic ways of thinking and living should be abandoned. A simple, spiritual sense of the values of life should be carefully inculcated in all countries, and in all societies. There should be an immediate return to the motto of ‘Plain Living and High Thinking,’ so successfully followed by our ancient forefathers, who understood well that the practice of renunciation is the sine qua non for the thorough eradication of greed and fear, which lie at the root of all troubles of the world. As a supplement to this, the spirit of selfless service should be infused into every man from his childhood-days. This is the point at which religion meets ethics and sociology; for the first posits the one Self alone pervades all existence. Hence, every piece of service done to others amounts to a benefit conferred on ourselves. The more this sublime basis of human actions is recognised and adopted, the more rapid will be man’s evolution towards perfection and divinisation. The emphasis in human relations should be shifted from right to duties. Communalism, racialism, nationalism— all ‘isms’ are only the different hoods of the same hydra-headed monster of selfishness and insistence upon rights and disregard of duties and should, therefore, give place to one all-embracing Universalism. National borders should gradually lose their artificial significance and importance; and one by one, all difference—of religion and language, social and moral codes, cultural and political institutions—should vanish and be replaced by the greatest common measure of uniformity of outlook, interests and conduct. In this age of atomic armament, racial hatred and policies of national greed, organised exploitation, inter- national exclusiveness, intolerance and distrust, our task is not so much the alteration and transformation of the patterns, policies and plans of the governments of the nations of the world as the creation of a great world-enveloping movement for a mass spiritual education and for the purification and the transfigurations of the nature and the personal propensities of the individual. The paramount importance and the imperative and indispensable necessity for the moral, ethical and cultural refinement of the individual personality upon a world-wide scale is to be realised first and foremost. For, the prime and fundamental unit of all wider groups like class, race, nation and human society the world over is the individual man. Great masses of mankind have to be weaned from the unfortunate hedonistic tendencies of thinking, feeling and acting with the grossness and greed of the mere beast. This is not an impossible proposition, for the Divine exists in all beings and it is an integral part of every individual consciousness. The method to draw it out is right and true education. This task of gradually, yet surely regenerating the nature of the masses has to be seriously undertaken in all earnestness and worked out in the educational and the domestic spheres, in particular, and the wider social sphere, in general—if the hope of creating a new generation and bringing into existence a new humanity who will elect and manage the future governments of nations in the best interests of all is to be fulfilled. I know this is a difficult task; but no great thing is ever done as if by magic. All constructivity implies hard work and more so much a creative and constructive task of world-wide nature. The results may not be immediate. To a large extent the fruit of such work will be for the posterity, while the tempo and the sincerity of the movement will set the elders athinking and gradually transform them as well. Just as a farmer who wishes to reap a rich harvest of healthy and luxuriant crop does not so much attempt to change and improve the existing crop that is already standing in the field—though he exerts to safeguard them from rot and pestilence—but rather starts to treat the soil in which the seeds of the next harvest are lying and germinating in silence, even so, all those who are to work for future peace and universal well-being should first of all strive to create a right and ideal condition that will ensure the four freedoms in order to enable the future generation to fulfil the hopes and ideals that we cherish today. If the world is to have peace, there has to be less of hypocrisy, less of prejudice and fear-complex, less of slavery to outdated traditions and exclusive material values. Above all, the ideal of righteousness to live and to let live and to consider the other man’s rights, necessities and self-respect as much as our own should have to be realised first. That act or exertion which does not do good to others, or that act for which one has to feel shame, should never be done. That act on the other hand, should be done, for which one may be lauded in society. This is a brief description of what right conduct is. To speak the truth, to practise Ahimsa, not to hurt the feelings of others in thought, word and deed; not to speak harsh words to anyone; not to show any anger towards anybody; not to abuse others or speak ill of others and to see God in all beings is Divine Life. It is by conduct that one acquires a long life, and it is by conduct that one acquires riches and prosperity. It is a means to attain the goal of life. Without good conduct no one can achieve the goal. Good conduct brings in fame, longevity, wealth and happiness. It eventually leads to Moksha. It is conduct that begets virtue, and it is virtue that prolongs life. Conduct gives fame, long life and heaven. Conduct is the most efficacious rite of propitiating the celestials. One should show mercy to all orders of men. Virtue is singled out by conduct. The good and virtuous are so on account of the conduct they follow. The marks again of good conduct are afforded by the deeds of those that are good or righteous. Indeed, it is by conduct that one acquires fame that depends upon great deeds both in this world and the next. Forsooth, one may, by his conduct alone, conquer the three worlds. There is nothing which the virtuous persons cannot obtain. A person of good deeds and pleasant and sweet speeches has no peer. People respect that man who acts righteously and who does good acts, even if they only hear of him without actually seeing him. “Do as you would be done by. Do unto others as you wish others do unto you.” This is the whole of Dharma. Attended to this carefully, you will be saved from all troubles; practise this in your daily life. Man should cultivate unlimited love. All patriotism, love of one’s nation, one’s own race, one’s own religion should never be allowed to be factors to encourage disunity, discord, hostility and superiority-complex. The love of your country and personal freedom should all the more emphasise that how much sacred is the other man’s love for his country and his personal freedom. True religion is love. True religion unites all in fellowship. Sages call upon man to see good in all, but our endeavour should be to see God in all, for only then will we be able to see the good in all. Let man be taught truth, purity, love, contentment and selflessness. Let there be a living faith in God in the hearts of men, for it is the very essence of the spirit of true religion. In this faith alone, lies the hope of our victory. Having achieved this, the main task is all but over and such humanity in whose bosom the divine flame has been kindled up will spontaneously direct all endeavours towards the materialisation of all these ideals. May the world be free from the fear of war and destruction, from the fanaticism of religious intolerance, racial prejudices and hatred, from the delusion of fostering civilisation through enslavements, from the self-righteous pride of charity and doing good to others, from ungodliness and the diabolical dialectics of materialism. May peace be unto all beings! PERSEVERANCE AND ASPIRATION LEADS TO SUCCESS(SRI SWAMI CHIDANANDA) When spiritual aspirants, seekers and sadhaks are looking for guidance, when they are seeking clarification and some advice about their difficulties and doubts, the ultimate advice that is usually given is, “Whatever you are engaged in doing, continue to do it, but make it gradually progressive. Do more and more of it. Increase your sadhana, and persevere in your sadhana. This is the way.” Impatience does not help in any way. In any journey you have to cover the distance between where you are and your destination. If you are eager to reach the destination early, then increase your pace and speed a little more. In addition, cover a comparatively greater distance each day than you have been doing hitherto. That may mean walk more hours than you have been doing. If you have been walking six hours a day, walk seven, may be eight hours. It is thus that a traveller will be able to fulfil his desire to reach the destination earlier. Even so, a sadhaka in the spiritual life, on the path of sadhana, should gradually increase and persevere in his sadhana, be it Japa, be it meditation, be it study, be it praying to the Lord, be it remembering Him in the midst of your duties and work. Do not let any doubt become an obstacle in your path. Let the doubt be there, you carry on your sadhana with greater vigour. This very act itself sometimes helps in clearing up doubts. What we could not understand a little while before, we begin to understand as we continue our sadhana and make it more progressive. All want to succeed in the spiritual life. This is but natural, and success is achieved by adhering to our spiritual sadhana and enhancing it. Continue to do what you are doing and do more and more of it. This is the one sure way of ultimately succeeding in attaining the goal of life—continuous, unceasing movement towards the great goal. Persevere and augment your sadhana day by day, and you have the key to sure attainment of the great goal. By analogy, it is this continuity and onward progress that makes each river ultimately attain the ocean. No matter what the obstacles that come in its way, it circumvents them and goes onward. Our ancients also compared this continuity to the flow of oil from one vessel to another. Just as the oil flows in an unbroken, continuous stream, so should one’s inner spiritual life and sadhana be. In addition, keep your aspiration alive and blazing. Mystics and saints have spoken about this great longing by giving human analogies from everyday society and life. If your longing for God, if your desire for meeting the Lord is as keen, as intense, as that of an unfaithful wife longing to secretly meet her lover, if your longing for God is like that of a miser constantly thinking of ways and means to accumulate more wealth, if your longing for God is like the longing of a sensuous person hankering day and night after sense enjoyments of various kinds, then surely you will attain God-experience, you will attain God, you will come face to face with the Supreme Being. Along this line, one mystic came forward with this assurance: “If you have the intensity of longing for God of these three—the secret longing of the unfaithful wife, the longing of the miser and the longing of the sensual person thirsting after sensual pleasure—and do not attain the Lord, I stand responsible. I give my guarantee.” Many of the mystics of both East and West embodied in themselves such longing. It all adds up to saying that we should not be lukewarm. We should become the very personification of that longing. We should become in our total nature that longing personified. This is the inner truth of all spiritual life and sadhana. This should be the inner content of the sadhaka’s heart. We should ponder deeply and become benefited by dwelling upon these truths about the life mystical—a life of devotion, perseverance and aspiration. May the grace of the Divine and the blessings of Holy Master enable us to become such an aspirant and seeker and enable us to keep this before us as a touchstone and ideal. THE ADVENTURE OF KNOWLEDGE(SRI SWAMI KRISHNANANDA) The problem of human existence and activity is really the problem of the human consciousness. Or, to put it more precisely, the problem is that man is not able to realise that this is the problem. Knowledge and activity are the fruits of education. But neither knowledge nor activity is unconcerned with an object outside. This would mean that our relationship with external things is the deciding factor in judging the worth of our knowledge and value of our activities. This, again, suggests that the worth and value of our education lies in the meaning attached to our relationship with the objects of our study. The whole question is one of subject-object relation, as the philosopher would put it. There is no such thing as either knowledge or effort unrelated to an aim or objective which is the purpose behind education, the enterprise of knowledge and the goal of all activity. If this aim is to be missed, if the purpose is to go out of one’s mind, if the object is to be separated from the subject, if the content of consciousness is to be cut off from consciousness, then, the result is obvious. And this is exactly what has happened to our educational methods, to the entire process of education today. When knowledge is devoid of content, what do we call it? Mere name? Only words? Objectless knowledge would be tantamount to an aimless activity. How would knowledge of this kind, activity of this character, contribute to human weal,—bring real knowledge, power and happiness, which are the ultimate aims of humanity? It is impossible to completely avoid reference to fundamental principles in the solution of ultimate problems. This is to say that one cannot entirely free oneself from the need to judge things philosophically and be under the cosy and misconceived notion that philosophy is a lyrical theory and errand of unpractical thinking, for, philosophy is not an ‘arm-chair’ affair as the wise old man is usually dubbed by the inexperienced younger blood, but forms the science of laying the very foundation of human society and life in general. Things in the world are not so simple as they appear on the surface. That some people are friends and some are enemies, some things are good and some bad, some beautiful and some otherwise, is the outcome of the credulous thinking of an illiterate mind. Such judgments as these imply a wrong assessment of the relation of the subject with the object, of consciousness with its content. At this stage it would not be proper to delve into this matter without, first of all, getting ourselves acquainted with the state of affairs in which mankind as a whole is placed, an outline of which is pictoriously depicted in the Aitareya Upanishad. To paraphrase this description in a language intelligible to us: The One Being that was from eternity, outside which there was nothing, willed to materialise itself in the form of creation. It concretised itself, through this Universal Will, into the Presiding Person of the whole universe. It grossened itself into the density of the material worlds (which are constituted of the five elements: ether, air, fire, water and earth). The process of manifestation of the worlds originally as the object of subjective experiences was something like this: From the Mouth of this Universal Person Speech came out, and from Speech Fire. From His Nostrils Breath came out and from Breath Air. From His Eyes Light came out and from Light Sight. From His Ears Sound came out and from Sound the Quarters or Directions. From His Skin Hairs came out and from Hairs Plants and Trees. From His Heart Mind came out, and from Mind the Moon. From His Navel the Out-going Breath came out and from the Out-going Breath the principle of Death. From His Virile Member Vital Force came out and from Vital Force Waters. This description of the origin of cosmic differentiation is intended to give an idea of the state of consciousness in which the human being particularly finds himself at the present moment. Though it is difficult to make a complete analysis of consciousness from this narration given by the Upanishad, there is no doubt in it a hint at the method of the type of analysis that has to be conducted for the purpose of acquiring a correct knowledge of the exact position of man in the universe. But the Upanishad takes us by a greater surprise when it does not end the story with this description alone, and goes further, and makes it a little more difficult for us to understand what has actually happened to us in the state in which we are today. The individuation of the Cosmic Being is not merely the separation of a part from the Whole, as a simple reduction or subtraction of a quantity from a larger measure, so that we cannot say that we as individuals are small gods, because we are little bits of that very same Supreme Cosmic Person. We are not small chips of this larger mass of gold, but something worse has happened to us, so that we have ceased to be the gold that we were once. In fact, there is nothing in this world that can act as a comparison to what has actually happened to us. Metaphors, images, examples and similes of every kind fail here. The condition in which we are is something quite different from what any language can explain. This is the reason, perhaps, why we cannot understand either ourselves or others, properly. To baffle us, as it were, with a greater mystery, the Upanishad goes on: When the individual was separated from the Whole, Fire became the speech and entered the mouth of the individual; Air became breath and entered the nostrils; Sound became sight and entered the eyes; the Quarters became sound and entered the ears; Plants and Trees became hairs and entered the skin; Moon became the mind and entered the heart; Death became the out-going breath and entered the navel; Waters became the vital force and entered the virile member. We should be careful to observe the tremendous reversal of process that has taken place in the function of the principles originally at the time of cosmic individuation, and subsequently at the time of the commencement of the individual’s functions, independently. Let us take only one of the functions mentioned above: when there was the first isolation of the individual from the Cosmic Being, we are told that from the Mouth of the Universal Person Speech came out and from Speech, Fire. But when it becomes the question of the individual’s function, we are told that Fire became speech and entered the mouth of the individual. What operated as the cause primarily during the origination of things becomes the effect in the individual, so that, we may say, while the power that we call Speech is the effect of the location called the Mouth in the Universal Person and the principle of Fire is the effect of the power of Speech, the reverse is the case with the individual; that is, Fire which was the last effect originally, becomes now the first cause and engenders the force of speech in the individual and restricts the operation of the vocal organs in the mouth. To take the instance of another function: Nostrils, breath and air act as cause and effect successively, originally, but now, in the individual, the process is reversed so that Air, breath and nostrils form the order of succession in a cause-and-effect relationship. And so on, with the other functions. From a consideration of the above description of the evolution of the individual from the Cosmic, we have only to conclude that a great woe has come upon man, so that he has not got a direct means of easily contacting the Cosmic through the faculties or powers with which he is immediately endowed. For, in the ‘reversal-process’ of the functions described above, the ‘original’ function operating as an ‘effect’ turns back upon the individual as the ‘cause’ of its functions, as it happens in reflections, wherein the features either become topsy-turvy or inversed in some way. And how does a reflection contact its original? There is a partial similarity of this position with the attempt of the reflection of the sun in water to come in contact with the original sun. In this comparison, the similarity is that the reflection truly pictures the original even as man is supposed to be made in the image of God. Now, how can a reflection catch the original or become the original? What is its relation to the original? Apparently there is no relation, for the two are far removed by the absence of any real contact, mutually. Yet, there is a relation; else, the original will not appear in the reflection. The analogy of the reflection of the sun in water, though it presents the context of the similarity between the original and the reflection, is, at the same time, partial: it does not represent the whole truth. This is because the reflection of the sun is spatially removed from the original by a great physical distance, while, in the case of the Cosmic Being and the individual, no physical distance can be introduced between the original and the reflection. The two overlap each other, as it were, which is the reason why the whole circumstance becomes difficult to investigate and even to understand. LISTENING WITH OUR ENTIRE BEING(SRI SWAMI ATMASWARUPANANDA) The basic declaration of the scriptures is that God alone is and we are That. This means that our moment by moment experience should be one of oneness, of non-separation. But for most of us that is not our experience except in rare moments and in deep sleep. The scriptures tell us that the reason for this sense of separation is because of our desires. Therefore, one practice that we can follow in meditation or any other time is to imagine that we have not a single desire. We’re all full. There is nothing we want. This practice lets us get a sense of our oneness; our sense of separation disappears. Actually there is no harm in having desires. It is quite natural to have them. The problem is our identification with the desires. If we see a desire simply as a desire, but refuse to identify with it, then it has no power over us, no separating power. A very real example of this is a lustful desire. If there is anything that we identify with, it is lust. We feel that it is we who are being lustful. But, in fact, lust is built into our being by the Creator; otherwise the species will not survive. If then, we see lust as a universal factor, we will just watch it and not identify with it. Not identifying with it, that lust has no power to make us feel separate from the rest of the universe. Instead it becomes an opportunity for a spiritual practice. There is another very simple practice—we would never think of it as being a spiritual practice—that we can actually practise all day long and it will tremendously benefit us. And that is to really listen. Most of us only half listen. And even when we do listen, we listen with our head, which at the same time keeps judging what we are hearing and keeps thinking up replies. We’re not really listening. Pujya Swami Chidanandaji more than once has said, “When I am speaking to you it is the Universal speaking to the Universal.” Or sometimes Swamiji will say, the Impersonal is speaking to the Impersonal. He says, “If you hear me as the Universal, then what I am saying will go into you and do its work. But if you hear me as an individual, then you will distort what I say and it won’t have its proper effect.” How then do we listen in an impersonal way, as the Universal? Put simply, we stop listening with our discriminating mind and listen with our entire being. We could say, we listen with our body rather than our head. We should also listen to God with our whole being. Our whole attitude as we move around during the day should be one of constant receptivity, of constantly listening. When we listen with our whole being our sense of separation fades away. So, in addition to our formal spiritual practices, we should become aware of very simple things that get right down to the heart of our problem—our sense of separation. We are not separate. The idea of separation is only an idea in the brain caused by identification with desires, caused by attachments. When we listen with our whole being, it starts to undermine that normal pattern and thus it is a spiritual practice. REALISATION OF A HIGHER IDENTITY(SRI SWAMI SHIVAPREMANANDA) [Continued from the previous issue] STATES OF CONSCIOUSNESSThere are four states of consciousness: jagrata, swapna, sushupti and turiya. An effort to be successful has to come to grips with reality. Idealism to be effective, our feet have to be firmly planted on the ground. Practicality is the only measure that makes sense in action. This is the purpose of jagrata or the waking state. It means to be alert, and keep our senses in focus. Only then can we observe well, and thereby be capable of learning. It is the most important of the first three states. Then follow swapna and sushupti. Jagrata is allegorically called the first foot of the atman. The dream state, swapna, is a world in itself. It is the second foot. I shall come to it presently. Dreamless sleep is possible only for a short time, generally the first couple of hours after falling into sleep. It is called sushupti, or sound sleep, the third foot, indispensable to resuscitate the mind, apart from the free flow of prana or vital energy reviving the physical body. After a sound sleep one feels fresh, and there is a sense of well-being. It is said that it is due to the mind being close to one's soul, even if unconsciously. True or not, sound sleep is necessary for good health. In dream we live out our fantasies, anxieties, apprehensions, deep-rooted insecurity and fear. When a pattern of dream persistently repeats itself, it is indicative of a problem that has to be tackled by rationalisation as to its invalidity in the present, as something of the past, even if it had scared oneself. Dreams are never rational. It is a play of the subconscious, mostly light-hearted and rather on the stupid side. Therefore, they fade out soon after waking up. Turiya is the fourth foot of the atman the individual soul. It is a state of pure consciousness in which the awareness of the body and mind, and of the surroundings, is lost for the time being. The heart is full. All desires are gone. When the cup is full, there is no need to put water in it. Beginning with the feeling as a free soul, there is only the consciousness of oneness with the world around, the whole universe and with the infinite spirit lastly, the consciousness of which alone remains, all the rest having merged in it. However, the state of turiya cannot last long. In the case of a highly-evolved soul, it remains as a residual pure consciousness in the depth of the mind, while the conscious aspect of it occupies itself with the day-to-day activity without feeling any bondage. In the tradition of yoga, there is another classification of consciousness: manas, chitta, buddhi and ahamkara. Manas is the thinking aspect which speculates and deliberates. Chitta is the record-keeper, by referring to which manas ponders. Chitta is related to the subconscious and the unconscious. Buddhi is the intelligence aspect which rationalises. Ahamkara is the ego, which arrogates. No leadership is possible without a good measure of ego, but a disciplined and a well-directed ego, without being offensive. If it is not so, a crude ego makes the owner insufferable. These are the four means of communication as well. CURVES OF EVOLUTION The purpose of philosophy is much more than loving (philos) wisdom (sophia). It is to seek a meaningful answer, more than a metaphysical one, to the questions: why are we here, where are we heading to, and how are we to get about? From a level of psychological self-realisation, philosophy seeks the awareness of a higher reality or a state of being within, and with which to sublimate our self-knowledge. There are two curves of evolution: the pravritti, the path of material pursuit and achievement; and that of nivritti, not of the external pursuit but of involution, the path of living spiritual ideals, and being absorbed in them. The former is by self-assertion, and the latter through self dissolution. The ideal is, while being in the world to be out of it at the same time, as Rabindranath Tagore muses in the following composition: Not my way of salvation to surrender the world! Rather for me the taste of infinite freedom, while yet I am bound by a thousand bonds. In each glory of sound and sight and scent, I shall find the infinite joy abiding: My passion shall burn as the flame of salvation, the flower of my love shall become the ripe fruit of devotion. To the spiritual seeker, life becomes a poetry: its rasa or sweetness is tasted, saundarya or beauty is felt, and empathy with people and nature (sadharana) becomes the leit-motif itself. To a seeker a melody in a song heard becomes a resonance of tunes in the mind, alliterating with feeling. As Ananda Kumara Swami says in his book, The Dance of Shiva: A great work of art, of painting or poetry or architecture or sculpture, has four basic characteristics: 1) the aesthetic intuition on the part of the original artist, 2) the internal experience of this intuition in a vision of beauty, 3) the expression of it by external means audio-visually and by poetry and architecture, and 4) the resulting stimulation of the heart and mind of those who participate in them. There is no artificiality or deliberate effort but only spontaneity of spirit. GREEK INFLUENCE The civilisations of the West have their roots in the classical age of Greece, from the seventh to fourth century BC, or from Homer to Aristotle. The English poet, P.B. Shelley spoke of Athens as the "mother of art and eloquence." He wrote about Greece: Her citizens' imperial spirit rule the present from the past. On all the world that inherited it its seal is set. The eight lamps of Greek art are related by Percy Gardner as: humanity, simplicity, balanced measure, naturalism, idealism, patience, joy and fellowship. They have, according to him, “the elements of ease and freedom, lightness and grace, rhythm and proportion, and symmetry.” The Greeks had a nature finely and delicately responsive to aesthetics. They “felt the unity of the true, the beautiful and the good.” According to Socrates: “Utility is the taste of beauty, and whatever is suited to the intended end is fair, and whatever is beautiful for the same reason is good, when suited to the purpose for which it was intended.” He appreciated "beauty as the essence of goodness and charm on the face of virtue." His chief disciple and the enumerator of his teachings, Plato, said: “Socrates taught that our love of the beautiful was due to the search of our soul for archetypical loveliness.” Plotinus said in his Enneades: “Everyone must experience the divine before discerning what is good and beautiful.” On the other hand, Virgil was down to earth. He wrote in his Aeneid: “Let others study art. Rome has something better in hand, her law and dominion.” He was prophetic, because even to this day western judiciary is heavily inlaid by Roman laws. The saying that politics is the art of the possible, and philosophy is the art of the idealist, meaning not quite attainable, is not true in the second part. The purpose of an ideal is its realisation. The domain of an idealist is not the cloud-cuckoo land, but the world. The purpose of idealisation is to make reality more meaningful. Idealism has to be selfless in order to sublimate human nature which is selfish by itself. One of the two greatest among the Italian artists of all times, Leonardo da Vinci, says, “That drawing is the best which expresses best the passion that animates the figure.” The other, Michelangelo, was more drastic. “Beauty is the purgation of the superficial,” said he. John Todhunter spoke of the beautiful as the “infinite loveliness which we realise by reason and the love of what is good.” In his book, “The Indian Concept of the Beautiful” K.S. Ramaswami Sastri says : “Form is static, while rhythm is dynamic. What is beautiful is symmetrical in form, and harmonious in rhythm. The seven colours of the spectrum are related to the seven notes of the musical scale. Beauty resides in order and proportion, and expresses more than what is seen. Beauty is joy, and not pleasure as such. It is a disinterested but sympathetic spiritual pleasure. It is a rapture of love like that of Endymion for his goddess, the love of a mortal for an immortal.” EXPRESSION OF AESTHETICS The Greek poets, architects, sculptors and philosophers were among the finest of the humankind in the classical age and ever since. They expressed the longing of the heart for eternal values through aesthetics. They have influenced the western works of art through the centuries. Good graces are sought by inwardness, and muses are expressed in poetry and music, leading to the identity with nature and the infinite spirit. The sculpture in the Olympian pantheon gave dignity to form in repose, and the Parthenon a graceful purity to architecture. Parthenos means virgin. Christian art extolled the forbearance of pain. The finest example of the Italian sculpture is Michaelangelo's Madonna with her dead child, touched by the deepest sorrow without losing her infinite calm and tenderness. In a more prosaic sense, the Katha Upanishad compares the body as a chariot, the five senses as the horses drawing it over the rough paths of life. The mind holds the reins, and the intellect guides the mind. The soul rides the chariot, a ride we all have to go through. With an inquiring intellect and disciplined mind controlling the senses, we can make the journey of life less buffeting. We can choose our path, our vocation, that would be less arduous and implicating. We can try to keep the body fit, so as to bear the stress of the circumstances. Above all, we have to keep our ego under check, to be in peace with ourselves and with others. In conclusion, I would like to say that in writing this article I have consulted the book of the late K.S. Ramaswami Sastri, ‘The Indian Concept of the Beautiful’, which was published by the University of Travancore (now Tiruvanantapuram),in 1946, of which he was a professor. I had known him personally when he visited the Shivananda Ashram at Rishikesh in northern India, in the 1950s. He was a poet at heart, as could be seen from the poem below, which I have taken from the aforesaid book. What dost thou see? What moves thy lips? What passions, yearnings and joys are thine? Why tremble thy fair finger tips? Why do thy eyes thus gloom and shine? The gems that clasp thy quivering throat seem so human in heir sympathy. With answering light, like note for note, they own a kindred ecstasy. Thine ankles sweet, more vocal are those tell-tale traitors round thy feet, disclose thy passions in peace and war, its raptures so deep and bitter-sweet. Oh! Call this not mere pantomime, or just a dissembled ecstasy. Thy lyrical soul in its own rhythm does come alive from time to time. NEWS AND REPORTSNEWS FROM THE HEADQUARTERS SEVA THROUGH SIVANANDA HOMEFor people in need of medical care, who have neither anybody to take care of them, nor any place to go, Sivananda Home under D.L.S. Headquarters situated near Laxman Jhula, has been a place of refuge and shelter. With the new admissions this month, the total number of patients has again gone up to 67. The male patients are accommodated on the ground floor, the female patients on to the first floor. The patients' daily food, clothes, bedding, medical treatment, security and attendance are provided, under the protecting and loving care of Sri Gurudev Swami Sivanandaji Maharaj, who Himself has ever been a haven of refuge for any person in distress, sorrow, pain, despair or dejection, physically mentally or spiritually, and has brought solace and peace to uncountable restless seeking souls. May His guiding Light, Love and Wisdom continue to inspire and infuse each and everyone ! At the moment, 13 patients in Sivananda Home are under Anti Tuberculosis treatment, taking a heavy regime of medicines together with special diet for at least 9 months. Patients with TB in the spine, bones, breast and lymphs are admitted in the general wards, since these extra-pulmonary forms of TB are not contagious at all. One of the new admissions this month is a Leprosy patient, who also suffers from Tuberculosis, besides being almost completely visually handicapped and hard of hearing. This old aged Babaji has been staying in one of the Leprosy Colonies since many years, but since he needed greater care and assistance in his daily routine of taking bath etc., he was brought for admission in the Home and is improving under treatment and nursing care. From the Ashram was referred an old-aged patient in semi-coma stage, due to diabetes, with fever, high BP and urine retention. Under intravenous and with blood glucose control he has recovered quickly, but remained confused and was looking for his luggage which seemed to be stolen on the road. After further treatment now he is normal and is continuing in the Home under medical care. Remembering a remarkable patient, who passed away this month, being one of the eldest in Sivananda Home, both age-wise and duration of stay. About 8 years back, this mentally retarded gentleman was found on the roadside, in a severe destitute condition, with heart trouble, not able to talk at all, and because of an anatomic problem in his throat he could only swallow liquid food. All these years he stayed happily in the Home, though nobody knew anything about his past. The last six months, his physical condition deteriorated, he had to be lifted and carried into a wheelchair, lost the control over his output functions, needed help for feeding and at last slumbered into unconsciousness. His age for sure had passed 85 years when he peacefully left his body. Last rituals were observed, the ashes were offered to Holy Mother Ganga, praying for his departed soul. May his soul rest in everlasting peace! Om Namah Sivaya. “Let us behold Thee in all these names and forms. Let us serve Thee in all these names and forms. Let us ever remember Thee. Let us ever sing Thy Glories. Let Thy Name be ever on our lips. Let us abide in Thee for ever and ever. Let us abide in Thee for ever and ever.” “Feed the Hungry. Clothe the naked. Serve the sick. This is Divine Life.” —Swami Sivananda REPORTS FROM THE D.L.S. BRANCHESINLAND BRANCHES Adoni (A.P.): During the month of May 2004, the Branch held Satsanga on Sundays and distributed food -to 70-80 poor people on Thursday. Ambala (Haryana): The Branch conducted daily Satsanga for two hours and Havans on the birth anniversary of Brahmaleen Swami Premanandaji Maharaj and on 28th May. Jalaseva at two centres and Homeopathy seva at two centres were continued free distribution of drinking water. Bangalore (Karnataka): The Branch Satsanga on Thursdays included Paduka Puja and the Friday Matri-Satsanga included recitation of Sri Vishnu-sahasranama and Lalita-sahasranama Stotras. In the programmes organised on Sundays there was a spiritual gathering on the 2nd, Akhanda Kirtan on the 16th and devotional music on 23rd May. Barbil (Orissa): The Branch conducted 4-hour weekly Satsanga on Thursdays and mobile Satsangas on Mondays at the residence of the devotees. Sivananda Charitable Homoeopathy Dispensary treated 520 patients during May 2004. Baripada (Orissa): In addition to the regular weekly activities of Satsanga at the Branch, mobile Satsangas and Paduka Puja, the Branch also organised two special Satsangas in Jagannath Temple and in an old-age home. Bellary (Karnataka): The Branch conducted twice-a-days Puja and Paduka Puja and Satsanga on Sundays. Berhampur (Orissa): The regular activities of the Branch are the weekly Satsanga on Sundays, mobile Satsanga on Saturdays and the monthly Sadhana Day and Narayana Seva which were on 16th May. It had also organised a 9-day discourse of Smt. Kamal Kumari Panigrahi. Revered Swami Sivanandagurusevanandaji graced the concluding function. Bhanjanagar (Orissa): The weekly Satsanga of the Branch was on Sundays. On 2nd May, 320th monthly Sadhana Day was held. Sri Prasant Kumar Rath gave discourses on the Ramayana. Bhavnagar (Gujarat): The regular activities of the Branch were: 1. Weekly Satsanga in five centres on five different days, 2. Paduka Puja on 24th, 3. Monthly Mahamantra Kirtan on 2nd May, 4. Monthly Kirtan of Siva Mantra on 16th May, 5. Monthly recitation of Sri Vishnu-sahasranama Stotram, 6. Discourses on the Bhagavad Gita on Thursdays, 7. Discourses on the Ramayana on Ekadasis, 8. Daily Yogasana class, 9. Swami Sivananda Homoeopathy Clinic for 5 days a week, 10. Spiritual Library, 11. Distribution of fruits and biscuits to in-patients, twice a month, 12. Providing dry ration to 92 families of two leprosy colonies, and 13. Providing bed-pans, water-beds and other accessories to bed-ridden patients. The special activity of May was a discourse and special Satsanga on Sri Buddha Purnima. Bhilai Nagar (Chhattisgarh): The Branch held its monthly Satsanga on 30th May. The Matri-Satsanga included recitation of Hanuman Chalisa on Tuesdays, Sri Lalita-sahasranama Stotram on Fridays, and of Bhagavad Gita and Sri Vishnu-sahasranama Stotram on Ekadasis. A special function was organised on the birth anniversary of H.H. Swami Devanandaji Maharaj. Bhubaneswar (Orissa): The Branch conducted daily early morning prayer session and Paduka Puja, weekly Satsanga on Thursdays and one mobile Satsanga. The monthly Sadhana Day was held on 30th May. In the Havan conducted with Bhagavad Gita Slokas with the Samput of ‘Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya’ on 8th May, 42 devotees participated. A 9-day programme of Ramayana recitation and discourses by Smt. Kamal Kumari Panigrahi was organised from May 21 to 29. Bikaner (Rajasthan): The regular activities of the Branch were as follows: 1. 2-time daily Puja, 2. Daily Satsanga with Swadhyaya of Ramayana, 3. The monthly Matri-Satsanga on 4th May, 4. Havan with Mahamrityunjaya Mantra on 24th May, 5. Homoeopathy Clinic, 6. Daily Yogasana class, 7. Sivananda Library, and 8. Monetary help to poor students. Special programmes were organised on Sri Narasimha Jayanti, Sri Buddha Jayanti and Nirjala Ekadasi. On Purnima, Kirtan was done from midnight to 4.00 am. Bishnupur (Manipur): The Branch carried on its regular activities which were: 1. Weekly Satsanga on Sundays, 2. Matri-Satsanga on 30th May, 3. Mobile Satsanga on Ekadasis, 4. Paduka Puja on 8th May, and 5. Recitation of Bhagavad Gita on 2nd May. Boudh (Orissa): The Branch held Satsanga daily. Chatrapur (Orissa): In addition to the daily Satsanga, the Branch conducted the weekly Satsanga on Thursdays and four mobile Satsangas including one in a nearby village. On Saturdays, recitation of Sundarakanda and Hanuman Chalisa was done. Paduka Puja was performed on May 8th and 24th. The Branch launched on 16th May a month-long programme of daily Rudrabhisheka and one-hour group chanting of Mahamrityunjaya Mantra in a Siva Temple. Cow feeding is also done during this month. A special function was organised on birth anniversary of H.H. Swami Devanandaji Maharaj. Chennai, Annanagar (Tamil Nadu): The Branch organised a special programme on Purnima. It included three discourses also. Chennai, Thirumullaivoyal (Tamil Nadu): Sri Vishnu-sahasranama was recited at the Branch on all Saturdays and Sundays. It held Satsangas on May 2nd and 23rd. Recitation of Sri Vishnu-sahasranama Stotram and other Stotras and meditation were the main highlights. Dharamgarh (Orissa): The Branch conducts daily Puja, Paduka Puja on Sundays and weekly Satsanga on Thursdays. Also, on Fridays special Puja is done with Rudrabhisheka and Mahamrityunjaya Mantra chanting. Gandhinagar ( Gujarat): The Branch continued its regular activities as under: 1. Satsanga-Swadhyaya thrice a week, 2. daily Yogasana session in the morning, 3. daily Yogasana class for ladies in the evening, 4. Yogasana training class from May 1st to 10th, 5. Homoeopathy Clinic once a fortnight, 6. Swami Sivananda Library, and 7. financial support to the residents of Leprosy colony. The special activity of May was Yogasana camp for ladies from May 18th to 27th in which 45 ladies participated. Ghatpadampur (Chhattisgarh): The Branch runs a Gurukul and conducts the following activities: 1. Daily morning 1-hour prayer-meditation session, 2, Daily Yogasana session, 3. Daily Satsanga in the evening, 4. Paduka Puja on Thursdays, and 5. recitation of Sundarakanda and Hanuman Chalisa on Saturdays. Gumergunda (Chhattisgarh): The Branch has Viswanatha Mandir, Samadhi Mandir and Gurukul. Its regular activities are: 1. 3-time Puja, 2. Morning prayer-meditation, 3. Daily evening Satsanga, 4. Paduka Puja on Thursdays, 5. Recitation of Sundarakanda and Hanuman Chalisa on Saturdays, and 6. A model daily routine for the resident students of Gurukul. Special programmes were organised on the occasion of Ganga Dussehra with 12-hour Akhanda Kirtan, Ganga Puja, Havan, Arati, etc. Jaipur (Rajasthan): The regular activities of the Branch were as under: 1. Daily early morning prayer session, 2. Srimad Bhagavata Swadhyaya daily afternoon, 3. Daily evening Satsanga which included recitation of Sri Vishnu-sahasranama Stotram on Mondays and Wednesdays, of Sundara-kanda and Sri Hanuman hymns on Saturdays, Mahamantra Kirtan on Tuesdays, Mahamrityunjaya Mantra Japa on Thursdays, meditation on Fridays and Sundays, etc., 4. The weekly Satsanga on Sunday morning with Havan, 5. The weekly Matri-Satsanga on Monday afternoon, 6. Swami Sivananda Charitable Homoeopathy Clinic—Dr. Saxena and Dr. Dalela treated 1680 patients in May, 7. Daily morning Yogasana class under the guidance of Smt. Sarala Singhvi, 8. Swami Sivananda Library, 9. Doles to 26 poor widows, 10. Providing dry ration requirement of 93 kg to a leprosy colony, and 11. A water-hut with cooler. The special programme of May was celebration of birth anniversary of H.H. Swami Premanandaji Maharaj. Paduka Puja, etc. took place in the morning and devotional music in the special Matri-Satsanga in the evening. Kadiadra ( Gujarat): The Branch held its weekly Satsanga on Sundays and a special Satsanga on 28th May. Kantabanji (Orissa): The weekly Satsanga of the Branch included Swadhyaya of Bhagavad Gita and Ramayana. Khedbrahma ( Gujarat): The Branch held Satsanga on May 6th and 27th. Kurnool (A.P.): The daily Satsanga of the Branch included a spiritual talk and meditation, and the weekly Satsanga included Swadhyaya and a discourse on the Bhagavad Gita. A prayer meeting was held on 1st May for peace and beautitude of the departed soul of Smt. Laxmikanthamma, the President of the Branch. Another prayer meeting was held on 23rd May in which rich tributes were paid to the spiritual scholar Mataji. Nabha ( Punjab): The weekly Satsanga-Swadhyaya was on Sundays. On 2nd May, group chanting of Mahamrityunjaya Mantra was done for half an hour and on Nirjala Ekadasi, 12-lettered Krishna Mantra Japa was conducted for one hour. Nagercoil (Tamil Nadu): The Branch organised a Homa with Mahamrityunjaya Mantra on 3rd May. It arranged discourses on “Twenty Important Spiritual Instructions” on 13th April, and on Bhakti Yoga on 8th May. Nalgonda (A.P.): The weekly Satsanga of the Branch was on Wednesdays. On 17th May a special Satsanga, recitation of complete Bhagavad Gita and Yajna were organised. On 24th May another special Satsanga was arranged. Nandini Nagar (Chhattisgarh): The weekly Satsanga of the Branch included recitation of Sri Vishnu-sahasranama Stotram and of Hanuman Chalisa. On 3rd May, Akhanda Kirtan of Mahamantra was done for six hours. A special Satsanga was arranged in a nearby village on the birth anniversary of H.H. Swami Premanandaji Maharaj. On 8th May, recitation from Ramayana was done for two hours. A Bhagavata Saptah was organised from May 24 and was concluded with Havan on the birth anniversary of H.H. Swami Devanandaji Maharaj. Clothings were given to seven destitutes. New Delhi , Lajpat Nagar Branch: The Branch conducted meditation class five days a week. The weekly Satsanga included recitation of Sundarakanda and Bhandara on 2nd May, group recitation of Sri Vishnu-sahasranama Stotram and Sri Laxmi Ashtottaram on the 9th, recitation of the Bhagavad Gita and Bhandara on the 16th, Paduka Puja and Samkirtan on the 23rd and Mahamantra Samkirtan on the 30th. In addition, a special Satsanga was organised to celebrate the birth anniversary of H.H. Swami Premanandaji Maharaj. Ningthoukhong (Manipur): The regular activities of the Branch were: 1. Daily early morning Puja and prayer session, 2. Daily Satsanga, 3. The weekly Satsanga on Sundays, 4. The weekly Satsanga for children on Sunday afternoons, 5. Publication of the monthly magazine. In addition, the Branch organised 26th All Manipur State Satsanga on 9th May. Revered Swami Gurugovindanandaji and more than 300 delegates attended the Satsanga, which was also telecasted on TV. Razole (A.P.): The weekly Satsanga of the Branch included recitation of Sri Vishnu-sahasranama Stotram and also meditation. Rourkela (Orissa): The Branch continued its regular activities as follows: 1.Twice-a-day Puja, 2. Paduka Puja on Thursdays, and on 8th, 24th, and 25th, 3. The weekly Satsanga on Thursdays, 4. Weekly mobile Satsangas on Sundays, 5. The monthly Matri-Satsanga on 31st May, and 6. Sivananda Charitable Medical Clinic with the kind Seva of Dr. D. C. Mishra and Dr. Samal. In addition, a special Satsanga was organised on the birth anniversary of H.H. Swami Premenandaji Maharaj. Rourkela, Fertilizer Township (Orissa): The regular activities of the Branch were as under: 1. Daily Puja, 2. Yogasana-Pranayama class for two hours in the morning and one and half hours in the evening, 3. Paduka Puja and Satsanga on Sundays, 4. Monthly recitation of the Bhagavad Gita on 2nd May, 5. Recitation of Sri Vishnu-sahasranama Stotram on Thursdays, and 6. Archana with the thousand names of Lord Vishnu on 9th and 16th May. Besides, a talk on Ashtanga Yoga was arranged on 2nd May. Salipur (Orissa): The Branch continued its following regular activities: 1. Twice-a-day Puja, 2. Daily morning session of prayer-Swadhyaya, 3. Weekly Satsanga on Sundays, the last Sunday for mobile Satsanga, 4. Paduka Puja on Thursdays, 5. The monthly recitation of Bhagavad Gita on 2nd May, 6. Sivananda Day on 8th May—Paduka Puja and one hour chanting of ‘Om Namo Bhagavate Sivanandaya’ Mantra, 7. Yogasana-Pranayama class on 9th May, and 8. Sivananda Charitable Homoeopathy Dispensary. Sambalpur (Orissa): The Branch conducted daily Puja, weekly Satsanga on Sundays, and two mobile Satsangas of which one included Paduka Puja also. 30 destitutes were given food on Mondays. Through Sivananda Charitable Dispensary 616 patients were treated and given free medicines. Sheragada (Orissa): The Branch continued its regular activities of weekly Satsanga and Narayana Seva. South Balanda (Orissa): The Branch conducted Mahamrityunjaya Mantra Japa for one hour daily and for 3 hours on Sankranti day. It held weekly Satsanga. for men on Fridays and for women on Sundays. Sunabeda (Orissa): In addition to 2-hour daily Satsanga and Srimad Bhagavat Swadhyaya, the Branch conducted Paduka Puja and Satsanga on Thursdays and Sundays. A two-day Sadhana camp was organised on May 15th and 16th. A large number of devotees from two districts participated in it. The Sunday medical camps treated 400 patients. Daily Yogasana-Pranayama class in two separate sessions for men and women was continued. Sunabeda, Ladies Branch (Orissa): The Branch continued its regular activities as follows: 1. Daily 1-hour Mahamantra Kirtan followed by the Bhagavad Gita recitation, etc., 2. Bi-weekly Satsanga on Wednesdays and Saturdays, 3. Weekly Satsanga for children on Sundays, 4. Paduka Puja and recitation of Sri Vishnu-sahasranama Stotram on Ekadasis, and 5. Narayana Seva on Tuesdays. Talod ( Gujarat): The Branch organised Satsanga on May 3rd, 9th and 30th. Vadodara ( Gujarat): The Branch held the weekly Satsanga on Thursdays with discourses by three scholars. On Sivananda Day and Chidananda Day Paduka Puja and 9-hour non-stop chanting of ‘Om Namo Bhagavate Sivanandaya and the Mahamrityunjaya Mantras was done. Dry ration and medicines were provided to the poor and needy families. Biscuits were distributed to the in-patients of the General Hospital on 8th and 24th May. A 6-day Yogasana Camp was organised from May 10th to 15th. The Homeopathy Dispensary treated the patients four days a week, and the Ayurvedic Dispensary on the remaining two days. Varanasi (U.P.): The Branch held fortnightly Satsanga on May 5th and 23rd. OVERSEAS BRANCHES Bristol ( U.K.): The monthly Satsanga of the Branch was on 22nd May. It included prayers, Bhajan, Kirtan, Swadhyaya, meditation, etc. Sarva Dharma Ashram ( South Africa): In addition to the daily prayer session, the Branch held twice a week Satsanga on Tuesday evenings and Sunday mornings. The Branch motivated children to do Likhit Japa and on some days 150 children were writing the Mantra . SPECIAL REPORTSCyclone Relief The Divine Life Society, Bhimkand Branch (Orissa) has adopted the cyclone affected village Harichandrapur. Rice was distributed to 98 poor persons, and cash doles were given to 11 very needy people. Social Service in South AfricaSarva Dharma Ashram of the Divine Society is rendering invaluable Service to the poor native people. Some of the direct measures are as under: 1. Freshly cooked meals are served twice a day to the needy people and persons living in ‘Disability Home’; 2. Sandwiches are given to poor school-going students, 3. Free clinic for public every Tuesdays, 4. Distribution of school uniform to the poor students, 5. Distribution of clothings to the poor, 6. Distribution of used toys against Likhit Japa, 7. Running a Play School. IN MEMORIAM In memory of and as a tribute to late esteemed Sri Daulat Manchandani, Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya! The beginning of the physical body is referred to as birth. The ending of the physical body is referred to as death. The birth and the death of the human individual is globally identical without any reference to race, religion, cast, creed or community. It is the same all over the world. Thus life is a journey whose starting point is birth and whose destination is death. None is exempt from it. Be he a poor man begging in the street or an Emperor ruling over a vast empire. May he be a penniless wonderer hungry for food or a King ruling royally over a wealthy kingdom. Each and every human individual born into this gross physical world of outer activities has to depart from it and return to that subtle spiritual region about which man does not know much. This tribute is to one such individual whose earth-journey has come to an end. God who had sent him here has called him back into that plane from where his further evolution and spiritual progress has to take place. About 10 or 15 years back, late Daulatji began to feel that total involvement in one’s secular life alone is not right and proper according to our ancient Hindu tradition and ideals. That is why our Sanatana Dharma conceived the concept of the four Ashramas, namely, the Brahmacharya Ashrama, the Grahstha Ashrama, the Vanaprastha Ashrama and Sannyas Ashrama. The first Ashrama is the student life of studying and learning. The second Ashrama is the Grahstha Ashrama or the married householder’s life for active involvement in the secular world and also to help the persons of the other three Ashramas. The third is retirement from total involvement in the householder’s family life and bestowing more and more time for the inner life of devotion, prayers, worship, meditation and inner spiritual concentration on the Divine. It is now changed to a God-centred life. Pondering this time-honoured pattern of the traditional Hindu life, Sri Daulat Manchandaniji had a small apartment constructed for himself right on the river Ganga by the side of Worshipful Gurudev Sri Swami Sivanandaji Maharaj’s Ganga Bank Gurudev Kutir. He called it “Shanti Dham” and periodically came to the Ashram and lived there for a few days or even a week or ten days. Thus he spent time in Sivananda Ashram on the banks of the Sacred River Ganga. Sri Daulat Manchandani was an industrious and busy man. He was also a good natured and friendly person who made everyone feel at home at his place. Until recently when old age has confined me to bed I had to keep frequently visiting Delhi upon the Divine Life Society’s work and programmes. Though my regular place of stay was invariable at the house of Sri Lal Mukand Lal Sachdeva in Panchashila Park, New Delhi yet sometimes I used to stay at Sri Daulat Manchandaniji’s home. At the top of the staircase which went up to the first floor there is a well maintained Gurudwara and Puja place. Late Daulatji was very regular in his Puja and prayers. My feelings of deep sympathy go out to the entire family at “Guru Kripa” in all its three generations. May God bestow upon him Eternal Shanti and Param Divya Satgati! Swami Chidananda IMPORTANT CORRIGENDUM AND CLARIFICATIONIn the ANNOUNCEMENT regarding SANT CHIDANANDA—A PICTURE GALLERY made in July 2004 issue of THE DIVINE LIFE, it was indicated as “IN ENGLISH, GUJARATI, HINDI, KANNADA, ORIYA AND TAMIL.” It is hereby clarified that it will be ONLY IN ENGLISH and not in Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Oriya or Tamil. Dear Readers may kindly note this clarification. Inconvenience caused in this regard is regretted. It is further clarified that the last date which was mentioned as 31-08-2004 for sending the remittance has been extended upto 30th September 2004. It is also hereby clarified for the information of all concerned that this is a project entirely of SADGURU PRAKASAN, CHENNAI, and is not of the DIVINE LIFE SOCIETY and the Divine Life Society has not sponsored it and is in no way connected with it or involved in it. The matters like placing of orders, supplying the book, etc., are matters purely private and are entirely between the persons concerned and SADGURU PRAKASAN. The ANNOUNCEMENT which appeared in July 2004 of The Divine Life Magazine was only for the information of the readers. —Editor IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTH.H. Sri Swami Vimalanandaji, a senior monk of the monastic order of Gurudev Sri Swami Sivanandaji Maharaj, who served Sri Gurudev and our most revered President H.H. Sri Swami Chidanandaji Maharaj for a long time, has now been appointed as a Trustee and Secretary of The Divine Life Trust Society and ex-officio General Secretary of The Divine Life Society with effect from 28-06-2004, in place of Sri Swami Jivanmuktanandaji. Swami Vimalanandaji Maharaj conveys his warmest Greetings and Good Wishes to all the devotees, members, well wishers and spiritual seekers related to The Divine Life Society, world over, with his prayers to the Lord and Gurudev for their welfare and spiritual progress. Swamiji Maharaj has made a humble request to everyone desiring to correspond with him related to any official maters, including Registered Letters, Money Orders, Bank Drafts, Cheques, Parcels, etc., to address to "The General Secretary, The Divine Life Society", and not in his or any other's personal name. (Bank Drafts, Cheques, etc., should be drawn in favour of "The Divine Life Society" only). This shall ensure prompt response to their mails. However, matters that are purely personal can be addressed to Sri Swami Vimalanandaji. —THE DIVINE LIFE SOCIETY IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTNow-a-days, The Divine Life Society Headquarters receives hundreds of satellite Postal Money Orders without having any message on the coupons (space for communication). It causes a great deal of inconvenience and complicacy. It becomes very difficult to identify the purpose of such remittances. Sometimes the remitted amount is taken to a wrong head resulting in misunderstandings, a lot of correspondences and transaction complicacies. Therefore we make a humble request to all concerned people to help us solve this problem in the following way: 1. All the remittances should be preferably made in the form of IPO or DD, in favour of THE DIVINE LIFE SOCIETY, SHIVANANDANAGAR, UTTARANCHAL. The DDs should be made payable at a bank in Rishikesh. The DD or IPO should be accompanied by a covering letter mentioning clearly the purpose of remittance and the full postal address of the sender (in BOLD CAPITALS). 2. If the remittance is meant for Membership Renewal or Affiliation Renewal of a Branch, the name of the person/Branch, Membership No./Branch No. should also be given in the covering letter itself. 3. In case of unavoidable circumstances (for the people residing in a locality without having banking facility), they can remit the money by MO. In such cases, they should not forget to write NOT FOR SAT in red ink( Bold Capitals) at the top of the Money Order Form. This will enable us to receive their original MO Forms with the necessary message on coupons. 4. They should also clearly mention the purpose of the remittance, on the MO coupon (space for communication) attached with the MO Form. If it is Membership Renewal or DLS Branch Affiliation Renewal, they should give the name of the Member/DLS Branch along with the corresponding Membership No./Branch on the MO coupon itself. —THE DIVINE LIFE SOCIETY SPECIAL REPORTTOUR OF DLS BRANCHES As per the decision of the DLS Headquarters for revitalising the DLS Branches, Revered Sri Swami Sivachidanandaji Maharaj, All India Organiser of the Divine Life Society and Sri Swami Dharmanishthanandaji visited all the 14 Branches of the DLS in Uttar Pradesh, and brought about a sensation among the devotees as regards strengthening and expanding the Branches. Their Divine Life Campaign commenced on 8-6-2004 with the active Khurja DLS Branch, through its able Secretary Sri Ramesh Kumar Bansalji, who took keen interest in successful completion of this tour. Both the Swamijis visited Khurja, Ghaziabad, Agra City, Agra Cantt, Pillipokhar, Jhansi, Kanpur, Lakhimpur Kheri, Lucknow, Faizabad, Gorakhpur, Sultanpur, Allahabad and Varanasi DLS Branches where the organisers were very hospitable and arranged Satsangas and Public Programmes. Youth programmes and Yoga classes were organised in Khurja and Agra Cantt. About 300 devotees attended each in Jhansi Manas Satyanarayan Mandir and Sanatan Dharma Mandir, Kanpur respectively. Dr. M.K. Goel of Lucknow arranged a seminar on ‘Spirituality and Stress Management’ in Hotel Clarks Avadh. The concluding Tour Programme was in the Malaviya Bhavan, BHU, Varanasi, on the topic, ‘Inaction in Action’ where 150 persons including Professors, students and devotees attended. The Members of DLS Branches were very much inspired by this visit and requested that there should be a Sannyasi deputed by the HQ in each state for activising the Branches and elevating the general public. —THE DIVINE LIFE SOCIETY IN MEMORIAM(SRI RAMPREMIJI) The sad news has reached us that Sri Rampremiji of Nizampur, Balasore in Orissa, an ardent devotee of Sri Gurudev, passed away on Sunday, the 27th June, 2004, on the Return Car Festival Day. He was suffering from high blood pressure and diabetes for many years. He was 84 years old. Being inspired by Sri Sudarsan Das of Balasore, Sri Ramesh Chandra Senapati, a young man, rushed to Rishikesh, met Gurudev and remained in Sivananda Ashram in the year 1949. Gurudev was pleased to listen to his self-composed Bhajans and gave him the name Kabiratna Rampremi. It was gathered from Sri Rampremiji that on being asked by Sri Swami Chinmayanandaji Maharaj before his Sannyasa as to the Sannyasa name he should have, the name ‘Chinmayananda’ was suggested by Sri Rampremiji the day previous to Guru Purnima, and the next day Swamiji gladly accepted this name during his Sannyas Deeksha from Gurudev Sri Swami Sivanandaji Maharaj. Sri Rampremiji visited schools and colleges in Orissa in 1954 for spreading the message of Gurudev. Two students of Ravenshaw College East Hostel were very much inspired by him in a programme organised by the DLS Cuttack Branch on 25-10-1954 and became Gurudev’s disciples. They are now Sri Swami Sivachidanandaji Maharaj, All India Organiser of DLS and Sri Choudhury Gourahari Mishra, Retired Principal, Chief Conservator of Forests, Orissa. Even now many students are being inspired by his books. He has written many books on Yoga and Vedanta subjects. In 1956 Sri Rampremiji attended the 8th All India Divine Life Conference in Calcutta and invited H.H. Sri Swami Chidanandaji Maharaj, Sri Swami Nadabrahmanandaji Maharaj and other Swamijis from Calcutta to Cuttack and organised a programme in the Janata Rangamanch. He spent the later part of his life in Orissa. His books on Brahmacharya, Yogasana, Swapna Doshavijnana, Sadachar Sadhana, etc., which are about 25 in Oriya language, are very much popular among the students. May Gurudev and Lord Almighty grant his departed soul Divya Sadgati, Param Shanti and Kaivalya Moksha! |
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