Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple ... SC's Directive & Devaprasnam

A brief interjection to make a point - for whoever is interested in it. (this is a more mundane discussion).

In the Supreme Court case of A. S Narayana Deekshitulu V. State of Andhra Pradesh, (AIR 1996 SC 1765), Justice Ramaswamy had noted, "The importance of rituals in religious life is relevant for evocation of mystic and symbolic beginnings of the journey but on them the truth of a religious experience cannot stand. The truth of a religious experience is far more direct, perceptible, and  important to human existence.  It is the fullness of  religious experience, which must be assured by temples, where the images of the Lord in resplendent glory is housed... It is essential that the value of law must be tested by its certainty in reiterating the Core of Religious Experience and if a law seeks to separate the non-essential from essential so that the essential can have a greater focus of attention in those that believe in such an experience, the object of such law cannot be described as unlawful but possibly somewhat missionary (ibid.:1790)"

In other words, Justice Ramaswamy wants Hindu Temples to "assure the fullness of religious experience because that is where the images of the Lord in resplendent glory is housed". Let us briefly examine what constitutes "fullness of religious experience". The "religious experience" is what we derive from the "power or vibration" of a temple.  The malayalis call it the "chaitanyam" of the temple. Different such vibrations or chaitanyams are created in each temple, and each temple is that way different from one another.

We have different deities specializing in rewarding us human-beings with different things we desire in life. For example, those that are desirous of having children often visit the temples of Guruvayoor or Doddamalloor.   Those who seek wealth and success are often seen visiting Tirupati.  Each Hindu Temple is that way  capable of granting us one or the other wish.  The ability of the Lord in that temple to grant our wish is critically dependent on the ability of the priests or the temple archakas to create that "vibration or chaitanyam".

What factors contribute to creation of the "vibration or chaitanyam"?

1. The Yantra established beneath the vigraham of the Lord of the temple
2. Certain "sanctified" material things including but not limited to Gold, Diamonds, and other Jewellery located along with  yantra beneath the vigraham of the Lord of the temple. (It may be noted that ordinary yantra or gold and diamonds and jewellery is insufficient - they must have been sanctified through rituals before placing them there. On another note, one needs to know that even the flowers we take to offer to the Lord are quickly sanctified by the priest through mantras before offered to the Lord).
3. Keeping up the vibration established in the Yantra, the Lord's vigraha and the material things offered to the Lord by constant practice of vedic recitations, and rituals in the temple.

Therefore one may say that the "fulness of religious experience" that Justice Ramaswamy says "must be assured by the hindu temples", is closely related to the "chaitanyam" established in the temple through practice of rituals as well as the Gold, Diamonds and Jewellery that were sanctified through vedic chants and established under the sanctum sanctorum of the temple by the erstwhile rulers of Travancore.  The treasure that is being counted by the representatives of the Supreme Court is definitely going to interfere with the chaitanyam or the vibrations of the temple, and it could very well take thousands of years more to bring back the vibrations to the temple if they continue what they are continuing to do there.  Kallara B which is said to be beneath the sanctum sanctorum should definitely not be touched.  The power of that temple will start diminishing gradually unless the present valuation is stoppped right away.  For the benefit of the present generation of Hindus and future generations Hindus all over India must fight to stop the valuation that is going on and help the temple priests conduct the rituals that the Lord has commanded them to perform in the Devaprasnam.

This article is dedicated to the Lotus Feet of Lord Padmanabhaswamy and Its Resplendent Glory!

Continuation ...Purpose(s) of Life

We discussed about the first three objectives of human-life: Dharma, Artha, and Kama.  Life after life eternally human beings have been taking birth in this universe, and all of them have had the same purposes in life - in that order. Dharma is the right to equality or the establishment of the level playing field - the social framework within which we ought to pursue the remaining two objectives - acquisition of wealth and satisfaction of desires.  It may be evident that the Artha and Kama are inter-related - one leads to the other - the person who has acquired wealth is able to satisfy most earthly desires - however, Kama could be out of this world as well - at that time only the shastras can help.  For example, even the wealthiest individual on earth may not be assured of a place in heaven after death. However, he/she could have a desire to visit the heaven and spend some time there.  Please note that no one can aspire to live permanently in the heaven as it is nothing but a paradise which Jeevatmas visit for sometime. After their time runs out, they are pushed down from there with their heads pointing down, back to earth to restart another life!

Now, the desire to visit and spend some time in heaven is a wish that cannot be purchased by "material wealth". Normally, one acquires that by performing good karma during one's life time.  There is also another way.  There is a yagna called "Jyotishyoma". One who performs that yagna is assured of visiting the heaven at the end of that life term.  Please note that, performance of that yagna does not mean the person will die right away and be transported to heaven.  Each Jeevatma experiences heaven or one or more of the various hells (naraka) normally based on their karma. However, if one has performed extremely bad karma and then performs the Jyotishyoma yagna, at the end of that life that Jeevatma is assured of visiting heaven for a certain duration.

Dharma, Artha, and Kama are temporary in nature.  Jeevatmas that have achieved these three pursuits still have to take birth again and again in this "samsara" until they become eligible for Moksha.  Moksha is therefore the fourth and final pursuit in life.  It may be noted that those who aspire for Moksha seldom care for dharma, artha, and kama during that life-time.

Moksha

There are two types of Moksha - Atma Anubhava and Bhagavad Anubhava.  In both the types of Moksha the experiences are different - however any Jeevatma that has achieved moksha will never take birth in Leela-Vibhuti owing to "karma". Let us see what this means in the next post.

Our Relationship with the Lord

Quote I got from Facebook:
Our Relationship with God something unique. In present terms non-divorsceable.  He can't break; We can't break - unilaterally or jointly.  We can't break on mutual acceptance also.

Artha Panchakam - 2

So why is this something everyone wants to know or should know?  Firstly, it answers the most important questions - questions that have not been satisfactorily answered by modern science or scientists. Let us take a deeper look at each of the questions, answers and implications.

First: Who am I?  Some of the previous blogs clearly established that the "I" refers to the Jeevatma who is the owner of this physical body that we see.  Brain and Mind are all part of this physical body or its extentions that will be destroyed when the Jeevatma leaves the body.  What goes with the Jeevatma from body to body is Karma and Vasana.  Birth and death are nothing but Jeevatma acquiring a body and Jeevatma leaving the body. The body is composed of things that exist in nature.  It may therefore be said that birth is nothing but Jeevatma acquiring relationship with "nature" (Prakirti-sambandam). Please note that Jeevatma is composed of "happiness" and "knowledge".  It is not matter and therefore cannot be sensed by sense organs. Now, that which cannot be sensed by sense organs or logically derived thereof (i.e knowledge acquired through sense-organ-based experience) cannot be known through science or rationality.  Therefore, the Jeevatma cannot be known through science or rationality.  In fact, anything that is eternal cannot be known through science and rationality as "time" is one of its (science's) essential coordinates.

What then are the sources through which one can know the Jeevatma?
Only through scriptures/words.
Whose words do I trust?  There are many scriptures?  Which one?
Those words that are not uttered by an unfriendly (one who is not a well-wisher) person.
Why?
Words uttered by an unfriendly person are straight-away discounted 100% as the person does is not a well-wisher, meaning he/she does not have an interest in our well-being.
Who qualifies as such a person?
Rishis of the yester-years performed their duties exclusively for "public-good".  They wrote the scriptures for us without vested interest.  Therefore they qualify.
What are these scriptures?
The Vedas (because they were uttered by Brahma the secondary creator having received directly from the primary Creator Sriman Narayana) and its derivatives - the upanishads, the Itihasas, the Puranas, the six vedangas, and the fifth vedas - the Nalayira Divya Prabandam, Works of the Acharyas in explaining the content of the vedas and Azhwar's works.

Who is God?
Again based on the above discussion, since God is eternal and cannot be known to science or rationality, He must be known only through words of scriptures as established above.  The 5 levels in which God exists has been explained.  Most important for us the human beings presently living on earth is the "Archa Avatara" - God living amidst us in the form of the murtis in the temples, and in Salagrama stones - why?
Because the other forms cannot be known through sense organs and therefore through science or rationality.

Purpose of Life.

This is an important question that confronts a lot of human beings in present world.  Each one has his/her own goals and think achieving that is the purpose of their life.  These goals broadly fall under one of the first three categories stated in the Hindu shastras - Dharma, Artha, or Kama. Let us briefly discuss what these are:

Dharma essentially is the fundamental need for a "level playing field" that can be used to pursue wealth or material acquisition (Artha), and fulfillment of desires (Kama).  Note that unlike popular interpretation, Kama is not desire for sex...kama is desire. Desire for material wealth, and fame are also Kama.  But alas, the human mind is so deceptive that it is capable of creating an endless list of Artha and Kama that the human being is drowned in the pursuit of that list.  And with each passing day, that list only grows!!! When the end is near, the human being is still in the pursuit of that list - his/her mind endlessly occupied even on death-bed thinking about unfulfilled kama.

To be continued...