Newsletter May 21, 2008

Past Events

Bhagavad Gita class- Middletown CT - Sun. May 18
Swami Yogatmananda conducted the monthly class on Bhagavad Gita (Ch 5 cont) from 10:30 - 11:30 AM at the Sri Satyanarayana Temple located at 10 Training Hill Rd Middletown CT.

Synopsis of Last Week's Classes

Friday - Bhagavad Gita Class - May 16

Ch. 2 (Verses 61-63):Lord Krishna told Arjuna to control the sense organs to be united with his true nature. One should take a psychologically effective approach and ask how did I get bound in the first place. According to the Gita, when we dwell on attraction for something, this gives way to attachment. From attachment desire follows and then its other side which is anger. This anger causes delusion and delusion makes us lose sight of all goals in life. It's a very subtle process. Unless we know the cause, we can't control the effects. There is a way we can succeed. That is by being introspective and keeping a check on what direction our mind is going. Any efforts we put in we will be able to see in our life through practice. If we can catch that ball of attachment or desire at the top step before it accelerates down the remaining ones and turns to delusion, we will have accomplished a major victory.

Sunday - Parables of Buddha - Swami Yogatmananda - May 18
Buddha emphasized in his teachings that 'Buddha' is the state of enlightenment to which everyone can potentially attain. The four noble truths preached by him are: 1) Everything is suffering. 2) There is the cause for suffering: desire is that cause. 3) There is the state beyond the suffering and 4) there is a practical way to get to this state: The eight-fold middle path.
Buddha did not preach the existence of God or soul or after life. When asked about it, he told the parable of the arrow. The first and foremost concern for a person struck with a poisonous arrow is to take out the arrow, without waiting to first know who shot it, what was his father's name etc.
Buddha explains through the parable of knots that our wrong perceptions keep us in ignorance. To untie the knots of ignorance and to get to the truth is a spiritual practice that one has to pursue patiently.
Sariputta, a faithful disciple of Buddha, once to meet him, crossed the mighty river with his undaunted faith. Buddha admired his faith and told people that such a faith is required to cross the mighty river of obstacles in spiritual life. Sariputta, expressing his faith once said that there has been nobody in past, present or future that could be compared to Buddha. Buddha showed him the folly of his statement and advised him to have his faith stand on sound rational footing. On his death-bed, Buddha told his grief-stricken disciples that he had given them everything with his fist open. He never thought himself as a teacher and support of the order and hence his disciples should not lament over his departure. His words - Look not for assistance to anyone but yourself. 'Be a lamp unto yourself' - is the great hope and encouragement to all of us in our spiritual journey.

Tuesday - The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Class- May 20

The path of devotion is suitable for most of us. The road of knowledge is hard due to our fervent attachment to the body. In bhakti too, the devotee ultimately sees that there is nothing but God. Regardless of the path taken, the Upanishads say: " All this is verily Brahman". Either path will take one to the ultimate goal. As one starts loving God, God starts entering our mind more and more. Our priorities shift and even if it's inclement weather, it's still a good day if we think and meditate on God.
Sri Ramakrishna warned about the pitfalls of lust and greed. Unlike hearing or seeing which employs just one sense organ, sex enjoyment uses all the organs working in unison, causing a potentially much bigger bondage. Also, it is the strongest drag in life, very difficult to overcome. So, one has to practice it according to one's capacity. The tough rules for a monk need not apply to a householder but a householder too must strive to control the senses as much as possible.