Satanic
nine/eleven 2001and Spiritual
nine/eleven 1893
(Discourse
by N.R.Srinivasan, Nashville, TN, September 2014)
AIn Ramayana Balakanda
Kausalya consoles grief-torn Dasaaratha
on Rama’s, Sita’s and Lakshmana’s departure to the forest with the following
verses;
Soko naasyate Dhairyam Soko naasyate
srutam |
Soko naasyate sarvam naasti soka same ripuh ||
Sakyamaapatitah sodhumprahaaro ripuhastatah |
Sodhumaapatitah sokah susookshmo api na sakyate ||
(Balakanda LXII-15, 16)
Grief eradicates patience, grief effaces learning. Grief
destroys all and there is no enemy like grief. A blow that has descended from
the hands of an enemy can be sustained.
Grief however that has appeared all of a sudden cannot be endured even
though it is minute.
Mo Most painful tragic events of 9/11-2001 haunt us still. The jet liners plunging, exploding fireballs, the crumbling buildings, sad story of 3000 souls that lost their lives and tales of fireman climbing to their deaths are all vividly broadcasted by all news-media on this disaster remembrance day adding fuel to the fire of our helpless situation and threat. The self-assumed defenders of faith, a set off butcher s and criminals claiming to be Islamists has further complicated the situation bringing more gloom and pessimism. Grief destroys all says Ramayana.
It is our duty to honor everyone who is a victim of
9/11 tragedy no matter whether they are related to us or not, whether we live
in America or not. We live today in a very complicated post 9/11-world. We need
to stick together and rise above some of these negative feelings. We have to stop trying to remember the event and the
terrible grief that was brought in at some point and move on in life. Let us stop thinking about our grief which
lingers on for a while and think about how the events have shaped us too. The
country has become unified and patriotic. We came together in the face of
tragedy beyond what we could have ever imagined on that day. We should cash on the transformation it has
made for our generation.
We should also analyze why this
tragedy took place. It is the wrong interpretation or conceptualization of
religion that has crept into some evil minds of Muslims. It may be the wrong reading
of their scriptures. Some Muslims assert:
“A true Islamic state, as practiced by the Prophet Mohammed, requires a ruler
who holds office through the acceptance of the people. The ruler must abide by
the concept of justice and by God's laws that require the ruler to be
compassionate and merciful to the people, just as a parent is to his children.
No one can just come in by force and claim to be the Caliph, as the terrorists
in Syria and Iraq are claiming. No one can kill people indiscriminately and terrorize
the population and be considered a Muslim ruler under the dictates of
Islam. Muslim values, as explicitly
described in the Quran and in the
teachings of the Prophet, guarantee the right to life, the right to family, the
right to property, the right to pursue our beliefs the way we
want. Only in the last century has a
different interpretation of Islam become oppressive to other faith tradition”.
The last statements do not hold good. Hindus have suffered under Muslim rulers right from the 12th century in India. They were forcibly converted asked to pay Jesia (a tax
for non-Muslims) and Hindu Temples were plundered and destroyed. This has
resulted today in India being the third largest Muslim country in the world even after
losing a large portion of the Motherland to Separatist Muslims. Historic evidences show Muslim rulers even
killed their father, imprisoned bothers and grabbed the throne.
No religion promotes killing,
exploitation and causing harm to others in its promotion. If it does, it can’t be called a religion and
worth following. What then is religion? This can very well be explained by
referring to the dialogue between Dalai Lama and the Brazilian philosopher.
A dialogue between a Brazilian
philosopher and theologian Leonardo Boff and the wise Dalai Lama explains
clearly what religion is: Leonardo posed
Dalai Lama following questions:
1) What is the best religion and 2) what is it that makes me better?
Dalai Lama’s answer was:
The best religion is one that
gets you closest to God. It is the one that makes you a better person.
To his second question he answered:
Whatever makes you more
compassionate; more sensible; more detached; more humanitarian; more
responsible; and more ethical!
He continued: I am not
interested, my friend, about your religion or concerned if you are religious or
not. What really is important to me is your behavior in front of your peers,
family work, community and in front of the world.
Remember the Universe is the echo
of our actions and our thoughts. The law of action and reaction is not exclusive to physics. It is also
for human relations (called Karma). If
I act with goodness I will receive goodness. If I act with evil, I will get evil.
What our ancestors told us is the pure truth. You will always have what you desire for others. Being happy is not a matter of destiny, It is a matter of options. Take care of your thoughts because they become words; take care of your words because they will become actions; take care of actions for they will become your habits; take care of your habits for they will from your character; take care of your Character because it will form your destiny; and your destiny will be your life. There is no religion higher than Truth. Satyameva Jayate !
The Parliament of World's
Religion started on 11 September 1893. Vivekananda gave his first lecture on
that day: He began with the words: "The Soul of India, the echo of the
Rishis, the voice of my Guru Ramakrishna the mouthpiece of the resurgent Time
spirit”, then he continued his
speech with salutation, "Sisters and brothers of America!" To these words he got a standing ovation from
a crowd of seven thousand, which lasted for two minutes. He recalled
the story of a frog living in its own well. Vivekananda concluded– "That
has been the difficulty all the while. I am a Hindu. I am sitting in my own
little well and thinking that the whole world is my little well. The Christian
sits in his little well and thinks the whole world is his well. The Muslim sits
in his little well and thinks that is the whole world." Much has been said of the common ground of
religious unity. Do I wish that the
Christian would become Hindu? God forbid. Do I wish that the Hindu or Buddhist
would become Christian? God forbid. The seed is put in the ground, and earth
and air and water are placed around it. Does the seed become the earth, or the
air, or the water? No. It becomes a plant. It develops after the law of its own
growth, assimilates the air, the earth, and the water, converts them into plant
substance, and grows into a plant. Similar is the case with religion. The
Christian is not to become a Hindu or a Buddhist, nor a Hindu or a Buddhist to
become a Christian. But each must assimilate the spirit of the others and yet
preserve his individuality and grow according to his own law of growth. He
finished his series of speeches with appeal "Help and not Fight,"
"Assimilation and not Destruction," "Harmony and Peace and not
Dissension."
Will there ever be an end to the
war on terror now in the hands of Islam militants? 21st century
will continue to be defined by our ongoing struggle with religious extremism
and hatred for our way life. Its intensity of operation is constantly shifting,
sometimes to West, sometimes to India and the Far east and sometimes to Middle East. A number of people live in
constant fear and anxiety.
Hindu philosophy of non-violence “Ahimsaa paramo dharmah” --non-violence
is the noblest act, is not a strategy to rid the world of violence, but rather
the way Hindus would like to live in a world of violence, particularly Hindu
Americans. Hindus also draw solace in this regard believing good Lord will
handle the situation--paritraanaaya
sadhoonaam vinaasaaya cha dushkritaam (For annihilating the wicked and
protecting the innocent). American thinking of non-violence is to get rid the
world of violence taking action themselves.
It may not be irrelevant to say here Jews,
Christians and Muslims have the same origin and same God. Brothers and sisters
fought and separated and even started hating each other. They often talk also of love thy neighbor or
brotherhood, but still fight.
The problem with the 9/11/2001 is
the lack of communication among the people of conflicting views. The strength
of the 9/11/1983 was the opportunity of communication among the people of
conflicting views. The only way to enjoy peace in this world is to respect and
understand the point of view from all
directions. No religion should impose its ideas on to others that live in
perfect harmony with its values. That is
what makes this world an interesting place – colors of many races, religions,
genders, ages and politics.
It looks as though the fittest
will survive and it may not be far-fetched if Jews, Christians and Muslims start
understanding each other and their origin to join together again eliminating
the wicked. As Hindu Americans we should
also remember spiritual 9/11 of 1893 when Swami Vivekananda brought light of
India by way of Wisdom of Vedas to World Forum of Religions held in Chicago. We should overcome the satanic influence of
9/11 of 2001. It is unfortunate after 108 Years of Spiritual 9/11 Satanic 9/11
showed its head with all vengeance and hatred. The forum in 1893 started appreciating the
greatness of each religion and wanted to remain in harmony after hearing to the
speech of Swami Vivekananda.
As Hindu Americans let us not be dejected and
resigned to fate and bogged down by these threats but be guided by the
wisdom of Vedas articulated by Swami
Vivekananda Arise, Watchful and Move on—Utthishtata, Jagrata, Charaiveti, Charaiveti (Arise,
Awake, Move on, Move Forward). Let us also follow the Vedic dictum Krinvanto Viswamaaryam, let us ennoble
the whole world and aatmavat sarvabhooteshu,
look upon all being as your own
self.
REFERENCES:
1) Valmiki Ramayana, Gita Press,
Gorakhpur, India
2) Huff-post articles on the
subject
3) Wikipedia and other Internet
Sources
4) Speeches of Swami Vivekananda, Ramakrishna Math
Publications
E- MAIL SENT ON SEPTEMBER 10, 2019A
REMEMEMBERING 9/11 TRAGEDY IN USA OF 2011
FOR OUR PRAYERS AND VENERATION
No
matter how hard we try, words simply cannot express the horror, the shock and
the revulsion we as Hindu Americans feel over what took place in this nation on Tuesday morning
in September 2011. September 11 goes
down in American history as a Day to Remember and renew our faith in the theory
of Karma and the divine assurance.
First,
we are reminded of the
mystery and reality of evil.
Why God allows such tragedies and suffering. Why did he program devastating
Dorain flood havoc in this month? I have to confess that I do not know the
answer. Being a Hindu I
accept, that God is Supreme and that He is a God of love and mercy and
compassion (Karunalu, Dayasindhu,
Bhaktavatsala) in the midst of suffering. That we all know from Bhagavad
Gita and His Divine assurances.
sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śharaṇaṁ vraja | ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pHeāpebhyo mokṣha-yiṣhyāmi mā śhuchaḥ ||
18-66||
Giving up all other Dharmas, turn to the Supreme beings spirit--Inner-net (Sva-dharma or Dharma of the Self) as the sole refuge; and
the Supreme Spirit will undoubtedly deliver the refuge-seeker from all ills and
evils; he will no longer grieve.
He also said “Paritraanayaam sadhoonam…
sambhavami yuge yuge” I personally incarnate to energize and purify the
good. He is also sending his messengers periodically to guide us in seeking Universal
Peace and Harmony. On October 2, we will celebrating 150th Birthday
of Mahatma Gandhi an Apostle of Peace reminding us to live practicing his
ideals! He constantly reminded us of three
Siamese cats telling us “See no Evil”. “Hear no Evil’’ and “Speak no Evil”.
9/11 reminds
us of the brevity and the uncertainty of life. We never know when we too will
be called into eternity. I doubt if those people who got on those planes or who
walked into the World Trade Center or the Pentagon on that ill-fated Tuesday
thought that it would be the last day of their lives. And that’s why we each
must face our own spiritual need and commit ourselves to God and His will. The
lesson of this event is not only about the mystery of iniquity and evil, but,
second, it’s a lesson
about our need for each other.
It is the Divine will that all these tragedies befell on
humanity in the holy month of Bhadrapada giving an opportunity to many for
salvation or movce forward. Hence these souls should be given a good
farewell with pitrukarya or Sraaddha. Westerners say pray for the souls. At the same
time the living should seek the blessings of Devi. As you know whenever we are
in trouble we run to our mothers or Mother of all Mothers, Mother Earth seeking
her love and affection.
Hindu calendar month of
Bhadrapada in the Chaturmasa is auspicious for worshiping a blend of
Deities, Sages and Pithrus; a unique opportunity to get discharged from Deva,
Rishi and Pithru rinas (debts). First half of the month is dedicated to the
worship of Devathas and Rishi Gana, second half of Bhadrapada Masam is totally
dedicated to the worship of Pithru Devathas that is known as Pithru Paksha or
Mahalaya Paksha. During this fortnight we pay our obeisance to not only our
ancestors but all departed souls on Earth by performing sacred rites. In this
month giving charity is considered
highly meritorious as demonstrated by Danaveera Karna.
It is believed that after the death,
the soul would remain in an intermediate world (loka) known as the Pitru loka.
The soul stays in the pitru loka until the fourth descendant enters the same
and once the fourth descendant comes, the first soul would move to the heaven
or the swarga loka. So at any given time only three generations of the soul
would reside in the pitru loka. This world is governed by Lord Yama. It is
believed that the souls of the ancestors would come down and reside with the
descendants in their home during this period and hence one should perform the
traditional ritual to satisfy the ancestors.
This month is mainly focused on Devis specifically to Mother Earth
hailed as Bhuvaneswari.
There is a mandate in our scriptures
to pray for the souls as well as pray for universal peace. That we do even
before entering married life by performing Nandi Sraddha (obeisance to parted
souls). Vedas say: Aatmanaa vindate veeryam--One gets strength knowing the Self.
Without any favoritism He has provided this Inner-net for call in all Beings. Whenever
we are lazy or in our ego forget to push the button we are in trouble like
these. So should have been all those victims of 9/11.
I would specifically bring these two
mandatory mantras for your attention:
Tarpana
ritual ends with the following Mantra:
Yeshaam
na pitaa na bhraata na bhandu naanya goetrinah | Te truptim akhilaa
yaattu mayaa tyaktai kusai stilaih ||
May
all who are neither my father, nor my brother, nor my relative nor belonging to
my gotra (leniency), may
get the satisfaction by this water offered by me through the medium of Kusa grass and
sesame seeds! (This is a universal prayer praying for all departed souls of all
races and creed)
Here
is a Universal prayer which is very common way to end all Hindu prayers,
praying for the welfare of all:
Dyauh saantih antariksha(ga)m saantih prithivee
saantih aapah saantih oeshadhayah saantih | vanaspatayah saantih viswedevaah
saantih brahma saantih sarva(ga)m saantih saantireva saantih saa maa
saantiraedhi ||
Oh Lord You have ensured us peace in
the heavenly region; peace in the
atmosphere; peace reigns on the earth; there is coolness in the water; the
medicinal herbs are healing; the plants are peace-giving; there is harmony in
the celestial objects and perfection in eternal knowledge; everything in the
universe is peaceful; peace pervades everywhere. May that peace come to all of
us!
While
the church bells ring, Hindu Americans should be running to temple to ring the
Temple bells and observe 9/11`as a
Special Religious Worship Day or meditate in their Pooja rooms praying for
the departed souls on this day in Bhadrupada!
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