Posted on: 18 Jun 2024
1. Can money be donated to the construction of a temple, which does food distribution to the poorest along with the propagation of spiritual knowledge?
[Smt. Chhanda asked: Paadanamaskaram Swami, please clarify the following doubts: Swami, in continuation to my earlier question, suppose someone proposes to a build new temple and promises that they will satisfy the two criteria of distributing food to the poorest and also propagate spiritual knowledge. And then asks for contribution, how will we know whether he is lying or not? What shall be our approach?]
Swami replied:- When there is such doubt, it is better to avoid them. When they carry on these two programs, you can help them.
2. Which one is correct? Attain chitta shuddhi to learn spiritual knowledge or after listening to spiritual knowledge.
[Swami which one is correct? After listening spiritual knowledge, a person will attain chitta shuddhi as the spiritual knowledge only will help in destroying jealousy. OR The attainment of chitta shuddhi first by destroying jealousy and then only a person becomes eligible to listen spiritual knowledge.]
Swami replied:- Some people say that Karma Yoga (practice) will bring purity of mind. But, how can inert practice without knowledge purify the mind? Hence, first knowledge shall be received, then theoretical devotion to Sadguru (Incarnation of God) is to be developed and finally, the practice of service and sacrifice to Sadguru should be done. After such final step of practice only, the mind is purified without ego and jealousy either to the human incarnation or to the co-human devotees. Without this proper procedure, the practice done straightly cannot purify the mind without understanding and without inspiration about the total procedure, which is called as the triad (Triputi) of spiritual knowledge. How can one start doing the practice of service and sacrifice without testing the quality of the spiritual knowledge given by a preacher? In a school or college, you can pay the fees in the beginning itself because there is a lot of vigilance over the teachers and the syllabus to be taught by the teachers is also printed for the sake of your information. Such school or college system is totally different from the spiritual preaching by a preacher. After hearing the preaching, then only you shall decide about the divinity of the preacher. Then, you develop theoretical inspiration that leads to the practice of service and sacrifice in the final stage. If Karma Yoga is to be done before hearing the preaching, how can you do it without knowing the quality of the preaching? Suppose the quality of preaching is the worst, will you take back the service and sacrifice done to the preacher? The mind is purified only after the completion of the triad, which is learning spiritual knowledge, getting theoretical devotion and finally doing practical devotion (service and sacrifice). Purity of mind means the elimination of fascinations towards worldly bonds, including all worldly aspirations finally associated with the destruction of ego and jealousy.
3. Are the following two comments the same?
[Can I say the following two comments are the same? i) ‘The soul in man is greater than his fate’ by Rishi Aurobindo and ii) ‘Determination has more power than destiny’ by Swami Vivekananda?]
Swami replied:- The first statement may be correct or may not be correct. If the soul succeeds in attaching to God through strongest bond and by that if the soul detaches from the fascinations of all worldly bonds, the soul is greater than its fate. If the soul is defeated in this spiritual effort, its fate is greater than itself. The second statement is perfectly correct because destiny is the force of the fruits of past deeds. The force of past deeds (sancita) is active only in the upper worlds, which are heaven and hell. Once the soul takes birth on the earth, the present fruit (praarabdha) is finished. The fruits of future deeds (aagaami) will be active in the upper worlds only like sancita. Hence, the present life of any soul on the earth is with full freedom in an open atmosphere without the interference of sancita and aagaami. Such a free atmosphere without any external hindrance is provided by God, expecting the soul to progress spiritually by doing full concentration on God. Hence, your determination for the goal in the spiritual path is more powerful than your destiny, which is inactive in the present life on this earth.
4. What is to be learned in identifying Krishna as the incarnation of God by Hanuman very late?
[Hanuman being a Chiranjeevi, was present during Lord Krishna’s time also. He took a long time to identify the same Lord Rama in the form of Lord Krishna. What is the reason behind it? How is it possible for such a climax devotee like Hanuman? What lesson can we take from such an incident?]
Swami replied:- Hanuman is not a devotee because He is the incarnation of God Shiva. God Shiva is only acting in the role of Hanuman to preach this great concept to devoted human beings. The psychology of human devotees is to recognize the past human incarnation and not the present contemporary human incarnation. Hanuman was also present in the time of God Rama. Hanuman wants to say to human devotees that they will easily recognize God if only good qualities are expressed by God as in the case of God Rama. The human incarnation also expresses some negative qualities to reject the undeserving devotees. The real devotees shall not fall into such an illusion and shall recognize the contemporary human incarnation. Hanuman wants to say that even a great devotee like Himself was caught by this illusion. This means that every devotee must be very careful in this point.
5. Hanuman also criticized the Gopikas. If it is true then there must be some purpose behind it. Please explain.
Swami replied:- The same above explanation related to the human incarnation can be extended to the case of climax devotees also. Hence, the message is that you shall neither misunderstand the contemporary human incarnation projecting negative qualities nor you shall misunderstand the climax devotees approaching God through the pure path of sweet devotion (Madhura Bhakti).
6. Can we say that the embryo has pure awareness without any qualities?
[Before the entry of the individual soul, can we say that the embryo is having pure awareness only without any qualities as the individual soul carrying its samskaras will merge with it in a later stage?]
Swami replied:- The individual soul itself has awareness. But, the embryo may also develop brain and nervous system to generate pure awareness, which is aware of itself (pure awareness). The individual soul is a bundle of thoughts and each thought is made of awareness and some worldly information mingled together like pure gold and design of jewel. Once the individual soul enters, the pure awareness of the embryo will mix with the individual soul to strengthen the individual soul.
7. Did ego and jealousy start increasing from the time of Lord Krishna?
[If we see the sequence of the ten incarnations of Vishnu, can we say that with time, the ego and jealousy of human being have improved as it has started from Matsyavatara and then in more advanced form and finally in the contemporary human incarnation form as in the case of Lord Rama? Then again ego and jealousy started increasing from the time of Lord Krishna? At Your divine lotus feet always, Chhanda]
Swami replied:- You should not superimpose the evolution of human being on the incarnations of God Vishnu. You take any incarnation of God Vishnu, every incarnation has the same composition of three qualities basically. One quality may become predominant in one incarnation, but again the original composition of major proportion of Sattvam (of God Vishnu) is immediately reached. Hence, comparison between God and soul is meaningless imagination of foolish poetry. Once the program of the incarnation is over, every incarnation (of His ten incarnations) became God Vishnu, who is the embodiment of 99% Sattvam.
8. Was Sita right in her words, as Rama was both God and husband to Sita?
[Swami, when Lord Rama asked Mata Sita to stay back at the palace before going to forest, She not only denied but scolded Lord Rama for the same. Was it right or wrong from her side as Lord Rama was both God as well as husband to Mata Sita?]
Swami replied:- The relationship between husband and wife is based on the concept of respect and at that level, the wife will not scold the husband. But, this relationship is also based on true love of darling relationship, in which scolding is excess of true love. Hence, it is not wrong at all. Moreover, God Shiva is masculine (having mustache and beard, etc.) and God Vishnu is feminine (beauty, wearing jewels, etc.) and what Sita told was also correct. Sita scolded Rama as a woman in the form of male (Striyaṃ puruṣa vigraham).