Posted on: 01 Nov 2022
1. Will leading a simple life help our spiritual growth?
[Smt. Lakshmi Lavanya K asked: Pada namaskaram Swami, I have read in Ramana Maharshi’s book that our spiritual money (ఆధ్యాత్మిక సంపద) will be used to grant us physical beauty, health, wealth, luxury. So if we lead a simple life, then our spiritual money would help us to get spiritual growth in life.]
Swami replied:- It is a perfectly correct statement.
2. Is it true that “one should eat food as a medicine for hunger, otherwise we owe it to God”?
[Venkayya swamy also said to his devotee that one should eat food as a medicine for hunger, otherwise we owe to God (ఆకలికి మందు లాగా ఆహారం తీసుకోవాలి, లేదా భగవంతునికి అప్పు పడతారు). Please explain to get clarity. Pada namaskaram Swami.]
Swami replied:- One should eat little food because the body and mind need little energy only. Very little food is converted into energy as per the equation of mass-energy equivalence. The rest large lot of matter is becoming excretory product to be rejected and its stay in the body generates almost all diseases. Hence, food must be high in quality and less in quantity. One must eat food, which is well cooked, high in quality and little in quantity (hutabhuk hitabhuk mitabhuk).
3. What should be our inner intention while chanting mantras given by You?
[Smt. Lakshmi Lavanya K asked: Pada namaskaram swami, in previous answers You have said "Even the power of the name of Rama is based on Rama Himself" and when I asked about chanting names of old incarnations, You said "how does it matter in theoretical devotion like chanting the name". In the example given by You although the monkey wrote the name of the human incarnation that time, the stone sank. I am thinking, the monkey failed in concentrating on God although it concentrated on the name of God. Here I request You to please explain about doing Japam, chanting mantras given by You
What should be our inner intention?]
Swami replied:- Japam does not mean chanting the name of God putting some effort. It only means spontaneous memory of the name of the God. Remembering various incidents based on the divine personality of God is the real meaning of the word Japam and this sense is expressed by Shankara for the word Japam (Aviśrāntaṃ patyuḥ guṇagaṇa kathā'reḍana japā—Soundarya Lahari). The incidents remembered again and again provoke the interest on God. Such increase in the interest is not done by simply repeating the name of God. Japam means only repetition of the qualities of the divine personality and not repetition of mere name that will lead to boredom finally. The Japam of various names of God can serve this purpose because each name is explaining a specific divine quality. In this way Japam of thousand names (Sahasra naama) is far better than Japam of a single name. The devotion develops by the divine personality shining in several angles. The name stands for one angle only.
4. Where should we concentrate?
Swami replied:- We should concentrate on the contemporary human incarnation of God. The divine qualities of the alive human form of God will develop the highest and the most natural concentration. Hanuman concentrating on Rama and Gopikas concentrating on Krishna are the best examples for concentration on the alive human form of God.
5. What should I feel while worshipping Hanuman and Subrahmanya photos?
[You are distributing photos of Hanuman and Subrahmanya Swami to Your devotees, what should we feel while worshipping them and meditating on them.]
Swami replied:- You should feel the corresponding angles of the divine personality of God representing some of the infinite number of good qualities.
6. What is the purpose of all the bhajans written and sung by You?
[Sri Ganapathi Sachhidananda Swami is writing and singing bhajans, You are also writing and singing bhajans, Sri Sankarachaarya also wrote and sang many stotras on many forms of God. Please explain
what is the purpose of all those bhajans?]
Swami replied:- The purpose is only to remember and concentrate on some specific modes of the divine personality of God Datta. These forms represent their corresponding auspicious qualities of the divinity of God. Song is the most attractive form of prayer, which is better than prose and poetry. This best method of singing on the divinity of God is called as Gayatri.
7. What is the difference between the bhajans written by the three of You?
[What is the difference between the bhajans written by the three of You. Please forgive me if I am asking anything wrong. Pada namaskaram Swami.]
Swami replied:- There is no difference among the bhajans of the three of us because as I told, the basic background is one and the same.
8. What should be our intention while singing the bhajans composed by You on God’s incarnations?
[What should be our intention while singing those bhajans because although You are human incarnation, You are writing bhajans on the Lord’s incarnations?]
Swami replied:- The repulsion towards the common human form present before the eyes brings some negligence and the attraction towards the divine energetic forms brings the possibility of absorption of mind without repulsion. Faith on the contemporary human incarnation is the best, but also, is the most delicate due to repulsion between common human media. In order to avoid this, this method is adopted.