Beauty Tips

•  For attractive lips, speak words of kindness. 
•  For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people. 
• For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry. 
• For beautiful hair, let a child run his or her fingers through it once a day. 
• For poise, walk with the knowledge you'll never walk alone. 
• People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; Never throw out anybody. 
• Remember, If you ever need a helping hand, you'll find one at the end of your arm. 
• As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, the other for helping others. 
• The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman must be seen from in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides. 
• The beauty of a woman is not in a facial mole, but true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It is the caring that she lovingly gives, the passion that she shows, and the beauty of a woman with passing years only grows!

Nanak’s Quest For The Beloved

 It was a dark, moonless night. Suddenly there was thunder and lightning and it began to rain. The village was asleep. Only Nanak was awake and the echo of his song filled the air.
    Nanak’s mother was worried because the night was half gone and the lamp in his room was still burning. She could hear his voice as he sang. She knocked at his door, ‘‘Go to sleep now, my son. Soon it will be dawn.’’ Nanak became silent. From the darkness sounded the call of the sparrowhawk. ‘‘Piyu, piyu, piyu!’’ it called.
    ‘‘Listen, mother!’’ Nanak called out. ‘‘The sparrowhawk is calling to his beloved; how can i be silent, i will call my beloved too…i will have to sing for lives upon lives before my voice reaches Him, for He is far away.’’ Nanak resumed singing.
    Nanak practised no austerities, meditation or yoga; he only sang, and singing, he arrived. His singing became meditation – his purification and his yoga.
    Endless meditation, if halfhearted, will take you nowhere; whereas just singing a simple song with all your being merged in it, or dance a dance with the same total absorption and you will reach. The question is not what you do, but how much of yourself you involved in the act.
    Nanak’s path to supreme realisation, to godliness is scattered with song and flowers. Whatever he has said was said in verse. His path was full of melody and soft, filled with the flavour of ambrosia.
    The moonless night described at the beginning was an incident from Nanak’s life when he was about 16 years of age. When the Japuji was conceived, Nanak was 30. The Japuji was his first proclamation after the union with the beloved. The sparrowhawk had found his beloved; the call of ‘‘Piyu, piyu’’ was now over. The Japuji contains the very first words uttered by Nanak after self-realisation; therefore they are special.
    Before the birth of the Japuji, Nanak sat on the banks of the river in darkness with his friend and follower, Mardana. Suddenly, he removed his clothes and walked into the river. Mardana called after him, but Nanak plunged into the depths of the river. Mardana waited and when Nanak did not return, he became anxious. Running back to the village, he woke up everyone. It was the middle of the night, but a crowd collected at the riverside because everyone in the village loved Nanak.
Three days passed. Though everyone thought him to be dead, on the third night Nanak appeared from the river. The first words he spoke became the Japuji. So goes the story – true because it gives the essential truth; false in the sense that it is only symbolic. When Nanak disappeared in the river, the story goes that he stood before the divine.
Now, this is a story; what it symbolises must be understood. First, unless you lose yourself completely, until you die, you cannot hope to meet God. Whether you lose yourself in a river or on a mountaintop is of little consequence; but you must die. Your annihilation becomes his being. As long as you are, he cannot be. You are the obstacle, the wall that separates you. This is the symbolic meaning of drowning in the river.
    You too will have to lose yourself; you too will have to drown. The three days in Nanak’s story represent the time required for his ego to dissolve completely.

सुख के लिए कोई धन्यवाद नहीं है, दुख के लिए बड़ी शिकायत।

एक बहुत बड़ा अमीर आदमी था। उसने अपने गांव के सब गरीब लोगों के लिए, भिखमंगों के लिए माहवारी दान बांध दिया था। किसी भिखमंगे को दस रुपये मिलते महीने में, किसी को बीस रुपये मिलते। वे हर एक तारीख को आकर अपने पैसे ले जाते थे। वर्षों से ऐसा चल रहा था। एक भिखमंगा था जो बहुत ही गरीब था और जिसका बड़ा परिवार था। उसे पचास रुपये महीने मिलते थे। वह हर एक तारीख को आकर अपने रुपये लेकर जाता था।

एक तारीख आई। वह रुपये लेने आया, बूढ़ा भिखारी। लेकिन धनी के मैनेजर ने कहा कि भई, थोड़ा हेर-फेर हुआ है। पचास रुपये की जगह सिर्फ पच्चीस रुपये अब से तुम्हें मिलेंगे। वह भिखारी बहुत नाराज हो गया। उसने कहा, क्या मतलब? सदा से मुझे पचास मिलते रहे हैं। और बिना पचास लिए मैं यहां से न हटूंगा। क्या कारण है पच्चीस देने का? मैनेजर ने कहा कि जिनकी तरफ से तुम्हें रुपये मिलते हैं उनकी लड़की का विवाह है और उस विवाह में बहुत खर्च होगा। और यह कोई साधारण विवाह नहीं है। उनकी एक ही लड़की है, करोड़ों का खर्च है। इसलिए अभी संपत्ति की थोड़ी असुविधा है। पच्चीस ही मिलेंगे। उस भिखारी ने जोर से टेबल पीटी और उसने कहा, इसका क्या मतलब? तुमने मुझे क्या समझा है? मैं कोई बिरला हूं? मेरे पैसे काट कर और अपनी लड़की की शादी? अगर अपनी लड़की की शादी में लुटाना है तो अपने पैसे लुटाओ।

कई सालों से उसे पचास रुपये मिल रहे हैं; वह आदी हो गया है, अधिकारी हो गया है; वह उनको अपने मान रहा है। उसमें से पच्चीस काटने पर उसको विरोध है। तुम्हें जो मिला है जीवन में, उसे तुम अपना मान रहे हो। उसमें से कटेगा तो तुम विरोध तो करोगे, लेकिन उसके लिए तुमने धन्यवाद कभी नहीं दिया है। इस भिखारी ने कभी धन्यवाद नहीं दिया उस अमीर को आकर कि तू पचास रुपये महीने हमें देता है, इसके लिए धन्यवाद। लेकिन जब कटा तो विरोध।

जीवन के लिए तुम्हारे मन में कोई धन्यवाद नहीं है, मृत्यु के लिए बड़ी शिकायत। सुख के लिए कोई धन्यवाद नहीं है, दुख के लिए बड़ी शिकायत। तुम सुख के लिए कभी धन्यवाद देने मंदिर गए हो? दुख की शिकायत लेकर ही गए हो जब भी गए हो। जब भी तुमने परमात्मा को पुकारा है तो कोई दुख, कोई पीड़ा, कोई शिकायत। तुमने कभी उसे धन्यवाद देने के लिए भी पुकारा है? जो तुम्हें मिला है उसकी तरफ भी तुम पीठ किए खड़े हो। और इस कारण ही तुम्हें जो और मिल सकता है उसका भी दरवाजा बंद है।

🍁सन्त वचन🍁

।।श्री हरिः शरणम्।।
 
आने-जानेवाली चीजों से अपने में फर्क पड़ जाय‒यह महान् मूर्खता है । ये चीजें तो आने-जानेवाली हैं । कुटुम्ब भी आने-जानेवाला है, धन भी आने-जानेवाला है । अधिकार, पद आदि भी आने-जानेवाले हैं । मिनिस्टर बन गये तो फूँक भर गयी कि हम बड़े हो गये । क्या हो गये तुम ? मूर्खता है सांगोपांग, एक केश-जितनी भी इसमें सत्यता नहीं है । आप बताओ, क्या हुआ ? आज हम हिन्दुस्तान के बादशाह बन जायँ और कल तिरस्कारपूर्वक उतार दे तो क्या इज्जत है इसकी ? और मरना पड़ेगा ही, सब छूटेगा ही उस दिन क्या साथ में रहेगा ? इन नाशवान् चीजों को लेकर आप अपने में बड़ापन और ऊँचापन देखते हैं, यह वास्तव में कोई इज्जत है ? यह कोई मनुष्यता है ? परमात्मा के आप साक्षात् अंश हो, उसकी प्राप्ति करो तब तो अपनी जगह आ गये, ठिकानेपर आ गये । नहीं तो ठिकाने से चूक गये और आने-जानेवाली चीजों में बँध गये । खयाल में आता है कि नहीं ? शंका हो तो खूब खुलकर करो । हो नहीं सकती शंका ! ठहर नहीं सकती ! टिक नहीं सकती !

     अविनाशी के सामने विनाशी चीज क्या मूल्य रखती है ? उन चीजों से राजी और नाराज होते हो । महान् दुष्टता है यह । यह बड़ी भारी दुष्टता है । इस वास्ते इन आने-जानेवाली चीजों से अपनी इज्जत-बेइज्जत मत मानो । निन्दा से, प्रशंसा से दुःखी और सुखी मत होवो । आपकी इज्जत है नहीं यह । निन्दा से नाराज होना भी बेइज्जती है और प्रशंसा से राजी होना भी बेइज्जती है । महान् फजीती है आपकी । इसके समान फजीती और कोई है ही नहीं । कौन हो आप ? परमात्मा के साक्षात् अंश हो । दो-चार आदमियों ने ठीक कह दिया तो क्या हो गया और दुनियामात्र बुरा कह दे तो क्या हो गया ? क्या है यह ? यह कोई मूल्य है क्या ? यह कोई स्थायी चीज है ? आपके साथ रहनेवाली है ? ऐसे जानेवाली को लेकर राजी और नाराज होते हो, सुखी-दुःखी होते हो । यह महान् मूर्खता है । छोटी-मोटी मूर्खता नहीं है, बड़ी भारी मूर्खता है ।

     ‘समदुःखसुखः स्वस्थः’‒जो निरन्तर आत्मभाव में स्थित दुःख-सुख को समान समझनेवाला, मिट्टी, पत्थर और स्वर्ण में समान भाववाला ज्ञानी, प्रिय तथा अप्रिय को एक-सा माननेवाला और अपनी निन्दा-स्तुति में भी समान भाववाला है । जो मान और अपमान में सम है, मित्र और वैरी के पक्ष में भी सम है एवं सम्पूर्ण आरम्भों में कर्तापन के अभिमान से रहित है, वह पुरुष गुणातीत कहा जाता है । (गीता १४ । २४- २५) वह गुणातीत आप हो ! गुणातीत बनते नहीं हो ! बनी हुई गुणातीत अवस्था टिकेगी नहीं । अगर अभ्यास के द्वारा गुणातीत बनोगे तो वह गुणातीत होना कोई काम का नहीं है । आप स्वयं गुणातीत हो ! साक्षात् परमात्मा के अंश हो ! आप अपने को भूल गये । कितनी अवस्थाएँ बदली हैं ! बालक, जवान, वृद्ध-अवस्था, जाग्रत्, स्वप्न, सुषुप्ति-अवस्था, मान-अपमान की अवस्था, निन्दा-स्तुति की अवस्था, घाटे-नफे की अवस्था सब बीती है, पर आप वे-के-वे ही रहे । फिर भी आने-जानेवाली चीजों के साथ हाँ-में-हाँ मिलाकर हँसने और रोने लग जाते हो ।
जय श्री कृष्ण

‘भगवत्प्राप्ति सहज है’ पुस्तक से, पुस्तक कोड- 406, विषय- मनुष्यकी मूर्खता, पृष्ठ-संख्या- ५९-६१, गीताप्रेस गोरखपुर

ब्रह्मलीन श्रद्धेय स्वामीजी श्री रामसुखदास जी महाराज

Constant Rememberance of God - How?

Constant Rememberance of God - How?

"Tasmat sarveshu kaaleshu maamanusmara yudhya che." (Gita 8:7)
Therefore Arjuna, remember Me at all times and fight. Here fight stands for doing one's duty. We can remember God at all times but we can't fight at all times. Arjuna's duty was to fight, just like we have to perform our daily duties. Domestic duties can't be performed at all times. The spiritual
aspirant have three options before them -
1) To do the work while remembering God,
2) To remember God while doing the work, and
3) To do the work considering it as God's work.
In the first option, remembrance of God is primary, while the work is secondary.
In the second option the work is primary, while remembrance of God is secondary.
In the third option there is undivided devotion for God.
Generally people forget God while working. There are two reasons for it. The important reason is one's negligence. The second reason is lack of attachment (feeling of mine-ness) with God. If there is attachment for anyone, he is reminded spontaneously of that one. People have attachment to their domestic affairs, not to God. They are therefore likely to forget God. As long as we accept and see the house, the work, and Self as our own, we are likely to forget God. Therefore we should be determined that we have to do only God's work, not our own work. What is the use of work which makes one forget God? Therefore a spiritual aspirant should accept that his house, his work and he himself belong to God. They are not his own. He should feel that he is doing God's work, with
His power in order to please Him. this firm determination will develop a strong bonding (a feeling of mine-ness) with God and in-turn spontaneous and constant rememberance of Him.
Hare Krishna

Everyone has the full freedom the follow the pathway of his choice

Of all the things that one can attain in life there is nothing that even remotely compares with the attainment of self-realization. When one reawakens his original enlightened consciousness this attainment far exceeds even the greatest accomplishments of world history. The benefit the awakened soul achieves are eternal and ever-increasingly auspicious unlike the temporary fizzling-out benefits of material attainments.

But for most people there is no question of searching for self-realization. They are simply interested in how to make money as much as possible and spend it for gratifying their senses and the senses of their family members. Even for those rare persons who have an inclination for self-realization, in most cases it is way down on their list of priorities. So the rarest are those who make self-realization the number one purpose of their existence. And the rarest of the rare are those who properly tread the pathway of self-realization following in the footsteps of a bona fide spiritual master.

Everyone has the full freedom the follow the pathway of his choice. If one wants to remain in the cycle of birth, death, old age, disease, Krishna will fully facilitate him. And if one wants to finish up his rotation in this never-ending cycle, Krishna will provide him with a bona fide spiritual who can save him.

All we have to do is sincerely desire to attain spiritual perfection and then we will see how Krishna has given us everything we need in order to attain it. We will see how He has given us His teachings in form of the Bhagavad-gita. We will appreciate how He has made Himself so easily available in the form of His inconceivably sweet holy names. And we will be in a state of wonder to see how we can so easily approach Him and qualify to become one of His intimate associates by serving His pure representative, the bona fide spiritual master.

according to one’s particular karma, one suffers or enjoys material life

SB 4.11.20

na vai sva-pakṣo ’sya vipakṣa eva vā

parasya mṛtyor viśataḥ samaṁ prajāḥ

taṁ dhāvamānam anudhāvanty anīśā

yathā rajāṁsy anilaṁ bhūta-saṅghāḥ

TRANSLATION

The Supreme Personality of Godhead, in His feature of eternal time, is present in the material world and is neutral towards everyone. No one is His ally, and no one is His enemy. Within the jurisdiction of the time element, everyone enjoys or suffers the result of his own karma, or fruitive activities. As, when the wind blows, small particles of dust fly in the air, so, according to one’s particular karma, one suffers or enjoys material life.

PURPORT

Although the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the original cause of all causes, He is not responsible for anyone’s material sufferings or enjoyment. There is no such partiality on the part of the Supreme Lord. The less intelligent accuse the Supreme Lord of being partial and claim that this is why one enjoys in this material world and another suffers. But this verse specifically says that there is no such partiality on the part of the Supreme Lord. Living entities, however, are never independent. As soon as they declare their independence of the supreme controller, they are immediately put into this material world to try their luck freely, as far as possible. When the material world is created for such misguided living entities, they create their own karma, fruitive activities, and take advantage of the time element, and thereby they create their own fortune or misfortune. Everyone is created, everyone is maintained, and everyone is ultimately killed. As far as these three things are concerned, the Lord is equal to everyone; it is according to one’s karma that one suffers and enjoys. The living entity’s higher or lower position, his suffering and enjoying, are due to his own karma. The exact word used in this connection is anīśāḥ, which means “dependent on their own karma.” The example is given that the government gives everyone the facilities for governmental action and management, but by one’s own choice one creates a situation which obliges him to exist under different types of consciousness. The example given in this verse is that when the wind blows, particles of dust float in the air. Gradually lightning occurs, and then torrents of rain follow, and thus the rainy season creates a situation of varieties in the forest. God is very kind—He gives everyone an equal chance—but by the resultant actions of one’s own karma one suffers or enjoys this material world.

Everything is only God

Everything is only God - if someone wishes to know this point, then he should sit in seclusion and begin to pray - O' Lord! How do I get to know You, how do I realize You?

"Katham vidyamaham yogimstvaam sadaa parichintayan | (Gita 10/17) "How may I realize You, O Master of Yoga! Everything is only You - how do I realize this! How do I realize! In this manner let there be an intense yearning within.
There is an incident about a very poor man. He went to a Mahatma and said "Maharaj! I am deep in debt. I am unable to get food-water-shelter-clothes for my sustenance. Shower me with your grace so that I can be free of debt." The Mahatma said "what is the biggest thing you have in your house?" The poor man said, I have a large stone, on which I sit while bathing. That is the largest object in my house. The Mahatma said, go home and sit on that stone and begin to repeat - Stone, turn into gold !… Stone turn into gold ! …. Stone turn into gold ! Is this much gold adequate for you? The poor man said, my debts will be paid off with a fraction of this gold. The Mahatma told him to go home and repeat the mantra for twenty-four hours. The man went home and began his recitation – stone turn into gold! He continued this recitation for 23 hours. Then he looked at the stone and said, so far even a small portion has not turned to gold, then too he continued. There were only five minutes remaining then too the stone had not converted into gold. He continued the recitation. Now only a minute remained, and being somewhat frustrated he said, if not into gold at least turn in iron. The moment he said this, the stone turned into iron. He went back to the Mahatma and said "Maharaj, that stone turned into an Iron block! How did this happen? The Mahatma said, you must have said so, therefore it turned into iron. You became tired and irritable therefore by your saying it turned into iron. If you did not become tired, and continued to repeat - May the stone become gold, then it would have turned into gold; because that was the time to have said so."

In this manner, an aspirant, should not become tired and impatient and instead get after God for twenty four hours saying – how am I to realize You? O' Lord, How am I to realize you? All can pray in this manner, because being a part of God all are entitled to God. If hunger troubles you, eat a "roti", if thirst troubles you, then drink water, if sleep troubles you, then go to sleep, but do not leave your yearning, your intense longing. Whether mind is engaged or not, whether attention is captured or not, but do not leave the prayer. God is very compassionate. He is the well-wisher of all beings. "Suhurdam sarvabhootaanaam" (Gita 5/29). Out of His mercy, He will make Himself known. That stone becomes gold, but is not so as such; but the world does not become a form of God, rather it is a manifestation of God. Simply we have to change our conception. The gopis therefore prayed to the Lord - "dayit drushyataam" (Srimad Bhagwat 10/32/1) Dear One ! You appear in front of us!" Then the Lord, appears in the center of all the gopis. "taasaamaavirbhoochourih" (Srimad Bhagwat 10/32/2) . What other spiritual practice will be easier than this?


From "Sab Jagah Ishvar Roop Hai" in Hindi by Swami Ramsukhdasji

Why are people so foolish to dedicate their entire lives to sense gratification?

Sense gratification is a losing proposition. If you want to invest your energy in something that will give you a decent return on your investment, you would be smart to begin by scratching sense gratification off of your list. Why?  Because sense gratification has nothing to do with the actual self.  The body is simply a temporary covering in which the actual self is encased. Sense gratification is like sitting down for dinner and feeding your clothes instead of feeding yourself. 

Why are people so foolish to dedicate their entire lives to sense gratification? They do so because this is all they know. Due to being grossly miseducated (which is much worse than being uneducated) people just plain don't know any better. They've been receiving the wrong information about who they are from the very moment they were born, and they will continue to be cheated in this way until the moment of death. A truly sad state of affairs, don't you think? Therefore something has got to be done about it. There must be a wide scale program of global proportions to enlighten every single person on this planet in the science of the self in relationship with the Supreme Self.

If we can simply learn to think, speak, and act at every moment on the platform of the spirit-soul, this world will be easily transformed into a virtual paradise. The time to act is now. Kindly dedicate your life at this minute to this mission. 

 

मान-अपमान में सम रहें

याद रखो-मान-अपमान ‘रूप’ का या ‘शरीर’ का होता है और स्तुति-निंदा नाम की होती है; और ये रूप तथा नाम दोनों ही तुम्हारे स्वरुप नहीं है । देह का निर्माण माता के उदर में गर्भकाल में होता है और नाम जन्म के बाद रखा जाता है । नाम बदले भी जाते हैं । अतएव ये रूप और नाम आत्मा के नहीं है । तुम आत्मा हो; इस देहके निर्माण के पहले भी आत्मारूप में तुम थे, देहावसान के बाद भी तुम रहोगे । आत्मा का मान-अपमान और स्तुति-निंदा कोई कर नहीं सकता । अतएव मान-अपमान तथा स्तुति-निंदा से तुम न हर्षित होओ, न उद्विग्न । दोनों को समान समझकर उन्हें ग्रहण मत करो ।

याद रखो -सत्कार-मान और बडाई-स्तुति जितने प्रिय लगते हैं, उतने ही असत्कार-अपमान और निंदा-गाली अप्रिय लगते हैं और उसी के अनुसार राग द्वेष होता है । राग-द्वेष का परिणाम है – आध्यात्मिक दैवी सम्पदा का नाश और भौतिक आसुरी सम्पदा का विकास । जहां आसुरी संपदा का सृजन होने लगता है, वहाँ भाँती-भाँती के पाप, दुष्कर्म, दुःख, क्लेश, संताप आदि का होना-बढ़ना अनिवार्य होता है । यों मानव जीवन दुखों तथा नरकों का अमोघ साधन बन जाता है । तुम जरा ध्यान देकर सोचोगे तो यह प्रत्यक्ष दिखलाई देगा की तुम न देह हो, न नाम हो और यहाँ के मान-अपमान तथा स्तुति-निंदा ही नहीं, लाभ-हानि, जय-पराजय, शुभ-अशुभ, सुख-दुःख, मित्र-शत्रु, जीवन-मृत्यु आदि द्वंद्व केवल देह-नाम या नाम-रूप से ही सम्बन्ध रखते हैं । तुम इनको भगवान की माया मान लो या उनका लीलामय स्वरुप मान लो बस, तुम इनके ऊपर उठ जाओगे