JKY e-Magazine, Issue No. 15                            September  2010


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In This Issue
Gems of Wisdom - Shree Maharajji
Announcements
Did You Know?
Upcoming Events
Current News
How to recognize a true Saint - Jagadguru Shree Kripaluji Maharaj
Secrets of Spiritual Sadhana - Swami Mukundananda
Ask Swamiji
Texas Retreat with Swamiji
Bal-Mukund
Trivia Time
Jagadguru Kripalu Yog

wisdom

"The one thing that God hates is pride, and the one virtue dearest to Him is humility."  Humility is the king of virtues.
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We doubt whether He is merciful. God says, "I am willing to give you Divine love, which will make Me your slave forever."  Now where is the doubt?
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The Divine knowledge of the Vedas is revealed in our hearts by the Grace of the Guru, when we surrender to him and serve him with love. 
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Until we weed out negative thoughts from the garden of the mind, the Grace of God will remain unavailable, to perform its miracle on us.
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No matter what arguments our mind may present to justify it, harboring negative thoughts like resentment, hatred, fear, etc is always wrong.
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True knowledge is most powerful. It directly leads to love for the Supreme, and shortens the journey to Him.  Strive for such knowledge.

These are all tweets sent by Swamiji, to reveal the Divine knowledge given by Jagadguru Shree Kripaluji Maharaj.
Announcements

Weekly Classes for Children
Weekly Classes
Bal-Mukund centers for children have been started in various cities across USA.  Weekly classes for children, in the age group of 5 to 15 years are offered.  We now have Bal-Mukund centers in New Jersey, New York, Maryland, Connecticut, Los Angeles, San Jose, Chicago, Tampa, and Dallas.  To enroll or start Bal-Mukund classes in your center, please contact:
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Get 25% off on the Bal-Mukund Character Building Series Books!
BM Book Set
Order Your Set Now!
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Ambit Energy supports JKY
Ambit Energy contributes up to $15 per customer per month.
Save on your energy bill and help support JKYog.  Earn free energy month after month.  Available in TX, Chicago, Houston, and NY. 
More Info and Enrollment
Featured Kirtan CD:

mahamantra 
Mahamantra

Featured Video:

Science & Spirituality II

science & Spirituality II
Did You Know?

swamiji's lecture

Receive Daily Inspirations


You can receive inspiring messages from Swamiji himself by configuring your mobile on Twitter.

Steps to Configure Your Mobile

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Become Swamiji's Friend

Stay connected, get the latest updates on Swamiji, JKYog events and much more on Facebook
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Steps to Join Swamiji on Facebook

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Watch Swamiji's Lectures

Watch Swamiji's Lectures, Yog & Meditation, and melodious Kirtans on our YouTube channel.

Steps to watch Swamiji on YouTube

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Discussion Group

You can interact with other devotees and Swamiji in the discussion forum.

Steps to Join Discussion Group
Upcoming Events

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Swamiji's Program Schedule

Sept 26th - 28th:  Bay Area

Sept 29th:  Torrance, CA

Sept 30th:  Canoga Park, CA

Oct 2nd - 3rd:  New Jersey

Oct 9th - 10th:  Boston

Oct 14th -15th:  Dallas

View Program Details
 Current News

JKP News

Janmashtami Celebration

Aarti

Shree Krishna's birthday was enthusiastically celebrated by thousands of devotees at Mangarh and Barsana on Sept 1st and Sept 2nd, in the Divine presence of Jagadguru Shree Kripaluji Maharaj.  Chanting of Shree Krishna leelas and pads, special arati of Baby Krishna were the main highlights of the celebration.  On this occasion, Shree Maharajji did the arati of Shree Krishna.  Bhakti Mandir was elaborately decorated with displays of Shree Krishna's appearance inside the shrine, and the exterior was lit with thousands of glittering lights.

Prem Mandir Inauguration
Nov 24-26, 2010


prem mandir

One of the biggest and most beautiful temple of  Shree Radha Krishna is currently nearing completion in Vrindavan, India.  It is made purely of Italian marble, with traditional Indian architecture and special carvings of Shree Krishna leelas around the walls, which is one of the most unique features of this magnificent temple.

Kalash Sthapana Ceremony

Maharajji kalash sthapana

kalash

Kalash
was mounted on top  of Prem Mandir on Sept 15th in the divine presence of Shree Maharaj ji.

Radhashtami Celebration

Radharani

Shree Maharajji celebrated Radhashtami on Sept 15th in Rangeeli Mahal, Barsana.

JKY News

baby krishna

Janmashtami was celebrated in different centers of JKYog.  In the Cuttack Ashram, the devotees took part in the celebration with great enthusiasm.  A lovely swing of baby Krishna was placed in the Satsang Hall, and everyone had the opportunity to have darshan and swing the Divine child.

cuttack ashram

dramas


Throughout the day, and up to midnight, devotional programs were held, which included special dramas and dances related to the leelas of Radha Krishna.

Houston program

Swamiji successfully completed his enlightening discourses at Houston, Corpus Christie,  Connecticut, and Pittsburgh which were exceedingly well received.  Yoga and Meditation programs were also conducted by Swamiji in these venues.

Sugar Land Program 

Swamiji's discourses on the topic "The Path to Happiness" and Yoga & Meditation Program are currently going on in Seattle. 

Media Coverage

Swamiji's tour of USA continues to gather increasing attention and coverage in the media.
The Editor
Jagadguru Kripalu Yog


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Welcome to the
 Jagadguru Kripalu Yog
 e-Magazine
How to recognize a true Saint
by Jagadguru Shree Kripaluji Maharaj

     mahalec11 

Continuing from the last edition...

All the scriptures and Saints say that a God-realized Saint does not perform either good or bad actions.  This is because, after God-realization, all the actions of that soul are governed and inspired by God Himself.  The soul becomes eternally absorbed in the Divine Bliss of God, and God performs all its actions.
 
sadā paśhyanti soorayaḥ tadviṣhṇoḥ paramaṁ padam

Now, if we assume that a Mahapurush, Saint realizes the presence of his beloved God in every entity and experiences His Divine Bliss all the time, then souls under the influence of Maya can raise a question.  The question is: if Mahapurushs realize God everywhere and are beyond Maya, then why did so many Mahapurushs in history rule kingdoms for thousands of years, fight wars and have children?  Dhruv, Prahalad, Prithu, Vibheeshan, Arjun, Yudhishthir, etc. all did this.  When they were God-realized, how and why did they perform these worldly actions?  Is there anything more left to do after God-realization?  Does any desire arise in their mind?  Are there any desires left after God-realization?  Moreover, their actions are so immense and colossal that a person under Maya does not have the power to make such desires, or fulfill them. 
 
The answer to this question is:

hari harijan ke karya ko, kāraṇ kachhu na lakhāya |
par upakār svabhāv vaśh, karat kārya jag āya ||

The one and only reason behind any action of God and Mahapurush is the welfare of humankind, which is their nature.

The Vedas state:

poorṇamadaḥ poorṇamidaṁ poorṇāt poorṇamudachyate |
poorṇasya poorṇamādāya poorṇamevāvaśhiṣhyate ||

God is infinitely complete and fulfilled in Himself.  Hence, if you remove a part out of an infinite entity, what is taken out is complete, and what will remain is also infinite and complete.  So, there is no question of any selfish motive behind the actions of these God realized Saints, who have achieved their goal and are completely fulfilled.  Since before God-realization, a Saint had been under the influence of Maya, like us, he is familiar with our sorrows and pain.  That is why he wishes that the individual soul should also attain God, and experience the same unlimited Divine Bliss that he is experiencing.  Thus, with this praiseworthy desire of welfare of all living beings, a Mahapurush performs all types of actions, with the single aim of wellbeing of all souls.  
 
Those actions may not be comprehensible to everyone, and the world could oppose such actions.  But because of the aim behind these actions is solely the welfare of human kind, those actions become praise worthy.  Even the most intellectual cannot comprehend the actions of a Saint.  This is because these actions are performed by a Divine power called Yogmaya, which is a special personal power of God.
 
Just as we cannot listen through the eyes, since hearing is not the subject of the eyes, similarly, we cannot grasp divine subjects with our material mind, because God as well as the Saints are not the subject of the material senses, mind and the intellect.  This is the reason why from infinite lifetimes we have never understood many Saints who descended on this earth.  That is why we have never benefited from them until now, and not attained our goal.  We tried to judge and observe them though our material minds. 

In the case of Mother Parvati, who was overcome by Maya, Lord Shankar clarifies: "O Parvati! You have neither doubts nor ignorance.  You are not under the influence of Maya.  Nevertheless, you pretended to be misled by Maya, as your intention was just to warn people not to apply their material intellect to the Divine actions and pastimes of God."  If they do so, they will harm themselves.  In order to teach this lesson to us souls, Mother Parvati herself applied her intellect and showed, "Look what happened to me.  You people do not make this mistake." 
 
In the same way, after reading about the examples of Garud and many other Saints, we will find that all these acts were done just for the welfare of humankind.  Hence, the Vedas say that one should imitate only good actions of a Saint and nothing else, otherwise it can lead to downfall of a person.  
 
Just like Lord Shankar drank Halahal, the most dreadful poison, and was designated with the title "Neelkanth," but if we try to imitate this action and drink even a drop of poison, we will surely die.
 
Therefore, we have now understood that the actions of a true Saint are Divine, and hence, beyond the comprehension of the material intellect.  We have to obey his instructions, which will result in the purification of the heart. Then, he will bestow his Divine grace and power with which we will be able to know God and relish His Divine Bliss. 
 
Thus, we now have to recognize a true Saint, so that by surrendering to him, we can achieve our goal of life.  Otherwise, we will never be able to attain Divine love of God.  This leads us to question, that when it is impossible for even Lord Brihaspati and Goddess Saraswati to recognize a true Saint, then how we will recognize him? If we are not able to recognize him then we will never attain our goal?  Will we always be under the clutches of Maya?

To be continued in the next edition....
Secrets of Spiritual Sadhana
by Swami Mukundananda

 Swamiji's Lecture

Continuing from the last month...

tṛiṇ se baṛhakar dīnatā ur rākhu nit hī pyāre

Moving further, Shree Kripaluji Maharaj tells us another important aspect of sadhana, devotion, which is dainya bhav, feeling of being humble.  To understand the importance of humility, let us consider the three paths of sadhana.  You will then be able to realize that developing humility is the easiest way to reach God. 
 
You might have heard or read that there are three paths to reach God. The first is karm, the path of Vedic ritualistic actions, the second is gyan, path of knowledge and the third is bhakti, the path of devotion.  All these three paths are related to our nature. By nature, we are sat-chit-anand, since we are the soul.  The nature of sat is to perform action, the nature of chit is knowledge, and the nature of anand is devotion.  Since we have three natures, similarly, there are three paths to reach God.  The first is karm, the path of action, the second is gyan, path of knowledge, and the third is bhakti, the path of devotion.

Amongst these three paths, the path of karm, to perform Vedic ritualistic actions, is very difficult path.  If you want to follow the path of karm, then there are 6 associated rules.  The place should be appropriate, for it cannot be performed anywhere.  An auspicious time has to be chosen.  The materials used should be pure and of the highest quality.  The money spent must be obtained by honest means.  It is not just a matter of purchasing ghee (clarified butter) from the market for worship.  The priest performing the Vedic rituals should be highly knowledgeable, and the host should be humble and sincere.  The pronunciation of the mantras, chantings of rituals should be perfect.  It is almost impossible to get all these six elements right in the present age of Kaliyug.  This is the reason that during Treta yuga, there was only one priest in the entire universe who was familiar with the Putreshti yagya when king Dasharath wanted to perform it.  Vasishta, who was the priest of the Raghu dynasty, did not perform the yagya.

śhṛiṅgī ṛiṣhihiṁ vasiṣhiṭa bulāvā | putra kām śhubha yajña karāvā ||

This was the same reason that in Dwapar yug, when the Pandavas wanted to perform the Rajasuya yagya, they made Shree Krishna their main priest.  They thought, "If He becomes the priest, then there will be no mistake while performing it.  What kind of a yagya is it if there is a mistake?"  Shree Krishna agreed to become their priest but he had a condition that he will pick up the used plates of all the Brahmins coming for the yagya.  The Pandavas were aghast, "How can we allow our Supreme Beloved to do such a work?"  Shree Krishna said that if they had any objection to this, he would not become the priest.  The Pandavas said, "Without your blessings as our priest, this yagya will not be possible.  If Your desire is to do this service, we accept Your wish, but You have to be our priest."  God was setting a standard here: nīch ṭahal bali jāooṁ.  Seva, service to God, which is considered to be of a low profile such as sweeping the floor or picking up the shoes, is highly praiseworthy in the spiritual realm, as it cleanses the heart at a very fast rate.  It brings humility.
 
Hence, Karmkand was very difficult to perform even in Treta yug and Dwapar yug, then how can we think of performing it in Kali yug?

ṣhaḍbhih saṁpadyate dharmasteti durlabhatarāh kalau |

It is almost impossible to follow the path of Karmakand, in this Kali yug.  Let us now consider the second path, i.e. the path of knowledge.  What is the difference between bhakti marg, or the path of devotion and gyan marg, or the path of knowledge? Some people think that debating about the Vedas & the scriptures is gyan, and chanting keertans, is bhakti marg.  But it is not so.  People on the path of knowledge also sing keertans and people who follow the path of bhakti also read the shastras. 
 
The difference is in the philosophy.  A gyani says, "soham", which means, "I am Brahm" or "Shivoham", which means, "I am Shiv, there is no entity beyond me".  In reply, the devotee says that this is not interesting.  The devotee says that a "da" should be added to "soham", i.e "dasoham", which means, "I am the servant of Brahm".  The gyani says again, "Add another 'sa' to it."  This will make it "sadasoham".  The devotee says, "You have spoilt it again!"  Add another "da" in front to make it "dasadasoham" which means, "I am the servant of the servant of God."
 
Hence, gyani says that the self is Brahm, and one should realize the presence of Brahm within.  But gyan marg is also very difficult.  The conditions are laid down in this path:

nirvaṇānāṁ jñānayogaṁ

The path of knowledge is for the one who is completely devoid of material desires, and who is completely detached from the material world.  The most famous acharya of gyan marg in this age was Jagadguru Shankaracharya.  He has laid the conditions stating gyan marg is for the following class of aspirants:
 
vivekino viraktasya samādiguṇaśhālinaḥ |
mumukṣhoreva hi brahma jijñāsā yogyatā matā ||


Gyan marg is for the one who has a great intellect, is completely detached from the world, has reconciled the mind in meditation, and has a curiosity to attain God.   And, if some one follows this path, then one has to face danger in every move, which means Gyan marg is equivalent to walking on the edges of a sword.

jñān ke pañth kṛipāṇ kī dhārā | parat khageśh hohiṁ nahīṁ bārā ||

It is said in Ramayan that Gyan marg is the same as walking on the edges of a sword, you will cut your legs.  If you lift one leg the other will bleed, and if you lift the back leg, the other one will be cut.
 
Thus, both the paths - path of karm, action and path of Gyan, knowledge are extremely difficult.  So, the easiest is the - Bhakti marg.

kahahu bhakti pañth kavan prayāsā | yog na makh jap tap upavāsā ||

There is almost nothing to be done in this path.  You just have to love God.
saral sukhad mārg yah bhāī | bhagati morī purān śhruti gāī ||

Hence, for us individuals, Mahapurush and the scriptures, have given the instruction that we should follow the easy path, which is the path of devotion.   This is Kaliyug.  And in Kaliyug, our body is weak and spoiled, the atmosphere is polluted, mind is restless and unsteady, the environment is impure.  With all these difficulties, it is better to walk the easiest path, which is just to love God.  One thing is clear now, that both Karm marg and Gyan marg are difficult, and Bhakti marg is the easiest. What if someone finds Bhakti marg also difficult? Is there any other marg which is simpler than this?  But what is so difficult about Bhakti marg?
 
The Ramayan says:
kahat sugam karanī apār

It is easy to say this but it is very difficult to implement it.  Why is this so? What is the meaning of bhakti? Bhakti means to do seva, to serve God.  Seva means to offer everything one possesses to God and not to expect anything in return.  Even while offering everything, one should not have the feeling of pride of offering.  One has to feel that it is the grace and mercy of God that He has accepted our service.  Also, one should have a feeling of incapability to serve God or the lack of feeling of servitude.  If someone does seva in this manner, then it is called as correct seva
 
In this Kaliyug, who can have this kind of servitude towards God?  It is only because of God's grace that He accepts our seva.   It is possible only is God bestows His grace on us.  Just as a child does not serve the mother and the mother takes care and serves the child.  Similarly, how can we, the human beings serve the almighty God?  When we surrender ourselves to God then, He will takes care of us.  Therefore, Shree Krishna says in Geeta: 

ye yathā maṁ prapadyante tāṁstathaiva bhajāmyahaṁ

"Once a soul surrenders to me, I will take care and serve that soul."   In bhakti, devotion it is easy to say that one should constantly contemplate upon about God.  While doing sadhana, devotion, sometimes it is difficult to concentrate your mind upon God.  What if someone finds bhakti marg also difficult? Is there any fourth path? It was told earlier, that according to the Vedas there are only three paths to attain God.  There is a fourth path which is very good for all of us.  What is this path?
To be continued in the next edition......


ask swamiji logo
Question:
We have heard many times that if we do punya we go to heaven and if we do paap we go to hell.  So, what are those paap and punya?
 
Answer:
Our scriptures have formulated code of conduct according to class and stage of life called "Barnashram Dharm".  This code of conduct have an extensive set of rules like always speak truth, never lie, give respect to your parents etc.  You can get detail information about it from scriptures like Manu Smriti, Mimamsha, Mahabharat, etc.  There are millions of rules.  If you are to keep your feet on ground, chant this mantra, chant this one while bathing etc.  But the main purpose of all these rules and regulations are to make you work in accordance to the scriptures.  If you work in accordance to scripture it will be called punya (virtue) and if you go against, it will be called paap (sin).

But there is one more theory that is the theory of Karm Yog.  What are you supposed to do in Karm Yog?  Not much.  Do whatever is required in your present situation.  If you are in family, look after it.  If you are a husband, earn. If you are a wife, take care of house.  Perform these basic duties.  But, while performing these duties, detach your mind from these worldly objects and transfer your attachment to God.  Lord Krishna said in Geeta:

manmanā bhava madbhakto madyājī maṁ namaskuru |
māmevaiṣhyasi  satyaṁ te pratijāne priyosi me ||

Give your mind to Me, be devoted to Me, worship Me and bow to Me. Doing so, you will come to Me alone, I truly promise you; for, you are exceptionally dear to Me.


Jagadguru Shree Kripaluji Maharaj has written in his Bhakti Shatak:

man hari meṁ tan jagat meṁ, karmayog tehi jān |
tan hari meṁ man jagat meṁ, yah mahān ajñān ||

Karm Yog is when your mind is fully observed in Shree Krishna while performing duties from your body. But, opposite of this, performing devotional formalities with body and attaching mind on world is greatest ignorance.


So this called Karm Yog - mind in God body in world.  Rest are- action accordance to the code of conduct set scriptures is virtue and going against them is sin.

Swamiji answers selected questions related to Yog, Spirituality and Philosophy every month on our e-Magazine.

Texas Retreat with Swamiji!
Sept 4th - 6th, 2010

Swamiji at trinity retreatLecture at Retreat







The final JKYog retreat of this year with Swami Mukundananda ji  concluded on Sept 6th, 2010. It was a blessed experience for everyone who attended the retreat  in the vast open lands of Texas.

The retreat was in Camp Olympia near Trinity, TX in a serene, secluded camp site at the banks of Lake Livingston, bringing us closer to nature. It was a perfect setting to contemplate on God with the guidance from our beloved Swamiji.

The children had a wonderful experience at the special Bal-Mukund classes at the retreat as well.

Bal-Mukund Group PhotoDramas

There was something for children of all ages.  Whether it was a fun classroom experience learning about the 'KRIPALU' values, and enacting them in the form of a Skit, or just sheer joy bringing Shree Krishna closer to their heart through yoga, meditations and art work, it kept the children well occupied and positively motivated.  It also had a perfect outdoor setting for sport enthusiasts and the huge outdoor 'Jumping pillow' kept the young and young at heart bouncing with joy.

The Parikrama led by Swamiji all three days was the nature walk of a lifetime and transported us back in time to the divine land of Vrindavan.

To top it all having celebrated Shree  Krishna Janmashtami with Swamiji  and everyone present, with full pomp and vigor,  I feel it was the best experience of all that elevated us to the brink of True Happiness - and brought us closer to our Goal - Selfless Divine Love.
- Aruna Kannan, Dallas

BMnew

Bal-Mukund Showcase

Bal-Mukund welcomes all contributions of creative works from children in different areas including poetry, moral stories, art work, etc.

Submission Guidelines
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Moral Story
Sudama - True Freindship
Sudama
This story comes from the Shreemad Bhagavatam.
 
Sudama, a poor brahmin boy, was a very close friend of Krishna.  They went to the same ashram for their studies. Their guru was Sandipani.
 
As times passed by, Krishna became the King of Dwaraka and married Princess Rukmini, the Goddess of Prosperity. Sudama married a simple brahmin girl.  He led a life of a devotee.  He prayed and read holy books. He had no interest in worldly attractions.  He was loved and respected by one and all, and his family lived happily.

Since Sudama led a very simple life, there was shortage of money all the time.  His family had very little food to eat and few clothes to wear.  As the children started going through hard times, Sudama's wife got very worried.  She respected her husband very much, but on a cold night when her children shivered without a blanket, she went to her husband.  She said, "Please go and meet your friend Krishna, King of Dwaraka.  He will surely help us to lead a better life."
 
Sudama wanted to meet his old friend too, but he told his wife that he would not ask Krishna for anything.  His wife agreed. She said she would be content with the Lord's blessings, which He would surely improve their condition in some way.
 
Before leaving for Dwaraka, Sudama asked his wife, I must give a gift to my Friend when I see Him after such a long time.  What have you got that I may give to Him? His wife could find nothing else in their poor hut that she could give.  All she could find was flattened rice.  She packed the rice in a cloth and gave it to her husband, saying, give this to Krishna when you meet Him.
 
Sudama left for Dwaraka with his small gift. After walking for days, Sudama reached the palace.  He felt uncomfortable and shy. He was thinking, I might have been Krishna's friend in school, but now He is a King! I am nobody.  Will Krishna remember me? Finally, he sent a message for Krishna that Sudama, His school friend, had come to see Him.
 
Upon receiving Sudama's message, Krishna came running and embraced Sudama. Krishna took him inside the palace and made him sit on his bed. Krishna and His queen Rukmani washed Sudama's feet and fed him a delicious meal.  After the warm welcome, Krishna asked, "Tell me Sudama, what can I do for you?" By this time, Sudama's heart was overflowing with gratitude because of the warm welcome by his friend. Sudama felt, Krishna has given me so much of love and respect.  Is that not enough? How can I ask Him for anything more?
 
Seeing the opulence of Krishna's palace, Sudama was feeling shy to offer his gift of flattened rice. Krishna knew everything. "Did you bring me anything?" asked Krishna. Sudama could not even respond. 
 
Krishna saw the little bundle hanging from Sudama's waist.  He grabbed it and pulling it open, He said, "I see that you have brought my favorite flattened rice for me."  He relished Sudama's rice and ate all of it.
 
Noticing that his friend looked ashamed of his small gift, Krishna said, "You have given me this gift which is very dear to me because it has been brought with love."
 
Next day, Sudama left his friend to go back home.  He had not told Krishna anything about his poverty, and had not asked for any kind of help from Him. 

On his way home, he thought of his wonderful friend and the joyous time spent together.  When he reached home, he was surprised to see that instead of his small hut, a big house stood there.  His wife and children, all wearing new clothes, came out to meet him.  The house was filled with all things needed to live a comfortable life.
 
Sudama felt the glow and warmth of his dear friend's love and understanding. Sudama did not ask for anything.  Yet, the Lord had given Sudama what he and his family needed. The Supreme Lord had blessed him with his miraculous power of loving care. 
 
Sudama lived a simple life of a hermit all his life, while his family enjoyed the gifts of richness given by Krishna.

Moral - God knows what we need, and helps us at the right time.  He only wants our devotion and love.  If you want to live under God's love and protection, just place yourself in His hands, and follow His will.

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 This story is selected from the book,
 
Bal-Mukund Character Building Series - Vol 2
A collection of  27 inspiring stories with
 beautiful illustrations

Volume2
A must have for all kids!
Get your collection of Bal-Mukund books TODAY!

Trivia Time

Jagadguru Ramanujacharya

Ramanujacharya was a great philosopher and preacher of Shree Vaishnavism.  He was born in the early twelfth century in the village of Sriperumbudur, in modern day Tamil Nadu.  Seeing his unfathomable knowledge of the Vedic scriptures, Ramanujacharya was acclaimed as Jagadguru, or Spiritual Master of the world.  He was the third Jagadguru in Indian history, after Adi-Shankaracharya and Nimbarkacharya. 

EARLY YEARS 
His childhood name was Ilaya Perumal.  Early in life, he lost his father, and was raised by his mother.  He got married as a teenager, and shortly thereafter, his family moved to Kancheepuram.  There, he studied Vedant under Yadav Prakash, a teacher of the Advaita philosophy. Many of Yadav Prakash's interpretations of the Vedas did not satisfy Ramanuja, and he would point out the mistakes to his Guru.  This made Yadav Prakash jealous of Ramanuja and he plotted to have him killed.

Ramanuja then became a student under Kanchipurna, who was an acharya (teacher) of the Vishishtadvaita school of Vedic philosophy, which was gaining popularity at that time.  Kanchipurna was a disciple of a great Vaishnav teacher, Yamunacharya. 

Ramanuja then learned Yamunacharya's philosophy from his disciple Mahapurna. He was invited to take over as the head of the Shrirangam Math.  Before taking that position, he was given a mantra in his ear by an acharya named Nambi. The guru asked him not to divulge the mantra to anyone.  Ramanujacharya disagreed with the instruction.  He said that if the mantra was beneficial, there was no reason to keep it secret.  He went to the crossroads and loudly announced it to the public.  Thus, Ramanujacharya mocked the tradition of receiving secret mantras from gurus in the ear.

HIS TEACHINGS 
Ramanujacharya propagated the philosophy of Vishishtadvaita or qualified non-dualism.  According to this school, God possess a form and attributes, that are all Divine and beyond Maya.  Lord Narayan is the Supreme Lord of the universe, and the jeev (soul) is a servant of God.  The goal of the soul is to surrender to God.

HIS WORKS 
Ramanujacharya wrote a commentary on the Brahma sutras called the Shree Bhashya. It is one of the most scholarly commentaries on the scriptures ever written.  Ramanuja's other works include the Vedant Saar (essence of Vedant), Vedant Sangraha (a resume of Vedant) and Vedant Deep (the light of Vedant).

LAST YEARS 
Ramanuja preached the philosophy of devotion to Lord Vishnu far and wide.  He visited all the sacred places in India including Kashi, Kashmir and Badrinath.  Ramanuja traveled extensively in South India and helped to cleanse temples there of the unnecessary rituals that had crept into practice.  He standardized the worship in these temples.  He visited the Tirupathi hills, and endorsed the worship of Shree Vishnu in the temple there.  He built several temples in the city of Mysore, and established it as the centre of his school of Vedant. As desired by his followers, he built a temple at Srirangam and installed his own image for worship.  His physical body is preserved to this day in the sanctum sanctorum at the temple.

Ramanujacharya continued his ceaseless service towards spread of his philosophy until the age of 120 years, when he entered maha samadhi.

Jagadguru Kripalu Yog
Siddhasan
Siddhasan

Method 

Sit in Dandasan. Fold your left leg and place the sole of the foot to the inner side of the right thigh. Place your heels close to the anus. Fold your right leg and place the right heel above the left heel. Right heel will touch the pelvic floor. Now; insert the right foot between the left thigh and the calf. Pull the left foot and place it between the right thigh and the calf. Keep your hands on the knees in any mudra. In final position knees will be on the floor.  You may swap the legs and repeat the asan in the other direction.

Benefits
It direct the sexual energy upwards. It stimulates and strengthens digestive system as the blood circulation gets concentrated in the abdominal area instead of the legs.  It activates the nervous system.

Contra-indications
People with sciatica or sacral infection should not do this asan.