Incidences I liked/I got inspired from in the life of Vivekananda

Ankur

Ankur Acharya
Uttishthta member

Friends and admirers of Vivekananda,

Here is your copy of Uttishthata Groupzine for the month of May 2007.

The theme of this month’s issue is ‘Character’.

Contents of this issue are:

Swami Vivekananda on Himself: Divine Experiences through Sri Ramakrishna.

Education for Character – by Swami Ranganathananda.

Glory of the Gita – Bhagavad-Gita for Executives, Chapter 2^nd Samkhya Yoga.

Character formation: Divine Message of the Veda – benefits of character.

Inspirational letter from Swami Shivananda (Mahapurush Maharaj).

Teachings of Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi on how to mould our mind positively during sufferings.

Visual presentation of the teaching of Sri Ramakrishna – Longing and Yearning.

Wisdom from the scriptures.

Chataka and water – advice of Swami Vivekananda on how to build character.

You may download Uttishthata Groupzine May 2007 from the following link:

http://www.uttishthata.org/wp-content/uploads/2007/05/Issue10May07.pdf

To read and download previous issues of Uttishthata Groupzine please visit:

With love and namaskar,

Yours in the service of Swami Vivekananda.

Rajan, Moderator

on behalf of Uttishthata Mailing Team

Vivekananda was born in 1863 in a rich family. Through his childhood he displayed outstanding qualities of character, great devotion, talent, a deep philosophical mind, and a capacity for both deep meditation and intense compassion for his follow men.

Vivekananda was born in Dutta Family in Calcutta. Since his childhood his keen interest was in spirituality. Vivekananda was always thinking that, if we have soul in our body then we should realize it. If there is a GOD in this world then we should see him or else we can not say there is a GOD. He was always seeking for such person who has seen GOD. One day they had some spiritual discussion in their class and from his teacher he came to know there is one person in Dakshineshwar who has realized GOD. Vivekananda was very much interested to meet such person so he went along with his friend to Dakshineshwar.
When he went to meet Ramakrishna, he asked first question that, “Have you seen GOD”?. Ramakrishna was surprised about his question and replied, “Yes, I have seen GOD.
Vivekananda asked next question whether he can see GOD. He told, “Yes, even you can see God.” From that moment he started dreaming to see GOD.
From this we can get, passion to see GOD and derive courage from swami Vivekananda.
He had really highly outstanding capacity. Slowly he realized that everything is within us so he started his sadhana and used to do that regularly.
After certain period he got self realization and that he put it front of millions of people.
He told after self realization you can do any thing. Nothing will be impossible for you. Some people think that it is magic, but it is not magic, it is exact science.
In Chicago, he gave very wonder-full lecture and that he has mentioned in his book i.e. RAJAYOGA.

His every incident is really inspiring for today’s generation, among that I would like to mention one of his incident.
This was happened when Vivekananda went to America.
He was just sitting near the tree on the bank of river and few boys were trying to hit the egg shell which was floating on the river.
They were really finding it difficult to hit that egg shell. Vivekananda was seeing all these things from a distance and he smiled. Among that one student found that Vivekananda is laughing at them so they all went to Vivekananda and told, “You are laughing us but do you think that you can shoot this egg shell? He again smiled and replied, “I will try.”
Vivekananda took the gun and he stood for five minutes and he fired the gun. Whenever he used to fire, he shoot egg shell students were really surprised to see this. They told Vivekananda, “you should have some hands of practice, than only this is possible?”
On this swami Vivekananda told them that the Key of success depends upon the POWER OF CONCENTRATION.

Now we should think about this sentence. This sentence will inspire each and every person and its really heart touching sentence.

In one of his article, he mentioned as follow:

“Hear, ye children of immortal bliss! Even ye that reside in higher spheres! I have found the Ancient One who is beyond all darkness, all delusion: knowing Him alone you shall be saved from death over again.” “Children of immortal bliss” - what a sweet, what a hopeful name! Allow me to call you, brethren, by that sweet name - heirs of immortal bliss — yea, the Hindu refuses to call you sinners. Ye are the Children of God, the sharers of immortal bliss, holy and perfect beings. Ye divinities on earth — sinners! It is a sin to call a man so; it is a standing libel on human nature. Come up, O lions, and shake off the delusion that you are sheep; you are souls immortal, spirits free, blest and eternal; ye are not matter, ye are not bodies; matter is your servant, not you the servant of matter.

Really, after reading this anybody can think twice on this.”

What a sentence..!!!

He used to say always….
Arise! Awake ! and stop not till the goal is reached.

After reading this any normal person also will keep some hope and will work for that. Such a Great person will not Born on this earth Again.

JAI HIND..

From
Tushar Shinde,
M.Tech
Industrial catlysis ( II Sem )
Cochin University Of Science and Technology, Kerala
Cell - 09995402511
Email - tushar_shindeus@yahoo.com

Dear Friends,

Here is your issue of Uttishthata Groupzine for the month of April 2007.

The contents this issue with few excerpts are:

1. Swami Vivekananda on Himself: Discipleship

“Have you seen God, sir?”

“Yes, I see Him just as I see you here, only in a much intenser sense.”

“God can be realized,” he went on; “one can see and talk to Him as I am seeing and talking to you. But who cares? People shed torrents of tears for their wife and children, for wealth or property, but who does so for the sake of God? If one weeps sincerely for Him, He surely manifests Himself.”

2. Overcoming Negative ideas: by Swami Bodhamayananda

Disciplinary exercises for the youth: of the body, of breathing, of speech, of thoughts, of one’s inner nature…

“Man is Man so long as he is struggling to rise above nature and this nature is both internal and external.” – Swami Vivekananda

3. Fifteen laws of Life: based on the teachings of Vivekananda

1. Love Is The Law Of Life.

2. It’s Your Outlook That Matters.

3. Life is Beautiful.

4. It’s The Way You Feel.

5. Set Yourself Free.

6. Don’t Play The Blame Game.

7. Help Others.

8. Uphold Your Ideals.

9. Listen To Your Soul.

10. Be Yourself.

11. Nothing Is Impossible.

12. You Have The Power.

13. Learn Everyday.

14. Be Truthful.

15. Think Different.

4. Education for Character: by Swami Ranganathananda

… What is it that is lacking in our people? We have enough money and resources at our disposal. Then, why this poverty? Why this suffering of millions of people? This thinking must come to you and you must find an answer to this problem. I shall help you to go into that line of thinking…. S.R.

5. Gems of Gospel: Selected teachings form the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna

6. Glory of the Gita: Bhagawad Gita for Executives

7. Parable of Elephant God: Visual Presentation of the teaching of Sri Ramakrishna

You may download this issue from the following link:

http://www.uttishthata.org/wp-content/uploads/2007/04/Issue9April07.pdf

Yours in the service of Swami Vivekananda,

Rajan, Moderator

on behalf of Uttishthata Mailing Team

In a small village in the valley, there lived a man who was always happy, kind, and well disposed to everyone he met. He always smiled and had a kind and encouraging word to say whenever necessary. Everyone who met him left feeling, better, happier and elated. People knew they could count on him, and regarded him as a great friend.

One of the village dwellers was curious to know what his secret was, how could he be always so kind and helpful? How is it that he held no grudge towards anyone and was always happy?

Once, upon meeting him in the street he asked him: “Most people are selfish and unsatisfied. They do not smile as often as you do; neither are they as helpful or kind as you are. How do you explain it?”

“When you make peace with yourself, then you can be in peace with the rest of the world. If you can recognize the spirit in yourself, you can recognize the spirit in everyone, and then you find it natural to be kind and well disposed to all. If your thoughts are under your control you become strong and firm. The outer mask of the personality is like a robot programmed to do
certain tasks. Your habits and thoughts are the programs. Be free from these programming and then the inner good that resides in you will be revealed.”

“But a lot of work is necessary. Good habits have to be developed. The ability to concentrate and to control the thoughts has to be strengthened. The work is difficult and endless. There are many walls that need to be climbed. It is not an easy task.” Lamented the villager.

“Do not think about the difficulties, otherwise that’s what you will see and experience. Just quieten your feelings and thoughts and try to stay in this peace. All the abilities and powers awaken spontaneously. You do not work on them directly. They are by-products of your peace of mind. Just try to be calm and do not let yourself be carried away by your thoughts.”

“Is that all?” Asked the villager.

“Try to watch your thoughts and see how they come and go. Stay in the quietness that arises. The moments of peace will be brief at first, but in time they will get longer. This peace is also strength, power, kindness, and love. When you realize that you are one with the Universal Power, you begin to act from a different dimension, not from the selfish, small, limited
ego.”

“I will try to remember your words,” said the villager and continued, “there is another thing that I am curious about. You do not seem to be influenced by the environment. You have a kind word to everyone and are helpful. Yet people do not exploit your goodness, and they treat you well.”

“Goodness and being kind do not necessarily point to weakness. When you are good you can also be strong. People sense your strength and do not impose on you. When you are strong and calm inside, you help people because you can and you want to. You then act from strength and not from weakness. Goodness can also go with power and strength; it is not a sign of weakness as some people erroneously think.”

“Thank you very much for your advice”, said the villager and went away happy and satisfied.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Uttishthata/message/1737

Dear friends,

Here is March 2007 issue of Uttishthata Groupzine.

Contents of this issue are:

1. Swami Vivekananda on Himself: Boyhood days
2. The Imitation of Christ and Hindu Scriptures- a compilation of selected passages from the Imitation of Christ and corresponding thought in Hindu Scriptures by Swami Vivekananda.
3. Gems of Gospel: saying of Sri Ramakrishna
4. Overcoming Negative Ideas: How to remain positively focused in our everyday life explained by Swami Bodhamayananda through examples.
5. Glory of the Gita: Bhagavad Gita for Executives. Understanding Gita and application in our everyday life, an exposition by Dr. Manohar Abhay.
6. Sri Ramakrishna’s respect for other faiths: Visual presentation of the teachings of Sri Ramakrishna.

You may download from the following link:

http://www.uttishthata.org/wp-content/uploads/2007/03/Issue8Mar07.pdf

Please send your contributions to Uttishthata Groupzine’s next issue.

Yours in the service of Swamiji,

Rajan, Moderator

On behalf of Uttishthata Mailing Team

A water bearer in India had two large pots, each hung on each end of a pole which he carried across his neck.

One of the pots had a crack in it, and while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at the end of the long walk from the stream to the master’s house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.

For a full 2 years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water in his master’s house.

Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments, perfect to the end for which it was made.

But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do.

After 2 years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream.

“I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you.”

“Why?” asked the bearer. “What are you ashamed of?”

“I have been able, for these past two years, to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your master’s house. Because of my flaws, you have to do all of this work, and you don’t get full value from your efforts,” the pot said.

The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and in his compassion he said, “As we return to the master’s house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path.”

Indeed as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path and this cheered it some. But at the end of tile trail, it still felt bad because it had leaked out half its load, and so again it apologized to the bearer for its failure.

The bearer said to the pot, “Did you notice that there were flowers only on YOUR side of your path, but not on the other pot’s side? That’s because I have always known about your flaw, and I took advantage of it. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you’ve watered them.

For 2 years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my master’s table. Without you being just the way you are, he would not have this beauty to grace his house.”

Moral: Each of us has our own unique flaws. We’re all cracked pots. Some of us don’t grow old gracefully, some are not so smart, some are tall, large & big, some bald, some physically challenged, but it’s the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding.

You’ve just got to take each person for what they are, and look for the good in them. There is a lot of good out there. There is a lot of good in you, My Friend!

Blessed are the flexible for they shall not be bent out of shape.

Remember to appreciate all the different people in your life!

“Each soul is potentially Divine. The goal is to manifest this Divinity with in.” - Swami Vivekananda

Dear Friends,

Here is your copy of Uttishthata Groupzine for January and February 2007 .

The contents of this issue are:

Swami Vivekananda on Himself: Boyhood Days - Part II
Human Excellence: Lecture by Swami Ranganathananda
Glory of the Gita: Bhagawad Gita for Executives
Parable of Jack-Fruit: Visual Presentation of Teaching of Sri Ramakrishna
Overcoming Negative Ideas: by Swami Bodhamayananda

You may download this issue here:

Yours in the service of Swami Vivekananda,

Rajan

Moderator

In a village in Orissa there lived a good natured girl called Vasanthi. Her mother Radhabai wanted to give her in marriage to a boy called Mahendra living in the same village since she knew that they loved each other. She expressed her thoughts to her husband Raghavaiyya.

Raghavaiyya was against this match as Mahendra was an orphan. He wanted his daughter to marry Sukaveera from a wealthy family. He thought that, as Sukaveera’s wife, his daughter would be able to lead a comfortable life.

His wife did not like this as Sukaveera was aged and she also knew that her daughter would not be happy with her father’s decision. In the meantime, Mahendra left for town in search of a job.

Sukaveera and his friends started for the town on some work. Vasanthi’s father also accompanied them.

They stayed in a choultry near the temple. Raghavaiya was laid up with small pox.

Noticing this, Sukaveera and his friends were worried about their own health. They discussed with each other and selfishly decided to leave the sick man outside the town.

Fortunately, Mahendra, who was in the same town heard this news. He immediately rushed to help Vasanthi’s father. Mahendra carefully nursed him back to health unmindful of his own safety.

When Raghavaiyya got better Mahendra took round the town and showed him the different temples. He also accompanied Raghavaiyya on his return to the village.

On the way there was a Krishna temple. When they were in front of the temple, Vasanthi’s father said, “How can I repay your debt? I promise that I will give my daughter in marriage to you”

Hearing this, Vasanthi was very happy.

But her happiness was short-lived. Shortly after Sukaveera sent a messenger with costly jewels and asked for his daughter’s hand.

Seeing all the wealth, Raghavaiyya got tempted. He decided that he should marry Vasanthi to Sukaveera.

Mahendra was shocked to see Raghvaiyya go back on his word.

He decided to go to Panchayat.

In the Panchayat meeting, Mahendra recounted the entire story of Raghavaiyya’s illness and his promise in front of the Krishna temple.

Unfortunately he had no witnesses to prove his point.

The panchayat questioned him, “Do you have any witnesses to prove that Vasanthi’s father Raghavaiyya gave you that promise?”

Mahendra replied, “Lord Krishna alone is my witness.”

The Panchayat laughed and said, “If you can bring him to the Panchayat we will accept the validity of your statement.”

Sad and disappointed, he walked back to the same temple. He wanted to end his life. The sorrow and exhaustion forced him to fall asleep at the doorstep of the temple.

While asleep he had a dream. Lord Krishna appeared to him and said, “My child, I will definitely come with you as the witness to the Panchayat. I will follow you to your village. But I have one condition. You should not doubt my statement and turn back to verify if I am coming. If you do so, I will stop at that spot.”

Mahendra agreed and started walking back. He could hear the sound of the Lord’s anklets. Presently, they entered soft sand on the banks of a river. The anklets sound stopped. On an impulse Mahendra turned and Lo! the Lord turned into a beautiful image.

Mahendra wept at his lack of faith in the Lord’s words.

He went back to the Panchayat and invited them to that spot. The people of the village were surprised to see the beautiful image of Lord Krishna where there was none. They praised Mahendra for his truthfulness. The Panchayat accepted this as witness and ruled in his favour. Raghavaiyya too relented and agreed to give his daughter in marriage to Mahendra.

The villagers built a temple for Lord Krishna at that spot. This temple can be seen even today on the way to Puri from Bhuvaneswar.

Friends,

My hearty best wishes for the New Year 2007.

Here is December 2006 issue of Uttishthata Groupzine.

Contents of this issue are:

1. Swami Vivekananda on Himself - Birth & Boyhood

2. Desires and Problems of Life – Solution by Vivekananda

3. Human Excellence – Swami Ranganathananda

4. Greed Ruins a Man – A Story from Mahabharata

5. Glory of the Gita – Bhagawad Gita for Executives

6. Why do we suffer? – Teachings of Holy Mother Sarada Devi

7. Swamiji’s wit and Humour

8. Swami Vivekananda and His Compassion

9. Difficulty of Preaching: Visual presentation of the teachings of Sri Ramakrishna

Send your comments, suggestions and contributions.

Jai Swamiji.

Rajan

Moderator