Friday, November 28, 2008
यक्ष-युधिष्ठिर संवाद
सरोवर में जल लेने गये युधिष्ठिर को उस सरोवर में रहनेवाले यक्ष ने चार प्रश्न किये, और कहा कि उन चार प्रश्नों के उत्तर देने पर हि वह सरोवर का जल ले सकते हैं । तब उन के बीच निम्न प्रश्नोत्तरी हुई;
यक्ष:
का वार्ता किमाश्चर्यं कः पन्था कश्च मोदते ।
इति मे चतुरः प्रश्नान् पूरयित्वा जलं पिब ॥
कौतुक करने जैसी क्या बात है ?
आश्चर्य क्या है ?
कौन सा मार्ग है ?
कौन आनंदित रहता है ?
मेरे इन चार प्रश्नों के उत्तर देने के पश्चात् हि पानी पी ।
युधिष्ठिर:
मासर्तुवर्षा परिवर्तनेन
सूर्याग्निना रात्रि दिवेन्धनेन ।
अस्मिन् महामोहमये कराले
भूतानि कालः पचतीति वार्ता ॥
इस मोहमयी कडाई में, महिने, वर्ष इत्यादि के परिवर्तन से, सूर्यरुप अग्नि के इंधन से रात-दिन काल प्राणियों को पकाता है; यह कौतुक करने जैसी बात है ।
अहन्यहनि भूतानि गच्छन्ति यममन्दिरम् ।
शेषा जीवितुमिच्छन्ति किमाश्चर्यमतः परम् ॥
हर रोज़ कितने हि प्राणी यममंदिर जाते हैं (मर जाते हैं), वह देखने के बावजुद अन्य प्राणी जीने की इच्छा रखते हैं, इससे बडा आश्चर्य क्या हो सकता है ?
श्रुति र्विभिन्ना स्मृतयोऽपि भिन्नाः
नैको मुनि र्यस्य वचः प्रमाणम् ।
धर्मस्य तत्त्वं निहितं गुहायाम्
महाजनो येन गतः स पन्थाः ॥श्रुति में अलग अलग कहा गया है; स्मृतियाँ भी भिन्न भिन्न कहती हैं; कोई एक ऐसा मुनि नहीं केवल जिनका वचन प्रमाण माना जा सके; (और) धर्म का तत्त्व तो गूढ है; इस लिए महापुरुष जिस मार्ग से गये हों, वही मार्ग लेना योग्य है ।
दिवसस्याष्टमे भागे शाकं पचति गेहिनी ।
अनृणी चाप्रवासी च स वारिचर मोदते ॥
हे जलचर ! दिन के आठवें भाग में (सुबह-शाम रसोई के वक्त) जिसकी गृहिणी खाना पकाती हो, जिसके सर पे कोई ऋण न हो, जिसे (अति) प्रवास न करना पडता हो, वह इन्सान (घर) आनंदित होता है ।
Thursday, November 27, 2008
रंभा रुपसुंदरी है और शुकदेवजी मुनि शिरोमणि ! रंभा यौवन और शृंगार का वर्णन करते नहीं थकती, तो शुकदेवजी ईश्वरानुसंधान का । दोनों के बीच हुआ संवाद अति सुंदर है;
रम्भा:
मार्गे मार्गे नूतनं चूतखण्डं
खण्डे खण्डे कोकिलानां विरावः ।
रावे रावे मानिनीमानभंगो
भंगे भंगे मन्मथः पञ्चबाणः ॥
हे मुनि ! हर मार्ग में नयी मंजरी शोभायमान हैं, हर मंजरी पर कोयल सुमधुर टेहुक रही हैं । टेहका सुनकर मानिनी स्त्रीयों का गर्व दूर होता है, और गर्व नष्ट होते हि पाँच बाणों को धारण करनेवाले कामदेव मन को बेचेन बनाते हैं ।
शुक:
मार्गे मार्गे जायते साधुसङ्गः
सङ्गे सङ्गे श्रूयते कृष्णकीर्तिः ।
कीर्तौ कीर्तौ नस्तदाकारवृत्तिः
वृत्तौ वृत्तौ सच्चिदानन्द भासः ॥
हे रंभा ! हर मार्ग में साधुजनों का संग होता है, उन हर एक सत्संग में भगवान कृष्णचंद्र के गुणगान सुनने मिलते हैं । हर गुणगाण सुनते वक्त हमारी चित्तवृत्ति भगवान के ध्यान में लीन होती है, और हर वक्त सच्चिदानंद का आभास होता है ।
तीर्थे तीर्थे निर्मलं ब्रह्मवृन्दं
वृन्दे वृन्दे तत्त्व चिन्तानुवादः ।
वादे वादे जायते तत्त्वबोधो
बोधे बोधे भासते चन्द्रचूडः ॥
हर तीर्थ में पवित्र ब्राह्मणों का समुदाय विराजमान है । उस समुदाय में तत्त्व का विचार हुआ करता है । उन विचारों में तत्त्व का ज्ञान होता है, और उस ज्ञान में भगवान चंद्रशेखर शिवजी का भास होता है ।
रम्भा:
गेहे गेहे जङ्गमा हेमवल्ली
वल्यां वल्यां पार्वणं चन्द्रबिम्बम् ।
बिम्बे बिम्बे दृश्यते मीन युग्मं
युग्मे युग्मे पञ्चबाणप्रचारः ॥
हे मुनिवर ! हर घर में घूमती फिरती सोने की लता जैसी ललनाओं के मुख पूर्णिमा के चंद्र जैसे सुंदर हैं । उन मुखचंद्रो में नयनरुप दो मछलीयाँ दिख रही है, और उन मीनरुप नयनों में कामदेव स्वतंत्र घूम रहा है ।
शुकः
स्थाने स्थाने दृश्यते रत्नवेदी
वेद्यां वेद्यां सिद्धगन्धर्वगोष्ठी ।
गोष्ठयां गोष्ठयां किन्नरद्वन्द्वगीतं
गीते गीते गीयते रामचन्द्रः ॥
हे रंभा ! हर स्थान में रत्न की वेदी दिख रही है, हर वेदी पर सिद्ध और गंधर्वों की सभा होती है । उन सभाओं में किन्नर गण किन्नरीयों के साथ गाना गा रहे हैं । हर गाने में भगवान रामचंद्र की कीर्ति गायी जा रही है ।
रम्भा:
पीनस्तनी चन्दनचर्चिताङ्गी
विलोलनेत्रा तरुणी सुशीला ।
नाऽऽलिङ्गिता प्रेमभरेण येन
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे मुनिवर ! सुंदर स्तनवाली, शरीर पर चंदन का लेप की हुई, चंचल आँखोंवाली सुंदर युवती का, प्रेम से जिस पुरुष ने आलिंगन किया नहीं, उसका जन्म व्यर्थ गया ।
शुक:
अचिन्त्य रूपो भगवान्निरञ्जनो
विश्वम्भरो ज्ञानमयश्चिदात्मा ।
विशोधितो येन ह्रदि क्षणं नो
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
जिसके रुप का चिंतन नहीं हो सकता, जो निरंजन, विश्व का पालक है, जो ज्ञान से परिपूर्ण है, ऐसे चित्स्वरुप परब्रह्म का ध्यान जिसने स्वयं के हृदय में किया नहीं है, उसका जन्म व्यर्थ गया ।
रम्भाः
कामातुरा पूर्णशशांक वक्त्रा
बिम्बाधरा कोमलनाल गौरा ।
नाऽऽलिङ्गिता स्वे ह्र्दये भुजाभ्यां
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे मुनि ! भोग की ईच्छा से व्याकुल, परिपूर्ण चंद्र जैसे मुखवाली, बिंबाधरा, कोमल कमल के नाल जैसी, गौर वर्णी कामिनी जिसने छाती से नहीं लगायी, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ गया ।
शुक:
चतुर्भुजः चक्रधरो गदायुधः
पीताम्बरः कौस्तुभमालया लसन् ।
ध्याने धृतो येन न बोधकाले
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे रंभा ! चक्र और गदा जिसने हाथ में लिये हैं, ऐसे चार हाथवाले, पीतांबर पहेने हुए, कौस्तुभमणि की माला से विभूषित भगवान का ध्यान, जिसने जाग्रत अवस्था में किया नहीं, उसका जन्म व्यर्थ गया ।
रम्भा:
विचित्रवेषा नवयौवनाढ्या
लवङ्गकर्पूर सुवासिदेहा ।
नाऽऽलिङ्गिता येन दृढं भुजाभ्यां
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे मुनिराज ! अनेक प्रकार के वस्त्र और आभूषणों से सज्ज, लवंग कर्पूर इत्यादि सुगंध से सुवासित शरीरवाली नवयुवती को, जिसने अपने दो हाथों से आलिंगन दिया नहीं, उसका जन्म व्यर्थ गया ।
शुक:
नारायणः पङ्कजलोचनः प्रभुः
केयूरवान् कुण्डल मण्डिताननः ।
भक्त्या स्तुतो येन न शुद्धचेतसा
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
कमल जैसे नेत्रवाले, केयूर पर सवार, कुंडल से सुशोभित मुखवाले, संसार के स्वामी भगवान नारायण की स्तुति जिसने एकाग्रचित्त होकर, भक्तिपूर्वक की नहीं, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ गया ।
रम्भा:
प्रियवंदा चम्पकहेमवर्णा
हारावलीमण्डितनाभिदेशा ।
सम्भोगशीला रमिता न येन
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे मुनिवर ! प्रिय बोलनेवाली, चंपक और सुवर्ण के रंगवाली, हार का झुमका नाभि पर लटक रहा हो ऐसी, स्वभाव से रमणशील ऐसी स्त्री से जिसने भोग विलास नहीं किया, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ गया ।
शुकः
श्रीवत्सलक्षाङ्कितह्रत्प्रदेशः
तार्क्ष्यध्वजः शार्ङ्गधरः परात्मा ।
न सेवितो येन नृजन्मनाऽपि
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
जिस प्राणी ने मनुष्य शरीर पाकर भी, भृगुलता से विभूषित ह्रदयवाले, धजा में गरुड वाले, और शाङ्ग नामके धनुष्य को धारण करनेवाले, परमात्मा की सेवा न की, उसका जन्म व्यर्थ गया ।
रम्भा:
चलत्कटी नूपुरमञ्जुघोषा
नासाग्रमुक्ता नयनाभिरामा ।
न सेविता येन भुजङ्गवेणी
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे मुनिश्रेष्ठ ! चंचल कमरवाली, नूपुर से मधुर शब्द करनेवाली, नाक में मोती पहनी हुई, सुंदर नयनों से सुशोभित, सर्प के जैसा अंबोडा जिसने धारण किया है, ऐसी सुंदरी का जिसने सेवन नहीं किया, उसका जन्म व्यर्थ गया
शुक:
विश्वम्भरो ज्ञानमयः परेशः
जगन्मयोऽनन्तगुण प्रकाशी ।
आराधितो नापि वृतो न योगे
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे रंभा ! संसार का पालन करनेवाले, ज्ञान से परिपूर्ण, संसार स्वरुप, अनंत गुणों को प्रकट करनेवाले भगवान की आराधना जिसने नहीं की, और योग में उनका ध्यान जिसने नहीं किया, उसका जन्म व्यर्थ गया ।
रम्भा:
ताम्बूलरागैः कुसुम प्रकर्षैः
सुगन्धितैलेन च वासितायाः ।
न मर्दितौ येन कुचौ निशायां
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे मुनि ! सुगंधी पान, उत्तम फूल, सुगंधी तेल, और अन्य पदार्थों से सुवासित कायावाली कामिनी के कुच का मर्दन, रात को जिसने नहीं किया उसका जीवन व्यर्थ गया ।
शुकः
ब्रह्मादि देवोऽखिल विश्वदेवो
मोक्षप्रदोऽतीतगुणः प्रशान्तः ।
धृतो न योगेन हृदि स्वकीये
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
ब्रह्मादि देवों के भी देव, संपूर्ण संसार के स्वामी, मोक्षदाता, निर्गुण, अत्यंत शांत ऐसे भगबान का ध्यान जिसने योग द्वारा हृदय में नहीं किया उसका जीवन व्यर्थ गया ।
रम्भाः
कस्तूरिकाकुंकुम चन्दनैश्च
सुचर्चिता याऽगुरु धूपिकाम्बरा ।
उरः स्थले नो लुठिता निशायां
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
कस्तूरी और केसर से युक्त चंदन का लेप जिसने किया है, अगरु के गंध से सुवासित वस्त्र धारण की हुई तरुणी, रात को जिस पुरुष की छाती पर लेटी नहीं, उसका जन्म व्यर्थ गया ।
शुकः
आनन्दरुपो निजबोधरुपः
दिव्यस्वरूपो बहुनामरपः
तपः समाधौ मिलितो न येन
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे रंभा ! आनंद से परिपूर्ण रुपवाले, दिव्य शरीर को धारण करनेवाले, जिनके अनेक नाम और रुप हैं ऐसे भगवान के दर्शन जिसने समाधि में नहीं किये, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ गया ।
रम्भा:
कठोर पीनस्तन भारनम्रा
सुमध्यमा चञ्जलखञ्जनाक्षी ।
हेमन्तकाले रमिता न येन
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
जिस पुरुष ने हेमंत ऋतु में, कठोर और भरे हुए स्तन के भार से झुकी हुई, पतली कमरवाली, चंचल और खंजर से नैनोंवाली स्त्री का संभोग नहीं किया, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ गया ।
शुकः
तपोमयो ज्ञानमयो विजन्मा
विद्यामयो योगमयः परात्मा ।
चित्ते धृतो नो तपसि स्थितेन
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे रंभा ! तपोमय, ज्ञानमय, जन्मरहित, विद्यामय, योगमय परमात्मा को, तपस्या में लीन होकर जिसने चित्त में धारण नहीं किया, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ गया ।
रम्भाः
सुलक्षणा मानवती गुणाढ्या
प्रसन्नवक्त्रा मृदुभाषिणी या ।
नो चुम्बिता येन सुनाभिदेशे
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे मुनिवर ! सद्लक्षण और गुणों से युक्त, प्रसन्न मुखवाली, मधुर बोलनेवाली, मानिनी सुंदरी के नाभि का जिसने चुंबन नहीं किया उसका जीवन व्यर्थ गया ।
शुकः
पल्यार्जितं सर्वसुखं विनश्वरं
दुःखप्रदं कामिनिभोग सेवितम् ।
एवं विदित्वा न धृतो हि योगो
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे रंभा ! जिस इन्सान ने, नारी के सेवन से उत्पन्न सब सुख नाशवंत, और दुःखदायक है ऐसा जानने के बावजुद जिसने योगाभ्यास नहीं किया, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ गया ।
रम्भा:
विशालवेणी नयनाभिरामा
कन्दर्प सम्पूर्ण निधानरुपा ।
भुक्ता न येनैव वसन्तकाले
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
जिस पुरुष ने वसंत ऋतु में लंबे बालवाली, सुंदर नेत्रों से सुशोभित कामदेव के समस्त भंडाररुप ऐसी कामिनी के साथ विहार न किया हो, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ गया ।
शुकः
मायाकरण्डी नरकस्य हण्डी
तपोविखण्डी सुकृतस्य भण्डी ।
नृणां विखण्डी चिरसेविता चेत्
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे रंभा ! नारी माया की पटारी, नर्क की हंडी, तपस्या का विनाश करनेवाली, पुण्य का नाश करनेवाली, पुरुष की घातक है; इस लिए जिस पुरुष ने अधिक समय तक उसका सेवन किया है, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ गया ।
रम्भाः
समस्तशृङ्गार विनोदशीला
लीलावती कोकिल कण्ठमाला ।
विलासिता नो नवयौवनेन
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे मुनि ! जिस पुरुष ने अपनी युवानी में, समस्त शृंगार और मनोविवाद करने में चतुर और अनेक लीलाओं में कुशल और कोकिलकंठी कामिनी के साथ विलास नहीं किया, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ है ।
शुक:
समाधि ह्रंत्री जनमोहयित्री
धर्मे कुमन्त्री कपटस्य तन्त्री ।
सत्कर्म हन्त्री कलिता च येन
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
समाधि का नाश करनेवाली, लोगों को मोहित करनेवाली, धर्म विनाशिनी, कपट की वीणा, सत्कर्मो का नाश करनेवाली नारी का जिसने सेवन किया, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ गया ।
रम्भा:
बिल्वस्तनी कोमलिता सुशीला
सुगन्धयुक्ता ललिता च गौरी ।
नाऽऽश्लेषिता येन च कण्ठदेशे
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे मुनिराज ! बिल्वफल जैसे कठिन स्तन है, अत्यंत कोमल जिसका शरीर है, जिसका स्वभाव प्रिय है, ऐसी सुवासित केशवाली, ललचानेवाली गौर युवती को जिसने आलिंगन नहीं दिया, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ गया ।
शुक:
चिन्ताव्यथादुःखमया सदोषा
संसारपाशा जनमोहकर्त्री ।
सन्तापकोशा भजिता च येन
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
चिंता, पीडा, और अनेक प्रकार के दुःख से परिपूर्ण, दोष से भरी हुई, संसार में बंधनरुप, और संताप का खजाना, ऐसी नारी का जिसने सेवन किया उसका जन्म व्यर्थ गया ।
रम्भा:
आनन्द कन्दर्पनिधान रुपा
झणत्क्वणत्कं कण नूपुराढ्या ।
नाऽस्वादिता येन सुधाधरस्था
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे मुनिवर ! आनंद और कामदेव के खजाने समान, खनकते कंगन और नूपुर पहेनी हुई कामिनी के होठ पर जिसने चुंबन किया नहीं, उस पुरुष का जीवन व्यर्थ है ।
शुक:
कापट्यवेषा जनवञ्चिका सा
विण्मूत्र दुर्गन्धदरी दुराशा ।
संसेविता येन सदा मलाढ्या
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
छल-कपट करनेवाली, लोगों को बनानेवाली, विष्टा-मूत्र और दुर्गंध की गुफारुप, दुराशाओं से परिपूर्ण, अनेक प्रकार से मल से भरी हुई, ऐसी स्त्री का सेवन जिसने किया, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ है ।
रम्भाः
चन्द्रानना सुन्दरगौरवर्णा
व्यक्तस्तनीभोगविलास दक्षा ।
नाऽऽन्दोलिता वै शयनेषु येन
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे मुनिवर ! चंद्र जैसे मुखवाली, सुंदर और गौर वर्णवाली, जिसकी छाती पर स्तन व्यक्त हुए हैं ऐसी, संभोग और विलास में चतुर, ऐसी स्त्री को बिस्तर में जिसने आलिंगन नहीं दिया, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ है ।
शुक:
उन्मत्तवेषा मदिरासु मत्ता
पापप्रदा लोकविडम्बनीया ।
योगच्छला येन विभाजिता च
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे रंभा ! पागल जैसा विचित्र वेष धारण की हुई, मदिरा पीकर मस्त बनी हुई, पाप देनेवाली, लोगों को बनानेवाली, और योगीयों के साथ कपट करनेवाली स्त्री का सेवन जिसने किया है, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ है ।
रम्भा:
आनन्दरुपा तरुणी नगाङ्गी
सद्धर्मसंसाधन सृष्टिरुपा ।
कामार्थदा यस्य गृहे न नारी
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे मुनि ! आनंदरुप, नतांगी युवती, उत्तम धर्म के पालन में और पुत्रादि पैदा करने में सहायक, इंद्रियों को संतोष देनेवाली नारी जिस पुरुष के घर में न हो, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ है ।
शुक:
अशौचदेहा पतित स्वभावा
वपुःप्रगल्भा बललोभशीला ।
मृषा वदन्ती कलिता च येन
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
अशुद्ध शरीरवाली, पतित स्वभाववाली, प्रगल्भ देहवाली, साहस और लोभ करानेवाली, झूठ बोलनेवाली, ऐसी नारी का विश्वास जिसने किया, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ है ।
रम्भा:
क्षामोदरी हंसगतिः प्रमत्ता
सौंदर्यसौभाग्यवती प्रलोला ।
न पीडिता येन रतौ यथेच्छं
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे मुनिवर ! पतली कमरवाली, हंस की तरह चलनेवाली, प्रमत्त सुंदर, सौभाग्यवती , चंचल स्वभाववाली स्त्री को रतिक्रीडा के वक्त अनुकुलतया पीडित की नहीं है, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ है ।
शुक:
संसारसद्भावन भक्तिहीना
चित्तस्य चौरा हृदि निर्दया च ।
विहाय योगं कलिता च येन
वृथा गतं तस्य नरस्य जीवितम् ॥
हे रंभा ! संसार की उत्तम भावनाओं को प्रकट करनेवाले प्रेम से रहित पुरुषों के चित्त को चोरनेवाली, ह्रदय में दया न रखनेवाली, ऐसी स्त्री का आलिंगन, योगाभ्यास छोडकर जिस पुरुष ने किया, उसका जीवन व्यर्थ है ।
रम्भा:
सुगन्धैः सुपुष्पैः सुशय्या सुकान्ता
वसन्तो ऋतुः पूर्णिमा पूर्णचन्द्रः ।
यदा नास्ति पुंस्त्वं नरस्य प्रभूतं
ततः किं ततः किं ततः किं ततः किम् ॥
हे मुनिवर ! सुंदर, सुगंधित पुष्पों से सुशोभित शय्या हो, मनोनुकूल सुंदर स्त्री हो, वसंत ऋतु हो, पूर्णिमा के चंद्र की चांदनी खीली हो, पर यदि पुरुष में परिपूर्ण पुरुषत्त्व न हो तो उसका जीवन व्यर्थ है ।
शुक:
सुरुपं शरीरं नवीनं कलत्रं
धनं मेरुतुल्यं वचश्चारुचित्रम् ।
हरस्याङ्घि युग्मे मनश्चेदलग्नं
ततः किं ततः किं ततः किं ततः किम् ॥
हे रंभा ! सुंदर शरीर हो, युवा पत्नी हो, मेरु पर्वत समान धन हो, मन को लुभानेवाली मधुर वाणी हो, पर यदि भगवान शिवजी के चरणकमल में मन न लगे, तो जीवन व्यर्थ है ।
हे रंभा ! सुंदर शरीर हो, युवा पत्नी हो, मेरु पर्वत समान धन हो, मन को लुभानेवाली मधुर वाणी हो, पर यदि भगवान शिवजी के चरणकमल में मन न लगे, तो जीवन व्यर्थ है ।
Thursday, November 20, 2008
A Young Welcome for Athavale
Templeton Prize winning spiritual leader inspires America's Hindu youth
By Archana Dongre, Los Angeles
The whole world heard of Pan Durang Shastri Athavale when he was honored with the Philippine's coveted Magsaysay Award in 1996 and the million-dollar Templeton Prize in religion in 1997. His organization, Swadhyay Parivar, has made an impressive impact in America with Vayashta Sanchalan, "Youth Rallies," at classy locations across the country, including Chicago's All State Arena (May 11), Los Angeles' Arrowhead Pond (May 18) and New York's Madison Square Garden (May 26). Fifteen to twenty thousand people attended each of the exquisitely organized events.
These expansive functions were put together at the last minute, thanks to the Parivar's well-honed human machinery of dedicated volunteers of youth as well as adults. One of the core national volunteers told Hinduism Today, "We received a call from Dadaji ["Elder brother," as Sri Athavale is affectionately addressed] in April asking us to go ahead with the youth rallies. The dates and venues were decided in hours following that phone call." The chosen venues are normally booked months in advance, but still they secured the dates they wanted. "Our only clout was the divine will and the divine hand," he said. As with every volunteer I spoke with, he did not want his name mentioned. So common do they find this divine hand in their work that the Parivar members have a saying for it—"Love letter from God to us in our work."
There was not a single paid advertisement of the events in any of the media. The news is spread by word of mouth. No invitations were sent by mail. Rather, every single family attending each of the events was invited in person with a home visit called bhav pheri, "friendly or loving visit." In the Los Angeles area for example, about 700 Parivar members took it upon themselves to make visits, mostly unannounced, to the homes of their friends, acquaintances and neighbors. They invited each in person with a free pass, and gave a small brochure containing the Trikal Sandhya Shlokas. Chanting these shlokas, or sacred verses, three times a day is a central practice for followers. Before they departed, they offered a brief prayer.
In a mobile society with everyone's overscheduled days, this was thoroughly impractical, both for the visitor and the visited, yet it was carried on with missionary zeal, repeating visits for the not-at-homes. One of my friends was actually annoyed when two swadhyayees (members) showed up at her door one evening, minutes before she had to leave for a social event. She asked them why they had not called her before, and asked me, "Why do they have to resort to the visiting practices of the Mormon church?" Of course, she was probably unaware that it is just this in-person approach that has made the Mormon church one of the most successful in America.
As I approached the expansive and elegant venue of the Arrowhead Pond for the May 18 event in LA, I could see the flags of 35 countries where the Parivar has active centers flying high above the parking lot. Three hundred young girls clad in white cotton salwar khameez, with black shawls of the Parivar symbols across their shoulders, stood joining their hands to form a human chain, signifying the Parivar's motto of unifying the whole world as one family. They shouted Parivar slogans as the car carrying Jayashree Talwalkar, affectionately known as Didi, the daughter of Parivar founder Pandurang Shastri Athavale, entered the premises.
Inside the arena, more than 15,000 people had gathered for the four-hour event. The stage was decorated with a giant torch that is the symbol of the movement, as well as three circles signifying Trikal Sandhya, and a globe of the Earth surrounded by a human chain, all crafted out of paper. Didi, who is standing in for her aging and frail father, was ceremoniously welcomed by the Parivar, as well as local dignitaries.
She summarized the teachings of her father in her half-hour talk in Hindi. "Dadaji, you have breathed an elevated sense of humanity in each human being with your teaching that the same God dwells in the heart of all, leading them to drop their complexes, and reminding each one of their divine mission in life," she said. "All matter is inert. It is the chaitanya or the sentient principle that gives momentum to people and their ideas. You have to pick up the ball of the movement and run with it."
Dadaji himself then was brought into the arena in a wheelchair, and said a few words. The audience gave him a tremendous welcome. Thousands lit the lamp sticks that had been handed out in advance. The sparkling lights waving from all four levels of the auditorium was a spectacular scene.
Next, 300 young men and 100 women, ranging in age from 16 to their early 30s, marched into the arena and moved in formation to finely choreographed steps. They held in their hands two-foot-tall torches with live flames, striding proudly in rhythm to the invigorating, patriotism-charged song "Jalti Mashal Hathmein Yuvan Chal Pade" ("With burning torch in hand, the youth stride forth"), sung with fervor by the musical ensemble. The torch is the symbol of their movement, and its meaning encompasses the advancement of culture, putting into practice the noble thoughts from the scriptures and accomplishing great deeds for the movement and the nation.
The event was grand, and after I reported back to Hinduism Today about it, the editors requested I learn more about this energetically successful organization, especially how they are able to elicit such enthusiastic youth involvement. The extravagant event was free, and when asked about this, the coordinator said, "When you attend a lavish wedding, do you ask that family how much money they spent or where the money came from?" He refused to give even a ballpark figure, shrugging it off as a family matter, and insisting that there is no fund raising in the Parivar, no charity; everything is done on the basis of devotion.
"Ever since the Parivar's early days, 60 years ago, Dadaji had taken an ayachak vrata, the "not-asking vow," that he would never solicit any money, directly or indirectly, from any individual, institution or government. He has not only maintained it for himself, but his millions of followers have kept the same principle," the coordinator explained. The 16,000 to 20,000 Parivar members who attend 300 centers spread across U.S. cities do not pay any membership, nor is there a formal membership ritual, no membership drive, but an open-door policy exists for persons of all creeds or class to attend their hour-long session every Sunday morning, mostly comprising prayer, scripture study and discussion.
"We do not believe in any superstition," the coordinator explained. "Dadaji has always said, 'Understand why we should love God and then do it fully. God is not just with you but within you. He does not work for you but with you.'"
The grass roots movement of Swadhyay Parivar began in 1942, when Sri Athavale, then only 22 years old, started giving discourses on scriptures at a humble pathashala, religious school, in Madhavbaug, Mumbai.
Sri Athavale taught, "God is the source of all life and He dwells in every human being. It is a multi-faceted, life-transforming world view that encourages self-esteem, concern for dignity of all and a discharge of gratitude to God through work-oriented devotion." The Parivar's motto is the brotherhood of all under the fatherhood of God. Today they claim some three million followers, coming from diverse religions, in 35 countries around the world.
One of the national-level coordinators—who, again, did not want to be named—told me, "We do not classify ourselves as a religious organization. The Parivar (literally, "family") is based on the concept of an extended family, and we are bound by a spirit of selfless love and service to fellow humans, like a family of millions. It is God-centered work, and work for others is rendered in the spirit of service to the God. We have no titles, no hierarchy, but only responsibility of coordination." Although led by principles culled from Upanishads and the Gita, they do not restrict themselves to Hindus.
"The God is not only in the sky and not only in the temple, but He resides in the hearts of all." This basic tenet of the Parivar propels an individual into dynamic action, transforming religious doctrine into a plan of action. The way the coordinators describe it, it is an injunction for karma yoga (seeking spiritual advancement through doing of good works) with dedication and action, with the yogas of jnana (spiritual knowledge and enlightenment) and bhakti (devotion) blended into it. To these their leader Athavale has added his own concept of sadhan yoga, "instrument yoga," which consists in one's being an instrument of divine work in family and society.
The emphasis in the movement is to inculcate the Parivar's spirit among the youth, and keep its torch, its resplendent spirit, burning bright, forming the motivation behind this year's four youth rallies, including the one that took place in London June 9.
Speaking with some youth members, I found the US-raised kids quite fond of their Sunday sessions at the Swadhyay centers. A 22-year-old recent Berkeley graduate said that at age six her parents first introduced her to the movement, when she was thrilled to make friendship with "Other kids who looked like me," referring to the Indian skin color. Then the weekly hour of stories, discussions and shlokas grew on her: "In the eighth grade I visited India. When I saw the Parivar's projects with the fishermen community and the farmers' tree temples, I could see a pulsating life that was far beyond the life we normally see in the US here. It was eons away from entities like the consumerism that is rampant in US," she shared with enthusiasm. "Dadaji has always said that whatever you can do most efficiently, offer that to God."
She offers her expertise in Bharata Natyam in helping choreograph dances and dramas of kids for the Parivar. I asked, "How does the Swadhyay shape your personality, dreams and ambitions?" She said, "I developed a pride, not superficial but deep, about my culture. Whatever my efficiency is, that is what God wants from me. I did not just learn mantras by rote, but understood their solid application in life. There is an intellectual aspect of Parivar and an emotional one. Dadaji's life is not that of a hypocritical leader; he has dedicated his entire life to the service of God and humanity."
Her 15-year-old sister, a 10th grader, is also one of the 600 avid members who attend one of the five Swadhyay centers in Northern California. "After our prayers and scriptural stories, we have interesting, stimulating discussions on topics such as, 'Is television good or bad,' 'Does God exist?' or 'Reincarnation,' for which we prepare our points ahead of time." Both the girls had participated in many aspects of the youth rallies, from participating in the human chain, to helping fashion the décor and the torches. "The classes fulfill my emotional as well as intellectual needs. The two-week annual camp brings together kids from all over the nation. It is a friendship, a sorority heaven that we look forward to. I want to be involved in the Swadhyay Parivar all my life," the US-born teenager shared ebulliently with me.
The Sanchalan event at the Arrowhead Pond, which I attended, rang with not only respect, but a strong devotional sentiment for Dadaji. Coupled with the enthusiastic comments of the above members, one question lingered, "Is there a deification of the person, of Dadaji, in the Parivar?" The 22-year-old liked my question, and answered, "Dadaji is against such an exalted position. He never wants anything for himself and has always maintained that whatever he teaches has been said before and done before, though maybe in a different form. What I feel for Dadaji is a profound sense of gratitude. It is a moving feeling to see him," she said. "Dadaji has dedicated his life to us," her younger sister chimed in.
The coordinator elaborated on the point that "Dadaji has always taught us to see God in ourselves and fellow human beings, and the divinity in each one of us. We love him like a cherished elder brother. He has been the unifying force of the entire Parivar."
Maharashtra born Archana Dongre is a journalist living with her husband in Los Angeles. She has a degree in education and an M.A. in Sanskrit language and literature.
The whole world heard of Pan Durang Shastri Athavale when he was honored with the Philippine's coveted Magsaysay Award in 1996 and the million-dollar Templeton Prize in religion in 1997. His organization, Swadhyay Parivar, has made an impressive impact in America with Vayashta Sanchalan, "Youth Rallies," at classy locations across the country, including Chicago's All State Arena (May 11), Los Angeles' Arrowhead Pond (May 18) and New York's Madison Square Garden (May 26). Fifteen to twenty thousand people attended each of the exquisitely organized events.
These expansive functions were put together at the last minute, thanks to the Parivar's well-honed human machinery of dedicated volunteers of youth as well as adults. One of the core national volunteers told Hinduism Today, "We received a call from Dadaji ["Elder brother," as Sri Athavale is affectionately addressed] in April asking us to go ahead with the youth rallies. The dates and venues were decided in hours following that phone call." The chosen venues are normally booked months in advance, but still they secured the dates they wanted. "Our only clout was the divine will and the divine hand," he said. As with every volunteer I spoke with, he did not want his name mentioned. So common do they find this divine hand in their work that the Parivar members have a saying for it—"Love letter from God to us in our work."
There was not a single paid advertisement of the events in any of the media. The news is spread by word of mouth. No invitations were sent by mail. Rather, every single family attending each of the events was invited in person with a home visit called bhav pheri, "friendly or loving visit." In the Los Angeles area for example, about 700 Parivar members took it upon themselves to make visits, mostly unannounced, to the homes of their friends, acquaintances and neighbors. They invited each in person with a free pass, and gave a small brochure containing the Trikal Sandhya Shlokas. Chanting these shlokas, or sacred verses, three times a day is a central practice for followers. Before they departed, they offered a brief prayer.
In a mobile society with everyone's overscheduled days, this was thoroughly impractical, both for the visitor and the visited, yet it was carried on with missionary zeal, repeating visits for the not-at-homes. One of my friends was actually annoyed when two swadhyayees (members) showed up at her door one evening, minutes before she had to leave for a social event. She asked them why they had not called her before, and asked me, "Why do they have to resort to the visiting practices of the Mormon church?" Of course, she was probably unaware that it is just this in-person approach that has made the Mormon church one of the most successful in America.
As I approached the expansive and elegant venue of the Arrowhead Pond for the May 18 event in LA, I could see the flags of 35 countries where the Parivar has active centers flying high above the parking lot. Three hundred young girls clad in white cotton salwar khameez, with black shawls of the Parivar symbols across their shoulders, stood joining their hands to form a human chain, signifying the Parivar's motto of unifying the whole world as one family. They shouted Parivar slogans as the car carrying Jayashree Talwalkar, affectionately known as Didi, the daughter of Parivar founder Pandurang Shastri Athavale, entered the premises.
Inside the arena, more than 15,000 people had gathered for the four-hour event. The stage was decorated with a giant torch that is the symbol of the movement, as well as three circles signifying Trikal Sandhya, and a globe of the Earth surrounded by a human chain, all crafted out of paper. Didi, who is standing in for her aging and frail father, was ceremoniously welcomed by the Parivar, as well as local dignitaries.
She summarized the teachings of her father in her half-hour talk in Hindi. "Dadaji, you have breathed an elevated sense of humanity in each human being with your teaching that the same God dwells in the heart of all, leading them to drop their complexes, and reminding each one of their divine mission in life," she said. "All matter is inert. It is the chaitanya or the sentient principle that gives momentum to people and their ideas. You have to pick up the ball of the movement and run with it."
Dadaji himself then was brought into the arena in a wheelchair, and said a few words. The audience gave him a tremendous welcome. Thousands lit the lamp sticks that had been handed out in advance. The sparkling lights waving from all four levels of the auditorium was a spectacular scene.
Next, 300 young men and 100 women, ranging in age from 16 to their early 30s, marched into the arena and moved in formation to finely choreographed steps. They held in their hands two-foot-tall torches with live flames, striding proudly in rhythm to the invigorating, patriotism-charged song "Jalti Mashal Hathmein Yuvan Chal Pade" ("With burning torch in hand, the youth stride forth"), sung with fervor by the musical ensemble. The torch is the symbol of their movement, and its meaning encompasses the advancement of culture, putting into practice the noble thoughts from the scriptures and accomplishing great deeds for the movement and the nation.
The event was grand, and after I reported back to Hinduism Today about it, the editors requested I learn more about this energetically successful organization, especially how they are able to elicit such enthusiastic youth involvement. The extravagant event was free, and when asked about this, the coordinator said, "When you attend a lavish wedding, do you ask that family how much money they spent or where the money came from?" He refused to give even a ballpark figure, shrugging it off as a family matter, and insisting that there is no fund raising in the Parivar, no charity; everything is done on the basis of devotion.
"Ever since the Parivar's early days, 60 years ago, Dadaji had taken an ayachak vrata, the "not-asking vow," that he would never solicit any money, directly or indirectly, from any individual, institution or government. He has not only maintained it for himself, but his millions of followers have kept the same principle," the coordinator explained. The 16,000 to 20,000 Parivar members who attend 300 centers spread across U.S. cities do not pay any membership, nor is there a formal membership ritual, no membership drive, but an open-door policy exists for persons of all creeds or class to attend their hour-long session every Sunday morning, mostly comprising prayer, scripture study and discussion.
"We do not believe in any superstition," the coordinator explained. "Dadaji has always said, 'Understand why we should love God and then do it fully. God is not just with you but within you. He does not work for you but with you.'"
The grass roots movement of Swadhyay Parivar began in 1942, when Sri Athavale, then only 22 years old, started giving discourses on scriptures at a humble pathashala, religious school, in Madhavbaug, Mumbai.
Sri Athavale taught, "God is the source of all life and He dwells in every human being. It is a multi-faceted, life-transforming world view that encourages self-esteem, concern for dignity of all and a discharge of gratitude to God through work-oriented devotion." The Parivar's motto is the brotherhood of all under the fatherhood of God. Today they claim some three million followers, coming from diverse religions, in 35 countries around the world.
One of the national-level coordinators—who, again, did not want to be named—told me, "We do not classify ourselves as a religious organization. The Parivar (literally, "family") is based on the concept of an extended family, and we are bound by a spirit of selfless love and service to fellow humans, like a family of millions. It is God-centered work, and work for others is rendered in the spirit of service to the God. We have no titles, no hierarchy, but only responsibility of coordination." Although led by principles culled from Upanishads and the Gita, they do not restrict themselves to Hindus.
"The God is not only in the sky and not only in the temple, but He resides in the hearts of all." This basic tenet of the Parivar propels an individual into dynamic action, transforming religious doctrine into a plan of action. The way the coordinators describe it, it is an injunction for karma yoga (seeking spiritual advancement through doing of good works) with dedication and action, with the yogas of jnana (spiritual knowledge and enlightenment) and bhakti (devotion) blended into it. To these their leader Athavale has added his own concept of sadhan yoga, "instrument yoga," which consists in one's being an instrument of divine work in family and society.
The emphasis in the movement is to inculcate the Parivar's spirit among the youth, and keep its torch, its resplendent spirit, burning bright, forming the motivation behind this year's four youth rallies, including the one that took place in London June 9.
Speaking with some youth members, I found the US-raised kids quite fond of their Sunday sessions at the Swadhyay centers. A 22-year-old recent Berkeley graduate said that at age six her parents first introduced her to the movement, when she was thrilled to make friendship with "Other kids who looked like me," referring to the Indian skin color. Then the weekly hour of stories, discussions and shlokas grew on her: "In the eighth grade I visited India. When I saw the Parivar's projects with the fishermen community and the farmers' tree temples, I could see a pulsating life that was far beyond the life we normally see in the US here. It was eons away from entities like the consumerism that is rampant in US," she shared with enthusiasm. "Dadaji has always said that whatever you can do most efficiently, offer that to God."
She offers her expertise in Bharata Natyam in helping choreograph dances and dramas of kids for the Parivar. I asked, "How does the Swadhyay shape your personality, dreams and ambitions?" She said, "I developed a pride, not superficial but deep, about my culture. Whatever my efficiency is, that is what God wants from me. I did not just learn mantras by rote, but understood their solid application in life. There is an intellectual aspect of Parivar and an emotional one. Dadaji's life is not that of a hypocritical leader; he has dedicated his entire life to the service of God and humanity."
Her 15-year-old sister, a 10th grader, is also one of the 600 avid members who attend one of the five Swadhyay centers in Northern California. "After our prayers and scriptural stories, we have interesting, stimulating discussions on topics such as, 'Is television good or bad,' 'Does God exist?' or 'Reincarnation,' for which we prepare our points ahead of time." Both the girls had participated in many aspects of the youth rallies, from participating in the human chain, to helping fashion the décor and the torches. "The classes fulfill my emotional as well as intellectual needs. The two-week annual camp brings together kids from all over the nation. It is a friendship, a sorority heaven that we look forward to. I want to be involved in the Swadhyay Parivar all my life," the US-born teenager shared ebulliently with me.
The Sanchalan event at the Arrowhead Pond, which I attended, rang with not only respect, but a strong devotional sentiment for Dadaji. Coupled with the enthusiastic comments of the above members, one question lingered, "Is there a deification of the person, of Dadaji, in the Parivar?" The 22-year-old liked my question, and answered, "Dadaji is against such an exalted position. He never wants anything for himself and has always maintained that whatever he teaches has been said before and done before, though maybe in a different form. What I feel for Dadaji is a profound sense of gratitude. It is a moving feeling to see him," she said. "Dadaji has dedicated his life to us," her younger sister chimed in.
The coordinator elaborated on the point that "Dadaji has always taught us to see God in ourselves and fellow human beings, and the divinity in each one of us. We love him like a cherished elder brother. He has been the unifying force of the entire Parivar."
Maharashtra born Archana Dongre is a journalist living with her husband in Los Angeles. She has a degree in education and an M.A. in Sanskrit language and literature.
The 1996 Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership
CITATION for Rev. Pandurang Shastri Athavale
Ramon Magsaysay Award Presentation Ceremonies31 August 1979, Manila, Philippines
In the Vedas and other sacred texts, India's ancient sages conveyed a view of the cosmos so complex and compelling that it survives vibrantly today. Enriched but never overtaken by newer religions over the centuries and by its encounters with the clamoring "isms" of our own time, Hindu civilization pervades the life of modern India. From deep within it, PANDURANG SHASTRI ATHAVALE is drawing strength for his country's spiritual renewal and material uplift. Born to a family of Brahmin religious scholars in Maharashtra, ATHAVALE mastered Sanskrit as a youth and absorbed the wisdom of the Hindu classics. In Japan to attend a world religions conference in 1954, he asserted confidently the salience of Vedic teachings and way of life. Someone asked: In your country, is there a single community that lives by these ideals? Disturbed by this question, ATHAVALE returned home and pondered frankly the grim realities of contemporary Indian life. Having founded a school combining India's sacred knowledge with Western learning, he began meeting regularly with a group of earnest young truth seekers—entrepreneurs, doctors, engineers, lawyers. He led them to cultivate self-awareness (swadhyaya) and to devote a portion of their free time to acts of devotion and gratitude to God. Taking up the call in 1958, ATHAVALE's middle-class disciples ventured into rural villages to propagate swadhyaya and to advance their teacher's belief that barriers of caste, gender, and religion must be transcended in order to recognize the true equality of all people. In the ensuing decades, ATHAVALE's volunteers swelled to hundreds, then thousands, then tens of thousands. Today, ATHAVALE or Dada (elder brother), as he is popularly known, guides a huge spiritual movement that courses through thousands of villages and touches millions of urban and rural Indians. Although emphatically spiritual, the swadhyaya movement has brought striking social and material benefits to its adherents. In hundreds of villages, swadhyaya devotees have abandoned drunkenness, gambling, wife-beating, and petty crime to devote themselves to community betterment. Fisherfolk, chanting Sanskrit hymns, ply "boat temples" whose daily catch is reserved for the local hungry. Villagers plant multi-hectare "tree temples" to restore degraded land and to make their habitats green again. Farmers cultivate the common fields of "God's farm" to grow food to share with needy neighbors. Swadhyaya-imbued villages are clean, tidy, and prosperous. Children faithfully attend school. Villagers of all castes, men and women, worship side by side. Untouchability is not recognized. Moreover, communal strife is rare in swadhyaya communities and, in some places, Muslims, Hindus, and Christians share the same place of worship. Even so, ATHAVALE often reminds people that swadhyaya has nothing to do with politics and is not undertaken to solve the problems of the world. "We are merely planting a bouquet of flowers," he says, "of love, compassion, selflessness, and peace." A small organization of volunteers gives some coordination to ATHAVALE's vast "family" and guides the work of swadhyaya schools. But it is largely through teaching that ATHAVALE leads the movement. His pithy, conversational sermons hold multitudes in rapt attention and circulate widely in print and on cassette. In them, ATHAVALE teaches that "God resides in everyone" and that achieving "spiritual oneness" will bring with it solutions for worldly problems. Calling upon the oldest of Hindu teachings, but alluding to Western thinkers as well, seventy-five-year-old ATHAVALE exhorts his listeners to liberate themselves from preconceived ideas and "baseless beliefs." "The basic revolution," he asserts, "should be of the human mind." In electing PANDURANG SHASTRI ATHAVALE to receive the 1996 Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership, the board of trustees recognizes his tapping the ancient wellsprings of Hindu civilization to inspire spiritual renewal and social transformation in modern India.
In the Vedas and other sacred texts, India's ancient sages conveyed a view of the cosmos so complex and compelling that it survives vibrantly today. Enriched but never overtaken by newer religions over the centuries and by its encounters with the clamoring "isms" of our own time, Hindu civilization pervades the life of modern India. From deep within it, PANDURANG SHASTRI ATHAVALE is drawing strength for his country's spiritual renewal and material uplift. Born to a family of Brahmin religious scholars in Maharashtra, ATHAVALE mastered Sanskrit as a youth and absorbed the wisdom of the Hindu classics. In Japan to attend a world religions conference in 1954, he asserted confidently the salience of Vedic teachings and way of life. Someone asked: In your country, is there a single community that lives by these ideals? Disturbed by this question, ATHAVALE returned home and pondered frankly the grim realities of contemporary Indian life. Having founded a school combining India's sacred knowledge with Western learning, he began meeting regularly with a group of earnest young truth seekers—entrepreneurs, doctors, engineers, lawyers. He led them to cultivate self-awareness (swadhyaya) and to devote a portion of their free time to acts of devotion and gratitude to God. Taking up the call in 1958, ATHAVALE's middle-class disciples ventured into rural villages to propagate swadhyaya and to advance their teacher's belief that barriers of caste, gender, and religion must be transcended in order to recognize the true equality of all people. In the ensuing decades, ATHAVALE's volunteers swelled to hundreds, then thousands, then tens of thousands. Today, ATHAVALE or Dada (elder brother), as he is popularly known, guides a huge spiritual movement that courses through thousands of villages and touches millions of urban and rural Indians. Although emphatically spiritual, the swadhyaya movement has brought striking social and material benefits to its adherents. In hundreds of villages, swadhyaya devotees have abandoned drunkenness, gambling, wife-beating, and petty crime to devote themselves to community betterment. Fisherfolk, chanting Sanskrit hymns, ply "boat temples" whose daily catch is reserved for the local hungry. Villagers plant multi-hectare "tree temples" to restore degraded land and to make their habitats green again. Farmers cultivate the common fields of "God's farm" to grow food to share with needy neighbors. Swadhyaya-imbued villages are clean, tidy, and prosperous. Children faithfully attend school. Villagers of all castes, men and women, worship side by side. Untouchability is not recognized. Moreover, communal strife is rare in swadhyaya communities and, in some places, Muslims, Hindus, and Christians share the same place of worship. Even so, ATHAVALE often reminds people that swadhyaya has nothing to do with politics and is not undertaken to solve the problems of the world. "We are merely planting a bouquet of flowers," he says, "of love, compassion, selflessness, and peace." A small organization of volunteers gives some coordination to ATHAVALE's vast "family" and guides the work of swadhyaya schools. But it is largely through teaching that ATHAVALE leads the movement. His pithy, conversational sermons hold multitudes in rapt attention and circulate widely in print and on cassette. In them, ATHAVALE teaches that "God resides in everyone" and that achieving "spiritual oneness" will bring with it solutions for worldly problems. Calling upon the oldest of Hindu teachings, but alluding to Western thinkers as well, seventy-five-year-old ATHAVALE exhorts his listeners to liberate themselves from preconceived ideas and "baseless beliefs." "The basic revolution," he asserts, "should be of the human mind." In electing PANDURANG SHASTRI ATHAVALE to receive the 1996 Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership, the board of trustees recognizes his tapping the ancient wellsprings of Hindu civilization to inspire spiritual renewal and social transformation in modern India.
Leader of Spiritual Movement Wins $1.2 Million Religion Prize
Published: March 6, 1997
The founder of a spiritual movement in India that emphasizes self-knowledge and awareness of God's love for all has been named recipient of the world's largest monetary award, the Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion.
The announcement that the $1.21 million prize will be given to Pandurang Shastri Athavale, 76, was made yesterday at the Church Center for the United Nations in New York.
The annual prize was established in 1972 by Sir John Templeton, an American-born resident of the Bahamas and creator of several investment funds, including the Templeton Growth Fund and Templeton World Fund. The prize's first recipient, in 1973, was Mother Teresa, founder of the Missionaries of Charity. Last year, the prize went to Bill Bright, head of Campus Crusade for Christ.
Since 1954, Mr. Athavale, who lives in Bombay, has inspired a loosely organized, volunteer movement by preaching swadhyaya (a Sanskrit word for self-study), a practice he has said leads oeople to cultivate greater self-respect and love for others by believing that God dwells in everyone.
His followers, called swadhyayees, have taken the message, he has said, to about 100,000 Indian villages, preaching love for God and God's love for all to people across caste lines, eventually starting cooperative farming, fishing and tree-planting projects. Mr. Athavale (pronounced ah-TAH-vah-lee) drew his principles from the Bhagavad Gita, a philosophical poem that forms a profoundly influential, sacred text of Hinduism.
Appearing somewhat frail, Mr. Athavale was helped to a lecturn by his daughter, Jayashree Athavale-Talwalkar. He then said he had tried to raise people's consciousness that all were ''the children of the same God.''
''It is my experience that awareness of nearness of God and reverence for that power creates reverence for self, reverence for the other, reverence for nature and reverence for the entire creation,'' he said. ''And devotion as an expression of gratitude to God can turn into a social force to bring about transformative changes in all aspects of human life and at all levels of society.''
He said the prize money would go to projects run by his followers.
An informational paper prepared by his movement, titled ''A Silent Revolution through Swadhyaya'' said the movement believed that service to God was ''incomplete'' unless it included raising people's consciousness about their dignity and closeness to God, and that ''every human being is good'' and can change for the better if approached with love and respect.
Rajat Saha, a counsellor at the Indian mission to the United Nations, who attended the prize announcement, said Mr. Athavale's movement was known in India for focusing its work on ''the poorest of the poor.''
The juries that select Templeton winners tend to be eclectic, combining people in religious work and secular professions; some of them are famous. Among the nine judges this year were the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, top spiritual leader of the Orthodox Church; former President George Bush; the Rev. Nichiko Niwano, president of Rissho Kosei-Kai, a Buddhist organization based in Tokyo, and Robert John Russell, a United Church of Christ minister who founded the Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences in Berkeley, Calif.
Mr. Athavale was nominated for the prize by Betty Unterberger, who teaches foreign relations and Asian history at Texas A&M University.
A formal ceremony to present Mr. Athavale with the prize will be held on May 6 at Westminster Abbey, London.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
शहाण्यांसाठी विचारांचा थोडा वेगळा चारा, अन वेडयांसाठी सुखावणारा गार गार वारा....
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
उगाचच रातभर जागायला हवे
सुखासीन जगण्याची झाली जळमटे
जगणेच सारे पुन्हा झाडायला हवे
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
घरट्यात फ़ेकुनीया शाल कानटोपी
कधीतरी थंडीलाच वाजवायला हवे
छोटे मोठे दिवे फ़ुंकरीने मालवून
कधीतरी सुर्यावर जळायला हवे
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
खोट्या खोट्या श्रुंगाराची लाली रंगवून
कशासाठी सजायचे चापून चोपून?
वरवर उडवत पदर जीण्याचा
गाणे गुलछबू कधी म्हणायला हवे
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
भांड्यावर भांडे कधी भीडायला हवे,
उगाचच सखीवर चीडायला हवे
मुखातुन तीच्यावर पाखड्त आग
एकीकडे प्रेमगीत लिहायला हवे
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
वीळीपरी कधी एक चंद्र्कोर घ्यावी
हिरवीशी स्वप्ने धारे धारेने चीरावी
कोर कोर चंद्र चंद्र हरता हरता
मनातुन पुर्णबींब त्यागायाला हवे
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
मनातल्या माकडाशी हात मिळ्वून
आचारावे कधीतरी वीचारावाचुन
झाडापास झोंबुनिया हाति येता फ़ळ
सहजपणे तेही फ़ेकायाला हवे
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
काही राती लावुनीया नयनांचे दिवे
पुस्तकाला काहीतरी वाचायाला द्यावे
शोधुनिया प्राणातले दुमडलेले पान
मग त्याने आपल्याला छळायाला हवे...
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
ढगलासा कोट, छडी, विजार तोडकी
भटकायची चाल दैवासारखी फ़ेंगडी
जगण्याला यावी आशी विनोदाची जान
हसताना पापण्यांनी भीजायला हवे...
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
स्वत:ला विकून काय घेशील विकत?
खरी खरी सुखॆ राजा मिळतील फ़ुकट
हापापुन बाजारात मागशील किती?
स्वत:च काही नवे शोधायाला हवे
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
तेच तेच पाणी आणी तीच तीच हवा
आणी तुला बदलही कशासाठी हवा?
जुनेच आहे अजुन रियाजावाचून
गिळलेले आधी सारे पचायला हवे
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
नको बघु पाठीमागे येइल कळून
कितीतरी करायचे गेलेले राहुन
नको करु त्रागा असा उद्याच्या दारात
स्वत:ला कधी माफ़ करायला हवे.
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
उगाचच रातभर जागायला हवे
सुखासीन जगण्याची झाली जळमटे
जगणेच सारे पुन्हा झाडायला हवे
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
घरट्यात फ़ेकुनीया शाल कानटोपी
कधीतरी थंडीलाच वाजवायला हवे
छोटे मोठे दिवे फ़ुंकरीने मालवून
कधीतरी सुर्यावर जळायला हवे
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
खोट्या खोट्या श्रुंगाराची लाली रंगवून
कशासाठी सजायचे चापून चोपून?
वरवर उडवत पदर जीण्याचा
गाणे गुलछबू कधी म्हणायला हवे
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
भांड्यावर भांडे कधी भीडायला हवे,
उगाचच सखीवर चीडायला हवे
मुखातुन तीच्यावर पाखड्त आग
एकीकडे प्रेमगीत लिहायला हवे
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
वीळीपरी कधी एक चंद्र्कोर घ्यावी
हिरवीशी स्वप्ने धारे धारेने चीरावी
कोर कोर चंद्र चंद्र हरता हरता
मनातुन पुर्णबींब त्यागायाला हवे
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
मनातल्या माकडाशी हात मिळ्वून
आचारावे कधीतरी वीचारावाचुन
झाडापास झोंबुनिया हाति येता फ़ळ
सहजपणे तेही फ़ेकायाला हवे
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
काही राती लावुनीया नयनांचे दिवे
पुस्तकाला काहीतरी वाचायाला द्यावे
शोधुनिया प्राणातले दुमडलेले पान
मग त्याने आपल्याला छळायाला हवे...
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
ढगलासा कोट, छडी, विजार तोडकी
भटकायची चाल दैवासारखी फ़ेंगडी
जगण्याला यावी आशी विनोदाची जान
हसताना पापण्यांनी भीजायला हवे...
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
स्वत:ला विकून काय घेशील विकत?
खरी खरी सुखॆ राजा मिळतील फ़ुकट
हापापुन बाजारात मागशील किती?
स्वत:च काही नवे शोधायाला हवे
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
तेच तेच पाणी आणी तीच तीच हवा
आणी तुला बदलही कशासाठी हवा?
जुनेच आहे अजुन रियाजावाचून
गिळलेले आधी सारे पचायला हवे
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
नको बघु पाठीमागे येइल कळून
कितीतरी करायचे गेलेले राहुन
नको करु त्रागा असा उद्याच्या दारात
स्वत:ला कधी माफ़ करायला हवे.
कधीतरी वेड्यागत वागायला हवे...
Foot Prints
One day a man having conversation with god when his whole life flashed before his eyes as a series of footsteps on the sands of time. He saw that there were two pairs of footprints, but during the most difficult periods of his life there were only one set of footprints. He asked god "You said you will be with me throughout this journey, but why have you deserted me during the most critical times of my life??" To which god answered "Son, I did not desert you, I was always with you...you see only one set of footprints because during those difficult times in your life, I was carrying you"
Decided to quit
One day I decided to quit…I quit my job, my relationship, my spirituality… I wanted to quit my life.I went to the woods to have one last talk with God."God", I said. "Can you give me one good reason not to quit?"
His answer surprised me…"Look around", He said. "Do you see the fern and the bamboo?" "Yes", I replied.When I planted the fern and the bamboo seeds, I took very good care of them.I gave them light. I gave them water.
The fern quickly grew from the earth.Its brilliant green covered the floor.Yet nothing came from the bamboo seed.But I did not quit on the bamboo.
In the second year the Fern grew more vibrant and plentiful.And again, nothing came from the bamboo seed.But I did not quit on the bamboo. He said."In the third year, there was still nothing from the bamboo seed. But I would not quit. In the fourth year, again, there was nothing from the bamboo seed. "I would not quit." He said. "Then in the fifth year a tiny sprout emerged from the earth.
Compared to the fern it was seemingly small and insignificant… But just 6 months later the bamboo rose to over 100 feet tall.
It had spent the five years growing roots.
Those roots made it strong and gave it what it needed to survive. I would not give any of my creations a challenge it could not handle."
He said to me. "Did you know, my child, that all this time you have been struggling, you have actually been growing roots."
"I would not quit on the bamboo. I will never quit on you. " Don't compare yourself to others .." He said. " The bamboo had a different purpose than the fern … Yet, they both make the forest beautiful."
Your time will come, " God said to me. " You will rise high! " How high should I rise?" I asked.
How high will the bamboo rise?" He asked in return.
"As high as it can? " I questioned.
" Yes. " He said, "Give me glory by rising as high as you can. "
I left the forest and bring back this story.
I hope these words can help you see that God will never give up on you.
He will never give up on you.Never regret a day in your life.Good days give you happiness
Bad days give you experiences; Both are essential to life.
A happy and meaningful life requires our continuous input and creativity. It does not happen by chance. It happens because of our choices and actions. And each day we are given new opportunities to choose and act and, in doing so, we create our own unique journey." Keep going…
Happiness keeps you Sweet,Trials keep you Strong, Sorrows keep you Human,Failures keep you humble, Success keeps You Glowing, but Only God keeps You Going!
His answer surprised me…"Look around", He said. "Do you see the fern and the bamboo?" "Yes", I replied.When I planted the fern and the bamboo seeds, I took very good care of them.I gave them light. I gave them water.
The fern quickly grew from the earth.Its brilliant green covered the floor.Yet nothing came from the bamboo seed.But I did not quit on the bamboo.
In the second year the Fern grew more vibrant and plentiful.And again, nothing came from the bamboo seed.But I did not quit on the bamboo. He said."In the third year, there was still nothing from the bamboo seed. But I would not quit. In the fourth year, again, there was nothing from the bamboo seed. "I would not quit." He said. "Then in the fifth year a tiny sprout emerged from the earth.
Compared to the fern it was seemingly small and insignificant… But just 6 months later the bamboo rose to over 100 feet tall.
It had spent the five years growing roots.
Those roots made it strong and gave it what it needed to survive. I would not give any of my creations a challenge it could not handle."
He said to me. "Did you know, my child, that all this time you have been struggling, you have actually been growing roots."
"I would not quit on the bamboo. I will never quit on you. " Don't compare yourself to others .." He said. " The bamboo had a different purpose than the fern … Yet, they both make the forest beautiful."
Your time will come, " God said to me. " You will rise high! " How high should I rise?" I asked.
How high will the bamboo rise?" He asked in return.
"As high as it can? " I questioned.
" Yes. " He said, "Give me glory by rising as high as you can. "
I left the forest and bring back this story.
I hope these words can help you see that God will never give up on you.
He will never give up on you.Never regret a day in your life.Good days give you happiness
Bad days give you experiences; Both are essential to life.
A happy and meaningful life requires our continuous input and creativity. It does not happen by chance. It happens because of our choices and actions. And each day we are given new opportunities to choose and act and, in doing so, we create our own unique journey." Keep going…
Happiness keeps you Sweet,Trials keep you Strong, Sorrows keep you Human,Failures keep you humble, Success keeps You Glowing, but Only God keeps You Going!
Why Read Bhagvad Geeta
Why do we read Geeta, even if we can't understand a Sanskrit Word???
An old Farmer lived on a farm in the mountains with his young grandson.
Each morning Grandpa was up early sitting at the kitchen table reading his Bhagvad Geeta। His grandson wanted to be just like him and tried to imitate him in every way he could.
Each morning Grandpa was up early sitting at the kitchen table reading his Bhagvad Geeta। His grandson wanted to be just like him and tried to imitate him in every way he could.
One day the grandson asked, "Grandpa! I try to read the Bhagavad Geeta just like you but I don't understand it, and what I do understand I forget as soon as I close the book। What good does reading the Bhagvad Geeta do?"
The Grandfather quietly turned from putting coal in the stove and replied, "Take this coal basket down to the river and bring me back a basket of water।"
The boy did as he was told, but all the water leaked out before he got back to the house। The grandfather laughed and said, "You'll have to move a little faster next time," and sent him back to the river with the basket to try again.
This time the boy ran faster, but again the basket was empty before he returned home। Out of breath, he told his grandfather that it was impossible to carry water in a basket, and he went to get a bucket instead. The old man said, "I don't want a bucket of water; I want a basket of water. You're just not trying hard enough," and he went out the door to watch the boy try again.
At this point, the boy knew it was impossible, but he wanted to show his grandfather that even if he ran as fast as he could, the water would leak out before he got back to the house। The boy again dipped the basket into river and ran hard, but when he reached his grandfather the basket was again empty. Out of breath, he said, "See Grandpa, it's useless!"
"So you think it is useless?" The old man said, "Look at the basket."
The boy looked at the basket and for the first time realized that the basket was different। It had been transformed from a dirty old coal basket and was now clean, inside and out. "Son, that's what happens when you read the Bhagavad Geeta. You might not understand or remember everything, but when you read it, you will be changed, inside and out. That is the work of Krishna in our lives.
"Celebrate Life. Care for others and share whatever you have with those less fortunate than you. Broaden your vision, for the whole world belongs to you."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
