Significance of Karthigai Deepam

 Karthigai Deepam is majorly observed by the Hindu community of Tamil Nadu, Sri Lanka, and Kerala. The day of Karthigai Deepam is fixed based on Tamil Solar Calendar. It falls in the month of Karthikai when Karthigai Nakshatra prevails during Ratrimana. This is also the time when Karthigai Nakshatra coincides with Pournami, the full moon day in the month of Karthikai.

🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔

Significance:

The Festival of Karthigai Deepam falls on the 6th of December this year. It’s a day regarded auspicious for two distinct reasons. 

🙏🏻The first is the manifestation of Lord Shiva as a huge infinite pillar of fire, which neither Narayana nor Brahma could fathom. This pillar of light is celebrated as the Thiruvannamalai Deepam. 

🙏🏻The second is that of Lord Murugan who was born of Agni as 6 babies, each having a Karthika Goddess (hence He is called Karthikeya) as his Mother and when Goddess Parvati held the babies she merged them all into one, earning him the name Shanmukha.*

*🪔The significance here is also that we all are born with 6 senses and when they merge into one that gives us the Supreme siddhi of being completely focussed, which is infinitely energetic.*

*🪔We become as powerful over both knowledge and all gunas (characteristics) as depicted by Brahma and Narayana respectively, giving us absolute control over not only ourselves but the whole universe. In fact, that is our true self.*

 Now days #plagiarizing  is very common. Can it be justified?

Stealing, of course, is a crime, and a very impolite thing to do. But like most impolite things,  is it excusable under certain circumstances ,as American film director Jim Jarmusch says..?

“Nothing is original. #Steal from anywhere that resonates with inspiration or fuels your imagination. Devour old films, new films, music, books, paintings, photographs, poems, dreams, random conversations, architecture, bridges, street signs, trees, clouds, bodies of water, light and shadows. Select only things to steal from that speak directly to your soul. If you do this, your work (and theft) will be authentic. Authenticity is invaluable; originality is nonexistent.”

—

How to get rid of the habit of stealing , when this question is asked to  Gurudev sri sri,   he  says  “I f you want to steal , steal someone’s  heart ❤️ .. steal knowledge, .. steal Ram Ratan .. loot sake to loot  😊..kya choti moti cheejo ki chori karna ”

In words of GuruDev Sri Sri( from various articles of guru dev)

“Man has three powers with him: Iccha-shakti (the power of desire), Kriya-shakti (the power of action), and Jnana-shakti (the power of knowledge). When all these three powers are influenced or dominated by Moha (attachment), it leads a person to become Tamoguni in nature (a quality or state of existence characterized by inertia, ignorance and negativity). People with demonic tendencies, negative and evil tendencies are completely sunk into Tamoguna.

Now, such people do have desires, they perform action as well and they also have some knowledge about the action they are doing, but there is no life in them (here meaning, to become devoid of positivity, enthusiasm and spirit). There is no awareness in them (meaning, to become deluded and lose sight of the Self).

A thief came to a saint wanting to surrender to him, but he didn’t want to give up stealing. The saint allowed him to have his way under the condition that he can steal provided he does it with full awareness. The thief thought it would be very easy as stealing was his second nature. But as and when he got ready to steal, he remembered the saint’s condition and became aware of his action. And he couldn’t steal thereafter!

Such is the power of awareness. It can bring about the highest transformation. Mistakes happen in unawareness. In awareness, one cannot get angry or commit a mistake. Such awareness comes when one establishes a connection with the Self. When a guru enters the life of a seeker, the awareness of higher Self dawns. The guru is a doorway one sees when groping for shelter from rain or the hot sun. The same rain and thunder, which appeared frightening, become beautiful when one is inside the shelter.

Once his master gave Kanakadas and other devotees a banana each to break the fast of Ekadashi with the condition it could be eaten only when no one was watching. The next day the disciples narrated their ingenious ways of eating it without being observed. But Kanakadas came back holding the banana. Kanakadas said he felt the presence of the Master wherever he tried to eat it. This is what we call sanidhya. In this state of awareness all complaints vanish and one operates with a deep sense of being taken care of.

🪷🪷🪷

This definite knowledge: “I am not the body. I am the Self. I am the space. I am the imperishable, untouched, untainted by the prakriti(nature), by this world around me. This body is all hollow and empty. And every particle in this body is changing and changing. The mind is changing and changing.” This definite knowledge is the way out of the cycle.

Jai gurudev

#srisriravishankar

#srisri #artofliving #happylifewithartofliving

#SriSriNote

 We fast not to please the Divine, but to cleanse our body.” - Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

According to Ayurveda, fasting rekindles the digestive fire. An increase in the digestive fire burns the toxins in the body. When the toxins are flushed out of the body, it loses dullness and lethargy. All the cells of the body are rejuvenated. Fasting, therefore, is an effective therapy to cleanse our body. When the body is cleansed, the mind becomes calmer and more peaceful because of the deep connection between the body and mind.

Your meditation happens best when your stomach is empty. Fasting decreases the restlessness of the mind, it becomes easier for it to turn inwards and meditate. Fasting coupled with meditation increases sattva -  the quality of tranquility and positivity within us. An increase in sattva makes our mind more peaceful and alert. As a result, our intentions and prayers become more powerful. A sattva bloom also makes the body lighter and energetic. We become more efficient. As a result, our desires manifest and our tasks get accomplished easily.

 That’s why Gurudev says “Why fasting is combined with prayer all over the world and in all religions, is because when you are fasting, you are detoxified, and your prayer becomes authentic and deep.”

 Items to avoid during fast

❌fried food and foods high in calories such as potatoes.

❌grains.

How to fast 

✅Have fluids such as water, fruit juices.

✅Have fruits, salads etc.

✅Keep the stomach light, preferably empty.

This change in food intake during a fast eliminates the toxins in the body, which could otherwise cause diseases. One should understand their ‘dosha’ type or the regulating forces of nature for them to observe a fast.

FASTING FOR PEOPLE WITH DOMINANT VATA PRAKRITI

If you have a predominance of vata dosha in the body or have a vata imbalance, complete fasting is not for you.  Zero fasting, water fasting and prolonged fasting is not recommended for you. Because fasting will increase dryness, lightness in the body which aggravates vata in the system.

Following a khichdi diet with vata pacifying herbs and ghee for 3-5 days is a good option to detox the system for vata peop

FASTING FOR PEOPLE WITH DOMINANT PITTA PRAKRITI 

Pitta prakritis have a strong digestive fire, hence zero fasting, water fasting and prolonged fasting is not applicable for pitta prakrti and in an increased pitta state.

Sweet, bitter and astringent tasting fruit juice, vegetable juice, soups and a khichdi diet with pitta pacifying herbs are a good choice. One can choose either one day in a week or continuous 3 days in a month based on the imbalance.

FASTING FOR PEOPLE WITH DOMINANT KAPHA PRAKRITI 

If you are healthy with a dominant kapha prakriti, regular fasting is good for you. Following intermittent fasting is highly beneficial for you.  One can go for complete fasting or water fasting once a week.

CONTRA-INDICATIONS

Fasting is not recommended for pregnant ladies, children, elderly people, during breastfeeding, menstruation period. 

Jai gurudev 🙏🏻

( This article is based on discourse and articles of Gurudev and art of living)

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#happylifewithartofliving #srisri #body #fasting #artofliving

 🪷Ganesha symbolises the consciousness which is omnipresent. Ganesha is the same energy which is the reason for this universe, from which everything is manifested and it’s the same energy in which the whole world will dissolve. Ganesha is not somewhere outside of us, but the very centre of our life. …Ganesha is formless;.. the form serves as the starting point and gradually the formless consciousness begins to manifest. 

🪷Ganesh Chaturthi marks a unique art of reaching the formless #Paramatma called Lord Ganesh by the repeated worship of his manifest form.

🙏🏻We pray to #Ganesha in our #consciousness to come out and sit in the idol for us for a while so that we can play with Him. After the #puja, we again pray asking Him to go back to where He came from – our consciousness. While He is in the idol, we offer back whatever God has given us through the puja of the idol.

🪷The ritual of #immersing (visarjan) the idols after few days of worship reinforces the understanding that God is not in the idol, He is inside us. 

So experiencing the Omnipresent in the form and deriving joy out of the form is the essence of the Ganesh Chaturthi festival. 

🪷In a way, such organised #festivity and worships lead to an upsurge in enthusiasm and devotion.

🪷Ganesha is the lord of all the good qualities in us. So when we worship Him, all the good qualities blossom in us. He is also the Lord of knowledge and wisdom. Knowledge dawns only when we become aware of the Self. When there is inertia, there is no knowledge, no wisdom, nor is there any liveliness (Chaitanya) or progress in life. So the consciousness has to be awakened and the presiding deity of consciousness is Ganesha. 

👉That’s why before every puja, the Lord Ganesha is worshipped to awaken the consciousness. 

👉This is the symbolic #essence of Ganesh Chaturthi festival, 🧘‍♂️to awaken the Ganesh tattva which is masked inside us.

( based on discourse of Gurudev SriSri)

#Srisri #happylifewithartofliving

#GurudevSriSriRaviShankar #ArtofLiving #GurudevSriSri #Meditation #Knowledgeispower #yogicwisdom #gurudev #happiness #wisdom #ganesha #chaturthi #consciousness #manifest #universe #parmatma

Must read significance of 32 forms of Ganesh:

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=641248164001250&id=104224781036927

श्री गणेश अष्टावतार 

मुद्गल पुराण के अनुसार भगवान् गणेश के अनेको अवतार हुये है जिनमे आठ अवतार प्रमुख हैं । यह आठों अवतार  इस प्रकार हैं;-

(1) श्री वक्रतुण्ड गणेश:-

श्री गणेश के वक्रतुण्ड अवतार के सम्बन्ध में एक श्लोक मिलता है जो इस प्रकार है –

वक्रतुण्डावतारश्च देहानां ब्रह्मधारकः |

मत्सरासुरहन्ताम स सिंहवाहनगः स्मृतः ||

अर्थ :– भगवान् श्री गणेश का वक्रतुण्ड अवतार ब्रह्म स्वरुप से सम्पूर्ण शरीरों को धारण करने वाला है, मत्सर असुर का वध करने वाला तथा सिंह वाहन पर चलने वाला है

(2) एकदन्त श्री गणेश:-

भगवान् श्री गणेश के दूसरे अवतार एकदंत के सम्बन्ध में एक श्लोक मिलता है जो इस प्रकार है –

एकदन्तावतारौ वै देहिनां ब्रह्मधारकः |

मदासुरस्य हन्ता स आखुवाहनगः स्मृतः ||

अर्थ :- भगवान् श्री गणेश का एकदन्त अवतार देहि ब्रह्म का धारक है, यह मदासूर का वध करने वाला है तथा मूषक वाहन पर चलने वाला है |

(3) महोदर श्री गणेश:-

भगवान् श्री गणेश का तीसरा अवतार महोदर का है जिसके सम्बन्ध में एक श्लोक मिलता है जो इस प्रकार है –

महोदर इति ख्यातो ज्ञानब्रह्मप्रकाशकः ।

मोहासुरस्य शत्रुर्वै आखुवाहनगः स्मृतः ||

अर्थ :- भगवान् श्री गणेश का महोदर अवतार ब्रह्म ज्ञान का प्रकाशक है, यह मोहासूर का वध करने वाला है तथा मूषक वाहन पर चलने वाला है |

(4) गजानन श्री गणेश:-

भगवान् श्री गणेश का चतुर्थ अवतार गजानन का है जिसके सम्बन्ध में एक श्लोक मिलता है जो इस प्रकार है –

गजाननः स विज्ञेयः सांख्येभ्यः सिद्धिदायकः ।

लोभासुरप्रहर्ता वै आखुगश्च प्रकीर्तिताः ॥

अर्थ :- भगवान् श्री गणेश का गजानन अवतार सांख्यब्रह्म का धारक है, यह सांख्य योगिओं को सिद्धि देने वाला माना जाता है यह लोभासूर का वध करने वाला तथा मूषक वाहन पर चलने वाला कहा जाता है

(5) लम्बोदर श्री गणेश:-

भगवान् श्री गणेश का पंचम अवतार लम्बोदर श्री गणेश का है जिसके सम्बन्ध में एक श्लोक मिलता है जो इस प्रकार है –

लम्बोदरावतारो वै क्रोधासुर निबर्हणः ।

शक्तिब्रह्माखुगः सद यत तस्य धारक उच्यते ॥

(6) विकट श्री गणेश:-

भगवान् श्री गणेश का षष्टम अवतार विकट श्री गणेश का है जिसके सम्बन्ध में एक श्लोक मिलता है जो इस प्रकार है –

विकटो नाम विख्यातः कामासुर्विदाहकः ।

मयुरवाहनश्चायं सौरब्रह्मधरः स्मृतः ॥

अर्थ :- भगवान् श्री गणेश का लम्बोदर अवतार सत्स्वरूप तथा ब्रह्मशक्ति का धारक है, भगवान लम्बोदर को क्रोधासुर का वध करने वाला तथा मूषक वाहन पर चलने वाला कहा जाता है ।

(7) विघ्नराज श्री गणेश

भगवान् श्री गणेश का सप्तम अवतार विघ्नराज का है जिसके सम्बन्ध में एक श्लोक मिलता है जो इस प्रकार है

अर्थ :-भगवान् श्री गणेश का सप्तम विघ्नराज का है जो विष्णु ब्रह्म का धारक है, यह शेषनाग पर विराजमान है । श्री गणेश का यह अवतार ममतासुर का वध करने वाला है |

विघ्नराजावताराश्च शेषवाहन उच्येत ।

ममतासुर हन्ता स विष्णुब्रह्मेति वाचकः ॥

(8) धुम्रवर्ण श्री गणेश:-

भगवान् श्री गणेश का अष्टम अवतार धूम्रवर्ण श्री गणेश का है जिसके सम्बन्ध में एक श्लोक मिलता है जो इस प्रकार है –

धुम्रवर्णावतारश्चाभिमानासुरनाशकः ।

आखुवाहन एवासौ शिवात्मा तु स उच्येत ॥

अर्थ :-भगवान् श्री गणेश का अष्टम अवतार धूम्रवर्ण श्री गणेश का है जो शिव तत्व का धारक है या शिव तत्त्व स्वरुप है , धूम्रवर्ण श्री गणेश मूषक वाहन पर विराजमान हैं । श्री गणेश का यह अवतार अभिमानासुर का वध करने वाला है

उपरोक्त अवतार सुखी और शांतिपूर्ण जीवन जीने और परम सत्य की प्राप्ति के लिए इन कमजोरियों को दूर करने की हमारी आवश्यकता को इंगित करते हैं।

#श्रीगणेशअष्टावतार #ashtavtarofGanesh #happylifewithartofliving #Ganpati

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 प्रश्न: अनंत पद्म चतुर्दशी का क्या महत्व है, और कलाई पर लाल धागा बांधने का क्या उद्देश्य है? 

श्री श्री रवि शंकर: अनंत पद्म चतुर्दशी का त्यौहार अनंत को मनाने का उत्सव है। (अनंत चतुर्दशी के दिन अनंत पद्मनाभ स्वामी (भगवान विष्णु) की पूजा होती है।) 

जीवन का उच्चतम ध्येय है अनंत का अनुभव करना। बिना अनंत के अनुभव के मनुष्य जीवन पशु के जीवन के समान है। आत्मा की अनंतता की एक झलक मात्र पा जाने से जीवन में बदलाव आ जाता है। सभी साधक इसके ज़रिये ही साधक बनते है - ध्यान में साधक अनंत की एक झलक का अनुभव कर लेते हैं। 

चित्रकार ने भगवान विष्णु को क्षीर सागर (दूध के सागर) पर नाग के बिछौने पर विश्राम करते हुये दिखाया है। मन की आनंदित स्थिति क्षीर सागर है, जहाँ संतोष की लहरे हिलोरे लेती हैं। नाग, मन की जागृत अवस्था का प्रतीक है - कुण्डलिनी शक्ति जो कि हमारे भीतर है। मन की आनंदित और जागृत अवस्था के बीच, चैतन्य विश्राम करता है। इसकी तीन परते हैं। दूध के सागर का अर्थ है कि वातावरण अनुकूल है। वातावरण के अनुकूल होने पर ही समाधि संभव है। शास्त्रों का अध्य्यन मनन करने के लिये भी ये आवश्यक है कि वातावरण में कोई व्यवधान ना हो। अगर आस-पास भूकंप या बाढ़ आई हो, तो कोई बैठ कर शास्त्र का पाठ, या ज्ञान की चर्चा नहीं करेगा। इसीलिए क्षीर सागर अनुकूल वातावरण का प्रतीक है। 

जब तक ज्ञान का गहराई से अनुभव ना हो, वह ज्ञान सतही रहता है। जितना चाहे कोई वेदांत का अध्य्यन कर ले, पर बिना अनुकूल वातावरण के...। 

जब कुण्डलिनी शक्ति ऊपर उठती है, तब हमारे भीतर जो चैतन्य शक्ति है, जो अनंत है, उसी का राज हो जाता है। उस अनंत शक्ति की नाभि से बिना किसी प्रयास के ही कमल का प्रागट्य हो जाता है। इसी तरह सृजन शक्ति का जन्म हुआ। 

चैतन्य के आनंदित स्वरूप से सृजन शक्ति का उदय होता है। बड़े से बड़े वैज्ञानिकों ने विश्राम करते हुये ही नये अविष्कार किये हैं। 

शोधकर्ताओं के लिये ये परम आवश्यक है कि उनका वातावरण अनुकूल हो - कोई शोर या व्यवधान ना हो। आप किसी से दो दिन में कोई नया अविष्कार करने को नहीं कह सकते हैं। अविष्कार, समय के बंधन से परे है, और प्रतिकूल वातावरण में नहीं हो सकता है। 

नाभि को दूसरा मस्तिष्क भी कहा जाता है। इस तरह, हमारे शरीर में दो मस्तिष्क हैं। एक तो सिर है, और दूसरा है नाभि। इसे मणिपुर चक्र (solar plexus) कहते हैं। दिमाग जो कार्य करता है, मणिपुर चक्र उसकी सहायता करता है। आधा कार्य तो मणिपुर चक्र ही करता है। इसीलिये, जब पेट अस्वस्थ होता है, तो अक्सर दिमाग में उथल पुथल होती है, मन में बहुत सारे विचार होते हैं।

इसलिये कहा गया है कि योग साधना से मणिपुर चक्र खिल उठता है। जो लोग योग साधना नहीं करते, उनका मणिपुर चक्र एक आमले के आकार का होता है। जब कुण्डलिनी शक्ति विकसित हो, तो मणिपुर चक्र का आकार एक संतरे से भी बड़ा हो जाता है - एक खिले हुये कमल के फूल की तरह।..

Jai gurudev 🙏🏻

#happylifewithartofliving #gurudevsrisriravishankar #SriSriNote #artofliving #srisriravishankarji #srisri

https://www.instagram.com/p/CiRdXENJwIs/?igshid=NmNmNjAwNzg=

 “You need to judge your company. Your company can pull you up or pull you down. The company that drags you towards doubt, dejection, blame, complaints, anger, delusion, and desires is bad company. It’s better to be lonely than in bad company. The company that pulls you up towards joy, enthusiasm, service, love, trust, and Knowledge is a good company. Don't think people who agree with your grievances, with your problems, are your friends, they are your enemies. Often, your own mind is your worst enemy. The negative tendency in your mind is your own enemy…”

~ SriSri

#happylifewithartofliving

#srisriravishankar

#srisri #SriSriNote #wisdome