The Sage of Kanchi

Pranams at the lotus feet of Sri Paramacharya!

Sri Paramacharya emphasizes the significance of Sun Worship/Sandhyavandhanam, which is considered as one of the most compulsory rites of a twice-born after the performance of sacred thread ceremony, any religious rites performed without sun worship would remain unfruitful.  All the religious and spiritual rite should be performed after the performance of sun worship to attain the meritorious reward mentioned in the scriptures.  Gayathri Mahamanthra is the essence of Rig, Yajur, Sama Veda, it is also known as 'Thripadha Gayathri', it has 24 sacred syllables which are divided as a set of eight into three.  It is highly propitious Mahamanthra which protects the intellect, virility, and energy of the worshiper who recites with intense devotion and faith.  Gayathri Mahamanthra is the mother of Veda, therefore recitation of this Mahamanthra would provide the piousness of the recitation of all the Vedic chants. The worshiper would attain all those Manthrasiddhi with the sincere worship of the Sun.  It is important that the worshiper should keep his body free from impurities to attain all those benefits of the performance of Sun worship.  The body is considered as a shrine which is the dwelling place of Paramathma in the form of soul.  It is our practice to keep the shrine free from impurities, in the same manner, the worshiper should keep his body free from impurities like addiction causing intoxicated and spirituous ingredients or consumption of meat, etc..

The temples follow particular disciplines and rules, shrine should be kept free from impurities.  At home we follow the different practices,  we do not observe all those strict practices followed in the temples.  The worship place and the living space should be kept separately in the homes, it is sad to note that nowadays people are not following any of the strictness in the homes.  It is the responsibility of the twice-born to practice religious rites and Vedic chants for the welfare of the Universe and its people, therefore he has to keep his body and mind free from impurities, he has to follow strict austerities and disciplines.  A twice-born should utilize his body for the welfare of the Universe and its people, the performance of religious rites, the recitation of Veda and protect Veda.  There was a time, the Kings and rulers were offered an abundance of wealth and grains as a charity for the performance of religious rites, and huge contributions were made to the Brahmins for the performance of religious rites.  Nowadays the situation has changed, people are not aware of the importance of religious or spiritual rites, either they are not willing to follow the custom or not aware of its importance.  Therefore, a twice-born has to work hard for earning money, that does not mean that he has to leave all his religious rites and accumulate wealth or engage in activities which are morally wrong.  It was believed that a twice-born should starve to attain knowledge, which promotes the welfare of the Universe and its living beings.  A twice-born need not cross the ocean to earn money and lead a comfortable life by leaving all his religious rites.  The primary duty of a twice-born is to protect Veda and perform religious and spiritual rites, which is capable to protect the entire Universe and its living beings.  A twice-born should be capable to alleviate the miseries of the people and protect the people from disaster with his Manthrasiddhi.  Unfortunately, in recent years twice-born has less interest in his duties and responsibilities, he got accustomed to the comforts, his mind, and body has become impure, even though he has a spark in him which he as attained from the piousness of previous births, if he put an effort to kindle the spark of worship of  Goddess Gayathri and Sun, it would protect him.   If he protects Veda and follows the religious rites,  it is definite that he will remain protected always,  when a person and his three generations stop performing sun worship would be considered as a Dhur-brahmin, he should  perform the atonement rites meticulously, even though it is impossible to regain the status of a twice-born.  It is the duty of a twice-born to recite Sahasra Gayathri whenever possible, and he should avoid consuming meals cooked other than in his home.

Sage of Kanchi -

Pranams at the lotus feet of Sri Paramacharya !

Paramacharya continues, children should not get involved in politics leaving their studies halfway; an uneducated person cannot manage the affairs of the country in any better way.  While studies, his main objective should be acquiring knowledge, he also has to concentrate on devotional life, morality, discipline, learn to handle emotions in an amicable way.  If he has achieved all these, and he really wants to pursue a career in politics that involved the life of millions and millions of people and their emotions, rest is God’s willing.  Education plays important role in children’s lives, without proper education it would be impossible to find a means of livelihood if a person cannot run a family how can he manage the affairs of the state?  In olden days the educational system was completely different, children were sent to Gurukulam/Preceptors home, at the age of eight.   In the Gurukulam there were limited facilities and strict disciplines, as a result, the child will learn adaptation techniques very easily, he will be good enough to live in any circumstances with strict discipline.  Preceptor love the children as his own, children will have little freedom to act, he has to strictly follow the rules of the Gurukulam otherwise severe punishments were imposed, children were taught to handle personal life as well as studies.   Modern day education provides all those comforts and luxuries of home;  children lived in the luxuries of home with a great lot of attention from parents move to a school where he is provided with all those comforts and freedom, these take a large control in their lives, it reflects in their overall life and behavior too.  Discipline cannot be imposed on a child’s life in a day or two, it is a lengthy process, firstly parents who enforce discipline on the children should have a history of good discipline, otherwise, it is impossible to implement on them.  Young minds have a lot of notions that are completely different from elders; they need a proper response for all their qualms, hence elders should patiently handle them with great care and love.  People who practiced self-control, humility, devotion and good discipline will not commit sins easily. Youths are full of life if they have adopted strict disciplines and morality, they will stick to it, moreover, they will create a world of young dynamic people.  We can see the enthusiasm in the youth forming Unions to fight for their needs if they utilize their ability in forming Unions for good causes like charitable purposes they can create a healthy society, medicine cure illnesses, education removes ignorance and helps them to grow noble-minded.  Education with humility is an essential quality.  The whole Universe is a mixture of good and bad, only human has the capabilities to elevate himself from the all-pervading illusion/Maya, he should continuously strive to raise his standards from normal to noble soul with the knowledge self and God-realization.  Supreme spirit has created the abode of deities and abode of demons as well, to strike a balance between good and evil.    We are living in Kali era, the nature of this era itself is predominant of wicked deeds, that does not mean that there will be no good, we all can strive to curtail the evilness.  Acharya concludes his speech amiably with an expectation that the younger generation will work hard for the betterment of society, promote spiritual as well religious rites, perform abundance of charitable work, remain noble soul, follow strict discipline, simplicity, morality, humility, and create a society better place to live in with the grace of Lord.

Sage of Kanchi –

Pranams at the lotus feet of Sri Paramacharya!

Paramacharya emphasizes the practice of charity among children.  It is the responsibility of the parents to make the children understand the need for the performance of charity, God will not get pleased to see all the money earned used for individual purpose, they should learn the habit of helping poor, sick, physically disabled, serving the meal to needy, etc.. In this way they can earn piousness as well as happiness.  Children can collectively perform the deed of charity, planting trees, cleaning shelter homes, gardens, shrines, etc… this will cultivate devotion, morality, and sense of  responsibility among the children, mere remembrance of Lord would clear all the impurities, it will keep the children safe from bad habits.  Children should practice obeisance and prayer to Lord in the morning, evening and before go to bed, during the troubled times' devotion will work as supporting stick, it keeps us protected from falling prey to dangers.  Acharya highlighted the importance of discipline in adults, an adolescent is a crucial age, during this period their emotions goes beyond the limit, they often get familiarized with the new habits like smoking, usage of addiction-forming drugs, movies, politics, etc.. Parents should handle them with great care and compassion.  If they lose discipline and self-control, it will damage their future; eventually, it will destroy peace in the family.  The practice of devotion in the childhood years would be of great help during these hours, some may find peace in the devotional and spiritual services, they lean towards more spiritual and religious rites, it will keep them mentally strong with a whole new perception. They find immense pleasure in listening to religious speeches, legends of holy men, readings scriptures, and various charitable services.  They know how to strike balance between their studies and personal work.  Unfortunately, children who are not familiarized with any of these practices of devotion may find peace in the above-mentioned addiction forming habits.  It is essential to organize religious and spiritual conventions very often inviting more youths into this gathering, utilizing their physical help as well as allow them to share their thoughts; it will channelize the young minds into more fruitful ways, it will help the youth transform into noble personality. 

Sage of Kanchi –

Pranams at the lotus feet of Sri Paramacharya !

Paramacharya continues if devotion is not cultivated in the young minds it is impossible to do it in later years, prayers work as a cleansing agent, like a dip in the holy river Ganga, it removes the impurities in the child, therefore every parent should  introduce  the habit of prayers in their children at a young age.  The habit of daily prayer is as essential as bathing; a child should practice Sun worship in the early years of childhood.  A child should understand the nature of Earth, he should have a love for nature, he should have the knowledge that God has created this Universe and its living beings, he has created Earth that rotates around Sun, it results in the origin of   four seasons known as Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter.  Supreme spirit is the essence of compassion and righteousness, children should learn to communicate with the Lord with their simple prayers, as a result, they will learn the habit of sharing all their troubles with the Universal spirit, after several years of practice they will realize the benefit of complete surrender to the supreme spirit which will protect them from committing sins.  During this process, all their impurities will melt like ice; they grow up with clear perception, discipline, and virtues.  Supreme Lord protects the whole Universe and its living beings, Lord Surya is Lord of  the day who nourishes the plants and human life, Lord Varuna is the source of an adequate downpour, Lord Chandra is the Lord of night and coolness of the air, Lord Vayu is the source of vital air, Lord Agni is the source for  all ritual practices and preparation of meals, in this way supreme spirit takes care of each and every needs of its living beings,  He is the source of wealth, minerals, and natural resources likewise,  in a family father is the breadwinner, mother take care of household duties and responsibilities of children and dependents, hence a child should be respectful and grateful to his parents in his whole life, they have made a lot of sacrifices and underwent a lot of troubles in bringing up a child.  The parents are another form of supreme spirit who symbolizes compassion, that is the reason they are protective of their children and always wish for their goodness, it is the responsibility of every child to show respect and gratitude to his parents, when the child grows up into an adult, it is his prime duty to remain a strong support system of his parents.  When the intellect is free from impurities like ego, lust, desire, jealousy, anger and pride, it will be the abode of love and peace, our innate nature is happiness/bliss where the supreme soul resides, where do we get pure intellect? It can be achieved only through the practice of devotion and faith.  Hence, it is essential that children should be introduced to religious and spiritual activities from the early years of childhood.

Sage of Kanchi –

Pranams at the lotus feet of Sri Paramacharya !

Paramacharya describes the primary duty of a school going child is to concentrate on his studies, obviously, there will be lots of distractions that can be expected, but he/she must be focused on his/her studies with the constant supervision of parents.  A child should not be introduced to any kind of labor during the tender age, because he is not mentally or physically strong enough to perform heavy tasks.  Humans are innate with impurities like ego, desire, anger, pride and jealous, all the sinful deeds performed in the several births accumulates as huge stack, the purpose of sending a child to school is to get rid of impurities and ignorance, knowledge is the only cure for ignorance.  During the process of learning, a child gets well accustomed to simplicity, humility, kindness, compassion, care, and love, these will wash off all the impurities in him/her.  Knowledge without humility is equivalent to ignorance, a person who is swollen with pride will not get help even from God, therefore intelligence and wisdom followed with humility is essential, it brings happiness and admiration.  Jnana yoga is the superior tool to get away from sins; this will teach a person the difference between pious and wicked deeds.  Introducing personal hygiene in a child is very important, regular bath twice a day will keep the child from skin diseases, cold water bath will revitalize the body and mind, child will get energy to fight against common cold and flu, habit of wearing clean and crisp clothes after bathing, and washing one’s own clothes are good habits.  The purity of mind is essential as bodily hygiene; a child should be introduced to simple religious activities and charitable works, it will keep them away from lies and unknown fears, children should have respect for elders, it is common to commit mistakes but forgiving mistakes and not to repeat the same is the highest of the virtue.  Parents have the right to impose punishments upon a child for their severe mistakes, but they are equally responsible to make the child understand the reasons for implementing such punishments.  Children get easily influenced by jealousy and pride, which can do nothing but harm, during these circumstances parents should make them understand the negative impact of jealousy and redirect their attention to a productive means.  Children should learn to cultivate the habit of friendliness, which could bring great joy in their life, speaking ill of others, mocking others, backbiting and backstabbing these should be avoided thoroughly.   Parents know of their children better than anyone, they should have a constant eye on their disciplines and habits.  It is simple as it is ‘What you sow,  shall you reap’.

Sage of Kanchi –

Pranams at the lotus feet of Sri Paramacharya !

Paramacharya describes the concept of ‘Family’, the whole Universe is a family, Vedas narrates the fourteen worlds, seven Vyahrithis/elevated world and seven lower ones/Pathala Loka, which are Bhu, Bhuva, Sva, Mahas, Janas, Thapas, and Sathyaloka are upper ones, Athala, Vithala, Suthala,Rasathala, Thalathala, Mahathala, Pathala, Naraka is the lower one.  These fourteen worlds is the essence of the supreme spirit, Lord Mahadeva and Goddess Parvathi is the Mother and Father of these fourteen worlds.  In the same manner, we have small families consists of father, mother, child, and dependents, in this world.  We worship Lord Mahadeva and Goddess Parvathi as Universal spirit, likewise, father and mother in every family are most venerable.  It is essential to create a sense of devotion in a child from the early years of childhood, we have no school to teach those lessons, so parents should take all efforts to teach their children with the legends from scriptures, small verses praising the glories of Lord.  Home and parents influence the greater part of a child’s life, a child is a mirror image of parents, and ultimately all the virtues and faults inculcated in them are the nature of parents.  If a house is a place for serenity, strict discipline, a place for religious and spiritual services, and place of pious people, consequently the children brought up in those homes will strictly follow all the rites, customs, and religious practices.  They remain virtuous in the entire life, they will grow up a strong  and responsible person with great will power, all those virtues reflect in all walks of his life.  A child brought up in a family where there is no discipline, religious, spiritual, or customary practices are followed, where there are constant conflicts and arguments takes place, eventually, the child will grow up an irresponsible with no virtues.  Home is the first school for a child,  it is the prime duty of every parents  to put great effort to shape a child to a responsible and virtuous citizen, hence parents should cultivate good discipline and habits in their children.  A wood requires lots of meticulous carving work to become a beautiful sculpture, in the same way, a child requires a lot of disciplines to bring up as a responsible citizen.    Later the child will go to a school where pupils from varied cultures, family backgrounds and disciplines will meet together, the disciplines he had learned from the home will keep him unalterable, goodness already instilled in the child will help others to get benefit from him.  A child brought up in a good atmosphere would treat the school mates as brothers and sisters, and teacher with great respect as head of the family.

Sage of Kanchi –

Pranams at the lotus feet of  Sri Paramacharya !

Paramacharya was walking University, an encyclopedia an information bank which could clear any doubts or provides information about varied subjects.  All those valuable information should be accessible to the younger generation so that they will get an opportunity to know about ‘The great Sage of Kanchi’ and adopt that priceless advice in their life too.  India is a land of numerous Siddhapurushas, Rishis, Sages, intellectuals, scholars etc..  Our life is not enough to get a glimpse of their works, even though we can make a humble effort to get to know something before leaving this world.  I am pretty sure none will get bored of reading about Paramacharya’s modest living with strict disciplines, kindness, compassion, love, optimism, enthusiasm, persistent efforts for the Universal well-being.  This is also one of the reasons we feel protected and serene in their vicinity.   Our Acharya has devotees all over the world, each and everyone was fleeing towards him like honey bees attracted towards nectar, he was enriched with far-sightedness, and he could envision the life of the younger generation, he well predicted the future of the younger generation and poured streams of advice for their well-being.  He tirelessly insisted parents, who contribute sizeable efforts to shape a child into a responsible citizen; he described the significance of joint living where children will have all the relations under one roof, each and everyone in the family contribute simple lessons which could help them to grow a better person, especially grandfather and a grandmother who is the storehouse of knowledge in various subjects.  Acharya must have dreamed a world where Dharma takes its predominant position, people who strictly follow their Varnnadharma, living in the peace of harmony, a world where there is no tinge on religion, beliefs, and devotion, people are fearless in performing spiritual and religious rites.  In the coming days I will be making a humble effort to portrait all those nectars like advice to children and parents as well.  Happy reading!

Sage of Kanchi –

Pranams at the lotus feet of Sri Parmacharya !

Paramacharya describes the significance of the Shatkarma while bathing it is customary to chant a few Sanskrit verses/Sankalpa, and Akamarshanasuktham that could purify the body as well as the mind,  it removes the sin of the worshiper.  Sandhyajapam is sun worship, it is performed for the welfare of the soul, it is performed three times a day, once in the early hours of dawn while the stars are visible, once in the afternoon anytime after 10.48  before 1.00, and in the evening before sunset.    Aupasana, Bhramayajjam, Devapooja/Panchayathanapuja is the worship of Goddess Shakthi, Lord Shiva, Lord Vishnu, Adithya,  and Ganesha,  and bhojanam/consuming meal during Madhyahnikam.  Pithru karma should be performed during Aparahnna/mid-day,  Deivakarma/veneration of deities during Sankalpa in the early hours of dawn, and recitation of sacred chants during Sayamkala/ early hours of sunset and Deivadharishanam/visiting shrines during Pradhoshakala.   

Acharya describes the significance of PanchamahaYajjam known as  Devayajjam/worship of deities, Pithruyajjam/homage to ancestors, Bhoothayajjam/Vaishvadevam, Bhramayajjam/recitation of Veda, and Manushyayajjam/service to humanity were strictly followed in olden days.  We are too busy with our livelihood, even though we have to take all the effort to perform whatever possible in this life, especially sun worship on a regular basis.  The performance of spiritual and religious rites will remove the sins of the worshiper, it will improve the intellect, and we will come to know what should do and what not, finally it provides happiness in this life and liberation from worldly existence.  Observing fast on Ekadhashi day and finish Parana on the Dwadhashi day before 8.24 brings an abundance of piousness.  Even the office-goers can do Snanam, Sandhyavandhanam, Aupasana, Shivapooja and Adithyam, retired people can perform Bhramayajjam and Vaishvadevam as well.  All the above religious rites can be performed for people who have the facilities.  These are the rites performed by Lord Bhrama, Rishis, deities, and our ancestors.  We have stopped performing all these rites or took hold of a few, that is the reason we are going through endless miseries, sorrows, grief, physical and mental afflictions, moreover, we have stopped the performance of these essential rites and prevented the abundance of piousness of our younger generations too.  A widower cannot perform Aupasanam, he can perform the rest of the rites, Aupasana is the performance of offerings to the creatures in Pithruloka, Devaloka, and Nagaloka.  Almighty has given us endless comforts but we are not willing to show basic gratitude by performing these rites.  We are incapable to produce a single piece of grain, supreme Lord has given us all that required for our life on Earth, we will remain, thieves, if we consume a meal without making an initial offering to him.  He is omnipresent; whatever offered to him will accept amicably.  We are performing homage to ancestors with the belief that the offerings will be received by our ancestors without any fail, in olden day’s telegram and money order system prevailed to transfer messages and money from one place to another, the performance of rites work exactly like this.  Acharya repeatedly insists every individual to follow Shatkarma which could provide piousness in this life and afterlife too.

Sage of Kanchi –

Pranams at the lotus feet of Sri Paramacharya !

Paramacharya continues modern day education to put people into a huge dilemma; there are very few following all the religious and spiritual rites, very few people who really want to follow all the disciplines, religious and spiritual rites.   There are people who really want to follow all those disciplines but not in a position to do so, there are people who cannot leave the disciplines and but willing to adopt a new way of living.    I have advised everyone to keep shunt, but who is following the same? People have changed their approach after the modern day education; it is compelling them to do various sins without any fear.  Every religion has its own school for teaching their customs and practices, but we are lacking that facility, therefore people are not aware of the significance of these rites or not following any disciplines and religious rites.  Our scriptures strongly recommend what are the disciplines to follow and what not, there are six major duties/Shatkarma every individual has to follow other than a livelihood.

Sandhya Snanam Japo Homo Devathanam Cha Poojanam |Adhithyam Vaishvadhevam Cha Shat Karmani Dhine Dhine ||

The above are the six duties performed for the goodness of health, prosperity, purity, and piousness.  These are simple duties such as regular bathing/Snanam, Japa/recitation of sacred chants, fire sacrifices/Homa, worship of deities, sun worship, and Adithibhojanam/feeding guests, Vaishvadevam/rite to pacify visible as well as non-visible creatures dead during the day to day activities, etc.. We all take bath for bodily hygiene, is that enough? What about the impurities in the heart? Visiting shrines and Mutt, consuming offerings of Lord that could purify the intellect as well keep the body fit.  Therefore when we perform a deed, it should serve the purpose of physical body as well as the soul,  and these Shatkarmas serve the purpose of both.

Sage of Kanchi –

Pranams at the lotus feet of Sri Paramacharya !

Paramacharya describes how to execute the great task of protecting cows, nothing is impossible if there are people who are willing to do service, all we need is a bunch of service-minded people who can contribute money for building shelter homes for cows, volunteers who can collect fodder from different areas, this is applicable to all the religion, protection of cow is a pious deed, abandoning a cow bring curse in the family.  There is a legend of King Dilipa of the solar dynasty, he visited the abode of deities but he overlooked divine cow Kamadhenu, because of that he got a curse that he will not have a progeny.  King Dilipa’s preceptor was Sage Vashishta who advised him to nurture cow/Nandini who is the daughter of Kamadhenu, he and his wife Sudhakshina sincerely followed the advice of his preceptor took great care of Nandini and relieved from the curse.  They had a child Raghu, later he became illustrious among the solar dynasty/Raghuvamsha.  In olden days there was the land for grazing the cattle and small water tanks were built to put out their thirst, there were milestones that were useful for them to rub their bodies against it to get rid of itching.  Nowadays there is hardly any place for grazing the cattle.    a cow is a national wealth, it serves human society until its death.  Acharya was against the idea of consumption of caffeine, which has many adverse effects on human health.  The performance of Yajja has reduced considerably, therefore the usages of ghee also have reduced, and devotees should make sure to offer ghee to temples and mutt, which could remove the internal as well as external impurities. We should make sure and always remember that whatever we receive from the cows are put into the usage of religious and spiritual needs first, we have the right to use only the remaining, because we are not spending one-third of her compassion in protecting her, hence the greater part of all that given out of love by her in the form of milk, butter, buttermilk, curd, ghee, cow dung, urine, etc..   it should spend in the service of the Supreme Lord.  A law should be enacted in order to prohibit cow slaughtering, our country has a law to protect the wild animals and sandalwood trees, and unfortunately, we do not have a law to protect a cow which is the pillar of righteousness and the welfare of the Universe.  Rishabha/bull and cow are considered as Dharmadevatha, their four legs represent austerity/penance, purity, compassion and truth.  The ideal way to get rid of the evil effects of Kali era is to protect Dharma, it is essential to protect the cow, there is no wealth equivalent to a cow.   There was a practice among us to donate cows during spiritual rites, it removes all the sins of the worshiper and it is considered an ideal way to perform charity.  Our Acharya was a noble soul, he had a great love for cows, and he ensured all the cows were treated properly in the mutt, not only cows all the creatures were treated with kindness, compassion, and love.

Sage of Kanchi –

Pranams at the lotus feet of Sri Paramacharya !

Paramacharya describes, a twice-born is reverentially greeted as deities on the Earth/Bhudeva, cow and twice-born are the pillar of righteousness, without cow and Vedic scholars none of the spiritual or religious rites takes place,  a twice-born who is dedicated his life for Vedic way of living performs daily rites, recites  Vedas and Upanishadh,  conducts sun worship thrice a day, performs  Yajja etc…. for the welfare of Universe and it's living, he is not doing any of the daily rites for personal motive all that performed for the well-being of the Universe, therefore he is addressed as deity on the Earth.  Nowadays, twice-born has forgotten his daily rites, people lost interest in Vedic study and as a result performance of Yajja has reduced significantly, eventually people lost interest in keeping cows at home, once the cattle shed is considered as the purest place as  the permanent abode of Goddess Mahalakshmi can be seen seldom.  Go Puja and Gaja Puja is regular events in our mutt to date.  Feeding a cow is considered as auspicious, this duty should be continued without any fail whether the cow stops giving milk or not, as long as it is alive, and otherwise it will bring severe sins.  Our Acharya urged the need for protection of cow legally and put a ban on cow slaughter.  Collecting vegetable waste from restaurants and shelter homes where meals are cooked in large scale and send to cattle shelter homes is a great idea to serve the cattle; even the women can do this simple task by setting apart from the vegetable waste and rice soup at home and feed the cows.  In this way, we can put an end to sending the cows to slaughter homes, feeding a cow brings an abundance of piousness and blessings of Lord Vasudeva.  It is the responsibility of every individual to make sure that no cow is sending to slaughter homes, instead construct shelter homes for the cows and contribute substantial money for feeding and protection of them, many of the cow owners are villagers from low-income group, they cannot afford to give away the cow for free, therefore provide a reasonable amount as compensation and send the cow to shelter homes.  We all are capable to do physical as well as monetary service, make sure we are utilizing our good energies for the welfare of the Universe.

Sage of Kanchi –

Pranams at the lotus feet of Sri Paramacharya !

Paramacharya continues, we have seen various usage of cow’s milk and supplementary products, cow-dung is used for burning fire and the remains are used as sacred ashes, it is used for fire sacrifices, it is used as cleaning property, it removes bacteria works as a disinfectant, it removes air pollution.    In olden day’s cow dung patties were kept in large stock in every home, it is used as burning fire during the winter season and for the religious and spiritual rites at homes.  Panchagavyam is a collective ingredient of milk, curd, ghee, cow dung, and urine, It is used as a purifying agent, it removes external as well as internal impurities.  Panchagavyam works as firewood, it removes the impurities in the air and when it is consumed it removes the sins of the individual.  Cow slaughtering brings severe sin, a sin equivalent to the killing of one’s mother; there is no Prayashchiththam/atonement for this sin.  When the cow get older, it reduces giving milk or completely stops, during this period of time it is our responsibility to take care of her and show gratitude for her long years of service to the family, when our mother get older and physically and mentally worn out, is not that our duty to take care of her?  It is not our practice to send her away from home; in the same manner, when a cow gets older we should protect her until the natural death takes place.  Gorochana is a bright yellow substance prepared from the bile of cattle after its natural death, it has various usages.  In Jabalopanishadh Lord Shiva describes the method of preparation of sacred ashes which remove the sins of the worshiper, and provides Moksha.  Usually, we take bath for bodily hygiene, smearing sacred ashes provides the same result of bathing.  The dust raised from the hooves of the cow is considered as sacred; it provides the piousness of sacred bath in holy rivers.  All the spiritual and religious practices are done for the welfare of the Universe and its living beings, Yajjas and various fire sacrifices are performed for the welfare of the people, all these Vedic rites require numerous ingredients from the cows and collective efforts of Vedic scholars/ priests for the performance, therefore Vedic scholar and cows are fundamental for the continuation of spiritual and Vedic rites, these two are vital for the Universal well-being and righteousness, none of the Vedic or spiritual rites takes place in the absence of these two.  Supreme Lord is the essence of Veda, he is the performer/Vedic scholar, and he represents the performance of Yajja/fire sacrifice and ingredients of Yajja as well.  Protection of cow is our prime duty, for the welfare of the Universe and its living beings.

Sage of Kanchi –

Pranams at the lotus feet of Sri Paramacharya !

Paramacharya continues endless attributes of cow, she is often compared with the Mother Earth for her forbearance, in fact, she is the Universal Mother who has embodied as Earth and cow, Earth has possessed rich mineral and soil, the cow is a source of wholesome milk which has high nutritional compounds, it multiplies the Swathik nature in human beings.  The supplementary products like curd, buttermilk, ghee, butter, cow dung, urine, etc.. are ingredients used for the performance of Vedic rituals as well as for personal consumption,  none of the spiritual or religious rites can be performed without these ingredients, she is the primary source for the existence Dharma in the Universe, so she should be treated in a well manner.  Cows constantly serve human beings like Earth which is the source of rich mineral and soil, therefore it is our responsibility to ensure her safety and protection.  In Dwaparayuga, Mother Earth assumed the form of a cow and appealed to Lord Vishnu, when she was burdened by the demons.  Even though Lord Vishnu has infinite incarnations, Krishnavathara is considered as Poornna Punyavathara, he lived on the Earth like an ordinary human being, he performed all the duties and responsibilities of a cowherd, he protected cows and took good care of them as a cowherd, he underwent all those sufferings, and miseries.  Lord Krishna came down to Earth for the accomplishment of a specific objective, he imparted knowledge of Bhramam, he killed numerous demons, he blessed his staunch devotee Devi Yasodha and Nandhagopa with his childhood pastimes, he performed various amusements in the sacred land of Gokulam and Brindhavan, he performed most glorious Rasaleela with the young maiden of cowherds and Sri Radharani, he crushed the pride of Lord Indhra and Lord Bhrama, he killed Kamasa and liberated Devi Devaki and Vasudeva from the detention,  he married to Devi Rukmini to prove that they are inseparable consorts, whenever Lord Vishnu incarnates on Earth, Goddess Mahalakshmi also follows him,  he performed the role of emissary of Pandava who symbolizes Dharmam, he carried out the role of Gitacharya and charioteer to Arjuna, he established a magnificent city Dwaraka, lived in this glorious city with sixteen thousand and one a hundred wives, once the objective of the incarnation was completed, he returned to the supreme abode.  This is one of the glorious incarnations of Lord Vishnu as a cowherd who protected cows.  Therefore, we should take good care and protection of cows, in every household the cow, should be worshiped and taken care in a good manner; it is the eternal abode of Goddess Sri Mahalakshmi.  

Sage of Kanchi –

Pranams at the lotus feet of Sri Paramacharya !

Paramacharya speaks about ‘Go Samrakshanam’/protection of cow, it is one of righteous deed should be done by all four Varnnas known as Bhramin, Kshathriya, Vaishya, and Shudhras, it is considered as one of the pious deeds by Buddhists and Jains as well.   The cow is believed as the mother of the Universe, except for cow rest of the living creatures feed their children only and that too for a short period of time.  The cow is the only animal which provides milk to the caretaker for a long period of time in their lives that is also one of the reasons the sacred scriptures strongly recommend the protection of cows.  All the Vedic rites begin with the veneration of cows, Veda praises the generosity of this animal, cows are considered as auspicious animals which abundantly supply with the ingredients for the performance of Vedic rites in this way they take a huge part in the life of a twice-born and performance of Vedic rites.  Protection of cows brings welfare to humans, milk is an essential part of our daily life,  not only milk various milk products like butter, ghee, buttermilk, curd,  cow dung, urine, etc.. are useful for personal as well as for religious rites,  therefore veneration of the cow is treated as most propitious act, it has the capacity to fulfill the needs of its calves and the people dependent on it.  Supreme Lord Krishna narrates the   three duties and responsibilities of a Vaishya, he should take care of agriculture and trade, he should protect cows, he should make sure to avail enough milk for the calves and rest of the milk should be utilized for personal use, he should take care of agricultural and farming for the welfare of other three Varnnas, business and trade is treated as the primary duty of a Vaishya, therefore a Vaishya who completely neglect his Dharma is a sinful deed.  A twice-born discarding his duties and responsibilities towards his family and dependents, living in woods and taking care of his needs also a sinful deed.  Vaishya doing his duty for the welfare of the society, therefore he should always remember that he is doing business not for personal motive, he should have remembrance of Lord who established the duties and responsibilities, it should be performed with intense faith then it is considered as a righteous deed.

Sage of Kanchi –

Pranams at the lotus feet of Sri Paramacharya !

Paramacharya describes the heroism of six warriors of Kali, The first warrior lust/desire says ‘I am capable to destroy an individual completely; I can make a person act worse than an animal.’ The second warrior anger speaks ‘I have a stronghold which causes  distress, afflictions, pains, sufferings, miseries, and sorrows, in that fortress even the arrow of lust/desire cannot enter, that is the heart of Sage Durvassa.”  It is a known fact that desire/lust cannot enter into the heart of Sage Durvassa, but anger permanently resides in it.  A book can be read in the shadow of light, but it cannot be read under sunlight, it creates darkness.  The illustrious Yogishvara Thirumoolar who compiled Shaiva Siddhantha in twelve Thirumurai,  in which the first one is Thirumandiram, he composed these glorious hymns when he comes out of the transcendental state once in thousand years, he elaborately described the difference in individual perception about a single thing, he explains, where is the subsistence of supreme spirit? How can we conduct a search for the supreme spirit? What has enclosed the supreme spirit?  Etc..  The whole Universe is the essence of supreme spirit; he is omniscient, omnipresent, and omnipotent.  A person who is aware of the truth of the all-pervading nature of supreme spirit will realize the eternal presence of supreme consciousness in his heart as well, it will remove the darkness of ignorance in him.  Veda concludes with the description of supreme consciousness, these are called Upanishad, Sri Adhishankaracharya who is divine personified on the Earth for exemplifying the glories of the supreme spirit.  The whole universe is in brightness; therefore we are not able to realize the supreme spirit which is the essence of brightness and Universe, our darkness of ignorance causes not to realize the supreme consciousness, Acharya explained the lack of duality which is the philosophy of Adhvaitha.  The Universal soul resides as a soul in all the living things, hence it is all-pervading, and it is the knower of all.  None has the interest to know the nature supreme consciousness, all are immersed in the material world, all want to earn and earn money, all are want to satisfy their comforts and feed their senses, all want to live in peace, is that worth for long run when everything has perishable nature.   When we accumulate wealth, we will find the source to harm others, we earn sin as well as illnesses.  Acharya suggests an ideal way to cure all kinds of illnesses, strictly follow disciplines and continue spiritual and religious rites according to Varnna.  An individual is highly admired in the society and always remembered for his good deeds, strict disciplines, generosity, morality, and performance of religious and spiritual rites.  A wealthy person who is not having any qualities or not following any of the basic rites will not earn any respect in the society and people will not remember him for long.

Sage of Kanchi –

Pranams at the lotus feet of Sri Paramacharya !

Paramacharya narrates the art of control over senses, darkness, and brightness are two segments, we realize the brightness when it gets dark, therefore the darkness is the cause for the realization of brightness, we cannot see the brightness of stars in the day light, but when it gets dark we can perceive the sparkling of stars, this is the essence of Vedantha, once we attain the self-realization and God-realization, the ignorance and illusions disappear.  If you concentrate on worldly matters, involuntarily the supreme consciousness vanishes.  If we learn to control anger, though it is difficult to bring into practice, many of the grief in our life will disappear.  There was a custom prevailed in our families, the woman of the house start her domestic work early hours of dawn, during these hours she will be singing glories of Lord in a musical form, therefore children in the home will be able to grasp some of it, in the later stages they will read stories from scriptures, further, they will listen to these glorious myths from the religious speakers.  Unfortunately, all those days are gone, later the theaters have come into existence, but most of the time they focus on worldly matters and little on the scriptures.  Now a day’s Orators has another responsibility to entertain his audience, he has to crack jokes to make the audience to sit and listen to his speeches.  Some have the opinion that scriptures are made up of stories, whatever it is, will it be soothing while listening or not? Scriptures have a sole purpose that is to bring peace and serenity to the listener.  Desire/lust is the major cause of sin and anger is more dangerous than desire.  Acharya beautifully narrates the story of Nalacharitham, in which Nala and Dhamayanthi were truly passionate to each other, it was the occasion of Swayamvaram of Devi Dhamayanthi, deities and Indras were enthusiastic to marry Dhamayanthi, they dressed up like Nala, but Dhamayanthi who has attained the blessings of Goddess Saraswathi, chosen the real Nala as her life partner, deities praised the virtues of Dhamayanthi and blessed her.  It stirred the anger in Kali, who was late to attend Swayamvaram, later he caught Nala for his minor mistake.  The poet describes desire/lust and anger is chief of army men of Kali, the rest of the warriors are greed, attachment, ego, and jealousy.