ಮಂಗಳವಾರ, ನವೆಂಬರ್ 29, 2011

Concepts of Mind management in the spiritual tradition

Concepts of Mind management in the spiritual tradition
In the antahkarana chatushtaya (the 4 parts of the inner 'instrument'- namely buddhi (intellect), chitta (memory), manas (mind) and aham (I consciousness), the buddhi and chitta are pre-conditioned by the past experiences and instincts. They can be cleansed and strengthened through right viveka (discrimination). But the one that directly perceives feels through the senses and soon gets influenced by the outer world is the manas. Therefore the control of this becomes most necessary to avoid further draining out of the inner potentials. Since nothing can be achieved without ‘inner silence’, controlling mind is vital in spiritual study. Although spirituality is itself much loftier than the study of psyche, mind needs to be given utmost attention because otherwise it plays havoc in the process of comprehension and concentration.
That is why all scriptures and paths emphasize upon mano-nigraha(control of mind). Like a stubborn and naughty child, the mind always tends to give a slip and play havoc in concentration and contemplation of subtle truths. It needs to be handled tactfully.
Bhagavadgeeta says- shanaih shanaih uparamair buddhyaa dhrutagrheetayaa--- The toughest achievement is self mastery. Adi Shankaracharya says- Jitam jagat kena? Mano hi yena. Numerous stories from puranas, epics and classical literature present stories and instances try to establish this fact. The greatest challenge of any true spiritual seeker therefore lies in escaping the pull of the mind. Patanjali even considers this as one significant step in astaangayoga. The process of collecting back the mental energies dispersed in outer names and forms is termed pratyaahaara. The control of the mind such that it does not run back is called dhaarana. The flow of the antahkarana towards the dhyeya(the object of meditation) is called dhyana. When this is perfected it culminates into samaadhi, a state wherein the antahkarana sublimates into the aatmaswarupa and attains perfect tranquility. This is the state of truth realization and supreme bliss.
The mind is constantly swayed hither and thither by the wind of delusion caused by the jeeva bhaava created by maaya. Adi Shankara explains with the examples of kasturi mrga, patanga( a kind of insect), elephant, fish and the deer explaining how each of them succumb to the greed of pleasure through each of their sense organs. The human being has all the five senses strongly distracting his mental energies outwardly. What then could be his plight!(vivekachudamani)
Merely controlling the outwardly flow of mind by force is of no use. The more we force it to silence down, the more it tends to drift away. I may quote a folk anecdote in this regard- A greedy man once forced a yogi to give him a mantra to suddenly become rich. The yogi disgusted by his greed wanted to teach him a lesson. He gave him a mantra and said, this mantra will soon fetch you the desired, but while you chant it you never ever for a moment remember ‘a monkey’, beware! The man was more then happy. He did everything to keep away the thoughts of the monkey but it kept coming to him. The more he avoided the thought the more it rebounded! Thus not mere negation, but indeed culturing and channelizing the mental energies is the purpose of saadhana
Till the true identity or aatmaswarupa reveals itself, the mind is bound down by the jeeva bhaava. This mind under the strong influence of delusion constantly nurtures a greed for enjoyment through senses. But as the aspirant slowly develops a capacity to discriminate between the material and spiritual existences, the transience of matter and its ways, the true nature of his soul i.e sat- chit- aananda, his mind gets back to track by itself. Thus chitta shuddhi through right act, speech, discrimination and meditation need to be constantly carried on so as the harness the mental energies inwards.
Managing the mind is important both for peace and balance in normal human life and even more for higher intellectual or spiritual comprehensions. The greatest contribution of Indian spiritual schools lies in devising various methods for mind management. This has also promoted many an effective yogic method of counseling, healing and health therapies. The concepts of mind management that we come across in Bhagavadgeeta, Upanishads, the numerous accounts and dialogue available in ancient literature and traditions including the folk and native ideologies, are today of great practical use in applications such as stress management, concentration techniques, memory boosting, control of mentions, BP and many more.
We are all very familiar with the revolutions that have been made world wide by our schools of yogasanas, pranayama, meditation and ayurveda systems. The yoga therapy system is nothing but medical application of the available mind management concepts in vedic and later vedic lore. In my own experience of life skills training and counseling, I have seen how handy and useful the Indian concepts of mind management and spirituality have been. Indeed even books on secular topics like arthashaastra, kaamashaastra, and others do not fail to emphasize on the necessity of indriyajaya and manonigraha. There are many darshanas, logical disputations, refutations and interpretations based on the vedic concepts. There are still many others that stood independent of the vedic injunctions like the Buddhism and Jainism. However all systems (except the charvaka!), unanimously support the concept of manonigraha.
Even for those who are least interested in spiritual probing, the concepts of mind and its mastery are of great use. What then to say about its use to sincere spiritual aspirants!

Extracted from my key note address at National science congress session- psycho-spiirtual and philosophical sciences, at AIISH, Mysore, hosted by SVAK, 2009

spirituality should be a quest into truth

Science is defined as a “dispassionate enquiry into truth”. Quest of truth is inclusive of both the material and spiritual domains. Lots of studies have been done in both these domains. The material sciences facilitate the method of probing through experimentations and technology because the world around is perceptible to the senses. But for those seeking the truths related to the psychic and spiritual truths that are beyond the normal sensory world, a subtler and intuitive study becomes necessary. In case of study of the psyche, at least the context of the person’s lifestyle, his innate nature and his relationship with the outer world provide some data for study. But the spiritual plane, which is independent of any influence within or without, is much too subtle and lofty to comprehend. It requires extraordinary genius and focus to tap the secrets of spiritual truths. Unlike material and psychic sciences, it is purely experiential in nature and not inferential. (When I say experience, it does not denote the sensory but super sensory / spiritual experience) We should take note of this before we study spiritual and metaphysical sciences. It is in this sense that Swami Vivekananda said – “Where (material) science ends, there (the science of) religion begins”

Extracted from my key note address at National science congress session- psycho-spiirtual and philosophical sciences, at AIISH, Mysore, hosted by SVAK, 2009

a glimpse into the Indian philosophical approach

A glimpse into the Indian philosophical approach
From time immemorial, Indian thinkers have ventured in both the directions- material and spiritual. Just as we see many sciences and arts based on their experiments with the material world around, so do we see a treasure of their hypothetical and experiential theories of the spirituality too. Since the oldest vedic ages, Indian thinkers have never ceased to venture into the subtle world of lofty spiritual truths. They also recorded these for posterity in the Upanishads, darshanas and other scriptures. Added to these time and again were the experiences and insights of many realized souls.
The striking nature of the bharatiya darshana or Indian philosophical perspective is that the direct experience of the seers has been valued the more than mere logical expositions. That is why a scholar, however adept in intellectual exercises and logical analysis, is never given the place that a realized soul or spiritual seer commands. Adi Shankaracharya rightly opines-
Vaivaikhari shabdajhari shaastravyaakhyaana koushalam
vaidushyam vidushaam ete bhuktaye na tu muktaye
(Viveka chudamani)
(The brilliance of shastric knowledge and oratory are only for material profit(or intellectual satisfaction) and not liberation)
On the other hand, in western philosophical heritage, we see that a philosopher need not always be a realized soul. If only he can logically analyze and convincingly present his views with a sound contextual understanding of the available philosophical treatises he qualifies as a ‘philosopher’ and his works get accepted. But in the Vedantic tradition, Scholarship and logic are only a part of the path and never the final qualifications to spiritual realization. Here only a rishi’s words based on his direct experience or intuition or those based on vedic injunctions get accepted. Not that scholarship and logic are dismissed off as insignificant, but they should rather supplement to the spiritual contemplation than proceed on its own. (Infact it is in India that the schools of Logic have developed to very sophisticated levels ever).
This perspective, wherein the true seeker stops at nothing but direct experience, is what makes the Indian philosophical view a ‘science’ and not merely a path of belief. In this context we see numerous examples of great yogis who have dared to break through the conventional thought lines in order to access spiritual experiences on their own. That is why in India, from ages, an amazing number of schools of philosophy and saadhana margas(paths to realization) have come into being. Never in the Bharatiya darshana, can a single school of thought propounded by a particular seer dictate the conscience of all people at all times. This openness to choose, analyze, accept or refute is the mark of Vedanta- the glorious Indian psycho-spiritual and philosophical science.
Extracted from my key note address at National science congress session- psycho-spiirtual and philosophical sciences, at AIISH, Mysore, hosted by SVAK, 2009

ಸೋಮವಾರ, ನವೆಂಬರ್ 28, 2011

ಜನ ಚರಿಸದ ದಾರಿ- The Road Not Taken ಪದ್ಯದ ಭಾವಾನುವಾದ

ಜನ ಚರಿಸದ ದಾರಿ
The Road Not Taken ಪದ್ಯದ ಭಾವಾನುವಾದ

ಪಯಣಿಸುತ್ತಲಿ ಕಂಡೆ ಕವಲೊಡೆದ ದಾರಿಯನು
ಪೀತವರ್ಣದ ದಟ್ಟ ಕಾಡ ನಡುವೆ |
ಎರಡರಲು ಒಮ್ಮೆಲೆಯೆ ಚರಿಸಲಾಗದು ಎಂದು
ಯಾವುದದು ಹಿತವೆಂದು ನಾನು ಬಹುವೆ ||
ಚಿಂತಿಸಿದೆ ಕಣ್ಣರಳಿಸೀಕ್ಷಿಸುತ ಎರಡನ್ನು
ಇಣುಕುತಲಿ ಪೊದೆಮುಳ್ಳುರಾಶಿಯಂದು |
ಬಾಗಿ ನೋಡಿದೆ ಮರಳಿ ಕಣ್ಣು ಕಂಡಷ್ಟನ್ನು
ಮಾರ್ಗವೆಲ್ಲಿಗೆ ತಲುಪಿ ನಿಲುವುದೆಂದು ||

ಒಂದರಲಿ ಬಹು ಜನರು ನಡೆನಡೆದು ಪೋದುದನು
ಸವೆದ ನೆಲ-ಹುಲ್ಲುಗಳೆ ಸಾರಿದ್ದವು |
ಮತ್ತೊಂದು ದಾರಿಯದು ನಿರ್ಜನವು ಎಂಬುದನು
ಬೆಳೆದ ಹಸಿಹುಲ್ಲುಗಳೆ ತೋರಿದ್ದವು ||
ಜನ ಹಿಂದೆ ನಡೆದಿಲ್ಲವೆಂದು ತಿಳಿದರು ಕೂಡ
ಆಯ್ದುಕೊಂಡೆನು ಇದನೆ ಕೌತುಕದಲಿ |
’ಮುನ್ನಡೆವೆ ಹೊಸದೊಂದು ಹಾದಿಯಲಿ ಒಂಟಿಯಾ
ಗೆಂ’ಬ ಕೆಚ್ಚಿನ ದಿಟ್ಟ ಭಾವದಲ್ಲಿ ||

’ಜನರ ಮಾರ್ಗದೊಲಾನು ಮತ್ತೊಮ್ಮೆ ಹೋದರಾ-
ಯ್ತಿಂದಿಗಿದೆ ನನಗಿರಲಿ ನೂತ್ನ ಮಾರ್ಗ, |
ನನ್ನದೇ ಮೊದಲ ಹೆಜ್ಜೆಗಳಿರಲಿ ಪಥದೊಳಗೆ’
ಎಂಬ ಹೆಬ್ಬಯಕೆಯಿಂ ಹೊರಟೆನಾಗ ||
ಮುಸುಕಿನಲಿ ಪಯಣಿಸಿದೆ ನಿರ್ಜನದ ಮಾರ್ಗದಲಿ
ಕಲ್ಲುಮುಳ್ಳುಗಳನ್ನು ಎದುರಿಸಂದು |
’ಹೀಗೇಕೆ ಬಂದೆ? ಸರಿಯೋ ತಪ್ಪೋ? ಹಿಂದಿರುಗಿ
ಹೋಗಲೇನ್’ ಎಂಬ ಭಯ ಕಾಡಿತಂದು ||

ಅಂದು ನಾನಾಯ್ದುಕೊಂಡೆನು ಅನ್ಯ ಮಾರ್ಗವನು
ಬೇಡವೆಂದರು ಮನವು ಭಯದಿ ನೊಂದು |
ವರುಷಗಳೆ ಸಂದಿಹವು ಆ ಬಳಿಕ ಎನಗಾದ
ಅನುಭವವ ಪೇಳುವೆನು ಕೇಳಿರಿಂದು ||
ನಾನಂದು ಜೀವನವನನ್ಯಮಾರ್ಗದಿ ನಡೆದೆ
ಇದೆ ಕಾರಣವು ಎಲ್ಲ ನವ್ಯವಿಲ್ಲಿ |
ನನಗು ಮಿಕ್ಕೆಲ್ಲರಿಗು ವ್ಯತ್ಯಾಸವಿದುವೆ ದಿಟ
ಬಾಳ ಸೊಗ ಬೇರೆನ್ನ ವಿಷಯದಲ್ಲಿ ||

source poem in English-
The Road Not Taken
(by Robert Frost (1874–1963)

TWO roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

Women in Indian tradition

Respect to women is the mark of the vedic culture. The pathetic condition of women in India that we see now and in a few generations before us(that of our grandmothers and a few generations before them) need not be understood as the condition that has been in vogue from since vedic times. From the descriptions of all types of literature, inscriptions and legends we can certainly infer that the economical and literary status of women was high in Indian women.(countless references can be cited to establish this)
Actually after repeated invasions and forceful conversions by brutal invaders, protecting the honour of women was the greatest need. This led to many sanctions upon their rights to education, social participation and marriage. Forced child marriage was the bitter fruit of this. Lack of modern smritikaras or lack of social concern on the part of the prevailing scholars has ended in bringing about no new rules or ammendments to bring back justice to the status of the women folk even ages after the onslaughts.
Just like the semitic traditions, even hindus began to treat the women like mere sex symbols or child bearing yantras. (Ofcourse this is completely against the vedantic spirit) Even religious theologies that sprung around this medieval time often called her kamini, mohini, maayaa, etc. Her role as janani was limited to cooking, atithya and baby care. Moulding the child's character, which was her prime role took a back seat because her own access to loftier concepts and lifestyles was curbed. Her participation in domestic and religious life became merely symbolical though. Lack of vedic education led her to rely upon only pouranic and regional religious practices (which are sometimes contradictory and concocted more on beliefs rather than wisdom. This made them easy prey to the arrogance of learned(?) men. Such men pioneered the cruel culture of snubbing women in all possible ways. This was unfortunately inherited as the 'tradition' by the generations that followed. The tragedy is that now nobody dares go back to the original culture and rectify these evil developments. The poeple who label themselves as traditional go telling about the nishedhas (dont do's) for women, and less of vidhis(do's). They may be desperate to maintain the snactity if the traditions. But no tradition can emain sacred, if its women are not given the right directions. It is high time we start producing women of high character, wisdom and insights so that glorius generations of great men and women can be produced in future. This can particularly be done by promoting the role of women to able 'builders of people' and not snubbing them to become weak and helpless parasites themselves.
Not reasons of all problems of women need to be imposed on men. At all times ego and cruelty has been a part of human mindset. There have arrogant and cruel behaviour on the parts of both men and women. An arrogant person finds every reason to hurt others. Not all men are hurting and not all women have been ill treated at all times. Lets be sensitive to this truth too.

Bhartrhari's subhashitam on man's greed for money

Jaatiryaatu rasaatalam-----This subhashitam is derived from Raja Bhartrhari's nitishatakam(arthaartapaddhatih)
This verse ridicules the importance which men give to money
A man too greedy for money cares the least for mannerisms, values or relationships.
The meaning-
" Let jati (caste) go to rasaatalam(one of the lower worlds)
Let gunaganah(group of virtues) go tathaapi adhah (still lower)
Let sheelam (character) fall from shaila tataat (the hill top--)
Let abhijanah (vamsha/clan) burn down in fire --
Let vajram (lightning) strike virtues like souryam valour (that defends us from enemies)--
Let only artha(wealth) be with us without which all other virtues become insignificant!!
This is simply the perspective of a materialistic man whose only criteria to value things in life is MONEY. He cares least for dharma, sentiments, relationships, knowledge, experience , character etc. He shamelessly goes on hoarding money at cost of everything else in life.
There is also a popular saying-
kaamaaturaanam na bhayam na lajjaa(a man overcome with lust has no fear nor shame) or lobhaaturaaNaam na bhayam ana lajjaa--(a man overcome with greed has no fear nor shame)
A momentary greed made Kaikeyi a villain in history. Duryodhana's otherwise great personality dimmed out because of his uncontrollable greed. Ravana's unlawful desires made him a villain and all his other potentials go unaccounted.
There is a kavya named Virupakshavasantotsavachmapu by Ahobala which describes the tale of a miserly brahmin doing every strange thing just to earn money during the great fair of Hampi. The tale is packed with humour and sattire Similarly Nilakantha dikshitar in his kalividambana gives humorous accounts of the ways of greedy people.--(sorry, too detailed to be cited here)

a note on Daana (charity)

A subhashitam from Raja Bhartrhari's nitishatakam(arthaarthapaddhatih) speaks high about daana (charity). MaNISShaaNOlleeDah---
A gem in its raw form lacks luster and shines only when polished against a shaana stone. Without undergoing the hard process the true charms of the gem cannot manifest. A warrior's valour is worth it only if he implements them in war even though it meant isking himself against wounds or death. An elephant that attains puberty profusely discharges the mada-rasa (the fluid secreted on the temple regions of a youthful elephant)but this also only boost the image of its valour. The sands of a river that has partially dried out during autumn appears very attractive— even the loss of water in the river adds to the beauty of the sands. The half moon although waning in size, also appears beautiful. The beauty of a young women attains fulfillment when she entertains her lord, even though it meant exhaustion. (Kalidasa similarly observes- priyeshu sowbhagyaphalaa hi chaarutaa- beauty is worth it only when appreciated by the beloved / connoisseur[kumarasambhavam]). Similarly a person who has given away his wealth in charity, although rendered poorer materially by some rupees, attains divine glory through the virtuous deed.
A person should never bother about spending money for a righteous charity. By giving charity, a man proves to himself that he is the master of money and is blossoming forth as a true human bieng. By unwillingly to give charity or by doing it half mindedly,man proves to himself that he is a slave of money. Such people even tend to defend themselves by speaking of charity as merely a show of. People who intend to make a show and lavish money on glamour are different and people who genuinely give with an intention to overcome their greed and selfishness, are different. To call every donor a person of show is a sin.
Infact charity is an attitude that shows the richness of heart. We see even rich and affluent men behave like beggars with nothing at hand when charity is demanded of them. They never feel shame to recieve anything, but fear and shun to give. On the other hand, even a poor man may display richness of heart by giving whatever little he can, but whole heartedly. He is a real rich man. The one with money but no heart to share is indeed a beggar. Such a man, however religious or gentlemanly in any other sense, is still a beggar and fallen man, because, he will degenerate morally and spiritually because of his own greed.
Daana is very much a part of any vratam (vow) or religious act. It is the ego, greed and selfishness that come in the way of giving charity. The more we are caught in the fists of these vicious feelings the more we hesitate or delay in giving. This explains why most of us do think of doing a charity or service and even mentally plan towrads it. But soon we hesitate to part with money or keep postponing it, and some day later even forget it completely and finally it may even not interest us any more. That is why daana is made a mandatory aspect of all religious acts in the Hindu dharma. Without giving some tambulam or dakshina or mangala dravyas or prasadam of some or the other kind, no puja is complete or fruitful. One who thinks of himself as clever by avoiding charity, and still please God and feel noble, knows not that he is abusing himself and becoming a slave of his own lower tendencies.
Charity is a noble act that elevates the soul. It is as much a saadhana as are japa, dhyana and others. Dharmasindhu defines charity thus- svasvatva-nivRuttipurvakam-parasvatva-apaadadam daanam i.e "Charity is a method of contributing to other's gain and also overcoming passion for ones own wealth". Taittiriyopanishad directs how a charity should be given with humility, conviction, devotion, etc shraddhayaa deyam, asraddhayaa adeyam, etc----
But of course charity is not merely giving away money to anyone and everyone. Daana should always be done only to satpaatra(deserving) Tradition even asserts that charity given to the undeserving people fetches sin. Money giving to drunkards, criminals, lavish pleasures, concubines, etc is not charity.
The giver should never feel proud of his act. He should rather consider the receiver as a representative of God who has accepted his humble services. Swami Vivekananada says -'It is not the receiver but the giver that is blessed and profited'. Sage Vasista in Ramayanam directs that one should not give with contempt, arrogance or ill feelings. For such a charity is useless or will cause doom to the giver.(Ramayanam , Balakanda, the context = putrakamestiyaga by Dasharatha)
Charity given should not be a mere formality or for show. It should be befitting and of good quality. People should never give away used and unfit articles as in charity, except when it may be of real use to the reciever. such a charity is not charity but a sin.
Katopanishad narrates the episode where young Nachiketa was pained when his father Väjishravas gave away weak and barren cows in charity. He realized that his father could never attain the true fruits by such deception but would rather descend to a joyless hell.(hell named anandaa) Anxious over the sin his father may thus incur, Nachiketa requested to be offered instead of the weak cows(Katha-upanishad)
Charity is hailed as one of the noblest yajnas. That is why it is performed with the utterance of Om. (Bhagavadgeeta, 17th chapter).
Charity has been practiced in the arsha samskriti in a big way. There are hundreds of examples and wonderful reflections over this scattered across Indian literature. The spirit behind and ultimate purpose of charity is overcoming passion for worldly belongings and attaining spiritual elevation. It also makes the world a better place to live.
I would like to quote an interesting fact I read about the twin seas galilea and Dead sea, on the west coast of Israel. Both the seas are set beside each other and happen to be in very similar geographical terrains and climatic cinditions. They are also fed by a common river called Jordon. But the natures of the two seas are completely different. While Galilea sea has less salts and more fresh and cradles innumerable aquatic animals and other living beings, Dead sea, got its name because it has absolutely no living beings in it. Research about the reason for this striking difference has been infered thus- Galilea sea has 2 or more outlets and the waters are constantly circulating in and out. That is why it is fresh and full of life. On the other hand, dead sea has very dense salt contents (about 35 %)beacuse it lies at a very low level has no outlet at all. All the waters and minerals that flow into it have remained there slowly saturating the waters from centuries. Because of large amounts of such accumulation and absolutely no give away from centuries, the sea has literally become 'dead'. It can never host any life and is never fresh.Galilea sea is fresh because it always circulate what it gets, and the dead sea is 'dead' because it only recieves but never gives!Does not this feature of nature give us a beautiful message? If you accumulate without giving, you are dead. If you want to live life, then give, share and care.
Are we all not in some or the other way profitting form annadaana, vidyaadaana, dravyadaana, dhanadaana or some or the other form of daanam given liberaly by our elders of ancestors?
Let us leave back a similar legacy to posterity by keeping the spirit if daana alive!

Tapasvinis in Valmiki Ramayanam

Austere women in Ramayanam

The women in Valmiki’s Ramayanam play a major role in the story line and are active and participant in all walks of life. Sita, Kausalya, Anasuya, Arundhati, etc are examples wherein women equal their spouses in nobility, dignity and purity. Vedavati, Mandodari, Tara, Anjana, Sabari, Swayamprabha and Satyavati are examples of women who shone independently. There are also examples of treacherous women like Manthara, kaikeyi, Surpanakha, etc whose selfish motives caused great damage at large. From all the descriptions we may infer that women were active participants in the political, cultural, religious and social activities during the Ramayanam period.
Ramayanam also contains many episodes describing women performing vows and austerities. A few notable examples may be seen here-
Satyavathi, the sister of sage Vishvamitra, is said to have been a women of great nobility and spiritual prowess. She is addressed as suvrata, a lady of noble vows. Intending to serve humanity, she generously flowed down as river Koushiki.
The hunter-woman Shabari attained great spiritual prowess through penance. Rama himself visits her on Matangaparvata while wandering in search of Seeta. Ripe old as she were, she is described as glowing with the lustre of penance. She attained the highest spiritual ranks through her selfless penance.
Anasooya, the consort of sage Athri, was a woman of extraordinary purity and spiritual prowess. Once when there was no rain for ten years and the world was burning in the heat of famine, this great women performed terrible vows and penance and created fruits and eatables as well as invoked the waters of Mandakini. She also performed tough penance for ten thousand years to ward off all the hindrances to the austerities of sages. Anasuya also spent many nights, as if they were one night, in penance to help the gods. She is said to have completely mastered anger. She advises Seeta about the greatness of the vows of Pativratyam.
Ahalya, the wife of Sage Gautama, lived long years in solitude under pious vows. She consumed only air and observed mounavrata for years. It was an expiation she undertook in order to atone for offending her husband. Rama counselled her and reunited her with her husband.
Arundhati, the consort of Sage Vasista, is acclaimed as a lady of great wisdom and penance. There are legendary references to her as independently lead a learning centre.
Pativratyam is itself hailed as a tapasya. Tara and Mandodari, the consorts of Vali & Ravana respectively are acclaimed as great pativratas. They were noble and learned and managed dire circumstances in their lives with great dignity and forbearance.
Seeta is herself an ideal of purity and Pativratyam. While in the captivity of the cruel Ravana, she was constantly in the vows of fasting and chanting her Lord’s name. She even declines Hanuman’s offer to carry her back to Rama since it would not befit a pativrata to voluntarily accompany a parapurusha (another man). Indeed the destruction incurred by Lanka was due to the injustice meted out to this great woman.
Anjana, the mother of Hanuman, is said to have performed penance in order to obtain such a meritorious son. She was actually a nymph cursed to be born on earth. She was engrossed in penance to expiate for her sin and regain her divine status.
The monkey battalion during its frantic search for Seetha, met a women recluse named Swayamprabha. When the monkeys accidentally enter her magical grove, she gave them good hospitality. Her wondrous secret habitat and her magical powers amazed the monkeys. As per her directives, the monkeys closed their eyes and in moments they were escorted back to normal land through her occult powers! She extended help in finding Seeta.
A pious maiden called Vedavathi performed rigorous austerities intending to win the love of Lord Vishnu. She was said to be so extraordinarily austere that when Ravana made lustful advances towards her, disgusted, she burnt herself to ashes with her Yogagni (spiritiual fire)! Such was her unswerving faith.
The epic also gives a brief account of the glorious penance of Goddess Parvati to win the hand of Lord Shiva. Later both Lord Shiva and Parvathi performed great penance to obtain the invincible Kartikeya for their son.
There is another instance in which the noble daughters of Sage Kushanatha exhibit unusual virtues of forgiveness. When Vaayu, overcome with lust tried to molest them, they warned him saying that they do not wish to curse him since they did not wish to ‘waste their hard-earned merits’. This suggests that they had performed many vows. But an angry Vayu cursed them to become dwarfs. When they returned heartbroken for being cursed for no fault of theirs, their father consoled them and even praised them for their extraordinary forbearance saying that Kshama (forgiveness) is the greatest penance ever.
Kausalya is described as a pious person. She was engrossed in vows and austerities and even resided beside the sacrificial horse for three nights as a part of the ritual on the eve of the putraamesti yaga. On the eve of Rama’s proposed coronation she performed mounavrata and worship of lord Visnu in order to invoke the blessings of the lord.
From instances from the puranas, epics and other literature, we infer that women have always had a significant role in the vedic culture. Both for material or spiritual achievements women dared to undertake difficult austerities. Tapas is the royal road for any achievement. It unfolds the inner potentials of the performer and elevates him spiritually and materially. This tradition of tapasya has been the spirit of the vedic culture and needs to be protected for posterity.

ಶುಕ್ರವಾರ, ನವೆಂಬರ್ 25, 2011

ಕರುಣಾಳು ಬಾ ಬೆಳಕೆ ಪುಸ್ತಕದ ಮೆಚ್ಚುಗೆ

ಕರುಣಾಳು ಬಾ ಬೆಳಕೆ ಪುಸ್ತಕದ ಮೆಚ್ಚುಗೆ

(ಕರುಣಾಳು ಬಾ ಬೆಳಕೆ ಪುಸ್ತಕದ ಲೋಕಾರ್ಪಣೆ ಕಾರ್ಯಕ್ರಮ, ೧೨-೦೯-೨೦೧೦, ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು)

ನಿಯತ ಪ್ರಜಾವಾಣಿ ವಾರ್ತಾಸುಪತ್ರಿಕೆಯ
ಕರುಣಾಳು ಬಾ ಬೆಳಕೆ ಅಂಕಣ ಸಿರಿ |
ಗುರುರಾಜರೊಲವಿನಿಂ ಬಾಳವಿದ್ಯಾರ್ಥಿಗೆಂ-
ದನುದಿನವು ಒಪ್ಪಿಸುವ ಪಾಠನ ಪರಿ ||

ಎಲ್ಲ ದೇಶಗಳಿಂದ ಎಲ್ಲ ಕಾಲಗಳಿಂದ
ಸುವಿಚಾರ ರತ್ನಗಳನಾಯ್ದು ತಂದು |
ಸಡಗರಿಲ್ಲದ ಭಾಷೆ ಸೋದಾಹರಣ ಶೈಲಿ-
ಯಿಂದ ಮನಮುಟ್ಟಿಸುವ ಆತ್ಮ ಬಂಧು ||

ಬಾಂಧವ್ಯ ಸೌಜನ್ಯ ನೀತಿ ಪ್ರೀತಿಯ ಶಕ್ತಿ
ಅಧ್ಯಾತ್ಮ ವಿಷಯಗಳನಮಿತ ಚೆಲುವಿಂ |
ದೃಷ್ಟಾಂತ ಸಂವಾದ ಮೂಲಕದಿ ತಂದಿರುವ
ಅಂಕಣಾವಳಿ ಇದುವೆ ನೋಡಿ ಗೆಲುವಿಂ ||

A rich young spoilt IT youth said----

I T ಯುವಕನ ಧೋರಣೆ (೨೦೦೬)

ನಾನು ಹಗಲು ಇರುಳು ಓದಿ BE ಪಾಸು ಆದೆನು |
ಯಾರು ನನಗೆ ಸಾಟಿ ಈಗ ಸೊಕ್ಕಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಮೆರೆವೆನು ||
ಅಮ್ಮನಿಗೊ housekeepingಬಿಟ್ಟು ಏನು ಗೊತ್ತಿದೆ? |
ಅಪ್ಪನ work experienceಉ outdated ಆಗಿದೆ ||
ಕಾಲವು ಮುಂಬರಿದು ಹೋಯ್ತು ಹಿರಿಯರು ಹಿಂದುಳಿದರು |
ನನ್ನ ಮಾರ್ಗ ವೇಗದಲ್ಲಿ ನಡೆಯಲಾಗದಾದರು ||
IT ಯವರ ಕಷ್ಟಸುಖದ ಪರಿಯೆ ಬೇರೆಯಾಗಿದೆ |
ಹೇಳಿ ಹಂಚಿಕೊಳಲು IT ಯುವತಿಯೆ ಬೇಕಾಗಿದೆ ||
ಕುಲವು ಸಂಪ್ರದಾಯ ದೇಶ ಭಾಷೆ ಎಂದು ನನ್ನನು |
ಕಟ್ಟಿಹಾಕಲಾಗದು ಬಿಡಿ ಧನವೆ ನನ್ನ ದೇವನು ||
ಬಿಳಿಯರೀವ dollarಗಾಗಿ ಹಗಲು ರಾತ್ರಿ ದುಡಿವೆನು |
ದುಡಿದುದನ್ನು clubಉ bar-resortಉಗಳಲಿ ಸುರಿವೆನು ||
ಮುಂದೆ ಓದಿ ಕಲಿತು ನಾನು ಪಡೆಯಲೇನು ಉಳಿದಿದೆ |
IT degreeಯೊಂದೆ ಸಾಕು ಜ್ಞಾನಪೀಠವೆನಿಸಿದೆ ||
ನನ್ನ styleಉ tasteಉ ಗಳಿಗೆ ತಂದೆತಾಯರೊಗ್ಗರು |
ಸಾಕು ಇನ್ನು oldagehome ಇನಲ್ಲಿ ಇರಲಿ ಮುದಿಯರು ||
siteಉ flatಉ shareಉ carಉ ಸುಲಭ ಕೊಳಲು ಎಲ್ಲವು |
ಹಣದ ಬಲವು ನನಗೆ ಇಹುದು ನನಗೆ ಸಾಟಿ ಇಲ್ಲವು ||

ಕೃಷ್ಣ ಕಾಮಿನಿ ಮೀರಾ

ಕೃಷ್ಣ ಕಾಮಿನಿ ಮೀರಾ (೨೦೦೮) (ಭಾಮಿನಿ ಷಟ್ಪದಿ)

ರಾಜಪುತ್ರರ ಕುಲದ ನೀರೆಯು
ಕೃಷ್ಣಕಾಮಿನಿ ರಾಣಿ ಮೀರೆಯು
ಅನ್ನ ನಿದ್ರೆಯ ತೊರೆದದೇಕೋ ಬನ್ನವಡುತಿಹಳು |
ಅರಸುತನ ಸುಖ ಭೋಗ ಭಾಗ್ಯಗ-
ಳನ್ನು ಲೆಕ್ಕಿಸದವಳು ತವಕದಿ
ತನ್ನ ಗಿರಿಧರನನ್ನೆ ಕರೆಯುತ ದಿನವ ನೂಕುವಳು || ೧ ||

ರನ್ನದರಮನೆಯಂಗಳದಿ ಬೆಳ-
ದಿಂಗಳಂದದಿ ಸುಳಿಯುವಳು ಶರ-
ದಿಂದುಮುಖಿಯುನ್ಮತ್ತಳಂದದಿ ಮೈಯ ಮರೆಯುವಳು |
ಉಚ್ಚ ಯೌವನದಲ್ಲಿ ಏಕೀ
ಹುಚ್ಚು ಹಿಡಿಯಿತು ಚೆಂದದರಸಿಗೆ
ಹಚ್ಚಿ ಮನವನು ಕಾಣದಿನಿಯಗೆ ಬರಿದೆ ಶೋಕಿಪಳು || ೨ ||

ವಿಷವು ಸುಧೆಯೀ ಶಾಂತಚಿತ್ತೆಗೆ
ಮುಳ್ಳು ಮೃದುತರ ಸುಮದ ಹಾಸಿಗೆ
ಲೋಕನಿಂದೆಯು ಮೋಜನೀಯುವ ಹಾಸ್ಯರಸಕಾವ್ಯ |
ಕೋಟಿ ಕೋಟಲೆ ಸಹಿಸಿ ನಿಂದು
ಸತತ ಕೃಷ್ಣಾ ಕೃಷ್ಣ ಎಂದು
ಕೂಗಿಯಾಚರಿಸುವಳು ಭರದಲಿ ಪ್ರೇಮವನು ದಿವ್ಯ || ೩ ||

ಸುಗ್ಗಿಯಂದದಿ ಒಲವು ಮೂಡಲು
ಹಿಗ್ಗಿದೆದೆಯಿಂದುಕ್ಕಿ ಹರಿಯಲು
ಕುಗ್ಗಿ ಲಜ್ಜೆಯ ಸೆರಗು ಜಾರಲು ಪಾದಕುರುಳುತಲಿ |
ಹೃದಯ ಮೇಳದ ರಾಗತಾಳಕೆ
ಸರಸೆ ಕುಣಿವಳು ಸ್ವಾನುಭಾವಕೆ
ರಸಿಕ ಕೃಷ್ಣನ ರಾಸನಾಟ್ಯಕೆ ಮೀಸಲಾಗುತಲಿ || ೪ ||

ಕೃಷ್ಣಕರ್ಣಾಮೃತದ ಒಂದು ಶ್ಲೋಕದ ಭಾವಾನುವಾದ

ಕೃಷ್ಣಕರ್ಣಾಮೃತದ ಒಂದು ಶ್ಲೋಕದ ಭಾವಾನುವಾದ (ಕೃಷ್ಣಾಷ್ಟಮಿ ೨೦೦೬)
Theme- Mother Yashodha persuading little Krishna to drink milk,
explaining that only then his hair can grow longer than Balarama's hair !
Innocent Krishna believes it and drinks milk and instantly begins to measure his hair!

ಮುದ್ದು ಸುರಿಪ ಚೆನ್ನುಡಿಯ ಕೃಷ್ಣನಾ ಲೀಲೆ ನೋಡ ಬನ್ನಿ |
ಕೃಷ್ಣ ಕೃಷ್ಣ ಶ್ರೀ ಕೃಷ್ಣ ಎನ್ನುತಲಿ ಹರಿಯ ಪಾಡ ಬನ್ನಿ || ಪ ||
ಹಾಲು ಕುಡಿಯೆ ಹಟ ಮಾಡುತಿದ್ದನೈ ನಂದಗೋಪ ಕಂದ |
ಮಾತೆ ಸುತನ ಮನವೊಲಿಸಲೆತ್ನಿಸೆ ಪ್ರೇಮ ನುಡಿಗಳಿಂದ || ೧ ||
“ನೋಡು ಬಲರಾಮ ಹಾಲನುಂಡು ಮೈದುಂಬಿ ಹಿಗ್ಗಿ ನಿಂದ |
ಅವನ ಕೂದಲುದ್ದುದ್ದವಾಗುತಲಿ ಬೆಳೆದವೆಂಥ ಚಂದ ! || ೨ ||
ಹಾಲು ಕುಡಿಯದೆಲೆ ಮಮ್ಮು ತಿನ್ನದೆಲೆ ತೆಳ್ಲಗಾದೆ ಕಂದ |
ನಿನ್ನ ಕೂದಲಂಗುಷ್ಟ ಮಾತ್ರ ಬೆಳೆದಿಲ್ಲವೆಂದಿನಿಂದ || ೩ ||
ಅಣ್ಣ ಬಲನು ಕಾಲಿಂದಿ ತೀರದಲಿ ಆಡುತಿಹನು ಭರದಿ |
ಹಾಲು ಕುಡಿದು ಬಿಡು ಅಷ್ಟರಲ್ಲಿ ಬೆಳೆದಾವು ಕುರುಳು ದಿಟದಿ” || ೪ ||
ಅರಳು ಕಂಗಳಿಂ ತಾಯ ಮಾತುಗಳನಾಲಿಸಿದ ಮುಕುಂದ |
ಮಾತೆಯಿತ್ತ ಹಾಲ್ ಬಟ್ಟಲನು ಕರದಲ್ಲಿ ಧರಿಸಿ ನಿಂದ || ೫ ||
“ಹಾಲು ಕುಡಿಯಲೆನ ಕೇಶ ಬೆಳೆವುದೇಂ ಅಮ್ಮ ಪೇಳು ನಿಜವೆ? |
ಅಣ್ಣ ಬಲನ ಮುಂಗುರುಳ ನಾಚಿಸುವ ಚೆಲುವು ನನಗೆ ದಿಟವೆ?” || ೬ ||
“ರಂಗ ಮುದ್ದು ಗೋವಿಂದ ನಂದನಾನಂದ ಹೇ ಮುಕುಂದ |
ಕುಡಿದು ನೋಡು ಕೆನೆ ಹಾಲ ಮಹಿಮೆಯನು ತಿಳಿವೆ ನೀನೆ ಕಂದ” || ೭ ||
ತಾಯ ನುಡಿಗಳನು ನೆಮ್ಮಿ ಕೃಷ್ಣ ಬಲು ಬಾಲ ತವಕದಿಂದ |
ತುಟಿಯನೊತ್ತಿ ಬಿಗಿದುಸಿರುಗಟ್ಟಿ ಹಾಲ್ಗುಡಿದ ವೇಗದಿಂದ || ೮ ||
ಎರಡು ಗುಟುಕು ಹಾಲ್ಗುಡಿದು ಚೆಂದದಿಂ ತಡೆದು ಧ್ಯಾನದಿಂದ |
ಕೃಷ್ಣನಲ್ಲೆ ತಾಯ್ಮಾತುಗಳನೀಗ ಪರಿಕಿಸೋಣವೆಂದ || ೯ ||
ಕುರುಳನೆಳೆದು ತಾನಳೆದನಲ್ಲೆ ಚೆಂಗೈಯ ಬೆರಳಿನಿಂದ |
ಉದ್ದವನ್ನು ಪರಿಶೀಲಿಸಿದನು ತನ್ನೋರೆ ನೋಟದಿಂದ || ೧೦ ||
“ಅಹಹ ಎನ್ನ ಕುರುಳುದ್ದವಾಯಿತೈ ಬಲನ ಕೇಶಕಿಂತ” ! |
ಎನುತ ಕುಣಿಯಲಾ ಮುದ್ದು ಕೃಷ್ಣ ವ್ರಜದಲ್ಲದೋ ವಸಂತ || ೧೧ ||

ಯುಗಾದಿಯಂದು ಪ್ರಾರ್ಥನೆ

ಯುಗಾದಿಯಂದು ಪ್ರಾರ್ಥನೆ
(೬-೪-೨೦೦೮, ಡಾ ರಾ ಗಣೇಶ್ ರವರ ಅಷ್ಟಾವಧಾನದಲ್ಲಿ ಪೃಚ್ಛಳಾಗಿ ಬರೆದ ಪದ್ಯ)

ಗಿರಿಯ ದರಿಯ ತಿರುವುಗಲಲಿ ಹರಿಯುತೊಂದೆ ಭಾವದಿ
ಕದಲಸೇರಿ ಬೆರೆಯುವಂತೆ ನದಿಯು ತಾನು ತವಕದಿ |
ಏಳು ಬೀಳುಗಳಲಿ ಹಾದು ಮುಕ್ತಿಯೆಡೆಗೆ ಹರುಷದಿ
ಬಾಳು ಸಾಗಲೆಂದು ಪ್ರಾರ್ಥಿಸಿರಿ ಯುಗಾದಿ ಪರ್ವದಿ ||

ಜೀವನವೇ giantwheelಇನಾಟ

(೬-೪-೨೦೦೮, ಡಾ ರಾ ಗಣೇಶ್ ರವರ ಅಷ್ಟಾವಧಾನದಲ್ಲಿ ಪೃಚ್ಛಳಾಗಿ ಬರೆದ ಪದ್ಯ)

ಜೀವನವೇ giantwheelಇನಾಟ

ಜೀವನವೇ giantwheelಇನಾಟವೆಂಬ ಸಡಗರ
ಮೇಲಕೇರುತಿರಲು ಹಿಗ್ಗು ಬೀಳುವಾಗ ಭೀಕರ |
ಹಾಡಿ ನಲಿಯುವವರು ಕೆಲರು ಕೂಗಿ ಅಳುವರಿತರರು
ಹೇಗೆ ಇರಲಿ ಕೊನೆಯ ತನಕ ಸುತ್ತಬೇಕು ಜೀವರು ||

ನಿದ್ರೆ

ನಿದ್ರೆ
(೬-೪-೨೦೦೮, ಡಾ ರಾ ಗಣೇಶ್ ರವರ ಅಷ್ಟಾವಧಾನದಲ್ಲಿ ಪೃಚ್ಛಳಾಗಿ ಬರೆದ ಪದ್ಯ)

ಅರಸ ಪಂಡಿತ ಶೂರ ಸುಜ್ಞಾಜ್ಞರೇ ಇರಲಿ
ವೃದ್ಧ ಯುವರೆಲ್ಲರೂ ಧರ್ಯ ತಪ್ಪಿ |
ಕಣ್ಮುಚ್ಚಿ ತಲೆಬಾಗಿ ಮೈ ಕುಗ್ಗಿ ಶರಣಹರು
ನಿದ್ರಾದಿದೇವಿಯಲಿ ಸೋಲನೊಪ್ಪಿ ||

ಮಂಕುತಿಮ್ಮನ ಕಗ್ಗದ ಪ್ರಶಸ್ತಿ

ಮಂಕುತಿಮ್ಮನ ಕಗ್ಗದ ಪ್ರಶಸ್ತಿ
(೬-೪-೨೦೦೮, ಡಾ ರಾ ಗಣೇಶ್ ರವರ ಅಷ್ಟಾವಧಾನದಲ್ಲಿ ಪೃಚ್ಛಳಾಗಿ ಬರೆದ ಪದ್ಯ)

ಪರತತ್ವ ರಸಭಾವ ಜೀವ ಸಂಬಂಧಗಳ
ಸರಿಹೋಲಿಕೆಯಲಿ ಹೂರಣಿಸುತುಣಬಡಿಪ |
ಸರಸಗತಿ ಛಂದಗಳ ಕನ್ನಡದ ಸಿರಿವೇದ
ವರದ ಗುಂಡಪ್ಪ ಕೃತಿ ಮಂಕುತಿಮ್ಮ ||

ಶಿಶುವಿನ ಉಪದೇಶ - ಶಿಶುಗೀತೆಯ ಮಾದರಿ

ಶಿಶುವಿನ ಉಪದೇಶ - ಶಿಶುಗೀತೆಯ ಮಾದರಿ
(೨-೨-೨೦೦೮ರಲ್ಲಿ, ಬೆಂಗಳೂರಿನ ವಿಜಯನಗರದ ಗ್ರಂಥಾಂಗಣದಲ್ಲಿ ನಡೆದ
ಶತಾವಧಾನಿ ಡಾ ರಾ ಗಣೇಶ್ ರವರ ಅಷ್ಟಾವಧಾನದಲ್ಲಿ ಪೃಚ್ಛಕಳಾಗಿ ಬರೆದ ಪದ್ಯ)

ನಕ್ರೂ ನಂಗೆ ಗರ್ವಾ ಇಲ್ಲ ಅಳ್ತಿದ್ರೂನೂ ದುಃಖಾ ಇಲ್ಲ |
ಎಷ್ಟೇ ಓಡಿಯಾಡಿದ್ರೂನೂ ಬೇಜಾರೆ ನಂಗಿಲ್ಲ ||
ಬೇಕು ಅನ್ನೋ ಒಲವೂ ಇಲ್ಲ ಬೇಡ ಅನ್ನೋ ಛಲವೂ ಇಲ್ಲ |
ನನ್ ಹಾಗಿದ್ರೆ ನಿಮ್ಗೂನೂವೆ ಬಿ ಪಿ ಗಿ ಪಿ ಇಲ್ಲ ||
ನಮ್ಮೆಜ್ಮಾನ್ರು (ಅಕ್ಟೋಬರ್ ೨೦೦೫)
(ನಮ್ಮ ಸ್ನೇಹಿತರು ಶ್ರೀ ವಿಠ್ಠಲ್ ರಾವ್ ರವರ ’ನಮ್ಮನಿಯಾಕಿ’ ಪದ್ಯದ ಉಲ್ಟಾ ರೂಪ)

ಇತ್ತಿತ್ಯಾಗೆ ನಮ್ಮೆಜ್ಮಾನ್ರು ಕಿರ್ ಕಿರ್ ಮಾಡ್ತಾರ್ ರೀ |
ಯಾಕೇಂತ್ ಗೊತ್ತಾಗ್ತಿಲ್ಲ ಅವ್ರೊಂದ್ ತರ್ಹಾ ಆಡ್ತಾರ್ ರೀ ||
ಅವ್ರ್ | ಅಮ್ಮ ಬಂದ್ರೆ ಹಾಡ್ ಹೇಳ್ಕೊಂಡು ಹರ್ಟೆ ಮಾಡ್ತಾರ್ ರೀ |
ನ | ಮ್ಮಮ್ಮಾ ಬಂದ್ರೆ ಕೆಲ್ಸಾ ಇದ್ದೇಂತ್ ಹೊರ್ಗ್ ಹೋಗ್ ಬರ್ತಾರ್ ರೀ ||
ಅವ್ರ್ | ಅಣ್ಣಾ ಅಕ್ಕ ಬಂದ್ರೆ ಮಾತ್ರಾ ಗೆಲ್ವಾಗ್ ಇರ್ತಾರ್ ರೀ |
ನನ್ | ತಮ್ಮ ತಂಗಿ ಬಂದ್ರೆ ಪೇಪರ್ ಓದ್ತಾ ಕೂಡ್ತಾರ್ ರೀ ||

ಬಂಧುಗಳು –ಹೇಗಿದ್ರೂ ಕಷ್ಟ !

ಬಂಧುಗಳು –ಹೇಗಿದ್ರೂ ಕಷ್ಟ ! (ಅಕ್ಟೋಬರೆ ೨೦೦೨)

ನಾದಿನಿಯೊಡನಾಡೆ ಓರಗತ್ತಿಗಿದೋ ಕೋಪವು |
ಓರಗತ್ತಿ ಮಚ್ಚಿ ಬರಲು ನಾದಿನಿಗೆ ತಾಪವು ||

ಕನ್ನಡಿ (೨೦೦೦) ತಾತ್ವಿಕ ದೃಷ್ಟಿಯಿಂದ

ಕನ್ನಡಿ (೨೦೦೦) ತಾತ್ವಿಕ ದೃಷ್ಟಿಯಿಂದ

ಸೋಜಿಗದ ಕನ್ನಡಿಗೆ ಬ್ರಹ್ಮವೇ ಉಪಮೆ |
ನಿರ್ವಿಕಲ್ಪದ ತಾನು ಕಲ್ಪಗಳ ಸೀಮೆ ||
ನಿಶ್ಚಲವು ತಾನಿರಲು ತೇಲುತಿಹುದಲ್ಲ |
ತನ್ನೊಳಗೆ ಜೀವನದ ಚಲಚಿತ್ರವೆಲ್ಲ ! ||
ನಗುವರಳುವರ ನಾಚುವರ ಹಿಗ್ಗುವವರ |
ಪರಿಯ ಬಿಂಬಿಸುವ ದಿಟದನುಕರಣಚತುರ ||
ರಸವ ತಾ ಮೀರಿರಲು ನವರಸಗಳೆಲ್ಲ |
ಹಾವಭಾವಗಳಾಗಿ ತೋರುತಿಹುವಲ್ಲ! ||

ಬಂಧುಗಳು

ಬಂಧುಗಳು (ಅಕ್ಟೋಬರ್ ೨೦೦೨ -ರಚನೆ)

ಮಿತ್ರರಂ ಆಯ್ದುಕೊಳಲೆಮಗುಂಟು ಸ್ವಾತಂತ್ರ್ಯ||
ಬಂಧುಗಳ ವಿಷಯದಲ್ಲಾಯ್ಕೆ ಇಲ್ಲ ||
ಇಷ್ಟವೋ ಕಷ್ಟವೋ ನಷ್ಟವೋ ಅವರೊಡನೆ |
ಬಾಳಬೇಕೈ ಬೇರೆ ದಾರಿಯಿಲ್ಲ ||

ಸೆರಗು

ಸೆರಗು (ರಚನೆ- ೨೦೦೦)

ಹೆಣ್ಣಿನ ಮೈ ಬಳಸಿ ನಗುವ ಬಣ್ಣದ ಹೂವಾಟಿಕೆ |
ಚಂದದ ಸಿರಿತೋರಣ ನೀ ಅಂದದ ಮೈ ಮಾಟಕೆ ||
ಒಯ್ಯಾರದ ಕೈಯಾಟಿಕೆ ಚೆಲುವೆಯ ಕೈಯಾಟಕೆ |
ನಲ್ಮೆಯ ಕರೆಯೋಲೆಯು ನೀ ನಲ್ಲನ ಕುಡಿನೋಟಕೆ ||
ಸೆಳೆಯಲು ಕೈಯಾಸರೆ ನೀ ಅಳುವ ಮಗುವ ಕಾಟಕೆ |
ಕಣ್ಸೆಳೆಯುವ ಚಿತ್ತಾರವೊ ಸಡಗರಗಳ ಕೂಟಕೆ ||
ಕನ್ನಡಿ ನೀ ಹೆಂಗಳೆಯರ ಕನಸಿನ ಹೂದೋಟಕೆ |
ಸರಸತಿಯರ ಬಣ್ಣಿಸಲಹೊ ಒದಗುವೆ ಕವಿ ಪಾಟಗೆ ||

ಇಂದಿನ ಶಿಕ್ಷಣ

ಇಂದಿನ ಶಿಕ್ಷಣ (ರಚನೆ- ೧೯೯೯)

ಶಿಕ್ಷಕನ notebookಇನಿಂದಲಿ ಶಿಷ್ಯನಾ notebookಇಗೆ
ಸಂಕ್ರಮಿಸುವಾ ಅಕ್ಷರಾಂಬುಧಿ ತಲೆಗಳೆರಡನು ಹೊಕ್ಕದೆ !

ರಾಮಕೃಷ್ಣಾಶ್ರಮದಲ್ಲಿ ನಡೆದ ಭಕ್ತ ಸಮ್ಮೇಳನ

ರಾಮಕೃಷ್ಣಾಶ್ರಮದಲ್ಲಿ ನಡೆದ ಭಕ್ತ ಸಮ್ಮೇಳನದ ಬಗ್ಗೆ (೧೯೯೭)

ರಂಗು ರಂಗುಗಳ ಚಪ್ಪರದಡಿಯಲಿ ತುಂಗ ಭಾವಗಳ ಮೇಳ |
ಹಿಂಗದಾತುರದಿ ಭಕ್ತರು ನೆರೆದಿರೆ ಕಂಗಳಲಿ ಬೆಳಕ ಜಾಲ ||
ಭಕ್ತಿ-ಮುಕ್ತಿಗಳ ನುಡಿಯ ಮುತ್ತುಗಳ ದಿವ್ಯಸುಧಾಮಯ ಸಾರ |
ಧರ್ಮ-ಕರ್ಮಗಳ ಪರಮ ಮರ್ಮಗಳ ತಳೆದು ಹರಿದಿರುವ ಧಾರಾ ||

ವಿಶ್ವ - ಹಳೆಯೂ ಹೌದು ಹೊಸತೂ ಹೌದು

ವಿಶ್ವ - ಹಳೆಯೂ ಹೌದು ಹೊಸತೂ ಹೌದು

ಹಳೆಯದರೊಳು ಹಳೆಯದೀ ವಿಶ್ವವೆಂಬ ವಿಸ್ಮಯ |
ಚಣಚಣದಲು ಹೊಸತೆರದಲಿ ತೋರುತಿಹುದು ನಿಶ್ಚಯ ||
ಭಾನು ಚಂದ್ರರವರೆ ದಿನವು ಗಗನವೇರಿ ನಗುತಿರೆ |
ಮನುಜರೆಲ್ಲ ಸಡಗರದಲಿ ಅಹ ಹೊಸ ದಿನವೆನುವರೆ ||
ಹಸಿವು ಅದುವೆ ಕೃಷಿಯು ಅದುವೆ ಅದೆ ನಗುವಳುವಾಟವು |
ಆದರಲ್ಲಿ ಹೊಸ ಬೆಳಕನು ಹುಡುಕುವ ತಡಕಾಟವು ||

(೨೦೦೧ ರಲ್ಲಿ ರಚಿಸಿದ್ದು)

ಭಾರತ ಮಹಿಳೆಯ ಸ್ತುತಿ- ೮ನೆ ಮಾರ್ಚ್, ೨೦೧೧, ಅಂತರಾಷ್ಟ್ರಿಯ ಮಹಿಳಾದಿನ

೮ನೆ ಮಾರ್ಚ್, ೨೦೧೧ ವರ್ಷದ ಅಂತರಾಷ್ಟ್ರಿಯ ಮಹಿಳಾದಿನದಂದು ರಚಿಸಿದ-
ಭಾರತ ಮಹಿಳೆಯ ಸ್ತುತಿ- ಡಾ ವಿ ಬಿ ಆರತಿ

ಭಾರತ ಮಹಿಳೆಯ ಸ್ತುತಿ

ಅದ್ವಿತೀಯಳು ನೀನು ಭಾರತದ ನೀರೆ |
ಚೆಲುವು ಗೆಲುವುಗಳಿಂದ ಮಿರಿಮಿರಿವ ತಾರೆ ||
ಪ್ರೇಮದಲಿ ನೇಮದಲಿ ಸಾಟಿ ನಿನಗಾರೆ? |
ಧರ್ಮ ಕರ್ಮಗಳರಿತು ನಡೆವೆ ನೀ ಚತುರೆ ||
ನಳಿನಳಿಪೆ ಸುಂದರಿಯೆ ತೊಟ್ಟು ನೀ ಸೀರೆ |
ಒಲವಿನಿಂ ಕಂದನನು ಗೊಳುವೆ ನೀ ಸೂರೆ ||
ಖಡ್ಗವನು ಹಿಡಿದೆ ನೀ ರಣದಲ್ಲಿ ಶೂರೆ |
ಲೇಖನಿಯಲೂ ನೋಡೆ ನಿನ್ನ ನುಡಿಧಾರೆ ||
ಕಷ್ಟಗಳ ಸಹಿಸಿರುವೆ ಕ್ಷಮೆಯ ಸಿರಿ ಧಾರೆ |
ನುಂಗಿ ನೋವನು ನಗುವೆ ಶಾಂತಿಯನು ಬೀರೆ ||
ಉದ್ಯೋಗ ವ್ಯಾಪಾರ ಸೇನೆಯಲು ವೀರೆ |
ಎಲ್ಲ ಕ್ಷೇತ್ರದಿ ಬೆಳಗಿ ನಿಂದಿರುವೆ ಪೋರೆ ||
ಸತ್ವದಲಿ ಲಕ್ಷ್ಮಿ ನೀ ವಾಣಿ ನೀ ಚತುರೆ |
ಶಕ್ತಿಯಲಿ ದುರ್ಗೆಯನು ತೋರು ನೀ ಬಾರೆ ||
ಮರೆಯದಿರು ನಿನ್ನಾಳ ಭಿತ್ತರವ ಗೌರೆ |
ಅರಳು ಪೂರ್ಣತೆಯಿಂದ ಹಿರಿಬೆಳಕ ಬೀರೆ ||
ಛಲದಿಂದ ಸಾಪಲ್ಯ ಶಿಖರಗಳನೇರೆ |
ಸೋಲಿಲ್ಲ ನಿನಗೆ ಮುನ್ನಡೆಯುತಿರು ಧೀರೆ ||
ವಿಶ್ವದಲಿ ಮಿನುಗು ನೀ ಹೇ ಭರತ ನೀರೆ |
ಶಾಂತ ಶಕ್ತಿಯೇ ಸತತ ಮಿನುಗುತಿರು ತಾರೆ ||

ಹಿಡಿದ ಕಾರ್ಯವ ಕೈಬಿಡದಿರು- ಆಂಗ್ಲದ Don't You Quit ಪದ್ಯದ ಭಾವಾನುವಾದ

ಹಿಡಿದ ಕಾರ್ಯವ ಕೈಬಿಡದಿರು
ಆಗಾಗ ಕೆಲಸಗಳು ಆದಾವು ಹಾಳು | ನಡೆವ ಹಾದಿಯು ಕುಸಿದು ಉಳಿದೀತು ಗೋಳು ||
ಹಣದ ಕೊರತೆಯ ಜೊತೆಗೆ ಸಾಲಗಳ ಭಾರ | ವೈಫಲ್ಯ ತಂದೀತು ಮನಕೆ ಬಹು ಖಾರ ||
ಬಂಧುಮಿತ್ರರ ಋಣವು ಒತ್ತಡವ ತರಲು | ನಗಬೇಕು ಎನಿಸಿದರು ನಿಟ್ಟುಸಿರೆ ಬರಲು ||
ಒಂದಿನಿತು ವಿಶ್ರಮಿಸು ಆದರೆಂದೆಂದೂ | ಕೈ ಬಿಟ್ಟು ಕೂಡದಿರು ನಡೆಯುತಿರು ಮುಂದು ||
ಬಳಸು ದಾರಿಯ ಬಾಳು ತಿಳಿಯದಾ ಮಾಟ | ಚಿತ್ರವದು ಕಲಿಸುವುದು ಎಲ್ಲರಿಗು ಪಾಠ ||
ವೈಫಲ್ಯಗಳ ನೀನು ಎದುರಿಸಿರೆ ಇಂದು | ಗೆಲುವನ್ನು ತರುವುದದೆ ಮರೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ನಿಂದು ||
ವೇಗದಲಿ ಸಾಗುತಿಲ್ಲೆಂಬ ವ್ಯಥೆ ಬೇಡ | ಏಟೊಂದು ನಿನ ಮೇಲಕೆಸೆದೀತು ನೋಡ ||
ಗೆಲುವೆ ಸೋಲಿನ ವೇಷ ಧರಿಸುವುದು ಜಾಣ | ಕರಿಮೋಡದಂಚಿನಲಿ ಬೆಳ್ಳಿ ದಿಟ ಕಾಣ ||
ಗಮ್ಯಕ್ಕೆ ಎಷ್ಟು ನೀ ಹತ್ತಿರವೊ ತಿಳಿಯೆ | ದೂರವಿದೆ ಎನಿಸಿದರು ಇದೆ ನಿನ್ನ ಬಳಿಯೆ ||
ಸಹಿಸಲಾಗದ ಹೊಡೆತವೆನಿಸಿದರು ಘೋರ | ಕೈಬಿಡದೆ ಮುನ್ನಡೆಯೊ ಅಳುಕದಿರು ಧೀರ ||

ಆಂಗ್ಲದ Don't You Quit ಪದ್ಯದ ಭಾವಾನುವಾದ – ಡಾ ಆರತಿ

Here is the english source poem 'DO NOT QUIT'
When things go wrong as they sometimes will
When the road you're trudging seems all up hill.
When funds are low and the debts are high.
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh.
When care is pressing you down a bit.
Rest, if you must, but don't you quit.
Life is queer with its twists and turns.
As everyone of us sometimes learns.
And many a failure turns about
When he might have won had he stuck it out.

Don't give up though the pace seems slow -
You may succeed with another blow.
Success is failure turned inside out -
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt.
And you never can tell how close you are.
It may be near when it seems so far:
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.

the interesting story behind the invention of the sewing machine


Invention of the Sewing Machine
Dear friends, there is an interesting incident related to the invention of the sewing machine.
In the mid 19th century, there lived a man called Elias Howe. He was trying to work out a way to make a lock-stitch sewing machine. He worked out a general idea for making this. But he was stuck on one point as to how to thread the needle. The hole in the needle as it usually is was not suitable for machine stitching. Elias Howe was so obsessed by thoughts of making the sewing machine that he almost gave up everything else those days. Then one fine day, the flash came to him in a dream.
Howe had a dream – ‘He was captured by savages, who forced him to find a way out to solve the problem of the needle. They threatened to kill him if he did not invent the machine. These dark-skinned painted warriors surrounded him, and even led to a place of execution. As Howe looked on helplessly, shaking with fear, the warriors pointed their spheres at him. With fear, he gazed at the sparkling tips that almost rubbed on his throat and chest. Meanwhile something caught his attention, it was the eye-shaped holes on the head of the spears. The eye like holes at the head of the speheres revealed something to Howe! Yes that was the solution to his needls as well! The dream had given him a message that unlike the conventional needles, the needle for the sewing machine should have holes in the front. Howe was excited! Exasperating with excitement as well as anxiety, he suddenly woke up. His mind lingered on around the dream. He did not lose time working on the new needle. He made a model of the eye-pointed needle.
The dream indeed helped Howe to complete find the solution for the needle problem and complete his invention. He was to patent the first sewing machine of the world.
Dear friends, there are many strange revelations that happen to man through nature. Any idea that seems down into the sub conscious mind, works on subtly but more powerfully. The hidden powers of the mind are far more effective in making us realize truths than the expressed part of the mind. This is the same with all of the great thinkers. Elias Howe’s dream is a wonderful example for how a truly sincere and persistent idea can attain fruition from within oneself. - Arathi

An episode from the life of Gopal the jester


Gopal gets the land tilled
Here is a Janapada (folk) Indian tale that speaks about a funny solution to a serious problem. With a pinch of humour, the episode narrates a creative idea that banks upon human greed.
A hardworking farmer lived in Bengal. He had a small piece of land which he cultivated for many years. His hardwork enabled him to reap good crops. But as years rolled, he grew old and weak. He had no children or relatives to help him at work. He still continued doing all the hard labour himself. He somehow managed the sowing, irrigation and harvesting tasks. But the initial tilling of the soil was too hard a job for his aging body. He could neither afford to hire workers. The hapless old man had to therefore leave his land uncultivated for more than 2 years. But then, unable to bear the life of starvation, one morning, he approached Gopal, the court jester for help. Gopal, was not only very witty but also a great supporter to the poor and needy. He assured help.
The next morning the old farmer woke up and was shocked to see the whole land thoroughly tilled! His happiness knew no bounds. He rushed to Gopal and thanked him profusely. He asked- “Gopal, how could you get the whole job done overnight without even the king’s help?” Gopal replied mischievously- “Oh! Don’t you know? Yesterday evening an amazing sadhu, a great astrologer, bearded and dressed in strange clothes appeared in the market place. He secretly revealed to some men about an unusual treasure hidden in your land. The greedy men stealthily came overnight and dug up your land for the treasure”. The old farmer was shocked- “Oh my God! Why then did the sadhu not tell ME about the treasure? I was more in need of it”. Gopal chuckled and said- “There was no treasure there you fool! That was me disguised as a sadhu. I wanted to make those greedy men to till your land free of cost! Now see how thoroughly they have dug up every inch! Stop worrying, go and continue the rest of the work. I will talk to the king and arrange for help for your next crop”.
The farmer and everyone around burst out in laughter. The hilarious incident soon became the talk of the town. The greedy men dared not reveal their identities, fearing that they would become the laughing stocks!
- Arathi

Hanuman, the master of speech

Hanuman the master of speech
These are no words enough that can celebrate the greatness of Hanuman, the most outstanding personality in Ramayanam.
May Hanuman's 'shakti-yukti- bhakti yukta tejasvi personality' enlighten our thinking and actions.
As an attempt to contemplate upon the great Hanumaan on the eve of Hanuma- jayanti, here are a few lines about Hanuman.
Ramayanam sets Hanuman as a role model for a person of samskrtaa vani (cultured speech). Narrating the first meeting of Rama and hanuman, Valmiki describes how Rama was fascinated by merely hearing a few words of Hanuman. A worth reading part of the epic (Valmiki Ramayanam, kishkindha kanda)
Rama recognizes Hanuman's worth in seconds by just listening to his few words.(Hanuman was still a stranger to Rama then) Here is a gist of what he says to Lakshman with deep admiration - "The manner in which this gentle man speaks proves that he has mastered all aspects of grammar, poetry, logic, vedas and scriptures and even has practiced them a repeated number of times. Never has he uttered a single wrong word or faltered anywhere. His narration is neither too lengthy nor too brief, his voice is neither too high nor too feeble, his presentation and body languages are perfect--. His style is beautiful and attracts the hearts of listeners. A king who does not have a duta (messenger) like him is indeed unfortunate---A king who has a duta like him can never face defeat!!"
Valmiki is indeed setting up noble standards for speech(and formal orators in particular) through this instance. We should pick up these wonderful observations and inculcate them into our speech and thoughts. A verse in praise of Hanuman -
buddhirbalam yasho dhairyam nirbhayatvamarogataa
ajaadyam vaakpatutvam ca hanumadsmaranaat bhavet---
Ramayanam is not just a story of Rama but verily a mirror that reflects Aryasamskriti with all its sacred and secular aspects. We need to consider not only the religious feel but also inculcate such secular and idealistic aspects of our epics and puranas in order to build up a holistic culture, which shall be progressive and competent as well as well-rooted in the great heritage.
- Arathi

a note on dharma- the sanatana perspective

These are some views on dharma I once shared when a friend asked me to define it. Thought I could share it with you all.
Dharma is one word that cannot be precisely translated to any other language in the world. The scope of meaning and the feel that it holds in Sanskrt, can only be adopted as it is into other vernaculars.
All efforts of translating the word dharma into other languages so far have ended up giving only partial, tentative, regional or even distorted meanings
This much I can say- dharma is not religion or cult or merely an ethic (as spoken of in the masses, it is rather a 'Cosmic understanding of life and eternal values'
It enables one to judge the appropriety of ones own behaviour and others' through various phases and tests of life. Dharma promotes independent discrimination (viveka) based on desha (place), kaala (time) and sandarbha (situation/ context)
Our scriptures speak of rta, satya and dharma as 3 forms of dharma
Rta is the comprehension of the cosmic value that governs the entire creation
Satya is the verbal expression of the same
Dharma is the practical implementation of the same in life
Dharma is implemented in 2 ways-
Samanya dharma and vishesha dharma
Samanya dharma (eternal values like truth, compassion, purity, forbearance, placidity, conviction and many more) is never bound by the limits of time, place or communities. These values are universal and forever hailed as the highest in life.
On the other hand vishesha dharma (comprising ones duties as a husband, wife, king, subject, student, employee, etc or ones obligations towards ones country, language, religion, family traditions etc) is no doubt respected and promoted,
But it is not universal and it may need modification according to the need of the situation. (for eg- the social norms of any country have changed with times, the customs in one region or religion may not applicable to another)
When there is a conflict between following samanya dharma and vishesha dharma, it is samanya dharma that needs to be held high and the latter can be relaxed.
People or cults who are attached more to vishesha dharma (at the cost of samanya dharma) lack a universal perspective of dharma and end up in intolerance, hatred and misunderstanding. They even become aggressive in asserting their vishesha dharma as the supreme universal code and try to impose it on all others through conversions by force or crook(semitic religions that invaded other comminities and converted masses are examples for this).
The great power that has saved sanatana dharma from this kind of intolerance is mainly this understanding of samanya dharma
Whenever alien forces or internal problems have tampered with our religious ad social life (vishesha dharma), we have withstood the onslaughts and reconstructed our national fabric slowly but surely as we are doing in the pesent age. This is only because we have always upheld samanya dharma above all.
But here again in our religion, those clans or faiths who are too blindly attached to their personal cults above samanya dharma, resort to intolerance of a similar style and degenerate internally in course of time.

I cannot simply define dharma in a line since it's scope is soo very wide.
That is why this write up. Even this is not holistic, but only an attempt ot summarize the wide range of understanding it promotes.
Well, these are some fundamental views about dharma that I could grasp from our literatue and traditions. there are many more. Only an unbiased, sincere and practical approach can enable us to understand the true import of dharma and as to why it was held so high by our ancestors and as to how it sustained the social, economic, political, cultural and religious growth of India down the ages.

By defining dharma as religion and asserting that 'dharmaateeta' rule is the solution for all problems is a blasphemous development, much promoted by the anti-Indian conspiracies. It has now come to be interpreted as tolerating any onslaught against native Indian religious and cultural concepts and blindly and indiscriminately accepting any alien religious or cultural influence with a pseudo-generosity which is in reality a confused rationale in us. This is eating into the roots of Indian identity which, if lost in this process, shall greatly damage the slef esteem and understanding of ourselves in the right light.
We need to rather understand dhama in the right spirit and adopt it with a universal pespective and promote justice to one and all.
I welcome views on this - Arathi