I had always felt that rituals do not necessarily mean anything, yet I felt as if something was missing from me until 2 days ago. Ofcourse, I know that the sign of a true brahmin has nothing to do with the rituals he performs but the purity and quality of his mind. A person of any birth is nothing more than an animal if he doesn't perform his prescribed duties. Ofcourse, the prescribed duties involve day to day mundane activities, studying to be something or doing a job for payment , whatever it is that you are doing, it involves doing your duty to the best of your capability, I guess that makes us an ideal brahmins, kshatriyas, vaishyas or shudras. But I can't help but feel that sometimes rituals help put perspective on things. For instance, I went to India in august of this year and got my upanayanam done, but I wasn't able to memorize the mantras, nor was I able to get them on tape or video to perform the Nitya karma after that, which is essentially Trikala Sandya vandanam. It didn't bother me much, because I didn't think much of it. However deep down I had felt that something was really missing from my life. I chanted gayatri 11 times or sometimes 108 times but it didn't feel pure , it didn't feel like I was getting any lasting peace. For months now, I had this feeling of loss. . This affected all other aspects of my life. My family was going through some tough times and I wasn't there for them. I kept forgetting things, ignoring some things, letting people down when it came to supporting them. But this all miraculously changed when I did my first sandhya vandanam. From the day before yesterday , I had felt a very calming presence and peace. I feel as if I have more control over my life now than I did any time in my short brief lifespan of 22 years. I feel now that the puja is somehow giving me strength from within to be self composed in these tough times. I suspect that this is a tool given to me by God to keep myself connected to Him and His strength now. I am glad he is watching over me, and I am very happy that I have a way to gain my composure. I know now that rituals hold a very important and necessary place in the realization of God. I guess krishna really meant it when he said "One who is unattached to the fruits of his work and who works as he is obligated is in the renounced order of life, and he is the true mystic, not he who lights no fire and performs no duty. "
I think rituals can be powerful and positive. They can be something like an outer affirmation of an inner state or conviction. I think one of the problems with modern culture in general and western culture in particular is the decline of public rites. Millions are entranced by childish spectacles such as sports events, while only a few will take time to attend an event dedicated to celebrating the love of God. It is a sad reflection on the state of humanity. I myself occaisionally attend Mass at my local Catholic church, and I always get a very strong feeling of participating in an ancient tradition which somehow makes me feel kinship with all the millions who have gone before. Usually, I come away with a positive feeling and a kind of renewed resolution. In a way it's all about continuity, and finding one's roots. It is also about community, and seeing that all of us are just small parts of something much bigger then our little selves. I'm aware of all the faults of the church, but somehow it doesn't seem to matter much, and I don't have a problem integrating this with my interest in other areas of spirituality. Glad to hear that you've had a positive experience anyway Jedi.
Thank you BBB. It is wonderful to hear that you go to mass. it is a very wonderful experience indeed. Anything pertaining to God, when it is in the right light is so unique and beautiful, thank you for sharing that with me. Hail our father who is in heaven, may he bless us all with his grace and unending love.
For me, there is no ritual or worship. It stopped the day duality left me. But for others, it serves a purpose. It rewires the brain to run differently than you've know in your earlier years. New neuron pathways have to be hardwired. This is done by repetition. I suppose rituals could be compared to the training wheels on a bicycle. The wisdom comes from knowing when to take them off. x
As krishna says , the wise follow their duties as if they are obligated to follow them, for the sake of leading those who are ignorant unto the right path. My dear xexon, if you have transcended the need for rituals, I suggest you still follow them for the sake of leading people less fortunate like me unto the right path.
I'm happy to share this Jedi, because in these last couple of years I have been through a bit of a time of doubt and uncertainty. Recently, I have had experiences - nothing extraordinary like trance states or anything, but just developments in my life which have served to make me look again, and have restored my faith which had begun perhaps to grow a little jaded. In this, my roots as a Catholic have helped me very much to see how God is working in my life, and in the lives of others, and how He is a God of Love. Of course, I don't say that other things haven't helped me too, but it is a question in my case of hopefully finally being able to see where my own future lies, and how I can best use my own experiences to help others where possible. I strongly believe in universality where spirituality is concerned, but we all have our own particular point of departure I think. Recently in the Christianity forum I noticed that our friend GD Kumar had posted something to the effect that 'if Jesus isn't enough for you, then the others - Krishna, Buddha or anyone will never be enough'. So for people like me who have been conditioned to the bone by Christianity, to reject it thinking that the grass is greener elsewhere is probably a mistake. Of course one can go beyond whatever religion or culture one is born into.It is very mind-expanding and I think positive to try to gain an overview of many different belief systems etc. But since Christ is the true God under one form, to reject him is to reject the other forms too. Sri Ramakrishna Parhamhansa said he tried practicing both Islam and Christianity, and got the same results as in his yoga practice. Of course, there is no-one more 'Hindu' than Ramakrishna. I don't even begin to compare myself with him, but I have tried different things from different paths, and had some result - my overwhelming feeling though is that I have to stick to my own roots, and integrate all of the positive things from other paths and traditions. But also I am actually very glad that I recieved the religious input I did at an early age. Although it took me many years to recognize it, it has coloured my whole life, and I'm sure, saved my life more than once. As I get older I find I come to value traditions in a way I didn't before. I feel they nourish the soul within us. In a way we are what we are because of these traditions which run very deep indeed - as deep as the soul itself.
Absolutely, we may become repulsed by those who may have not come to a certain level of understanding of spirituality. They may make us look elsewhere, but God is there watching us, he will reel us back into his arms. It is all part of our spiritual evolution. I guess when things do not go our way, we tend to look elsewhere , maybe it is good in some ways because we begin to appreciate our roots better later on in life. Whether we claim to follow christ, krishna, shiva, or the Self, the truth remains that God is the controller of all these paths I wish there was a group that shared all the wisdom from all scriptures without dividing them and classifying them into the strict constraints of hinduism, islam, christianity etc. We tried something like that universal approach at our university, it failed miserably. I guess some of us have evolved and some are still evolving, and it is best to not force the evolution.
Namaste Brother Jedi, The external puja is metaphor for the internal sadhana of awakening and allowing the Isvari Kundalini to reunite with Her and your source and Love, Paramasiva. In a book I recently published, I defined external worship and external sacrifice as metaphors for authentic Yoga Tantra sadhana. When the Kundalini Devi is awakened and allowed to approach and reach the Sahasrara Cakra, the abode of Paramisvara or Paramasiva, your ego sense of self is withdrawn into Her, and actually has been which is what initiated her arousal to start with. This is your sacrifice, the result of your own subjective puja, which was and is your Yoga Tantra sadhana. Through the realization that has been the result of my sadhana, I understood once and for all, that all external religious worshiping and their external sacrifices were simple allegories for the internal sacrificing of ego self they were supposed to be performing all along. This is why Christ's life was an exemplification of sacrifice. What does "pick up thy cross and follow me" directly imply? In simple terms, you sacrifice your finite self, and you inherit the divine self. As far as Hinduism is concerned, the puja always has been supposed to have been a subjective act, but over time has become mis-construed as an external act. The difference between Hinduism and the other faiths is that over time the western faiths have lost the actual practice structure that would allow them to perform this inner worship and sacrifice so as to authentically approach the the divine self. Hinduism has Yoga Tantra. My Guru is Swami Satyananda of Yoga Bharati of Bihar, in which I was formally initiated this past summer, the first westerner to be initiated without their personal instruction. I taught myself and awakened the Devi with their books and Lord Siva's grace alone. The obviousness of this convinced them of my qualification. What they teach is known as Yoga Tantra, with tangential basis from the ancient scripture of Kashmir Shaivism. You mentioned that you wished there was a group that did not divide the search for truth into religious iconography. What you seem to be seeking is the actual subjective worship and sacrificial offering of Kundalini Tantra. When your ego self is sublimated and becomes one with Paramesvara, the search is over. Namaste, Yogin Bhairava Atmabhoda Sarasvati
Dear Brother Yogi Bhairava, I am happy to see there is much spiritual wisdom in what you say. It is true, that the mother Herself presents us to the father. She cleans the dirt of ego and presents us to Paramatma. She is the key, there is no greater grace for us other than Her grace, whether you call Her Shakti, Durga, Radha, Laxmi. I am happy to see you had the same experience. However, when I was referring to my desire for a group where we study from all scriptures, I was not referring to a group literally, but a collective consciousness within us all humans that gains wisdom from Koran, bible, Torah, hindu scriptures, buddhist scriptures...all scriptures alike with a feeling of brother/sisterhood. Personally however, there is no reason for me to look for a group. I am a brahmin, born into a brahmin family within a rich srivaishnava tradition. Performing brahminical duties such as trikala sandhya vandanam and performing all actions without attachment in the spirit of karma yoga, with bhakti toward Sriman Laxmi narayana is enough for this simple life. God bless.
Oh pssh, you flatter me Mr.BBB and also you say that like you are 80 or something, you are not so old BBB. Thank you though, we really tools used in His service.
"Personally however, there is no reason for me to look for a group. I am a brahmin, born into a brahmin family within a rich srivaishnava tradition. Performing brahminical duties such as trikala sandhya vandanam and performing all actions without attachment in the spirit of karma yoga, with bhakti toward Sriman Laxmi narayana is enough for this simple life." Born from southern hillbillies. Baptists too. Boy howdy, was I a different pea in the pod. Heh heh. History must also fall away when you reach for the divine. You've got to arrive at heaven's gate butt naked. You might even say it's the ultimate nudist colony. Bare souls. Like lightning bugs in a jar. Radiant. Beautiful. And free to come and go as they please. Rituals belong to belief. These souls have none. x
We all have our ways of doing things. What matters is what we surrender ourselves to the divine. That is the most important ritual of all.
Ha ha - no, I'm not trying to flatter. I am genuinely pleased to find here on this forum younger people who are sincerely into a spiritual path. Most of the people under 30 I know are not very spiritually inclined at all, and seem to be led by materialism and consumerism. There are one or two exceptions. No - I'm nowhere near 80 just yet! And I'm very much a man in the prime of life. I have definite plans for the future I'm sure God wants to use us! And does use us all the time. And thats the one reward of devotion - the feeling that it is God who moves and acts in us and through us.
Sandhya is such a beautiful ritual. It conencts us with countless generations of ancestors, connects us with the earth (especially when performed in a river) and the sun and with all beings. it is very purifying. My guru used to say ritual is the bark of the tree of religion/spirituality, that protects the sap of knowledge flowing within it. Have you tried agnihotra?
Yes you are right bhaskar, it is a very beautiful ritual indeed. Especially after the gayatri japam, you say "Om Apo Jyothi Rasomritam Brahma Bhur Bhuvah Svuhar Om" Translation: The water, light, the very existence we live in, is Om (God, Sriman Narayana) . I had done agnihotra before, right after my upanayanam, I had done a homam when we were removing munji from yajnopavita with other brahmanas, we all got together and changed yajnopavitas that day. After that, I haven't done any other homams, it is very difficult to do that in America. Now, I simply carry out trikala sandhyavandanam three times a day, I think that is good enough if it is carried out with discipline, devotion and love.
I though perhaps I would stop lurking and reply to the original topic. lol. I actually like ritual a lot. Perhaps its the Roman Catholic upbringing....but there's something about "doing" that makes me easier to feel like I am doing things for the Divine. My favourite ritual is simple...just aarti. Its so simple but I love all the multiple layers of what it means...its so simple ...just waving lights/incense...but so complex b/c in that light is your whole self offered...
It seems it runs very deep I think it's virtually impossible for most of us to do nothing. I think there's definitely value in having periods of stillness and quietude, but it seems our nature is dynamic. Also, in both Hindu devotion and in Catholicism (Orthodoxy too), there is a kind of immediate appeal to the senses, and to the heart I think.
