Why do scriptures urge women to do vat-savitri puja to get the same husband for seven lives when the goal of life is to attain liberation?
→ The Spiritual Scientist

 From: Mukund 

If ultimate aim of the human life is to get liberation from cycle of birth and death then why do scriptures recommend women to perform “Vat Savitri” puja to get same husband for Seven lifes (Saat Janam)? Is this practice at all mentioned in scriptures?

Transcription: ( By Bhavesh P)

 

Answer: The scriptures talk about multiple levels of spirituality. And within karma kanda, which is an important part of the scriptures as vast majority of the scriptures talks about karma kanda although it is not the conclusion of the scriptures. Within that the idea is material enjoyment is ultimately the goal of life and the purpose of dharma is to help us get better material enjoyment. So within the karma kanda sections, it is mentioned that our worldly relationships can be perpetuated at the material level not by avoiding death but by replicating those relationships in future lives. That’s how the problem of death which sabotages all material enjoyments is attempted to be circumvented in karma kanda and as a part of karma kanda there are these sort of rituals where the material relationships are prayed and their worship is done. Prayers and worships are done to perpetuate the material relationships for many many life times.

 

Now if we go beyond karma kanda to gyan kanda, there we have the idea that all the relationships are false. And one should just cut off the bonds of these relationships and move forward to go on towards spiritual life and attain moksha. Beyond that if we come further to bhakti, things become little more complex. Bhakti in and of itself does not reject material relationships but it spiritualize those relationships. That’s why in the seventh canto of Srimad Bhagvatam, chapter fourteen talks about ideal family life. In that chapter, it is mentioned that if the wife assists the husband in performing devotional service and both of them render devotional service together then that devotional connection can be continued not just in the next life in swarga but it can be perpetuated in the spiritual world eternally.

 

The idea here is primarily that we don’t reject the material relationships, we spiritualize them. But at the same time the focus is not on spiritualizing the relationship, the focus is on spirituality, focus is on Krishna. And once we are centered in Krishna then we can spiritualize the relationship concomitantly. Yes these kind of things are there in scriptures but devotees who aspire not just for moksha but beyond moksha to reside in spiritual world where there are eternal relationship centered with Krishna. In the practice of devotional service in this world we try to replicate a similar Krishna centered reality in our home and we try to make all our relationships Krishna centric. Hence we may not at a material level aspire for perpetuating the relationships but we can aspire to focus on serving Krishna and dovetailing all our relationships in that way. That’s how we can spiritualize our relationships and all our relationships can help us move closer to Krishna.

 

Thank you

Transcription in Hindi

प्रश्न – यदि जीवन का सर्वोच्च लक्ष्य जन्म और मृत्यु के चक्र से निकलना है तो फिर शास्त्र स्त्रियों को वट सावित्री पूजा, अर्थात सात जन्मों तक वही पति पाने की पूजा, करने का सुझाव क्यों देता है? क्या ऐसी प्रथा का शास्त्रों में उल्लेख है?

उत्तर – शास्त्रों में आध्यात्म के अलग-अलग स्तरों का वर्णन है। इसमें एक स्तर है कर्मकाण्ड। यद्यपि कर्मकाण्ड शास्त्रों का निष्कर्ष नहीं है किन्तु शास्त्रों का एक बड़ा भाग कर्मकाण्ड के विधि विधानों का वर्णन करता है। कर्मकाण्ड के अन्तर्गत भौतिक सुख की प्राप्ति ही जीवन का एकमात्र लक्ष्य है। इसमें व्यक्ति यह मानता है कि धर्म का एकमात्र उद्देश्य है जीवन में अच्छे से अच्छा भौतिक सुख प्राप्त करना।

कर्मकाण्ड के ही किसी एक भाग में ऐसा बताया गया है कि हम अपने भौतिक सम्बन्धों को कई जन्मों तक आगे ले जा सकते हैं। ऐसा मृत्यु को टाल कर नहीं किन्तु अगले जन्म में एक बार फिर से उसी सम्बन्ध को पुनः दोहरा कर किया जा सकता है। मृत्यु के कारण जब समस्त भौतिक भोग विलास समाप्त हो जाता है तो कर्मकाण्ड के रीति रिवाजों का पालन करके इस समस्या का हल किया जाता है। इन रीति रिवाजों के अन्तर्गत पूजा अर्चना की जाती है जिससे कई जन्मों तक वही भौतिक सम्बन्ध बना रहता है।

यदि हम कर्मकाण्ड से आगे बढ़कर शास्त्रों में दिए ज्ञान काण्ड विभाग की ओर चले तो वहाँ धारणा ऐसी होती है कि सभी सम्बन्ध मिथ्या हैं, इनमें कुछ नहीं रखा और अंततः इन सम्बन्धों को त्यागकर हमें आध्यात्मिक जीवन अपनाना चाहिए तथा मोक्ष की प्राप्ति करनी चाहिए।

ज्ञान काण्ड से आगे बढ़कर यदि हम भक्ति काण्ड की ओर जाऐं तो वहाँ धारणा में फिर बदलाव होता है। भक्ति काण्ड में भौतिक सम्बन्धों के त्याग नहीं किन्तु सम्बन्धों का आध्यात्मिकरण करने की सलाह दी गई है।

श्रीमद्भागवतम् (एक भक्ति शास्त्र) के सातवें स्कंध के चौहदवें अध्याय में आदर्श गृहस्थ जीवन का वर्णन मिलता है। वहाँ ऐसा उल्लेख किया गया है कि यदि पत्नी पति की कृष्णभक्ति करने में सहायक बनती है और दोनों साथ मिलकर कृष्णभक्ति करते हैं तो उनका यह सम्बन्ध न केवल स्वर्ग तक किन्तु भगवान के आध्यात्मिक धाम गोलोक वृन्दावन तक शाश्वत बना रहता है।

अतः भक्ति काण्ड में धारणा यह है कि भौतिक सम्बन्धों को नकारना नहीं किन्तु उन्हें स्वीकार करना है तथा उन्हें आध्यात्मिक बनाना है। ऐसा करने में हमारा लक्ष्य वास्तव में सम्बन्धों को आध्यात्मिक बनाना नहीं किन्तु अपने पूरे जीवन को ही कृष्णभक्ति के लिए समर्पित करना है। ऐसा समर्पण करने पर हमारे सम्बन्ध स्वतः ही आध्यात्मिक बन जाऐंगे।

वट सावित्री जैसे कर्मकाण्डी विधि विधानों का उल्लेख शास्त्रों में अवश्य है किन्तु भक्तगण इन सबमें नहीं पड़ते। वे न केवल मोक्ष किन्तु मोक्ष से भी आगे आध्यात्मिक जगत में भगवान श्रीकृष्ण के साथ अपने शाश्वत सम्बन्ध के बारे में ही विचार करते हैं। भक्तगण अपने वर्तमान जीवन में ही गृहस्थ में रहते हुए परस्पर वैसे ही आध्यात्मिक सम्बन्ध बनाने की प्रतिक्रिया आरम्भ कर देते हैं जिनका केन्द्र श्रीकृष्ण ही होते हैं।

End of transcription.

Real Love
→ Dandavats

“Just like we individual soul, we want to enjoy our senses. Similarly, God has also senses, He also wants to enjoy. Just like here, we see a young boy, a young girl is united. Similarly, you have seen our pictures, Krishna, Rādhā and Krishna, They are also united. There is also love, but that love
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Kenyan Presidential Candidate is an ISKCON Devotee
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Prof George Wajackoyah speaks to Nation journalists at his Karen offices on February 17, 2022   On Sunday, June 19, Prof. George Wajackoyah, a presidential candidate for the Roots Party, revealed that he is an ISKCON devotee and priest. Wajackoyah acknowledged that he was a priest in the Hare Krishna movement in an interview with […]

The post Kenyan Presidential Candidate is an ISKCON Devotee appeared first on ISKCON News.

ISKCON Scarborough – 10th Annual Jagannath Festival – Saturday – 13th Aug 2022
→ ISKCON Scarborough

ISKCON Scarborough's 10th Annual Jagannath Festival is scheduled to take place on Saturday -13th Aug 2022 at the Milliken Park, Scarborough, Ontario, Canada (McCowan & Steeles).

This grand event is free for everyone and includes a diverse assortment of multicultural activities for the entire family. The focus of this year is to make the stage programs newcomer friendly.

There will be several stage performances as well as tents in the park where attendees can get their face painted beautifully, apply henna to their hands/palms and there will also be several cookbooks & ancient Vedic texts.

The highlight of the event is the distribution of free vegetarian feast/free water for everyone throughout the day starting at 11 am.

Several dignitaries will be taking part in this annual event.

The parade starts inside the Milliken Park at 11 am and the VIP introduction/ inauguration is scheduled to take place at 12 noon.

We kindly request you to spread the message about this event so that everyone can come to Milliken Park on Aug 13th 2022 to partake the blessings of the Lordship.

Stay tuned for further updates


ISKCON Scarborough

3500 McNicoll Avenue, Unit #3,

Scarborough, Ontario,

Canada,M1V4C7

Email Address:

scarboroughiskcon@gmail.com

website:

www.iskconscarborough.org

After being in a coma for 3 days
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I was distributing in central Wellington and met Jake, a pleasant young chap from Nelson, who had literally just arrived in town that very morning. I showed him Bhagavad-gita and asked him to comment on the picture of the transmigrating soul. His face lit up when he saw the image. He explained that he had
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Srivasa Pandit Thakur Disappearance
→ Ramai Swami

Srila Srivasa Pandit, the fifth member of the Panca-tattva, appeared in Srihatta, West Bengal, about 30 years before the appearance of Lord Gauranga. Srivasa Pandit lived in Navadvip before the advent of Lord Chaitanya. 

Living the traditional brahminical life, he and his younger brothers, Srinidhi, Sripati and Srirama, worshipped Lord Krishna, performing devotional service and bathing thrice daily in the Ganges. On his order, they moved to Navadvip and began to associate with the senior and respected Sri Advaita Acharya.

They regularly used to attend the assembly of devotees who gathered at Sri Advaita Acharya’s house to hear the Srimad-Bhagavatam and engage in congregational chanting of the Holy Names. 

“Intelligent Srivasa had previously been Narada Muni, the best of the sages. Srivasa’s younger brother, Sriman Rama Pandit, had previously been Narada’s close friend Parvata Muni” (Gaura Ganodesh Dipika 90).

Srivasa Pandit and his wife Malini Devi became intimate friends of Jagannatha Misra and Sachi Devi. When Lord Visvambhara appeared, the hearts of all the devotees were filled with parental affection for the child. After the birth of Nimai, Malini would regularly visit and give advice to the younger Sachi mata on how to raise her mischievous child.

Nimai looked upon Srivasa Pandit and Malini just like His parents. Gaurachandra loved Malini as a second mother. Malini Devi was Krishna’s wet nurse in Vraja, Ambika. (Gaura-ganoddesa-dipika 90)

Srila Vrindavan das Thakur, the Vyasadeva of Sri Gaurasundara’s pastimes, has sung the praises of Srivasa Pandit in this way:

“It was in Pandit’s house that Sri Chaitanya enacted His pastimes of sankirtana. Those four brothers (Srivasa, Sri Rama, Sripati and Srinidhi) were continuously engaged in singing the names of Sri Krishna.” 

Person Worship
→ Seed of Devotion

One early morning, dressed in a traditional sari and acting in my role as a kind of priestess [pujari], I was seated in front of two small brass deities of the divine couple, Radha and Krishna. I intoned, “Su swagatam,” then immediately said, “Idam asanam,” and gestured with an open palm from the deities to two small, elaborately stitched sitting cushions. 

The first mantra I spoke simply translates as “Welcome!” and the second one translates as “Please, have a seat” - I was welcoming these deities to please, metaphysically, have a seat on these cushions. 

This welcoming of brass deities to please have a seat could seem strange. But within my spiritual tradition, deity worship is an expression of love and devotion, and I have been surrounded and inspired by this culture since I was a child. Ten years ago, I traveled to a holy village in India to formally study at a renowned Academy this ancient science. 

It sounds archaic to be intoning mantras and making mystical hand gestures (mudras) and learning obscure recipes. Sounds maybe, even, a little Harry Potter-ish. But by the time I graduated from the Academy, I had the most profound realization that deity worship is a practice to learn how to treat God as a person. 

One of the core practices is to offer Reception, which is, basically, hospitality.  

You are welcome here, come on in. 

That's all. 

Just treat God like a person. As the saying goes, we should love people and use objects, but so often we use people and love objects. 

I had the epiphany: What if I used some of these principles to treat PEOPLE like people?? 

I began to apply the principles of deity worship to how I offer hospitality in my own home. Whenever someone walks through my front door, I will immediately say some variation of: “Welcome, so good to see you! Come on in!” and then I will say, “Please, have a seat,” and actually physically gesture to a chair or the sofa. This simple physical movement, or mudra, is nothing mystical. It’s a powerful gesture from host to guest that communicates, “You belong here.” And then I will offer a glass of water (idam paniyam) - I never ask, I just place the cup of water in their hands or on a saucer on the table. 

The response of gratitude by my guests over the years has been astonishing, some even crowning me as the “Queen of Hospitality” but I just have to laugh because ultimately most times what I’ve offered was so simple - a welcome, a seat, some water.  

Hospitality is transcends religion or culture or time and place because it is the science of transformation of heart. Deity worship is not "idol worship", it is "person worship" - a brass deity of the Lord becomes a person, a person we can serve and know and love. 

And when I apply the principles of deity worship with other people in my life - whether family or strangers - they truly become persons I can serve and know and love. 


For the Wisdom of the Sages Ashram Month this August, I will be teaching a one-week segment on the culture of bhakti yoga. You will learn the principles of character and practices that create a transformational culture of love and devotion. Come join us! For more information, follow this link to the Wisdom of the Sages website: https://www.wisdomofthesages.com/ashram-month
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Food for All Supports World Refugee Day
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June 20th is World Refugee Day and it is Refugee Week up until the 24th of June. Food For All’s great friend Jennie Matthias has released a new single in support of World Refugee Day 2022. All proceeds will go towards supporting refugees in London, by offering them food, work, and rehabilitation. You can help […]

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