The State Government in Indore will distribute scholarship worth Rs 60 lakh among students of Indore division to promote their interest in Sanskrit.

Ref: Hindustan Times

(Source: Satyopanishad)
Meaning:
Discard the company of bad people,
Get in touch with noble company,
Bear in mind what is impermanent or transitory,
Do meritorious deeds day and night.

It was said by Einstein, “Tell me your company. I shall tell you what you are.” You imbibe the qualities of the company you keep. We should not get into bad company. Then we get bad thoughts. Run away from bad company. By living in the company of noble people, we raise our thought level, and get inspired to do good deeds naturally.

We should also distinguish that which is divine from the one that is temporal. We are gifted with intellect for discrimination and judgment to distinguish between what is transient, perishable and dual and what is eternal, immortal and nondual.

Ref: Sai Darshan

These are the preachings handed down to us by Taittirīya Upanishad. It means “Regard the mother as God, the father as God, the teacher as God, and the guest as God”.

We should show love & respect to our parents, and take care of them as much as we take care of our children. Any amount of prayer to Lord will not please him if we forget our parents. We should have the same gratitude for the teacher(acharya) as we have for the god. The importance and the role of a teacher is well emphasized in many of the sanskrit verses (see my earlier posts). Taking good care of our guests and honoring them has been a part of our ancient culture, and is well expressed in this verse.

To our dismay, we often find people fight with the mother, argue with the father, look down upon the teacher, and insult the guest. Lets try to educate them, and make sure we are not one among such people.

By Mr. Vardharajan

Speak truth in such a way that it should be pleasing to others. Never speak truth, which is unpleasant to others. Never speak untruth, which might be pleasant. This is the path of eternal morality, sanatana dharma.

To speak truth is an eternal value irrespective of time and place. But the expression of truth should be accompanied by two conditions. Firstly, it should be presented in a loving manner and secondly it should be spoken for the betterment of others. How you speak is as important as what is said. Priyam means speech that does not hurt others. Hitam is something that is said for the good or betterment of others. One should be careful of speaking truth but not hurting others.

We should be careful in speaking the truth. The purpose should be good and the words used and the manners in which they are spoken are important. So the value of truthfulness is relative to a situation. According to the Indian scriptures while living in the world of relativity truth can be interpreted in many ways.

Ref: Prajnanvani

Himalayan Academy, publisher of Hinduism Today and HPI, is proud to announce their new on-line lexicon of Hindu and related philosophic terms in Sanskrit, Tamil and English. The dictionary is programmed with AJAX, and contains definitions of over 3,600 words. A valuable resource containing many thorough definitions of complex concepts.

Ref: Hinduism Today

According to the theories of the ancient seers, evolution and perfection equal satyam – truth, shivam – auspiciousness, and sundaram – beauty. These are the three components that we need to attain in our lives to complete the journey. Once you attain a nature which is full of truthfulness, auspiciousness and beauty, then you attain what is known as realization, completeness in life, moksha or nirvana.

The words sound nice but the process of attaining them is a sadhana. Sadhana is a conscious, ongoing effort which you make to experience the transformation of your nature. It is not something that you do for one hour. Sadhana is continuous awareness, being in the present moment. The entire process of yoga is based on the principle of sadhana.

Ref: Yoga Magazine

The Mantra is addressed to Lord Shiva and is a centuries old technique of connecting one to pure consciousness and bliss.

(Source: Sukla Yajurveda Samhita III. 60)

Meaning:
Om. We worship The Three-Eyed Lord Shiva who is fragrant and who increasingly nourishes the devotees. Worshiping him may we be liberated from death for the sake of immortality just as the ripe cucumber easily separates itself from the binding stalk.

Explanation:
The mantra is a prayer to Lord Shiva who is addressed as Sankara and Trayambaka. Sankara is sana (blessings) and Kara (the Giver). Trayambaka is the three eyed one (where the third eye signifies the giver of knowledge, which destroys ignorance and releases us from the cycle of death and rebirth).

Chanting of the Maha Mrityunjaya Mantra (also known as the Moksha Mantra of Lord Shiva) creates divine vibrations that heals, and pulsates through every cell, every molecule of human body and tears away the veil of ignorance.

It is said that chanting of this Mantra generates divine vibrations that ward off all the negative and evil forces and creates a powerful protective shield. Besides, it is said to protect the one who chants against accidents and misfortunes of every kind.

Ref: Mahashivratri.org

(Source: Patanjali Yoga Sutra I. 33)

The essence:
Friendship, mercy, gladness, and indifference, being thought of in regard to subjects that are happy, unhappy, good, and evil respectively, shall pacify the Chitta.

We must have these four sorts of ideas. We must have friendship for all; be merciful towards those in misery; when people are happy, we ought to be happy; and to the wicked, we must be indifferent.

Same is the case with all subjects that comes before us. This aphorism of Patanjali indicates beautifully as to what kind of emotions or thoughts we will have to cultivate in our minds, in order to live peacefully with our surroundings.

Meaning:
With the cultivation of these sentiments of friendliness and loving kindness (maitri), mercy (karuna), joy and desire for the happiness of others (mudita), and equanimity (upeksanam) toward all beings and events, regardless if the events are auspicious or inauspicious (punya-apunya), or their conditional circumstances (visayanam), the underlying serenity and clarity of the citta (citta-prasadanam) is always cultivated and thus can manifest.

This powerful practice or cultivation (bhavanatas) as a attitudinal stance toward all beings and things in all circumstances will help maintain serenity and keep us centered in the heart (chitta-prasadanam). It will counteract polar imbalances of pleasure (sukha) or pain (dukha) caused by external events (visayanam), and prove to considerably enhance the continuous experience of the Eternal Reality — of All Our Relations.

Do you want to wish someone on their birthday in a more meaningful way than the usual one? Here it is… sing it in sanskrit.

Meaning:
O! Friend, may this birthday of yours
Bring in auspiciousness and happiness.
We pray that you enjoy hundred beautiful years of life, and
May the Lord always protect you.
By your virtuous act, earn fame and
May your life be fulfilling.

Hmm~ This makes more sense than saying “Happy birthday to you…” in several different tunes. Sure this is more difficult to sing too. To make it easier for you, I will try to get a podcast for this.

Ref: Chinmaya Mission DFW

Meaning:
The mind and the vital airs are endowed with consciousness and activising force respectively. These are the two branches of one basic power.
(Source: Upadesa Saram, verse-12)

The mind and breathing are two branches of the same energy, linked to consciousness and activity. By controlling one, the other is controlled. If breath is calmed, the mind is calmed as well. If the mind is calmed, the breath will be calmed. Observe when you are excited how hard and short the breath becomes, and how soft and relaxed it is when you are at peace.

I am reminded of the principles of “Art of Living foundation“.

To be able to deal with our mind and negative emotions is an art: the Art of Living. There is an inbuilt ability within us to calm the mind, relax the body and energize the entire system within minutes. The secret lies in the breath.

Ref: Upadesa Saram translated by Gary Weber