In the service of God and humanity
Pujya Swamiji speaks of His early childhood and His early visit to Dal Lake in Kashmir, and about the importance of place. He also speaks about how we are different from animals....
The festival of Navaratri is a glorious time of the year, filled with joy, celebration, and also with great lessons for our lives. Navaratri means “nine nights.” This festival occurs twice a year, at the change from winter to summer in the Spring, and again at the change from summer to winter in the Autumn. The Autumn festival is celebrated from the first day to the ninth day of the bright half of Ashvina/Aswayuja (September-October), while the Spring Festival is celebrated in Chaitra (April – May). The two Navaratri celebrations are known...
This month we celebrated the sacred day of Buddha Purnima. There are so many beautiful lessons to learn from the life of the Buddha. His life is the epitome of enlightenment in action. When he was born, an astrologer told Buddha’s father that his son would either be an emperor or a sanyasi (holy renunciant). The king understood that in order to prevent his son from renouncing the material world in favor of the spiritual world, he would have to keep him sheltered and protected. Thus, Siddharth (the young Buddha) was raised...
Once there was a sadhu, a renunciant living on the banks of a river, performing his sadhana with great piety and determination. One day as the holy man went for his bath in the river, he noticed a scorpion struggling in the water. Scorpions, by nature, cannot swim and the sadhu knew that if he did not save the scorpion, it would drown. Therefore, carefully picking up the scorpion, the saint lifted it out of the waters and was just about to set it down gently on the land when the...
At the day of the final “test” from the Swami Narayana Gurukul – Rajkot Sadhana Camp, held at Parmarth Niketan, Pujya Swamiji was requested to give blessings and pravachan. Following is an excerpt from that lecture: Today you are taking your “pariksha” (test); however, a spiritual path has three important components: Pariksha (tests), Samiksha (introspection) and Pratiksha (waiting). The true Pariksha is not simply passing a test given by someone else. The true pariksha is when you start taking your own test. The true pariksha is when you start taking your own photo with...
Today, fasting has become a great trend across the world. In any bookstore you will find volumes of literature extolling one fast or another. There are juice fasts, water fasts, fruit fasts, etc. Fasting is frequently heralded as the “miracle weight loss” for those who have tried all else without success. Connection with the Divine However, while fasting is certainly of great health benefit, to define it merely as a type of “diet” is to undermine one of the oldest and most sacred spiritual practices. Fasting has been used for millennia by...
The message of the Kumbha Mela, the message of the 21st century, and the message of the 3rd Millennium is one of unity and brotherhood. Only by joining hands lovingly with one another – across borders of color, race, religion and language – can we make the future a bright and positive one. In the Kumbha Mela there are no borders, no boundaries. Everyone is gathered for one common cause: divine enlightenment, purity and liberation. There is no discrimination, no violence, no hatred. People of every color come from every corner...
There was once a horrible drought. For year after year not a drop of rain fell on the arid ground. Crops died, and – as the land became parched – farmers gave up even planting their seeds. As the time of planting and tilling the ground came for the fourth rainless year in a row, the farmers of the region had given up hope and they sat listless, passing their time with playing cards and other distractions. However, one lone farmer continued patiently to plant his seeds and sow and till...