by Michael Mamas | Saturday, October 25, 2014 | Clarifying Confusion, Spiritual Evolution |
When a culture is healthy, the wisdom of the ages is passed down from one generation to the next as tradition. If a culture becomes unhealthy, the wisdom underlying the traditions becomes lost or misunderstood. Unfortunately, those echoes of the underlying truth are still perceived as truth. Echoes of truth, perceived as truth, hold truth at bay. At some point, the younger generation cries fowls and rejects the traditions all together. Cultural decay is the result. This is why, as Adi Shankara said, the Knowledge must be regenerated by every generation. That is the deeper meaning of the word, “generation”!
Each child must find truth within himself. If they are merely indoctrinated into echoes of truth, traditions will eventually be rejected. Society will ‘throw out the baby with the bathwater”. The underlying wisdom of the ages will no longer be passed down from generation to generation. The result is social decay.
So how can we help our children find truth within themselves? We must understand the modern mentality. All parents sees their children, to some degree, being influenced by the current social mentality. With the expansion of the Internet, television, etc. those influences are becoming ever more pervasive. Though real knowledge is eternal, the way it is expressed must change eternally to interface with the mentality of the times. We live in a time of logic and science. To be embraced, things must make sense. If they do not make sense, they will be rejected. This is what is happening to religion. It has ceased to make sense to the younger generation. Having to choose between faith and logic, they chose logic.
In one sense, I was lucky. Though religious, my parents were by no means fanatical. Furthermore, my father, being an electrical engineer, instilled in me a deep appreciation for logic. I was then, perhaps unintentionally but quite naturally, left to myself to figure things out… and I was passionate about doing so, combing the worlds of philosophy, physics, spirituality, etc. to find truth from within myself. I was not encumbered by indoctrination. It was through my inner searching and struggles that I came to conclusions about the nature of life and existence. Imagine how thrilled I was to find that Vedic Knowledge was there, expounding with great detail and precision, what Truth I found within myself.
Presenting this Knowledge to the world has been fascinating to me. I come up against indoctrination on a daily basis. Many find Vedic knowledge too foreign to the traditions and indoctrinations they were brought up with and therefore reject it. Interestingly enough, people who were brought up in the Vedic tradition often are simply indoctrinated into it and have not really looked deeply into it… though they would disagree, they have not really found it within themselves. It is really just that the indoctrination has reached deeply within them. Their children may, even if those parents do not, see it as indoctrination that makes no sense and those children therefore reject it. They throw out the baby with the bathwater.
Vedic Knowledge, when not found within, over time reduces down to indoctrination, just another religion. The knowledge then, as Adi Shankara said, gets lost. No culture should ever let that happen, but as surely as the Sun rises and sets, every culture does. It is time for the Sun to rise once again. Truth is revealed to the Self, by the Self, and through the Self. Each generation, each child, must find it within himself.
In the larger sense, all members of humanity are children. In the deepest sense of the word, Veda is, by definition, Truth. Parents must facilitate the process of Truth-discovery in their children, in all children, young and old. Mount Soma was created to help humanity achieve that goal.
© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.
by Michael Mamas | Sunday, October 12, 2014 | Vedic Technology |
Yesterday after the Ganesh puja in the temple the following came to my mind that I was compelled to get up and share with the group:
“In meditation you rest into the absolute… pure consciousness, pure is-ness. From that depth of your being, the influence wells up and permeates all levels of your being. You know that it is something best done twice daily. Over time it cultures the physiology in the direction of enlightenment.
The pujas, havans, and all the ceremonies at the temple approach from a different angle. Obviously there is the physical aspect of the procedure. From there is permeates the physiology more and more deeply… through the levels of thoughts, feelings, etc. ultimately touching and enlivening the depth of your being.
It is as if meditation goes from the bottom [or depth] up and the ceremonies go from the top down. Meditation awakens you to the unstructured, pure abstraction, which lies at the basis of all life and existence. The ceremonies awaken you to the deepest structured level of existence and permeate all levels of your being from there. That is why it is best to not actually meditate during the ceremonies but to instead keep your attention on the ceremony. To transcend, to bring the attention to the unstructured level, is different from staying with the structured and enliving the Absolute from there. It is like the distinction between Atman and Buddhi… transcendence and the very finest relative.
Meditation waters the root of life. The ceremonies, mantras, etc. direct their nourishment through specific aspects of life, depending upon the deity (personified aspect), sankalpa (specific purpose), etc. You can have a havan for health, wealth, happiness, or even more specific things. Often the results are felt immediately. However, as with meditation, it is best viewed as a culturing process. Every day, every day, every day do your meditations and attend the temple. Culture your being to live in harmony with nature day by day.
It does not really make a lot of sense to only meditate on special holidays. No! Of course not! People understand that meditation is a culturing process that is done twice daily. But it seems few understand that attending the temple is also a culturing process best done every day. You can attend pujas, havans, do japa, pradakshina, etc. It does not have to be for an extended period of time. Just attend the temple and touch in, touch in, touch in.”
I then asked Panditji to comment to the group about what I said and to feel free to correct or refine anything that he felt was not exactly right. As he and I both have enjoyed through the years his knowledge gave beautiful confirmation to what I said.
Another important approach is that of knowledge, but not just intellectual facts but true understanding from the depth. My lectures are for that purpose. I remember years ago, after attending a number of my lectures someone said, “I think there is a lot more going on here than just a lecture.” Honestly I was a bit shocked that it took them time to understand that. Yet I was delighted that they now understood. What we offer here at Mount Soma, daily group meditation, the temple, and the lectures are all great catalysts to your evolution. Make hay while the sun shines!
© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.
by Michael Mamas | Friday, October 3, 2014 | The Gods |
Today is Vijayadashami. Victory Day. It is a good day to start new projects, businesses, etc. It is the day that Lord Rama defeated Ravana and the Goddess Durga defeated the buffalo demon, Mahishasur. But what does that really mean? And how could it be that Rama and Durga both happened to be victorious on the exact same day of the year?
Everything cycles. The sun rises and sets. When the sun shines, flowers bloom. Every season has it own unique influence. Similarly each hour of the day, and each day of the year have a unique influence. There are of course many other variables, many other factors, at work simultaneously. However, it is good to know when ‘the sun will be shining’ so you can ‘make hay while the sun shines’. There are also ‘Nodal points’. Like water freezing at 32 degrees.. not 33, 34, or 31. Today is a nodal point in nature called Vijayadashami, Victory Day.
But who is victorious on Victory Day? Those who act in harmony with the laws of nature will be supported toward victory on this day. This is a mechanic deep within creation. Rama and Durga are both very deep principles ‘woven within’ the very fabric of creation. This day then carries that influence, their day of victory.
Why would this be hard for some people to comprehend? People have no problem ‘believing’ that individual human beings exist because they see them in the physical body. But stop and think a minute here. People are born out of nature… ‘Right? So why is it so hard to understand that the intelligence that birthed personified beings (humans) also has personified aspects? Just because you can’t see it? Keep in mind we have no technology that can read a mind. Similarly, we have no technology that can ‘read the mind’ of the underlying basis of existence. But because people can’t see it or read it, they conclude it does not exists? Isn’t that rather arrogant? And why, too, is it so difficult to understand that some people, Rishis, have developed an ability to perceive that which others cannot? Isn’t that also rather arrogant? To question it is understandable. To insist that it is absolutely not true is absurd.
I am a scientist by formal education. I insist that things must make sense. At this point in human history, knowledge has advanced in so many fields of life, that by putting all the pieces together, the big picture can be logically derived. To those willing to entertain the possibility, I offer that compelling understanding.
© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.
by Michael Mamas | Monday, September 15, 2014 | Clarifying Confusion, Spiritual Evolution, The Veda |
If you think this quote from Mundaka Upanishad undermines Vedic knowledge in any way, then you do not understand the quote. It is speaking of the sublime and subtle relationship between the Pure Absolute and the finest finest level of existence. It is a beautiful commentary on the structure of existence. This topic seems to keep coming up which is why this is posted here. To those that seem to lose sight of the importance or even the possibility of their awakening to the Absolute, I would say read this quote. To those who would not understand or appreciate the profound value of reason, Vedic literature, and the Vedic rituals, I would say that you too do not understand this quote.
My life is one of dedication to knowledge… both aspects of knowledge. We are all in great debt to the Pandits and scholars who preserve and share Vedic knowledge. You must of course, keep your ‘eye on the ball’ as you pursue the Self… the ‘higher Knowledge’ that is spoken of in the quote… enlightenment. When held and understood properly, you understand the exquisite relationship between the two. Each honors and reveres the other.
Directly experience the Self through PROPER meditation. Learn and practice the
Surya Ram Meditation and Surya Ram Meditation with Advanced Technique…From Mundaka Upanishad:
1)
This Self cannot be obtained by studying the scriptures,
nor through the use of reason,
nor from the words of others
-no matter what they say.
By the grace of the Self is the Self known,
The Self reveals Itself.
2)
‘Those who know Brahman,’ Angiras replied,
‘say that there are two kinds of knowledge,
– the higher and the lower.
The lower is that of the four Vedas
– Rig, Sama, Yajur, and Atharva,
and of the accompanying sciences:
pronunciation, ritual, grammar,
etymology, metre, and astrology.
But higher is that through which the Eternal
is directly experienced.
3)
But verily, these rituals are unsafe boats
They cannot reach the farthest shore.
The Vedic sciences are but the lower
The ignorant,
who take them as the higher,
sink once more into old age and death.
Though they think themselves wise and learned
they are fools lost in ignorance,
a prey to suffering,
wandering without direction,
like the blind led by the blind.
© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.
by Michael Mamas | Sunday, September 7, 2014 | Announcements, The Veda |
Swamiji’s followers, Maharshi, Swamiji in orange, Pandit Prasad, Lakshmi (Panditji’s wife)
The Brahma Sutras are a portion of the Vedas that addresses Vedanta. Sri Adi Shankara in his commentary on the Brahma Sutras set forth the non-dualistic( Advaita) interpretation of Vedānta. It is said that knowledge is structured in consciousness. In other words, the knowledge a person has of any subject is a function not only of the information they have, but even more so it is a function of their level of consciousness. Certainly this is true when addressing a topic as sublime and profound as Vedanta and the Brahma Sutras. Even as it is stated in the Veda, Knowledge does not dwell in books, it dwells in the consciousness of enlightened individuals.
Furthermore, translations, interpretations of the texts themselves, interpretations of the commentaries, and the changes of subtle meaning of words and expression over time result in the study of Vedanta and Brahma Sutras texts and commentaries being an incredibly elusive field of knowledge.
Swami Paripoornananda Saraswathi, a renowned saint, scholar and visionary, recently visited Mount Soma. It was wonderful to spend time with him. Everyone at Mount Soma greatly enjoyed the talk he gave to the group. He and I became great friends, even in the little time we had together. I would love to some day offer a conference with him to discuss, not just academically, but experientially the Brahma Sutras and Vedanta. He and I did have the opportunity to privately have a brief discussion on the topic. It was fascinating. He is a great reservoir of knowledge. He has invited me to join him to tour and give lectures in India. I very much look forward to that magnificent opportunity. It is a great joy to have him as a dear friend.
© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.
