Brihadaranyaka Upanishad

------------------------------------------------ Saturday, October 31, 11 : 11. AM. CHAPTER - I : The Universe as a Sacrificial Horse-1 ------------------------------------------------------------- The commencement of the Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣhad is a description of a symbolic placement of the parts of the individual in the cosmic quarters, with the spiritual intention of an undivided meditation, where the subject commingles with the object. The peculiar technique, adopted here in this Upaniṣhad, is ritualistic as it is characteristic of the Brāhmaṇas in the Vedas, and this technique is supposed to be adopted in the case of every individual character in its correlation with the universe. Here the individual concerned is the horse of the Aśvamedha Sacrifice, which is the object of consecration and while, exoterically considered, it is one of the items in the Aśvamedha Yajña, and it becomes a part of an external act, in the Upaniṣhad it becomes a piece of contemplation, which is the avo

------------------------------------------- Tuesday, October 20, 2020. 08 : 48. AM. 1.Introduction -17. ------------------------------------------- The act, the process and the end towards which the action is directed are all single in their essence, and they are not even a tripartite or a threefold process. It is a single development of Being which is impartite. This contemplation which was originally initiated in the Puruṣha-Sūkta, as the Cosmic Sacrifice, may be said to be the Mother of all other concepts of sacrifice, or Yajña in the Indian tradition, or perhaps any other tradition of this type. The offering up of oneself is the core of the Sacrifice, and, thus, the highest Sacrifice is supposed to be self-sacrifice, not the sacrifice of outward material or anything that one 'possesses'. The offering of what we have is a lower sacrifice in comparison with the sacrifice of what we are. This is the Jñāna-Yajña, or the knowledge-sacrifice that is spoken of in the Bhagavadgītā

  ------------------------------------------- Tuesday,October 13, 2020. 10 : 12.AM. 1.Introduction -16. ------------------------------------------- 1. Om Santih! Santih! Santih – 'Om! Peace, Peace, Peace'. We always recite this peace chant three times, indicating that there should be peace in the three realms, or in three ways, or freedom from the three sources of trouble. We have three principal kinds of trouble, and all these three are to cease and peace is to prevail. We have trouble from within; trouble from without; and trouble from above. This threefold problem is known as Tapatraya. If there is a heavy flood, or there is an earthquake, a thunderbolt, or a destruction of this kind caused by factors beyond human range, such catastrophe is referred to as supernatural adhidaivika-Tapa. When troubles come from outside, as those from animals, reptiles, wicked persons, etc., they are known as adhibhautika-Tapa. When troubles come from inside, such as illness, sorrow born of men