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Quotations on Good Conduct and Discipline (Post.9312)

MARCH 2021 ‘NEW THOUGHTS’ CALENDAR

WRITTEN BY LONDON SWAMINATHAN

Post No. 9312

Date uploaded in London – –26 FEBRUARY  2021     

Contact – swami_48@yahoo.com

Pictures are taken from various sources for spreading knowledge.

this is a non- commercial blog. Thanks for your great pictures.

tamilandvedas.com, swamiindology.blogspot.com

We have 31 quotations on Good Conduct and Discipline taken from Sanskrit and Tamil works

Festival Days:–March11- Maha Shivaratri ;  14- Karadaiyan Nonbu;; 28-Holi and Panguni Uttaram

Ekadasi Fasting Days – 9, 24; New Moon day/ Amavasyai-13; Full Moon Day/Purnima-28

Muhurta/ Auspicious Days – 3, 5, 10, 11, 15, 24, 31

***

MARCH 1 MONDAY

Conduct bespeaks lineage- Chanakya Niti

Xxx

MARCH 2 TUESDAY

The five elements which constitute the body will jeer at the secret conduct of the deceitful minded man- Tirukkural 271

Xxx

MARCH 3 WEDNESDAY

A rigid routine kills freedom-

Uttara Rama Charita

Xxx

MARCH 4 THURSDAY

Those who have not learnt to conduct themselves in conformity with the world, however learned they may be, are in reality ignorant.-Tirukkural 140

xxx

MARCH 5 FRIDAY

Conduct is the highest Dharma- Manu Smrti

xxx

MARCH 6 SATURDAY

A man of pure character will not utter foul words even by a slip of tongue.–Tirukkural 139

Xxx

MARCH 7 SUNDAY

The basis of caste is conduct, and the basis of the conduct is scriptures.

Kahavatratnakar

Xxx

MARCH 8 MONDAY

Good conduct increase s longevity and confers fame

Xxx

MARCH 9 TUESDAY

Right conduct results in happy and virtuous life-

Tirukkural 138

Xxxx

MARCH 10 WEDNESDAY

A beloved one must be escorted up to the water boundary

Sakuntalam

Xxx

MARCH 11 THURSDAY

Scholars, preceptors and Brahmins deserve salutations even when spotted at a distance.- Ramayana Manjari

Xxx

MARCH 12 FRIDAY

If a Brahmana forgets his learnings , he may reacquire it ; but if he fails in his conduct he slips down in his rank of birth–Tirukkural 134

Xxx

MARCH 13 SATURDAY

Do not what the world abhors

Sanskrit proverb

Xxx

MARCH 14 SUNDAY

No single custom appeals to one and all

Mahabharata

Xxx

MARCH 15 MONDAY

Good conduct constitutes high birth

Tirukkural 133

MARCH 16 TUESDAY

Do not shelter the one whose family and character are unknown

Panchatantra

xxx

MARCH 17 WEDNESDAY

Wake up in the auspicious early morning hours and reflect on dharma and artha/economy- Manu Smrti 4-92

xxx

MARCH 18 THURSDAY

Xxxx

Men with envious nature cannot get riches, a man without character cannot have greatness.-Tirukkural 135

Xxx

MARCH 19 FRIDAY

Good conduct brings nobleness–Tirukkural 137

Xxx

MARCH 20 SATURDAY

No good comes to one by crossing the line of good conduct–

Vishnu Purana

Xxx

MARCH 21 SUNDAY

The foundation of all penance is the observance of right conduct–

Manu Smrti.

Xxx

MARCH 22 MONDAY

Right conduct makes one great- Tirukkural 131

Xxx

MARCH 23 TUESDAY

As the custom, so should be the conduct–

Kahavat Ratnakar

xxx

MARCH 24 WEDNESDAY

Cruel Arrow is straight, Sweet lute is curved; therefore don’t judge by appearance . Men should be judged by their deeds–Tirukkural 279

Xxxx

MARCH 25 THURSDAY

It matters not whether a man shaves his hair or allows it to grow in flowing locks, if he could refrain from what the world shuns– Tirukkural 280

xxx

MARCH 26 FRIDAY

Dine with friends but never live together– Kahavat Ratnakar

xxx

MARCH 27 SATURDAY

Though correct what is not in consonance with social norms should neither be done nor said– Kahavat Ratnakar

MARCH 28 SUNDAY

The noble are to be revered– Satopadesa prabandha

xxx

MARCH 29 MONDAY

Safeguard and maintain your good conduct with assiduous care

Tirukkural 132

Xxxx

MARCH 30TUESDAY

Preceptors are to be praised openly; friends and family, discreetly.

Subhaasita ratna bhandagaram

Xxxx

MARCH 31 WEDNESDAY

Time honoured conventions are to be preserved

Satopadesa prabandha

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tags- March 2021, calendar, quotes, discipline, conduct

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QUOTES ON FAMOUS PANINI (Post No.7684)

Written by London Swaminathan

Post No.7684

Date uploaded in London – 12 March 2020

Contact – swami_48@yahoo.com

Pictures are taken from various sources for spreading knowledge; this is a non- commercial blog. Thanks for your great pictures.

AGRAWALA, BURNELL, COLBROOK, GOLDSTUCKER MACDONNELL, WEBER QUOTES ON PANINI

Panini lived 2700 years ago in North West India. Great Sanskrit scholars of India and abroad place him before the Buddha. His grammar is closer to Vedic Sanskrit than the classical Sanskrit. More over Patanjali’s huge Mahabhashya must have been written at least 500 years after Panini. When we look at other ‘sutra’ literature, we see a big gap between the original and the commentary.

“The Sanskrit grammarians were the first to analyse word forms, to recognise the difference between the root and the suffix, to determine the functions of suffixes and on the whole to elaborate a grammatical system to accurate and complete as to be unparalleled in any other country”-Macdonell, India’s Past, p 136

“The celebrated grammar of Panini is the oldest surviving representative of this elaborate grammatical analysis of forms and linguistic investigation.

Panini is the architect of the magnificent edifice known as the Ashtadhyayi, which justly commands the wonder and admiration of the world”—V S Agrawala

Weber regards Panini’s grammar as

“Superior to all similar works of other countries, by the thoroughness with which it investigates the roots the language and the formation of its words”–

History of Indian Literature, p.216

According to Goldstucker

“Panini’s work is indeed a kind of natural history of the Sanskrit language. His grammar is the centre of a vast and important branch of ancient literature. No work has struck deeper roots than his in the soil of the scientific development of India”.

The characteristic feature of Panini’s system is that it derives words from verbal roots. He has given us a comprehensive list of suffixes and roots.

As Colebrook has put it,

“the Ashtadhyayi certainly bears internal evidence of its having accomplished by a single effort.”

According to Burnell,

“Paninis grammar, in all probability, been little tampered with; we have better warrant for its integrity than in the case of any other work”.

On the Aindra School of Sanskrit grammarians

Bhagavan Panini!

Patanjali, the author of Mahabhashya, has applied his master mind to reveal the depth and range of Panini’s scholarship. Like Katyayana, Patanjali applies the term Bhagawan exclusively to Panini in recognition of his supreme position in the field of study he had made his own.

Greatest of the modern Tamil poets Subrahmanya Bharati praised him as the scholar who has produced ‘an incredible work’..

Dr S Radhakrishnan, philosopher and President of India writes,

“Two works on dramaturgy , one by Silali and the other by Krsasva , are referred to by Panini. They show that the dramatic art in India existed long before its rise in Greece.We have lost those works”.

Of Panini’s Sanskrit grammar, which could be printed in about 35 pages of quarto size, the late professor A Macdonnell of Oxford said,

And yet this grammar describes the  entire Sanskrit language  in all the details of its structure with a completeness  which has been never equalled elsewhere.  It is at once the shortest and fullest grammar in the world.”

Kalhana in Rajatarangini

Being to the last degree one, who has achieved his tasks and  helped to augment virtue, what is the difference between  His Majesty J ayapida and  Panini who has fully dealt with the Krthya suffixexs  and made rules for  Guna and  Vrddhi.

During the time of the expounding of Mahabhasya through cleverly camaflouged verses , here is one attack on him which thr scholars circulated as follows,

He who has allwed  himself to be eclipsed  by the brahmins and  who prescribes rules for the stability of society what is the difference    between  His Majesty Jayapida and  Panini who has dealt with the prepositions  Vi and  P ra and laid down rules for the  terminations of the past tense.

— Rajatarangini 4-635 to 637

The comment by R S Pandit on these three verses is

Each of the epithets has a three fold mwaning. One as applied to the grammarian and of the other two , one is in praise of Jayapida and  the other in condemnation of  him. The reference is to  the illustrious grammarian Panini  whose memory is kept ever green in India ,

Yena vyakaranam protam tasmai paninaye namah –

To Panini  by whom  was formulated grammar – a salutation.

tags – Panini, quotes, McDonnell, Burnell,

–SUBHAM–

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30 more Golden Sayings from Panchatantra (Post No.3763)

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Written by London swaminathan

Date: 27 March 2017

Time uploaded in London:- 20-44

Post No. 3763

Pictures are taken from various sources; thanks.

contact; swami_48@yahoo.com

April 2017 Calendar
30 more Golden Sayings from Panchatantra (Last month calendar carried 31 quotes from Panchatantra)

Festival/ Holidays: April 5 Ram Navami; 9 Mahavir Jayanti; 14 Tamil New Year Day & Good Friday; 16 Easter Sunday; 29 Akshaya Trtyai; 30 Shankara and Ramanuja Jayanti

Ekadasi (11th day Fasting)- 6, 22; Amavasya/ New Moon- April 26
Paurnami/Full Moon- April 10; Auspicious Days:- April 2, 9, 10, 17, 21

April 1 Saturday
Don’t waste words:
The chickpea may hop up and down frantically
but will it crack the frying pan?

April 2 Sunday
What are dreams?
What a man watches or does
or yearns for during the day
he does the same at night in his sleep
He talks about it; he acts it out.

April 3 Monday
Which man does Fortune not render proud?
which seeker after pleasure sees his troubles end?
whose heart is not shattered by a woman?
who does not fall into the clutches of Time?

April 4 Tuesday
whoever saw or heard of these?
cleanliness in a crow,
truth in a gambler,
forbearance in a serpent
spent passion in a woman

April 5 Wednesday
Rulers live off their lands,
physicians off the sick;
merchants live off consumers
the learned off fools

928f5-rama2bold2bstyle
April 6 Thursday
Money! Money!
A trouble to acquire; a trouble to protect;
a trouble if it is lost; a trouble if it is spent;
money is nothing but trouble,
alas! from beginning to end.

April 7 Friday

one without ambition does not hold office;
one fallen out of love does not care to adorn himself;
one who lacks learning displays no eloquence;
one who is blunt in speech is never a cheat.

April 8 Saturday

The senses age first, then the body
in those blessed with virtue and piety
but in those who possess neither
body ages, senses never.

April 9 Sunday

A tiller of the soil, an outcaste with matted hair,
or another man duly initiated
with Siva’s mystical names and vows; whose body
is marked with sacred ash becomes a twice-born pure.

April 10 Monday

A king is ruined by bad advice
an ascetic by company
a child by fond indulgence
a Brahmana by lack of learning

b4e1a-brahmin2

April 11 Tuesday

Hospitality:
A stranger at dusk must not turn back unwelcomed
householders who honour and serve a guest
brought by the setting sun, themselves
take on an aura of divinity.

April 12 Wednesday

Water, a pile of straw, and a place to sleep
kind words of welcome, these four things
are never found wanting in the houses
or mansions of the good and virtuous.

April 13 Thursday

Delirium, trembling, tottering, falling down,
a constant patter of incoherent babbling
these are the sure signs of foul fevers, lie threatening,
and of drunkenness as well

April 14 Friday

Honest man:
The man who appears in open court
calm and cheerful, with smiling face, defiant eye,
and speaks in clear, firm tones with confident pride,
know him to be true and upright.

April 15 Saturday

Women:
They laugh, they weep, to gain their own ends;
they win the trust of others; trust no one themselves
Let them be shunned therefore like burial-urns
by all men of good conduct and noble birth

dd3f1-ammami

April 16 Sunday
Criminal:
Altered speech, changing complexion,
eyes darting from side to side in alarm
drooping, broken in spirit: such a man
having committed a crime is afraid of his own act.

April 17 Monday

Death Sentence:
A Brahmana, a child, a woman, a sick man,
and an ascetic may not be put to death;
if the offence be serious, the law lays down
that disfigurement is proper punishment.

April 18 Tuesday

Seven Sins of Rulers
Women, dice, hunting and dice
abusive speech, that is the fifth,
punishment severe beyond reason,
and rapine – that completes the seven.

April 19 Wednesday

The Crow and the Serpent Story
Where sheer prowess cannot succeed
a clever ruse may accomplish the end;
the hen-crow by means of a golden chain
brought about the deadly black serpent’s death.

April 20 Thursday

Animal Behaviour:
Crows, cowards, deer, these three,
will never abandon their home;
elephants, lions, and noble men, these three,
faced with dishonour will always leave home.
a1bdd-assam2belephants2bin2btea2bestae

April 21 Friday
Women:
Pretty on the outside; poisonous within;
they resemble the Gunjas’ bright berries
Women God! Who did create them?

April 22 Saturday

Health:
There is no friend like good health;
there is no foe like sickness;
no joy equals that of children;
no pain equals that of hunger

April 23 Sunday

Evil men perish:
Why need you think of ways and means
to do harm to evil doers,
when they are sure to fall on their own
like trees that grow by the river’s edge.

April 24 Monday

Sacrifice for a Friend:
Imbued with passion for benevolence,
saints on earth, possessed of steadfast minds, cherish
service to others alone, and count as nothing
even the sacrifice of their own life for a friend.

April 25 Tuesday

Foolish Friends:
Better take a walk with a snake
or share your home with rogues or foes;
never put your trust in evil friends,
false, fickle and foolish

dracula
April 26 Wednesday

Fear danger while it is still to come;
once you are face to face with danger
strike hard with no hesitation.

April 27 Thursday

Arrogance:
In blind arrogance, men often mistakenly disdain
a weak foe; only to find that foe
easily put down first, soon growing unassailable
like a disease that flares if not contained in time.

April 28 Friday

Women:
Falsehood and daring, folly and deceit,
uncleanness of body and spirit too,
excessive greed, and lack of compassion,
these vices are inborn in women

April 29 Saturday

Sinful Act:
The sinful acts the ignorant commit
for the sake of a single life,
bring them only sorrows that extend
over a thousand recurring lives.

April 30 Sunday
King:
A king is a lamp, wealth, the oil
gathered from the people.
Who has ever perceived him as shining
lit by in-dwelling virtues radiant.

68f52-siva2bthird2beye
–Subham–

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28 Beautiful Quotations of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa—Post No. 3587

Compiled by London swaminathan

 

Date: 29th January 2017

 

Time uploaded in London:-  6-17 AM

 

Post No.3587

 

 

Pictures are taken from different sources; thanks.

 

 

contact; swami_48@yahoo.com

 

 

February 2017 Good Thoughts Calendar

 

Festival Days and Holidays:- February 3-Rata Saptami; 9-Thai Pusam;  24-Maha Shivaratri

 

Ekadasi- 7,22

New Moon Day-26

Full moon Day- 10

Auspicious Days-1, 2, 6, 9, 16, 17, 23.

February 1 Wednesday

There are pearls in the deep sea, but you must hazard all the perils to get them. If you fail to get at them  by a single dive, do not conclude that the sea is without them. So also in the quest for the Lord, if your first attempt to see him proves fruitless, do not lose heart. Persevere in the attempt, and you are sure to realise Him at last.

 

February 2 Thursday

As a lamp, does not burn without oil, so a man cannot live without God.

 

February 3 Friday

As the water of the ocean is now calm and next agitated into waves, so are Brahman and Maya. Th e ocean in the tranquil state is Brahman, and in the turbulent state, Maya.

February 4 Saturday

The snake itself is not affected by the poison in its fangs; but when it bites, the poison kills the creature bitten. Likewise, Maya is in the Lord but does not affect Him, while the same Maya deludes the whole world.

February 5 Sunday

Women and gold keep men immersed in worldliness. Woman is disarmed when you view her as the manifestation of the Divine Mother.

 

February 6 Monday

Snakes are venomous reptiles. But the man who has learnt the art of snake charming can play even with seven snakes coiled around his snake. Similarly a man of realisation is immune from the dangers of worldly life.

February 7 Tuesday

A Brahmana’s son is no doubt a Brahmana by birth; but some of these born Brahmanas grow up into great scholars, some become priests, others turn out cooks, and still others roll themselves in the dust before courtesans’ doors.

 

February 8 Wednesday

There are some who boast of their wealth and power, of their name and fame, and high status in society; but all these are for some time only. None of these will follow them after death.

February 9 Thursday

If  I hold this cloth before me you cannot see me anymore, though I am still as near you as ever. So also though God is nearer to you than anything else, because of the screen of egotism, you cannot see Him.

February 10 Friday

Hanuman was blessed with the vision of God both with form and without it. But he retained the ego of servant of a God.  Such was also the case of Narada, Sanaka, Sanandana and Sanatkumara.

 

February 11 Saturday

In the Kingdom of God, reason, intellect and learning are of no avail. There the dumb speak, the blind see, and the deaf hear.

February 12 Sunday

To explain God merely after reading the scriptures is explaining to a person the city of Banaras after seeing it only in a map.

 

February 13 Monday

Utter the word Gita, in quick succession, several times. It is then virtually pronounced as Tagi, Tagi, which means one who has renounced the world for the sake of God. Thus, in one word, Gita teaches, RENOUNCE. Renounce everything, and fix the mind on Lord.

February 14 Tuesday

As the water under a bridge enters from one side and passes out at the other, so religious advice given to the worldlings enters the mind thorough one ear and goes out by the other, without leaving any impression.

 

February 15Wednesday

Iron appears as red hot in the furnace, but becomes black soon after it is taken out. In the same way, worldly men are full of religious emotion if they are in a temple or in the society of the pious; but no sooner do they leave these associations the flood of devotion in them subsides.

 

February 16 Thursday

Out of the myriads of paper kites that are seen flying in the air, one or two get free by snapping of the string. So out of hundreds of aspirants practising spiritual disciples only one or two get free from worldly bondage.

 

February 17 Friday

When a certain quantity of milk is mixed with double the quantity of water it requires good deal of time and labour to condense it. The mind of a worldly man is diluted with the filthy water of impure thoughts and he has to work long and hard to purify it.

 

February 18 Saturday

Butter churned early in the morning is the best; that churned after sunrise is not so good. Addressing his young disciples, Master used to say, “You are like butter churned in the early morning; my householder disciples are like butter churned late in the day.

February 19 Sunday

The young bamboo can be bent easily , but the full-grown bamboo breaks when it is bent with force. It is easy to bend the young heart towards God.

February 20 Monday

The love in the heart of a boy is whole and undivided. When he gets married in time, half of his heart or more, is given away to his wife, and when children are born to him, he loses another quarter there off, while the remaining quarter is divided among father, mother, honour, fame, pride, dress and the rest; therefore, he has no love left to offer to God.

 

February 21 Tuesday

It is the nature of the winnowing basket to reject whatever is light and useless, and whatever is weighty and good. Such is the nature of all pious souls.

February 22 Wednesday

Wherein is the strength of a devotee? He is a child of God, and his devotional tears are his mightiest weapon.

February 23 Thursday

The man whose hair stands on end at the mere mention of the name of God, and from whose eyes flow tears of love – he has indeed reached his last birth.

February 24 Friday

A boat may stay in the water, but water should not stay in the boat. An aspirant may live in the world, but the world should not live within him.

February 25 Saturday

When you are engaged in devotional practices, keep aloof from those who scoff at them, and from those who ridicule the piety and the pious.

 

February 26 Sunday

If a white cloth is stained even with a small spot, the stain appears very ugly indeed. So the smallest fault of a holy man becomes painfully prominent.

February 27 Monday

Trust not a Sanyasin (ascetic) who practises medicine, uses spells and incantations, receives money and displays his piety with sign boards of elaborate external marks.

February 28 Tuesday

The oyster that contains the precious pearl is of very little value, but it is essential for the growth of the pearl. The shell is of no use after securing the pearl. So, ceremonies and rites may not be necessary for him who has attained the highest truth, namely, God.

–Subham–

 

 

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Jealousy: Wisdom from Indian Villages

brahmins

Written by London swaminathan

Date : 2 September  2015

Post No. 2118

Time uploaded in London : 19-39

None has grown richer by envying

And no one has lost by not envying –Tirukkural 170

Envy destroys one’s wealth and leads one to evil deeds – 168

The Goddess of Good Fortune (Lakshmi) cannot bear the sight of envious people

Whom she will turn over to her elder sister (Alakshmi, Jyeshtadvi) — 167

jealousy2

There were two Brahmins, one is an illiterate and another is a learned. Both of them visited the king in the neighbouring county. The king treated them well and gave them equal respect. He gave them a gold coin every day. But the learned Brahmin was very jealous about the illiterate getting the same respect like him. When the illiterate Brahmin was gone to his room, he told the king, “Oh, King, don’t you know the proverb that says ‘give your daughter knowing the family (Gotra) and give money knowing the person (Paatra)’? Moreover that illiterate Brahmin has got two concubines. I am very learned and yet you give me the same treatment. Then he went home.

Next day both of them came to see the king. Now the king gave three gold coins to the illiterate and only one coin to the learned Brahmin. He became very angry and waited till the other person gone. He told the king, “Even after I explained to him his characterless life and his lack of knowledge in scriptures, you gave him three gold coins and only one gold coin to me. Why are you insulting the learned like this?”

The king replied, “Look, learned Brahmin! I am paying according to the needs, not according to your knowledge. You only told me that he has a larger family. I don’t want him to suffer.”

The Brahmin went home confused!

—————-xxxxxxx————-

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PATRIOTISM: Bismarck and Californians!

40033-california-comp-sketch

Written by London swaminathan

Date : 1 September  2015

Post No. 2115

Time uploaded in London : 19-50

United-Stamp4931-california

(1).Californians are famous for their loyalty to their native state. One of its native sons was once visiting his wife’s relatives in the East. While there he had occasion to attend the funeral of a man who was little liked in the community. At the services the minister, who was new to the parish, called upon someone to say few words about the deceased. A long and significant silence ensued. Finally, the true son of California stood up and said, “Well, since there is no one present who has anything to say about our departed brother, I would like a few minutes to tell you something about California.”

bismarck

Bismarck story

(2).Bismarck told a story of an Alpine host who, after pointing out the glories of his native land, asked a berlin youth if they had any such mountains in Berlin. “No”, he replied, “we have not got such mountains, but, if we had, they would be much finer than these.”

(3).Emperor Vespasian: Bhagavad Gita Echo!

When the Emperor Vespasian commanded a Roman senator to give his voice against the interests of his country and threatened him with immediate death if he spoke on the other side, the Roman, conscious that the attempt to serve a people was in his power, answered with a smile:

“Did I ever tell you that I was immortal? My virtues is in my own disposal, my life in yours; you do what you will, I shall do what I ought; and if I fall in the service of my country, I shall have more triumph in my death than you in all your laurels.”

((When I read this I am reminded of the Bhagavd Gita sloka/couplet: “Either slain thou shalt go to heaven; or victorious thou shalt enjoy the earth; therefore, arise, Arjuna, resolved on the battle” (2-37) “Weapons do not cleave this self, fire does not burn him; waters do not make him wet; nor does the wind make him dry. The soul is eternal (2-23)

VESPASIAN

(4).Little Boy’s Reply

It was a little boy in an American school, who in his reply to his teacher’s question, “Who was the first man?” answered, “George Washington”, and upon being informed that it was Adam, exclaimed, “Ah, well! If you are speaking of foreigners, perhaps he was.”

(5).I would have produced more sons!

In the early part of the American civil war an elderly lady who attended meeting of the First Vermont Regiment, arose, full of enthusiasm, and said she thanked God that she was able to do something for her country; her two sons, all she possessed in the world, were in the regiment; and the only thing she had to regret was that she could not have known twenty years before that the war was coming – she would have furnished more.

(A True Patriot!)

Washington_at_Brooklyn_1951_Issue-3cjpg

(6).Retort to British

Sometime after the conclusion of the revolution, a young American was present in a British playhouse, where an interlude was performed in ridicule of Americans. A number of American officers being introduced in tattered uniforms, and barefoot, the question was put to them severally: “What was your trade before you entered the army?”

One answered tailor, another a cobbler etc. the wit of the piece was to banter them for not keeping themselves in clothes and shoes, but before that could be expressed, the American exclaimed from the gallery: “Greta Britain beaten by tailors and cobblers! Hurrah!”

Even the Prime Minister, who was present, could not help smiling, amidst a general peal of laughter.

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by Tamil and Vedas on September 1, 2015  •  Permalink
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Three Popular Anecdotes on Patience

519-Maharshi-Valmiki-India-Stamp-1970

Article No. 2079
Written by London swaminathan
Date : 17  August  2015
Time uploaded in London :–  19-59

“Forbearance is the best ornament for men and women”, says sage Valmiki.

“Alankaaro hi naariinaam ksamaa to purusasya vaa” – Valmiki Ramayana

 

Patience is a virtue extolled in every scripture and preached by all the saints. There are popular anecdotes in the life of famous people. Tamil saint Tiruvalluvar has devoted one full chapter for it. Mahabharata and Ramayana have plenty of references to patience, forbearance and forgiving.

Retaliation gives but a day’s joy;

Forbearance brings glory for all time – Tirukkural 156

There are three anecdotes to illustrate the greatness of this virtue:

 stamp_newton

Isaac Newton and his dog Diamond

Isaac Newton’s favourite dog is Diamond which was so famous even Carlyle has mentioned it in his book on the French Revolution. One day Newton went for a walk leaving the dog at home. He had his research work on his table where there was a lighted candle. The dog had jumped on it and set fire to the papers. It was the product of his twenty year work. When Newton returned from the walk he saw the charred papers and got a shock. But he never became angry or threw the dog out of the house. He patted on its back and said, “O Diamond, You don’t know what you have done to my work.” He started writing all his work again.

Dictionary Destroyed

There is a similar story about Dr Thomas Cooper who edited a dictionary during the reign of Queen Elizabeth. He edited a learned dictionary with the addition of thirty three thousand words, and many other improvements. He had already been eight years in collecting materials for his edition, when his wife, who was a worthless and malignant woman, going one day into his library, burnt every note he had prepared under the pretence of fearing that he would kill himself with study.

The doctor shortly after came in, and seeing the destruction, inquired who the author of it was. His wife boldly avowed that it was the work of her mischievous hands. The patient man heaved a sigh and said, “Oh, Dinah, thou hast given me a world of trouble!”

Then he quietly sat down to another eight years of hard labour, to replace the notes which she had destroyed.

buddha

Buddha and Purna

Purna was one of Buddha’s disciples. He decided to preach in the region of Sudana, which was an uncivilised region.

Buddha asked, “Purna, Where are you going to preach?”

In the region of Sudana, said Purna.

What if they refuse to accept your teachings and criticise you?

That does not matter. I am happy that they did not physically hurt me.

What if they attack you?, asked the Buddha.

It does not matter. I am happy that they did not attack me with weapons.

What if they stab you or cut you with a knife?

I will be still feeling happy thinking that they did not kill me.

What if they kill you?

It does not matter. I will be happy that they helped me to get liberated

Buddha was very happy when he heard this and allowed him to go to the chosen area saying that he reached the highest stage.

valluvar

Tiruvalluvar, author of Tirukkural

Plato and Aristotle

Dr S M Diaz in his commentary on Tirukkural points out neither Plato nor Aristotle said anything about patience:

“It is surprising that these higher level virtues like forbearance, which before Christ, were not referred to by Plato and Aristotle in any of their treatises. But Sangam Tamil literature (Kalitokai 113-14; Natrinai 116)) and the Kural mention it. Obviously the Tamil society of those days, through national channels, had reached a high plateau of norms of virtue, as regards individual and social conduct.”

Some English Quotes on Patience, Forbearance and Forgiving

To err is human, to forgive is divine – Alexander Pope

Good to forgive, best to forget – Robert Browning.

Only a great soul can be superior to the injury – Cato

The best revenge is not to copy him

That was wronged you – Marcus Aurelius, Book VI-6

Unkindness must be treated with kindness – Seneca, Book 27-III

Father, forgive them; they know not what they do – Luke 23-34

The rarer action is in virtue than in vengeance – Francis Bacon

— End —

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KINDNESS: Seven Anecdotes and Quotations

mockingbirdstamp

Article No.2010

Written by London swaminathan

Swami_48@yahoo.com

Date : 22  July 2015

Time uploaded in London : 19-27

“The soul of love must live within,

Or bodies are but bone and skin” (Tirukkural 80)

“What is righteousness sans kindness?”

“Ko Dharmah krpyaa vinaa”

“Righteousness springs from compassion”

Dayaamuulo mato dharmah –(Sanskrit Sayings)

1.Euthanasia practised by Mocking Bird!

XXX Archibald Rutledge tells this story: “When I was a boy in Carolina (USA), I was cured forever of caging wild things. Not content with hearing mocking birds (birds which mimics the sounds of other birds and insects) sing from the cedar, I determined to cage a young one, and thus a young musician all my own. On the second day in the cage, he saw his mother fly to him with food in her bill. This attention pleased me for surely the mother knew how to feed her child better than I did. The following morning my pathetic little captive was dead. When I recounted this experience to Arthur Wayne, the renowned ornithologist, he said ’A mother mocking- bird, finding her young in a cage, will sometimes take it poison berries she thinks it better for one she loves to die rather than to live in captivity,”.

Mockingbird,_

2.Abraham Lincoln

U.S. President Abraham Lincoln once dropped a few kind words about the confederates (his opponents). A woman flashed forth a question of how he could speak kindly of his enemies when he should rather destroy them.

“What, Madam, do I not destroy them when I make them my friends?”

XXX

3.Brahms’ Kindness

Never was a famous composer kinder than Brahms to his young colleagues – where he found genuine talent. With might and main he urged Simrock to publish the works of Knorr, Roentgen, Fuchs and Novak. He rescued Dvorak from the direst poverty, made Simrock bring out the Slavonic Dances, and helped them to their wide success. Twice he begged Dvorac, with all his heart, to consider the Brahmsian fortune as his own. And when he learned that the Bohemian was a most incompetent proof reader, he himself actually assumed the hard work of correcting all his friend’s proofs.

XXX

4.Roadside Artist given recognition

The despised and rejected often found in this great-hearted man (Brahms) a ready ally. Widman tells how, one night under the arcades of Bologna (Italy), Brahms enthusiastically a deaf-and-dumb sidewalk artist who had drawn in the flags a portrait of Cavour (Italian statesman).” A plate stood nearby into which one could throw a coin which one might feel like offering to such art of the highways. But there was a new surprise when the coin, ringing on the hard stone, showed that the plate was not a real one but a well and truly drawn imitation. Brahms could not find words enough to praise this fine idea of the poor artist. And his offering showed how deeply he was moved by the learning that in this gifted race, even the street beggar knew how to cover his nakedness with a corner of the hem of Art’s sumptuous robe.”

brahms

XXX

5.Kindness taken for Granted!

A kindly passer- by assisted small boy in pushing a heavily loaded cart up a long, steep hill. Reaching the top, and at last getting his wind back, he said indignantly, “Only a scoundrel would expect a youngster to do a job like that! Your employer should have known it was too heavy for you.”

“He did”, replied the boy, “but he said, ‘Go on, you are sure to find some old fool who will help you up the hill.”

XXX

6.Kindness towards Trees

The sentiment of “Woodman, spare that tree”, is carried out on an extensive scale by the screen actor, Edward Everett Horton. He has a large ranch which he has converted into an “Old Tree Home.” Whenever he discovers a beautiful oak, maple, or elm condemned to be cut down to make way for highways or buildings, he purchases it and has it removed to his sanctuary for unwanted trees.

7.Tamils’ Kindness to Plants and Animals

This reminds of the famous Tamil philanthropist and chieftain Pari. He gave his chariot to a jasmine climber, seeing that it has no supporting tree nearby.

Another Tamil Chieftain Bekan gave his valuable shawl to a dancing peacock thinking that it was shivering in cold.

Sibi, a king of North West India, gave flesh from his body to an eagle just to save a dove it was chasing. This is reported in Sangam literature and Sanskrit literature.

mayil quite

Quotations

“God’s justice, as the solar blaze

Shrivels the worm, the loveless slays (Tirukkural 77)

The homes for love that find no room,

Like withered trees in deserts bloom – (78)

The heart the labouring limbs must move,

Or vain the outward life will prove (79)

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by Tamil and Vedas on July 22, 2015  •  Permalink
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Kalidasa’s Famous Quotations

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Indian Postal Stamps on Kalidasa’s works

Compiled by London swaminathan

Article No.1921; Dated 9 June 2015.

Uploaded at London time: 20-51

I give power and knowledge to him I love;

In invest him with Holy Power;

I make him a sage, a seer— Rig Veda 10-125-5

Kalidasa is one of the greatest poets of India. He is the most famous poet of ancient India. He has used over 1000 apt similes in his seven works. And there are quotations in his works which are used by the Sanskrit knowing general public in their every day conversations; his seven works are

POEMS

1)Meghadutam (MES)

2)Rtusamharam (RTS)

3)Kumarasambhavam (KS)

PLAYS

4)Malavikagnimitram (MA)

5)Vikramorvasiyam (VU)

6)Abhijnana sakuntalam (AS)

EPIC

7)Raghuvamsam (RV)

He is a dramatist, a writer of epic and a lyric poet of extraordinary scope. In his hands the language attained a remarkable flexibility, becoming an instrument capable sounding any moods and nuances of feeling – says Chandra Rajan in her book Kalidasa- The Loom of Time.

Here are twenty five of his quotations (source Suktisudha published by Chinmaya International Foundation):

kalidas-encyclopedia

Excess Affection

Deep affection often hits upon the specific remedy (VU)

Ati snehah khalu kaaryadarsi

Excessive affection suspects that evil will happen (to loved ones)

Ati snehah paapasanki (AS 4)

Authority / Power

The office of the government knows no rest (AS.5)

Avisramoyam lokatantraadhikaarah

Thoughtlessness

Which heartless soul will sprinkle scalding water on the tender Navamallika creeper? (AS.4)

Ka idaaniimsnodakena Navamaalikaam sincati

Misfortune

Misfortune enters through a miniscule loophole in an uncompromising truth (AS.6)

Randhropanipaatinonarthaa iti yaducyate tadavyabhicaari

kalidas-cinema-song-book

Hope

Hope makes bearable even the intense sorrow of separation (AS.4)

Gurvapi virahaduhkhamaasaabandhah saahayati

Senses

The senses toe the line of fate (VU3)

Bhavitavyataanuvidhaayin indriyaani

God

None has understood the real nature of Lord Siva (KS 5-77)

Na santi yathaarthyavidah pinaakinah

Nectar turns into poison, and poison into nectar, if the Lord so choses (RV 8-46)

Visamapyamrtam kvacid bhavedamrtam vaa visamiisvarecchayaa

Daughter/ unmarried girl

A daughter is another’s wealth (AS 4-22)

Artho hi kanyaa parakiiya eva

The daughter wedded to a virtuous groom will never be a source of grief to her father (KS 6-79)

The girl should be given to a virtuous man (AS 4)

Gunavate kanyakaa pratipaadaniiyaa

Action/ work/ deed

Will not he who undertakes a futile task become a butt of ridicule? (MES 1-54)

Ke vaa na syuh paribhavapadam nisphalaarambhayatnaah

Efforts, when directed towards a meaningful end, bear fruit (RV 3-29)

Kriyaa hi vastupahitaa prasiidati

A spirit tired by toil gets refreshed by reward (KS 5-86)

Klesah phalena hi punarnavataam vidhatte

kali2

Russian stamp to honour Kalidasa

Love/ desire

The desirous are self-centred (AS 2-2)

Kami svataam pasyati

Time

Requests submitted to bosses by the proficient at the opportune time will surely be granted (KS 7-93)

Kaalaprayuktaa khalu kaarya vidbhir vijnaapanaa bhartrsu siddhimeti

Anger

What else can scorch better than fire? (AS 4)

Ko nyo hutavhaaddagdhum prabavati

Warrior caste

All the exertion of warriors is to safeguard dharma (RV 15-4)

Dharmasamraksanaayaiva pravrttirbhuvi saarnginah

Virtue

Virtues are set foot everywhere (RV 3-62)

Padam hi sarvatra gunairnidhiiyate

The creator is averse to bringing together a totality of positives in a single soul – (KS 3-28)

Praayena saamagryavidhau gunaanaam paraanmukhi visvasrjah pravrttih

Guru /spiritual teacher

Question not the preceptor’s precepts (RV 14-46)

Aajnaa guruunaam hyavicaaraniiyaa

 

Senseless

The numb at heart do not recognise virtue (AS 6-13)

Acetanam naama gunam na laksayet

Factual knowledge

Fie on the transience of the lives of men (RV 8-51)

Dhigimaam dehabhrtaamasaarataam

Fear

Place a wreath on a blind man’s brows and he tears it off, fearing it to be a snake (AS 7-24).

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by Tamil and Vedas on June 9, 2015  •  Permalink
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Stories and Quotes on Fate and Free will

woman-crossroads

Article written by S Nagarajan

Research article No.1467; Dated 8th December 2014.

Fate and Free will – Part VII
Santhanam Nagarajan

Bhartruhari – the famous king turned saint has sung categorically thus
(in his famous Niti Sathakam meaning 100 verses on morals):

“Whether dive in the ocean or ascend the Samairoo hills, get victory over the enemy in the field of battle, engage in husbandry, trade or service, soar high in heaven like birds, what is not destined would never happen and whatever happen cannot be undone.”

To illustrate his point, he has given an example also in another verse:
“A serpent, not experiencing to live long and being confined in a basket, was in great bodily trouble and out of hunger all his organs had become loose. A mouse, having made a hole in the said basket, fell into the mouth of that serpent, who, being satisfied with its flesh, escaped through that hole. Now, you may observe that in prosperity and adversity, God is the cause of causes.”

But at the same time, like Thiruvalluvar, the Tamil poet, Bartruhari also says:
“Laziness is a great enemy of mankind. There is no kinsman better than one’s own efforts, from the performance of which all troubles are removed.”

Hence, even fate is all powerful; one has to make his best efforts at all times.
Similar views are expressed in ‘The Bustan of Sadi’.

We can read some of the stories:
A poor man dropped a dinar in the road. He searched much, but at last, despairing, abandoned the attempt.
Someone came along and found the coin by chance.

Good and ill fortunes are predestined. Our daily portion depends not upon our strength and efforts, for those who are strongest and strive the most stands often in the direst need.

free will
One more story:

A darwesh remarked to his wife, who was of ill-favored countenance: “Since Fate has made thee ugly, do not encrust thy face with cosmetic.”

Who can attain good fortune by force? Who, with collyrium, can make the blind to see?

Not one among the philosophers of Greece or Rome could produce honey from the thorn.

Wild beasts cannot become men; education is wasted upon them.

A mirror can be freed from stain, but it cannot be made from a stone.

Roses do not blossom on the branches of the willow; hot baths never yet made an Ethiop while.

Since one cannot escape the arrows of Fate, resignation is the only shield.

The wisdom of east strongly favours Fate. But at the same time it advise us to work

(Note: Niti Sathakam: three verses -English translation by: Mr Sohan Lal
The Bustan of Sadi: two stories – English translation by Mr A. Hart Edwards)
We will analyze further.

******************
fate2

Mother of Aurobindo Ashram’s View on Fate
Fate and Free will – Part VIII
Santhanam Nagarajan

The Mother of Sri Aurobindo Ashram has clearly defined destiny.

Who is Mother? Originally named Mirra Alfassa, the Mother was born in Paris on 21st February 1878. Between 11 and 13 a series of psychic and spiritual experiences revealed to her not only the existence of God but man’s possibility of uniting with Him, of realizing Him integrally in consciousness and action, of manifesting Him upon earth in a life divine.

At the age of thirty-six the Mother journeyed to Pondicherry, India, to meet Sri Aurobindo. She saw him on 29th March 1914 and at once recognized him as the one who for many years had inwardly been guiding her spiritual development. She went back to Paris and returned to Pondicherry on 24th April 1920 to resume her collaboration with Sri Aurobindo, and remained there for the rest of her life.

She worked for 50 years in Aurobindo Ashram and left her body on 17th November 1973 at the age of ninety five. In her spiritual charged life she had touched all spiritual subjects and advised the ardent seekers of Truth about all spiritual matters. She explains the destiny as follows:
“I shall give you a simple example – but it may occur in any state of consciousness.

A stone falls. If it fulfills its destiny, it will fall to the ground, won’t it? But you are there and you have a vital or mental will – one or the other – and you catch the stone in your hand. You have changed the destiny of the stone. A leaf falls to the ground if it follows its normal destiny. You have a vital will; you take the leaf in your hand. You have changed the destiny of the leaf. This happens millions of times in the universe and nobody notices it because it is so common.

But imagine that you have a very high range of consciousness. If into the determinism down here you can bring by aspiration, an urge, a prayer, a higher consciousness, if you can take hold of your higher consciousness, so to say, and bring it into the material destiny. Everything would immediately be changed. But because you do not see or understand what is happening, you say that it is chance or a miracle.

Not every destiny is active in a material destiny, and if you want to change this material destiny, you must be able to bring down another one from above. In this way, something new will enter into it – these “descents” of the higher consciousness take place all the time, but because we do not understand them, this ‘something new’ that comes is turned by ordinary people into a miracle.”

Bringing down the Supramental force and consciousness into the physical and material world, everything will be changed in an absolutely unexpected way.

Thus material destiny could be changed and you have to work hard to bring down another one from above.

Great sages and saints agree that by Divine Grace the destiny can be changed, altered, modified, eliminated.

Fate and Freewill series is written by S Nagarajan. To be continued…………..

contact swami_48@yahoo.com

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