Just as the holy Ganga flows incessently towards the ocean, if all our thoughts can flow towards God, that is bhakti.
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Bhakti, or devotion means to sit close to God. For this we must repeatedly think, "Shree Krishna is mine and I am His." ***********
Although God is Almighty, He has His rule of love, which allows the devotees to come close to Him. ************
God
says whichever devotee loves Him to whatever extent, God too will
love that devotee to the same extent in the same sentiment.
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The mind is made of the material energy, Maya, so it is naturally attracted to the world. But effort has to be made to attach it to God.
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The process of Karmyog is to attach your mind to God and Guru, while using the body to perform your worldly duties. These
tweets were sent by Swamiji from his Twitter account, to remind us of
the eternal spiritual principles, as taught by Jagadguru Shree
Kripaluji Maharaj.
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Announcements Have you visited JKYog video library? You can select a lecture or bhajan of your choice from various playlists. Visit JKYog Video Library ********* Inauguration of JKyog and Bal-Mukund Center on Jan 9th!
Children's Classes, Yoga Classes, and Satsang
Valley Ranch/Irving, Texas Click here for details Bal-Mukund is looking for teachers/volunteers. If interested, please contact info@bal-mukund.org *********
Swamiji's lecture on the topic, "Synthesis of Spirituality & Materialism" given at the University of Illinois at Chicago is added to JKYog Video Library.
View Lecture
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Did You Know? Receive Daily Inspirations You can receive inspiring messages from Swamiji himself by configuring your mobile on Twitter.
Steps to Configure Your Mobile **********
Become Swamiji's Friend Stay connected, get the latest updates on Swamiji, JKYog events and much more on Facebook. ********** Watch Swamiji's Lectures Watch Swamiji's Lectures, Yog & Meditation, and melodious Kirtans on our Youtube channel.
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Current News JKY News
Swamiji
is currently in Cuttack. Hundreds of devotees eagerly waited to
meet and have darshan of Swamiji after a very long time. He will
spend two months in Orissa. A special satsang with Swamiji is
held every evening in the Cuttack Ashram. Devotees participate in
the satsang and chant the sweet keertans and pads sang by Swamiji. Highlight of this session is the explanations of the pads done by Swamiji himself everyday.
Swamiji
visited various centers of Orissa in his short tour of 5 days. He
covered Phulbani, Baudh, Sambalpur, and Bhavanipatna. Swamiji
will visit more centers during the next month.
View Tour Photos
On Dec 19th, Swamiji inaugurated a charitable homeopathic clinic, which will be opened everyday in the Cuttack Ashram.
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The Editor Jagadguru Kripaluji Yog
XVII/3305, 1st Floor, Ranjit Nagar, Near PUSA, New Delhi - 110008 India
7405 Stoney Point Dr Plano, TX 75025 USA
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Welcome to the Jagadguru Kripaluji Yog e-Magazine
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How to recognize a true Saint by Jagadguru Shree Kripaluji Maharaj
Continuing from the last edition....
Now we will discuss some direct evidences and notable specialties of a Mahapurush,
or a true Saint. In recognizing a true Saint, we should be very
careful regarding a few things. For example, a genuine Saint does
not grant any kind of material objects to people.
A Mahapurush never
gives worldly things to people. This is a very important point to
think carefully. In the world, cheaters play a fake act of
granting material gains, like wealth, son, etc. to take advantage of
people. In the material realm, ninety percent of the people
desire worldly things. These desires are often fulfilled by
people's own prarabdh, or destiny. When people visit a
fake saint and wish for a material thing, if that desire is fulfilled,
people think that it was due to the blessing they received from that
saint.
Just
imagine, a Saint who understands the transitory nature of the world and
has attained God, why will he give material things to people? If
he does that, then is he a Mahapurush or a demon? Not
even God can grant a person worldly gains, if it is not destined for
him. In Mahabharat, Abhimanyu's uncle was God Shree Krishna
Himself, his father was the great Saint, Arjun, and the person who
conducted his marriage was God Ved Vyas. Yet, they could not save
him from being killed in the battle. Then how can a saint change
the destiny of an ordinary person? In our country, there is
always a story of a so-called saint who has made the impossible
possible. Just imagine, if this kind of a thing would happen,
then everybody in this world would have attained the Divine bliss of
God. That so-called saint who claims to make the impossible
possible would only have to wish it, and all souls would be released
from Maya. However, even a God-realized Saint cannot make a resolution that souls attain God and be liberated from Maya.
The Saints are ready to take physical and mental abuses from the world,
then why haven't they graced us spiritually? It is said in
Mahabharat:
nābhuktaṁ kṣīyate karm kalpakoṭi śhatairapi
"Even
the great personalities have to experience what is written in their
destiny." Then how can we expect Saints to change our destiny
just by their blessings. And if someone pretends to do so, that
person is not a genuine Saint.
However some people argue that a Mahapurush is: par upakār vachan man kāyā.
According to Ramayan, God is causelessly merciful, and desires
the welfare of others. So, if He fulfills their material desires
then what is wrong in it? Yes, it is true that sometimes God and
Saints break their rules and grant material things to devotees, but
history bears the fact that this was only for people who surrendered
completely to God. It was for just a few of them. Secondly,
even if a Saint or God grants some worldly thing with a special
intention, he also gives the soul a special power so that the soul does
not get attached to that thing.
According to the Saints, while practicing devotion, we should keep
contact with the world only to the extent that is necessary for the
survival of this body. This is for the
reason that, our mind does not get entangled with the material world,
and can concentrate on God freely and easily. Kunti also asked
for this wish from God, "O Shree Krishna! Give me sorrow and pain, so
that due to the lack of material pleasures, I can chant Your glories.
The second point to note carefully is that a Mahapurush never reveals any miracles or displays any siddhis, or supernatural powers. We get into the trap of fake saints who perform miracles of a material nature.
There are mainly five types of siddhis. The lowest of all is called as tāmas siddhi. This power is practiced by the lowest kind of people and the result of performing this siddhi is hell.
The second kind of siddhi is rājas siddhi. This type of siddhi is exercised by people to protect themselves. This siddhi also keeps you within the bondage of Maya.
The third siddhi is sātvik siddhi. It contains siddhis such as: aṇimā, laghimā, garīmā, prākāmyā, and others. With these siddhis,
a person can come to know the thoughts of other people, can take many
forms of body, can become invisible, and can perform many impossible
tasks. We might be fooled into considering this kind of a person
to be God. However, we should stay a thousand miles away from
such kind of people because they are still under the domination of Maya. Hence, if they are not able to free themselves from the clutches of Maya, how can they do welfare for others?
The fourth siddhi is spiritual siddhi, which is called mukti, or liberation. A person who acquires this siddhi gets liberated from the bondage of Maya, but with this siddhi,
our own personality or individuality gets destroyed. Just like a
river, which flows into the sea and loses its identity, in the same
way, we will always be deprived of the Divine Love Bliss of God.
So, we should be very cautious with this kind of siddhi. The great spiritual teachers have referred mukti as a witch:
bhukti mukti spṛihā yāvat piśhāchī hṛidi vartate |
tāvad bhakti sukhasyātra kathambhyudayo bhavet ||
"As long as bhukti, or worldly desires up to the attainment of Brahmalok, and mukti, or
the desire for liberation, resides in our heart, until then, devotion
can never enter our hearts." Therefore, those who are
intelligent, reject this siddhi too.
as vichārī je param sayāne mukti nirādari bhakti lubhāne (Ramayan)
The fifth siddhi is Divine Love, which is the ultimate attainment. In this kind of siddhi,
a person not only gets freedom from material bondage, but also relishes
the ultimate Bliss of Divine Love and receives it till eternity.
You must have understood by now that we should be very alert and careful with the four siddhis and make attainment of the fifth siddhi
as our goal of life, which is the attainment of Divine Love. We
should be far away from the person who performs miracles otherwise we
would drift away from our aim of life.
Generally,
people have a fear that a saint may curse them. But this is
against the kindhearted nature of a Saint. We will now discuss
how soft a Saint's heart is.
To be continued in the next edition.....
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Secrets of Spiritual Sadhana by Swami Mukundananda
Continuing from the last month...shvās jab khīṁcho to 'rā' kahu manahiṁ man te pyāre śhvās chhoṛo to kahahu 'dhe' dhyān bhī karu pyāre
Some
people have a question: How should one constantly contemplate upon
God? Here, Shree Kripaluji Maharaj discloses a secret. He
tells us to chant the Divine name of God with every breathe that we
take. Our mind needs a base to which it can get attached.
Otherwise, how will you attach your mind? So the solution is to
firstly, chant His Divine name. When you chant His name, your
mind will naturally think about God. So, chanting of God's name
is a very good means of absorbing your mind in God. Besides
chanting, you can also visualize and meditate upon the Divine form of
God. The third point is to think and sing the glories of God's
qualities. He is the friend of humble souls and purifier of
sinners; He is the ocean of mercy and Grace, more beautiful than
infinite cupids. He is the soul of our soul. By
contemplating upon these qualities of God, we should divert our mind
towards Him. You should think about the leelas,
or pastimes of God - He is sitting, we are fanning Him while He rests,
He is sitting on a swing, etc. You can imagine any leela of God as per your wish and meditate upon it. In addition to the leelas,
think of His Divine abodes. If you are unable to concentrate upon
God then you can think about Vrindavan. Think that the tree
nearby is a Divine tree from Vrindavan. From every leaf, the
sound of chanting of 'Radhey Radhey' is emanating. Or,
you can meditate on the form of the Guru. The main point we have
to remember is that God has infinite Names, infinite Forms, infinite
Attributes, infinite Pastimes, and infinite Associates, and that are
all one. They all reside within each other. Therefore,
God's Divine Names, Forms, Pastimes, Abodes, Qualities, and Associates,
all belong to the Divine realm of God. By meditating on any of
these areas, your devotion is strengthened. This is the
foundation for practicing devotion. If you attach your mind to
any of these Divine attributes, it is Divine and you will get the
Divine result. bhakti bhakt bhagavant guru chaturnām vapu ek | True Saints have blessed us with a huge treasure of devotion. They write and compose keertans. In these keertans, they have described God's infinite Names, Forms, Pastimes, Qualities, and Abodes. Devotees sing and chant these keertans,
and with the help of these Names, Qualities, Abodes, and Pastimes, the
Saints shower their love for God. Jagadguru Shree Kripaluji
Maharaj has written many keertans. Surdas, Tulsidas, Meera, Jaidev, Saint Tukaram, have composed many keertans
and mentioned about God's Divine Name, Pastimes, Qualities and
Abodes. They have left a vast treasure for the future
generations. Surdas and Meerabai came to this world 500 years
ago, and wrote so many keertans. Since 500 years, the devotees have been singing these keertans and kept increasing their love for God. That is why during the lifetime and descension period of a Mahapurush,
very few devotees realize the importance and value of his
appearance. There is also less preaching about the teaching of
that Mahapurush during the descension period, as compared to the wide preaching afterwards. In every keertan
of Shree Kripaluji Maharaj lies a treasure which is precious. He
says, "People are not aware what I have written in the 1008 pads of
Prem Ras Madira. When the propagation of these pads will happen,
then people will specially learn Hindi language just to read and
understand them, and immerse themselves in devotion."Hence,
the Divine Names, Qualities, Pastimes, Abodes, and Forms, are all the
basis of practicing devotion. Amongst all, the easiest one is
God's name. Chaitanya Mahaprabhuji said: bhajaner śhreṣhṭh navadhā bhakti |
tār madhye sarvaṣhreṣhṭh nām saṁkīrtan || In Navadha Bhakti, the best is chanting the glories of God, or singing keertans. khāite suite yathā tathā nām leya | While
eating, drinking, sitting, standing, or doing any daily work, chant the
name of God. Keep doing your work alongside and keep chanting the
Divine name of God. This method will elevate you
spiritually. Lord Ram descended in this world in Tretayug, and lived for 11000 years. In those years, He benefited only a few souls. But He left the Divine name "Ram". By just uttering the name, many people benefited themselves spiritually. Thus, Tulsidas ji writes: rām ek tāpas tiya tārī | nām koṭi khal kumati sudhārī || "Just
look at the wonders of Lord Ram's Name. Ram descended to this
world and graced only soul, Ahilya. But His name, "Ram" is the
most amazing thing. It has provided spiritual benefit to millions
of people and gave them Divine knowledge. So, the Divine name of
God is a very powerful way. There is another specialty of the
Divine name. What is it? To be continued in the next edition.......
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Happy Birthday Dearest Swamiji!! Swamiji's Golden Jubilee Birthday Celebrations!!
In
many centers of India, Swamiji's birthday, which was on Dec 19th,
was spontaneously celebrated with full zeal and enthusiasm. In
the Cuttack Ashram, hundreds of devotees from across Orissa gathered to
celebrate his birthday. A grand function was organized by the
devotees of the ashram. The ashram was decorated with flowers and
lights. The premises were filled with devotees waiting for their
chance to wish Swamiji on this special occasion.
View Program Photos
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Special e-card from JKYog devotees,
Bal-Mukund Plano, Connecticut, and Maryland
In various centers of USA, devotees wished and celebrated Swamiji's birthday by chanting keertans. Bal-Mukund children from all the centers wished Swamiji and wrote poems and birthday messages on this special occasion.
Click here to view contributions from:
Bal-Mukund Plano
Bal-Mukund Connecticut
Bal-Mukund Maryland
Plano devotees
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Question: If
someone is facing problems (himself/ herself) or a family member (or
loved one) is suffering or in trouble, or someone close to you is being
mistreated or victimized and you have done your level best to resolve
it or get justice with no positive results, then should you make more
efforts or leave it to God. Like many people says "Jaisee Hari ki iccha".
Now remember the same person who is in trouble is not because of
his/her own fault and is honest and always helped you and everyone and
let's say now it is your turn and it is your utmost duty to help that
person but you are expressing that you are helpless. Then what is
your duty now? Should you leave it to God and feel that now you
have peace. And how can you concentrate in your sadhna or bhakti, or Meditation?
Answer: As
long as we are in material bondage, we cannot hope to be totally free
from misery. We will all grow old, we will all become sick, and
we will all die one day. Who can escape these realities of life? Besides this, we all have sanchit karmas
(the karmas of endless past lives) that create suffering and happiness
for us from time-to-time. Not even God violates this law of karma. The Puranas tell us that the Pandavas suffered immensely, even though they were great devotees of Shree Krishna.King
Dashrath passed away from the world leaving Kaushalya a widow.
They were the parents of God Ram, and yet He did not interfere to
remove their miseries. As human beings, we are instructed by the
scriptures to help others, and endeavour to mitigate their sufferings.
But we must do it in a detached manner, and leave the results to
God. How do we know, after all, that God is not giving them
suffering for their wellbeing? The "Bhagavatam" states:
tam bharanshayami sampadbhyo yasya chechya manugraham.
Here
God says, "When I wish to bestow the highest treasure of Divine Love
upon someone, I first prepare the soul by giving suffering." The
Bible states: "God sometimes gives misery in our lives, to turn us away
from sin, and seek eternal life." At
the level of our thinking, material suffering is bad, but in the Divine
plan, it may be necessary for the evolution of the soul.When
we wish to do good to others, we think of removing their material
miseries. This is only a very partial and temporary solution -
you give food to a hungry person, and after six hours, he is hungry
again. I am not decrying the need for doing material charity to
society. But that is not the only kind of charity that exists.
The highest charity is to help someone attain love for God, and get out
of the cycle of life-and-death. The God-realized Saints engage in
this Divine charity. They remove the root cause of suffering of
the souls, which is forgetfulness of God. We are not so elevated
ourselves, as to engage in this Divine charity by ourselves. But
if we help the God- realized Saints in their work, effectively we
engage in the highest charitable work we possibly can.So,
if people are close to you, do try to alleviate their material
miseries. But at the same time, try to inspire them to strengthen
their relationship with God. And remember that your duty was
merely to put in your best efforts, and leave the results in the hands
of God. Therefore, if your sincere efforts to help them do not
yield results, do not be the least bit disturbed.
Swamiji answers selected questions related to Yog, Spirituality and Philosophy every month on our e-Magazine.
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Bal-Mukund Showcase
Bal-Mukund
welcomes all contributions of creative works from children in different
areas including poetry, moral stories, art work, etc.
Submission Guidelines ********* Bal-Mukund's Parents Testimonial
"As
I was telling you earlier, I have seen many positive changes in Devan
since we started attending Bal-Mukund in August. I'm amazed at
how much a 6-year-old can consider the lessons he is learning and make
the conscious decision to apply them. He asks so many
philosophical questions that I myself didn't ponder until I was much
older. He looks forward to Bal-Mukund and proudly tells people
that he goes to "Sunday School." His teacher shared a story with
me that exemplifies Devan's confidence in his strengthened
values. There is a boy that in Devan's class who has
some serious behavioral issues. The other children have begun to
treat him poorly and keep their distance from him. When the
children were asked to work in cooperative groups recently, one
girl said she didn't want to sit next to that child. The
teacher overheard Devan telling the girl that she needed to be
respectful of that boy's feelings. Devan then said, "I'm going to
sit next to him so that he doesn't feel lonely." Devan has always
had a huge heart, but I know the lessons he's learned at
Bal-Mukund gave him the courage to do the right
thing when he witnessed an injustice. I am grateful
for everything that Bal-Mukund is doing for my entire family."
- Surekha Madadi
********** Festivals of India Sharat Poornima
Sharat
Poornima, is a festival celebrating the onset of winter, under the
cooling rays of the full moon. It brings a respite from the heat
and humidity of the summer and monsoon that have preceded it, and
promises pleasant days ahead. This festival is celebrated on the
full moon day in the Hindu month of Ashwin (September - October).
Origin
Sharat
Poornima is the full moon night when the gopies danced in the "Raas
Leela" with Shree Krishna. The Raas Leela was Shree Krishna's
most famous leela (pastime), which began with Him playing the flute on
the full-moon night of Sharat Poornima. Shree Krishna took as many
forms as there were gopies, and danced with every one of them.
Each of the gopies was devoted to Shree Krishna, and He graced them by
showering Divine bliss on them. Many Krishna devotees consider
Sharat Poornima as the highest of all festivals, since it was on this
day that God showered the highest Bliss of Divine love on His most
loving devotees.
It
was on the cool night of Sharat Poornima in the year 1922 that our
beloved Jagadguru Shree Kripaluji Maharaj appeared in a small and
remote village called Mangarh in Pratapgarh district of Uttar Pradesh,
in India.
In
Maharashtra, it is believed that Goddess Lakshmi walks around all night
asking "Ko jagarti?" (Who is awake?). Thus, this night is
called "Kojagiri Poornima."
Celebrations
The
grandest celebrations are in those parts of the country associated with
the Divine pastimes of Shree Krishna - Mathura, Brindavan and
Braj. People spend the day fasting and praying, and stay awake
the whole night in remembrance of the Lord.
In Maharashtra, Prayers are offered to Goddess Lakshmi, asking her to bless them with prosperity and good fortune.
In Orissa, it is the young girls who propitiate Lord Kartik on this day.
This festival is selected from the book,
Bal-Mukund Character Building Series-Festivals of India
A collection of 18 festivals celebrated across India, with beautiful pictures
A must have for all kids!
Get your collection of Bal-Mukund books TODAY!
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Trivia Time Celestial Gods and Goddesses
Lord Indra
Lord Indra is the king of celestial gods and Lord of Svargalok,
or Heaven. Indra is the god of thunder and rain. He heads
the Heaven and the celestial gods, such as Agni Dev, Varun Dev, and Surya Dev. In Hindu scriptures, the rainbow is called Indradhanush meaning the bow of Indra.
He is also the god of war. He is famous for the weapon, Vajra, the lighting bolt or thunder. He rides on Airavat, the white elephant.
During the descension period of Shree Krishna 5000 years ago, a very interesting leela
took place. Shree Krishna saw huge preparations for the annual
offering to Lord Indra and questioned his father Nanda about it.
He debated with the villagers about what their duty truly
was. They were farmers. They should do their duty and
concentrate on farming and protection of their cattle. He
continued to say that all human beings should do their karm, or
action, to the best of their ability. And their prayers should be
offered only to the Supreme Lord, not to any of the celestial
gods. Indra was a celestial god, not the Supreme Lord. They
should not worship him. Instead, they should worship Goverdhan
hill, who was the personification of Lord Vishnu Himself.
The villagers were convinced by Shree Krishna, and did not proceed with the special pooja,
or prayer. Indra was angered, and flooded the village.
Shree Krishna then lifted Govardhan Hill with his little finger
and held it up as protection to his people and cattle from the rain.
After seven days of continuously sending rain and yet being
unable to submerge the land of Braj, Indra realized his folly. He
came to Shree Krishna and begged to be forgiven.
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Jagadguru Kripaluji Yog Janu Shirshasan
Sit with your legs
outstretched. Bend your right knee and place the sole of the
right foot against the inside of the left thigh. Keep the right
knee on the floor. Keep your spine straight and place your palms
on top of the left knee. Inhale (Radhey) in this position. While exhaling (Shyam),
bend forward from the waist and try to grasp the left toe. Also, try to
touch the left knee from your forehead. In the final position,
try to place the elbows by the side of the calf on the floor.
While inhaling (Radhey), gently come back to the initial position.
Benefits
It tones and massages
the abdominal and pelvic region including pancreas, stomach, liver,
adrenal gland, spleen etc. It helps alleviate disorders of the
uro-genital system. It controls diabetes, menstruation troubles,
colitis, kidney troubles, bronchitis and eosinophilia.
Contra-indications
People with slipped disc and sciatica should not practice this asan.
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