Lord Krishna said: "If one offers Me with love and devotion a leaf, a flower, fruit or water, I will accept it." (Bhagavad Gita 9:26)


patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ
yo me bhaktyā prayacchati
tad ahaṁ bhakty-upahṛtam
aśnāmi prayatātmanaḥ

God does not care whether we know Mantras or whether we have knowledge of Sanskrit or Latin or Hebrew…

God is interested only in our sincere devotion.

Any prayer in any language in very simple words will do.

To say, one need to know rituals or mantras to pray to God is out right ridiculous.

Lord Krishna said the whole creation is his LEELA (Divine child play) and creation came from his Maya (illusion).

Since we are part and parcel of that Maya (illusion), it is not easy for us to comprehend this Maya (illusion).

Just like the “on” and “off” switches on a digital computer (BINARY CIRCUIT of zero and one ) make thousands of forms of "illusion" for all of us, through Maya, God is creating all the illusion again and again.

WHY? Nobody knows.

Lord Krishna tells his friend Arjuna:

“ Oh! Arjuna, in the beginning of time (Kalpa = 4.3 billion years) , through my Maya( illusion), I create everything and at the end of time (Kalpa =4.3 billion years), the whole creation merges in me. By my will the whole universe is created & annihilated again and again “


(Bhagavad Gita 9:7,8)

Spiritual Maturity will ONLY happen within us slowly and steadily....

It take years to achieve that.

Like a small sapling plant becoming a giant Banyan tree tree one day, even the worst among us will slowly change and become better and eventually attain spiritual maturity.


We have nothing to worry, except worry itself.

It is very difficult to describe how change comes, but that happens in the life of everyone.

ROME was not built in a day.
Neither U and I.

But we can be assured a completely change will happen within all of us and we will attain spiritual maturity
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It is ordinary human beings like you and I slowly becoming yogis one day and as such everyone will go through the transformation I described.
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It is a glutton worm that one day becomes a beautiful butterfly. Similarly, it is a person who is the most materialistic one day becomes a YOGI.

Sin only means KARMIC DEBT. No Hindu will say "I am a sinner" since sin in Hinduism means “Ignorance of the truth that one is the immortal soul within the body (Atman) and not the perishable material body.”

Lord Krishna said:


“Even if you are the worst sinner in the world; You can still cross the ocean of Sin; By a bark of (Jnana) wisdom.

As the blazing fire burns wood to ashes, Arjuna, so does the fire of true knowledge (Jnana) which will burn all “karmic debt” to ashes.”


(Bhagavad Gita Chapter 4:36, 37)

No Hindu will ever say he or she is a Sinner.

No Guru will ever discuss about SIN since Sin is not important in Hindu scriptures.

Whatever the situation, don't give in to stress: Lord Krishna said:
“Arjuna, everything comes and goes in life. Happiness and unhappiness are temporary experiences that rise from sense perception. Heat and cold, pleasure and pain will come and go. They never last forever. So, do not get attached to them.”


(Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2:14)



We are in a rat race of endless, self-defeating, and pointless pursuit.

So, these words of Lord Krishna have a lot of importance today

We have to get rid our self of excessive worry.

Excessive worry will result in HEART ATTACKS and in STROKES.

Why do Hindu scriptures give utmost importance to ASHRAMAS and ASHRAMA DHARMA?

Because ASHRAMAS were developed by RISHIS in tune with the physical and mental development of a human being.

Ashramas are the stages of life which provide training and environment for realizing the ideal of our life.

There are four ashramas in all:

Brahmacharya (student life),
Garhasthya (family life),
Vanaprastha (retired life), and
Sannyasa (life of renunciation).

Nobody is allowed to JUMP any ashramas.

Even Adi Sankara and Suka Maharishi were FORCED to marry and go through GRAHASTHYA ashrama, even though they did not.

All the money 💰 in the world 🌎 will not make U happy.

All the pretty 👧 girls in the world 🌎 won’t make U happy.

All the handsome 👦 boys in the world 🌎 won’t make U happy

True happiness only happen, when we becomes spiritual. 🙏

More materialistic we are, more we suffer.🙏

Objects and people will give us happiness but that happiness only temporary,🙏

By the way, learning to remain joyful throughout the day can have dramatic positive effects on body and mind.🙏

Status of women in Hinduism. Believe it or not, there are hymns in Rig Veda indicating very high status to women during Vedic age.

* Women were allowed to marry men of their choice through Swayamvara as well as enter in a living in relationship like Gandharva Vivaha.

* Many great women like Sati, Sita, Kunti, Panchali, Damayanti chose their husbands through Swayamvara.

* Girls were married only after attaining the age of maturity. During Rig Vedic times, women were treated with respect by men.

* Women Rishis in Vedas are called Rishikas .

* Some of the great women thinkers and writers during Vedic age are Gargi, Maitreyi ( one of two wives of the Vedic Rishi Yajnavalkya). Ghosha, Lopamudra, Sulabha. Gargi, composed several hymns that questioned the origin of all existence.

* Among many hymns in Rik Veda, at least 10 are accredited to Maitrei .

Coping with the death of a loved one is not at all easy. Anyone who is born will surely will die one day.

Anyone who is dead will be reborn unless that person has exhausted all his or her karmic debt.
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Lord Krishna said:


"Arjuna, birth and death are part and parcel of life... So please do not worry about them."
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Lord Krishna also said:

“ For the soul (Atman) there is neither birth nor death any time. Soul is unborn, eternal, everlasting and primeval. Soul is not slain when the body is slain.”

(BG 2:20)
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Lord Krishna said:

“One who has taken his birth is sure to die, and after death one is sure to take birth again. Therefore, in the unavoidable discharge of your duty, you should not lament."


( Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2.27)

What are the Hindu scriptures? Hindus have hundreds if not thousands of scriptures. According to Rishis , knowledge (Jnana) always existed in the form of sounds in the universe.


Thus knowledge (Jnana) started as SRUTI - that which is heard.


All Hindu scriptures were written in Sanskrit which is older than Hebrew and Latin.


The first words in English language came from Sanskrit.



The Rishis of ancient times, who had perfected themselves, heard eternal truths and they taught those truths to their disciples by telepathy and later disciples wrote them in books.


Hindu scriptures are broadly divided into two parts...

.

SRUTI:


That which is heard scriptures


Vedas and Upanishads.


SMRITI:


That which is remembered scriptures


Rest of the scriptures.

येषां त्वन्तगतं पापं जनानां पुण्यकर्मणाम्।
ते द्वन्द्वमोहनिर्मुक्ता भजन्ते मां दृढव्रता:॥ २८॥

परन्तु जिन पुण्यकर्मा मनुष्योंके पाप नष्ट हो गये हैं, वे द्वन्द्वमोहसे रहित हुए मनुष्य दृढ़व्रती होकर मेरा भजन करते हैं।


But those men of virtuous deeds, whose sins have come to an end, being freed from delusion in the shape of pairs of opposites born of attraction and repulsion, worship Me with a firm resolve in
every way. (7:28)

जरामरणमोक्षाय मामाश्रित्य यतन्ति ये।
ते ब्रह्म तद्विदु: कृत्स्नमध्यात्मं कर्म चाखिलम्॥ २९॥

साधिभूताधिदैवं मां साधियज्ञं च ये विदु:।
प्रयाणकालेऽपि च मां ते विदुर्युक्तचेतस:॥ ३०॥

जरामरण- वृद्धावस्था और मृत्युसे मुक्ति पानेके लिये जो मनुष्य मेरा आश्रय लेकर प्रयत्न करते हैं, वे उस ब्रह्मको, सम्पूर्ण अध्यात्मको और सम्पूर्ण कर्मको जान जाते हैं।
जो मनुष्य अधिभूत तथा अधिदैवके सहित और अधियज्ञके सहित मुझे जानते हैं, वे मुझमें लगे हुए चित्तवाले मनुष्य अन्तकालमें भी मुझे ही जानते हैं अर्थात् प्राप्त होते हैं।

They who, having taken refuge in Me, strive for deliverance from old age and death know Brahma (the Absolute), the whole Adhyatma (the totality of Jivas or embodied souls), and the entire
field of Karma (action) as well as My integral being, comprising Adhibhuta (the field of Matter), Adhidaiva (Brahma) and Adhiyajna (the unmanifest Divinity dwelling in the heart of all beings as their witness). And they who, possessed of a steadfast mind, know thus even at the hour of death, they too know Me alone. (7:29-30)

इच्छाद्वेषसमुत्थेन द्वन्द्वमोहेन भारत।
सर्वभूतानि सम्मोहं सर्गे यान्ति परन्तप॥ २७॥

कारण कि—  हे भरतवंशमें उत्पन्न शत्रुतापन अर्जुन! इच्छा (राग) और द्वेषसे उत्पन्न होनेवाले द्वन्द्व-मोहसे (मोहित) सम्पूर्ण प्राणी संसारमें (अनादिकालसे) मूढ़ताको अर्थात् जन्म-मरणको  प्राप्त हो रहे हैं।

O valiant Arjuna, through delusion in the shape of pairs of opposites (such as pleasure and pain etc.,) born of desire and aversion, all living creatures in this world are falling a prey to infatuation. (7:27)

अन्तकाले च मामेव स्मरन्मुक्त्वा कलेवरम्।
य: प्रयाति स मद्भावं याति नास्त्यत्र संशय:॥ ५॥

जो मनुष्य अन्तकालमें भी मेरा स्मरण करते हुए शरीर छोडक़र जाता है, वह मेरे स्वरूपको ही प्राप्त होता है, इसमें सन्देह नहीं है।

He who departs from the body, thinking of Me alone even at the time of death, attains My state;
there is no doubt about it. (8:5)