Godmen is a derogatory word among the so-called Communist intellectuals in India and perhaps their cousins all over the world. One cannot blame anyone who truly believes in the absence of a superior logic to rubbish anything related to God. We should definitely respect true Communists, Marxists and Maoists when they ridicule God and Godmen based on their ideology. But then the question turns to the basis of their ideology itself. Communism has failed completely and what we are seeing in China, Russia and even among Indian Maoists are only dishonest and hypocritical attempts to push the secret agenda of a few in the name of Communism. We too had very many true Communists who were hardcore atheists in their younger days; but ultimately all of them failed in their pursuit and some of them even became prominent Godmen. So how can followers of a ideology that failed in the span of a century ridicule the rationality of our shastras that advocate Godmen and have survived many millennia. It is now proven that Man’s irresistible quest for a rational explanation about God cannot lead to anywhere else but to the spark of Godliness within him as demonstrated by many a Godmen.
The case of the two Semitic religions is no different when it comes to Godmen. Deriding the concept of Godmen has always been a prominent weapon of the two Semitic religions that are competing to convert the whole of India into their folds. Their foreign progenitors were inherently incapable of comprehending the Vedic signals from India that pointed to an all pervading logical entity that can be called God. Instead they believe in a God who lives in another world. All their techniques to convert the followers of Hindu Sanatana Dharma (PTBH) have an element that ridicules the concept of finding God within Man. The clever ones among missionaries and mullahs know that their own existence will be questioned if the truth of an all pervading entity finds any foothold among their followers who are trapped under an ideological slavery. They are hell bent on keeping God away from Man and operating their wholesale agency business. Little do they realize that the eternal truth shall always overcome the transient ones and the truth of Godmen shall be firmly established one day.
No Separate God
The concept of a separate God can hold water only when it is possible to provide proof for separate origins for God and others. Whatever little theology that could be built up by the followers of such religions has been completely shattered when Big Bang started seeing light of the day. So far prophets, messengers and godsons were having a good time formulating faiths with ulterior motives for domination and subjugation. Just the simple fact that their blinding books have many references to non-believers when their separate God is supposed to be all-powerful shows the hollowness of their claims. An omnipotent Creator should at least have the vision to refer to all humans as His followers. Instead the books containing His dictates’ are self-explanatory in revealing His diffidence and inabilities. How can any entity that cannot ensure that all ordinary humans believe and follow it be granted omnipotence? It is only as strong or weak as any of us are.
Another strong argument against the existence of a separate God is the present condition of human race in this universe after almost a dozen billion years of existence. There are religions and religions, each with a version of God of their own. Not all can be true. If any particular one is the real truth, all those who fully follow it should have succeeded in every respect by now. Extreme violence and misery in the Arab world, steady decadence of the Western world etc., points only to the lack of any substance in their beliefs of a separate God, which is all-powerful, compassionate and omnipresent. The utter failure of all Hindu schools in the past that advocated Dvaita and Visishta-Advaita in India also proves this point beyond any doubt. There is definitely a God but it cannot exist outside any of us. Like all forms of energy that needs storage or conductor, God is nothing but a logical energy that resides in each and every thing in this universe. It cannot have any human feelings like compassion, vengeance and benevolence as promised by the prophets and messengers.
Only Godmen & Godwomen
Where the concept of a separate God dies, the relevance of Godmen begins. Given the fact that God is present in all of us and that all of us are different, it is only natural to conclude that we all have different ‘quantities’ of God. The concept of Godmen (and Godwomen) comes in here. Divinity of the entire six billion people can be plotted in a graph and we are sure to come up with a clear bunch at the top. These are the people like Saibaba and Mata Amritanandamayi who have demonstrated their uniqueness without any doubt. A lot of us are confused between divinity and miracles. Most miracles remain inexplicable for those who consider it as miracles and it is not necessary to possess divinity to show miracles. A magician may be able to show it better. Divinity is nothing but the silent radiation of God energy. Even the most unbelieving will feel excited in the very presence of people like Ramana Maharshi, Saibaba and the Mata. I do not think anyone will demand proof for their positive divine capabilities when we compare their achievements to that of the rest among us.
Another equally important truth of evolution comes in here. In the broad spectrum of divinity pattern distributed among us there cannot be any doubt about the slow and steady process of spiritual evolution. Knowingly and unknowingly we are accumulating knowledge through our experiences. Those who have inborn qualities of radiating God energy and those who accumulate the same consciously during their lives go on to become Godmen. Many of their deeds and words point to only one thing – that they have much more of God energy than we have. The basic inequality of human beings is nothing but a reflection of the different levels of God within us. All other inequalities in terms of social, economical and even physical parameters can be altered. An individual’s divinity can be altered by only him (or her) and that too based on his (or her) individual efforts. The one and only way to realize the God within you (and become a Godman) is through strenuous hard work or prayers.
All of us have God within us, but to become accomplished Godmen there is the acid test of sustained acceptability. Many a Nityanandas and Premanandas have failed miserably in this regard. Truly accomplished Godmen in the past like Ramana Maharshi (www.ramana-maharshi.org) were highly indifferent to publicity. But the strength of divine signals emanating from such rare personalities not only overwhelmed the locals but followers from far and abroad. A list of devotees who fell for this seemingly unimpressive saint is truly astonishing. In contemporary times, the accomplishments & achievements of Mata Amritanandmayi (www.ammachi.org) and Saibaba (www.saibaba.org) need no further proof to establish their claims as genuine Godmen. Those among us who are wasting our time in failing to recognize their divinity are making the big mistake of searching for a non-existent separate God when Godmen are readily available in our midst.
Showing posts with label amritanandamayi. Show all posts
Showing posts with label amritanandamayi. Show all posts
Sunday, August 08, 2010
Monday, November 19, 2007
‘BHARAT RATNA’ MATA AMRITANANDAMAYI
To err is definitely human, but institutions must never err. One crucial mistake can make an important institution thoroughly meaningless and redundant. If Nobel Foundation was awarding only annual prizes for peace, it would have suffered such a fate. Luckily for everyone, they operate in other areas as well and that makes the institution still relevant. Their grave mistake lies in NOT awarding the Nobel Prize for Peace to the most eligible individual of all times viz. Mahatma Gandhi for ‘unknown’ reasons. Every year they try to wriggle out of the same embarrassment by flouting stories about Gandhiji being nominated many times but not being awarded due to the imperial pressure from British Raj. But the question still remains as to why they failed to do it in 1947 or immediately after that posthumously. To conclude that all White governments are essentially ‘colour-blind’ may not be a wrong conclusion even in this twenty-first century. Attitudes and current policies of countries like Australia strengthen only such arguments further.
A very similar situation is arising in our own country in the case of Padma and other civilian awards. The discretion of governments in power is no doubt important. But there are certain towering personalities who cannot be ignored by anyone in power. Turning a blind eye to such outstanding individuals will only make the selection process questionable and suspicious. Many a time we have seen highly popular governments in India (which comes to power once in a while) awarding the highest civilian award to certain unpardonable ‘misses’ and thereby trying to correct the so-called historical mistakes. But that is not enough. What needs to be done today must be done today and not after a few years. The country is doing a grave mistake (and ingratitude) if we are continuing to avoid conferring the highest civilian award ‘Bharat Ratna’ on living saints like Mata Amritanandamayi and Sathya Sai Baba. In many ways it is the least a grateful nation can do to its greatest living children.
Colonial Mentality
During colonial times awards are always given at the whims and fancies of the colonial establishments. More often it goes to those colonial citizens who have worked in favour of the colonial power than in the interests of their own motherlands. Times have changed in India after it has become world’s largest democracy but the attitude of those who comes to power by elections remains unchanged in many respects. The case of annual civilian awards is a classic one. The most important point often missed by the new periodic rulers is the transparency required in any selection process. It is not enough if there is majority liking within the elected group for deciding on awards and rewards. The majority mandate is only for wielding the reigns of power and not for deciding on the colour or pedigree of the horse to ride or even the path to take. All such decisions are always left to the open court of the people at all times.
In sharp contrast to colonial establishments, the civilian awards in a democratic society must be igniting a sense of pride in those who give it than in those who receive it. Any award is recognition for the immense efforts undertaken by individuals voluntarily. No true proponent of charity would wait for a reward or canvass for it behind the curtains. And no true servant of God would put conditions on the beneficiaries of their charity efforts. Some one who is willing to serve all (and hug all), irrespective of colour, race and religion is definitely almost near the one and only God, if not God itself in human form. And when the nation awards such individuals, it is the nation that is more honoured. In India today, everyone knows who deserves ‘Bharat Ratna’ most. And the elected establishment in power must implement that popular desire of millions of people.
Charity Monopoly
Thanks to the high publicity content in whatever Westerners do, charity worldwide has come to be associated with a few Western icons. Many people still have the feeling that if it is charity work, it has to be by the church. This feeling is not only nourished by their believers but also by a vast majority of other religionists as well. And if there is somebody who is taking an initiative in helping the poor and downtrodden, the foregone conclusion is that it will be a White lady of European origin. It is still difficult for our people with colonial frame of mind to recognize and accept a helping hand from our own midst. Many of our people are still stuck in the quicksand of Western publicity regarding their ‘charity monopoly’. But the fact of the matter is that charity or helping others is essentially an Eastern concept that had spiritual dimensions.
Charity is part and parcel of Indian civilization from time immemorial. But many Indians are still made to believe that charity came to Indian sub-continent in the form of some missionaries of charity. It was a clever but highly successful ploy of the missionaries that they could influence their cousins in power to grant official status for charity work only to their own institutions. That is why we find schools and hospitals doing charity work only in the name of a particular community. What their cousins did is understandable, but not what was done by our own Rajas and Maharajas. Thousands of acres of land and crores of rupees were given to such ‘monopolisers’ of charity in order to be in the good books of the British. The very sight of costly mansions in central locations all over India in the name of some such charity institutions is a stark reminder of the mistake made in granting official status to do service to humanity. What must be a voluntary noble work has been turned into a lucrative real-estate business by the missionaries.
In post-1947 India there are hardly any social, religious or political leaders who have touched the lives of so many millions of people than Mata Amritanandamayi and Sathya Sai Baba. The hospitals, schools and other institutions they have built up are reversing the negative destiny of thousands of people every day. Their activities have crossed borders, races and even religious barriers. The world has recognized them, but not our own elected establishment. It is already too late not to have conferred ‘Bharat Ratna’ on both these highly revered universal personalities who happened to be born in India. We should not miss the opportunity to show our gratitude and earn their blessings for the country as a whole.
A very similar situation is arising in our own country in the case of Padma and other civilian awards. The discretion of governments in power is no doubt important. But there are certain towering personalities who cannot be ignored by anyone in power. Turning a blind eye to such outstanding individuals will only make the selection process questionable and suspicious. Many a time we have seen highly popular governments in India (which comes to power once in a while) awarding the highest civilian award to certain unpardonable ‘misses’ and thereby trying to correct the so-called historical mistakes. But that is not enough. What needs to be done today must be done today and not after a few years. The country is doing a grave mistake (and ingratitude) if we are continuing to avoid conferring the highest civilian award ‘Bharat Ratna’ on living saints like Mata Amritanandamayi and Sathya Sai Baba. In many ways it is the least a grateful nation can do to its greatest living children.
Colonial Mentality
During colonial times awards are always given at the whims and fancies of the colonial establishments. More often it goes to those colonial citizens who have worked in favour of the colonial power than in the interests of their own motherlands. Times have changed in India after it has become world’s largest democracy but the attitude of those who comes to power by elections remains unchanged in many respects. The case of annual civilian awards is a classic one. The most important point often missed by the new periodic rulers is the transparency required in any selection process. It is not enough if there is majority liking within the elected group for deciding on awards and rewards. The majority mandate is only for wielding the reigns of power and not for deciding on the colour or pedigree of the horse to ride or even the path to take. All such decisions are always left to the open court of the people at all times.
In sharp contrast to colonial establishments, the civilian awards in a democratic society must be igniting a sense of pride in those who give it than in those who receive it. Any award is recognition for the immense efforts undertaken by individuals voluntarily. No true proponent of charity would wait for a reward or canvass for it behind the curtains. And no true servant of God would put conditions on the beneficiaries of their charity efforts. Some one who is willing to serve all (and hug all), irrespective of colour, race and religion is definitely almost near the one and only God, if not God itself in human form. And when the nation awards such individuals, it is the nation that is more honoured. In India today, everyone knows who deserves ‘Bharat Ratna’ most. And the elected establishment in power must implement that popular desire of millions of people.
Charity Monopoly
Thanks to the high publicity content in whatever Westerners do, charity worldwide has come to be associated with a few Western icons. Many people still have the feeling that if it is charity work, it has to be by the church. This feeling is not only nourished by their believers but also by a vast majority of other religionists as well. And if there is somebody who is taking an initiative in helping the poor and downtrodden, the foregone conclusion is that it will be a White lady of European origin. It is still difficult for our people with colonial frame of mind to recognize and accept a helping hand from our own midst. Many of our people are still stuck in the quicksand of Western publicity regarding their ‘charity monopoly’. But the fact of the matter is that charity or helping others is essentially an Eastern concept that had spiritual dimensions.
Charity is part and parcel of Indian civilization from time immemorial. But many Indians are still made to believe that charity came to Indian sub-continent in the form of some missionaries of charity. It was a clever but highly successful ploy of the missionaries that they could influence their cousins in power to grant official status for charity work only to their own institutions. That is why we find schools and hospitals doing charity work only in the name of a particular community. What their cousins did is understandable, but not what was done by our own Rajas and Maharajas. Thousands of acres of land and crores of rupees were given to such ‘monopolisers’ of charity in order to be in the good books of the British. The very sight of costly mansions in central locations all over India in the name of some such charity institutions is a stark reminder of the mistake made in granting official status to do service to humanity. What must be a voluntary noble work has been turned into a lucrative real-estate business by the missionaries.
In post-1947 India there are hardly any social, religious or political leaders who have touched the lives of so many millions of people than Mata Amritanandamayi and Sathya Sai Baba. The hospitals, schools and other institutions they have built up are reversing the negative destiny of thousands of people every day. Their activities have crossed borders, races and even religious barriers. The world has recognized them, but not our own elected establishment. It is already too late not to have conferred ‘Bharat Ratna’ on both these highly revered universal personalities who happened to be born in India. We should not miss the opportunity to show our gratitude and earn their blessings for the country as a whole.
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