Sri Deva Sthanam

What is Vedanta?

Sun, 02 Mar 2014 09:10:33 +0000

Vedanta is a form of Hindu theology based on the combined interpretations of three sacred sources: 1. Upanishads 2. Bhagavad-gita 3. Vedanta-sutra In spite of what common opinion says, there is no such a thing as “thee” Vedanta theology. Instead there are widely divergent interpretations of Vedanta, all of which may be called Vedanta theologies. There are, however…

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What is a Guru?

Sun, 02 Mar 2014 09:08:54 +0000

The idea of a guru is a misunderstood concept within Hinduism. Literally, the word guru means “heavy”. Thus a guru is a person heavy in knowledge, a teacher. In this sense a school-teacher is a guru, a coach or athletic instructor is a guru, a fine-arts or even a dance teacher is a guru. One’s parents are also gurus. In the religious field, where the word is most commonly used, a guru is a Hindu…

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God in Hinduism

Sun, 02 Mar 2014 09:08:26 +0000

As surprising as it may seem, Hinduism has no one word “God” as English does. Instead, it has many words that each describe a certain understanding of God. This is something like in many Eskimo (Inuit) languages there is no one word for snow, instead there are many words, each describing snow in its various varieties, as wet, dry, iced, melting, slushy, and so many other forms that people who do…

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Non Harming: Ahimsa

Sun, 02 Mar 2014 09:08:00 +0000

There is a chilling reflection on the nature of life in the Bhagavata Purana: “Those who are devoid of hands are prey for those with hands; those devoid of legs are prey for those with legs. The weak are the life of the strong, for the rule holds: one living being is food for another.” Against this back drop of harsh reality, there is the principle of ahimsa, which Hinduism upholds as one of its…

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Liberation: Moksha/Mukti/Nirvana

Sun, 02 Mar 2014 09:06:03 +0000

In Hinduism the present life is considered to be the result of many lifetimes of past desires, actions and the results of those actions. The results of these previous actions are unfolding at every moment. Some actions are mature and bearing fruit at the present moment, other actions are laying as “seed” waiting to mature at a future time. All that we have done in the past creates who we are in…

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Action: Karma, Punya and Papa

Sun, 02 Mar 2014 09:05:33 +0000

Karma Karma is a frequently heard word that has entered many Western languages including English. The word karma comes from the Sanskrit root kri meaning “to do.” Karma is action, plain and simple, whether involuntary or voluntary. The beating of the heart, the breathing of the lungs, eating, walking, working, playing; all of these actions are karma. One also hears of good karma and bad karma…

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Hindu Caste: Varnashrama Dharma

Sun, 02 Mar 2014 09:05:11 +0000

The Varnas There is a famous verse from the Rig Veda entitled Purusha Sukta, which describes how this physical world emanates from the cosmic body of God, or according to another interpretation, how the physical world is the body of God. This hymn describes, for example, how the moon arises from the mind of God, how the sun comes from the eye of God, how the mountains are His bones…

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Voluntary Service: Seva

Sun, 02 Mar 2014 09:04:41 +0000

The word seva comes from the Sanskrit root, sev, meaning to “attend” or “to go towards.” Seva is generally understood to be “service” and mostly it is used in the context of religious service as in the case of a person doing Deity seva by bringing fruits and flower and bowing down before a form of God in a temple. Such seva is actually a form of bhakti-yoga. Another way to look at seva is simply…

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Fasting: Upavasana

Sun, 02 Mar 2014 09:04:15 +0000

Think of fasting as a “holiday” for the senses, a chance for the body to cool down from the constant bombardment of sensual simulation and a chance for it to slow down and catch its breath. Fasting is a kind of austerity (tapas), and like all austerities involves the voluntary stopping of contact between the senses and their sense objects. This may seem like an unusual way to think of fasting…

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Yoga and the Yogi

Sun, 02 Mar 2014 09:03:53 +0000

Today one hears of yoga everywhere. People go to yoga classes for exercise and weight reduction; people do yoga meditation to reduce stress and to help sleep at night; one even hears of a yoga diet. In his classical treatise on yoga, Patanjali, an ancient yoga master, defines yoga as, “stilling the movements of the mind” (citta-vritti-nirodha). So what does exercise, weight loss, diet…

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