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Lakshmikumar • February 10, 2002 


SrI:
SrImatE rAmAnujAya nama:
SrImatE SrI LakshmI-nrusimha divya pAdhukA sEvaka
SrIvan SaThakOpa 
SrI nArAyana yatIndra mahA dESikAya nama:

Dear Sow. B.Shoba,

namO nArAyaNa!

His Holiness The Jeeyar of SrI Ahobila mutt, SrImad
Azhagiya Singar in his book SrI Vishnu purAnam
(translation of SrI Vishnu purAna in Tamil) answers
your questions very clearly. This book (actually
printed in two volumes) enshrines so much precious
informatian ( presented in simple and easy Tamil for
everyone to understand)  that every SrI VaishnavA
needs to know and follow. aDiyEn requests you to buy
and read this great book. This book can ordered via
internet from http://www.ahobilamutt.org

aDiyEn will try to brief the relevent portion of the
book viz. Canto 2 Chapter 6 (pages 292 to 298 of
Volume I). Please excuse any errors in aDiyEn's free
translation of these excerpts. aDiyEn requests
bAgavathAs to correct any error in his translation.

---------

Partake food with others
------------------------

SrI Vishnu purAnam says that the one who eats any
tasty foodstuff alone (and the one one who does
'sAhasa' activities) attains a kind of naraka (hell)
called "bhUyavaham" (hope I spelled it correct!). This
is a place where one can not even stand for a second
because of the stench that's pervaded there. So, we
should eat any good food sharing with others.

Like this, there are many sinful activities that lead
one to many different kind of hells.

Sins and the ways of expiation
------------------------------

SrI Vishnu purAnAm also says that only the one, who
does not want to  
atone for / expiate his sins by doing
'prAyacchittams', goes to the hells. Like the sins,
the prAyachchittams also are many. According to the
gravity of sins, the prAyachchittam may be harder or
easier.

Sarva pApa prAyachchittam
-------------------------

It is hard to find these prAchchittams and it is
harder to execute them. Even if we could execute it
successfully, it absolves only the sin for which we
did the prAyachchittam. Moreover, it will not prevent
us from doing the sins in the future. Unlike these
kind of prAchchittams, there one prAyachchittam
available. That (1) is very easy to do; (2) absolves
all the sins done so far; (3) prevents us from doing
the sins in the future. That is 'KrishNa-anu-smaranam'
( meditating of Lord SrI Krishna). This is greater
than all the prAchchittams like fasting, doing
penances, yAgyams, etc.

prAyaSchiththAnyaSEshANi thapa:karmAthkAni vai |
yAni thEshAm aSEshANAm krishNAnusmaraNam param ||

Thus Sage SrI parASarar explains the greatness of SrI
krishNAnusmaranam. 

We should meditate on SrI KrishnA with the thought
that we are His servants. The upaSarkA 'anu' in
'anusmaraNam' emphasizes SEshatvaanusanthAnam (feeling
the servitude). Likewise, SrI krishna nAmA sankirtanam
is also a great prAyaSchittam. We can understand that
the glories of SrI krishnA is greater than that of the
other avatAras by the shAstrAs specifically dictating
that we should meditate / chant on SrI krishnA.   

Not doing sins is the best. But if we have done any
sin, we should  feel sorry for that and strive for not
doing it again. Such kind of intense feelings, even
felt once, themselves are good atonements for the
sins. By feeling sorry for any sin repeatedly, we can
prevent us doing it again. We already have accrued
many sins that are powerful enough to excite us to do
many more sins. But repeted SrI krishNAnusmaranam will
destroy the power of the past sins. 

To do the other prAyaSchittam, there is a stern
necessity of proper time, suitable place, etc. For SrI
krishNAnusmarnam, there is no such requirements. We
can think / meditate on SrIman nArAyaNa at any time.
Only upon successful completion of the other
prAyaSchittams, one's sins will be destroyed (at a
later time). But it is not so in the case of SrI
krisnAnusmaranam. While doing (ie thinking of Lord SrI
Krishna) itself, one gets rid of his sins. "samsmara~n
satya: pApa~kshyam avApnOti' - maharshi uses the
present tense here. 

SrI krishnAnusamaranam, nAma sankIrtanam, et al will
lead one to take up the two upAyAs of mOkshA viz.,
bakthi-yOgA or prapatti as well.
Hence, they also are causes for one to attain the
highest perfection mOkshA. 

---------

Hope this helps you.

SrImad Azhagiya Singar goes on explaining the
greatness of these prAyaSchittams elaborately in his
own inimitable style. It will be very much more
delectable to read the book to get clearer
understanding of the answers to your questions and
many more. 

namO nArAyaNa!

aDiyEn,
LakshmIkumAr rAmAnuja dAsan
SrImad Azhagiya Singar thiruvadigalE saranam!




--- In bhakti-list@y..., bath sobha 
wrote:
> Respected Members of the group,
> 
>  Namo Narayanaya,
> 
>    I shall be very thankful if elders and learned
> members of the group could clarify my following
query:
> 
>  It is not uncommon to find a person(male or female)
> devoted to Sri  Vaishnavism and residing either in
> India or abroad is forced to live a single life by
> virtue of circumstances or job. I have read in one
of
> the e-mails in these columns that it is a great sin
to
> cook and eat alone.The above mentioned people are
> compelled to eat and cook alone for majority of
their
> time in the house.If such a living is a dosham, is
> there any
> method  for eg. spiritually that is advocated in the
> saastras to circumvent the dosham.?
> 
>  (2)  Will serving cooked food to birds or other
> animals before such a person sits down to eat can be
> considered as a solution to the problem?
>  (3) Are such single people permitted to do dhyana,
> puja considering the fact that no other person lives
> with him/her?
> 
>  Thanking one and all ,
> 
>                   With pranamams,
>                      B.Sobha


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