Re: Bodily health
From the Bhakti List Archives
• July 22, 1999
Thanks for the excellent topic. Adiyen would like to add few sentences to this. A piece from Gita, would aptly fit in here. "Etham shariram kauntheya skhetram" - Oh Son of kunti ! your body is the field (for your karma). Gita also insists only who maintain the sharira gets to conquer the path of yoga - bhoga(bodily happiness) - roga(disease) . The paramapurusha - "Purusha" - as addressed by the Upanishads gives him four attributes. Poornathvath Purusha - Puranathvath Purusha -Bahudanath Purusha - Purisayanath Purusha . The last attribute - Purisayanath Purusha - the one who is inside us - within our body. The Paramathma is within us. Hence we have to maintain this body as a abode of God. This truth should clarify the questions on maintaining the sanctity of ourselves - to sustain our mind and soul in to the innerself. The beautifications of the body or undergoing medical treatments - the bhoga and the roga - needs to be conquered in order to achieve and conquer the yoga. ----- When I just finished the previous mail one of the kalakshepam stories came to my mind. The upanishads (as well Gita) describes the body as a tree where the soul - the bird resides. The Paramathma also resides within the same body. A normal question that could arise is that - does paramathma undergo the pains and joy of the body ? The Paramathma remains in the body unaffected just the same way as a feathered bird would be uneffected by the climate unlike the unfeathered one. The climatic changes of rain and heat stick to the body of unfeathered one while the feathered one remains un effected. A teacher was explaning the same at a Gurukulam when one of the students started arguing. "How's that it would stick to one bird but not to other? " He argued that he was not ready to accept unless Guru gave concrete proof. The Guru - calm and knowledged - advised that it was not him but the vedas which say that. And that vedic truths shouldn't be doubted. The student was unconvinced. To put the end to the discussion the guru said he couldn't prove it at that time and would do so later. The student now was pride enough that he was asking questions that the guru couldn't answer. All these were happening in the month of Kaarthigai(Nov-Dec). Then came maargazhi. The 27th day - the Koodaravalli day. Unlike the second day of Margazhi where it advises of fasting and praying, the 27th paasuram (Koodarai vellum), asks us to enjoy. It asks us to feast with Pongal- with ghee floating over the Pongal - the ghee should flow over the hands while having it (mooda nei peithu muzhangai vazhi vara). The guru asks 'our' disciple to come first and have it. He made him more happy by offering him second time. Then he said to the other disciple to bring in some cheeyakai powder, so that he could wash his hands (which was now sticky with ghee) off and start serving others. Guru retained some cheeyakai powder and gave some to the disciple to wash off his hands. The desciple came back and the guru offered him some more cheeyakai. The disciple declined it saying his hands are clean now. The guru said back that this was to clean his tongue of the ghee. The disciple retarded that ghee wasn't sticking to his tongue. Guru calmly said - "Can you make the meaning of THAT veda truth now ?". The disciple prostrated. The Guru continued "if a ordinary ghee can have the property imagine Paramathma - He is Purisayanath Purusha. The sun rays fall on Gopuram as well as mud. It livens the lotus while scorches dry twigs. The sun rays themselves remain uneffected. Just the same way the Paramathma remains in us uneffected "
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