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Re: Does this look familiar ? =)

From the Bhakti List Archives

R & L. Chilukuri • June 8, 1995 


>Greetings

>I am not prepared to mouth platitudes when the magnitude of the problem is
>this fundamental. Somehow, quoting " sarva DHarmaan parityajya / mAm ekam
>sharaNam vraja " does not quite cut it. Who said it first had a heck of a lot
>more going for him than i ever will =)
>

I have found that it is better not to worry about the loss of faith. 

Intense faith and an intense longing for a vision of Sri Rama may be
experienced in the presence of a great teacher who skillfully expounds the
Ramayana. However, such intense bhakti is usually short-lived and cannot
survive the pressures of day-to-day life.

Alternately, a callous attitude may develop in day to day life, with an
attitude such as - God is in his heaven, but is of no immediate use to me
TODAY, HERE AND NOW! Such callousness can persist for several months, and
will probably culminate in an irritable restlessness that cannot be easily
curbed.

I find it useful to try and remember that the restlessness is caused by a
lack of spiritual effort. It is not easy to then re-energize faith
instantaneously. I try to re-read the biographies of great saints that have
previously impressed me. Or simply study the meaning, grammar and
prose-order of great shlokas from the Gita. Over a period of a few months, a
relative calm begins to appear -- the beginning of a resurgence of faith.

Another note... I find that a "fall" almost always follows a period of
intense sadhana? Surprising eh?

Krish Chilukuri