Ayurveda Initiative For Global Health

The science of birth and death which is briefly mentioned in the vedas is explained in Upanisads and thoroughly expanded in the puranas. This condition of living entity is called Samsara (Material existence). The word samsara (cycle of birth or rebirth) appears more than thousand times in various vedic scriptures.  The ancient Vedic people belived in an afterlife and spiritworld. The Vedic recycling is beautifully explained in Rigveda - once dead, one’s “life” is indeed transferred to new system, in earth, sky or waters. (RV 10.16.3) But is that “reincarnation”? No, it is a mere recycling of the constituents of the body, that become the life-promoting cells in another part in this earth.  Rebirth is conditioned and driven by the doctrine of Karma. Several verses of the Rig Veda speak of rebirth (punarjanam),    पुनर्नः सोमस्तन्वं ददातु पुनः पूषापथ्यां या सवस्तिः ||  शं रोदसी सुबन्धवे यह्वी रतस्य मातरा | (Rigveda 10.59.7) Once again give me this earth...

The Master's Voice 24 In olden days, the Indian village hired a night-watchman to keep down crime and accidents. He would go around the streets and lanes with a square metal lantern, open only at the front. The watchman could see, wherever the lantern cast its light. No rays of light fell on him, who carried the lantern. If you wanted to see who the watchman was, you had to ask him to turn the lamp back on his own face. We are like that!  Our eyes (ears, tongue, etc.) are all facing outward, looking at and feeling the things of the world. The Master's say, "if you want to see The Lord, turn the lamp around; look within and find the Source of all the light." The Master's say, "Our consciousness is spread wide across the world. It is scattered here and there. Hence, our consciousness is restricted to the initial 3 levels of consciousness. The Dream, Sleep and Wake consciousness." These consciousness, according to The Saints are within the ambit of Cycle of...

It's Durian season and while you're in Singapore or any other South East Asian country, you can't ignore this "King of fruits". The durian is the edible fruit of several tree species belonging to the genus Durio. There are 30 recognised Durio species, at least nine of which produce edible fruit. Durio zibethinus is the only species available in the international market, other species are sold in their local regions. It is native to Borneo and Sumatra. The durian stands out in the fruit market for its large size (up to 30 cm long and 15 cm in diameter) strong odour, and thorn-covered rind. It typically weighs 1 to 3 kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its spiny skin varies from green to brown, and its creamy flesh ranges from pale yellow to red, depending on the species. Some people regard the durian as having a pleasantly sweet fragrance, whereas others find the aroma overpowering with an unpleasant o...

I was in 10th grade when I was diagnosed with migraine. I regularly suffered from nausea and vomiting. The pain would last between 4 to 72 hours at a stretch. The medical industry has a term for this pain - “migraine without aura”. It means I was extremely sensitive to light and sound. I couldn’t stay hungry beyond a time. I used to take painkillers when I suffered the attack and this continued throughout, and even after, my engineering.   On my friend's insistence I joined The Art of Living Happiness Program. After doing the Sudarshan Kriya for the first time, I felt a sense of calm and lightness. I came back home with a smile and I had the deepest sleep ever in months. Practicing Sudarshan Kriya every day ensured that I didn’t have migraine attack for next one year. Even if I suffered a migraine attack, it didn't last beyond 4 hours and the frequency has reduced to once in 2 months or even less. It was not that I never faced challenges or never felt low, but the Sudarshan Kr...

Elephants are symbol of power and prestige, the Nobel animal became the vehicle of the Royals. Some time later this was extended to protector of the Kings and his people. Festival and Elephant are integral part of Malayalee culture.  Elephants are a part of temple rituals in Kerala. Many temples keep elephants. Elephants are respected as the form of Ganesh, son of Mahadev. As of elephants, Rigveda mentions in Mandala 6. On special occasions, the elephants are worshipped and fed by devotees to please Ganesh for well-being. Most of them are donated by devotees. Guruvayoor temple has 57 elephants. Guruvayur temple currently has 47 elephants.  There are numerous festivals but one that stands out is the elephant festival of Kerala. The event is known as Pooram Gajamela or Festival of Elephants. The elephant processions gather the largest crowds with music, percussion, and classical dance performances accompanied by lots of frenzy. One can cherish the sight of elephants ...

Yantra Vidya is a classified study and knowledge of the Arts and Science of the symbols, idols, sculptures, images, signs, logos, and emblems. Nirgun-Nirakar Brahman: The Single Formless God. The Ultimate, Formless, Omnipotent, Omniscient, Omnipresent, and all-pervasive Universal Consciousness, called Nirakar-Nirgun-Brahman (God-Nature-Paramatma) is one entity and cannot be perceived with the five normal senses of sight (eyes), hearing (ears), smell (nose), taste (tongue), and touch (skin). It can be perceived with the higher faculty of the extrasensory perception (ESP) of clairvoyance (Divya-Dhrishti/extended divine vision), clairaudience (an enhanced spectrum of the hearing), intelligence (Buddhi), absolute wisdom (Pravidya-Pragyan), intuition (Mahat), and Super-consciousness (Turiya). The extrasensory perception can be developed with the regular practice of Akhand Yoga, an integrated form of Yoga, and conscientious chanting of Akhand Gayatri Mantra. Sagun Brahman: The Fo...

Hanuman Chalisa helps you stay happy all day. Reading Hanuman Chalisa with full devotion can help you fulfill all your wishes. It gives one strength and courage to face challenges head-on. The authorship of the Hanuman Chalisa is attributed to Tulsidas, a poet-saint who lived in the 16th century CE. Worshipping Hanuman has great merit. In Hanumanji we find a Saviour par excellence who can rescue us from precarious situations that we have to face politically, socially or economically. Therefore, we hold him in high esteem and reverance in Kaliyuga.  He has been depicted in many forms depending on the situation and the task placed in front of him. To become Hanuman we must awaken to our inner nature as a portion of cosmic consciousness, a servant of the Universal Self that is Sri Rama. Each one of us has the power of the entire universe within us, but only when we surrender to Lord Rama within. We can only recognize this when we become aware of our inner Self, what the Up...

Knowledge Sheet 150 April 22, 1998, Zen Monastery Blois, France.  Do Not Follow Me Do not follow me. In fact, you cannot follow me, because I am behind you to push you forward! You have to leave everything behind & move ahead. All your past experiences, your relations- everything- is part of the past.  Leave the whole world of your memories behind- including me. Drop everything. I am there behind you. Move on. Stop looking for more & be free! Then compassion will flow from you. Q- When people do not follow anyone, isn't it usually out of fear or rebelliousness? Sri Sri: One type of Do not follow comes from fear or rebelliousness. Another type comes from heightened awareness. You cannot follow me because I am behind you & I am in you. For long you have been a sheep. Now it's time to be a lion. 🌸Jai Guru Dev🌸   साप्ताहिक ज्ञानपत्र १५० २२ अप्रैल, १९९८ फ्रांस मेरा पीछा न करो मेरा पीछा मत करो। वास्तव में तुम मेरा पीछा कर ही नही सकते क्योंकि मैं तो तुम्ह...

Ashta Siddhis are the eight divine Knowledge which means eight divine powers are: Anima, Mahima, Garima, Laghima, Prapti, Prakamya, Isitva, Vasitva are Hindu religious knowledges in Hanuman chalisa or Ganesh vajana, that gives one complete power over each and everything.  Hindu scriptures say that the people who have complete control over the siddhis can gain power of demigods. Each siddhi governs certain character or certain aspect of nature and mastering each gives one distinct ability unique to other siddhis. Anima is the first among the ashta siddhis. Mastering this siddhi gives the individual the ability to shrink down one’s body. This siddhi gives only the ability shrink the body; the owner of this siddhi can shrink the body to his own will even at the atomic scale but cannot increase the size of the body. The most notable use of this siddhi was done by lord Hanuman while spying on Lanka in search of mother sita. While spying lord hanuman shrunk his huge body to a...

The difference between successful people and others is how long they spend time feeling sorry for themselves. Perception is a clash of mind and eye, the eye believing what it sees, the mind seeing what it believes. A belief is a proposition we create and accept as representing the way the world actually is in our mind. We filter information based on our beliefs (logic based on past experiences) and only absorb the information that matches our belief system. Toxic people If you've ever spent time with truly toxic people, you know how destructive and exhausting they can be. Toxic people spread ne gativity and suffocate the positive. Let them find a new home-or, if that's not possible, make sure policies and supervision are in place to minimize their damage.  No professional development Everyone needs to know that they are learning and growing. Without that, the workplace grows static and dull. Professional development for each of your employees allows them grow in the...

Devimahatmya is given to us by Rishi Markandeya. It’s a part of the Markandeya Purana comprising seven hundred verses. It is said in the Rudrayamala Tantra that this contains the secret most knowledge about the Divine Mother and it bestows all siddhis - asti guhyatamaṃ devyaḥ mahatmyaṃ sarvasiddhidam. Damara Tantra extolling the glory of this text says: As among all yajnas Ashvamedha is significant, as Vishnu is highly glorified among all Gods, so saptasati is among all stutis or praises of the Divine Mother - stavanamapi sarvesam tatha saptasatistavaḥ.  One needs to have the vision or the drishti of a Rishi to see what secret lies hidden in this text - cakṣuṣmantoonupasyanti netare tadvido janaḥ. The secret of this text can reveal itself to the sadhaka who engages himself in parayanam, japa, homa and tarpana. Devimahatmyam dealing with the purpose of life (artha). Devimahatmyam makes the sadhaka aware of the very purpose of life.  सप्तशती saptasati vs सप्तसती sapt...

The Master's Voice 25 Once a disciple asked The Master, whether the world was created for happiness or misery. All eyes turned towards The Master for the answer. The Master answered, "Creation is neither good nor bad; it is as it is. It is our mind which puts all sorts of permutations and combinations on it, as it sees things from its own perspective. How much will it suit our own interests. A woman is just a woman, but one mind calls her “mother,” another “sister,” and still another “aunt” and so on.  Men love women, hate snakes, and are indifferent to the grass and stones by the roadside.  These attachments are the causes of all the misery in the world. Creation is like a tree: Birds eat fruits and take shelter under its branches, men cool themselves in its shade, but some may hang themselves on it. Yet the tree continues to lead its quiet life, unconcerned with, and unaware of, all the uses it is put to. It is our mind that creates its own difficulties and then cries for he...

The Master's Voice 26 One day, a Disciple went to The Master and asked, "All the scriptures that have to be read, I have read. All the mantras and japa that have to be done, I have done. Still I have no peace. Please save me." The Master took a little time. There was complete Silence, and in the silence, The Master was gazing at the disciple. Subsequently, The Master said, "If one keeps watching at the progress made by us, the mind is absorbed in That Process; This is tapas. When you are reciting a mantra, You are involved in trying to find from where the sound is coming from? The answer is, It is coming from within you. When you sing a Bhajan or do prayer, you watch where it is emanating from? It is coming from your Heart. We need to put our attention on that, our Soul or The Heart, within us, not outside. When this happens, We sacrifice our Ego, as mind becomes busy in the process, that is antar Tapasya, here both the Soul and Mind are totally focussed on the Simr...