Why can’t we see Sun Light in night?

We see the Sun during the day & its rays lit the whole world during the daytime. We are not able to see the Sun at night.  The reason being that the side of the Earth which we are on, has rotated so that it is facing away from the Sun (into space). At night we have turned our-self opposite to the Sun i.e. earth has moved in such a way that at night, Sun is in opposite direction to us. In simple terms, if we divide the Earth into 2 halves, then at any point of time, one half of the earth sees the Sun while the other half sees the Moon / night / darkness. We all know that the earth takes 24 hrs. to complete one rotation along its own axis. So, if we see, it’s hardly 12 hrs. between the sunrise and the sunset. So we go into the other half of the earth during night and vice versa. At mid night, no direct light of Sun reaches the night side, so we do not see light at night & always remain in darkness.

Here above we have seen that at night, as we are not facing the Sun & as we have moved away from it, then we are not able to see & there is darkness everywhere. Same is the case with God. When we turn away from Him then we are not able to see Him & get His light, wisdom & grace. In our real life, we all have become so busy in our life that we have turned our face away from God. All miseries of our life are only due to that only that we have turned our face away from the God & are living in the dark night of Maya. As soon as, we turn our face towards the God then we are able to see Him & He starts showing his mercy upon us. It is our fault only that we have turned our face, mind away from God, while God is always around us shining like a Sun.

So, O Lord, Lead us away from the Darkness (of Ignorance) to the Light (of Spiritual Knowledge). O Lord, in You, there lies the light of wisdom. Tamas is the darkness. Jyoti is the light. With light, darkness is dispelled. Darkness is death. The light is Truth, Bliss and Peace. The light is eternal. So Lord pl. bless all of us with your bliss.

Below are few verses of Bhagwat Gita which tells that if a devotee turns to the God, then He too turns toward His devotee & always fulfills their desires & always protects them:

"tesam jnani nitya-yukta
eka-bhaktir visisyate
priyo hi jnanino ’tyartham
aham sa cha mama priyah" (Bhagwat Gita: Chapter Seven verse 17)

"Sri Krishna said to Arjuna: Of these, the one who is in full knowledge and who is always engaged in pure devotional service is the best. For I am very dear to him, and he is dear to Me."

"purushah sa parah partha
bhaktya labhyas tv ananyaya
yasyantah-sthani bhutani
yena sarvam idam tatam" (Bhagwat Gita: Chapter Eight verse 22)

"Sri Krishna said to Arjuna: The Lord / God, who is greater than all, is attainable by unalloyed devotion. Although He is present in His abode, He is all-pervading, and everything is situated within Him."

So let's have full devotion towards God. "Once the mind of a person is full of surrender to the lotus feet of God & the mind is full of hankering after Lord's qualities, then that person never encounter Yamarâja (Lord of death) and his superintendents, or even in one's dreams meet his servants carrying the ropes to bind, because doing such Devotional service to Lord is the right atonement for all sins." Let’s all turn our face to God & get his mercy. Let Lord Krishna bless all of us.

Jai Shri Krishna

Tree from a Seed, Web from a Spider

Have you ever wondered how a big banyan tree sprouts & comes out of a small seed? Have you ever wondered how a spider spins out her thread from her own body, and draws it back with her arms?

“In ancient times in India, a very wise “Spiritual Guru” used to live in a hut in the forest. He had inherited the spiritual wisdom from his father & forefathers. Once a young man from the village came to him. This was a man well-known as the owner of land, wise in the ways of the world. He said to “Spiritual Guru”, "Please tell me that knowledge which will explain everything to me."

“Spiritual Guru” looked at him & said. "There are really two kinds of knowledge," he replied. One of them is higher knowledge and the other one is lower one. The lower knowledge is of hymns and scriptures, rituals, grammar, poetry, astrology and other such sciences.....but the higher knowledge leads a man to that being which never dies. That is called the knowledge of the Indestructible."

"Yes, sir," said the young man. "That is what I want to know about."

“Spiritual Guru” said, "Then, listen well. The Indestructible cannot be picked up like this stick or that stone. It belongs to no family, nor to any caste. It neither has eyes nor ears (yet sees & hears everything), It has no hands or feet, It is forever. Wherever you go It is there; you cannot leave It; It is all around you.

"Indestructible is very fine, very subtle, and that is why you do not see It. everything else has come out of this Indestructible, you see. You know how a spider spins out her thread from her own body, and draws it back with her arms, or how plants grow from the soil, or how hair grows on a person's body. In that same way, the whole universe emerges from that Indestructible Being called God.”

The God who is present everywhere in space & creation is called Omnipresent God. There is no place in creation which can be without the presence of God & He is present there at every point of time and space. God fills all the space & places in heaven and on earth.

Here below are few verses from Bhagwat Gita which describe about the infinite nature of God:

"sarvatah pani-padam tat
sarvato ’ksi-siro-mukham
sarvatah shrutimal loke
sarvam avrtya tishthati" (Bhagwat Gita: Chapter Thirteen verse 14)

"Sri Krishna said: O Arjuna, Everywhere are His (God's) hands and feet, His eyes, heads and faces, and He has ears everywhere. In this way the Super Soul exists, pervading everything in this world."

"mattah parataram nanyat
kincid asti dhananjaya
mayi sarvam idam protam
sutre mani-gana iva" (Bhagwat Gita: Chapter Seven verse 7)

"Sri Krishna said: O Arjuna, there is nothing else besides Me in this world. Like clusters of yarn-beads formed by knots on a thread, all this world is threaded on me.

So let's pay our obeisances to such an Indestructible & Infinite God. Let's also think that God is always near us & is always in our heart. Then He too shall never give you up or never depart. God is always with you & shall always be with you if you think Him to be supreme Indestructible. So always have trust that God is near you though He is present in all the creation.

Jai Sri Krishna

Happy Shivratri – Lord Shiva is Supreme

This article is dedicated to Lord Shiva on the day of Maha Shivratri. Sivaratri or Shivaratri (Night of Shiva or "Great Night of Shiva") is a festival celebrated every year by the Hindus. It is celebrated in the honor of Lord Shiva who is one of the Hindu Gods forming the trinity, Brahma, Vishnu & Mahesh (Shiva). Sivaratri (Night of Shiva) literally means ‘the grand night dedicated to the worship of Shiva. This festival is observed for one day and one night every year.

Many legends are associated with the Sivaratri festival. According to one legend, Sivaratri is the wedding day of Lord Shiva and Parvati. As per another legend it is the night when Lord Shiva performed the Tandava Dance - the dance of primordial creation, preservation and destruction. Another legend associates Sivaratri with the great mythical churning of the ocean called Samudra Manthan. According to the legend, during the churning of the ocean, a pot of poison emerged. The gods and the demons were terrified as it could destroy the entire world. When they approached Lord Shiva for help, He, in order to protect the world, drank the deadly poison. However, he held it in his throat instead of swallowing it. This turned his throat blue. Since then Lord Shiva came to be known as ’Nilkantha’, the blue-throated one. Mahashivaratri celebrates this event by which Lord Shiva saved the world. Lord Shivs is considered to be unborn and hence cannot die. He is one without a beginning or an end and exists eternally.



Here is an interesting story about the birth & father of Lord Shiva :

When Lord Brahma presiding over Lord Shiva's marriage with goddess Parvati, asked Him, what his 'gotra is', Shiva at first remained silent. For the readers not familiar with Hinduism, Gotra is the lineage name started by first person that usually is an ancient Rishi sage in that family. For example, if someone's gotra is Kashyap, then he traces back his family lineage to the Kashyap Rishi. In some cases it may also mean the lineage of the family Guru.

So upon asking His lineage, Gotra by Brahma, Lord Shiva kept quite. Brahma asked again, but no reply came from Lord Shiva. So Brahma asked Shiva who is your father? Shiva said, you are my father Brahmaji. He again asked, who his grandfather is. Lord Shiva replied, it is Lord Vishnu. Lord Brahma asked again, so who is the father of Lord Vishnu? Shiva replied: it’s ME. And in that way, he revealed that he is the father of the universe and the cosmic manifestation. He is also the ParBrahm. Beyond Brahm. Lord Vishnu has worshipped Lord Shiva in his every incarnation. This is revealed by Lord Rama and Lord Krishna, who worshipped Lord Shiva, during their incarnation.

One may consider Vishnu and Shiva the two sides of the same coin, both are one only.

The origins of Shiva are unknown. He appears by his own energy. That is why he is also called Swayambhu.
As per the Hindu mythology, God is ONE. Lord Krishna is same as Lord Rama & also same as Lord Shiva. As per Bhagwat Gita Chapter Ten Verse - 23, God himself declares that He (Lord Krishna) is same as Lord Shiva.

"rudranam sankaras chasmi
vitteso yaksha-rakshasam
vasunam pavakas chasmi
meruh sikharinam aham" (Bhagwat Gita: Chapter Ten verse 23)

"Sri Krishna said: Of all the Rudras I am Lord Shiva, of the Yakshas and Rakshasas I am the Lord of wealth [Kubera], of the Vasus I am fire [Agni], and of mountains I am Meru."

Now here below is a beautiful story which shows the kindness of Lord Shiva to his devotee & how He saved one of His devotee from the tiger.

Lord Shiva saves the Hunter:

Once a hunter was wandering in a dense forest, to chase a deer and suddenly he found himself on the banks of river Kolidum, where he heard the roar of a tiger. In order to defend himself from the tiger, he climbed up a tree close by. The Tiger sat on the ground below the tree without the purpose to leave.

The huntsman stayed at the tree whole night and to keep himself awake, he plucked one leaf after another from the tree and threw it down. There was a "Shiva Lingam" under the tree and gracefully the tree turned out to be a ''bilva'' tree (leaves of this tree are adored by Shiva). Without any knowledge, the huntsman had delighted the Lord Shiva by pouring Bilva leaves all night. With the arrival of the sun, the hunter looked down and found that the tiger has gone. In its place, Lord Shiva was standing there and he prostrated before the lord. With Shiva's blessings, he attained salvation from the bondage of the material world.



Om Namah Shivaye

Why People Shout When They Are Angry?

Do you know why people get angry in life? Moreover, do you know why people start shouting at each other, while in anger? Here below is an interesting story about that:

“A Hindu saint who was visiting river Ganges to take bath found a group of family members on the banks, shouting in anger at each other. He turned to his disciples, smiled and asked.

'Why do people in anger shout at each other?'

Disciples thought for a while, one of them said, 'Because we lose our calm, we shout.'

'But, why should you shout, when the other person is just next to you? You can as well tell him what you have to say in a soft manner.' asked the saint.

Disciples gave some other answers but none satisfied the other disciples. Finally the saint explained.

'When two people are angry at each other, their hearts distance a lot. To cover that distance they must shout to be able to hear each other. The angrier they are, the stronger they will have to shout to hear each other to cover that great distance.

What happens when two people fall in love? They don't shout at each other but talk softly, because their hearts are very close. The distance between them is either nonexistent or very small...'

The saint continued, 'When they love each other even more, what happens? They do not speak, only whisper and they get even closer to each other in their love. Finally they even need not whisper, they only look at each other and that's all. That is how close two people are when they love each other.'

He looked at his disciples and said.

'So when you argue, do not let your hearts get distant, Do not say words that distance each other more, Or else there will come a day when the distance is so great that you will not find the path to return.”

We all know that getting angry is not good in life but all of us get angry at some point of time in life. Why at times, our mind gets violent & anger is expressed in our nature? In a state of anger we hurt our near & dear ones by speaking angry words. When anger gets out of control and turns destructive, it can lead to problems for oneself, as well as, for others also. In the state of anger we are at the mercy of an unpredictable and powerful emotion which if not controlled by us does harm only to our life. If anger is not controlled, it can lead to physiological, as well as, psychological problems in our life.

Now how can we control this anger? Basically, to control anger is to first control & calm your mind. If your mind remains in a state of calm then no negative emotions can arouse in it. To be peaceful at mind, the easiest way is that we let our mind delve inside our own inner nature rather than hankering after outside the worldly objects i.e. we should daily do some meditation, as in meditation mind becomes peaceful. If mind continuously runs after worldly things outside then it gets disturbed when the thing of desire is not attained. When the mind gets disturbed in this way then anger arouses in the mind & it leads to negative consequences only. When you close your eyes in meditation, you start delving inside your inner nature. What is your inner nature? It's nothing but your Soul inside, where you delve in times of meditation & attain peace. In Soul, there is peace only. Now your Soul is nothing but part & parcel of Universal Soul only. Universal Soul is nothing but God only, who is ultimate peace.

Below are few verses from Bhagwat Gita which explain why we should avoid anger:

"tri-vidham narakasyedam
dvaram nasanam atmanah
kamah krodhas tatha lobhas
tasmad etat trayam tyajet" (Bhagwat Gita: Chapter Sixteen verse 21)

"Sri Krishna said: O Arjuna, There are three gates leading to the hell — Lust, Anger and Greed. Every sane man should give these up, for they lead to the degradation of the Soul."

"krodhad bhavati sammohah
sammohat smriti-vibhramah
smriti-bhramsad buddhi-naso
buddhi-nasat pranasyati" (Bhagwat Gita: Chapter Two verse 63)

"Sri Krishna said: O Arjuna, Delusion or wild idea arises from anger. The mind is bewildered by delusion. Reasoning is destroyed when the mind is bewildered. One falls down from the right path when reasoning is destroyed."

"kama-krodha-vimuktanam
yatinam yata-cetasam
abhito brahma-nirvanam
vartate viditatmanam" (Bhagwat Gita: Chapter Five verse 26)

"Sri Krishna said: O Arjuna, Those who are free from anger and all material desires, who are self-realized, self-disciplined and constantly endeavoring for perfection, are assured of liberation in the God in the very near future."

"dambho darpo ’bhimanas cha
krodhah parusyam eva cha
ajnanam chabhijatasya
partha sampadam asurim" (Bhagwat Gita: Chapter Sixteen verse 4)

"Sri Krishna said: O Arjuna, Pride, arrogance, conceit, anger, harshness and ignorance—these qualities belong to those people who are of demoniac nature."

So, let’s not be angry in life & let's not hurt our near & dear ones by our angry nature. Remaining calm & peaceful in life is a blessing & we should bless others with our peaceful nature. Let’s not disturb anyone’s peace of mind by getting angry with them.

Jai Sri Krishna