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A person who hears about the condemnation of another incurs sin.

What need be said about the sin incurred by a man who actually engages in nit picking? Jagadguru Sri Adi Shankara Bhagavatpada Moksha can be attained by all. Never for a moment think yourself incompetent or incapable of attaining moksha. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Instead of using the tongue for speaking futile issues, use it to chant the names of God. God shall then guide you along the right and beneficial path. Jagadguru Sri Bharati Tirtha Mahaswamigal Do not be proud of wealth, people (relations and friends), and youth. All these are snatched by Time in the blink of an eye. Giving up this illusory world, know and attain the Supreme. Jagadguru Sri Adi Shankara Bhagavatpada Effort in violation of the sastras leads to evil and effort in conformity with the sastras leads to good. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal No man is omniscient. Hence man should not have the ego that he knows all. It is ego that leads man astray and drives him to commit sins. Jagadguru Sri Bharati Tirtha Mahaswamigal Realise the depth of your fall from the true ideal of life and make an honest endeavour to recover it. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Daylight and darkness, dusk and dawn, winter and springtime come and go. Time plays and life ebbs away. But the current of desire never leaves. Jagadguru Sri Adi Shankara Bhagavatpada It is ridiculous to suppose that Prarabdha can be more powerful than ones will. The reason for this is that Prarabdha itself is a creature of ones will. What one performed guided by ones will in the previous births, is what is now appearing as fate. What one has brought about due to exercise of ones will in the previous births can certainly be overcome by exercise of will power in the present birth, provided one makes adequate effort. Jagadguru Sri Abhinava Vidyatirtha Mahaswamigal Ordinary people get the fruits of their own individual conduct alone. But persons who are placed in high positions and influence the conduct of others have a double

responsibility. They are answerable not only to themselves but also for others, as others are induced by their example to be good or bad. Just as their merit is the greater when they adhere to dharma, so is their sin the greater when they resort to adharma. The Lord has said in the Gita Whatever the highest person does, that along is done by the others. The future of the land is really in the hands of the people in power. They should set by their example, a standard of right conduct. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal An object continues to be dear as long as one derives pleasure from it and it is detested for the duration that it causes pain. The same object cannot be always liked or disliked. Sometimes, that which is not dear may become dear. Moreover, that which was loveable can turn unpleasant. The Atma, towards which affection never wanes, is always the most beloved. Jagadguru Sri Adi Shankara Bhagavatpada There is no reason whatsoever to despair about ones spiritual progress. If one tries strong enough, one will certainly make much progress. After all, Prarabdha has been compared by Brahma to seed. Not only the seed determines what one gets out of the field but also by the effort that one makes to till the land. By proper manuring and the like the situation can be very much improved. It is meaningless if a man just sits quiet and expects fate to lead him on in the spiritual path. Jagadguru Sri Abhinava Vidyatirtha Mahaswamigal Does fire refuse to scorch a person who touches it without knowing that it will scorch or who refuses to accept its power to scorch? Similarly, if you go against Gods laws you are bound to suffer. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal The greatest impediment to Bhakti is the ego, which repeatedly asserts itself and prevents self-surrender. Thus a man can truly surrender himself to Ishvara only if he annihilates his ego. Repeatedly thinking of Ishvara and practicing spiritual discipline precisely in the manner indicated by the Guru go a long way in effacing the ego and engendering devotion. Jagadguru Sri Abhinava Vidyatirtha Mahaswamigal Does the court let go an offender even though it finds that he did not know the law when he committed an offence? Obviously not. Similarly, if a person commits a sin he must suffer, even if he did not know what he was doing was wrong, provided he has the capacity to know. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Dharma is two-fold, one which takes the form of ritual that requires a large number of persons and accessory things to carry it out and the other japa, bhajan, meditation and introspection which is to be done by the individual seeker. Both these forms of dharma purify and calm the mind of the seeker and help him realise his identity with God.

Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal The source of bliss is not something external but is ones own true nature, the Atma. Not realizing this, the man devoid of discrimination seeks happiness in external objects. It is because of the mistaken feeling that happiness can be got from things external that the mind goes outward. Jagadguru Sri Abhinava Vidyatirtha Mahaswamigal Sri Krishna describes desire, anger and greed as the triple gates of hell. These are mans worst enemies and one must never succumb to them. Desire can be overcome by dispassion. Anger is a result of frustration of desire. Thus by conquering desires completely one can conquer anger. An attempt must be made to control greed by impressing upon the mind that in reality everything belongs to Ishvara alone and that one is but an instrument in the hands of Ishvara. Jagadguru Sri Abhinava Vidyatirtha Mahaswamigal An ideal disciple will indeed act as per the Gurus instructions and not give place to thoughts as Is it possible for me to do as he says? Shall I try something else? If we follow our Gurus instructions, it does not mean that we are unintelligent. It only implies that we have surrendered for our own good to a power superior to us. Jagadguru Sri Abhinava Vidyatirtha Mahaswamigal

The light of a lamp falls on its surroundings. One may study Sastras in that light. While another may, paying no attention to it, spend time sleeping. Similarly great souls are always showering their grace. Each one can derive benefit depending on ones mentality. If one takes a big vessel to a pond, one can bring a large quantity of water, just because it is said that a small vessel can hold little water, it does not mean that the vessel itself is the limit for the capacity of the pond. Jagadguru Sri Abhinava Vidyatirtha Mahaswamigal Maya is the differentiating principle which is responsible for diversity in both the universe of matter and in the universe of souls. If it were not for maya, there would be no diversity at all. Both matter and the individual souls would have no independent existence of their own, but for maya. Though maya is the sakti or power of Brahman, it has no independent existence of its own apart from Brahman (i.e. the supreme being). From the highest standpoint of absolute truth, maya has no existence at all. From the absolute view, only Brahman exists and nothing else. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal The greatest impediment to Bhakti is the ego, which repeatedly asserts itself and prevents self-surrender. Thus a man can truly surrender himself to Ishvara only if he annihilates his ego. Repeatedly thinking of Ishvara and practicing spiritual discipline precisely in the manner indicated by the Guru go a long way in effacing the ego and engendering devotion. Jagadguru Sri Abhinava Vidyatirtha Mahaswamigal

If you wish for a guru in all earnestness, he will be before you in no time. But if you require his presence only to enable you to test his competence of a guru, he will be farther off than before. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal A guru is bound to teach only those who do not know, but seek to know. If people prefer to remain in ignorance, the teachers are not to blame at all for not attempting to teach them. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Doubts can never be solved unless you approach the persons who have not merely studied their religion but are daily living it. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal For the purpose of trade and money, we cross the vast oceans and explore the air, but for the purpose of Truth we make no effort. We want the teachers to come to our door and solve our doubts for us. We have no time or desire to learn and practise our dharmas. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Do not be disheartened by the spiritual darkness over-running the world. When the sun sets and the darkness of night envelops the land, we do not stop our work saying that the sun has set. Do we not light a lamp and get on with our normal activities with the aid of that lamp? If we feel that there is an urgency, do we not walk miles and miles together during the darkest of nights guided by the flickering light of a torch? If you feel earnestly and keenly the urgency for escaping from the cycle of birth and death, you will ignore the spiritual gloom prevailing in the land and seek out a guiding torch which will dispel the gloom for you. Such a guiding torch is the guru, your spiritual master, who is waiting to help you. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Tendencies develop, regardless of the characteristic of the action performed. Hence, he who wishes to lead a proper life will do well to avoid evil deeds and to repeatedly perform virtuous deeds. Jagadguru Sri Abhinava Vidyatirtha Mahaswamigal Advice is of no use unless there is some likelihood of its being followed. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal The greatest impediment to Bhakti is the ego, which repeatedly asserts itself and prevents self-surrender. Thus a man can truly surrender himself to Ishvara only if he annihilates his ego. Repeatedly thinking of Ishvara and practicing spiritual discipline precisely in the manner indicated by the Guru go a long way in effacing the ego and engendering devotion.

Jagadguru Sri Abhinava Vidyatirtha Mahaswamigal Know that as soon as you come into this world, the quota of pleasure and pain to be enjoyed by you in this life has already been determined and it is not within your power, or anybody elses, to add to or take away from that allotment. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal The mind becomes completely still (i.e. free from all thoughts) only during deep sleep. But we cannot sleep always. We seek such mental peace even while awake; and this is the aim of spirituality to still the mind completely so that we experience everlasting peace, day and night, in all circumstances. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal If you choose to avoid a present inconvenience and risk a greater inconvenience in the future, it is purely an act of your volition and you must be prepared to face the consequences. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal The health which is not preceded by a sickness is more natural, perfect and permanent than the one which comes into being on the cessation of a sickness. Similarly, the happiness which is not preceded by a mental disturbance will be more natural, perfect and enduring than the one which follows a mental disturbance. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal The feeling of peace, contentment and happiness is inborn and ingrained in every one of us. If we neglect our inner happiness and seek for happiness in the outside world, we are seriously impairing our chances of getting it again in the next birth, for God will be quite justified in withholding a gift which the donee does not appreciate at its proper value when he has it with him. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Make honest and sincere attempt to regain and retain your inner peace and happiness. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal The number of things in the world that awaken desire is infinite. If a man gets a particular thing, the mental unrest caused by the longing for that thing may cease; but it will be replaced by restlessness caused by desire for another object. This process will go on forever as there is no end to desire. Similarly, the number of things that are undesirable is also infinite. If you get rid of a particular undesirable object, no doubt you get mental peace for the moment; but the next moment you will become restless because another thing will start troubling you. This process will go on indefinitely as the things which give us trouble in the world are countless. If, therefore, we seek to remove our mental unrest by trying to secure all the things which the mind asks for or to get rid of all the things which disturb it, our search for peace will be an endless one and true everlasting peace and happiness will never be

attained by us. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal You are responsible for what you are today. You are responsible for your pain and suffering and misery. You cannot escape your responsibility by blaming fate, for fate is of your own making, or by blaming God, for he is but the divine dispenser of fruits in accordance with the merits of your actions. You have none to blame but yourself for your present state of affairs. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Fate is nothing but the sum total of the results of your past actions. By exercising your free will in the past, you brought on the resultant fate (i.e. present). By exercising your free will in the present, wipe out the past record and work for a better future. Whether for acquiring more happiness or for reducing misery, you have to exercise your free will in the present. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Fate is invisible. The past is past and is beyond our vision and unseen. Do not worry about fate or the past. The present is before you and by the exercise of your free will, you can shape the future and this is what you should do, instead of wasting your time or energy bothering about the past and fate. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Fate places no obstacles in our path. All obstacles are of our own making and it is within our competence to overcome them. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal If we do not succeed in the first few attempts, it means that in the past we have exercised our free will just in opposite direction. So our present effort must be proportionate to that past activity to eliminate its effects. Thus the obstacles which we face in life are just the gauge by which we have to guide our present activities. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal If you do not succeed even after your best effort, do not despair, for fate being a product of your free will, can never be stronger than free Will. Your failure only means that your present exercise of free will is not sufficient to counteract the result of the past exercise of it. But if you keep on trying you are bound to succeed. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal When we see a nail on the wall we cannot see what exact length of the nail is embedded in the wall (How much effort is required to pull out the nail depends on how deeply the nail is embedded in the wall.) We do not desist from the attempt to pull out the nail simply because we happen to be ignorant of the length of the nail in the wall or of the number and intensity of the strokes which drove it in. Rather we persist and persevere in pulling it out. If we do not succeed in the first few attempts, we increase the number and the intensity of our present efforts to pull it out. The nail

in the wall represents the obstacles which arise in our present life due to the wrong use of our free will in the past. Just as we persevere to pull out the nail from the wall, we should make persistent efforts to counteract the ill effects of our past actions. We are bound to pull out the nail sooner or later. Similarly, we are bound to overcome all the obstacles which we face in our life, if we try hard enough. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Worldly life is at best only a means of livelihood. There are higher objects in life than mere living, and only by turning to religion can you secure such objects. Do not ignore your spiritual welfare, in the interests of mere living. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal In the name of progress and economic growth we have grown weaker and weaker. Western thought and influence are corrupting us. The slow poison of un-Hindu thought and manners has entered our blood; and the most pitiable part of it is that we do not and would not realise that it is poison. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Man can be happy by refusing to submit himself to anything which may disturb his mental equilibrium and make him unhappy. Our ancestors were happy, not because they had more objects of pleasure or less causes of trouble, but because they were able to retain their mental equilibrium, which gave them rest, peace and contentment and, therefore, happiness. They did not depend upon outside things to make them happy, nor did they concede to outside things the capacity to make them unhappy. Their feeling of rest and peace, contentment and happiness was normal, natural and healthy and, therefore, lasting. Every man must cultivate this feeling if he wants to be happy. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Suppose you have 20 articles in your room, every one of which is likely to distract you by its very sight? Which is the more practical method, to prepare cases for enveloping every one of them or to shut your eyes? Obviously the latter is easier. Similarly, it is impossible for you to regulate, modify, annihilate or create at your pleasure the infinite things of the universe which are likely to disturb you. But you can regulate your own mind so that it gradually ceases to be disturbed by the objects of the world. And this is the aim of spirituality - to regulate the mind so that it is peaceful and happy in all circumstances. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Take money and worldly success when it comes and use it. Do not anticipate or hanker after wealth and worldly success. This is the right attitude. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal A thing has value only to the one who wants it. Worldly success and wealth count therefore only with those who want them. If you do not want them, you certainly do not care how wealthy or successful another person is.

Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal The happiness obtained by the gratification of sensual pleasures is nothing but a reflection of the inherent bliss of the Self and not true happiness. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal If you pray with faith and devotion, the Lord will certainly listen to your earnest prayers. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Once you begin to feel the presence of God, a joy unknown to you ever before will begin to be felt. The thought of his ever-living presence with you will be a great solace to you. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal If we are honest and sincere in our efforts and follow implicitly the directions of the sastras and the guru, the Lord will guide us along the path of progress, solve all our problems and doubts, free us from all worry and trouble and lead us on to the state of realisation of the Supreme Reality, the truth and the bliss of the absolute oneness of all in the undifferentiated Brahman. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal It is our duty to learn the scriptures and follow the commands of our sastras implicitly. Ignorance by itself is certainly no sin but it is a sin when there is a duty to learn. There is no doubt that the man who knows and yet errs is a greater sinner; but there is no satisfaction, much less an excuse, for the man who prefers to continue in ignorance and in error. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal If we limit our belief only to those things which can be proved, it will be impossible to do anything in this world. If a stranger standing by the road directs you, at your request, to a house you are searching for, you do not ask him to prove to you he is right. You place immediate and implicit reliance on him and go as directed by him. If then you reach the wrong house, it will be time enough to find fault with him. Similarly, you must have faith in the words of our ancient sages who proclaim the existence of God. If you follow their dictates and find at the end that they were wrong, it will be time enough to blame them, but not until then. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal The Vedas are divine commands. Strict performance of the duties enjoined by them is the only way of securing the grace of the Lord. It is within your competence to perform the duties proclaimed by the scriptures. Do not neglect your duties, for only by doing them can you serve the Lord. Performance of duties selflessly amounts to service to God. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal

Do not blame the times for your suffering. The so-called bad days are our own making. All our present sufferings are due to our own neglect of dharma. We can, at any moment, put an end to them by reverting to the simple faith and the upright conduct, the religious fervour and the peaceful contentment of our forefathers. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Who are you to sit in judgement over other religious teachers and religions? Waste not your precious life in judging others. Use it to regulate your life and purify yourself. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal To suffer the result of sin, only the capacity to suffer is required; and this capacity, namely, the sense of pain and pleasure, is present in the baby, even when it is in the womb. A child cannot distinguish between right and wrong. So until it acquires this capacity, it incurs no sin. If a child commits no sin, why do so many children experience pain and suffering? The reason is simple. Children suffer for the sinful acts done by them as adults in previous births. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Vasana is the resultant impression/tendency left in the mind by an action or an experience. A vasana urges the person to perform the same act or have the same experience once again. The stream of vasanas has two currents, the good and the bad. If you try to dam up the entire stream, it is dangerous. The sastras, therefore, do not ask you to attempt that. They enunciate in detail which vasanas are good and which vasanas are bad and ask you to be led by the good vasana current and resist being led away by the bad vasana current. It is your responsibility to encourage good vasanas and overcome bad vasanas. Through the use of your free will you must purify yourself. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal It is not within our power to obtain all the things desired by us or to get rid of all the things which trouble us. So if we depend on the external world for happiness we will only be slaves of circumstances. Our mind will always be in a state of unrest and true lasting happiness can never be experienced by us. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Fate is invisible. The past is past and is beyond our vision and unseen. Do not worry about fate or the past. The present is before you and by the exercise of your free will, you can shape the future and this is what you should do, instead of wasting your time or energy bothering about the past and fate. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Fate places no obstacles in our path. All obstacles are of our own making and it is within our competence to overcome them. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Start with boundless hope with the presumption that nothing is impossible for you. If you work with earnestness and persist in your efforts, you can accomplish anything. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal It is true that in the world of practical life, you cannot do without wealth. But do not attach more importance to money than it deserves. Never forget that money is only a means of happiness and not happiness itself.

Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Worldly life is at best only a means of livelihood. There are higher objects in life than mere living, and only by turning to religion can you secure such objects. Do not ignore your spiritual welfare, in the interests of mere living. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal In the name of progress and economic growth we have grown weaker and weaker. Western thought and influence are corrupting us. The slow poison of un-Hindu thought and manners has entered our blood; and the most pitiable part of it is that we do not and would not realise that it is poison. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal When you know that you have an enemy to encounter, you arm yourself to meet him. It is always preferable to meet the foe in an open field of battle; it is very difficult to fight the foe who is by your side and masquerading as a friend. It is easier to fight a tiger openly attacking you than to fight a poison which, unknown to you, has entered your blood and is sapping your life slowly but unfailingly. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal When man forgets himself (i.e. his divinity) and forgets God, the supreme dispenser of all karmas, and when he looks upon worldly success and sensual pleasures as an end in itself, he begins to suffer. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Man can be happy by refusing to submit himself to anything which may disturb his mental equilibrium and make him unhappy. Our ancestors were happy, not because they had more objects of pleasure or less causes of trouble, but because they were able to retain their mental equilibrium, which gave them rest, peace and contentment and, therefore, happiness. They did not depend upon outside things to make them happy, nor did they concede to outside things the capacity to make them unhappy. Their feeling of rest and peace, contentment and happiness was normal, natural and healthy and, therefore, lasting. Every man must cultivate this feeling if he wants to be happy. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal Suppose you have 20 articles in your room, every one of which is likely to distract you by its very sight? Which is the more practical method, to prepare cases for enveloping every one of them or to shut your eyes? Obviously the latter is easier. Similarly, it is impossible for you to regulate, modify, annihilate or create at your pleasure the infinite things of the universe which are likely to disturb you. But you can regulate your own mind so that it gradually ceases to be disturbed by the objects of the world. And this is the aim of spirituality - to regulate the mind so that it is peaceful and happy in all circumstances. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal It is not necessary to ask the Guru for anything. If His glance falls on us it is sufficient. If he were to bless, Let this man be a noble one, it is enough; we will obtain good results.

If we are honest and sincere in our efforts and follow implicitly the directions of the sastras and the guru, the Lord will guide us along the path of progress, solve all our problems and doubts, free us from all worry and trouble and lead us on to the state

of realisation of the Supreme Reality, the truth and the bliss of the absolute oneness of all in the undifferentiated Brahman. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal

Young children have no conception at all of the right or wrong, nor have they the ability to form any such conception. With them ignorance is inevitable and therefore is not a sin. To commit a sin it is necessary to have the capacity to discriminate between right and wrong. But when the child grows up and acquires the capacity of discrimination and is able to understand the distinction between right and wrong, he becomes responsible for his actions and incurs sin if he acts wrongly. The fact that he allows his capacity of discrimination to sleep by reason of ignorance will not lessen his responsibility. Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal

In spite of the knowledge that telling a lie is sinful, many people persist in it. When people sin, knowing that what they do is sinful, what is the point of teaching them that many other acts of theirs are also sinful. Such a teaching is not going to make any difference to their conduct. Now they err in ignorance; after being taught they will err deliberately. That will be all the difference perhaps. The fault lies with us. What can any guru do when we have no desire to reform ourselves? Jagadguru Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal

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