"Can You Explain God's Love?"

Dear Malathi,
Thanks Malathi. I remember Chinmaya's analogy because I read it decades ago and it is still in my memory. But my extending the analogy came just when I was reading yours.
In a way I need to thank you for that.
love,
sridhar

 

Dear Indhu,

Hats off to you Indhu for raising the most relevant question. I am happy you chose to ask.

And before answering your question let me first thank you for your compliments.

I decided to reply to your blog only after I could finish writing this week's blog.

Now your question is that why can't we seek God in all these things - pleasures, sex, money fame ...
The short answer is we can provided we can also accept God in their opposites. In other words we can see God in prosperity if we can see him in poverty as well. We can feel his hand while in the height of our popularity; but we should be able to feel his presence even when we are utterly humiliated.

The problem with sex, money, fame and things like that are that they are dangerously addictive. If we see God only in these things and not in others then we are slaves to addiction. And when our sexual pleasures are disturbed we will lose our balance.

Is it difficult to understand? I'll use an example which I have been reserving for a future blog.
One of Sankara's disciples wanted to drink alcohol. Sankara was teaching Advaita and saying in effect everything was brahmam. This disciple thought that alcohol is also brahmam why not I drink it?
He did not put his question to Sankara but the latter understood.
The next day as they were walking down the street Sankara entered an arrack shop and drank a pot full of arrack. His disciples were aghast. And this disciple was very happy. He had planned to visit the same shop later in the evening.
Shankara next went to a kind of welding shop. There was molten lead (lead in liquid form which will be very hot about 330 degrees Celsius) in a small vessel. If one touches molten lead well it will take months before the wounds heal. But Sankara drank the molten lead in the same way he drank arrack.
He then looked at the disciple as if to say,
"If you can see brahmam in molten lead and drink it then you can see brahmam in arrack and can drink it too."

Unless we have Sankara's mind we have to avoid all those things. Otherwise we will be caught for ever in that net.

Hope I have answered your question, Indhu.
love,
sridhar

 

dear bharathy,
thanks for coming in almost on the last day of this blog. And you have without knowing talked about the next week's blog. 'blaming Him for our agony and our sufferings'. Next week we are going to see the root cause of all our agony in the back drop of a love story as usual.

You are right, Bharathy. We fall prey to external material things and forget about God. We get and forget. He gives and forgives.

Lets try to change this.
regards,
sridhar

 

Oh Dears! Beware! Beginning from tomorrow (Superstar's birthday) Varalotti's Kutti blogs are coming your way.

These kutti blogs (calling it kutti (meaning small) because I am trying to contain them within 800 words) are overflows from my weekly blogs, outbursts which can't wait till the succeeding wednesday or thought processes I want to share with you, something which can't wait.

I know I am taxing you! When I asked a few months ago if you are interested in bi-weekly blogs you maintained a stoic silence which was really frightening.

But now I am imposing these blogs on you. Somewhere deep down I have a fear that time is running out fast. Let me get out as much of myself on to this repository. You can read them whenever you feel like.

We have Saturdays With Varalotti and Wednesdays With Varalotti Forums. Here we have the regular blogs and Kutti blogs.

Around 9 AM IST Saturday you will have the first mini adai hot from the oven.

Wish me good luck; bless me and please do pray for me.

love,
sridhar