Stress
Sufferings and
Spirituality
A View Point of a Priest
God will not permit any
troubles to come upon us, unless He has a specific plan by which great blessing
can come out of the difficulty.
- Peter Marshall
Sufferings are the other side of the coin of life; first
being peace, pleasure, love and happiness. It has been endeavor, since the
beginning of civilization; man made millions of discoveries and inventions, to
make living easy. At individual level man is always after the best of life and
facilities; still life is not always a most delicious cake. Problems, suffering
difficulties, maladjustments say by whatever name one likes, happen without
notice to everyone without exception the difference is only in the perception. When
in trouble an individual tries to seek solution and solace from two great
institutions, parents and the Lord.
Despite so many beliefs and controversies most believe He
(the Uparwala) is very near to us and most powerful: can do everything and
anything. Even Albert Einstein said, "Coincidence is God's way of
remaining anonymous.”
How to convince Him the Lord to help us; a big question.
Pilgrimages, offerings, prayers, religious gathering, chanting name, satang –
collective singing of His praise and prayers, poor feeding, free community
kitchen, free service in religious places, people do whatever they like to
invoke his blessings that would relieve them
of miseries. Still there are others always engrossed in Him, without any
specific motive, but just to feel Him, do deep meditation and follow rigorous
routine.
Once in a prayer meeting; priest narrated a couplet below (Verse
21 of Uttarkand) from Shri Ramcharitmanas (Ramayana) by Poet Tulsi Das
दैहिक दैविक भौतिक तापा।
राम राज नहिं काहुहि ब्यापा।।
सब नर करहिं परस्पर प्रीती।
चलहिं स्वधर्म निरत श्रुति नीती।।
daihika daivika bhautika
tåpå,
råma råja nahi kåhuhi byåpå
|
saba nara karahi
paraspara priti,
calahi svadharma nirata
sruti niti ||1||
Meaning
During Rama's rule no one
suffered from pain of any kind whether (daihik)
caused by one's body or mind; (daivik)
divinely caused like floods and drought or (bhautik) caused by other living and non-living like money, family,
relations, failures so on. All humans constantly loved one another and intently
followed their ethical duties as upheld in scriptures.
How to get rid of these three types of suffering is a big
question. The Priest explained a view based on spirituality and faith in
divinity:
Daivik Tapas-suffering
caused by Divine: The Lord does not cause any suffering to
man-his creation and his replica- is always benevolent. But still many people
in India believe in Pitra Dosh the suffering caused by ancestors, and some
times they are made to believe that mishappenings are the result of having
promised something to Divine but not performed and also that a person is under
the influence of certain stars-Grahs as per Indian astrology: this is perhaps
accepted by science also that life on earth is effected by other stars. People
also believe and are made to believe in bad sprites widely known as ghosts.
Commonly known acts of nature like floods, droughts, earthquakes are also
termed as Daivik Tapas-pains.
How to take care of such suffering. The priest expressed that
man should remain attached to God, always remember him, be God fearing, be
grateful to him, do everything as if one is doing it in the presence of God, feel
His presence near and around. Keep one’s conscious clear, above board, beyond
doubt and with the truth-the best way to defend oneself always. One should talk
to himself sincerely as often as possible-the self-audit: then the corrections
must follow like not to repeat activities or perform penance. This would save one from all suffering caused
by the acts of God- Daivik Tapas.
Dehik Tapas – Bodily
Sufferings
Dehik Tapas bodily sufferings many of which emanates from type
of food we eat. Food is the primary source of satisfaction, maintenance, health
and immunity. Every process right from earning till the first bite rather, till
we ease it out, is important.
Money spent for food be well earned not grabbed or unearned,
that enhances your respect for the food. Pride is the offshoot of hard work
that satisfies the human soul. Food purchased with hard earned money is very
dear to an individual. Whosoever leaves food in plate after satisfying his
hunger does not display wisdom nor regards for the food
Do not work for food that
spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will
give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.
John 6:27
Preparation of food for eating is next step: food should be
prepared with good mood, positive energy, must feel pride, without any ill
feeling or grumble. The ingredient of love gets added at home only not in hotel
where is can be best of crockery, presentation, master chefs and all quality
ingredients. But a Rar-slowly roasted chapatti with crystalized butter and
simple salt and red chilies prepared by mother, wife, sister with love is far
superior in taste and satisfaction. An old saying is, “Jaisa Khaoigai ann
visahoga mun” (Your thinking will as your food).
How you eat food. Do you enjoy every bite, take pride in
taking food, be respectful, have time to eat and adopt a respectful posture.
Buffet is the modern way of serving our guests; it does not bestow honour and
love on the host or the guests. People just eat and go sometimes they do not
even say bye to the host. On the other hand Indian style of serving the guests
has all the respect and regard both for the guest a well as for the food.
Physical hygiene and purity of ingredients have its own
importance-at home it is ensured without any regulations but seldom in hotels
despite regulations and inspections. Nature provides us best of the foods-more
the processing more the loss of essentials the nature has given.
Next step is eating. Before you start your lunch, dinner or
breakfast or any meal, offer food you are going to eat to the Lord-no need to
go to temple or perform some worship- a simple thanks or a remembrance,
expression of gratitude to Lord, before you take the first bite that is
required. My grandfather had his own style to remember the Lord before taking
food: he would dip his right ring finger in the food and would sprinkle a few droplets
on the mother earth and then would fold his hands in prayer for a few seconds
before taking the first bite. Food taken
like this becomes a Prasad-Blessing from the Lord, helpful to keep away
sufferings emanating from food.
Whenever we make an offering to almighty in a religious
place, the priest retains a part of the offering for the deity or say in the
name of the diety. Thus the offering is divided into two portions. First
portion is retained by the priest and second portion is returned to you as
Prasad. In fact, the first part indicates the negativities in our life which
are retained by the priest and absorbed by the Almighty. The Prasad returned to
us is all positivity, for our prosperity, well-being and development. So
continue to make an offering to Almighty as often as you can. Be grateful to
Him for what you have, this will keep Dehik Tapas-bodily sufferings miles away
from you.
So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for
the glory of God.
Corinthians 10:31
Bible
Bhotik Tapas
Bhotik Tapas relate to the sufferings caused by worldly
things like money matters, relationships, family, friends etcetera. Every
religion believes that we should give away 10% of our earnings as alms, charity
etcetera without expectation of any return. If you have an expectation from the
charity given then it is not a charity, it is then give and take, barter, and a
trade. Charity given without expectation comes back to you in different forms
often with a multiplication factor thus your wealth continues to multiply
enabling you to give more and more in alms. This is perhaps the reason that
people arrange free community kitchens-in India known as Bhandara and Langer.
Charity need not be food alone, it can be service, help, education, clothes,
even the space and medical help. In some charitable hospital people go there to
serve the patients without any charge. Real charity begins at home take care of
your old parents and poor relatives perhaps they deserve most and first. This
saves a person from Bhotik Tapas.
A generous person will
prosper;
Whoever refreshes others
will be refreshed.
Proverbs 11:25 | NIV
Fact of the matter is, if you ask Indians, what type of Govt
or governance they want; 90% would immediately
say “Ram-Rajya” that is the popularity and satisfaction drawn
from the reign of Lord Rama even millions of years after. In fact Raja Ram was incarnation
of Lord Vishnu as per the Hindu scriptures, so his reign has to be the best
example of Govt and governance. At present although the fundamentals of Govt
& governance remain the same, the incumbents are much nearer to vices than
virtues.
Above three principles of: chant the name of Lord, earn your
salt and give charity are very well imbibed in Sikhism as Nam Jap, (Recite
Lord’s name) Kirit Kar (Earn your food)
and Wund Ke Chhak (give charity). So is in Bhagavad Gita which has Bhaktiyog
(Recite Lord’s name), Karamyog (do your duty), and Gyanyog (obtain knowledge)
along with charity and penance. Fact of the matter is these three pillars are
common to all religions and faiths.
You need not cry very
loud; he is nearer to us than we think.
- Brother
Lawrence
Those times when you feel
like quitting can be times of great opportunity, for God uses your troubles to
help you grow.
- Warren Wiersbe
God had one son on earth
without sin, but never one without suffering.
- Augustine
Snuggle in God's arms.
When you are hurting, when you feel lonely, left out, let Him cradle you,
comfort you, reassure you of His all-sufficient power and love.
- Kay Arthur
Adopt these three His
remembrance, earning one’s salt and charity in your daily life and be
Stress free.
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