Theism in the Vedanta, and in the Village

"I have a friend who simply does not believe in God, he feels most beings waste enormous amount of time and energy in life in praying or thinking about this non-existent entity. He reasoned: if I fall in this ditch then who will help me? Rama, Jesus or Allah. No one, I will have to get up or pay money to an ambulance and get treatment in a hospital. For every physical or emotional wound we have none to help us except ourselves. Why create God and add to the confusion and misery. I agree!"

Prasad Krishnan - "The notion of a "Old man in the sky" is the "God" that is being denied here. This is the God of Abrahamic religions. "Rama" cannot be straightjacketed in the same category as Jesus or Allah. The Hindu conception of Ishwara is both as the antaryaami and the sarvavyaapi. It is incorrect to reject this Ishwara simply because one cannot "feel" His aid. According to the shaastra, the very inspiration to help oneself is got from Ishwara, who instigates all beings towards Dharma from within."

"Ishwara is also the karmaphaladaata, the one who bestows the fruits of karma. Karma as a dead law cannot function of its own accord. Moreover, without Ishwara in mind, performance of any actions creates only more bondage/confusion/samsaara. Thus one cannot escape Ishwara or deny His presence simply by the logic that "No other person is there to help me when I am in trouble". What is is Ishwara, this is the message of Vedanta. This message is enshrined in all practices in Hinduism. One merely has to bring this vision into all the ritualistic portions, and then they all become very much alive and necessarily helpful in the spiritual pursuit which one alone can undertake for oneself."

Prasad Krishnan I have learnt from many teachers the same message. Prominently I have learnt traditional Vedanta from Swami Paramasukhananda of Ramakrishna Math.In principle they are all the same Guru to me, forms are different and style of teaching is different, but essence is same.

Piyush Manush Karmaphaladaata / Man made rituals as path to spirituality !! very interesting

Aparna Krishnan  A country is rooted in a tradition, and how deeply I realized only in the village. 

There is no 'sanskrit' and 'local' ... the same Mahabharatam that sanskrit scholars discuss is part of the late night stories exchanged on the spaces outside village homes. What the Geeta says, I see ingrained into practice, and referred to as 'Dharmam'. So when you talk to a spiritual revival, it needs to be rooted in the practices of the civiliation. 

" According to the shaastra, the very inspiration to help oneself is got from Ishwara, who instigates all beings towards Dharma from within." Eashwaramma tells me as, "Whatever we do we do because of the thought that god gives us."

Aparna Krishnan And Lakshmamma says, "In drought god helps us by giving us the thought to go to the forest and pluck the dederu leaves and cook and eat them.". This is India, and this is her foundation.

Prasad Krishnan The essence is really speaking the identity between oneself and Ishwara. Dharma/the antaryaami/sarvavyaapi nature of Ishwara is a very evolved and practically relevant intermediary stage.

Piyush Manush Karmaphaldattta .. when ishwar is made into a judge ..it becomes very very problematic ..does he judge instantly or after a year or after decades or in the next birth !!! it disconnects people from existing living earth ... and strongly uproots one from nature on which we exist and rely on for our existence !!

Prasad Krishnan Piyush Manush : Karmaphaladaata is not equal to a judge. Ishwara is not a person who judges based on his whims and fancies. He merely connects the karma to its fruits. Nothing more and nothing less. It is not unlike the connection of physical actions with physical reactions. Ishwara makes karma and the enjoyment of its fruits possible. Without Him neither is possible, that is the point.

We can go still deeper and see karma itself as interaction with the Lord and all fruits of karma as evidence of the Lord's presence. Vedanta is revealed in a number of layers, one has to go deeper and deeper to answer all questions. It all comes to an end at the 'essence' I have mentioned above.

 

Aparna Krishnan Gandhi had somewhere stated, 'God is the law and the lawgiver rolled into one.' Somewhere else, 'God is the conscience of the atheist'. I find my simplified Vedanta there !

Aparna Krishnan And regarding karmaphala, i have discovered that it gives people immense strength . This struck me in the village. When they see people follow dharmam and stay poor, it does not shake them - because the canvas is vast  and spans lifetimes. So they say, 'Devudu unnadu', 'Devudu chooskuntaadu' ... and proceed following dharmam. And this is not at all a weakness. It needs tremendous strength to follow dharmam and be generous when your next meal is in question. I see that strength in my village.