Ganesha

Ganesha means God of the masses or groups. 

His name is composed of GAN = masses/ groups and ESHA = God, meaning that He is the God of humanity and all living and mythical beings.

Ganesha symbolizes the union of Shiva and Shakti – the supreme Male and Female energies of cosmic creation – and being their Son is born with Shiva’s knowledge, and Shakti’s strength

The elephant head symbolizes many things per different texts, one of which is STRENGTH, to crush obstacles and barriers, therefore HE is also called “Vighna-Harta” which means Remover of Obstacles.

According to the 1400 AD Mudgala Purana, Ganesha’s 8 avatars (incarnations) are:

1. Vakratunda (“twisting trunk”), overcomes the demon Matsaryāsura (envy,  jealousy)
2. Ekadanta (“single tusk”) conquers the demon Madāsura (arrogance, conceit)
3. Mahodara (“big belly”) vanquishes the demon Mohāsura (delusion, confusion)
4. Gajavaktra (“elephant face”) tames the demon Lobhāsura (greed)
5. Lambodara (“pendulous belly”) controls the demon Krodhāsura (anger)
6. Vikata (“unusual form”) destroys the demon Kāmāsura (lust)
7. Vighnaraja (“king of obstacles”), eliminates the demon Mamāsura (possessiveness, attachment)
8. Dhumravarna (“grey color”) subdues the demon Abhimanāsura (pride)

The Mugdala intrinsically links Him with Buddhi, Riddhi and Siddhi meaning He grants Wisdom, Affluence and Spiritual Power to those who subdue their baser self.

Adi Shankara’s Maha Ganesha Pancharatanam is a powerful prayer said to grant wishes,  Siddhi Vinayak Mandir in Mumbai is one of His famous Temples, and one of His mantras is:

Om Gan Ganpataye Namah

(*GAN is prounounced with a soft N)

 

Ganesha helps because His Nature is to help – it’s just a matter of asking  Ganpati Bappa Moreya

Calling Krishna

Krishna, like Meera and Chaitanya, I too long for you to fill my spaces with your radiance and peace and dispel all the hurt that I brought into my life by forging relationships of pain. You are all I want so let me deserve you:

An Old New Bhajan

Gobind bolo, Harigopal bolo, Radha Raman, Harigopal bolo – a modern treatment of a tradition bhajan – no matter the clothes or the looks God is fine if approached with love:

A Krishna Bhajan

Krishna – The Supreme One, some say the Ultimate Hindu God – is fun, joyful, playful, happy and this bhajan is about his childhood:

On Wisdom

“Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools, because they have to say something” – Plato

“By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest” – Confucius

“It is a characteristic of wisdom not to do desperate things” – Henry David Thoreau

“To conquer fear is the beginning of wisdom” – Bertrand Russell

“Wisdom outweighs any wealth” – Sophocles

“Patience is the companion of wisdom” – Saint Augustine

“It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer” – Albert Einstein

Universally and across ages; patience, perseverance, discretion, courage; are held as building blocks and evidence of wisdom. The road map is obvious and obviously tough to follow going by the evidence of strife in life in general. So to get ahead a door needs to open to let out the self, and let sense in – the self that gets in the way of you and you, you and them.

On Faith

“Doubt is a pain too lonely to know that faith is his twin brother” – Kahlil Gibran

“Faith consists in believing when it is beyond the power of reason to believe” – Voltaire

“Reason is our soul’s left hand, faith her right” – John Donne

“If patience is worth anything, it must endure to the end of time. And a living faith will last in the midst of the blackest storm” – Mahtama Gandhi

“Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase” Martin Luther King, Jr.

“Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe” – St. Augustine

“A man of courage is also full of faith” – Cicero

Why do we despair, agreed times are dire, fears real, but that faith works is also real because these men of great intellect and accomplishment would not embrace faith were it an illusion. Perhaps Faith is capabilities coupled with self-confidence in those, and maybe deployable skills are the only real foundation of  faith, separating day-dreams from faith, earned from anticipated or entitled.

On Fear

“What is needed, rather than running away or controlling or suppressing or any other resistance, is understanding fear; that means, watch it, learn about it, come directly into contact with it. We are to learn about fear, not how to escape from it” –  J. Krishnamurti

And empirical knowledge, with all assumptions carefully removed, is the antidote to fear. Reality cannot be escaped but with knowledge translated into skills reality can be livable, even pleasurable, and us drivers not pawns.

Tulsidas says

आवत ही हरषै नहीं नैनन नहीं सनेह।
तुलसी तहां न जाइये कंचन बरसे मेह।।

Do not go where (you are) not welcomed with affection even if showered with lavish gifts there.

Happiness Tools

Happiness is the pre-requisite to a healthy, mature, loving relationship with God.

The unhappy reach to God in want, not in love and celebration, making theirs a conditional, need based supplication teetering from hope to despair, often questioning and mostly dissatisfied.

To be happy is in our own hands – to a very large extent, if not entirely, and the basic simple, steps to happiness are:

• Physical Fitness: healthy, fit body to afford and enjoy what we want most
• Intellectual Refinement: open, trained mind equipped to adapt to and accept reality and change
• Financial Independence: essential self respect and dignity tool that elevates life from survival to living it up
• Emotional Satisfaction and Security: secure bonds of faith where love is born and nurtured and adversities handled with equanimity.

So be happy. It is in your hands. It’s in your head. It’s in your grasp. When you hit the peak of all 4 you will be real close to experiencing God.

On life

“A man who dares to waste one hour of time has not discovered the value of life” – Charles Darwin

“Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first” – Mark Twain

“God writes a lot of comedy… the trouble is, he’s stuck with so many bad actors who don’t know how to play funny” – Garrison Keillor

“He who has a why to live can bear almost any how” – Friedrich Nietzsche

To paraphrase: value time, let go of that sense of entitlement, deal with it all with humor and have a purpose.