Bhaja Shivoham

After the discovery of the Shiva Linga figure in the Gyanvapi Mosque, posts started circulating on social media with images of elliptical/oval figures mocking the claim of the Plaintiffs that the figure is a Shiva Linga. I saw some of those posts (now that I have returned to Twitter). I was hurt because the posts also mocked God, that too an aspect of God which is dear to me (Shiva). I spent sometime being angry and annoyed. Posted some heated tweets (which made me realise why I had left Twitter in the first place).

But something did not feel right. I kept feeling like that there must be a spiritual answer to this. Like in the Manishapanchakam, Bhagwan Adi Shankaracharya came across a Chandala on his way to the temple. When Bhagwan asked him to move away, the Chandala asked him whether he wanted the body to move or the consciousness that pervades the body? Realising that the Chandala was really Bhagwan Shiva, Bhagwan Adi Shankaracharya gave the most exquisite explanation of the Oneness that pervades everyone and everything. Incidentally, the background of Manishapanchakam was also in Banaras.

And so I wondered, whether there could be such a poetic response to these posts. It is quite presumptuous of me to compose such a response. I seek Bhagwan's mercy, as I endeavour to compose a response. I am very poor at Sanskrit, and so the response is in Hindi - not that my Hindi is great! 

शिव व्यापक हैं, जगत कारण,

अधिष्ठान हैं, करें ब्रह्माण्ड धारण;

 हर "है" रूप मे भासमान,

 इधर भी वही विराजमान।

शिवलिंग हैं विशेष चिन्ह,

उपासना से होंगे अभिन्न;

सारी सृष्टि उनकी कृति

हर रूप मे करो हर दृष्टि !

जो शिव मंदिर में प्रतिष्ठित,

वही सब के हृदय स्थित;

उनकी निन्दा है तुम्हारी हार,

तत्त्वमसि - कहें कितनी बार?

भज शिवोहम् ! भज शिवोहम् ! 

*

Shiva is all-pervading, He is the cause of the world,

He is the sub-stratum, He encompasses the whole universe;

He shines in all that exists,

(Thus) He is here too.

Shiva Linga is His special symbol,

Worshiping (It) one becomes not-different (from Him),

Everything is His creation,

In every form see Him!

The Shiva that resides in the temple,

Also resides in everyone's heart,

You lose when He is insulted,

That Thou Art - How many times to repeat?

Recite Shivoham (I am Shiva)!

Recite Shivoham (I am Shiva)! 

This is my humble attempt at composing a response. Please accept with a bucket full of salt. I don't even know if this qualifies as a response, but I wanted to write something.

[Indica.org is holding an essay writing competition on Bhagwan Adi Shankaracharya. One of the topics is - "Adi Shankara in my daily life". I have not written the essay as yet, but this is an example of Adi Shankara in my daily life. His compositions inspire, console and enthuse me. My experiments with religion/faith would not have been possible without Bhagwan's ever illuminating guidance.]

ॐ

Photo Credits: Mokshi

Wonder

During the annual summer vacations in school, my brother and I used to leisurely wake up. We didn't have to get up at the crack of dawn and get ready for school and we would lie in bed for as long as we could. But parents are parents and one of their key goals in life is to ensure that their progeny wakes up on time - by hook or by crook. And so our dear Mum deployed a unique strategy to wake us up. 

Mumma had purchased a CD of Anuradha Paudwal Ji titled 'Ram Ratan Dhan Payo'. It was a collection of Bhagwan Ram's Bhajans. Now in the 1990s, bluetooth speakers were not the norm. Instead, we had a 'music system' with two large speakers, which we called a 'deck'. The music system had two cassette inlets and the optical disc drive had the option of playing 3 CDs (which was remarkable!). It had a gazillion buttons, which when pressed would let out voices such as 'Bass', 'Treble' and the like. Right at the centre of the device was the volume dial. Playing any track on full volume had its own joy.

Anyway, to wake us up, Mother used to play that CD on the deck at near full volume. It was impossible to continue sleeping. Reluctantly, we would get out of bed and find some other place to loaf about. Since I had heard the entire album innumerable times, the bhajans are now etched in my subconscious memory. I would know when Anuradha ji would take a pause and when she would repeat a particular phrase. 

[Incidentally, when I was in Bali and the wife and I were basking in the sun at the beach, one of the beach shacks behind us was playing Aartis by Anuradha ji. It was quite hilarious and remarkable at the same time.]

I don't remember when and how 'Ram Ratan Dhan Payo' stopped playing. I guess, we grew up. Or the deck became obsolete. But like I said, the memory of the bhajans remained. My favourite track in the album was Ramchandra Kripalu Bhajaman. It continues to be one of my favourite Bhagwan Ram bhajans. 

But there is another track in the album which is quite calming. It is Ramcharitamanas. Unlike the other tracks, it doesn't have accompaniments like the manjira or the ghanti or ghungro. I think only the Tanpura is playing. It is a melodious recitation of a portion of Tulsidas' Ramcharitamanas.

I am a terrible singer. But I am even worse at lyrics. I don't remember the words to even my favourite songs. And so, I had heard Anuradha Paudwal Ji's Ramcharitamanas several times, only picking up bits and pieces of the verse, never fully knowing the words or their meaning. The track felt calming and I enjoyed listening to it.

Until yesterday, when on Twitter, I clicked on a link in a tweet by Vedanta Society. The link was to a post by Swami Tyagananda titled "Where shall I stay?". The post was about an exchange between Bhagwan Rama and Rishi Valmiki in Tulsidas' Ramcharitamanas. During His exile in the forest, Bhagwan Rama asked Rishi Valmiki - 'Where shall I stay?". To this, Rishi Valmiki said that Bhagwan Rama should reside in the hearts of His devotees and then goes on to list the attributes of a devotee.

As I was reading the post, the words seemed familiar. Idiot that I am, I first thought that perhaps some of the verses are from the Hanuman Chalisa. Until I came across a particular verse which was distinctive of Anuradha ji's rendition of Ramcharitamanas. It then dawned on me that the verses in front of me were the words of the track that I had been listening to since over two decades. What a coincidence!

Even though the ignorance of the lyrics and their meaning did not have a negative impact on my life - in the sense that I did not feel incompleteness - the knowledge of the lyrics and meaning gave a positive feeling of joy and wonder. The track now has a different and more intimate connection with me. 

And that is the incredible thing about life. Things that appear ordinary become special when we examine them closely. Now when I listen to it, the composition evokes a deeper feeling of bhakti.

A vocalist singing a complex Raga may seem bizarre to an untrained ear; but with the right knowledge of music, the same rendition would evoke the desired rasa in the listener. 

In Chapters 20 and 21 of The Little Prince, there is a fascinating discussion between The Little Prince and the Fox where the latter asks the former to 'tame' him. By taming him, he would become the Prince's friend and would be unique to him. He would no longer be like the hundreds of other foxes. The ordinary would become meaningful and special. It is here that the Fox tells the Prince a secret - It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye. 

We have all grown up learning and singing the rhyme - Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. The second line of the composition is - How I wonder what you are! And yet, at some point, our 'wonder' for the stars (and many other things in life) stops. Things become mundane instead of being special. We let the beauty pass by and don't stop and admire the wonder!

The real wonder, of course, is that on a closer examination, the world is a manifestation of Bhagwan Rama Himself. A vision like that makes everything special. Nothing becomes a source of sorrow. Everything is God. There is nothing that is different from God. Everything is unique and yet part of a universal continuum.

May the Lord give us the vision to see Him in all beings (including us)!

Seeing a peacock as you drive out of court. A wonder indeed!
Photo credits: NK

What are you wearing?

It seems that I cannot retire from political writing. The latest issue that has caught my (and the country's) attention is the Hijab Ban by the Karnataka Government. I believe that whatever could be said about the issue has already been said - either in courts of law or on news channels or in newspapers etc. Therefore, this post probably does not have anything new to offer. Even though I am a lawyer, I am not going into the legal niceties of the ban. 

Instead, I am going to present 3 arguments against the ban. This style is reminiscent of my college debating days and perhaps I would be able to do justice to my younger rebellious self.

1) Education is God

Universal education/literacy has been an illusive dream for India. The State has consistently made efforts to make school education attractive to parents and children. Primary education has been made free and compulsory. The State provides uniforms, books, materials etc. free of cost. No child is left behind. The schools also provide mid-day meals to ensure proper nutrition for the children and to incentivise parents to send their children to school. Particularly, for the girl child, the Central Government came out with the flagship program - Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao. We should also not forget that a school is a sanctuary for children, protecting them from child labour. Thus, education is the God of practical life - it protects, it nurtures, it propels and without it, we are utterly clueless. Thus, the State has always worked towards universal education by removing barriers and incentivising parents. The Hijab ban is a retrograde step - as it creates an impediment for certain children. They (and their families by implication) are compelled to choose between their personal/spiritual God and the God of practical life; a choice no child should be burdened with. Such a choice will only limit access to education. Thus, for this reason alone, there should not be a Hijab ban.

2) Anti-Hindu

The move has been touted as anti-minority - a specific attack on Muslims by a majority Hindu leaning BJP government. I am not getting into that. Whatever the motivations, in the long run, the move is potentially anti-Hindu. You will find various articles that would say that Hinduism is a way of life. Hinduism is all pervasive - it effects all aspects of your life. If you're an ardent Hindu, you will find that Hinduism has prescriptions regarding what to eat, what to wear, how to worship, who to befriend, who to marry etc. The Dharma Shastras cover almost the entire spectrum of life (and death and beyond). Because of this all pervasiveness, the public and the private life of a Hindu is determined (or at least affected) by her religion. 

Now, the ultimate goal of the Hijab ban is to create secular public places/spaces devoid of religious presence. While all of this looks great in imagination, it is almost impossible to achieve in India due to the pervasiveness of religion in our life.  Let me illustrate. You have today started with a head scarf. Tomorrow the argument could be that schools should not have holidays on religious festivals, as that is anti-secular. The argument could be extended to say that Hindus cannot wear yajnopavita or kada or rudraaksha to schools. It could further be extended to school uniforms as they stand today - Is shirt-pant Christian? Is salwar-suit Hindu or Muslim? Lets move to food - should mid-day meals contain eggs, as they have protein content and the dietary restrictions of the children be ignored? 

Morning assemblies of schools are also not immune to religious interference. I have heard morning assembly prayers of schools that contain requests to God for strength (among other things). Any student of the University of Delhi would attest that on Basant Panchmi, Goddess Saraswati is worshipped by students on University grounds. That will also have to stop. Holi also cannot be celebrated on Government college grounds. 

The purpose of the above is not to engage in whataboutery. It is meant to illustrate the pervasiveness of religion and the near impossible task of removing it from our public spaces. What will you retain? What will you remove? Where do you begin? Where do you stop?

I have said this before and I am repeating myself. I believe that India is at Nash equilibrium. To make someone better off, we always end up making someone worse off. There is a somewhat comfortable interference that religion has in our everyday life and there is a somewhat comfortable tolerance for it as well. The moment you stoke the fire of discomfort, there is a possibility of everything becoming uncomfortable.

And because Hinduism is a way of life, the stripping of activities (if done objectively) would effect them the most.

3) Better things to do

This is 2022. Don't we have better things to do? We are still battling a pandemic. I am certain there are more pressing things to read or write or legislate on. This year we celebrate 75 years of independence. Over this time, there has been much talk (and progress) on women empowerment, equal pay-equal work, Beti Bachao Beti Padhao et al. If after all this, we are back to deciding what young girls should wear to school, then it begs the question - What have we achieved? I mean, really? Kuch aur nahi hai kya karne ko?

Tilak and Dhoti Kurta - April 2016, Faculty of Arts, University of Delhi 

Quite distressing to imagine that there could be a ban on wearing this

[Photo credits: Aarti Kumar]