LORD KRISHNA’S TWO IMPORTANT TEACHINGS

 

 

                                LORD KRISHNA’S TWO IMPORTANT TEACHINGS     

            Lord Krishna’s birthday is called Janmashtami. It is being celebrated today in India as well as in some other parts of the world as piously as possible.

            In the literary and religious history, Lord Krishna  is famous as the author of Bhagavad Gita ---The Song of God  which  is divided into eighteen chapters titled as :

            The Sorrow of Arjuna, The Yoga of Knowledge, Karma Yoga, Renunciation Through Knowledge, The Yoga of Renunciation, The Yoga of Meditation, Knowledge And Experience, The Way To Eternal Brahman, The Yoga of Mysticism, Divine Glory, The Vision of God In His Universal Form, The Yoga of Devotion, The Field And Its Knower, The Three Gunas,  Devotion To The Supreme Spirit, Divine And Demonic Tendencies, Three Kinds of Faith, and The Yoga of Renunciation.

            This write-up is concerned with only two most important chapters --- The Yoga of Knowledge and The Yoga of Renunciation.

            In The Yoga of Knowledge Lord Krishna acts as a teacher , the remover of ignorance,  because Arjuna who was to fight against his rivals firmly refuses to perform this duty since  who will die in the war were either his relatives or superior elderly persons.

            According to Lord Krishna Arjuna is ignorant about the reality of death, He regards the death of the body as the total death of an individual who is composed of not only of the body also of the soul.

            The body, Lord Krishna tells Arjuna , is perishable , but not the soul. The soul is birthless, deathless, endless, changeless, etc. It does not die but assumes a new form. The body when it becomes old is like a worn-out garment,  thrown away to don a new one. Thus whom Arjuna will be killing will not die; they will be reborn in a different form. So fighting is not really murderous. This enlightenment by Lord Krishna is eternally inspirational for all humans.

            In The Yoga of Renunciation, the great Lord asserts that our actions should not be motivated by desire. They should be done with non-attachment i.e. without expectation of their fruits.  However, this teaching of the great Lord should not lead to inaction. Humans are selfish. They are desirous for an attractive fruit for their actions. They work for some return, not fruitlessness. That is why they are advised to adopt the sacred attitude of renunciation. Act you must but without love for its reward. Thus, you have mandatory right to work but not for its reward.

                        The ultimate moral of the Bhagavad-Gita is dedication of all actions to God with no ego, no attachment, no desire for reward, and no claim for self-advancement.

            True renunciation is the soul of The Song of God.

                                                *****

G.R.Kanwal

4^th September 2026           

             

RABINDRANATH TAGORE SAID

 

          RABINDRANATH TAGORE SAID

            Rabindranath Tagore was a Bengali poet, author, playwright, musician, composer, philosopher, social reformer, painter, a great figure in the emergence Bengal Renaissance. He was born on 7 May 1861 in Kolkata and passed away 7 August 1941 in the same city. He wrote many books and won in 1913 the Nobel Prize in literature for his profoundly sensitive, fresh and beautiful verse. His most famous book of poems is Gitanjali (Song-offering) published in 1913.

            What follows is two extracts from his important writings:

            *Spiritual life is the emancipation of consciousness. Through it we find immediate response of soul everywhere. Before we attain this life, we see men through the medium of self-interest, prejudice or classification, because of the perpetual remoteness around us which we cannot cross over. When the veil is removed, we not only see the fleeting forms of the world, but come close to its eternal being which is ineffable beauty.

            Some seek for the evidence of spiritual truth in the outside world. In this quest one may stumble upon ghosts or some super-sensual phenomenon of Nature, but these do not lead us to spiritual truth, as new words in a dictionary do not give us literature.

                                                                        ----

            **We light the lamp in our room which creates a seeming opposition  between it and the great outside world. Our life on the earth is like that small room in which our consciousness has been concentrated. And we imagine that outside it lies death which opposes it. But the one indivisible truth of existence which is  for us must not be doubted because our life obscures it for a moment.

                                                            ********

G.R.Kanwal

3^rd September 2026

                                               

 

LEARNING FROM OTHERS

 

          LEARNING FROM OTHERS

            Great men express the gist of their practical experience or deep thinking in short sayings which others may read to enrich their knowledge, enhance their wisdom, and amplify their vision about life.

            Here are several examples of such expressions.

1.     Not failure, but low aim, is crime.---J. R. Lowell, American poet 1819-91

2.     It is worse to apprehend than to suffer.----Bruyere, Jean de la, French essayist (1645-96).

3.     He best part of beauty is that which no picture can express.----Francis Bacon, English essayist and philosopher (1561-1626).

4.     Brevity is the soul of wit.----William Shakespeare , English poet-playwright (1564-1616).

5.     The one prudence of life is concentration.—Ralph Waldo Emerson, American essayist and poet (1803-1882).

6.      Life often presents us with a choice of evils rather than of good.---Colton Caleb C, English clergy (1780-1832).

7.     A man of integrity will never listen to any reason against conscience. ---Henry Home, Scottish judge (1696-1782).  

8.     Without consistency there is no moral strength.----John Jason Owen, American clergy (1803-69).

9.     The over curious are not over wise.----Philip Massinger, English poet-dramatist (1583-1640)

10.                        Delicacy is to the mind what fragrance is to the fruit. A. Poincilot, French author and philosopher (---1850).

11.                         The early morning has gold in its mouth.----Benjamin Franklin, American author and statesman (1706-90).

12.                         One should eat to live, not live to eat.---Benjamin Franklin.

13.                         The education of the human mind commences in the cradle.----T. Cogan, English physician (1736-1818)

14.                         The wisest man may always learn something from the humblest peasant.----J. P. Senn, Swiss writer (1792-1870).

15.                         No crime is so great to envy as daring to excel.----Winston Churchill, Statesman and former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1874-1965).

16.                           Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall. ----Confucius, Chinese philosopher (Died 479 BC).

17.                         Men of cold passions have quick eyes.----Hawthorne, American author (1804-64).   

18.                          Even the best things are not equal to their fame.---Henry David  Thoreau , American naturalist and essayist (1817-62).

19.                         Man is a poetical enemy and delights in fiction.---William Hazlitt, English essayist (1778-1830).

20.                         The future is always a fairy land to the young.----English journalist George Augustus Sala (1828-95).

21.                         A mask of gold hides all deformities.-------Thomas Dekker, English dramatist  (1572-1632).  

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G. R. Kanwal

2^nd September 2026

 

HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

 

          HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

            Human development focuses on putting people first rather than just measuring a country’s wealth. It relies on cardinal virtues which are:

            A long and healthy life with moral values like prudence, justice, fortitude, temperance, self-control, abstention from criminal and vulgar acts, honesty, contentment , and righteous living.

            Among the Greek philosopher Plato’s cardinal virtues wisdom and rationality are also significant. Another Greek philosopher Aristotle includes in his group of virtues justice and the golden mean of the Indian Lord Buddha.

            Capitalism lays emphasis on economic system where private individuals or businesses own the means of production and run for profit.

            In current times developed countries boast of material advancement and military power with most destructive weapons.    

            All developed countries are now like business houses. They buy and sell, import and export their goods and chattels.

            Ethical values are declining  and that is an unfortunate aspect of latest developmental policies.

            Now greed rather than contentment is on the rise.

            Look at the following short poem by the American poet Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882). The title of the poem is: A NATION’S SRENGTH.

            Not gold, but only men can make

            A people great and strong ---

            Men who, for truth and honour’s sake

            Stand fast and suffer long.

            Brave men who work while others sleep,

            Who dare while others fly,

            They build a nation’s pillars deep,

            And lift them to the sky.

 

To conclude, the following words of Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948):

Service of humanity and self-realization or knowledge of God are synonymous terms.     

                                                            ********

G.R. Kanwal

1^st September 2026         

 

 

 

SOME EXRACTS FROM FAMOUS POEMS

 

                   SOME EXRACTS FROM FAMOUS POEMS

1.    From The Stream’s Song

Crumble, crumble,

Voiceless things;

No faith can last

That never sings.

     …….

2.     The woods are lovely, dark and deep,

But I have promises to keep,

And miles to go before I sleep

And miles to go before I sleep.---By Robert Frost

          ………

3.     And if I pray, the only prayer

That moves my lips for me

Is, ‘Leave the heart that now I bear

And give me Liberty !----Emily Bronte

                   ..…….

4.     They are slaves who fear to speak

For the fallen and the weak ;

They are slaves who will not choose

Hatred, scoffing, and abuse ;

Rather than in silence shrink

From the truth hey needs must think;

They are slaves who dare not be

In the right with two or three.----James Russell Lowell

                              ………

5.     I would be true, for there are those who trust me;

I would be pure, for there are those who care ;

I would be strong, for there is much to suffer;

I would strong, for there is much to dare. ……Howard Arnold Walter

                              ……….

6.     Blessed am I that I am born to this land and that

I had the luck to love her-------

      The first light revealed to my eyes was from

Her own sky and let the same light kiss

Them before they are closed for ever.…….. Rabindranath Tagore

                              *******

G.R.Kanwal

31^st August 2026         

                 

 

 

 

 

ENMITY

 

                ENMITY

            Being at enmity with someone, or a neighbouring country  means being in a state of active hatred, deep-seated hostility, or opposition towards them.

            Common synonyms of enmity are discord, strife, war, bitterness, rancour,hate, animosity, animus, hatred, malevolence, malice, aversion, hostility, malignity, and opposition.

            Some antonyms of enmity are: friendship, goodwill, harmony, kindness, love, sympathy, and cordiality.

            In simple terms enmity means a deep-seated often mutual feeling of intense hatred, hostility, or ill will between people or groups.

            The causes of enmity are deep-seated hostility, competing desires, and unresolved interpersonal or group conflicts.

            Results of enmity are destruction of personal relationships, social division, and widespread conflict, even armed conflict that leads to death and destruction on a large scale.

            Enmity between neighbouring countries can arise from religious differences, political and social discords, lust for expansion, enhancement of natural sources like water,  minerals, fuel, etc.

            Enmity should not last long if rulers of a country believe in the Biblical saying:  Love thy neighbor as thyself. Unfortunately this belief is not acted upon. Hence, neighbouring countries go on amassing arms and weapons, new and old. Their powers lies in the well-equipped armies. They contribute to the ancient saying : Might IS Right.

              How does personal enmity conduct itself. In exceptional cases it  mourns the death of its enemy believing in the moral adage: Nothing but good should be talked of the dead.

            Here are some important quotes:

*The best way to destroy an enemy is to turn him into a friend.

*Never try to destroy the enemy. Destroy the enmity.

*Enmity breaks hearts apart, but love assembles the pieces.

*It is easy enough to be friendly to one’s friends. But to befriend the one who regards himself as your enemy, is the quintessence of true religion. The other is mere business. ----Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948).

                                                _______            

PUNCHLINE: Our enemies are our outward consciences.----English poet-playwright William Shakespeare (1564-1616).

                                                            *****

G.R.Kanwal

30 August 2026

 

SILENCE

 

                                SILENCE

          Silence has many meanings, Simple ones are complete absence of sound , noise, or speech.

          It is also defined as a refusal, failure, or choice not to speak or communicate.

          One more definition says: It is an act of keeping information back or hidden or withheld.

          I believe that silence is a form of wordless speech. It conveyance its meaning through facial expression.  

          Some synonyms of silence are : stillness, muteness, voicelessness, inarticulateness, and reticence.

          If you are silent you are quiet and calm or you are unwilling to communicate vocally.

          Greek-Roman philosopher Plutarch (C.46 -after 119/125 AD) said: He can never speak well, who knows not how to hold his peace.

          Some more important quotes are:

*True silence is the rest of the mind, and is to the spirit what sleep is to the body, nourishment and refinement. It is a great virtue; it covers folly, keeps secrets, avoids disputes, and prevents sin.---English Quaker William Penn (1644-1718).

*Speech is great, but silence is greater. ---Scottish essayist and historian Thomas Carlyle (1795-1881).

 *Silence in times of suffering is the best.---English poet and literary critic John Dryden (1631-1700).

*The unspoken word never does harm. ---Louis Kossuth Hungarian patriot (1802-94).

          Finally, the following words of Indian saint and anti- colonial leader Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869-1948):

“I find that silence avoids irritation. There is a perceptible drop in blood pressure when I observe silence. After every silence I feel recuperated and have greater energy for work. The output of work during silence is much greater than when I am not silent. The mind enjoys a peace during silence which it does not without it. The decision to be silent itself produces a soothing effect on me. It lifts a burden off my mind. My experience tells me that silence soothes the nerves in a manner no drug can.

                                                ******

G.R.Kanwal

29 August 2026