(Nov 17,2013 ) Spiritual Message for the Day – Kartigai Deepam by Swami Sivananda

Kartigai Deepam

Divine Life Society Publication: Hindu Fasts and Festivals by Swami Sivananda

ON THE full moon day of the month of Kartigai (November-December) which falls on the ascension of the Kritigai star, the Hindus celebrate the Kartigai Deepam. It is on this day that the huge beacon is lit on the holy hill Arunachala, in South India.

Once Lord Shiva assumed the form of a hill at Tiruvannamalai in South India. Here He quelled the pride of Brahma and Vishnu who were quarreling as to their relative greatness. One day, when Lord Shiva was in meditation, Parvati left Him and went to the hill of Arunachala. There She performed penance. She was the guest of the sage Gautama. It was during Her penance here that Mahishasura was killed by Durga hidden by Parvati. Parvati saw Shiva as Arunachalesvara. She was taken back by the Lord to His side, and made His Ardhangini once more, that is, She occupied half of the body of the Lord.

Arunachalesvara is Tejo Lingam. Arunachala or the Tiruvannamalai Hill is the place that represents the fire element. (The five elements are represented by five holy places in India.)

When the light on the top of the Tiruvannamalai Hill is unveiled on the Kartigai Deepam day, people see the big light and worship it. They recite again and again in a loud voice “Harohara”. The esoteric meaning is that he who sees the light of lights that is burning eternally in the chambers of his heart through constant meditation attains immortality. The light on the Arunachala brings the message to you that the Self or Lord Shiva is self-effulgent; He is the light of lights.

On the Kartigai Deepam day in South India, people make bonfires in front of temples in the evening. It is said that Lord Shiva burnt the chariots of several demons who were torturing sages and celestials. This bonfire symbolizes this legend.

People place rows of earthen lamps in front of their houses on the evening of Kartigai Deepam and worship the Lord. They also light a variety of fireworks.

Annihilate the three impurities, namely, egoism, selfish action and delusion. Burn the mind, senses and the desires in the fire of knowledge of the Self or Shiva-Jnanam. Attain full illumination and behold the light of lights, which illumines the mind, intellect, sun, moon, stars, lightning and the fire. This is real Kartigai Deepam.

May the light of lights illumine you all! May Lord Shiva bless you with more light! May you merge in this supreme light and attain the eternal abode of bliss and immortality!

Excerpts from:

Kartigai Deepam - Hindu Fasts and Festivals by Swami Sivananda
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(Oct 21,2013 ) Spiritual Message for the Day – The Light of Man is the Self

The Light of Man is the Self

Divine Life Society Publication: The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad by Swami Krishnananda

 

Janaka asks sage Yajnavalkya:  In this human being, what is the light which illumines itself and illumines others? What is the power depending on which the person works? Ultimately, it is a sort of illumination, an awakening, a knowledge, which can be regarded as 'the light'. Now, what is this light? How do you work in this world; with the help of what? What is the aid that you have in this world which enables you to perform your function?

Yājñavalkya said: "Well, the simple answer to this question as to what is the light with the help of which people work in this world is that the sun is the source of all light." It is due to the existence of the light of the sun that people move about, perform their activities, and appear to be contended. Janaka agreed that this is so indeed.

When the sun sets, and there is darkness everywhere, what is the light, with the help of which people act? Then Yājñavalkya said the moonlight is the only support for them. All actions are performed by the moonlight if the sunlight is not there.

But if moonlight is not there, if sunlight also is not there, what is light, with the help of which you will work? "Fire is the light then." You light a fire if there is no sun and no moon, and with the light and the warmth of the fire that you burn, you may be comforted, and you may do your work.

But if fire also is not there, what is the support then?  So Yājñavalkya says: "When the sun sets, when the moon is not there and fire does not burn, by sounds and by speech people communicate their ideas with one another. Merely by speech they can work, if everything else fails."

But suppose there is nobody around you and nobody speak, no sound is coming forth, then how will you act? Your own self is the light; there is nothing else afterwards. You guide yourself, by yourself. Apart from the five senses, we have a sixth sense in us by which we act when everything else fails. It is a kind of inward illumination which begins to reveal itself when everything else fails as a support. That light is our own self. Why is it that we should wait for the time when everything else has failed, before the light within manifests itself to guide us and that we can be a light to our own selves?

Ordinarily, the light within gets attached to the external temptations and stimulants from outside sources. It may be sunlight; it may be any object of sense. Our selves get absorbed in the objects outside and become totally dependent on externals. We appear to have some sort of independence and a capacity to exist by ourselves, only when everything external fails.

Normally, we feel that we require many external appurtenances to sustain us from outside. We require a bungalow; we require many other facilities to exist; we require friends and servants; we require food and water; we require so many things. Without these things, we feel we cannot live. But if nothing of this kind is there, still we will exist. And that capacity to exist, when everything goes, reveals itself only when everything goes, not before, because of the dependence and the hope that the self pins upon the objects of sense outside, due to their presence. That you have a light of your own; that you have a worth of your own; that you have a status of your own, you cannot realize as long as you are dependent on things outside.

We have been brought up in an atmosphere of dependence. Always, we are depending on somebody or something – on parents, on teachers, on society, on bosses, on money, on wealth. All sorts of things are there on which we hang for our support. But there can be circumstances when we are deprived of all supports. When we are deprived of every kind of external assistance, the self that we are, the strength that we are, the status that we have, comes to our relief and begins to act. It is impossible to imagine what that light is and what that strength is.

We have got maximum power within us. We are mines of strength. We are not poor weaklings as we appear to be. We appear so on account of certain defects in our personality. One of the defects is the habit of depending on things; the other defect is our intense desire for objects of sense. Every desire draws energy from the body, from the Pranas, the senses and the mind, and pours it upon the objects which we are contemplating. We get depleted of all strength due to contemplation of objects. Secondly, there is also an inward feeling that we cannot exist without these objects. So, for these reasons, the light within gets stifled and smothered and it is not seen. It is like a light inside a bushel, as they say, and its existence remains undiscovered.

Ātmanaivāyam jyotiṣāste, palyayate, karma karute, vipalyeti iti: You depend on your own self when everything else goes. This is what Yājñavalkya says. Your self is your light; your self is your knowledge; and your self is your strength; your self is your sustenance. There is nothing except your self when everything else fails.

Excerpts from:

The Light of Man is the Self: The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad by Swami Krishnananda
Archives - Blog

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