Question Meaning of inaction in action and action in inaction in Bhagavadgita 4.18 Answer Here is a better understanding of the verse. I would like to start with an analogy. Inaction in action: Unattachment amidst Action Suppose a person is taking his food and we request him to listen to a story simultaneously. So, we would say "Listen to the story while eating" or an act of "listening in eating" is requested....
Question Why are owls considered inauspicious? Answer Owls and pigeons are mentioned in Vedas(Atharva Veda to be specific) as the messengers of Nirrti,the Goddess of misfortune ,destruction,poverty etc and hence they are considered inauspicious. Nirrti also known as Alakshmi is considered to be Goddess Lakshmi's sister. Quoting from this page: VI, 27. Charm against pigeons regarded as ominous birds. O ye gods, if the pigeon, despatched as the messenger of Nirriti (the goddess of destruction), hath come here seeking (us out), we shall sing his praises, and prepare (our) ransom....
Question Was Gaudapada a guru or grand-guru of Adi Shankarachrya? Answer Adi Shankara told Nirvana Shatakam on being questioned by Govindapada. Here is what Madhaviya Shankara Digvijaya tells: Meeting with Govindapada and accepting Sanyasa (89-96) Travelling a long distance, that young Sannyasin; with staff in hand and wearing new Kashaya dress, arrived at the forest hermitage of sage Govinda towards one evening, even like the sun at the western horizon. The shade of tall trees on [he river bank and the cool breeze blowing through them assuaged his bodily exhaustion very soon, while the sight of deer skins and bark clothes on the pranches of bushes indicated to him that he had arrived at a hermitage....
Question Is Sanskrit the oldest language? Is it older than Pali? Answer The oldest surviving Buddhist texts in the Pali language come from the relic chamber of a Buddhist stupa at Sri Ksetra. They consist of a twenty-leaf manuscript of solid gold and a large gilded reliquary of silver. A new and exhaustive palaeographic study of these inscriptions shows that they date from the mid-fifth to mid-sixth century AD. This link provides multiple reference to support this claim : http://dhammawheel....
Question What Tilak or Namam does Lord Brahma have on His forehead? Answer The best iconography of Brahma is found in the Puranas (such as Matsya Purāṇa Chapter 260 and Agni Purāṇa chapter 49) and other iconography in some medieval texts on architecture (the most famous being Aparājitapṛcchā Chapter 214, Devatāmūrtiprakaraṇam Chapter 4, Mayamatam Chapter 36) but the tilaka of Lord Brahma was nowhere to be found except in only one book called the Mānasāra...
Question Was Rishi Vyasa the great grandson of Rishi Vashishtha? Answer There is a verse Attributed to Great Sage Vyasa which goes like this vyAsam vasishta-naptAram Sakteh pautram akalmasham parAsarAtmajam vande Suka-tAtam tapo-nidhim. Which means vyAsa is the Great-Grandson of vasishta and the grandson of Sakti. He is the son of parAsara and the father of Suka. I offer my obeisance to that vyAsa who is free from all defects and is a mine of austerities....
Question Did Rama or Krishna ever practise meditation? Answer Not sure if he did it regularly, but on the night before Arjuna slayed Jayadratha, Krishna went into a state of yoga and meditation: "Sanjaya said, 'Then lord Kesava, of eyes like lotus-petals, having entered the unrivalled mansion of Arjuna, touched water, and spread (for Arjuna) on the auspicious and even floor an excellent bed of Kusa blades that were of the hue of the lapis lazuli....
Question What are Mahavakyas? Answer The Mahavakyas are "Grand Pronouncements" or "Great Sayings" usually taken from Upanishads. They have profound significance in Hinduism. The four Mahavakyas (महावाक्यानि) are as follows: 1. Prajñānaṃ Brahma (प्रज्ञानं ब्रह्म) From Aitareya Upanishad 3.3 of the Rig Veda. Also called लक्षणा वाक्य. It is about (pure) consciousness of Brahman 2. Tat Tvam Asi (तत्त्वमसि) From Chandogya Upanishad 6.8.7 of the Sama Veda Also called उपदेश वाक्य....
Question Where can I find an online version of the Adhyatma Ramayana? Answer Unabridged English translation by Rai Bahadur Lala Baij Nath: https://archive.org/details/TheAdhyatmaRamayana Link to PDF Hindi translation by Munilal (with original Sanskrit verses): https://archive.org/details/AdhyatmaRamayana Link to PDF Abridged English translation by Srikrishna Prapnnachari: indiadivine.org (PDF) Note: “The question: Where can I find an online version of the Adhyatma Ramayana?” is licensed by Stack Exchange Inc (https://hinduism.stackexchange.com/); user contributions licensed under CC BY-SA....
Question Is sitting on a camel in a dream inauspicious? Answer I think you're being confused. Riding (or sitting on) a camel is not considered inauspicious. But having dreams about riding a camel is certainly considered inauspicious (for the person who is riding it in dreams) (as it is considered to be a sign of approaching death). Analysis of good/bad dreams and good/bad omens are given in detail in the Agni Purana....
Question Why Ravana of Ramayana is worshipped like god and also considered as a demon? Answer If we go by Uttar Kanda of Valmiki Ramayana then his act of Kidnapping Sita is also considered not bad. It is told he did it to get liberation from hand of Rama. The Story is in Section XLIII of Uttar Kanda of Valmiki Ramayana: Agastya Rishi is describing stories to Rama. Now he says:...
Question Worship of one god and worship of Shri Ram Answer Worship others is not unauthorize. It is a big system and other gods are also part of the system. There is a word "Ramsification" means subdivisions of a big system. Lord Vishnu holds Rajas nature and he knows how to tackle Arjuna in Mahabharata so he told him that only worship me. Lord Vishnu also knew other people's karma and also the fate of the war also the end of the war....
Question Which mantras should be recited to properly worship Lord Rudra? Answer Although it's been said that Lord Shiva is very easily pleased but the method of his worship is by no way simple or short. It's easily the most elaborate process at least if you want to do it as the scriptures has ordained. You can see a lot of mantras in Tezz's answer but the point is that not everyone is allowed to chant a lot of those mantras including in particular the Veda mantras....
Question What are the Agama scriptures? Are they related to Shruti/Vedas? Answer Well, as far as I know, in Tantra tradition, Agama texts are those in which Devi questions and Shiva answers. Examples of such texts are numerous like the Mahanirvana Tantra, Kularnava Tantra, Vijyana Bhairava Tantra etc. And Nigama are those where Shiva questions and Devi answers. Texts of this nature are not many in number . One example is the Kulachudamani Tantra....
Question When will the Kalyug end? Are there symbols written in scripture? Answer Yes. According to MahAbhArata, the Kaliyuga ends with possibly total annihilation of mankind and then the mankind is regenerated with the Kritayuga (or Satyuga). During Vana Parva, Rishi Markendeya explains Yudhishtira about the effects of Kaliyuga. He also provides the signs of end of it. ... And when those terrible times will be over, the creation will begin anew....