Q&A

Question Who is the father of Indra? Answer Indra's father is the sage Kashyapa, son of the sage Marichi who is one of the mind-born sons of Brahma. Kashyapa married numerous daughters of Brahma's other son Daksha, including Aditi, mother of the twelve Adityas which include Indra. This is confirmed in numerous scriptures. Here is what the Aranya Kanda of the Ramayana says, for instance: Of them Kashyapa accepted eight slender-waisted daughters of Daksha Prajapati, namely Aditi, Diti, Danu, Kaalakaa and Taamra, Krodhavasha, also thus Manu and even Anala also as wives....

Question Sanskrit: Full shloka of “sā vidyā yā vimuktaye” (translation & English online reference & oral and written author location) Answer This is my first post in this forum. I am happy that I have stumbled upon it. Anyways, I was the one who replied in the Wordreference thread: http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=2962626 So, I'll simply copy my answer from there for easy reference: ============== I am sorry, I cannot help you with the references....

Question Why “GURU” is equal to “supreme GODS”? Answer Why is Guru equal to Brahma, Vishnu and Maheshvara This is because Guru is God Himself come in Human form. The Guru is the guide who knows the way to take the jiva to the top, which is re-union with God. Sri Swami Sivananda says in 'Guru Tattva': The Guru is God Himself manifesting in a personal form to guide the aspirant....

Question How to start reading Bhagavad Gita? Answer The Gita is one of the 3 pillars of modern Vedanta (the other two being the Upanishads and the Brahma-Sutras). There are many translations in many different languages. Read in the language that you are comfortable with. Chanting in Sanskrit is ok, but if you do not study it in a language that you understand, it is the same as a parrot mimicking human speech....

Question How can a soul enjoy or suffer when it is not harmed by anything? Answer Can the Soul take birth in higher planes or lower planes? The soul is never born and it never dies. The soul is indivisible, eternal and invincible. Sri Krishna says in Gita 2:20 The soul never takes birth and never dies at any time nor does it come into being again when the body is created....

Question Chapter-13, Verse-34: Why Lord Krishna says “… Sun alone lightens the whole universe …”? Answer It's just a case of translation Let's see what other commentaries contain Sri Ramanuja's commentary of the same verse: As the ‘one sun’ illumines ‘all this world’ by his radiance, so the ‘knower of the body’ illumines the entire Ksetra, i.e., the body, by Its own knowledge, within and without and from head to toe, by conceiving ‘This my body is of this nature....

Question Charm to promote hair growth Atharva veda Answer Here are the hymns of Atharvana Veda Book 6 pertaining to hair growth in Sanskrit, along with links to their English translations: Book 6 Hymn 21: A charm to strengthen hair and promote its growth imā́ yā́s tisráḥ pr̥tʰivī́s tā́sāṃ ha bʰū́mir uttamā́ | tā́sām ádʰi tvacó aháṃ bʰeṣajáṃ sám u jagrabʰam || śréṣṭʰam asi bʰeṣajā́nāṃ vásiṣṭʰaṃ vī́rudʰānām | sómo bʰága iva yā́meṣu devéṣu váruṇo yátʰā ||...

Question Why do we celebrate Maha shivratri festival? Answer Mahashivratri is the day, Lord Shiva was married to Godess Parvathi. Maha Shivaratri is celebrated on the Krishna Paksha Chaturdashi of Hindu calendar month Maagha as per Amavasya-ant month calculation. It is said that the benefits of powerful ancient Sanskrit mantras such as Maha Mrityunjaya Mantra increase greatly on this night. The festival is principally celebrated by offerings of Bael leaves to Shiva, all-day fasting and an all-night-vigil (jagaran)....

Question What were the three good things Ravana thought to do? Answer Raavan thought to do the following 4 things: Making sea water drinkable Making Moon Scarless Building staircase from earth to heaven Making Fire smoke free. I heard these from many saints in satsangs. Sorry, I don't have many references but I am attaching this YouTube video link (starts from 7.31 min) of this brahmagyani saint. Note: “The question: What were the three good things Ravana thought to do?...

Question Do we have any details about the oldest idol of any Hindu God found anywhere in the world? Answer Before the Kali Yuga, idols were few and far between, because the Archa form of gods hadn't really been established yet. Still, there are many idols that date back to the periods of the Ramayana and Mahabharata. But there are other idols even older than those. Here are three contenders for the oldest idol:...

Question Vivekachudamani Of Adi Sankaracharya Answer This website provides three translations of the Vivekachudamani. And here is one more translation, in PDF format. As far as commentaries go, you can watch this series of lectures on YouTube, or you can listen to this audio commentary by Swami Paramarthananda. Note: “The question: Vivekachudamani Of Adi Sankaracharya” is licensed by Stack Exchange Inc (https://hinduism.stackexchange.com/); user contributions licensed under CC BY-SA.

Question Why does the soul fall prey to maya, when it resides in the body? Answer You are not in the body, you are only apparently in the body. There is no need for the Lord to do anything, you are already free. You cannot become something which you are not. If you were not already free, you could never become free. The Asthvakra Samhita (1.11) says - "A man who considers himself free is free indeed, a man who considers himself bound remains bound....

Question Understanding Bhagavad Gita 2.46, 2.47 Answer There are two paths open to every human being as expounded by the Vedas. One path is for those who want to reap the fruits of their actions, this is the path of the fathers. By rightful living one can gain wealth in this life as well as heaven after death. Krishna expounds on this path to Arjuna in verses 31-38. On this path, after reaping the fruits of the karma generated in heaven, one is born again in the world....

Question Is it possible to separate Soul from the body through Yoga Answer The answer to your question is: yes, it is possible to to separate the soul or jivatma from the body. Even one can enter another body through this process: When the bonds of the mind caused by action have been loosened, one may enter the body of another by knowledge of how the nerve-currents function. [PYS - 3....

Question What is difference between Aatma, Jeevatma and Paramatma? Answer Aatma Atma simply means one's true Self. This is the root or fundamental entity of anything or any being that is eternal, unchangeable, unmodifiable and so on. Atma can mean different things depending upon the context it is used. For living beings like us, atma means the soul about which Shri Krishna explains in the Gita using the following verses:...