Meandering thoughts - Sita Sreeraman

Indian epics and Puranaas are tales of good vs evil and so thoroughly enjoyable(Amar Chitra Kathas of our younger days for example or Chandamama) and also have such hidden gems/nuggets. My son is especially fond of the story of Bhasmasura. He finds it hilarious. We often talk of the Law of Karma, what we sow we reap if not in this life, in the next. And he asks why did Gods grant boons to the asuras who were wicked by nature. And I often say(with my limited knowledge) it is Law of Karma, if you meditate with single point focus whoever you are, the Gods have to grant boons.  Action begets response. But the difference lies in the choices made once the Gods appear. Asuras invariably chose boons that granted them great power - and they used it to destroy the world and themselves in the process, be it Bhasmasura or Ravana or others.  The saintly, wise chose closeness to God on the other hand. And this automatically led to enlightenment and greatness without their seeking. They serv...

We just finished celebrating Navarathri, 2021. I received many forwards about Navarathri - the significance, dress colour code, stories and more! The energy during Navarathri is generally high - it is a festival where women tend to dress in rich bright colours, the music slokas, pujas all add to a general lift in energies. Meeting friends, singing/chanting together, sharing prasadam, subtly we are all uplifted and in higher spirits, more smiles, more laughter, more singing, it is an uplift of energies. When we feel good about ourselves and our spiritual energies are high, we can handle any setback with greater dignity and grace. We can handle successes also with a greater balance and grace, both ways. Either success or challenges, we handle them with a grace. Vice versa, when our energies are low, even a tiny challenge can shake us more than it should. We do go through cycles. When my 12 year old asked about the three Goddesses - Parvati, Lakshmi and Saraswati, and asked me if they are...

My Appa, Sri T.P. Sreeraman composed many slokas on Trikkurappan, the Shiva deity of our temple Trikkur, a cave temple in Trichur district.  Appa also taught Rudram to many after his retirement. Appa chanted Rudram daily as part of his prayers.  From left, Appa, Vaidyanatha Vadhyar, Ramachandran Mama Drukpuresha or Trikkurappan temple is a temple on top of a small mount in Trikkur, a picturesque village with the Manali River flowing through it. Legend has it that the small mount fell off as Hanuman carried the mountain with Sanjeevani to Lanka. There is a small Hanuman carving on the walls of our temple. The temple is a cave temple with a Lingam and worshipped as Soma (Shiva + Uma). Appa said there is a carving of Ganapathi on the cave walls.  One can climb the mount and the scenic beauty of the area is revealed in complete from this elevation, the green tapestry of coconut trees, paddy fields, the Western Ghats in the distance, the cool breezes, the feeling so serene and...

Periyava Thunai My esteemed Appa Sri. T.P. Sreeraman and my Chitappa Sri T.P. Gopalakrishnan participated in many Soma Yagams and were directly involved in the 1990 Athirathram at Kundur and in 2004 Apthoryagam at Mulangunathukavu, both in Kerala.    Maha Periyava gave Appa two duties when Appa visted Periyava after his retirement in April, 1988. One was to take care of my grandfather and the second was to work on the rejuvenation of Yagams in Kerala. Appa thus became an instrument of Periyava in this lofty endeavour and devoted his energies completely to this. My Chitappa was like Lakshmana to Rama, accompanying Appa and assisting Appa in every way he could. Together, they went to Sengalipuram, Koneru Rajapuram and other villages in TamilNadu which in the early 1990s saw many yagams.  In the software and manufacturing world, we have Lean, Six Sigma, TQM, ISI and other standards which layout processes and methods for measuring quality. When it came to our daily life and p...

 The Bhakti tradition in India has seen a renaissance in the last few decades. With the rise in the Bhakti and pujas, the conduct of ancient Vedic rituals like Soma Yagams have declined to almost zero. Most Puja rooms in our grandparents times were simple rooms with a few pictures of Gods/Goddesses, the oil lamp, the kolam or rangoli with home grown flowers and fruits and the food cooked at home being offered as neivedhyam. There was no room for ostentation. There was an emphasis on personal hygiene (madi/acharam), simplicity and individual practice/ritual be it Shiva Puja to the Saligramam or daily prayers.  With the rise in material prosperity, the temples became yet another way to display wealth especially by families who came into wealth recently - be it as the 1008 prasadams, manicured lawns, silk clothes and jewelry to the Gods/Goddesses, the many change in ensembles(Alankarams) to the Gods with fruits, vegetables, savouries etc. And the annual ustavams/functions with ma...

Hinduism, pre-independence and a couple of decades after, was mostly a religion of subtraction. From material wealth to the reduction/subtraction of the six evil tendencies, it was about subtraction.  --- Lust or desire ( Kama), Anger (Krodha), Greed ( Lobha), Attachment (Moha) , Arrogance (Mada), Jealousy (Matsarya)  The four Ashramas/life-stages in life was about subtraction   --- Brahmacharya (student), Grihastha (householder), Vanaprastha (retired) and Sannyasa (renunciate)  A way of life to move from outer experiences to inner! Ostentation was eschewed. Appa used to jokingly remark that silk sarees were worn to create jealousy and want in other women. And how his mother had only 2 silk sarees and she was content with it, though she had the resources to buy more.  Wise words, jokingly said, but so true!  On a serious note, Kanchi Maha Periyava, Jagadguru Chandra Sekara Sarawati and also Sringeri Maha Periyava Chandra Sekara Bharati, Ramana Maharishi are...

I grew up in my hometown of Trichur, Kerala. Vadukkunathan temple, Kuttangulangara, Sankarangulangara, Paramekavu, Thiruvambady, Punkunnum Shiva Kshetram, Ponganam Ramaswamy temples and the temples in my ancestral village Trikkur were some of the temples we visited quite often. Early in the morning on any monsoon day, with the rain and the accompanying gentle breeze, visiting a temple was something special, something I treasure, especially some of my visits to Vadukkunathan temple and Trikkur temples during this season. Kerala temples with their conical tile structures, burning oil and ghee lamps, the smell of sandal paste, turmeric paste, home grown local flowers and leaves as adornments are special - very earthy and powerful. No artifice is allowed here. One mandatorily has a hair bath before entering the temple. There is such an emphasis on purity(hence local flowers and ingredients) and cleanliness, that one can't help but feel pure and serene. The electric lighting within ...

Sri Rudraikadasinee Mahayajna – A Commentary by Sri. T.P. Sreeraman. About the author :- This commentary comes from a person who has been a visionary in the building of today’s Brahmana Samooham that we see. Known to everyone as “Sreeram Anna”, he is one of the pillars on whom this Samooham revolves around. May his presence enlighten us with knowledge and help us to serve VEDA better. Sree Gurubyo Namaha Sree Maha Ganapathaye Namaha Sree Drikpureshaya Namaha Sree Jagadambikaye Namaha Sree Maha Saraswathye Namaha Trikkur Brahmana Samooham Sree Rudraikadasinee Mahayajnam Blessed devotees, May Sree Drikpureshwara(Sree Trikkoorappan), Sree Purayankave Bhagavathi, Sree Kamakshee Kailasa Natha Swamy, Sree Dharma Sastha and other devathas and sree Drik-Ganga (Trikkur Puzha) confer all Sreyas on all of us. By the grace of god, and the blessings of our divine poorvikas, and with the sagacious advice and guidance of our Acharya Brahma Sri VaidhyaNatha Vadhyar, Sri Rudraikadisn...

I.SOAMA YAAGAS i.Historic perspective: Yajnas are probably the most ancient and still surviving forms of organized God worship. They have the unbroken history of several millenniums. Bhagavad Geetha Ch.3 Slokha 10 states that Yajnas and mankind were created simultaneously. (SAHA YAJNAh PRAJAAH SRUSTHWAA). Rig Veda starts with the Manthra worshipping Agni, as the priest of the Yajna, the deity worshipped by yajna, the performer of the Yajna and the dispenser of the fruits of the Yajna: AGNIMEELE PUROHITAM YAGNASYA DEVAMRUTVIJAM HOATHARAM RATHNADHAATAMAM (Rig Veda 1. 1. 1) Yajur Veda starts with the Manthra, which enshrines the words SHRESHTATHAMAAYA KARMANE (for the noblest of activities) (Thaithireeya Samhitha 1. 1. 1) Thaithireeya Brahmana 3. 1. 2. 4. interprets “Sreshta Thamaaya Karmane” and proclaims “Yajno hi Sreshtathamam Karma”. Yajna is the noblest activity. In the first Manthra of Saama Veda, Agni is invoked to come and receive the offering to him in the Yajna and c...

Sree Gurubhyo Namah Gayatri Mantra: On the day I left TCR (04/09/99) for Bangalore, a very reputed artist and intellectual came to my friend Dr. T.I. RadhaKrishnan. Dr. T.I. RadhaKrishnan has done a lot of research on the relation between VEDA and modern Science. He has authored a book in Malayalam christened 'VEDAM ENNA SASTRAM' . He called me also for the discussion. He put forth a lot of material before that lady. It was a nice discussion. The lady remarked "Modern science lacks poetry. Our ancients have presented Science poetically. I felt it is true. 1. All ancient Sanskrit works on Science even Mathematics are couched in poetry. 2. The presentation itself is poetic So Gayatri enshrines a lot of Scientific concepts - much more than what has been tried to be brought out. The Question being asked is : If solar energy can be absorbed and stored in inanimate objects like Solar Cells and used at will, can't it be stored in human body and used at will? It is now b...

This book 'The Hindu Dharma' by Kanchi Mahaperiyava Sri Chandra Sekara Saraswati is a must-have. This book is a translation of Dhaivathin Kural and is a compilation of the various speeches/discourses given by Periyava over many years. This book is a gem akin to the Bhagavad Gita. Periyava expounds Sanatana Dharma very beautifully and simplistically for all of us. It is now available online @: http://www.kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part1/chap1.htm