there are so many rules like dont touch gods idol in temple...even though they say god is every wheere..lord shiva who doesnot follow any kind of rules and staysin samshan..is rams grtest bhakt...
im not comparing us to lord shiva...im just asking why so many rules..it is just enough to think about lord..and love him with heart...shiv hi nai..sai bab bhi bole hai ki sare kinds of flowers god ko ache lagte hai...then wats the prob with people..y do they discriminate..haa humko pata hai ki humme se sab pure nai hai..par lord ke liye to sab apne children hai na...muje aisa rules se nafrat hai..jo bolta hai ki hum god k murti ko chu nai sakte...aur muje samaj me bhi nai ata aisa kyu karna hai...jinka koi reason nai hai..jinki jarurat nai hai fir me unko kyu maanu???????? nd me ye sab kisiko insult krne nai bol rhi hu....
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There are a lot of wonderful answers here, I shall try my best to give my opinion.
Rules, in general, are meant for the benefit of society. If there are no rules, nothing but chaos would emerge. Imagine we live in a city where no one commits any murders- would you say that having a rule that prohibits murder is unnecessary? If you think it's unnecessary, then you're inviting murders to your society, and thus naturally you should think that rules should exist even though it may not apply to you or a group of people.
Lord Bolenath Shiva Shankar is very kind and his purpose is to help those who have fallen to far, those who are unable to see the "light", and help them / guide them back to the "light". But Lord Shiva himself is a unique case because he is empowered by Lord Krishna because he is following Lord Krishna's instructions. I read about this particular pastime somewhere on IDT where the demons were unable to be killed because they were Vishnu-bhaktas, so Lord Vishnu suggested that Lord Shiva become the head of a tamasic religion to sway these demons. Lord Shiva was like how can I be a head of this tamasic religion and not be affected by it. And here Lord Vishnu promises and gives a mantra to Lord Shiva to recite and thus be free from contamination while living in such a contaminated area. Lord Shiva himself wants these fallen people to rise up and worship his beloved Lord Rama too, so he accepts anyone and everyone.
As a final statement, you said it yourself -- "they say god is everywhere" ... so if god is everywhere, what need is it to touch his deity form with your own materially contaminated hands when you can touch his lotus feet with your mind, your eyes, your inner soul. If Krishna can accept any offering simply by looking at him, can we not be able to touch our beloved Krishna with our mind and our soul? My point is - rules are meant as guidelines for everyone. There are certain devotees who can go on the alter and serve the lord, and if you sincerely wish to do that then Krishna himself will call you to his side to serve him. But if everyone bends the rules, then the deity will be nothing more than an object and Krishna is not an object. Yes, Krishna is our father, yes Krishna is pleased when we show even a slightest bit of attention to him, but is it not our responsibility to also make sure that Krishna is comfortable.
Think about it this way - imagine you are the president of India, or heck a very popular actor and actress. How would you feel if you were standing in the center and thousands of people would come by to touch you on your arm or your leg or your face or your feet. It feels creepy and very uncomfortable for me and I definitely do not want to be in such a place. If people do not follow rules, chaos will prevail, and chaos is the last thing we need. This is why we follow rules and this is why we worship Krishna to our heart's content by simply gazing at his divine face, because the only reason we want to "touch" something is to make sure it's real. But if we know Krishna is real, you can touch his lotus feet all day, all night long with your mind, your eyes, your heart, your soul...
Please forgive me if I have spoken out of line, I know I stated "you" many times, and it's a horrible habit of mine. I did not mean you in particular, it was more of a generalization type of thing.
Your Servant,
its okay dnt say sry nd i hv my own views..your opinion was also very good...it actually makes m angry when someone says that i cant touch him bcz he is god..i feel he is my brother..and why the hell i cant touch him ..thats the reason i dnt folow rules...
Hare Krishna Bhakta Sabyasachi
Dandavat Pranam!
As per your comment
"Who have told you you cannot touch idol/murti. You can go and touch murti/idol whenever you want... What devotees will stop you from touching is Deities/Vigrahas."
What's the difference between idol,murti,deities or vigrahas?
I don't see any difference between the one I have at home or in the temple, they are all Lord's Krishna's form. So what differentiates it to be called as idol/murti/deity/vigraha?
Please forgive me for my ignorance. Will appreciate any answers from shastras.
Hare Krishna
Hare Krsna Matatji,
PAMHO.
Why are so against rules? Did you not wear uniform in school or did you not follow class timings and other rules in school? You must have done all that na, then why is there a problem in following rules in spirituality.
Lord Krsna has mentioned in details the way to pray to him - the way one should do puja, set up the altar, what items to use, how to use, what should one think while praying etc. It is mentioned in the 11th Canto of Srimad Bhagawatam. I am deliberately not sending you the link because to read the 11th Canto, you have to read the first 10 cantos. As you know, scriptures are to be read from the beginning to the end and not in bits and pieces from middle. If you think that is also a rule, just too bad... it is.
Coming back to your point about touching deities, we all want to touch the deities and put the dust of the lotus feet on our heads. That is why in South Indian temples and in Mayapur, in the Nrisimha temple, there is a system of what is known as shatari - i.e. they will touch that raised metal crown kind of thing to everyone's head individually as a blessing. On top of that shatari is the tulsi leaf from the lotus feet of the lord, signifying that whoever gets the blessings of the shatari on the head has touched the lotus feet of the lord. Isnt it more convenient than to let everyone who visits the temple to go upto the altar and touch the deities.
One senior devotee once explained to me the metaphoric meaning of touching the lotus feet of the lord. It means that we have taken the teachings of the lord to our head and endeavour to imbibe it in our lives. That is touching the lotus feet of the lord.
When we see the beautiful form of the deities in front of us and admire the look, we are touching the deities with our eyes. If we can smear our eyes with love at that time, it purifies us more than physical touching.
One request mataji, please do not fill your heart with hatred - mujhe rules se nafrat hai, i just dont care.... etc. Your heart is the abode of the supersoul, that means paramatma, Krsna Himself. Please fill that heart with love for Krsna, not hatred for minor things like rules.
If you think God is everywhere, even in animals and can develop that consciousness, then nothing like it. Please try to see the lord everywhere. That is our mission - to always remember Krsna and to never forget Krsna.
I hope I have been able to answer your queries.
Haribol,
Your servant,
Rashmi
in raga nuga bhakty yoga you dont have to .
sravanam kirtanam smaranam pada sevanam its only rule you have to follow.
and thats wat i do... thats the reason i dnt folow rules..i pray to him wth full heart...and if i want to folow any rule ..that should come from heart ..not just because every one does...i cant do somethng that doesnt come from heart..and about wat krishna said in bhagvat gita..i dont hv knowledge abt nthing dint read bhagvat gita...i dnt knw anythng...all i knw is that my god whom i pray doesnt need any thng but love...is that falsE??
when someone loves him from whole heart does it matters wheater he follows all the rules..and the thing about uniform ...that shows equality..no child is rich or poor...all r equal...nd othr thng is wearing unifrm doesnt mean that all the children want it..you should remmbr..your childhood..everyone likes to wear civil dress ...being free from rules gives happy heart...and that person will do everythng from heart..not bcz it was said by others...its my thinking...and im sorry ..if was rude or somthng...i knw i dnt hv nough knowledge like others...but i do knw wat is rite and wrong and krishna isthere to guide me...i sorry again
Hare Krsna Mataji,
PAMHO.
If you had to follow only your heart, then why did you find the need to write on this coloumn at all? Who was stopping you from following your heart and who was coming to see what exactly you are doing? I assume that you have written in this discussion forum because you want some kind of validation to your actions and thoughts.
It is true and I really appreciate the truthfulness of your heart, dear mataji - that you pray to the lord with full heart - incidentally, that is also a rule. Our actions have to be from the heart, not externally only.
The difference between vaidhi bhakti and raganuga bhakti is that in vaidhi bhakti, we are getting the knowledge that we are servants of the lord and we should serve the lord, but our minds and intelligence is so conditioned that we are unable to do full surrender. Thats why the process of surrender is broken down to a lot of dos and donts, like sravanam, kirtanam etc. It is variegated because we are all unique individuals. What appeals to one need not appeal to all.
You say that you love the lord with your full heart, but you have not read Gita or Bhagavatam yet (from your mail, I dont see any urgency to read either). How is it that you love someone from all your heart, but are neither interested in hearing from Him or about Him? It seems more like the relationship is that of order supplier. God guides you in your heart and you keep asking Him whatever you want, He supplies. Please do not delude yourself to think this is raganuga bhakti. Please read about the nine processes of devotion, you will realise where you stand. Raganuga bhakti is for one who has transcended the processes of vaidhi bhakti, for whom the love of God is so great that nothing else matters, then no rules apply. Until then, all rules apply dear mataji. Raganuga bhakt cannot stay without thinking about the lord for even a second, even at great danger to their own life. The lord also responds to such a bhakt in the same manner. Such a devotee has already reached the stage of complete surrender. From what my limited vision is and my limited knowledge is, you have not. Forgive me for being so blunt.
Examples - When Gadadhar Pandit became very old, he could not stand to do deity service of Tota Gopinath in Puri. One day, he prayed to the lord that I have become very old, I am unable to stand and do your arati, my knees hurt. So from tomorrow, I will handover the charge to someone else. That night, he had a dream where Lord Himself came and said He will accept only Gadadhar's seva. Next morning when Gadadhar Pandit opened the altar, the Lord was SITTING!!! That temple is still there in Puri, you can visit mataji.
When Madhavendra Puri saw the payasam that was being taken for Gopinath's offering, he thought if only he could taste the nectar of the prasadam. Immediately, he felt ashamed that he could lust for something meant for the lord and was repenting. Meantime, when the offering was made to the lord, the lord Himself hid one bowl in His dress. That night, the lord appeared in the dream of the head priest and asked for that bowl to be retrieved and handed over to his exalted devotee, Madhavendra Puri, who is sitting somewhere on the footpath. The deity is till today known as Kheerchor Gopinath.
The two examples I have given above were very much devotees in parampara. Madhavendra Puri is the guru of Ishwar Puri, who initiated Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Gadadhar Pandit is the incarnation of Radharani, who had come to assist Mahaprabhu's leela, for whom we sing Jai Shri Krishna Chaitanya, Prabhu Nityananda, Shree Advaita, Gadadhar.... that Gadadhar. I am sure you also know the story of Sakshi Gopal.
The purpose I am writing in so much detail mataji, is so that you open your eyes and see where you stand. Only when you reduce the false ego, will you become receptive to teachings.
I am sorry, I know I have hurt you. My purpose is to awaken you.
Haribol,
Your servant,
Rashmi
im sorry i spoke rudely..thnks fr xplaining..and i dint knew many thngs...i had ego that i have him with me...even knw i hv that proud and happy feeling that he is with me always..nd my reasn fr writing this coloum was frustation that some one says that you cant touch ur fav god murti...nd i bliv he is mybro..aapke liyee vo bhagwan hai.mere liye vo phle bhai hai...aur me janti hu ki me unke layak nai hu..mene unke liye kuch nai kiya..mujhme bahaut zaada ego hai ki vo mujse prem krte hai..jo kam karna mushquil hai kyu ki me aabhi yahi matrialistic world ko belong krti hu...aurme sab kuch chor k nai a sakti..mere kuch aims hai rsponsblitis hai..par me ek din pakka aungi sabkuch chor k aur mere khuda ka bhi yahi marzi hai kki me a jau... nd thnks muje samjane k liye...aur acha hua aapne muje hurt kiya...thnks
hare krishna
Hare Krsna,
I must say I was in anxiety after writing that mail until I read your mail. Was worried how you will take it. I write in this coloumn to help people, not to trouble them further.
See, we all are fallen souls and we are all caught up in maya. We are simply trying to help each other. It is only a true friend who puts a mirror in front of you.
It is very good that you feel the presence of Krsna in your life, but please do not be proud. Krsna left the gopis in the middle of the rasa dance the moment pride came to them. Therefore we have to be careful in our sadhana and thats why we need each other to associate, so that we can progress together and weed out all the anarthas in our path to devotion.
Sab kuch bhagwan ki marzi se theek ho jayega mataji, aap sirf achche se chanting karte rahiye, aur apne bhai is guidance lete rahiye. Remember, chanting time is chatting time. He always guides us if we agree to be guided by Him.
Best of luck and take care,
Hare Krsna,
Your servant,
Rashmi
Hare Krishna Mataji
Dandavat Pranam
Who have told you you cannot touch idol/murti. You can go and touch murti/idol whenever you want... What devotees will stop you from touching is Deities/Vigrahas.
Now, if you think you are eligible enough to touch the deities, then actually you shouldn't be allowed. When you actually think you are not eligible enough to enter the alter even forget to touch the deities than you can be allowed.
Simple logic, isn't it???
ys
hare krishna...
every one says god is very where..so y so many rules..and who said that i dnt touch gods idols...even though i did many mistakes in my life...but still i hv my right to touch him ...and y only idols...he is also present in animals..nd evrywhre..all i hv to do is think abt him...and i dnt care abt rules..i just dont folow any rules..unless and untill there is a good reason behind it...and cleanliness was a good reason..mainting suroundings is must...
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