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Smt. Priyanka Seethepalli asked: Swami, can you please enlighten us regarding the difference between God’s plan and the free will of mankind. Can you extend the same concept of God’s will to various human actions like deforestation and killing of animals resulting in the extinction of some animal species like gorillas...
Shri Manikanta asked: Padanamskaram Swamiji! Are mushrooms considered vegetarian food or non-vegetarian? Please enlighten us on this point. Manikanta
Swami replied: The main issue is to ensure that the food you eat is not obtained by causing an animal to suffer the agony of being killed. Mushrooms are fungi. Scientists do not classify fungi as either plants (botany) or animals (zoology). We even consume foods containing bacteria such as curd from milk. Mushrooms do not exhibit pain and suffering as an animal or bird does, when it is killed. Therefore, mushrooms can be consumed...
Kum. Amudha asked: Dear Swami! How can one remain happy in one’s life even in difficult times. How can one be good and ethical, at all times? At Your Divine Feet. Amudha.
Swami replied: The only way that your wish will come true is when you accept the existence of God and develop devotion to Him. Devotion is developed when you come to know the true details and divine qualities of His personality. If one is always inspired by God and is certain that God will punish sinners...
Smt. Rupa Murthy asked: Padanamaskaram Swamiji! I really admire your different perspectives and the underlying meanings of Your discourses. I have a few questions, which I have presented below. My questions are related to a woman’s duty in this world. What is most important in a woman’s life? Is dealing with a toxic relationship considered great? Or is being a mother considered great? Or is pursuing a career great? A woman can successfully manage all such roles together, only if she finds a proper life-partner...
Shri Ahsan Habib, Dhaka asked: Hello, I was reading your article about the Incarnation of God. I wonder, what if, Jesus Christ was Lord Krishna Himself! Could you please explain your point of view? Kind regards, Ahsan Habib (Sabuz), Dhaka.
Swami replied: All Human Incarnations of God, belonging to all religions, are one and the same, since the unimaginable God present in each of them is one and the same. But it does not mean that Krishna is Jesus Himself. The unimaginable God is like the gold metal from which various ornaments are made. From the standpoint of gold, both the golden chain and the golden bangle are one and the same. But from the standpoint of the design of the ornament, the bangle is different from the chain. Thus, there is an internal unity...
Shri Ahsan Habib, Dhaka asked: You have said that Jesus did not die on the cross and that, with the help of His disciples, He escaped to India, where he died at the age of 85. So, does it not mean that His resurrection was false?
Swami replied: What do you mean by resurrection? If it means rising from the dead, there is no problem in saying that Jesus was resurrected after three days. There are different versions of the life of Jesus. As per one version, Jesus died on being crucified and rose from the dead again. Then, after His resurrection, He travelled to India and lived for many decades, during which He interacted with many Indian philosophers. Finally, at the age of 85 years, the inevitable death of His mortal body took place and the tomb of Jesus exists...
Shri Balaji asked: Respected Swamiji, Namaste. Many times, when we meet strangers, they might act like good persons. Sometimes, they might even pretend to be great devotees, just to fool others or due to their ego or over-confidence. Perhaps, some of them might even be genuine and might have the best of intentions. But in a short meeting, it is difficult to know the reality of people. So, usually, I end up giving the benefit of the doubt to them and assume...
Swami replied: Every person is an individual soul with an ego. The ego makes the person think that he or she is preaching true spiritual knowledge or a true philosophy. The person also expects others to become his disciples and accept and follow him. It gives pleasure to the soul. No one wants to always remain a disciple and receive knowledge from a divine preacher. It makes the person feel inferior...
Shri Balaji asked: Respected Swamiji, Could You kindly clarify the third verse of the Īśāvāsya Upaniṣad? The verse, “Asūryā nāma te lokā…ātma hano janāḥ”, is a warning, describing the the fate of the slayers of their own souls (ātman). Who are these destroyers of the soul (ātma hanaḥ)? Is it just people who fail in the path of worldly justice pravṛtti as said in the first verse, “Tena tyaktena buñjīthā ma gṛdaḥ kasyasvit dhanam” or does it also extend to people who do not strive for niṣkāma karma yoga as said in the second verse “Kurvaneha karmāṇi...na karma lipyate nare”? Sincerely, Balaji
Swami replied: The people mentioned in the first verse are the same people implied in the second verse. The second verse is the extension of the first. If a person commits suicide (destroyer of the soul), such a person will fall into a dark hell forever. Human life is the most precious...
Dr. Nikhil asked: In a question answered by You on August 27, 2019, about how Allah created living beings as stated in the Quran, You suggested that the devotee should refer to Darwin’s theory of evolution. But Darwin’s theory of evolution and biology in general, does not include God to explain how life evolved. Darwin’s original theory of evolution, which is based on natural selection, later gave way to the ‘modern evolutionary synthesis’, which unified Darwin’s evolution with the genetics of Gregor Mendel. Even this modern evolutionary synthesis is also mainly based on natural selection. Personally, Darwin was most probably...
Swami replied: O Learned and Devoted Servants of God! I am not criticizing the theory of evolution or any other discovery of science because I am also a scientist. I fully believe in the value of science, which is based on experimental validation and not on mere theoretical imagination. Let us understand the respective roles of science and spirituality through the example of making coffee. I agree with the scientific procedure involved in the preparation of a cup of coffee. I am not denying the scientific laws of heat transfer in heating the water and milk. I also agree with the scientific laws related to the solubility of sugar and coffee powder in the hot mixture. I am only giving additional information...
I would like to offer the following ārati composed and sung by me, to Swamiji:
Jaya Jaya Jaya Jaya Shri Venu Gopala
Swami Satguru Datta Bhagavān
Jaya Jaya Jaya Jaya Shri Venu Gopala
Swami Satguru Datta Bhagavān...
Smt. Bindiya Chaudhry asked: Is there any significance of the fasts that we observe on karvā chauth for the well-being of our husband or on aṣṭami for the well-being of our children? Shat shat pranam and thank you for continuously enlightening us. Thanks, Bindiya.
Swami replied: All these forms of worship of God are good because they improve the devotee’s devotion to God. Of course, these forms of worship are linked with some worldly fruits desired by us, such as the well-being of our husband, children and so on. But unless the worship is linked to some worldly fruits, the majority of people will not care to do it, at all. So, initially, God fulfills the worldly desires of devotees who worship Him in this manner. But one should not cling on to such desire-filled worship throughout one’s life. When a small boy in the kindergarten...
O Learned and Devoted Servants of God! There are three views regarding the relationship between God and the soul. They were proposed by the three Divine Preachers called Śaṅkara, Rāmānuja and Madhva, who came one after the other, in that sequence. Their philosophies are known as Monism (Advaita), Qualified Monism (Viśiṣṭa Advaita) and Dualism (Dvaita) respectively. The three Divine Preachers are like the school teacher, college lecturer and the university professor. This might immediately make you think that Śaṅkara had a low standard of knowledge, Rāmānuja had the middle standard and Madhva had a high standard...
Shri Sai Ram Kiran asked: During the holy thread ceremony, why is the young boy’s head shaven except for a small portion of hair on the head? Also, why are the boy’s ears pierced for wearing ear-rings? What is the significance of the holy thread consisting of three strands?
Swami replied: O Learned and Devoted Servants of God! The holy thread ceremony of a young boy is known as upanayanam and it marks the beginning of the boy’s education. After this ritual, the boy is supposed to go and live with the teacher and learn knowledge. At the teacher’s place, he is not to expect comfort. Every day, he is expected to take a cold water bath...
Shri Manikanta asked: God Narasiṃha is God Viṣṇu, who is the ultimate power. Could He not have directly come and killed the demon Hiraṇyakaśipu? What was the necessity for Him to come as Narasiṃha, a human being with the head of a lion?
Swami replied: A rowdy misuses his power and gains victory over his opponents by violating established rules. A good administrator, who is very intelligent, succeeds even without violating any rule. He is also able to interpret the rules properly and prove that his victory was justified. The demon Hiraṇyakaśipu...
Dr. Nikhil said: Swami, I am unable to concentrate much on the propagation of Your spiritual knowledge due to the pressure of my job. The concepts of Your spiritual knowledge are really amazing and deserve propagation. But the results of the propagation activities are not seen due to my insufficient attention to the propagation.
Swami replied: O Learned and Devoted Servants of God! The job is the basic stage on which both the dramas of worldly life (pravṛtti) and spiritual life (nivṛtti) can be enacted. If one has a good lot of property, then thinking of leaving the job can be justified. It is also justified, if one does not have a family to take care of, like Śaṅkara, Vivekananda etc. But, having entered into family life, one should not go back. Even Arjuna tried to withdraw from the war...
Swami replied: Sex is not forbidden for a saint. Sainthood (saṃnyāsa āśrama) just comes at the end of one’s life, after gradually passing through the three previous stages or āśramas, namely, brahmacarya, gṛhastha and vānaprastha. The duty of the saint is to preach correct spiritual knowledge to humanity. The saint should not reject sex by forcible effort. The rejection of sex must happen spontaneously, due to the total diversion of one’s attention to God. No preacher should suppress...
Swami replied: The actual reason of why it happened cannot be identified by us. The exact reason is known only to God. We are not omniscient to know every detail regarding the deeds and nature of the saint. Even a great saint might have committed certain hidden sins. We were not following him all 24 hours, with a video camera. Even if we managed to that, we would still have no idea of what thoughts were going on in the mind of the saint. Besides, there might also be a good side...
[Shri Balaji asked: Elders say that I should listen to them and follow them. Otherwise, they say that I will lose their blessings. In that case, I am unable to put into practice the true concepts of spiritual knowledge given by You.]
Swami replied: If there is truth in what the elders say, there is no need for them to put any extra pressure on you and threaten you that you will lose their blessings, if you do not follow them! The truth in the concept itself is the greatest force. If they are pressurizing you...
Shri Phani asked: We have prepared some banners and visiting cards to be used in the propagation of spiritual knowledge. Please advise us on how we can proceed.
Swami replied: O Learned and Devoted Servants of God! When a political leader stands for election, there is a need for doing some propaganda of the candidate and his ideas everywhere in his constituency. Every citizen in the constituency who has a right to vote, is a target of his propaganda. But in our case, every citizen is not a target for the propagation of spiritual knowledge. Our spiritual knowledge is well-received only by some deserving devotees, who are scattered everywhere in the world. Hence, we cannot localize the promotion of the concepts, using banners and visiting cards. All the deserving receivers of our spiritual knowledge are not localized...
Nobody opposes science because the fundamental concepts in science are based on practical experiments. Spiritual knowledge must also start at the basic level of the practical experience of miracles, which alone can convince atheists and scientists. Thus, the experience of miracles serves as the foundation of spiritual knowledge. The concept that God is unimaginable is stated in the Veda (Yato vāco, aprāpya manasā, Na medhayā, Naiṣā tarkeṇa etc.) and in the Gita (Māṃ tu veda na kaścana). So, no soul can ever know the true nature...
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