God is One
We Hindus regard both Shiva and Vishnu as the same and this is evident from the fact that in the ecstasy of our devotion, whether were are alone or are in groups, we exclaim "Haro-Hara" and "Govinda-Govinda", which (whose) names come to our lips spontaneously. The holy

days of Shivaratri and Janmashtami are divided from each other by exactly 180 days, and this seems to indicate that God in His aspect as Shiva protects us during one-half of the year, and in His aspect as Vishnu, in the other half. The traditional practice of boys and girls

collecting oil for their vigil on Shivaratri and Janmashtami nights, singing in chorus a song which means that Shivaratri and Sri Jayanti are the same, is another pointer to the identity of these two manifestations of the Divine. Apachaaranivrtti must precede Anugraha -

eradication of sins must precede blessings. So God as Hara destroy the sins of His devotees, while as Govinda, He protects them from harm. The expressions Hara-Hara and Govinda-Govinda come to children effortlessly. It is significant that Sri Shankara composed Bhaja Govindam when

he was a child and Sri Sambandar sang that Hara naama should envelop the world, when he too was a child. The Upanishads speak of God as Uma-sameta-Parameswara, and it is worthy of note that all children refer to God as Ummachi, which is obviously a contraction for Uma-Maheshwara.

#ஜெய்ஶ்ரீராம் #Anandashram #ஆனந்தாஷ்ரம் ராம நாம கீர்த்தனை செய்வதற்கு மட்டுமே ஒர் ஆஸ்ரமம் இந்தியாவில் உள்ளது. பலருக்கும் இது தெரியாமல் இருக்க வாய்ப்புள்ளது. 1931 ஆம் ஆண்டு முதல் இன்று வரையிலும் இங்கே தினமும் 12 மணி நேரம் விடாமல் ராமநாம கீர்த்தனை நடைபெற்றுக் கொண்டே இருக்கிறது. காலை

6 மணி - மாலை 6 மணி வரை ராம நாம கீர்த்தனை நடைபெற்றுக் கொண்டே இருக்கிறது. முதல் 30 நிமிடங்கள் பெண்கள் மட்டும் கீர்த்தனை செய்கிறார்கள். அடுத்த 30 நிமிடங்கள் ஆண்கள் மட்டும். இந்த ராம நாம கீர்த்தனையில் நாமும் பங்கு பெறலாம். ஜாதி மத பேதமில்லை, பெரியோர் சிறியோர் குழந்தைகள் அனைவரும்

பங்கு பெறலாம். அப்படி பங்கு பெற நாம் செய்ய வேண்டியது முன்பதிவு மட்டுமே! அப்படி முன் பதிவு செய்தால், இந்த ஆஸ்ரமத்தில் தங்க அறை கிடைக்கும், உணவும் கிடைக்கும் இலவசமாக. ராம நாமத்தை ஜபிக்க வரும் பக்தர்களுக்காக ஆஸ்ரமமே செய்திருக்கும் அற்புதம ஏற்பாடு இது. தனியாக செல்லலாம், தம்பதியாக

செல்லலாம், நண்பர்களாகச் செல்லலாம். இந்த ஆஸ்ரமத்தில் அதிகபட்சமாக மூன்று நாட்கள் தங்கலாம். 1931 முதல் தொடர்ந்து ராம நாம கீர்த்தனைகள் நடைபெற்று வருவதால், இந்த ஆஸ்ரமம் முழுவதும் கோடிக்கணக்கான எண்ணிக்கையில், லட்சக்கணக்கான மனிதர்களின் ஜபம் காற்றில் பரவியிருப்பதை உணர முடிகிறது. இங்கே

மூன்று நாட்கள் தங்கியிருப்பதன் மூலமாக நம் நீண்ட நாள் மன உளைச்சல் தானாகவே சரியாகிவிடும். சிலருக்கு நிலையான மன உறுதி கூட சீர்குலைந்து போயிருக்கும், அதுவும் சரியாகிவிடும். ஆழ்ந்த மன நிம்மதி பெற விரும்புபவர்கள் இங்கே ஒருமுறை வந்தால் போதும்.
சிலருக்கு ஒரே நாளில் மன அமைதியைப் பெற

#MahaPeriyava
There is an organisation in America called the Paul Brunton mission, extolling the British journalist who came to see the Sages here. Brunton had Sri Maha Periyava’s darshan and on his advice went to Ramana Maharishi whose gracious glance he received. Every year

the students who were members of this association, would visit Kanchipuram and stay on for 10 or 15 days, immersing themselves in Periyava’s blissful darshan. The Group had come as usual one year. One day, Periyava was seated under the Night-flowering jasmine (Pavazhamalli) tree,

which used to be in SriMatham in those days and was giving them the darshan. Periyava was sitting with his eyes closed. The American boys were seated around Periyava with their eyes closed in Meditation. It was very silent, not a whisper anywhere. The attendants Balu Mama and

Vedapuri Mama moved away and came out of SriMatham. A car came to stop there. A middle-aged couple and their three children got down. It was clear from the clothes they wore that the children were thoroughly westernised. They looked at Balu Mama and Vedapuri Mama who were

standing there. Old, discoloured dhoties, hair knotted in a tuft, stripes of sacred ash, rudraksha beads around their neck. The ultra-modern kids found them amusing. “Who are these ancients? Some saints around here it seems? Wonder if he too is like this? Dirty people,

#BadKarma_due_to_slaughtering_cows
Beef eating among Hindus have become a fad. It is a wile #woke_culture to defy the age old customs and practices without understanding the seriousness or repercussions of such actions. Cow is not a mere animal for Hindus. Cow as an adobe of 33

crore Hindu Deities and hence Cow is considered sacred in Hindu Dharma. Cow is considered auspicious and also a symbol of compassion and piousness. Hindus believe that one can attain salvation (Moksha) by worshipping the Cow and serving her. Both Lord Krishna and Balrama

spearheaded the Cow worship and preservation culture. Of all beings, the Cow is treated as the most sacred and sanctified. This sense of the unique sacredness of the Cow is expressed in the works of ancient in the Vedas, Smritis, Srutis and Puranas and by Indian Rishis. So highly

were cows held in esteem by the Society that there were days fixed in a year for exclusive worship of the Cow. Three days prior to the festival of Deepavali is called Bachvaras (Vasubaras), which is a festival when puja is offered to Cows. Dhanteras is a day when cows are

worshipped along with Dhanwantari the God of medicine. Balipratipada or Padwa is celebrated the day after Deepavali when, in many parts of India, cows are ceremoniously worshipped. Not only cows, but bulls also were and still are objects of worship. The last day of the month of

#MahaPeriyava
“We say that Ambal is the embodiment of kindness and compassion. At the end of Lalitha Sahasranamam she is described as “Avyaaja karunaamoorthi” – one who showers kindness and compassion without any reason. However there are countless difficulties and hardships in

the world. Only I know that. People who come to me talk of the various difficulties faced by them in the world. Even people who do poojas, undertake pilgrimage, take bath in holy waters are afflicted with problems. During such times, many of them cry their heart out to me and

feel depressed saying, “In spite of all the poojas and my devotion, Ambal has only been giving me difficulties and hardships! You call her as the embodiment of compassion, but in my case she is blind”. They even get angry with Ambal. However, if you ask me, difficulties and

hardships are given because of her compassion; sometimes I feel this is the highest form of her compassion. We look at our good deeds of the present and argue if it is justified for us to be faced with so many difficulties. We curse the gods. But have we all done only good things

regardless of who we are? If we self introspect deeply we will know the number of sins (Paapam) that we have committed; if not physically the great sins we have committed by way of thoughts will be obvious. These are of the present – that is, of this life. We don’t know what we

#MahaPeriyava Narrated by Prof S.Kalyanaraman, Neurosurgeon, Chennai
Compiled by Jagadguru Sri Maha Periyava - Kanchi Paramacharya/Fb

By the blessings of Sri Maha Periyava, I have been able to do brain operations in India continuously in the government General Hospital in Madras

from 1964 to 1992 and after I retired from government service, I have been in private hospitals for more than a decade. What is perhaps equally important is that I have been able to involve throughout these forty years in training several dozens of young doctors in neurosurgery

in the General Hospital, Chennai from 1964 to 1992 and in Apollo Hospital, Chennai recognized for DNB qualification in neurosurgery from 1992 onwards. In those days when a Brahmin boy went abroad and returned he was supposed to go to Rameswaram and have a bath in the ocean for

purification. Somehow although we are an orthodox family, I could not do this. Soon after my return I had to undergo surgery for hernia. Then I got married. Later I became very busy in hospital work and I could never get the time to plan a trip to Rameswaram. Sometime in 1975 I

went to Kancheepuram with my younger sister and niece to have darsanam of Maha Periyava. By that time I had already been abroad several times. An elderly Brahmin gentleman who had just come from Nigeria was present too to have darshan. There was a crowd of about sixty or seventy

#MahaPeriyava
Those who distrust the Puranas maintain that they contain accounts that are not in keeping with day-to-day realities. The stories in the texts refer to the arrival and departure of celestials and of their awarding boons to devotees. To the critics such accounts

seem false. A woman is turned into a stone because of a curse, then the curse is broken with the grant of boon; or the sun is stopped from rising - such stories seem untrue to us because they are beyond the realms of possibility and refer to acts beyond our own capacity.
Since

such things do not happen these days, is it right to argue that they could not have occurred at any time? In the past the mantras of the Vedas had their own vibrant power because of the exemplary life led by those who chanted them. Then people practised severe austerities and

cultivated yogic power of a high order. These facts are borne out by ancient books. Through their mantras, austerities and yoga, people then could easily draw to themselves powers of a divine nature. Where there is light there is shadow. So with divine powers there also existed

demonic forces that could be seen in their gross form during those times. Today the war between the celestials and the demons is still being waged (the combat between good and evil). Eons ago people could perceive these forces of good and evil because of the special vision gained

Important facts on #Saivism

1. The symbols of Saivism are Vibhuti, Rudraksha and the Namasivaya Mantra

2. Annabhishekam is done during
Aipasi Poornima to Lord Shiva

3. The form in which Shiva is a yogi and bestows wisdom Is #Dakshinamurthy

4. Where is Shiva who represents

the soul?
Thiruperundurai (Avudayarkoil)

5. The place where Easan graces as the Kalasamhara Murthi is
#Thirukkadaiyur

6. The place where Lord Shiva asked Nandi to move to see Gnanasambandar is #Pattiswaram

7. The one who sang a song on Lord Siva once every year is #Thirumoolar

8. The shrine known as Muktivasal is Thiruvengadu (Navagraha Budhan Sthalam, Nagapattinam District)

9. Snanam of Shiva Parvati in Cauvery in the month of Aippasi is known as #Tulasanam

10. Bathing in Cauvery along with all the Gods on the last day of the month of Ippasi in

Mayiladuthurai is called Kadai Muka Snanam.

11. The king who built a roof temple (mada Kovil) for Shiva is #Kochengatchozhan.

12. The Lord who is worshiped as Koothappan is Nataraja (Khootu means dance)

13. A place blessed with the virtue of if you get Dharshan here one is

sure of mukti is #Chidambaram

14. A once-in-a-lifetime must visit Kshethram or holy place is #Kasi

15. The place where Lord Shiva appeared and stood as fire is
#Thiruvannamalai

16. The place where Ambal worshiped Lord Shiva in the form of a peacock is Mylapore Kapaleeswarar

Those who want to know about #MahaPeriyava can please read this detailed post. It gives a glimpse into how He became the head of Sankara Mutt and His life after that.

His Holiness Jagadguru Pujya Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswathi Swamigal or the Sage of Kanchi was the 68th

Madathipathi of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam. He is one of the greatest saints that history has ever witnessed. He is usually referred to as “The Walking God” "Visible God of Kaliyuga" "Incarnation of God" "Embodiment of Love, Peace and Compassion” “Confluence of Dharma" "Destroyer

of all Evils" and “Essence of Knowledge".

Swaminathan (Purvashram name of His Holiness) was born on 20 May 1894, under Anuradha star into a Kannadiga Smartha Hoysala Karnataka family in Viluppuram, South Arcot District, Tamil Nadu. He was the second son of Subramaniya Shastrigal

a District Education Officer. The child was named Swaminathan, after the family deity Lord Swaminatha of Swamimalai, near Kumbakonam. Swaminathan began his early education at the Arcot American Mission High School at Tindivanam, where his father was working. He was an exceptional

student and excelled in several subjects. In 1905, his parents performed his Upanayanam, a Vedic ceremony which qualifies a Brahmin boy to begin his Vedic studies under an accomplished teacher

"Truthfulness means mind and speech being well integrated. The wise say that speech being at variance with the mind is untruthfulness.
Vangmanasyoh Aikarupyam Satyam
God has given man the gift of speech so that he may give expression to his thoughts and feelings. If what we

speak is at variance with what we think (with our mind) God will take away the faculty of speech from us in our next birth- that is we will be born in the animal kingdom. There are, as we have seen before, exceptions made in our sastras to the rule of absolute non-violence: in

waging a war to preserve dharma, in offering animals in sacrifice. Are there similar exceptions to the rule of truthfulness? You will perhaps say none. But, as a matter of fact, there are. In a locality there must be a number of undesirable characters. Let us suppose that a

certain citizen is annoyed with such characters and gives open expression to his anger. "He committed this outrage. That other man is guilty of such and such a crime, “he keeps recounting the misdeeds of the bad elements. In doing so he is being truthful, that is his speech and

mind are in accord. But by giving expression to his feelings no purpose is served for neither he not the community is benefited. It is a futile kind of accord - that of his speech and mind - and it cannot be called truthfulness. Take the example of another person. He is full of

Today is #DattatreyaJayanti #DattaJayanti
Lord Dattatreya is one of the 24 Vishnu’s Incarnations. Lord Dattatreya was born of Rishi Atri and Anausya. The name Dattatreya can be divided into two words, Datta (means Giver) and Atri (Sage Atri). Lord Dattatreya considered as guru

of environmental education, gained enlightenment by his observation from surrounding, which provided him 24 gurus. These gurus explain the problems of mundane attachments, and teach the path towards the spiritual self-realization of the Supreme. The core message of Dattatreya is:

“Never judge by surface appearances but always seek a deeper Truth”.
Lord Dattatreya has three faces, six hands. The three faces represented the Trinity (Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva). Each pair of hands carries two of the symbols of the three deities. The four dogs who are with Him

are the Four Holy Vedas. A cow standing behind in Lord Dattatreya represents the Mother Earth. Once, while Dattatreya was roaming in a forest happily, he met King Yadu, who on seeing Dattatreya so happy, asked him the secret of his happiness and the name of his Guru. Dattatreya

said that the Atman alone was his Guru, and yet, he had learned wisdom from 24 individuals,who were therefore, his Gurus. He speaks about His 24 Gurus in detail.
1. I learnt patience and doing good to others from the EARTH, for it endures every injury man commits on its surface,