Shukarahasya Upanishad: An Introduction

Shri Shuka Rahasya Upanishad stands out as the tallest and in fact the very top most tip of all the 108 Upanishads and hence celebrated to be at the very apex point of Vedanta Darshana.

Being a direct instruction of Advaita , both in theory and practice , directly from Lord Shiva himself to Shri Shuka on the occasion of Upanayanam of Shri Shuka , it resulted in total transformation of Shri Shuka into a Brahmi Bhoota , a personality of total identification with Brahman .

This Upanishad contains the formal Mantra Upadesha of the Four Maha Vakyas of Vedanta using the Six Angas and also the Anga Nyasa and Kara Nyasa.

The study , understanding and practice of the procedure of Anusthana given in this Upanishad results in definite Release or Moksha from the World of Karma and Maya resulting in being established in a total state of Advaita

భగవద్గీత శ్రీశంకరాచార్యుల భాష్యంతో

భగవద్గీత అనే అమృతాన్ని ఆస్వాదించడానికి సిద్ధంగా ఉన్న జిజ్ఞాసువులం మనమంతా. ఒక ప్రసిద్ధ శ్లోకంలో ఇలా చెప్పారు. ఉపనిషత్తులన్నింటిని ఆవులతో పోలిస్తే, శ్రీకృష్ణుడిని గోపాలుడిగా భావిస్తే, అర్జునుడు లేగ దూడ స్థానంలోని వాడు. ఉపనిషత్తుల సారమే గీతామృతం అనే పాలు. దూడకు చేపు వదిలిన తర్వాత మనం పాలు పితుకుకున్నట్లే మనలాంటి జిజ్ఞాసువులందరూ ఆ అమృతాన్ని సేవించే భోక్తలు. ఇంపుగా ఉంటుంది కాబట్టి అమృతం అని కాదు. అజ్ఞానం మృత్యువు లాంటిది అంటుంది వేదాంతం. దాని నుండి కాపాడడానికి జ్ఞానం కావాలి. ఆ జ్ఞానమే అమృతం. ఇది వేదాంత శాస్త్రంలోని పారిభాషిక పదం.

భగవద్గీతను బ్రహ్మవిద్య అని, యోగశాస్త్రమని, సకల వేదార్థానికి సంగ్రహమని వ్యాఖ్యానించారు. ఇది మనకెందుకు అనే ప్రశ్న రావచ్చు. ఇది అన్ని దేశాలకు, అన్ని కాలాలకు, అందరికీ అవసరమైన విషయం. ప్రపంచంలో ఇవాళ జరుగుతున్న సంస్కృతుల పోరాటాన్ని గమనిస్తే మన మనసుల్లో మెదిలే అనేక ప్రశ్నలకు సమాధానం కావాలంటే భగవద్గీతను తెలుసుకోవాలి. విష్ణువు గొప్పవాడా శివుడు గొప్పవాడా లేదా గణేశుడు అందరికంటే గొప్పవాడా మొదలైన ప్రశ్నలు మన పిల్లలు వేస్తే సమాధానం చెప్పగలగాలి. అందరికంటే గొప్ప దేవుడు ఎవరు, అతడు ఎక్కడ ఉంటాడు అంటే సమాధానం చెప్పగలగాలి., మన సమాజంలో కులవ్యవస్థ ఎలా వచ్చింది దేవుడు సృష్టించాడా అంటే సమాధానానికి భగవద్గీతకు రావాలి.

మనం విగ్రహాన్ని ఎందుకు పూజిస్తున్నాము అంటే సమాధానం కోసం భగవద్గీతకు రావాలి. ఇలాగా ఈనాటి సమాజంలో మన ఎదుర్కొంటున్నటువంటి అనేక సందేహాలకు సమాధానం భగవద్గీతలో దొరుకుతుంది. సమాజంలోని అశాంతికి మూల కారణం ఉపనిషత్తుల సారమైన భగవద్గీతను తెలుసుకోకపోవడమే అని కచ్చితంగా చెప్పవచ్చు. కేవలం మన సమాజమే కాదు ప్రపంచంలో ప్రపంచమంతటా శాంతి నెలకొల్పాలంటే దానికి పునాది భగవద్గీత అని చెప్పవచ్చు.

అలాంటి భగవద్గీతకు శ్రీ శంకర భగవత్ పాదులు విపులమైన వ్యాఖ్యను వ్రాశారు. ఆ వ్యాఖ్యను అర్థం చేసుకొని మన సందేహాల్ని నివారించుకోవడం, అందులో చెప్పిన ఆత్మజ్ఞానాన్ని పొందడానికి ప్రయత్నించడం మన భాగ్యం.

తేది 09 జనవరి 2025 నుండి ప్రారంభం

ప్రతి సోమ మరియు బుధ వారములలో

సమయం: ఉదయం 10.00 నుండి 10.45 వరకు

Sarva Darshana Of Sarva Dharma

With the advent of Sri Ramakrishna, the possibility for universal understanding between spiritual paths and religions, has expanded considerably. Babaji has composed his new book, Footfalls of the Indian Rishis based upon this principle, revealing India’s stunning contribution to it. A brief discourse of key elements of the book will both support and clarify this important facet of spiritual life.

Living The Yoga Sūtra-s

‘I wish there was a user’s guide for this human incarnation thing!’ Said the seeker.

‘There is!’ Replied my teacher, ‘Patañjali’s Yoga Sūtra distils the foundation principles of yoga and gives us a practice manual for a human birth. These sūtra-s are the stiches that weave together the fabric of unity.’ And, as we’ll explore in this session, the principles set out in the yoga sūtra can help us weave deepening harmony into the whole of our lives and help us remember more fully who we really are.

-As described by the speaker, James Boag.

Symposium On ‘Prakarana Granthas’

Prakarana Granthas are authoritative texts that elucidate complex concepts in an accessible manner, providing clarity on technical terms and terminologies used in the Shastras. They also serve an important pedagogical function, namely facilitating a graded teaching of Shastras wherein a student is first taught these texts before taking them to a study of more advanced texts. Thus, they serve as invaluable companions for students embarking on deeper study of the Shastras.

The Vedanta tradition encompasses a profound journey of self-discovery, involving the renunciation of ego-driven desires, mastery over the mind and eventual transcendence of all notions of duality. It is essentially a path of Knowledge or Jnanayoga which involves deep inquiry into the Upanishadic teachings accompanied by contemplation and meditation on those teachings which would cultimate in realization of the Absolute Truth (Tattva-Jnana).  Known as Sravana (listening to Vedantic teachings from Guru), Manana (intellectual enquiry), Niddhidhyasana (contemplation on truth), these constitutes the three stages of Vedanta Sadhana (or Jnanayoga) which cultimates in Atma-Jnana or Self Knowledge.

This being the case, a systematic study of Vedanta Shastras plays a central role in Vedanta Sadhana.

To facilitate this, Adi Shankara Bhagavadpadacharya, the great master in his utmost compassion had authored a large number of works for communicating Vedantic knowledge to everyone. He authored the Prashthana Trayi Bhashyas for the intellectually leaning panditas. He composed a large number of Stotras for the devotionally oriented seekers. And finally, he composed numerous Prakarana Granthas both as introductory texts introducing the subject of Vedanta and as texts imparting directly the essential teachings of Advaita helpful for the Mumukshus in their quest for liberation.

Following Bhagavadpadacharya, many other Advaita Acharyas have composed a larger number of Prakarana Granthas as well. The purpose of these Vedanta Prakarana Granthas are three fold:

  1. Introduce the student to the essential teachings of Vedanta in a simple manner, thereby providing a comprehensive overview of the entire system.
  2. Introduce the student to all the Shastriya concepts and terminologies, and other preliminaries necessary for a student.
  3. Facilitate the beginner student to gradually become competent to take up study of advanced Vedanta texts such as Prasthanatrayi Bhashya.

Some of the prominent Vedanta Prakarana Granthas by Bhagavadpadacharya and his lineage of acharyas in the Advaita Sampradaya include:

Vivekachudamani
Upadesha-Sahasri
Atma-Bodha
Aparokshanubhuti
Vakya-Vritti
Panchikarana
Dasha Sloki
Tattva bodhaa
Nirvana Shatkam
Panchadashi
Vedanta Sara
Vedanta Paribhasha
Advaita Makaranda
Dṛg-Dṛśya-Viveka

The symposium seeks to highlight some of the distinguishing features of Vedanta Prakarana Granthas as well as shed light on its important teachings.

Schedule

Time Speaker Title of Talk
9.00 AM-9.15 AM Nithin Sridhar
Director & Chief Curator, INDICA Moksha
Opening Remarks
9.10 AM-10.00 AM Mahamahopadhyaya Swamini Bramaprakashananda
Chief Acharya, Dr. Shrikant Jichkar Memorial Arsha Vijnana Gurukulam, Nagpur
Significance Of Prakarana Granthas In Advaita Parampara
10.00 AM-10.30 AM Kathirasan K
Certified Mindfulness Teacher. Founder CEO of the Centre for Mindfulness, Singapore
Upadeshasahasri: A Unique Perspective On The Teaching Of Vedanta
10.30 AM-11 AM Vidwan K Giridhara Sarma
Traditional Vidwan of Vedanta and Mimamsa. Electronic Engineer.
Insights From Panchadashi Of Swammi Vidyaranya
11.00 AM-11.30 AM Gokulmuthu Narayanaswamy
Director of Product Development at Itron India, Bangalore
Tattvabodha – The book Of Vedanta Vocabulary
11.30 AM – 12.00 PM Br. Ved Chaitanya
Student of Sanskrit and Vedanta
Aparokshanubhuti: The Intimate Experience Of the Reality
12.00 PM – 12.30 PM Sudhanshu Shekhar
Additional Commissioner of Income Tax, Pune
Ajnana In Sushupti As Per Naishkarmya Siddhi
12.30 PM – 1.00 PM Dr. Suryanarayana Jammalamadaka
Senior Project Manager, Siddhanta Knowledge Foundation,
Co-founder, Kameswari Foundation
Why so many Prakarana Granthas in Vedanta
1.00 PM – 1.30 PM Acharya Jaishankar Narayanan
Vedanta Acharya. Runs Aarsha Vidya Varshini Gurukulam at Kallidaikurichi
Shabda Pramana In Vedanta Paribhasha
1.30 PM – 2.00 PM Dr. Srinivas Jammalamadaka
Scholar – IKS Courses, Siddhanta Knowledge Foundation,
An Analysis of Functionality Of Unreal: From Shastra-Siddhanta-Lesha-Sangraha By Appayya Dikshita
2.00 PM – 2.30 PM Vidwan P V Rajaraman
Traditional Vidwan and Chief Technology Officer, Adi Shankara Institute of Engineering and Technology in Kaladyy
Unveiling the Greatness Of Vivekachudamani: A Guide To Liberation
2.30 PM – 3.00 PM Vidwan Manikandan Iyer Traditional Vidwan and Banker Drk Drsya Viveka- A deliberation Of The First Verse Of The Text
3.00 PM – 3.30 PM Jayakumar S. Ammangudi
Founder and Managing Trustee of Arsha Seva Kendram
Uniqueness Of Atmabodha
3.30-4.00 PM Nithin Sridhar
Director & Chief Curator, INDICA Moksha
Conclusion and Vote of Thanks

 

Religious Landscape Of India During Shankara’s Time

One of the richest sources of information from the life of Acharya Shankara is the religious landscape of the land of Bharat. While we typically associate the Acharya with the rejuvenation of Upanishadic wisdom, his contribution to streamlining and resurrecting the religious fabric of Bharat is Himalayan. While my upcoming book ‘Sankarayanam – The journey of Sankara’ delves deeper into this topic, the ‘Weekend with wisdom’ session of INDICA Moksha intends to offer a glimpse into this.

Modern Science In The Background Of Ancient Indian Wisdom

Ancient India displayed great wisdom. The education system, namely, the Gurukul system, emphasized on holistic personality development along with development of professional and scientific skills. It embodied both scientific and spirituality concepts and drew heavily from the authentic scriptures, namely, the Vedas which are blemish free. The authenticity of the Vedas was demonstrated unequivocally by many great Rishis and Acharyas, who displayed super-natural powers, and the teachings therein impacted the lifestyles, ethical values and also the professional abilities of different individuals as per their needs. Prof. Ramakrishna Hosur will present those accomplishments first showcasing the great depth of knowledge our ancestors had and preached.

Modern science which is about 400 years old has indeed accomplished great feats. However, many of those echo our ancient accomplishments. Prof. will present some of those, especially the ones dealing with Creation and Medicine.

Modern eminent scientists have also come to terms with ideas of God, which were refuted earlier, and acknowledged the ideas of personalized medicine, described in Ayurveda. Prof. will shed light on all these aspects as well as on the spiritual concepts which are crucial for our lifestyles and to be peaceful and happy.

Introduction To Yogatattva Upanishad

Yoga Tatwa Upanishad is a standard text of Yoga .

This Upanishad presents the core of Yoga Practices aimed at the Self Realisation,the final goal of all spiritual efforts.Being one of the most important Yoga Upanishads , the Yoga Tatwa Upanishad belonging to Yajur Veda ,presents the Ashtanga Yoga in its own unique manner and contents.

Yamas,Niyamas, Asanas,Pranayamas,Pratyahara,Dharana,Dhyana and Samadhi all explained in detail in an impressive but practical manner with all details.

Prof. C S R Prabhu will provide a comprehensive introduction and overview of the text.

Morning Session : 08:00AM to 09:30AM

Evening Session : 02:00PM to 03:00PM

Dharma & Dilemma: Resolving Dharma Sankata

Everyone has conflicts as part of their lives. Quite often we resolve these conflicts well. However, there are few conflicts – that are tricky and difficult. We can call these as ‘dharma sankata’. These few become difficult to resolve because we may not have a framework or guidelines. It gets more complicated when people are forcibly isolated from their traditional family support base to distant places due to work or other reasons.

In this talk, Rajesh ji will share through stories about the various conflicts that people go through in their life and how they think incorrectly at times to resolve them.

He will also explain the easy way out most of the Hindu people take, consequently falling prey to extreme ideologies like Wokeism, radical proselytization and how they start seeing no value in the Sanatana Dharma.

Finally he will also explain the well-tested age old framework of Dharma to resolve conflicts. While the word ‘dharma’ may be elusive, even thinking through from the first principles about how it will apply helps reduce the stress of decision making in a conflicting, endless choice-driven world.

Introduction To Amritabindu Upanishad

Among the 108 Upanishads, 20 are Yoga Upanishads and among these Yoga Upanishads, the Anritabindu Upanishad is one of the most important text.

AmritaBindu Upanishad starts with a description of the mind and its nature . Then it delves deep into the practices of Yoga like Meditarion or Dhyana and its final stage of Absorption or Samadhi . In Nirvikalpa Samadhi the Mind ceases to exist and the self is absorbed in Self.The Self or Atman is in reality one and same as Paramatman if the mind is dissolved .The Paramatman is Brahman or Absilute Reality that is the Truth,Infinite and Eternal.That realisation of the invidual self being absorbed and hence identified as one and the same as Brahman is Liberation or Moksha.

In this talk, Prof. C S R Prabhu will provide a detailed introduction to the Upanishad.