Nature of love and sexuality

In the Bhagavad Gita in Chapter 3 regarding Karma Yoga, we find this verse:

Bg 3.37 — The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: It is lust only, Arjuna, which is born of contact with the material mode of passion and later transformed into wrath, and which is the all-devouring sinful enemy of this world.

In this world we commonly associate love with sexuality as well as lust with sexuality.  However, the Bhagavad Gita refers to lust in a much more broad context.  Lust can be manifested in a variety of ways including lusting after possessions or material wealth.  

However, in the most common context of lust regarding sexuality, we can curb this desire through transformation of this into divine love.  In the 1960s, there was a concept or notion of "free love".  Though that was commonly meant to mean uninhibited sex, it could also mean the concept of unconditional and selfless love.  In married or committed relationships, love and sexuality are generally considered synonymous.  Only outside of committed or loving relationships is the concept of sexuality without love considered.

There is a common saying that "everyone wants to be loved".  Everyone is looking to find love in some form or another.  Some humans find it through sexuality, other through relationships and yet others find it through God or religion.  

But as the Bhagavad Gita states, if we attach ourselves in loving devotion to God, all other love will come to us.  God always loves unconditionally since all human beings are created in his image and are part and parcel of the Supreme Lord.  If we love our fellow human beings in a manner similar to God (unconditionally), we will always be supremely happy.  Common literature including books such as A Tale of Two Cities speak of unrequited love, but unrequited love can really be considered synonymous with unconditional love or the love of God.  Love is always believed to require reciprocation, but that is not the case.  Those who do not know God or do not even have the capacity to know and realize God (including animals, plants etc.)  are all still loved by God.  

Therefore, if we love and are attached to God and consequently love human beings regardless of whether or not that love is reciprocated, we will always be supremely happy.  We will always be able to find love.  And if we share that love with all other human beings, we will eventually find that one love which is reciprocated and makes all the love shared with other human beings worthwhile.  

This is clearly evidenced by the tremendous number of songs and writings all centered on the concept of love.  In the words of the Beatles, "All you need is love, love is all you need, love is all you need."

Star Wars and the Bhagavad Gita

I was just recently watching the Star Wars series on the Sci-Fi Channel and began to notice the religious allegory in the storyline that I had never noticed before.

After doing some searching on the Internet, I found this article that seemed very interesting:

http://www.chron.com/entertainment/movies/article/Many-faiths-see-religious-allegory-in-Star-Wars-1919344.php

One thing I found very interesting in the article was that there was no mention of the Bhagavad Gita in the passage at all.  Therefore, I thought it might be worthwhile to add some clarification to some of the mentions made in the article:

Much of the debate centers on the nature of the Force, which Lucas told Time magazine in 1983 was God. Sixteen years later, Lucas told Bill Moyers that he put the Force into Star Wars "to try to awaken a certain kind of spirituality in young people — more a belief in God than a belief in any particular religious system."
If we look through the passages of the Bhagavad Gita, we can find many references that explain directly what George Lucas describes:
http://vedabase.com/en/bg/18
Bg 18.66 — Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reactions. Do not fear.
The article refers to no particular religion in reference to God, just an overall spirituality.  The Bhagavad Gita, while traditionally associated with Hinduism, indicates that all varieties of religion are acceptable to follow the principles of the Bhagavad Gita.

In fact, if you read the entire passages of the Bhagavad Gita available here: http://vedabase.com/en/bg, you will be able to find suitable comparisons for nearly all of the characters in the movie including Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader, Princess Leia, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Han Solo, The Force etc.

While someone can easily write entire volumes on the allegory of Star Wars (as some authors already have done), I will provide just a few brief examples from the Bhagavad Gita and leave the rest to those interested in further research and investigation:

1. Luke Skywalker--Devotee of God such as Arjuna in the Bhagavad Gita
2. Obi-Wan Kenobi/Yoda-Gurus of the Devotee/Lord Krsna
3. Darth Vader-Duryodhana as well as Lord Krsna/God (Lord Vader saves Luke in Return of the Jedi)
4. The Empire-The Kaurava Forces
5. The Rebel Forces-The Pandava Forces
6. The Emperor-Dhritishtrashta
7. Princess Leia-Draupadi
8. Chewbacca-Bheem

Perhaps in a future blog post I may be able to elaborate further on these various references as well as relate to the specific passages in the Bhagavad Gita, but that's all for now! :-)

Surrendering all activities to God

In the Bhagavad Gita, there is a verse that states

"O scion of Bharata, surrender unto Him utterly.  By His grace you will attain transcendental peace and the supreme and eternal abode."

Many religious believers from all varieties of religions have understood and embraced this concept wholeheartedly.  They believe that all activities that they perform occur as a direct result of the grace of God.  This includes all sorts of activities ranging from their work duties as well as their household duties.

We see this activity frequently reflected in all types of mediums from work activities to household computer activities.  By offering all these types of activities to God, one becomes purified of sins in a manner similar to offering food to God by saying "Grace" before consuming food.

If we take upon ourselves the daily practice of offering all of our activities to God, by gradual degrees we can continue to be purified and cleansed of our sins and therefore come to see and realize God.

Alternative to Gelatin for Vaishnavs

Unfortunately, in the Western world, gelatin is a very prevalent substance in nearly all foods as well as medicines that are released in capsule form.

As most Vaishnavs know, gelatin is made from the bone of animals and thereby being an animal product is forbidden from consumption from both Vaishnavs as well as vegans.

Fortunately, some companies looking for a "vegan friendly" solution to using gelatin in capsules have instead opted to use vegetable cellulose and water as a very viable solution for providing easily digestible capsules.

However, it is up to the vegans and the Vaishnavs of the world to spread this message to all of the consumer manufacturing companies that produce these products using gelatin that we would prefer them to use vegetable cellulose and water so that we may also consume their products.  The retail and manufacturing industry continues to deal in the law of supply and demand.  Therefore, if there is enough protest in the consumer market regarding the prevalent usage of gelatin in the industry, the manufacturers WILL change their manufacturing process to fit the needs of their consumers.  If we look at many large fast food chain outlets such as McDonald's and Pizza Hut, these chains were formerly using lard and other animal byproducts in the production of their food items.  However, with the rise in vegetarians in the United States, these chains have long since switched to more "vegetarian friendly" alternatives such as the use of vegetable oil or other plant-based alternatives where possible.

Therefore, WE can change these practices and thereby change the WORLD.

Understanding the "subconscious"

Western philosophy often refers to the inner personality of a human being as their "subconscious".  This is understood by Western philosophers to mean actions or thoughts taken by a human being that is completely out of their conscious mindset or knowledge.  Some of the things that have been described as occurring completely through means of the subconscious are rather amazing and spectacular.

However, the phenomenon created by the "subconscious" can be explained rather easily through religion especially through religious texts such as the Bhagavad Gita.  In the Bhagavad Gita, every human being is said to be a manifestation of God or an instrument/servant of God.  However, many people have not achieved this self-realization and therefore continue to believe that they are in charge of their own fates/destinies through the power of independent "free will".  While humans still exert some level of free will and independence, ultimately, all outcomes as dictated by God will come to pass.  A person's exertion of his/her free will only serves to delay the inevitable.  Therefore, when a person "unconsciously" or "subconsciously" performs an action, they are actually carrying out the will of God.  They are acting as instruments and servants of God completely unbeknownst to them.  

Therefore, a true religious believer will understand that the phenomenon that is attempted to be explained by Western philosophers and Western culture is simply a manifestation of executing God's will and God's destiny.

The Truth behind Astrology/Horoscopes

As many people know, the study of Astrology is the study of the planets/stars and how they relate to human beings.  This has been done by thousands upon thousands of years by many various cultures including the Indians as well as the Chinese.

Many modern men and women no longer believe in the study of Astrology because they feel that it is too fantastic and illogical that the movement of the stars and planets could actually control and predict the course of our lives.

However, from a religious perspective, the study of astrology makes complete and perfect sense.  As God created the Universe as well as all souls on this planet, our souls and lives are inevitably bound to everything to everything in the Universe.  We are one with God and the Universe.  As God controls the Universe, as does he control our souls and our lives.

However, our souls are only a small fraction/part of God compared to the overall Universe, therefore, by only understanding the Universe can we comprehend the future and course of our lives.  It is a great deception for us to believe that our lives are completely within our control through our free will.  All actions and reactions in this world act according to God.  While we have some free will to complete actions on our own, ultimate even these choices of our free will must eventually be surrendered unto God.  Each action that we commit even through our own free will is still influenced through the grand scheme woven by God.  The actions that we commit through our own free will only delays the inevitable result to be realized by God.  

Therefore, if we look to the study of Astrology as a religious truth due to our unity with the Universe and God, we will recognize how much astrology can predict the course and future of our lives.

Advice for the Modern Man regarding "Sexual Tension"

Most men in the Western World will describe a phenomenon known as "sexual tension".  This essentially involves the sexual feelings that a man might feel towards a woman that is particularly beautiful or attractive woman.  

Why does a man feel this "sexual tension"?  The underlying cause stems from his identification with the characteristics of the beautiful and attractive woman.  Seeing such beauty manifested in the body of another human being puts the man in awe.  He would like to further understand how such immense beauty can be manifested in another human being.  

However, he does not realize that his yearning and desire to further know this immense beauty is nothing other than the desire and yearning to know the beauty of the world that is created by God.  Instead, most men identify this feeling with the desire of the sexuality of the human being and thereby remain bound to the items of the material Earth rather than the spiritual plane.  This desire is subsequently translated into passion or lust and therefore a man feels uncomfortable around spending time alone with a particularly beautiful or attractive woman without being in a relationship.  He feels that he will not be able to repress or control his feelings and will thereby act upon the desires and emotions that he experiences while seeing such a beautiful woman.  The man may even try to subtly release that sexual tension by flirting with the attractive woman through dialog or even possibly lightly touching her.

What men do not understand is that most women will not feel this way around men.  Women are more driven by a desire for love than the primitive emotions of passion and lust.  This is how many beautiful and attractive women can spend time in the company of men without feeling similar feelings.  Women are much more focused on their own internal sense of love and attraction rather than superficial features of beauty.  Many handsome men might be in a room with a very beautiful woman and yet the woman will be able to fend off the advances of all those men while they are focused on the man that is the object of their affection and love.  Women feel this attraction on a much more emotional and spiritual plane than men who typically associate with this feeling on the physical plane.

Therefore, what can the modern man to alleviate this "sexual tension" and continue to remain in the presence of beautiful and attractive women?  First, by understanding that women do not typically experience this "sexual tension", many men can put their minds to rest and at ease.  If the attraction between a man and a woman is mutual, the attraction will ultimately result in some type of communication or even possibly a relationship.  If that attraction is present, the woman will often times go out of her way to send signals of interest and attraction to the man (which are far too numerous to describe here) in order for the man to follow up and initiate a conversation with the woman of interest.  Second, a man can try to better control his feelings of passion through identifying the woman as a sister or a mother rather than an object of sexual desire.  Third, a man can direct those feelings of passion and lust into a desire for understanding, knowing and loving God that created this Universe and all the beauty within it  In this manner, the modern man can ultimately relieve this feeling of repressed passion or lust and instead better leverage his energy towards finding, knowing and loving God that created all human beings on this Earth.