[Advaita-l] A REQUEST FOR GUIDANCE.

[Madhava Havyavahana]

my namaskaarams to all the respected members.
   
  it has been about 3 days since i became a member of this group.today, i saw some amazing and very scholarly mails regarding meanings of hymns,regarding relations between spiritual ideas of different cultures(naishkarmya siddhi and taoism),regarding the various kinds of texts available in advaita philosophy.i saw discussions and debates about karma yoga based on the info provided in bhagvadgeetha,ashtavakra geetha..curious,and wanting to know more of such things i even visited the archive only to be amazed further.
  you all may be surprised at what i am saying...you may not be scholars by your standards,nor might your questions be such awe inspiring ones,and may be treated by you as mere enquiries which are basic pre requisites for serious students of vedanta."maybe people who are novices to such ideas and discussions are not meant to be a part of this list"was the thought that struck me immediately after going through these mails.but after some time of thought,i realised i was wrong.
   
  i realised that though there are several who want to be pseudostudents of vedanta,who go through the monotony of life without stopping to question the credibility of their actions,and when they do, to find out that their answers lie in the corners of philosophical books and bhasyas,just move ahead as if they had not stopped at all.i believe such people arent worthy of attention of serious and dedicated people such as you,whatever their excuses may be,of a fast moving lifestyle,or lack of easy accesibility of teachers..whatever.because,where ever there is a will,there is a way.
   
  But it may also be understood,that there are people who nurse a genuine desire to go in that vedantic path,but have been guilty of pseudoaspiration,as i have mentioned above.for such people, their desires get the better of them quickly.and it is with that hope that i am leading my life.i am performing my dwikala japas,and attending my veda classes and participating in homas caring  two hoots for their ACTUAL purposes, and without knowing in which direction to move.i get involved in light hearted banter regarding philosophies and mahavakyas,with people who know little better than i do resulting in nothing more than time pass...
   
  I feel ashamed of having lived an absolutely ignorant life,and i am using past tense very scruplously here as i have already committed myself to a better quality of life henceforth.and i believe that at 19 i have the time to START being a student of vedanta.it is always better late than never.This mail carries none of the amazing questions or answers regarding tattva and jnana that you members are so accustomed to see.instead it is a plea,an appeal of a fickle minded,ignorant but repentant man to you knowers ,asking for your precious guidance in becoming a good student of vedanta,and in taking my first steps to "know".
   
  For the benefit of the kind who would like to help,as i have mentioned before i am following the prescribed rituals of krishna yajurveda such as japa, veda adhyayana,and others and my spiritual knowledge is restricted to only this much apart from sincere chanting of totakashtakam and lalita sahasranamam and other such hymns without bothering to look into their meanings.i have minimal knowledge of sanskrit which i am now trying to improve by self study.as my first steps in understanding advaita i have recognised a pattern to follow.sri sankara (as i found recently in the ramakrishna ashram,bangalore)being the great acharya that he is has made for the sincere students of his tattva a preparatory series/collection of books in the order of simplicity,understanding to know his philosophy: tattva bodha,atma bodha,the beautiful vivekachoodamani,vakya vritti;mastering which the aspirant is requested to study the upadesa sahasri and then after he has firmly fixed his foot in the
 sands of advaita  by doing these things,is then exposed to the sublime beauty of the sareerika bhashya.
   
  I request you to confirm if this information is correct and inform me of ways and means to gain the required knowledge.what are the pre requisites needed before embarking on the study of vedanta,is it right for a person to accept one philosophy and go on studying it?should he master all to come to the final conclusion?are there any acid tests to to conclude that one philosophy is the ultimate reality?
  As a knowing community i believe that apart from engaging yourselves in superb discussions and debates you also share the responsibility of uplifting/guiding those needy of knowledge.
   
  My sincere apologies to the members for my inability to express myself in a more diplomatic manner as i am speaking out of real and wholehearted anguish.
   
  My apologies also, to the authorities for having  violated the rule which said that the posts to be sent should always be spiritual and informative in content.
   
  my requests may please be looked into and i hope to receive your guidance .
   
  thanking you,
   
  yours sincerely,
  Madhava havyavahana 

 		
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