[Advaita-l] Life is wonder-II

[kuntimaddi sadananda]

Life is a wonder. Part II-----------------------Fortunately the bathroom doors were not a lockable type;and she could enter and did whatever that was needed without thinking twice.The rest of the story is routine. I had to come back to the planet earth, and wastaken to emergency, went through several immediate tests and got admitted formore extensive analysis by a local Cardiologist.  I had to stay in the hospital for two days, withmy wife not letting me go away from her even for a minute in spite of the nurses’protests, and was discharged with the assessment that the fall was due tosevere exhaustion during the previous day; of course after paying heavily formy temporary trip to Heaven.  The real wonder is how could I fall flat with the face upwhile being unconscious in a highly congested bathroom that can accommodate me  only in that one position without hittingcommode on one side and the sink on the other, and without my head hitting onthe sharp elevated 4-in metallic strip  that separates shower area from the rest. Myhead was inside the shower area with the neck resting on the edge but withoutany sign of hurt in the neck area. It was unbelievable.  One can make all post-logical explanations including avague statement that I was lucky, since the probability of that happening is veryremote. It looks as though that some unknown force put me down without  myself getting hurt while at the same time makingbig enough noise for my wife to get up, realizing that something was wrong.  From my perspective, all I know was that Iwas reveling in the beauty and compassion of the Lord. Looking back now, I amreminded of the sloka from Mukundamaala of Shree Kulasekhara Alwar that mymother used to teach me when I was a child. ………………………………………….praaNa prayaana samaye kaphavaata pittaiH kanTaavarodana krutousmaraNam kutasthe? When the old age comes and the life is in the process ofgoing, and when the voice is gone and throat is busy with cough and cold, Oh!Lord, how can I think of you at that time?– even though you have told in Geetathat if one thinks of Me in the last minute he will reach Me only –  antakaale ca maameva smaran muktvaa kalevaram| yaH prayaati sa madbhaavam yaati naasyatra samshayaH||8-5 At the final moments one who gives up the identificationwith his body and think of Me alone, he reaches Me only – there is no doubtabout that.  Only way this can be insured is to think of Him all thetime – says Shree Kulasekhara Alwar –  cintayaami harimeva santatam, manda manda hasitaanaambujam, nandagopa tanayamparaatparam – Hence Oh! Lord I am going to think of you all the time,the smiling beauty of the lotus-faced Lord, the son of Nanda-gopa and who isbeyond all manifestations….  On the third day, I still ended up giving a seminar tothe Graduate students of the Aeronautical Engineering at Delft U., while mywife was there for the first time to listen to my non-Vedantic talk, and to insurethat I don’t get fatigued by the talk on Fatigue.  We are now back in Chennai with all AC’s down, internetdown, every one promising that they will be there to fix it but not showing upeven after a day or two – Yet with all these inconveniences we are happy thatwe are back comfortably sitting in our own flat moving around and greetingpeople who are dropping by to say hello. I know I can get back to my heavenanytime while my wife is worried and not letting me go anywhere without herwatching. I am following the husband’s duties – listening to a caring wife. Iam washing off my hands saying that she is responsible now as she brought meback to this Earth. Of course we have Jayanthi who is like a daughter ready totake care of us – while waiting to see when I will start my lifestream talks onVedanta so that she can do the taping.  However one thing is for sure; the essence of the Lordremains the same as the light of consciousness expressing in the eternalendless life of cycles – Yet there is beauty and order in this universeunimagined and ready for the discovery.  Effort is needed to discover this truth, until onerecognizes that it is actually effortless – since it is ever present existenttruth. It is not an experience, nor just knowledge – but it is experiencesoaked with knowledge, and comes with constantly meditating on that truthgained by the knowledge of the truth. As Shree Madhusudana Saraswati says inhis introduction to his Adviata Siddhi –about the Lord Vishnu who pervades thisentire universe as –  maayaakalpita maatRitaamukha mRiShaadvaitaprapanchaasrayaH|satyajnaana sukhaatmakaH shrutishikhotthaakhanDadheegocharaH||……. Lord Vishnu(vyaapakatvaat – one who pervades) who is the substratum for the entire worldof plurality that appears due to the power of maaya and being the essentialtruth as pure sat-chit-ananda swaruupam – who can be only be realized by theknowledge gained from the study of the scriptures by the prepared minds,…. To that Lord who is expressing as Life of Wonder who isthe guiding principle and taking care of me with love and compassion, invarious forms starting with my own darling wife – my prostrations.  Hari Om!Sadananda