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Thread: Is this a Sanatana Dharma Path?

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    Is this a Sanatana Dharma Path?

    Hello,

    I am new here and I joined because I have some questions about Sanatana Dharma. I am from the UK and was born into a catholic family who did not practice. From a young age though I was curious about religion and felt drawn to spiritual practice.

    Even though all my family ate meat I became vegetarian when I was about 12 and am still vegetarian over 20 years later. Also I never took up drinking, smoking, or drug use as was common amongst my peers. None of this was out of any conviction it just always felt very natural for me not to do those things, even to the point where drinking coffee (any caffeine) and eating eggs make me feel unwell so even though I was not opposed to these things my body seemed to dislike them.

    I also naturally would never kill anything, not even a bug. Again, this feels very natural and proper to me but to those around me my family and peers killing insects was all very normal and I remember my mum would be very angry with me when I did not vacum in a certain area because a spider had built her web there and I could not bear to destroy it.

    Later in my 20's I came to Yoga and fell in love with this practice. I again noticed that while many people around me in classes were put off by any of the spiritual aspects of yoga and prefered to focus only on the excercise part of yoga. I felt the opposite, if I went to a yoga class and found that the yoga teacher made no referance to sanskrit asana names or to the spiritual dimension of yoga I felt like I had not really done yoga at all and would be disappointed and would actively seek out teachers who gave those teachings.

    Now more recently I have been practicing mantra meditiation and starting to read texts such as the Yoga Sutras and the Bhagavad Gita.

    When I first started reading these I almost felt a kind of vertigo as what I found in the pages were reflected many things I myself had intuited on some level even as far back as childhood and here were these ideas reflected back to me in these sacred texts. Of course my ideas and understanding were very limited and only partial but it was immense to me to find such a clear connection between my own personal experience and a spiritual path as ancient as the Sanatana Dharma.

    Recently talking with a friend they suggested that I am now essentially a practicing Hindu in all but name. I am not sure about that but at the same time it feels a very natural path to me although one which is at the same time very far removed from my heritage even the part of the UK I am in has very few Hindus.

    I think I am happy to continue as I am, so far it has all been a very natural and organic unfolding and I am in no rush. I have no expectations of enlightenment or anything everything just seems to be as it should be which is wonderful in and of itself I do not know if I am "official" or not and I tend to think it does not matter so much as long as I do my best.

    I think there are perhaps a couple of noteable "odd" instances in my childhood which may have some bearing on my attraction to this path but they could just be coincidence and not really evidence that I have been on this path before but who knows!

    Anyway I would be curious to know if you think that the above is a way to practice Sanatana Dharma or if you have any advice?

    Thank you so much for reading!

    Namaste

    Shimada

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    Talking Re: Is this a Sanatana Dharma Path?

    Namaste, and welcome!

    I wouldn't worry about being "official." You've already mastered some of the important pieces that people new to Sanatana Dharma struggle with. From your description, "this isn't your first rodeo."

    Learn, practice, experience. The beauty of Sanatana Dharma is that there is no "official" way, there are many paths which intersect at a later point, with rich and varied traditions.

    There are many, MANY, wonderful and knowledgeable people on this board, who can help you answer any questions. The beauty of SD is that there is NO RUSH. Take your time, explore, find out what feels right to you. There is a wealth of information and it can overload one at first.

    Welcome, you have come to the right place.
    Aum Namah Shivaya
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    "Reality must always be real. It is not with forms and names. That which underlies these is the reality. It underlies limitations, being itself limitless. It is not bound. It underlies unrealities, itself being real. Reality is that which is. It is as it is. It transcends speech. It is beyond the expressions 'existence, non-existence', etc." ~Sri Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi~

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    Re: Is this a Sanatana Dharma Path?

    Vannakkam Shimada: Yes, most definitely. I would venture a guess you were Hindu in a past life, with all that early childhood stuff going on naturally.

    I agree with all Vasa said too. Welcome to these forums. I hope your stay here is fruitful.

    Aum Namasivaya

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    Re: Is this a Sanatana Dharma Path?

    Namaste Shimada

    Welcome to the Forums !

    Hinduism is a way of life.

    Anyone can be a Hindu or a Sanatan Dharma practitioner.

    You are categorized under any caste by your nature and your actions.

    You seem to already follow what Sanatan Dharma teaches. There is no need to have an Official Tag of Sanatana Dharma.

    Just be as you are. You are doing fine. Nothing is wrong in your approach.

    Guilelessness, eating veg food, not indulging in dirty things, etc are signs of sattva Guna.

    I think your peaceful nature and not to rush and race in this world to become a leader (correct me if I am wrong) sets you apart.

    *The one who constantly thinks of Brahman is Brahmin. Brahman means supreme souls or supreme consciousness. Note Brahma is different from Brahman. Lord Brahma is one of the Tri Devas, Creative aspect of God, one who has created this universe. Brahman is Atman / Paramatman / SELF / God without attributes - Nirguna Brahman).

    Brahmin is a caste in Hinduism. So it's not by birth that you are so and so. It's due to your actions that make you what you are.

    In simple words, you are already following Sanatana dharma principles. This may be due to your merits in past life, so that you already have some good qualities by birth.

    The ways are all Official, but it's not just one way. There are many ways leading to same destination.

    Imagine you want ot go to a mountain top. The peak is pointed with little flat ground, but the base of mountain is very broad. So one can climb up from any point. There can be many ways to reach to top, but as you climb upwards i.e. come closer to peak i.e. come closer to God / your destination, paths merge and some principles and approaches are common in all paths and finally they all lead to one destination - Peak i.e. God

    I hope you are getting my point.

    The qualities you have mentioned and described, wil help you to enter easily in meditation. Some how I think that Lord Shiva best suits you, because your nature tunes with Lord Shiva's nature

    Mahadev (Lord Shiva) has compassion for all living beings and so accepts even ghosts and spirits. So he is called bhuta - nath (bhuta = Ghost and nath = lord)

    Bhut may also be translated as body or lord of Body. Mahadev is a great Yogi and a symbolism of Jnana (knowledge). He does not emphases on rituals, but more on devotion and unconditional surrender. He does not ask anything from anyone. Such a person is neutral in nature and peace loving. He also has a habit of extracting essence from any issues or talks or any situation. He tries to find the root cause of the situation or incident. So Mahadev is a yogi and also a Jnani. He is also an ascetic. He lives a simple life with nature and accepts things which are not permissible or recommended in worship of other Gods.

    Living a simple contented life, compassion, peaceful nature, practising Jnana and or Yoga, ahinsa (non- injury to all living beings), guilelessness (he is called bhole nath, bhola = simple, straight forward), nath = Lord) etc are nature of Shiva and so he that matches your nature than Shiva is the Eshta Devta i.e. preferred God or deity that best suits you.

    So if you are stressed, then simply gaze at his picture. You will find peace. Thats the sign that Mahadev is for you. If so than chant his name "OM namah Shivaya' and if your mind can easily calm down as compared to others mantra than Mahadev is for you.

    Pray to him, surrender to him and you will find all tension and worries have evaporated.

    Bhagavad Gita covers all 3 paths

    1. Karma - Action
    2. Bhakti - Devotion
    3. Jnana - Knowledge

    Each one can follow any one path. You cannot follow all 3 and have mastery of them. Though all are needed, one path is the primary- the best that suits your nature. So Gita can help anyone, as any person will foloow any one of these.

    Yog is also another path and Gita can be applied to Yog too.

    I wold also like to say that keep praying to God to show you or give you correct direction. IF you have any doubts pray to God to give solution. Thats that best way. Depend upon God. You can trust him.

    Hope this helps.

    As other members have said, there are many knowledgeable members on HDF (Hindu Dharma Forums).

    Hope you get what you are seeking.

    Good luck for your spiritual journey.

    Aum

    Indiaspirituality (IS)
    Last edited by Amrut; 27 July 2012 at 12:50 PM. Reason: added more info *
    Only God Is Truth, Everything Else Is Illusion - Ramakrishna
    Total Surrender of Ego to SELF is Real Bhakti - Ramana Maharshi

    Silence is the study of the scruptures. Meditation is the continuous thinking of Brahman which is to be meditated upon. The complete negation of both by knowledge is the vision of truth – sadAcAra-14 of Adi SankarAcArya

    namah SivAya vishnurUpAya viShNave SivarUpiNe, MBh, vanaparva, 3.39.76

    Sanskrit Dict | MW Dict | Gita Super Site | Hindu Dharma

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    Re: Is this a Sanatana Dharma Path?

    Namaste.

    IndiaSpirituality hosts a blog that you can access via their profile, it is very nicely done and contains some great information. Also, Indraneela has a blog linked on their profile as well, it is also a great read with interesting information.

    I beg 1000 pardons of I am neglecting to mention someone else with a blog.

    Pranam.
    Aum Namah Shivaya
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    "Reality must always be real. It is not with forms and names. That which underlies these is the reality. It underlies limitations, being itself limitless. It is not bound. It underlies unrealities, itself being real. Reality is that which is. It is as it is. It transcends speech. It is beyond the expressions 'existence, non-existence', etc." ~Sri Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi~

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    Re: Is this a Sanatana Dharma Path?

    Namasté,

    Shimada, welcome. You have an intriguing introduction. As other replies have correctly told you, there is no rush to assign an exact name to your current journey. This forum is excellent for having questions answered and learning more than ever seemed possible about Hinduism, so whether or not this is your path, at least the reading along the way will be interesting.

    Vasa, I appreciate the kind words! However, my blog isn't a good representation of Sanātana Dharma, nor what a "typical" Hindu practices and reveres, so it could confuse a newcomer. If you're seeking friendly voices on becoming Hindu, I can suggest an alternative: the Western Hindu site is the blog of another of our forum members (and has other recommendations on his page entitled Westerners Following Hinduism). It's a nicely-written and down-to-earth blog.

    Other good reading along those lines is the work of Dr. David Frawley, particularly a brief article called Hinduism for Westerners, and his really fascinating book, How I Became a Hindu. (Shimada, David Frawley - now known as Vāmadeva Śāstrī and recognised as a great teacher of traditional knowledge - describes the long, roundabout path that led him to become Hindu in the first place. His story might resonate with you, as it did with me.)

    Indraneela
    ===
    Oṁ Indrāya Namaḥ.
    Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya.

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    Re: Is this a Sanatana Dharma Path?

    Namaste

    I think this question leads to a wilderness of mirrors. Which labels we ascribe and why...

    Many would view you as not a Hindu, for a variety of reasons.
    At the extreme end, you have not received the samskaras - the ceremonies that mark key events in the life of a Hindu, this is almost entirely reserved to ethnic/cultural Hindus with the exception of a few second+ generation Western converts.

    Otherwise, you are not initiated in a sampradaya.

    Otherwise, you are approaching Hindu Dharma and essentially cherrypicking what works for you from the buffet table.

    In my opinion, none of this matters at all.

    I think it is important to distinguish between two things:

    1. Sanatana Dharma = The Eternal Law of Truth. All that is true, righteous and spiritually efficacious in all places at all times. In this sense, every person, every culture, has the presence of the Sanatana Dharma to varying degrees. Please note that I am not suggesting a radical universalism where we say that all religions are true, only that all religions contain Truth, to greater or lesser degree (and the degree can vary enormously!). Insofar as you are true to the truth, and obey the law of one's sense of right and wrong - the svadharma, one is a Sanatana Dharmi regardless of the name chosen by self or others to describe the path.

    2. Hindu Dharma = the Law of Bharat. Sanatana Dharma is more manifest in the dharma of the Hindus than anywhere else, but Hindu Dharma carries with it many culturally binding mores. You may or may not be a Hindu Dharmi, but you are a Sanatana Dharmi. Certainly you imbibe wisdom from the Hindu Dharma.

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    Re: Is this a Sanatana Dharma Path?

    Vannakkam everyone,

    Shuddhasattva,

    I think it is important to distinguish between two things:

    1. Sanatana Dharma = The Eternal Law of Truth. All that is true, righteous and spiritually efficacious in all places at all times. In this sense, every person, every culture, has the presence of the Sanatana Dharma to varying degrees. Please note that I am not suggesting a radical universalism where we say that all religions are true, only that all religions contain Truth, to greater or lesser degree (and the degree can vary enormously!). Insofar as you are true to the truth, and obey the law of one's sense of right and wrong - the svadharma, one is a Sanatana Dharmi regardless of the name chosen by self or others to describe the path.

    2. Hindu Dharma = the Law of Bharat. Sanatana Dharma is more manifest in the dharma of the Hindus than anywhere else, but Hindu Dharma carries with it many culturally binding mores. You may or may not be a Hindu Dharmi, but you are a Sanatana Dharmi. Certainly you imbibe wisdom from the Hindu Dharma.

    Well said and thank you for clearly differentiating both. Now I actually understand Hinduism better!


    Aum Namah Shivaya

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    Re: Is this a Sanatana Dharma Path?

    @Shuddhasattva

    I think Hindu dharma is a part of sanathana dharma.

    I have not heard of any separate sanatan dharma practiced along with Hinduism like Islam / Buddhism, etc. If there was any, then it's more or less extinct.

    Hindu dharma is not just rituals and idol worship. It is more than that.

    Something like Islam and Sufi.

    In day-2-day life, no one wants to progress in spirituality. For them, to make them progress into spirituality, certain rules, values and procedures, etc are laid down, which rishis thought were necessary for 'samaj' to live happily, peacefully and in harmony with nature.

    Gita is Dharma Granth. Gita does not teach moral and cultural values. Manu smruti can be called as dharma shastra. You can get instructions like:

    Do not say lie AND Always speak truth

    So both positive and negative are covered

    or you can say,

    Do not drink liquor (wine) or respect elders, etc, etc

    These are necessary for a samaj to function and work properly in harmony.

    Gita and other shastras are moksha shastras. Though they are interconnected with Hindu dharma, they can live independently. Dharma opens doors towards spirituality.

    Punya karma opens doors to moksha. I personally think entire karma kaand like havans, puja, service to humanity, etc are to assimilate punya, which makes one's chitta sattvik, deserving of tatva Jnana. only a sattvik mind is capable to live a spiritual life.

    Hindu dharma covers all aspects of life for laymen. Since we cannot live without work, great emphasis is given to work related services. Entire 'Grihastha Ashram' is for lok-kalyana - for betterment of society.

    It helps other 3 ashrams. It's for 'paropkaara'. - sorry I could not find english word.

    When I got Gita, I was told that one has to cross the borders of caste, creed, dharma, etc to understand Gita. Gita is for everyone.

    Upnishads do not describe any name of God. Only OM is described. Shiva is described as 'Kalyankaari Atman' and not Lord Shiva or Mahadev, one of the tridevas.

    This is also reflected in Sri Adi Shankaracharya's NirvANa ShaTaka or Atma ShaTaka.

    Hindu is a way of life.

    Yes the sanskaras and the procedures what you mention are also important, which are given to Hindu born in a Hindu family, preferably which has both father and mother from same caste. This is a pure Hindu Brahmin or Vaishnav Family.

    Converts miss them, but they get converted for spirituality and not to collect punya, as service is encouraged in almost all religions. What lacks is the path and a Self Realized Guru whose finger can we hold and progress towards ultimate goal.

    What you say SAnatana is nothing but today's Hindu Dharma, which covers all aspects of life. There is an effortless shift of a Hindu from a dharmic Jivan (life) to AdhyAtmic Jivan.

    Remember, Shastras are not taught to any one. They are taught to anyone who deserves it, be it of any caste, but not just 'Anyone'

    Even Prakaran Granth like Tatva both and Vivek Chudamani has slokas describing the Adhikara of any one deserving to know this scripture. Vivek chudamani is alone capable of giving Moksha i.e. one can attain moksha by walking on steps prescribed (please do not take literate word-by-word meaning like walk on spiritual path, attain Jnana, etc. Catch the content, drop the container, says Swami Tadrupanand ji of Manan ashram)

    So shastras are for anyone (who deserve), but not for anyone (who does not deserve).

    Since, Sanatan dharma is oldest religion, so it does not have any formal procedure to convert to a Hindu. Diksha is a different thing. Other religions do have conversion procedures, as they had to convert people following an already existing religion (generally but not exclusively Hindu). So technically, anyone living in this world is a Hindu or a Sanatan Dharmi - a better word, which does not look like a cult

    Everything can be found in Hindu dharma which is given emphasis in other religions.

    Like doing Punya and ascending to Heven, Ahinsa - Jain
    Ahinsa, compassion - Buddhism
    Service to humanity - Christianity
    Surrender to God - Islam

    Religions practicing formless aspect of God, maybe Jews

    Agni Deva or Fire Lord is the lord of Parsis - We find praise in Shastras as Agni is found anywhere, be it dormat or latent. If there is no agni, then nothing can be burned. So Agni Deva is also omnipresent. Then there is also Jnanagni - Fire of wisdom. No ritual begins without worshipping Agni Deva.

    Hindu: Devas and Asuras, Ram - Ravan, Krishna - Kansa, KAirav - Pandav
    Buddhism: Buddha and Mara
    Islam - Khuda and Saitan
    Christianity - Christ and Satan (correct me if wrong)

    Doesn't it sound similar?

    *One has to fight (without fighting) negative with the help of positive. It's all in the mind. These are qualities

    But then if this is accepted, then it means danger to their Independent existence. Rest we know what's happening everywhere, There are both Good and Bad people everywhere.

    Sri Ramakrishna respected all religions and said that they are all true and lead to same destination. He experienced it all.

    Just my humble personal opinion. No offenses to any religion.

    Aum
    Last edited by Amrut; 29 July 2012 at 04:48 AM. Reason: Added line after *
    Only God Is Truth, Everything Else Is Illusion - Ramakrishna
    Total Surrender of Ego to SELF is Real Bhakti - Ramana Maharshi

    Silence is the study of the scruptures. Meditation is the continuous thinking of Brahman which is to be meditated upon. The complete negation of both by knowledge is the vision of truth – sadAcAra-14 of Adi SankarAcArya

    namah SivAya vishnurUpAya viShNave SivarUpiNe, MBh, vanaparva, 3.39.76

    Sanskrit Dict | MW Dict | Gita Super Site | Hindu Dharma

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    Re: Is this a Sanatana Dharma Path?

    hariḥ oṁ
    ~~~~~~

    namast

    Quote Originally Posted by Shimada View Post
    Anyway I would be curious to know if you think that the above is a way to practice Sanatana Dharma or if you have any advice?
    Every journey (adhvan) begins with first steps. It is being mindful that you are on a path that one begins to grow over time. This then can anchor one into sanātana dharma. It is the difference between window shopping and being purposeful in one's actions. Sanātana dharma is about being purposeful.

    But purposeful of what ? Of discovering one's real nature, of pūrṇatā पूर्णता- fullness.

    praām

    words
    grow = upacaya - improves over time; growth
    यतस्त्वं शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṁ śivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

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