Deivathin Kural Series - 67

Om Namah Sivaya.
Deivathin Kural # 67 of 15 Sept 2006.

1. These e-mails are translations of talks given by the erstwhile Pontiff of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam, over more than sixty years, published by Vanady Padippagam, T.Nagar, Chennai, India, in ten volumes, in the Tamil language. The english version is likely to be available very soon. These e-mails are simply an effort on the part of the sender, to share some of his bliss, as it is said, 'Yam perra peru peruga ivvaiyagam'. When he adds any personal observations he uses the phrase, 'KTSV adds'.
2. To-days chapter is from his lecture, titled, 'Edhu Swarajyam?', ie., 'What is Self Rule?', in pages 345 to 347, in Volume 1 of Deivathin Kural. In the next 45 pages of 13 pages, Periyaval tackles matters of social interest. That means also that the messages are going to be averaging less than three pages only. 'Enjoy madi!'. Unless specifically mentioned, he or man includes, she or woman.
3. Now-a-days, everybody is talking about, 'Swadeshi and Swarajyam', (Swadeshi means, anything of one's own country and Swarajyam means, Self Rule). But in style, dress and attitude, everyone is trying to copy the, 'White Man'. Till such behaviour persists, we are only 'paradesi' and our country is a slave colony only. (Paradesi, literally means 'foreighner'. But it is a word used disparagingly. The person is pitied as something less than normal.) If you have to get real self-rule, we have to study as to how was our country's peoples' culture and tradition and adopt them once again. Our old habits, trditions, behaviour patterns and Dharmas, have to be retained. It is wrong to copy the behaviour of the rest of the world. Once we have subjugated ourselves to their habits and way-of-life, how does matter whether we have home-rule or foreign-rule?
4. If it is a true Swarajya, if our legislatures and parliament were independent, we should be deliberating as to how our country's Dharma Rajyam, was and dwell deep into ways and means of reestablishing the same. We have a culture and civilization of our own! You may be tempted to say, "Why should we waste our time in trying to retain the old? Let the bygones be bygones! Why should we bother about such things?" My answer is that, I am not saying this, just because it is 'our past', as I would if I was simply too attached with 'me' and 'mine'. Many old cultures and civilizations have been washed away by 'time and tide'. But our culture has 'stood the test of time', for many thousands of years like a 'weather beaten rock'. There is something of value in it. We should live by it. We should live as 'ourselves'. Instead of blindly copying others, all our strength and energy should be directed towards, recreating the original true Indianness in us, for others to emulate.
5. Our people, in the westerner's garb, enact the laws and we are slaves to them! Where is the essence of freedom in this? If we give votes to people, who do not live by our culture and 'sampradaya', are we not slaves still? Our culture is one in which, even worldly affairs were deeply rooted in, 'the individual - humaneness and God - consciousness nexus'. We should first recognise that our own freedom is in identifing this. Then we should be working towards making, 'highest individual morality as the basic qualification', in private and public life. We should position people in power only those who preach what they practice. Instead of accepting corruption as a way of life, we should accept that it is possible to live by Dharma. Dharmam should be accepted as workable, in the individual, in education, in trade & commerce, in government and in all walks of life. It should be demonstrated as workable and feasible. Automatically we will influence the world to sit up and take notice. For doing so we should know our Dharma Sastras. For this there are many guide books. I am able to talk about this, because of the existance of such reference books. Otherwise all this could have been forgotten and lost track of. All the people have to think and opt for the freedom of uncorruptability instead of feeling that 'corruption is unavoidable'. If you feel that corruption is unavoidable, where is the freedom of choice? Why not send only known honest and sincere persons of impeccable character, to Legislatures? I pray to God Parameswara, to make Dharma a functional proposition in India, to become a direction-finder for the whole world!
Sambhomahadeva.