To: AM-GLOBAL
From: Foster Davis
Subject: Misuse & Abuse of Manan
Date: Fri, 21 Oct 2011 22:29:23 -0400
Baba
Note: With the Occupy Wall Street protests in full swing, and garnering a lot of attention, some may think that all the ills of capitalism have been uncovered in the form of corporate greed etc. As Ananda Margiis, we know that the disease and trickery of capitalism go deeper than that. We should all be aware of the following so we can guide others.
Namaskar,
In this present era, while living in this mostly capitalist dominated world, it is necessary for one to be careful lest they fall in the capitalists' degrading trap. Because with their crooked ways, the capitalists infuse certain negative thought patterns to suit their greedy ends.
As we know the Sanskrit term 'manan', i.e. thinking, can be spiritually elevating or totally degenerating. In the case of the latter, those crude thoughts have a terrible effect on the human psyche-- on one's mental structure, causing depression & ultimately degradation.
Baba says, "Regarding this faculty of thinking, if it is done in a methodical way, the result is certainly positive...But if it is not done in a methodical way, the general result is negative." (YP, 'Mind Grows in Magnitude')
So all should be aware about the sneaky ploy executed by today's capitalist exploiters. Because their goal is to make people misuse and abuse their power of manan, just so that they (the capitalists) can make huge money.
Of course, for ages & ages yogis have held a deep belief in the dominance of mind; and yogis have long cultivated the habit of positive & systematic thinking in order to build a healthy mental arena.
For that reason yogis pointedly spend their days practicing the pure approaches to manan, shravan, niddhidhyasana. That is thinking godly thoughts (manan), listening devotional ideas (shravan), and ideating on Parama Purusa (niddhidhyasana).
Because yogis understand well the theory, 'As you think so you become'.
By this way there is a distinctly positive momentum in the mind and it advances inwards towards the cosmic nucleus. That is, the mind gets transformed and restructured by the continued practice of mantra japa and dhyana. By thinking in that uniquely spiritual way the mind becomes more subtle and sublime and moves towards that spiritual Goal.
This is the cherished way of the yogi.
Capitalists-- on the other hand-- are matter-centered and in their crude theory they do not (openly) recognise the concept of mind. Rather capitalists believe that matter is everything. That is their expressed philosophy.
Yet, they have one trick up their sleeve as well.
Because, in their devilish dealing, the capitalists employ mental tricks in order to control the public. That is they infuse their own ideas into the public mindset in order to get the public to think about their products. This is how the capitalists abuse the practice of manan-- mental thinking.
So on the one side in theory such capitalists proclaim that this universe is matter centered and one can just ignore the mind. That is their stated agenda. But their practice is something quite different. They understand that the best way to control a person is through the mind and not through matter. And that is how they sell their products, by staining people's minds.
They infuse within people the mental desire to look or be a certain way by buying certain products. That is the sales-pitch of capitalists.
CAPITALISTS INTENTIONALLY DEGRADE THE PUBLIC MIND
THROUGH THE ABUSE OF MANAN
That is why we see that through their endless advertising campaigns and media onslaught the capitalists' chief plan is to colour the public mind-set with propaganda about their products. Through radio, tv, films, internet, newspapers, magazines and so many other avenues, the capitalists spread their crude messages to the consumers-- in an attempt to get their
slogans deeply embedded within the public psyche. This is their dastardly method.
Thus in their hypocrisy those capitalist agencies know that if they can capture the public mind then they make millions and billions of dollars. That is why in their commercials they invent catchy songs and attractive slogans which they hope the public will recite and remember. Such as 'Have it your way at Burger King', or 'Ooh-la-la Sasson' for Sasson jeans', or thousands and thousands of other slogans and advertising messages that get repeated millions of times during the day.
Even if one walks into any elementary or primary school, then it is evident that the tender minds of our children are already littered with the ideas of big-business. Because the children walk around singing the songs of those capitalist commercials etc. And that type of abuse of manan-- that type of negative thinking-- adversely affects their development of mind. But for the capitalists it means profit, profit, profit.
So this is the heinous trick going on in this era. And while surely many are protesting corporate greed, they may not at all be aware about the psychology of capitalism. Rahter they may be drowned in it completely.
Indeed this is what happens to many: Those phrases get infused into the public psyche and the peoples' mind becomes saturated with that capitalistic propaganda. In which case their whole mental arena becomes distorted and full of that capitalist junk.
Baba says, "Now, everywhere, in cent-per-cent of the cases, there is wastage of human psychic potentiality. The psychic potentialities of human beings are immense, but people do not utilise them because most of their valuable time is wasted in undesirable thoughts, in psychic extravaganza." (YP, p.134)
So the whole sequence of events is quite nasty and sublime. Because the capitalists invent invasive approaches to enter into the public mind set, in turn the public psyche gets distorted and coloured by crude messages, and in that subliminal tactic that public does not even realise that they are getting affected by those crude propaganda campaigns.
Rather when Tom, Dick, or Harry walks into a store and they see an item that they want to buy-- such as cologne or an automobile or a toaster etc-- then they really think that it is their inner heart's desire to purchase that thing. They do not realise that this is a capitalistic schema imposed upon their psyche.
Rather that brainwashed consumer takes total ownership of that desire and they are convinced that the purchase of that item will satisfy their inner longing.
And this happens to all members of the general public: men, women, children. All start thinking that they must look a certain way, act a particular way, and possess certain items. And they think that this is their true internal longing-- that this will bring them happiness and success. But little do they realise that they are getting cheated to the
bone by feisty capitalists.
Hence by the abuse of manan-- by infusing negative ways of thinking on the minds of the common people-- those capitalists achieve their crooked ends of selling their products. That is all they care about. And in their duplicity they know that the best and only way to achieve this is to recognise the dominance of mind and distort the public way of thinking. And tragically this is exactly what they have achieved in this negative era of capitalism.
And in result the common people suffering in innumerable ways such as depression, anxiety, until ultimately they fall into crude samadhi etc.
As Ananda Margiis, we must never fall prey to the sinister traps set by those hoarding capitalists. We must keep the mind clean and pure and be vigilant not to become painted in the colour of consumerism. This is Baba's strict warning.
Baba says, "From the psychic sphere also, unnecessary waves are to be removed. This will remove many burdens from the mind. 'I must not bother about petty things, because that will waste my time' -- people should remember this. This removal or rather withdrawal of unnecessary and undesirable thoughts emanated from the mind, will help you in rationalising the major portion of your mental faculty, and so this must also be practised." (YP)
Thus Baba's above guideline is to keep the mind free and clear of negative ways of thinking-- our mental arena must not get polluted by crude thoughts or capitalistic advertising slogans. By ridding the mind of such things, then our human mind can be properly utilised.
Ultimately Baba guides us that we should direct all our thoughts towards that Supreme One.
Baba says, "Withdraw the mind from physical objects and goad it unto Parama Purus'a". (AV-14)
Baba's teaching then is not to let the mind get overwrought with the crude effects of capitalism; rather one is to push the mind in a distinctly spiritual way of thinking. That is the real manan-- otherwise degradation will occur.
So we should chant our kiirtan and repeat our ista mantra all day long and not for one second think about the propaganda of those cheating capitalists. We should not allow their tactics to invade our mental arena. This must never be allowed to happen. If it does one will become a slave of capitalism.
That is why Baba's mandate is to infuse the mind with sentient thoughts and sweet ideations. Here again is Baba's divine guideline.
Baba says, "You must have a spiritual goal. You must know what to do, what not to do, how to do, why to do. And for this purpose, the movement is to make the mind pinnacled, apexed, and bring all the propensities to that point, and goad it towards your spiritual goal." ('Subjective Approach Objective Adjustment')
By Baba's grace each and every margii will grow in a clean way through proper manan-- through proper thinking. This is Baba's blessing.
Baba says, "You will have to ultimately reach Parama Purus'a. This is the pinnacled point, the supreme point of human glory. You should always remember this, during your lifetime and even after your death." - Baba
Namaskar,
Purusottama
Through pracar, education, and constant effort we must awaken the common public to the capitalists' negative and abusive strategy of manan. All must be alerted about these tricky maneuvers lest the common become more and more degraded.
Not only that, with the upsurge of Occupy Wall Street protests, we should take the opportunity to share with others how capitalism invades the mind. This type of inner understanding is needed in order to truly lead the people.
Here below Baba outlines the highest and most pure way to do manan.
Baba says, "Manana, that is, thinking only about Parama Purus´a and about no one else. If any other person or thing comes in the mind, ascribe Brahma-hood to that person or thing. This process is manana." (AMIWL-11, 'Mantra Caetanya')
From: Foster Davis
Subject: Misuse & Abuse of Manan
Date: Fri, 21 Oct 2011 22:29:23 -0400
Baba
== MISUSE & ABUSE OF MANAN ==
Note: With the Occupy Wall Street protests in full swing, and garnering a lot of attention, some may think that all the ills of capitalism have been uncovered in the form of corporate greed etc. As Ananda Margiis, we know that the disease and trickery of capitalism go deeper than that. We should all be aware of the following so we can guide others.
Namaskar,
In this present era, while living in this mostly capitalist dominated world, it is necessary for one to be careful lest they fall in the capitalists' degrading trap. Because with their crooked ways, the capitalists infuse certain negative thought patterns to suit their greedy ends.
As we know the Sanskrit term 'manan', i.e. thinking, can be spiritually elevating or totally degenerating. In the case of the latter, those crude thoughts have a terrible effect on the human psyche-- on one's mental structure, causing depression & ultimately degradation.
Baba says, "Regarding this faculty of thinking, if it is done in a methodical way, the result is certainly positive...But if it is not done in a methodical way, the general result is negative." (YP, 'Mind Grows in Magnitude')
So all should be aware about the sneaky ploy executed by today's capitalist exploiters. Because their goal is to make people misuse and abuse their power of manan, just so that they (the capitalists) can make huge money.
PATH OF THE YOGI: AS YOU THINK SO BECOME
Of course, for ages & ages yogis have held a deep belief in the dominance of mind; and yogis have long cultivated the habit of positive & systematic thinking in order to build a healthy mental arena.
For that reason yogis pointedly spend their days practicing the pure approaches to manan, shravan, niddhidhyasana. That is thinking godly thoughts (manan), listening devotional ideas (shravan), and ideating on Parama Purusa (niddhidhyasana).
Because yogis understand well the theory, 'As you think so you become'.
By this way there is a distinctly positive momentum in the mind and it advances inwards towards the cosmic nucleus. That is, the mind gets transformed and restructured by the continued practice of mantra japa and dhyana. By thinking in that uniquely spiritual way the mind becomes more subtle and sublime and moves towards that spiritual Goal.
This is the cherished way of the yogi.
DUPLICITY OF CAPITALISTS
Capitalists-- on the other hand-- are matter-centered and in their crude theory they do not (openly) recognise the concept of mind. Rather capitalists believe that matter is everything. That is their expressed philosophy.
Yet, they have one trick up their sleeve as well.
Because, in their devilish dealing, the capitalists employ mental tricks in order to control the public. That is they infuse their own ideas into the public mindset in order to get the public to think about their products. This is how the capitalists abuse the practice of manan-- mental thinking.
So on the one side in theory such capitalists proclaim that this universe is matter centered and one can just ignore the mind. That is their stated agenda. But their practice is something quite different. They understand that the best way to control a person is through the mind and not through matter. And that is how they sell their products, by staining people's minds.
They infuse within people the mental desire to look or be a certain way by buying certain products. That is the sales-pitch of capitalists.
CAPITALISTS INTENTIONALLY DEGRADE THE PUBLIC MIND
THROUGH THE ABUSE OF MANAN
That is why we see that through their endless advertising campaigns and media onslaught the capitalists' chief plan is to colour the public mind-set with propaganda about their products. Through radio, tv, films, internet, newspapers, magazines and so many other avenues, the capitalists spread their crude messages to the consumers-- in an attempt to get their
slogans deeply embedded within the public psyche. This is their dastardly method.
Thus in their hypocrisy those capitalist agencies know that if they can capture the public mind then they make millions and billions of dollars. That is why in their commercials they invent catchy songs and attractive slogans which they hope the public will recite and remember. Such as 'Have it your way at Burger King', or 'Ooh-la-la Sasson' for Sasson jeans', or thousands and thousands of other slogans and advertising messages that get repeated millions of times during the day.
Even if one walks into any elementary or primary school, then it is evident that the tender minds of our children are already littered with the ideas of big-business. Because the children walk around singing the songs of those capitalist commercials etc. And that type of abuse of manan-- that type of negative thinking-- adversely affects their development of mind. But for the capitalists it means profit, profit, profit.
So this is the heinous trick going on in this era. And while surely many are protesting corporate greed, they may not at all be aware about the psychology of capitalism. Rahter they may be drowned in it completely.
Indeed this is what happens to many: Those phrases get infused into the public psyche and the peoples' mind becomes saturated with that capitalistic propaganda. In which case their whole mental arena becomes distorted and full of that capitalist junk.
Baba says, "Now, everywhere, in cent-per-cent of the cases, there is wastage of human psychic potentiality. The psychic potentialities of human beings are immense, but people do not utilise them because most of their valuable time is wasted in undesirable thoughts, in psychic extravaganza." (YP, p.134)
THE PUBLIC GETS TOTALLY DUPED
THEY THINK THE IDEA TO PURCHASE WAS ORIGINALLY THEIRS
THEY THINK THE IDEA TO PURCHASE WAS ORIGINALLY THEIRS
So the whole sequence of events is quite nasty and sublime. Because the capitalists invent invasive approaches to enter into the public mind set, in turn the public psyche gets distorted and coloured by crude messages, and in that subliminal tactic that public does not even realise that they are getting affected by those crude propaganda campaigns.
Rather when Tom, Dick, or Harry walks into a store and they see an item that they want to buy-- such as cologne or an automobile or a toaster etc-- then they really think that it is their inner heart's desire to purchase that thing. They do not realise that this is a capitalistic schema imposed upon their psyche.
Rather that brainwashed consumer takes total ownership of that desire and they are convinced that the purchase of that item will satisfy their inner longing.
And this happens to all members of the general public: men, women, children. All start thinking that they must look a certain way, act a particular way, and possess certain items. And they think that this is their true internal longing-- that this will bring them happiness and success. But little do they realise that they are getting cheated to the
bone by feisty capitalists.
Hence by the abuse of manan-- by infusing negative ways of thinking on the minds of the common people-- those capitalists achieve their crooked ends of selling their products. That is all they care about. And in their duplicity they know that the best and only way to achieve this is to recognise the dominance of mind and distort the public way of thinking. And tragically this is exactly what they have achieved in this negative era of capitalism.
And in result the common people suffering in innumerable ways such as depression, anxiety, until ultimately they fall into crude samadhi etc.
GOAD MIND TOWARDS PARAMA PURUSA-- NOWHERE
ELSE
As Ananda Margiis, we must never fall prey to the sinister traps set by those hoarding capitalists. We must keep the mind clean and pure and be vigilant not to become painted in the colour of consumerism. This is Baba's strict warning.
Baba says, "From the psychic sphere also, unnecessary waves are to be removed. This will remove many burdens from the mind. 'I must not bother about petty things, because that will waste my time' -- people should remember this. This removal or rather withdrawal of unnecessary and undesirable thoughts emanated from the mind, will help you in rationalising the major portion of your mental faculty, and so this must also be practised." (YP)
Thus Baba's above guideline is to keep the mind free and clear of negative ways of thinking-- our mental arena must not get polluted by crude thoughts or capitalistic advertising slogans. By ridding the mind of such things, then our human mind can be properly utilised.
Ultimately Baba guides us that we should direct all our thoughts towards that Supreme One.
Baba says, "Withdraw the mind from physical objects and goad it unto Parama Purus'a". (AV-14)
Baba's teaching then is not to let the mind get overwrought with the crude effects of capitalism; rather one is to push the mind in a distinctly spiritual way of thinking. That is the real manan-- otherwise degradation will occur.
So we should chant our kiirtan and repeat our ista mantra all day long and not for one second think about the propaganda of those cheating capitalists. We should not allow their tactics to invade our mental arena. This must never be allowed to happen. If it does one will become a slave of capitalism.
That is why Baba's mandate is to infuse the mind with sentient thoughts and sweet ideations. Here again is Baba's divine guideline.
Baba says, "You must have a spiritual goal. You must know what to do, what not to do, how to do, why to do. And for this purpose, the movement is to make the mind pinnacled, apexed, and bring all the propensities to that point, and goad it towards your spiritual goal." ('Subjective Approach Objective Adjustment')
BABA'S BLESSING
By Baba's grace each and every margii will grow in a clean way through proper manan-- through proper thinking. This is Baba's blessing.
Baba says, "You will have to ultimately reach Parama Purus'a. This is the pinnacled point, the supreme point of human glory. You should always remember this, during your lifetime and even after your death." - Baba
Namaskar,
Purusottama
Note 1: MUST WARN THE PUBLIC
Through pracar, education, and constant effort we must awaken the common public to the capitalists' negative and abusive strategy of manan. All must be alerted about these tricky maneuvers lest the common become more and more degraded.
Not only that, with the upsurge of Occupy Wall Street protests, we should take the opportunity to share with others how capitalism invades the mind. This type of inner understanding is needed in order to truly lead the people.
Note 2: THE BEST PRACTICE OF MANAN
Here below Baba outlines the highest and most pure way to do manan.
Baba says, "Manana, that is, thinking only about Parama Purus´a and about no one else. If any other person or thing comes in the mind, ascribe Brahma-hood to that person or thing. This process is manana." (AMIWL-11, 'Mantra Caetanya')
PRABHAT SAMGIITA
"Tumi ye path dhariya' esechile ta'ha'r surabhi a'jao a'che..." (PS 756)
Purport:
Baba, the path on which You came still carries Your sweet fragrance even today. The divine love which You showered upon me with Your sweet and charming smile, its vibration is still dancing to this day. And it is blissfully charging my whole existence.
Baba You came with the aroma of sweet songs; You came with the melody and tune. And You graced me and became my nearest and dearest-- You became one with my heart. It is Your grace.
Baba, at that time why did You look towards me in such a sweet, attractive way and take my heart away. That very loving gaze is still fresh in my mind. Just one single glance of Yours changed my whole existence. Baba You showered me with Your loving grace.
Baba, You thought about me and that is the greatest achievement of my life. What more do I need. The force of that Divine gift is not exhausted even today; it always gives me strength and inspiration to go on loving You.
Even today, I am surviving on the hope that I will again get You as my intimate, as my close, as my own. Baba, Your sweet smile is still fresh in my mind and fills my heart with Your divine love...
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Futility of Materialism
Baba says, "Materialism is the sign of shallow knowledge. Due to lack of proper understanding and ignorance people become materialists. Human beings should study more and acquire sufficient knowledge. Then they will understand that in materialism there is nothing." (DMC 84 Delhi, SS-16 (H))
***************************************
Futility of Materialism
Baba says, "Materialism is the sign of shallow knowledge. Due to lack of proper understanding and ignorance people become materialists. Human beings should study more and acquire sufficient knowledge. Then they will understand that in materialism there is nothing." (DMC 84 Delhi, SS-16 (H))
***************************************
