“’O naughty child, now try going from here, if you can.’ Having spoken thus, she returned to her household duties.” (Vishnu Purana, 5.6.15)

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यदि शक्नोषि गच्छ त्वम् अतिचञ्चलचेष्टित
इत्य् उक्त्वा च निजं कर्म सा चकार कुटुम्बिनी

yadi śaknoṣi gaccha tvam aticañcalaceṣṭita
ity uktvā ca nijaṃ karma sā cakāra kuṭumbinī

They warn you against it. The warning is strong. Granted, they won’t physically interfere. Proceed at your own risk, they say, but at least you should know what you are getting yourself into. Once you start, it is difficult to retract. Walking back any of your statements might not be so easy. The damage will be done. People will tag you with a certain label, and an unflattering one, at that.

The warning is that you should not discuss religion or politics. Especially in a social setting, such as a party or organized event, these two subjects tend to bring out the worst in people. Deeply rooted beliefs. Strong sentiments. Anger at the mere mention of a political figure or two; which you can confirm from your personal experience. You always carried a healthy skepticism of any politician, but apparently this one person has taken hold over so many people, causing them to lose their minds, in a kind of derangement syndrome, when they were otherwise considered sane and rational.

In the spirit of open discussion and honest debate, the following thought exercise is a comparison of different religions. It is more of a way to think about the perspective of the highest being of all. If you were to command the greatest authority, where practically everyone was your dependent, what would your outlook be? Particularly if you are kind, benevolent, compassionate, and completely satisfied in your own self, atmarama, how would you behave with others? What approach would you take? What would you like to see happen?

1. Take the fall for sins

One possibility is simply wiping the slate clean. People out there are struggling. The folks need help. They can’t tell up from down, right from wrong, positive from negative. They are lost. They keep doing the wrong things. It is almost like you can count on them to choose something which will harm them in the end, every single time.

In light of the struggles they endure, you decide to absorb everything. All of the negative reactions. All of the consequences that are set to occur. Everything merges into you. Like forgiveness of that student loan. Like sneaking into the professor’s office, after hours, and correcting the exam papers before they are graded. Like placing a heavy object in front of a moving vehicle, just before it is about to go in the wrong direction and cause significant damage.

What is the collateral? What is the payment expected from the other side? Well, since you do not require much yourself, all the people have to do is believe in you. They have to set aside any other savior or benefactor. This is in the sense of acknowledgment. They can respect others. They can show appreciation, but they must acknowledge that you are the supreme. There is no other supreme individual. They must also emphatically state that there is no other way to receiving the same forgiveness. The more they proclaim this, especially in front of others, the more they will be favored. The more they share their testimony, unashamedly and often, the more you will be pleased.

What about moving forward? You wiped the slate clean. You absorbed the sins. You were the fall guy, taking the punishment that others were set to receive, based on their own misdeeds. Well, apparently there is nothing else required from the people believing in you. They can go ahead and do what they were doing previously. They can make the same mistakes. They can set up elaborate schemes to kill innocent animals, for instance. Well beyond the need for basic survival, this is to satisfy the taste buds.

If you thought these people were totally devoid of compassion, you would be sorely mistaken. You see, they spare certain animals. The ones that are kept in the home. The ones with a cute face. The ones that respond to their name being called. Other animals, even females who produce milk on sight of their children? Never mind, as their flesh tastes amazing, so they can continue to be rounded up and placed on an assembly line where the final destination is destruction, blood, guts, and all.

Again and again these followers can keep doing the wrong thing. Those sins that you previously absorbed? You will continue to absorb them. You took the fall the first time. You intervened so that someone could escape prison time. Well, what is to stop them from doing the same in the future? You took the fall once, so why not accept the blame again? It isn’t hurting you, is it? As long as they believe in you, as long as they state their preference in a public gathering that meets once a week, they can continue to do whatever they want.

2. Give life

Another possibility is to give an actual plan for passing the time in the present experience of life. In this case, you also agree to absorb blows, but with a subtle distinction. Since the people following your recommendations might feel guilty about missing other obligations, which they deemed to be important, you agree to account for anything missed. If they were supposed to worship the giver of the rain, for instance. If that giver should happen to retaliate with devastating rainfall, enough to wash away an entire village and its population of innocent creatures, you will intervene. You will run cover for your worshipers. They are following your advice, after all.

वर्षतीन्द्रे व्रज: कोपाद्भग्नमानेऽतिविह्वल:
गोत्रलीलातपत्रेण त्रातो भद्रानुगृह्णता

varṣatīndre vrajaḥ kopād
bhagnamāne ’tivihvalaḥ
gotra-līlātapatreṇa
trāto bhadrānugṛhṇatā

“O sober Vidura, King Indra, his honor having been insulted, poured water incessantly on Vrindavana, and thus the inhabitants of Vraja, the land of cows, were greatly distressed. But the compassionate Lord Krishna saved them from danger with His pastime umbrella, the Govardhana Hill.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 3.2.33)

Not just for skipped worship, but for any other obligation that the people feel might be missed, there is nothing to worry over. If someone used to be a hunter and now wonders how they will eat, in the absence of killing animals, you, as the benefactor, can find a solution. They can shift towards a new way of life such that others will bring donations of food. This is to support a person they see as saintly, based on their renounced way of life and constant chanting of sacred names: Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.

The new way of life that you offer might keep a person occupied from morning until night. It is like whatever they do, there is a connection. They are offering the results to you. The daily grind of work and home. The stressful commute to the office. The attention and care over dependents. The dedication in acquiring knowledge through reading. The rituals observed in a timely manner, with faith, love and devotion. These are all done as an offering unto you.

यत् करोषि यद् अश्नासि
यज् जुहोषि ददासि यत्
यत् तपस्यसि कौन्तेय
तत् कुरुष्व मद्-अर्पणम्

yat karoṣi yad aśnāsi
yaj juhoṣi dadāsi yat
yat tapasyasi kaunteya
tat kuruṣva mad-arpaṇam

“O son of Kunti, all that you do, all that you eat, all that you offer and give away, as well as all austerities that you may perform, should be done as an offering unto Me.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 9.27)

In this second option, you might feel so obliged by the kindness, by the dedication, by the pure love, that you agree to appear directly in front of the worshiper. You might even become a dependent, wherein the worshiper gets to feel like they must take care of you. They might become so attached to your association that they insist that you remain in a safe place, where they can see you. They might tie you down, playfully, with your help in the background, and taunt you to try to move.

सर्व-धर्मान् परित्यज्य
माम् एकं शरणं व्रज
अहं त्वां सर्व-पापेभ्यो
मोक्षयिष्यामि मा शुचः

sarva-dharmān parityajya
mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja
ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo
mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ

“Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reaction. Do not fear.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 18.66)

In Closing:

The different postures consider,
In how dependents to deliver.

In one case taking the fall,
Number on speed-dial to call.

Where sinning repeatedly still,
Clemency like healing pill.

In another with invigorating life to give,
Where even as loving dependent to live.

Categories: the two

Tags: dailyprompt, feature, god, hare krishna, hinduism, poem, poems, poetry, religion