 Satguru Siva Yogaswami Jaffna, Sri Lanka  Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami Hawaii, USA |
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 Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami Kauai's Hindu Monastery, USA 
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April 3, 2002
April 3: Mula until 3:17PM HST April 4: Purvashadha until 5:12PM HST Hindu Year 5103: Vrisha, the "Year of Fulfillment" |
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 Sadhu Paksha, Day Five: Gurudeva said, echoing the classic path of Self inquiry: "Imagine turning your eyeballs backward, look inside and ask yourself who is there, who is watching, who is the watcher?"
Our Beloved and Revered Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami
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Cybertalk: I receive requests to send letters blessing various activities at Hindu temples around the world, just as Gurudeva did. The New Zealand Tiru Murugan Temple is having its kumbhabhishekam after only two years, and my message to them is Gurudeva's message about the importance of temples, especially in Hindu communities outside Hinduism's spiritual homeland. Without them, our beautiful cultural heritage will simply begin to fall away.
A special puja honoring Paramaguru Yogaswami's mahasamadhi will be held soon in a temple in Ontario, Canada. Yogaswami's attainment is our potential attainment. Be inspired to become That! Yogaswami's advice was to improve ourselves, to control the mind, practice meditation and "Know thy Self by thyself."
" For more information about listening to Gurudeva's talks online and to hear them in other formats, click here.
And click here for an Index to All Past CyberTalks.
Study Gurudeva's teachings
every day. Visit the Master Course site!
Bodhinatha will be happy to hold "Prasnottara Satsang" -- "Questions and Answers" over the telephone with any Hindu religious societies, Hindu youth groups, Radio talk show hosts etc. All you need is a phone with a speaker and an enthusiastic audience. Arrangements may be made in advance by sending email to Sadhaka Mahadevan
If you are experiencing any problems listening to the audio, please to go our Audio FAQ page for sound geeks and follow the directions there.
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Sadhaka Tyaganatha at his desk in the newly renovated and now beautifully decorated Lombodara Kulam (Priest Department). He is our main "homa" (sacred fire) priest and also a dynamic energetic force... working at "light speed" with a positive spirit and selfless joyous mood.
Saravananathaswami and Yogi Mahadeva review some materials for the Kauai Aloha Endowment project.
We have some 400 or more varieties of TI plants, some with rich lavish colors. Would you call this lavendar, purple, bright pink -- probably a little of all those. and more.
We have been having some spectacularly still, clear, sunny days. A visitor recently came here who had traveled all over the world... he stood in front of this view and proclaimed: "In all my life I have never seen such beauty all in one place."
The Nawiliwili tree in front of the publications office is blooming profusely showering us with its incredibly deep crimson blossoms... mid-morning the nectar flows thickly in the flowers for a few hours and the bees can be heard humming happily in the tree.
Yogi Japendranatha.... Now the two new yogis will enter a new flow, daily vigils... Yogi japendranatha has his vigil from 3 am to 6 am... does not watch any TV and doesn't even get Hindu Press International on his computer--though this is our own publication, since it is a cyber magazine it is off the scope for the Yogi Tapasvin, who is cut off from the outside world, to open a new world within.
Yogi Mahadevan.... The yogi stage in our monastic training is a time for a deeper effort toward inner sadhana and Realization... to storm the gates of heaven, open the flood gates of inner light and climb, as Yogaswami said, "to sit in the chair at the top of your head."
 The Remarkable Vision |
Iraivan Temple Progress Update |
Join this historic undertaking. Please contribute generously. Sponsor a stone today! |
The day has finally arrived for courses six, seven and eight to disappear behind the retaining wall of sand.
Our old friend and neighbour, Dennis Wong,is a highly skilled heavy equipment operator. As the staging around the sanctum rises higher and higher we really need a skilled man for this job.
Our fork lift is outfitted with a bucket
Dennis position's himself very carefully..
Then he lifts the forklift and moves the sand in over the sop of the retaining wall... now about 10 feet above the foundation.
The silpis transfer the sand and pack it in around the wall and then into also prepare the mortar that fills the space between the inner and outer walls of the sanctum.
With only a foot or two to spare between the edge of the foundation and the back of the forklift this is a delicate operation. One day next year when they reach the top the retaining wall will be removed.
The temple from a distance. Give generously to this project... build a monument at the site of heaven on earth.
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Study Gurudeva's teachings.
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Date: March_24_2002
Title: The Power of Consensualocracy
Category: Relationships
Duration: 6 min., 16 seconds
Date Given: March 07, 2002
Given by: Bodhinatha
Consensualocracy. Hard to pronounce, consensualocracy is a wonderful principle that Gurudeva gives us. It is not the opposite but different from how many matters are decided.
For example, in politics you are happy to have a majority. If something gets the majority, if more than fifty percent vote for something, it wins. Why do we use majority in politics? Because, people have such diverse opinions that there is no way you
can get everyone to agree. They just hold very diverse beliefs on basic facts on how life should be lived, about wealth, about government and so you cannot get everyone to agree. If you can get more than fifty percent to agree, you consider that a majority and you do it that way.
However, in a particular religion, members of that religion have the same beliefs, respect the same hierarchy, perform the same religious services. So having everyone agree is possible because they have common beliefs. In that context, Gurudeva defines consensualocracy as "Government or management by intelligent cooperation based on a shared vision and adherence to dharma. Ahimsa, non-hurtfulness is the key note of this tribal family system of rule."
Intelligent cooperation based on a shared vision. Wonderful statement! Of course, our monastery works on this principle and our family missions worldwide also follow it. But because so many activities we are involved in do not, I thought it would be helpful to share a few thoughts of how this type of management, consensualocracy, works best.
Usually you have meetings. Group gathers together and have a meeting to discuss a topic that is the basis for decision. In a non-consensualocracy approach you figure out your best idea, bring it to the meeting and you try to convince everyone of your idea. If you are successful in convincing everyone, you feel great. If you are not successful, "Boy! They lost out on a great idea." You feel that things are only right if everyone agrees with the idea that you brought to the meeting. That is not consensualocracy.
Consensualocracy works best when you bring your best idea which opens to other ideas. You are hoping that the group will get creative and develop an idea which is better than the idea that you brought, better than the idea that anybody brought. Because you are looking to create the best shared vision that you can. So it is a creative process, it is a detached process. Not attached to your own idea, not trying to dominate and have everybody agree with you. Rather you are trying to create together by each one contributing their best thoughts in a free flowing way and hoping to transcend what anyone would come up with individually.
Non-consensualocracy, you dominate the group with your view point. Consensualocracy, you are helping others to express theirs. You are encouraging everyone present to express a view point. So, you don't dominate with a single idea, you want everyone to participate. So encouraging everyone there to share ideas.
Another point to avoid is sometimes we will get carried away in presenting our own view point and our words are so forceful, they hurt people. Or, they are even disrespectful and they hurt people by not showing proper respect for everyone present in their opinions. Works best when we always speak kindly and praise others' good ideas. We want to be careful as Gurudeva says, "Ahimsa, non-hurtfulness is the key note of this system of rule." So we cannot hurt other people's feelings, either by being to forceful or not showing enough respect.
Those are just some ideas on how we can all improve our consensualocracy management of our monastery and our missions worldwide.
| MORE UPLIFTING THINGS |
Innersearch 2002 in Hawaii! Our next Innersearch Travel-Study program will be held right here on the island of Kauai in the summer of 2002. It's the first such program on the Garden Island since 1974! From July 17 to July 22 we will enjoy daily classes with the swamis, join in the annual Guru Purnima festival, be inspired by local culture, explore the lush tropical island in exciting and non-touristy ways, and more. Be prepared for a wonderful spiritual experience in paradise with meditations, seminars and sacred ceremonies at the Siva temple of Kauai's Hindu Monastery. Many have applied already, and there is a limit of 50 participants, so we recommend everyone apply as soon as possible. Interested? Please request an application from pilgrim@searchbeyond.com |
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