Showing posts with label Spiritual-Christmas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Spiritual-Christmas. Show all posts

Dec 25, 2007

Christmas-Jesus Christ

ॐ नमः शिवाय!

Jesus was a Palestine Jew. He was born of Mary and Joseph at Bethlehem without impregnation and out of immaculate conception. He was meek and humble. He remained as innocent as a child throughout his life. He was tolerant, kind and merciful. He was a Yogi of the east though he preached in Palestine.

Jesus welcomed and embraced the sinners, the despised and the harlots and purified them. He comforted them and gave them solace and peace. He raised the fallen. He brought relief and rest to the broken-hearted.

Jesus said: "Unless you become as little children, you shall in no way enter the Kingdom of God." To Jesus, God was a loving father, Jesus' watch word was love for God and fellowmen.

"Have faith in God. The Lord is our God, Thou shalt love the Lord with all thy heart and all thy soul, and all thy mind, and all thy strength. Thou shalt love the neighbor as thyself. The love of God manifests in the love of man." This is the central teaching of Jesus.

Jesus was a world teacher, a prophet and Messiah, His sermon on the mount is nothing but the practice of Sadachara or right conduct. It corresponds to the practice of the Yama-Niyama of Raja Yoga, the Eightfold path of the Lord Buddha. It is marvellous, inspiring and soul -stirring.

Jesus washed the feet of his disciples at the Last Supper, How humble he was! HE SAID, " Blessed are the meek, for they shalt inherit the earth."

Lord Krishna washed the feet of the guests in the Rajasuya Yajna performed by King Yudhishthira, Avataras or mighty souls perform such actions, should you not learn lessons from those great persons? Lord Krishna , the mighty Lord of the three worlds, took delight in washing feet of the guests. Should you not learn to be humble? How haughty and proud you have become!

You are puffed up with vanity and intoxicated with pride when you possess a little money, a small car and a small estate. You think you are a mighty emperor and walk with arrogant steps and treat others with contempt. You think too much of yourself and your position in life. In reality , your officership has created in you a slave mentality and fear of losing your position!

Christ's message has always been:" Love thy neighbor as thyself." He said:" The Kingdom of heaven is within thee. His will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Be not anxious, Seek ye first His Kingdom. Everything will be added unto thee." He was the way, the truth and the light , for all men to follow.

Jesus Christ laid stress on Love of God and love of fellowmen, and the need for repentance or a change of heart, for entry into the Kingdom of God, He instructed people to feed the hungry and clothe the naked. He said that a contrite heart was necessary in order to receive God's forgiveness.

"The Kingdom of God is with in thee. Seek and ye shall find. Knock and the door shall be opened unto thee." This is the foundation upon which the ethics of Jesus has been built.

Jesus recommended prayer as a means to seek the Kingdom. He said, " If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more good things shall your father who is in heaven give you to them who ask Him?"

Jesus said:" You have heard that it was said by them of old time, 'Thou shalt not kill and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment.' But I say unto you that whosoever is angry with his brother shall be in danger of the judgment." In the sermon on the mount, he said, "Blessed are they who do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled up. Those who seek the Kingdom of God within themselves will find Him, and therefore, ' All things would be added.' "

"Overcome evil by good." Jesus prescribed this great rule for his followers and the world at large. This is only the practice of Ahimsa or non-violence which purifies and softens the heart Ahimsa is a form of truth only.

Lord Jesus retired after baptism into the wilderness beyond the Dead Sea. He disappeared at the age of thirteen and reappeared in his thirty-first year, he came to ( Went) to India and practised Yoga. Thereafter he preached for about two or three years and passed into the Great Beyond.

Jesus left Jerusalem and reached the land of Indus in the company of merchants. He visited Varanasi, Rajgriha and other places in India. He spent several years in Hindustan. Jesus lived like a Hindu or a Buddhist monk, a life of burning renunciation and dispassion. He assimilated the ideals , precepts and principles of Hinduism. Christianity is modified Hinduism only, which was suitable for those people who lived in the period of Christ. Really speaking , Jesus was a child of the soil of India only, That is the reason why there is so much of similarity between his teachings and the teachings of Hinduism and Buddhism.

Jesus preached on earth the divine and prefect love. He spoke very highly of gifts and charity. he said: " It is more blessed to give than to receive. Give thy heart's best treasures. From fair nature learn. Give thy love and ask not . Await not a return. And the more thou spendeth from thy little store, the more will God give thee. He will give thee a double quantity."

Jesus Christ was crucified and yet he is living even now. He has immortalized his name. None can silence his voice. His voice has been speaking through centuries. Jesus said" " Come into the Kingdom by selling all ye have and distributing it to the poor." Men have not adhered to his message, but his voice has not been silenced.

Jesus was a perfect Yogi. He did many miracles. He stopped the waves of the ocean. He gave sight to blind people. He cured lepers by mere touch. He fed a large multitude with a small loaf of bread.

Lord Christ was crucified . He accepted death with great joy in order that others might live. What a magnanimous soul! He had learned to die cheerfully for His children. His last words are an example to the world. He said:" O Lord! Forgive those people who are torturing me and putting me to death, for they know not what they do." How noble! His hands were tied to the cross and nails were hammered into them. In this state he prayed for the people who were tormenting him. What a large and forgiving heart he had! Jesus was an embodiment of forgiveness of Kshama. That is the reason why he still lives in our hearts and why millions of people worship him.

Jesus set an example to man to overcome evil by good. The cross of Jesus will remain for all time as the supreme example of this doctrine: " Return good to evil". Jesus surrendered himself completely to God. He knew that God changed the heart of the unjust through the sufferings of the just.

After Jesus was crucified , he was restored to life . The resurrection or the rising again from the dead was, according to Jesus and ineffable condition in which all bodily limitation was transcended . It was a condition of being perpetually in the presence identification with the physical body. He identified himself with the Supreme Soul. He said:" I and my father are one."

THE TRUE SIGNIFICANCE OF CHRISTMAS.

Christmas is named after Christ. This is the birthday of Lord Christ, the Saviour Christ, the Yogi of the east. He was born in a stable at Bethlehem, of Mary and Joseph, the obscure village carpenter. Mary and Joseph made the stable a home for Christ, the King , the Price of Peace. the birth of Jesus is celebrated all over the world as the scared Christmas.

Lord Jesus was an embodiment of mercy, love and humility. He was an apostle of non-violence and peace. His body was crucified , but his voice has been speaking through the centuries.

The message of Christmas is the message of universal love . It is the message of Christmas is the message of peace and goodwill among all nations. Christmas is more than a day of rejoicing and festivity. It is a day for realising the Christ-consciousness or cosmic consciousness. It is a day for remembering the noble deeds of Lord Jesus and his sacred life of pristine purity. Christmas comes and Christmas goes, but let the spirit of Christmas be ever with you all.

Merry-making is not Christmas at all. Christmas does not consist in ringing bells and singing songs, exchanging mutual gifts and sending Christmas Cards, and in enjoying rich repasts and heavy dinners and eating cakes.

Christmas is a state of Christ. Walk in the footprints of Christ dive deep into the heart of Christ. Ever seek to express, in your daily life, love , joy, and peace. Imbibe Christ's message of love and sacrifice. Manifest the latent Christ with in you. Follow the Sermon of the mount. Attain God-Consciousness. Live in the spirit of Christ's teachings. Annihilate this little self-arrogating personality and melt yourself in Christ or the universal Soul. This is real Christmas.

All wish to enter the Kingdom of God. But how many of you possess the real spirit of Christ? How many of you are real Christians? How many of you follow teachings, precepts and doctrines of Christ? How many of you love your neighbor as your own self? Those who are endowed with purity of heart, humility , universal love, generosity and nobility---they only can attain the Kingdom of God or supreme peace and immortality.

The spirit or heart of Christ is seriously lacking in the vast majority of persona. The love of Christ is badly wanted . What is Christmas without love, mercy and purity? Everybody wants to exploit his/her neighbor, One nation wants to destroy another nation . Is this Christmas? Is this the teachings of Christ?

Real Christmas never comes and goes , it is eternal, Feel the spirit of Christmas not only one day, but throughout the year Every day is a Christmas day for a real follower of Christ, for a thirsting aspirant.

By Shri Swami Sivananda Maharaj


ॐ नमः शिवाय!

Sianala, Montreal, Dec 25