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Sunday, July 25, 2010

Modus operandi

Too often when people speak of "scripture" the images of flimsy belief systems, outdated stories or conduits of damnation are conveyed. It is the belief of many that scripture is absolutely opposed to anything practical. I hypothesize that this is not the case and that if we experiment with some scriptural quotations from the Srimad Bhagavatam we will observe some beneficial results. I will leave the conclusion up to you.

Below is a description of the different qualities that manifest in material nature. For all of you relativists out there I am sorry to say that some are indeed labeled good and some are labeled bad.

The qualities are placed into three catagories: goodness, passion and ignorance. We can endlessly discuss all of these qualities and their applications into daily life, but here we will just list the qualities. If I may, I will also suggest that throughout the day you observe your actions and thoughts in light of these descriptions.

I cannot resist in making one point. In order to realize truths such as our spiritual identity, the qualities of God, and the workings of the world around us we must situate ourselves in the mode of goodness.

Goodness:: Mind and sense control, tolerance, discrimination, sticking to one's prescribed duty, truthfulness, mercy, careful study of the past and future, satisfaction in any condition, generosity, renunciation of sense gratification, faith in the spiritual master, being embarrassed at improper action, charity, simplicity, humbleness and satisfaction within oneself.

Passion: Material desire, great endeavor, audacity, dissatisfaction even in gain, false pride, praying for material advancement, considering oneself different and better than others, sense gratification, rash eagerness to fight, a fondness for hearing oneself praised, the tendency to ridicule others, advertising one's own prowess and justifying one's actions by one's strength.

Ignorance: Intolerant anger, stinginess, speaking without scriptural authority, violent hatred, living as a parasite, hypocrisy, chronic fatigue, quarrel, lamentation, delusion, unhappiness, depression, sleeping too much, false expectations, fear and laziness.

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