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Periyava A Glimpse at His Life Amp Teachings
Periyava A Glimpse at His Life Amp Teachings
By a humble devotee
Table of Contents
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Our Temples discourses by periyava The Vedas discourses by periyava The State Of Jeevanmukthi discourses by periyava Mans Duty discourses by periyava
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Preface
This book is a part of the authors continous attempt to highlight the life and teaching of His Holiness Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswathi Swamigal of Kanchi Mutt. Pramacharya or Periyava as he is popularly th known amongst his devotees was one of the greatest sage to walk on this earth in the 20 century. His Holiness was a very remarkable person. Deeply imbued in Sanskrit lore, especially the Shastras and the Vedanta, he was at the same time a scholar in several branches of learning ranging from art, architecture, archaeology, politicsm, economics, numismatics to inscriptions. He was a linguist who could speak several languages, besides his own which is Kannada. Though austere by himself and immersed in penance by fastings and vigil, puja and contemplation, his accessibility to all who go to him for advice and guidance is well known. He is endowed with singular powers of memory and his expositions of abstract and abstruse philosophic truths are marked with a facility of expression and a singular capacity to convey their meaning even to the ordinary and uninstructed laymen. He had proved himself as an able administrator, under whom the management of Mutt has assumed unprecedented importance and influence. The book comprises of 2 different parts- one deals with the life of Periyava in the eyes of various types of people who surrounded him and talks of memorials planned to be built in his honours. The list of such persons includes media, eminent personalities and devotees. The second part contains some important teachings of Periyava. The idea is to stress the wider acceptability and reach which he has achieved.
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Disclaimer
This book is a collection of various articles and teachings of His Holiness Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswathi Swamigal of Kanchi Mutt from various sources. The author has only facilitated the compilation work including but not limited to identification and presentation of such articles. No attempt has been made to change the original writing and the same has been presented as it is. All will agree that it is not possible to contain the life of a great soul in the limited medium of human expression. While this book aims at making wider audience benefit from the life and teachings of this great soul, it lays no claim to have even covered a drop of his ocean like life.
This book is not for sale and only meant for private circulation. No part of this work may be reproduced in
any form or by any means without the authors written permission. No part of this text may be copied, printed or edited without authors permission. Any person to whom the author has forwarded an electronic version of this book may forward the same to others, after obtaining the consent of the author.
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Saint who stressed on quality of life by Greece princesses and Indian girl student
A GIRL student from an Andhra school gets a prize amount of more than a thousand rupees for her brilliant academic performance and one Telugu teenager chooses to send the entire amount to Sri Sri Mahalakshmi Mathrubootheswarar Trust (SSMM Trust) in Kotturpuram, Chennai, to go towards their Orirukkai Satabhdi Manimantapam construction expenses. She writes she was inspired to make the contribution as a token of her own loving reverence for the centenarian Sage of Kanchi about whom elders in her family have told her so much! A lad of 25, Ph.D. when landing a lucrative job, sent the first month's salary in full, as a token of his and his dear parents' homage to the revered Acharya. An NRI who kept a dollar aside every day during puja and sent $365 (Rs. 17,000) last year, when he came to Chennai to see his aged parents last month, made it to the Kotturpuram office of the SSSMM Trust to contribute another sum of $500 (Rs. 24,000). A devotee who sends Rs. 10 every month by Money Order from a mofussil place is sad beyond words that his monthly contribution cannot be continued after he breathes his last! Visitor's books kept in the site of the Manimantapam in Orirukkai (according to a perceptive correspondent who went there to report about the progress of the work since her last visit two years ago) ``overflow with the joy of the devotees, of the work taking shape.'' Princess Irene of Greece was one such visitor who calls the project ``a fitting tribute to a saint who spent his entire life for the welfare of humanity." Who is this saint to whom a princess from a far off land and culture is as much devoted as that teenaged girl from Andhra born and bred in the religion of the saint himself? Sri Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswati Swamigal of Sri Kanchi Kamakoti Sankara Matam, who attained Mahasamaadhi on January 8, 1994, (just a few months before he completed 100 years of age) continues to inspire young and old, Indian and nonIndian devotees alike to this day, as the daily throng of visitors to his Adhishtanam in the Kanchi Sankara Matam and to the site of the Satabdhi Manimantapam in Orirukkai on the banks of river Palar in Kancheepuram eloquently testify. Years ago, Arthur Koestler was asked by the Sage of Kanchi what the purpose of his visit to India then was. ``Is it merely to observe the country and the people, or is it to guide them in some healthy manner?'' When the writer said he had come to see and learn and with no other purpose, His Holiness observed: ''One's own passive interest, too, exerts an influence. Even without any specific activity, the angle from which you approach a problem or country produces Shakti an active force.'' When Koestler said he was sorry it should be so, and added but nobody could avoid throwing a shadow", pat came the response from the Sage of Kanchi: ``But one's sincere sympathy thrusts its own radiance". Koestler records: ``And as the Sage said that, a smile transformed his face into that of a child. I had never seen a comparable smile or expression; it had an extraordinary charm and sweetness.''
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``Cultivate friendship which will conquer all hearts. Look upon others as thyself. Renounce war; forswear competition. Give up aggression on others which is wrong. Wide Mother Earth, our Mother is here ready to give us all our desires. We have the Lord, our Father, compassionate to all. Ye peoples of the World! Restrain yourselves, Give, Be kind. May all people be happy and prosperous". Shreyo bhooyat Sakala Janaanaam!
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Bhruvau bhugne kinchid-bhuvana-bhaya-bhanga-vyasanini Tvadiye netrabhyam madhukara rucibhyam dhrtagunam Dhanur-manye savyetarakara-grhitam ratipateh Prakosthe mustau ca sthagayati nigudhantaram ume.
-Saundaryalahari, verse 47 O Uma! In Thy slightly knit eyebrows, intent on dispelling the worlds fears, I imagine the bow of Ratis lord (Manmatha), strung with the string of Thy shining bee-like pair of eyes, held in his left hand, with the middle parts of both concealed by the forearm and the clenched fist covering them. In this verse of the Saundaryalahari composed by our Acharya, the eyebrows of the Divine Mother are described. Sri Acharya went to Kailasa and by the grace of Isvara obtained along with the five Lingas the
Saundaryalahari consisting of a hundred verses containing mantras and a description of the Mothers
form from the crown to the feet. As he was bringing the script of the poem, Nandikesvara obstructed him and succeeded in seizing fifty-nine verses. Sri Acharya was able to retrieve forty-one verses which contain the mantras and completed the poem by adding his own composition of fifty-nine verses describing the divine form from the crown to the feet. In these fifty-nine also there are mantras embedded. Of these, the present verse praises that aspect of the Mothers form which dispels the fears of all the worlds. For removing fear, it is usual to knit the eyebrows slightly. Therefore, in the verse, the Mother is described as being intent on dispelling the worlds fears. When the brows are knit for the sake of removing fear,they bend like a bow. If the brows are knit out of anger, the brows will be raised. Then, they will not resemble a bow. Because the Mother knits the brows slightly for the sake of removing fear, they bend like a bow. They are seen to resemble a bow. So, the Acharya says, bhruvau bhugne
kinchit: bhugna means, slightly knit. The two eyes extend upto the ears. The black pupils shine
like the black-bees. If it were asked, whose bow is this, the reply is that it is the bow of the Lord of Rati, Manmatha. Because he is the lord of beauty, his bow also is beautiful. The poets describe that bow as ikshu (sugar/cane). The string for that bow is constituted by bees. Thus, the pupils of the eyes that extend upto the ears are said to be like the bees that constitute the bow-string of Manmatha. In another verse of the Saundaryalahari, Sri Acharya says, maurvi madhukaramayi (bow-string made of black-bees, v.6). If the knit brows and the pupils of the eyes are compared to the bow and bow-string respectively, there is some difficulty, so thinks the Acharya. There is a region in between the two eyebrows. And between the two eyes there is the nose. These two partially hide the bow and the string.
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Arjunah, phalgunah, parthah, kiriti, svethavahanah, Bibhatsur, vijayah, krishnah, savyasachi, dhananjayah.
It is usual to recite these ten names when it thunders. This is because thunder is Indras bow, and Arjuna was Indras son. Of these ten names, Savyasachi is one. The meaning of this name is one who can shoot arrows even with the left hand. Ordinarily, one holds the bow with the left hand and shoots the arrow with the right hand. But Arjunas distinctive greatness was that he could hold the bow with the right hand and shoot with the left hand also. In the same way, Manmatha too is Savyasachi. If the bow is held with the right hand and the arrow with the left we know how it would be. So are the Mothers eye-brows and eyes. Thus says the Acharya. Mushti is closed fist. Prakoshta is the forearm near the wrist.
Savyetaragrhitam means held with the hand other than the left. Here the description is like the bow
held by Manmatha with the right hand. It is when the bow is held with the right hand that the closed fist and the forearm will hide respectively the middle part of the bow and of the string. This will not be so if the bow is held with the left hand. Therefore it is that the Acharya says "savyetaragrhitam." The region between the eye-brows and the part of the nose between the two eyes are like the fist and the wrist. There is a place of pilgrimage called Madhuvana. In Tamil, it is known as Nannilam. The legend in regard to this holy place is that there the bees offer worship to the Mahalinga. Till today there is seen a honey-comb in the temple there. That is why the place is called Madhuvana. There was a Chola king by name Kochengat Chola. Ko means a king who wears a crown. Chengan means red eyes. In Sanskrit, he is referred to as Raktaksha Chola. That Chola king was a great devotee of Lord Siva. He undertook renovation works in regard to several temples. For such works the name is yanai-erat-thiruppani. This means reconstructing the temple-disposition in such a way that elephants will not be able to enter. From this it can be inferred that in former days the elephants could go in. In ancient times, great sages were worshipping the Mahalinga for their own sake on the banks of rivers, in forest regions and underneath trees. In those times, other people did not go near. But, in the Kali-age, in order to make available the worship of Lord Siva to others also, the kings arranged to build temples in accordance with Agamic rules. The kings made provision for those performing Siva Pooja daily. Thus, in places where the sages had been worshipping by themselves the Mahalinga, the kings built temples and appointed for worship those priests who had received the necessary initiation (diksha). Because in the Dharma Sastras, it is laid down that Brahmins should not worship for monetary emoluments, the arrangement for a section to receive initiation was made. Thus, in all of these regions, the Siva temples were constructed by the kings later on for the Mahalingas which were being worshipped in those temples according to the Agamic rules. In each of the temples, even today, there is to be seen a sthala-vriksha, a sacred tree. There are also such names as Thillai-Vanam and Tejani-Vanam. In Thiruvanaikkaval there is the jambu tree; in Kanchi there is a mango tree; in Mallikarjuna, Putarjuna and Madhyarjuna the tree is Arjuna. These are the Sthala Vrikshas in the places mentioned. When the renovation work was done for the Thiruvanaikkaval temple, there was only a bark left of the jambu tree. The Chettiyars of Kanadukattan, who did the renovation, were afraid that, that bark too might
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thiruppani for seventy temples. He was a great devotee of Lord Siva. His devotion to Siva has been praised even by Alwars in the Periya Thirumozhi. While mentioning that Kochengan built the Vishnu
temple at Nachiyarkoil, it has been stated that he was the builder of many Siva temples. "Place with devotion on your head the sacred feet of the Lord who is the consort of Nappinnai with roseate lips and who, in the past (at the time of His incarnation as Parasurama), destroyed all the kings and overcoming the might of enemy king, Karta Veeryarjuna, in the battle-field and cut off his head. Go to the temple at Thirunaraiyur which was visited for worship by the Chola kings of noble lineage who built seventy temples for the Lord with eight shoulders whose lips repeat the Purushasuktha of the Veda.
-- Periya Thirumozhi, 6, 6, 8.
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Of the fourteen dharma-sthanas (the sources of knowledge of dharma), six are auxiliaries, four are subauxiliaries, and the Vedas are four, namely, Rig, Yajus, Sama and Atharvana. The greatness of the Veda is limitless. Yet, on the empirical level we may understand its greatness in a way. Of the holy places in the world Kasi is believed to be the greatest. While speaking about other holy places, it is said that they are equal to Kasi. From this, the greatness of Kasi is evident. This place (i.e. Varanasi) is referred to as the Southern Kasi. Uthara Kasi is on the Himalayas. Vriddhachalam is known as Vriddha Kasi. Sometime ago I stayed at Bugga. That place is also called a Kasi. If there is a place referring to other sacred places, it is said: "This one is equal in greatness to Kasi, this other one is even a little greater". There is a verse about Kumbakonam.
Anyakshetre kritam papam Punyakshetre vinasyati Punayakshetra kritam papam Varanasyam vinasyati Varanasyam kritam papam Kumbhakone vinasyati Kumbhakone kritam papam Kumbhakone vinasyat
The purport of this is that Kumbhakonam is holier than Kasi. By saying so, it is made evident that Kasi is holy in a special manner. By giving Kasi as the standard of comparison, its greatness gets increased. About a hundred years ago a great man composed a sloka about Kasi.
Kshetranam utthamanam api yad upamaya ka pi loke prasashthi Chittadravyena mukthikrayam abhilashatam yadbhutha panyavithi, Saksad vishvesvarasya tribhuvanamahita ya pura rajadhan Ramya kasi sakasi bhavatu hitakari bhuktaye mukthyaye nah
--Mahisha sataka vyakhyanam. That which has become famous by being cited as the example for the most sacred places is Kasi. There, if one gives the money, which is, bhakti (devotion) one could easily get mukthi (release). The market
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Malai).
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sakha. For the Yajur Veda there were 101 sakhas. Of these, only three are extant. There were 1000
Sakhas for the Sama Veda. Only two of them are available now Gautama sakha and Talavakara sakha. Not even one sakha of the Atharvana Veda is at present available. In Orissa (Utkal) in the North, there are eighteen sub/divisions of Brahmins. Of them, one group is known as Atharvanika. From the name we come to know that the forebears of this group should have studied the Atharvana sakha. Vyasa divided the Veda into 1180 sakhas. At present only eight remain. (Although there were many more, Vyasa thought that number was enough for Kali age. That number itself has been so considerably reduced now.) In a sakha are contained all topics that are necessary for a Brahmin to perform his karmas from birth to death.
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Our Acharya taught Advaita in order that all beings may be redeemed. We who have come in that tradition are visiting all sorts of places. When we do so, we are reminded frequently of Him and of His Advaita teaching. Now all of us have met here. At this time, the memory of Sri Bhagavatpada comes to all of us. This is an important fruit of the tradition he has left for us that we should be constantly wandering about. This is not alone. There is also another purpose. The Acharya established our religion and the way of dharma from the Cape to the Himalayas. He has also given us a command. His command to us is that we should expound the various topics connected with our religion, when we perform the Pooja of Sri Chandramouliswara at the different places to which we go. For this purpose, He has also made us bear His name. Therefore our main task is to spread the teachings of the Bhagavatpada, being in the Sanyasa Asrama. We call those as Acharyas who have established religion. It is usual for those who have established religion to refer to our Acharya as the Bhagavatpada. It is not our habit to utter the name of those whom we revere. There is the wish in us, i.e., in all beings, right from the ant onwards, that we should remain without dying but each and every being dies again and again and also is born again and again. We have heard from the epics that there were many great people who have conquered death. In recent times, it is known that there was one such great person of that nature, Sadasiva Brahmendra. Now also there may be some great ones but they do not come to us and tell us what is the medicine that will remove the disease called death. It is this highly potent medicine that the Bhagavatpada has taught us. We can acquire it even while living. We do not have the sufficient power for getting it after death. Those of us who died formerly have taken birth again. Is that not so? Even because of this, what I stated just now is clear. Similarly one who is not surviving cannot die. Because we died previously, we should have taken birth. If we probe thus still further our head will reel. Let that be. I said that we couldnt acquire the medicine for not dying after death and that is known from the fact that we have taken birth again. In the same manner, we know that even in the previous births, when we were living we did not discover this path. The reason for this is this: Is that not so? Thus the disease known as birth and death haunts us all and has been baffling us. Lord Krishna says to Arjuna in the Bhagavad
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mantra occurs: Tam evam vidvan amritha iha bhavathi Not for Sale - Only for Private Circulation Page 22
PERIYAVA A GLIMPSE AT HIS LIFE & TEACHINGS Nanyah pantha vidhyathe yanaya
The meaning of this mantra is: He who has known this Self very well becomes one who has attained the state of deathlessness even in this birth. For gaining this state there is no other way. Amritha means
moksha. To those who have gained moksha there are no birth and death. Therefore moksha is called amritha. The disease called the body is not something, which has come to man anew. It has come from
countless time and without our knowledge. We require only the experience of those who have had this disease cured by taking the appropriate medicine. Even like this disease the medicine which is meant for this is also stated in the beginningless Veda. We write a book. Before the writing it was not there. The
Veda is not like it. It was not written by someone. The conclusive view is that it is like the perennial teaching. I shall tell you about it when there is time. In the passage cited above there is the word iha (here). Therefore even while this body lasts, it is clear, the state of deathlessness can be gained. This way alone is the best. Why? If as is stated in other traditions this state is to be gained in another world, we cannot know about it now. Those who have gained it will not come back and tell us about that experience. The purport of the passage is that Self-knowledge is the means to the state of immortality. I said that the disease consisting of hunger and thirst is common to all beings. In order to satisfy it there are required instruments such as eyes, tongue, etc. The mind too is needed. Through the mind we come to know which objects are good and which are bad. With the help of these instruments we acquire many objects. In order to protect them there is required a house; in order to help us a wife, son, relations, friends and others. Without stopping therewith, we begin to have great conceit in them, thinking they are ours. If there is pain for the instrumentseyes, legs, etc. we imagine that the pain has come to us. If the body gets emaciated, we think that the suffering is ours. From this, is it not clear that we have not understood our true nature? Although sometimes we say This is my mind, this is my eye, my body, etc. separating ourselves from them, yet at the same time the conceit of identity does not leave us as is evident from such statements as I am tall, I am short, etc. The medicine, which will destroy this, is Self-knowledge alone. It is customary always to find the proper medicine for a particular disease. If one takes on oneself on account of ignorance, the troubles which are not there and suffers as a consequence, the proper medicine for that is the knowledge that these do not belong to one. If we realise that the body is not ours then the disease called the body will go of its own accord. For the sake of this, one need not commit suicide nor is there required a search for some other means. By these methods, the connection to the body will become only all the more. This I have stated already. The Bhagavatpada has taught us
that we should realise bodilessness even while the body is there. This is immortality (amritha), release (moksha).
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The souls that are in the world are called living beings. Living beings are those that are endowed with life (prana). Prana is life. Therefore, all beings endowed with life are called living beings. All living beings are always engaged in doing something or other. Every living being is ever seen to be busy doing some act or other. The ant is always on the move. The snail does something or other. The bird remains flying or eating something. Man goes to office and does his work. Or, he ploughs and rears crops. He is seen engaged in similar other works. Not even one person remains without doing some work or other. The Lord says this in the Gita:
No one at any time remains without doing some work or other even for a moment.
Thus, we observe in the world man is always doing something or other. For a man who lives in a small village, there are only a few things to do. For one who resides in a big town, there are innumerable things to do. Why should all be doing something or other thus? It is only when we are doing something that we are without misery. In order to be without misery, many things have to be done. In order to gain happiness also, many things have to be done. Nothing is so difficult as remaining quiet without doing anything. In order that we may thus do things, there is something within prompting us. That hunger prompts man saying, Do this, Do that. If we remain doing no action, the stomach pinches. One has to procure the medicine for removing the disease called hunger. There is great difference here from the diseases which, after having been cured, come after many days. For this disease, the medicine should be administered at each part of the day. In order to procure this medicine, everyone has to work. If the tiger kills the antelope or the cow, it is for curing this disease. It is for the same purpose that man acts many roles and tries to be clever. If he is hungry, he procures rice, cooks and eats it. For procuring rice, he works. If the body is to be preserved, one has to work. It is not possible to remain without work even for a moment. If one remains without any work, ones body would become useless. If one is a wealthy person, it does not mean that he should sit idle without work. It is such a person that has many things to do. Anxiety haunts him always that the loans that he has given should be safe. In order to ensure this he has to attend to several things. More than a Brahman who lives by gathering rice grains by alms everyday, a wealthy man who has property worth ten lakhs is active. There is no end to work he does. Thus, there are many kinds of work that a man does. The things that he does for the sake of his own body constitute one kind. Another kind consists of things that he does for the sake of those who belong to him. Children, wife, father, mother and other persons have been entrusted to his care. There are things which he has to do for them. Over and above these, it may be that he owns a cow and a dog. If these attachments increase, there may be a cat. And, there are things to be done for the sake of the farmer who looks after his land, his servants and others. After these, there are items of business connected with the village community. Just as keeping the house neat and tidy is the responsibility of the family which lives in it, managing the affairs of the village is the responsibility of its inhabitants. A family
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sraddha feeding the Brahminscan we not say that all these are extra actions? Of what use are such actions? As if these are not enough, there are bhajan parties functioning in this city (Madras) since some
years past. What they do involve a great strain for the throat. There is no relation whatsoever between their bhajans and their office work. The act of bhajans goes on without being necessary. Do not all these actions appear to be quite unnecessary? But are these really unnecessary? Why should they be performed? What is their use? We shall now ponder over these questions. Why does man earn money? Will it not do if he gets his hunger satisfied everyday? If he goes to some household and asks for food, he gets it. He could eat also in charity homes. No one thinks: There is food to be had; why receive pay? If a choice were offered between one measure of cooked rice and ten rupees, a person would choose the latter. Why? Is it not that he requires only food? What for is money? Cooked rice would be useful for one meal a day. Uncooked rice could be kept for another meal. But money could be used for fulfilling ones needs ten times. A man prefers that which could be used for several days. To a boy who goes to school, his mother gives cooked food for his mid-day meal. If we are travelling to a distant place, we take with us rice and other accessories. In former times there were no railways. There were no quick means of transport. On account of these, our troubles only increase. Train fare, hotel charges, bus fare, charges for coffee, etc. all these involve expenditure of money. Besides these, if we go to a new place we spend money for buying new things. All these expenses are incurred nowadays. In former days when one travelled, there was no expense at home for food. And, by walking, there was strength for the legs.
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I remember now, of one who lived long ago in this manner, spending very little. There was one Krishna Iyer in a place called Chittur near Palghat. He started a Bank. Out of the income from the Bank, he founded and maintained a Vedic School wherein over seventy students studied. In those days the students who completed their studies there used to come here and continue their studies in the Sanskrit College founded by V.Krishnaswamy Iyer. Among those who thus started schools there was another by name Muthu Ganapathi. He lived in Thiruvaiyaru. He arranged for Vedic study for about a hundred or a hundred and twenty boys. He also saw to their proper boarding, etc. He used to levy a penalty on those who were working under him when they committed mistakes, fund the money thus collected and maintain the school out of the interests therefrom. One day, an officer visited that school. Seeing the boys, he said, Oh, what a waste! Why should these boys be rendered useless for life? What is the use of impounding them like a herd of sheep for ten years? No way is being shown to them to earn a living. If they had been taught English, they would have benefited greatly. A person who was then by his side replied: By keeping these boys here without sending them to learn English, half the expenses are saved. If they had been made to study English, money would have been spent on costly dress, hairdressing, a bicycle, etc. All that money has now been saved. Had they learnt English and begun to earn, half their salary would go to meet these unnecessary expenses. Now, that has been avoided. As for earning the other half of such salary amounts, we are showing them the way here. Even if they fail to learn anything here, they will gain by not having turned their attention to English. These instances have been given in order to show that there were people in those days who lived great lives by spending economically. We are at the foot of a mountain. We have with us one thousand rupees. And that too in cash consisting of paise-coins. A number of thieves approach us with evil intentions. A great turmoil is about to take place. If we could cross the mountain and reach the other side, we would be safe. In such a situation, a person comes and asks for exchange of cash for a thousand-rupee note. What would we do then? Immediately, we would give him the bag containing the cash and receive the note and crossing the mountain get to safety. Only, that note should be such that it would be valid in the country beyond the mountain. Our story is similar to this mans. If we make use of our present strength and resources and do things that would be useful later, we shall meet with no difficulties. One may ask: We should be happy here. How is it certain that we shall exist later? The answer to this question is Suppose we exist, should we suffer?
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