Hinduism: Vedanta –
Philosophy:
Vedanta, the
basic philosophy of Hinduism, is one of the world's most ancient religious
philosophies and one of its broadest. Based on the Vedas, the sacred scriptures
of India, Vedanta affirms the oneness of existence, the divinity of the soul,
and the harmony of religions. Vedanta is the philosophical foundation of
Hinduism; but while Hinduism includes aspects of Indian culture, Vedanta is
universal in its application and is equally relevant to all countries, all
cultures, and all religious backgrounds.
A closer look at the word "Vedanta" is revealing: "Vedanta" is a combination of two words: "Veda" which means "knowledge" and "anta" which means "the end of" or "the goal of." In this context the goal of knowledge isn't intellectual—the limited knowledge we acquire by reading books. "Knowledge" here means the knowledge of God as well as the knowledge of our own divine nature. Vedanta, then, is the search for Self-knowledge as well as the search for God.
According to Vedanta, God is infinite existence, infinite consciousness, and infinite bliss. The term for this impersonal, transcendent reality is Brahman, the divine ground of being. Yet Vedanta also maintains that God can be personal as well, assuming human form in every age. God dwells within our own hearts as the divine Self or Atman. The Atman is never born nor will it ever die. Pure, perfect, free from limitations, the Atman, Vedanta declares, is one with Brahman. The greatest temple of God lies within the human heart. Vedanta further asserts that the goal of human life is to realize and manifest our divinity.
Thus, following are the fundamental principles of Vedanta:
· Truth is one; sages describe it variously.
In other words, God is one; people worship Him in different forms.
· Every human being in his/her true nature, is Divine.
· The ultimate goal of every human being is to realize this Divinity.
· The ways to realize this divinity are innumerable. They are called the Yogas. As Sri Ramakrishna, a famous mystic of 19th-century India, declared, "As many faiths, so many paths."
Vedanta is a way of living and realizing. It gives full freedom to each individual to evolve morally and spiritually according to his or her own faith and conviction.
Modern Vedanta is based on the teachings of Sri Ramkrishna and Swami Vivekananda. It includes various truths found in all religions of the world, including the teachings of the world's great saints and sages. A Vedantin is one who accepts and respects all religions as true paths to the same goal.
A closer look at the word "Vedanta" is revealing: "Vedanta" is a combination of two words: "Veda" which means "knowledge" and "anta" which means "the end of" or "the goal of." In this context the goal of knowledge isn't intellectual—the limited knowledge we acquire by reading books. "Knowledge" here means the knowledge of God as well as the knowledge of our own divine nature. Vedanta, then, is the search for Self-knowledge as well as the search for God.
According to Vedanta, God is infinite existence, infinite consciousness, and infinite bliss. The term for this impersonal, transcendent reality is Brahman, the divine ground of being. Yet Vedanta also maintains that God can be personal as well, assuming human form in every age. God dwells within our own hearts as the divine Self or Atman. The Atman is never born nor will it ever die. Pure, perfect, free from limitations, the Atman, Vedanta declares, is one with Brahman. The greatest temple of God lies within the human heart. Vedanta further asserts that the goal of human life is to realize and manifest our divinity.
Thus, following are the fundamental principles of Vedanta:
· Truth is one; sages describe it variously.
In other words, God is one; people worship Him in different forms.
· Every human being in his/her true nature, is Divine.
· The ultimate goal of every human being is to realize this Divinity.
· The ways to realize this divinity are innumerable. They are called the Yogas. As Sri Ramakrishna, a famous mystic of 19th-century India, declared, "As many faiths, so many paths."
Vedanta is a way of living and realizing. It gives full freedom to each individual to evolve morally and spiritually according to his or her own faith and conviction.
Modern Vedanta is based on the teachings of Sri Ramkrishna and Swami Vivekananda. It includes various truths found in all religions of the world, including the teachings of the world's great saints and sages. A Vedantin is one who accepts and respects all religions as true paths to the same goal.
The Oneness of
Existence: Unity in Diversity
The unity of existence is one of the great themes of Vedanta and an essential pillar of its philosophy. Unity is the song of life; it is the grand theme underlying the rich variations that exist throughout the cosmos. Whatever we see, whatever we experience, is only a manifestation of this eternal oneness. The divinity at the core of our being is the same divinity that illumines the sun, the moon, and the stars. There is no place where we, infinite in nature, do not exist.
"The Self is everywhere," says the Isha Upanishad. "Whoever sees all beings in the Self, and the Self in all beings, hates none. For one who sees oneness everywhere, how can there be delusion or grief?"
All fear and all misery arise from our sense of separation from the great cosmic unity, the web of being that enfolds us. "There is fear from the second," says the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad. Duality, our sense of separation from the rest of creation, is always a mis-perception since it implies that something exists other than God. There can be no other. "This grand preaching, the oneness of things, making us one with everything that exists, is the great lesson to learn," said Swami Vivekananda a century ago.
“…...The Self is the essence of this universe, the essence of all souls…...You are one with this universe. He who says he is different from others, even by a hair's breadth, immediately becomes miserable. Happiness belongs to him who knows this oneness, who knows he is one with this universe.”
The unity of existence is one of the great themes of Vedanta and an essential pillar of its philosophy. Unity is the song of life; it is the grand theme underlying the rich variations that exist throughout the cosmos. Whatever we see, whatever we experience, is only a manifestation of this eternal oneness. The divinity at the core of our being is the same divinity that illumines the sun, the moon, and the stars. There is no place where we, infinite in nature, do not exist.
"The Self is everywhere," says the Isha Upanishad. "Whoever sees all beings in the Self, and the Self in all beings, hates none. For one who sees oneness everywhere, how can there be delusion or grief?"
All fear and all misery arise from our sense of separation from the great cosmic unity, the web of being that enfolds us. "There is fear from the second," says the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad. Duality, our sense of separation from the rest of creation, is always a mis-perception since it implies that something exists other than God. There can be no other. "This grand preaching, the oneness of things, making us one with everything that exists, is the great lesson to learn," said Swami Vivekananda a century ago.
“…...The Self is the essence of this universe, the essence of all souls…...You are one with this universe. He who says he is different from others, even by a hair's breadth, immediately becomes miserable. Happiness belongs to him who knows this oneness, who knows he is one with this universe.”
About the
Vedanta society of Providence:
The Vedanta Society Of Providence is a branch of the world-wide twin organization Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission. This twin organization was founded by Swami Vivekananda, the most illustrious disciple of Sri Ramakrishna. It has currently 12 branches and a few sub centers in USA.
This center was started on September 9, 1928 by Swami Akhilananda. He was a disciple of Swami Brahmananda, a direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna and the first President of the Ramakrishna Math. After Swami Akhilananda passed away in 1962, Swami Sarvagatananda became the minister in-charge of the society and continued until his retirement in June 2001.
Swami Yogatmananda is the minister in-charge since July 2001.
This center is located in the heart of the city of Providence and in the neighborhood of Brown University.
Regular activities at this Center:
· Daily prayers & meditation in the morning and evening in the Chapel
· Weekly service on Sunday afternoon (5:00 PM)
· Weekly classes on Tuesdays and Fridays (7:30 PM)
Current Text: Tuesdays – The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna
Fridays – Bhagavad Gita
· Birth-Anniversary celebrations of Sri Ramakrishna, Sri Sarada Devi, Swami Vivekananda and Sri Krishna
· Celebrations of Durga Puja, Thanksgiving day, Christmas and New Year
· Quarterly Spiritual Retreats.
· A small library of religious and philosophical books open to members
· A Vedanta Book Store: Books/ CDs/ DVDs available for sale.
Website – www.vedantaprov.org
The Vedanta Society Of Providence is a branch of the world-wide twin organization Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission. This twin organization was founded by Swami Vivekananda, the most illustrious disciple of Sri Ramakrishna. It has currently 12 branches and a few sub centers in USA.
This center was started on September 9, 1928 by Swami Akhilananda. He was a disciple of Swami Brahmananda, a direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna and the first President of the Ramakrishna Math. After Swami Akhilananda passed away in 1962, Swami Sarvagatananda became the minister in-charge of the society and continued until his retirement in June 2001.
Swami Yogatmananda is the minister in-charge since July 2001.
This center is located in the heart of the city of Providence and in the neighborhood of Brown University.
Regular activities at this Center:
· Daily prayers & meditation in the morning and evening in the Chapel
· Weekly service on Sunday afternoon (5:00 PM)
· Weekly classes on Tuesdays and Fridays (7:30 PM)
Current Text: Tuesdays – The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna
Fridays – Bhagavad Gita
· Birth-Anniversary celebrations of Sri Ramakrishna, Sri Sarada Devi, Swami Vivekananda and Sri Krishna
· Celebrations of Durga Puja, Thanksgiving day, Christmas and New Year
· Quarterly Spiritual Retreats.
· A small library of religious and philosophical books open to members
· A Vedanta Book Store: Books/ CDs/ DVDs available for sale.
Website – www.vedantaprov.org
Swami Yogatmananda, President
Born in 1953 in Karnataka,
India, Swami Yogatmananda joined Ramakrishna Order in 1976. He received his
monastic vows in 1986. After being at Ramakrishna Math Center at Nagpur, India
for 20 years, he was posted as the Head of Ramakrishna Mission, Shillong,
Meghalaya, India.
He was posted to United States in the summer of 2001 as the Minister of the Vedanta Society of Providence. His present responsibilities include conducting Sunday service, weekly study classes and organizing spiritual retreats. He is invited to preach Vedanta at different places in the United States. He also gives classes, on invitation, at various Universities about Hinduism, Hindu Psychology and Hindu Social System.
Swami Yogatmananda is the Hindu Religious Affiliate at the Brown University, Providence, RI and the Hindu Chaplain at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, MA.
Swami also grants personal interviews to earnest seekers.
He was posted to United States in the summer of 2001 as the Minister of the Vedanta Society of Providence. His present responsibilities include conducting Sunday service, weekly study classes and organizing spiritual retreats. He is invited to preach Vedanta at different places in the United States. He also gives classes, on invitation, at various Universities about Hinduism, Hindu Psychology and Hindu Social System.
Swami Yogatmananda is the Hindu Religious Affiliate at the Brown University, Providence, RI and the Hindu Chaplain at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, MA.
Swami also grants personal interviews to earnest seekers.
