AvadhootaDatta Peetham

2012 Previous speech Next speech Speech of HH Sri Datta Vijayananda Teertha Swamiji on Brahmotsavam - May 30, 2012 - SDVT Mysore Someone asked me “What is the meaning of Brahmotsavam?” and prayed to tell about Brahmotsavam. Yesterday I got a thought, what is the meaning of Brahmotsavam. Sri Appaji has given us such a splendid temple. Not only a temple, but He also gave many other splendid things like a Garden, a Museum and the Nada Mantapam for listening and to make us listen to the nada yogam. Sri Appaji has made splendid arrangements. Sri Appaji has given all these facilities to us for our spiritual upliftment and to enhance our spirituality in a progressive way. Our approach towards life should not be like we have taken birth, lived and went away. Since we are Guru Devotees, we must do spiritual practice with real effort and get closer to Guru and gain His love, care, and blessings. Using His blessings, we must move forward in a proper path. If we do meager sadhana and question ourselves whether the sadhana I am doing is enough? Are the charities that I am doing enough? Are the good deeds I am doing enough? It is not good. Leave the questions and remove them. Just as we have told, anyone who has started spiritual practice will never be doomed.Even for the meager spiritual practice done by you God will bless you graciously. This is the specialty of the spiritual world only. Does it happen anywhere else? Is it possible to get a seat in IAS (Indian Administrative Service) on the basis of writing and passing high school examinations? Will anyone give you huge salary for doing small job? It is not possible anywhere right? Remember that only in the spiritual path a meager spiritual practice will also give you a substantial fruit. There are millions of people in this world, but not many are mindful enough to do spiritual practice. Even among the people who are mindfully doing it, only one among the 1000 such persons is achieving liberation. How is it possible for me to earn liberation in such rush of people or competition? Such thoughts should never be entertained at all. Your thought process should be like “Why I cannot be that ONE in the Thousands of spiritual aspirants who try for liberation and succeed?” God will only bless such spiritual aspirants. You must think “What is not possible for me? Why I cannot do it?” Only then, God will bless you with victory. If you totally surrender to God and plead at His lotus feet that I cannot win, please make me win! Then God will surely make you win. Either you should be determined to fight your battle with guts and pray God to make you win or totally surrender to His louts feet and plead to him that I cannot do it, please make me win. Arjuna did the latter thing. Following neither of the above and trying to escape like a lazy person is not good. In this case God will not bless you. In spirituality, even small deeds are blessed graciously by God. Brahmotsavam is continuous service and seva to God. As we cannot do all these festivites in our individual capacity, we have darshan of Swami and think about Swami on special occasions like Brahmotsavam. In Venkatachala Mahatyam it is told that Brahma (Creator with four heads) first worshipped Lord Sri Venkateshwara. Brahma prayed Lord Sri Venkateshwara “O God! You are very elder to all, You are called Brahma (Parambrahma)”. Does anyone of you know what Brahma means? In Sanskrit, Shastras, or Veda, God has not been given any name. First name of God /Chaitanya / Shakti (energy) is Parambrahma. It is also the last name given to God. The other names like Shiva, Vishnu, Chaturmukha Brahma and Mother Goddess came later. That is why the bhajan Kala trya Booditam Brahma Brahma. Kala trya abadhitam Brahma Brahma means that no three phases of time (past, present and future) can be a cause of distress to Him. We sleep today and time has passed and the day is over, but for God there is no such thing. If God is also bound by time, then we must say that one day He will depart. He is ageless, eternal and He is Satya swaroopa (personification of truth) so, He is called Brahma (Parambrahma). Such Parambrahma has incarnated in the form of Lord Sri Venkateshwara in Tirupati. Now who should worship Him? Who is capacitated to do this worship? Only one who knows the four Vedas can do it. Who among the greats can recite all four Vedas at one go? Only Brahma (Creator with four heads) can do it. Nobody else can do it. Each head of Brahma has a different brain. We also have four brains that do four different things at the same time. For all of us, Who is the first Being in the creation? Brahma(Creator with four heads). The creation has been done in four ways, so Brahma prayed to Lord Sri Venkateshwara to kindly grant Him a chance to worship His lotus feet. Lord Sri Venkateshwara agreed to the prayer of Brahma. Since it is the archana (worship) done by Brahma, it is called Brahmotsavam. Since Brahma does this festivity or celebration, it is called Brahmotsavam. Utsava (festivity) is a wonderful word. “Savam” means Yagna. In Vishnu Sahasranama we have the name “SAVAHA =yagnam”. Therefore “Utsava” means the Yagna performed for your upliftment. It is of no use if you do not change. We must graduate in the aspects of physicality, spirituality, and socially also. To graduate in all the three ways as said above, we approach Guru. Once you catch Guru, you must increase your devotion towards Guru. We need growth in the entire three sectors namely physically, spiritually and socially. It is not possible to deny such growths. We need good fame, name, sadhana and good health. These are essentials for us and we cannot deny anyone of these. We must be mindful not to get attached to any of these other than spirituality. Utsava takes us higher and enhances our growth. Brahmotsavam means Brahma-Utsava. In Sanskrit, there are seven types of Vibhaktis (Sanskrit grammar). When we interpret the meaning of Brahmotsavam, using the Vibhaktis then there is a special meaning to the word Brahmotsavam. I feel like telling you, so I am telling you. Brahmotsavam is celebrating Parambrahma as a festivity. Such a festivity itself is called Brahmotsavam. Brahmanda Lord Sri Venkateshwara Swami is Himself an Utsava. He is vaibhavam – glory. Seeing Him is glory. Seeing Guru is glory. We do not need another glory. Lord Sri Venkateshwara Swami is called Triloka Guru (Guru of the three worlds). He is the form of Brahma (Parambrahma), He is Himself Parambrahma. Seeing Him in the form of festivity or Utsava is called Brahmotsavam. The festivity that is celebrated for Brahma (Parambrahma) is called Brahmotsavam. When the Brahma comes and graces us, then it is called Brahmotsavam. Jaya Guru Datta