BRAHMO WAY OF LIFE

 

(A general informative Note prepared by SANJOY CHANDA ([email protected]), describing it as: a short write up of mine on how we humble householders may lead a Brahmo way of life.)

 

Modern lifestyle is such that our professional duties keep us occupied for long hours everyday. When we get released from that, we have our duties to our families. So, we argue, where is the time for us to devote to religion, to God or to society? And what happens as a result? We tend to move away from the path of God, tend to forget the religious lessons we had learnt, do not feel the need to commune with like minded fellow believers.

 

But actually, to live a Brahmo life it is not necessary to devote a lot of time to rituals – it is not necessary to change our lifestyle.

 

Let us have a look at the basic ideals and principles that a Brahmo is supposed to follow:

#·        There is one God who is the creator, sustainer and regulator of the world, who is all knowing and all pervading.

#·        Purity of character and reverence to God are the main requirements for practising religion.

#·        For worship of God no rituals are required. All one needs is faith in Him.

#·        Our ideal is fatherhood of God and brotherhood of man.� Accept all men as brothers “ irrespective of caste, creed, colour, religion or nationality. Work for their welfare.

#·        It is possible to worship God and be an ardent devotee of Him while performing our duties to our society and our family.

 

What do these principles tell us? That we do not need any specially assigned place to pray “ we can sense the presence of God in every blade of grass, every one of His creations and we can pray to Him in any place convenient for us, we do not have to go to a temple for that. We do not need any specially appointed time for praying to God and we do not have to perform any specified rituals for His worship. While we carry out our daily routine work at office and home, we may remember God and seek His blessings. Also, we serve God by helping our fellow human beings.

 

In the Brahmo Dharma� book there is a sloka meant for householders like us which means that the householder while performing his daily chores should remain devoted to God. He should consecrate to God whatever work he carries out. To be a religious person, to be a devotee of God, one does not have to become a hermit, abandoning all worldly affairs and cutting off relationship with one's family. But while preserving these relationships and leading the life of a family man, a householder, it is important that his mind remains focussed towards God.

 

King Janak is a classic example of how we should live. There is the story of Shukhdeva who went to Janak for initiation into Brahma Gyan. Seeing the riches in Janak's court, a doubt crept into his mind as to his ability to teach him Brahma Gyan. Divining his thoughts through deep insight, the king gave him a cup filled to the brim with oil and asked him to circuit his kingdom holding that. Shukhdeva came back with the cup as it was, without spilling a drop of oil. He could do so by keeping his mind fixed on the cup. Then Janak told him that he too performed his worldly duties keeping his mind and soul fixed on the Lord.

 

I hope that from this example we get a good idea about how we can be involved in all our worldly affairs, but still remain faithful, practising Brahmos. However, for those of us who live life on the fast lane, do consider the suggestion given in this quotation:

Slow down and enjoy life.

It is not only the scenery you miss

By going too fast, you also miss

The sense of where you are going and why.�

 

As I have already said, the ideal of Brahmo Samaj is fatherhood of God and brotherhood of man.� In fact the most practical way to serve God is to be of service to fellow men. Raja Rammohun Roy had said the best way to serve God is to do good to man�. The most important thing in life is much more than winning for ourselves. The important thing is to help others win just as --

A candle looses nothing of it is used to light another.�

A woman lost her husband whom she loved dearly. She was plunged into the depths of sorrow and for a long time she had forgotten to smile. One day she happened to look out of her window and found two poor children in the street below. She came out of her mansion and asked them where are your parents? We are orphans�, they replied. Who takes care of you?� she asked. No one. The neighbours give us little things from time to time and we somehow survive.� Forgetting her sorrow, the woman took the children to the market and bought them shoes and clothes and food. The children were very happy and something of their joy stole into the heart of the woman. She forgot her grief and for the first time in many months she smiled.

A candle looses nothing if it is used to light another.�

The joy of giving can surpass the happiness of receiving. In return we can receive far more than we give“ in form of sense of fulfilment and mental peace.

 

So, in conclusion I repeat what I said in the beginning “ that we can be good practising Brahmos without taking time off from work, spending quality time with the family, meeting friends. We can continue with our life style, only we should not loose our focus on God. To be good Brahmos we have to be good human beings. Even while attending to our daily obligations, we can find opportunities to show love and kindness to others. All we need is to have the right attitude, as Winston Churchill had said, attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference.� There are so many ways to spread God's love to those around us. A kind word, a helping hand, a gentle touch can help brighten another's day. And in the process we ourselves find peace and fulfilment.