To elaborate on what Shri Visu has mentioned..... the rationale would cover the following aspects : a. Under normal circumstances, ordinary mortals like all of us function with the 5 senses (touch, smell, sight, hearing and taste). However, the scope and range of our senses is very limited. For example we cannot see like x-rays. X-ray can see thru your skin and look at your bones, but with ordinary eyes you and me cannot even think of such a feat. Similarly below and above certain range of decibels/cycles/frequency the normal human ear cannot hear things. Bats use ultrasonic sound and are blind but we humans cannot achieve this. b. what follows from (a) is there are frequencies, wavelengths, levels higher and lower than those ordinarily percieved by the 5 senses. These can be termed as super normal, sub-normal, abnormal levels. At these levels there are beings, activity, creation/dissolution and interactions. It is an entirely different world. This email can be read by you because what is written millions of miles away is converted into invisible electrnoic symbols and travels by air (which again cannot be percieved by our ordinary senses) and somehow gets into your computer and finally gets converted into words back. The entire operation is invisible, but it happens nevertheless. c. Whenever we pray, meditate and involve in all spiritual (look at the word spiritual, it means connected with the spirit, which automatically means and implies that the subject cannot be percieved and felt by the ordinary 5 senses and is beyond these) activity, then we are attempting to connect, communicate with such sub-normal, abnormal, super normal levels. d. What happens to an astronaut after he returns to earth from his sojourn to the planets/stars ? He is quarantined for sometime/days. Why? Because the scientists (mortals etc.) despite so much technical advances, so much knowledge still nurse a 0.000001% doubt whether the astronaut might be carrying some alien particle harmful once it is released on earth. This is a western form of "Acharam / Mati", though they call it in polished fashion as "Quarantine". Visitors to Australia and New Zealand might be familiar with the treatment at airport/points of entry in these countries. They are very strict. Dust /mud caked in your shoe bottom is enough to warrant "deportation or quarantine or even penalised....recently our cricket stars were fined in Wellington for having this dirt on their shoe!!!! e. By the same reasoning, what do you do when you go for an job interview, or an important conference or occasion like an marriage? For all such occasiions be it marriage, interview, party, conference, meeting your first unconscious act is to be clean at least physically. You wear the best clothes, put the best perfume, after shave, powder and oil. Shoes are polished/Washed ? Why ? because the occasion demands it. It is something away from the normal routine. There is a speciality treatment which our minds are trained automatically to address and act. f. Similarly when you try to visit temple /God, pray etc. is it not a special occasion? Will you dare to meet the Chief Executive of your company or the Principal of your college in unkempt hair, unshaved and wearing crumpled clothes? And the DIVYA DAMPATHIS are the Chief Executives for the entire mankind!!!!. The Greatest of the Greatest Maha Vishnu is referred also as "ALANKARA PRIYAR" (ONE WHO LIKES TO BE ADORNED WHO LIKES GOOD DRESS, CLEANLINESS, ORDERLINESS, DECORATION,) And since this involves matter of the special occasion + dealing with spirit (that which cannot be ordinarily percieved by the sense organs), this requires special conditions conducive for such an engagement. g. Now what are these conditions? The Yoga Sutra of Patanjali written over 2000 years back valid even today amplifies the oft repeated Vedic stricture namely, Souchya i.e. cleanliness. It is a simple one word but loaded with deeper meaning/interpretations. Cleanliness covers physical, external, internal and mental. If there is noise you cannot concentrate and noise therefore even if pleasant, even if it is a holy song is a disturbance; bad smelling surroundings will affect the concentration; an unpleasant feeling will disturb and persist when teeth /mouth is washed or if bath is not taken; an unclean, disorganised physical things will disturb the eyes; In fact all these disturbing factors will first be percieved by the senses and then conveyed to the mind which will accordingly react and ultimately the 'pure' clear', silent, empty state will not be obtained and this in turn will be an hinderence to our attempt to establish contact with the spiritual plane. h) For a image to be clear, both the sending TV station and the receiving TV set has to be fine tuned to a mathematical precision. Both should be without impurity, dust. In between as the signals are travelling there should not be great natural disturbances like storm, wind, thunder etc. Many times we must have experienced during a TV show sudden waves on the screen. What is this? Nothing but external disturbance which impacts the signals and finally the quality of picture we see. In the same manner, the human receiver with normal senses should move (fold away- mati) him/herself away from disturbances so that the senses can receive super normal,abnormal,sub normal signals from the spiritual plane. This is what meditation is all about. What is the end result after the contact is done and finished? A sense of calmness, peaceful, restful, relaxed mental, body and breathing conditions. One feels refreshed and capable of doing things creatively, effectively. i. "Acharam/Mati" are therefore, as Shri Visu has rightly pointed out "fold/retreat, moving away" i.e.a condition fit for spiritual pursuits to be established. Otherwise the pursuit will be unsuccessful and may land us in trouble. j. Now let us have a closer look at some of the common "Mati/Acharam" features. All these strictures are conditions where impurities are either created, discharged or made to remain static. Created Static discharged/destroyed leftover food yeast/bacteria freshness fungus growth, foul smell; fermentation Haircut possible infectious condition as we are body parts /cells dead cells in touch with the public saloon/implements/ barber Menstruation Mental inconvenience dead cells possible unhygenic conditions Child birth labour pains dead cells possible unhygenic conditions Pungent /aromatic enhanced salivation; Satvic tendencies food like onions Desire, enhanced calmness garlic etc. activity In all these cases, you will see there is constant creation and destruction. The static mode is generally not present. And Satva is the sign of static being. Satva incidentally is symbolised by "Maha Vishnu" i.e. sustainer and maintainer. When there is destruction and creation taking place then there is no room for receiptivity or perfectness of Satva tendency which is why the receiver becomes incapable of receiving the sender(spirit's) impressions (refer h above) And what is our purpose for engaging ourselves in the Puja, prayer etc. ? If we are mentally, physically, psychologically, emotionally not fit, then how can we receive the blessings or convey our prayers. There is disturbence all of which cannot be seen but which exist and which cannot be disproved also. Hope one has managed to give some insight into this controversial topic Visu9@xxxx To: s.ramachandran@xxxx, 12/31/02 06:42 SriRangaSri@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, japa78@xxxx PM cc: Subject: Re: [SriRangaSri] from mukund /namastE Shri Mukund. I think we can get a better understanding of /acAram and /maTi if we try to capture the basic ideas behind it. One way to do this is to look at the meaning of these words. What do these words mean? Are there English equivalents or are these ideas unique to us? Let me attempt by beginning with the word /maTi. A relevant meaning for /maTi is "retreat" or "withdrawal". The word comes from /maTittal --- to fold. We fold a paper; that is /maTittal. What happens? The full-size has become half-size. The paper has been withdrawn from its full use. Retreat is a religious idea seeking withdrawal from the world to be in unuion with God for a few minutes or a few days. Catholics practice /maTi, when they enter into retreat every year --- even children. No talk for most of the day. Only reading. The word /maTi has negative use too! You must withdraw of course routinely, not for ever! When you do that you are a /maTayan, one who has separated himself or hesrelf from reality of the world. He or she has built an isoalted world good only for hin or her. That is /maTayan. A very god example is given by /maHA/kavi subramanya bhAratiyAr. /mAtar tammai iZivu ceyyun maTamaiyaik koZuttuvOm. That is a stupid isolation of women from public life until Gandhiji came. There is a pleasnat use of the word /maTi. Women are iften bashful. Let a boy of 16 0r 16 tell a little girl of 14 how pretty she is. She is going to fold. She is a /maTantai. A /maTantai is a woman slim enough to be able to fold! (Sorry, not putting down others; I cannot change the meaning of words!). I hope it is clear to you that /maTi in the sense of "retreat" is good for all of us. What we need to do is to get expand the current concept of /maTi to one where people reamin in "retreat camps" For example, /gItai maTi will be an occasion for people to fold into the /gItA. /vantanam. Visu
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