Swami Krishnananda Shashtyabdapurti Mahotsava Commemoration Volume

A Souvenir released on Swami Krishnananda's 60th Birthday

POETRY BY SWAMI SIVANANDA

What is Woman?

Woman is Chaitanya Maya,
She is the child of Adi Shakti,
She holds the key of this world,
She controls the destiny of children.

She is your first teacher,
She is your visible God,
She is an emblem of beauty,
She is full of sweetness.

She is graceful and mild,
She is gentle and elegant,
She is humble and patient,
She adorns the house.

She is the Laxmi of the house,
She is the life partner of man,
She is the loving mother,
She is all in all.

Her modesty is laudable,
Her chastity is a mighty force,
Her voice soothes the man,
Her music elevates his heart.

Without her the house is a void,
Without her man is helpless,
Without her this world loses all charm,
Without her there is no creation.

Glory to women,
See God in a woman,
Give up the ideas of sex, husband and wife,
Adore her as the energy aspect of the Lord.

Language of Smile

There is language in smile,
There is Bhav in smile.
The language of smile
Is more powerful
Than ordinary language.

Smile expresses one's character,
It reveals one's inner nature.
The smile from a gall heart
Smells very pungent.

The smile of a wicked man
Is treacherous.
He smiles and smiles fire
And then cuts a man's throat.

The smile of a saint is radiant,
It is vibrant and inspiring.
It removes doubts and teaches.
The smile of a lewd woman is poisonous,
It is bewitching.

The smile of Sita-Radha,
Of any Pativrata
Is fragrant with Prem,
It is charged with Maha-Bhav,
It is divine.
It heals,
It redeems and transforms.

Sages do not laugh,
They smile through their eyes.
Rude people laugh,
Guffaw or giggle is silly,
It is indecent too.
It shows lack of culture.

Take Care of Little Things

Little drops of water
Make the mighty ocean.
Little grains of sand
Make this beautiful land.

Little moments
To make the mighty ages.
Little pies and farthings
Make millions and crores.

Little mistakes,
Little unkind acts,
little evil thoughts
will make you a devil.

Little words of love,
Little acts of kindness,
Little good thoughts
Will make you a saint.

The Riddle

Why God created this world?
This is a puzzling riddle;
Don't rack your brains now,
You will know when you realise.

Lokavat tu Lila Kaivalyam–
This world is the Lila of the Lord;
He sports in all names and forms.
Do not probe into divine mysteries.

How can there be desire to create,
When the Lord is Apta-kama,
When He is above desires?
This is His Svabhava.

Why should there be pain in this world?
This is also a riddle;
Cogitate deeply for a while,
Pain is an eye-opener and a blessing.

When did Karma begin?
This too is a difficult riddle;
Karma, is Anadi or beginningless,
Do Vichara and become wise.

Why should there be evil in this world?
This is also a vexing riddle.
Know that evil is negative good,
And that this is a relative world.

How can there be Avidya
In knowledge absolute?
This is another bewildering riddle,
You will know this when you transcend reason.

From the Absolute viewpoint
There is neither world nor pain,
Neither evil nor Karma, neither Avidya nor Maya.
Brahman alone exists—this is the Truth.

Guiding Precepts

Part I

Goodness and intelligence,
Yea, purity and knowledge,
When found together in one,
Believe, there Divinity is manifest.

Control not thy senses,
Merely for Scriptures say like that;
Realise the dilution of sense-indulgence,
And the senses will not trouble thee.

Devoid of renunciation,
And purity of the heart,
Intellect is nothing,
Nothing but a straw.

Wisdom and power
Lie not in books;
Not in conference,
And not in writing,
But lie in full,
In discriminative renunciation
And godly meditation.

Nothing is the difficulty,
Nothing is distraction,
Nothing is inimical,
Nothing is bad or good;
Know though that all fault
Lieth inside thee!

If at any time you say,
Anybody is a rogue,
Anybody is ill-willed,
Anything is inferior,
Believe, you are insulted the Almighty Lord!

Open not thy mouth,
And hear not undivine talks,
Lest thou shalt be punished
Four thy great commission.

To no man is to know God,
And to know the world;
Four man and whirled
And God are all one.

Part II

He who restrains, gains all the worlds.
And he that enjoyeth, loses his all;
Therefore, suffer, 0 friends! and pains endure,
And dance not to the tune of the senses.

You gain what you give,
And you lose what you have;
Say not "This belongs to me",
For nothing belongs to you here!

The sages will not praise thee,
For praise is vanity exhibited;
Censure shall not upset thee, O friend,
For speaking and feeling have no meaning here.

Thy real worth is often expressed
In thy movements, talks, and behaviour;
And a wise man is always

Calm, silent and indifferent to all!

The wiser you think you are,
The lesser you know the Truth;
For the Knower simply enjoys the Bliss,
And talks not, nor thinks that he is such.

The lower our status in the world,
The more menial the service we do,
And the greater the blows we receive,
The nearer to God we approach!

Vast knowledge and vast power
Are hidden in thy own being;
Blaspheme not thy self in sorrow,
For grief is the worst sin thou committest.

There isn't any work in this world,
For you to take great interest in,
At the cost of Godly meditations;
The world can give you nothing!

God is both static and dynamic,
Reality and appearance,
Soul, mind and world,
Subject, object, cause and effect,
All at one and the same time!
That is the One, the Reality Great!

Silence

Where is silence?
Is it in the forest,
Or is it in the caves?
It is in the heart.

What is Silence?
Silence is Consciousness,
Silence is Bliss,
Silence is Peace.

How to attain Silence?
Silence the thoughts,
Silence the emotions,
And rest in Silence.

Vrittis subside,
Visibles disappear,
Mind enters the heart,
Here is Silence.

Cravings perish,
Egoism vanishes,
Brahman shines,
Here is Silence.

Time melts,
Space evaporates,
'I' and 'you' dwindle,
Here is Silence.

Withdraw the senses,
Enter the Silence,
Drink the Nectar,
And become Immortal.

Brahman Shining

Brahman shining
Maya hiding
Avidya veiling
Jiva weeping.

Trishna burning
Vasana scorching
Emotions bubbling
Sankalpa swelling.

Anahat ringing
Kundalini awakening
Nectar dribbling
Yogi drinking.

Ascetic controlling
Thoughts subsiding
Egoism vanishing
Knowledge revealing.

Sage rejoicing
Jignasu meditating
Aspirant reflecting
Neophyte hearing.

Bhakta singing
Devotee surrendering
Tapasvin fasting
Sadhak subduing.

Adept resting
Eyes glittering
Joy radiating
Wisdom flowing.