P hilosophy. How To Attain Peace : Comparision Between Lord Buddha and Vethathiri Maharishi

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1 P hilosophy National, Registered, Recognized & Referred - Journal : Research Link - 100, Vol - XI (5), July , Page No RNI No. MPHIN , ISSN No How To Attain Peace : Comparision Between Lord Buddha and Vethathiri Maharishi Meditation is a Psychic practice to attain peace and stability of mind. Detaching form the senses, the mind is fixed on the life force. The inward journey of the mind towards the innate consciousness is called meditation. Only the Meditation practice will bring one to the range of mental frequency so as to transform man from the sinful character of animalistic habits to the virtuous culture of spiritual consciousness. Vethathiri Maharishi feels Kundalini Yoga is a systematic and integrated practice for body and mind and its thrust is to make a man creative. By a new method which is wholly safe, one can get the Kundalini Power aroused in minutes. DR.CH.VENKATA SIVASAI Introduction : Buddha held that there was no Atman. He was of the view, that when people spoke of the soul, they really found only the five Khandhas, either alone, or in combination with each other. The word 'Khandha' or the Sanskrit word 'Skandha', means the trunk of a tree, and is used to mean a group or aggregates. The number of factors, that go to make up an individual, are according to Buddhist thought, five in number. These factors of Skhandhas or Khandhas, are grouped under two heads, viz.. Rupa or the physical factor, and nama or the psychical factor. The five Khandhas are: (1) Rupa comprising of the four elements Earth, Water, Air and Pire. (2) Vedana comprising of feeling, sensation, emotion etc. (3) Sanna or Samjna comprising of perception, ideations, knowledge etc. (4) Samskara comprising of compound concepts or what are called kinetic dispositions and (5) Vinnana of Vijnana comprising of consciousness, reasoning etc. This vijnana which is a khandha is to be differentiated from the Vijnana in the twelve causal series. According to Buddha, all these five aggregations were responsible for all experience. When a man says, that he has perceived the self, he is only deluding himself, for the perceives, only one or more of these Khandhas. According Vethathiri the word nature is packed with meaning comprising all things, actions and results like the entire universe is divided into five stages. (1) Physical forum (2) Spirit (3) Wave (4) Truth and (5) Mind. There are five stages are called nature. He observes consciousness in everything in the universal evolutionary process consciousness is functioning the following way. (1) Consciousness functions as order of function with three principles, pattern, precession & regularity (2) The Second is with three principles, cognition experience and discrimation. The last one is the total consciousness in the universal being is our ultimate goal of self realization. Message of Buddhism for The Common Man : Buddhism was from the first, both ethic and religion, for the Founder, having a great mystical experience, believed that by way of moral living, man can arrive at transcendental rapture. Men are of various temperaments and abilities; to each he adapted his teaching and that of his predecessors. To those ready for the heights of mysticism he offered The Eightfold Path - which begins in right ideas, and goes on to ecstatic and rapt contemplation. To others he offered a way of part-time devotion: to morality of a simple kind and to the occasional keeping of holy days and mild asceticism. Vethathiri feels when a man realizes himself he realizes the value of everyone on earth. Respect for the needs, aspirations and ambitions of others and to restrict and moralize once own activities in life become part of once being. All are having the same aims, the same inner urge and the same potentiality with in. nature is the totally and man is fraction. That why everyone must have maintains harmonious relationships one with another. Karma Yoga of Vethathiri Maharishi : Karma means action of man with will. Action includes three different functions of man viz, deed, speech and thought. Yoga means a system of life best-suited for man inharmonious communion with Nature. An action is the movement of the physical body with mental effort to achieve some thing or some kind of enjoyment, or engaging oneself Assistant Professor, School of Buddhist Studies, Gautama Buddha University, Greater Noida (Uttar Pradesh) Research Link Vol - XI (5) July

2 in some enjoyment. Man is a combination of four phenomena; Body, Mind, Life-force (soul) and Bio-magnetism. The lifeforce is basically a minute energy-particle with speedy, selfrotative, whirling motion. The continuous whirling motion of the particles of the life-force radiates a spreading wave. The sum-total of such waves intensified sufficiently in the absolute space within the body is bio-magnetism. Mind is the peripheral functioning state of Consciousness. Karma Yoga is a most suitable, scientific method of living for mankind to enjoy happiness, satisfaction, harmony and peace in life. To achieve the purpose of life and the goal of perfection of Consciousness, the revelators found two important principles in life: one is the worship of God to the Truth, the Universal Being and to realise the mysterious fact that the same Truth is Consciousness in everything and every living being. The other is virtuous way of life, which comprises three conscientious aspects: morality, duty and charity. Simple and Safe Yoga : Now there is a new and extremely safe method suitable for all people. Men and women, single or in family-life, can adopt this practice straightaway with no fear of complications whatsoever. This valuable and easy method is known as Simplified Kundalini Yoga (SKY). At present a hundred thousand people throughout the world are happily practicing it and enjoying its benefits. An aspirant can be initiated in SKY by a trained Master in Kundalini Yoga. Within minutes of initiation, the aspirant will be able to feel the sensation of the movement of the life-force as a feeble pressure. The effect of Kundalini Yoga will start from the same day. By fixing the mind on the life-force the mind will get an inward turn, away from its sensory activities. By fixing the mind sharply on the life-force, will-power and intellectual clarity will start developing; and peace of mind will come into being, reducing the conversion and consumption of life-energy. There are seven centres for meditation in the body. Each centre is connected with its relevant endocrine gland as follows: Mooladhara Sex-gland Swadisthana Connecting sexgland and adrenals Manipuraka Adrenal gland Anahata Thymus Visuddhi Thyroid Agna Pituitary Brahmarandhra Pineal. In the SKY system, Introspection is classified into five subjects : (1) Analysis of Thought; (2) Moralisation of Desire; (3) Neutralisation of Anger; (4) Eradication of Worries; and (5) Self-Realisation or Who Am I? Meditation : Meditation is a Psychic practice to attain peace and stability of mind. Detaching form the senses, the mind is fixed on the life force. The inward journey of the mind towards the innate consciousness is called meditation. Only the Meditation practice will bring one to the range of mental frequency so as to transform man from the sinful character of animalistic habits to the virtuous culture of spiritual consciousness. Vethathiri Maharishi feels Kundalini Yoga is a systematic and integrated practice for body and mind and its thrust is to make a man creative. By a new method which is wholly safe, one can get the Kundalini Power aroused in minutes. Hence this method is called the simplified Kundalini Yoga, its objective is to enable the practitioner to postpone the ageing process and death. Findings and Suggestions : The Uniquness on Peace among Lord Buddha and Vethathiri Maharishi : According to them peace means The appearing, pacifying of all ills and sufferings. It also means the cessation of suffering through the extinction carving, which causes suffering. Peace as defined is one of the several characteristics of Nibbana (Nirvana), the ultimate goal of Buddhism. Peace it self is the same as Nibbana. Absolute peace is the ultimate goal of Buddhism. It is essentially an internal peace, viz. Peace of mind. It also includes external peace. A peaceful mind is a mind which is luminous and purified, well ordered, established and concentrated. The mind is the source of knowledge, power, energy and bliss. Power comes from quite ness. The cyclone derives its power from a calm centre from which man derives his latent power. It increases power and develops mental energy and personality. A peaceful mind is so profound and powerful that it can perceive profound truth that is beyond the ordinary or peaceful mind. It possess the capacity to produce rational concepts through processes. If a man with such peaceful mind thinks or speaks, his thought and speech are also profound and powerful. Nibbana is not a thing that can be comprehended by a mundane mind. It is a matter of understanding, not of reasoning or dialectical ability, but of the inner illumination or realization that comes of a spiritual development which transcends the mind from its lowly condition of mundane existence through super mundane wisdom. According to Lord Buddha compassion is the essential nature of man and the other creatures. The word compassion stands for harmony and peace. Compassion (Karuna) is an immortal and universal property belonging to all individuals. They have their own right to bring it out from their deepest mind to utilize it and cultivates it towards all beings in order to establish peace in the world. References : (1) E.Conze, Buddhist thought in India, London 1962, PP 31-32, Thirty years of Buddhist studies, Oxford, 1967, PP (2) Anguttaga 1 : (3) Majjihima 1 : 163, 240. (4) Samyutta. (5) Ninian smart, Doctrine and Argument in Indian Philosophy (London 1964) P.46. (6) Henepola Gunaratha, the path of Serenity and Insight (Delhi-1985), P 18. (7) T.W. Rhysdavids, trans Book of Discipline, Maharagga I, P.6. (8) Warder, Indian Buddhism op. Cit., P.208. (9) Allen, G.F, the Buddhist Philosophy, George Allen and unvin Ltd, London, (10) Bapat, P.V. (ed) years of Buddhism, Govt. of India Publication, New Delhi, Research Link Vol - XI (5) July

3 P hilosophy National, Registered, Recognized & Referred - Journal : Research Link - 100, Vol - XI (5), July , Page No RNI No. MPHIN , ISSN No Philosophy Of Education Of Jiddu Krishnamurti : A Critical Study rs, ut hee the nt re ns se er He all ksa he rti nd on of se nd er ery at nts he he be lly re nt or ing ch y, ar, nd 8) s ng ala wn on n: hi, es, be n, ot ew ay Krishnamurti is quite different from all other educators with regard to leisure and its definition. According to other educators, the leisure is such a time, which can be used according to one's own will. One can do any activity, of arts, literature, or science, according to one's interests, taste for one's entertainments, development, and while in Krishnamurti's opinion, it is a mere escape. If anybody wants to be free from miseries, pains, drudgery, weariness, loneliness and dryness, he should try to understand the self. For this he should meditate, sitting lonely with silence, observing his thoughts, feelings and activities. Thus, he has given a new meaning to the word, 'leisure'. He has not divided the education into pre-primary, primary, secondary, higher secondary and college divisions. In this article, I would like present the view of Jiddu Krishnamurti on education. Let us begin with this saying, life is an education, or the human can be developed by education. Truly, nobody can deny this fact, because the civilization of the world comes from education and educationists. However, although the philosophy of education may be difficult subject because educational activity is worldwide in scope and because the rationales proposed to justify it is so numerous. But the initial steps to frame areas of justification, gathering information about them, and relating them to educational practice have already been taken. Education and philosophy are inseparable matter because the end of education is the end of philosophy wisdom; and the means of philosophy is the means of education inquiry, which alone can lead to wisdom. The artificial separation of philosophy and education inhibits inquiry and frustrates wisdom. However, the study of philosophy does not guarantee that individuals will be better thinkers or educators, but it does provide a valuable base to help us think more clearly. Traditionally, the word philosophy means the pursuit of wisdom. For education is involved with both the world of ideas and the world of practical activity; good ideas can lead to good practices, and good practices can lead to good ideas. In order to behave intelligently in the educational process, the educator needs the things philosophy can provide; that is, an understanding of thinking processes and the nature of ideas, the language we use to describe education, and how these may interact with practical affairs. For the educator, philosophy is not simply a professional tool but a way of improving the quality of life because it helps us gain a wider and deeper perspective on human existence and the world around us. Moreover, theme of this research is devoted to a systematic study of Krishnamurti's viewpoints, on various PHRAMAHA BANCHONG SAMANA aspects, such as, educational equality, ethics, societies, religions and so on. He knows the importance of knowledge in external development as well as its harmful side in internal development. Therefore, he prefers awakening intelligence to giving information as the aim of education. Generally, the psychologists consider intelligence as an inborn quality that cannot be developed. In this context, Krishnamurti differs from other educationists to some extent. He does not want to give any place to any ideology in education as a dividing factor in the world. He opposes to develop the so called qualities of mind such as comparison, competition, justification and imagination which other educators prefer. But he prefers curiosity, enquiry, criticism, sane thinking, alertness, awareness and observation. He is original in thinking. In his opinion not only should the conscious and mind but also unconscious mind be taken into consideration. Krishnamurti differs entirely from other educationists when he rejects the aim of education as the flowering of virtues and good moral character. In spite of this he originally prefers to nourish the quality of love from the very beginning, and sensitivity. In his view, to eliminate the fear from the child is one of the foremost tasks of education. He does not ignore the aim of livelihood, as he is quite aware of the hardships and complexities of the present day life. Krishnamurti opposes to the traditional aim of preparing good citizens. But like Bertrand Russell, he likes to present good man through the education but not good citizen. He adds to the education a new aim of establishing right relationship between man and man, man and animate as well as inanimate world. He does not accept the function of education to conform the student to the present society as he thinks that Ph.D. Research scholar in the Department of Philosophy, University of Madras, Chennai (Tamil Nadu) Research Link Vol - XI (5) July

4 the present day society is corrupt. But from his point of view the aim of education is to create a new society and a new culture based on new values. Some other educators too think that education would bring about some changes in the society. But for Krishnamurti, education is the first and foremost and the last means to bring about total revolution. Like other idealistic educators, according to Krishnamurt, the aim of self realization and self-knowledge through observation is one of the most important aims of education. Krishnamurti's new contribution as an aim of education is to enjoy the beauty of nature. Through it he wants to develop aesthetic sense, the art of observation and sensitivity. His uniqueness of educational aim lies in bringing about a total and integrated human being through education. Krishnamurti gives more importance to an individual than to the society. But he does not ignore society. Besides the development of a total person he too wants to develop the feelings of love, correlation, co operation and unselfishness which are the real bases of an ideal society. Thus his educational aim is individual and broadly social as well. To create an integrated personality Krishnamurti has tried to present an all round theory of curriculum. He prefers the teaching of all subjects in previous years for the children. Along with this, his new contribution is to include the observation of nature and meditation. Krishamurti's concept of 'learning' differs largely from other educationists. Other educators mainly co relate this word with 'modification of behavior' while Krishnamurti means to say, 'to think sanely and clearly without an illusion, imagination or a myth'. Almost all educationists discard physical punishment from the field of education. Krishmaurti not only discards the theory of physical punishment but also he does not believe in cold and insulting punishment such as using harsh words in an insulting manner or some kind of mental torture. He also thinks sweet words as an attempt to make a student work by emotional influence as cunningness which is educationally improper. All educators consider reward, punishment, comparison and competition as motivations to learning. Krishnamurti does not agree with these motivations. He thinks them as hindrances. He prefers natural curiosity, interest, attention, freedom and fearlessness as helping factors. Other educators agree with him on this point. Other educators believe concentration and attention as one, while according to him attention is, 'paying attention to great deal' and concentration is, 'not seeing everything but only one thing'. He has not discussed the external situations and external elements which also influence learning such as seating arrangement, air, light, physical circumstances and other accommodations. But he has discussed deeply the internal elements. Krishnamurti seeks the necessity of religious teaching. But he does not favor any particular creed such as Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Persi and so on. He prefers religion which is, 'an internal state of tranquility of self-knowledge'. He denies dogmas, rites, beliefs, rituals, and rewards of heaven, punishments of hell and all hopes of future life. His religion is not based on any sacred book, church or any imaginary god and goddess. He differs from others with regard to the concept of meditation. To him meditation does not include concentration, introspection and control of thought. His meditation is mere watching of one's own thoughts, feelings and actions with full attention, without any choice. Krishnamurti says life is in relationship to others and hence no isolation can be useful in bringing about religious life. He discards all the traditional old beliefs, methods and ideas about religion and religious education, and thus his thinking is quite original and free. He differs from all the educators so far as the problem of discipline is concerned. His discipline is not concerned with traditional beliefs, for example, rules, regulations, good conduct, character-training, obedience, compulsion, fear, or suppression. His discipline means learning. Where there is freedom to watch, to observe, to think, there is discipline. Thus he presents a new original idea of discipline. He is a great supporter of freedom. He wants freedom not only for a human being but also for every plant, every bird, and every animal to live. His freedom and order ( discipline) are the two sides of one coin. Here he also stands with other educators. He has no faith in teaching through books, though book has necessary for everyone because it is an original knowledge. He thinks that the knowledge gained from books is not based on one's own experiences. He believes in learning by doing but not from books. He is a strong supporter of observation and meditation, helpful in understanding one's own self and that of others and in enjoying the beauty of nature. He does not discuss the techniques of evaluation. He cites the fundamental elements which are necessary for an evaluation. He doesn't expect such an evaluation which creates disappointment, frustration, envy, jealousy, poverty, or any kind of superiority or inferiority complexes. The evaluation should not create competitions or comparisons among the students. Nowadays, examinations have become devil's workshops, where all the evils and vices are brought out. These examinations are based on comparison and competition. Therefore, he strongly opposes examinations which are budding around such evils. But he knows that parents and the teachers are eager to know the progress of their children. Therefore, he says that they should not be given marks. But a record of their progress should be maintained for the information of the teachers and parents, and this will be done by the teacher, himself. He stands with all other educators when he says that 'teaching is the highest profession, if it can at all be called a profession'. He has enumerated some qualities necessary for a good teacher are a burning desire to teach, love, patience, try to understand himself and his students. He should not encourage the feeling of dependence and superiority of inferiority. A teacher should not feel himself superior to the student, but he should stand on equal footing with him. He must have faith in freedom. He must not have authoritarian outlook. Almost all educators agree with all these qualities that are expected of a teacher except equal level of the teacher and the student. Some think that the teacher is an authority so he should be on higher level than that of a student, otherwise, it will be impossible for a teacher to maintain discipline in classroom. He does not discuss a teacher's behavior, dress, speech, habits, language, pronunciations, mastery over the subject, preparation of the subject, knowledge of various methods and techniques, child psychology and so on. He simply talks of inner qualities but not external features. A teacher's function Research Link Vol - XI (5) July

5 is to help a student to learn not this or that subject only but also to understand the whole activity of learning, and to help to be a whole human being. He should help the student to face any kind of fear. It is an absolute responsibility of a teacher for blossoming goodness in a child. Thus, Krishnamurti simply talks of the functions of teachers with regard to inner development of a pupil. He thinks about it deeply. But he does not discuss about the other functions of a teacher which are compulsory for a teacher today, such as excursions, sports, dramas, publication of annual magazines, organizing cultural and literary activities, collecting fees, preparing progress report, keeping records and so on. The concept of Krishnamurti about school is different from that of other educators. Krishnamurti defines school' as it ought to be according to his concept of education, while other educators define school, keeping an ordinary traditional school before their mind. He thinks that a school should have a limited number of the students so a teacher can pay due attention to every student, and there will not arise any problem of indiscipline. Nobody will disagree with this view of Krishnamurti. The headmaster and teacher should work co operatively to make the school policies successful. They should be on equal level. About this point Krishnamurti and other thinkers too agree unanimously. He opposes the aim of education to prepare the children, to conform to the society. He thinks the society is corrupt, and based on wrong values. Here he is quite unlike other educators who recommend the educational aim of passing cultural heritage from one generation to the other. He is quite different from other thinkers on the problem of education with regard to society. He believes education as the biggest social medium for bringing about a revolution. He has not faith in political, economic and collective revolutions. In his opinion to bring change in a human being, the psychological revolution is absolutely necessary which can only be brought about through education. No thinker except Krishnamurti has given so much prominence to education. Only some reforms and social services are considered enough for that purpose by others. This is a unique contribution of Krishnamurti in the field of education and social transformation. Krishnamurti opposes to the government control on education. He also recommends education to be free from the control of religious organization. He throws the responsibility on parents, teachers and educators. As an ideal, his thought seems to be fine. But it is not practicable. In the poor country, where millions of people are extremely poor, unemployment and price rise are the economic cancers. They are not capable of satisfying their primary needs of life. Not only this, they also do not know properly the importance of education. In this terrible situation to throw the burden of education on the heads of the poor masses will not be proper. Krishnamurti is quite different from all other educators with regard to leisure and its definition. According to other educators, the leisure is such a time, which can be used according to one's own will. One can do any activity, of arts, literature, or science, according to one's interests, taste for one's entertainments, development, and while in Krishnamurti's opinion, it is a mere escape. If anybody wants to be free from miseries, pains, drudgery, weariness, loneliness and dryness, he should try to understand the self. For this he should meditate, sitting lonely with silence, observing his thoughts, feelings and activities. Thus, he has given a new meaning to the word, 'leisure'. He has not divided the education into pre-primary, primary, secondary, higher secondary and college divisions. He has talked generally about the whole educational process, not specially about any particular part of that process. He has not expressed any views separately about women's education. Perhaps he does not differentiate between man and woman's problems. He has not made any distinction between any caste, color, creed or sex. He thinks human being as only a human being. He thinks beyond the limitations of space and time. It is seen there that his educational thoughts are international thoughts. In this way, his resembles other educators at some places, differs at other places and is also original in some specific points. His thinking on education is original, deep and serious. He presents many new thoughts to educational field. He is the only thinker, who expresses his original views, on the broad lines of international education. Therefore, indeed, they have many achievements and some limitations. To bring about a new culture, a new society and a new integrated man, through psychological revolution and educational training, this experiment in itself is an achievement. There is a great hope and possibility lying in this novel experiment, to create a new world. The teat of Krishnamurti's thoughts and educational experiments is on wide scale in their feasibility and practicability. References : (1) Conner, O'D.J., An Introduction to the Philosophy of Education, London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, (2) Dewey, John, Democracy and Education, New York: Macmillan Company, (3) , Problems of Men: Introductory note, New York: Philosophical library, (4) , in 'Introductory readings in education, edited by Fredrick Mayer, California : Dickinson Publishing Company, Inc, (5) , The School and Society, Chicago: University of Chicago Press, (6) , How we Think, Chicago: Henry Regnevey, (7) Krishnamurti, J. Education and the Significance of Life, Chennai: Krishnamurti Foundation India, (8) ,The Krishnamurti Reader, Vol. I. Edited by Mary Lutyens, New Delhi : Penguin Books India, (9) ,The Second Krishnamurti Reader, edited by Mary Lutyens, New Delhi: Penguin Books India, (10) , The Awakening of Intelligence, New Delhi: Penguin Books India, (11) ,The Revolution from within, Chennai: Krishnamurti Foundation India, (12) ,Truth and Actuality, Chennai: Krishnamurti Foundation India, (13) ,Total Freedom, Chennai: Krishnamurti Foundation India, (14) ,Krishnamurti's Journal, Chennai: Krishnamurti Foundation India, (15) ,Commentaries on Living, First series, Chennai: Krihnamurti Foundation India, (16) ,Commentaries on Living, Second series, Chennai: Krishnamurti Foundation India, (17) ,Commentaries on Living, Third series, edited by D. Rajagopal, Chennai : Krishnamurti Foundation India, (18) ,The Wholeness of Life, London: St.Edmundsbury Press Ltd., (19) ,The Network of Thought, Chennai: Krishnamurti Foundation India, (20) ,On Relationship, Chennai: Krishnamurti Foundation India, (21) ,On self Knowledge, Chennai: Krishnamurti Foundation India, (22) ,That Benediction is where you are, Chennai: Krishnamurti Foundation India, (23) ,On Fear, Chennai:Krishnamurti Foundation India, (24) ,On Love and Loneliness, Chennai: Krishnamurti Foundation India, (25) ,A Flame of Learning, Chennai: Krishnamurti Foundation India, (26) Lodge, C. Rupert, Philosophy of Education, New York: Harper & Brothers, Research Link Vol - XI (5) July