Sample Copy. Not For Distribution. · be happy- Be yourself Be simple Be in present Be positive Be free There might be several ways to develop those characteristics. I chose the path

Sample Copy. Not For Distribution.

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Married Monk


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Married Monk Secret of Living a Happy Life

(Balance your life, be a Married Monk)

2nd Edition

Pradeep B. Muzoomdar

Author’s email- [email protected]

EDUCREATION PUBLISHING (Since 2011)

www.educreation.in


mailto:[email protected]

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Dedicated to Sri Ma Sarada Devi

“If you want peace of mind, do not find fault with others. Rather see your own faults. Learn to make the whole world your own. No one is a stranger, my child; the whole world is your own.” - Sri Sarada Devi

I am dedicating this book to Holy Mother, Sri Sarada Devi, the Divine Consort and Spiritual Companion of 19th century Avatar, Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa. - Pradeep B. Muzoomdar


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Contents

Chapter 1 ............................................................................... 1

Why you should read this book? ................................... 1

Chapter 2 ............................................................................... 5

Who is a Married Monk? .................................................. 5

Chapter 3 ............................................................................... 8

Be yourself............................................................................. 8

The Creation .............................................................................8 Creation – Real or just a thought? ............................................................ 9 Maya, the illusion ........................................ Error! Bookmark not defined. Temporary escape from Maya ..................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Brahman ..................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Consciousness ............................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Atheist ........................................................ Error! Bookmark not defined.

Who are you? ................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Your body and you are not same ................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Your body- ‘Koshas’, the sheaths ................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Your true nature.......................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Story: Sheep lion ............................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Your true nature is the nature of God ......... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Karma Theory ................................ Error! Bookmark not defined. ‘Doing’ and ‘Happening’ .............................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Types of Karma ........................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Right, Wrong, Good, and Bad ...................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Importance of Karma .................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Motivation for performing right Karma ....... Error! Bookmark not defined. Free Will ...................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Source of your thoughts .............................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Is the law of karma applicable to human beings alone? ... Error! Bookmark not defined. What is the importance of Karma? .............. Error! Bookmark not defined. What’s your duty towards a, ‘wrong’ doer?. Error! Bookmark not defined.

Story: Son biting mother‟s ear ....... Error! Bookmark not defined.


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To what extent should a wrong doer change? ........... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Story: Snake and Saint ................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Inaction ....................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Intention behind karma ............................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Summary – be yourself ................................ Error! Bookmark not defined.

Be yourself – the practice ........... Error! Bookmark not defined. Before bedtime – revisit, ‘be yourself’ ......... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Chapter 4 .................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Be simple..................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Story: King Janaka, the knower of God .... Error! Bookmark not defined.

When will the craving subside? ................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Joy of living a simple life .............................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Where is God?............................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.

Story: Ten naïve men ....................... Error! Bookmark not defined. God has no gender ...................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Spirituality ................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Materialism and Spiritualism ....................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Religion and Spirituality............................... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Story: God is everywhere ................ Error! Bookmark not defined. Spirituality begins where Religion ends ....... Error! Bookmark not defined. Rituals ......................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Secret of holy water .................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Advaita, Non-dualism .................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Science of Advaita ....................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Story: Jesus and stone pelting mob .......... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Manifestation.............................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Summary – be simple .................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.

Be Simple – the practice ............. Error! Bookmark not defined. Before bedtime – revisit, ‘be simple’ ........... Error! Bookmark not defined.


Be in present.............................. Error! Bookmark not defined.

Let Go the Past .............................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Why do people argue? ................................ Error! Bookmark not defined.


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Perception................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Story: Five blind men and elephant ........... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Disagreeing ................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Story: Frog of well ............................. Error! Bookmark not defined.

Discussion V/s Argument ............................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Difference of opinion .................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. There is no end to renouncing ..................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Beliefs ......................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Why do you believe in what you believe?.... Error! Bookmark not defined. Summary – be in present ............................ Error! Bookmark not defined.

Be in present – the practice ....... Error! Bookmark not defined. Two beautiful proverbs ............................... Error! Bookmark not defined. How should you react? ................................ Error! Bookmark not defined.

Story: Crow, fish, and vultures ..... Error! Bookmark not defined. Before bedtime – revisit, ‘be in present’...... Error! Bookmark not defined.


Be positive .................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Different types of Gurus .............................. Error! Bookmark not defined. God can be best defined by silence ............. Error! Bookmark not defined.

Story: God cannot be described .... Error! Bookmark not defined. Seeker ......................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Seeker and non-dualism .............................. Error! Bookmark not defined.

Story: Heaven and Hell .................... Error! Bookmark not defined. A Seeker should avoid craving ..................... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Story: Craving for ecstasy ............... Error! Bookmark not defined. Guru seeks disciples .................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Guru and disciple relationship ..................... Error! Bookmark not defined. What is wrong with many gurus? ................ Error! Bookmark not defined.

Story: Guru has no wants .............. Error! Bookmark not defined. Story: Everything happens for good ........... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Guru-disciple relationship is sacred and secret .......... Error! Bookmark not defined. ‘Guru’ is not a marketing product ................ Error! Bookmark not defined. Christianity V/s Yoga ................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Aggressive guru V/s passive guru ................ Error! Bookmark not defined. Guru has power, not everybody? ................ Error! Bookmark not defined.


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Story: Buddha and a dead child‟s mother Error! Bookmark not defined.

Transmitting Shakti ..................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Story: Beggar‟s Treasure ................. Error! Bookmark not defined.

Seekers hardly question .............................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Story: Beggar king ............................ Error! Bookmark not defined.

Is only one side, ‘right’ and other side, ‘wrong’?........ Error! Bookmark not defined. Putting yourself in other person’s shoes...... Error! Bookmark not defined. What is an Upanishad? ................................ Error! Bookmark not defined. Not in letters, but in spirit ........................... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Story: Two monks and a woman .. Error! Bookmark not defined. Will power................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Use your Will power to make life more meaningful ... Error! Bookmark not defined. Summary – be positive ................................ Error! Bookmark not defined.

Be positive – the practice ........... Error! Bookmark not defined. Applying scriptures in daily life .................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Can you apply scriptures to daily life? ......... Error! Bookmark not defined. Say, ‘Done’ .................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Hope the best but prepare for the worst ..... Error! Bookmark not defined. Before bedtime – revisit, ‘be positive’ ......... Error! Bookmark not defined.


Be free .......................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. A Splinter called Ego .................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Pranayama .................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Bandha ........................................................ Error! Bookmark not defined. Dosha .......................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Guna ........................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Meditation ....................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Practicing meditation .................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Chakra ......................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Sitting meditation and Living meditation ..... Error! Bookmark not defined. Is the meditator following the process correctly? ...... Error! Bookmark not defined. Is our meditation giving its effect? .............. Error! Bookmark not defined. Why bad things happen to good people? .... Error! Bookmark not defined. Kundalini ..................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.


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Meditating on Heart V/s Crown of head Chakra? ...... Error! Bookmark not defined. Samadhi, Non-duality, and Trance states .... Error! Bookmark not defined. Mantras ...................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. How powerful are mantras and vows? ........ Error! Bookmark not defined.

Story: Faith in Mantra ..................... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Self-realization ............................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Is Self-realization difficult? .......................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Enlightenment and non-duality ................... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Story: Angry sage who burned a bird ........ Error! Bookmark not defined.

Raja Yoga ......................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Summary – be free ...................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Be free – the practice ................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Maintaining peaceful relationship ............... Error! Bookmark not defined. Take away your options .............................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Before bedtime – revisit, ‘be free’ ............... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Your Spiritual Journey ................ Error! Bookmark not defined.

What is Happiness? ...................... Error! Bookmark not defined.

The Secret Key to Happiness .... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Married Monk Club ....................... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Stories .............................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.

The beginning ................................ Error! Bookmark not defined.


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Married Monk 1 Pradeep B. Muzoomdar

Chapter 1

Why you should read this book?

Perpetual happiness is all that everybody desires; and you are no exception. Now the secret is that that you already have that happiness, but you are not aware of it. Vedanta is a millenniums old philosophy. The Sanskrit name, „Vedanta‟ is a combination of two words, „Veda‟, and „anta‟; where Veda means knowledge and anta means end. Thus, the literal meaning of Vedanta is, „end part of knowledge‟, or in other words, „acquiring all the knowledge that anybody would ever need.‟ It is impossible to have such a deep knowledge and yet not to be happy in life!!! You just need to constantly experience five characteristics to be happy- Be yourself Be simple Be in present Be positive Be free There might be several ways to develop those characteristics. I chose the path of studying and practicing Vedanta philosophy. If being yourself, being simple, being in the present moment, being positive, and being free look so easy to understand; then why is it so difficult to practice them? The answer is knowledge.

If being yourself, being simple, being in the present moment, being positive, and being free look so easy



to understand; then why is it so difficult to practice them? The answer is knowledge.

A 50 year old car can be made to run smoothly again if whatever is broken is fixed, which means if it is brought back to its original nature. Similarly, every human being‟s original nature is divine. But, over the years, a person accumulates a lot of negativities, such as negative knowledge and negative experiences, which become the cause of his unhappiness. When knowledge of his original nature is restored in him; he can live a happy life thereafter. I, the author of this book, have used the Vedanta Philosophy to remind you of your true nature. I have pulled out enough concepts from the said philosophy, which will reintroduce you to your original nature; and when you put that knowledge in use in your daily life; you will find eternal happiness. All that you need for living a happy life is, knowing that you are such a blessed soul; that nobody and no circumstance can make you unhappy. There are two reasons that are stopping you from being happy; and they are; firstly, lack of knowledge of your true self; and secondly, all the misconception about the reality. One lifetime is not enough to understand Vedanta philosophy completely. But, in this book, Married Monk, I have put together all the wisdom that I acquired in the last 3 decades of my study of the said philosophy. I have named a chapter on each of the five characteristic needs; and put some Vedanta knowledge in every chapter. The knowledge put in any chapter may not be directly relevant to the characteristics after which the chapter is named. Overall the purpose of the book is to acquaint you with enough knowledge of Vedanta that would enable you to master the five characteristics; which in turn will result in a happy living.



I repeat, the Vedanta knowledge you will find in each chapter might not relate directly with the name of the chapter. However, by putting in practice the sum total of all the Vedanta knowledge given in this book, you will be able to live the five characteristics mentioned in this book; and that will guarantee you a forever happy life.

Changing oneself is not easy, and I honestly admit that it took me 3 decades to switch from the, „pseudo self‟ to, „real self‟. I have summarized my learning from hundreds of books and other study materials, spiritual retreats, and meditations into this small book for your benefit; so that you don‟t have to spend 3 decades to find permanent happiness. A cave may be dark for ten thousand years. But, to light it up it just takes one second; just strike a matchstick. Similarly, you might have lived as the, „pseudo you‟ for several lives; but, it would be just that one second in your life, when your, „pseudo you‟ changes into, „real you‟. I hope this book does the work of striking the matchstick, and bringing the light in which you find your, „real you‟. Once you start living your true nature, the other four steps become easy- living simple, living in the present, living positive, and living free. That is living HAPPY!!!

“If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.” ― Mother Teresa


http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/838305.Mother_Teresa

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/838305.Mother_Teresa


How you should read this book?

It is imperative that I tell you how you should read this book. And, please do not proceed with reading any further, until you read this page. This book is written on Vedanta philosophy. Vedanta is millenniums old philosophy, which is the foundation of spirituality of the East. Vedanta, in its original form, is very difficult to comprehend. But, this book is written in a very simple way for everybody to understand. While most books on Vedanta philosophy sounds like formal discourses by spiritual gurus; this book is more like informal talks by a Vedanta teacher. As you read this book, assume you are participating in an informal Vedanta discussion to learn about happy living. While reading this book, if any portion becomes too theoretical then skip a page or two. In this book I shared bits and pieces of Vedanta wisdom, scattered in various chapters. Topics of the wisdom might not seem very relevant to respective chapter; but, the aim is to get you accustomed with the knowledge, which indirectly will broaden your ability to accept people and circumstances as is. Have you seen any movie in which two or three stories run parallel; with no connection between them; but at the end they all tie up? It‟s same with this book. Vedanta knowledge provided in each chapter might look unrelated to the chapter. However, at the end, everything will tie up. This one little book contains every aspect of Vedanta that you would need to master the characteristics for living a Happy Life!!!



Chapter 2

Who is a Married Monk?

You are a Married Monk. If not already, you could become one. In fact, you should become a Married Monk to enjoy life full of happiness!!! During olden days, particularly in the East, men were categorized into two types– Monk and Householder (or any worldly person for the purpose of this book). A monk is a man who detached himself from all his relatives and friends; gave up his family and home and either sheltered in a monastery, or chose a life of wandering seeker. A Householder on the other hand is a man who has a family to support; he has the responsibility of taking care of necessities and comfort of his dependents for which he has to have a home and source of income. During kings‟ times many kings were curious of finding out which one between a monk and a householder was superior. Is a monk‟s life more difficult than a householder‟s, or is it the other way around? World has come a long way since those kings‟ days and we are in 21st century now. Many young, hale, and hearty men wouldn‟t like to give up the worldly life and confine themselves to monastic lives. At the same time it doesn‟t make much sense the way today a householder lives a, „rat race‟ life, always buried in work and tension, which turns into his frustration, which ultimately gets out on his loved ones. That‟s where the need arose where a man has to be a householder as well as a monk at the same time, a married monk.



That‟s where the need arose where a man has to be a householder as well as a monk at the same time, a married monk.

A person may have both the qualities of a householder as well as a monk. He may continue to take the responsibilities of himself, his family, his society, and the world. And even while he does that he should be able to keep a tender attitude of a knowledgeable, soft spoken, cool tempered monk. Such a peaceful and happy person is a married monk! Here I would like to emphasize that, for the purpose of this book, the term; „married‟ doesn‟t refer to marriage of two people but rather marriage of a person with the world, or worldliness. Thus a, „married monk‟ is any individual, whether married, or not, but who lives the life of a worldly person and monk at the same time, in spirit and not in letters. Further, the definition of, „Married monk‟ extends to every person, irrespective of one‟s gender, age, and so on. So, to summarize, a, „Married monk‟ is every single individual on this planet, who is married to the worldliness, even if that‟s in a very small way. In a nutshell; this book is for everyone, and the only intention of this book is to help people learn the secret of happy living; by learning the truth about one‟s own true nature; and how to practically experience it.

Every individual, who doesn‟t want to live a monastic life in a monastery, yet want to live a happy, peaceful, and tranquil life should become a married monk. And, this book politely claims to make that happen for you.



This could be a little bit of repetition, but I would still like to state- While one life could be a short time to read everything Vedanta has to offer, I have tried to summarize, in this one little book, all that I have read and experienced in the last 3 decades of my Vedanta journey. It is with the help of this knowledge, I believe, any person can live a happy life, irrespective of the fact whether he is a monk, or householder, or anybody else. But before that I wish to make it very clear that the intention of this book is not to thrust Vedanta knowledge on the readers, and much less even to focus on, „God‟ as such. The overall idea of the book is good for even an atheist.

Though the word, „God‟ appears couple of hundred times in this book, the book is good even for an atheist. An atheist will vouch for that after reading. In fact, an atheist might not even call oneself an atheist after reading this book.

Punchline of the book

“Balance your life, be a Married Monk”

“Both attachment and detachment perfectly developed make a

man great and happy” – Swami Vivekananda. A monk stays detached from worldliness; like personal relationships, possessions, name, and fame. A worldly person is completely opposite of a monk; very much attached to all that worldliness. The book claims to teach you to balance your life between complete detachment and attachment; and thus live a Happy Life!!!



Chapter 3

Be yourself

“Every soul is potentially divine”

- Swami Vivekananda First and foremost reason of your unhappiness is your lack of knowledge about who you truly are. For that you need to understand the truth about your creator and His creation, of which you are the most important part.

The Creation

In the beginning, before any creation, there was, „something‟, which was always there and will always be there. Science calls that, „something‟, ENERGY, or Atom; Spirituality calls that, „something‟, GOD, or Atman (pronounced, „atma‟). And, hence both Science and Spirituality say the same thing, “Energy, or God can neither be created nor destroyed, it can only be transformed”. According to science everything is, „energy‟ in one form or another. According to spirituality everything is, „God‟ in one form or another. Thus far science has explored a tiny portion of the vast power of, „energy‟, and named those as Mechanical energy, Electromagnetic energy, Electrical energy, Chemical energy, Thermal energy, etc. The unexplored portion still continues to be referred to as, „Primordial Energy‟, or, „Divine Energy‟, or, „GOD‟. Whatever word you use, „Energy, or Shakti‟, „Brahman, or Shiva‟, „God‟, „Allah‟, „Tathagata‟, etc. it doesn‟t matter we refer to that Energy, or Consciousness which is beginning-less and endless.



Whether you believe in the Big Bang theory of creation, or any

other theory; the bottom line is you believe in the existence of

this universe that you live in.

Vedanta says, „There is no creation‟. This universe and

everything in it is made in the thoughts of God.

Vedanta says, „There is no creation‟. This universe and everything in it are made in the thoughts of God.

Creation – Real or just a thought?

How long did it take God to create the universe? Some scriptures say, „Seven days‟. Some others say, „Just one day‟, and yet another says, „Just a blink of an eye‟. In Hindu religion Brahma is the Creator God. Every time Brahma opens his eyes a universe is created, and when he closes his eyes the entire universe dissolves. Again Brahma opens his eyes, a universe is created, and it dissolves when He closes his eyes. And thus the universe is created and dissolved in one blink of God‟s eyes. Spirituality is a subject of, „beliefs‟. Whether universe was created in seven days, one day, or blink of God‟s eyes is not material. One can believe in whatever he is comfortable with. Nobody‟s belief would change the reality. One such belief is, „Universe was never created and thus, the universe doesn‟t exist at all‟. Sounds weird? Well, Vedanta teachers have explained it too well. I can try to describe that as follows- The universe exists only in the, „Thoughts‟ of God.



Scriptures say, “God said, „let there be light‟, and there was light”. Scriptures don‟t say, “God said, „let there be light‟, and then God created light”.

Scriptures say, “God said, „let there be light‟, and there was light”. Scriptures don‟t say, “God said, „let there be light‟, and then God created light”.

The power of God is so great that without Him creating anything this creation came into existence. The above statement can be explained in many ways such as by using the example of a dreamer or a moviemaker. A Dreamer: In our dreams we see an unknown person, house, or car. While dreaming we take those as real and experience them as real. When we wake up we realize that to be a mere dream and not real. Now, the question is, to make us experience the person, house, or car did God create them? Obviously not! Even without creating that particular person, house, or car God can make us experience them in our dreams by His power of making people experience things in dreams. If the same concept were extrapolated then one would understand that by the power of Maya (Illusion) God could make people experience this universe without actually create it. To summarize – God makes people (in dreaming state) experience things in dreams without actually creating those dream objects. Similarly, God makes people (in waking state); experience this universe without actually creating the universe.



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Sample Copy. Not For Distribution. · be happy- Be yourself Be simple Be in present Be positive Be free There might be several ways to develop those characteristics. I chose the path