Eternity: Two years on and its sinking in.

Its two years today from the day my mother passed away, gone to be with her beloved mother, father brothers and dear sister. She was the last member of the family unit, (her parents and siblings) that walked the Earth.

As Hindus and Sikhs, we believe in reincarnation. Some say that the souls return to be near their dear ones, and this also facilitates the fulfillment of Karma. So I suppose I believe in reincarnation, being raised in a Sikh household that also followed the Hindu traditions. However, I am not very clear on it, and cannot fathom it reasonably, having has no intimate experience with it.

October 16, in 2015 was on a Friday. It was the 289th day of the year. It was also the Fourth day of the important and prominent Hindu Festival of Navrartri. She observed it religiously. I was not with her that year, and have no idea what she did or did not do that day. She had become quite frail and towards the last of her days she looked quite emaciated. It seems her breathing and pulse both became slow, till she finally breathed her last at some point that evening.

I was in Brussels and could not make it in time for the cremation. To be honest, I could not imagine her being dead, let alone being cremated. It was hard for me to comprehend this loss, even though she was 92, and I should have been prepared for it. My children offered to come with me, but I was very resistant. I could not go and see her empty room. It was a very hard thing for me to accept, because for all practical purposes, I became an orphan that day.

There is nothing remarkable, special or unique in my experience of her passing. People die every day, and someday we all will die. Yet, why is this event hard on us? Why does an adult have denial or other issues with the passing of a parent?  Yet, when they are living, we take them for granted. We forget that the next breath in any life is not guaranteed, that death is the one certainty that is promised, with every life that comes on Earth.

So, here it is. Two years on, I am feeling the grief come on now. I feel her loss, its an eternal loss. What is Eternal? Eternity is where our life ends, and we foolishly think its something for ever. As if we will never die. There is no forever. Missing my mother, the grief, are all part of the journey. As is the momentous joys we had together. I am what she helped me become. A part of her lives in me, a huge part of me is made up of her, by her. Her nurturing ensures she survives in memory. Mine, and all those who loved her, and perhaps many of those she loved. That I suppose is Eternity. When we love, and are in return loved, we create our Eternity.

October 16, 2017.
Copyright Veenu Banga.

The Great Eclipse of 21st August 2017.

The Great Eclipse of August 21, 2017.

When I was growing up in India, I remember the Eclipse was a revered happening. My grandmother covered all the windows in the house, and we stayed indoors as far as possible. I think the day was spent in prayer and loads of charitable giving. In fact, people came shouting in the streets, asking for some, which were freely given, along with rice, lentils, fruits and sometimes offerings even of milk.

In the USA, it's a rage and people are planning to drive a long time, and trips to watch the Great Eclipse have been organized months earlier. The price of Special glasses has gone up 600%, if they add even available retail. Fakes too are now being sold, and authorities advise against buying from unscrupulous sellers.

What do the other cultures feel about the Eclipse?

I think if we watch the Eclipse from a place of humility, and reverence, it can be a Spiritual experience. If during totality as some articles say, you can see the planets, it will be a breathtaking and humbling sight.

We forget that we are sharing this planet with others older and more powerful than ourselves. Even many, many trees are older than us, and will be here still after we are gone. Besides the mountains, the rivers, the oceans, and all life that is sustained within them- the marine life, and plant life and wildlife, etc. There's also the Stars and the planets in the sky, part of Creation, and we who are but barely a Speck of a speck in this Grand design, forget that and desire to control the world, succumbing to pettiness of class, creed and color and the like.

Maybe to use this time, to look inside, unite, be humble, and above be grateful that we were given the opportunity walked this beautiful Earth, where before us tread the greats, including the Son of God, and the many Masters and Saints.

Now the Great Eclipse is come and gone, and life goes on. Many astrological predictions were made, and also many made resolutions for a new start. Lets see, how the dice rolls going forward, where we roll with it, or where we take our selves with our own determination. Or will we succumb to the wonders of the next big event, or the next political news? While all that is magnificent and mighty, stands mute, tall and eternal, we human lose ourselves in our own egoistic chatter.  

Veenu Banga
21st August 2017. 10:14 pm.

Does God pay attention to your Elocution?


Written on February 28, 2016, rediscovered today.


On a recent Facebook post it was suggested that pronunciation of Prayers and Mantras is very important. This was in response to someone who translates Sanskrit and Hindi texts into English. I was moved to write this response.


What are your feelings about my arguments? Open to criticism. Here it is:


"The Lord knows all the languages, especially the language of the heart. Surely he will forgive someone who does not know Sanskrit or cannot read Hindi very well, to mispronounce or to communicate with Him in English.


Having said that, as a lifelong student of the spiritual life, I do understand that Sound is the beginning, the Origin as it were of life as we know it. Sound carries with it vibrations, and even different vibrations have their own sound, that even silence has sound, so the point about pronunciation is important, because pronunciation is essentially Sound.


Furthermore, may I humbly add that the pronunciation and even the words of certain mantras have been altered in various parts of the world, as different regions influence speech.


As an example, Om Mani Padme Hum, which is a popular Buddhist chant, is in my understanding derived from Sanskrit, because the religious branch of Buddhism itself is born of Hinduism. This same chant is taught as Om Mani Beme Hum in some Chinese monasteries.


While correct pronunciation does have a very important place in Prayer and chanting, Understanding of the prayer, or its message is also equally vital, because then communication with the Divine comes from the heart.


In that kind of heartfelt and loving communication with the Divine, nothing is impure, imperfect or contaminated. The act of Shabri offering her bitten into, (pre tasted for sweetness) fruits to Lord Rama comes to mind.


The Lord is all forgiving. Even with ignorance and imperfect speech, we can grow if we are striving to change, to evolve to a higher level. Like Valmiki, who was a dacoit, (until his meeting with the sage Narad muni) and was later credited with writing the Ramayana.


The Lord is all forgiving, it is us humans, including some staunch devotees who are unable to find forgiveness in our hearts.


Prayers and mantras written by the greats such as Adi Sankaracharya, and so many others who preceded and followed him, carry the vibrations of not just the words they wrote, but also the Energy and Vibrations of their devotion. Yet, the very same prayer can answer different requests from different devotees, keeping the integrity of the prayer intact, while expanding its scope. Even abundance and riches have different forms, so the same prayer of abundance can manifest differently.


When the works of these ancient greats and Enlightened Masters are translated into English, they reach a wider audience, penetrating the consciousness of a larger humanity.


The Purpose and the message of these Prayers and Masters is better served by translation into a widely understood language such as English.


Even in the originating motherland of these Slokas, India with its hundreds of dialects and several regional languages, it is English that is the uniting language of the country.


Therefore better mispronounced, than missing out on the living treasures that is in the messages and wisdom of the Indian scriptures, prayers, mantras and Bhajans."


Veenu Banga 28 February 2016.