{"id":5693,"date":"2008-04-26T12:14:05","date_gmt":"2008-04-26T11:14:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/?p=5693"},"modified":"2008-04-26T12:14:05","modified_gmt":"2008-04-26T11:14:05","slug":"road-kill-revelation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/?p=5693","title":{"rendered":"Road Kill Revelation"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Karnamrita dasa<\/strong><\/p>\n

The world we live in speaks to us loudly, boldly, in no uncertain terms, according to our interest or necessity. What we want from life we notice and pursue. Other things we rarely notice due to lack of awareness. Krishna tells us (BG 4.11) that He reciprocates with our approach to Him (whatever we think He is), and He gives us the faith to pursue our conceptions (BG 7\/21). Or as the Bible says: \u201cAsk and it will be given. Seek and ye shall find.\u201d This principle said another way is the reason materialists have no time for spiritual inquiry, and pure devotees no interest in the so-called charms of the world. \u201cWhat is night for all beings is the time of awakening for the self-controlled; and the time of awakening for all beings is night for the introspective sage.\u201d (BG 2\/69)<\/p>\n

Everyone is ultimately, though ignorantly and indirectly, searching for Krishna through their pursuit to become happy. Our desires and attachments define us materially, fueling our material interest and keeping us in the world. Our mind is expert at dangling the proverbial carrot of possible future enjoyment before our nose. What we want is just up ahead. We only have to work a bit harder, and then after we obtain our heart\u2019s desire, there is this other thing which needs to be obtained or accomplished to make our life even better. And so we go birth after birth, in search of the holy grail of fulfillment and lasting happiness.<\/p>\n

As those aspiring to be on the spiritual path, we are recommended to keep death or the temporary nature of \u201clife\u201d always in our mind. Not in morbid or depressed sense, but as an impetus for our spiritual endeavor to achieve the true positive platform of our loving relationship to Krishna. <\/p>\n

Sometimes it is said that \u201cbeauty is only \u2018skin deep\u2019\u201d. One meaning of this expression is that we are attracted to the outward beauty of the body without understanding its’ inner components and that it covers the soul or the true beauty within. When the inside of the body—\u201cblood and guts\u201d—becomes visible, the soul remembers that the person or creature is not their body. <\/p>\n

While driving to and from work, I can\u2019t help but notice the fate of many creatures who meet their end by contacting the march of so-called progress. The modern day \u201cpredators\u2019 called automobiles create \u201croad kill\u201d by the side or in the middle of the road. A squished body is plainly visible for all to see, bright with red blood for emphasis, in various stages of decomposition. In the countryside sometimes they are called even more to my attention by other creatures—the world\u2019s sanitation department—like vultures or crows who have been given the assignment by Krishna to consume dead bodies. <\/p>\n

People become \u201cshocked and awed\u201d by this naked form of matter, especially if a most dear relative is seen in parts after a ghastly accident. In our society when the mechanical arrangements of the body are on bloody display, traumatized people often need some kind of counseling to deal with this stark reality usually hidden from our sight (interest). Of course the real philosophy to help people deal with death and dying\u2014and the realization of the ugliness of the components of the body separated from the soul–is contained in Bhagavad-gita and other Vedic texts. <\/p>\n

Unfortunately, other than with devotee therapists, they are not used in most counseling offices. If they are consulted, people can use this knowledge to see the body for what it is—a temporary covering for the eternal soul. Then they will have a different relationship with \u201croad kill\u201d. They and we can come to see it as a positive demonstration that we are all, \u201cnot our body\u201d. Along with saying \u201cyuk\u201d and feeling sorry for this poor creature\u2019s untimely death, we can be inspired that Krishna has so kindly and graphically demonstrated that the soul is what is attractive in the body. <\/p>\n

The body when the soul leaves is just material elements that decompose, and become physically disgusting. Material bodies and things are \u201chere today, and gone tomorrow\u201d, while the soul is eternal, and what is really valuable. For the devotees, Krishna kindly teaches us this basic fact in our everyday life. There are many reminders which are plainly visible, but only properly understood to those on a spiritual path. (BG 15\/10-11)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\"HareBy Karnamrita dasa<\/strong><\/p>\n

The world we live in speaks to us loudly, boldly, in no uncertain terms, according to our interest or necessity. What we want from life we notice and pursue. Other things we rarely notice due to lack of awareness. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,92],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5693","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-articles","category-karnamrita-dasa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5693","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5693"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5693\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5693"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5693"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5693"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}