Vamsi’s Tabloid

There are some people in Hinduism, like Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupaada of ISKON temple, who believe that Lord Krishna is himself the Almighty. And Lord Krishna himself says in the Bhagawat Gita, that he is the Lord Almighty, the Creator, Sustainer and Destroyer. So, I believe that Lord Krishna is the “Supreme Personality of Godhead”.

What is a Soul?

I am just wondering how I should explain what a “Soul” is. In religion it is commonly used interchangeably with the word “Spirit”.

To start with, I can tell how it looks like. In some of the famous Mythological Films on Indian Languages, one sees “A Small Amber of Fire” suddenly emanating from a person who just dies, and travels up into the sky. I can call that as a “Soul”. Or shall I call those characters which look like “Bhetaal” without legs, when he flies in the sky in the famous Indian Television series “Vikram Bhetaal”, which is a collection of wonderful stories, and provides the viewers with lots of gems of Wisdom.

I frankly cannot describe how a “soul” looks like. It’s because I have not seen it!
But, I can help the readers of this blogpost to feel and know what a soul is like.

Understanding a Soul

We will take your own self as an example. I am taking this example of your own self, because in Bhagawat Gita it’s written that each Living Being is a soul in a physical body.

Now, I am prescribing an experiment to you. Just wake up in the morning and have a tea or coffee. Don’t have tiffin and any food till say 2.30 pm in the afternoon. You can have water during this period if you wish. Now, at 2.30 pm, go to your dining table, take some 3 chapattis and Rajma from the casserole and put in your plate. Just tear the first chapatti into a small portion, and eat it with some Rajma. Again help yourself with some more of the first Chapatti and Rajma. When you have eaten the first Chapatti, then wait and feel the sudden changes in your body.

Suddenly your whole body responds to the Chapatti you have just eaten. Of course, this intake of food after a long while will definitely have some impact on the body’s metabolism, as some doctors say. But, you have to look for that part of the whole experience, wherein you feel sudden energy within your body, a very pleasant feeling wherein your eyes feel completely at ease; your body is just feeling very much at ease. You are in high ecstasy. You feel complete bliss.

This wonderful condition of your body after eating just one chapatti is what I call a full manifestation of a “Soul”. When the food is taken after the long gap, the soul gets appeased first.

Next as you go on eating more chapattis, then suddenly you realize that the stomach becomes very heavy. Of course, the stomach is heavy because you have eaten lots and lots of chapattis! But, as you move on from the first chapatti to the next, the “bliss” you experience, that is your soul, is no longer there. Your physical body takes over from the soul as the body metabolism increases tremendously.

This is just a simple example of how to explain and feel a soul within you!

Fasting Rituals in Hinduism and Islam

In Hinduism, there are many rituals wherein these rituals prescribe the devotees not to eat anything for some set period of time. Particularly, during the Shiv Ratri. And in Islam too, we have the practice of fasting during the holy month of Ramzan.

There are some people who say that all those rituals are of no use. Why should people go on fasting, when there is no need for that? Will god not like those people who don’t follow those rituals and fast? Will god get very angry with those who don’t follow those rituals according to the scriptures?

I would say, god loves each and every soul. And god becomes very unhappy when his beloved children or “souls” just fast, not eating anything for a long stretch of time. It is utterly wrong to think that god will become happy when one fasts. In fact, god has given all the means to his children to enjoy the food that is coming from god himself!

And at the same time, I would not say that all these rituals in both Hinduism and Islam are wrong. It’s because I am no person to question the beliefs of the people following these two wonderful religions. All I would say is that, these rituals just help us to understand, experience and realize that we are not this physical body but “souls”. That is the only purpose why these rituals are being created in the first place and that is the whole purpose why these rituals still stand.

But, on a personal note, my advice to all people would be not to miss even a single session of meals, either as Tiffin, Lunch or Dinner.

Its because of unless the body is in good shape and the brain is working properly, the soul cannot be appeased. If body does not get proper food, then the brain will not work properly, the body will get impoverished, and we as individuals cannot be at ease.

Always remember, that “Food is Prah Brahma”.