What is Satsang?

One of the definitions of Satsang-(the Sanskrit word sat=true, sanga=company) is to be in company with an assembly of persons who listen to, talk about and assimilate the truth. The experiences with mass observations and prayers in different settings  by followers of  different spiritual traditions made me reflect on these processes.

HOLY SPACES..prayers

Right from school (studied in a convent St.Vincent’s High School, Pune where there used to be moral science classes and a chapel where Catholics used to do confessions), to the Mass observations of the expatriate community of San Francisco Church of Dahra Tripoli where I went last Friday-(2/12/2011) the first holiday after coming back from a journey which made me revisit, reconnect and observe some traditions of Satsang-I have observed the different cultural mythology found in religious practices and its differences with spirituality.

Arch of Marcus Aurelius-Tripoli.                                                                              Discussing the nuances and differences between Stoicism, Cynicism,
Pragmatism and the connections with modern thought trends like
Existentialism, Anarchism.
Friday musings of Tripoli Reading group

Is Satsang the same as Communion practiced by Christians?

What are the differences, what are the similarities?

An Atheist debates on the banks of Alaknanda

https://prashantbhatt.wordpress.com/2011/10/18/walks-by-alaknanda/

Bilu-Kedar Temple-Near Kirti Nagar-Pauri Garhwal

Met the same priest who had said prayers for my father. Now we did the same rituals for my mother. One of my cousins is a proclaimed Atheist.

“When life  teaches and tests, the biggest Atheists become theists” the father of the rational wave 16 year old told with quiet confidence.

Billu-Kedar Temple:Pauri Garhwal- The priest here knows three generations of our family. One of our family members -a young 16 year rationalist challenges these rituals. I quickly revised some definitions of Theism with him

I quickly went through the definitions of Theism, Deism, Pantheism, Atheism with the teenager to equip him better for the debates which he finds himself in, especially in what is called-Devbhoomi-Uttaranchal

Meerut-The Gita reading groups

Had a reunion with an old friend at Meerut. We met Shri D.M.Sinha, the inspiration behind the Gita reading groups. Born in Bijnor in May, 1922, he began his association with Rehana Tayyabji in 1967, and later with  Hanuman Prasad Poddar,Editor –“Kalyan” and other spiritual practitioners of Shivananda Ashram, Rishikesh which helped him develop on the spiritual path.

Gita Discussions- Meerut: Waiting for old age to read the Gita is as ridiculous as studying Engineering after spending a lifetime building faulty bridges

Sri Aurobindo Ashram –Delhi

Meditated with some practitioners of Sri Aurobindo ashram

Remembering Mirra Alfassa-who is widely known as “The Mother”

https://prashantbhatt.wordpress.com/2009/02/21/mirra-alfassa/

These all fall into the realm of Neurolinguistic Programming.(NLP) which  is defined in the Oxford English Dictionary as “a model of interpersonal communication chiefly concerned with the relationship between successful patterns of behaviour and the subjective experiences (esp. patterns of thought) underlying them” and “a system of alternative therapy based on this which seeks to educate people in self-awareness and effective communication, and to change their patterns of mental and emotional behaviour”

Meditation Hall-Sri Aurobindo Ashram Delhi-Interesting discussions -discourses on the different manifestations of the Mother-Mahakali, Mahalaxmi, Mahasaraswati, Maheshwari

Evening  winter tea- Reconnecting with some old themes

A Poem by the Ganga-Rishikesh:                                                                                        Is poetry just for pleasure or a source of moral instruction.
Aristotle used to believe that Poetry is a greater moral
instructor than history as poetry deals with the universal, while history deals with the particular

Remembering Bijender

https://prashantbhatt.wordpress.com/2009/02/24/remembering-bijender/

If Satsang is to be  company with an assembly of persons who listen to, talk about and assimilate the truth, I recalled an old friend, with whom I used to have tea on foggy winter evenings.

We shared some truths.