meditations.

Brahmajnana must conform to the nature of Brahman.
It is not possible to know the whole of Brahman for it is beyond any man's capacity at best one can relate partially to one or some of his nature that to in similarity only. Four types of meditation through which one can relate to brahmajnana.
Sampad upasana: This is an imaginary identification between two dissimilar objects with some similar attributes for eg. mind has endless modifications and the visvedevas are innumerable on the basis of this resembalance the mind is contemplated upon as the visvedevas the result the upasaka meditator attains infinite worlds.
In ancient India meditation was a subject of deep study, research and experiment. The followers of the Samkhya philosophy developed it into an independent science of mental life. When properly concentrated on an object, the mind undergoes certain changes. These changes are the same for a particular degree of concentration whatever be the object chosen. In other words, concentration follows certain universal laws. These laws were discovered by the great yogis of ancient India.
Brahmajnana involves sampad upasana because of the similarity of consciousness brahman is merely imagined in the Jiva.
Adhyasa Upasana: the mind is brahman. the alambana is accorded on the jiva and is contemplated as brahman.
Kriyayoga upasana: the meditation is based on some mode of activity. here the two factors are different but are contemplated as one owing to the similarity of action. 
Vayu is the great absorber at the time of cosmic dissolution, similarly at the time of sleep all organs of the individual are said to merge in the vital air (prana.) Because of this resemblance in activity prana is contemplated as vayu. similarly jiva is contemplated as brahman because of their causing to grow.
Samskara upasana.  In this upamsu sacrifice there is an injunction. that the sacrificer's wife should look at the ghee for its purification, his is a subsidary action to the performance of the sacrifice. The jiva contemplates himself as brahman. such a meditation purifies the agent of the specific ritual.

"Treatise to Himself"

The Meditations is divided into 12 books that chronicle different periods of Marcus' life. Each book is not in chronological order and it was written for no one but himself. The style of writing that permeates the text is one that is simplified, straightforward, and perhaps reflecting Marcus' Stoic perspective on the text. Depending on the English translation, Marcus' style is not viewed as anything regal or belonging to royalty, but rather a man among other men, which allows the reader to relate to his wisdom.
A central theme to Meditations is the importance of analyzing one's judgment of self and others and the development of a cosmic perspective. As he said "You have the power to strip away many superfluous troubles located wholly in your judgment, and to possess a large room for yourself embracing in thought the whole cosmos, to consider everlasting time, to think of the rapid change in the parts of each thing, of how short it is from birth until dissolution, and how the void before birth and that after dissolution are equally infinite".^[3] He advocates finding one's place in the universe and sees that everything came from nature, and so everything shall return to it in due time. Another strong theme is of maintaining focus and to be without distraction all the while maintaining strong ethical principles such as "Being a good man"
His Stoic ideas often involve avoiding indulgence in sensory affections, a skill which will free a man from the pains and pleasures of the material world. He claims that the only way a man can be harmed by others is to allow his reaction to overpower him. An order or logos permeates existence. Rationality and clear-mindedness allow one to live in harmony with the logos. This allows one to rise above faulty perceptions of "good" and "bad" – things out of your control like fame and health are (unlike things in your control) irrelevant and neither good nor bad.
 "I have had for some time an old copy of the Emperor Marcus' most profitable book, so old indeed that it is altogether falling to pieces . . . This I have had copied and am able to hand down to posterity in its new dress." he refers to passages in the "Treatise to Himself"  and it was this title which the book bore in the manuscript from which the first printed edition was made in the 16th-century.
eg.
If thou art pained by any external thing, it is not this that disturbs thee, but thy own judgment about it. And it is in thy power to wipe out this judgment now.'

Put an end once for all to this discussion of what a good man should be, and be one.


Soon you'll be ashes or bones. A mere name at most—and even that is just a sound, an echo. The things we want in life are empty, stale, trivial.

Never regard something as doing you good if it makes you betray a trust or lose your sense of shame or makes you show hatred, suspicion, ill-will or hypocrisy or a desire for things best done behind closed doors.

Not to feel exasperated or defeated or despondent because your days aren't packed with wise and moral actions. But to get back up when you fail, to celebrate behaving like a human—however imperfectly—and fully embrace the pursuit you've embarked on.

feminine indeed.

Weather you are a man or a woman unless the feminine becomes alive in you you will never experience the finer aspects of life. sadguru.

Nivritti or Pravritti does it matter?

Suka confesses that though he is a Brahma Nishta sage steeped in meditation of the Nirguna Brahman, he finds much joy and delight in singing the praises of the Lord’s excellences. This statement is made when Parikshit asks him the way to salvation. Quoting the Upanishad thought about what is really worthwhile, Suka says that each one has to know about the All-pervading and Omnipotent Lord, and to this end one has to hear His glories expounded, and then remember Him always, pointed out Sri R. Krishnamurthy Sastrigal in a discourse. The Bhagavata Purana is capable of leading people out of samsara by fostering devotion true and simple, regardless of whether they have opted for the spiritual path of renunciation, Nivritti, or the path of a householder, Pravritti.

There is a story about how the Lord wishes to enlighten Narada on the true devotion practised by even those in Pravritti. The Lord speaks highly of the devotion of a farmer in a village. Noticing that Narada feels disappointed that the Lord has not credited him as an ideal devotee, the Lord entrusts him with a simple task, to carry a bowl filled with oil around the world without spilling even a drop of it. Narada leaves with the oil bowl and proudly comes back to the Lord after carefully finishing the assignment. The Lord is pleased and as He takes back the bowl, asks Narada about the number of times he chanted His name when he was on the errand. Narada admits to the Lord that he had forgotten to chant the Lord’s name during his trip as he had to focus on not spilling the oil. After all, he was only doing the work allotted by God, argues Narada. The Lord points out that the farmer too does the work ordained for him, and in the midst of it takes care to remember Him.

paper kite

moral courage.

margam

Bharatanatyam Margam

Alarippu

The word ‘Alarippu’ means ‘blooming’ (root ‘alaru’ may be found in telugu, tamil and other Dravidian languages). Alarippu is short invocatory Nritta item. It’s meaning is paying obeisance or salutation to God, guru and audience. It opens performance and also opens dancer’s body – limbs are warmed up by simple movements, mind is focused by precise rhythm and emotions are activated by harmony and beauty of traditional choreography and inner joy of dance, so dear to each dancer.

Alarippu can be performed in different thalas and jatis, traditional alarrippu-s are rupaka, misra chapu and chaturasra eka thalam alarippu.

S Sharada Teacher explained Alarippu as follows:

'The Alarippu movements begin with the eyes and neck and move progressively downwards. This is essencially a dance dedicating each part of the body before commencing the actual program. Alarippu conveys happyness. 'Nanadanti anena devata - iti naandi.' That which makes the deva-s happy is naandi. Hence the Alarippu is like the naandi sloka.Hence the Alarippu is like the naandi sloka. Since this is dedicatory dance, it has to be simple, setting the stage for the more complicated dance to follow.'

Jathiswaram

This is pure Nritta item set to tune (ragam) in particular rhythm (thalam). Jathiswasram includes Jathi (sollukattu), Pallavi, Anupallavi and one or more Charanas. There is no any sahityam passages present her, the whole composition is sung by swaras.

The meaning of Nritta, pure dance, is using the God given body and limbs we create as many forms of beauty as possible through flow of poses and movements connected together by rhythm and music. Beauty and inner joy of dance is the only meaning of Nritta. It doesn’t have any particular mood or sentiment. It produces aesthetic pleasure.

In answer to question asked by the sages, Bharata explained: “The dance is occasioned by no specific needs. It has come into use because it creates beauty.”

As a dance composition, jathiswaram includes jathi and several korvais set to Pallavi, Anupallavi and Charanas. Some korvais are intervened by Mai adavu (set of adavus characterized by elaborate body movement).

Famous Jatiswarams are composed in ragas Kalyani, Chakravakam, Arabi, Vasanta, Saveri, Kamas.

Shabdam

This is a song in praise of deity The other name of this musical composition is ‘Yasho geetam’ (song in praise). In olden days all Shabdams were composed in Kamboji ragam. Nowadays shabdams are sung in raga malika, but the first ragam of the sequence should be Kamboji. Majority of shabdams are set to Misra Chapu thalam.

Shabdam starts with short jathi. Each line of sahityam is repeated several times. Dancer should explain it through pada artha (word by word) and vachika artha (sanchari) abhinaya. Each line is concluded by short jathi when the dancer executes set of simple adavus.

Varnam

'In the Varnam, teermanam-s should be in proportion to the rest of the piece. Disproportionately lenghy teermenam-s spoil the continuity of the work. So do unnecessary long Sanchari-s. When Sanchari go beyond three or four avarta-s (rhythmical cycles), the dance turns into a drama or mono-acting. At one recital, I counted as many as 60 repetitions of a line, at which point I gave up counting. This kind of a thing distorts the form of the varnam. IT is possible to communicate what is necessary in the shortest span of time.'

'The kalapramanam (tempo) for a varnam should be moderate. This enhances the beauty of the presentation. In the older forms, tattu mettu was never done for the Pallavi and Anupallavi. Tattu mettu was done for the Chittaswara sahitya. The continuity of teermanam-s should also not be broken. Adavu-s should be in proportion to the teermanam-s.'

The stage space should be correctly used. Just as the delineation of adavu is important, so also are the lines created when covering the stage. A dancer should not wander on the stage; there are certain prescribed ways of moving which should be respected.'

'For the Sanchari-s in the varnam, the various subtle meanings of the song should be used within the context. This will make the presentation attractive.'

Padam

Padam may be described as musical monologue. To understand meaning of Padam it is very essential to comprehend relationship between the heroine (Nayaki) and the hero (Nayaka).
In Padam human soul is represented by female lover (Jeevatma) yearning for union with supreme being (Paramatma). This type of relationship is called ‘Sringara-bhakti’ (devotion through love of the highest, dignified kind).

Padams give the widest scope for Abhinaya, expression of sentiments, emotions, feelings, moods including all the shades possible.
Before performing a padam, the one should visualize the hero and heroine, the previous history of their relationships, the current situation, the mood and intentions of the heroine (or hero, depends upon from whose name the padam is sung) and possible development of the situation between the lovers.

Padams are suggestive, they admit dual meaning – direct and indirect aspects. Padams are centered round theme of love, which is basic and underlying mood of Padam. Over this mood different emotions may be expressed, according to situation and character of the heroine and hero, but they should not break the main stream of tender affectionate feeling of love flowing underneath. Anger is often pretended, suffering is mingled with hope and indignation is softened by hidden affection.

'Care should be taken when selecting the theme for a padam which is a slow item and contains a lot of deep rasa bhava. The rasa is nearly always Sringara. An idea already presented in a sanchari should not be repeated. The best charana-s should be selected. The mood of the nayika should be correctly ascertained and portrayed.'

Padam includes Pallavi, Anupallavi and Charanas. For dance not all charanas may be selected, just one or two the most beautiful lines are enough. Padams are set to Rakti ragas such as Ananda Bhairavi, Shankarabaranam, Todi. Padams are sung in slow tempo.

Padams are mostly composed in Telugu and Tamil, but there are also Sanskrit, Kannada and Malayalam padams.

The famous composers of Padams are Kshetrayya, Sarangapani, Annamaya, Melattur Venkatarama Sastri, Kasturi Rajgaya, Swathi Tirunal, Iraiman Tambi.

Keertanam

Keertanas deal with glories of the Gods. It includes Pallavi, Anupallavi and Charana-s. Keertanas are set to lighter ragas. It is usually sung in Madhyama kalam (medium tempo). Sahityam narrates prayers and stories from Puranas, thus basic bhava of keertanam is Bhakti.

As a dance composition, Keertanam is abhinaya item, where lines of sahityam are intervened with jathis and swaras during which the dancer executes different korvais (sets of adavus).

'Keertanas are taken from other works should be authentically presented. There is a common misconception that the keertana 'Yaro ivar yaro' is Sita singing about Rama, while in reality it is Rama singing about Sita*. The kalapramanam should be moderate.

*This wonderful keertanam is sung in Bhairavi ragam, very deep, touching and rich of moods raga. In this keertanam Rama comes to garden along with Lakshmana and encounters Sita first time. He is stunned and taken by overwhelming feeling of attraction and admiration towards her. He asks 'Yaro ivar yaro? Enna pero narien?' - 'Who is she? What is her name?'

'The keertana is a form of single-minded devotional music. The Ramanataka keertanas or Nandanar keertanas and others of different authors are therefore steeped in bhakti and evoke devotional mood with little or no distraction or conflict. Hence the delineation of different moods as in Sringara rasa is not possible. So the expansion of ideas in those songs is only by elaborating on the episodes and stories found in the puranas about the God in whose praise the keertanas are composed.'

Javali

In contrast to Padams (songs of dignified love), Javali-s are songs reflecting very casual aspects of love, in light and playful manner. They emphasize amorous (and even erotic) nature of relationships between the lovers.

Javalis are set to lighter ragas. It is usually sung in Madhyama kalam (medium tempo) or faster. Language of sahityam is very simple, even colloquial. It is also suggestive but in playful sense, without deep philosophical insinuations.

Daru

This composition belongs to the sphere of applied music. It figures in dance dramas. It is the story told in form of a song. In Daru the principal character of dance drama is praised and his deeds are described. Daru is sung in Madhyama kala (medium tempo).

Thillana

Main feature if Thillana is brick and attractive music. Thillanas are sung in the end of either music or dance performance.

Thillana includes Pallavi, Anupallavi and Charanam. Is starts from eye movements, followed by several Mai Adavus (featuring elaborate body movements) set to Pallavi. After Mai adavu several korvais (sets of adavus) are performed set to Pallavi and Anupallavi.

Usi adavu is another feature of Thillana, when dancer covers the stage by quick and fast sequence of movements. Thillana is Nritta item, but there is always one-two line slokam in the end when dancer performs abhinaya (Addressing the deity last time before to conclude the program).

Sloka

Sometimes a recital concludes with a sloka (prayer). The sanchari-s in a sloka should be brief. This is an item without tala and provides felief after the earlier items. It also gives the musicians a chance to use their creativity.