Harry Terhanian.com

Eemastoutiounohv guh hahchovees
There was once a very pious and humble priest of a small village church. He was reputed to be a very wise man who had complete faith in God. There lived a powerful king who was in the habit of challenging wise men with difficult questions about God. If they could not give him adequate answers to his questions, he would execute them. The king summoned the humble priest to his palace and challenged him.
“I have three questions that no holy man has yet answered to my satisfaction. Where is God? Why do I not see Him? What does God do all the day? Answer these questions to my satisfaction or I’ll have you executed!”
“Dear King, may God shower blessings on you. I request that you give me three days to answer these important questions,” said the priest with humility. The king consented to his request.
The priest returned to his church and prayed for a long time in a quiet meditative mood. He prayed for wisdom.
Armenian Prayer for Wisdom
Eemasdootyoon Hor Hisoos,
Door eents eemasdootyoon,
Ezparis khorhel yev khosel yev kordzel
Arachi ko hamenayn jam.
Ee char khorhertots, ee panits
Yev ee kordzots pergya zees.
Yev voghormya ko araradzots yev eents pazmameghis.

Prayer for Wisdom
O Jesus, wisdom of the Father,
Grant me wisdom, That I may,
at all times, think, speak and do
before Thee that which is good in Thy sight.
And save me from evil thoughts, words and deeds.
Have mercy upon Thy creatures, and upon me, great sinner that I am.
He repeated this prayer over and over again. He had full confidence that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, would give him the wisdom to answer the king. Without hesitation or fear, he prayed steadily for hours waiting for the Lord to illumine his mind. Gradually a serene feeling of peace embraced him. Images and thoughts appeared in his mind by the grace of God that gave him the confidence to return and answer the king. He spent the three days in prayer, meditative thought, and celebrated the Eucharist with feelings of love for Jesus and his supreme sacrifice of His blood and flesh for the salvation of mankind. He returned to the king’s palace and was brought into the grand reception hall where many noble men and women were waiting to hear his answers.
The king looked at him sternly and asked, “Are you able to answer my three questions?” The priest said quietly, “Yes, your majesty. First, I want to thank you for asking such important questions. Such inquiries are a sign that you have a sincere desire to remove any obstacles in your path toward God. Please, my lord, I beg you for a pail of fresh milk with full cream from one of your royal cows, a fresh lemon and a stove to heat the milk. I want to demonstrate how to make fresh cheese (bahneer). The king ordered them to be fetched.
When the priest received them, he asked one of the king’s attendants to kindly bring the milk to a boil and pour fresh lemon juice into it. Soon the cheese separated from the whey which was drained off through a cheese cloth. The cheese remained in the cloth.
The priest squeezed the cheese into a ball with his hands and presented it to the king with the words, “Your majesty. The first two of your questions are answered”
The king became impatient. He could not understand how the ball of cheese answered the first two questions. He said, “How is this cheese pertinent to my questions?”
The priest asked the king, “Your majesty, praise be upon you always, wherefrom did the cheese appear?”
“From the milk”, said the king.
“Can you say in what part of the milk the cheese was present,” asked the priest.
“I am not sure,” said the king. “It must have been present throughout all of it.”
“Exactly, your majesty, and similarly God is within all things and pervades the entire creation.” said the priest.
The king was flustered. He raised his voice, “Then why is He not visible to me?”
“Your majesty, may you live long. Just as I followed a process to extract the cheese from the milk, so must you follow a process to prepare yourself to see the almighty God in everything. Obviously, God is everywhere in His creation. You simply need to undergo the process to see Him.”
“What process are you talking about?” said the king.
Your majesty, the process begins by putting your faith in Jesus for faith in an authority is the beginning of knowledge. A child naturally accepts the authority of his parents and begins to learn how to speak and behave under their guidance.
“When I was a young boy, I watched my mother make bahneer (Armenian fresh cheese). She was my teacher. As I grew older, she encouraged me to help her make the cheese. She coached me step by step. I learned by watching, listening and following her instructions. The process to see God is learned from a genuine lover of God who is surrendered completely to the will of the Lord. You accept such a person as your teacher and you listen, watch and follow his instructions. With such sincere effort, God will reveal Himself to you as you gradually surrender yourself to Him. It is reciprocal. To the degree you surrender to God’s will, He progressively or proportionately reveals Himself to you.”
“Our Lord Jesus revealed Himself as the Son of God to his sincere disciples by resurrecting from the dead and walking among them for forty days before going to Heaven to join His Father. Our Lord Jesus performed miracles and was later crucified and died on the cross to purge the sins of those who believe in Him. He revealed Himself as the Son of God to His sincere disciples by resurrecting from the dead. He walked among men for forty days before going to heaven to join His Father. He revealed the word and glory of God by His example of complete surrender to the will of His Father. He cast away the temptations of the Devil by fasting, prayer and remembering the words of His Father as recorded in the ancient scriptures of the Bible.”
“Your majesty, when you asked me to answer the three questions I asked you for three days to answer. During that time, I prayed to Our Lord Jesus Christ to reveal His wisdom to me. I can say that I have experienced the amazing grace of the Lord who has blessed me with the ability to answer your questions. I am not a scholar or intellectual. But, I have complete faith in the Lord and depend on His good will and grace. During my prayers, the Lord conferred His causeless mercy on me by inspiring my mind with images and thoughts that enabled me to answer your questions.”
“My dear King, faith in God precedes knowledge. The unseen God sent forth His Son into this world to reveal His personal existence. The Father and Son are unique persons. Yet, they are united in oneness of love. Jesus demonstrated this oneness of purpose when He completely surrendered to the will of His Father.
The Holy Spirit completes the trinity of God’s existence by communing with us through prayer. The Holy Spirit reveals the knowledge by which we can always stay on the path of light and act as instruments of God’s will.”
“God sent His Son to help fortify our faith because from faith comes the revelations of God’s glory by which all the temptations of this temporary world pale. Our Lord Jesus said, “What profiteth a man if he gain this entire world and loseth his soul… Work not for the fruit of this world but for the eternal salvation in God.”
“The first two of your questions are answered,” said the priest. (Where is God? Why don’t I see Him?)
“Why don’t I see Him,” insisted the king.
“Because you don’t churn your mind and refine your perceptions through sincere prayer. If you do that, you will see God and more importantly hear His instructions, but not otherwise. Now, I beg to take your leave, your majesty,” said the priest.
“Not so fast,” said the king. “You have not answered my third question: ‘What does God do all day?’”
“Your majesty, to understand the answer to this question, I beg that you consider that you are the representative of the Almighty God on this earth. As the supreme authority, you administer to the needs of the kingdom and your subjects by giving dictates that are executed by your governmental agents who deign to your commands. As you have your government organization, so does the Almighty have a universal government of angels who are obedient to His every wish. You may have thousands of surrendered souls in your service such as functionaries, military, ect. The Almighty has multitudes of angels serving his directives. Yet, there is a wonderful difference. The Lord is not obliged to do anything because He sent His Son to incarnate in this world to redeem us of our sins. Jesus is the king that commands the legions of angels that administer the universe. The Father is always transcendentally situated in the spiritual world far away from our world of birth, death, old age and disease. He is enjoying at His will transcendental affairs of loving relations with His sincere devotees with His Son at His side.
He is not obliged to do anything for He is the supreme God. No one is equal to Him or greater than Him. His slightest will or desire is immediately accomplished without any personal effort on His part. He simply enjoys with His eternal companions free of any constraints of time and its consequences or any obligation because He is the Supreme Eternal Lord of the spiritual and material worlds.
Indeed, your majesty, you have been blessed to represent the Almighty Lord of the universe in your kingdom. This certainly attests to your great fortune. May you always been blessed.”
The king was impressed by the answers of the priest. He felt complimented by the words of the humble priest. His attitude changed. He addressed the priest with kind words.
“Holy father, I am pleased by your answers. May peace be with you. Go and administer to your faithful in your village. I will reward you with a life-long pension for your wisdom.”

dzehranahs dzehree bahdeevuhn eemahnas

Those desiring greatness must develop modesty and self-discipline in personal life and genuine respect for others. A youth cannot measure correctly the value of experience that comes with old age. But as a person ages, he is able to understand the difference between callow youth and seasoned maturity that recognizes the value of careful consideration of consequences of one’s actions.

The wisdom of an elder can be invaluable for a youth to learn early in life. Many time people say, “If I only knew when I was young what I know now in my old age.”

When I was a young boy, I was taken care of by my great auntie. She was my grandmother’s sister from my mother’s side and we called her Morkor (short for morakouyr which means mother’s sister). Morkor was my essential link to the traditions and legends and spirituality of Armenia. She survived the Turkish massacres of the Armenians although she had to walk from Malatia, Turkey to the desert of Syria like my mother. As she was older than my mother, she was kidnapped by Arabs and forced into a harem. After she gave birth to a child, she tried to escape with her baby. The Arab caught her and left her for dead after stabbing her. Fortunately, she survived as did her child. She made her way to Aleppo and finally with the help of my mother, who also survived miraculously, she came to the USA. One day, she told me about the Six thousand secrets of wisdom which is called vetz hazaria in Armenian. All she said was, “If you are fortunate enough, God will let you read the vetz hazaria and you will have all the knowledge possible for a human being.” Her words have always remained in my mind. Recently, I read Song of America by George Mardikian. I was pleasantly surprised to see the following short paragraph about vetz hazaria. “Der Haroutum had read the vetz-hazaria. To understand how important this was, you must know that the title means “six thousand secrets of wisdom.” There are only four or five copies of the vetz-hazaria in existence. They are all ancient and massive volumes, that have been written by hand on parchment. Very few are ever allowed to see and read them. Their whereabouts is a secret. In the history of my country, the readers of the vetz-hazaria have formed, down through the centuries, almost a mystic order, to whose members has been handed down the wisdom of the ages. And Der Haroutun, my father’s uncle, was one of them. This accomplishment - the reading of the “six thousand” - set him apart, as a star is set apart from the earth. It made him almost a god of learning. When the villagers wanted advice on family or spiritual matters, when they wanted important letters written or needed medicine for their children - in short, in the crises of their lives - they came to see my father’s uncle, because he had read the “Six Thousand.” (Song of America - George Mardikian, p. 4) What my Morkor said about the vetz hazaria was true. However, it was mysterious and seemingly out of reach. If a certain book or tomb is such a valuable source of knowledge, then why should it be kept so secret? The Bible, Koran, Buddhist writings and the vast Vedic literature is available for the edification of humanity. Why would the Armenians keep the vetz hazaria secret and accessible for only a very few like Mardikian’s father’s uncle Der Haroutun? To further complicate matters, I found that an Armenian man named Arthur Armin made a film called “Noumenon,” which purports a fable- like esoteric history of the vetz hazaria. Most of Armin’s film portrays events in Armenia, against the backdrop of the Biblical Mount Ararat. Supposedly six thousand years ago, a priestly elite convened a secret universal congress at the main temple seemingly dedicated to the cult of the Sun, nestled in the bosom of Biblical Mount Ararat. The secret council of the high priests of the twelve supreme temples (it is not clear where the other eleven temples are located in the world), which governs the world, resolves to destroy all existing cuneiform tablets that contain esoteric knowledge and guidance with regard to accessing an alternate universe/reality. Moreover, the council decides to limit the oral transmission of such information, considering that the spiritual/ theocratic class has begun to lose its authority, ceding power to the fledgling priestly class. The council finds that the exercise of secret knowledge in the absence of the highest spiritual principles and wisdom might endanger the very existence of humanity, especially in the future. Menua, a young priest at the temple of the sun, is among a few to be entrusted with the secret knowledge and given the right to acquire supreme spiritual enlightenment. As Menua undergoes a spiritual transformation on the path to reaching enlightenment, he sees the future – specifically, our present time – as well as his own reincarnation as a physicist. First, it is interesting to note that the title of the film, Noumenon, is a philosophical word which has a classical meaning from Greek philosophy and a newer meaning from the German philosopher Kant. If we accept the classical Greek meaning of the word used specifically by Plato, then the following describes the word’s meaning. Plato claimed there were two realms. One, the inferior realm, is the material, physical world perceived through the senses (eyes, ears, nose, tongue and skin). He called this material realm the phenomenal world where there are temporary, material objects that can be perceived with our limited senses of perception. The other, the superior realm is the world of the immaterial, the spiritual, the world of realities not accessible to the body’s limited senses. Plato called it the noumenal world because it could not be perceived with the gross material senses of the body. It could be understood with a superior intellect that was completely free of mundane illusion. Plato claimed that all the forms we perceive in this material world are merely imperfect and temporary, shadow reflections of perfect, eternal forms in the superior realm. Only a person who is completely liberated from “the cave of illusion,” where there are only shadow reflections of forms, can come out into the light of pure knowledge and see the real, eternal forms. If we accept this Platonic definition of the word noumenon, then Armin’s depiction of what happened six thousand years ago on Mount Ararat becomes plausible. The priestly council of the world’s elite sages sit in council and decide “to destroy the cuneiform tablets that contain esoteric knowledge and guidance with regard to accessing an alternate universe/reality.” Then a young priest, named Menua, and a few others are chosen to receive the supreme knowledge of enlightenment and they constitute a select elite for the secret knowledge. Accessing the alternate universe or reality is very similar to Plato’s superior realm populated with eternal, perfect forms. Thus, the Vetz Hazaria was a book of ancient wisdom that revealed how a sincere person could attain eternal life in a state of perfect harmony with God in the spiritual world where eternity, bliss and ever increasing love are experienced. It also contained practical knowledge of this world by which an enlightened person could avoid most mundane problems and attain the freedom to attain their cherished goal of liberation from temporary mortal life. According to Mardikian, a few copies of the Vetz Hazaria were present when he was still a young boy in Western Aremnia. These were reserved for a select number of chosen men who could benefit the lives of ordinary people with this ancient wisdom. The chosen few could impart knowledge how to live successfully in this world and when appropriate they could recommend that a few could access the higher knowledge of total emancipation.

I will summarize the main sections of Vetz Hazaria for the benefit of all people. This precious knowledge is not subject to normal academic study. Although you will be able to read it in summary form, it still cannot be realized simply by reading. It is revealed by a descending process from teacher to student or guru to disciple. Becoming a sincere disciple of a genuine teacher or guru is required so that one receives the full revelation of the knowledge. It is impossible to simply study this knowledge academically and successfully assimilate it.

The following are the outline chapter titles covered in the Vetz Hazaria: origin of humanity, difference between humans and animals, laws of nature that regulate all living beings, the difference between the body and the soul, how to free the soul from material entanglement of the body, evolution of consciousness by understanding the five basic truths of life: who is God, who we are in relation to God and in relation to the material world, what is time, what is the material nature, what is mankind’s essential duty in life. By understanding these five basic truths of life a person can attain the ultimate goal of existence, which is pure love of God and complete liberation from the illusion of material existence. The above is a very short summary of the Vetz Hazaria. The book contains detailed information about these five basic truths of life and supplemental information about mastering certain powers of nature such as foreseeing the future, correct analysis of past and present, overcoming evil forces that may pose obstacles to the spiritual quest, maintaining physical and mental health, living in harmony with nature so that one may avoid unnecessary troubles caused by ignorance of the laws of nature, avoiding pitfalls of material nature by which one becomes hopelessly entangled in dualities, and other pertinent details to help attain the goal of life.

Ultimately, the knowledge contained in the vetch hazaria was meant to raise mankind from the animal level of satisfying basic needs such as eating, sleeping, mating and defending to reaching the full potential of human life: pure love of God. This loving propensity can be fully satisfied when it is directed to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and that is the sum and substance of spiritual life. Love occurs between persons because there is a reciprocal relationship. Unless one knows God as a person, the full range of love does not develop and one feels unfulfilled.

The loving propensity is present in all living entities, especially humans. People are taught to love country, family or oneself, but they lack the knowledge where and how to direct their loving propensity so that everyone can become happy. The basic principle of love is that both the lover and the beloved become happy by their mutual exchanges of service. From birth, the child learns to love his parents, then his brothers and sisters. As he grows up, he begins to love his family, society, community, country, nation, and continues to increase his circle of love to include the whole of humanity.

The loving propensity of the individual is so expansive that even by loving the whole of humanity, the potential of love is still not fulfilled because the ultimate object of love has not been reached. The eternal personal God or Lord Krishna, the all-attractive One who possesses all beauty, fame, knowledge, wealth, power and renunciation, is the ultimate person we seek to love. Our consciousness attains the unlimited realm of eternal love when it connects to Krishna who is the origin of all existence.

The original Vetch Hazaria text was a text of superior spiritual knowledge that could guide a person to ultimate liberation from the cycle of birth and death. It guided the way back to the spiritual world of eternal life through love and devotion to God. The Vetch Hazaria was a pre-Christian text that had its origins in Vedic History more than 6000 years ago. The Vedic history in contrast to Christian history goes back hundreds of millions of years as I explained in a previous posting entitled Curse on the Armenian People.

The Caucasian area was inhabited during the Vedic period. In fact, the Caspian sea is named after the great Vedic sage Kasyapa Muni. His ashram or spiritual abode was located in the Caucasian area. Kasyapa Muni fathered many different human races as well as many other species of life with his wives. He married the thirteen daughters of Prajapati Daksha (Aditi, Diti, Kadru, Danu, Arishta, Surasa, Surabhi, Vinata, Tamra, Krodhava??, Ida, Khasa and Muni.) Kasyapa fathered the devas, heavenly demigods; asuras, demonic races; danas, mixed races of devas and demons; and many other species that included birds, reptiles, insects, etc.

One son of Kasyapa with his wife Aditi was the incarnation of God, Vamana deva who appeared as a dwarf brahmana. The history of Vamana deva is very instructive if we want to understand the path to liberation from the cycle of birth and death. It can also reveal why the Vetch Hazaria was kept somewhat secretive by being taught by oral reception rather than widely published written form. The transmission of knowledge from teacher or guru to disciple requires specific qualification of both. The guru must be above any material contamination of lust, anger, greed, envy, madness or illusion. The disciple must be submissive to the guru in order to hear the knowledge properly as well as offer humble service and ask important questions. When the guru and the disciple are both qualified, then the knowledge is passed from one to the other without any adulteration and the goal of achieving love of God is achieved.

In ancient times there was a powerful king of the asuras or demons whose name was Bali Maharaja. His guru was Sukracarya. Bali was an obedient disciple of Sukracarya who taught him to regularly give in charity to brahmanas in order to secure his own well-being and prosperity. Sukracarya also correctly instructed Bali that the ultimate beneficiary of all sacrifices, penances and charity is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Krishna who is also known as Lord Vishnu.

Bali was an obedient disciple of his guru Sukracarya, who taught him to give in charity to brahmana priests in order to secure his own well-being and prosperity. Although Sukracarya was a spiritual teacher, he was still interested in material profit and personal gain. Nevertheless, Sukracarya instructed Bali that the ultimate beneficiary of all sacrifices, penances and charity is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Krishna who is also known as Lord Vishnu. He taught the truth, but followed it for personal benefit.

There was a profound difference between the behavior of Bali Maharaja and his spiritual master. Bali developed love for God because he was previously instructed by his grandfather Prahlad Maharaja in the principles of pure love free of any personal material motive. Sukracarya, however, was merely a priest of routine rituals who had not developed his service for God out of love because he was attached to material benefits for his family.

One day, when Krishna appeared before Bali for charity disguised as a dwarf Brahman named Vamana, Bali was ready to give Him anything He wanted. But, Sukracarya instructed Bali not to give anything to the dwarf incarnation who Sukracarya claimed would take away his kingdom and acquired wealth. Bali hesitated because he realized Sukracarya was contradicting the teaching of the scriptures (Vedas) and the principles of pure devotion he learned from his grandfather. Normally a disciple should obey the order of his spiritual master. Bali, however, realized that his teacher deviated from his duty as a spiritual teacher, which is to take the disciple back to Godhead. If the teacher is unable to do so and instead obstructs the disciple, he should be rejected. The goal of life is to surrender completely to the will of God and serve Him with pure love and devotion. Thus, one is freed from the cycle of birth and death and returns to God.

Sukracarya put forward a materialistic argument to dissuade Bali from offering charity to Vamana. He explained that one’s material means of livelihood and one’s reputation, sense gratification, and economic development must continue properly. A married man must consider this to be his first duty in life especially if he wants to be successful in material affairs. Sukracarya emphasized that if a religious principle or duty does not affect one’s material condition, it can be accepted and followed. This is a classic materialistic concept prominent even today. People are reluctant to accept a religious principle or duty if it hampers their material prosperity.

Bali was attracted by the beauty and humility of the dwarf incarnation of God Vamana. When Vamana approached Bali for charity, Bali immediately promised to give Him anything He wanted and gave a list of possible choices. Vamana refused any of the offers Bali made. However, he asked for three steps of Bali’s kingdom. Since Vamana was a dwarf, Bali thought He was asking for too little. How much land could a dwarf cover with his small steps? However, Sukracarya cautioned Bali that the dwarf was actually an incarnation of God who could easily extend his dwarf legs to cover the entire universe with only two steps and thus deprive Bali of everything he possessed. Then Bali would not be able to fulfill his promise of giving three steps to Vamana and thus he would be condemned to suffer.

Sukracarya used his extraordinary talents to convince Bali to renege on his promise to Vamana. Since Sukracarya was an expert in Vedic knowledge, he began to quote selected verses to persuade Bali not to give anything in charity to Vamana. He demonstrated the pernicious technique of cleverly using spiritual knowledge to further one’s personal material motives. It was difficult for an untrained person to recognize that Sukracarya was actually misleading one from following correctly the spiritual path. Fortunately, Bali had received previous instruction from his illustrious grandfather Prahlad. Therefore, he was able to detect the sophistry in Sukracarya’s presentation. After careful reflection, Bali rejected his guru’s order to refuse giving in charity to Vamana.

Sukracaraya became extremely angry at his disciple, Bali. He cursed him to lose everything he had. Actually this curse was a blessing for Bali. He was so successful that he developed the concept that he was the ruler of the entire universe and that it belonged to him. The truth, however, is that everything in creation belongs to God including our individual body, mind, words, senses, the powers of perception, the objects of perception, absolutely everything. Although Bali was a devotee of the Lord, he was attached to material possessions. The Lord appeared as the dwarf Vamana to show his special favor to Bali by taking away all his material possessions including his body, mind and senses. When Bali realized his folly of misconception, he completely surrendered everything to Vamana including his vast kingdom, his own body, mind and intelligence.

Ahmehn mehg khoskut mehg kohahr
Ahbsos ahgahnch ounehtzogh keech yehn

giankuh yehv hahroustoutiounuh ahntzoghahgan yehn, meeaihyn eemahsdoutiounuh muhnaihoun eh

Time, the reaper, moves unrelentingly in stealth
Robs each man slowly of his hard-earned wealth
Ravages the body, ruins his health
Leaves him forlorn, feeling sorry for himself

Man like a puppet is forced to act
To eat, to sleep, have sex, fight back
Thinking falsely he is in control
But lives in fear like a lowly mole

Happiness appears, gives us hope and cheers
We yearn for more, yet it disappears
Memories we hold of bygone years
That give some solace and sad tears

We live in an illusory kingdom
Chasing madly happiness and freedom
Why persist after a hopeless phantom
True value is acquiring wisdom

Wisdom sees the past and reads the future
Without such vision we are doomed to failure
Everyone is born and destined to die
This is a truth no sane person can deny

We seek happiness in the wrong place
Sex, drugs, gambling are a disgrace
Beneath the dignity of the human race
That arouse man’s passions the most base

There is a higher pleasure, a higher fate
A peaceful, uplifting mental state
It begins when we see the body and soul
And use everything for the spiritual goal

Understand we are not the controller, nor enjoyer
We are subordinate to God, our employer
Material things belong to God who sets aside our share
Accept the minimum, use the rest to spread His grace and care

Life dedicated to God’s service is mankind’s best hope

We will be known not for what we saved but what we gave

If we are blessed with assets use them in God’s service

By such unselfish service we are freed of lust, anger and greed

The values that define the character of people are often preserved in proverbs, stories and words of wisdom handed down from generation to generation. Armenian proverbs and teaching stories have served as useful tools to educate new generations the accumulated wisdom of their ancestors. One can understand a people by their stories and words of wisdom.

There is one proverb that may summarize the learning experience: It says

Ahmehn pohrtzank mehg khuhrahd eh, votch pohrtzank guh vehrchanah, votch khuhraduh

“Every trying experience is a lesson. The experiences will never end, nor will the lessons to be learned.”

Life is full of experiences and lessons to be learned. For example, a child may play with matches. The fascination with striking a match and igniting a flame may seem irresistible to a curious child. For an inexperienced young child, playing with matches may be very dangerous. The child can burn himself or set fire to a house and cause damage or death or both. If an adult sees the child playing with matches, he may scold or spank the child or even dramatically show the child what happens when playing with matches. Out of a sense of tough love, the adult may light a match and bring it close enough to slightly burn the finger of the child. Once the child can understand how dangerous it is playing with matches, there is a good chance he will no longer want to play recklessly with them knowing well that he will be punished and perhaps burned again.

It is said:

Ahntzuhrehvuh eench ahnee kahreen, khuhraduh eench ahnee chahreen

What good is it if the rain falls on a rock? What good is advice for a bad or foolish person?

Because a child may not understand good advice, it may be necessary to scold, spank and punish to make the point. Spare the rod and spoil the child does not help the child to be well educated, disciplined and responsible. But one should not terrorize or scare the child.
One can be affectionate all the time, but still teach a child discipline and responsibility. It is said:

Ahrantz seerehl seerd chee gah

Without love or fondness, there is no heart to encourage and uplift.

Children need to be continually supervised because if they are left on their own, they may inadvertently do something that endangers them. It is said:

Yehrehkhaheen kohrtzee teer, yehdehvehn kuhnah

Give a child a task, but carefully observe his work.

It takes time and patience to train a child and repetition is necessary. In fact, it is said:

Khelokeen meg, ahnkhelkeen hahzahr ou mehg

One time is enough for a wise person, but a thousand and one times may be necessary for the uneducated.

Basic values of life are best learned in childhood with good training. It is said:

Gahtee hed muhdahdzuh, hohqou hed tuhrsuh

What is learned in childhood will remain until death (literally this proverb says “what enters while drinking milk, will exit with the soul”).

Without learning lessons of wisdom, we may easily be discouraged by the difficulties we encounter in life such as sickness, old age, death, natural catastrophes, political events, etc. It is said:

Yes kez khuhrahd, ell chuh tzahness gudahvuhhahd

I will give you wisdom, so that you will not be discouraged and hopeless.

People become discouraged when they cannot see any way to improve their situation in life. They end up hopeless. Receiving wisdom, however, gives people a sense of empowerment by which they can understand the reasons for their difficulties and how to rectify the situation. It is said:

Muhdik uhreh mehdzeen khuhrad vor chee hasni portzank vuhrhat

Listen to the advice of elders so that misfortune does not come upon you.
(Listen to elder’s advice, so that you avoid misfortune and vice.)

Respect for elders especially father and mother and grandparents, uncle and aunties, and elders in general especially spiritual teachers is the beginning of the learning process. Without such respect, one will not be ready to accept knowledge from the accumulated wisdom of previous generations. Lacking respect for elders one will vacillate toward unqualified persons for inspiration and advice or example. It is said:

Lav eh eemashdoun marthoun karereh guhrrelh
Kahn teh unmuhdkeen kineen khuhmelh

It is better to carry the rocks of a wise man
Than to drink the wine of a fool

Fools rush in where angels fear to thread. Fools never take the time to think carefully about the consequences of their acts. They make quick decisions and often are attracted to immediate gratifications rather than long term benefits materially and spiritually. What the fool may do in the end, the wise man does in the beginning. Wise men will learn from other’s mistakes, but fools, by their own. It is said:

Kohar muh keen ounee, pari khuhradmuh uhnkeen eh

A precious jewel has a price, but good advice is priceless.

Good advice is priceless because it can save so much time, trouble, heartache and even death. Good advice can be accepted or rejected. If a man is drowning in a well and someone throws a rope down. He must take hold of the rope to be saved. It is said
“He was slain that had warning, not he that took it.”
If we want good advice but refuse to follow it, then we cannot expect good results. What use is it to see a doctor and get medicine for an ailment, then go home and throw it in the trash. It is said:
Jahnahchelh eemastoutioun yehv khuhrahd, eemahnahl ayn pahrehr vor gouhdahn hahsgatzoghoutioun
To know wisdom and instruction, and to perceive words of understanding.
This was the first sentence translated into Armenian from the Bible (Prov 1:1) soon after the invention of the Armenian alphabet in AD 405. To acquire understanding about the purpose of life and how to attain it while living a good life free of vice and unnecessary suffering brought on by ignorance is the purpose of knowledge and wisdom.
Real learning begins with humility. It is said:
hahmesht yegheer vor sohrvees - Be humble so that you can learn
huhnazahnt yegheer vor hedehvees - be obedient so you can follow
sahd luhsseh yehv keetch khosseh - listen much and talk little
hahrtz uhreh yehv badashkhan luhsseh - ask questions and listen to the answers
muhdahdzeh ou yertoum ehrreh - think deeply and make a vow
misht sheedak jahmpah hedeveh - always walk the straight path (the path of knowledge and virtue)
Seeking out a genuine knowledgeable person and humbly listening to his or her advice is the beginning of learning. It is said:
Yegheer keedounee kehree, mee leeneerh ahnkedeen seerehlee
Become the servant of the wise man rather than the sweetheart of the fool.
Learn to listen to the wise person attentively without any distraction. It is said:
Yehs kehz pahn yem ahsoum, eehssk tou pahmbak ehss kuhzoum
I am trying to tell you something, but you are combing raw cotton.
(To make conventional cotton wool or thread, the cotton is harvested, cleaned to remove dirt and seeds, and then carded. Carding separates the fibers and roughly lines them up, so that they all lie in the same direction. The cotton is divided into slivers, hanks of raw cotton which are spun into thread or wool. When cotton is combed, fine brushes are used to pull out any remaining impurities, along with short cotton fibers. Approximately 15% of the volume is removed, leaving behind only long, straight fibers which are even and aligned. The slivers of combed cotton are then spun into thread.)
If one remains always inattentive, there will never be any lessons learned. It is said:
Ehssuh kahrasoun ahnkam yehrusahlem eh kuhnatzehr, ehli ehs eh munatzehr
The donkey went to Jerusalem forty times, and still remained a (dumb) donkey
There is a saying: “Man is known to be mortal by two things, sleep and lust.” One can remain asleep to what is the real purpose of life even though awake and functioning as if normal. This is due to bad habits that divert the mind from self realization to self gratification. It is said:
Akhkadoutiyan badjaruh yerrek - Khoumarji, zennehji, keenovnahl
There are three causes of poverty: gambling, womanizing, and drinking.
One remains poor materially and spiritually. Material poverty is not a crime. As long as one maintains “bahdeev” or honor, self-respect and moral rectitude, they can function and by the grace of God they will somehow make ends meet.
It is said: Lahv eh keetch, kahn votch eench “ better something than nothing
But, as soon as one becomes addicted to low class behavior such as intoxication, gambling and philandering, a steady downward spiral takes place. It is said: Women, wine, game and deceit, lowers one to shame and defeat. Bad habits and bad friends will cause one to lose good qualities such as honesty, self-control, patience, tolerance, compassion,etc.
It is said:
Halal mahzuh chee guhduhrvee, hahrahm kehrahnuh guh gohduhrvee
One single hair of a good person cannot be cut, but a thick column (belonging to a sinful person) can be easily broken (the literal translation of the Armenian is: righteous hair cannot be cut, a sinful column can be broken).
Mahrtuh shohrohv eh keghyeghcheek, khosskuhn ahradzoh
A man is handsome due to his clothes, speech with proverbs of wisdom

In the quiet depths, unassuming, the fish eat their fill
Deer graze in peace on the grassy green hill
Virtuous men live happily sharing their good will
Yet, the angler, hunter and the wicked use their skill
To hook, to stalk, to shoot, to torture, to kill

A drop of water on a waxy lotus petal is unsteady
Life in this uncertain world is like a whirling eddy
A swirling pool of lusty, angry and greedy humanity
Who drown in the vortex of suffering and envy

The vast ocean can be crossed by a ship
The darkness of night can be lighted by a lamp
The sweltering heat can be relieved by a fan
The huge elephant can be controlled by a short goad
With the passage of time, the worst problem can be solved
But the wicked mind of evil men cannot be changed by God

You can convince the ignorant man easily
The learned man can be convinced even more readily
But the man who knows little but thinks he knows everything
Even God cannot convince such a boorish person

A water drop falling on a red hot rock vanishes without leaving a trace
The same drop falling on a lotus leaf glistens like a crystal diamond
If it falls on an oyster shell in the sea, it becomes a pearl of lasting beauty
So by associating with the inferior, the normal and the superior, men reach different ends

The man of good qualities can honorably live
The doer of virtuous deeds will always thrive
But one who has neither can barely survive
In the end he drops to hell in a free-fall dive

Some may study the holy scripture and codes of ethics
But knowledge of right and wrong is not merely academics
The student requires training by an expert teacher
Whose life and example empowers him as the best preacher
He can give insights, wisdom and correct the student’s faults
Impress by practical applications with the power of thunderbolts
Without such expert guidance, the student remains like the ladle
Though stirring good food, but for the taste is incapable

The blind man does not see external faults in others
The man seized by lust is also blind
So is the man who is full of arrogance
Likewise the greedy knave whose only thought is money

The hawk’s visual acuity can espy a carrion from afar
But it’s powers of sight are used only for survival as a predator
Man’s vision is much less developed than the hawk
Yet man can understand that spiritual salvation is greater than mere survival
He can use all his faculties for the higher quest
Failing to do this, he is no better than a bird of prey

By nature and frame, all men are not the same
There are differences, though they have a common name
The cow and the serpent are both from high heaven
One eats grass to give milk, one licks milk and spits venom

There are three gates to hell - lust, anger and greed
Every sane man should give up their lead
They make one ungrateful, without compassion, unsteady
Degrading the soul, to go to hell, they ready

When advising others, every one expounds wisdom as if a master
When putting the advise into practice, most pretenders are a disaster

There are five ways to know a fool,
First, he is stubborn as a mule
He is reluctant to follow any rule
He uses foul language like filthy stool
His pride flames like fire fed by gas fuel
He considers good advice like drool
Above all, his conversation is very uncool
What he didn’t learn at home, he’ll never learn at school
The best advice is to avoid such a fool

Ants work long hours to collect grain
The miser amasses wealth with much pain
Honey is collected by bees for the hive to sustain
But all will be lost and their efforts will be in vain

The bee keeper will steal the honey
Thieves or relatives will squander the miser’s money
The ant’s grain will end up in others’ tummy
One’s loss is gain for another. Is the worker a dummy?

The company of a truthful, wise man should be sought
Beware of the crafty, wise one who can guile you to naught
The honest fool may be treated with compassion
While the deceitful fool, one must abandon

The flames of the fire attract the moth who flies into them not knowing they burn
The hungry fish bites the tasty bait not seeing that there is a hook so hard and stern
Although men know the risks of sensual pleasures, they yearn them incessantly to return
The workings of the mind heated by passion reasons ill and good advice spurns

The unstoppable thrust of old age threatens us like a fierce tiger
Ravaged by disease and pain we are beset with continual danger
Life slips away like water in a broken pot, youth is a stranger
Loose teeth, cataracts, sore joints, wrinkles, ready for the grave digger

Man is not known for what he saved
He is praised for the charity he gave

Our parents are gone long ago
Our youthful friends are deep below
We too are near the end of the show
Memories jostle our mind to and fro

Pleasures I had, I have no more
Those to come seem like distant lore
They may be mine if I don’t die before
They last a short time, not anymore
What then is the meaning of it all

There are many setbacks for the evil doer
Full of failures on the path to false grandeur
Sorrow, misfortune and loss of wealth
Separation of loved ones, ill health
Betrayed by trusted friends in his stealth
At last in prison, alone, defeated, forlorn
Why was he ever born to live in such scorn

Lust deprives one of shame and makes one uncouth
Old age ravages the lustrous beauty of youth
A mean nature spoils virtuous and honorable acts
Anger can push one to lose memory and overreact
Greed may force us to have more than we need
Depriving others, ruining their chance to succeed
By service for evil people, good qualities are destroyed
But false pride will ruin everything and leaves no joy

One’s speech should never be too harsh or severe,
Impress with pleasant words, truthful and sincere
One’s dearest friends, parents, wife or son
Hurt by invective, your company will shun

Never be puffed up with pride by acquiring knowledge
Wealth, power, fame or by good birth. Let God be the judge.
Conceited by these one may reject good advice
Of well-wishers, by mouthing a reasoned device

Speaking harshly kindles people’s ire
Emblazons anger, puts their minds on fire
Arguing incessantly disturbs those that hear
Troubles the mind, and wearies the ear

Contempt is bred by stinginess and greed
Fanatic beliefs are a ribbed, false creed
Madness and rage are not a social grace
Sinful life will lead to failure and disgrace

Spending for gambling is a total waste
What is squandered for lust is bad taste
Angry words leave one rash and red faced
Good deeds come not of ill-thought haste

We act with the body but live in the mind
Daily we think, feel and will for joy to find
Confronted always by much opposition
We struggle hard to better our condition

Through endless strife we strive to control the mind
So unsteady, restless, oft mean and unkind
Such bitter struggle for life of short duration
Baffled, we question why be in the creation

The body is like a cart, intelligence the driver
Mind the reins, senses the incautious horses
The self is the rider, who suffers or enjoys
Driven to a frenzy by the mind’s restless ploys

The intelligence should direct the mind
Often though, it is incapable and blind
Powerless to distinguish good from bad
It is helpless to control the mind gone mad

One cannot catch the raging wind
Nor the mind that has often sinned
One may restrain the senses by force
But mind unbridled will bring remorse

Man conceited by wealth no matter how astute
Exploits others and denies his disrepute
Like the goat that smears himself with its piss
Though amiss, thinks he enjoys heavenly bliss

Money should never be an object of worship
Judiciously used, it is an aid to servitorship
One should spend it for charity that makes us wiser
The world is sustained by the giving man, not the miser.

Mind can be a friend or enemy as well
Slave to the senses, the mind is like hell
“I want to control, I want to enjoy”
Such thoughts are the mind’s cleaver decoy
Luring us in a trap of hard work and no joy

There may be short-lived joy, but it is a pittance
We are left frustrated, sore that it lacks endurance
Our hopes, desires and dreams never grow old
But the body will dwindle to be wrinkled and cold

By not controlling the mind, one’s life is spoiled
Control of lust, anger, greed, will be foiled
Is one safe living with a poisonous snake?
Also meet the whims of the mind is a mistake.

The enlightened strive ever for perfection
Of charity, sacrifice, love, and compassion
They attempt to nurture these to fruition
Death will test if they are real or deception

Once upon a time there was a rich family with seven sons. All the sons were married and lived in one house with their mother and father. Although they were rich, the big house always seemed to be disorganized and this caused everyone to feel unhappy. One day the youngest of the brides pleaded with her mother-in-law to give her the charge of household. The young girl worked hard to keep the entire household clean and orderly. Everyone felt happy to live in a freshly cleaned and well organized house.

Two of the elder brothers were jealous of their youngest brother’s wife. They didn’t like her making rules for them and trying to enforce them. The young bride insisted that all the men bring home firewood every evening and place it neatly on the wood stack in the garden. The two jealous brothers found a large, black dead snake one day. They brought the snake back and threw it on the wood stack. They thought it would be an excellent way to scare the young bride and discourage her from continuing her management. But destiny is such that one cannot predict its course. A stork happened to fly near the wood stack. It saw the large snake. The stork happened to be wearing a precious and extremely valuable crown of jewels. The large bird swooped down, dropped the crown, picked up the snake and flew away.

When the young bride went to inspect the wood stack, she saw the precious crown and immediately hid it. During the family dinner, the two jealous brothers expected to see the young bride come running disheveled and frightened. They were, however, disappointed when she entered the dining room calm and serene. They were not aware of what actually transpired.

The next day, the young bride talked with her father-in-law. She gave him the precious crown. She suggested that he take it and give it as a gift to the king. If the king offered him a reward, she advised him to not accept anything in return. He followed the young bride’s advice. Gifted the crown to the king and refused any gifts in return for the precious crown.

After some days, the king ordered seven mules to be loaded with gold and precious gifts and delivered to the home of the seven brothers. When the mules arrived with the royal tresures, the young bride refused to accept the gifts. But the royal guards insisted that the king had ordered them to deliver the gifts. They unloaded the mules and left the treasures at the doorstep of the seven brothers.

When the family members saw the treasure, they were amazed and understood that something wonderful had occurred due to the expert advice of the young bride. They realized that she was
talented and clever. She never revealed what really happened. But everyone accepted her household management after that because she was able to make a happy and prosperous home.

An intelligent person asked the trees: “Why is it that the higher you grow, the deeper you sink your roots?” They replied: “You are a thoughtful person, how can you not be aware that we would be unable to bear so many heavy branches and resist the power of the wind if we did not sink our roots deep into the ground?” The sand-box tree (hachari) and the pine (p’ichi) do not grow deep roots. They are unable to resist powerful winds because their roots are shallow.”

This fable by Mkhitar Gosh counsels those who want to establish spiritual and physical stability to consecrate the time to build a strong foundation like trees that have deep roots that are able to withstand the power of strong winds.

It is wise to start off with a firm base in order to pass the tests of time. If a tree grows on shallow land with short roots, it will not be able to resist strong winds that blow its branches and trunk. It will be easily uprooted.

In Matthew 7.24-27, Jesus tells the parable of the two houses.

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 “And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. 26 “Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 “The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.”

Jesus asked the question : “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say?” He said there are two types of people in the world. One, the wise person, comes to him, hears his words, and then uses them to guide his actions in life. The foolish person hears the words of Jesus but does not follow them.

The wise man builds his life on the rock of Jesus Christ, and that life will stand when the storms of life come. The foolish man builds his life on another foundation (his intellect, his talent, worldly wisdom, and speculative philosophies), which is compared to a weak foundation. When the storms of life come, that house will collapse.

The entire Sermon on the Mount follows. It is a great lesson in Christian teaching.

Matthew 5-7:27 (New International Version)
New International Version (NIV)

Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society
[NIV at IBS] [International Bible Society] [NIV at Zondervan] [Zondervan]

Matthew 5
The Beatitudes
1Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2and he began to teach them saying:
3″Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
5Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
6Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
7Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
8Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
9Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called sons of God.
10Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11″Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Salt and Light
13″You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.

14″You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.
The Fulfillment of the Law
17″Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
Murder
21″You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder,[a] and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ 22But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother[b]will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca,[c]‘ is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.

23″Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.

25″Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still with him on the way, or he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. 26I tell you the truth, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.[d]
Adultery
27″You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’[e] 28But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.
Divorce
31″It has been said, ‘Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.’[f] 32But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, causes her to become an adulteress, and anyone who marries the divorced woman commits adultery.
Oaths
33″Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.’ 34But I tell you, Do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. 36And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. 37Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.
An Eye for an Eye
38″You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’[g] 39But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. 40And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. 41If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. 42Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
Love for Enemies
43″You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor[h] and hate your enemy.’ 44But I tell you: Love your enemies[i] and pray for those who persecute you, 45that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? 48Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Matthew 6
Giving to the Needy
1″Be careful not to do your ‘acts of righteousness’ before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.

2″So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Prayer
5″And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

9″This, then, is how you should pray:
” ‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
10your kingdom come,
your will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
11Give us today our daily bread.
12Forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.[j]‘ 14For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
Fasting
16″When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 17But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Treasures in Heaven
19″Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

22″The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. 23But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

24″No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.
Do Not Worry
25″Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life[k]?

28″And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Matthew 7
Judging Others
1″Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.

3″Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

6″Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces.
Ask, Seek, Knock
7″Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

9″Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! 12So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
The Narrow and Wide Gates
13″Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
A Tree and Its Fruit
15″Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.

21″Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ 23Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
The Wise and Foolish Builders
24″Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

Looking at something and becoming fond
Will cause one to develop a strong bond
Such sustained contemplation becomes lust
Which if frustrated becomes anger and bust

Anger will be the cause of delusion
Then memory becomes baffled confusion
Thus intelligence is completely lost
Victim of life’s waves we’re hopelessly tossed

Entrapment in the material world begins by not seeing things properly.
When we look at an object without acknowledging to whom it may belong, we begin to imagine that we can control and enjoy it. Such thoughts are the root of material desires and subsequent troubles..

We begin the subtle process of thinking, feeling and willing about the object. We first think about the qualities of the object. Next, we feel how good it would be to own and enjoy the object. Then, we make a decision of will that we must have the object to be happy. The psychological processes of thinking, feeling, and willing are the inspiration for performing action (or work). Becoming convinced that our desires need to be fulfilled is the subtle form of action.

First, we hear about or observe an object. We acquire knowledge of the object. We, as the knower, undergo the process of thinking, feeling, and willing. Thus there is the knower, the object of knowledge and the knowledge of the object. These are called the impetus to action.

As our contemplation of the object gets more intense, we evolve from desire to attachment and then lust or the obsessive desire to control and enjoy an object. Once there is strong attachment or excessive desire and attachment (lust), if we are in any way hindered or frustrated in our attempt to control and enjoy the object, we become angry. Anger comes right after frustration.

Anger after frustration has definite symptoms such as, heavy breathing, tendency to use harsh language, possibility of violence, swelling of the chest and tensing of the muscles and facial expressions such as sharp eye contact, raising of the eyebrows or furrowing of the forehead, rashness of thought, increased heartbeat, and quick conclusions of retaliation, etc.

From anger delusion develops.The state of delusion occurs when one believes to be true or real something that is false or unreal. The conviction: “I am the controller and I am the enjoyer” is the basis of the delusion. This requires explanation as it is difficult for most people to accept that such a thought is actually delusional.

The basic concept of property and proprietorship determines the organization of society from the life of an individual to the entire population. For example, in modern day countries there are differences of social organization founded on a basic concept of proprietorship. In a capitalist country, the assumption is that the individual is the proprietor and the majority of laws protect personal property. In a socialist country, the state is the most prominent proprietor and most of the laws protect state ownership. In a monarchy, the king and nobles are the main proprietors. In a communist state, ideally the commune or the working class people as a collective is the proprietor. In a dictatorship, the dictator, his family and friends such as his military, industrial, and banking cronies are the proprietors. Every one of these concepts of property ownership and the social institutions that protect such concepts are flawed.

If I make a mistake at the beginning of solving a mathematical problem, I will most probably get the whole problem wrong. A mistake in the beginning will give me a wrong result in the end. Similarly, if the most fundamental concept on which an entire society is built (the concept of proprietorship) is wrong, then how can we expect the people in that society to be happy and eventually achieve the goal of human life?

Today, we live in the United States of America. Did this country exist five hundred years ago? The answer is no. Will this country exist five hundred years from now. The answer is we do not know! We can conclude that the existence of this great country or any country for that matter is temporary. The same can be said about anything we believe that we own. At most, we temporarily own something. Even during the period that we temporarily own something, we do not really own it. We can lose a possession at any time due to a variety of causes. If all the above mentioned concepts of proprietorship are wrong, then what is the right concept of proprietorship?

Before we answer the question, first let us consider the following. If all the above concepts of proprietorship are wrong, then we must be in a state of delusion if we believe we are the proprietor. I might accept rather easily that I am not the proprietor of the state of Colorado. But, I am hard pressed to accept I am not the proprietor of my body or my bank account. The truth is that I am not really the proprietor of my own body because so many functions of the body are taking place that are completely out of my control. I may reside within the body, but it is functioning in mysterious ways that are beyond my comprehension and conscious determination. I don’t control my heartbeat, the blinking of my eyes, my entire digestive system, and so many other vital processes of the body. I don’t control the aging process and ultimately, I don’t control birth, disease and death. Then how can I pretend that I am the owner of the body when I do not really control its vital functions.

Through honest self inspection one can understand that any claim to proprietorship is very temporary and always dependent on some superior authority such as the state or anyone with overpowering force, natural laws, and ultimately God. The person who controls nature and its insurmountable laws is the real proprietor of everything by virtue of his overpowering force. We see this force in hurricanes, tidal waves, earthquakes and any massive display of natural force. The strongest army in the world, the US Armed forces with all its sophisticated weapons could not stop hurricane Katrina from destroying most of a modern American City, New Orleans. Therefore, no one and no nation can claim to be proprietor except the Supreme controller of everything or God Himself.

At the most, our claims to proprietorship are temporary and always dependent on superior authority and ultimately God. If I believe that I am the absolute owner (or enjoyer) and controller, then I am in a state of delusion.

From such a state of delusion, our memory becomes confused. We forget who we are, where we are, what is our purpose in life, what are our limits, what are our duties and responsibilities.

From this confused memory, we lose our intelligence or our power to discriminate right from wrong. Then we fall down into a whirlpool of frenzied activity that is ultimately destructive to ourselves and others.

Unless we learn to see things correctly as owned and controlled by God, we become prone to developing material desires and acting in selfish and self destructive ways. God has made an arrangement by which He has set aside our minimum needs. However, when we take more than what we need, we become victims of our own greed by which others may be denied their minimum needs. We then become subject to the laws of material nature or correction for our greed.

The allurement of the material world is the desire for sense gratification. Such gratification is necessarily selfish, self centered and often passionate. The progression down the path of destructive behavior begins by seeing an object and meditating on it, developing attachment for it. From attachment, lust arises. If the lust is frustrated, there is anger. From anger comes delusion. From delusion comes bewilderment of memory. Then loss of intelligence and finally falling down into irresponsible behavior. This progression can happen very quickly.. It can occur in a few seconds or develop over an extended period of time.

There are many examples that can be given. I want to cite one that is particularly troubling. The following article was written

Friday, 14 December 2007.

“Thought she was not a virgin
Egyptian kills his bride on their wedding night

CAIRO (Moustafa Suleiman, AlArabiya.net)

Egyptian police arrested laborer Ibrahim Ali after he killed his wife on their wedding night. Failing to deflower her, Ali thought his bride was not a virgin and killed her, assuming she had an illicit relationship.

Residents of Al-Quba village in the Delta governorate of Sharqia said they heard the screams of Hoda Salem, 23, the new bride. When they rushed to her rescue, they found her lying on the floor with critical stab wounds.

The bride told them her husband had stabbed her and then run away. The neighbors called the police, and she was transferred to the hospital, where she died.

Police later arrested the groom, who confessed to the crime. He said that after he failed to break her hymen, he thought she was not a virgin.

This is the second crime of its kind within the month. The first incident took place in Giza governorate when a peasant killed his bride for the same reason.

In a previous case, a man killed his wife, only to have the coroner’s report show that she was still a virgin. He is now in jail.

Gynecologist Naglaa Ahmed told AlArabiya.net that she deals with many cases in which the husband cannot break the wife’s hymen on the first night. This, she explained, is due to the physical and psychological stress both go through leading up to the wedding.

Ahmed added that the condition of the hymen could be another reason. In some cases, minor surgery is needed to break the hymen due to its thickness or inelasticity. In rare cases, pregnancy can occur while the hymen is still unbroken, she added.

Virginity is one of the most important conditions for marriage for most Egyptians and is seen as a matter of personal and family honor.”

How can a man murder his newly wedded wife on their wedding night? It seems incomprehensible. Yet, if we understand the progression from incorrect contemplation to loss of intelligence, we can comprehend in a rational way the process by which intelligence can be quickly lost and one resorts to irrational behavior out of frustration and anger.

The purpose of spiritual education is to understand our eternal relation with God. At the same time, we must learn the pitfalls of material life in this world. Spiritual knowledge teaches us to stop the process of incorrect observation that leads to attachment, lust, anger, delusion, confusion of memory and loss of intelligence before we become victimized by such a slippery slope toward irresponsible behavior.

Laborer Ibrahim Ali who, on the spur of the moment had a doubt about the virginity of his new wife and murdered her, could have waited a day or two, made an appointment with a doctor and had her examined to see if his hunch was right or wrong. Better yet, he could have asked her before their marriage to submit herself to a test of virginity. He could have acted with his intelligence in control. However, he lost control of himself and murdered her as an act of unjustified rage.

Another interesting example to study is that of Lord Jesus and the prostitute that was going to be stoned to death.

Jhn 8:1 Jesus went unto the mount of Olives.

Jhn 8:2 And early in the morning he came again into the temple, and all the people came unto him; and he sat down, and taught them.

Jhn 8:3 And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery; and when they had set her in the midst,

Jhn 8:4 They say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act.

Jhn 8:5 Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou?

Jhn 8:6 This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with [his] finger wrote on the ground, [as though he heard them not].

Jhn 8:7 So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.

Jhn 8:8 And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground.

Jhn 8:9 And they which heard [it], being convicted by [their own] conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, [even] unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.

Jhn 8:10 When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?

Jhn 8:11 She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.

Jhn 8:12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

Jesus rightfully says that one must first be free of sin themselves before they attempt to judge another person of sinful behavior.

A recent event illustrates this same point.

“A federal appeals court judge on Friday stepped down from a high-profile obscenity trial in Los Angeles, three days after acknowledging that he had posted sexually explicit material on a publicly accessible personal website.

“In light of the public controversy surrounding my involvement in this case, I have concluded that there is a manifest necessity to declare a mistrial,” wrote Alex Kozinski, chief judge for the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. “I will recuse myself from further participation in the case and will ask the chief judge of the district court to reassign it to another judge.”

* Trial will see hours of hard-core fetish pornography

* Alex Kozinski: A respected, colorful, sometimes controversial jurist
* Kozinski in 2003: On Jurist’s Case Over His Ties to a Killer

On Wednesday, Kozinski suspended the trial of Hollywood filmmaker Ira Isaacs to allow the prosecutor to explore what he saw as “a potential conflict of interest concerning the court having a . . . sexually explicit website with similar material to what is on trial here.”

The words of Jesus were so powerful that they were able to stop the scribes and Pharisees from stoning to death the prostitute. Also the Pharisees wanted to trap Jesus by forcing him to say something against the ancient Jewish law. Jesus, however, was able to make such a cogent statement that his detractors became introspective about their own qualification to exact justice. This is an example of spiritual education which makes a person introspective about controlling their passions and building up their discriminative powers (intelligence) to stop themselves from falling victim of the lower forces of material nature: improper observation, attachment, lust, anger, delusion, confusion of memory and loss of intelligence.

Similarly, the case of Judge Kozinski is example of a person who sits in judgment of the “sins” or illegal activities of another person while the Judge has the same weakness or “sinful tendency” as the man being judged. The Judge did not voluntarily recuse himself when he was appointed to the case. He was ratted out by the defendant’s attorney who found out that the Judge had posted sexually explicit material on his own web page. Then it became apparent that Judge Kozinski was not qualified to sit in judgment in such a case.

The important issue is whether a person has control of their senses and mind. There are four activities that render mind and sense control almost impossible. They are: gambling and philosophical speculation, meat eating, intoxication and illicit sex. These four material activities undermine truthfulness (gambling and speculation), austerity and humility (meat eating), mercifulness (intoxication) and cleanliness (illicit sex). These four principles are the universal principals of spirituality. Undermining these principles by the four material activities of gambling, meat eating, intoxication and illicit sex, a person becomes very prone to being a victim of the slippery slope of imperfect observation to loss of intelligence and destructive behavior. When a person can regulate material activities based on the universal spiritual principles, they become capable of self control. The intelligence exercises its discriminative powers and can project into the future to see the consequences of rash behavior. It acts to avoid the senseless dive into the abyss self destructive behavior and causing harm to others.

There is an example of a man who is dreaming while asleep. He cries, “Tiger, tiger…It is eating me!” Another person who is awake witnesses the sleeping man’s emotional cries. He smiles and wonders “Where is the tiger?” Yet, the dreaming man is crying and moaning, “Tiger, tiger, tiger.” One does not have to be in a state of dreaming to be in illusion. An illusion is accepting something for what it is not due to either imperfect hearing or seeing. If we see water in the desert or mistake a rope for a snake, we may accept that the reflection of the sun on the hot sand is actually water when it is not or the rope is actually a snake when it is not. These are examples of illusions. When we believe that the illusions are really factual, we are in a state of delusion.

Sometimes politicians claim, “This is my land. This is my country.” Another group of politicians claim the same land and say, “This is my land, my country.” The two sides begin to fight and kill each other. Both sides are in a state of delusion. The land does not belong to either side. It belongs to God. But they are claiming my land, my country. But how long will they live to enjoy their land and country? It is an illusion to accept God’s property as one’s own property.

Without understanding our real position, we remain perplexed in the midst of the problems of this world which are all caused by false claims. The root cause of the illusion is the material conception of “I” and “Mine” or the false idea that I am the controller and enjoyer,

Once a king was about to die. He ordered that a coffin be made with two holes. When asked why he said, “I am a most powerful king with untold wealth. But when I die, I want the people to see my hands protruding from the coffin. I want them to see that I left this world empty handed even though I was so wealthy and powerful.” “Dust thou art and dust thou shalt become,” is the Biblical saying. It rings true. Any claim to proprietorship (even of our own body) is a false claim. The only true proprietor is God. If we learn to use everything in the service of God, then we can escape from the chains of illusion and self destructive behavior. Most disputes and wars in this world are based on territorial claims. Individually we attempt to be the controller and enjoyer. This attempt is spread to an entire society or nation. Then one nation desires to control and enjoy another nation. All wars are fought for sense gratification. One nation wants to enjoy their senses in one way and another nation in another way and they fight for domination for their own brand of sense gratification. It is all false and illusory.

Another interesting example is a story about Hazrat Ali, the famous Muslim prophet who is the saint of the Shia Muslims. Hazrat Ali was fighting in a “holy war.” He knocked down an opposing soldier and was about to kill him with his sword. The soldier spit in Hazrat Ali’s face. The saint put down his sword. The soldier was shocked. He said, “Why don’t you kill me?” Hazrat Ali said, “Before you spit in my face I was going to kill you on behalf of Allah as a righteous act. But when you spit in my face, I became angry at you. I cannot kill you in a state of personal anger based on my own emotional state. Therefore, I have put down my sword.” The soldier was so impressed by the motives of Hazrat Ali that he converted to Islam and became a sincere follower. There is a difference between acting on one’s own personal motives and acting as a servant of God without any personal attachment or self interest. One is saved from the entanglement of reactive work by acting only on the order of God without any personal motive. This story illustrates how important the motive of the action is.

During a war, a soldier kills an enemy fighter according to the rules of engagement. He is not considered a murderer although he kills. But, after the war, if the same man kills someone of his own accord, he will be prosecuted as a criminal. By acting under the orders of superior authority and following the rules of engagement, one is not responsible for the acts. Acting on one’s own selfish desires, one becomes responsible.

There is another example of delusional acts under the influence of extreme anger.

By RYAN LENZ, Associated Press Writer Wed Jun 25, 7:07 PM ET

HENDERSON, Ky. - ” A 25-year-old press operator shot and killed five co-workers and himself at a plastics plant in rural western Kentucky just hours after arguing with his supervisor about not wearing safety goggles and using his cell phone while on the assembly line, police said Wednesday.

Authorities said Wesley N. Higdon of Henderson was so riled by the argument with his supervisor that he called his girlfriend and told her that he wanted to kill his boss. The girlfriend didn’t warn anyone, police said, and just two hours later, Higdon argued with another co-worker then shot and killed his supervisor as they walked outside. Then, he returned and shot at co-workers in a break room and on the plant floor.

A man who called 911 frantically described the violent scene to a dispatcher, tallying up the number of dead around him.

“There’s more than two people dead. There’s like one, two, three, four, five people dead,” the man said. “The supervisor is dead, too.”

Authorities said Higdon was known to keep a .45-caliber pistol in his car, which is not illegal in Kentucky.

The first shooting took place as the supervisor was escorting him from the building. Other co-workers were shot in the break room and on the plant floor. One worker was injured and was being treated in the critical care unit at St. Mary’s Hospital and Medical Center in Evansville, Ind.

“He just walked in, looked like he meant business and started shooting at everybody,” Henderson Police Sgt. John Nevels said at a news conference.”

The need for real education is absolutely necessary to help people control their senses and mind and refrain from rash, passionate acts of senseless violence.The first symptom of an educated and civilized person is that they always consider carefully the outcome and collateral effects of an act before they act.One cannot do this unless they accept that there is a higher authority than oneself. Respect and love for the higher authority, who is ultimately God, is the beginning of self control and self discipline.

Unless one sincerely understands the spiritual truth of our eternal relationship with God, we can never become free from the material influence which leads us on like a blind man into a ditch of confused, desperate acts. In truth, material sense enjoyment pales in comparison to the higher taste of spiritual enjoyment in the association of God. Tasting such spiritual pleasure in the presence of God is the beginning of freedom from material conditioning.

Speak with respect the candid truth
Honor your elders in your youth
When you become old and grey
You will be respected everyday

Think and act with gentle humility
Value words and acts of civility
Let others know you as responsible
Steady in virtue and reliable

Those who are tolerant remain unmoved
Serene in mind when they are reproved
If insulted or purposely harassed
They resist the flames of anger with class

Let your actions teach the dignified life
Good behavior, noble deeds all free of strife
Patience, tolerance are lessons to learn
Practiced daily, respect we will earn

Work with the wise, carry a heavy load
But fools you avoid like a poison toad
Be inspired by acts of the pious
Learn what not to do from the impious

With the wise you will never be depraved
With the depraved you will never be saved
By your company you will be known
To be a good man or a mindless clone

If you will to be wise
Never ever tell lies
Nor anyone despise
Nor thievery devise
Nor lust for others’ wives
Nor drink bibulous wines
Nor gamble one time
Nor on meat ever dine

Keep not nasty words in your heart
Forget such speech right from the start
Lest they fire your mouth like hot coals
That will stain your soul and burn all
make you angry and downward fall

All that you hear do not disclose
Nor all you see dare not expose

Cherish traditions that sustain morality
avoid new ones that favor abnormality
Do not untie a knot that is tied
nor a new one seal that is untried

Notice not a woman whose body entices
With makeup, dress, scent, and alluring devices
That divert you from goodness, awaken your lust
Engross in illusions, waste life, turn you to dust

Covet not the wife of another
look upon her like your own mother

Avoid women that whisper much
One’s with shrill voice never touch

The beauty of woman is her good sense
Truthful words and love that she can dispense

Spring blossoms of the almond come out fast
But the fruits take time to mature the last
Mulberry tree flowers blossom slowly
Yet the ripened fruits are eaten quickly

Be not rash to reach conclusions to fast
not based on facts nor wisdom of the past
Ponder events slowly, consider all
Justice served, your fairness will all enthrall

Jahnahchelh eemastoutioun yehv khuhrahd, eemahnahl ayn pahrehr vor gouhdahn hahsgatzoghoutioun

The first sentence translated into Armenian from the Bible (Prov 1:1) soon after the invention of the Armenian alphabet in AD 405.

eemashdouneroun metch unmeed mee uhllar
yev unmeedneroun metch ahl eemashdoun

Gandhi was characterized as politician among holy men
and a holy man among politicians

The British were able to perfectly characterize him through
their observation of his behavior. Gandhi was a disciplined man and a yogi who exhibited self restraint. Yet, he was not able to truly maintain spiritual purity of purpose and remain faithful to the
teachings of Vedic knowledge. Because he was not integral in his spiritual practices and understanding, he ultimately made a colossal mess of his movement and was ironically assasinated. Gandhi espoused nonviolence. Yet, his ambivalent understanding of the Vedic knowledge made him a weak political pundit. His lack of determined leadership created the circumstances by which hundred of thousands of Hindus were massacred by Muslims and large numbers of people were forced to leave their homes with nothing and start their lives again forever distanced from their ancestral lands. Although he was somewhat instrumental in getting the Colonial British out of India, the result after Indian independence was a catastrophe. Gandhi had written down what his goals were: ending Hindu Muslim strife, establishing a rural agrarian society decentralized from large industrial cities, cow protection, village industries and sustainable agriculture, and more. All of these goals failed especially the Hindu-Muslim coexistence.

Amongst politicians he spoke of spirituality and amongst holy men he spoke of politics.