Kunda Miss, My Veda Guru

Kunda Miss at High School  : (From About Ancient Indians) :

I had actually selected Kannada as my first language in 8th standard, but my school (M.L.A. girls’ high school, Bangalore) ruled that English Medium students had to study Sanskrit. This was a great boon and blessing to me.

I was taught Sanskrit, at school, by Kunda Miss. I don’t know her initials or surname, but the lady was a brilliant and dedicated teacher and I was an enraptured student. She taught me for 3 blessed and wonderful years. In 10th Standard, I topped the state board in Sanskrit. She actually wrote me a letter to Trinidad, telling me this. Our sanskrit syllabus had selections from the scriptures and I used to learn the beautiful words and their meanings by heart.

Kunda Miss becomes my guru : (From Two bits of good news ) :

My high school sanskrit teacher, has agreed to teach me Vedartha and Vedangas. All those dips in the freezing Ganga at Haridwar and Rishikesh, as well as Krishna River, Kanyakumari’s TriSamudraSangam and other places are paying off.

Kunda Miss as my Veda and Yoga Guru : (From : A new kind of adventure : Learning Vedas and Yoga)

… So now my with my Veda Guru working on my chanting… my classical music quality is improving by orders of magnitude.

The no onion and garlic rule has eliminated outside eating to a huge extent., which has naturally reduced oil, and I am losing weight to my great joy.

And then the yoga practice is designed to strengthen my back.. and my back pain is reducing…

I am very possessive about my Veda teacher and feel happy when the other students don’t show up and I have a one-on-one class.

Only thing is I must learn to clam up and listen more.,  I talk so much about so many things that she knows already, losing precious time in which I could learn something more. She listens to me as a mother delights in baby prattle glad that I have learned a few new words and ideas.

It looks like a german student wants to learn from her now., but she will be in India only for 2 weeks.. so I guess., that’s okay.

I have to ask her tomorrow about what to do to improve my throat range and lessen my throat strain..

Kunda Miss cares more for what I need than what I ask for : (From No Brufen since I started Yoga!

I did not start Yoga willingly. It was imposed on me by my Veda Guruji, who decided that my health had to be improved. Out of respect for her words I agreed.

Guru vatsalya and matru vatsalya are different. A mother gives all without asking. A teacher makes you do what is in your best interests and is quite amused by any sulking…!

Since I started Yoga, I have not needed to take any brufen for my back pain.. I used to take a couple of tablets every week. My eyes are sharper and this really helps with my study of the night sky.

It is said that when Ravana lay dying, Sri Rama sent Lakshmana to him to learn many things. After learning, Lakshmana asked Rama why he was sent to a dying enemy to learn, instead of being taught by his own divine self. Rama told him that  the guru had to be other than a family member to get love and proper instruction without pampering.

My family thinks I have lost weight and look much prettier than before.

Yesterday I wanted her to start teaching me Vedangas. I waited over two hours for my class just to learn this. (As a result of a communications failure). When she finally came, she wanted me to do Yoga. I told her that I had already practiced and would she please teach me Vedangas at least a little. she said she would teach me a little pranayama. After the pranayama instruction, she told me that it would strengthen my lungs and relieve asthmatic suffering.

My family is delighted that I am finally taking care of my health. My friends have been telling me to do yoga and pranayama for years. Finally they have found someone, who can “make me” do it and it is leading to a lot of delighted amusement on their part at my expense 

I can only imagine the days of gurukula when gurus looked after their student with love and care. Giving them what they needed, instead of what they asked for.

Kunda miss is quick to forgive others : (From Calming thoughts)

My present goal is to transform the thoughts generated by the actions/speech/presence of other people into calming thoughts. My guru does this by forgiving people quickly, having no expectations of others, and always finding an excuse for others before they can even think of one for themselves. Thus others really can’t touch her peace of mind.

Kunda Miss is an aparigrahi : (From My Veda Guru

She wears the simplest of clothes, un-ironed, her hair uncombed. When I asked her about wearing colour sarees – she said she was not interested.

When I took her fruit, she offered it God and distributed it to children.

When I offered her fees for Vedas, she refused, saying it was RshiRNam., a debt to the Rshis.

She offered to teach me yoga in addition to Vedas, to improve my health. My aches and pains have reduced. When I offered her money for that she refused Very Firmly.

There is a yoga instructor course she wants me to do so that I understand the theory of yoga. That daily course for 3 months and she will accept fees for that at the end of 3 months and not before. And that too I dont think it is for her.. the money is for the samstha and the purpose is my health.

My poorva ashrama  (software etc) vasanas have not left me and I do look at all things in a commercial way still. I have become unused to people with zero greed.

She has asked me to write the rudram in devanagari.. I have not begun. She asked for a printout of my brahmagiri article, I have not given her. She asked me to read a kannada book, I whined. She asked me to practice yoga morning and evening. I have not. she asked me to listen to her guru’s veda chanting CDs, early in the morning, since I asked for them and bought them.  I have not done this.

I expect to pay for invaluable teaching, not with devotion, service and obedience but with money. I have a LONG way to go. To accept gifts of knowledge with the same grace that they have been bestowed upon me and to not try and “somehow repay”.

I have to learn that I am not this rich patron of a pensioned high school teacher, but a grateful, dependent arthi of the highest knowledge in the world, Vedas, Vedangas and Brahmagnyana, being bestowed upon me with the greatest of love, patience, exactness and time.

Basically I have to lose some more of my old vasanas and change as a person.

I have to lose my arrogance and superficial assessments first and foremost.

I am somehow feeling not very proud of myself  today., more in the lines of a donkey. 

A few folks write to me asking me to be their guru. This is why I can’t be a guru. I have not won over the 6 internal enemies. I can at best be a co-student sahapATin sharing her notes. If you have the time or opportunity you should try and learn something from my Veda Guru. She lives in Vidyaranyapura, Bangalore and teaches Vedas from 3 to 5 in the afternoon on most days. (Times are adjustable).

Kunda Miss is quick to show respect to elders : From : My Guru and I

Today my mom came along with me to yoga class. Many decades ago my mom was teacher at degree college. Kunda Miss was so excited and pleased to see her. She bowed to her at the beginning and end of the class and gave her some milk and blouse pieces.

To my mom, Kunda miss is a little girl who grew up and became a saint. She went on telling me.. “your Kunda Miss is so sacred now.. so saintly”.

With great love and devotion, Kunda Miss taught my mother some breathing practices, muscle and joint loosening exercises and pranayama. Mom took her some flowers from her own garden, because that is one of the very few things that Kunda Miss will accept from anyone, for use in her puja.

Once I decided to give her some dates for her puja. She loves distributing prasadam to her young students. When I went to the shelf in the store, there was a “buy one get one free” offer. So I got a free packet of dates that my mom could use in her puja. So the gift for Kunda Miss cost me nothing. As usual she distributed it to all the children after offering it to God. Then she made sure I had some. Only then, when I insisted,  she put one into her mouth, looking like a small happy child with a toffee in her cheek.

Then recently when I went for a class she was buying some soppu – green leafy vegetables. With her permission, I paid the Rs 10 for the soppu to save her some time and bother. Then on the way home, for Rs 10, I saw a tempo guy selling fresh soppu very cheap and for another Rs 10, I got the best soppu that I had ever bought in Bangalore in recent years and tons of it!!

So it is really hard to give her anything! No wonder.. it is said that Rukmini did not allow Sri Krsihna to accept the third handful of ‘avalakki’ from Sudama. By accepting 2 handfuls, Sri Krishna had already blessed Sudama with all the wealth needed for his present and future births.

I must stop trying to give her material things and concentrate my efforts on learning all that she has to teach. I must preserve and transmit her knowledge. Yet I do want to take her some honey or ghee for her next puja.. I guess I do not learn easily. I must learn to with draw my mind from the manifest material layer.

She says that for all these years I have given so much to the prapancha (world), that the prapancha has a strong hold on me now. My challenge is to let go and withdraw my mind into myself. My problem is Vyasa’s problem.

She says that the prapancha needs brahmagnyanis for solace and soothing. But brahmagnyanis need that one perfect student who can learn what he has to teach. That is why Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa was so excited about Swami Vivekananda and not about the thousands of people who came to him for comfort and compassion.

My Veda Guru, Kunda Miss,  says :

On Bowing and Blessing :

1. Women do a panchanga pranamam and men do a sashtanga pranamam.
2. Anyone can be blessed with a long life but a brahman (seeker of brahma vidya) may be blessed to attain brahma vidya and a kshatriya (king/soldier) may be blessed with victory and fame.
3. It depends on what the seeker wants and what the blesser wishes to give. The blesser should sincerely attempt to channel blessings from the divine on the seeker.

On The only Guru is Bhagwan (God) :

1. The only Guru is Bhagwan. When we sit to learn from a teacher, it is the Jagadguru Sri Krishna Parabrahma, Himself who is teaching us.  ….Similarly when anyone bows to us for a blessing, they are bowing to God and blessings go to them from God.
2. I think this is very thrilling. I always think of my Veda Guru as Vidya Devi (Saraswathi) of Vidyaranyapura. But to think that Sri Krishna himself is teaching me through her with such a personal interest in my progress.. is thrilling beyond measure..

On Cooking and eating are yagnyAs!

1. Because the vais’vAnara occupied our bodies after creating them, He resides in our bodies as the jaTaragni.
2. Therefore my veda guru says that cooking and eating clean and fresh satvik food in time is a yagnya offered to the Vaishvanara. It should be done with care, devotion and love.
3. Housewives, please take note.. you cannot neglect yourselves…

On Health and Emotional Balance – Yoga, Pranayama and Satvik Diet :

1. Yoga, Pranayama and Satvik Diet, help to balance one’s physical and emotional health. The advantage of this is that we are then no longer burdens on anyone around us!!
2. My veda teacher forced me to learn yoga, because she decided I needed it, though I declared that I  felt fine. Today I am finally a convert. It is very nice to feel pain free and peaceful..  :D.
3. My previous yoga teachers taught in large groups and forced me to do many asanas that are contraindicated for me. They also were not spiritual. To the extent, that I refused to go to yoga classes even when they were taught free in my own locality.
4. Now learning from a spiritual, aparigrahi, who is an expert in all adhyatamic and yogic matters, who understands my limitations and tells me what I can actually do, while lecturing me till I actually do it, I have seen the value of these techniques.
5. One needs a guru in adult life as much as one needs a mom in childhood…

On Isa Vasya Upanishad Santi Mantram :

Spiritual Meaning of pUrNat pUrNamudacyatE: ‘That” refers to brahman (Parabrahma). “This” refers to this manifest universe. What we can sense with our sensory organs. Both are complete. Completeness refers to Perfection. This visible universe that manifests from the perfect brahman is also perfect. When perfect, complete manifest universe is removed from the brahman, only the perfect complete brahman remains. The manifestation of a perfect God cannot be imperfect, it is also perfect. (Courtesy : My Veda Guru)

On Mano Rahitya – A state of absence of mind :

rahita – means without (something). rAhitya – is a state of  absence of  (something). manO rAhitya is a state attained by siddhAs after sufficient sAdhana or practice. In their practice, the sAdhakAs train themselves to reach and stay in the Atmasthiti, or the self state., where the mind and all antahkaranas (inner senses) are still. At this time, their mind is said to dissolve into nothing and they experience the ananda (bliss) of the self. My Veda Guru tells me that some sAdhaks attain manO rAhitya and stay endlessly in that state, and some for smaller periods of time.

On other topics :

1. Da in yajurvEda becomes La in Rg vEda
2. dwiswaritAs – Vedic Chanting – Siksha Vedanga – Vedic Swaras
3. Veda Vismarana – Brahmahatya Patakam
4. Devas can be summoned by Veda Mantras.
5. Veda Swaras, Viniyoga and Artha
6. Sri Devi Suktham RV 10.8.175 vAgAmbhraNi rsika
7. Rg Vidhana – by Saunaka Maharshi
8. Rg Vidhana of Saunaka
9. Atharva Veda : the origin of medicine, yoga and tantric texts
10. Anushthana is required for Veda Practice
11. yatha sakthi, yatha dravyam
12. Density Variations in Divine Presence
13. Vedic Swaras or Variations in Pitch

Recommended By Guruji :

1. Upanishad Sources : Books : The Isadi nou upaniSad, in Hindi, Gita Gorakhpur press, priced at Rs 100, is an amazing book, with both the upanishad mantras and sankarabhasya in Sanskrit plus their translations in Hindi. Excellent print hardbound. It was recommended to me by my veda guru.
2. My veda guru had told me about her professor, Sri Lakshmi Tatachar : A swayamAcarya was at the head of sanskrit research at melkote and to look him up  as well as the sanskrit library. From :  s’ama dama : s’ama in Melkote Narayana Sannidhi. He invited her to doa PhD. with him, but  by then she had already found her Guru.

See Also :

1. Guru, Acharya, Adhyapaka, Upadhyaya
2. Can women learn the Veda?

Authorship and Copyright Notice : All Rights Reserved : Satya Sarada Kandula