Jean-Pierre Lehmann
“The planet needs quite desperately a sense of moral order, spirituality and an ethical compass. The Indian religious and philosophical traditions can provide a great deal of all three. It was in a recent conversation with an Indian religious guru that I was also pleased to discover I could adhere to his religious tenets, while maintaining my secular convictions. No imam or priest would allow me that.”
Global Hindu Heritage Foundation is very happy to inform you that we have started Bala Samskar Kendras (Schools for children and youth) to enrich them with the greatness of Hindu Dharma and appreciate the sacrifices many leaders have done to protect Bharat. There are many kings who have achieved new heights in their skills, talents, and strength. Unfortunately, Bharath denies its history to its own children and glorified the most undeserving rulers. The government has corrupted the minds of young students since Independence in 1947. It is our effort to teach them the greatness of our scriptures, enriches their minds with timeless wisdom, create a sense of pride through time-tested moral and ethical compass, and make them proud of the science behind all our customs and traditions.
Bala Samskar Kendras started in 2021 and now we have about 200 Bala Samskar Kendras in five States in India and four in Bangladesh. They are very active and a large number of children are attending many parents are impressed with their own children and how much they are learning and how they changed behaviorally. 
Celebrated Adi Shankara Jayanti
Adi Shankaracharya is one of the most outstanding personalities that India has produced in last few thousand years. He was a teacher, scholar, poet, saint, philosopher, yogi, bhakta, tantrika, a jivanmukta, and an avatara (incarnation).
He taught the high philosophy of the Upanishads- the path of Jnana to those who were eager to attain Atma-Jnana, he taught the path of Karma to those inclined towards the performance of actions, and he showed the path of Bhakti for those who were devotional in nature.
He taught people both pravritti (actions) and nivritti (renunciation), both Dharma and Moksha and showed how to travel from former to the latter. In many a sense he was truly a Jagadguru- World Teacher, who went to great lengths to teach and re-establish Sanatana Dharma across India.
Today, on the occasion of Shankara Jayanti- the birth anniversary of the great master, let’s briefly look into some of his teachings as imparted in his small composition- Sadhana Panchakam.
Adi Shankaracharya is most famous for his Prashtanatraya Bhashya- commentaries on Brahmasutra, Upanishads, and Bhagavad Gita. Scholars after scholars have examined these commentaries and derived various aspects of Adi Shankaracharya’s teachings from these commentaries. But, commentaries by their very nature allow a commentator to only explain the teaching of the text on which the commentary is being written.
Hence, one can say that there is a kind of limitation on the part of any Acharya to impart direct instructions to people while writing commentaries. To overcome this limitation, various Acharyas have written independent works called ‘Prakarana Granthas’, where relevant teachings extracted from the scriptures are directly imparted to the students. One such small Prakarana Grantha written by Adi Shankaracharya is ‘Sadhana Panchakam’.
Adi Shankara then advises people to give up desires and cleanse the stream of Paapam (demerits) attained due to past performance of Adharma. Desire is the root of all demerits and bondage. One is entangled in the cycle of birth and death, because of the unending desires to experience worldly pleasure.
Hence, as long as one remains attached to desires, one will keep performing Adharmic actions and will remain attached to worldly bondage. Only when one overcomes desires and develops Vairagyam- dispassion towards worldly enjoyment, will one be able to pursue his goal of Moksha without any distractions. Thus, the great master advises people to give up desires.
Another important quality that is crucial to attain Moksha is restraint of the senses and the mind. It is the nature of the mind and the sensory organs to grasp worldly experiences and gratifying those experiences will only increase attachment to worldly objects. Thus, indulgence in both pleasure and pain, both happiness and sorrow increases bondage to physical existence.
The only solution to overcome this bondage is the restraining of the mind and the senses from pursuing the objects of its desire. In other words, one slowly develops Vairagyam by practicing ‘Indriya Nigraha’- control of the mind and the senses and thus the great master has included it among his instructions.
People often identify themselves with their name, their possessions, and their body and mind. But, all of these are impermanent and only the innermost Atman, which is non-different from Brahman is permanent. Moksha or liberation is nothing but the first hand direct realization that one is not the body and mind, but is Infinite ever-free Brahman itself.
Therefore, to attain this Moksha through direct realization (i.e. Aparoksha Jnana/Atma Jnana), one must overcome the notion that ‘I am body’, ‘I am name’, or ‘I am the mind’. And this is only possible when a person has purified his mind, given up desires, and has restrained his mind and senses. This renunciation of the notion ‘I am body’ forms Sannyasa in the true sense and it directly leads one to abide in his innermost Atman and attain Moksha.
Thus, Adi Shankaracharya teaches in Sadhana Panchakam that the practice of Svadharma, Bhakti, Vairagyam, Indriya Nigraha, and Sannyasa will slowly lead a person towards Atma-Jnana and Moksha.
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