My Journey Into Sanātana Dharma

Introduction

	I want to become a Hinduism religious education teacher and teach the children the wonders on Hinduism. May the children be able to appreciate Hinduism for what it is. May they become strong and devoted in the amazing faith. Hare Krishna! Jai Ho!

NAMASTE...I honor the place in you where the entire universe resides. I honor the place in you, where lies your love, your light, your truth and your beauty. I honor the place in you, where...if you are in that place in you ... and I am in that place in me...then there is only one of us!"
I believe what it says is correct.

Anyways, This is my 1st post on my journey into my new religion (Sanatana Dharma/Hinduism). I am a former catholic, who is now practicing Hinduism. It was a little overwhelming at first, but I started researching about the religion and things started to get easier. I got books from my local library to read up and learn about things. Just two days ago, I got through a condensed version of the Gita. The pieces were starting to come together. I started praying to the Gods. I feel more connected to Lord Krishna and Lord Ganesha. I feel more at peace with my new religion, then I ever have (and ever would) with catholicism. The beginning of journey is so uplifting and inspiring to me...It feels so great!!!

Well I'm making another post to explain about how I got interested in Hinduism (Sanatana Dharma). I met a wonderful Guy (He is now my boyfriend and we've been together for almost a year now) and he invited me over to his families house. At first things seemed strange at first. I saw: crosses, pictures of Krishna, Jesus and other various gods in their home. Little did I know about them at first, but it seemed like they were calling to me. I was curious to find out more about those images, so I went on a quest to find out.

One day I asked my boyfriend what religion he was and he said he was Christian. I also asked if his mom was Christian and he said "no, she is practicing Hinduism, and she goes to a temple for service." I wanted to know what Hinduism was, so I started research. Then one day, Just before I was to go to Catholic Church, I was online and had the urge to research some more and it hit me...The more information I found out about Hinduism, the more I felt connected with this religion, and less connected with Catholicism. I remember one night in particular, I had a dream, but it was no ordinary dream. In my dream it seemed like I was at some music concert. As I watched, I saw dancers dancing and chanting. As the dream went on there was sounds to it and people were chanting "Hail Krishna". I decided to find out more, so I started reading the Gita and instantly knew that Hinduism was the religion for me.

I didn't want to be Catholic anymore. I hated all the rules, that if you did even a tincy thing wrong it was considered a sin. I felt more comfortable with myself by practicing Hinduism. I understood the meaning that heart, mind, body, and soul should be at perfect balance in order to find God. I believed that In my past life I was a practicer of Hinduism. I found a connection to the name AAshna, when I was randomly bored and looked up Indian baby names. Aashna means: beloved, devoted to love. I like that and maybe it was my name in my past life. Who knows, it could a sign for the future. I hope to one day find peace with myself and create a great future for my future family (whenever that may be) and teach them the wonderful ways of Hinduism (Sanatana Dharma).





Today, I received shocking news from a friend who read my blog. My friend told me that even people who are devotees of Krishna can sometimes go their whole lives without a clear vision of him (awakenings). She said that I'm very special, because Krishna has chosen me as his own and put his love in my heart. She also said that I am like a angel, that I have the power to turn bad/negative situations into good/positive ones.

I want to one day, help children learn about the ways of Hinduism and teach them to have the love of Krishna/the gods in their hearts. Children like me for some reason and look up to me. They are the future and we should cherish them. It is very inspiring to see the reaction of your teachings in them, them doing good and having the love of Krishna/the gods in their hearts :D!

I want to also share something to you. My boyfriend said to me a few days ago...

"You need to learn on your own to fix your own habits, not rely on me or you will never learn from your mistakes."

That is so very true indeed!!!

You can not learn to fix things, if you rely on someone to do it for you. It makes you lazy. Put your life in motion, make it worth something. Krishna and the gods gave you a life so make the most of it.

One of my favorite personal quotes...

"May the Gods bless you. Thank the Gods for everyday is a blessing, a gift. Don't let your life go to waste. Celebrate your life and praise the Gods always, for they have created you. They gave you a life, a heart, and a soul. Be glad your alive. Always do good, never do bad (Karma)."

I strive to live it in my heart and share my knowledge and love for Krishna/the gods, with others. I hope to inspire people to do good, and have love for Krishna/the gods too!

Sorry I haven't blogged lately. I have been researching a lot about Hinduism. I came across a copy of the Bhagavad Gita, that I love reading. It is easy to understand and is annotated/explained. I am also reading Autobiography of a Yogi, By: Paramahansa Yogananda. I can't stop reading that book. I feel his heart and soul when I'm reading the book. It is as if he is actually with me telling me the story face-to-face.

Over the past few days, I have felt more myself and more devoted to my Gods. When I went to my Catholic church (I go because, I sing in the choir there), I imagined people (like priests) dressed in Middle Eastern/Indian outfits with red dots on their foreheads. While I was praying in church, I could hear the voice of Lord Shri Krishna speaking to me. I am still trying to understand the meaning of all this (If it was part of my past life or is my future...the path I should take). But, eventually this will all make sense in the end.

I had a dream last night and I would like to share it here. In my dream, I was talking to someone (looked like a woman). I saw kids coloring books...one with Jesus and Saints, and the other with Hindu Gods. I asked the person if they were raising their kids both religions (look like this person had kids). She said yes. I took a liking to a perticualar book the person had. It had to do with prayers to Lord Brahma. I told the person this was my favorite book (I don't know why or how it was my favorite book). Then I told the person that I want to raise my kids to practice Hinduism (Sanatana Dharma). I think the dream is my soul telling me that it recognizes the self-realization thing. That it is more then just flesh and bones. It has a past life. The balance perspective (heart, mind, body, and soul acting as one).

I have no clue why I had this dream, but I do remember before going to bed and having the dream, that I was doing something strange. I was sitting on the couch still (like a statue), and not moving or speaking. People have seen me get still and not move or say anything for a few minutes. They/I have no clue why I do this, But I think it is me in meditation mode. As I was still and quiet, I could hear the voice of Lord Shri Krishna speaking to me. I said if you are really Krishna, then show yourself to me. I wanted to see how strong of a connection I have with him. I still don't know why Krishna has personally chose or took a liking to me. But, I do believe that in due time the answer(s) will be reveled to me.

Namaste To All,

Sorry I haven't posted for a while. I've been busy finding myself the past few days. I am so excited to say that I am on a wait list to take a yoga class at my local college. I went to go see my Boyfriend on the 20th of this month (It was our one year relationship anniversary). It was great, I didn't have to hide myself and the Gods gave me an opportunity to tell his mom about my new religious path. She understood about everything and I'm grateful to have her support in this amazing journey :) ! The Gods have blessed me so much the past few days and it is wonderful.

Here's a prayer I got for one of my great friends...

Lord I surrender everything to you, no matter what, I shall continue to love and worship thee, please increase your love in my heart with every breath and step I take

I resite this prayer every night before I go to bed. It has opened a lot of doors for me. I thanks the Gods every night for blessing me with, a wonderful boyfriend, and his mother, and for everything else that is wonderful in my life.



A big apology to all my readers,

It has been several months since I last posted. I got so caught up in my life, and never had time to post regularly on here. I am now back and I will try to be more up-to-date on my post. Thanks for understanding.

Now to my post...

It has been an amazing journey so far. The past few months have been great. I love the Hindu Temple I go to. The people there are so wonderful and all of them (even me) are so committed/devoted to the faith. I went to festivals at the temple throughout New Year's weekend and enjoyed it immensely. I had a few Indians (India, not Native American) come up to me. Two of the ladies said I should major in Hinduism in school, since I am so passionate about the faith and one lady in particular told me the most amazing comment ever. To quote...She said: "I wish my children were as devoted as you are!", it made me smile the biggest smile ever ( :D ) !!! I had so much fun and on New Year's weekend the latest I stayed out till was like 5:00AM (at the temple of course).

~I love being Hindu sooooo much and the experiences I have will last a lifetime. I want to teach my children (when the time comes) the wonders of Hinduism. In fact, I want to become a Hindu Religious Education Teacher, and teach the future generations (children) about the glorious wonders of Hinduism!!!~

This week at temple I had a very inspiring encounter with a Swamiji. Swami Mukundananda came to my temple to speak and do yoga/meditation. I loved his yogasans. They made me feel more flexible and brought me one step closer to better health. The meditations helped me become more focused and at peace. Clear mind & healthy mind = a healthy & fit body. After the yoga/meditation and lectures the people were given indian food. I was blessed to sit by Swamiji. He remembered my name from when i told him earlier in the week. He asked me how I got started in Hinduism. He seem very interested in what I was saying. He seem to like the part where I said I had dreams about Brahma and Krishna. He finished eating and left before he left I waved at him and he waved back. I went and handed him a paper I wrote on my spritual journey. He seemed very happy to recieve it from me. This is a week and a expirance I will never forget. -Jai Shree Guru-

SOURCE:-http://aashna-namaste.blogspot.in/2011/09/very-inspiring-encounter.html