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Half the Way Home
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That fish looks very familiar!
Another good one Gurunistha
It amazes me how often, like this poor fellow, we go fishing thinking that that next fish is going to be the “big one” even though countless years of such fishing has only gotten us rather harsh bites in the butt. Sad how self-destructive we are.
Wow dangerous & scary! Every single time! But maybe it won’t be so bad next time?!?!?! Let’s try fishing again…
you shoulda’ seen the one that got away!!
Except for the one that eats us alive, don’t they all get away??!!
When we wish for something big, are we indeed tempting the Fate? How about wishing for Krishna? It does not get any bigger… 😉
We should not be afraid to take chances when it comes to realizing our dreams. Srila Prabhupada used to say (I paraphrase): “If you go hunting, you might as well go after a rhino. In that way if you fail, nobody can laugh at you”.
Dream big and have faith in Krishna. You never know, He may very pleasantly surprise you by granting you that dream, and then some! 🙂
I think devotees are preoccupied with the negative thinking… 😉
Yes, how about a Paradise in Open Space !
I agree. I was thinking of “the one that got away” as ever elusive material enjoyment. My preoccupation with the negative didn’t allow me to think that this ocean could be the Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu.
But then again, I don’t think someone named Mike would be on that boat with the lucky bhakta who just caught the Timingila of kripa-siddhi!
Otherwise, yes. We should be outrageously positive and enthusiastic. We have already achieved such mercy!
Negative thinking is just as bad when applied to the material realm as when applied to the spiritual realm. It relates to the way we see reality. Why do you think devotees fight so much among themselves over the tiniest of differences? Because all their life they have been conditioned and preoccupied with negative thinking.
Instead of seeing everything in a positive way we just see gloom and doom. Everything can be a life-changing positive lesson, even hooking up a monster of a problem. You just have to be willing to learn from your experiences. It is not that fishing in the Ocean of Desire is bad – that is akin to saying that all desire is bad. We must understand that mode of goodness desires lead to liberation. And from there it is anly a short step to purely spiritual desires. You are still fishing in that ocean… you are just fishing in a different spot, using a differend bait, but you are still fishing… 😉
I wouldn’t quite say that Kula, when I see this comic I see material based wishful thinking, and there are different aspects that support this intent, such as the fishermen having secular names (as already pointed out by Madan Gopal), so they are likely not devotees, as well as the “big one” being a scary saber toothed monster. If this could be a metaphor for our desire for Sri Krsna, I don’t think it would be captioned “Fishing in the ocean of desire”.
In short, it seems to me that in order to see this comic in a positive light, many aspects would have to change =).
My point was that the cartoon itself is based on negative thinking 🙂
We shouldn’t disregard the positive effect of negative impetus. All white is a problem just as all black is.
Furthermore, your comment, while advocating not having a negative view of the universe, takes a rather purely negative view of the comic.
No doubt. Reality must be acknowledged. But it is the half full vs. half empty routine. I say from my experience as a devotee that the half full vision is better and more conducive to both spiritual and material life. Who wants to be around people who only complain how rotten the life in this world is? Promising people better life afer death is merely passing a post dated check. Bhagavad Gita promotes the happiness in the mode of goodness as a way to liberation, not whining and self mortification. That is real preaching and real way to live.
Touche on being negative about the comic! 😉
The cartoon is certainly funny and reflects those moments when while wishing for happiness we get hit with distress as in: be careful what you wish for. Sometimes ‘the one that got away’ was actually Krsna’s arrangement saving us from a huge disappointment.
I just like to ba a contrarian… 😉
But reacting negatively to a harmful thing is actually very positive. Or would you not see material desire and the distraction it causes to be harmful for progressing in bhakti?
I think we have to be careful not to water down the eternal truths of vedanta in the quest of trying to be more balanced about psychological/human issues. Desires are a part of the human experience and we can’t deny them in ourselves but that doesn’t mean that we are better off by fully embracing them either, right?
Gurunistha-ji… we all know the philosophy… or at least so we think. My call is for a more positive approach to life’s many risks and problems. I have sat in many stomach churning classes about the horrors of material life, given by embittered renunciates or devotees with hugely messed up personal life. Those classes failed to inspire me. You sometimes portray such situations in your cartoons because you know that kind of preaching does not work.
My call is for more comics! I think humor is good for the soul. And whether it is satire, cynical, negative or makes us laugh at ourselves, I love it. I can’t remember the last time I laughed at something that was really positive. Humor is a great way to make a point that people otherwise try to avoid. Though I completely agree that there are negative results from being negatively oriented towards the negative things about this world, this discussion is way too serious for me. 🙂
Oh, you are just sentimental prabhu! 😉
For progress we are told we should reject that which is unfavorable for bhakti and embrace that which is favorable. Our goal is suddha bhakti but to get there most of us have to pass through various stages starting with karma misra bhakti. Desire devoid of any connection to Krsna is surely an impediment – to move from selfishness to selflessness is the path – to get there we have to start by at least trying to dovetail whatever desires we have with bhakti in some way.
Feeding the ‘fire of desire’ certainly threatens us with being devoured in it’s every increasing flames. That is a tangible fact, not negative thinking. This path certainly includes dismantling the ego that is the very basis of sepertate interest. No one can reach the goal without dismantling the false ego.
Pointing out the pitfalls and dangers on the path just makes good sense to help those who wish to avoid them. It like driving down the road and having harzard signs posted – something most drivers appreciate so they can take appropriate precautionary measures.
And ultimately positive…
When something inspires us to think deeply about how we can make progress in spiritual life than it is GOOD. Even bad things or bad examples can do that, making us reflect on what works and what does not.
Cheers to Audarya-lila’s comment! 😀