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Srimate SrivanSatakopa Sri Vedanta Desika Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:

" Insure and Be Secure!"

One of the most difficult jobs in the world is selling insurance. If you ask 
insurance agents, they would tell you how hard it is to convince anyone to 
insure themselves, for, almost everyone believes themselves to be permanent 
residents of this planet, refusing to acknowledge even to themselves that they 
have to leave some day or the other. Sri Krishna might have proclaimed "JAtasya 
hi dhruvO mrityu:" ( those who are born must indeed die someday), everyday we 
might see people, some of them our relatives, friends or acquaintances, passing 
away, never to be seen again, we might see crematoria or graveyards on our way 
to work, standing as stark reminders of where our ultimate destination is--- we 
might see all these signals of life's impermanance: however, the realisation, 
that we too are subject to the inexorable laws of nature, somehow escapes us or 
we just shut our eyes and minds to the possibility, ostrich-like. 

And in our society, it is considered inauspicious to talk of death, though it 
is something we encounter in some form or the other every day, be it the demise 
of a relative, a friend, a mere beggar on the roadside or of just a cockroach 
or a rodent. We rear back at the mere mention of the word, unwilling to face 
the phenomenon even when it stares us in the face. The Yaksha Prasna of 
Mahabharata narrates, inter alia, a question addressed by the Yaksha to 
Dharmaputra-"Which is the most surprising thing in this world?". YudhishttirA's 
reply is an eye-opener for every one of us. When a dead body is being carried 
away for disposal, a passerby comments, "What a pity!", little realising that 
he too is destined to go the same way, some day or the other, sooner or later. 
This, says Yudhishttira, is the most astonishing thing in the world. This is 
what makes the salesman's job so hard, for, he has to commence his spiel with a 
reminder that we too are mortal and must pass off some day. He might talk 
euphemistically of "the unthinkable" happening, but what he means, in precise 
terms, is the end of life. Thus, in the process of selling insurance, he has 
two difficult tasks-the first is to convince people that they are indeed 
subject to mortality and destined to pass over like every body else, and, 
secondly, to make them see the necessity to provide for such an eventuality. 

It might interest us to know that Insurance is hardly a modern invention and 
has been in vogue since long, perhaps not in the form we have come across, but 
all the same incorporating the same concept. The difference between the current 
day indemnities and the ancient ones is that the former provide only financial 
compensation in the event of the risk materialising-they cannot provide any 
other form of recompense. All types of insurance, be it medical insurance, life 
insurance, vehicle insurance, property insurance or burglary assurance, are 
aimed solely at providing monetary compensation in the event of loss. 

There is a unique form of Insurance which our Acharyas have long held out to 
us, which has any number of unique features which our modern day companies can 
never hold a candle to. For an extremely negligible premium, this contract 
offers us not only the pot of the gold at the end of the rainbow, but the 
rainbow itself. If you are interested in this priceless product, please read on.

Prapatti or Sharanagati is the name of this product, which offers us a 
wonderful contract of assurance. There are any number of unique 
charactreristics, which distinguish this Policy from others of its ilk-
1) The insurer is not some fly-by-night operator or someone of limited 
financial strength, who may or may not be able to honour his obligation, but 
the Supreme Lord Himself. There is thus no fear of contractual obligations not 
being honoured at maturity.
2) Unlike the ordinary life policy which offers just monetary compensation but 
cannot prevent death, this policy of Prapatti can indeed make us immortal. Even 
if this body comprised of the five elements falls in course of time, this 
policy enables our soul to realise and reaffirm its eternality in the service 
of the Lord.
3) No Insurance policy, per se, can bring us happiness. Even if it were to 
afford us some pleasure due to the moneys it brings along, this is at best 
ephemeral and puerile. Prapatti, on the other hand, offers us unalloyed and 
undying bliss, immeasurable and matchless.
4) When we subscribe to life insurance (especially a whole life policy), it 
does nothing for us, the insured, and provides only for a lump sum payment to 
our nominee. Thus, though we pay the premium life long, we ourselves derive no 
benefit from it. The policy that the Sampradaya offers, however, ensures that 
we ourselves benefit immensely, while conferring incidental profits on our near 
and dear.
5) Insurance policies necessitate recurring payment of premia over long periods 
of time. Prapatti, however, calls for an inexpensive, single-time payment, in 
the form of Bharasamarpanam, which calls not for astronomical amounts of money, 
but only for the correct attitude of mind.
6) Insurance is a contract of utmost good faith("uberima fidae"), requiring the 
insured to disclose all pre-existing illnesses and all material developments in 
the future too. Otherwise, claims under the policy may not be settled. In the 
case of Prapatti, however, though an undertaking of good conduct is obtained at 
the time of entering into the contract, even if the same is violated, the Lord 
overlooks the transgression or levies some minor penalty, with the assured 
benefits remaining unaffected.
7) When the eventuality occurs, the insurer has to be notified of the 
occurrence and the benefits under the policy claimed by the nominee after a lot 
of procedural hassles. No insurer keeps track of who dies when, nor does he 
hasten to award the insurance moneys, unclaimed. In the case of Prapatti, 
however, once the mortal coils are shed, the Lord Himself rushes in to carry 
the soul with Him to the Promised Land ("aham smarAmi mat bhaktam, nayAmi 
paramAm gatim"), with no other effort required on the part of the assured or 
their dependants.
8) There are now any number of players in the mundane insurance industry, all 
competing with one another for a share of the cake. In the case of eternal 
benefits, however, the Lord remains the sole insurer, with absolutely none to 
compete with Him, none capable of conferring the benefits that He can ("MOksham 
icchEt JanArdanAt", "apavarga pradO Hari:" etc.).
9) Insurers are selective about the individuals they cover and do not extend 
life cover to people suffering from chronic or major diseases, for fear of 
having to settle early claims not commensurate with the premia received. 
However, the Lord extends assurance to all and sundry, irrespective of whether 
they are sick or healthy, rich or poor, exalted or underdog, good, bad or 
ugly-He is game to accepting proposals from even the wilest of people, provided 
they are made with sincerity-"Viditam bhuvanE VibhishaNO vA yadi vA Ravana iti 
udIritam tE".
10) If you read the policy documents issued by mundane insurers, you will find 
the fine print containing so many restrictive clauses and loopholes, enabling 
the insurer to wriggle out of his commitment. On the other hand, once the Lord 
approves a contract of Prapatti, He adheres to His part of the bargain, come 
what may. His is an unconditional assurance, a categorical declaration of 
intention to protect and deliver us from sin and stigma-"aham tvA sarva 
pApEbhyO mOkshayishyAmi, mA sucha:"
11) An important difference between the two types of assurances, earthly and 
eternal, is the mode of canvassing potential subscribers. While the former 
relies on advertisement in the visual and print media, apart from engaging an 
army of agents, canvassing for the latter type of insurance that the Lord 
provides, is done purely through word of mouth, by the angelic brigade of 
Azhwars and Acharyas, extolling the priceless policy and the Inimitable Insurer.
12) While insurance contracts are entered into only during the companies' 
working hours and at specified places where they have offices, Prapatti is a 
policy issued anytime, anywhere, to anyone. The Sun never sets in the Lord's 
offices and their working hours are unlimited. He remains prepared for an 
emergency call anytime, anywhere and from anyone,("PAtu praNata rakshAyAm 
viLambam asahan iva") be it an embattled elephant fighting for its life or a 
Pandava princess struggling to save her modesty from being outraged. 

With all these going for it, is not the Lord's policy infinitely superior to 
the indemnity offered by any other mundane assurer? All of us must have 
definitely taken out life policies, to cover eventualities; but how many of us 
have obtained the type of assurance only the Lord can provide? And for those 
who are yet to join the Society of Surrendered Souls and secure their eternal 
welfare, the Lord's doors are always open. All they have to do is to contact 
their Acharya and through him, perform Prapatti at the Lord's lotus feet and be 
blessed with a cast iron policy of assurance. For this, there are no hidden 
charges, no marked-up prices or fake discounts, no promotional gimmicks nor any 
"festival offers"-it is a simple contract, transparent to the core and with no 
doubts as to its enforeceability.

What are you waiting for? Rush today to your Acharya, to Insure and Be Secure.

Srimate Sri LakshmINrsimha divya paduka sevaka SrivanSatakopa Sri Narayana 
Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:
Dasan, sadagopan


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