Today Gurudeva explains that the monastery has begun Sadhu Paksha, a two-week retreat for the monastery during which Kauai Aadheenam is closed to guests. He then talks about violent video games, their impact on consciousness and the karma of this form of mental violence.

Unedited Transcript:

Today at Kauai Aadheenam, January 18th.

We begin a two-week retreat. This means our daily work goes on as usual but we have no guests. Some of the religious routine is performed outside the building, like walking the beautiful lands, looking at the lakes and becoming one with Siva's perfect universe. Whenever a thought arises about yesterday or tomorrow, we turn that thought form into a beautiful flower. Whatever happens in our mind, you know, is a creative, productive function that eventually will manifest in the future. So, during this retreat we look into our minds. We step back a little from what we are doing and we reflect for a two-week period. This retreat is called Sadhu Paksha and it comes up twice a year.

This makes us reflect on video games that are on the computers these days, all over the world that teach violence. When a person, young or old, is mentally killing someone else or something else, he is putting the seed of 'alrightness' of that, within his sub-conscious mind. Now, for instance, looking at the karmic chain - one thing makes another thing happen, which makes another thing happen, which makes another thing happen. If someone actually does harm to another because he was trained to do that, by playing a video game, the bad karma goes on to the creator of the game, the manufacturer of the game, the salesperson who sold the game, and the store clerk. It is all a shared karma. That is the karmic chain. Therefore, think about it.

I know some of you there in our cyberspace congregation, especially maybe the new ones that are just coming in and finding us for the very first time, and finding this ashram in the middle of nowhere on the Garden Island of Kauai, have had the experience or are having the experience or maybe have just turned off, a violent game, to enter the Cyberspace Ashram. What are you doing to yourself? Not good. You have the power of decision. You can make choices. Make a choice to put good things into action in your future.

Today, we are going to talk to a Lieutenant Colonel of the United States Army about violent video games for our magazine, 'Hinduism Today'. He is going to explain in his own words that violent video games teach people to kill, exactly the same way the army teaches people to kill to defend our country. How about that? We will have more on that tomorrow, and hear what he has to say.

So, think this over. You will improve your future.