Sandeha Nivarini - Post 27

Dear All,

We saw some maxims classified under the three progressive path towards Self Realization - Karma, Bhakti and Jnana.

Remaining maxims are for daily practice and are given below

Beginners in Spiritual sadhana may take out few important points  from below and include them in their chart for daily conduct and they may evaluate themselves every day about their practicing these points on a daily basis.

	For Daily Practice
1	Those who seek the bliss of the Atma should not run after  the joys of sense objects.
2	You must possess control of the senses, an unruffled  character, and non-attachment.
3	Be always on the alert against the four sins that the tongue  is prone to commit: (1) speaking falsehood, (2) speaking ill of others, (3) back-biting, and (4) talking too much.  It is best to attempt to control these tendencies.
4	Try to prevent the five sins that the body commits: killing,  adultery, theft, drinking intoxicants, and the eating of flesh.  It is a great help for the highest life if these are kept as far  away as possible.
5	Be always vigilant, without a moment’s carelessness,  against the eight sins that the mind perpetrates:  craving (kama), anger (krodha), greed (lobha),  attachment (moha), impatience, hatred, egotism, and pride.  One’s primary duty is to keep these things at a safe  distance from oneself.
6	Patience is all the strength one needs.
7	No reply should be given to the words of the wicked.  For your own good, be at a great distance from them.  Break off all relations with such people.
8	Seek the company of good men, even at the sacrifice of your  honour and life. Pray to God to bless you with the  discrimination needed to distinguish between the good men  and the bad. You must also endeavour to discriminate,  using the intellect given to you.
9	The mischief-mongering tendency should be plucked out  by the roots and thrown off. If allowed to exist,  it will undermine life itself.
10	When you are invaded by anger, practice silence or  remember the name of the Lord. Do not remind your- self  of things that will in ame the anger more. That will do  incalculable harm.
11	From this moment, avoid all bad habits. Do not delay or  postpone. They do not contribute the slightest joy.
12	Whatever you feel should not be done to you by others,  avoid doing such to others.
13	For faults and sins committed in ignorance, repent sincerely  and try not to repeat them. Pray to God to bless you with the  strength and courage needed to stick to the right path.
14	Don’t allow anything to come near you that will destroy your eagerness and enthusiasm for God. Want of eagerness will  cause the decay of the strength of people.
15	Don’t yield to cowardice; don’t give up bliss (ananda).
16	Don’t get swelled up when people praise you; don’t feel  dejected when people blame you.
17	If anyone among your friends hates another and starts a  quarrel, don’t attempt to inflame them more and make  them hate each other more; instead, try, with love and  sympathy, to restore their former friendship.
18	Instead of searching for others’ faults, search for your own,  uproot them, and throw them off. It is enough if you search  and discover one fault of yours —that is better than  discovering tens of hundreds of faults in others.
19	Even if you can’t or won’t do any good deed, don’t conceive or carry out any bad deed.
20	Whatever people may say about the faults that you know are not in you, don’t feel for it. As for the faults that are in you, try to correct them yourself, even before others point them out to you. Don’t harbour anger or bitterness against people who point out your faults; don’t retort, pointing out their faults, but show your gratitude to them. Trying to discover their faults is a greater mistake on your part. It is good for you to know your faults; it is no good for you to know others’ faults.
22	If anyone speaks to you on any subject, having understood it wrongly, don’t think of other wrong notions that will support that stand but grasp only the good and the sweet in what was said. True meaning is to be appreciated as desirable, not wrong meaning or many meanings, which give no meaning at all and cause only the hampering of bliss (ananda).
23	If you desire to cultivate one-pointedness, don’t, when in a crowd or bazaar, scatter your vision to the four corners and on everything, but see only the road in front of you, just enough to avoid accidents to yourself. One-pointedness will become firmer if you move about without taking your attention off the road, if you avoiding dangers, and if you don’t cast your eyes on others’ forms.
24	Greed yields only sorrow; contentment is best. There is no happiness greater than contentment.
25	Bear both loss and grief with fortitude; try to find plans to achieve joy and gain.
	Love.

Sri Ramana Maharshi