Sadhana Panchakam- Post 8

 

As the author had clarified, we are not going to limit all these instructions only for “Brahmacharya” Ashram. So we will try to introspect on each instruction at universal level, at deep philosophical level, no matter how many posts we take for each of the 40 instructions.

  

Tad Uditam: “Duties ordained”. These are duties prescribed according to the Vedas.

 

Karma: This is a technical term, having a specific contextual meaning, in spite of many other meanings of the word. In the science of self-development, Karma means actions performed as well as the reactions produced by such actions.

 

Vihita or actions approved by the Vedas are classified into 4 types. They are:

 

i) Nitya Karmas: One’s daily round of duties. When performed well and regularly, they bring about our self-purification. They work out and reduce our Karmic bundle.

ii) Naimittika Karmas: The actions performed on special occasions.

 

iii) Kamya Karmas: Actions arising from personal, legitimate desire. Kamya Karma is permitted to the extent that they do not deny others their rights and do not violate Dharma or the Laws of Righteousness. (We covered this under “Kama” when we dealt with 4 Purushartha in our Karma session/ Karma blog posts.

 

iv) Prayaschitta Karmas: Expiatory actions which are necessary to wipe away the effects of unknown Karmas from past births and those being done unconsciously moment to moment in this birth. 

 

Scope of Work in the Gurukula:

 

The student is given many tasks to do in the Acharya’s household. Through these tasks, the household is kept running. So it is not just a laboratory exercise, but is actually fulfilling an important function. The students virtually produce their own needs by engaging in these tasks. They take care of themselves under the direction of the Acharya and his wife.

 

A sense of responsibility gets instilled in them.

 

In days of yore, the tasks would have been different from what we see children doing these days. Then it was mostly agricultural work. There was the chopping of firewood, for instance. 

 

The cows had to be tended; Lord Krishna as a child loved this task greatly and has given dignity to it. India’s traditional love and care for cows has a rich scriptural support which comes from the life of Lord Krishna in Brindavan.

  

Today the tasks may have a different nature, but their essential purpose is the same namely, to survive. The content of the work is immaterial.

 

The supervision of the students by the Acharya and his wife, the Guru ma, made all such tasks a Sadhana. And Sadhana is what this text is all about.

  

There are two ways of looking at how a disciple undertakes his duties in Gurukulam to the best of his abilities.

  

1. Diligence: From an ordinary level, ability may be viewed purely as diligence. It pays to be diligent, to have a hard-working disposition. Diligence brings with it success in any venture. There is much more to one’s ability than just that.

 

2. Perfection: At a deeper level, one may view “best” as the desire for Perfection in work, regardless of any material gain, i.e. the pursuit of perfection for its own sake. This, too, will improve the profitability of the work, but the gain in character outweighs that.

 

To attain this perfection requires a highly developed mind, not just a hard-working mind. It requires a level of concentration of a very high order to keep focused on the details of a particular task. To be meticulous, orderly, neat, and fully focused brings out the “hidden benefit” of Perfection. These are found to be very essential for our Sadhana later.

 

We will take a break and see how Guru guides His students, His disciple, to perfection.

 

“I am always ready to help you,” said Swami Sivananda. “My sympathies are ever with you. I will radiate joy, peace, and thought-currents of love to you. I will inspire you. But I cannot do the work for you. You yourself will have to do the work. The struggle and exertion must come from your side.”

 

Nothing pleases the guru more than seeing the disciple stand on his or her own two feet; at some point the disciple must do the practices alone, eventually reaching the goal. 

  

Swami Rama wrote in his autobiography, “We should not worry about who will guide us. The question is: Am I prepared to be guided? Jesus had only 12 close disciples. He helped many, but he imparted the secret wisdom only to those few who were prepared. The Sermon on the Mount is comprehended by only a few, not by the multitudes.” 

 

 

Maa Amritanandamayi tells a story,

 

“Once a young man went to a saint and became his disciple. The saint said to him: “You write down whatever you have known and learned about religion and spirituality. It will benefit you. Then come and show it to me”.

 

The disciple, heeding fully to the Guru’s command, started writing in a big notebook whatever he knew so far in life about religion and spirituality. It took one year for him to complete it. He brought the notebook and handed over to the Guru.

 

The saint opened the notebook and glanced over several pages for a while. Then he said, “This is indeed written with clarity and mental focus. It can really give the reader the needed spiritual fillip to tread the path of spirituality. Your one year of hard work is reflected in the contents. However, it is rather too long. Can you please do a precis writing and reduce the length?”

 

The disciple agreed and went back. It took five years for him to condense his ideas and reduce it to half of its original length. He brought it to his Guru. The guru leafed through it and said, “Well done! Ideas are very clear and the writing style is excellent! However, I want you to make it considerably more brief”.

 

The disciple was disappointed when he heard this. However, bowing to the Guru’s wish, he started rewriting it. It took 10 years for him to finish the task of condensing all his ideas to just 5 pages. He submitted it to the Guru saying, “Master, I have condensed all that I have understood on spirituality in these 5 pages. I am thankful to you for making me fit for grasping this truth”.

 

The guru went through the five pages fully and thoroughly. Then he said, “Extremely well written! You have achieved it purely through your concentration and spiritual austerities. Yet, there is a little shortcoming in this. Try to rectify it”.

 

Years went by. The guru was getting old. He became bed ridden. The time had almost come for the guru to leave his mortal body. 

 

The disciple came to the guru and prostrated before him. He handed over a piece of paper to the guru. The guru glanced it. There was nothing written in it. 

 

Immediately, the guru placed his hand on the disciple’s head and blessed him, saying, “Now you have grasped the truth fully. Let the truth henceforth be revealed to you and shine in you”. In that very moment, the disciple attained enlightenment. He sat silently at the feet of the guru. The guru left his mortal body and merged with the infinite.”

 

 

Continued……

 

Love.