Friday, October 2, 2020
Sadhana Panchakam - Post 20
Human life is not accidental event but
purposefully designed culmination in evolution. Therefore, Sankara suggests
significantly in Vivekachudamani
(2-3) that human birth is very rare for a creature, even thereafter, purposeful
manly inclination and intelligence, even thereafter access to vedic righteousness and superior Wisdom
is difficult. Therefore, one should discriminate between the Self and the non-Self
for realization and reposing one's self in Brahman; otherwise deliverance is
not possible even after cores of lives.
This has been taught elaborately in the purpose
of Human birth blog post, explaining the verse beginning with “Jantunam nara janma durlabham”.
In the Brihadaranyaka
Upanishad, Yajnavalkya teaches Maitreyi that realization cannot be had
through wealth and not for the sake of all that one becomes dear, but for the
sake of one’s own self, all becomes dear. One should be receptive to the self,
should reflect and meditate.
When
Janaka asks Yajnavalkya ‘When the Sun sets and the Moon sets, the
Fire goes out and the Speech too has stopped, what light has a person here
have?’, Yajnavalkya replied,
‘The self indeed is his light for with
Self indeed as the light, one sits, moves about does one’s work and
returns’.
Therefore, Janaka, the King of Mithila, abiding
in his own Self, exclaimed ‘Infinite indeed is my wealth of which nothing is
mine. When someone alerted him that it seems Mithila is burning, seated in
front of his acharya, Janaka said, "If Mithila burns, nothing that is mine
would be burnt".
Aitareya
Upanishad declares
Self as one by whom one sees, hears, smells odors, one articulates speech or
discriminates the sweet and the un-sweet, that which is the heart, mind,
consciousness, perception, discrimination, intelligence wisdom, insight,
steadfastness, thought, thoughtlessness, impulse, memory, conception, purpose,
life, desire, control all these and more.
In Aparokshanubhuti,
Sankara says, ‘The nature of the cause inheres in the effect not vice versa; so
through reflection one finds that in the absence of the effect, even the cause
disappears’.
Further, ‘One should therefore, verily, observe
the cause in the effect and then dismiss the effect altogether. What then
remains, that the sage himself becomes’.
Even Bhakti is not simple devotion to God, as it is generally understood, but being in communion with Him as the Prime Principle, the state where there is no difference between the subject (Bhakta), which sees, the object (Bhagawan) which one sees and act (Bhakti) which one performs in seeing.
It is the state where everything has becomes
one, leaving no space for the second to exist.
A master recounts the instruction received from
his master, Swami Rama and describes the same, which is very relevant to the
today’s instruction in post - “Seek the SELF with consistent endeavor”
“Swami
Rama declared unequivocally, “Seek Self-realization at all cost.” No
discussion; no debate. It was not in the middle of some other conversation. It
was just sitting there all on its own—a direct instruction.
There
were quite a few times in my life when somebody would tell me what to do. But,
no other human being had ever told me anything even remotely like this, and
with such conviction, with such support, with such clarity, and yes, with such
love.
For
me hearing this story was music to my ears too. What a joy to hear these words
that embraced the process of allowing everything in life to be directed to
realize the Self. At first the sentence struck me as: “No matter what is needed
to seek Self-realization, DO IT.”
In
a world where the majority is mostly not interested in realizing the Self,
these words felt like a long longed for “permission” to go against everything,
to not be stopped by anything, to do whatever it takes! Which may come across
as “Do whatever it takes to seek Self-realization; even pushing against someone
or something if it stands in the way”.
But,
this is of course not what it means, that would be himsa—violence. Do whatever it takes to be FREE within ahimsa—non-violence. Later the sentence
deepened to what I think it truly contains, namely: “Literally everything has
to GO to seek Self-realization.” Are you willing to pay the most expensive
price to seek Self-realization? The cost of ALL that you think you are. If
you can pay that, the Self stands alone, and the Self is realized.
(Swami Jnaneshwar)
Swami declares,
“The Sadhaka (spiritual aspirant)
has to direct his attention away from the external world and become insighted,
he has to turn his vision towards the Atma. He must analyze the processes
of his mind and discover for himself wherefrom all the modifications and agitations
of the mind originate.
By this means, every trace of
“intention” and “will” has to disappear. Afterwards, the only idea that will
get fixed in the mind will be the idea of Brahman.
The only feeling which will occupy the
mind will be the feeling of Bliss, arising out of its establishment in
the Satchidananda (Being-Awareness-Bliss) stage.
(Jnana Vahini)
Love.
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