Sathya Sai Vahini - Post 15

                

Chapter VI

Religion is Experience

This wave-like movement of proceeding and receding, of merging and emerging, has been happening since time; it will happen till time ends; it is eternal in its feature. This is the belief of Indians (Bharathiyas). 

A person is not just this gross body; in it, there is a subtle component called mind; inside it, as its prompter and spring, is an even more subtle principle called the individualized soul (jivatma). This soul has neither beginning nor end, it knows no death, it has no birth. This is the basis of the Indian faith.

One other article of faith, which is a unique feature of Indian mental equipment: Until the individualized soul gets liberated from the individualization and merges in the Universal, thus attaining liberation (moksha), it has to encase itself in one body after another and go through the process called living. This idea is held by no other people. 

This is the cycle-of-birth-death (samsara) idea, which the ancient texts or scriptures of India reveal and propagate. Samsara means “movement into one form after another”.

 

The nature of Atmic reality

All the different schools and sects among the Indians (Bharathiyas) accept the fact that the apparently individualized souls (jivAtmas) are eternal and unaffected by change. 

The schools and sects may differ in describing or denoting the relationship between the Atma and God. 

- One school of thinkers may posit that the two are ever separate; 

- another that the individualized soul (jivAtma) is a  spark in the universal flame of fire that God is; 

- a third that the two are undifferentiated. 

But the truth remains that the Atma is beginningless and endless; since It is not born, It has no death. Its individualized image has to evolve through a series of bodies until it attains fulfillment in the human. All schools are one in upholding this faith, in spite of the variety of their other interpretations.

We now come to the foremost among the glorious truths, the most astounding of the basic truths that the human intellect has attained in the spiritual field: the Atma is, by its very nature, purity, fullness, and bliss (parisuddha, paripurna, and ananda). This is the belief that animates all schools of thought, whether they are worshipers of Sakthi, Siva, or Vishnu or whether they are Buddhists or Jains. Every Hindu acknowledges it.

The dualists (dwaithins) believe that the fundamental genuine nature of the Atma is bliss (ananda); this is diminished and desiccated by the consequences of human actions in life after life, so it has to be restored and revitalized by the grace of God. 

The monists (adwaithins) believe that there can be no diminution or desiccation. They assert that the Atma is fully splendorous; however, through the influence of the deluding effect of ignorance (maya), which superimposes false impression on what is really true, It appears as if it has diminished.

Whatever the differences in interpretation, when we take our stand on the central core of the truth on which all agree, a deep passage will be discerned between “East” and “West”, where both do journey to the goal. 

People of the Eastern countries seek the realization of this gloriously beneficent consummation in the inner regions of themselves. While worshiping, we close the eyes and endeavor to visualize God inside ourselves. 

People of the West lift up their faces and visualize God in outer space, in the beyond. Indians believe that the Vedas — their sacred scripture — were the very breath of God conveying meanings to the sages who had installed Him in their hearts. Westerners believe that their scriptures were recorded by people under the direction of God.

Another point must be understood: We have to hold fast to the belief, always. Unless a belief is held unshaken throughout night and day, it cannot be used to achieve victory. No success is possible otherwise. When a man asserts that he is low and mean and that he knows but little, he becomes low and mean and his knowledge shrinks.

We become what we believe we are. We are the children of almighty God, endowed with supreme power, glory, and wisdom. We are children of immortality. When we dwell in this thought, how can we ever be low and ignorant? Indian spiritual culture enjoins on everyone to believe that the real nature of mankind is supreme and that one should be ever conscious of this truth.

The Indians (Bharathiyas) of past ages had faith in their great reality. They achieved victory in their endeavours as a result of this faith and rose to lofty heights. They reached the peak of progress. Today, we have slid down into the present decline mainly because we have lost faith in the Atma in us. 

This was the beginning of our fall. For, loss of confidence in the Self (Atma) involves loss of faith in God Himself. That Omnipresence is the inner motivator of all, the warp and woof of our body and mind, our emotions and intellect. 

Strengthening faith in Him is the only means of realizing the highest goal of mankind. This is the lesson that Indian spiritual history longs to teach.

 

Love.

 

Note - Today’s portion of Swami’s writing being a very deep subject, we will delve deeper into today’s post, in the next Post.