Verse 14
अधिकारिणमाशास्ते फलसिद्धिर्विशेषतः ।
उपाया देशकालाद्याः सन्त्यस्मिन्सहकारिणः ॥ १४ ॥
adhikāriṇamāśāste phalasiddhirviśeṣataḥ |
upāyā deśakālādyāḥ santyasminsahakāriṇaḥ || 14 ||
(Ultimate success in spiritual
endeavours depends entirely upon the degree of fundamental qualifications in
the seeker. Auxiliary conveniences such as time and place, all have a place
indeed, but they are essentially secondary.)
Here is a suggestion to seekers who
generally get disappointed at having to encounter obstacles at the very outset
of their sadhana.
When a team of students is working
under the instructions of the same Master, it is always observed that some of
them progress faster than others. Those who lag behind soon reach a state of
despair and they complain about the hollowness of the sastras. Such students
are advised to attribute their lack of development to some intrinsic subjective
maladjustment in their psychological and intellectual make-up.
The indispensable requisites of a work
worth studying are four in number and are collectively called Anubandha
Chatushtaya.
One of the requisities is “Adhikari”.
“Adhikari - A qualified student. Here
it is one who is endowed with the four means of salvation. i.e., Sadhana
Chatushtaya, viz., Viveka, Vairagya, Shad-sampat and Mumukshutva, who has
removed Mala (impurities of the mind) by Nishkama Karma Yoga and Vikshepa
(tossing of mind) by Upasana, who has Chitta Suddhi and one-pointed mind and
who is endowed with Yukti (reason), Samartha (ability) and Buddhi (sharp
intellect).
Adhikaris are of two kinds, viz.,
Kritopasaka and Akritopasaka. He who has done full Saguna Upasana and who is
endowed with perfect one-Pointed mind is a Kritopasaka. He will be equipped
with all the Sadhanas mentioned in the scriptures. He who has done imperfect
Upasana of Saguna Brahman is an Akritopasaka. He has only partial concentration
of mind. He is equipped with only a few Sadhanas.
He has Viparita-Bhavana though he
possesses knowledge of Brahman by study of Vedantic Literature. He must
practise constant and intense meditation.”
The qualifications necessary for a
successful spiritual pilgrimage have been enumerated here by the Acharya
only for self-scoring of the seekers themselves.
That is, if success on the spiritual
path has been slow or unsatisfactory, the seeker himself is to blame. It
is invariably because of some clogs of the heart. All that he has to do in
order to achieve more progress in his efforts is to remove these clogs
and apply himself more intensely to self-development.
Qualification of a student plays a very
important role in the rise of knowledge.
Just as a prepared land is required for
a plant to grow. If seed is put in the desert land; it will not sprout; it is
not the mistake of the seed; only that the land is not prepared. And land
preparation is not an easy job; tilling the land is important; and also the
temperature must be right to grow;
The accomplishment of the result; that
is moksha which very heavily depends upon or primarily depends upon what?
adhikarinam; the competent student or the competency of the student; and that
is the reason that in the olden days they never brought vedanta to the public.
When in meditation a sadhaka finds his
mental avenues blocked, it is meaningless for him to sit in the asana
and rave in disappointment, cursing the entire hierarchy of rishis or
the science of Vedanta. He must, at once, look within to see if the
necessary adjustments are all properly maintained therein. The description
of the necessary qualifications is for our guidance, that we may know what
are the common troubles that arise in the inner vehicle during our flight
to the beyond.
There are some seekers who wait for
better circumstances to do their sadhana, a more suitable time or a
greater Master to initiate them.
Love.
