Upadesa Saram - Post 5

Verse 3

ईश्वरार्पितंनेच्छयाकृतम्|

चित्तशोधकंमुक्तिसाधकम्|| ३||

īśvarārpitaṁ necchayā kṛtam |

cittaśodhakaṁ muktisādhakam || 3 ||

Offered to the Lord, done not with desire,

It is a purifier of the mind, useful for Liberation. (3)

Limited action resulting in limited results and binding one to Samsara is also seen to be the Angel that will pull us out of our entrapped state. According to the Maharshi, all that is required is for us to change our attitude towards our actions. 

Two things are required of us in this regard: 

i) Dedicating our actions to the Lord, whom we acknowledge to be the Supreme Controller of the results of our actions. 

ii) Accepting as His Prasad what He considers to be the just result of our action due to us, when the whole circumstance is taken into account. 

This in a nutshell is the Path of Karma Yoga that is taught by the Maharshi. It may be summarized neatly in this equation: 

In order to accomplish action in this manner, three points have to be borne in mind: 

i) To Identify Our Duty: We must first determine our role and then perform it to perfection. We need to note that no one is dispensable. Everyone has something to offer to this world. We must know that we belong to God. 

ii) To Act Without “I”-ness: We remove the ego notion, the Ahankara or “I”-ness. Whatever means we possess to perform action comes from Him. 

iii) To Act Without “Doer-ship”: What is left then that is ‘mine’? Nothing. So we cannot even be called the doer. Doership is the Lord’s. Everything that accomplishes the action comes from Him, and the result also is determined by Him. Actually, God alone is playing with Himself! We don’t come into the picture at all. This “I” becomes an instrument in His hands. This is Ishwara Arpana. This removes the “Mama”-kara or “mine”-ness. 

The Karma Yogi says, “God thinks this is good for me. Lord, I take it as your Prasad.” How terrible would it be to refuse His Prasad! Prasad has come from the Lord’s feet – how can we refuse it, or be dissatisfied with it? Therefore, never complain about Prasad. Such should be our attitude towards the results of our actions. 

Those of you who have been attending the monthly Sai Sadan talk may recall what was explained regarding a situation where, some property proposal has come to us and we have to decide whether to buy or not.

What was the answer explained during the talk??

It was explained that the following factors must be considered, rather. You must be living in a state of existence where the following factors get considered automatically and spontaneously when ever any decision on any act needs to be taken.

·      without selfish desire,

·      without fear,

·      invoking the Divine infinite energy around (God), 

·       filled with purity

·  looking at the options available, take a decision which seems appropriate, in the background of all the above and moving forward

·     performing sincerely towards the decision taken, to bring it to completion.

·     leaving the rest to Swami, getting back to Swami instantly and immersing in LOVE.

So, the last 2 points explained in this case is what has been explained as Easwara arpana earlier.

Also, the most important aspect explained, for taking up any act / any effort, is reproduced below. This was told by none other than Swami to a Student.

“IF YOUR HEART IS PURE AND SELF LESS, THE ENERGY OF THIS ENTIRE UNIVERSE WILL COME TO SERVE YOU. 

YOU DON’T HAVE TO ASK. 

FROM ALL THE  NAVA GRAHAS, ANUGRAHA WILL POUR IN. YOUR HEART HAS TO BE KEPT OPEN AND PURE TO RECEIVE IT”.

There is a verse from Srimad Bhagavatham which has to be read, contemplated and aligned with whatever we have learnt as Easwara prasada in this post.

कायेन वाचा मनसेन्द्रियैर्वा ।

बुद्ध्यात्मना वा प्रकृतिस्वभावात् ।

करोमि यद्यत्सकलं परस्मै ।

नारायणयेति समर्पयामि ॥

Kaayena Vaacaa Manase[a-I]ndriyairvaa

Buddhy[i]-Aatmanaa Vaa Prakrteh Svabhaavaat |

Karomi Yad-Yat-Sakalam Parasmai

Naaraayannayeti Samarpayaami ||

Meaning:

Whatever I do with the Body, Speech, Mind or the Sense Organs,

Either by discrimination of the Intellect, or by the deeper feelings of the Heart, or by the existing Tendencies of the Mind,

I Do them All (i.e. Whatever work is to be done) without Ownership,

And I Surrender them at the feet of Sri Narayana.

It is enough at this stage, in alignment with today's verse, to understand that a true absorption of the above verse will result / is bound to result in our offering all our possible actions arising out of any / all factor(s) to God, without any sense of DOER-SHIP.

We will contemplate more on this verse when we proceed further in this treatise to deal with the path of devotion.

An in-depth absorption of the above verse will result wonderfully in total detachment, total surrender and total annihilation of vasanas!!! It is a wonderful poetic verse. 

Love.

Upadesa Saram - Post 4

Verse 2

कृतिमहोदधौ पतनकारणम् |

फलमशाश्वतं गतिनिरोधकम् || २ ||

kṛtimahodadhau patanakāraṇam |

phalamaśāśvataṁ gatinirodhakam || 2 ||

The non-eternal result, the cause of the falling into the great ocean of action, Is the obstruction of progress. 

What is meant here is that even if the desired results are produced for the enjoyment of the doer, the hidden result of the action is its power to bind us. This is what we examine in this verse – the stealthy way in which Actions have the power to trap us into a vicious circle from which it appears impossible to escape. 

What is this power of action? 

Impermanent Results: 

The results of actions, being finite in nature, become the cause for further falling rather than release. 

They give a further lease of life to the problem instead of solving the problem.

The Karma phala gained in one life gives rise to another body in next life which in turn causes further actions. 

Sometimes, it becomes difficult even to conclude whether something which a man undergoes or does is a cause for an action or the result of an action.

For eg, our mind moves in a particular action and propels us to act in a particular manner, say, it forces us to take to alcohol or to some immoral act. 

Whether we say that this is a result of our past action that our mind is acting in this way so that we suffer OR do we say that this is a fresh cause / new action for us to suffer in future?

Ramana says that by action, one falls into this ocean of samsara which is nothing but a chain of action- reaction- action.

Analyzing action in this way, we discover that actions alone can never enlighten us, but thrust us into deeper ignorance. The problem becomes more vicious. The impermanence of results is treacherous. We see that actions have the power to bind us from “head to foot”. 

Some materialists would say, “So what is the problem with a temporary result? We can do the action again and again to get the result.”

If the result brings us Sukha or happiness, it is repeated again and again. The only way we think we can be happy is to repeat that action – ad infinitum! In this way Karma rules over our life, enslaving us to it. This is the “barrier to progress” that is given as the title of this verse. This is what is meant when we say Action is not so innocent as it may appear. 

With repetition of an act comes firm attachment to it. The desire gets concretized. It is now no longer superficial but has become a Vasana (or deeper impressions), an inborn tendency which we have to live with until we heal ourselves of it through some spiritual means. 

If action thus keeps producing limited results and binds us to this samsara, is there any way that we look at our action, we prepare for action which can purify our mind and prepare us for a higher spiritual goal?

We will see about this in the next verse.

Love.

Anandamayi Ma

Who is known as a vaiṣṇava? 

One who sees Viṣṇu everywhere. 

And as a śākta? One who beholds the Great Mother and nothing save Her. 

In truth, all the various ways of thought spring from one common source — who then is to be blamed, who to be reviled or suppressed? All are equal in essence.

Thou art Mother, 

Thou art Father,

Thou art Friend and

Thou art Master, Truly, 

Thou art all in all.

Every name is Thy Name,

Every quality Thy Quality,

Every form, Thy Form indeed.

Yet He is also where no forms exist, as Pure Unmanifested Being — all depends on one’s avenue of approach.

Anandamayi Ma