Why the world should not be regarded as equal?

[Guest guest]

This short story beautifully describes why non-duality is consistent with

the plurality of the world. This story is narrated by Sri Satyasai Baba

during one of his discourses and permission has been obtained for posting it

here.

 

Ram Chandran

Burke, VA

 

Once a young man aged 22 years went to Sankara. When Sankara was giving

spiritual lessons to his disciples he interrupted and asked Sankara if all

human beings in this wide world should not be regarded as equal since the

same kind of blood flows in all of them. Sankara smiled at this young man

and said that the blood flowing in that youngster is hot and fast and so he

was trying to push things too far. It is not possible for man to distinguish

between permanent and impermanent things. One can adopt the notion of

non-duality or advaita in one's own thoughts and attitudes but it is not

possible to equate everything in the world in practice. The young man

insisted that this does not seem right. He stated that to him, the proper

thing appeared to be to treat all living being in the same manner.

 

Sankara recognized that if this young man was allowed to go on in this

strain, he was likely to reach some absurd conclusions. Sankara decided at

once to teach him a lesson and immediately asked whether he had a mother.

The young man replied that he had a mother who was alive and that he

respected her very much. He again asked if the young man was married. The

young man replied that he was married and that his wife also had come with

him to the ashram. Sankara then asked him if he had a mother-in-law. The

young man replied that the mother-in-law was quite hale and healthy. Sankara

again asked if he had any sisters and the young man replied in the

affirmative and said he had two sisters. Sankara asked if all these people

were women. The young man asked how it should be otherwise. Sankara asked if

he regarded all of them as equal and was treating all these people in the

same manner and if in particular, he was treating his wife as mother and his

sister as his mother.

 

In this world of multiplicity one has to recognize qualitative and

quantitative differences. Each electric bulb is varying in power and

wattage. Therefore the light radiating from the bulb is not due to electric

current. The current is the same everywhere but the difference arises from

the bulbs with different intensities. God's power is like electric power and

our bodies are the bulbs.

 

 

Source: Chinna Katha I & II - Stories and Parables - Quoted from the

Divine Discourses of Bhagavan Sri Satya Sai Baba, Sri Satya Sai Books and

Publications Trust,

Prashaanti Nilayam, P.O. 515134

Anthapur District, Andhra Pradesh, India