Bliss

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When people seek employment, in addition to salary, they also negotiate about

 

holidays they can have.

 

Why is holiday necessary?

 

To attend to personal work. More important, to have some rest.

 

Why is rest necessary?

 

Why! Rest is pleasure.

 

Good. If rest is pleasure, then why should you work? Stop working.

 

But how is it possible? What about our livelihood?

 

Good. Then, why don't you work always? It will earn more money for you!

 

There will be no happiness at all if we work continuously.

 

If it is so, where does real happiness lie? In work or in rest?

 

It is not easy to answer this question. Shall we then say that happiness is

like a pendulum that oscillates between work and rest?

 

Since time immemorial, the entire creation appears to have been oscillating

between work and rest.

 

Creation exists for a period of one Kalpa. This period is the state of work.

Pralaya is also of the same duration as that of creation. This period is the

state of rest.

 

The entire life is filled with activities. This is work. In the end is death.

 

This is rest.

 

Between sunrise and sunset is work. From then on, till the next sunrise, it

is rest.

 

In this way, the Jeevi (being), in pursuit of pleasure, is swinging between

work-rest, work-rest. It has been going on since creation. He is yet to find

a

place or situation where there is permanent happiness.

 

Why?

 

May be, happiness is present neither in work nor in rest!!

 

Where is it then?

 

"It is present in the very person who is swinging between rest and activity"

is the dictum of the ancient Rishis.

 

Is it so? Then I will stop swinging from now on. Will I experience true

happiness?

 

If you stop your oscillating, you will remain in a state of rest. Don't you

already know that there is no happiness in rest too?

 

This is indeed becoming complicated. There is no permanent happiness in

activity - this I already know. You say that rest is no better. How then can

I

experience real happiness?

 

There is a point where the human intellect, having exhausted all its

resources, wills become so weak that it becomes helpless. From that point,

the Vedic

knowledge takes over. Like a regal eagle, it takes off where the intellect

collapses, and flies high, transcending all limits. We must learn to travel

in

that route, of course, with the help of the great rishis.

 

There is a state which is neither rest nor work. It has to be called by a

name. It is called as 'sat'(meaning - existence).

 

That which is responsible for longing for rest is Tamas.

 

That which drives a person to work is Rajas.

 

That which is responsible for a longing for a state which is neither rest nor

 

work is Sattva.

 

When Tamas dominates, events like Pralaya, death, sleep, etc., result.

 

When Rajas dominates, events like creation, life, alertness result.

 

When Sattva guna dominates, it results in wisdom, discrimination and clear

(and real) vision.

 

A body at rest continues to be at rest and a body in motion continues to be

in motion unless an external force acts on it to change its state. This is a

well-known theory in physics. In fact, it is because of the effect of the

Trigunas (satva-rajas-tamas) that the above theory is true.

 

A state in which all the three gunas are combined is called as 'Moola

Prakriti'. When the Paramatma reflects in this when Tamas is predominant,

creation

takes place. Therefore, all being in the creation aspires for a state

characterised by Tamas, that is, restful state.

 

When a wave of Rajas arises in this, the beings become active. The Jeevi

becomes charged with speed. The being now begins activities. As the wave of

Rajas

tends to wane, the jeep's natural Tamasic tendency once again prevails and

the

being goes in to the state of rest or inertia. After some time, the wave of

Rajas rises again, eventually dies off and makes way to Tamas. Thus,

action-inertia, action-inertia this swaying never ends. Neither there is

permanent

happiness.

 

Is there at all a way to break this vicious circle?

 

'Yes' says the following Sookti.

 

Tvam chet alpo hi analaso mahaa kaarya karo bhava

 

Nadyo hi analasaa stanvyah toyadhim poorayanti alam

 

You may be an insignificant being. Still, if you give up laziness, you can

achieve big goals. Even though the rivers are thin at the time and place of

their origin, do they not eventually perform the astounding task of filling

the

ocean by flowing persistently till the very end?

 

When understood from the worldly point of view, the Sookti appears to say

'give up laziness'. The simile is also very appealing.

 

But the real message is even more sound and profound. It suggests two ways of

 

breaking the vicious circle discussed before. Let us see.

 

1.Even if you have become insignificant because of Tamas now. When you become

 

active because of Rajas, you should seize the opportunity and engage yourself

 

in grand acts (maha karya), i.e., noble acts. You will then be able to go

beyond Rajas and enter the domain of Sattva. There you will experience

permanent

happiness.

 

2.The second purport needs some effort to understand. Observe carefully.

 

What is meant by Maha Karya? (Great Act). The word 'analasah' gives us a

hint.

 

'Lasah' in Sanskrit means he who shines. 'Lasah' means one who does not

shine, a lazy fellow. Analasah means one who is not lazy. This is the common

etymology of the word 'Analasah'. Let us see the other meaning of the word.

 

'Ana' means life force. 'Lasah' means one who shines. Analasah means one who

is effulgent with life force. One who has gained mastery over the Chakras -

from Mooladhara to Ajna - by successfully controlling the breath, is a true

Analasa.

 

Such an 'Analasa' will have 'conquered' the devatas (deities) represented by

the seed letters found on the petals of the different Chakras. He can be

called as 'Alpa'. Al is the expression which stands for the entire alphabets

of

Sanskrit. 'Pa' means a ruler. Alpa means a ruler (or emperor) of all the

letters

(in other words, the six Chakras - because different Chakras represent

different syllables).

 

The Sookti ordains that when there is increased activity of Rajas, one should

 

strive to achieve control over the breath, and thereby conquer all the

chakras - and - the energies represented by them. This is indeed a Mahakarya

(great

act).

 

What is the use? The sookti answers this question through the same simile.

 

The rivers - which are described as 'tanvi'(slim, trivial) and yet

'analasa'(devoid of laziness) are capable of filling the sea to capacity.

Here, rivers

represent human beings. However insignificant a person may be, if he shrugs

off

laziness, he can perform great deeds. The beauty of the simile does not end

here. Nadi (river) represents Naadi (astral nerves). Tanvi also means that

which has expanded. In the context of nerves, expansion means the nerves

activated

by flow of energy. What do these nerves do? They fill the Toyadhi which is of

 

the nature of 'Alam'. (Toayadhi = sea, Alam= full in their common meaning).

Toya means water. Water signifies that which holds life together. Toyadhi

means

that which protects the life force i.e., Sattva guna, which is of the nature

of 'Alam'. The word 'Alam' has a special meaning too. 'A' signifies

Brahma-Vishnu- Shiva. When they merge in each other and become one, what

remains is pure

'Sat'. Thus, that which is responsible for their merging is 'Alam'. "Alam

Toyadhim" therefore means 'Shuddha Sat'(pure 'sat')

 

When one performs the 'Mahaa Kaarya' mentioned above, one's nerves will

become activated and will fill the sea called Sahasrara Chakra with pure

'SAT'.

This is neither a state of rest nor of activity. It is a state of solid

bliss!

Permanent bliss!! May you all experience that Bliss!!!

 

Sri Swamiji

 

from dattapeetham.com JGD