Swami teaches... The Divine cosmic unity that subsumes the multiplicity

[Guest guest]

Sai Ram

 

Light and Love

Swami teaches... 7 - 9 March 2006

 

The Divine Cosmic Unity that subsumes the Multiplicity

 

There is enormous interest, not only in India, but all over the world in the

methods adopted by the rishis (sages) of this land to acquire Shanthi (Peace),

through Prema (Love) and through Yoga, Dharma and Sathya (communion with God,

Truth).

Life is a series of ups and downs. India has taught and practised the art of

smooth travel, for centuries. Learn that art and be at peace. (Youth is eager to

share the heritage of the past, so that they may build a better future for

themselves).

 

When a tree first shoots forth from the seed, it comes up with a stem and

two incipient leaves. But, later, when it grows, the trunk is one, and the

branches are many. God, the same God, feeds the spiritual hunger of all nations

and all faiths, through the common sustenance of truth, virtue, humility and

sacrifice. That is the declaration of Vedas and related to them sacred

scripures of the past.

The Vedas teach human that all are kin; that all are divine. They emphasise

that God is Love. It is only in the contemplation of the beauty, majesty and

omnipresence of God that one can be at peace.

(No one knows exactly when the Vedas were collated in their present form.

Some scientist surmised that it must have happened about 13,000 years ago;

others bring the date down to 6,000 years ago, but, all are agreed that it was

beyond at least 4,000 years. And, Buddha is a historical figure, who lived

about 2,500 years ago. Christ was born 2006 years ago, and Islam was formed 600

years later. So, chronologically as well as logically, the inference is correct,

that the Vedic Dharma is the grandfather, Buddhism is the Son, Christianity the

grandson, and Islam the great-grandson. The ancestral property of which all are

co-sharers is the same).

The Sastras (Vedic scriptures) declare that the essence of all the 18

Puranas (legends, belonging to ancient times, for example Srimad Bhagavatam),so

highly revered in India, is Merit. It is when you do good to another; sin is

when you do evil to another. When you are fixed in this path, you will welcome

all faiths and religions as kith and kin; all faiths attempt to trainman along

this path. The seeds of all these are in the Sanathana Dharma of the Vedanta

(concluding philosophical portion of sacred scriptures).That Dharma examines

all possible approaches to the Divine and arranges them in the order in which

they can be utilised by the aspirant, according to the level of equipment and

attainment.

The young generation has to preserve this valuable heritage, to propagate

it, and save the world from the waves of hatred and violence.

 

Let's look in brief what teaches us the Vedic scriptures.

The Universe does not exist apart from God. The Prasnopanishad (one of the

Upanishads' - the phylosophical sections of the Veda's, intended to understand

the personal character of the Absolute Truth. There are 108 Upanishads)

expatiates on this cosmic unity. In every object there is a Divine element.

Without this Divine basis, no object will be cognisable. The Divine is the

basis of the physical substance. The Prasnopanishad has pointed out how the

essential one-ness of Shiva-Shakthi represents the unity of the Divine. Hence,

there is no basic difference between the revelation of the scriptures and the

discoveries of science.

For living creatures Prakrithi (Nature) is the Mother, the Feminine

principle, the Maya (illusory energy). She is the great teacher. If you do not

learn the lessons well, Nature punishes you. She is a stern merciless

instructress; but, if you learn well, she will lead you proudly to the Presence

of the Supreme Person. The commands of Prakrithi given for your good are called

Dharma. Have that Dharma as the witness of all your thoughts, words and deeds.

Be guided every instant by the dictates of that Dharma, and success will be

yours.

A living creature proclaims its existence by the Life-principle in it. There

is life in matter and matter in life. This truth has been recognised by the

Vedic sages and modem scientists in the concept of the convertibility of matter

and energy. Generally it is considered that the natural sciences are

concerned only with matter. Metaphysics is regarded as being concerned with

things spiritual. But the physical and the metaphysical are

inextricably-related to each other. The unique greatness of the Upanishads

consists in proclaiming this basic unity. It is unfortunate that in these

days the Upanishads are regarded as spiritual texts which are not concerned

with physical phenomena. Many consider that spirituality has no concern with

mundane affairs. Equally, they consider that there is no connection between the

physical world and the realm of the Spirit. This is a grievous mistake. One

is the base and the other is sustained by it. One is prana (life) and the other

is the prani (living being). The cosmos is the synthesis in consciousness of

these two (spirit and matter).

To ignore this Universe and to concern yourself with only the Spirit is a

form of narrow mindedness. The Divine and the Universe are intimately

interrelated. If the phenomenal world did not exist, one cannot understand

anything. Basing yourself on the physical world, you have to aspire for

realising the Divine.

Once upon a time, six young students, who were keen to learn about the

mystery of existence and the true purpose of human birth and to investigate the

goals of life, came to the sage Pippalada. Prostrating before the sage in all

humility, they asked the sage: "Oh Maharishi! What is the cause of creation and

of the Cosmos? What is the primary purpose of human life?" Pippalada said: "It

is your good fortune that you have developed this desire for the highest

wisdom. But, for undertaking any task, one has to have the minimum competence.

Without thatcompetence, even the answers I give will be beyond your

comprehension. Therefore, while your desire iscommendable, you have to prepare

yourselves at the outset by preliminary studies relating to the processes of

investigating the truth about the real and the unreal. You must cultivate

patience to discover the purpose oflife.

Sage explained to the students that in the Universe, both matter and

chaitanya (consciousness) are self-existing. The unity of these two accounts

for the creative process. The Sun is ever shining effulgently. For every object

on the Earth whether it is a tree or a mountain or a living creature, the Sun's

rays are essential for its existence. These rays contain the Life-Force. It is

through this Life-Force that creation goes on. It is this Life-Force that

sustains the cosmos. On the Earth the Sun is the primary cause of creation,

growth and dissolution.

 

In his answers to the questions put by the six students who approached him,

the sage Pippalada revealed to them what were the primary goals of life and how

they should conduct themselves. In this Kali age, owing to the perversions of

time, place and circumstances, students are prone to ignore the promptings of

their inner conscience and act in response to external impressions. The

external environment is highly polluted. But if you keep your hearts pure, you

can cleanse these impurities and transform the environment. At the basis of

all these is the awareness of the Self, the Atma-principle. Pippalada taught

the students that this awareness should be their primary objective. In that

awareness, the identification with the body consciousness goes and the oneness

of the Atma in all is realised. This is the message of the Prasnopanishad.

Little children must be taught with the help of big letters scrawled on

boards and slates. Temples, images and Saligrams (crystal stones) are the

slates and boards, for children in spiritual progress, But, even if you play

with a toy elephant you cannot get the experience of contacting a live

elephant, can you? The Formless God-head can be understood by you only when you

have rendered yourself Formless. When you are in the world of gunas

(qualities), you have to attach yourself only to a Saguna Lord (God with

attributes).

 

Principle of unity in diversity is clearly expounded in the Kathopanishad.

This Upanishad has compared the human body to a chariot and the Atma

(Indwelling Spirit) to the charioteer and pointed out that human existence is a

journey in this chariot. The body and the Spirit are integrally related to each

other. (But human in own ignorance has separated the one from the other and

developed divisive tendencies. The result is that two forces are operating

within human. One is the Demonic impulse. The other is the Divine impulse).

The unity that subsumes the multiplicity will become apparent if an objective,

pure and selfless enquiry is made. Historically, socially, biologically and

scientifically it is evident that food and drink are common to all human

beings. A rich person may appease hunger by a wide range of delicious dishes. A

beggar satisfies hunger by whatever he can get. Hunger, however, is common to a

millionaire and a pauper. Equally common are sleep and fear, for all human

beings. A rich person may sleep in comfort on a luxurious couch. A beggar may

sleep soundly on hard ground. The place of sleep may vary, but sleep itself is

common to both. More than all these, the most important experiences that are

common to all equally are birth and death. This is an index of the unifying

principle for humanity.

(Unfortunately people today misuse the God-given potencies within and

thereby ruin themselves and cause harm to the world. The reason for this is the

encouragement of divisive forces in the place of unity, and the growth of the

acquisitive tendency.

Today divisive tendencies are rampant. There is discord between humans. The

world is turning into a kind of mad-house. All nations seem to be afflicted

with some kind of lunacy. To kill one man they are prepared to sacrifice a

hundred lives. They have no regard for life. But it is not easy to escape from

the consequences of one's actions. But there is no need for despair. If one

earns even a grain of grace from the Divine, a mountain of sins can be reduced

to ashes. But without heart-felt penitence, this will not happen).

Contemplation on the Divine is the key to all happiness and prosperity.

Among the myriad names of the Lord,the most significant is Sath-Chith-Ananda.

This means that the cosmos is the embodiment of Sath-Chith-Ananda

(Being-Awareness-Bliss) and vice versa. They are inextricably united.

Everything in the Universe, from an ant to the Absolute, is a manifestation

of Sath-Chith-Ananda. Sath is that which transcends the three categories of time

past, present, and future. Chith refers to Paripurna-jnana (total awareness).

Where these two are shining in unison, there is the Bliss Divine. (Fire has

three qualities: heat, light and redness. These are not separate from each

other. Likewise, the Divine is the unified form of Sath-Chith-Ananda). You are

the embodiment of Sath-Chith-Ananda. Everything around you is a manifestation

of Sath-Chith-Ananda.

A blind man knows that the world exists, but is unable to see it. Likewise,

people believe from the teachings of the Vedic scriptures and of the learned

ones that Sath-Chith-Ananda exists, but very few have direct experience of the

Divine. The Upanishads have declared that what does not exist cannot be made to

exist. What exists cannot be wished away.

Chandramouli Sastra (Vedic scripture) was telling about the mantras, which

when repeated in faith and with full knowledge of implications, can endow you

with mysterious experiences of the Divine. That is to say, the mantra enables

you to be in the proximity of the Divine that is drawn near by the potency of

the formula when charged with your own mental current. What is mantra? 'Man'

it is manana (continued reflection on latent meanings), 'tra' it is thraana (the

act of saving, of enabling one to cross over sorrow). What are the conditions

under which the mind can charge the mantra with the required potency? The first

and foremost one is onepointedness.

The more easier to achieve this potency is the incessant remembrance of God

through the Name of the Lord. It does not need any special time or extra

allotment of time; it can be done always, in the waking stage, whether you are

bathing or eating, walking or sitting. The Name of the Lord when uttered with

sincere joy has great influence on the mind. It is like moonlight, for the

waves of the inner ocean in marl for, it is God echoing from within, the call

of go from without.

Most of the Names of the Divine have but two letters or syllables; the

significance of the number, two, (Rama, Krishna, Hara, Hari, Datta, Shakthi,

Kaali, etc.) is, that the first syllable represents Agni (Fire principle),

which burns up accumulated demerit or sin, and the second, represents the

Amritha principle, the Restorative, the Refreshing, the Reformation force. The

two processes are necessary; removal of obstructions and construction of the

structure.

Let the Love for the Lord grow in you, as in Bharatha in Ramayana's epic.

Let that sense of adoration, whichdiscarded even a throne, flourish in you.

(However, that faith to the can come only slowly, by association with the

godly, by reading the lives and experiences of godly persons, and by gaining

experience oneself).When you will obtain this skill, you can be of great use to

your country, your cults, your society, your religion and your community. Or

else, all this bother that you have undergone, to attend Satsangh, to listen to

spiritual discourse, to meet spiritual masters, study spiritual texts, etc, will

be a colossal exercise in futility. (Reet's compilation from, Sathya Sai Speaks.

Vol. 3. "Sathyam, Shivam, Sundharam," Chapter 14; Sathya Sai Speaks. Vol. 9.

"Sign and symptom of glory," Chapter 22 and "Exercise in futility," Chapter 24;

Sathya Sai Speaks. Vol. 24. "The Divine and the Cosmos," Chapter 12 and "Honour

the plighted word," Chapter 22).

Namaste - Reet