Satyopanisad

[Guest guest]

Swami! In an organisation where we have to interact with people, most often we

come across people criticising each other and blaming each other. This is very

frustrating, and divides people into groups. Sincere persons become frustrated

because of uncharitable criticism. It looks like character assassination and mud

slinging. How are we to take this evil prevalent everywhere?

 

It is a sin to criticise others. It is a sign of weakness and inferiority

complex. You shouldn't criticise or hate anyone. In fact, no one has any

authority to criticise others. To tackle this, first of all, one should put a

question to oneself: " Who is being criticised? " Then, you don't feel upset any

longer. Why? If the criticism applies to your body, you don't need to feel bad

because the body is temporary and ephemeral. You should be indifferent to your

own body, which lands you in many difficulties and problems. The other man is

doing service to you by criticising your body. You should be thankful to him for

doing so on your behalf. Is it then, the spirit or atma that is criticised? This

is not possible because the same soul or atma is present in the critic also.

Atma is Self, the same in all. Then, who is the critic and who is criticised? It

all amounts to the criticism of one's own self. Ego and jealousy are the root

causes that provoke a person to criticise others.

 

You have put another question. You want to know how you should react to

criticism against you. A small example. Suppose you receive a registered letter.

If you don't want to accept it, you can refuse to take delivery. The registered

letter will then go back to the sender. Will it not? Similarly, criticism

against you is a registered letter. Don't acknowledge and receive it. Refuse it

so that the same registered letter of criticism will go back to the sender, the

critic himself. If anyone speaks loudly and belligerently against you in public,

it is all lost in the air or in your vicinity. If anybody accuses you secretly,

it goes to the accuser himself.

 

What I feel is that one has to be judged by one's merits and not by one's

faults. I ask you repeatedly to seek out your own faults and others' merits. If

you enquire deeply, you will notice that personal criticism is nothing but the

" reflection of the inner being " . You spot the bad in the outside world, because

of the bad in you. There is nothing that you can find outside yourself.

Duryodhana was asked to go in search of a good man. He returned saying that he

had found none. If you want to know any good person existing in this world, it

is yourself only. Dharmaja was asked to go round and bring a bad person. He

returned saying that there was none who was bad other than himself. This is the

difference in the attitude of two persons with different views of life. As is

your vision so appears the creation. As is the colour of the glasses you wear,

so is the colour of the world you see. If you are aware of this truth, you will

never criticise anybody.

 

Sarva ova namaskarah kes'avam prati gacchati, whomsoever you respect and revere,

it amounts to reverence unto God. Since God is in everyone, if you respect

anyone, it means, you respect God. Similarly, sarva jiva tiraskarah kes'avam

prati gacchati, whomsoever you hate, it amounts to hatred of the Divine Himself.

If you deeply look into the eyes of the man standing in front of you, you see

your own reflection. Therefore, he is not a separate person but your own

reflection.

 

There is only one without the second, i.e., God who is present in all. When you

point out your forefinger at the mistakes of another man, three fingers of yours

are turned towards you, reminding you of your own mistakes. If you understand

this, you won't criticise anybody or blame anybody. God gives and forgives. I

often tell you, past is past and it is beyond recovery. Hence, be careful

hereafter.