Characteristics of a wise man

January 28, 2005

Pranam to all Vaishnavas,

A person to whom Krishna ordain defeat will have his vision blurred and his senses blunted as well as taken away from him and this step will then make him do ignoble deeds. When his intellect thus fails, his destruction is sure. To His virtuous devotee, Krishna will grant the ability to use his power of thinking and decide properly. One's desires will meet with success in proportion to the respect one pays to Krishna’s Law of

Morality. The chief characteristics of a man, who is considered wise, are that he will always aspire for nobler ideals in life. His assets will be forbearance, hard work and steadiness while his acts will be rooted in virtue and his intelligence will be fixed on Krishna. Neither anger, nor joy, nor pride, nor false modesty, nor vanity will distract him from his purpose. He will not hesitate to seek counsel from the learned as many times as necessary. He will neither get puffed up by praise nor hate criticism. He will obey the commands of the elders. On the other hand, ``fools'' are those for whom scripture is a closed book Krishna a fictitious character. Such a person will indulge in vicious practices. He will display his envy at other's prosperity, exaggerate negative events and will dislike all those who love Krishna.

A dissertation on the enviable qualities of a virtuous person and the wicked designs of a man with warped outlook, the duties of a ruler, the assets of a sensible adviser and a host of morals applicable to everyone and during all times are presented in the ``Vidhura Neethi'' in the Mahabharata. The blind king (Dhritarashtra), who supported his wicked son (Duryodhana), who refused to abide by justice, experienced restlessness. To have some peace of mind he sought the advice of his minister, Vidhura, who symbolised honesty. His elaborate advice is stuffed with morals. How one should behave, lead a life

of nobility and uphold the ``Law of Dharma'' under all circumstances are explained therein. The essence of his treatise is ``Poison kills only the man who consumes it. So too is a weapon. But wicked counsel will destroy an entire country. Hence, the highest good in life is Righteousness.'' The other salient features of this ``sermon'' are : supreme peace, contentment and happiness are got by forgiveness, knowledge and benevolence. Three ``terrible and unpardonable crimes'' are theft of another's property, outraging the modesty of other women and breach of trust. The three gateways to hell are passion, anger and lust. A man who wishes to become great should avoid sleep without limit, drowsiness, unjustified fear, anger, indolence and procrastination. One's body is a chariot, the ‘Krishna’ within the heart is the driver and the senses, the horses. Guided by Krishna’s divine grace, the wise

will go through life's journey peacefully.

Lord Krishna says in Gita , Chapter 10, Sloka 20 :

aham atma gudakesa / sarva-bhutasaya-sthitahaham adis ca madhyam ca / bhutanam anta eva ca( O Gudakesa, I am Antaryami residing within the heart of every living being, and I alone am the cause of the creation, maintenance and destruction of all beings.)

OM NAMO BHAGAVATE VASUDEVAYA!!!

Krishna’s Dasi, Jayamma .

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