Fwd:Philosophers' Magic Barge

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"May our minds move in accord. May our thinking be in harmony--common the purpose and common the desire. May our prayers and worship be alike, and may our devotional offerings be one and the same" (Rig Veda 10.191.3) Capil Sookdeo ---------------------- Philosophers' Magic BargeWe are told that hundreds of years ago in the city of Madurai, known asthe Athens of India for its cultural pre-eminence, there was constructedat the Meenakshi Somasundareshvara Sivan Koyil, within the vast templetank, a magic boat called the Philosophers' Barge. Rishis came from theHimalayas, pandits from all corners of India and humble bhakta siddhasfrom the South to sit together and discuss life, illumination and releasefrom mortality. This boat's singular magic was its extraordinary abilityto expand to accommodate any number of people who conversed with

anattitude of respect and harmony. But, miraculously, it grew smallerwhen discussion turned rancorous, and those who brought about thecontention suddenly found themselves in the water, swimming to shorein embarrassment. In Siva's temple, it seems, only nonargumentativediscussion was allowed.We have no magic boats today, ©or perhaps we do. During a recentpilgrimage to India, I spoke to several large groups of devotees,including hundreds of sadhus of the Swaminarayan Fellowship, aboutzero tolerance for inharmonious conditions. Everyone found the messagepertinent, yet difficult to practice, for there is no group of peopleon Earth for whom living in harmony is not a challenge at one time oranother. But it is true that among my monastics we have zero tolerancefor disharmonious conditions of any kind.Harmony is the first and foremost rule of living in all spheres, butparticularly in spiritual work, where it is

an absolute must. Strivingfor harmony begins within the home and radiates out into all dimensionsof life, enhancing and making joyous and sublime each relationship forevery devotee. Thus, each strives to be considerate and kindly in thought,word and deed, to unfold the beautiful, giving qualities of the soul,to utter only that which is true, kind, helpful and necessary. Thegreat Tamil saint, Tiruvalluvar, offers the following sage advice inTirukural verse 100: "To utter harsh words when sweet ones would serveis like eating unripe fruit when ripe ones are at hand." Yes, thisis the ideal. I was asked by the swamis in Gujarat, time after time,"But what if conflict and contention do arise?" My answer was that inour fellowship all work stops and the problem is attended to at once. Itis each one's responsibility to follow this wisdom. Nothing could bemore counterproductive and foolish than to continue work,

especiallyreligious work, while conflict prevails, for demonic forces have beenunleashed that must be dispelled for any effort to be fruitful and longlasting. Any breach in the angelic force field of the home, monasteryor workplace must be sealed off quickly.Our approach is simple. We are all committed to the shared sadhanathat all difficult feelings must be resolved before sleep, lest theygive rise to mental argument, go to seed and germinate as unwanted,troublesome vasanas, subconscious impressions, that cannot be totallyerased but only softened and neutralized through the mystic processesof atonement. Disharmony is disruption of the harmonious pranic flow:anger, argument, back-biting, walking out of meetings, painful words andhurt feelings. The Vedas pray, "May our minds move in accord. May ourthinking be in harmony--common the purpose and common the desire. Mayour prayers and worship be alike, and may our

devotional offerings beone and the same" (Rig Veda 10.191.3. ve, p. 854). One of the principlesof harmony is that the commitment to harmony has to be greater thanany commitment to any particular issue or problem. Problems change,but the strength of harmony has to be the ultimate priority. This is aconceptual tool to use whenever differences arise.

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