Vedanta - Sadhna.

[Guest guest]

JOHN: What do you mean by `qualified for enlightenment?'

 

 

Ram: Many Western people have no idea what sadhana is. They actually

think that they can just get a ticket to India and get on the

spiritual circuit and attend a satsang or two and they will get

`awakened.' They may have some experiences but if you get `awakened'

you will certainly fall back to sleep, usually because there is no

sadhana in place.

 

 

And there are gurus who themselves did sadhana but are loath to insist

that their disciples do it…for fear of losing them, I suppose.

 

 

You see many people who have been to Ramesh coming through

Tiruvannamalai and what they seem to have got is the idea that they

are not `doers.' So their sadhana is no sadhana. Why? Because they

have been told there is nothing you can do because your enlightenment

is not up to you. It's all up to `grace.' I'm not sure why the

resolve to do vigorous sadhana is not the grace of God…but there you are.

 

 

It's true that you are not a doer, but the you that is not a doer is

the Self. The ego doesn't become a non-doer by trying not to `do'

anything.

 

 

This sort of teaching is very misleading because it is tailor made for

the ego. It gives it the impression that it can have its cake and eat

it too. But it has value too…for someone addicted to doing, someone

whose self worth is tied up in accomplishing things.

 

 

People are continually bewildered by the fact that Ramana was

supposedly a non-dual jnani and that he preached religion and sadhana

which is dvaita, duality. But he is completely in line with

traditional Vedanta on this issue. Purification is at least as

important as knowledge, perhaps more so, because without a clear mind,

you will not get knowledge, jnanam. This idea does not sit well with

people nowadays. They want it handed to them on a platter. This

accounts for the popularity of the shaktipat gurus and the miracle

makers. Around them you have a whole class of people who actually

believe that the guru is doing the work for them!

 

 

 

JOHN: But Ramana didn't do sadhana to get enlightenment.

 

 

 

Ram: That's true…but he certainly did sadhana after it. Knowing who

he was, he need not have sat in meditation in caves for many years, he

could have gone home and eaten his mom's iddlys and played cricket.

It was all the same to him. But he didn't. He decided to purify his

mind.

 

 

The glory of Ramana is not his enlightenment. It was just the same as

every other enlightenment that's ever been. His glory was his pure

mind. He polished his mind to such a degree that it was particularly

radiant… a great blessing to himself and everyone whom he contacted.

 

 

That kind of mind you only get through serious sadhana, or yoga, if

you will. These modern gurus, particularly the so-called `crazy

wisdom' gurus who seem to revel in gross mind, refuse to encourage

people to develop themselves because they do not understand the

tremendous pleasure that comes from a pure mind.