Fwd: Ramana Maharshi disciple discusses about The Three Desires we need to Renounce

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, Prasanth Jalasutram <jvrsprasanth

wrote:

 

In Sanskrit, they classify the desire for wife, son and wealth

(thara-putra-dhana) as the three de-sires, whereas in Tamil they classify

the desire for land, women and gold (man-pen-pon) as the de-sires. But on

scrutiny, these are found to be not three desires but only two.

 

The desire that we have for wife or women and the desire for son can be

taken as one desire, namely the desire for relationships (or uravasai);

likewise, the desire for gold, the desire for wealth and the desire for land

can be taken as one desire, namely the desire for material possessions (or

porul-asai). What then is the third of the three desires? It is only the

evil desire for praise, fame, honor, appre-ciation or recognition (or

puhazh-asai), which makes one hanker after the proud and vain glory of

feeling " I have renounced the desire for all these four – wife, son, land

and gold " .

 

The desire for loving relationships (uravasai) the desire for material

possessions (porul-asai) and the desire for honor (puhazh-asai) are the

unac-ceptable three desires. More than the first two de-sires, the third one

is very dangerous. Know that the non-rising of the ego, which rises either

with the feeling " I am having this particular desire " or with the feeling " I

have renounced this particular desire, " is alone true renunciation.

 

Even after renouncing, with a little discrimi-nation, love for relationships

and love for material possessions, many wise people become a prey to this

desire for name and fame, which has the power to destroy their

discrimination. Therefore, know that true renunciation is only the state in

which the ego- " I " does not rise, having renounced the liking to en-joy even

the honor (puhazh) that results from the re-nouncing of relatives and

possessions.

 

 

Those who experience the sufferings that result from desire for

relationships and desire for material possessions will finally one day or

other be-come disgusted with these desires and renounce them. But the desire

for honor (puhazh) that comes to one is a very treacherous delusion (maya)

that is skillful in concealing and not showing the dangerous harm that lies

in itself. Therefore, people will find more and more joy in this desire for

power and honor (puhazh-asai) and will not shrink from it.

 

Note: When the mind experiences intense suffer-ing due to the diseases which

result from the desire for women or due to the enmity which results from the

desire for sons, it will sooner or later automati-cally gain a liking to

renounce them. Similarly, on account of the endless misery that results from

hav-ing desire for gold, land and wealth, the mind will sooner or later

automatically gain a liking to re-nounce such possessions. Thus desire for

relation-ships and material possessions (uravasai and porul-asai) will one

day or other reveal the dangerous harm that lies in themselves. But when

desire for honor, name and fame (puhazh) is experienced more and more, it

will make the mind feel only a de-lusion of joy, and hence the dangerous

harm that lies hidden in it cannot easily be discerned by the mind. That is

why Sri Bhagavan warns us in verse 37 of Supplement to Reality in Forty

Verses (Ulladu Narpadu Anubandham), " Even though all the worlds have been

renounced as mere straw, and even though all the scriptures have been

mastered, for those who have come under the sway of the wicked harlot called

praise, honor, recognition or apprecia-tion, ah, to escape from slavery to

her is indeed very difficult! "

 

Trying to destroy the three desires while re-taining the ego, the feeling " I

am this body " , which is the root of all rising, is utter foolishness, just

like try-ing to cross a river riding upon a crocodile as a raft. The

destruction of the ego, the original sin, is alone the destruction of the

threefold fire of desire. There-fore, in order to destroy all the three

desires, the only way is to destroy oneself by inquiring, " Who am I, who

have these desires? "

 

Source: A Light on the Teaching of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi The Essence

of Spiritual Practice (Sadhanai Saram) By Sri Sadhu Om

 

--

Om namo Bhagavate Sri Ramanaya

Prasanth Jalasutram

 

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