HH Sri Tridandi Jeeyar Swamy's Discourse II - The Purpose of Life (continued) Part II

[Guest guest]

As stated previously, the manas - our subtle body consisting of mind,

intellect and experience - along with the Lord, is one the two best

friends for a jeevatma. Consequently, our objective is not to bring the

manas under control, but to befriend it and guide it gently in a

direction that we would like it to go. The manas is very fast and very

erratic, so beseeching it at just the right time is important.

 

In a beautiful pasuram (verse), Sri Nammazhwar speaks to his manas:

 

Oh Manas! You are so great, and so incredibly clever and fast! You now

are desiring the Lord. You wish to sing his praises, worship Him, and

serve Him unceasingly. I am not so fast or so clever. Please wait for

me, so that we can walk on our journey towards Him together.

 

In the sixth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita, Sri Krishna describes to

Arjuna how the individual should see his/her true self as being distinct

with the manas and senses, and merely become an observer to their

nature. In other words, we become disciplined in our self realization,

and let the manas and senses, which are connected to this material

world, just go about what they are needing to do. Our focus should be

on our true self (the atma) and our connection to the Lord. The concern

that Arjuna and all of us would have at this point is if we just let the

manas fly about like some free spirited bird, how do we know that it

will not steer us in the wrong direction?

 

The analogy of the free spirited bird is used quite beautifully in

Chandogya Upanishad, in which it is described that the manas and its

natural draw towards experiencing the world is like a beautiful bird

with lavish multicolored feathers flying around us in a myriad of

directions. When we observe the bird in this, its natural state, it

appears in all its beauty and glory. But, when we try to cage it, its

beauty as well as our enjoyment of it become lost.

 

What we need, then, is a way to let the bird go about its business, but

in a way that is conducive to us. One good way is a leash, a thread,

which we can tie to the birds foot. This way the bird is free to fly

about every which way that it can, and we can be allowed to enjoy it.

At the same time, however, we have the ability to guide it, to direct

it, and also pull it back when it goes too far. The beauty of the bird

is maintained, our enjoyment of it is maintained, but we both can go

together in a positive direction.

 

The key now is to determine what this thread is. This thread is " pre:ma

su:tram " or the thread of Love. If we cultivate Love for the Lord, our

other best friend, then our Love for Him becomes the thread by which we

can guide the manas towards Him.

 

This does not mean, however, that we can merely yank the bird and pull

him back towards the Lord. The manas has its nature, its desires and

aspirations, and our thread is really very delicate as it is a thread of

Love. But, while allowing it to move about, we should also softly guide

the manas, just like a parent would guide a child.

 

In practical application, this involves utilizing one's everyday

experiences and desires in a direction that is in service to Him. Say,

for example, that your manas, which is always under the sway of the

beauty of this world, tells you to go to a shopping mall. You do not

resist. You go there. And, when you are there, you allow you and your

manas to walk through all the stores and boutiques. But, when you see

something that the manas wants, you remind the manas: " Manas, this is

very nice. But look at that over there. Wouldn't Lord Krishna like

that. Why don't we buy that for Him, instead of just buying this for

ourselves. "

 

As stated before, the manas is the operating system that connects our

true selves with our body and senses. By cultivating this pre:ma

su:tram, this thread of Love for the Divine, and putting it into

practice, we will soon find that wherever we are, whatever we are doing,

saying, or thinking, all of this will begin to revolve around Him and

will be conducive to Him and His world.

 

Sri Kulasekhara Azhwar had this finely tuned sense of love for the Lord,

he knew nothing but Him. And because of this, in pasurams and

sto:trams, He could beseech his manas to move along with him in the

direction of the Divine.

 

And, as stated previously, the way to cultivate Love for the Lord is

through the development of the two good qualities vinayam and

vide:yata. This leads us back to the need for an understanding of the

very powerful yet simple mantra, " namaha " , which shall be described in

the next posting.

 

adiyEn rAmAnuja dAsan

Mohan