Final Part --- 50 Divine Thoughts By Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswathi [ The 68th Sankaracharya ]

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By multiplying wants, we only increase poverty. What is essential for life

and honour should be made available to all the people of the country. It is

for this we want plans. Men of means should live like the poor and should

not increase their wants beyond necessities. The rich should share their

prosperity with the poor. This is punya, leading to salvation. The more we

increase our wants, to that extent, there will be no peace or comfort and it

will only produce poverty and sorrow.

 

Vedanta which is the peak of the Vedas teaches the way for the removal of

sorrow. Hatred and desire arise only in respect of the objects other than

us. That desire will not arise if those objects are rendered identical with

us, if there is nothing other than us, then desire will not arise. If there

is no desire, there will be no effort and no sin. When there is no sin,

there will be no body and there will be no misery.

 

We may get many types of sorrow. What seems to be sorrow to all the people

of a place may not seem sorrowful to us. If we stay always happy, without

wanting to attain anything untouched by sorrow like the lotus-leaf and the

Kalakodi - seed, that is called yoga. " Know that to be indicated as yoga

which is separation from being united with sorrow, The removal of

association with sorrow. "

 

In order to reach one purport, why should the Veda speak of many matters?

This question may arise in our minds. It is through many matters that it is

possible to understand that one purport which is Reality - yoga, meditation,

austerity, sacrifice, performance of karma; when these are accomplished,

what they indicate is that one Reality. It is that Reality which is the true

purport of the Veda. Other things are of a changing nature. They become

woven into a story and then even that story disappears.

 

What for is the science of medicine? It is for keeping the body strong and

healthy. What if the body is not strong and healthy? The body will be

subject to diseases. What if there is disease? One will not be able to

function properly. He who has given this body is the supreme Self. This is

the truth, we should practice several disciplines. We can practice them only

if the body is well. In order to keep it well, we must prevent it from

becoming a prey to disease. The science of medicine tells us how to prevent

diseases. Thus, Ayurveda helps in the realisation of Advaita experience.

 

Savikapla Samadhi: The mind is steady without any distraction, contemplating

its object wholly absorbed therein.

Nirvikalpa Samadhi: This is the goal of yoga. In this, the mind ceases to

function and vanishes once and for all, leaving the self to shine forth

alone. In Advaita too, the path of meditation is recognised; but here the

object of meditation is the distinction-less Brahman.

Sahaja Samadhi: This is realised through the path of enquiry. It is the

natural state of Self - realisation and one of utter unconcern for the

fleeting phenomena.

 

There is nothing to feel elated about seeing the people worshipping me. But

when I reflect that is worship to the God, who they think are approachable

through me, I feel glad that there are so many who believe in a

compassionate God who will hear them and remove their misery.

 

Our religion Hinduism has grown by devotion, meditation and self -

purification. The other religions might have grown by propaganda and

conflict. The reason for crores of our people remaining within the fold of

Hinduism, in spite of powerful propaganda of other religionists, wars, lure

of money, etc., is we see a great man (Mahatma) in our midst by whom we are

impressed. We develop devotion to him and generate faith in our religion.

There is a text in the Veda which says that a flowering tree attracts bees

automatically. If we examine ourselves and we find one of use to be perfect,

the world will follow him.

 

A child eats earth. Its hands are tied by the mother. The child gets angry

and cries. Is it without reason the mother ties it's hands? We do not know

the mercy of Universal Mother. The good or harm coming to us has its source

in Her Grace; Suffering - Her Grace for some reason. We must accept whatever

comes to us, good or bad, as Her Grace. We do not know why she gives it. Our

vision is limited. We do not know what precedes it or follows it. If we are

able to look into the past present and future, we will know that God does no

harm to us. Other than God, there is no kith or kin for us.

 

We cannot say that a child or an idiot who keeps quiet without activity like

a stone is great. We cannot presume that he has attained jivanmukti. This is

the result of sin. He is a Yogi or Jnani whose intellect is very subtle and

as sharp as a sword. He has to become like a withered tree, an immovable

object with a steady mind. He must understand all that is happening around

him. His knowledge should be perfect. He should not be affected by passion

or sorrow. He should always be happy. None of us is like that and Iswara is

described as Sat-Chit-Ananda.

 

If God is the ocean of mercy and if He knows everything, He must know what

we want. Why should we appeal to Him to do this or that? The reasonable

answer is that instead of begging useless people at useless places, we plead

before the Highest and the Omniscient. Otherwise, we have no justification

to ask Him to give us this or that.

 

Everything disintegrates on earth and this earth also will vanish one day.

The sun will disappear and the whole universe will go. Then there must be

some powerful substratum responsible for creation, protection and

destruction. We call it God. We have the faculty of thinking and capacity of

doing, in smaller or greater measure. This also merges after our death with

the omnipotent. Being, from whom we derive this energy. The stable principle

which is the cause of creation and destruction of all energy is God, called

by any name.

 

Mother loves her child but later on, an unfaithful sun causes her sorrow. We

know of cases where mother starts litigation against sons or sons against

mother. If one loves another, and if one of them dies, the bereavement

causes sorrow. The bank helps people who have deposited money with them. It

is supposed to remove the sorrows of the people in times of need. But when

the bank itself is liquidated or closed, the depositors weep. Their sorrows

once gave sustenance to the bank. The more we love, the greater the sorrow

in consequence. Then, shall we decide that we should not love anyone at all?

The object of this birth is to bestow undivided love on someone. The subject

of our love should not be quarrelsome or separable. If we say that we should

love only the imperishable God, then the question is: can we hate others?

Let us learn to love all be realising that God is in all. God is eternal and

our love for him should be eternal.

 

I am prone to come to the conclusion that there lives none without

predominantly selfish motives. But with years rolling on, an impression,

that too a superficial one, true to my nature, is dawning upon me that there

breathe on this globe some souls firmly rooted in morals and ethics who live

exclusively for others, voluntarily forsaking not only their material gains

and comforts but also their own sadhana towards their spiritual

improvements.

 

It is clear to us that there is birth and there is death. Passion is the

cause of birth. Time is the cause of death. What is created by passion is

destroyed by time. If passion comes, the seed sprouts. If time comes, the

tree dies. Kaalo Jagat Bhakshaka: Even the sun and the moon disintegrate

when time comes. If there is no passion, there is no production. If there is

no time then there is no destruction. Therefore we have to conquer Kaala and

Kaama. Iswara burnt Kaama and kicked time. So if we go to Him, there is

neither birth nor death for us. Let us therefore pay to the Universal Father

and Mother.

 

" Jagatha pitarau Vande Paarvati Parameswarau "

 

A master has two servants. One always flatters the master, the other just

performs his duties without any love for the master. If the master is a

fool, he would love the flattering servant. If the master is too clever, he

will not love either the man working for wages or the flatterer. The master

will love more the one who does his job as his own out of devotion. So is

the case with the Good Master, God.

 

Why do we break coconut before Lord Ganesa's idol? He is the Son of

Parameswara and asked His Father to sacrifice His head with three eyes

because only then, he thought any effort would be crowned with success and

without any obstacle. So, instead of the head with three eyes, we are

breaking coconut which has three eyes. Ganesa is so powerful as to demand

the head of his own father. Whatever is superior to everything else must be

sacrificed to God. Symbolically, we are sacrificing the three - eyed

coconuts created by God, as ordained by Him. When a sannyasin attains

Siddhi, this is done. This practice is in vogue only in Tamil Nadu.

 

Thinking that God is far away from you, you are wandering in search of Him.

So long as you do not know, He is far away. Though you may wander, you

cannot see Him, but he is near you. He is distant, yet near. The story of a

girl wanting to marry the highest among men, a king, ended, after all the

travels, in the discovery of an ordinary man her parents had already

selected. The bridegroom was so near. She took a long route to arrive at a

point so near.

 

We see our reflections in a mirror. In a row of mirrors, thousands of

reflections are seen. It is only one person who sees all these reflections.

The one who resides within us and who sees all this, is God. The seer is the

cause of all the seen. That cause is knowledge which is the basis of this

world. Where is that knowledge? Within you, what is macroscopic is

microscopic in you.

 

Joy comes in the form of status, money, etc. comes from without. We feel

isolated. But it is the smallest fragment of the great joy from within,

which is Ananda. Paramatman, the ananda within is not worried whether any

joy comes from outside and mixes with it or not. Waters enter into the sea,

which though ever being full, is ever motionless.

 

If we analyse the teachings of the Gita, there may appear to be many

contradictory matters regarding bhakti, karma and jnana. But the Lord takes

the devotee step by step. We must meditate on the form of God as described

in the scriptures. This bhakti will enable us to understand the universal

nature of God. Spiritual vision will then make it clear that God without

form is the Supreme Reality, which hears without ears, moves without legs.

To worship God at the initial stage, metaphysical knowledge is not

necessary. The more and more we meditate, bhakti grows and we automatically

realise the universal form. There is no distinction between the devotee and

the object of devotion.

 

Our minds should automatically seek and cling to God just as iron filings

are attracted by the magnet; the heart of the chaste wife seeks her husband;

the creeper embraces the tree; the rivers go to the sea.

 

Philosophical truths and ordinary people have nothing much in common.

Therefore outward garb is useless. The representatives of religion must have

real worth, peace - loving nature (shantam), austerity (tapas) and unselfish

nature. Hinduism, in spite of its vicissitudes, is surviving even to this

day. This is due to the blessings of a succession of saints. If there is one

saint among us, the world will prosper.

 

It is natural that man should seek to satisfy his wants like hunger, thirst,

and a place to rest. There are duties which an individual has towards

himself, the social group and the nation. Ordinarily, the performance of

these duties remains on the level of satisfying the creaturely wants. But

there is a way of performing these duties which will elevate everyone

concerned spiritually. That is dharma. And it is the duty of the king or the

state to see that the citizens are provided every opportunity for spiritual

growth and progress. That is the meaning of saying: " Raja Dharmasya

Kaaranam " .

 

Upaasana is dhyaana or concentration of meditation. A form is required for

concentration. Reality is always the same and changeless. God, as the

Ultimate Reality, is Formless. But Upasana of a Form is done with a purpose,

namely, the attainment of a given benefit. The purpose to be attained by

worshipping or concentrating on a Form differs. The scriptures tell you how

to meditate and on what all Forms and with what results. For Upasana, you

have to follow the Sastras or Scriptures. The different upasanas are all

aids in the path to the ultimate goal, namely, understanding Reality.

Scriptures prescribe Upaasana n order to train the mind to concentrate.

Upasana is the affair of the individual; there is nothing collective about

it.

 

Neither the raw fruit nor the tree wants to leave each other. But when the

fruit becomes ripe, this attachment automatically disappears. Man requires

to experience anger, jealousy, passion, etc. just as the fruit had to

undergo various stages of growth and taste before it became fully ripe so to

get automatically detached from the tree. We cannot overcome these

experiences in the beginning. But we must ponder over the fact why we

undergo these experiences. Otherwise we will be the losers. We will become

slaves of these experiences and can never achieve fulfillment or

contentment.

 

When adversities overtake us, we blame God and complain that He is blind to

our misfortunes. But if we indulge in a little introspection, we will

realise that our faults are so enormous that we are utterly unworthy of His

grace and, in spite of that we are able to get food, shelter and clothing.

It is due to the abundant mercy of God. We must consider the difficulties we

encounter as a blessing in disguise.

 

A mother may tie the hands of her child who has the propensity to pick up

and eat mud. This seeming cruelty of the mother is for the good of the

child. Similarly troubles are verily God's grace to save us. In the entire

picture of life, troubles form but a tiny spot. In our inability to

visualise the past and the future, we complain when we suffer in the

present. A proper perspective will enable us to understand our present

plight in its proper setting.

 

Whenever any honour is done to a person the recipient must remember the

divine source from which he derived the qualifications to receive that

honour, and feel humble and not elated with a feeling of self - importance.

 

Cultivate Friendly attitude to conquer the minds of men;

Look at others as yourself;

Give up war; give up jealousy;

Don't commit aggression without reason;

Mother earth is like Kamadhenu to fulfil wishes;

The Lord God is like father showering mercy

People of the World !

Live with discipline;

Live with charity;

Live with mercy;

May all people attain greater well - being

 

Source: http://www.kamakoti.org/miscl/divine50b.html

 

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