YAKSHA PRASHNAM – SATHSANG PART 8
Q: WHAT IS IT, WHEN RENOUNCED, LEADS TO NO REGRET?
A: WRATH, WHEN RENOUNCED, LEADS TO NO REGRET.
(Wrath (Krodham) is the anger in the higher degree. When anger takes full control of us, we don't know what we speak and what we do. And when we come back to our senses, we feel ashamed of ourselves and regret for what we have done. If we had controlled anger in the first place, there is no room for regret. In the third chapter of Gita Lord Answer to Arjuna's question (what prompts man to commit sin) that anger and lust born of Rajo Guna prompt man to commit sin. The anger sprouts because the 'I' is not given importance. If we increase our patience level and give a thought that 'other person is right', the wrath can be overcome. As said by Yudishtira earlier, the control of mind leads to no regret. Anger is the mind's product. Control of senses and mind is very important to lead a peaceful life and to avoid a life full of regrets.
One day Tagore had asked his driver to come early in the morning at 7AM as he had to go somewhere. Tagore waited for a long time for the driver. He got angry because the driver didn't turn till 9AM. Tagore arranged to go by some other means but his anger against the driver was imbedded in his mind. The next day the driver came in the morning. Tagore burst out and scolded him left and right. The poor driver was hesitating to open his mouth but the master didn't allow him to do so. After some time when Tagore cooled down, the driver said: "Master I lost my young child yesterday and there was no way I could communicate and today I came mainly to inform you why I didn't come yesterday." Tagore was shocked beyond belief. He felt sorry that he lost his temper and immediately hugged the driver repeatedly saying 'sorry'. From that day Tagore told to himself that he will never lose his temper in his life time. We live by our experiences and it is always good not to repeat the mistakes.
Lord says in Bhagavad Gita "krodhaad bhavati sammohah sammohaat smrti-vibhramah
Smriti–bhramsaad buddhi-nasho buddhi naashaat pranashyati"
Krodam leads to mental imbalance; mental imbalance leads to loss of memory; loss of memory leads to a permanent disability called 'MADNESS'. Prahlada told his father Hiranyakashipu that he had conquered three quarters of the world but not his six enemies (kaama, krodha, lobha, mada, maatsarya). One cannot be considered great unless he conquers these enemies.
Q: RENOUNCING WHAT DOES MAKE MAN HAPPY?
A: AVARICE, WHEN RENOUNCED, MAKES MAN HAPPY. (Avarice is the greed, the covetousness. The elephant can get into the eye of the needle but not the man's greed. The conversation between Bhishma Pitamaha and Yudishtira on the topic of 'Dharma of a king' is the source of answer given by Yudishtira here.
Covetousness was the first guest to our hearts. When it came into life, men began to want things which did not belong to them. The next passion to be born was lust. Lust can never exist alone. It has to have a companion and so wrath came into existence.
Covetousness is one root of all sin. It destroys all merit and goodness. From it precedes the river of sin. It is from this single source that many of the sins flow like loss of judgment, deception, pride, arrogance, malice, vindictiveness, and shamelessness, loss of virtue, anxiety and infamy. Life may decay, but this will never wane in its power. Even men of great learning, whose minds are the very treasury of all the scriptures, who have the intelligence to clear all the many doubts of others, are found to be incompetent to manage their own affairs. They are spineless and weak, and it is because they are slaves of this dread disease covetousness.
Ignorance has its origin in this covetousness. As covetousness grows, ignorance grows with it. The root of covetousness is but loss of clear thinking, loss of judgment, and so ignorance is an inseparable companion of covetousness.
How then to renounce this covetousness? Bhishma Pitamaha says it can be renounced through self-restraint. The knowledge that 'you and me are not different; we are the expression of the same divinity' makes us come out of greed. Greed is the feeling of wanting more and more in life. As long as this feeling remains, we can never be happy. If we can develop the attitude to enjoy other people's success as our own, the talent of other person as our own or any good, excellent things we find anywhere as our own and the thought no need to bring home to make us our own, will make us happy and this is the only way to be happy.
Q: WHAT IS 'THE WAY'? BY WHOM IS IT CONSTITUTED?
A: THOSE THAT ARE GOOD CONSTITUTE THE WAY. (Good is the path of 'Shreyas'. Human beings have the choice of following two ways in this world: the first is the path leading to the fulfillment of worldly desires (Preyas) and the other is the path to liberation (Shreyas) from worldly bondage. Those who wish to indulge in sensory cravings choose the path of Preyas and get into the cycles of birth and death by their selfish actions. The man of wisdom opts for the path of Shreyas which leads to the eternal bliss by liberating him from worldly bondage because he knows that the joys of the world are short lived.
Lord Krishna warns us in Gita 'do not come under their (senses) sway' because it drags us to lower levels of life. Desire, anger and greed are the causes of one's spiritual downfall as the mind is completely taken by one or the other. Keeping the consequences of succumbing to desires in mind, a seeker after liberation should remain always vigilant and stay in line to his objective.
Due to primordial ignorance (Avidya/Maya) the individual self (Jiva) is caught in the cycle of birth and death, which is known as bondage. This is akin to the concept of day and night seen in the world according to whether the sun is visible or not but in the sun there is no night or day. So in reality there is no bondage or liberation to the Self and it is because of ignorance (The thought that 'I am the body') that worldly bondage and the sorrows that come out of it. Liberation is the removal of this ignorance by self-knowledge (the experience 'I am').
The sense organs by nature are outward bound and the Self can be realized by withdrawal of the senses from the respective objects. Like Tortoise withdrawing its limbs, the wise man senses the danger in the objects of the world and he withdraws completely from it. By turning the mind inward with the aid of spiritual sadhanas (practices) the mind will attain one pointed concentration and grasp the blissful self within.
The way is the path of good (it takes us near to Lord) and not the path of pleasant (it takes us near to world and far from Lord). The path of Shreyas is constituted by all wise people, Rishis, Our Guru. This is the path prescribed by Lord through scriptures and through many devotees' experiences. Katopanishad explains in great detail about the path of good. Young Nachiketas chose to be in this path, because he wanted to have that which is not destroyed by time.
Q: WHAT IS THE SIGN OF ASCETICISM?
A: STAYING IN ONES OWN RELIGION IS ASCETICISM. (Recently I read an article in a magazine which says "Man sooner or later must realize that he is a thinking being endowed with discriminating faculties. This is the special blessing of God and Nature to man. Therefore, it behoves man to willingly, freely and lovingly practice those disciplines that would make man manifest his Real Nature which is Divine. These exercises are found in all religions.
These disciplines are practical, genuine and well-tested by the votaries of the respective religions. The only criterion is that one would take it seriously and perform those exercises with sincerity, regularity and purity of motive. Be loyal to the ideal. This in turn will yield the highest result."
It is true that every religion is complete by itself. To think one religion is better than another is the sign of ignorance. Where there is ignorance, one cannot be called as an Ascetic. Ascetic is a person who feels contented where he is put by the Lord and does not go in search of anything better in life. If one cannot remain happy in the place where he is, then he cannot be happy anywhere in the world. Muni is a man who has controlled his mind and who has renounced everything including the religion, caste, creed or any mark related to the body/birth. He is contented with the self within and sees everywhere the same self.
"My daily activities are not different
Only I am naturally in harmony with them.
Taking nothing, renouncing nothing,
In every circumstance no hindrance, no conflict…"
This is the true sign ofAscetism whichever religion one follows.
SUMMARY:
v ANGER AND GREED ARE CLEAR SIGNS OF MIND TAKING CONTROL ON THE INDIVIDUAL. WHEN THE HORSES ARE NOT IN CONTROL, AS SAID IN KATOPANISHAD, IT TAKES US IN SLUSHY ROADS OF LIFE AND WE WILL BE SWIMMING IN THE POND OF IGNORANCE ALONE. THESE TWO COMES OUT OF US WHEN LOVE FOR OTHERS IS LACKING IN US.
v THE HUMAN BIRTH IS VERY RARE TO GET. THE WISE IS ONE WHO USES THIS BLESSING TO ATTAIN KNOWLEDGE AND TO DESTROY THE IGNORANCE, WHICH IS THE CAUSE OF ALL SORROWS. THE PATH OF KNOWLEDGE EVEN THOUGH SEEMS TO BE DIFFICULT TO PRACTICE INITIALLY (Like children who are putting their full efforts to get 100 upon 100 giving up all they like – goal fixed); THE RESULT IS THE ULTIMATE HAPPINESS.
v ASCETICISM IS THE SIGN OF NO MIND. ONE CAN BE A MUNI ANYWHERE/ IN ANY RELIGION.
HARI OM!
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