YAKSHA PRASHNAM - SUMMARY

YAKSHA PRASHNAM SUMMARY

1.     If one can perform duties in a selfless way in the given Varna and the Ashrama, he becomes pious.

 

2.    The study of Srutis is very important as one comes to know about the dharma and the purpose of human life only through that.

 

 

3.    Yudishtira answers 'steady intelligence is the helpful companion always' – steady is the important word here. Steady intelligence means the single pointed buddhi; the buddhi with the right discrimination and judgment. This intelligence can be acquired by serving the Guru (A man of wisdom). Gita says 'pariprashnena sevena' – by asking questions in line with the scriptures and by obeying the Guru the intelligence becomes steady.

 

4.    AUSTERITIES help man to achieve the great.

·         Renounce Pride

·         Renounce Desire

·         Renounce Wrath

·         Renounce Avarice and

·         Controlled mind

·         Withdrawing from all unworthy acts

·         Enduring enmity - We lead the life of no regrets.

 

5.    NATURE OF MIND

·         Fleeter than wind

·         The thoughts that arise in the mind are innumerable than grass

 

6.    Way to happiness:

·         Contentment

·         Good behavior

·         Tranquility

·         Simplicity

·         Mercy

·         Controlling the senses – which are inputs to the mind

 

7.    Clean the mind from all impurities – true bath

 

8.    Restraint of the mind – true restraint

 

 

9.    Covetousness is the incurable disease; contentment is the only remedy.

 

10.  CHARITY: One who does not share or offer anything to creatures around is considered to be dead.

 

11.  The most valuable of all possessions is knowledge. To whom agreeable and disagreeable, weal and woe, past and future are the same is considered to be wealthy. He alone is knowledgeable

 

12.  IGNORANCE:

·         Not knowing one's duties

·         Grief

·         Believing themselves to be permanent, immortal

·         Not valuing time, not using the time to attain the ultimate goal

 

Yudishtira touches the most valuable thought 'TIME'. This is the highlight of Yaksha Prashnam. People are dying everyday but we feel that death is not for us.

 

We have all desires except the Lord. Gondavalekar in his discourse says that we add only a pinch of salt to the roti flour for taste. If we add to the heap of salt little flour what will happen? The pinch of salt is nothing but the world. Our life is full of world of desires.

 

Time never waits for anyone. Parikshit was given 7 days to prepare himself for death. We don't know where we stand in the queue; when our life is going to be snatched away by the Kaala. Have we realized that? If we have realized how do we spend our time?

Watching IPL matches? 24/7 election news?

 

We are growing ignorance every moment attaching ourselves to innumerable things (my husband, my child, my house, my property, etc.)

 

The ultimate of attending satsangh, reading scriptures should lead us to a question "WHO AM I?" Where am I going in my life?

 

The question makes us see life differently. The question makes us live a life of a human.

 

If it has not led to that question like taking coffee or tea, the spirituality is also an addiction only.

If we understand the uncertainty of life and we have very little time to do our prime duty of human birth (to go back to the source), the practice follows here and now.

 

If we meditate on Yudishtira's answers, we understand that he has underlined knowledge as the ultimate end and all the austerities are the means to that end. Without practicing these austerities knowledge cannot dawn. In fact, means itself is the end.

Yoga Vasishta says beautifully that the hallmark of a liberated person is that he internally renounces everything thoroughly and externally accepts everything that comes in the natural way.

 

HARI OM!

 

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PART 21 - YAKSHA PRASHNAM SATSANGH

PART 21 – YAKSHA PRASHNAM SATSANGH

Namaskar Mahatmas!

This week we are in the concluding part of Yaksha Prashnam. The humbleness of Yudishtira is very well shown in this part.

After listening to all the answers of Yudishtira, the Yaksha said: "I am immensely pleased with your answers. You are the wisest and the most righteous person in this world. I now grant you a boon. I will grant the life of one of your brothers. You are at liberty to choose".

Yudishtira said: "Please Lord, let this dark, young, handsome brother of mine, Nakula, come back to life".

The Yaksha was amazed at Yudishtira's choice. "I am surprised at you. I know both Bheema and Arjuna are dear to you. Why did you not choose either Bheema or Arjuna? Bheema would have killed all the sons of Dhrithrashtra. Arjuna is one person on whom you are depending for your victory. Why did your choice fall on Nakula?"

Yudishtira replied: "My father had two wives, Kuntidevi and Maadridevi. I want both their children to live. I am the son of Kunti and Nakula is the son of Maadri. I love both my mothers equally. I cannot gladden the heart of one and hurt the other. So, I choose Nakula, if one of my brothers is to live. I would rather give up my life than give up Dharma. I want the world to know that I will never abandon Dharma".

The Yaksha was very much pleased with the nobility of Yudishtira. He said: "You are great. I am not going to see anybody like you at any time. I am very happy to grant you the lives of ALL YOUR BROTHERS".

The moment he said that, all brothers rose up as though from a deep sleep. They found that all their thirst, hunger and fatigue had all vanished. Yudishtira hugged all of them again and again. He fell at the feet of Yaksha and said: "My Lord! I want to know who you are. You are not a yaksha. No Yaksha knows all the nuances of dharma as you do. You must be a god from above. You are someone very dear to us. Whoever you may be, you must reveal yourself to me. I am eager to know who you are".

The Yaksha now stood in his natural form. He smiled at Yudishtira and said: "I am Dharma, your father. I wanted to see you and talk to you. I am very pleased with you. You will conquer the world with these brothers of yours. But what is pleasing to me is the fact that you have already conquered my kingdom; the kingdom of RIGHTEOUSNESS. Earthly victories are but pale and insignificant beside your conquest.

In Kali Yuga, the fourth quarter of Time, if people just pronounce your name they will become dear to me. Four names will have this greatness: the name of the king Nala of Nishadha, your name, the name of Sita, the wife of Shree Rama. The fourth is the name of one who is very dear to all of you, Krishna.

As for the Arani sticks stolen from the Brahmin, they were stolen by me. I wanted to get you to this lake. Now you can take them back to him. I will grant you another boon. Your exile of twelve years is over. The last and most difficult year is imminent. I assure you, because of my grace, no one will be able to recognize you at any time. You can disguise yourselves and go anywhere you choose. No one will be able to find your real identities".

Yudishtira's joy went to great heights. He placed his head on the two feet of his father and wept unrestrainedly. He spoke to his father: "I do not want anything else in life. I have seen your blessed form. I will receive with gratitude the boons you blessed on me. But, my Lord! I want just one more boon".

Dharma Raja looked at him to continue. He promised that he will grant whatever he wants.

Yudishtira said: "My Lord! Please grant me victory in my fight over the six of my deadly enemies: lust, anger, avarice, possessiveness, arrogance and envy. Please grant that my mind be always led towards truth. I want nothing else in this world".

Dharma smiled at him and said: "My child! There is no need to grant you something you already have. You have conquered these enemies long ago! Go, my children, and be happy. I am on your side. Where I am, there will be Victory. Where Krishna is there will I always be. Your sufferings will soon be over. Nothing can hurt you, as long as you think of me. I wish you well".

HERE ENDS THE YAKSHA PRASHNAM.

The boon that Yudishtira asks from Dharma Raja shows that the world, the kingdom, the riches, the victory etc never had any impact on him. The last answer where he said "The man to whom the agreeable and the disagreeable, weal and woe, the past and the future are the same is considered to possess every kind of wealth" – Yudishtira himself is the essence of this answer.

All sadhanas we undertake is to win the six enemies. Prahlada asked his father Hiranyakashipu 'what is the use of being proud that you are the Lord of the world when you have not won the six enemies inside you'. The one who conquers the kaama, krodha, lobha, madaa, moha and maatsarya is the real conqueror and a wealthy man. In him alone the Lord resides.

We will do a summary of all the questions and answers in the next week.

HARI OM!

 

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PART 20 - YAKSHA PRASHNAM SATSANGH

PART – 20 YAKSHA PRASHNAM SATSANGH

This week let us meditate on the following questions of Yaksha and the answers of Yudishtira.

What is the path? – That alone is THE PATH along which the Great have trod.

What is the news? – Time is the cook that is cooking all creatures of the world full of ignorance. That is THE NEWS.

Who is truly a man? – The report of ones good actions reach heaven and it is spread over the earth. As long as that report lasts, so long is that person called a MAN.

Which is the man who is considered to possess every kind of wealth? – The man to whom the agreeable and the disagreeable, weal and woe, the past and the future, are the same, is considered to possess every kind of wealth.

 

WHAT IS THE PATH?

THE TRUTH ABOUT RELIGION AND DUTY IS HIDDEN IN THE CAVES. THEREFORE, THAT ALONE IS THE PATH ALONG WHICH THE GREAT HAVE TROD.

(Lord Krishna says in Bhagavad Gita in the fourth chapter that this knowledge (the knowledge of supreme self) is passed from Vaivasvan to Ikshvaku indicating the flow of knowledge through the guru parampara. The great saints have meditated on the ways and means of attaining the supreme truth by the grace of the Lord and of their great tapas and have written scriptures which help ignorant people to easily walk their way to success. Without Guru there is no liberation as He alone can guide us.

Our scriptures always point that one should surrender their ego to realize the Self. Finding our own ways and our own interpretations on the scriptures only swells our ego and it is a clear indication that we don't want to walk the path treaded by our saints. Moreover, we are only wasting time by finding new ways without understanding that our intellect is limited. The Guru alone can measure our growth. Sai satcharitram says that if we take a guide with us to cross the dense forest, the guide will take us safely in a short while as he knows by his self experience - the places of danger. If we want to find our own way we may get lost and we lose the valuable human birth.

Yudishtira says here that the path is not simple which we can understand easily. Ramana Maharishi says that this path is like walking on the razor's edge. The best way to realize the truth is to just surrender our ego and do whatever our Guru says.)

WHAT IS THE NEWS?

THE WORLD FULL OF IGNORANCE IS LIKE A PAN. THE SUN IS FIRE. THE DAYS AND NIGHTS ARE THE FUEL. THE MONTHS AND THE SEASONS CONSTITUTE THE WOODEN HANDLE. TIME IS THE COOK THAT IS COOKING ALL CREATURES IN THAT PAN. THAT IS THE NEWS.

(We generally don't miss to hear to news every day. Not once a day but 'on the hour every hour' we are updated on what is going on around the world at our drawing room. But hear to this news which Yudishtira is saying here!

All of us are handled by time every moment in our life. Time doesn't wait for anyone. All experiences toss us up and down in the cooking pan of world. The desires and anxieties make us run like mad because of our ignorance. We have no time to look into ourselves – what are we doing? What is right? Am I in the right path?

We want to know about everything in the world other than what is the real stuff inside us. We don't want to know what is to be achieved with this human birth. Even if we know, we don't want to take it up 'now'. Isn't it the news?

We too know the truth and see this everyday helplessly. But we tend to ignore since it is the automatic benevolence of the Lord. We see people who were there yesterday are not with us today. When we look into our past, it clearly reveals that things have continuously changed and are changing – time cooking all the creatures in the pan of world of ignorance.

Lord says in Gita as well as in Bhagavatham that a devotee who has surrendered his ego, goes beyond the time and the space. The experiences of day and night; the change of seasons; do not affect a person who becomes a witness to this unfailing nature. He lives happily and dies happily firmly established in the inner self).

 

WHO IS TRULY A MAN?

The report of ones good actions reach heaven and it is spread over the earth. As long as that report lasts, so long is that person called a MAN.

(Man does not mean one's physical form. The inner purity is what really matters. When one performs actions which are selfless (as the nature does), that attitude grants him the heaven, the happy place. The goodness spreads in no time in this world as said in Gita, 'whatever great people do, the other people follow'. As long as this body is used to spread the divinity, the body gets the name MAN. Otherwise it is all animal life of sensual proceedings). 

WHICH IS THE MAN WHO IS CONSIDERED TO POSSESS EVERY KIND OF WEALTH?

THE MAN TO WHOM THE AGREEABLE AND THE DISAGREEABLE, WEAL AND WOE, THE PAST AND THE FUTURE ARE THE SAME, IS CONSIDERED TO POSSESS EVERY KIND OF WEALTH.

(Equanimity is by far the best wealth one can possess. Without this pristine quality any amount of wealth ceases to be a permanent source of pleasure. As said by Yudishtira earlier, contentment is the best of the wealth. The qualities listed here by Yudistira remind us about the Stithaprajna of the second chapter of Gita. Agreeable and disagreeable are for a person who has desires. When these look the same, it is understood that the person has no desires. The past and future are for a person who has worries and anxieties which are the products of the mind. Happiness and difficulties are also the products of desires. When these do not create any disturbance in a person, it means that person has controlled his mind and the senses. It shows his complete surrender to the Lord. It is understood that the person has become witness to his life. A person who is with the self is ever happy and he alone possesses the wealth of every kind. This wealth of the knowledge of self is great because it is not taken away by time. It cannot be cut; burnt; wet; nothing touches this truth whereas every other wealth is bound by time and meets its end).

 

SUMMARY:

Let us not reinvent the wheel. By just following the words of the Guru without any doubts, questions and with complete faith and surrender is the way to success.

Keeping the NEWS in our mind all the time, let us see and act everyday with an attitude of selflessness. Let us use this limited time effectively to live in knowledge. As long as we live in desires, we live in ignorance.

Fulfilling the desires is not the way to happiness; contentment is the only way to happiness.

All experiences are only to the body. It comes and it goes. It is the nature of the world. Understanding that we are the SELF, untouched by anything, we become wealthy here and now.

HARI OM!  

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