In the process of attaining mind-control, we commonly use
other people as excuse to indulge in sense pleasures, which is highly
detrimental. It is important to not give any leeway to the mind to indulge in worldly
objects. Many people find it necessary to go with the flow of surroundings and
indulge in sense pleasures to sustain in the society. This is an escapist
attitude, which leads to quick debacle. People try to progress on spiritual
path, but falter again and again. Seekers who are unable to maintain a firm
resolve and steadfastness face a downfall. Complacent seekers don’t even
commence the spiritual journey, let alone make progress on the path. The main
reason for complacency is the lack of Sattva-Guṇa. To make progress on spiritual
path in available lifetime, it is imperative to maintain a firm resolution.
Once the goal is fixed, we should not be lenient with ourselves.
St. Tukārām encourages us to study a little every day. With
persistence, we start enjoying the studies. We continue to be alert and
vigilant about every self-action. Spiritual practice gradually grows and
becomes profound. This leads to attaining the complete control on mind.
Sāttvic
behavior (Āchār, आचार) -
Profound studies are possible only with spotless conduct and
behavior in everyday life. In Kaliyuga, it is generally assumed that
maintaining a clean conduct and behavior is a challenging task. But there are
many people who maintain clean conduct while doing regular job or business.
They are strong enough to renunciate the sense pleasures. Even if they lose out
a lot from others’ perspective, they earn valuable returns for themselves. Spiritual
pursuit is easy when no time is wasted in extraneous, irrelevant activities. At
least after formal retirement from professional life, one should be able to
pursue the spiritual path. After the age of 60, major responsibilities and
duties are usually over. It is possible to attain the goal of Moksha even if
one is physically feeble. Moksha is pertinent to the mind (Antahkaraṇa, अंतःकरण), which
is efficient even in the later half of life.
Sattvic
thoughts (Vichār, विचार) -
St. Dnyāneshwar has provided
excellent guidance on how to purify the thoughts in his famous poem Pasaydān.
Jeṁ khaḻāñcī
vyañkaṭī sāñḍo | Tayā satkarmī ratī vāḍho |
Bhūtāṁ
paraspare paḍo | Maitra jīvācheṁ||
(जें खळांची व्यंकटी सांडो । तया सत्कर्मी- रती वाढो ।
भूतां परस्परे पडो । मैत्र जीवाचें ॥)
- ‘May vicious people get rid of their evilness, depravity,
and be gradually inclined to noble deeds. May all living beings be bonded with
the ties of friendship.’
This is the foundation for the practice of Shama. We should
not nurture hateful, revengeful and hurtful thoughts in the mind and
purposefully refute resentful memories of the past. When bad, malicious thoughts
are gradually subdued, Sattva-Guṇa starts to evolve. It is necessary to consciously
stay alert, notice the bad thoughts, think
about their consequences and revoke them instantly when they arise. There are
no short-cuts in this process.
Many so-called seekers get bored and tired by the required
tenacity and resilience in this course. They take refuge of chanting a Mañtra
to purify the thoughts. Chanting done with precise, focused efforts is surely
an effective practice that gives desired results. But it is imperative to stay away from offences
(Nāmāparādha, नामापराध) such as lying, or being violent etc. while chanting a Mañtra. In Kaliyuga, seekers who chant systematically with complete understanding
of its theory get prescribed results. Those who
chant merely as a pastime, or to escape from other rigorous spiritual practices
do not get the expected results.
In spiritual pursuit, same precautions need to be taken while
following any path towards liberation. Be it Shama-Dama in Jñana-Yoga, or
guarding against offences in Chanting in Bhakti-Yoga, or Yama-Niyama in Ashṭanga-Yoga;
these lead to the same internal changes in seekers. Purification of thoughts
and conduct is imperative to develop and flourish Sattva-Guṇa.
For effective practice, we should analyze our personal aptitude
and strengths; and evaluate time and resources available to us. It is important
to eradicate all adverse traits in spiritual pursuit. E.g. ‘daydreaming’ is a
common trait that obstructs the path to Moksha. Daydreaming indicates
unproductive thoughts in mind. Even spiritual daydreams are time-killers and
futile. Sattvic daydreams at-least help to promote the spiritual practice. But
Rājas and Tāmas Guṇās create hurdles for the growth of Sattva Guṇa. Spiritual pursuit
comes to a standstill with these two Guṇās. E.g. a Rājas daydream is when one
keeps thinking about winning a lottery and becoming a millionaire. Tāmas dreams
work in the same manner. E.g. we feel strong bitterness for some people. Just
utterance of their names creates strong revulsion in our mind. Antagonistic
thoughts of revenge, anger create Tāmas impressions in mind and keep us away
from the spiritual practice. Unproductive thoughts or dreams lead to enormous
wastage of time that cannot be compensated for. It leads to alienation from
Sādhan-Chatushṭaya that is the very beginning of spiritual pursuit. To stop
this debacle, we should make explicit efforts to stop daydreaming in any manner.
It is important to firmly and consistently practice Shama i.e. the control of the
mind.
Sattvic thoughts can be enhanced by consistently reading
spiritual texts such as Rāmcharitamānas, Dāsbodh, Kabir Dohāvali, Dnyāneshwari or
any other book written by saints. These texts explain the basics of Advaita
Vedānta. They are backed by profound spiritual practices and divine powers of
Saints. They contain blessings for faithful readers. Saints naturally rejoice
in the Pure Bliss of the Self i.e. Ātman (Ātmarati, आत्मरती).
Their texts are manifestations of their divine brilliant intellect (Ritambhara
Pradnyā, ऋतंभरा प्रज्ञा). They have the innate power of Sattva-Guṇa.
As seekers, it is our prime responsibility to maintain sanctity of thoughts,
communication and conduct while reading these texts.
We can see deteriorating nature of many people these days during
group activities or public sessions conducted by various religious systems
(Sampradāyas). Organizers have an honest intention to keep all participants
engaged throughout the duration of programs. They usually give a very short
break between two discourses or sessions. However, some attendees sneak out in
break-time to quickly smoke or indulge in other addictions. They even defend
their behavior saying that such activities give them a ‘high’ for active
participation in remaining spiritual programs. These are undue concessions.
Even if we are able to control our minds in the company of sages or saints, the
debacle that happens in intermediate times when we are alone, is truly pathetic.
It should be strictly avoided.
Sattvic
speech (Ucchār, उच्चार) -
Pure,
righteous speech is as important as pure conduct and thoughts. Chanting is
immensely useful for this purpose. We can easily avoid superfluous speech when
we chant persistently in the mind. It is our responsibility to maintain conscious
restraint on our expressions. The way we speak or behave is sometimes hurtful
or distressing to others. We should be sensitive to feelings of other people. It is easy to control the mind if
we can remember the simple fact that hurting others is a sin.
Paropakāraḥ
punyay | Pāpāy parapīdanam |
(परोपकारः पुण्याय | पापाय परपीडनम्)
- ‘To help
others is a virtue, to hurt others is a sin.’
Sinful person cannot possess Sattva-Guṇa as per the theory
of ‘Cause and Effect’
(KāryaKāranBhāva, कार्यकारणभाव).
Scriptures explain this thoery, so we can evaluate ourselves against it.
There is a reason for putting so much emphasis on Sattva-Guṇa. Three Guṇās
consistently exert their influence on human lives. Rājas Guṇa is responsible
for the ‘birth or creation’ (Utpatti,
उत्पत्ती), Sattva-Guṇa is responsible for the ‘maintenance’ (Sthiti, स्थिती), and Tāmas-Guṇa is responsible for the ‘death or destruction’ (Laya, लय). This system is designed by
Ishvara. Spiritual practice can be consistently ‘maintained’ only if Sattva-Guṇa dominates the other two Guṇas. Routine job, duties,
responsibilities are ‘maintained’ due to the presence of Sattva-Guṇa. When a
business is run by a Sattvic person, it is supported by the ‘consistency’ of
his efforts. Rājasi person has a wavering nature. He takes holidays, changes job
or shuts down the business frequently. Tāmasi person is highly lazy and
lethargic in nature. He spends much of his time sleeping. Influences of Guṇās explain why there is so
much emphasis on nurturing Sattva-Guṇa.
To be continued...
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