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Anil Kumar's Sunday Satsang at
Prasanthi Nilayam
November 2, 2003
The Sunday Talk Given by Anil Kumar
“The Five D’s”
November 2nd, 2003
OM… OM… OM…
Sai Ram
With Pranams at the Lotus Feet of Bhagavan,
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
The FIVE D’s
For this morning’s topic, I have chosen the five D's. In His
discourses, Bhagavan often refers to these five D's, particularly
when talking to the students. At the same time, I feel that they
have application and relevance to seekers and spiritual aspirants
also. Hence, I think that it is essential to share these five D's
with our study group as well.
The five D's are:
1. Dedication
2. Devotion
3. Discipline
4. Duty
5. Discrimination
The five are given in this particular order for a purpose. I have
not chosen to put them that way. It is very clear that one leads
to the other, that one is corollary to the other; that they are
given in a sequential order. To begin with, I will just give you a
bird's eye view of these five D's.
Dedication
The first is dedication. Dedication is a word that we often hear.
People say, “I dedicated my property to so-and-so.” Some say, “I
dedicated my life to such-and-such a sacred cause.” Some people
say, “I dedicate my work to so-and-so. I dedicate this book to
so-and-so.” This is all the dedication that we know. Yet, my
friends, that is not in anyway spiritual. It is easy to dedicate
our residences and easy to dedicate our professions. Yes!
But the toughest thing is to dedicate, that is, to give up our
ego. This is the toughest thing possible. After all, I can share
anything with anybody. I am prepared to give up anything to
anyone. However, to give up this ego is the toughest and most
difficult thing. Why? Because ego is not just of today. Ego has
been there with us over the past many lives.
Naturally you may question, "How do you know?"
The very fact that we are born here is enough proof that we have
not lost our ego. Ego is the cause for re-birth. Once ego is given
up, there is no question of re-birth at all. Life after life,
birth after birth is obtained because of this maintained,
sustained ego. Once this ego is given up, there is no question of
being born again. Once given up, the cycle of birth and death
ends. End of ego marks the culmination or the climax of human
pursuit, of human endeavor along the spiritual path. It means
liberation.
Once I give up ego, it means I have attained liberation.
Liberation may also be called Nirvana. Liberation may also be
called Moksha. Moksha, Nirvana or Liberation is nothing other than
giving up ego.
we have to dedicate (Give up) our ego
E – G – O: This three-lettered word is really causing havoc and
untold misery to the entire humanity since the beginning of time.
Dedication means that we have to dedicate (to give up or
sacrifice) our ego. So, my friends, dedication is kept on the top,
as the first D. The spiritual journey, the spiritual path begins
with dedicating our ego, giving up our ego, sacrificing our ego.
That is the commencement of spiritual exercise.
Unfortunately, in reality, we find ego being strengthened more and
more, even on the spiritual path. That's the reason why we have no
peace of mind even in temples, even in mosques, even in churches,
synagogues, hermitages and pilgrim centers. We don't have peace of
mind anywhere. Reading a sacred text or doing a spiritual activity
also is not giving us the desired result of bliss. The reason is
that the ego is still there! So long as there is ego, bliss cannot
be expected; the desired results can never be achieved.
First, dedicate your ego, which is the foremost, essential
principle on the spiritual path. Hence, we have chosen
‘dedication’ as number one. Not that we have chosen it, but
Bhagavan has kept it in the first place. We are just adopting
Bhagavan's sequential order; it is not of our imagination.
I am only a cassette
I repeatedly tell my friends that nothing is of my making. I am
only capable of repeating, like a parrot, what I hear from
Bhagavan. That's all. I have no claim of practicing all that I
say. In addition, I make no false claim of interpreting other
texts. My business is only to prepare certain topics from Sai
literature and share them with you. No extra claims. I repeatedly
and emphatically tell my friends this almost every alternate week.
This reminds me that I am not original. I am only a cassette. I am
only a fellow seeker. I am only a fellow aspirant, a fellow
pilgrim, in no way greater than anybody else. I am also highly
conscious of the fact that most of you are more learned or
proceeding along the path of sadhana more than what I have been
doing. I am highly conscious of it. The present attempt is only
sharing our views. That's all. That's why this is a study circle
group.
Devotion is love for God
After dedication, which means giving up ego, we start developing
devotion. In other words, devotion is out of the question when
there is ego. Devotion is unheard of, unthought of or undreamt of
when there is ego. Devotion begins only after dedication.
Dedication means sacrificing the ego. Then comes the second stage
of devotion.
What do I mean by devotion? I am just giving you the ordinary
sense of the term, the usual interpretation of this term. We say
so-and-so is highly devoted to his profession. We say that he is
very much devoted to his family, very much devoted to his country
and very much devoted to his work. We are devoted to our own
fields of activity.
Devotion, according to Swami, is altogether different. Devotion is
Love for God! Devotion is not in anyway attachment. It is not
total identification with work, avocation, profession or anything
else. Devotion means Love for God!
What is Love for God? That which is unconditional, that which is
desireless, that which is beyond reason and season, that which is
eternal, blemishless, pure, unpolluted, crystal clear, non-dual,
immortal and nectarine is Love for God.
I am using all these adjectives, the vocabulary nomenclature at my
command, not in a vain attempt to exhibit my expertise of the
language. Certainly not! I am only struggling to express myself
one way or the other. That's why I use so many words. For any one
of you, one word will appeal. Then my task is fulfilled. That is
the only purpose. My friends, devotion means unconditional,
desireless, selfless, eternal Love for God. This is the second
step.
You are no devotee if you have no discipline
Devotion leads to the third step, which we call discipline. What
is discipline? Some think that discipline is a behavioral
activity, as we find in the army -- attention, stand-at-ease, turn
to your left, turn to your right, left, right, march. That is not
discipline. The discipline that you find in the army is military
regimentation.
Then there is discipline that we find in the classroom, where
students do not open their mouths. Listening to the teacher is an
enforced order for fear of the teacher. Then the discipline in a
mandir or temple is social discipline. When everyone is silent, I
cannot afford to be disturbing others. I can't afford to be noisy.
So discipline is a social phenomenon; discipline is regimentation;
discipline is an enforced activity.
But spiritually speaking, discipline is ‘out of source and not out
of force’. ‘Out of source’ means left by myself, I am highly
disciplined. Although I know that I am not watched by anyone, I am
still disciplined. Discipline has become my way of life. I have
been thoroughly convinced of discipline and therefore it has gone
into the bones and marrow of my life. It has not been enforced
upon me, nor has any incentive for non-practice been withdrawn.
No! Discipline is ‘out of source’.
Bhagavan goes one step further when He says, "You are no devotee
if you have no discipline." If you have no discipline, you are not
a devotee.
Furthermore, Bhagavan added two more points: "The one with
behaviour is a boy. The one with discipline is a devotee. And the
one with manners is a man."
When there are no manners, we cannot call ourselves ‘men’. Without
behavior, we can't be boys. Without discipline, we cannot be
devotees.
Such discipline comes from the source. It is discipline of the
mind -- discipline which will not allow the mind to waver. It is
discipline that will not allow the senses to follow their own
wayward nature. It is a discipline that will not allow the
intellect to be selfish. It is a discipline that will not make the
body self-centered. This discipline has to be taken in a broader
sense, in a wider context. It is not merely a classroom, a
military or a police-enforced discipline. The spiritual discipline
prepares the ground for us to do our duty.
the highest and the greatest duty is the realisation of the self
The fourth aspect is duty. What is duty? I do my duty at the
college. Doctors do their duty in the hospital. Others have duties
in stores, hospitals, bookstores, or at any place where they work.
We do our duty and everyone says that we are quite dutiful, if not
beautiful. We do our duty.
But spiritually speaking, duty has another, deeper meaning. It is
not simply discharging a duty. No! It is not the duty you have to
do to maintain your own living; not the duty you have to do to
maintain your own family. Doing your duty is nothing great. If you
do not do your duty, you must be condemned. Others will say
something is wrong with the mind. Therefore, discharging a duty is
just a thing done by anybody anywhere, at any period.
But spiritually, duty has another, deeper significance. Right from
childhood, we have certain duties. A student’s duty is to study.
As a householder, my duty is to attend to the requirements of the
family and to take care of its members. Then there is the duty to
do my job at work. Then there is duty or obligation towards my
country. These are all the fundamental duties of everybody in
every nation.
But the highest and the greatest duty is the realisation of the
Self, the knowledge of the Self, the awareness of the Self. The
experience of the Self is the spiritual duty. All other duties are
mundane duties, momentary duties, ephemeral duties and worldly
duties -- physical activities, that's all. The highest duty is
spiritual -- the awareness of the Self.
Discrimination
The fifth point is discrimination. Along with the path of duty, we
need to discriminate. We cannot do anything just as we like. We
should not allow ourselves to be prone to lean towards certain
aspects of life. Our intellect has been given to us to
discriminate, to judge, to evaluate, to assess, to be discreet and
to enquire. We should clearly distinguish and differentiate. That
is discrimination: discrimination between right and wrong, good
and bad; discrimination between momentary and eternal;
discrimination between the creation and the Creator;
discrimination between energy and matter. So, we should
discriminate!
The sixth automatically is the result
These five D’s come in a sequence. Once we understand the five D’s
-- 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 -- the sixth automatically is the result. You
don't have to make any further attempt. Once you mix milk, sugar
and instant coffee powder, the hot coffee is ready. Right! That
result is automatic. You can name it under the heading of
‘determination’. Until now, I have not added determination, which
means to determine now, to decide now. This is determination, the
sixth one, which is the result of following the other five. It is
automatic, sequential, the climax, the knowledge or the practice
of the above described five D’s.
My friends, that explains, in brief, the title of this morning's
talk, “The Five D’s”, which in turn culminate in the sixth D of
‘determination’.
In the time left, I will try to elaborate a few points on each one
of them.
True identity is known only by dedication of the ego
Number one: Dedication. Once I have the spirit of dedication, I am
left with two alternatives. Either I should have material values
or spiritual values. Some have dedicated their lives for the
freedom struggle. Some have dedicated their lives for patriotic
goals. Some have dedicated their lives for material benefits.
That’s all dedication indeed. We cannot dismiss it altogether. But
we are here for a more important reason. We have to recognise that
the spiritual values constitute what we call ‘dedication’. This is
possible by giving up the ego.
By dedication, we find our own identity. What is our Identity? I
have been thinking that I am the body; I have been thinking that I
am the mind; I am thinking that I am an individual. No! Once the
ego is dedicated, once the ego is sacrificed, naturally I will
find my true identity. I am the Self, not the senses, the body,
the mind and so on. True identity is known only by dedication of
the ego. Dedication will help me understand the meaning of life,
the purpose of life – not simply life as a sort of machine, or
life as a robot. Life is not a routine. Life is meaningful and
purposeful. This is known by the act of dedication.
Enlightenment is not a stage
Now comes enlightenment! By dedicating our ego, which is an
obstacle, which is a barrier, which is an iron curtain between God
and me, once it is removed or once it is gone, I reach a state,
which we call ‘enlightenment’. My friends, enlightenment is not an
achievement.
Some people say, "I got enlightenment," as if they purchased some
food packet or obtained some packet from an instant food
restaurant.
Enlightenment is not a commodity. Enlightenment is not a stage.
Enlightenment is not an accomplishment. Enlightenment is not to be
strived for. Enlightenment is not to be struggled for.
Enlightenment is already here. How can I say that? Light is
already there outside. We have closed the windows and doors;
therefore this room is dark.
What am I to do now? Open the doors. Open the windows. That’s all!
The light already there will get into this hall. You are not
pushing the light; you are not generating the light; you are not
producing the light. The light is already there. Only the windows
and doors are closed. That is the tragedy.
Enlightenment is our birthright. We are already enlightened. But
the growing ego, along with advancing age, along with the increase
in the weight of the body, obstructs the light. We are not able to
see the light of enlightenment because of the curtains, because of
the window of ego, which closes and does not permit the light to
enter. So that is enlightenment, which you get by dedication.
Love is the beginning and the end
Then Love - Love is the ultimate purpose. Love is the beginning
and the end! Let us know that love is not the end. Love is the
beginning and the end! Love is the means and the end. Love is the
way and the goal. Only with absolute Love are we prepared to
dedicate. No one is prepared to dedicate anything so easily.
Giving up ego is a big problem.
Everyone starts recognising me, everyone starts greeting me,
everyone starts praising me, and hence my ego starts establishing
itself. Then if anyone considers me an ordinary man, if no one
recognizes me, if no one smiles, if no one greets me, I begin to
feel neglected. My ego is affected. My state of mind becomes
suicidal. Why? Over a period of time, the ego has developed. When
it is shattered, I feel like committing suicide.
Dedicating is not that simple. It is easy to speak on dedication.
It is easy to write about it. But it is tough to practice it. I go
to my office and my subordinates don’t greet me -- my ego is
affected. My students don’t greet me -- my ego is affected. In the
Mandir, everyone starts pushing me -- my ego is affected. Then
someone else takes my regular seat -- my ego is affected. Swami,
who talks to me regularly, stops talking to me for the last couple
of days -- my ego is affected.
Spiritual enlightenment is something within; but ego is something
that happens when something goes wrong outside. In our
interrelationships, our ego is affected. So, to give up the ego is
not an ordinary thing. One can give up many things; but my
friends, this process is painful and agonising. The dying process
of giving up ego cannot be done without absolute Love. Unless
there is absolute, total hundred percent Love for God, you cannot
afford to give up ego. It’s impossible!
Even in front of God, I have ego. It’s not that easy to give up.
Those who say that they have no ego, please take it from me, they
are the very models of ego. They are the very personification of a
hundred percent ego. When you say, "I have no ego", that ‘I’ has
plenty of ego. (Laughter) If I say that I have no ego, that 'I' is
ego. Ego might have gone out verbally, but within, it is
strengthening deeper and deeper.
Once the ego is given up, peace is the result
Once I give up my ego, peace abides. I don’t look that side or
this side. Whether people have known me or not, whether people
speak of me or not, whether I am popular or not, whether there is
any character assassination, mud-slinging, rumor, or gossip
against me; whether I am popular, famous or notorious, I am not
bothered. Nothing doing! I am happy within myself. The whole world
may say a thousand things. But I am not disturbed because peace
abides once there is dedication. Once the ego is given up, peace
is the result. By dedication, I proceed along this path of
Self-discovery. I discover that I am capable of reaching a state
of excellence.
Spirituality is stateless
Some people say, “I am a sinner,” or, "Sir, you don’t know my
previous life."
Swami has said, “Forget the past. Why do you want to bother Me
with your past?” Further, God says, “There is nothing like past,
future or the present. God is beyond time. Your true Self, Atma,
is timeless. Then why do you think about the past?”
There are people who go on bothering you about their past: “You
don't know, but I was a heavy smoker and I was a total drunkard.
Today I am a changed man.”
Well, I am not bothered about your biography. Please tell me
something that is of interest to both of us. Please tell me
something interesting so that both of us can join together and
encourage each other along the spiritual path. Don’t tell your
bio-data and statistics about which I am not concerned.
Therefore my friends, you are capable of experiencing the state of
human excellence. It is possible!
Then there is another group of people who say, "We cannot go that
far. I am not at that level."
How do you know what level you are at?
Some people say, "Well, we cannot reach that state."
What is that state? Where is it? Do you know your state? How do
you know that you are at a lower state than someone else?
Some people say, "Sir, I am in the next state."
Oho! There is only the final state. Goodbye! (Laughter)
My friends, spirituality is stateless. Spirituality is level-less.
Spirituality is class-less and caste-less. “You are already That,”
says the Veda. You are already That! Thathwamasi: You are That.
You are That. You are God!
If I still say that there is a long way to go and I cannot reach
that level, then I do not reach it. All right! If you don’t want
to go, why not say that you are not going.
I think I told you sometime back that somebody asked Ramana
Maharishi, "Swami, what shall I do for realisation?"
He said, "Don’t do." (Laughter)
Straight answer, "What shall I do?"
"Don’t do."
Somebody thought this was a funny answer, so He asked, "Swami,
what do you mean?"
Swami said, "Whatever you do, your mind gets into it. It is the
mind that does. It is the mind that directs. It is the mind that
guides. It is the mind that monitors. It is the mind that
achieves. It is the mind that frustrates. It is the mind that
elates."
That is only ground preparation
God is beyond the mind. Whatever you do with the mind -
nagarsankirtan, Suprabhatham or bhajan - whatever you do, it is
only an act of discipline. It is only a sacred activity. It is
only ground preparation. The flight is yet to take off. It is just
moving there. That’s all. It is yet to take off. Wait for the
announcement. Am I clear?
All of the spiritual activities that we do with this mind are only
a preparation. For actual realisation, Ramana Maharishi said,
"Don’t do,” which means, don’t let the mind get into the picture;
don’t let the mind take leadership; don’t let the mind be the
pivot of your activity. That is the state of excellence, which is
already in existence. It is already there.
With the spirit of dedication, you find joy in work
If anyone says, "Sir, I am tired," it only means that he does not
enjoy the work. Once you dedicate your life, you don’t get tired,
you don’t get exhausted. Age is no barrier. No! You are ready to
work from birth until death. Because you love, you are prepared to
work until the last breath. That is the outcome of dedicating your
life. Once there is dedication, our personality is well revealed,
and we maintain harmony in unity of thought, word and deed.
A man of dedication will have harmony of thought, word, and deed.
He will not say something, think something else and do something
in a different way. The thought, word and deed are not at variance
with each other. They cohere; they never adhere. It is perfect
union of thought, word and deed. That is dedication!
My friends, now relax for couple of minutes. Just take a break now
and examine what dedication is?
Can we say that we are dedicated? Has dedication any place in our
lives? What is dedication? For what purpose, is dedication given
the first and foremost place? One sentence: Dedication is nothing
but giving up the ego! That's all!
Devotion is unconditional, desireless, selfless,
eternal love for God
Then we get to the second point - devotion. After we give up ego,
then devotion starts. With all my ego, I cannot call myself a
devotee if I go on telling about all of my achievements: "You know
what I am? You know what I have?"
Firstly, why should I know?
Some people come and tell you, "You know what I am? You know what
I have? You know what I did?"
Please keep it to yourself, sir; I am not bothered. Please share
these things with those who are interested. I am not interested. I
am only ashamed of my own record. How can I be bothered about your
record? It is not necessary to tell me.
Devotion means a state after giving up ego, when there is no more
talk of achievement, when there is no more of claim, when there is
no more extra feeling. There is nothing like extra sensational
expression, extra sensual perception. Nothing doing!
Devotion is unconditional, desireless, selfless, eternal Love for
God. That's all. With this definition, I am sure no temple will be
full of devotees. We go to temples and break our coconuts so that
our children will get medical seats, or so that our children will
get a seat in engineering colleges. We visit temples so that our
business will prosper. All this is desire-oriented. It is not
devotion in the strict sense.
You have to love Him unconditionally. In other words, whatever He
gives you, you are prepared to accept. Whether failure, loss or
defeat, it does not matter. That's your gift. That's all. This is
surrender. Devotion is surrender, meaning, "Oh God, whatever You
give me, I consider that is Your gift."
What made Jesus Christ pray for those who crucified Him on the
cross? Jesus prayed for everybody: "Oh God, forgive them. They
know not what they do." It is excellence. It is ecstasy. It is
bliss born out of Love, born out of devotion and nothing else!
So my friends, devotion is selfless. Devotion is desireless.
Devotion is eternal. Devotion is unconditional. Devotion is
equanimity. That level of devotion naturally will have an emphasis
on certain values. Well, we have a set of values.
Worldly devotion is an aspiration
Some might say, “I have one staff member in my office who is
highly devoted to work.” “I have one person working in my factory
who is highly devoted.” “There is one doctor who is highly devoted
to his profession.”
That is devotion to worldly pursuits. Devotion to worldly goals
and objectives we can call aspirations. “I am highly devoted to
politics” means that someday I want to become Chief Minister. “I
am devoted to financial concerns.” Yes, I aspire to be a
millionaire at the earliest time possible. These are all
aspirations. Devotion towards the world is aspiration, whereas
devotion to God is adherence to a set of values. Devotion to God
is the practice of values. The very practice of values is called
devotion.
Devotion is not being ritualistic. "Sir, I am highly devoted. I go
to church every Sunday."
Oh, I see. The Church is not going to suffer if you do not attend.
(Laughter)
"I go to temple every Saturday, to the Lord Venkateshwara Temple,
which is very busy every Saturday."
If you don’t go there, Venkateshwara will not miss you.
"Sir, I could not attend this morning’s darshan. I am very much
worried."
Your attendance there is independent of Bhagavan's darshan. He has
been giving darshan for the last 78 years in spite of you or
irrespective of you.
This sort of a thing is not devotion. Devotion is adherence to and
practice of values. Once you are truthful, once you are truth,
once you are loving, once you start to love, once you are peaceful
and spread peace in the neighborhood, you are devoted. That is
devotion to God, not simply practicing rituals. A ritualistic life
is only external devotion, but spiritual devotion is adherence to
and practice of human values.
Visa Venkateshwar
Then devotion wants us to be loyal. Okay! “For the past several
years, I have been coming to this temple. My desire has not been
fulfilled yet. Please give me the address of another temple where
I can get it fulfilled.”
In Hyderabad, there is one place. I forgot the name, but it is
very close to Hyderabad. There is a Venkateshwara temple in a
village very close to there. They call Him ‘Visa Venkateshwar’.
(Laughter) If you go to that Venkateshwara temple, you are sure to
get a visa. So, He is ‘VV’ – ‘Visa Venkateshwar’.
See how we humanise God. When God wants to divinise our lives, we
want to humanise God Himself. We are experts and geniuses at
modernising. ‘Visa Venkateshwar’! (Laughter) That's not loyalty.
“Because I did not get a visa in some other Venkateshwara temple,
let me go to ‘Visa Venkateshwara’ temple now.” That cannot be
devotion. No! Loyalty is important! So is commitment and practice.
You are committed to certain values. You are committed to certain
principles. That's devotion!
Faith + Confidence = Devotion
Then there is no question of compromise. There is nothing like
‘beating around the bush’.
"Is what you say true?"
"Ah, it is something like that."
Something like that! That is ‘beating around the bush’. It is
nothing like circumnavigation. You are right there at the center.
There is no question of compromise. There is no ambiguity. There
is no confusion. It is experience in totality. Devotion is truth,
love, justice, peace and compassion. These are all the values
where you don't just circumnavigate. You are at the center of the
experience of these values.
“Then what do I get out of this devotion? What do I get?”
What you get, after all, is this - morality in action! What do I
mean by ‘morality in action’? Most actions are immoral; most
actions are selfish; most actions are unethical. Once you are
devoted, your actions are moral in the sense that they are caring,
sharing, concerned, co-operative, team-oriented and yes, loving.
Once there is devotion, all these things start working. That's the
advantage.
Bhagavan Baba says, “Faith + Confidence = Devotion."
Faith plus Confidence: You have faith in God and you are confident
that God will take care of you. You have faith in Him and you are
confident that good will happen to you. 100% faith and 100%
confidence equals devotion. Baba, the Divine mathematician, has
given us this equation.
Then the next point: Duty with devotion. Once you have devotion,
it takes you to the performance of your duties. You will have this
devotion throughout.
There are people who say, "I was devoted in the year 1988." I see!
"I was devoted until 2002." I see!
Devotion is nothing like past tense or future tense. “I will be
devoted from 2004.” It is not the present, or the past or the
future. Devotion is present continuously! You were, you are and
you will be. It is a thing that will come to stay with us. That is
devotion!
Devotion is Non-interference in our faith
Giving up ego is dedication. Unconditional, selfless, eternal Love
is devotion, which will make me disciplined. When there is no
discipline, well, it means something is wrong. There is no
devotion. According to Baba, a man who does not follow discipline
does not have devotion.
You can check this point, if you are blessed with an interview. A
number of times, Bhagavan has made this amply clear -- discipline
and devotion go together. One is the obverse and the other is the
reverse of the same coin. The point is that discipline is natural
to a devotee. This discipline is not physical discipline. It is
not discipline concerning our dietary habits.
Some people say, “I am highly disciplined; I eat only once a day.”
Please stop eating that also. (Laughter)
There are others who say, "I am highly disciplined; I don't go
anywhere."
Please lock yourself within the house and stay there, so that you
are no longer a nuisance in the neighborhood. That's not
discipline!
Some say, "I am highly disciplined; I don't talk."
Yes! Your talk is of a standard that nobody is prepared to listen
to. (Laughter) It is not discipline.
What is discipline? “Oh, God I will ask anything that comes
between You and me to get out.” I will be free from anything that
comes between God and me. I won't talk to a person who comes
between God and me. I do not look at the face of the person that
would make me lose my faith.
Discipline means to maintain your own devotion so that no one can
ever interfere with your relationship to God. Our habits should
not interfere. Our contacts should not interfere. Our
relationships should not interfere. There should be
non-interference in our faith. Unhindered, unaltered, steady,
one-pointed devotion to God, without any of these factors
interfering along the way, is discipline!
It does not matter that you get up at 4:30. It doesn't matter even
if you get up at 5:30. Why not? These are all external rules and
regulations that you do for your own health care. You cannot call
it spiritual discipline.
The discipline of our mind, so that it cannot desire further and
further, is spiritual discipline. The discipline of our senses, so
that our mind is not polluted by the experiences that we get
through our senses when interacting with the external world, is
spiritual discipline. Let us discipline our desires so that there
will be only one single desire -- that of being with Him, of being
one with Him.
Unity of thought, word and deed IS CHARACTER
Let us discipline our power. Some people have a lust for power, a
craving for power. However, the inner power is the mightiest. That
is the discipline! You may have money, but the spiritual
discipline wants you to know who you really are. The greatest
wealth is the Self within you. The Self is rich! The Self is
wealth! Bank accounts and security deposits are only money.
Let us discipline our emotions so that we will not be angry, so
that we will not be greedy, so that we will not have a temper, so
that we will not be jealous, so that we will not be filled with
malice. Let us discipline our emotions so that we will be
equanimous all the time.
Then we need to discipline our personality. There is no discipline
in my personality when my attention to the body is more than my
attention to the mind. Then my attention to the soul is altogether
absent. Discipline means equal attention to body, mind and Atma -
M, B, A -- mind, body and Atma. That is discipline.
Let us discipline our character. We have our own definitions, our
own understanding of character. But according to Baba, character
means harmony of thought, word and deed. Unity of thought, word
and deed is character.
Some people say, “My son has excellent character. He does not
smoke and he doesn't drink.” Oh ho, fine! However, what he says,
you cannot believe. You cannot predict what he is going to do.
What he is thinking, nobody can comprehend. How does that relate
to character?
So, unity of thought, word and deed is character. It is not simply
refraining from vices. It is not anything like refraining from bad
habits. No! Unity of thought, word and deed is character!
Then no one should have pathological values. Pathological means
disease-causing values like greed and selfishness. Let me have
discipline so that I will be immune to all these pathological
values, so that I am resistant to these pathological values.
Moral character is the outcome of discipline.
The highest duty is to know the purpose of life
The greatest discipline is to avoid everything that comes between
God and me, centering my attention on the Self. That's the highest
discipline. Then that takes me to another level, the fourth D -
Duty.
What are our duties? Some people say, "Sir, my duty is from 10
o’clock to 4 o’clock. Or my duty is at night from 8 p.m. until 6
a.m." All the duties that we perform are time bound. All the
duties we have are remunerative. All the duties that we discharge
are obligatory. All the duties are for our living and maintenance.
But the highest duty is to know the purpose of life. The highest
duty is to know the Self. The only duty is to be the Self, with
the Self, in the Self, of the Self. That's all! To experience that
supreme state is our duty. Yet, we are happy with fractional
happiness. We are happy with segmental bliss. We are happy with
pieces of joy. From the spiritual perspective, oceanic bliss, the
bliss of the vastness of an ocean, the bliss that is as vast as
sky, to experience that is the only duty we have, having been born
as a human.
At the same time, it does not mean that we have to run away from
our families, or that we should leave our children on the streets.
No! We have a moral obligation to our family, to society and to
nature. Apart from that, the greatest duty is to find and
experience the Self. We must be grateful to our parents, teachers,
mentors, to the society and to nature by-and-large.
Because we have not cared for nature, today we are facing the
results of earthquakes, floods and all sorts of hazards in nature
- air pollution, water pollution, food pollution, soil pollution,
oil pollution and what not! Even poison is polluted. (Laugher)
Even if one wants to die by consuming poison, it is not possible
because it is polluted. (Laughter) Therefore my friends, pollution
is everywhere. Why? Because there is no gratitude to nature. We go
on exploiting nature. We are not grateful to nature.
Man has become the worst exploiter
Man has become the worst exploiter. We find the water unfit for
drinking. Many of the rivers are polluted. The sacred Ganges River
is the worst polluted river in this country. Ganges is pure, but
we made it impure.
My friends, we are not thankful to nature. We are not grateful to
nature. Therefore, we are suffering today from health hazards and
natural hazards. We are not grateful to society. We exploit the
society. Having been born into society, having built up a stature
in society, having earned money in society, having been benefited
in every way in society, we have to pay back something in the form
of service. Yet, we don't do that. Therefore, faith is gone and
trust is gone. This is the present condition of our society. We
are not grateful to our teachers; the result is arrogance and
pride. We are not grateful to our parents; the result is that we
are going to suffer tomorrow at the hands of our own children.
Therefore, we must express gratitude, thankfulness, reverence,
appreciation, and do service to nature, society, men, parents,
teachers and mentors. This is all part of our regular obligation,
our fundamental basic duties. Yet, the highest duty is to know the
Self. The path of inquiry leads one to experience the Self.
What is the effect of showing that kind of attitude towards
discharging your duties? There will be harmony! There will be no
disharmony. There will be no disunity. There will be no imbalance.
There will be perfect balance and harmony. There will be Love.
People will care for each other. People will be ready to share
with everybody. You will find unity and justice. When everyone
does their own duty, both from the outer and the inner points of
view, there will be love, peace and justice in all quarters of the
world.
Bhagavan said one thing, "Today people have forgotten their
duties, but they are fighting for their rights." Man is craving
for rights, but he has forgotten his responsibilities. Therefore,
the emphasis should be more on performance of duties and
responsibilities, and not merely on rights. That's what Bhagavan
has said. We are ready to fight for rights, but we are not ready
to discharge our responsibilities.
Discriminate between good and bad
Well, we have come to the fifth D - Discrimination. When I want to
know my Self, which is my highest duty having been born a human
being, I have to exercise my discrimination. In knowing the Self,
in being with the Self, in the Self, I have to exercise my
discrimination between right and wrong. If I am in the wrong
place, I cannot be blissful. Discriminate between good and bad,
reality and delusion, spurious imagination or authentic truth. I
must be able to discriminate what is good for me versus what is
not good for me. I should be able to discriminate what would help
me spiritually and what would not help me spiritually. I should be
able to discriminate so that I can avoid certain things in life
and certain people in life. That way I can grow spiritually. I can
advance spiritually. I can mold my personality. I can develop my
character. This is all possible through discrimination.
Finally, what happens? Determination! Discrimination ends up in
Determination. I have not given the sixth D because it calls for
action, which is automatic. Instead, I have given the heading of
the fifth D.
Now what should I do? One - detach from power. As long as there is
power-mongering, we cannot be spiritual in any sense. It is
impossible! Power-mongering and spirituality can never go
together. That's definite!
He is leading a worldly life in the spiritual field. Power and God
cannot go together. Impossible! Detach from ego! Ego and God
cannot co-exist! It may be possible for you to mix fire and water,
but it is impossible to be egoistic and at the same time Divine.
Detach from power and ego! Detach from cravings of the senses!
Senses always want. Let us put a ceiling, a regulation, on the
senses. You have had a bundle of experiences, so no more. Enough
is enough! Put a full stop, oh please!
“O senses, you have ruined me enough! I am aged now. I am weak
now. Why do you still allure me? Why do you still make me sensual?
Why do you still lead me to vices? I am fed up with this. Please,
enough is enough! “
Let us beg our senses, not to take us to the external world
anymore. Enough is enough! Detach from sensual pleasure and
sensual attraction.
Detach from the mind! The mind is a bundle of thoughts,
particularly when one sits for meditation. All thoughts find it
convenient to settle there. Or during bhajan time, all thoughts
come into my mind.
“O mind, let me say ‘never mind’!” Let me not go along with the
mind.
“O mind, why don't you keep quiet please for some time?”
At night, my body is at rest, but the mind has no rest as it wants
to dream further and further. The mind is restless. This mind,
which is acting, even wants to be active at night, dreaming while
we sleep.
In turn, the restless mind is the cause for sickness of the body.
The body falls sick because of the restless state of the mind. So,
let us see that mind is at rest.
How is it possible? By withdrawing the thoughts! What is the
process? Meditation is the process of withdrawing the mind.
Meditation is a process of controlling our thoughts. Meditation is
a process of the no-mind state. That we have to determine.
Life is a dreamland, but not a merry land
Let us also be detached from illusion. Let us not think that
everything is permanent. Let us not hanker after possessions and
acquisitions. Let these all just be imagination.
Baba says, “That is a night dream; this is a daydream. That's
all!”
What we experience while we sleep is a night dream. What we
experience now is a daydream. Life is a dreamland, but not a merry
land.
Baba says, “Life is a dream, realise it.” Realise that the
daydreams and the night dream are not permanent. You are the
Truth! The real You is the Truth, not the day or the night dreams.
If we really want to be spiritual, we need to detach ourselves
from lust for power, money, status, luxury and prestige.
Recently we watched Mother Theresa being given the highest honour
in the city of the Vatican by the Pope. She was honoured for her
spiritual excellence. She was honoured because of her humility.
She was honoured because of her service and sacrifice. Mother
Theresa was always moving with folded hands and a bent head. We
never saw any trace of ego in her. Yes, that is spirituality! That
is religion in practice! She had no luxuries. When she left this
world, most of you must know what property Mother Theresa had -
two plastic buckets, a mug and two dresses. That's all! All the
cars that she was gifted with by people, including the Pope at the
Vatican, were auctioned and the money was given to the church. She
was left with nothing. But of course, God was with her. That is
spiritual life!
We have to neutralise. Some are in overtones. Some are more
intensive. Some are excessively manifesting. So we have to
neutralise. A simple example: When there is more salt, we use some
chilly powder. When there is more of decoction, we mix some sugar,
so as to neutralise the effect. Similarly, when you are greedy,
neutralise it. Be greedy so far as devotion is concerned, but not
greedy towards the world.
Kama: Desire is wrong, but when Kama is desire for God, it is
sublime. It is the same thing, yet desire towards the world is a
weakness, whereas desire for God is a merit. Greed in the world is
a negative point. Greed for God, yes, it is a merit. It is also
called sadhana. So neutralise.
Envy should not express itself by way of avarice, hatred or
enmity. Why can’t all of us achieve? Why can't I also control my
senses? Why can't I also meditate? Why can't I also concentrate?
One should have this spirit. Let there be no place for hypocrisy
or double standards. There is no scope for arrogance whatsoever.
We cannot be aggressive. There should not be any malice between
us. There should only be Love abiding.
This is what we are supposed to do now. We have to detach from
certain qualities and we have to neutralise other qualities. All
this comes under determination. Unless we are determined, we
cannot neutralise the evil traits. We cannot detach.
So, my friends, this is the topic for the day. I thank you very
much for having listened in rapt attention.
Thank you very much.
OM… OM… OM…
Asato Maa Sad Gamaya
Tamaso Maa Jyotir Gamaya
Mrtyormaa Amrtam Gamaya
Om Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu
Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu
Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu
Om Shanti Shanti Shanti
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