Craving & its
antidote
The following is a free translation of Vagbhatananda’s essay on a
variety of subjects ranging from alcoholism to Rajayoga. He also writes about
vegetarianism. The couplets in Sanskrit are omitted and only its essence is
translated into English. Not
surprisingly, he focusses on Bhagavad Gita in the end to find a way-out.
Vagbhatananda quotes Acharya Hemachandra
to introduce a drunkard.
Stanza one : The intellect of the person who drinks intoxicating
beverages is doomed for sure. Like
someone who is in love with a two-timing girl.
Stanza two : Those who are addicted to liquor are sinners , treating
their mothers as wives. Conversely, wives are treated like mothers.
Stanza three: The boozer trips down like a dead body. He spreads himself
on the thoroughfare. The street dog
pisses into his open mouth.
Stanza four: The boozehound is back at his house. He is stark naked and
is positioned right in the front yard of his house. He is on the ground, fast asleep. All those
things which should have been kept under wraps are out in the open.
Stanza five: Like classic paintings slowly being destroyed by termites,
alcoholism eats up one’s health, fame and intelligence.
Stanza six : The problem drinker is like a lunatic. He dances
intermittently, weeps uncontrollably and moves around erratically.
Stanza seven : Liquor is nothing but Kalakooda
poison. Drink it up and one’s body deteriorates, sense organs become weak and
intellect is dazed forever.
A speck of fire can wipe out an entire expanse of grassland in no time.
Likewise, the spirits can annihilate viveka,
jnana, shoucha and satya.
(constructs of wisdom, knowledge, health and righteousness).
If one does not harbor a craving for alcohol, naturally one is off the
hook of its ill-effects.
Avoid craving for other objects too and you won’t get affected by
negativities of any kind. Discerning thoughts about each subject will take you
to lofty planes and you would be able to segregate the kernel from the chaff. Craving
will get weaker day by day and you’ll get convinced that you have been clinging
to a pretty dangerous thing, i.e., the longing for the pleasures of the world.
Like moths playing the suicidal game with the fire, you too will perish seeking
them.
Stay away from doing injustice in thoughts, words and deeds. You’ll even
be offered the king’s throne, showered with gold coins but never change the resolve.
Afterall, the human-body is just like a bubble on water, unstable and transient
like water falling on yam leaves. You will manipulate things, doing injustice
all the way and end up sitting majestically in the King's throne but it will not
last long. Nothing is permanent. At the same time, the infamy that is generated
through your acts is there to stay. On the contrary, if you are aligning with
Justice, you’ll be eulogized as great and the name never fades!
There is yet another kind of people who are compassionate and helpful to
others. However, they are benevolent only to their fellow-beings. Birds and animals are killed for gastronomic
pleasure. If somebody tries to correct
their ways, they will put up a brave face and argue that those creatures are
created for the exclusive consumption of man.
In short, their kindness exists only in words, not in deeds. We must
infer that meat-eaters have their Guru in carnivores, eagles, fox etc. Those
who are bereft of kindness cannot act as per the principles of Dharma. Kindness
is the root of the Dharma-tree. If somebody is kind, it shows in all his
actions. There won’t be any discrimination. Like the moon showering its
kindness, moonlight, to all beings irrespective of its stature. The King and his subjects are treated alike.
Even a stray dog enjoys moon’s kindness in equal measure.
In fact, there exists a world, full of pure happiness – Ananda – within our reach. The Veda and Vedanta are guiding us to reach at this space. The state of supreme shanti or paramananda as it is called
is beyond our comprehension . We are engrossed in the physical world which is
so full of pain and miseries. Who can avoid death? And disease for that matter?
In a lesser plane, people are dissatisfied because everybody asks for more. The expert wants more knowledge, the layman
has no basic education, the rich desperately seek additional money and the poor
always in dire straits. In short, it’s just impossible to live a joyful life in
this world keeping the sorrows away. The westerners thought perhaps technology
was the answer, went on to develop and implement it for upgrading their lives.
They scaled the peaks of pleasures only to fall into the abyss of despair
later. Why don’t we learn a couple of
lessons from them? The Veda and Vedanta have shown us a definite path to steady-state happiness and
we should make a try.
Once we enter this realm, the fear of all kinds stop bothering us, it
withers away to nil. In a split second we are overwhelmed with pure happiness,
suddenly discovering the truth that everything is God. This realisation is the
ultimate purpose of human life, Sayujyamukti.
The destination is now clear but the route-map is still unprepared. Luckily, there exists an easy way-out! A
reorientation is all that is needed. As we are aware, our mind is always directed
outwards through the five sense-organs. Call it back by practice. The mind is now
turned inwards. This weakening and nullifying the mind is called Rajayoga which is our entry point to
bliss.
Yato yato nischarati
Manaschanchalamastiram
Tatastato niyamraita
Datmanyeva vasam
nayet (Bhagavad Gita (6-26))
The mind, enduringly eager to go out and run amok, is tossed up and down
on account of its cravings and aversions. It seeks various ways to escape but
has to be held back for anchoring at the soul.
Yujnannevam sadatmanam
Yogi vigata kalmasha
Sukhena
brahmasamsaparsha
Matyantam sukhamasnute (Bhagavad
Gita (6 – 28))
The Yogi who works this mode is cleansed of all impurities and enjoys
steady-state happiness, i.e., the brahmananda.
Steering the mind inwards is the easiest way as well. Rajayoga is employed to
accomplish the task. For extroverted people who seem to be the vast majority,
practicing rajayoga appears
difficult. However, Bhagvan allays
all the fears. The Lord assures,
Rajavidya rajaguhyam
Pavitramidamuthamam
Pratyakshavagam
dharmyam
Susukham kartumavyayam (Bhagavad Gita (9 – 2))
Rajavidya is esoteric, pure, ideal and can be
directly experienced. It follows the path of Dharma. Rajavidya never goes out of relevance and is easy to learn. No
physically demanding chores are involved nor does it incur any expense of
money. It’s a divyarasayana (wonder-drug)
which can be administered to all, men & women, literates & illiterates,
saints & house-holders alike. Outcasts and convicts are also included. Afterall,
what is rajayoga? Its nothing but the
union of our individual mind into the Universal Mind. Imagine you are listening
to a music concert. Unless your mind merges with the mind of the musician,
ecstasy eludes you. Likewise, eternal bliss nityananda
is generated by dissolving your mind in Paramatma .
You might ask “Where is the so-called Paramatma? Can you show us?”
Well, the answer is this.
Ya esha deva kadhito
Naiva doorevathishtate
Sareere varthate
Chinmatra miti
visrutam
Its inside you. At the same time, its different from your sense organs,
its different from your mind. Take the
example of sight. You are seeing an object based on a physical view which is
mechanical. Unless the mind helps to connect the sight, the view does not make
sense. Where does this power of the mind
stem from? Nowhere else other than a divine radiance called Soul. It is
perfect, eternal and pure.
Let me explain. The objects could be of varying sizes and in different
shapes. What about the eyes that see
them? They have diverse vision i.e., poor eye sight, no sight, excellent sight
etc. Coming to the third entity, the
Mind, it also shows diverse character. It correlates the object with the vision
but the mind could be doubtful, conceited, fearful etc. In short, the Mind is
oscillatory. And who is beyond all these diversities?
The answer is Consciousness.
It illuminates all and knows. Consciousness
activates the Mind which integrates the output from sense organs.
Now think about the air around you. It manifest in you as Prana. One can’t differentiate between
the air inside the body (prana) and that
exists outside. Both are same. Brahma is like the air. It fills the Universe
and beyond. You are also part of it. Yes, you are Brahma. Actually, you don’t
have to seek Brahma elsewhere. You are Brahma. The search stops.
(December 1916)
***********