Ignorance is not Bliss – 2
As we’ve seen earlier, we
don’t want a transient escape from our sorrows.
The absence of those causes
which puts us in a desperate situation is not enough. In reality, we’re all
desert-travelers without a drop of drinking water. What we want is a
permanent, everlasting solution to all our troubles. Even if you’re a person
with no worries whatsoever, unless you have the additional edge, “Ananda” on
your side, you’re a nowhere man/woman.
Ananda is pure Happiness. i.e.,
Cessation of sorrows + attainment
of ‘Ananda’ = Bliss (“Moksha” in Sanskrit)
Moksha is overwhelming
Contentment; nothing less!
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| Reina Cottier-"Taking every moment as it evolves |
There’s a hitch, however. One has to pre-qualify for ‘Moksha’. One must get through a couple of sine qua non failing which one doesn’t get a ticket to the journey.
1.
Longing
This
is the essential prime-mover in the traveler's passage. Without longing, the journey
becomes a dreary exercise, a duty you feel you ought to do rather than an exciting
adventure of the heart. Without longing, you’re like a locomotive without
steam!
2.
Reading
One
has to burn the midnight oil. Read and get the basics right. Get at least a
cursory idea of tatwabodha first. The real knowledge of the Self, that is.
Concurrently,
one has to do practise something called “Sadhana Chatushtaya”.
‘Sadhana’
means the groundwork required. It’s simply hard work. One pointedness. If you’re an Indian Classical
Artist, you’ll immediately get it.
In
Urdu, the equivalent words are ‘riyas’, talim etc.
The
four-fold ‘Sadhana’ consists of
i)
‘Vivekam’ (or power of discrimination to remove
the kernel from the chaff.
ii)
‘Vairagyam’ (or dispassion)
iii)
‘Samadhi Shatkam’
Control of mind, control of senses and
withdrawal of the same (if you like the idea and if you’re emerging as a topper
in (i) & (ii).
iv)
Shraddha (or faith in the words of Guru and in
the text of ‘Adwaita’ philosophy.
We shall talk about this in the next post. Too much of high-funda will cause indigestion.
Michael Drust - "Spiritual Awakening"
3.
Keeping an ear to the ground…
Reading
a lot of spiritual stuff or a couple of listening to lectures of a popular Guru
does not give you a license to get away from the world. Couch potatoes of any
kind is not permitted. If at all you
want to do it, go to the woods and meditate while managing on your own. Alternatively,
you can go to the snow-capped mountains like the Himalayas and be at ease! You don’t
have to worry about food and shelter there.
If
you’re a millionaire in US $, you can even buy a virgin island in the Pacific
Ocean and settle there for the rest of the life. You are alone and you can do
whatever you feel like. If that’s not Freedom, what else is?
If
you’re a pro, technician, police-man, or even a politician, you have to get the
pulse of the world right. See what’s happening around you. The wars, the
persecutions, the deprivations, the scant regard to environment, the mega-scams
etc.
You
may not be able to do anything about it. Don’t worry, you can always make a
change with a mere wish to that effect!
Anyway,
one has to imbibe directions which give you clear instructions from the young
age itself. One has to embark on the ‘sadhanas’ when one’s is young and one’s
body is in perfect health. Start it when you’re “Swastam”!
(Contd.)
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