M. stood there speechless and looked on. It was as if he were standing where all the holy places met and as if Sukadeva himself were speaking the words of God, or if Sri Chaitanya were singing the name and glories of the Lord in Puri with Ramanada, Swarup, and the other devotees.

Sri Ramakrishna said: "When, hearing the name of Hari or Rāma once, you shed tears and your hair stands on end, then you may know for certain that you do not have to perform such devotions as the sandhya any more.  Then only will you have a right to renounce rituals; or rather, rituals will drop away of themselves.  Then it will be enough if you repeat only the name of Rāma or Hari, or even simply Om." Continuing, he said, "The sandhya merges in the Gayatri, and the Gayatri merges in Om."

#gospelofsriramakrishna #om #spirituality

किं कर्म किमकर्मेति कवयोऽप्यत्र मोहिताः तत्ते कर्म प्रवक्ष्यामि यज्ज्ञात्वा मोक्ष्यसेऽशुभात् -- Even wise men are deluded on this point, what is action and what is inaction. I shall tell thee the philosophy of work, by knowing which thou shalt attain to absolute freedom from all imperfections. -- Bhagavad Gita, Ch.4, 16.

Karma Yoga means literally "skill or dexterity in work", and deals with all activity whether of body or mind. Recognizing that activity is an inevitable condition of life, that no human being can live without performing some kind of work , either mental or physical, it seeks through its teaching to show how this constant output of energy may be utilized to acquire the greatest spiritual enlightenment and to attain to perfection and absolute freedom.

There are five conditions necessary for the accomplishment of all mental or physical labor:

1. We must have a physical body, it is the storehouse of energy.
2. There must be present the sense of the ego as the doer or actor.
3. We must have the instrument with which to work.
4. We must have the desire or motive to work.
5. There must be some sort of environment.

The results of actions performed under these five conditions are of three kinds:

1. Those that are desirable because they help us to fulfill our aims in life, and bring us comfort and pleasure.
2. Those which are not desirable.
3. Those which are partly desirable and partly undesirable.

It is not possible to escape these results at every moment of our existence; since, as has already been said, the activity of our organism never ceases. Practically speaking, there cannot be absolute rest of body or mind.

If activity is inevitable and each action must produce its result, what can we do to make all such results harmonize with the highest ideal of life? To search for that which, in the midst of our varied activities of mind and body, remains always inactive. When we have found that and recognized it, we have understood the pur­pose of the philosophy of work, and can make our every effort lead us to the final goal of all religion, to the realization of Truth, and to the attainment of Blessedness. If we cannot do this, we shall be forced to go on reaping the fruit of our actions and continue in the suffering and misery which we now endure. By practicing the teachings of the philosophy of work, on the other hand, we shall not only bring freedom to the soul, but shall rise above all law and live on a plane above motion. From the subtlest atom up to the grossest material form, there is cons­tant motion. Nowhere is there rest. One thing, however, moves not; one thing is at rest, and Karma Yoga explains what it is, how we may realize it and make ourselves one with it.

That something which is beyond all activity, is called in Sanskrit Atman. It is the knower in us. If we use a higher discrimination and try to understand the nature of the knower, by observing our internal process while we are doing anything, we will know that the knower is constant. The knower is unchangeable and is not bound by the conditions which govern the changeable.

It is when, on account of our imperfect knowledge, we identify our true Self or Atman with the limitations of mind and body, we become selfish and are ready to do the things which brings us suffering and misery. Those who are living on this plane of sense perceptions, are like primitive beings. They do not believe in the existence of things which cannot be revealed by the senses. They cannot differentiate matter from spirit, soul from body, or the knower from the object known. Consequently they identify themselves with their mental and physical activity.

We must remember that the five conditions already described are absolutely necessary for any kind of work; but they can in no way influence or affect the Knower (Atman). Intellect, mind, body, and senses exist in relation to it and cannot be active if cut off from it ; but they are perpetually changing, while it is unchangeable. He who realizes this — that all things on the mental or physical plane exist only so long as they are in relation to the Atman, the absolute source of life and knowledge, sees that one which is inactive in the midst of all activity, and becomes a right worker. Such an one attains to perfection through his work.

Let the body work, then, while we remember that it is the mind and the sense organs which are working, and that we are in reality the Knower, the Atman. Anything else is not permanently connected with us. We have taken this body for the time being and are using it for the fulfillment of the highest purpose of life.

If anger or hatred or desire surge up within us, we have only to separate ourselves from that mental change and it will vanish. If passion arise, we have only to remember that we are the witness-like Knower of passion and it will subside. It is when we forget that we are the Knower, and become identified with anger, passion, or hatred, that we fall under their dominion.

Wise men work ceaselessly, being conscious at the same time that they are not working; allowing the body and mind to act, but seeking nothing in return. Those, on the other hand, who are passionate, ambitious, easily affected by joy or grief, gain or loss, are ordinary workers of the world. They are never happy, but are always disturbed, anxious, and uneasy. Yet all their wickedness, selfishness, attachment, and passion proceed only from ignorance of their true Self. ॐ तत् सत्। 

(..To be continued, 5th of a seven part series).

#doctrineofkarma #karma #philosophy #spirituality #swamiabhedananda

रागद्वेषवियुक्तैस्तु विषयानिन्द्रियैश्चरन्‌ आत्मवश्यैर्विधेयात्मा प्रसादमधिगच्छति -- A wise man moves about the objects of senses free from love and hatred keeping the tranquil state of mind absolutely controlled by his true Self. -- Bhagavad Gita, Ch. 2, 64.

As every act brings its own reward by the law of compensation, so every crime brings its own punishment by the law of retribution, whether it is found in this life or in the next.

The soul perceives the causal retribution, but the people call the change of external circumstances as retribution which comes after some time. This law manifests itself in the soul long before the external changes appear. Emerson says, "Every act rewards itself first in our own soul, then in circumstance. People call the circumstance retribution."

St. Bernard said, "Nothing can work me damage, except myself; the harm that I sustain I carry about with me and never am a real sufferer but by my own fault." It is for this reason that the Hindus although do not believe in the hell-fire doctrine, struggle hard to live virtuous lives simply fearing the eternal law of karma. The Buddhists who do not believe in a personal God, and deny existence of the permanent entity of the soul, have founded their ethics and religion upon this universal law of karma, or of cause and sequence.

The doctrine of karma can explain the mysterious problem of good and evil and reconcile man to the terrible and apparent injustice of life. Those who believe in this noble doctrine, are never disturbed in their minds at the sight of the inequalities of birth and fortune, or of intellect and capacities around them. The knowledge of this universal truth prevents them from cursing life. The law of karma, eternal as it is, predestines nothing and no one, but, on the contrary, making every one free agent for action, shows the way out of the world of misery, through good thoughts and good deeds. We really create by our actions the causes of good and evil and receive reward or punishment as the reactions of our thoughts and deeds by the law of compensation.

(..To be continued, 4th of a seven part series).

#doctrineofkarma #karma #spirituality #swamiabhedananda

न मां कर्माणि लिम्पन्ति न मे कर्मफले स्पृहा इति मां योभिजानाति कर्मभिर्न स वध्यते -- Actions do not bind Me, nor have I any longing for the result of action. Whoever knows Me thus is not fettered by action. -- Bhagavad Gita, Ch. 4, 14.

As every effect must have a cause, every consequence must have an antecedent, so also there must be equal balance between a cause and its effect, between an antecedent and a consequence. A cause must always produce an effect of similar nature both in quality and quan­tity and a reaction must be similar to action. The forces of nature operate neither for profit nor for loss but for a perfect balance or harmony. If there be a surging of a high wave in the ocean there must be a deep hollow at its sides. It produces what we understand by the word compensation.

There cannot be bargaining in the realm of nature. What you wish to get, you must have to pay for it first, in thought, word and deed. Some­thing cannot be obtained for nothing. In our daily life when we seek for a bargain either in buying or selling we forget this law and make many mistakes and suffer or repent in the end.

Whatever we suffer physically or mentally may appear to be unjust, may make us feel that we do not deserve it, but when we trace its cause and compare with it, we find that it is perfectly right and a just compensation. We cannot judge a thing correctly if we do not connect the effects with their antecedents. The causes determine the nature of the effect, the ante­cedents their consequences. But the processes of this law in connection with the affairs of our lives are extremely intricate and they generally involve a cycle of beginning, growth and maturity. This cycle may take a short or a long period of time to complete itself. A man may reap the result of compensation for his works either in this life or after death in another incarnation, just as now we are reaping the results of the works of our previous lives. If we deny preexistence and reincarnation of the soul and admit that the physical birth is the beginning of our life and by death ends all, then the chain of cause and sequence will be broken abru­ptly and the process of compensation will be unexpectedly interrupted by death. Then, there will be no compensation for the wicked who commit crimes and apparently enjoy all the blessings of life; nor for the virtuous who perform good unselfish works and do not get any return whatever during their life-time.

So long as we look upon our individual lives as isolated events beginning with the birth of the body and ending with its death, we shall not find correct explana­tion of anything but will see injustice and wrong at every step.

But when we connect our present lives with our past, and our future, and standing upon the broad platform of eternal life that is, past and future life, if we look at our present we shall see justice and compensation at every step. Our present is the resultant of our past, and our future will be the resultant of our present thoughts and deeds. Suppose our life begins each morn­ing and lasts for twenty-four hours. If we disconnect the life of today from the past of yesterday and of the future of tomorrow, and judge each day by its results, we shall find very poor compensation for our daily labor.

The law of compensation covers the whole chain of our individual lives. The broader the basis of reckoning there is, the more perfect is the compensation.

(..To be continued, 3rd of a seven part series).

#doctrineofkarma #karma #spirituality #swamiabhedananda

नादत्ते कश्यचित् पापं न चैव सूकृतं विमुः-- God never rewards the virtuous nor punishes the wicked. -- Bhagavad Gita, Ch. 5, 15.

The law of causation, or law of Karma includes the law that the like produces the like, or that every action must be followed by a reaction of similar nature. If I strike a blow on the table, the table will react upon me with similar force. If I strike harder, I shall receive harder blow in return.

In the chain of cause and effect, it can be shown that each effect is latent in the cause and each cause is latent in the effect.

We do not have to blame our parents for our misery and sufferings. It is our own Karma that produces its results in the form of joy or sorrow, pleasure or pain, happiness or unhappiness. It is compensation.

Everything that we possess in this life is the effect of our previous Karma or action, both mental and physical. Our present character is the resultant of our past and our future will be determined by our present acts. Neither God nor Satan is responsible for our pleasure and pain, happiness and misery. Thus, all the inequalities and diversities of characters can be scientifically explained by this law of Karma. In the face of this universal law of Karma, there is no room for the hypothesis of predestination and grace which is accepted by the majority of orthodox Christians. The hypothesis of predestination and grace teaches that God, the Creator of all, settles the destiny of man before his birth. He pre­ordains before the birth of each man and woman what he or she will be in future. The whim of the Creator makes one sinful or virtuous, before the time of one's birth. But this hypothesis destroys our moral responsibility and personal freedom.

He who obeys the law of Karma is more moral and more virtuous than one who blindly obeys the Ten Commandments. He stands on a more rational ground than one who fears the punishment of God. He shrinks from doing anything wrong, not because it is written in a book or scripture, but because he knows that every wrong action will sooner or later react upon himself and will make him unhappy and miserable. He performs good deeds for the reason that they will bring good reaction in the form of happiness, peace, tranquillity and higher enlightenment.

(..To be continued, 2nd of a seven part series).

#doctrineofkarma #spirituality #swamiabhedananda

सर्वारम्भा हि दोशेण धुमेनाग्निरिवावृताः -- Works are always followed by their defects and demerits just as the fire is enveloped with smokes. -- Bhagavad Gita, Ch. 18, 48.

No event can occur without having a definite cause behind it. To trace the causes of events and to become familiar with the conditions under which an effect is produced have always been the aim of the various branches of science and philosophy.

It can be shown that every action however minute or trivial it may appear to us, being conditioned by the universal law of causation, produces different effects visible and invisible and affects the whole world of phenomena either directly or indirectly.

This universal law of causation is called the law of Karma. Under the sway of this all-pervading law of Karma , there is no room left for a chance or accident. What we call happening by chance or accidental is in reality the product of some definite causes which we may not know or cannot trace on account of our limited knowledge. The causes might be on the moral or spiritual planes, but we seek only on the physical plane. That which appears to be supernatural or Pro­vidential to an unscientific mind, is natural to a scientist or a philosopher whose concep­tion of nature is larger and more universal.

In this world of relativity within the limitations of time and space, it is impossible to find any action which is absolutely good or which produces a result that creates no discord or disharmony in any shape or man­ner in any part of the world. It is impos­sible to find any work producing absolute evil effect, without causing some kind of good somewhere. Ordinarily, in judging a result when we see the prepon­derance of good over evil, we call it good and where evil predominate we say, that action is evil, wrong or sinful.

(..To be continued, 1st of a seven part series).

#causation #doctrineofkarma #karma #spirituality #swamiabhedananda

Maharaj: You threw that away -- if someone hurts himself in his sole?

That person replied, "Nothing would happen."

Maharaj: Would nothing happen? We are old people -- we are scared of everything. Nothing happens in hundred years, then one day it will happen. I saw that in the treasury they used to guard with guns on their shoulders year after year, nothing happened. It seems they are guarding for nothing. But all of a sudden there was an "attack" in 1942. So many day's preparation for this 1942.

#chat #spirituality #swamisuhitananda #thevedantkesari

I was delighted to receive your letter. There is no need for you to worry about your devotion or liberation. The Lord will grant you these things in this very life. Don't worry about it. You will have ecstasy and attain Self-realization in this very life. The Lord will also have the work that is earmarked for you done. But this will be no impediment to your liberation. Have no doubt about this.

You no longer need to exert yourself too much doing your spiritual practices. Rather, take good care of your health from now on. No doubt you have to work hard if you want to realize God by your own spiritual practices, but remember, at the root of your success lies God's grace. Know this for certain. God's grace is already on you.

If you want to do God's work, you cannot help but mix with all kinds of people. That this will have some influence on your mind is natural. But don't worry, this will not hurt you. By His grace you will be safe.

A better time will come when you will be able to concentrate on spiritual practices, and then you will be able to remove the veil covering your mind. The mind will then be pure, and you will enjoy divine bliss. Know that this will happen.

I have nothing further to add. My sincere love and good wishes to you.

#lettersofswamishivananda #liberation #spirituality

My dear Gurudas,

Don't get discouraged or disheartened. Why should it be always sunshine and good times? Let Mother's will be done. Never mind sunshine or rain, we must not forget Mother at any time. Even if we don't see her, why should we lose heart? She appears again in our view. She knows what is best for us. Once we have given ourselves over to her, what right have we to think of ourselves again? It is not so easy to do as to say -- of that I am sure, but there is no other way out. Whether we see or don't see, Mother is our only place of rest. There are ups and downs in all hearts, but we should not give way to them.

Think not about yourself but only for others. That is renunciation, that is religion, that is all. Have you not given everything over to Mother? Why then think of yourself again? Never care for position. Give up all such ideas. Work is worship. Everything is in the life we live, not in position. Mother knows the heart and sees the heart and arranges things accordingly. Let your light so shine that everybody can see it. Let your work be silent and in secret and your Mother who sees in secret shall reward you openly.

Be strong! Don't give in to anything whatever. It is not good to be weak; the weak must go to the wall. This is the law of the world. But what you to do with the world anymore? Mother's child good or bad, weak or strong, you have no other to look up to but Mother! Others, who do not know, may think of temporal help. But you can never think that way, I am sure!

Pray for unflinching love and devotion and you will have everything.

There is no happiness in that which is finite; that which is finite is perishable. That which is universal is Blissfulness itself. [Chandogya Upanishad, VII.23.1, 24.1]

There is no world outside. It is what we project outside. But how difficult it is to understand this, and how much more difficult to remember it always, even after understanding it. we feel unhappy when we make ourselves small. We feel miserable when we think of ourselves as finite. That is the bane. Yet we forget and are in the whirlpool of Maya ever once again. But thanks to the grace of Mother, we remember it again soon. Know the universal! That is your real Self. May we never lose sight of this our real Self, which is the Self of all, our dear Mother, whose children we are.

#gurudas #lettersofswamituriyananda #mother #renunciation #spirituality

Here is Akshay's own account of this first meeting: "Devendra and Dhirendra took the dust of the Master's feet, as usual, and took their seats. The humble author did likewise and the Master gave him a look full of compassion. What was there in that look, I do not know. It was beyond any description. The holy image of the Master entered his heart through his eyes and occupied it right away. That charming figure at once dazzled his eyes and mind and captivated his heart. Whatever had been left in the heart was cleared out by listening to the Master's sweet words. It was an invisible play, burglary in open daylight by breaking open hundreds of locks inside one's heart...All past remembrances disappeared in a moment, and I became completely oblivious of the world. I forgot my old self, a new current started flowing, a new being was born in my old body. The assembled people no longer seemed to be people, the houses ceased to be houses at all, and having lost everything old, it appeared as if I had entered a new territory and was moving forward in a dream. The story of the Master's glory has been chiselled in my heart. Where can I find adequate language to describe it?" Soon the kirtans began. Sri Ramakrishna burst forth into a rapturous song, "Behold, the two brothers have come, who weep while chanting Hari's name..." Intoxicated with divine joy, the Master began to dance, his face beaming with love and bliss. At times he went into samadhi and remained motionless, at other times he danced with great vigour. As the spiritual fervour reached a climax, Mahimacharan pointed to Sri Ramakrishna and exclaimed, "Here's our Krishna." Akshay, a Krishna devotee, felt deeply that the Master was verily Lord Krishna for whose vision he had been yearning for years.

#spiritual #spirituality