by Sri Bimal Mohanty
VOL No. 42
August. 2004

ATTEMPTS TO DESCRIBE BRAMHAN - Part 16

"Based on the lectures by Sri Bimal Mohanty"

To QUESTIONS FROM READERS

QUESTION 1 from Mr BRYAN NUMAN

With so much of unhappiness around and each individual brooding over his own unhappiness, is this world no place for happy living?

ANSWER: So everyone of us keep wondering. Our forefathers kept wondering too and the future generations will do so? But why this lack of understanding, in spite of the mankind being in possession of the answer for thousands of years since the dawn of sanatan philosophy?

The world was not created by the Lord- nothing was created by the Lord- to make His children unhappy and miserable. It is all in our minds, the way we think of it. It is all in our eyes, the way we look at it. It is all in our actions, the way we conduct.

The fire was not created to burn houses, it is the very sustainer of life. But it can burn down houses by some one’s foolish action. The knife is such an useful tool. It helps you to prepare the very food you eat. But how many people have used it to cut throats?

The sanatan philosophy explains so lucidly this world around us. With its myriad nuances, basket of opposites, the infallible principles of cause and effect, its ever-changing character, the world is the very base, the great laboratory where all of us can change to becoming higher beings. With right observation, right understanding and right conduct we can use this world as the great opportunity for achieving that goal.

How do we do it? Our scriptures have also explained it. The question of happiness is in our understanding or lack of it. Every one is after surface happiness, after fleeting moments of sense gratification. Every one seeks also the solution by scratching the surface only. Small pleasures of senses, a little ego-lift, a lucky break in acquiring a thing or two, is all that we understand from happiness. None before us have found happiness in this and none in future will.

The magic solution lies in first relating everything in life, including your happiness to the Divinity. Whatever I do it has to be the work of the Divine and not with a selfish motive. Whatever I ask must have the sanction of the Divine and not what I have not earned with my efforts. Whatever I think must be in conformity with the Divine, not keeping only ‘me’ in mind but which is not malicious towards any single one. If I can train my mind to start thinking in these lines and recognize the Divine in everything, the contentment and happiness is a sure outcome.

Swami Chinmayananda said rightly when he observed: “ the suffering of each depends, not upon the factual happenings, but upon the texture of each one’s mind.”.

Spiritual consciousness provides this texture. A total change may not come overnight. But to the little extent I succeed in convincing my mind, brings that much happiness to me and every one around me. The scriptures say: swalpasya api dharmasya trAyate mahato bhayAt. Even with little practice of right conduct (dharma) great calamities are avoided.

Remaining constantly linked with the Divine is the key. That is the spiritual approach to life. Slowly and slowly one discovers that the world is not a bad place after all.

QUESTION 2 from SRI RISHI VASUDEV

Namaste Mohantyji
My idea of Karma Yoga is to devote one's life to the service of Brahman through actions. If however, I realise that are areas of my dharma that I need to gain more knowledge on by reading the appropriate religious scriptures should I ignore my job until that issue is resolved, or should I research only after I have completed my job?

ANSWER:Firstly, You can understand this yourself, when you realize that every action that the individual soul (jiva) does, is and should be part and parcel of “Yoga” and not any kind of purposeless activity. Whatever we do, voluntarily or involuntarily, studying, thinking, playing, worshipping, living our day to day life, all indeed is to be considered as yoga, meaning thereby, constantly in awareness and in conformity with the divine. For everything, one must be in awareness of a linkage (yoga means linkage) with the Lord. The Bhagavad Gita says : Yogastha kuru karmani. Undertake all actions as if you are in Yoga with the Lord.

With this back drop, karma yoga ( yoga of action) and Jnana yoga (yoga of knowledge) are not differentiated and must walk hand in hand. It is not a case of one or the other. You learn through work and work while learning. As a lawyer keeps reading law books to be able to practice law, so do constant studying of scriptures assist us in whatever actions we undertake. As we increase our knowledge (always remaining in yoga) our work keeps attaining higher and higher degrees of perfection. Yoga karmasu kaushalam- Yoga imparts skill to our actions.

In time, every yogi will discover that not only his knowledge has grown, but simultaneously his actions have acquired more and more refined perfection. Tasmat yogi bhavarjuna – therefore be always a yogi, Lord Krishna tells Arjuna.

QUESTION 3 from Ms COULETTE MURRAY

I live in South Florida and wanted to know if there are any groups that follow your philosophy regarding life. I’m very interested in learning more and would like to meet other like minded people.

ANSWER:(Please If by the grace of the Lord, your mind, is finding pleasure in pursuing subjects of Spiritual relevance and has turned God-ward., consider this as a great blessing from the Divine. There are many who even have not reached this stage.

These blessings are felt when God- consciousness or BramhachetanA takes hold of our body, mind and psyche. God has been always so near to us, with us always, but not often we become aware of His presence, His closeness to us.

But once that beginning is made, once that closeness to God is felt, why do I hanker for the company of others? What more shall I gain? Why do I have to run after others?

Mind you, this attitude is by no means a question of rejecting others or being indifferent to the company of others. Rather it opens our eyes to a greater truth in SanAtan (universal) philosophy. I discover God in everything and everyone around me. For me no particular person or groups contact is a necessity. Through God I fulfill that necessity. If I can relate to God do I not relate to every one else?

A person who develops this attitude, finds that without even being in direct contact with any one he is already in tune with every one. This is not necessarily on a physical plane but definitely in mental and psychic plane. Yoga brings this great change in all of us.

Some argue that nevertheless, some physical or direct contact is needed in life, for mutual development. This is true. But let us not forget if my trust in The Lord is genuine, it is He who organizes this contact with the right persons, the right things, at the most appropriate time, even without my asking. He knows and only He knows what is best for me and when. Whatever is presented to me now or in future, I must develop wisdom to recognize his grace and make the maximum of it. The key to life they say is Atmani AtmanA tusta- to remain content with that supreme self within your own self. I repeat, this is not a rejection of the rest but recognition of the Lord in everything else and finding everything else in the Lord.

In good time we meet all the people, experience all the experiences, that are indeed necessary and will benefit us in our spiritual quest, if only we trust His wisdom.

People run after groups, sects, persons, teachers in search of happiness. The only object to run after is God. He arranges everything else when people are ready. He is more concerned with my spiritual development and my efforts towards it more than even myself.

Try to develop this attitude. Every one you meet, everything in this creation that you come across, is carrying a spiritual message for you. Do you get that message?

QUESTION 4 FROM SRI VINOD DHAWAN
We are told not to bother too much about the outer. Just concentrate on the inner. How relevant is the outer in our journey? With respect and regards Vinod Dhawan

If I understand your question correctly, you refer to physical phenomenal world that we cognise through our senses as outer and the psychic world of the ‘self’ within ourselves as inner. That is the common conception. In another sense, the world of the illusory maya is broadly described as the outer and the world of consciousness is the inner. One school of thought – and that is the common perception- consider all these illusory world of maya to be unreal, distracting and counter progressive and therefore keeping away from it, they consider prudent. The inner world of consciousness is the world of gnosis, and therefore is the realm of spiritual quest. That is how some people understand and urge the seeker to turn away from the gross phenomenal world and dwell within.

But this is a flawed understanding.

Both these worlds are indeed two aspects of the same Bramhan. If you discard one and attach yourself to the other, you will end up only in an imperfect understanding of Bramhan. ….

If everything is Bramhan, (Isavasya sarvam idam), then rejecting one aspect of Bramhan means rejecting the Bramhan itself.

Where is this outer and where is this inner? Who drew this dividing line?

The outer phenomenal world is not here for nothing. It is indeed the greatest book of lesson open before the seeker reading which and understanding which, he develops and learns the esoteric meaning behind the maya. That leads eventually to the perfect truth.

Sanatan philosophy does not advocate rejection of anything as is commonly misunderstood. It says: accept everything, be conscious of everything, understand everything, and through understanding raise your level of mind so that it can expand and reach out to that all pervading consciousness, the ultimate knowledge