by Sri Bmal Mohanty
VOL No. 8
 February 2001

CHAPTER NINE – WHY WE SEEK HAPPINESS ? ..

"Based on lectures by Sri Bimal Mohanty"

    We have spoken at length the imperativeness of constantly following the path of dharma in case we want our developmental process to go in the positive direction.

If we seek in our own hearts a sincere answer to questions like – whether this has been easy?, whether we have maintained our lives in accordance with the divine laws of righteousness?, what will be our answer? Perhaps 99.9% of us will admit that no matter how sincere we are, how devoted we have been, and how true our intentions may be, we have faltered every day. Failures and frustrations have been our constant companion.

No doubt it is and indeed has been difficult. We are not ofcourse uniquely inadequate in this respect. In all yugas, even in the ages of Satya, dvapara or tretaya - if you believe our puranas – the same problem has goaded the mankind. Our seers have declared this path as kshurasya dhara yatha – like walking on the sharp edge of the sword.

This raises two significant questions.

Firstly, if it is so difficult and lives and lives go by without any tangible progress, why then the mankind is still running after this? what is that , which is pushing you and me still on this path millenium after millenium, birth after birth?What is the reason behind this quest?

Then the second question. If I am not prepared to abandon my goal, what can I do to make it easier for me?
For a moment, let us reflect upon these two questions?

Why am I still running and if I have to, how can I make it a little easier? These two practical questions address to the very basis of our spiritual sadhana. .

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