Be Ever Vigilant
The workings of Maya are so
very subtle, so very difficult to overcome, and human nature is fundamentally
so Asuric and unregenerate that real spiritual development and progress in
Sadhana (spiritual practice) are indeed very hard to obtain. To achieve success
in any measure in spiritual life is most difficult and uphill task that truly
it is Divine Grace alone that can raise the aspirant from darkness to Light. So
vehement, self-assertive and rebellious is the egoistic self of man that it
refuses to be changed from its vicious state to a state of virtue, goodness and
saintliness. It is a great blunder to think that the mere act of renunciation
is sufficient achievement in spiritual life. If renunciation makes you feel
that you have at once become quite superior to the rest of mankind and has
bestowed on you the right to preach and to dictate to others, then the very
purpose of renunciation gets blasted. You destroy the very foundation of
spiritual life by this egoistic assumption. The eradication of egoism in all
its numerous aggressive forms comprises the very core of spirituality and all
spiritual Sadhana.
Concentration, meditation and
Samadhi (union with the Lord) are still very far from him who has not purified
himself and got rid of his evil traits. Sinning and evil have become so much a
habit with man that he never feels that he is committing them even though day
and night he is doing so constantly. And the greatest harm is done by the fact
that even while in this unregenerate state, the aspirant becomes deluded by
Maya (illusion) into thinking that he has already progressed considerably in
spirituality. He deceives himself with the thought that as far as he is
concerned he is pretty far advanced in Sadhana. He thinks that he has acquired
that unattached attitude where he can commit any sort of act and yet remain
unaffected by it. This self-deception puts a bar to all progress. Under this
grave delusion he allows himself to be unrestrained and runs wild, intolerant
of criticism, resentful of the least opposition, utterly disregardful of
others’ feelings and absolutely unamenable to advice and correction. All sense
of discrimination, sane judgment and introspection vanish from him. Even the
common courtesy and culture possessed by an ordinary worldly man take leave of
the aspirant of his presumption of spiritual advancement and growth in wisdom.
He becomes disposed to attack even venerable and elderly persons and
spiritually superior souls.
O aspirants! Beware of these
dangers in your spiritual life. Be vigilant always. Always regard yourself as a
beginner just commencing Sadhana. Never underestimate the importance of Yama,
Niyama, of ethical culture and Sadhana Chatushtaya! They are everything. Japa,
Kirtan, Svadhyaya, Upasana should be done side by side with ethical training
and character-building.
Without the latter, Sadhana
becomes as fruitless as filling a vessel which is full of holes in the bottom.
Without the eager and earnest desire to obey the Guru and improve oneself,
without service, humility, sincerity, simplicity and eagerness to learn and
improve oneself Sadhana is useless as rowing a boat which is firmly anchored to
the riverbed or like sowing seeds upon the rock.
Spirituality means growing
into the form of the Divine Ideal. It is the transformation of your nature from
the human to the Divine. You can hope to achieve perfection only when you
effect this transformation. It is purification and change of heart alone that
makes concentration and meditation possible. To grow in Sattva (purity) you must
entirely destroy the Asuric (diabolic) side of your nature. Never imagine for a
moment that you are anywhere near the Goal unless and until you strive with
earnestness and diligence to rid yourself of evil tendencies, get established
in a pure Sattvic ethical character.
Remember this point clearly.
Constantly reflect upon this. Meditate upon this. Know what true spirituality
is. Fully realise the importance of becoming a changed man ethically and
morally, before you can claim to be an aspirant. Carefully avoid the dangers of
self-deception by constant vigilance and introspection. Do Sadhana regularly
and pray for His Grace. Imagine not that you have scaled the heights of
spirituality. Patiently wait for results. When your nature is changed, purified
and prepared, Grace will flow down itself in the firmament of your pure heart.
Bliss and Ananda will spontaneously flow in and fill you when you have emptied
yourself of all harshness, egoism, pride and passion. Perfection and
immortality will be yours. Where there is kindness, humility and purity, there
spirituality springs up, saintliness shines, divinity descends and perfection
manifests itself.
Excerpts from:
If you would like to purchase the print edition, visit:
http://www.dlshq.org/cgi-bin/store/commerce.cgi?
http://www.dlshq.org/cgi-bin/store/commerce.cgi?
If you would
like to contribute to the dissemination of spiritual knowledge please contact
the General Secretary at:
generalsecretary@sivanandaonline.org
No comments:
Post a Comment