Articles for Saadhana

Harih Om Tat Sat. Jai Guru. Jai Guru.

I would like to share what is in my mind. Generally I do it. Prabhata Rashmih is a program where whatever comes to my mind, whether it is spiritual or non-spiritual, I speak about. And there is nothing for me which is non-spiritual. Everything is part of our life and our life itself is what - it is God manifest. The Jiva in us is no other than the Supreme Lord himself, you can call it a drop of the ocean. I have always been, if it all I have striven hard in my sadhana, ultimately I found it was the differential feeling that has to be set right. This is called in good cultural world, bheda-buddhi - the intelligence by virtue of which you make a difference of many things.

In Vivekachudamani there is a verse:

The lakshana, the feature, the characteristic of a jeevan-mukta is, when in his intelligence and mind there is no difference between Pratyak and Brahma. Pratyagātma means the Self and Brahma means the Supreme Reality.

Similarly, Brahma Sargayoh, between Brahman, the Supreme reality and world, srishtih, there should be no difference. It is like water condensed in the form of ice and heated to become vapour. The H₂O does not change at all. My dear children, this is not merely said, you can have this realization provided you are earnest and you will be properly guided by your own intelligence and scriptures.

Early in the morning, I had to cut short my walking because I wanted to write a note to our Supreme Court advocate, Ravi Mehrotra. We have filed an intervention petition in the Supreme Court with regard to the entry of women in Sabarimala temple where the overflowing majority does not want to allow it. I generally have a reformist and revolutionary thinking in these matters but I am a very, very orthodox and scriptural person. Our scriptures are quite pure, great, holy and noble. But somewhere down the line, it is the impure mind of man, corrupt mind of man that handles the scriptures and scriptural traditions. So the selfish ends take over.

It is the desire and greed sprouting in the mind that generally makes a man commit wrong and sin. You don’t have to point your finger to anything else. When Arjuna asked, “What is the reason for anybody to do a wrong even when he does not want?” Krishna answers it in this way in the third chapter. I had explained it very well a few days back here.

So, the scriptural position has been diluted and even contradicted in many of our practices. I say even (if) a squirrel wants to worship in a public place of worship, it cannot be prevented. You can have disciplines necessary. All the disciplines should be scriptural and everything has to be scientific and logical.  

The Supreme Court initially, our Judge Mishra asked a question, “In the Vedic times, were the women discriminated?” Nobody has answered this question in the Court so far as I know. So I wanted to voice the Vedic pronouncements and Vedic insight. So luckily, an advocate who is also a disciple of mine, he also agreed. So I started preparing notes. Finally he has put them very nicely, all written by me.

Now, two days back it was presented and it has been listed. So in the afternoon yesterday, he has received information from the Registrar that it has been listed today. So I am preparing some notes. I wanted to tell you something about it. The Judge repeatedly says, “We are not going to consider the point from any other aspect. What is the deity whether he is a brahmacharin, a celibate or not. We will consider the subject only under the constitution, what can stand.” 

Now I am firmly of the opinion that the constitution is supreme in our land to govern the behavior and interaction of the people. We don’t have any other parallel law. We may have traditions, cultural elements. Was there any time when the Hindu society took up corrections and brought improvements only by themselves? Even in abolishing Sati, Rammohan Roy’s voice was not heeded by people. Finally the government had to pass a legislation. For temple entry also, the Raja had to give it in the form of a proclamation.

What arrangement does the society have, Hindu society have, to bring about any change or reformation in them? They were managing temples and all of them were siphoned away. Finally, government had to interfere to take over the temples. Even now, there is a cry that the temples should be handed over to the society. Which society you tell me? The society of householders? Sannyasins are no exception. Suppose these people come, that will be another elected ministry. Just as that is corrupt, more corrupt will be the Hindu society leaders who man these temples.

The best will be, after all a democratically elected government is there, and to the government you can raise your voice. Why not the society raise its voice saying that, “Our temple administration must incorporate these and these”? Now whatever offering is made, it is a religious offering, it is a devotional offering. The secular government cannot touch it. They cannot use a single pie. If they use it, it will be equivalent to Jizya  tax imposed by the Muslim emperors. It is a voluntary offering. Let them take taxes, taxes under enactments of the parliament. That money they can touch. But when I say this, the Hindu society is mute. Why don’t you join me? And I want to be followed by tens of thousands of people and if we make one or two public meetings, the government will shudder. They will never touch the money. And again, why should the temples hoard the money? We have got tonnes of gold in the temples. They are simply rusting there. The temple sastras or our scriptures do not allow any hoarding. Hoarding has to be treated as thieves and robbers and they have to be punished, says Bhagavatam. So I am always of this kind of a view.

Now why I am taking up these issues is, why is it that the voice of the scriptures is not being discussed properly to be a guiding light? So I am writing that this equality of gender and other things which constitution speaks about is only a fractional reflection of the cultural samatva that we have been holding right from the beginning. Our society is noted for samatva and in Bhagavad Gita, Krishna speaks about samatva and samatva alone:

A beautiful verse from the fifth chapter. And he speaks about Samatva everywhere. When we won the second Pakistan war, I believe Dr. Radhakrishnan was the President of India. While addressing the parliament he said, “We should not lose our equipoise. We should not gloat over our victory as Gita says samatvam”. What do you say? This samatva is not a discovery of our Constitution. After all, it is the people of India who invented the Constitution or formulated it and they have this cultural background.

Our people took up “Satyameva Jayate” as the national motto. It is a quote from Mundaka-Upanishad. Now I understand the Supreme Court has got its motto, “Yato Dharmah, tato jayah”.  It is from Mahabharatam. So I want to tell the Court that ‘You need not have a preference only to keep to the constitutional provisions. After all, a large majority of our people are looking for support from the scriptures. So if the scriptures are there which are pre, pre, pre, pre-constitution, they also uphold samatva. What is the harm in your taking the stand according to the scriptures also? When there is a scriptural dispute, finally as parens patriae, you, the Supreme Court, will have to come and adjudicate the matters. There is no other provision, whenever there is a matter of propriety, no matter whether it is religion or not.’

Now some people are saying, why Hindus alone? Let first of all, let it be pronounced in the Court that constitution is supreme and no religious law or no religious tradition can stand against it. Once this point is approved by the Supreme Court, somebody can go to the Supreme Court saying that this kind of order is not merely applicable to the Hindus sections of the society, they are equally applicable to all citizens, because the constitution is meant for all people. You will find in 41 days, somebody else will take the petition and that is how changes come. How short-sighted our people are! ‘Why they are imposing only on Hindu society?’ At least let it come, baba. We are primary members of the society. Ultimately we alone are there. So in our name, let this judgment be pronounced and that will pave the way for further corrections and further incorporations.

So, early in the morning I got these points. Only yesterday Ravi told me something. So I was putting them, I have to write, so I have to go and give a final touch to it. So, the important points that I want to say is, the Court cannot be having a preference only to constitution. The constitution itself has got its credence to the culture, the patriotic culture of the Motherland though they have not used the word Motherland to Bharat. So that is one point.

Secondly, when the scriptures are guiding and supporting us, what is the harm in taking their support? So they will be appeasing a number of minds who look for the voice of the Vedas. So it has been listed for today, I don’t know how it will go. I said, “You can tell the Court, if necessary I will myself come and represent the matter as a petitioner”. I am a person who talks, who has been talking. I can as well go the Supreme Court and speak, clarifying the whole points.

I just thought of telling you all this. Because this is something very current in my mind and in all these things, I have only one aim. What is that? Our scriptural insight should be hoisted, should be upheld, should be made known. This scripture written by no specific person as we understand, this is the one binding force in India. This culture is not religious. When that was evolved by our ancient people, by our ancestors, there was no division in the society like Hinduism, Islam and Christianity. They were evolved by our common ancestors. Common means ancestors of present Muslims, present Christians and present Hindus. It is a voice of the land, culture of the land and they incorporate values. All the values relate to the mind and intelligence of people. They don’t relate to God. God is a concept evolved by the mind.

So our values are completely based upon the individual personality. It speaks about senses and sensory control, mind and mind’s equality, intelligence and the wisdom, reason and logic it should always cling to. This is also mentioned in the constitution. In all matters, we have to develop a scientific temper. A sense of logic and reason should be there and we have to uphold the composite heritage of the land, in every matter.

So I am presenting all these thoughts. It becomes a little difficult because I have to do the other work, this work. I am writing SIR (Science of Inner Redemption), in between this pressing proposition comes, so it becomes difficult, I thought of mentioning to you.

Now you may wonder - why is Swamiji taking up these matters? My dear souls, anything pertaining to India is dearer to me than myself. I voice the Motherland’s heart. I have also enough dispassion to see the country ablaze. Then also, I will remain like Parikshit, after having listened to Shukamuni, he withdrew himself and before the Takshaka came and bit him, he had got completely dissolved into his inner personality. He never knew. Similarly when the whole country is ablaze, this Swamiji will be the first person to close his eyes and remain absorbed in himself. But, but till then, I will uphold our land. I will uphold the culture of the land. It is not based upon himsa, ahimsa, non-hurting. It is not based upon infidelity, total fidelity. It is based upon samatva and universal brotherhood. These are values which anybody in this world will cherish, must cherish and will be nourished by.

So I don’t have any difference between any one act and another act. Dog and God, food and meditation, the fickle matter in the large intestines and sweet food in the stomach, both are carried by the same stomach. Similarly my mind hosts both with a beautiful fulfilling note. So I have no difference between God and world, God and myself and there is no God plus for me, there is no God minus for me. Only God is there.

Harih Om Tat Sat. Jai Guru. Jai Guru.