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Harih Om Tat Sat. Jai Guru.
In the last satsang yesterday, I was speaking about how everything about yoga that Krishna speaks about involves the mind and the intelligence alone, even in the devotion. Even in the devotional feel you will find, it is the same mind and intelligence that are involved. The earlier you understand it better. You call it by any name – jñāna, bhakti, yoga, philosophy, anything whatsoever.
Twelfth chapter in Bhagavad Gita is a chapter on devotion. Arjuna raises a question about whether the devotee is better or the knowledge seeker is better. Krishna acknowledges the question and gives an answer that the bhakta is no doubt good, the knowledge seeker is equally good provided he becomes interested in the welfare of all, he adds. So this is a very clever way of answering, effective way.
After explaining what is devotion, it is all centered in the mind alone, he comes to explain, "Here are the devotees who I like most." And the first description is,
निर्ममो निरहङ्कारः समदुःखसुखः क्षमी ।।
सन्तुष्टः सततं योगी यतात्मा दृढनिश्चयः ।
मय्यर्पितमनोबुद्धिर्यो मद्भक्तः स मे प्रियः ।।
nirmamo nirahaṅkāraḥ sama-duḥkha-sukhaḥ kṣamī
santuṣṭaḥ satataṁ yogī yatātmā dṛḍha-niścayaḥ
mayy-arpita-mano-buddhir yo mad-bhaktaḥ sa me priyaḥ
Mayi-arpita-mano-buddhih - what does it mean? Mayi – in me. Arpitah – offered, mano-buddhih – mind and intelligence, unless you are able to touch your mind and intelligence and offer both of them to God, it is not devotion at all. You may organize a big pooja with baskets and baskets full of flowers. You may also prepare 101 litre pudding, payasam, no, no, no. You must be able to offer your mind and intelligence. Mind, the first factor, the intelligence will go on arguing if you remain like that. Is it right? Is it not foolishness? So many questions will come. So the intelligence also should be offered. Mind and intelligence.
When the mind and intelligence are offered to God, then you become dear to Him. What is meant by offering the mind and intelligence? Adveṣṭā sarva-bhūtānāṁ. See? Generally we have a measure of dislike, hatred or intolerance towards people. In our ordinary parlance you will find there is always a blaming and a critical note whenever we talk. "Why did you not come there? What were you doing? What big business did you do? You did not come there.” That is the statement we want to make. We will always put it in a displeasing manner.
A question arises. “Swamiji, we tell something to somebody three times, four times, and the fifth occasion, will we not get irritable?”
“Yes. We are likely to get irritated.” Tell me whether the irritation is good or bad. So the answer will be by telling him a fifth time it cannot be and will not be done, he is very insensitive, either unintelligent or otherwise. So you have to get reconciled to the fact that here is a person who will not be responsive or sensitive and do you want him? Then keep him, or you avoid him. So we must think what next has to be done. But yet never hate anybody. The same nature and power which have made you intelligent and sensitive have made him not so. You don’t have anything particularly to claim. If you were like him, what would you do? You would be doing the same thing as he is doing and all people will be displeased. So somewhere you have to strike a chord of affinity.
Adveṣṭā sarva-bhūtānāṁ. Sarva-bhūtānāṁ adveṣṭā. It is not that you have to be non-hateful towards the few around you. In the mind, develop an attitude of appreciation, accommodation, adjustment, affinity, reconciliation with all the creatures in this world. The lion, the tiger, the cobra, everything! You have to look after your safety. You do it. They don’t come and stay where you do. You can drive them away.
Man’s life is meant for attention, attention, attention! He has to look for his own safeguard. Are we not floating insurance companies? How many facilities we are making? Have we not instituted a police force, a defense force? All for our safeguard. Similarly safeguard yourself but don’t destroy. Adveṣṭā sarva-bhūtānāṁ. Once the dvesha is overcome, you should not stop there.
Maitraḥ karuṇa eva ca - You have to become friendly towards the others. Friendly, friendly, friendly. I don’t hate anybody. That is only one part. Are you friendly and courteous to the others? Are you amiable?
Karuṇa eva ca - mere friendship, expression of it will not be sufficient. You have to be sympathetic and considerate to the others and this feeling should become expressed in your action. So mentally be helpful to them, orally be helpful to them and materially using materials including money, be helpful to the others. Karuṇa eva ca.
Nirmamo nirahaṅkāraḥ - That is the important point. There it becomes spiritual and philosophical. Do not have any mamata or ahaṅkāra in doing so, in being so. That is the safeguard for you. I have received an email, website email. "We are helping others always expecting something to be done, it does not take place. We get angry. Swamiji, is it right to associate counter help when we are helping others?" Something like that, I have not read the question yet.
So these are points that we have to understand. So even bhakti becomes characteral, behavioral and interactional.
Harih Om Tat Sat. Jai Guru.