A spiritual seeker,
seeking answers to the questions, “Who is God?” and “Who am I?” etc., needs to
undertake a spiritual journey within to get the answers. The starting sadhana for this
spiritual quest is given as Karma yoga in scriptures. Karma yoga is elaborately discussed in the
third chapter of Gita and can be briefly defined as proper actions performed
with proper attitude backed by proper values.
Swami Paramarthananda defines Karma yoga using an acronym “RIDE”, where
each letter stands for an instruction. R
stands for ‘Reduce Adharmic activities’; I for ‘Increase
Dharmic activities’; D for ‘Dedicate all actions to the Lord’; and E for ‘Experience
everything as Prasada’.
Reduction of Adharmic activities: - Adharmic activities are the actions and responses that do not
conform to Dharma, as laid down by the scriptures. They act as obstacles to one’s spiritual
progress and they must be reduced gradually over a period of time with
commitment. Lord Krishna has given a list of qualities that gives rise to such actions as Asuri sampath
in the 16th chapter of Gita. In simple language it can be stated as
avoidance of all actions and responses which one does not want from others
towards oneself. In short, don’t do unto
others what you don’t want others do unto you, is the prescription. That means
one should strive to be alert and watchful all the time to avoid all prohibited
actions and responses completely.
Increase
Dharmic activities: - Simultaneous with
reducing Adharmic activities, one must try to increase the performance of
Dharmic actions. These are popularly
known as Pancha Maha Yajna in the form of reverential attitude and
worship/service of 1) deities symbolizing divinity (Deva Yajna); 2)
sages and rishis and scriptures (Brahma Yajna); 3) parents and
forefathers (Pitru Yajna); 4) society
at large (Manushya Yajna); 5) animals and plants and the environment
itself (Bhutha Yajna).
Dedicate
all actions to the Lord: - Doing all one’s actions
as worship of Lord, treating material consequences as subservient to spiritual
growth. This is also called Iswararpana Buddhi.
Experience everything as Prasada: - To accept and experience the results of actions as Iswara Prasada,
without complaint, and without question ‘Why me’.
Before
the seeker starts on the spiritual journey, God is in one’s life, only for a
brief moment during prayer at home or in occasional satsang or during a
visit to temple, where he seeks something for himself or for people close to him
or where he seeks to avoid something for himself or for people close to him. He blames everybody else including God, for
things going wrong with him. He wants to
change everything else and everybody else except himself. As he progresses in following the ‘RIDE’ in Karma
Yoga, God-consciousness underpins all his thoughts and actions. In fact
the priority shifts away from material pursuits and his prayers also reflect
it. The seeker seeks Lord’s Grace only
at all times for his spiritual advancement.
Even the material benefits he seeks are to equip him better for progress
in the spiritual path. And as he progresses
in the practice of Karma Yoga, spiritual goal becomes the primary goal
of life and he develops purity of mind conducive for the acquiring and
absorption of Jnanam through Jnana Yoga
Jnana
Yoga consists of three stages; Sravanam, Mananam and Nitidyasanam
leading to acquisition, absorption and assimilation of Self Knowledge through
the analytical study of Sastras. Of these Sravanam, the first
stage is consistent, systematic study of Sastras under a competent Guru
over a length of time where the Guru’s teaching of Sastras acts as a
virtual mirror to discover one’s Self removing Self ignorance. The subject is so subtle and truth it reveals
is so ‘startling’ that Swami Paramarthananda advises one should prepare for it
through PORT reduction where PORT stands for possessions, obligations or responsibilities,
relationships and transactions, which with their demands on time and mental
preoccupation will be an obstacle for deep study and contemplation. So to get quality time for the study of Sastras
and to benefit by it PORT reduction is advised. When one with PORT reduction
goes through consistent and systematic study over a length of time one learns
the Truth from the Vedantic scriptures that was termed ‘startling’
earlier. This message Swamiji
sums up in five capsules which run as:
1) I am of the nature of eternal and all-pervading Consciousness.
2) I am the only source of permanent, peace, security and happiness
3)
By my mere presence, I give life to
the material body and through the body, I experience the material universe. The
word “body” includes the mind because the mind is also a subtle form of body
4)
I am not affected by anything that
takes place in the material world and in the material body, including the
material mind
5)
By forgetting my nature, I convert
life into a struggle and by remembering my nature, I convert life into a sport
or entertainment.
Consciousness, which is defined as oneself, has five features which are,
again in the words of Swamiji:
1) Consciousness is not part, product or property of the body
2) Consciousness is an independent
entity or principle which pervades and enlivens the body
3) Consciousness is not limited by
the boundaries of the body
4) Consciousness continues to exist
or survive even after the death of the body
5) The surviving consciousness is not
accessible because of the absence of the body medium
When the seeker learns the five features of the Consciousness and
relates it to “I” and tries to use the word ‘I’ in the meaning of
Consciousness, several doubts assail him, which have to be cleared through Mananam. Mananam is the process through which all the intellectual obstacles in
the way of absorption of this knowledge is removed and the knowledge gets
converted to conviction. Discussion with Guru and fellow-seekers and also
self-contemplation helps the student to have the doubts clarified and be
intellectually convinced. This doubt-free knowledge has to be assimilated
deconditioning all the negative emotions developed in the ignorant mind so that
it becomes his second nature, which turns him into a Jivan muktha. This process of internalisation of knowledge is effected through Nitidyasanam,
Vedantic meditation. Chapter 6 of Bhagavad
Gita discuses this meditation only. Nitidyasanam
involves meditation on Mahavakhyas that spell out the Jiva Brahma
Ikyam. With successful assimilation
of Mahavakhya teachings, the Vedantic message “Brahma Satyam, Jagat Mithya, Jeevo Brahmaiva
na Parah”, the seeker blossoms into a Jivan Muktha, with his views of
world, God, himself and Moksha completely transformed.
In the new mindset he no longer sees the world in the triangular format
of Iswara, world and Jiva, but only in the binary format of athma and anathma
where athma only is absolute Reality while anathma is only apparently
Real. His goal of Moksha at a
future date is also changed as he sees himself as a Muktha Purusha all the time with the upadhi of body. So in his view no
bondage, no Liberation; no Jivan Mukthi, no Videha Mukthi applies to him. If one after
realization of his inner Divinity can stay steadfast like this with the inner
conviction of the essential Divinity of one and all as well, then
that person can be said to have arrived at the end of the spiritual journey. The journey that started at Aham (ego) and continued to Daso’ham
(triangular format) now ends with the assertion, after Realisation, of So’ham
(binary format).
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