AvadhootaDatta Peetham

Discourse on Yoga Vasishtha

Day 76, November 24

Jaya Guru Datta

Sri Ganesaya Namaha
Sri Saraswatyai Namaha
Sripada Vallabha
Narasimha Saraswati
Sri Guru Dattatreyaya Namaha

Sri Ganapati Sachchidananda Sadgurubhyo Namaha

asato ma sadgamaya
tamaso ma jyotirgamaya
mrityor ma amrtam gamaya
Om Santissantissantihi

Please lead me from untruth to Truth, from darkness to light, from death to immortality. May there be peace.

Yoga Vasishtha Dhyana Slokas:
yatassarvāṇi bhūtāni pratibhānti sthitāni ca
yatraivōpaśamaṁ yānti tasmai satyātmanē namaḥ || 1
jñātā jñānaṁ tathā jñēyaṁ draṣṭādarśana dr̥śyabhūḥ
kartā hētuḥ kriyā yasmāt tasmai jñaptyātmanē namaḥ || 2
sphuranti sīkarā yasmāt ānanandasyāṁbarē vanau
sarvēṣām jīvanam tasmai brahmānandātmanē namaḥ || 3

Om santissantissantihi

In the Yoga Vasishtha in the second prakarana, Mumukshu Vyavahara Prakarana, we have concluded the fourth sarga and we are now entering the fifth sarga.

Mumukshu is he, who has the desire to attain liberation and puts forth an effort to attain it.

Many people ask why we are born. We did not ask to be born, they say. The cause for birth is past karma performed by you. Your own karma is responsible for your birth. The good and bad situations we face in this lifetime are based on the good and bad deeds we performed in our previous lifetimes.

It is very wrong to blame parents for giving you birth and bringing you into this world. They are innocent. They might have prayed for a child. But they did not pray specifically to have you as their child. You were born under certain circumstances to those specific parents because of your karma.

It is wrong to speak bad words to parents.

The purpose of being born is to make sure that we are not born again.

Let us assume that God has decided to give us this particular birth. He must have some intention or some purpose behind it. God has placed great trust upon us to give us this birth. He is the caretaker of our body. Why did He give us birth? He wishes that we should merge into Him. This is the explanation given as per the principle of devotion. But if you consider it the Vedantic way, there is no difference between the Paramatma and the individual soul. This realization we should gain. If we leave this body without attaining this realization, then we will be born again. What is wrong in that? It may lead to endless rebirths like this.

People want to avoid distress and wish to earn happiness. If you are suffering with a severe headache, would you be interested in going to the cinema, or having any other treat? You first wish to get rid of your headache. People want to get rid of their troubles. What causes trouble? Ignorance is the cause of all trouble. That is the root cause. How to get rid of it? You must perform good deeds. You must acquire spiritual wisdom. You must listen to spiritual teachings. You must ponder over them deeply. You must listen to Guru with concentration and faith. You must follow the method given in the scriptures and do sadhana. Then, you will attain Moksha or liberation. That is what is said in the Yoga Vasishtha.

Suka Yogi and Sage Vyasa are Jeevanmuktas. While still residing in the body, they enjoy liberation. There is no necessity to leave the body to enjoy the bliss of liberation. If anyone is told that after ten million years they will get liberation, will they make any effort towards it? No one will do it. People want instant bliss. They want to enjoy and experience it right now, in this lifetime. Vasishtha assures Sri Rama in this Yoga Vasishtha that Sri Rama will also obtain eternal bliss, the way Suka Yogi and Vyasa have attained it.

Here Sage Vasishtha declares that anything can be achieved by deliberate, conscious effort. Rama did not say anything in response, but seeing the expression on his face, and sensing that Sri Rama's mind is entertaining a doubt whether one like him can achieve liberation, affirms that anyone can achieve by making an effort.

Sadguru need not be told everything that is in your mind. He knows intuitively what is going in the minds of disciples.

Many people believe in luck and blame things on bad luck. Vasishtha assures that there is nothing like luck. One must make an effort to accomplish anything.

Vasishtha addresses Rama affectionately and persuades him to place total faith in the teaching of the scriptures and to put in a sincere effort with a strong determination. When one follows the words of Guru, elders, parents and knowledgeable guides as per the prescribed methods mentioned in the scriptures, one is certain to succeed. By doing so, the bad effects of past karma will get canceled.

When people do bad things, often they feel very good about themselves. But the result they obtain will be bad. In the Kali Yuga, the results of karma come quickly. That is the specialty of this Yuga. Perhaps sometimes, not at once, but after ten or twenty years, the result may come.

A severe thirst is experienced, as if without water one would die. During the experience of that thirst, there is money, there are servants, there is plenty of food and water available. But inside the throat there are so many ulcers that not even a drop of water can be swallowed. Such will be the bad consequence of a sinful act.

On the contrary, what would be the result of the performance of a good deed? One would become an emperor of the entire world. That is not a great thing. But having become an emperor, he would wish to give away gladly all that he possesses as if it were no more than a blade of grass. Such peace of mind, contentment, and confidence is the reward for good deeds.

Next, Vasishtha speaks about Paurusha sthapana. Here, purusha has nothing to do with gender. It is deliberate effort. Paurusha sthapana means establish your effort with conviction.

Praaptana and Adyatana are two concepts.

The bondages of karma acquired from past lifetimes is Praptana. Adyatana is what we do in this lifetimes. The two are constantly in conflict. Weighing the strengths of the two, as if they are two fighting rams, Vasishtha announces that certainly the present day effort carries more weight if you put your entire force and conviction into it. But if you lose heart and give up hope and blame everything on bad luck, then your present effort will lose. To be effective, the effort must certainly follow the prescribed procedures.

To go to Bangalore from here, you must travel northward. If you proceed south instead, you will never reach Bangalore. You will end up in Kerala, and ultimately will reach the seashore. Your effort was not scientific or as per the scriptural advice.

This teaching is most needed for the modern youth.

Vasishtha gives an excellent example. Indigestion caused by what was eaten yesterday is getting cured by the medicine that is consumed by us today. Similarly, the negative effects of past karma can be canceled by the good deeds performed by us today. This argument is very convincing considered from all aspects.

pravrttireva prathamam ..

We must conduct the journey of life following a proper road map. If you are arrogant and run a red light, you risk not only your life but the lives of others. The young and the old must learn to follow proper rules. Travel is allowed but with proper direction.

For many people life begins at midnight. In the cities they are out until the early hours of the morning. Health gets spoiled. Many youths do this every week. They rebel against tradition and rules. They claim that they have every right to lead their lives as per their own whim and wish. They have the time and the money to blow off. But they will destroy their health. Those who follow the rules remain safe.

There are two paths. Pravrtti, and Nivrtti. If we are following the path of pravrtti, outward view, we must follow rules. If we follow the path of nivrtti, going totally inward, then external rules are superfluous, since their path only leads towards liberation.

Pravritti path is the path where one is concerned about oneself, family, society, possessions, fame, and so forth. Seeking pleasures here or in heaven, and thinking of the hereafter after securing the affairs of family and friends, and doing sadhana to attain liberation after giving up the body, is called the path of Pravrtti. While on this path, how to conduct ourselves is ordained by the Vedas. There are only two paths in this world, that of karma, and that of knowledge. In the karma path, if you do good, you gain good; if you do bad, you acquire bad. In the Jnana path, all that matters is that you understand the principles correctly and clearly, and then you will be on the road to liberation. In the karma way, if you understand the concept of Karma Yoga, and practice without expecting any benefit, that also will lead you to liberation.

Initially, karma has to be performed. Some argue that they are at a higher spiritual level and do not need to engage in any prescribed karma. As per what is prescribed by Guru, the Vedas, and scriptures, one must tread the path of karma. This instruction serves as the instrument for all activities, just as light, be it from the sun or a small lamp, helps us to see things.

Bhagavad Gita says that one who wishes to reach the top level called Jnana, has to first engage in Satkarma, performance of noble activities. That is what Guru advices. Do charity, do service. Do worship with a deliberate effort. It should be done fearlessly, wholeheartedly, and with determined dedication. The scriptural teachings should neither be ignored nor transgressed. If they are distorted, bent, or transgressed, misfortune results.

Sastra says that at night one should not bathe in rivers and oceans. You must say a prayer before touching the ocean waters. If you get into a river on new moon night when it is totally dark, and suddenly the river rises, what will happen to you? You will be washed away in the flood. We must never forget that Guru is our well-wisher.

Whatever he says is for our benefit. We must have that faith. In many circumstances in life, Guru gives us good advice on how to overcome our difficulties. What is the use if the advice is not followed? Just keeping a good intention in the mind and when it comes to applying it in action, the person takes the wrong footing, he is bound to suffer a downfall. His mind gets perverted and he will fail in his attempts to succeed at anything. The person gets deluded.

Such actions are mad antics which bode no good whatsoever.

yathaa..

As we act, so will God act. This is a rule etched in stone. We cannot do a wrong thing and expect a good result. There is no such thing as good luck, which gives a good result for a bad deed.

Uchchastram ..

Going against Sastra is called Ucchastram. Sastritam is following Guru's and scriptural instruction. These are the two ways of acting. The first gives a negative result. The second gives a beneficial result.

dvau..

Like two rams fighting, the past karma and the karma of the present life will always be locking horns. The one that you give more strength to, will certainly win. If you are afraid of the strength of your past karma and feed it with your fear, certainly it will win. You must act in such a way that the actions performed here and now in this lifetime will have the upper hand. Sometimes the task before you may appear insurmountable. It would appear as if you are fighting against God. How is it possible to win? Many people get discouraged, give up and lose the fight. But history gives us many examples of those who have succeeded in their attempts to overcome all types of adversities.

In the Life History of our Sadguru we clearly see such instances. At least by observing and learning from his example, we must understand that such a thing can be done. How many difficulties and calamities he went through in his childhood! Yet, he surmounted all of them and came out ahead. Look at it from the physical point of view. Do not argue that he is an incarnation of Lord Datta. That is a different matter. As an individual, see how he faced and won the challenges during his childhood and youth. Of the two rams fighting, the one that is better fed and is given more stamina will certainly win.

Vasishtha says, therefore, make a deliberate effort to overcome your difficulties by following the true and tested methods suggested by your Guru.

When people approach Sri Swamiji with difficulties, he says: Chant the Datta Stavam. Read the Datta Darsanam. Perform the Sankashtahara vrata or the Satyanarayana Vrata. He may suggest getting a homa performed. He may suggest a charity, a japa, or an annadana. Guru will give the same suggestion when the same people approach him a second time saying that their efforts have failed. Why? It is because the strength of their past bad karma is so strong, that they have to further strengthen their attempts now, to defeat the past karma. That is why they are not getting good results yet. That mountain of sins has to get destroyed by continuous good deeds performed now.

For everything, there are certain rules and regulations.

Laziness has to be given up. Inertia stops us from engaging in the required action immediately. It will tempt us to procrastinate. Once such a tendency is detected, one must fight it, and jump into action at once. The good sense within us will be asleep and it is necessary to awaken it with firmness repeatedly, by slapping it awake. We must detect our tendency for causing delay and nip it in the bud. If laziness is encouraged, it will drown us. Mother Goddess is called Tandradoora - one who destroys laziness.

Sadyogaat means with proper consideration, as per the instruction given by noble souls, and with discretion. One must remember the good advice heard before, and apply it in one's actions. When such conviction and determination are there, that will generate the strength within, to vanquish the bad karma of the past.

verse:

The two rams are not always equal in their strength. What if they are equally strong? Then which one will win? The one that continues to fight tirelessly, will win. The one that gives up the fight will lose. Aatmeeyaha is what we do today. Anyadeeyaha is past karma. It is our opponent. It is as if someone else had done that past karma.

Sometimes people complain that for some sins perpetrated by their forefathers, they are having to suffer now. They question the justification of that. The Sastras have an answer for that. The reason that the great grandson is suffering the consequences of the sins performed by his great grandfather is this, that it is the same great grandfather who is now reborn as the great grandson. He himself is the author of his past bad karma. That we must understand.

God has made his plan very simple and straightforward. There is no need for any further maintenance or repair work required in this plan. He has set the machine in motion. It will only stop when we get out of its mechanism. That is why the Sastras caution us that we have to be careful with our actions because what we do now will affect the lives of our future generations. The meaning of this is that you will be reborn as your own grandson or great grandson to reap the consequences of your past actions. We get reborn as our future generations. The Veda spells it out very clearly: Atmaavai putranaamaasi.

You will be born as your own progeny to punish yourself. It is your own finger which will hurt you if it gets injured. The son who torments you is none other than you, reborn as your son to give you the pain that you have earned. God made it extremely simple. One has to be extremely careful in one's actions.

Vasishtha says that the ram which is 'atibala' will succeed. The term atibala is used to describe Lord Hanuman. Sri Rama, while praying to Hanuman addressed him as 'atibala' (super strong). As Mother Sita prayed to Hanuman with the shloka, "Tvamasmin karyaniryoge pramanam harisattama, hanuman yatnamasthaya duhkhakshaya karobhava", prior to that, Rama prayed to Hanuman for help.

Hanuman, an ordinary monkey crossed the ocean. How is it possible? It was his effort. It was his faith in Lord Rama. Once, Hanuman, while giving Upadesha to Arjuna said that the reason for his crossing the ocean three times was only the grace of Lord Rama. It was Hanuman's faith in his effort and in the grace of Rama that made him succeed. How did Rama win against the great warrior Ravana, with the help of mere monkeys? It was his faith in his effort.

anarthah ...

Sometimes, even after we do good deeds, as per all the rules, still, some untoward incident occurs right afterwards.

A family would have visited a temple after a long delay, just completed a puja to their satisfaction. On their way back from the temple, the man trips over a rock and injures himself. How will the man react? He will curse that he never wished to go to a temple in the first place, because there you are required to remove the footwear and you become vulnerable to injuries. Why did this bad thing happen after I did something good?

The explanation is this: Had he remained at home, he perhaps would have died due to some other reason. Because he came to the temple, he is escaping with a small injury. The grace of God and the grace of Guru have saved his life.

When the wealth of negative karma that is stored in you is greater, then, the small merit you have earned by your puja is not going to be enough to cancel it out. If you owe a thousand rupees, and if with good effort you have only earned ten rupees, how can this small amount repay that huge debt? Whereas if your debt is only ten rupees, and you have now earned a thousand rupees with your good karma, your loan gets easily paid off.

Whatever logic we see in daily life, the same logic applies in spiritual life also. People grind their lower teeth with their upper teeth when they get furious. Like that, with the earned profuse good karma, one can, and should, grind to dust the past negative karma.

Praakta ..

The more power we give to our past karma, the less are our chances of defeating it. All negative thoughts must be given up. One who looks around at his poverty-ridden setting and loses heart that he can ever get out of the rut, will remain there. One who holds tremendous faith in his own effort and works hard to rise above his circumstances, will not only make himself elevated and worthy, but will help a hundred others who are associated with him. Never say, it is my karma, and I cannot rise above it. You pray to God to give you the strength to overcome your unfavorable situation.

No one gives us such good advice as is being given to us now by sage Vasishtha. When you get sick, you must get the proper treatment and get well. You must never reconcile to your fate and deteriorate further. Ignorance can be defeated. Maya can be overcome. Delusion can be destroyed. What is required is proper, consistent effort.

taavattaavat...

The effort must continue until the entire heap of bad karma from the past is completely burned or exhausted. Then happiness will certainly result.

This teaching is absolutely required in this present day, for the youth. It is important at the outset to consider whether one's plan of action is recommended or not, and then one must proceed with sustained effort with confidence and consistency. Guru and elders should be consulted and their advice should be sought prior to embarking on a plan. One should not foolishly attempt the impossible and become a failure and a laughing stock. It is essential to follow the guidance of Guru and parents.

We will continue tomorrow.

Please listen to the Bhagavata parayana during the day and the discourse in Tamil in the evening. Bhagavatam is close to the heart of Sadgurudeva and Sri Jayalakshmi Mata. The same teaching is given in the Bhagavatam as is given in the Vedas. It is made interesting with many interwoven stories. It is Veda Vyasa who has composed the epic.

Jaya Guru Datta
Sri Guru Datta

Om santissantissantihi