Hari Aum.
One of the challenges of spiritual life is that the seeker has to learn to perfect even the smallest act. This is very hard work. One has to train the eye to see God even in the most ungodly people and things. No matter how severe the provocation, one has to train the mind not to react. This is a terrible task, a tremendous challenge. Every experience of anger, jealousy, greed, craving, pride in the mind is a failing. To fail is ok, it is a step towards success. To make a mistake is ok, but one should acknowledge it and take responsibility (and not blame others).
I want to be perfectly frank here and state that my mind, like that of most others, has two sides. There is the noble, the spiritual, the aspiring side. And there is the other side- that gets grumpy, irritable, negative. There is a Mahabharata (great war) going on in my mind, like in the mind of all spiritual seekers. There is a war between the positive, divine, sattvic forces and the negative, undivine, tamasic energies. The daily recitation of mantra helps to empower the divine energies in the mind and weaken and remove the negative, undivine energies. Reciting a mantra or meditating daily is like having a mental bath. It is necessary for mental hygiene.
The smallest act matters in spiritual life. No progress can be made if one does not pay attention to these. I would like to share an example here of a recent mistake that I made- when I failed to pay attention in a small act and what I learnt from this. It is a rather sad story in some ways.
In the winter here, it gets quite cold and my husband and I had put some seeds out in the garden in a feeder for the birds. We enjoyed watching various birds come and feed - it was a mutually beneficial experience, the birds got food and we enjoyed watching them (some are very cute).
One day, sometime in January this year, a small mouse appeared in the garden and began to eat a lot of the bird food with great energy. We were both rather concerned and wondered what to do. We did not want to stop feeding the birds but did not wish to encourage the mouse due to the risk of causing an infestation that could have affected both our house and the neighbourhood.
On one occasion, I became annoyed and alarmed watching the mouse eat continuously from the feeder - my mind imagined large numbers of mice in the garden and the house. This would not have been good from a health perspective, as mice, although cute, do carry some serious diseases.
I therefore went out into the garden and loudly clapped my hands to scare off the mouse. It looked at me in some surprise (as if wondering why I would try to scare it) and then continued eating. Again, I went closer and clapped more energetically- this made it run away.
After scaring it off, I went indoors. For a few moments I felt satisfied that I had accomplished my task. Soon after though, I began to experience a very uncomfortable feeling. I realised that I had caused fear in another creature- that too, an innocent animal which was only eating because it was hungry like any other (it was simply trying to survive on a cold winter's day).
I had a strange conviction that this act of mine was ignoble, cruel and would not be pleasing to God and Guru- after all, God and Guru are present everywhere including inside the mouse. In the Gita, Krishna says He resides in the heart of all beings. He does not say, only human beings. He says all beings- that includes animals and birds.
In other words, I felt that I had been cruel to a living form of Narayana in the form of the mouse. This act I felt was not befitting one who was trying to develop devotion to Narayana. I felt remorse and regret for my unkind behaviour.
After a while, I noticed the mouse returned to the garden and was cheerfully eating plenty of seeds from the feeder. This time, I did not go and frighten it away. I decided to let it eat as much as it liked. However, from a health perspective, the next day, I decided to close off the entrance to the feeder that the mouse was using and let it eat only the limited seeds on the ground (to reduce the risk of mice infestation). I decided that, while I would not actively hurt the mouse in any way in future (including causing it any fear), I would take sensible steps from a health perspective.
However, the nagging feeling that I had done something wrong and that I had not properly atoned for this did not leave me. I then decided that, to become free of the feeling of guilt from having carelessly hurt a harmless creature, I would dedicate a portion of my mantra chanting tapas to the mouse's spiritual welfare.
I told Narayana, that whatever tapas I had done during the week of the eclipse in February this year (which was the previous week from when I made this prayer), including several rounds of japa during the actual eclipse, should be dedicated towards the spiritual welfare of the soul which currently inhabited the body of the mouse. Mantra done during an eclipse is said to be several hundred thousand times more effective than at other times, so I hoped that this would be a decent attempt at atoning for my negative act.
I also apologised for harming any souls in the form of animals, birds or other species, knowingly or unknowingly, in this and all previous lifetimes and dedicated that week of mantra chanting to all of them. After this, I gave the mouse a name, and enjoyed watching it come and eat seeds in the garden from time to time. There was no mouse infestation - only one mouse (I assume it was the same one) would appear daily to eat a few seeds and then go away.
Spring began a few weeks ago and one day, my husband and I happened to be sitting on the sofa and looking out into the garden. Suddenly, we saw the mouse. By this time, we had come to recognise it rather well and were pleased to see it (my husband had even taken some close-up photographs as it was rather cute and quite fearless).
It was an idyllic sight. The sun glinted on the leaves, flowers bloomed in the bushes and the mouse played on the grass. Suddenly, to our horror, a large magpie swooped down and grasped the mouse by the neck and began to viciously peck at it. The mouse went limp and did not appear to fight back. I looked away in shock, and the bird flew off with the mouse. We have not seen the mouse since and can only assume that it has died. We chanted the Maha-mrityunjaya mantra for the peace of the soul of the mouse (as it was a rather unpleasant way to die) and to make ourselves feel better (we were rather traumatised at the horrible sight).
Nature has an incredibly beautiful and an incredibly terrible side. The episode reminded me again that things can change so quickly. One moment, the mouse was playing cheerfully in the garden. The next minute it was in the vicious grip of a bird, breathing its last. Life changes in seconds.
Cruel though this world is, I suppose it goads us to seek a realm where such cruelty does not exist. One feel shocked at the murderous brutality that abounds everywhere on Earth, and most of all, among human beings (who can behave with a cruelty that animals lack). Seeing the viciousness and cruelty all around- under the beauty of Nature lies such terrible cruelty - one cannot help but agree with Lord Krishna as He says in the Gita- this world is an impermanent world of suffering ('dukhalaya'), seek a way out O Arjuna.
And that is what I guess we are all trying to do as spiritual seekers. Seek a way out. Seeking freedom from the cruelty within and without. I hope the tapas dedicated to the mouse will help it have a better rebirth and that it may quickly attain eternal peace at the feet of Narayana. I am glad I made my apologies to it before it died (would have felt worse otherwise). This episode also reminded me to take care in terms of how I behave towards other species on Earth as these are also manifestations of God.
May God and Guru bless us all to continue on the spiritual path to find a way out of this dukhalaya (abode of sorrow).
Hari Aum Tat Sat
One of the challenges of spiritual life is that the seeker has to learn to perfect even the smallest act. This is very hard work. One has to train the eye to see God even in the most ungodly people and things. No matter how severe the provocation, one has to train the mind not to react. This is a terrible task, a tremendous challenge. Every experience of anger, jealousy, greed, craving, pride in the mind is a failing. To fail is ok, it is a step towards success. To make a mistake is ok, but one should acknowledge it and take responsibility (and not blame others).
I want to be perfectly frank here and state that my mind, like that of most others, has two sides. There is the noble, the spiritual, the aspiring side. And there is the other side- that gets grumpy, irritable, negative. There is a Mahabharata (great war) going on in my mind, like in the mind of all spiritual seekers. There is a war between the positive, divine, sattvic forces and the negative, undivine, tamasic energies. The daily recitation of mantra helps to empower the divine energies in the mind and weaken and remove the negative, undivine energies. Reciting a mantra or meditating daily is like having a mental bath. It is necessary for mental hygiene.
The smallest act matters in spiritual life. No progress can be made if one does not pay attention to these. I would like to share an example here of a recent mistake that I made- when I failed to pay attention in a small act and what I learnt from this. It is a rather sad story in some ways.
In the winter here, it gets quite cold and my husband and I had put some seeds out in the garden in a feeder for the birds. We enjoyed watching various birds come and feed - it was a mutually beneficial experience, the birds got food and we enjoyed watching them (some are very cute).
One day, sometime in January this year, a small mouse appeared in the garden and began to eat a lot of the bird food with great energy. We were both rather concerned and wondered what to do. We did not want to stop feeding the birds but did not wish to encourage the mouse due to the risk of causing an infestation that could have affected both our house and the neighbourhood.
On one occasion, I became annoyed and alarmed watching the mouse eat continuously from the feeder - my mind imagined large numbers of mice in the garden and the house. This would not have been good from a health perspective, as mice, although cute, do carry some serious diseases.
I therefore went out into the garden and loudly clapped my hands to scare off the mouse. It looked at me in some surprise (as if wondering why I would try to scare it) and then continued eating. Again, I went closer and clapped more energetically- this made it run away.
After scaring it off, I went indoors. For a few moments I felt satisfied that I had accomplished my task. Soon after though, I began to experience a very uncomfortable feeling. I realised that I had caused fear in another creature- that too, an innocent animal which was only eating because it was hungry like any other (it was simply trying to survive on a cold winter's day).
I had a strange conviction that this act of mine was ignoble, cruel and would not be pleasing to God and Guru- after all, God and Guru are present everywhere including inside the mouse. In the Gita, Krishna says He resides in the heart of all beings. He does not say, only human beings. He says all beings- that includes animals and birds.
In other words, I felt that I had been cruel to a living form of Narayana in the form of the mouse. This act I felt was not befitting one who was trying to develop devotion to Narayana. I felt remorse and regret for my unkind behaviour.
After a while, I noticed the mouse returned to the garden and was cheerfully eating plenty of seeds from the feeder. This time, I did not go and frighten it away. I decided to let it eat as much as it liked. However, from a health perspective, the next day, I decided to close off the entrance to the feeder that the mouse was using and let it eat only the limited seeds on the ground (to reduce the risk of mice infestation). I decided that, while I would not actively hurt the mouse in any way in future (including causing it any fear), I would take sensible steps from a health perspective.
However, the nagging feeling that I had done something wrong and that I had not properly atoned for this did not leave me. I then decided that, to become free of the feeling of guilt from having carelessly hurt a harmless creature, I would dedicate a portion of my mantra chanting tapas to the mouse's spiritual welfare.
I told Narayana, that whatever tapas I had done during the week of the eclipse in February this year (which was the previous week from when I made this prayer), including several rounds of japa during the actual eclipse, should be dedicated towards the spiritual welfare of the soul which currently inhabited the body of the mouse. Mantra done during an eclipse is said to be several hundred thousand times more effective than at other times, so I hoped that this would be a decent attempt at atoning for my negative act.
I also apologised for harming any souls in the form of animals, birds or other species, knowingly or unknowingly, in this and all previous lifetimes and dedicated that week of mantra chanting to all of them. After this, I gave the mouse a name, and enjoyed watching it come and eat seeds in the garden from time to time. There was no mouse infestation - only one mouse (I assume it was the same one) would appear daily to eat a few seeds and then go away.
Spring began a few weeks ago and one day, my husband and I happened to be sitting on the sofa and looking out into the garden. Suddenly, we saw the mouse. By this time, we had come to recognise it rather well and were pleased to see it (my husband had even taken some close-up photographs as it was rather cute and quite fearless).
It was an idyllic sight. The sun glinted on the leaves, flowers bloomed in the bushes and the mouse played on the grass. Suddenly, to our horror, a large magpie swooped down and grasped the mouse by the neck and began to viciously peck at it. The mouse went limp and did not appear to fight back. I looked away in shock, and the bird flew off with the mouse. We have not seen the mouse since and can only assume that it has died. We chanted the Maha-mrityunjaya mantra for the peace of the soul of the mouse (as it was a rather unpleasant way to die) and to make ourselves feel better (we were rather traumatised at the horrible sight).
Nature has an incredibly beautiful and an incredibly terrible side. The episode reminded me again that things can change so quickly. One moment, the mouse was playing cheerfully in the garden. The next minute it was in the vicious grip of a bird, breathing its last. Life changes in seconds.
Cruel though this world is, I suppose it goads us to seek a realm where such cruelty does not exist. One feel shocked at the murderous brutality that abounds everywhere on Earth, and most of all, among human beings (who can behave with a cruelty that animals lack). Seeing the viciousness and cruelty all around- under the beauty of Nature lies such terrible cruelty - one cannot help but agree with Lord Krishna as He says in the Gita- this world is an impermanent world of suffering ('dukhalaya'), seek a way out O Arjuna.
And that is what I guess we are all trying to do as spiritual seekers. Seek a way out. Seeking freedom from the cruelty within and without. I hope the tapas dedicated to the mouse will help it have a better rebirth and that it may quickly attain eternal peace at the feet of Narayana. I am glad I made my apologies to it before it died (would have felt worse otherwise). This episode also reminded me to take care in terms of how I behave towards other species on Earth as these are also manifestations of God.
May God and Guru bless us all to continue on the spiritual path to find a way out of this dukhalaya (abode of sorrow).
Hari Aum Tat Sat
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