Hari Aum.
Many of us who are on the spiritual path wonder whether we are progressing. Many people define spiritual progress in different ways. Here I will share the views of my Guru Sivananda on this issue.
The ultimate test of spiritual progress is not whether one can fly, has siddhis, can materialise things, have spiritual dreams, have interesting experiences in meditation such as seeing lights/colours and so on. All these things may or may not indicate spiritual progress. People who are not at all spiritual, who have no humility or devotion, can also develop such powers- these are not indicative of true spirituality.
However one thing definitely indicates spiritual progress- that is being able to forgive those who harm one. Let us examine this further.
It is said in yoga philosophy, that those people who:
1. Do good to those who do good to them, and do evil to those who do evil to them are average human beings. We have all experienced this. We like people who are nice to us, and dislike those who are nasty to us. This is what we call 'normal' behaviour in society and the majority of human beings on our planet are like this. Such people have a mixture of sattva, rajas and tamas.
2. Do evil to those who do good to them are asuric/demonic in nature. Those who harm people who have done good to them are filled with rajas and tamas. Such people are also ultimately divine (we are all part of God) but have a long way to go to manifest the divine within them.
3. Do good to those who do evil to them are divine/saintly in nature. This takes a long time to develop. This shows spiritual maturity. This is the hallmark of every saint since time immemorial. This is the nature of those who have attained God, or those who are on their way to doing so.
The hallmark of true saints
The hallmark of a saint is not whether they can exhibit some magic tricks, read one's mind, walk on water, fly in the air or any of these things. A saint may be able to do all this, but this is not saintliness.
The hallmark of a saint is tremendous compassion which manifests as an extraordinary ability to forgive those who harm them.
Some famous examples are well-known. Jesus is regarded as a great yogi, a great master by those who walk the path of yoga. He may have walked on water, but this was not what made him a saint. His amazing saintliness shone through when he was treated most brutally by ignorant people who could not understand his greatness. Despite being treated in a most terrible way, he remained deeply compassionate and forgiving, even saying "Father forgive them, they know not what they do". This conduct revealed his divine nature to the whole world.
Similarly Buddha demonstrated great compassion. In his previous lifetime, before he became the Buddha, he is said to have seen a hungry starving mother tigress who was about to eat her own cubs as there was nothing else to eat. Buddha seeing this, offered his life to her so that the cubs would live. It was this wondrous compassion that was the hallmark of the individual who later became the great Buddha, the embodiment of love and wisdom.
In this context I will also mention a more recent example of compassion and forgiveness which involved my Guru Sivananda.
One evening during a satsang at my Guru's Ashram in Rishikesh, a man appeared out of the blue with an axe and tried to attack and kill Sivananda. He came close to Sivananda and would have succeeded but for the quick actions of some disciples who caught hold of him in time. The police were called and the man was arrested and spent a night in the local prison. The next morning, Sivananda visited the prisoner who tried to kill him in jail and worshipped him as a manifestation of God- he presented the man with garlands and sweets. He then requested the police to set the man free without any punishment- the police were not at all happy with the idea and said the man might return to try to kill Sivananda again. However Gurudev was adamant that he wanted no punishment for the man and he was released. This experience transformed the mindset of this man and he is said to have become a disciple of Sivananda and taken up spiritual life. This is the transforming power of compassion and forgiveness.
I will also briefly mention as interesting story of compassion from the Bhagavata Purana. A noble king called Ambarisha was a great devotee of God who he worshipped in the form of Vishnu. He had kept the sacred Ekadasi fast which is observed by devotees of Vishnu. He was about to complete the ritual by breaking the fast the next day when the sage Durvasa arrived. Now Durvasa was famous for his anger and tendency to put terrible curses on people who annoyed him.
Ambarisha greeted him and invited him to join him for a meal - kings would always show respect to great sages. Durvasa agreed but said he needed to bathe first and went off. Now Ambarisha had a problem. He needed to break the fast right away to complete the ritual of worshipping Vishnu. But if he ate before his guest, this would be disrespectful. So as a compromise, he decided to take a sip of water only and did not eat anything while waiting for Durvasa to return.
When Durvasa returned, he realised through his yogic vision that the king had taken a sip of water and broken his fast. He felt angry and insulted thinking that the king had broken his fast before he, the guest, had eaten. In great anger, he pulled out one of his hairs which he made into a demon- he ordered the demon to kill the king.
However before the demon could do anything, the mighty weapon of Vishnu, the great discus known as Sudarshan Chakra appeared and destroyed it. Then the mighty weapon turned on Durvasa to destroy him. Durvasa ran all over the three worlds, and then to Brahma and Shiva who both said they could not help him. He then went to Vishnu Himself and begged for forgiveness. Vishnu advised him to go and ask for forgiveness from the king Ambarisha. The king, on hearing about the unfortunate situation of the sage, immediately prayed to Vishnu to forgive him. Vishnu then withdrew the Sudarshan Chakra and the life of Durvasa was spared.
This story shows that a true devotee of God is one who has compassion and forgiveness in great measure like the king Ambarisha. And that people who have mind-reading powers and wander about as sages, such as Durvasa, may have siddhis, but they have no true devotion to God.
Krishna famously gives the definition of a true devotee in the twelfth chapter, called Yoga of devotion, of the Bhagavad Gita:
"He who hates no creature, who is friendly and compassionate to all, who is free from attachment and egoism, balanced in pleasure and pain, and forgiving, ever content, steady in meditation, possessed of firm conviction, self-controlled, with mind and intellect dedicated to Me, he My devotee, is dear to Me"
This forgiveness of saints is born of great compassion, of great wisdom and understanding of the mindset of those who do harm. People who do harm to others are usually suffering themselves. They have ignorant ideas about right and wrong, they harm others and themselves too. They suffer terrible negative karmic reactions for their negative actions. The Divine Law of Karma gives them appropriate punishments for their cruel negative deeds.
A saint sees all this, and probably more. A saint can see when we are in the grip of rajas and tamas, negative thinking. They know the suffering we are going through, and the suffering that is to come to us as a result of our negative thoughts and actions.
Furthermore, a saint is ever rooted in God. S/he knows that their true essence is immortal soul, Atman, ever united with God.
As the Bhagavad Gita says, the soul, Atman, cannot be harmed in anyway by any force on Earth or elsewhere. Water cannot wet it, fire cannot burn it, the wind cannot dry it, a sword cannot kill it. It is ever immortal, ever blissful, full of wisdom and beyond the comprehension of the mind and intellect. So ultimately, saints who have experienced their true nature as Atman know that no harm can be done to them. However they are filled with pity for ignorant people who identify with the body-mind complex and try to harm them.
A true saint has three main qualities:
1. Wisdom- a saint has discovered his/her nature as one with God, is ever united with God. S/he rejoices in the bliss and peace of God experience, far beyond worldly conflicts and suffering.
2. Compassion- having attained the supreme heights of God-experience and eternal peace, saints feel compassionate for those who have not yet done so. They see the suffering of such people and try to help those who also seek to walk the spiritual path. They try to motivate people to walk the spiritual path. And they feel great compassion for those who turn away from the spiritual path and engage in negative self-destructive activity which leads to suffering.
3. Forgiveness- a saint understands the nature of human minds- its changeable nature, its impurities- full of lust, anger, greed, jealousy, pride and delusion. So when deluded humans attack them, they who have reached a state beyond all attack, are filled with compassion for such unfortunate self-destructive beings. Because ultimately, it is not the saint but the one who tries to harm them who suffers.
The acid test of spiritual progress
So when we ask ourselves "Am I progressing in spiritual life?" we should consider- am I growing in compassion, forgiveness and understanding towards other living beings? Not have I got siddhis/mind-reading and other meaningless powers.
One may have stood on one leg doing tapas for forty years, one may have given up food and drink and be living on air only, one may be doing japa all day long, one may be able to do the most impossible asanas and the most difficult pranayamas, one may have memorised all the scriptures and be able to quote them with ease, one may have acquired some siddhis like clairvoyance or mind-reading- all this matters nothing if one gets angry with others and has thoughts of harming them, if one is cruel to animals, birds and insects, if one has pride, jealousy and hatred for others.
All such magic tricks are worth nothing. The only thing that matters in spiritual life is character development. A spotlessly clean and pure mind, a heart that beats with compassion for all other living beings, an incredible ability to forgive and genuinely wish well those who harm one- this is the acid test of spiritual progress.
We may not be there yet, but if there is some improvement in our ability to forgive those who harm us, then we are progressing. If we feel genuine grief for those who suffer, and do not just stop here- if we actually start taking some action and do something practical for others on this planet who are suffering, we can say we are progressing in spiritual life.
If we lose interest in winning battles with others to prove who is right and who is wrong, we can say we are progressing in spiritual life. We must express our views of course if we feel they are correct but no need to force them down anyone's throat. Let people think, say and do whatever they feel they must- there are seven billion people on this planet and each has his/her own way. We are all free to act as we please, but we must then face the consequences of our actions as per the law of karma.
This character development may sound boring and dull, it may sound much less glamorous than having siddhis, clairvoyance, mind-reading and so on, but it is the only way to God. Only a spotlessly clean and pure mind and heart can attain God.
The purpose of all yogic practices is to purify the mind and heart and develop true devotion to God. Mantra japa and service of living beings is the formula advised by my Guru Sivananda for rapid spiritual progress.
Hari Aum Tat Sat
Many of us who are on the spiritual path wonder whether we are progressing. Many people define spiritual progress in different ways. Here I will share the views of my Guru Sivananda on this issue.
The ultimate test of spiritual progress is not whether one can fly, has siddhis, can materialise things, have spiritual dreams, have interesting experiences in meditation such as seeing lights/colours and so on. All these things may or may not indicate spiritual progress. People who are not at all spiritual, who have no humility or devotion, can also develop such powers- these are not indicative of true spirituality.
However one thing definitely indicates spiritual progress- that is being able to forgive those who harm one. Let us examine this further.
It is said in yoga philosophy, that those people who:
1. Do good to those who do good to them, and do evil to those who do evil to them are average human beings. We have all experienced this. We like people who are nice to us, and dislike those who are nasty to us. This is what we call 'normal' behaviour in society and the majority of human beings on our planet are like this. Such people have a mixture of sattva, rajas and tamas.
2. Do evil to those who do good to them are asuric/demonic in nature. Those who harm people who have done good to them are filled with rajas and tamas. Such people are also ultimately divine (we are all part of God) but have a long way to go to manifest the divine within them.
3. Do good to those who do evil to them are divine/saintly in nature. This takes a long time to develop. This shows spiritual maturity. This is the hallmark of every saint since time immemorial. This is the nature of those who have attained God, or those who are on their way to doing so.
The hallmark of true saints
The hallmark of a saint is not whether they can exhibit some magic tricks, read one's mind, walk on water, fly in the air or any of these things. A saint may be able to do all this, but this is not saintliness.
The hallmark of a saint is tremendous compassion which manifests as an extraordinary ability to forgive those who harm them.
Some famous examples are well-known. Jesus is regarded as a great yogi, a great master by those who walk the path of yoga. He may have walked on water, but this was not what made him a saint. His amazing saintliness shone through when he was treated most brutally by ignorant people who could not understand his greatness. Despite being treated in a most terrible way, he remained deeply compassionate and forgiving, even saying "Father forgive them, they know not what they do". This conduct revealed his divine nature to the whole world.
Similarly Buddha demonstrated great compassion. In his previous lifetime, before he became the Buddha, he is said to have seen a hungry starving mother tigress who was about to eat her own cubs as there was nothing else to eat. Buddha seeing this, offered his life to her so that the cubs would live. It was this wondrous compassion that was the hallmark of the individual who later became the great Buddha, the embodiment of love and wisdom.
In this context I will also mention a more recent example of compassion and forgiveness which involved my Guru Sivananda.
One evening during a satsang at my Guru's Ashram in Rishikesh, a man appeared out of the blue with an axe and tried to attack and kill Sivananda. He came close to Sivananda and would have succeeded but for the quick actions of some disciples who caught hold of him in time. The police were called and the man was arrested and spent a night in the local prison. The next morning, Sivananda visited the prisoner who tried to kill him in jail and worshipped him as a manifestation of God- he presented the man with garlands and sweets. He then requested the police to set the man free without any punishment- the police were not at all happy with the idea and said the man might return to try to kill Sivananda again. However Gurudev was adamant that he wanted no punishment for the man and he was released. This experience transformed the mindset of this man and he is said to have become a disciple of Sivananda and taken up spiritual life. This is the transforming power of compassion and forgiveness.
I will also briefly mention as interesting story of compassion from the Bhagavata Purana. A noble king called Ambarisha was a great devotee of God who he worshipped in the form of Vishnu. He had kept the sacred Ekadasi fast which is observed by devotees of Vishnu. He was about to complete the ritual by breaking the fast the next day when the sage Durvasa arrived. Now Durvasa was famous for his anger and tendency to put terrible curses on people who annoyed him.
Ambarisha greeted him and invited him to join him for a meal - kings would always show respect to great sages. Durvasa agreed but said he needed to bathe first and went off. Now Ambarisha had a problem. He needed to break the fast right away to complete the ritual of worshipping Vishnu. But if he ate before his guest, this would be disrespectful. So as a compromise, he decided to take a sip of water only and did not eat anything while waiting for Durvasa to return.
When Durvasa returned, he realised through his yogic vision that the king had taken a sip of water and broken his fast. He felt angry and insulted thinking that the king had broken his fast before he, the guest, had eaten. In great anger, he pulled out one of his hairs which he made into a demon- he ordered the demon to kill the king.
However before the demon could do anything, the mighty weapon of Vishnu, the great discus known as Sudarshan Chakra appeared and destroyed it. Then the mighty weapon turned on Durvasa to destroy him. Durvasa ran all over the three worlds, and then to Brahma and Shiva who both said they could not help him. He then went to Vishnu Himself and begged for forgiveness. Vishnu advised him to go and ask for forgiveness from the king Ambarisha. The king, on hearing about the unfortunate situation of the sage, immediately prayed to Vishnu to forgive him. Vishnu then withdrew the Sudarshan Chakra and the life of Durvasa was spared.
This story shows that a true devotee of God is one who has compassion and forgiveness in great measure like the king Ambarisha. And that people who have mind-reading powers and wander about as sages, such as Durvasa, may have siddhis, but they have no true devotion to God.
Krishna famously gives the definition of a true devotee in the twelfth chapter, called Yoga of devotion, of the Bhagavad Gita:
"He who hates no creature, who is friendly and compassionate to all, who is free from attachment and egoism, balanced in pleasure and pain, and forgiving, ever content, steady in meditation, possessed of firm conviction, self-controlled, with mind and intellect dedicated to Me, he My devotee, is dear to Me"
This forgiveness of saints is born of great compassion, of great wisdom and understanding of the mindset of those who do harm. People who do harm to others are usually suffering themselves. They have ignorant ideas about right and wrong, they harm others and themselves too. They suffer terrible negative karmic reactions for their negative actions. The Divine Law of Karma gives them appropriate punishments for their cruel negative deeds.
A saint sees all this, and probably more. A saint can see when we are in the grip of rajas and tamas, negative thinking. They know the suffering we are going through, and the suffering that is to come to us as a result of our negative thoughts and actions.
Furthermore, a saint is ever rooted in God. S/he knows that their true essence is immortal soul, Atman, ever united with God.
As the Bhagavad Gita says, the soul, Atman, cannot be harmed in anyway by any force on Earth or elsewhere. Water cannot wet it, fire cannot burn it, the wind cannot dry it, a sword cannot kill it. It is ever immortal, ever blissful, full of wisdom and beyond the comprehension of the mind and intellect. So ultimately, saints who have experienced their true nature as Atman know that no harm can be done to them. However they are filled with pity for ignorant people who identify with the body-mind complex and try to harm them.
A true saint has three main qualities:
1. Wisdom- a saint has discovered his/her nature as one with God, is ever united with God. S/he rejoices in the bliss and peace of God experience, far beyond worldly conflicts and suffering.
2. Compassion- having attained the supreme heights of God-experience and eternal peace, saints feel compassionate for those who have not yet done so. They see the suffering of such people and try to help those who also seek to walk the spiritual path. They try to motivate people to walk the spiritual path. And they feel great compassion for those who turn away from the spiritual path and engage in negative self-destructive activity which leads to suffering.
3. Forgiveness- a saint understands the nature of human minds- its changeable nature, its impurities- full of lust, anger, greed, jealousy, pride and delusion. So when deluded humans attack them, they who have reached a state beyond all attack, are filled with compassion for such unfortunate self-destructive beings. Because ultimately, it is not the saint but the one who tries to harm them who suffers.
The acid test of spiritual progress
So when we ask ourselves "Am I progressing in spiritual life?" we should consider- am I growing in compassion, forgiveness and understanding towards other living beings? Not have I got siddhis/mind-reading and other meaningless powers.
One may have stood on one leg doing tapas for forty years, one may have given up food and drink and be living on air only, one may be doing japa all day long, one may be able to do the most impossible asanas and the most difficult pranayamas, one may have memorised all the scriptures and be able to quote them with ease, one may have acquired some siddhis like clairvoyance or mind-reading- all this matters nothing if one gets angry with others and has thoughts of harming them, if one is cruel to animals, birds and insects, if one has pride, jealousy and hatred for others.
All such magic tricks are worth nothing. The only thing that matters in spiritual life is character development. A spotlessly clean and pure mind, a heart that beats with compassion for all other living beings, an incredible ability to forgive and genuinely wish well those who harm one- this is the acid test of spiritual progress.
We may not be there yet, but if there is some improvement in our ability to forgive those who harm us, then we are progressing. If we feel genuine grief for those who suffer, and do not just stop here- if we actually start taking some action and do something practical for others on this planet who are suffering, we can say we are progressing in spiritual life.
If we lose interest in winning battles with others to prove who is right and who is wrong, we can say we are progressing in spiritual life. We must express our views of course if we feel they are correct but no need to force them down anyone's throat. Let people think, say and do whatever they feel they must- there are seven billion people on this planet and each has his/her own way. We are all free to act as we please, but we must then face the consequences of our actions as per the law of karma.
This character development may sound boring and dull, it may sound much less glamorous than having siddhis, clairvoyance, mind-reading and so on, but it is the only way to God. Only a spotlessly clean and pure mind and heart can attain God.
The purpose of all yogic practices is to purify the mind and heart and develop true devotion to God. Mantra japa and service of living beings is the formula advised by my Guru Sivananda for rapid spiritual progress.
Hari Aum Tat Sat
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