Motivation

Hari Aum.

I was just reflecting that motivation to do spiritual practices is definitely due to the grace of God. We often say "I did sadhana" but the reality is that we would not be able to lift a finger to do any form of sadhana were it not for the grace of God. It is His/Her grace that gives us the motivation and will-power to do sadhana.

I feel this rather strongly having lost my motivation for sadhana a few months ago and having regained it again recently. I am back to my usual japa and manasik puja practice and also including some kirtan and svadhayaya (spiritual study) as able. As I'm in the second trimester of pregnancy at a stage where the baby is supposed to be able to hear, I'm hoping she's enjoying the japa and kirtan. I really feel the best gift I can give her as a mother is a love for the name of God and I pray that she will be blessed with this throughout her life. (Obviously a parent also needs to provide all the practical, material necessities of life but these can only take one so far. Ultimately it is the name of God that bestows all auspiciousness in life, both spiritual and material.)

I am about halfway through my first draft of the fourth Krishna book. This bit of the Bhagavatam has some very motivating bits on sadhana in Kali yuga. Basically it says that Kali yuga is an excellent time to be born if one wants to attain the spiritual goal of life, i.e. eternal peace, bliss and wisdom. The reason of course is that very simple sadhana such as singing and loud chanting of the names of God alone is adequate to attain spiritual success. One need not stand on one leg and meditate for years on end as in previous yugas. All this also adds to one's motivation to continue sadhana.

I was having a chat with my sister recently and discussing that I felt that it was 'outrageous' to think of my attaining God in this lifetime as I felt too lowly and small to attain such a great goal no matter what sadhana I did. She asked what was so outrageous about it. After all, she said that when one demands various material things from God (such as winning the lottery, landing a lucrative job etc), He may or may not respond depending upon His will for us.

However, since the goal is spiritual, God Himself, why would He not respond to our request. Her view, like many of the yogis, was that if one wants this above all else, then why not? On reflection, I do feel that I want this above all else. I'm of course very grateful for all the material things God has given me (health, family, wealth etc) but I feel that God Himself is the basis, the support, of it all. Therefore, He is to be given first place in one's life. It's interesting that it can be relatively easy to tell others that they can surely attain spiritual success through sadhana, but it can sometimes be hard to really believe that one can achieve this oneself (probably because one knows one's mind with all its flaws better than one knows that of others!).

This is why the grace of God is important. No matter how many flaws the mind has, the Bhagavatam and the yogis assure us that they can be destroyed by the chanting of the name of God. The name cuts through sins like a knife cuts through butter. I'm glad I have this conviction that keeps me going on the spiritual path.

Om Sri Gurave Namah
Om Namo Bhagavate Sivanandaya
Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya.

Hari Aum Tat Sat

Tukaram: saint of the 17th century

Hari Aum.

I recently watched an interesting movie on Tukaram (on Netflix). It was made in 2012 and is simply called "Tukaram". It is a good movie and I would recommend watching it.

Tukaram was born in Maharashtra, India in the 17th century and was a great devotee of Krishna whom he called "Vittala". He was a householder (married twice and had three children) and composed some great devotional poems. During his lifetime, he had to undergo many sufferings including famine, poverty and the death of many dear relatives. Despite all these trials, he remained firm in his devotion and attained God. It is said that he went bodily to Vaikuntha, the realm of Vishnu, at the end of his lifetime. During his life, he challenged the system of caste discrimination and also provided guidance to King Shivaji.

My Guru, Sivananda, wrote about him- the link to his article is below:

http://sivanandaonline.org/public_html/?cmd=displaysection&section_id=1643

I am sharing one of Tukaram's poems below, an inspiring one for all japa yogis:

Tukaram: on the Name of God.

"He who utters the Name of God while walking,
gets the merit of a sacrifice at every step.
His body becomes a place of pilgrimage.

He who repeats God’s Name while working,
always finds perfect peace.

He who utters the Name of God while eating
gets the merit of a fast,
even though he has taken his meals.

Even if one were to give in charity
the whole world encircled by the seas,
it would not equal the merit of repeating the Name.

By the power of the Name,
one will know what cannot be known,
one will see what cannot be seen,
one will speak what cannot be spoken,
one will meet what cannot be met.

Tuka says,
Incalculable is the gain that comes
From repeating the Name of God."

The above poem and others by Tukaram can be found here:

https://allpoetry.com/Sant-Tukaram

Hari Aum Tat Sat

Role models and regularity in spiritual life

Hari Aum.

An inspiring role model can be very useful to stay motivated on the spiritual path. Reading about the lives of saints and their attainment of God gives encouragement to those of us who are walking the spiritual path to keep going.

I have found great inspiration in reading about the life of my Guru, Swami Sivananda, and his disciples such as Swami Chidananda and others. The lives of other saints such as Anandamayi Ma, Ammachi, Ramakrishna and Vivekananda are also a very useful aid in motivating oneself to keep walking the path.

The only risk sometimes is that one can sometimes ignore the message of these great spiritual teachers that we are all divine, and instead put them on a pedestal that is impossible for us to reach. There is no doubt that these are great spiritual teachers who are worthy of reverence and worship. At the same time, we have to remind ourselves that their message to us is that we ourselves are children of the divine, made of the same stuff as them. We are not separate from them, our ultimate destiny is the same as theirs--i.e. to experience the God within us.

Let us remember that these spiritual greats also went through the same trials and tribulations that we go through. They had to deal with difficult external environments and equally challenging internal/mental states. Their minds too revolted at times, they too struggled as we do at times. The spiritual path was not a bed of roses for them just as it is not for most of us.

There comes a stage in spiritual life when we have been walking the path for a while and we just need to keep walking. There is no stopping here. Stopping leads to stagnation and we lose what we have gained. The weary mind has to be gently coaxed to keep up the practice at any cost.

The mind also has a tendency to beat itself up. It may veer between despair that we are not doing enough and a rebellion that it is all too much. The golden middle way has to be found and stuck to.

Sivananda says that regularity is of paramount importance in spiritual life. If one has to choose between doing an enormous amount of sadhana daily for a few months, and doing a smaller amount daily for a few years, the latter is preferable. There is no point in doing a lot for a short time and then burning out.

When it comes to deciding how many malas of japa to do per day therefore, it is better to choose a reasonable amount that one can sustain for several years, rather that a large amount that can only be sustained for a few weeks or months. There is a play-off between quantity and continuity when it comes to japa. The greater the quantity of japa per day, the harder it will be for the mind to do the practice daily for years. A smaller quantity will be easier to continue for years and is more likely to produce better results. Daily contact with the name of God is required for purification of the mind.

When I look back at the last seven and a half years of spiritual practice, I feel there has been some progress. There are times when I feel frustrated that the progress has not been more but then I tell myself to be patient and keep at it. There are no quick fixes on this path. The truth is I do not feel that I really could have done more than I have done- I feel I have given whatever I could to spiritual life in the past seven years so there is no use being frustrated with myself for not doing more. Moreover, I feel I have seen some results. There is some positive change in the character, mindset, and a greater desire for God. Furthermore there have been some dreams that were prophetic in nature and others that were encouraging. I haven't found any scientific explanation for a prophetic dream so have to assume it is something to do with the mantra practice. I see these as hints from the universe that something is changing internally even if it does not always feel obvious and that I should just keep going. And that's what I'm doing.

Hari Aum Tat Sat