Swami teaches... The Role of Good Company

[Guest guest]

Sai Ram

 

Light and Love

 

Swami teaches... (24 January 2005)

The Role of Good Company

(Ancient sages developed the skill to direct their visions as "beyond the

brain''. By Upanishads there was the Universe inside a human being. It was as

light within oneself. The good company illuminates as many spiritual lights

within what through experience from "the material to the spiritual" lead every

member of company to the eternal Atmic Unity*).

Birth is the result of the karma done before death. This is no religion of

despair; it is a religion of hope, of assurance, of encouragement to lead an

active, useful, beneficent life. For the future is in your hands; tomorrow can

be shaped by today, though today has already been shaped by yesterday. That is

the reason why the biggest section of the Vedhas is called 'Karma Kaanda' and

deals with various types of Karma.

The Thaittireeya Upanishadh takes the student from the gross to the subtle,

step by step, in its effort to teach him the Divine Principle. When Bhrigu, the

son of Varuna, approached his father, saying, "Teach me Brahman," he was told in

a general way, "Brahman is that from which all this originates, that in which

they live, and that in which they enter when they depart," and he was asked to

investigate it through meditation himself. Bhrigu declared that 'Food was

Brahman,' and when asked to proceed with the investigation, he proceeded to the

next hypothesis, that Brahman was Praana (life); later, he found that

Manas(will, sankalpa, ichchaashakthi) was Brahman; then he reached the stage

when he could declarethat Brahman was Vijaana (intelligence); the next step was

reached when he identified Brahmanwith Aanandha (bliss); thus the Upanishadh

teaches the subtle, supreme, non-dual Bliss, hiddenin the cave of the heart.

>From the material to the spiritual - that is the process of

Upanishadhicteachings. The lasts are experiencing through good company. Avoid

the bad company, what causes misfortune to you. Once there was a hunter who

had captured a baby bear and who brought it up as his pet withgreat love and

care. The bear too reciprocated his love and behaved like a good friend for

many years. One day, when he was traversing the jungle with his pet, who had

grown up into a hefty beast, he felt overcome by sleep; so he laid himself down

on the grass, asking the bear to see that he is not disturbed. The bear kept

watch very vigilantly. It noticed a fly that flew round and round and settled

on the nose of the master. The fly went off when it waved its thick heavy hand;

but, it came again, and settled on the nose. The bear got enraged when repeated

waves of the hand did not teach the fly that his master's nose was not the

fly's resting place. At last, the bear could not bear the insolence any longer!

His heavy palm came down with a thump on the nose, a devastating whack! The

master died on the spot! That is the consequence of keeping company with the

wild and the foolish. However affectionate they are, their ignorance will land

you into disaster.

When the mental resolutions take a bad turn and when you are then in the

company of a bad one, your condition becomes worse on account of plus getting

added to plus. The result is disaster. When your intentions and resolutions are

good, and when you join the company of the good, you can progress faster. The

company of the good is like the noon-time shadow. It is short in the beginning

but lengthens as the evening comes on. The company of the bad one is like the

morning shadow. It is long when the day dawns, but becomes shorter as noon

approaches. The comradeship and conversation of the undesirable appear sweet

and profound in the early stages, but the effect is only pollution of minds and

hearts. Shankaraachaarya has emphasised the value of the company of the good to

persons on the spiritual path, for it leads man to immortality. From Good

company to No-company, From No-Company to No-Desire, From No-Desire to

Un-moving Truth, From Un-moving Truth to Eternal Liberation.

 

"Immortality can be attained, not by ritual deeds, nor by birth, nor by

wealth, but only by sacrifice and renunciation". This is the declaration of the

Vedhas. Giving up the little 'I' is what renunciation or thyaaga means. Thyaaga

does not mean running away from hearth and home into the jungle. It means

sublimating every thought, word and deed as an offering to God, and saturating

all acts with Divine intent.

Seva is the highest Saadhana for, God Himself takes human form and comes

down to serve mankind and lead it to the ideals it has ignored. Therefore

consider how delighted God will be when human being serves human being!

Life is short, it is liable to be cut short any moment. The body may fall

and release you, without notice. So while you can, you must dedicate the heart

to Him who gave it to you. Your heart is your witness; question it whether you

have obeyed the directions of the Lord. A thousand persons may swear that you

have not, but if your conscience affirms that you have, you need not fear.

You may ask, "Swaami! When you find a person behaving wrongly, viciously,

how can we love him? How can we revere him, as you want us to?" In such a

situation consider one thing: Who is it who committed that wrong? What is it

that prompted the act? Who did the deed? The body did it. What prompted the

body? The mind. Why was he forced to do it? Through the influence of his karma,

the cumulative effect of his activities and attitudes through many lives in the

past. The Aathma in him is unattached, to any deed or motive. That Aathma is

Divine; love that, revere that. That is My answer.

 

The human heart is an ocean, whose depth none can gauge nor can anyone limit

its horizon. The ocean has countless pearls and precious corals but it has also

sharks and crocodiles. One has to explore continuously and boldly for the gems

and pearls of good thoughts and feelings, and cultivate them more and more.

There are two obstacles which prevent person in this valuable effort. The

first is the tendency to compare yourselves with others. This is very wrong. No

two things or no two persons are identical. Even identical twins grow in

distinct ways of life. Each with his distinct nature, quality, potentiality and

destiny. How, then, can any one compare himself with another and either exult or

despair? We are proud that we are better than others. All this is very silly

when we come to think of it. Secondly, we are in the habit of justifying our

faults, rationalising our errors and avoiding theresponsibility of facing them

squarely and correcting them. These two attitudes thicken man:signorance and

breed further failings. Every one has God as the source. No one is higher or

lower. (Reet's compilation from: Sathya Sai Baba. Sathya Sai Speaks:

Vol. 7, "Not Loka but Lokesha," Chapter 5 and "The wet wick", Chapter

39.

Vol. 15, "Two kingdoms with one king," Chapter 36 and "Eternal

harmony," Chapter 8.

Vol. 16, "The daily prayer," Chapter 2). * My comments always in

brackets in black. Namaste - Reet