Sathya Sai Baba Geetha Vahini - Chapter 10

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Sathya Sai BabaGeetha Vahini

Chapter X

"Dhananjaya! Only he is entitled to be called a Pundit, who has seen clearly the

distinction between Karma and A-karma. If he has only stuffed in his head the

matter contained in books, he is not a Pundit. The Pundit must have an

intellect which grants the vision of the Truth, Samyag-darsana. When that

vision is gained, all Karma becomes ineffective and harmless. The fire of Jnana

has the power to consume and burn Karma."

"Some people say that a Jnani must perforce suffer the consequences of Prarabdha

karma; he cannot escape from it. This is a conclusion that other persons draw;

not the experience of the Jnani himself. To those who watch him, he might

appear to be reaping the fruit of past Karma, but he is absolutely unaffected.

Whoever is dependent on objects for happiness, or pursues sensory pleasures;

whoever is motivated by impulses and desires, is bound by Karma. But those free

from these cannot be affected by the temptations of sound, touch, form, taste,

smell and other attractions of the senses. Such is the true Sanyasin. He is

unmoved. The Jnani is supremely happy by himself, without the need to be

dependent on other things. He finds Karma in A-Karma and A-Karma in Karma. He

may be engaged in Karma but he is not affected in the least. He has no eye on

the fruit of actions."

"You may ask how he is able to do that. Listen: He is ever content. The

contented man is free, he does not depend upon others; he is unaffected by the

feeling of agency. He is content with whatever happens to him, well or ill, for

he is convinced that the Lord's will must prevail. His mind is unshaken and

steady; he is ever jubilant. Want of contentment is a sign of the Ajnani. Those

who give up the Purusharthas and walk the path of sloth, how can they be said to

be happy, whatever happens? Contentment is the treasure that is won by the

Jnani; it cannot be won by the A-jnani who piles one wish on another, and

builds one plan after another, who pines perpetually, worries himself and sets

his heart ablaze with greed."

"The Jnani is not mastered by the dualities of joy and grief, victory and

defeat, gain and loss. He is Dwandvaatheetha. He scorns hatred and never allows

it to affect him. Both the Swarupa and the Swabhava of the Atma guarantee that

It is un-affected. It is A-sanga. It is un-influenced by any thing that is not

Atma. It has neither birth nor death, hunger nor thirst, grief, delusion.

Hunger and thirst are qualities of the Prana; birth and death are

characteristics of the body; grief and delusion are afflictions of the mind.

So, Arjuna, do not assign any status for these; know yourself as the Atma; give

up all delusion and become unattached. Be like the lotus leaf in the marshy lake

of Samsara; do not get smeared with the mud around you. That is the sign of

A-sanga: In it but yet outside it. Be like the lotus leaf, not like the porous

'blotting paper' that gets tainted with whatever it comes in contact with."

"Do Abhisheka to the Atma-linga, with the pure waters of your own pure

Chittha-vritthi, mental impulse. When the chittha moves in one direction and

the indriyas move towards another, the person is doubly confused. So, keep

attachment afar. When that is done, whatever you do becomes a sacrifice, a

Yajna. Whatever you speak becomes a holy manthra; wherever you plant your foot,

the place is rendered holy."

"Arjuna! I shall tell you something about Yajna also. Listen calmly, controlling

all agitations of the mind. People talk of Dravyayajna, Thapoyajna, Yogayajna,

etc. If a pit is dug, the earth excavated becomes a mound by its side. There is

no pit without a mound; when riches accumulate in one place, there must be

corresponding charity too. The proper utilisation of one's riches is

Dravyayajna. What is proper utilisation? Gift of cows, of lands, of skill are

included under Dravyayajna. Again, when all physical activities, mental

activities and speech are utilised for Sadhana, then it becomes Thapoyajna. How

can it be Thapas if you have lain down due to weakness arising from missing a

meal? Doing Karma but yet remaining unbound by Karma - that is Yogayajna."

"And Swadhyaya Yajna? It means studying with humility and reverence the sacred

scriptures that lead you to liberation or Moksha. This study is the means to

repay the debt to the Rishis who put the scriptures together. The next one is

Jnanayajna. By this is meant not the knowledge of the visible and perceptible

but the Jnana of the invisible, the imperceptible, (the Parokshajnana, not the

Aparokshajnana). Listen to the Sastras that are related to this Jnana, study

them and ponder over the teaching in your mind, weighing the pros and cons:

this is called Jnanayajna. Jnana means also the eagerness to realise the Atma

thathwa through inquiry from elders and those who have spiritual experience."

"Arjuna! You may ask Me about the means whereby this can be acquired. Those

anxious to get it have to go to realised souls and win their grace and studying

well their moods and manners, they must await the chance to ask them for the

help. When doubts arise, they should approach them calmly and courageously.

Studying bundles of books and delivering hours-long discourses and wearing the

ochre do not make the genuine Jnani. Jnana can be won only from and through

elders who have experienced the absolute. You have to serve them and win their

love. How can doubts be ended by the study of books? They only tend to confuse

the mind."

"Books can at best inform; they cannot demonstrate by direct proof. Only the

realised can convince by direct demonstration. So they have to be sought after

and served reverentially. Then only can this precious Jnana be won. No amount

of sea water can slake one's thirst; no amount of Sastric study can solve

doubt."

"Besides, the aspirant for Jnana must have not only Bhakthi and Sraddha but he

should also be simple and pure. He should not grow impatient and irritate the

teacher. Haste ruins chances of success. Whatever the Guru tells should be

practised and experienced. You should not try out every single item of advice

that your hear or learn, thus changing the Sadhana as fancy takes hold, even

from the desire to become Jnani quick. Doing thus, you will only end as a

complete A-jnani. Why, it is sometimes preferable to remain an A-jnani; for

such people tend to end up in madness. Therefore, one has to be very careful."

"You must endeavour to please the Guru and win his favour by obeying his orders

and serving him lovingly. You should have no other thought than his welfare and

happiness. Give up all else and win his grace; then, Jnana is yours. Instead, if

you are disobedient and critical through egoism and want of faith, you cannot be

blessed by the vision of the truth; you will be plunged in gloom."

"As the cow takes her calf near when it sees it, so the Guru will draw the

Sishya to his presence and give him the milk of grace. The Sishya ought to be a

sterling character; then, just as a clean piece of iron will be attracted by the

magnet, he will receive the immediate attention of the teacher."

"The qualification of the Guru can be inquired into by the Sishya; in fact he

ought to. For, he needs a teacher. Arjuna! I shall describe the characteristics

which a teacher should possess. He must have not merely book-knowledge, but the

wisdom derived through direct experience. He must be established in reality,

that is, in Brahmanishta. Mere Sastrajnana is incompetent to grant Mukthi; it

can at best help in gaining Bhukthi (a living). Why, there are some who by

sheer Anubhavajnana have won Mukthi, without a grain of Sastrajnana. But such

persons cannot save disciples who are pestered by doubt; they cannot understand

their difficulties and sympathise with them.

"There are Lakhs and Lakhs of persons who are Gurus in name only. All those in

gerua are now 'Gurus;' even those who smoke Ganja are 'Gurus;' all those who

indulge in discourses are 'Gurus;' all who write books are 'Gurus'! Wandering

over the country and learning to argue, no one can claim the name. He should

possess the power through direct experience to uplift the disciple and put him

on the track of Sadhana prescribed by Sastras. Of what use is argumentative

skill? Whatever is said and done by him must have the sanction of the Sastras.

Spouting of things imbibed from books in long speeches which move the listeners

from one wave of excitement to another does not make a Guru. They may be heroes

in lecturing; but they are zeros in Sadhana and in the mystery of the spiritual

field. They can be schoolmasters, but they cannot confer Bhakthi or point out

the way of liberation. These 'Gurus' attain only that stage and the Sishyas who

resort to them get just that. They have as much

value as the books which contain all the matter that they pour forth. Many

unwary Sadhakas are attracted by the magic of words and the verbal gymnastics

of such showy 'Gurus'. They may be called Pundits; they may give lectures; but,

just because of this, they do not become entitled to grant the boon of Jnana.

That can be done only by Avatharas, Devamsa-sambhuthas, and Thatwavids who have

realised the absolute. (The Lord come in human form, persons who represent

divine attributes and glory, and Jnanis who have attained the summum bonum of

spiritual Sadhana and tasted the supreme bliss.) It is no use claiming a

fraction of this or that experience. The experience must be of the full and

itself full. Those who know only a fraction will take you up to a certain point

and leave you there, in the middle region, like Thrisanku, who was hung between

heaven and earth."

"The Guru must study the virtues and qualities of the aspirant who seeks his

guidance; he must not be moved or prejudiced by his wealth, status, or

position. He must be able to judge the aspirant's heart, his real nature. The

Guru must act as the alarm-clock to the disciples who are caught in the sleep

of A-jnan. If the Guru is a miser and the disciple is a sloth, woe be to both."

Thus, Krishna taught Arjuna very clearly the qualifications of both the Guru and

the Sishya: their conduct, scholarship, virtues and weaknesses, activities and

characteristics. These valuable gems of advice were addressed not only to

Arjuna, but to the whole world. All who seek to become either Gurus or Sishyas

must pay attention to these precious words.

The natures of the Gurus and Sishyas of today are in keeping with the low

standards of today. In ancient times a Guru could be found only with great

difficulty; thousands of eager seekers searched in the forests for them, for

they were so rare and so precious. Now, Gurus are available at every street

corner by the dozen but true Sishyas are declining in number. Both are

deteriorating fast and each is becoming as the other, suited to the other's

level. The Gurus have been reduced to necessity of feeding and fostering

Sishyas; not that it is wrong, when the Sishyas are worthy; but the Gurus are

afraid of the Sishyas deserting them and so they have to cater to their tastes

and fancies. The Sishyas claim to be Guruputhras, to be Asramavasis, Sadhakas,

etc., but their lives are untouched by the Asram atmosphere, Sadhana or Sadhu

qualities. They have not even elementary gratitude to the Guru. They mouth

slogans like Krishnarpanam but their acts reveal only Deha-arpanam (dedication

to

the body, not to God)!

Besides, the Sishyas lay down conditions! Their desire for recreation, easy

living and comfort has to be honoured by the Guru. The Guru must ensure the

happiness of the Sishya without insisting on any Sadhana, or causing any loss

or worry. Moksha must fall like a fruit right into their lap. The Guru should

not recommend any rigorous discipline or rule of life. The Guru must respect

all the wishes of the Sishya. If he goes against him, the Guru is immediately

given up and condemned.

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