Dharma Vahini, Chapter 11 - By Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba

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Chapter XI

The Eras, classified according to the principles and practices of spiritual

progress as laid down in the Hindu Dharma, are three:

The Vedic Era, during which great importance was laid on Karma or Rituals; The

Upanishadic Era, when Jnana was emphasised more than all else; and The Puranic

Era when Bhakthi was declared and described as all important.

Vedic literature consists of Samhithas, Brahmanas, Aranyakas, and Upanishads; of

these, the first three deal with Karma and are known as Karmakanda and the last,

the Upanishads, are concerned with Jnana and so are called Jnanakanda.

The groups of Manthras in the Veda Samhithas are full of Stotras, glorifying

Gods like Indra, Agni, Varuna, Surya and Rudra. The Aryans in ancient times

earned peace and contentment and the fulfillment of their desires by sacrifices

and rituals, addressed to these Gods through these Manthras. They realised that

the Absolute Principle, the Paramatma, is One and one only; and they also knew

that it manifests nevertheless as varied and manifold, under different Names

and Forms.

 

In many Rig Vedic Manthras this is clearly announced:

Ekam Sath viprraa bahudaa vadanthiAgnim yamam maathariswaanamaahuh

"There is only just One: those who have seen the Truth praise it in many ways:

Agni Yama Maathariswaan". This Brahmam, the One without a Second, is designated

in the Rig Veda as Hiranyagarbha, Prajapathi, Visvakarma Purusha. The

Hiranyagarbha Suktha and the Purusha Suktha are classical examples of this

vision.

The way of living of the ancient Aryans is designated "Dharma". It can also be

called, "Yajna". Their daily disciplines were marked by rituals, puja and

praise, surrender and dedication. So, their life was full of Bhakthi or

Devotion. The word Bhakthi might not be used, as such, in the Samhithas, but is

not the word "Sraddha" found?

Sraddhayaagnih Samidhyathe Sraddhaahooyathe havihSraddhaam bhagasya moordhanivachassaa Vedayaamasi

"It is only through Sraddha that the Flame of the Sacrificial Fire is lit and

fed. It is through Sraddha alone that the offerings reach the Gods who are

called. Let us praise Sraddha, which is the highest form of worship". See, how

mighty is the power of Sraddha!

The simple spontaneous disciplines of the Vedic Age gradually became complex and

confused by the overgrowth of rituals and formal rules; with the passing of

time, it was declared that Dharma consists of Yajna and Homa, that Heaven can

be gained only by the performance of such rites! Though the Yajna was really a

method of worship of the Gods, value was shifted from the Gods, to the Yajna

itself. "The Gods were only the means; those who desired Heaven must do Yajna".

Such was the turn the declaration took.

 

Meanwhile, the Upanishad Age dawned. The Upanishads rejected material objectives

as devoid of permanent value; they condemned them as inferior. In fact, the

Karmakanda of the Vedas was transformed and revalued in the Upanishads, as

vehicles for the liberation of man from the bondage of birth and death and as

vessels for crossing the ocean of Samsara. The vision of the Upanishadic

Sadhaka breaks through this "external sensory objective world" and centers

itself on "the inner world". The Upanishadic Rishis collectively confirm the

nature of the Highest Principle thus: "In the basic depth of this Namarupa

Jagath (this Name-Form World of Change) there is the One Eternal Permanent

Sath. That is the Absolute, the Para-brahmam. The Highest can be grasped by

means of Jnanayoga". Therefore, "Thad Vijijnaasaswa; thad Brahma"; "Inquire

into that; That is Brahma." This is the Brahmavidya that the Upanishads (the

Vedantha) teach.

Besides, the Upanishads also declare: "The Vedas, though mainly concerned with

the human objective of attaining Heaven, also provide the basic training for

achieving Liberation, or Moksha. The attainment of the Absolute does not depend

entirely or solely on mastery of this Brahmavidya. It is beyond the reach of

study, scholarship, or intellectual conquest. It is only by Upasana that it can

be realised". If the scholar, with all the weight of learning, also gets

immersed in Upasana, his life is indeed sanctified!

Before such aspirants, the Lord will be manifest in His Real Glory. This is the

meaning of the following declaration in the Brahadaaranyakopanishad about the

bond between the Jivi and the Paramatma, the individual and the Universal:

Eshosya parama gathiEshosya paramam sampad;Eshosya paramo lokaEshosya paramaanandam

The Universal is the individual's highest goal, highest wealth, highest

elevation, deepest joy. In the Taittiriya Upanishad it has been proclaimed

thus: "The Paramatma is the source of contentment, for He is the Embodiment of

Rasa, of the Purest Emotion. Attaining Him, the Jivi can be immersed in joy. If

the Paramatma is not shining in the firmament of the Heart, who is to taste, who

is to live? He feeds all, with Ananda."

 

The seeds of Bhakthi which are found scattered in the Vedasamhithas, sprout in

the Upanishads, and begin to grow with many a blossom-full branch in the

Puranas.

Well, many are yet confused when it comes to deciding what exactly is Bhakthi,

what is the nature of the attitude called Bhakthi! It is impossible for any one

to demarcate what exactly is Bhakthi and what is not. Bhakthi has infinite

facets. Only pure, tender, tolerant, calm and loving souls, the very cream of

Sadhus, the Hamsas sporting ever in the company of kindred Bhakthas, can

understand its purity and depth. Others will find it as difficult to discover

Bhakthi in a person, as discovering softness in rock or coldness in fire or

sweetness in neem. The Bhaktha holds the Lord dearer to him than life; and the

Lord too is attached to him in equal measure. Some great men even declare that

the Bhaktha is superior to Bhagavan; the ryot loves the clouds more than the

ocean though the clouds only bring the ocean waters to their fields. The ocean

does not come directly over their crops. This is how Tulsi Das describes the

relationship between the Bhaktha and Bhagavan. The clouds bring

the mercy, the love, the grandeur of the ocean and the fragrance of the

atmosphere and shower them over the entire land; so too, the Bhakthas carry

these great traits wherever they go. Just as gold is dug out of mines, these

virtues also are part of the Divinity in man.

The sage Durvasa arrived one day in the court of Ambarisha, to test the efficacy

of Bhakthi. For this purpose, he created out of his anger, Krithya, for his

destruction. But the Lord's Chakra, which demolishes the fear in the hearts of

devotees, destroyed Krithya and started pursuing Durvasa to the ends of the

earth. He fled over hill and dale, lake and stream, and leaped across the seven

seas; he tried to take asylum in the heavens; but, the foe of a Bhaktha could

get asylum nowhere. At last, he fell at the feet of Narayana in Vaikhunta, an

exhausted penitent; the Lord, however, declared that He was always on the side

of His Bhaktha, and that He will never give up the devotee who relies on Him as

his only refuge. "I follow the Bhaktha as the calf follows the cow, for he gives

up, for Me, all that is considered desirable by the worldly-minded."

Once, Krishna told Uddhava thus: "Tapas, Jnana, Vairagya, Yoga, Dharma, Vratha,

Pilgrimage, the merit acquired by these is acquired by My Bhakthas with even

greater ease". Reflect how great is true devotion! By its means, a Chandala can

excel even a Brahmin! A Bhakthiless Brahmin is inferior to a Chandala endowed

with Bhakthi. This is elaborated in the Puranas. That which is described in the

Vedas as simply, "Nethi Nethi, Not this, Not this," that which is declared as

"Beyond the reach of words, far out of the grasp of the Mind," that which is

un-reachable by the senses, the mind or the intellect, such an Entity is

capable of being felt and experienced by those immersed in Dhyana. Bhakthi

brings it into the Consciousness easily, it fills the devotee with bliss.

The Bhagavan, described in the Puranas, is not only the

Nirguna-nirvikara-adwithiya Brahmam, the Thing to be known, the Chithswarupa,

the Origin of the Universe. He is also the repository of all the Noble,

Elevating and Attracting Qualities; He is the Reminder and refuge of all that

is beautiful and loving. He lifts, energies and purifies. The Unmanifested

Nirguna Brahmam cognised at the climax of the Jnanamarga cannot be grasped by

the sense-centered individual, without great travail and trouble. This is the

reason why the Puranas dwell so much more on the Saguna aspect than on the

Nirguna aspect of Godhead. First, the aspirant has to practise the Sadhana

related to the Saguna aspect of God; this will endow him with concentration

and, later according to the law of procedure from the gross to the subtle, he

can merge his mind in the Nirguna Brahmam itself. The mirage leads the thirsty

man far away from the tank, he then turns away and returns to the place where

water is available;

reaching the tank, he becomes competent to drink and slake his thirst. This is

called the Sthulasourambhikaanyaya. So too, aspirants after Moksha do get the

desire for Nirgunopasana; the Lord who is attached to the Bhakthas takes up the

forms which the Sadhus and Mahatmas seek. He grants, out of his bounty, the

Purusharthas; all four.

http://beaskund.helloyou.ws/askbaba/dharmavahini/dharma46.html

Sathya Sai Baba Dharma VahiniTranslated from the Original TeluguPublished by Sri

Sathya Sai Books and Publications TrustIndex:

http://beaskund.helloyou.ws/askbaba/dharmavahini/index.html

 

 

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