Baba
Outdoor sadhana
Namaskar,
Ananda Marga is the path of supreme realization and spiritual attainment. Often, we try doing sadhana in the house, yet that often only invites distractions. Inside we are surrounded by books, family members, food, and numerous daily chores and responsibilities. With all these types of pabula around us, naturally the sensory organs get attracted to them. Whereas if those pabula are out of sight and beyond the scope of the senses, then those things do not drag us down and the mind is much more free to do sadhana. Going out of the house is a big boon for our spiritual practices as this allows us to leave so many distractions behind.
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Ananda Marga philosophy says, "It cannot be denied that the noise of the bustling world is a hindrance to intuitional practice and makes solitude very desirable." (1)
And, if we think a moment, we can see how the 'bustling world' does not only mean 'on the city streets' but also refers to 'living in our own home'. Because when we remain in the house then countless thoughts and mundane things come in the mind which pull us away from our sadhana. In that case it is difficult to do long, peaceful, serene meditation. How many times does it happen that on the point of food alone, we quickly and hastily conclude our sadhana as meal time approaches etc. And in this way days, months, and years pass by.
But if we go outside in the natural environment, we have a much better opportunity to delve into our sadhana practices and do sustained sadhana. And if this becomes our regular practice then it can transform our entire existence. On this point it can also be said that we need not go so far from the house. Generally by walking just a short distance we can find a good place for sadhana. And by going just a little further we may find a top-notch place.
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Conclusion
Yet if we just get routinized into always sacrificing our meditation and just doing short, interrupted sadhana - constantly getting pulled away by mundane distractions, then this is not good. Because by this way the whole life will pass us by. In which case it is not easy to concentrate in sadhana in old age if one did not do proper sadhana their whole life.
Ananda Marga philosophy says, "There is no value in remembering God in old age, when it is not possible to concentrate the mind due to the weakness and disease of the body and its preoccupation with the reactions (sam'ska'ras) of the deeds of this life. The mind then is caught up in the infirmities of the body, in the diseases of old age, impending death, and most of all, in memories of past incidents, and it is impossible to concentrate the mind. For these reasons one is incapable of intuitional practice. (2)
Sadhana is important and outdoor sadhana has many benefits like: fresh air and oxygen, peaceful vibration, less distractions etc. That is why Baba recommends that this is one practice we should all do. Ultimately sadhana awakens our dormant and latent qualities, and makes the ordinary person extraordinary.
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Ananda Marga ideology guides us, "When a person attains an exalted state of spirituality, they can bring welfare to millions of people." (3)
Namaskar,
in Him,
Ananda Dev
References
1. Ananda Marga Elementary Philosophy, '92, p.127
2. Ananda Marga Elementary Philosophy, '92, p.135
3. Subhasita Samgraha part 18, The Path unto the Abode of Beatitude
== Section: Important Teaching ==
Overeating is self-destruction
Ananda
Marga Yogic Treatments states, “In the world today a handful of people
who do no physical work, but live by their wits, have appropriated to
themselves most of the wealth of humanity, so they are able to buy
comparatively expensive foods, and use them to satisfy their taste buds.
As a result, they, on the one hand, swell with unnecessary fat, while,
on the other hand, those people doing hard manual labour are forced to
live in poverty and deprived of the ghee, butter and sweets they need to
maintain their bodies; they have nothing to compensate properly the
energy they expend, and they become weak, emaciated and broken in
health. On account of malnutrition and excessive hard labour, they fall
victim to tuberculosis. Remember that in tropical countries
non-vegetarian food is generally like poison….”
“So
my point is that obesity is primarily a disease of well-off,
non-labouring society. High-salaried office workers, rich businessmen
and parasitic politicians are those who suffer most from obesity.”
Fat becomes their enemy and pushes them to their death
Ananda
Marga Yogic Treatments states, “It should be borne in mind that the fat
stored in the human body is nothing but its work energy in latent form.
When fasting or doing physical labour, it becomes liquefied, then
transformed into vital energy or work energy. So when people perform
little manual labour, their fat becomes their enemy and pushes them to
their death.”
Excess fat: sterility in women and impotence in men
Ananda
Marga Yogic Treatments states, “When this fat accumulates in the
abdominal region, it causes sterility in women and impotency in men.
That is why we find that in most cases obese people have no children.
Too much accumulation of fat on the chest and abdomen disturbs the
váyu; and then, as long as the liver is not affected, the person
suffers from “demon hunger”; so much so that in homes where the person
is entertained, he or she becomes famous for his or her voracity.
Another distinguishing mark of such people is that they are most greedy
for those foods which are most fattening; that is, when invited outside,
they will never even by mistake eat much in the way of vegetable
preparations – instead they will eat a lot of luci, fish, meat and
sweets.” (1)
Reference
1. Yogic Treatments and Natural Remedies
== Section: Ananda Vanii ==
The movement of Neohumanism
Ananda Marga philosophy states, “Those who are egotistic will not accept their mistake even when they discover it. They will say, “You see, it seems I made a mistake and So-and-so has pointed it out. This is a great insult to me – I cannot tolerate it! Though he may have spoken the truth, it is beneath my dignity to accept it. It is too humiliating! If I even admit that I have harmed the people, that will be a great slur on my character – how can I allow that to happen? So I will continue to maintain that what I have done is right. This may harm people, but I must make sure that my prestige is not injured.” (1)
Reference
1. Liberation of Intellect - Neohumanism Is the Ultimate Shelter (Discourse 11)
The movement of Neohumanism
“All
the beings of this universe are the kith and kin of one another. No one
is despicable. All are equally respectable and entitled to equal love
and affection. No problem is to be ignored as an individual or group
affair. Every problem is to be considered as the collective problem of
universal humanity and is to be resolved collectively and resolved it
must be. Let it be the vocal panorama of the newer world of today – the
continuous musical notes behind the movement of Neohumanism.” (Ananda
Vanii #58)
Note 1: True Ananda Vaniis have a number whereas Fake Ananda Vaniis do not - just as a fake car license plate has no number. By this way, you can easily recognise a Fake Ananda Vanii.
Note 1: True Ananda Vaniis have a number whereas Fake Ananda Vaniis do not - just as a fake car license plate has no number. By this way, you can easily recognise a Fake Ananda Vanii.
== Section: Important Teaching ==
Third class people
Ananda Marga philosophy states, “Those who are egotistic will not accept their mistake even when they discover it. They will say, “You see, it seems I made a mistake and So-and-so has pointed it out. This is a great insult to me – I cannot tolerate it! Though he may have spoken the truth, it is beneath my dignity to accept it. It is too humiliating! If I even admit that I have harmed the people, that will be a great slur on my character – how can I allow that to happen? So I will continue to maintain that what I have done is right. This may harm people, but I must make sure that my prestige is not injured.” (1)
Reference
1. Liberation of Intellect - Neohumanism Is the Ultimate Shelter (Discourse 11)
== Section 2: Links ==