Baba
Struggling in sadhana
Namaskar,
The other day in our unit, a number of margiis were telling stories about their sweet journey since coming onto the path of sadhana. Some talked about their personal, spiritual experiences in sadhana, and others shared the Baba dreams they had. One common theme, along with the joy and bliss of spiritual life, was the remarkable difficulties and high hurdles faced, as well as the good fortune experienced, since embarking on the path of sadhana. All due to the ripening and burning of their samskaras. Here below is one such story.
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Story: boils left as quickly as they came
One brother recounted how when he first started doing sadhana, suddenly boils formed on his rear. In his life, he had never had boils before, so this was a big surprise for him. They were so tender and sensitive that it was too painful to sit down and do sadhana. And when he told his acarya about this, his acarya directed him that no matter what he must continue with his sadhana.
So that margii adjusted and began doing sadhana from a lying position. Soon the boils began to form on the back of his legs and across his back. The margii was thinking that this was unbearable and again he went to his acarya and told that it was too difficult to forge on with meditation. But his acarya would not relent and instead told that, "This is a good sign - you are cleaning and purifying your body and burning samskaras. At any and all cost you must continue with your sadhana."
Not knowing what else to do, the margii started doing sadhana from a prone position, lying face down on his stomach. But then again trouble found him out as boils began to appear on his belly, thighs, and torso. When he approached his acarya this time he was ready to give up sadhana and quit entirely, but his acarya outrightly told him that, "Great things are happening. You are getting purified to pursue the path of Ananda Marga - all those negative samskaras are oozing out. So keep going."
With renewed vigour, that margii continued his sadhana, and by Baba's grace despite having painful boils all over his body, his sadhana improved and, amazingly, within a week all the boils disappeared - leaving as quickly as they came. In the 25 years since, he has not had a single boil; and, to this day he remains a committed sadhaka, a fully dedicated traveler on the path of Ananda Marga.
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Good sadhaka - more requital
In the above account, the newly initiated margii was well-coached by his acarya; and, by that way, he courageously adhered to the path. Because the whole point here is that as soon as one takes initiation and gets diiksa', then the annihilation of both good and bad samskaras begins in an accelerated fashion. And this continues throughout the course of one's life.
Ananda Marga ideology states, "When a spiritual aspirant moves from the most negative point towards the ultimate positivity, what happens? His accumulated sam'ska'ras start to become exhausted. That is, all his sam'ska'ras start to wane." (1)
So as soon as one starts sadhana up until the time they attain liberation, one will invariably undergo the speedy exhaustion of samskaras. The tantra of Ananda Marga means the imminent burning of all samskaras - both good and bad ones - so one can move quickly and reach their cherished Goal, i.e. becoming one with Parama Purusa.
So many come onto the path of Ananda Marga and immediately their life undergoes radical change - at an accelerated rate. They may lose their job, or have their property stolen, or so many things might happen - challenging, unexpected events, both good and bad. For lack of a proper guide, one might not understand they are getting purified and progressing. Instead, they become worried or scared, and end up leaving their sadhana and Ananda Marga. They wrongly conclude that it has brought them bad luck and too many difficulties. Certainly, we all know so many cases of this nature.
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So they will not drift away from their sadhana
There are an equal number of cases where sadhakas undergo the burning of good samskaras and due to their success in the mundane world they lose sight of the real Goal and leave their sadhana. Infatuated with worldly riches, property, or professional successes, they mistakenly think that such wealth and prestige will give them lasting happiness and they fail to pursue the path of sadhana. This also happens.
In the case of good samskaras, people lose their sadhana due to their self-satisfaction with their worldly life; and in the case of bad samskaras, people lose their sadhana due to their sorrows of living in this relative world. But it does not have to be this way. It does not have to be so many sadhakas are lost from the path of Ananda Marga.
If we are vigilant and educate new and old margiis - including our wts - about the way of the path of sadhana, then our attrition rate will be much less. Then far fewer wts will leave and we will be able to retain a greater number of our newly initiated margiis.
This can all happen as we educate others about how samskaras are exhausted very quickly while on the path of sadhana and how they should not be sidetracked - either due to our worldly happiness or mundane sorrows. Just we have to ensure to keep our mind focused on the Goal. In that case, everyone will be sure to maintain their sadhana - regardless of what may be happening in their life, regardless of the way their samskaras get exhausted.
So here the takeaway is that we must be vigilant to coach new and senior margiis alike about the inevitable changes that are going to occur while on the path of sadhana. Speedily sadhakas will get cleansed and purified and our job is to support and guide them through this process. By that way they will not lose sight of the Goal and not drift away from their sadhana.
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Conclusion
The condition of non-sadhakas is like slaves. They are slaves of avidya maya - goaded by animal propensities and living like brutes. By this way they are under the bondage of avidya maya. Maya is very happy seeing their situation and such ignorant people do not recognise their plight. Due to their ignorance they are in misery but they are also happy. They are slaves and avidya maya is their master. But when that non-margii becomes a sadhaka then avidya maya resists. No master wants their slave to walk away free. So avidya maya creates all sorts of problems to stop their sadhana. Newly initiated sadhakas face all kinds of problems; but if they are sincere in their sadhana, avidya maya gives up. And maya will also aim to stop anyone whose sadhana is accelerating. So every sadhaka should be careful: When obstacles come, do not runaway - persevere in sadhana. After some time the obstacles will disappear and you will be victorious.
Namaskar,
in Him,
Ananda Sagar
Ananda Margiis are fortunate
Let us then take a moment to reflect on how fortunate we Ananda Margiis are to be on the path of sadhana - because only sadhana can bring lasting peace. After all, every human being - whether margii or non-margii - has infinite desires; and only through satiating that infinite longing can one get true happiness. Hence mundane, finite things like worldly riches etc can never bring lasting happiness or peace.
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The chief difference is that non-margiis remain unaware of this truth and they pass their days immersed in mundane allurements thinking that will bring them happiness; whereas, true Ananda Margiis ensconce the mind in sadhana and exhaust all samskaras. By that way, we are blessed to experience that infinite bliss that gives permanent satiation to our infinite desires and leads one to a stance of perfect peace.
Thus no sadhaka should fall by the wayside and become frustrated or intoxicated by the burning of their bad or good samskaras. These samskaras should find expression - and very quickly - because that is the only way to reach liberation in this very life. So our only duty, our only aim is to keep the mind fixed on Him by holding onto our sadhana. Only then we will experience infinite anandam or bliss.
Progress is very fast
As soon as one gets tantric diiksa' and starts doing sadhana and leading our Ananda Marga way of life, then their wheel starts moving quickly. Lifetimes of old samskaras become ripe and ultimately get exhausted. By that way one becomes free of so many fetters and they are able to advance very, very rapidly. Then His grace becomes ever resplendent in their life and they are able to reach their ultimate divine realm. This is the ideal destiny of every Ananda Margii.
In this lifetime, every Ananda Margii will have to reach their Goal. That is why their speed is so great. And that is why in the life of Ananda Margiis the cycle of happiness and sorrow rotates quickly: only by exhausting all these good and bad samskaras can one reach their ultimate abode. So our movement is very fast, by His grace. Because in this very life we are going to get Him.
In contrast, the road for non-margiis is vastly different. Rather than racing towards the Cosmic Nucleus in a straight line, they move slowly, slowly around the periphery. The ripening of their samskaras occurs in a very gradual way where one can hardly see any movement in their life. What they are when they were born is not much different from how they are when they die. Their progress is negligible.
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When one does not have a Tantric Guru
When one one does not have a Tantric Guru and when one does not have sadhana, then they have no path of movement to race forward. So they live their life shackled by old samskaras and their rate of change is very minute. They will have to undergo life after life - thousands and millions of lives. Their journey will be extremely slow and mostly uneventful.
Whereas in Ananda Marga, due to Baba's grace, we are racing towards Him with tremendous speed - in which case all the fetters rapidly fall away as one after another samskara gets annihilated. Such is the great transformation that takes place within the life of every Ananda Margii. And that is why amidst the various obstacles and difficulties, joys and pleasures, those moving on the path of Ananda Marga will reach their cherished goal in one life.
Full cycle
Our Ananda Marga is the path of tantra where by Baba's unfathomable grace the sadhaka has the opportunity to attain liberation in this life itself. Indeed this is the guarantee Sadguru Baba has given in The Supreme Command. So really we are blessed.
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Human desires are infinite and as this infinite desire gets channelised toward the spiritual realm and spiritual yearning is awakened, one will begin the spiritual journey, exhaust all their samskaras, and reach unto Parama Purusa. At the same time, we should understand the underlying philosophy and science. Then we can better anticipate and understand how and why our lives transform as we speedily move towards the Cosmic Nucleus.
Most importantly, by this way we will be able to support and guide new and old margiis on the path when they invariably undergo the accelerated ripening of samskaras in their movement towards the Goal.
Occult powers name, fame
Here is an outline of the different stages of sadhana:
(a) When a person initially starts sadhana those obstacles come from the external world - people will oppose them and disturbances will come from without, i.e. from the external world.
(b) After gaining victory from external problems then obstacles arise from within. In that case, no one will disturb you but one will face mental hurdles like lack of concentration etc. But if you continue your sadhana with greater speed those problems will also be defeated.
(c) Then in the third stage occult powers (name, fame, prestige) come and in this stage most get defeated. But if still one goes on doing sadhana they will get success.
All these stages occur when one is really sincere in sadhana and if you are not sincere then throughout your whole life you will remain in the first stage - beset by external struggles. You will sit in sadhana and others will create problems for you. External problems will always harass you and if you cross that and you may get stuck in stage 2 and problems will come from within. Here again you must accelerate your sadhana to overcome this problem, and ultimately, success will arrive and the mind will become like an obedient pet.
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~ In-depth study ~
Here below Baba beautifully explains how those on the path of sadhana reach unto the Supreme Goal of life and attain Him.
Ananda Marga ideology guides us, "Now how to get liberation from these bondages? It’s possible only when the reactive momenta get exhausted, and this is possible only through sa'dhana'. When one walks in the sphere of actional bondages one’s movement is from subtle to crude. The sa'dhana' for liberation from bondages is a movement from crude to subtle. The 'saincara' process is a movement from the supreme positivity to the supreme negativity, a flow from fundamental negativity to fundamental positivity. But, what is this movement for? This movement is for the exhaustion of actional bondages. It is movement from darkness to light and truth. One has to march towards truth." (2)
Ananda Marga philosophy states, "Sometimes it may happen that a man was a degenerated man. When he was a bad man, he was eating, drinking, and making merry, but as soon as he starts Sádhaná, he is to face so many obstacles, so many hardships. He has become good, but be has to undergo so many troubles, so many problems. What is this? Why? Do you follow what I said? Why? The reason is that the pendulum moves. When it starts coming in the opposite side when its upward movement ends and the downward movement starts. The moment he becomes a good boy, becomes a Sádhaka, the reaction of his bad actions starts." (3)
Without obstacles progress is a dream
Ananda Marga ideology says, "Sádhaná is the effort to free oneself from the qualifying influence of Prakrti. Avidyámáyá is also a quality, and that too has to be renounced. If a tenant has been occupying a house for a very long time it will be extremely difficult to suddenly evict him by force, particularly if he has been treated as a respectable tenant for a long time. He will never leave the house willingly and will place all sorts of obstacles in your path. You will have to fight against all his manoeuvres, and only when you have completely defeated him will the bully allow you to enter the house. Similarly, as one has been at the mercy of Avidyámáyá for many lives, it will not leave easily when one starts intuitional practice. Like the bullying tenant, Avidyámáyá will throw all possible obstacles across one’s path when one tries to destroy its influence. Sádhaná or intuitional practice as taught by a great preceptor is the way to remove Avidyámáyá. Only success in sádhaná can make Avidyámáyá loosen its hold. So the beginning of true sádhaná is marked by great resistance from Avidyámáyá, which, through the obstacles it creates, tries to compel one to give up sádhaná. In its attempts to subdue Avidyámáyá, sádhaná will naturally meet resistance from the evil force of Avidyámáyá. Obstacles in sádhaná (intuitional practices) should be regarded as an indication of one’s success in one’s attempt to remove Avidyámáyá. Obstacles are not created by God or the great preceptor (sadguru), as they wish every one of the units to become emancipated like themselves. They are created by Prakrti, against whom one is waging war. If one is to win, Prakrti has to be defeated with the weapon of sádhaná, against which Avidyámáyá defends itself by placing obstacles in one’s way. Obstacles in sádhaná should be regarded as good signs, indicating that the influence of Avidyámáyá is beginning to wane." (4)
How sadhakas get victory
Ananda Marga ideology states, "The avidyá force declares war on those whose desire or inclination is towards vidyá; this gives rise to a hostile tendency in the recesses of their minds, against which they have to struggle. At home the husband, wife or the other members of the family become dissatisfied with them, and create various obstacles. In the field of their activities the opportunities arise for depravity, meanness, bribes etc., and they have to maintain their self-control. The locusts of desires come swarming in to destroy the very bud of their sádhaná. So they must carefully avoid such temptations for their own safety. But those whose movement is truly towards vidyá, who are determined to follow the path of vidyá by sacrificing their all, will eventually become immune to all obstacles. No amount of scornful taunts or diatribes will be able to check their lightning speed. They will emerge victorious, weathering and defying all storms, and eventually stand firm and erect like the Himalayas; and the storms and squalls will rebound back in disappointment." (5)
Ananda Marga ideology says, "When the Sádhaka or the spiritual aspirant will stand untrammelled and resolute, with the courage of his conviction, and self-confidence, all snags and dangers will gradually wither away – will timidly disappear from his path...Obstacles are the concomitants of sádhaná, struggling is a good sign. By these obstacles sádhakas can understand that their spiritual practice is on the right track. Spiritual philosophy comes into being only when sádhakas struggling with avidyá’s hindrances, vindicates their move towards Brahma after defeating the base propensities of avidyá by their own intellect and judgment." (6)
References
1. Ananda Vacanamrtam - 25, The Importance of Diikśá
2. Subhasita Samgraha - 19, Salvation and Devotion
3. Ananda Vacanamrtam - 14, Action and Reaction
4. Ananda Marga Elementary Philosophy, Intuitional Practice and Its Necessity
5. Subhasita Samgraha - 3, Supreme Benevolence and Mundane Pleasure
6. Subhasita Samgraha - 3, Supreme Benevolence and Mundane Pleasure
* * *
The below sections are entirely different topics, unrelated to the above material.
They stand on their own as points of interest.
* * *
== Section 2: Important Teaching ==
Source of the sun’s energy
Ananda Marga ideology says, “Because each and everybody in this universe gets energy from Parama Purusa, He is the Supreme Source of energy.”
“This earth and all the other planets and satellites of this solar system get their energy from the sun. The sun is the source of their energy. But He is the source of the sun’s energy. And that’s why He is jvalantam.”
“And that’s why I have said that there won’t be any thermal death of this universe. Because He is jvalantam, He is present, and He will be present forever. So there won’t be any shortage of energy in this cosmic system, though there may be a shortage of energy in some particular portion of the earth or the cosmos.” (1)
Reference
1. Ananda Vacanamrtam - 3, The Fear of Him
== Section: Important Teaching ==
Common occurrence in present era
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: Important Teaching ==
Priests: worst enemies of humanity
Note: In religion, there is nothing positive. It just a bag full of negative things. In the name of God religious agents exploit the common mass and innocent people, in endless ways. They camouflage their dealings in various shapes and forms. Those with keen eyes can understand the falsehood that religions propagate. History bears testimony that religion has been the cause of so much human suffering. And still it is going on.
Ananda Marga ideology guides us, “If someone argues that an arum dish rather than a potato dish should be offered in the temple of Jagannath because potato is non-indigenous it is the height of absurdity. Does Jagannath make any discrimination between different countries? Is there any difference for Him between the river Ganges and the Jordan?”
“All lands are His own land; everything is within His mind, created with His own atoms and molecules, and resonated with His sacred ideation. Those whose preachings encourage such discriminatory feelings are the worst enemies of humanity.”
“These are the people who in every age in the name of religion have caused blood to flow, and have injected the fear of heaven and hell, of ghosts and demons into the human mind. These are the people who made human beings lifeless puppets.” (1)
Greed and cruelty of vultures
Ananda Marga ideology guides us “And even today these vested interests are still trying to perpetrate discrimination in a thousand and one ways. It is said, “One who knows Brahma becomes a Brahman.” But this definition of a Brahman is inconvenient for them so they have declared that the son of a Brahman is a Brahman and the son of a Vipra is a Vipra, whether they merit the title or not. In this way they have cheated the simple, mute and gullible masses for centuries together.”
“They do not have the key to salvation; no, they hold only one thing in their hands: the binding rope. They don’t possess the spirit or the valour to sing the songs of human emancipation. Their eyes do not shine with the radiance of universalism, but squint with the greed and cruelty of vultures. Buddha was the first person to revolt against their cruelty and devouring greed.”
“He declared unequivocally...Nobody is born low, nobody is born a bráhmiń. Human beings are considered low only because of their bad actions. But when they see Brahma in each and every finite entity, and act accordingly, they attain the rank of bráhmiń, they become established in integral knowledge. A bráhmiń is not a caste, it is not a rank; it is the vast Cosmic Entity established in universalism.” (2)
Note: In religion, there is nothing positive. It just a bag full of negative things. In the name of God religious agents exploit the common mass and innocent people, in endless ways. They camouflage their dealings in various shapes and forms. Those with keen eyes can understand the falsehood that religions propagate. History bears testimony that religion has been the cause of so much human suffering. And still it is going on.
About Islamic cruelty
Ananda Marga ideology guides us, “Humanity, in its all-out quest for this aesthetic science, attained spirituality. One must acknowledge this. Herein lies the excellence of aesthetic science. For this reason, I have given my whole-hearted and explicit support for nandana vijiṋána. You know that there are certain religions which do not encourage aesthetic pursuits. You will notice that in those religions inertia, inferiority complexes and a sense of violence are predominant.” (3)
References
1. Ananda Marga Ideology & Way of LIfe - 6, The only way to Salvation
2. Ananda Marga Ideology & Way of LIfe - 6, The only way to Salvation
3. Ananda Vacanamrtam - 10, Yatamána – the Stage of Perseverance
== Section: Important Teaching ==
Not doing sadhana defeats purpose of existence
Ananda Marga philosophy says, "So humans were created only to do sadhana and attain emancipation. Those who do not do sadhana for their mukti (emancipation)
even though they were created for this purpose, go against the wishes of the Supreme Entity. They defeat the very purpose of the creation of human
beings." (1)
Reference
1. Ananda Marga Elementary,What Is This World?
== Section 3: Links ==
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