Why Stuck in Sadhana

Date: 31 Jan 2009 22:48:37 -0000 From: "Shivadayal Singhal" To: am-global@earthlink.net Subject: Why Stuck in Sadhana Baba "A'nandaghan tumi ananta karun'a a'nanda sudha'sa'ra..." (PS 4140) Purport: O' Baba, You are Ananda Ghan, You are full of bliss, You are Bliss Personified. Your karuna' [1], Your compassionate grace, knows no bounds; it is unending. You are the essence of nectar-- the essence of infinite bliss. Baba, You are the most charming and attractive One. You always remain in bliss. Your culmination lies in a'nanda; Your every expression - thought, word, and deeds - is bliss. Baba, You are uniquely situated in a'nanda and your entire Being is a'nanda. O' my Lord, You are bliss personified, You are A'nandamu'rti. Baba, You are Alakha Nirainjan [2], infinite and blemishless. You are so gracious; You are Bhra'ntivimocan [3], You remove all confusion, doubts, and dilemmas. You have three eyes. You have perfect vision of the past, present, and future. Baba, by Your grace, You are sarva'ksa'dhaka, You are the answer of everything. You are fulfilling everyone's desires and wishes. You grant everything. You are everyone's own; You are in everyone's heart. Baba You are the infinite ocean of perfect peace. Baba, in this world, You have come and expressed Yourself in the form of effulgence and You will always remain in effulgence. Baba You are eternally present in the three worlds-- subtle, crude, and causal. You are vibrating everything. From unit to cosmic, from the blade of grass to Brahma, You are attracting everyone. All are moving towards You, by Your grace. O' Great Entity, You are mine and You are the essence of essence. You are everything... NOTES FOR PRABHAT SAMGIITA 4140: [1] Karuna': (Literally: 'Divine Compassion'); When Parama Purus'a sees the suffering of devotees, then He feels pained by how they are unable to move ahead on the spiritual path due to getting caught up in various problems and difficulties. In such circumstances, Parama Purusa cannot bear to watch His bhaktas go through so much struggle and strife. So in their helpless condition, when devotees are trying hard to progress but their pathway is completely obstructed and they cannot advance in their sadhana or spiritual life-- and again and again they are overcome by various complexes, bondages, and obstacles-- then by seeing His devotees beleaguered in this way, Parama Purus'a Himself comes and graces them. With His immense feeling of karuna' (divine compassion), Parama Purusa blesses His devotees and relieves them of their pain and suffering. This special grace is nothing but His divine karuna': Wherein Parama Purus'a graces the devotees and removes their troubles and hindrances so that once again they can move ahead freely on the path of spiritual salvation. [2] Alakhanirainjan: ('Alakh' means 'invisible'; 'nir' means 'no'; 'ainjan' means 'black spot'.) Of the infinite attributions of Parama Purusa, one of which is that He is invisible and blemishless-- totally pure and perfect. That is why He is known as Alakhanirainjan. Because in this world unit beings are bound by their past actions, by their samskaras; and this creates a black mark in their mind. But being Alakhanirainjan, being both invisible and blemishless, Parama Purusa is totally beyond the realm of sense perception and beyond the realm of samskara. His mind never gets stained. He remains eternally pure and spotless. [3] Bhra'ntivimocan: (Bhra'nti means 'confusion', vimocan means 'remover'). This is one of the names of Parama Purusa: The Entity who graciously removes all confusion and clears the sadhaka's mind of ignorance and delusion. When one is swamped in avidya maya and thinking that right is wrong and wrong is right, then their future is bleak. They are totally caught up in dogma and wallowing in misconceptions. They think transitory things to be permanent. In that dreadful and desperate time, when by His grace Parama Purusa removes the ignorance and clears the sadhaka's mind of all darkness, then the sadhaka is able to realise the truth and move forward on the path of Supreme Benevolence. That is why one of the names of Parama Purusa is Bhra'ntivimocan.

== WHY STUCK IN SADHANA ==

Namaskar, We all know that sadhana is the cream of life. Sadhana is the only way to reach the Goal and feel His bliss. It is by sincerely practicing sadhana that we progress on the path. There are many factors that might temporarily halt our progress in sadhana - procrastination, laziness, mundane attraction etc. These certainly can happen. However there is one fundamental flaw that will make our sadhana become "stuck" - when we really cannot move ahead. And it is this pitfall that every sadhaka and seeker must be aware of - and avert - if they want success in their spiritual life.

BHAKTI MEANS SERVICE TO PARAMA PURUSA

Baba reminds us again and again that bhakti means service to Parama Purusa.

Bhaktir Bhagavato seva'

Bhakti is service to the Supreme

To serve anyone, to serve Parama Purusa, His presence is needed. One must feel that Baba is nearby, closeby so that we may serve Him. Without His presence there can be no service; and if there is no service there is no bhakti. So this inherent feeling of closeness with Parama Purusa is the key ingredient of bhakti. And with the feeling of bhakti then one can easily move forward on the path of sadhana. Hence, it all starts with the presence of Parama Purusa, thinking that Baba is close by. This is an essential element of sadhana.

THE MAJOR PITFALL

The main pitfall then or reason for getting stuck in sadhana is falling into the dogma that Parama Purusa is not really there. Unfortunately some feel this way - and in that condition their sadhana becomes totally stuck. People innocently fall into the belief that sadhana is "just my imagination". They repeat their mantra, they do their chanting, they do so many things - all with the feeling that they are alone and that Parama Purusa cannot really hear them. This defective approach has invaded the mental plate of many a sadhaka. And it is a most dangerous phenomena. How does it happen? Well, people think, "I imagine so many conversations - with my spouse, my boss, my grandmother, or my friend. And those persons do not actually hear me. They do not know I was talking with them. It was all just my imagination. Same then is the case with sadhana and Parama Purusa. I am repeating my mantra but He cannot hear me. It is all just my imagination." This is one unfortunate misunderstanding that may enter the mind. And this will bring one's sadhana to a complete halt. Because without Parama Purusa there is no sadhana. If we fall into the trap that Parama Purusa is not close by but rather very far away then He will remain beyond our grasp. Baba says, "If you think that He is very far from you, He will remain forever beyond your reach." (AMIWL-6) In that case sadhana will just be one fantasy - just a far off dream. There will not be any progress. There will not be any vibration or feeling of closeness in sadhana.

HOW EVERYONE CAN MOVE AHEAD

To avert this spiritual calamity, one must feel like they are communicating with Baba in sadhana. And to do this, one must cultivate the idea that He is close by. One may think that, this is easier said than done. But, as we have all felt, really it is not very difficult. The whole essence of our second lesson - or Guru mantra - is that Parama Purusa is watching me. That is the beginning, middle, and end of second lesson. If one feels this way then that is everything in second lesson. Hence, all the 24hrs we should cultivate the feeling that Parama Purusa is watching me. And that is the reality also. It is not just one's imagination. Because Parama Purusa has deep, deep love and affection for everyone - i.e. for you. In that case He cannot keep Himself away. Rather His tendency will be to come close and watch for your welfare. And when as sadhakas we embrace this reality, then we will have His closeness and touch. Baba says, "If you think that He is near, He will be so near that you need not move even an inch to attain Him." (AMIWL-6) So the feeling embedded within 2nd second is vital toward our spiritual growth in sadhana. And indeed when doing citta shuddi, this very same feeling must be inculcated. Only when we feel we are completely surrounded by His presence should we then commence our mantra japa. In a nutshell, when we feel that He is with us, then our sadhana can never become stuck.

IT IS THE TRUTH ALSO - HERE IS THE PROOF

Even then some think that, "Okay, Parama Purusa is watching me, I can accept this idea, follow it, and tell others about it, but in my heart I do not think it is true." Some fall in this category. That is why for years and years, in countless reporting sessions and in dharma samiiksa and in PC, Baba would again and again prove to us that He was there all along, watching us. He would smile and perfectly repeat what we were thinking when we were standing outside in the rain waiting for the bus, or He would talk about how we ate a sweet before doing sadhana, or He would describe who the passengers were on the train when we were traveling to DMC. All these things and many more Baba would tell us. And the sole reason behind it was to teach and show us that in all circumstances He is always with us. That was His message: Never are we alone, always Parama Purusa is with you - watching - caring for your welfare. Verily, this is the essence of spirituality: His presence. And Baba has written hundreds of songs in His Prabhat Samgiita collection that depict how we are to sing to Him and that He is always listening. All this reinforces the sweet notion that He is always with us.

A BEAUTIFUL THOUGHT NOT A SCARY ONE

So whether doing sadhana or not, we should always feel that He is with us - watching us - looking out for our welfare. And this is one beautiful idea. It is not scary as if some enemy is secretly watching us through the window. Rather it is one very charming and blissful concept that no matter where I may go in this universe, Baba will always be with me, gently holding my hand - guiding me, helping me - saving me.

MOST IMPORTANT ASPECT OF SPIRITUAL LIFE

This idea is the most important aspect of our spiritual life and it is this notion that propels us ahead on the path. So we must always feel that He is with us. When doing second lesson we are to feel that He is watching us. And when doing first lesson we are to feel like we are calling Him. That is Baba's explicit guideline. Mindlessly repeating those mantras without that ideation - without the feeling of His presence - will be futile. It is the feeling that we are communicating with Him directly - that He is there listening - that empowers our sadhana and gives shakti to our mantra japa. So we must always cultivate this as the first step in our spiritual life: That He is present. Never should we allow ourselves to fall prey to the myth that sadhana is just our imagination. Doing so is like the kiss of death. Then our sadhana will really be stuck. Even if we sit for hours and hours we will not advance. When we think - "Baba is with me" - then all the lessons of sadhana come alive and we float in the bliss of of His sweet Presence. Then we communicate with Him, and we will directly receive His communication and love also. Sadhana will be a blissful interaction between bhakta and Parama Purusa.

BABA'S BLESSING

In our Marga, the whole concept and practice of sadhana is based on the idea that we are very close with and in communication with Parama Purusa. That is the golden nugget of Ananda Marga. In the various religions they feel that their god is far away in the seventh sky and that he is only available one day a week and even then to communicate with him one needs the help of a priest etc. That is their dogmatic outlook. In AM it is not like that. Baba has infused withus with the idea that 'Parama Purusa is yours and that He is your very close companion'. It is this very real vibration that gives force to our mantra japa and propels us toward Oneness with Him. By remembering and practicing this ideal, we will never again get stuck in sadhana, by His grace. Baba says, "He who is guiding the stars of the skies, is with you, you are not alone. Under no circumstances should you ever be afraid. Never think that you are alone. Whatever has to happen, will happen, and the One who causes this happening is with you. He is not something which resides far far away. You are not a distant relative of His. He is your Father. So you only have to know the One. Who is He? He is your nearest and dearest One. He is your most beloved." (AV-5) Namaskar, Shivadayal

Note 1: THINGS TO AVOID

If we do sadhana just to show off in front of others or if we do sadhana just so that we can go and eat food, then this is not at all good. In that sadhana there is no Parama Purusa, there is only self and the mundane desire for name and fame or food. If one falls in this category then they are stuck. Their sadhana will not go anywhere. Only when one thinks that my sadhana is for Parama Purusa will they then be able to advance. Baba is ever-gracious so whatever right or wrong habits we may have had in the past, He is always there to help us proceed on the path. Let us all move forward embracing this idea.