"THIS MARGA IS MINE":
THIS SHOULD BE THE MENTALITY OF EVERY ANANDA MARGII
Namaskar,
It is no secret that our Marga is now going through tough times.
That is because even though Baba has given us a sublime and perfect
ideology, our AMPS is made up of imperfect human beings. Naturally
mistakes are going to happen and issues are going to arise.
When those problems do invariably occur, there are three basic responses
we will see:
(A) Those who are third-grade people will think that AMPS is not a good
place to stay and they will run away.
(B) Second grade people do not get concerned and justify that things
should remain as is. Just hide the problem so that others do not find
out about it, otherwise everyone will have a bad name.
(C) Those who are top-grade people will recognise the problem, alert
others and work to collectively solve the matter.
Let's look at the matter this way:
If there are 5 people and one person gets seriously sick, then we may
see an array of reactions. Those who have the least amount of sympathy
will leave the scene entirely - not caring at all. Another may not be
concerned and will think it is best not to tell others and by that way
the problem will go away. Those who are true friends and family members
will cry out loudly and bring that person to the hospital. They will not
care who knows or does not know, with deep love their only thought is to
cure their sick friend of the disease.
This same set of circumstances happens in AM as well.
Those who are third class people run away when they see a problem;
second grade persons do not get very concerned - they just try to hide
and ignore the problem so they can reap the rewards in the form of high
posts etc. They are just in it try for their own prestige. In contrast,
top grade people get very concerned because they see the organisation as
related with their own existence. They will alert everybody and try to
fix the problem.
STORY: BABY FOUND IN THE STREET
Now look in this way. My acarya told me this story and I found it quite
helpful.
A husband and wife were walking down the street. They were young and
they had not yet had children. As they were continuing their walk they
found a baby in the street. They thought they should look after the
baby. So they took it to the doctor and the doctor told them that the
baby had a severe case of tuberculosis. They thought that having a baby
with TB was inviting too much of a problem, and they left the baby at
the hospital and continued on with their lives.
Then just one year later, that same married couple gave birth to their
first child. When the child was just a week old the doctor told them
that their child suffered from a severe case of autism and that he would
never be normal. Even then, the parents felt that this "baby is mine"
and they took the firm resolve to care for the baby even though the baby
would require huge attention and lots of money.
Thus the same married couple got involved in similar situations but with
vastly different outcomes. Since they felt that the baby in the street
was not theirs, they did not want to know about or deal with the
problems. In contrast, with their natural birth baby they were ready to
undergo all kinds of struggle and strife.
Why? Because they felt, "this baby is mine."
HOW THIS RELATES WITH AMPS (PART 1)
The above story speaks well to the situation now in AMPS.
Those who do not feel that AMPS belongs to them are not willing to deal
with or hear about the problems whereas those who feel a sense of
belonging to AMPS are ready to address all kinds of issues in order to
clean-up and repair the organisation.
WHEN PROBLEM IS OUR OWN THEN WE SOLVE IT
It is just like if one's own hand is dirty, then that person will not
chop off their hand, they will clean it. The point being that when there
is a problem that affects one's own life, then they solve the problem.
Whereas if you think that problem is not related with you, then you
separate yourself from the problem. That is the difference.
The same thing applies to the organisation. Those who are concerned
members of AMPS will try and fix the problem because they think AMPS
belongs to them. So they will point out the problems, alert others, and
rally to solve the difficulties.
Whereas those who look at AMPS from arms-distance will just move further
away when problems arise. They will go elsewhere.
WE PAY TO FIND OUT THE FAULTS
Those who are concerned about something always want to know the problem.
For instance, if you are going to purchase a house then you will contact
all kinds of specialists and inspectors in order to find out what is
wrong with the house. You are not paying them to tell you what is good
about the house. You want to know where the weaknesses lie. You want all
the problems uncovered because this is going to be your house.
The same occurs when you bring your motorcycle, moped, or car to the
repair shop. You are incurring expense because you want them to figure
out the problem and solve it. You are giving them money to find the
defects. And if they do not find any problem, then you are not going to
pay them. That is the way it works.
Similar is the case of going to the doctor. We go to get our ailments
identified and cured. Not to be told that there is no problem. We want
our body to be healed.
Here the point is that when anyone considers something to be theirs,
then they want to know what all the problems are and get them fixed.
Thus what steps we take in our personal life we should also take in our
organisational life. Just as a car or bike or house or human body is
mine, this organisation is also mine. This should be our mentality.
WORKS THIS WAY WITH ALL SYSTEMS
This same formula of identifying the problem and repairing the wrong
works in the natural world as well.
The human body has a spectacular immune system. Whenever the body
suffers from any problem or disease, then immediately those anti-bodies
start attacking that infection or germs. The antibodies do not concern
themselves with the parts of the body that are healthy.
In contrast, if the immune system does not respond properly, then the
body decays and eventually dies.
In cases of nature, the positive approach is to fix the problems - that
is nature's special way. We see this with the various ecosystems, in
biology and chemistry, and in so many strata. In all such cases, a red
alert is signaled when a problem arises and then all sorts of natural
forces come forward to solve the problem.
And if there is no signal then there is no problem.
WHAT SHOULD BE OUR OUTLOOK: Part 1
When we have come into AM and when we know that AM ideology is the
panacea then we should have a proper outlook. We should not think that
all margiis and avadhutas are divine and free from any defect. Rather we
should think that Baba's philosophy is 100% rational and that humans are
prone to making mistakes. And if we ignore those mistakes then the
problems will multiply.
We should follow nature's way and Baba's directive to find out the
defect and correct the wrong.
Every organisation will have at least one bad apple and if that rotten
apple is allowed to fester, then everything will become rotten. So our
approach is to be vigilant and keep our organisation clean & totally
free from any grime. Overlooking the problems will not do.
WHAT SHOULD BE OUR OUTLOOK: Part 2
To continue, the first needed ingredient is an emotional attachment to
AMPS. We should think that: AM ideology is mine and this AMPS
organisation is mine. All should feel like this.
Then we will be adamant to fix the problem and find the solution.
Those who run away are cowards and those who do not know AM ideology are
blind. Such persons can never solve any problem
All true Ananda Margiis will cultivate a sense of rationality. We know
that all religions are dogmatic and that only AM is dharma.
Baba says, "Ananda Marga alone is dharma and all the rest are sectisms."
(SS-1, p. 63)
Thus when we know only Baba's AM is a perfect philosophy then we must
take the duty to fix the organisation and find others to do the same. In
that way we will be able to solve one problem after another and make
AMPS shine.
Furthermore, if ever we come across a new margii who became inactive
after finding out some dirt in AMPS, then your duty is to try to
convince them with the following logic:
They belong to the organisation and it is their duty to help fix it
because AM ideology is unparalleled. It is their duty to help; indeed
they are needed to help. There is no other way. Because no other
organisation in the universes is built on the pillars of neo-humanism
and bhagavad dharma. We should convince them in this manner.
As we all know, so many new persons get attracted to AM ideology and
find it to be logical and rational, but they hear about the problems and
feel suffocation with AMPS and consider leaving. We should convince them
to stay with the aforesaid logic.
Finally, the best thing is to think that AM is mine; but only those who
have extreme love can say and feel like this. If one mother has 4
children, they will all refer to her as my mother; they never say our
mother. Because each child has a high degree of love for their mother.
Each and every margii can and should think that this AMPS is mine.
If not, then at least think that it is ours. But those with more love
will think AMPS is mine. We should all harbor this feeling.
ON-GOING ISSUE
We must remember that in this relative world there will always be
problems. In this dance of creation, avidya maya keeps spinning her
web. This is an ongoing matter.
Since AM started there were problems. So many people inside and outside
of AMPS created problems for us. And always Baba was there to show us
how to solve such problems. Solving problems is essential and always
Baba did like this. That is the way of tantra and that is why He is a
Tantric Guru.
For this reason He would both lovingly punish and praise; and for this
reason He gave dharma samiiksa. His each and every action was aimed at
identifying the problems and giving the solution. Because that is what
Taraka Brahma does. He comes when society is at its worst and then
builds it up in the best way.
So we should follow in Baba's footsteps by solving the problems.
Plus, when we hear about problems in AMPS from someone else, we should
always remember the advice of the great saint Kabir. He advised:
"Keep those close to you who are going to point you out, by this way you
will be corrected and cleaned."
The sense is we should always embrace those who are pointing out the
problems in AMPS, because that is the only way to create a proper
organisation to establish dharma.
BABA'S BLESSING
By Baba's grace we must take a positive approach in life. Just seeking
out good news is not the way. We should find out the problems,
especially in AMPS. Because whereas we can get another automobile if it
breaks down, we cannot find another organisation founded by Taraka
Brahma. AMPS is the only one. We should be vigilant to keep it in proper
shape by thinking that this AMPS is mine. Then we will find out the
problems, alert others, and jointly solve those issues with other good
people.
Those who are weak-minded cannot fathom such an approach.
But by His grace every Ananda Margii has the temperament of a true
sadhaka of tantra and is ready to face all kinds of obstacles in order
to make life and AMPS brilliant. That is our way. We think: AM ideology
is mine and AMPS is mine.
Baba says, "Struggle is the essence of life. Yours should be a pauseless
struggle against corruption, hypocrisy and animality." (Ananda Vanii #11)
Namaskar,
Jawaharlal
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