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How to Improve Sadhana: Part IV

To: AM-GLOBAL From: Foster Davis Subject: How to Improve Sadhana: Part IV Date: Thu, 01 Jul 2010 07:38:29 -0400 Baba "Bha'loba'si toma'y a'mi, keno ta' ja'ni na'..." P.S. 2329 Purport: Baba, I love You but I do not know why I love You. You go on pulling my heart-- but what is the mystery behind this, how and why You are attracting me, that I cannot say. Baba, all I know is that You are the divine effulgence of my dark heart. By Your grace I will never allow that effulgence to get extinguished. Baba, I will always keep Your love in my heart. By Your grace I will always hold Your image in my mind. Baba, all the love I have in the deep core of my heart, and all the hopes and longings I have in my mind, all these desires and aspirations of mine are revolving around You. And by Your grace they get expressed through Your songs, dance, melody, and rhythms. Baba, You are the focal point of my life; You are my everything. Baba, by Your divine grace I feel that You are guiding each and every aspect of my existence. There is not even a single ounce of confusion in my mind. Everything is totally clear by Your grace. Where am I, where will I go, and from where have I come: All these types of useless questions never creep into my mind. Baba, by Your grace, I do not even want to know these things. Just I am fully depending upon You-- that You know everything and that everything is in Your control. For me that is enough. Baba, You are my shelter, You are my anchor. And You are the Supreme Controller of this vast universe. Baba, You are always ever gracious on me. I love You with all my heart; my whole existence is Yours...
== HOW TO IMPROVE SADHAN: PART 4 ==
Namaskar, Only margiis and those sincere field Wts who are following Baba can be classified as dharmikas. In this regard the number of dharmikas in AM is growing as more and more are interested in following HIM. Here is more about the series on Sixteen Points which speaks to Baba's given code of dharma.
DHARMA IS NATURAL LAW
Baba's teachings are the essence of dharma. This is the common fact known to all Ananda Margiis. So Baba's guidelines are-- by definition-- in accordance with natural law. Or, more explicitly, they are the natural law. Hence Sixteen Points is the pathway for the proper and wholesome development of human all beings. And by His grace we Ananda Margiis have experienced this on a first-hand basis. So step by step each and every guideline of 16 Points is leading in this positive direction on all the levels: in physical life; in the psychic sphere; and in the spiritual realm as well.
NATURE'S WAY
Nature has provided the human body with all the basic requirements for human life. Means it provides neither too little nor too much of anything-- by birth the human design is proper, whether male or female. And this all occurs with the golden stamp of approval of Parama Purusa Himself. Thus, with regards to point #2 of Sixteen Points, when all males are born with an attached foreskin, then Baba's expressed guideline is to simply pull the foreskin back upon reaching adolescence. Meaning that when born and up to the age of 12 or so, it is healthy, normal, and natural to keep the foreskin attached as it offers many inherent benefits; and then later on males can keep it pulled back as in that position also it has its plus points. Thus there is no need for any cutting etc.
SIXTEEN POINTS AND CARYACARYA
That is why when Baba first delivered His guidelines of Sixteen Points in Patna just prior to the jail period, then Baba has simply told all margiis to pull the foreskin back. No further option has given and the Hindi and Bengali books of Caryacarya reflect His golden guideline. Meaning: Pulling the foreskin back is the sole teaching of point #2 of Sixteen points. In those original Caryacarya books there is no mention of the word circumcision. Only when certain later English editions of Caryacarya got printed did the word "circumcision" appear on the scene. Thus, when preparing the book for overseas sales, it seems those editors in short-sighted way made the so-called link that being circumcised fulfills the guideline of "keeping the foreskin pulled back". Yet in actuality, the circumcision term has nothing to do with Baba's expressed guideline. However in their naive way of dealing, on their own those editors actually gave circumcision as an option and printed that word in the English version of Caryacarya-- when in fact this is not Baba's guideline. And this word 'circumcision' never ever got included in the Hindi or Bengali editions of Caryacarya. Baba has never included it. And to this very day you will not find it in those editions of Caryacarya.
A FEW UNNATURAL DEVELOPMENTS
Thus the circumcision term is one of a small collection of words that got mistakenly added into or misapplied in our present day AM life, when in fact it really does not belong at all. It is similar how in our overseas countries the term dharmashastra has been wrongly used to refer to Dada's talks after dharmacakra. When in fact in the true sense dharmashastra only refers to Guru's dharmic discourses and guidelines. No Dada can give dharmashastra. So those talks after dharmacakra given by Dadas are really part of the practice of svadhyaya or less than that, depending. So the overarching purpose here is that those talks have nothing to do with the dharmashastra term. Yet for years and years in our various sectors from Berlin to Suva to NY to Hong Kong to GT etc-- in all these sectors various margiis & WTs were using dharmashastra in that wrong way. But now it seems that this is slowly getting cleared up or fixed altogether. But this is just one example of many how terms get added or wrongly used. And in a related way the circumcision term got wrongly latched up with AM society. And here's another example of how such things come to be. Often is that case in those Muslim countries our Dadas go there to try and do pracara and invariably during the course of the day they go to practice their own lessons of dharma sadhana. And then when locals ask about their whereabouts then one or another response comes that 'Dada is doing is namaz'. Thus in certain of those Muslim regions the namaz term has slid into our AM vocabulary. When in fact namaz is really nothing more than dogmatic Muslim prayer rituals-- and has nothing to do with dharma sadhana. But due to local misperception etc the namaz term got stapled onto the practice of AM sadhana. At the beginning times when new practices arrive then such things happen-- there are numerous example of such occurrences. When terms get misapplied or wrongly added etc. And it happened in the case of circumcision as well. Yet invariably in a short time all these things get cleared up via further reflection and heightened understanding.
A HOLDOVER OF SEMITIC RULES
As we think and use our rational minds it becomes increasingly apparent that the term and ritual of circumcision is a by product of semetic life-- and not part of our dharmic AM system. Baba says, "Human beings readily accept traditions without seeking the reasons behind them. Since ancient days the semites have been observing the practice of circumcision. Moses and Mohammed accepted this system which today has become tradition." (HS-1) And in this following teaching Baba is explaining how dogmatic customs like circumcision get carried over from one era to the next. Baba says, "Long ago the Jews started practising circumcision. When Moses converted some of his contemporaries to Judaism, and later when Mohammed converted some local people to Islam, neither prophet dared to instruct their new followers to discard the old customs they followed, consequently the old customs continued after their conversion." (PNS-21) By that content, style, and vibration of Baba's above quotes, it is quite clear that circumcision is really nothing more than on old, outdated ritual of prior eras and not one of the crisp, new, sterling instructions of Sixteen Points. And here is another letter on this topic
HANDLING THE SITUATION NOWADAYS
Perhaps the first step now is to think the situation through, talk with others, and apply our rational minds. And by this way in our various overseas sectors where certain margiis are "automatically" circumcising their male offspring, then little by little this practice will subside-- and ultimately come to a halt entirely. If already this is not happening. Of course in many sectors and certainly in our Delhi sector, then circumcision is not at all an issue nor an option. Because no one does it-- nobody. But in those lands that got painted in the colour of those Semitic faiths then circumcision developed into the mode of the day. Yet as Margiis we are not to get swept up into rituals of old; rather we readily pickup Baba's revolutionary new ways. And in this way dharma gets established-- step by step, point by point. So we should take care with our new-borns & infants by rationally applying Baba's dharmic code of keeping the foreskin as outlined in Point #2 of Sixteen Points.
BABA'S BLESSING
Baba says, "You who are genuine spiritualists should practise spiritual cult thinking that by doing so you will become effective in maintaining the universal balance. You must think, 'I will personally move towards the supreme desideratum, and at the same time I will try to assist those who are suffering from despair, those steeped in blind superstition." (MVNS, p. 146) Namaskar, Purusottama
Note 1: COVERING THE BASES
About this entire topic of circumcision, essentially the matter is quite clear and straightforward. However, there are a few auxiliary points here and there so if anyone has any thoughts or unanswered questions about any aspect of this topic then without any shyness that should be raised. Doing so will invariably help clarify the matter further for us all.
Note 2: KEEPING UP WITH THE TIMES
In our western countries and around the globe there is a fast and growing movement against the practice of circumcision. And in most cases the rationale is the same. People are rightly thinking that the human body is God's creation and that the way it is at birth is the perfect presentation. It does not need any alterations or tailoring-- no cutting or splicing. Just it is perfect upon arrival. And even those less theistic type of movements are doing away with circumcision by raising the call of nature. Their feeling is that just as the sun and the moon rise and fall in the sky, and just as the rivers and the oceans merge together on this earth, in the same natural way the human baby has it rhyme and reason and no one should interrupt nature's course. Thus we Ananda Margiis should rationally apply Baba's guideline so as not to lag behind. Rather that will keep us adequately ahead so that by His grace we will steer the humanity in right proper direction in all the spheres of life, from the very outset of one's birth.
Note 3: IMPROVING SADHANA
This letter is part of the series on Sixteen Points. And since 16 Points is inextricably linked with all the realms and especially spiritual life, by following them we gain added momentum in our sadhana also. Here are the other letters in this series:
**************************************** Suffering of the Rich is Much More than the Poor
Baba says, "If money or wealth would have been the solution of all the problems then in that case rich persons would have always enjoyed being in a state of bliss. But in society it is not like that. The suffering of the rich is more than the poor." (Allahabad, DMC 1984) Note: In our western countries nowadays, where money is more free-flowing, the number of psychic diseases is multiplying day by day. The haves are coming under the nasty grip of depression, frustration, hopeless, and overall melancholia. In that state they are always sunk in some degraded psychic flow. This is rampant. That is why so many westerners like those in the USA go to psychiatrists and other psychic counselors in order to feel good. Because otherwise just by following their daily routine they succumb to depression. So they go see their chosen psychiatrist etc. But those sessions are often a band-aid approach at best. Because most of the time those very psychiatrists and psychologists are themselves depressed-- in that case what kind of guideline are they going to give. The only way out is to develop a balanced mind through the practice of sadhana. Then alone one can escape the the terrors of materialism.
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