== A CRITICAL CORRECTION IN HUMAN SOCIETY ==
Namaskar,
The role of morality in Ananda Marga is truly something dynamic and new,
so there should be no confusion about our moral code and its effect.
Unfortunately, due to a mistranslation, our book, Human Society (English
edition, 2000) presents a definition of morality that strays from Baba's
teaching.
This is of great significance for two reasons:
1) Our definition of morality is very important because the morality
term is often highly misunderstood and widely misused throughout the
globe; as Ananda Margiis we must not harbor such confusion since
morality is integral our AM philosophy.
2) When Baba uses morality in His discourses He presents a totally new
meaning which is radically different from that of the general society.
If His teaching on morality is not properly presented and hence not
understood, many will misunderstand the entire discourse.
We should all direct our focus to the "Moralism" chapter of HS-1 and
ensure it gets corrected.
ANANDA MARGA MORALITY
VS
THE MORALITY OF RELIGIONS & MATERIALISM
First, let's take a look at how our Ananda Marga's approach to morality
compares with that of the major religions and even nations.
Ina nutshell, in AM morality is that which helps the human mind proceed
to Supreme Consciousness. Whereas in the various dogmatic religions,
morality leads one toward their chosen dogma.
For instance, in Ananda Marga our code of morality is yama and niyama
and that invariably propels the sadhaka forward on the path to the
Divine. Hence, our code of morality is completely universal.
In stark contrast:
(a) The morality of Hindus is based on brahmin supremacy wherein dalits
(untouchables) are not allowed to wear shoes, use an umbrella or walk on
the roads. In addition, Hindu morality preached that women must not hear
the vedas or else molten lead would be poured into their ears. Plus
there are any number of aspects of Hindu morality which do nothing but
suppress certain castes and maintain the status quo.
(b) The morality of the Christians was to engage in the crusades and
kill non-Christians in the past; and now the morality of Christians is
to kill animals and females are 2nd class citizens. Plus they employ
various other codes that suit their convenience. So Christian morality
deals with the self-interest of their religion and religious leaders.
(c) The morality of the Muslims is to cover women from head to toe and
claim that three women are equal to one man, and embark on various
jihads etc. Indeed there is a whole slew of Islamic laws and moral codes
that only seek to maintain the interest of those in power etc.
(d) In places like US, Europe and other countries, the code of morality
is always changing. In recent US history the moral code allowed slavery,
and now slavery is illegal, whereas things like gay marriage which were
banned in the past are now being embraced. It all changes according to
the whim of the people. Likewise in Europe, prostitution is now legal
whereas in the past it was outlawed. And there are so many examples of
how the materialistic code of morality is just based on convenience -
not welfare. They alter it according to their own interests during a
particular era.
In all the above cases, their code of morality is far from the cause of
universal welfare; the morality of the Hindus, Christians, Muslims and
capitalists is only for maintaining the status quo, nothing more.
In Ananda Marga, the code of morality is totally unique as its sole aim
is to bring one ahead on the path of salvation - and the tenets are
universal as they apply across time, space and person, whereas the
dogmatic religions and materialistic societies bend the moral code
according to their individual interest.
Our code of morality should be known to and followed by all as it leads
to the emancipation of unit beings and brings universal welfare to society.
Unfortunately, due to a critical error in the Human Society book, our
definition of morality has been misrepresented.
BABA'S DISTINCT DEFINITION
Before examining the faulty translation, let's clarify morality as per
Baba's teaching. In addition to being comprised of yama and niyama, in
Ananda Marga morality has a distinct purpose and function. In His 1990
June DMC discourse, Baba pointedly identifies the role of morality.
Baba says, "Morality propels the microcosms [unit mind] towards Him
[Parama Purusa] without break or pause." (YP)
We can easily understand then that morality is the force or inspiration
which goads one towards Parama Purusa. Baba's definition is quite clear.
And in various other discourses Baba puts for this same idea.
HUMAN SOCIETY BOOK:
WHERE THE MISTAKE LIES
Now here see how the term "morality" has been wrongly portrayed in Human
Society Part 1.
"The ideological component of the unit mind, which provides the initial
inspiration for the individual to attain that Cosmic state, is called
“morality”. " (HS-1, '87 & 2000)
The above translated lines wrongly claim that morality is a "component
of the mind". And that is not true. It is not an aspect, layer or part
of the mind - rather morality is an ideal or force that inspires the
mind towards Parama Purusa. The above English translation is totally
erroneous. Anyone familiar with Baba's ideological teachings will easily
recongise this mistake.
Because in Ananda Marga, morality means yama and niyama and yama and
niyama is not a part of the mind; rather it is a guiding force that
goads the mind along the path of Supreme Benevolence.
Here then is how that line should read. The below reflects the proper
idea - though professional translators should be able to render a
smoother translation. But at the very least, the ideal of morality is
not lost in this version.
"The force, which provides the initial inspiration for that vishes'
bha'vagat a'darsh (special ideological aspect) of mind to reach the
Cosmic stance, is what I call morality."
And indeed this above translation is consistent with Baba's other stated
teachings on morality.
Baba says, "Morality propels the microcosms [unit mind] towards Him
[Parama Purusa] without break or pause." (YP)
Hence morality is clearly a guiding force that goads jiivas towards
Parama Purusa. And His other discourses support this teaching.
Whereas there are zero discourses which portray morality as a layer or
component of mind. Only the Human Society book does this and that is
because it was wrongly translated.
The situation is serious because our Human Society book is commonly
cited at present & will be cited even more in the future. People
reference this book to get Baba's teachings on all kinds of topics
including morality. Hence this book must be correct. Another important
factor is that morality is a fundamental aspect of life; it is widely
used and referenced. Hence, the way things are now, our moral code will
be propagated the wrong way as the very definition of morality in the
Human Society book is off the mark.
HOW IT CAME TO BE
As you may know, the Moralism chapter for the Human Society book was
dictated by Baba in 1959 in Bangla. And that early Bangla version was
fine. And the 1968 Hindi edition was also fine. Both reflected the
proper idea of morality.
And indeed the later Bangla editions of this particular line are also
quite clear.
"Maner ye vishes' bha'vagat a'darsh - ta'ke ei bhuma'bha'be paonchava'r
pratham preran'a' joga'y - ta'kei bali niitiva'd." (PNS-1, Bangla '92, p.12)
Then, as you read the below, you will notice how the Bangla got changed
a little bit as the dashes ( - ) were removed.
"Maner ye vishes' bha'vagat a'darsha, ta'ke ei bhuma'bha'be paonchava'r
pratham preran'a' jogay, takei bali niitiva'd." (HS-1, Bangla '95, p.3)
Even then the above Bangla reflects Baba's real teaching on morality. It
is only when it got translated into the English edition of Human Society
('87 & '00) that the definition of morality was off the mark.
Here again is that mistranslated line:
"The ideological component of the unit mind, which provides the initial
inspiration for the individual to attain that Cosmic state, is called
“morality”. " (HS-1, '87 & 2000)
Indeed the above faulty translation defines morality as being an actual
component or part of mind, rather than an independent force which goads
the mind. Because, morality in Ananda Marga means yama and niyama and
those tenets are not a part of the mind - rather they direct the mind
and one's actions along the path of emancipation.
So morality is the inspiring agent or motivating force - not "a
component of mind". Morality inspires and brings human beings to the
path of divinity.
Thus there are two problems with the aforementioned (mis)translation.
a) Firstly, the language does not properly reflect the original Bengali.
b) Secondly, the mistranslation actually puts forth a wrong definition
of morality.
Thus the problem is compounded by the fact that the philosophical
message is also incorrect.
FIX YOUR BOOK:
HOW IT SHOULD BE PRINTED
Here again is how that line should be rendered in your Human Society
book, English edition.
"The force which provides the initial inspiration for that vishes'
bha'vagat a'darsh (special ideological aspect) of mind to reach the
Cosmic stance is what I call morality."
Everyone should put this line in their book - at least until a more
official correction is issued by the Publications Dept.
LEVELS OF MISTAKES
Mistakes in our AM books may come on a few levels.
1) The most innocuous mistake is the "typo". That is when it is quite
evident that a wrong word or misspelling was inserted into the text.
This rarely becomes a serious problem and is easily corrected. An
example of this might be if "one human society" got printed as "on human
society" etc.
2) Then there are minor mistakes in translation that make reading the
text difficult to understand but ultimately the book can be understood
by reading the entire paragraph or whole page. In this case, the
expression is convoluted by an error in translation, but the
philosophical integrity of the discourse is not tainted.
3) Finally, there are the worst kinds of errors wherein due to a poor
translation not only is the linguistic expression affected but the
meaning and philosophical import is also distorted. In this case Baba's
divine teaching has been negatively affected and the reader cannot get
the right answer by reading the book. Such as a mistake might be where
the wrong definition is given. These major errors have far-reaching
ramifications.
Unfortunately that is what has happened in our Human Society book
(English edition '87 & '00). In that text, the definition of morality is
wrong. That is the tragedy and critical problem. We should all ensure it
gets fixed.
BABA'S BLESSING
By Baba's grace He has brought us onto the path and is using us as His
media for bringing others. Thus it is our bounden duty to ensure our own
conduct is proper and that our efforts to spread His teachings - such as
through the publication of Baba's books - is done carefully and
precisely. Errors in His books means the false propagation of His
guidelines. We must not fall in this latter category.
Baba says, "The scriptures containing spiritual injunctions must be
totally flawless." (NSS, Disc: 14)
Namaskar,
Jinaneshvar Panda
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Baba Story About Food
Once Ba'ba' stayed at Shrii O P Goenka' Da'da's house in Chennai on the
occasion of DMC before 1970. As a matter of fact the Goenka family were
strict in taking sattvika food; they didn't take onion & garlic &
followed a purely vegetarian diet. His mother got an opportunity by His
Grace to cook food & serve Him.
As soon as Baba sat down for taking food, He asked, "Ma'(mother), is
there any onion & garlic in this food?"
She exclaimed,"B'aba', onion and garlic in our house - never!"
Ba'ba smiled & replied, "It is my usual habit to inquire before taking
food."
This event was recounted personally by Shrii OP Goenka.
Though Ba'ba' is the All Knowing Entity even then He used to inquire to
ensure the food was sentient food. We have to take note and follow His
divine example for being strict on sentient food.
During WT reporting, Baba was regularly pointing out how Dadas were
unknowingly ingesting onion and garlic when they were purchasing
pre-made from the market and in hotels etc. Baba would abuse them
harshly for taking tamasik food. Such Dadas were unaware that what they
ate was tamasik but after Baba's scolding came to know that the veg food
they ate in the market was prepared in a non-veg pot etc. So Baba
pointed out their wrongdoing - this was a regular occurrence. By His
grace, now most in AM know not to take food in a hotel or restaurant.
This above story came to mind because of this following letter where one
Dada regularly transgressed our code or sentient food.
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