Daily, I evolve…

“Your life dear fellow, is a missed opportunity. “

Life as a missed opportunity is a profound statement.

For that, firstly I need to ask “What is the goal of life?”. Is this life as a solitary entity? Or as part of a continuum with a prologue already gone through in an earlier lifetime, and with many more lives to come?

Any life in which we do not reach the stated goal would be a missed opportunity. Just as the World Cup final was a missed opportunity for the Indian cricket team.

The consolation is that even if we do not reach the goal, we do not have to start afresh in a new lifetime. So let us take the opportunity to evolve the most while we can. We assure ourselves of an elevated perch from which to begin the next life. And maybe in the quest for evolution, with the munificence of the Gods thrown in, we reach the holy grail of mukti in this lifetime itself. 😊🌸

“Forget about the next life. Why can’t we just live this life ?”

What is this life and is it part of a continuum? Who am I? These are necessary issues to grapple with in order that I am properly and fully live this life.

In no way should it dampen the zest for living.

And looking to our Indian cricket team’s heart break at the World Cup finals, I can’t help but say that the Lord is indeed kind to us.

Even though they reached the finals, next time, they need to start all over again. With nary a guarantee of even reaching the semi-finals.

Whereas we need to start over at the next ‘World Cup’, straight away at the finals. We get one more shot at it. And if we fail, then again one more. Then again one more.

Where are we right now? Where, on the scale of evolution?

Are we already playing our umpteenth finals?

High time we brought home the cup and let it be done with.

This game has gone on for too long.

The Indian team needs to defeat any of assorted creatures – kangaroos, kiwis, whatever. We only need to deal with that which is within.

On winning, the victory is for ever. Not so for the rotating World Cup.

I frequently wake up at night. With not a chance of sleep. Completely awake. More awake then I can ever hope to feel on actually getting up. I wonder how I am going to pass my time. While knowing perfectly well that well in the wee hours of morning, I am going to be feeling really sleepy.

This happens as we approach middle age.

This is nothing but kindness from the Lord.

This is a small pocket of time the Lord opens up when we can think of him. Alone. Exclusively.

So if possible, sit up and meditate. Try to think only and only of Him. Let your mind naturally gravitate towards Him.

Or if not that, just lie on bed thinking of Him. Silently recite the Hanuman Chalisa, Or whatever else is your forte.

But what about the bouts of anxiety and stress-inducing thoughts which often accompany the waking up. They are the mirage which reminds us of the sea. The real anxiety is the fact that life is passing by. Are we doing enough to realise the ‘I’ within? So treat the worldly anxieties as but beacons to remind us to re-orient ourselves to our goal.

These few minutes alone at night. This instance is a gift from the Lord. Accept it with gratitude. With grace. With love.

Om.

“Man should device means to be in contact with nature as much and in as many ways as possible.

If you love Nature and are nourished by its magical touches, where is the need for smaller company and meagre solaces!”

– Pujya Swamiji Shri Ishwarananda Giriji Maharaj

What is my goal, your goal, everyone’s goal?

Without an exception, it is bound to be the pursuit of happiness.

Even the person who is subjecting himself to all kinds of bodily pain, or even he who smilingly goes up to the gallows to sacrifice his life for his country, are all seeking an inner happiness.

So is the pursuit of happiness the most important thing?

Yes and no.

Yes. Because the pursuit of ultimate happiness, everlasting happiness, is certainly of paramount importance.

Our rishis, called this ultimate happiness – Mukti. Moksh. Kaivalya. Salvation.

But reaching it is not easy. It is an arduous path. A person who is seeking short term pleasures would soon grow weary of this path and give up.

But if one continues on this path, one may not feel immediate pangs of pleasure. But one evolves. Slowly and surely, one evolves.

So to evolve is to get closer and closer to that ultimate happiness, for which one is striving for. To attain which, one is prepared to forego short term gratification.

So what is my goal? To be happy, or to evolve?

Do I prefer to be happy while not evolving, or to evolve even as feelings of happiness seem far away.

I go for the ultimate happiness. I go for the need to evolve.

And my steadfastness towards that need, will make the journey internally joyous, even if outwardly trying.

Om.

Our prime purpose of taking birth is to attain knowledge of our true self. To attain mukti.

If not to reach there, at least to evolve to the maximum extent possible in that direction.

We face a three-fold challenge as regards our spiritual evolution.

• Develop purity of mind. So that I am an ethical person in action, word and thought. So that I harbour feelings of मैत्री – करुणा – मुदिता – उपेक्षा towards one and all. So that I do not allow lustful thoughts to creep into my mind. This would involve कर्म योग। Also, अष्टांग योग of Patanjali. Especially यम – नियम। May I also add the भजन – वैष्णव जन तो तेने रे कहिए जे… Its lyrics beautifully spell the inner cleansing to strive for.
• Develop love for God. This is भक्ति योग। 
• Gain knowledge of scriptures. ज्ञान योग। 

We have to work on all of the above. Not in any particular order, as they are all complimentary and ‘feed on each other.’

As you strengthen one, the path becomes easier for you to progress onwards in the other two.

Om

धर्म, अर्थ, काम, मोक्ष के पुरुषार्थ को हर एक व्यक्ति को करना है।

अब इन पुरुषाथों में से ज्यादातर लोग केवल अपनी कामनाओं की पूर्ति के लिए पुरुषार्थ करते हैं और अर्थ कमाते हैं तो मात्र इच्छाओं को पूरा करने के लिए। धर्म और मोक्ष रूपी पुरुषार्थ न होने के कारण से अधर्म,अराजकता, भ्रष्टाचार बढ़ता ही जा रहा है।

आज पूरी दुनियाँ में सारी उथल-पुथल, अराजकता का कारण भी यही है।

धर्ममय जीवन जीना और लक्ष्य अगर मोक्ष हो तो फिर जिन्दगी में चाहे कितना भी अर्थ और कामनाएं आयें,वह आपका कुछ भी नुकसान नहीं कर सकती हैं।
जैसे
नहर का एक मजबूत किनारा धर्म हो।
दूसरा मजबूत किनारा मोक्ष हो,
तो फिर
उस नहर में अर्थ और काम
रूपी कितना भी पानी आए,उससे नहर को कोई हानि नहीं होती है।

इसे यों समझें कि व्यक्ति का लक्ष्य अगर आत्यन्तिक दुख से छूटना (मोक्ष) हो और वह धर्म-पूर्वक जीवन जीता है तो फिर, उसके जीवन में कितने ही रुपए-पैसे और कामनाएं आएं, उस व्यक्ति को पथ-भ्रष्ट नहीं कर सकती हैं।
क्योंकि

धर्ममय जीवन जीने वालों की कामनाएं सात्विक होती हैं और उनके अर्थ (धन) भी अच्छे कार्यों में ही लगते हैं न कि अधर्म के कार्यों में।

चारों पुरुषार्थ को इसी तरह से अपने जीवन में पालन करना है। जीवन की सफलता का यही मूल-मंत्र भी है।
अगर सफल व्यक्तियों के जीवन को देखा जाय तो उनके जीवन में इसे पाया जाता है।

(Courtesy : Message from Swami Veereshwarji)

In Shrimad Bhagavad Gita, Ch. 10 Shloka 5, we come across the word तप.

In the word-to-word translation book from Gita Press, it is explained as :

स्वधर्म के आचरण से इन्द्रियादि को तपाकर शुद्ध करने का नाम ‘तप ‘ है।

ॐ

अगस्त्यं कुम्भकर्णं च शनिं च वडवानलम्।
आहारपरिपाकार्थं स्मरेद् भीमं च पंचमम्।।

अगस्त्य,कुम्भकर्ण,शनि, वडवानल और भीम इन पांचों के नाम का स्मरण कर लो, तो जो आप भोजन करोंगे वह पच जायेगा।।

(Courtesy : Message from Swami Veereshwarji)

आप संसारी हैं या साधक, इसकी जाँच के लिए निम्न मानक हैं—-

१)आपकी श्रद्धा बढ़ी या नहीं।

२)निश्चिंतता बढ़ी या नहीं।

३)संसार का भरोसा कम हुआ
या नहीं।

४) भीड़ अच्छी लगती है या
एकांत।

५)ज्ञान की पिपासा बढ़ी या
नहीं।

६)सत्कर्म या दुष्कर्म, किसमें
मन अधिक लगता है।

जय शंकर

(Courtesy : message from Swami Veereshwarji)

In this exclusive excerpt from William Shatner’s new book, “ _Boldly Go: Reflections on a Life of Awe and Wonder_ ,”_ the Star Trek actor reflects on his voyage into space on Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin space shuttle on Oct. 13, 2021. Then 90 years old, Shatner became the oldest living person to travel into space, but as the actor and author details below, he was surprised by his own reaction to the experience.

“So, I went to space…

Apparently, the anomaly wasn’t too concerning, because thirty seconds later, we were cleared for launch and the countdown began. With all the attending noise, fire, and fury, we lifted off. I could see Earth disappearing. As we ascended, I was at once aware of pressure. Gravitational forces pulling at me. The g’s. There was an instrument that told us how many g’s we were experiencing. At two g’s, I tried to raise my arm, and could barely do so. At three g’s, I felt my face being pushed down into my seat. I don’t know how much more of this I can take, I thought. Will I pass out? Will my face melt into a pile of mush? How many g’s can my ninety-year-old body handle?

And then, suddenly, relief. No g’s. Zero. Weightlessness. We were floating.

We got out of our harnesses and began to float around. The other folks went straight into somersaults and enjoying all the effects of weightlessness. I wanted no part in that. I wanted, needed to get to the window as quickly as possible to see what was out there.

I looked down and I could see the hole that our spaceship had punched in the thin, blue-tinged layer of oxygen around Earth. It was as if there was a wake trailing behind where we had just been, and just as soon as I’d noticed it, it disappeared.

I continued my self-guided tour and turned my head to face the other direction, to stare into space. I love the mystery of the universe. I love all the questions that have come to us over thousands of years of exploration and hypotheses. Stars exploding years ago, their light traveling to us years later; black holes absorbing energy; satellites showing us entire galaxies in areas thought to be devoid of matter entirely… all of that has thrilled me for years… but when I looked in the opposite direction, into space, there was no mystery, no majestic awe to behold . . . all I saw was death.

I saw a cold, dark, black emptiness. It was unlike any blackness you can see or feel on Earth. It was deep, enveloping, all-encompassing. I turned back toward the light of home. I could see the curvature of Earth, the beige of the desert, the white of the clouds and the blue of the sky. It was life. Nurturing, sustaining, life. Mother Earth. Gaia. And I was leaving her.

Everything I had thought was wrong. Everything I had expected to see was wrong.

I had thought that going into space would be the ultimate catharsis of that connection I had been looking for between all living things—that being up there would be the next beautiful step to understanding the harmony of the universe. In the film “Contact,” when Jodie Foster’s character goes to space and looks out into the heavens, she lets out an astonished whisper, “They should’ve sent a poet.” I had a different experience, because I discovered that the beauty isn’t out there, it’s down here, with all of us. Leaving that behind made my connection to our tiny planet even more profound.

It was among the strongest feelings of grief I have ever encountered. The contrast between the vicious coldness of space and the warm nurturing of Earth below filled me with overwhelming sadness. Every day, we are confronted with the knowledge of further destruction of Earth at our hands: the extinction of animal species, of flora and fauna . . . things that took five billion years to evolve, and suddenly we will never see them again because of the interference of mankind. It filled me with dread. My trip to space was supposed to be a celebration; instead, it felt like a funeral.

I learned later that I was not alone in this feeling. It is called the “Overview Effect” and is not uncommon among astronauts, including Yuri Gagarin, Michael Collins, Sally Ride, and many others. Essentially, when someone travels to space and views Earth from orbit, a sense of the planet’s fragility takes hold in an ineffable, instinctive manner. Author Frank White first coined the term in 1987: “There are no borders or boundaries on our planet except those that we create in our minds or through human behaviors. All the ideas and concepts that divide us when we are on the surface begin to fade from orbit and the moon. The result is a shift in worldview, and in identity.”

It can change the way we look at the planet but also other things like countries, ethnicities, religions; it can prompt an instant reevaluation of our shared harmony and a shift in focus to all the wonderful things we have in common instead of what makes us different. It reinforced tenfold my own view on the power of our beautiful, mysterious collective human entanglement, and eventually, it returned a feeling of hope to my heart. In this insignificance we share, we have one gift that other species perhaps do not: we are aware—not only of our insignificance, but the grandeur around us that makes us insignificant. That allows us perhaps a chance to rededicate ourselves to our planet, to each other, to life and love all around us. If we seize that chance.