Hari
Om
Each 'Choose-day' we will investigate the process by
which we can reassess our activity and interaction with the world of plurality
and become more congruent within our personality.
Last week we began an investigation of the samaadhi shatka-sampatti,
the six elements of self-assessment and self-management.
The
six, in simple list, are
- Shama
- Dama
- Uparati/uparamii
- Titiksha
- Shraddha
- Samaadhana
An
introduction to the first three of these was given. Often, in the study group
scenario, protests are heard. "This
is a pipe-dream!... Just try this with crying kids around… Corporate commitment
will not permit…" All the justifications in the world are put forward as
to why these disciplines cannot be exercised. The aachaarya will gently ask the
question "then why are you sitting here?" Invariably the answer is that respite is
sought. Then the reminder is given that
respite comes first with the recognition of its need, secondly with the asking
for help, thirdly by accepting that help. The gap between the second and third
can sometimes be a chasm.
The
attempts of practice are what count. There is no magic wand. If given a pill by the doctor, it will only
aid your healing once you
swallow it. Think of any of the skills you have gained in life. Can you recall the beginnings of learning
those skills? Craftworks, carpentry,
driving, cooking, you name it. All had
to start somewhere and all demanded practice by you in order to achieve some level of competency.
All have their sets of basic rules which, once learned will serve you well in
any situation regardless of the materials with which you are expected to work.
The
saadhana chatushtaya are the basic rules for the skill of life. Have धृतिः /dhritiH - fortitude! No matter how
often we fall, never mind; we must get up and walk again.
Which
leads us nicely into the remaining three of the six.
तितिक्ष /Titiksha.
This
is often spoken of individually as it is the aspect of the six which ties into
dhritiH. Titiksha means forbearance. It
is stoicism. It is the capacity to
endure all the 'downers' in life without seeking revenges and harbouring
bitterness. Titiksha, well applied,
frees us from anxiety and the maudlin turn of mind which can cause us to dwell
and linger unnecessarily. It's the
"don't sweat the small stuff".
It
does not mean that one must become a doormat; though at times (to the casual
observer) it may seem such. It is acceptance when action is beyond us. There are situations where we have no
control, or where action may worsen things. As frustrating as this can be, we
are forced to deal with this. If we have
an understanding of titksha, this 'dealing' becomes more bearable. We can sigh, shrug our shoulders and move
on. Titiksha is the mental aspect of
alertness to the facts of the matter; 'can I do anything about this? No. Leave
it.' This is not to suggest that solutions
to any situation may not present themselves later. Titiksha, however, helps us to not become
bogged down in a sense of helplessness.
From
the philosophical point of view, titiksha is when the intellect is fully
convinced of the values of life lending a cheerful and patient nature which can
overcome the personal obstacles strewn before us.
Titiksha
is not to be mistaken as meaning 'austerity'; which is a common flaw in
thinking amongst many practitioners.
Extensive fasting, low dressing...all sorts of peculiar behaviours have
been perpetrated by seekers who have partial understanding and - as the adage
goes - a little knowledge is dangerous.
This is where it becomes imperative to have a leader, a role model,
someone who has been along the road some way and in whom we can place our
trust.
श्रद्ध /Shraddha.
The
simple translation given for this word is 'faith'. However, it is so much more. Shraddha is the working of the intellect
towards full appreciation of the depths and import underlying the
teachings/scriptures and the words of the aachaarya/swami/guru. It is the trust
that there is indeed something higher to work towards and that there are people
available to hold our hand. For the majority
of us then, it can be the 'faith' that, because "God" might seem far
out of our reach, we can rely on Lord Jesus/Sri Rama (name your prophet) to
show us the way. If their examples are
too high at this stage, but we still consider the effort worth the making, then
we will seek to find a manifest teacher, be it the parish priest, the Dalai
Lama, the Mahatma, the Rabbi…
Shraddha,
in practical terms, is the part of our intellect which can interpret the lay of
colour upon a canvas, appreciate the words of a poet beyond the mere lettering.
If we love art, we will make greater efforts to understand the message the
artist is portraying with their imagery.
If we love poetry, we learn that each verse is greater than the
collection of its words, thus we will look more closely at all contexts and
attributions, semantics and etymology; the deconstruction can at times seem harsh and clinical, yet what we receive in our total experience after all this
work is something beyond
all words and visual impact. That is our reward.
Thus,
if we apply ourselves with such devotion to the philosophy and science of life,
how much more will we benefit from that faith and trust? This is shraddha.
समाधन /Samaadhana.
The
essence of meaning here is tranquillity. It is the when the mind is constantly
engaged in the total contemplation of the Supreme Reality. This is not obtained
by any other means than that one has worked out all the kinks of understanding,
and climbed each step in the ladder of self-control whereby proper and clear
perspective is achieved.
Gurudev's explanation is this;
"When we are on the ground our neighbours may be a nuisance to us because, say, of land dispute; but when we have taken off in a plane, these bickerings seem to have no meaning; from those tremendous heights our property and that of the neighbours seem to merge into one unbroken expanse of beauty. In an aerial view of the world, there are no disquieting mental agitations, because in that vision of oneness the little differences of opinion about a boundary line pale into insignificance.
Similarly, when a seeker raises themselves into greater ambits of spiritual vision, the mind can no longer entertain any agitations at the ordinary levels of likes and dislikes. This poise gained as a result of constant contemplation on the Supreme and the Divine is termed as samaadhana."
Questions?
Doubts? Voice them! There is one more of the four great qualities
to address, which will be done next week, but the absolute essentials from the
view of improving daily life are contained in those looked at so far.