Day 1 Reflection Question

coimbatore

Day 1: Reflection question

1. Deep desire to attain Para Brahmana. Tapas – 3 fold practices (ṣariram/body, vāk/speech, manas/mind) to remove impurities from the mindb. Yadnya – worship by divinizing all aspects of lifec. Dāna – Charity
2. Objective mind – By living life of goodness, dedicated to the higher, selfishness ceases & there is peace on level of mind.
3. Purity of mind – Chitta ṣuddhi – gained by karma yoga. Live a life dedicated to god. Ego is not the center.
4. Focus of mind – Chitta ekāgratā – by Upasanā.
5. Mumukshu – a person who has defocused from the lower & desires the higher. One who is viraktaha – naturally evolved dispassion towards all worldly possibilities. Life lived to perfection with karma yoga bhāva – mind becomes very clear & focused – with that clarity comes dispassion towards highest of worldly achievements.

Path to Self-realization:

1. Tapas (body, speach and mind)
2. Yajna – divinise thought, speach and action by seeing Lord in all
3. Daana – helping all beings and environment The above will help purify mind (citta suddhi), focused and undistracted mind (citta ekaagradha)
4. Vairagya – dispassion (contended as the whole rajya is in possession like king), wanting nothing
5. Tyagaha – giving up all attachment and attention to worldly things in general (most important, dropping everything at mind level)

Path of Self Realisation as enumerated in the 1st verse of Svarupa anusandhanam?

1. The mind has become pure by the practices such as austerity in the body, mind and intellect levels (tapah), performance of every work dedicating to the Lord (yajna bhava), offering to the needy and at the right time (dana), and so on…
2. Then the purity of mind manifests as objectivity in the thinking (viveka).
3. Then by attaining the total detachment from the worldly lower things (because there ego was the cause which indeed was leading to likes & dislikes), and attaching to the higher God (vairagya).
4. Then renouncing from everything around the world, the unwanted desires and unwanted accomplishments through understanding their nature and by understanding that they are ephemeral and perishable. (example -even like giving up the status of the king). This does not mean leave your duties and job but leave your holding behind it like Janaka Maharaja (tyaga).
5. Then finally the path to the higher is taken as the goal as the person has attained chittha shuddhi and chittha ekagrata considerably.

The Path to Self Realisation is as follows:

1. Purify one’s Mind (By Tapas, Yagna Daanam adi which essentially means following Karma Yoga – Ishwara Arpana and Prasaddha Buddhi – attitude of doing one’s duties alongwith regular Upasanas). This will lead to Chitta Shuddhi and Chitta Ekagratha.
2. Purified focused mind will lead to Clarity and this will enable proper Vichara to be carried out i.e Viveka ( Discrimination). Viveka into what is SAT and ASAT will lead to Vairagya. This in turn will enable Shat Sampatti qualities of Mind and thereupon Mumukshutva (Desire for Knowing Brahman) will arise.
3. Thus endowed with Sadhana Chatushtaya sadhaka becomes an Adhikari.
4. Adhikari now can progress further through steps mentioned in next verse to evolve in the Spiritual path and finally attain Self Realisation.

The Spiritual journey on the path of Self – Realisation begins with :-
Tapas, Yajna & Dana.
Tapas – penance
Purification of Body – Shariram
By worship of Gods, Guru & elders, straightforwardness, non violence these tapas or penance are for purification of Body – Shariram, should be practiced in perfection.

Purification of Vak- Speech,
By using words which causes no annoyance to others, truth, acceptable and beneficial words. Study the Vedas & scriptures and practise chanting Divine name – these penances are for the purification of speech – Vak, which should be practiced in perfection.

Purification of Manasam – Mind
Always be cheerful, calm, contemplate on God, control of mind & maintain perfect purity of inner feelings. These austerities are penance for purification of Manasam – Mind, and should be practiced in perfection.

Yajna – all penance performed with faith, and worship the Lord. Visit sacred temples, chanting Gods name and maintaining silence, should be practiced in perfection.

Dana – accept all goodness Lord has given us . Offer your expansion and offer every action to God. These penance Tapas,Yajna, and Dana practised in perfection gives purity of heart.
With Chitta shuddhi – Purification of mind & Chitta ekagrah – one pointed mind the sadhaka reaches a stage of vairagya – gives up worldly impermanent things as worthless desires and is now an Adhikari. With practise of Sadhana Chatushtaya – Viveka, Vairagya, Shamadi Shatak Sampatti, becomes a mumukshu with one pointedness, I want the permanent one and only Para Brahma. With this aspiration the most attractive of worldly things even of becoming the highest King is worthless and means nothing.