Index 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

NALLINEEDALAGATHA JALAMATITHARLAM
TADWAJJEEVITAMATHISHAYA CHAPALAM
VIDDHI VYADHYABHIMAANGRASTAM
LOKAM SHOKAHATAM CHA SAMASTHAM (Verse 4)

This world is like a shining drop of water that collects on a lotus leaf. It quivers and shakes without being steady. Heaps of attachments fill the life of man. Trouble and sorrow constitute the screen on which the world shows itself.

As a drop of water on a lotus leaf disappears in no time, even so, we should know that our life is transient and will disappear very much like that and in no time. The world is full of sorrow and the human body is full of disease. Our life is full of turbulent thoughts and is like a dilapidated house. Under these conditions, according to Shankara it is possible to live in a peaceful manner, only by following the divine path and getting over all our worldly attachments. So long as one does not know who he is, one cannot escape these sorrows. So long as one does not realize, the Eswaratatwa or the presence or the presence of Easwara in everything, one cannot escape this sorrow. SO long as one does not understand that to be born, to grow, to live and to die is only for one purpose and that is to understand the nature of the Atma, the one imperishable thing, it is not possible for him to escape this sorrow. Just as the Lotus flower is born in water, stays in water, lives in water, and ultimately dies in water so also this human life is born in the Atma tatwa, stays and lives in the Atma tatwa and finally extinguished in the Atma tatwa. This verse conveys that the Atma tatwa is the pond or the lake, that maya is the bunch of leaves and that the Jiva comes out as the lotus flower in this pond of Atma. This lotus spreads the fragrance of many good qualities. While spreading such fragrance, even the water in the pond becomes one with the Atma tatwa. The drops of water that come out of the pond of Atma, come to the leaves of the Lotus and go back to the Atma. This going back to the source is what is contained as an essence in this verse. In the infinity of the Atma, the Jiva comes as the lotus because Maya spreads in the form of leaves. The Jiva which is like the lotus, spreads the fragrance of the good qualities which can be ascribed as jiva tatwa.

Vishnutatwa is synonymous with the realization of omnipresence. Out of the navel of Vishnu comes the lotus which gives rise to the creator Brahma. The various petals that constitute this lotus are the different components of this world. Thus starting from this Vishnu aspect or the aspect of omnipresence, the creator comes and out of the creator comes the Jiva tatwa. Out of the Jiva, come various things which in the end go back and become one with the source. The Atama tatwa. This is the three fold description of what we see namely Jiva, Eswara and Prakriti. Our feeling that this threefold description of the universe, is equivalent to a diversity therein is an illusion.

The oneness of it all is the basis of Advaita. For a tree to be born, to grow and ultimately to give you the fruit, there are three essential things. These are the wind, the rain and the earth. More than these three, the seed is of even greater importance. If we do not have the seed, even if we have the other necessary ingredients like earth, rain and wind, we will not be able to see the tree. In the same manner, it is in accordance with the sankalpa of the Lord that man is created in the world. Man comes into this world as if he comes from a seed. In the case of every man, the sankalpa that creates him is like a seed. So long as sakalpas or desires are in man, it is not possible for him to escape being born. On the day when he becomes completely free from sankalpa or desire, that day will he be free from rebirth. In order that he may take this sacred path, free from desires, he has to surrender himself. There are certain obstacles for one to be able to surrender. Everyone understands in this world that it is not possible to enter the house of an affluent person or the house of a person who is in a position of importance with ease and without being questioned. At the entrance to the house, you will find a watchman who will ask what business you have with the owner. If in the case of a person, who has limited power and a worldly position, such restrictions regulate his entry to the house, so what is the wonder that in case of God, who has unlimited powers, there are regulations restricting your entry as a person of limited powers and worldly position, into His mansion. If you want to enter the palace of Moksha or Liberation, you will find that at the main entrance, there are two guards. This entrance is the place where you offer yourself and may be called the gate of surrender. The two guards who are there are Shrama and Dama. The meaning of this is that you must make an effort and you must have patience. These are the two guards at the entrance. However much you offer yourself in surrender, it is not possible for you to enter the God's abode without Shrama (Effort) and Dama (Patience). This would mean the control over your outer and inner organs. Today, it has become rare for us to find such a sadhaka who has achieved control over his organs. Everywhere you find the path of falsehood. You do not find people who follow the path of truth. Although for external appearances one is a man, the ideas and thoughts are those of a monkey. Where one should naturally laugh, one is found to be crying and where one should naturally cry, one is found to be laughing. Is this not a path of falsehood? So long as you put on such false appearances, God, who is, all merciful will never show himself, to you. All these external and false appearances are described as acting in a drama, whereas what is truth in you could be referred to as the aspect of Narayana. While devoting your life to such worldly pleasures and ideas, it is not possible for you to realize God.

A King used to ask all visitors to his Kingdom to tell him the correct path for God realization. Each one, basing himself either on some standard texts or what elders told him, used to say that a particular path was the right one for liberation. While this was going on, a servant close to the King was listening to the many descriptions that were being given to the right path for liberation. He found that the king was continuously listening to various methods of attaining Moksha but he was not putting any one of them into practice. With the intention of teaching the King a good lesson, one day when King was sitting and talking to many people in the central hall, the servant came from outside shouting loudly. The King got up and asked the servant what was he shouting for? The servant replied with some anxiety on his face that all the camels in the zoo were climbing up to the top of the terrace and running away. The king asked how can camels climb the terrace and run away. The servant then said, that the King, steeped in luxury, can aspire to climb up the path of spirituality and attain liberation and moksha, there need be no surprise at the camels climbing to the terrace and then running away. The king understood that the servant was wanting to point out to him the absurdity of his attempts and that he should first sacrifice all the worldly pleasures before hoping to attain liberation. From that day, realizing the truth, the King started thinking of God and putting good things into practice. You can attain Moksha, even while performing worldly duties, if your mind remains immersed in divinity. You will then be working in consonance with God. However, on account of the influence of this age of Kali, almost all of us fail to understand and implement the inner meaning of these practices. Vedanta teaches us that once we recognize the essential basis of all that we see, there is no need for any more sadhana. If you have a pot with a hole in it, you can never fill it with water. In the same manner, if the pot of our mind has got many holes in the form of sensory desires, than all the work that we do will not fill our mind with sacred thoughts. Only when there are no holes, can your attempts become fruitful and take you to the divine.

Our faith diminishes because our ambitions are limitless. There was a rich person who had a daughter, with a flat nose. The father wanted to get his daughter married. Every contender who came and looked at the girl ran away, although tempted by the wealth. In those days plastic surgery was not available. In desperation, the father announced that he would offer plenty of money to anyone who would marry the girl. He found one person to marry the girl with whom the marriage was performed and thereafter the couple developed considerable faith in God. They visited many temples, went on pilgrimages and bathed in many sacred rivers. They met a saint who advised them that no one who is involved in worldly matters can give a good nose. He, who created the nose, can alone bring it back to normal. Although they had a lot of wealth they were not happy at all. The girl suggested to her husband that they should go to the lonely Himalayas and pray to God and spend a month there in that manner. He agreed and they did so. The girl had a great desire to get back her nose. So she began to pray to God in great earnestness. God appeared, due to her good luck, and asked what she wanted. She asked for the grant of a good-looking big nose. God said, so be it and granted her the boon. As soon as God disappeared, she looked at her face. She saw her big nose and felt that she became uglier than before. She prayed again more earnestly and God appeared again asking her what she wanted. She said that she did not want that big nose. God said so be it and granted her the boon. She immediately found that her nose had completely disappeared. Then she thought that she was praying to God for a good nose and in the process, she lost her nose completely. The moral of the story is that although God is present before you, playing with you, and talking with you, you do not know what to ask, when to ask, and where to ask. Not knowing what we should ask, we are asking Him for something while we really want something else. In this process, we are getting ourselves into difficulties. God is always ready to give you all that you want but you do not seem to know what you should want under what circumstances, it is better and easier to surrender yourself completely to God and simply ask for His Grace.

We should serve the world and earn the grace of God. This is very necessary for youth. Many young people ask the question if there is God. They further ask if God is present, where He is and so on. They waste their time in asking such questions. In that context, Totaka, a disciple of Shankara, was approached by a young man who asked him such questions. He also asked him why he was wearing a yellow robe and why was he wasting his time by remaining with his guru. Totaka said that his guru only could answer such questions and took the young man to Shankara. Shankara asked him whether his doubt is in regard to his God or of Totaka's God. The young questioner asked why Shankara was distinguishing between his God and Totaka's God, while God is only one and is not different for different people. By asking such question he accepted his foolishness in accepting the existence of only one God and yet was questioning His reality. Young students, what really exists, is only God. All else is false. We are questioning what truly exists and accepting the reality of what is false without questioning. We should have belief in the existence of the one truth and that is divinity. By such faith, I hope you will pursue a sacred path for going through your life and bring glory to your country.