The truth that joy is the nature of the Self and it does not come from outside needs to be understood a little more deeply.
By their very nature, all our senses perceive things outside us [taste, touch (sex), smell, music, beauty]. Whatever experience of pleasure (taken for happiness and joy) we seem to have, appear to be coming from outside (eating something delicious, having a good sexual experience etc.) and that is why each one of us seeks happiness through external pursuits. All our (worldly persons) efforts are directed towards achieving this happiness alone. But as the years pass by, instead of reaching happier states of existence, one becomes tense and miserable.
If one sees a group of children, one finds them to be full of energy and their smiles are divine. Teenagers have good relationships with their friends (our most intimate friends are often those with whom we get associated with at this stage of our lives), they believe in each other and look forward to life with optimism. The young working persons are optimistic about changing the situations for the better in their sphere of activity. In their quest for happiness though success, they become ambitious and competitive, would not easily believe others and would not mind achieving their goals by riding over the shoulders of others. As mentioned the preceding article, the success gives one a brief spike of happiness and the life is routine again. The failure on the contrary makes one sad and frustrated which linger on for longer time. Some total of one’s efforts (zero for success and negative for failure) is thus negative and the graph of happiness shows a downward trend. This is the reason why, though many a young person achieves success in the material world, instead of reaching happier states, one feels tense and empty from within – making one wonder if one’s efforts are not enough and that one needs to reach still greater heights. And as one becomes a little older, one slowly but certainly develops cynicism (even hatred) and no more believes in others and is miserable. It is surprising that although all our efforts are directed towards attainment of happiness, result is misery.
The net result of our efforts thus show that there is something basically wrong the way we set ourselves onto this task of achieving happiness in our lives. Our efforts are going to fail as their direction is wrong – we are seeking in the wrong place – seeking without instead of within. In a lighter vein, a song expresses this situation well where a girl wishes to calm herself by bathing in the rain – “aise jo bujhani ho mun ki agan, amber ke badalon ka pani hai kum (if one wishes to satiate one’s passion by bathing in the rain, water of all the clouds in the sky will be inadequate)”
In fact, the happiness that appears to be coming from outside is something like taste of blood for a dog chewing a dry bone. Nothing comes out of the bone but trying to bit it hard to extract something out of it (as this is all what he has), hurts the teeth and the gums and blood starts dripping from the gums. He smells and tastes the blood. The dog feels as if it is coming from the bone. Any attempt by other dogs to snatch the bone is resisted by the dog with all its might. This is the root of all the conflicts.
As discussed in the previous article, the truth is that an external situation merely helps remove the mental curtain (or make it a little transparent) and one has a glimpse of the real Self – peace, beauty, love and joy being its attributes. Without such understanding, one would continue to be fully entangled in managing the external situations and relationship and continue failing.
Another truth to understand is the process of formation of this mental curtain [without going into the concept of Maya and past samskaras(Sanchit Karma)].
A person is borne with survival instincts which include craving for food and water and emotions like fear and violence. Besides, one is borne with sexual instinct for procreation.
Soon one picks up the ideas of good and bad, beautiful and ugly, right and wrong, moral and immoral etc. from one’s social environment. This power of discrimination is considered as unique to human beings as it distinguishes them from animals. He also picks up ideas about the aims and goals in life. The natural tendencies of a person are thus modified to an extent.
With such tendencies and learning, he aims to become somebody in life and happens to pick up some occupation. The occupation, in many a case, is at variance with his natural talent and tendencies. He has to thus struggle to achieve the aim of finding a place in the society and a meaning to his life. But for this, he has to compete with others which brings about a ‘feverishness’ in actions – actions which do not appear to have an end.
Likewise to receive appreciation and love from others also appears to be an important need of an individual. In the name of patriotism, religion, welfare of the society, help to others etc. the society fully exploits this need of an individual. For receiving appreciation and love from others, one has to compromise – act in a manner contrary to one’s natural tendency. This gives rise to ‘hypocrisy’.
Through the development of power of discrimination or interpretation picked up from the society, the mind classifies every thing, thought or perception into good or bad, beautiful or ugly, right or wrong. Once this happens, likes and dislikes naturally follow. Then one would try to acquire and keep (yoga and kshem) what one likes and try to avoid what one dislikes. This cannot happen as this infinite existence is the way it is – it will not change according to arbitrary likes and dislikes of an insignificant human being. Further in trying to acquire and keep what one likes and trying to avoid what one dislikes one is bound to come in conflict with others. The external situations thus trigger emotions like fear, anger, jealousy, hatred, attachment, greed and possessiveness etc. leading to suffering.
Interpretation or discrimination by the mind is thus the starting point of all suffering. And this discrimination itself is based on the ideas one borrows from the society. One thing or idea can be considered good or beautiful in one society and bad or ugly in the other. Even the same thing or idea may be considered as good in the same society at one point of time and not so at some other time. For example, idea of a beautiful person in Africa is different than what it is in China. Some of the values which are considered good in Muslim community are considered bad by Hindus and vice-versa. It is, therefore, not difficult to understand that the ideas of beautiful or ugly, good or bad, moral or immoral are mere beliefs.
But, with time, the beliefs become so overbearing on an individual that in the face of a belief he even ignores his own experience or intelligence of his body. For example, infants have a great craving for milk and they obviously like it. But by the time a child is over two and half years of age, production of an enzyme (lactase) which helps digestion of milk stops. After this age, therefore, children do not want to have milk. But every parent says, every book informs the child that milk is a complete food. If you do not have milk, how will you grow and become strong? As if all grown up and strong elephants and horses are taking milk! But mothers make life of the children miserable and do not stop until having milk becomes their habit and they start liking its taste. Thereafter these very children, who through the intelligence of their bodies did not wish to take milk, force this habit on their children. Similarly one does not relish the taste of alcohol at first instance. But because of imitation and social acceptance for it, develops a taste for it. Thereafter he starts enjoying having liquor including its taste.
In fact on receiving any stimulus, a sense organ sends an impulse to the mind. On the basis of its old data bank, the mind classifies an impulse as pleasant (positive or good) or unpleasant (negative or bad). Development of taste for something only means that the classification of certain impulse is changed in the mind from negative to positive. These impulses are a form of energy. By its very nature, the energy is neither negative nor positive. To consider it that way is only based on our belief systems. This is the reason why a dislike for something or someone can be changed into liking for it or him and vice versa. If we look back and examine our experiences, it would be evident that there were many things, persons or ideas which we liked earlier and do not like them any more. The reverse is also true.
That is why whoever explored the mystery of this existence, always found that everything in this universe is manifestation of one reality, whether the seeker or the explorer came from the field of religion or from the field of science. Religions born in east call it Om [a vibration, consciousness (chetan) or energy] or God and other religion call it God. Science calls this one reality as energy (matter is manifestation of energy – matter and energy are inter convertible).
Everything and everyone is thus manifestation of that One as they spring up from one source. If we think and analyse it would not be difficult to understand that the ideas of good and bad, moral or immoral are mere rules of convenience created by the society to have some order – nothing is intrinsically good or bad. That is why they say that social norms of conduct do not apply to Yogis. It is another matter that one may follow these rules as it is convenient to follow them. There will be lesser problems (reaction from the society) and one would be able to devote his energy and time to do something worthwhile (earning livelihood or inner exploration). For example, if one drives on left side of the road following the rule, it is convenient for everyone. But there is no sin (punishable with a term in the hell) if someday one drives on right side of the road. Of course for this, one may be caught by the traffic police involving consequent unnecessary effort for resolving the matter.
If one understood ideas and beliefs as being mere social rules of convenience, there would not have been much of a problem. But with time, one becomes so identified with the borrowed ideas and beliefs that one starts considering them as one’s own. One has an image of Saraswati (though he has never seen her) and when someone portrays her in a different manner, sentiments are hurt. History is replete with instances where disagreement on these borrowed ideas or beliefs caused wars and destruction bringing about untold sufferings to the mankind and others. The same is true of our daily lives. One feels hurt if even most beloved member of one's family or friend does not agree with one’s views or beliefs. This triggers anger, violence, depression etc.
When one follows one’s instincts and natural tendencies, which may sometime not agree with the social norms, inner as well as external conflict may arise. A person usually thinks that an act defying the social norms and following one's instincts is an act of independence. But this is also not so. Where is the question of independence when one is forced into an act by the instincts and beliefs which are all borrowed!
Life goes on getting messed up in conforming to borrowed ideas, aims and code of conduct and following one's instincts and emotions. One is left with nothing but conflict, feverish action and hypocrisy. These in turn trigger emotions like desire (sex, ambition), anger (violence), jealousy (hatred), greed (attachment and possessiveness), fear (anxiety), guilt, depression etc. These constitute that dark opaque mental curtain which hides the Self and one feels lost (finds no purpose in life) and miserable.
By their very nature, all our senses perceive things outside us [taste, touch (sex), smell, music, beauty]. Whatever experience of pleasure (taken for happiness and joy) we seem to have, appear to be coming from outside (eating something delicious, having a good sexual experience etc.) and that is why each one of us seeks happiness through external pursuits. All our (worldly persons) efforts are directed towards achieving this happiness alone. But as the years pass by, instead of reaching happier states of existence, one becomes tense and miserable.
If one sees a group of children, one finds them to be full of energy and their smiles are divine. Teenagers have good relationships with their friends (our most intimate friends are often those with whom we get associated with at this stage of our lives), they believe in each other and look forward to life with optimism. The young working persons are optimistic about changing the situations for the better in their sphere of activity. In their quest for happiness though success, they become ambitious and competitive, would not easily believe others and would not mind achieving their goals by riding over the shoulders of others. As mentioned the preceding article, the success gives one a brief spike of happiness and the life is routine again. The failure on the contrary makes one sad and frustrated which linger on for longer time. Some total of one’s efforts (zero for success and negative for failure) is thus negative and the graph of happiness shows a downward trend. This is the reason why, though many a young person achieves success in the material world, instead of reaching happier states, one feels tense and empty from within – making one wonder if one’s efforts are not enough and that one needs to reach still greater heights. And as one becomes a little older, one slowly but certainly develops cynicism (even hatred) and no more believes in others and is miserable. It is surprising that although all our efforts are directed towards attainment of happiness, result is misery.
The net result of our efforts thus show that there is something basically wrong the way we set ourselves onto this task of achieving happiness in our lives. Our efforts are going to fail as their direction is wrong – we are seeking in the wrong place – seeking without instead of within. In a lighter vein, a song expresses this situation well where a girl wishes to calm herself by bathing in the rain – “aise jo bujhani ho mun ki agan, amber ke badalon ka pani hai kum (if one wishes to satiate one’s passion by bathing in the rain, water of all the clouds in the sky will be inadequate)”
In fact, the happiness that appears to be coming from outside is something like taste of blood for a dog chewing a dry bone. Nothing comes out of the bone but trying to bit it hard to extract something out of it (as this is all what he has), hurts the teeth and the gums and blood starts dripping from the gums. He smells and tastes the blood. The dog feels as if it is coming from the bone. Any attempt by other dogs to snatch the bone is resisted by the dog with all its might. This is the root of all the conflicts.
As discussed in the previous article, the truth is that an external situation merely helps remove the mental curtain (or make it a little transparent) and one has a glimpse of the real Self – peace, beauty, love and joy being its attributes. Without such understanding, one would continue to be fully entangled in managing the external situations and relationship and continue failing.
Another truth to understand is the process of formation of this mental curtain [without going into the concept of Maya and past samskaras(Sanchit Karma)].
A person is borne with survival instincts which include craving for food and water and emotions like fear and violence. Besides, one is borne with sexual instinct for procreation.
Soon one picks up the ideas of good and bad, beautiful and ugly, right and wrong, moral and immoral etc. from one’s social environment. This power of discrimination is considered as unique to human beings as it distinguishes them from animals. He also picks up ideas about the aims and goals in life. The natural tendencies of a person are thus modified to an extent.
With such tendencies and learning, he aims to become somebody in life and happens to pick up some occupation. The occupation, in many a case, is at variance with his natural talent and tendencies. He has to thus struggle to achieve the aim of finding a place in the society and a meaning to his life. But for this, he has to compete with others which brings about a ‘feverishness’ in actions – actions which do not appear to have an end.
Likewise to receive appreciation and love from others also appears to be an important need of an individual. In the name of patriotism, religion, welfare of the society, help to others etc. the society fully exploits this need of an individual. For receiving appreciation and love from others, one has to compromise – act in a manner contrary to one’s natural tendency. This gives rise to ‘hypocrisy’.
Through the development of power of discrimination or interpretation picked up from the society, the mind classifies every thing, thought or perception into good or bad, beautiful or ugly, right or wrong. Once this happens, likes and dislikes naturally follow. Then one would try to acquire and keep (yoga and kshem) what one likes and try to avoid what one dislikes. This cannot happen as this infinite existence is the way it is – it will not change according to arbitrary likes and dislikes of an insignificant human being. Further in trying to acquire and keep what one likes and trying to avoid what one dislikes one is bound to come in conflict with others. The external situations thus trigger emotions like fear, anger, jealousy, hatred, attachment, greed and possessiveness etc. leading to suffering.
Interpretation or discrimination by the mind is thus the starting point of all suffering. And this discrimination itself is based on the ideas one borrows from the society. One thing or idea can be considered good or beautiful in one society and bad or ugly in the other. Even the same thing or idea may be considered as good in the same society at one point of time and not so at some other time. For example, idea of a beautiful person in Africa is different than what it is in China. Some of the values which are considered good in Muslim community are considered bad by Hindus and vice-versa. It is, therefore, not difficult to understand that the ideas of beautiful or ugly, good or bad, moral or immoral are mere beliefs.
But, with time, the beliefs become so overbearing on an individual that in the face of a belief he even ignores his own experience or intelligence of his body. For example, infants have a great craving for milk and they obviously like it. But by the time a child is over two and half years of age, production of an enzyme (lactase) which helps digestion of milk stops. After this age, therefore, children do not want to have milk. But every parent says, every book informs the child that milk is a complete food. If you do not have milk, how will you grow and become strong? As if all grown up and strong elephants and horses are taking milk! But mothers make life of the children miserable and do not stop until having milk becomes their habit and they start liking its taste. Thereafter these very children, who through the intelligence of their bodies did not wish to take milk, force this habit on their children. Similarly one does not relish the taste of alcohol at first instance. But because of imitation and social acceptance for it, develops a taste for it. Thereafter he starts enjoying having liquor including its taste.
In fact on receiving any stimulus, a sense organ sends an impulse to the mind. On the basis of its old data bank, the mind classifies an impulse as pleasant (positive or good) or unpleasant (negative or bad). Development of taste for something only means that the classification of certain impulse is changed in the mind from negative to positive. These impulses are a form of energy. By its very nature, the energy is neither negative nor positive. To consider it that way is only based on our belief systems. This is the reason why a dislike for something or someone can be changed into liking for it or him and vice versa. If we look back and examine our experiences, it would be evident that there were many things, persons or ideas which we liked earlier and do not like them any more. The reverse is also true.
That is why whoever explored the mystery of this existence, always found that everything in this universe is manifestation of one reality, whether the seeker or the explorer came from the field of religion or from the field of science. Religions born in east call it Om [a vibration, consciousness (chetan) or energy] or God and other religion call it God. Science calls this one reality as energy (matter is manifestation of energy – matter and energy are inter convertible).
Everything and everyone is thus manifestation of that One as they spring up from one source. If we think and analyse it would not be difficult to understand that the ideas of good and bad, moral or immoral are mere rules of convenience created by the society to have some order – nothing is intrinsically good or bad. That is why they say that social norms of conduct do not apply to Yogis. It is another matter that one may follow these rules as it is convenient to follow them. There will be lesser problems (reaction from the society) and one would be able to devote his energy and time to do something worthwhile (earning livelihood or inner exploration). For example, if one drives on left side of the road following the rule, it is convenient for everyone. But there is no sin (punishable with a term in the hell) if someday one drives on right side of the road. Of course for this, one may be caught by the traffic police involving consequent unnecessary effort for resolving the matter.
If one understood ideas and beliefs as being mere social rules of convenience, there would not have been much of a problem. But with time, one becomes so identified with the borrowed ideas and beliefs that one starts considering them as one’s own. One has an image of Saraswati (though he has never seen her) and when someone portrays her in a different manner, sentiments are hurt. History is replete with instances where disagreement on these borrowed ideas or beliefs caused wars and destruction bringing about untold sufferings to the mankind and others. The same is true of our daily lives. One feels hurt if even most beloved member of one's family or friend does not agree with one’s views or beliefs. This triggers anger, violence, depression etc.
When one follows one’s instincts and natural tendencies, which may sometime not agree with the social norms, inner as well as external conflict may arise. A person usually thinks that an act defying the social norms and following one's instincts is an act of independence. But this is also not so. Where is the question of independence when one is forced into an act by the instincts and beliefs which are all borrowed!
Life goes on getting messed up in conforming to borrowed ideas, aims and code of conduct and following one's instincts and emotions. One is left with nothing but conflict, feverish action and hypocrisy. These in turn trigger emotions like desire (sex, ambition), anger (violence), jealousy (hatred), greed (attachment and possessiveness), fear (anxiety), guilt, depression etc. These constitute that dark opaque mental curtain which hides the Self and one feels lost (finds no purpose in life) and miserable.
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