Swamiji on the do’s and don’ts of our spiritual journey.
Swamiji adding value to a talk just given by a devotee. In the beginning says Swamiji, at its lower levels, religion provides rules or guardrails to keep us on track.
At a higher level we come across the laws of Yama [should do] and Niyama [shouldn't do] precepts. These aren't random, but provided in the scriptures for us, by the ancient Rishis [sages, seers, saints].
Everything in our realm on consciousness is guided by 'laws' [norms, principles] of some sort – Swamiji gives examples – and illustrates that there's an automatic penalty for breaching them. Like a surgeon, Swamiji takes a scalpel to the lack of logic in someone saying, 'I don't want to live by laws', and uses an ashram example of early morning rising to make the point.
Swamiji says animals aren't governed by laws, so much as by instinct. And humorously adds that the day an animal decides it wishes to abandon instinct, and think independently, it's ready for birth in a human body! 😉
'Tell the truth in a way that causes least injury', was a favourite cautionary from Swamiji. Silence being the better option, if necessary. And it surfaces in this discussion, too. As does asking a sannyasi 'what they were' before they embraced monasticism. Swamiji says don't do it. These are such important guidelines for living and travelling the spiritual path, without causing offence or harm.
Swamiji wraps up the discussion by talking about the receiving of gifts or favours, and the obligation or bondage that can develop from doing so.
To listen to this wise counsel, please click on the link below. Jai Sri Ramakrishna!
Duration: 07:13
NEW! For a fresh daily reading recorded and transcribed by Team Radha Ma and Brother Tim, Click HERE.
The original audio recordings of these posts were made by close Ramakrishna Centre of South Africa and Swami Shivapadananda devotee, Mother Radha. The audio editing and noise reduction of the original 1970s-onwards tapes, has been lovingly engineered, over many years, by her son and our dear gurubhai, Brother Tim. May Sri Ramakrishna and Swamiji bless them both.
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Context: As always, care should be taken to remember that what Swamiji was saying, may have been very specific to the needs of people with him at the time. Please bear this in mind.
Links to our Guruparampara (spiritual lineage) organisations, which will broaden your knowledge base: Ramakrishna Math and Mission and our alma maters, the Ramakrishna Centre of South Africa and the Sri Sarada Devi Ashram in Durban. The Ramakrishna Centre of Johannesburg is also active in Gauteng province in South Africa.
There are various publications [The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna etc.] which you can download at no charge, from the Ramakrishna Centre of SA website page, HERE.
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