Swami Shivapadananda Puri shares an exquisite technique for purifying heart and mind.
Swamiji speaks of the compassion of the Divine, which incarnates and comes to this plane to uplift human beings and move us further along the spiritual path. The huge difference between the holy ones and most of us, is that they seek nothing in return. Which then begs the question, what then is our dharma? Swamiji says we have to purify our minds by doing things which are conducive to love, compassion and selflessness. And as long as that state doesn't come, what must we do? Don't give up – the message is clear: Go on trying and trying.
One of Sri Ramakrishna's disciples came to him one day and very openly said, 'Maharaj my mind is so evil, it's thinking about all the bad things.' Swamiji praises the candour and honesty of the disciple in speaking like this. There was no attempt to put on a pious face and demure behaviour in front of the guru. He was completely sincere about trying to change his state of mind.
And then – and this for me, is the heart of this audio posting – Swamiji shares with all of us a beautiful, incremental solution to the problem of cleansing the mind. It's not a big-bang process, but a persistent and consistent effort that is required. And it doesn't involve guilt or self recrimination. Listen to Swamiji giving us the step by step solution. The message emerging from Swamiji's suggestions is: 'Try your best to do the right thing. And keep on trying. No matter how many times you fail.' A common axiom in human personal development is: Failure is not when you fall over. Failure is when you decide not to get back up, again.
By adopting the 'slow and steady approach', a beneficial habit will be formed. Sri Ramakrishna and Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi repeatedly said that the simplest way of reaching awareness of our original true divine nature in this Kali yuga, is by repeating God's name (japa). Any name that you associate with the Divine. Swamiji emphasises that by getting into the habit of repeating one of the many names we use for God, is that it purifies us and attracts good habits and things towards us, while the bad automatically falls away. (Please don't immediately think of the Lotto – that's only one kind of material good.😉)
But we can't sincerely want God whilst looking down on our fellow human beings. Our humility must become like that of a blade of grass – as Swamiji says, you know where the grass is? – underfoot. Despite any trampling, temptations or obstacles, the message is: Do not give up your spiritual practice, your right attitude to purifying your mind, and your resolve to progress. When we do these things we can be categorised as 'human' beings. Otherwise we are still animals – but in a human body. (Note: this is not to denigrate animals – but they're driven purely by instinct and not governed by intellectual discernment.)
Swamiji says that if we really are prepared to sacrifice in our quest, nothing can stand in our way. Not even the gods.
Swamiji shares the story of a sadhu, a scorpion and a hunter – with a valuable take-away for us. Coming back to the all-important component in spiritual progress – concentration. When the mind is dissipated and distracted, it can't be concentrated. Thinking that praising God, lighting agarbatti, offering flowers, cloth, prasad and other rituals may persuade the Divine in our favour is infantile thinking. As Swamiji said to us so often, 'Don't develop a shop-keeping mentality with God.' Swamiji describes that approach as 'baby prayers'.
The notion of getting instant God-realisation once initiated, comes under fire. Swamiji stresses that purity of heart (re-emphasised in so many other postings) is the non-negotiable criterion. That first and foremost. Having visions and hearing music or bells doesn't mean God-realisation. Those manifestations are to be found even among mentally disturbed people. (Or people on drugs). All of these can take place, but if our daily actions remain unchanged, they mean nothing.
This post contains a simple way of approaching our daily spiritual journey. Not with a focus on being perfect, but rather on transcending our imperfections to become better and better with each step along the journey. And the technique (hint: cloth and dye) suggested by Swamiji in explaining how to go about it, will bring encouragement that we too, can manage the process.
God bless you. Enjoy the listen. Jai Sri Ramakrishna!
Click on the link below to listen.
Duration 10:26
The original audio recordings of these posts, were made by close Ramakrishna Centre of South Africa and Swami Shivapadananda devotee, Mother Radha Hoare. The audio editing and noise reduction of the original 1970s tapes has been lovingly crafted, over many years, by our gurubhai Tim Hoare. We thank them both.