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Date:19 Oct 1998 Occasion:Deepavali Place:Prashanti Nilayam

Dispel the Darkness of Ignorance

In this supremely sacred land of Bharat, forbearance is the highest wealth,
Of all forms of rituals, the most important one is adherence to truth
and integrity,
The sweetest of feelings in this country is love for mother and the
motherland,
In this land character is more important than the life itself.
Such sacred principles have been totally forgotten,
And in the name of freedom people lead a perverted life imitating the
western culture.
Just as the mighty elephant is not aware of its own strength, Bharatiyas
are not aware of the greatness of their own culture

(Telugu poem)

It is the moon that gives us light in the night;
During the day it is the sun that shines with all brilliance;
It is the Dharma that illumines all the three worlds in all the three
periods of time,
Likewise a good son illumines the entire clan.

(Sanskrit Sloka)

Embodiments of Love!

All festivals of Bharat have an inner divine significance. In Bharat the
festivals are celebrated to prove the immanent divinity in humanity.
This day's festival, Deepavali, teaches a sacred inner meaning to
humanity. No other element in this world is as significant as light. It
is the light that shows us the way dispelling the darkness. It is
because of the light that man is able to attend to his daily duties.

The flame of a lamp has two significant qualities. One is to banish
darkness; the other is a continuous upward movement. Even if a lamp is
kept in a pit, the flame is directed upwards. The ancients have taught
that the upward movement of the flame denotes the path to wisdom and the
path to divinity. However, the external light can dispel only the
external darkness, but not the darkness of ignorance in man. When
Hanuman set Lanka ablaze, though there was light all around, Ravana's
heart was filled with darkness. Ravana was no ordinary person; he
belonged to the lineage of Brahma. He was the brother of Kubera, the god
of wealth. He had a brother, Kumbhakarna, who was very powerful. He had
a son by name Indrajit, who conquered the mighty Indra, the king of
gods. He was a master of four Vedas and six Sastras. Such a powerful and
highly educated Ravana could not get rid of the darkness of ignorance.

Ignorance is the cause of birth and death. One with ignorance is born
again and again (punarapi jananam punarapi maranam). But, one with
wisdom has neither birth nor death.

God has neither birth nor death.
He is eternal; he has no beginning, no end.
He is in the form of Atma.
That is Jnana Jyothi (light of wisdom).

(Telugu poem)

If you want to light a lamp, you need a container. You have to fill it
with oil and place a wick in it. You need a matchbox to light the wick.
Only when you have all the four accessories, can you light the lamp.
This lamp dispels the external darkness. Similarly to dispel the
darkness of ignorance, you need to have Vairagya (renunciation), the
container; Love, the oil; one pointed concentration, the wick and
Tattwajnana (spiritual wisdom), the matchbox. Only when you have all
these four can you light the lamp of wisdom.

Renunciation is a must for every spiritual aspirant. Renunciation does
not mean leading a life of seclusion, leaving wife and children. Giving
up evil qualities is the real renunciation. That is the real thyaga
(sacrifice), and yoga. So first and foremost develop detachment. Even
the detachment has to be within certain limits. Extreme detachment will
lead to danger. It is impossible to live in this world giving up
everything. So lead your life with equanimity.

Once gopikas prayed to Krishna thus: "O Krishna! Your mother is trying
to catch you to chastise you for your mischievous deeds. You don't need
to run hither and thither to hide yourself. There is a place, which is
beyond the reach of your mother, that is our Heart. Our Heart is filled
with the darkness of ignorance. So enter our Heart and banish the
darkness of ignorance."

What is the inner significance of Deepavali? The capital of the kingdom
ruled by Narakasura was known as 'Praagjyotishapuram'. The name consists
of four syllables: Praag, Jyothi, Sha and Puram. Praag means before,
Jyothi means light, Sha refers to forgetting. The inner meaning of this
name is that the inhabitants of this city have forgotten the ancient and
eternal light (Atma Jyothi). Narakasura, the king of Praagjyotishapuram
had totally forgotten the Atmic principle, identifying himself with the
body, leading a life in darkness of ignorance. One has to develop
attachment to the Self, not to the body. Attachment to the body is the
main cause for all sufferings. One who travels towards ignorance is
Naraka and the one who travels towards wisdom is Nara, the human. To
travel along the path of wisdom one needs to develop sacred thoughts,
sacred words and sacred actions.

God does not like to kill the wicked Himself. So Krishna devised a
master plan to kill Narakasura. As Narakasura was very strong both
physically and mentally, Krishna decided to weaken him gradually by
subjecting him to fits of anger. The modus operandi was to provoke
Narakasura and when he would come chasing in a fit of anger, Krishna
would withdraw. Anger is the main cause for man to lose his physical and
mental powers. If one gets angry, one loses the energy obtained from the
food partaken over a period of three months. When Narakasura lost all
his strength due to his anger, Krishna made Sathyabhama kill him. God
has His own master plan for everything because He is the master of
everything.

Narakasura committed many sins in his life. He imprisoned thousands of
women and tortured them. They were the sixteen thousand gopikas. They
could neither live nor die. Such was their pitiable condition. After
Narakasura was killed Krishna freed them from prison and asked them to
return to their respective homes and lead a peaceful life. But all the
gopikas fell at Krishna's feet and pleaded that it would be impossible
for them to live in dignity in their homes after being prisoners of
Narakasura. They said Krishna was their only refuge and prayed that He
should take care of them. Krishna agreed to take the responsibility of
protecting them. Then gopikas sang in praise of Krishna thus:

"O Krishna! It is impossible to describe Your glory in words. Even
Brahma, the Creator cannot understand You. We have been longing for your
divine grace. Listen to our prayers and protect us. You freed
Devaki-Vasudeva from prison. You saved the honor of Draupadi and
protected Pandavas. You removed the poverty of Kuchela, you turned ugly
Kubja into a beautiful woman. You freed sixteen thousand gopikas from
prison." (Telugu song)

It is the ignorance that makes one suffer when only the external world
is seen, but not the Atmic principle. Human being is like a bridge
between the seen and the unseen. That which is seen is bound to perish.
It is the unchangeable and eternal wisdom that is important, not the
transient world.

When Narakasura was killed all those who suffered under him were
overjoyed. Having led a life of darkness till then, both internally and
externally, they celebrated the occasion by lighting lamps. There is
significance in lighting lamps. The flame of one lamp can light the
whole array of lamps. That one lamp symbolizes the Paramjyothi (supreme
effulgence). The others symbolize the Jeevana Jyothis (light in
individual selves). Deepavail is celebrated in order to teach this truth
to the world. People celebrate this festival by bursting firecrackers
signifying the victory of good over evil.

The inner meaning underlying the Bharatiya festivals should be rightly
understood. On each festival day people have a sacred bath early in the
morning and wear new clothes, keep their houses and surroundings clean.
Thus the festivals teach us the importance of internal and external
cleanliness. The Vedas declare, "Anthar Bahischa Tat Sarvam Vyapya
Narayana Stithaha", God is present within and around. So one has to be
pure both internally and externally. It is the water that helps to keep
your body clean. But it is love that keeps your heart clean. You should
celebrate the festivals in full realization of their inner significance.

As man has no purity of heart he has become the cause of all the
restlessness in the world. What is the reason of all suffering? It is
the polluted mind. Never blame the world for your suffering; blame
yourself. "Yad Bhavam Tat Bhavathi" (As is the feeling so is the
experience). If your heart is pure you will find purity everywhere. So
purity of heart is essential. Only when you have purity of heart can you
attain wisdom. In the absence of purity you will be immersed in
ignorance and restlessness.

Ignorance leads to suffering. We do not know what is ignorance. We
should try to know what we do not know. That is the true Sadhana. It is
only through effort that man can achieve anything. Even a small ant can
travel miles together if it makes an effort, but a bird cannot move even
an inch if it does not make an effort. Man can accomplish anything if he
puts in effort. He is able to travel lakhs of miles into space spending
crores of rupees. But he is not making an attempt to travel at least
half an inch into his heart. He is undertaking space travel with the
help of yantra (machine). It is the mantra that is important, not the
yantra. Hiranyakasipu could even reach the pole star with the help of
yantra, but what is the use? It was child Prahlada who could win the
grace of God with the help of mantra. The power of Hiranyakasipu was
related to yantra; whereas, the Prahlada's power was related to mantra.
Yantra may fail, but not the mantra.

Yantra, mantra and tantra all the three are latent in human beings. We
are repeating the mantra 'Soham' 21,600 times a day. 'Soham' means I am
God. There is no better mantra than this. Human body is the yantra. Who
is responsible for making the heart beat? Who is responsible for
digestion and blood circulation in the body? The eye, which is not even
an inch in size is able to see the stars, which are millions of miles
away. The eardrum, which is small in size, is able to receive sounds
from far off distances. Television and telephone are within the body.
Having been endowed with such a powerful yantra, the body and the sacred
mantra, Soham, it is a shame if we do not work for the redemption of our
life. Hridaya is the tantra, Soham is the mantra and body is the yantra.
Though all the three are within man, yet he is in search of them outside.

Man is encased in five koshas (sheaths): Annamaya, Pranamaya, Manomaya,
Vijnanamaya and Anandamaya koshas. The physical body is the Annamaya
kosha (the sheath based on food). Subtler than this is Pranamaya kosha.
Still subtler is Manomaya kosha. Man today has progressed up to the
level of the mind. The moment he progresses to the level of Vijnanamaya
kosha (wisdom sheath) he will experience Anandamaya kosha (sheath of
bliss). That is the non-dualistic bliss. "Ekam Eva Adviteeyam Brahma"
(God is only one and not two). That is the Atmic principle. Just as the
same current flows in different bulbs, the same Atma exists in all the
beings. The culture of Bharat speaks of this unity in diversity.
Unfortunately in the modern age, unity is viewed as diversity. It is
this mistake that puts man to suffering.

Nations are many, but earth is one.
Being are many, but breath is one
Stars are many, but sky is one,
Jewels are many, but gold is one.

Once you understand this basic unity, you can understand the divine
principle. You should not hate anybody. Hate your own anger, do not
fight with others; fight with your bad qualities. Give up your bad
qualities. How is it possible? It is possible only if you surrender
yourself to God.

Markandeya was the son of Mrukandu. He was to live only for sixteen
years, but he was not aware of this. One day he found his parents in a
very dejected mood. When he asked the reason they revealed that his end
was approaching. On hearing this he immediately rushed to the temple of
Lord Siva, hugged the Siva Linga and started chanting His name. When the
Lord of death came and cast the noose, even Easwara was caught up in it
as Markandeya was holding fast to the Linga. Then Easwara manifested and
burnt the Lord of death to ashes.

It means, once you are unified with God, there is no question of
separation. How can this unification take place? A small example, when
coal and fire are placed apart they remain as they are. Only when the
coal comes in contact with fire, and fanned can the coal become fire.
Similarly, when you are near and dear to God, you will become God. This
is what the Vedanta said, "Brahma vid Brahmaiva Bhavathi" (the knower of
Brahman becomes Brahman Himself). For this you need not do any sadhana.
It is enough if you have the total and pure love.

All the worldly sadhanas are only to sanctify the time. Time is God. Do
not waste time. Be happy. This is the sadhana you should do. Never be
narrow minded. Expansion of love is life; Contraction of love is death.
Expansion of love is possible only if you have love for God. God can
confer anything if you have love. There is nothing that He cannot give.
God is always ready to give Himself.

"Ask and it shall be given. Knock and it shall be opened." But man does
not ask, does not knock. He asks only demons and knocks the doors of
hell. You should call out to God whole-heartedly. You should knock the
doors of liberation. The moha (attachment) has to be reduced in order to
attain moksha (liberation). To reduce attachment, renunciation is very
important. Bhadrachala Ramadas has compared human life to a lighted lamp
in one of his songs and has declared that when the oil of life ebbs away
none will follow the departed. Do not depend on this ephemeral world.
Depend only on God. God is the basis for everything. If you totally rely
on God you can achieve anything. Since you rely on Padaartha (material
world), you forget Paraartha (spiritual knowledge) and yathaartha (the
reality). All your material and secular knowledge are of no use in the
field of spirituality. Give up materialistic thinking. Develop spiritual
knowledge.

Pray to God, saying "Thamasoma Jyothir Gamaya" (Lead us from darkness to
Light) and "Mrithyorma Amritham Gamaya" (Lead us from death to
Immortality). What is the way to Immortality? Removal of immorality is
the only way to Immortality. Give up all bad qualities such as lust,
anger, greed etc., and install God in your heart. Do as I say.

Some people do not listen to good words
Though they are said whole-heartedly.
They readily pay heed to bad words.
Can such people ever know Me?
What is the use of all their education?

(Telugu poem)

Ravana was a master of all sixty-four types of knowledge, but he could
not receive God's grace. Since he did not put his knowledge into
practice he suffered from 'indigestion'. That resulted in the sickness
of sensual desires. Rama also learnt all the sixty-four types of
knowledge and He put them into practice. Ravana was interested only in
aggrandizement; whereas, Rama was interested in practice.

Life without the knowledge of Self is useless, just as a tree without
root, a tree without fruit and a fruit without juice. If you do not know
your true identity, what is the use of taking a human birth? Know
thyself and you will know everything. This is the most sacred teaching
of all the festivals. Think of God. Constant contemplation on the Divine
will free you from all worries.

(Bhagavan concluded His discourse with the Bhajans, "Hari Bhajana bina
sukha santhi nahi..." and "Prema muditha manase kaho. . . ')

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