Chhoti Baatein

 

Chhoti Baatein ( Small Things)

This phrase from an old song rings in the mind today as I recall an incident from a couple of years back. 

छोटी बातें

छोटी-छोटी बातों की हैं यादें बड़ी

भूले नहीं, बीती हुई एक छोटी घडी

Seemingly insignificant moments stay permanently etched into our memories at times and come alive in the most unexpected way and at unexpected times. One such non specific memory is from one of my earliest talks in Pune to an audience of women who were keen to listen on spiritual topics. I had picked a very basic subject and that was about Sant Vagmay (Saint Literature). At the end of this talk we had a question answer session and discussion about what was spoken earlier. One woman from the audience who seemed at least ten years older than me, may be more, confessed that she does not believe in the idea of God. When asked about God by her grand children she told them confidently, God does not exist. Yet she attended the session that heavily revolved around the subject of God, because she found ethical pearls in the teachings of the saints to be of practical value. Essentially she was prepared to lift part of the spiritual teachings that spoke about how a good person lives life and simultaneously discard another part that validated the presence of God. 

Today I was reading some of Tukaram Maharaj’s writings where he extols the virtues of chanting the name of Vitthala. He asserts that in Kaliyuga the best means to attain enlightenment is by continuous chanting of the name of God. He makes a case that this method is easy and convenient for just about anyone as against other tedious means like yoga and study of Vedas etc.. The fine print in this overly simplified message is that when you make it a regular habit to focus on the name of God, indirectly you will be practicing meditation or dhyaan. When you begin to combine that with a good understanding of what that name represents you will attain to Dnyaan. Attaining full understanding of what God is, by definition, is what enlightenment means. 

A thought came to my mind:

If it is that simple, why do we not practice this habit? 

That’s when the memory of my conversation with the elderly lady was revived. 

In response to her stand on not believing in God, I had asked her that day if she knows about a few generations above her, like grandfather, great grandfather, great great grandfather etc.. Her answer was yes. Had she met them in person? No. What they did for a living was simply what she knew from hearsay. Yet she had no doubts whatsoever that it was the absolute truth. Why? Because of unwavering faith in the words of her parents. In contrast, despite the saints proclaiming over and over again about their personal experiences of God, she was unable to trust their word for this. 

Most of us in this world can relate to her. One of our basic problems is identical to this woman’s position. Our mind and intelligence hesitate to believe everything that saints tell us.  We take part of the advice and disregard other. Speaking to my nieces recently about the issue I found one doesn’t believe in the existence of God and the other is ambivalent about the idea of God. Both of them lack the inclination to ascertain the truth. More recently a conversation with a dear cousin revealed that he believes in the idea of one super power but does not believe in scriptures or religion.

There are several reasons why we don’t bother to explore fully. 

One is that the world around us in general proves a deterrent for serious study. The intellectuals tend to not believe in occult subjects. The believers, more often than not, are not intellectuals. This latter group is often drawn to dogmatic beliefs and paradoxically compromise the very basic tenets of saintly teachings such as kindness, equality, justice. They also are willing to dismiss scientific evidence in favor of religious beliefs rather than seek reconciliation between the two lines of thought. Naturally any person raised to rely on scientific data finds it difficult to identify themselves with such sections of blind followers of God or religion.

There is yet another important reason why there is lack of zeal to explore the teachings of religion. That is because the purpose of this study or the goal of enlightenment itself is blurred in our minds. We don’t understand it and therefore we don’t feel inclined to find out. The physical world as we see it is our only trusted reality. Our mortality is a major source of our insecurities and sufferings but most of us have adapted by not giving much attention to it in daily life. Thinking about it seriously causes grief, so our mind puts that subject away. Out of sight, out of mind! The believers find solace in merely the thought that there is a better place they can go to upon death if they live following the rules. They don’t care to explore more into that philosophy.

Most religions  offer one or more of three possibilities after death: going to heaven, going to hell or returning to the earth in a new physical body. The tradition of the Hindu faith or Sanatan Dharma gives an additional option. That option is moksha or liberation. Few are aware that moksha can be achieved even before physical death. The Bhagwad Gita cites this option. All the saints of the warkari tradition endorse it. Not just endorse but they emphasize that this is the only option worthy of pursuing. All other options do not permanently remove the possibility of suffering. Even if someone becomes eligible for a life in heaven they must return to mortal life after the good karmas are spent. Thus all three options other than moksha exist within a temporal frame. 

Moksha is the only one that facilitates an exit from the realm of time and space. In other words , this fourth option of moksha is the only one that is outside of temporal restraint. It falls in the domain of eternity.

The basis of this philosophy is that our true nature is identical with the nature of God. This God or our self in the natural form is eternal and self luminous. Our identification with mortal elements in the physical body or with changing milieu of thought and emotions is due to a veil of ignorance that covers our true nature. Chanting the name of God with the understanding of what it represents will eventually culminate into realizing that we are essentially identical with God who pervades everything. There is nothing devoid of us/God. 

If mind can be cured of its scepticism and puts this simple exercise of chanting the name of God into practice, with faith and understanding, results will be evident. 

The conversation with my cousin made me ponder whether scriptural study is essential. Perhaps not. But serious and persuasive contemplation on God is essential. Just believing cannot take you beyond the physical realm. It becomes a matter of choice whether one wants status quo or evolution. 

That leads me to consider another subject. The language of our mind. Will discuss this in a subsequent post.

Saree is a handspun cotton weave from West Bengal.