23 Jun 2016
Questions from Kishore Ram:
1) The modern science reveals the positive benefits of Alcohol consumption in a limited quantity. But, scriptures are against this. Can you please throw light on this?
Swami replied: Limited quantity of alcohol is already supplied to the body through food items. Fermentation generates alcohol and in several food items fermentation is inevitable. This means that consumption of alcohol in limited quantities is good for health and therefore God arranged for such supply of alcohol in limited quantities through various food items. The point here is that if you start taking extra alcohol than the required quantity, which is already arranged by God, even the limited quantity becomes extra quantity only since required quantity is already supplied through food items. Leave this for some time. You start taking limited quantities of alcohol for good health and this initial step slowly grows to uncontrollable stage. We see several cases in this way. Same doctors say that alcohol damages liver and leads to the end of life. Often you find T.V. scrolling regarding such warning whenever a context of the scene of drinking alcohol is shown. Taking alcohol directly brings such problem. Taking little quantities of alcohol is a humble beginning for the future tremendous progress. Every mighty work starts always with humble beginning only. If doctors prescribe that your body requires some little alcohol more than already supplied small quantities through food items, you can take some more food items involving fermentation in the place of some normal food items. Ask the doctors about this idea. If any doctor says that you should take some little alcohol directly only, you must be careful to analyse the reason for his hidden enmity with you since it is sure that the doctor wants to kill you as early as possible! Based on all this background only, scripture says that one should not drink (na suraam pibet). Drinking wine is considered to be one of the five horrible sins. Considering all this background only, ethical scripture frames rules for humanity. It is better to follow the rule after knowing the background clearly so that these confusions are avoided.
Decide Satguru After experiencing Truth of Spiritual Knowledge
2) Swami has told many a time on intensive logical analysis of any divine knowledge by him (Satguru) instead of blindly accepting it. But I read in some discourse which says- ‘you will need a torch (intelligence) until you find and follow the Satguru, after that the torch is not necessary which means you can blindly follow Satguru. This is something which looks confusing? Can you please clarify?
Swami replied: When you are travelling to a house, which is fully radiating with powerful lights, but, the path to it is full of darkness, you need a torchlight in the path only and not on reaching the house shinning with lights. The point here is that you have to search Satguru and after reaching Satguru, you need not analyse Him. It is just like to put on the torchlight on the way before reaching house and the torchlight should be put off after reaching the house with thousand lights. The logical analysis is required in searching the Satguru and not in examining the Satguru. Here, the word reaching Satguru means fixation of Satguru through analysis. Unless you analyse, you can’t fix Satguru. ‘You have fixed Satguru’ means that you have already examined Him, analysed Him and then only fixing Him as Satguru results. You should not take the sense of simile directly to the sense of concept. Reaching lighthouse resembles reaching Satguru. You have experienced the lights of house and reached it. Similarly, you must experience the light of spiritual knowledge of Satguru and then only reach (fix) Him. Without experiencing the light of house, it cannot be called as lighthouse. Similarly, without experiencing the truth of spiritual knowledge of the preacher, you can’t call Him as Satguru. Basis of confusion is that the word ‘reaching’ is applied to lighthouse and Satguru in common meaning. The word ‘reaching’ in the case of lighthouse doesn’t require any analysis to decide that it is light house since you can experience it instantaneously. In the case of Satguru, you can’t experience Him as Satguru instantaneously on just seeing Him like the lighthouse. Whenever a simile is given to a concept, the limitation of simile should be carefully noticed and you have to apply the simile to the concept within the boundaries of limitation of simile. Face is compared to moon. The limited area of comparison is only pleasantness. You can’t take the total area of the simile to the concept like black spots on moon, growth and reduction of moon etc. The comparison of simile and concept must be limited here in the area that after reaching the lighthouse you need not put on the torchlight means that after analysing and fixing (reaching means both analysis and fixation in the concept) Satguru, you need not analyse Him continuously without end. At some stage, you should stop analysis and fix your faith on Him. If you doubt Satguru continuously till the last second of your life, you are the true doubting Thomas and the Gita says that such person is destroyed forever (Samshayaatmaa vinashyati). During preaching of the Gita only, Arjuna experienced that Krishna is Satguru. He doubted Krishna by saying that it is impossible for Krishna to preach Sun in the beginning of creation. This shows that Arjuna has not fixed Krishna as Satguru so far. Satguru means God in human form preaching the right spiritual knowledge. If you have called somebody as Satguru, it means that you have accepted Him as God. After this, doubting Him is not correct. But, if you have doubt about such conclusion, you should continue to analyse His preaching. At the end of the Gita, Krishna advised Arjuna to analyse the Gita before he accepts it. Satguru always says this because He doesn’t fear for any analysis done about His preaching since it is sure that the preaching will pass through the fire test any number of times. Hence, from the point of Satguru there is no issue. From the point of the devotee only, it is advisable to develop faith after a long time at least avoiding doubting forever till the end of life.
3) Why the name ‘Parabrahma Gita’ was kept to recent Swami’s poetry/Discourse? Can you please explain the difference between Prarabrahma Gita and Uttara Parabrahma Gita.
Swami replied: Parabrahma means the original absolute unimaginable God, who is beyond space and time. Anybody, anytime, can never touch Him by the activity of analysis of brain. This is the greatest merit. The divine nectar (amrutam) is always associated with horrible poison (haalaahalam). The greatest defect of the unimaginable God existing side by side is that He can’t be imagined even by the sharpest analysis of even angels, not to speak of human beings. Hence, atheism starts projecting based on this defect. For this, the unimaginable God shows unimaginable events called miracles as proof for His existence. These miracles are unimaginable, but their exhibition requires various items of imaginable medium only. For example, the tender finger of child Krishna lifted huge mountain. This is unimaginable event since nowhere imagination or logic is applicable. But, the items or media used to express this event are imaginable like finger, process of lifting an object, hill etc. The unimaginable event remains as unimaginable even though it takes the help of items of imaginable nature for expression. By this, the existence of unimaginable God, who is the source of unimaginable events, is proved, but, the expression of unimaginable God is not done. Only existence of unimaginable God is proved, but not the visual expression of Him. This deficiency is also solved since that boy Krishna is the expressed unimaginable God. All wonderful aspects like miraculous spiritual knowledge, miraculous love and miraculous deeds are truly linked to unimaginable God only. Hence, the unimaginable God (Parabrahma) is mentioned as the author of poems/songs and since He is expressed in this human form called as Swami, there is no problem of very clear visual expression of unimaginable God also. But, this statement that unimaginable God is expressed as this Swami is very hard to digest in view of the repulsion between common media called as human beings. This problem is true with any contemporary human incarnation. Today, we respect Krishna as God since He is past human incarnation. Assuming that we are in the time of Krishna, to avoid this problem, it will be better to say that God Narayana, the energetic incarnation existing in Krishna sang the Gita. Similarly, Datta is the energetic form containing unimaginable God forever. Datta merged with Swami and hence the unimaginable God exists in Swami through Datta. Datta is the energetic form and Swami is human form. Both are media of unimaginable God only. Hence, the root source, Parabrahma is directly referred here as far as authorship is concerned. For the sake of expression, Datta, the energetic form, which is invisible but imaginable, is selected as the golden middle path between the two extremities, Parabrahma and Swami. Parabrahma is the actual source but invisible and unimaginable. Swami is the visible and imaginable medium. The first is left due to unimaginable nature and the second is left due to repulsion from co-human beings. The middle via-media way is Datta, who is referred everywhere. The monism between Datta and Parabrahma (unimaginable God) is acceptable since both are invisible. The difference that Datta is imaginable and Parabrahma is unimaginable is immaterial since both are invisible to avoid repulsion, which comes only when the medium is visible.
Uttara means last part. This Uttara Parabrahma Gita stands as the last part and before that the actual text of Parabrahma Gita continues. When the Parabahma Gita ends, this Uttara Parabrahma Gita stands as closing part.
4) Myself and Subhash (Devotee of Dattaswami) had several discussions on ‘Free will of Human soul’, however we are not convinced and confused after going through various discourses. What is the meaning of “Human effort” when the fruit of the effort is bound by past deeds of Human soul either in this or previous birth and particularly by grace of God. kindly enlighten this.
Swami replied: The concept given by Me is once again recapitulated here.
1) This earth is called as Karma loka, which means that you have full freedom to do anything and there is no interference from God anywhere unless you disturb the world-peace as per the Gita (Naadatte..., svabhaavastu…). Swami Vivekananda told that you can change your destiny here and the basis of his statement is the above concept only.
2) The upper worlds are called as Bhoga lokas since you have no freedom there except to enjoy the fruits of the deeds done here.
3) Though you have full freedom to do any work in this world, it is one side of the coin; the other side is that your psychology or mentality (vaasanaa or samskaara) decides the course of your action. This mentality is based on the rigid mental setup existing in you due to accumulation of strong feelings concentrated from several births. This means that there is no real freedom in any deed since you are fixed with a specific mental setup.
4) In the upper worlds, this mental setup is modified in its concentration of concepts (quantitatively), though its composition (qualitatively) doesn’t change. Such change is necessary for the soul to enter this world in co-operating with the world-peace.
5) All the above four points are dynamic with respect to a soul in reference to place, time and context since the whole picture is under the preview of God, who can alter any aspect in any way for the welfare of soul keeping the goal of eternal reformation of soul by spiritual knowledge. Of course, as routine way, hell and heaven are used for temporary reformation and encouragement for the sake of management of world peace.
6) The fruits of your deeds are generally to be enjoyed by you in the upper worlds only. However, the fruits of intensive deeds attack you here itself with very fast speed, which may interfere with your normal deeds also making you feel that some divine interference is present in your deeds. Actually, there is no such interference.
7) Finally, you have to understand that God alone gives the fruits of all deeds because He is the creator of this entire creation and also of all facilities and punishments. He is not the creator of their related deeds. However, He is the dynamic energy of every deed, but, is not involved in the direction of deed, which is decided by you alone. He has electrified your house and is supplying current to your house. You can put on the switch to use the current for the enjoyment or put your finger on current and get shock. In both cases, the fruits and the dynamic energy leading to the corresponding fruits is one and the same, which is attributed to God. But, the direction of the deed resulting in a specific fruit is simply due to the doer only. Freedom of the doer lies in selecting any choice he/she likes. But, every deed is fixed with a specific fruit and you have to receive that fruit if you do that deed. You have choice to put your finger in fire or water. You put in fire, it will burn certainly. You have no choice in receiving the specific fruit once you do specific deed.
Nivrutti Procedure Followed By Every Soul in Case of Issues
5) The path of Nivrutti is very difficult for almost all the people. In such case what is the way to uplift every soul to the plane of Nivrutti? (Question from Shri Anil)
Swami replied: Every soul in this world is perfectly following Nivrutti in this world and anyone can easily succeed in Nivrutti. The procedure of Nivrutti is practised by every soul in this world. Don’t be shocked with this statement. The reason is that you are seeing every soul in Nivrutti with not a gold medal but with platinum medal! Are you not seeing the same Nivrutti in the case of the issues of any soul? Whatever you have earned, you are passing it on to the issues only even though they neglect or even insult you? You are doing horrible sins to earn for the sake of your issues only. If the item of issues is replaced by God, the same process is called as Nivrutti. The difficulty is not in the procedure. Difficulty lies only in the goal of procedure. If the goal is your issues, you are spontaneously coming out of Nivrutti with successful colours. If the goal is God, all the problems appear. If the procedure is difficult, you must fail in the case of issues also as in the case of God. You are saying that you can lift a mountain in Mumbai but not in Pune! If lifting mountain is difficult, you should fail in both places. The difficulty lies with the goal and not with the procedure.
Procedure is the same in both cases. You are giving all your earnings to your issues without aspiring any fruit in return from them. In Nivrutti also, you should sacrifice without aspiring any fruit or favour from God in return. All the service done to your issues is based on your one side love only without bothering about love from them to you in return. In Nivrutti also, we say that you should serve God purely based on your one side love to Him irrespective of His reaction to you in return. Even if your issues insult, scold and beat you, your written will to them is not changing! Similarly, even if God reacts negatively to your love and service to Him, your will of devotion to Him shall not change. In this point, there is a difference between God and issues. The negative reaction of God to your love is only to test your firmness in devotion. The negative reaction of issues is not based on such concept of test, but, is based on their real nature. You don’t care for hell and heaven in the context of pleasing your issues. Similarly, in Nivrutti, Gopikas did not care for hell to dance with Him or to give their foot dust to Him to cure His headache. Therefore, the procedure of Nivrutti is exactly one and the same in both the cases. If the case is of issues, you are coming out of examination with flying colours selected for platinum medal! If the case is of God, you are not getting even grace pass marks! The bond with issues is based on blind ignorance since you do not know that issues reached you to collect their loans of previous birth along with interest as said “Runaanubandharupena pashu patni sutaadayah”. The bond with God is always based on the light of true spiritual knowledge because you will realise that you are indebted to God for various favours done to you without aspiring any fruit in return from you. He has given us human birth so that we will put some effort here to reform ourselves to at least to some extent so that a series of human births can be granted to us. Actually, our files on examination show that we are certainly to be thrown in to cycles of animals. He interferes with the enquiry and get the files kept in cold storage granting human birth. For this one point itself, we are always indebted to Him. After this also, without referring the past files, He has provided all the facilities to us so that we will try for reformation without any disturbance in mind. There are hundred points like this and we are ungrateful even to one point.
We know certainly that human beings are not going to pass out Nivrutti. The reason is lack of true knowledge of true love of God on us. We are preaching this Nivrutti with full stress with a view that the goal should be at least highest so that a little achievement in Pravutti is possible. If you aim at cent percent, at least you will achieve forty pass marks. Of course, there are a few original diamonds in the devotees, who have reached a climax of Nivrutti also. Only one in the entire colleges of the university gets the gold medal.
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