You can access the talks of the master on http://www.vedantavidyarthisangha.org The following posts are TRANSCRIPTIONS; these posts don't bear any sentence of mine. The ideas, language is wholly Swamiji's.
Sunday, March 2, 2014
Sivaratri Talk –What is God’s grace? (27/02/2014)
Our culture which is based on the Vedic scriptures is a religious culture which appreciates the presence of God in everything. Our scriptures define Ishwara as Shisti, Struthi, and Laya Karanam – not only Bhagawan creates this world, not only does Bhagawan resolves this world, in between also the world is surviving because of the presence and blessings of the Lord only. The entire universe is operating according to several laws and that’s why everything in creation performs in an orderly manner. We as human beings can only know the laws governing creation, we cannot create or maintain this universal principle. Therefore we appreciate the presence of the Lord, and also the grace of the lord in the uniform functioning of the creation. In Brihdaranya Upanishad, Yagnavalkya tells Gargi: If the planets are moving round the sun, and if they are maintaining some orderliness because of which alone days and nights are possible, because of which alone all the seasons are possible, because of which alone we get rain and food etc; when we are experiencing all of them, a Vedic person appreciates the unseen hand of God behind all of them. I see the grace of the Lord in the sunrise, I see the grace of the Lord in the sunset; in Sri Rudram we are only appreciating that glory of the Lord. In the Bhagavad Gita also Lord Krishna tells the same thing: In the form of Surya Bhagawan, I alone absorb water from the ocean. I alone generate cloud at the right season, and I alone make the cloud pour in the form of rain. In all these, may you appreciate the unseen hand of Ishwara. Thus everything is possible in our life because of the provisions given by the Lord only. Dayananda Swamiji beautifully says,” When a person goes to a 5 star hotel, he need not carry everything. Because in a 5 star hotel everything will be provided; you don’t have to carry a bucket or a mug. And if you do, you are a mucku!” …(laughter). If I appreciate what has been provided, I will appreciate the person who has organized all these things. As Swami Dayananda would say,” If that is the glory of a 5 star hotel, when we are born, we are born in a creation which is not 5 star but a multi-star creation. When we come into this world, we come only with a suitcase called the physical body. We don’t bring oxygen for our need, imagine if you have to carry oxygen cylinders, what kind of pregnancy will it be? If we have carry water, food etc; we don’t bring anything but we just land and everything is provided for us. In all this multi-star facilities that we enjoy, there is an unseen hand and that is Ishwara. Therefore a Vaidika, a Hindu, must appreciate Ishwara’s grace in everything for whatever is happening in the creation. This is not only to be appreciated at the macro level, at the individual level also we appreciate the grace of the Lord in all our activities. So whenever we accomplish something, everyone may appreciate us, but we will add “all this is possible because of grace of the Lord” only. If I am able to give this talk because of Lord’s grace, two weeks back I had to cancel the class, remember. Therefore in every activity and in every accomplishment, we appreciate the grace of the Lord.
But when it comes to the life of the individual living being, we do face a problem. With regard to the creation at the macro level Ishwara’s grace is always there; everything functions perfectly. But in one’s individual’s life, I do experience the grace of the Lord on several occasions. In some instances I find the situations very, very favourable to me and immediately appreciate HIS grace. “I went there and there was this last ticket, I got the ticket…God’s Grace.” Whenever extraordinary things happen, I experience God’s grace. But when I look at my life, at the individual’s level, God’s grace does not seem to be uniform. There are many situations I face a lot of unfavourable and adverse circumstances; in such trying circumstances I would wish God to rescue me from those difficulties. I desperately look for God’s grace. I desperately pray for God’s grace. There are lots of situations that despite my expectations, in spite of my desperate prayers, God’s grace seem to elude me. And problems after problems come and they say Patta kal ayala Paddam….(the same leg is hurt once more) I face problems like a wave coming one after the other. Each problem being worse than the previous one. In desperation, I pray to the Lord. Sometimes the prayers are answered, and sometimes the prayers are not answered. Sometimes Bhaktas sing the song also: O Lord, I have been screaming. Aren’t you not listening? Are you also hard of hearing because YOU are growing old? Do you require an audiogram test as my prayers seem to fall on deaf ears? Only this morning I heard this song on Kapalieswara: Kathinain Kadarinain (I shout and I crawl) and Lord you don’t seem to look at me even with the corner of the eye. When such difficult situations come and when God seems to desert, we get a question: WHAT ARE THE NORMS FOR GOD”S GRACE? When will grace come and when will grace not come? Is it an arbitrary choice of God? HE looks around and says: let me send grace to this person. There are times when HE sees the devotees crying also and HE chooses to ignore him. So what are the norms for the Lord to favour the devotees with HIS grace? Are there any norms or is it Bhagawan’s choice? When we are in dire states; they say Bhagawan is Karunamaya, Karusindhu, Karunasagarah, Karunandhi….I don’t want to say that ..(laughter). Some bhaktas pray to God very intelligently: O Lord, I am dinahah and you are supposed to dina saranyah. You are the protector of the desperate one. If YOU have to protect your title, better you save me.”….(laughter). Otherwise YOU will lose YOUR name. Bhaktas try all kinds of methods and sometimes everything fails. Then there is a doubt,” Whether there is a God at all; or whether there is God’s grace at all?” Some people turn nasthikas also. “Swamiji, I have stopped praying to God and I have stopped the pujas.” And there are some who don’t know how to answer the question, therefore they suppress the intellect. We don’t know the basis for Bhagawan’s grace. Whenever HE feels, let him bless. I have no right to question HIM? Therefore Bhagawan’s ways are inscrutable; whenever HE feels, HE blesses. Whenever HE doesn’t feel, HE does not bless. I should not ask any question because I don’t understand the ways of the Lord. When these questions arise some suppress the intellect and don’t raise the question, and some reject the Lord HIMSELF. Two extremes! But our scriptures point out that when we get such questions, what is the norm with regard to the grace of the Lord, neither suppress the intellect nor reject Ishwara but try to understand the principle behind Ishwara Krupa.
What exactly is Ishwara krupa? And how come Ishwara krupa works for some people for some time and does not work for another at that time? In an accident the whole bus falls into a ditch, some people survive the accident while some people die. Some people have Ishwara’s grace while some people don’t have HIS grace. Why is there a reason, is there a norm behind it? The scriptures say we have the answers to these question but we must study the scriptures to understand it. And what do the scriptures say with regard to Ishwara krupa or Ishwara anugraha? It says Bhagawan does not select the people with regard to HIS grace. If Bhagawan were to choose some people and favour some people and does not favour other people, then what will it mean? Can you guess the answer? Suppose in an accident Bhagawan saves some people and allows some people to die, if Bhagawan is responsible for choosing the people then HE will be open to the charge of favouritism. The Lord will be polluted with RAGA and DVESHA. We human beings have this problem of raga-dvesha, strong likes and dislikes, HE will also suffer the same problem if HE favours some and doesn’t favour some others. In Brahma Sutra Vysacharya dedicates an exclusive adikaranam that clearly states that Bhagawan does not choose the people for favouring with grace. Bhagawan does not choose, HE cannot afford to choose, and if Bhagawan does choose, HE will be open to the charge, in Brahma sutra, it is called Vaishamya Nairgrunya dosah. Vaishamya means favouring someone and helping them to escape an accident. No doubt the person who is alive will come and say,” All this is due to God’s grace” and Swamiji nothing happened to me”. It is very nice to hear but we should ask the question: If Bhagawan saved that person with grace, why didn’t Bhagawan save the other person with the same grace? This means the Lord is partial with regard to this person and HE is very cruel to the other person. So Vaishamyam means partiality or favouritism and Nairgrunyam means cruelty. And if Bhagawan were to choose objects or people for HIS grace, HE will be accused of FAVOURITISM and CRUELTY. We had the recent flood havoc in Kedarnath, the temple itself was saved because a huge boulder came before the temple. All the waters were diverted and so the temple was saved from destruction. And everyone was praising the glory of the Lord as HE was able to save HIS temple. They talked about the miraculous role of God in protecting the temple. But if you go to the villages and those people who lost their near and dear ones, many lost their entire savings and livelihood and you tell them,” Bhagawan saved HIS temple, they will argue what kind of Bhagawan is HE? HE is so selfish to look after HIS temple but not my wife and children. So if you say Bhagawan is great because HE saved some people, will it not imply that HE is cruel as HE did not save some other people. Therefore in Brahma Sutra Vaishamya Nirgrunya Adhikaranam, Vysacharya clearly states that the Lord does not select people for HIS grace. Bhagawan is an embodiment of grace and his infinite grace is open to all. It is not directed towards a person or a society or a particular country, it is not unidirectional but it is omni-directional – HIS grace is there for all people. It is available. Therefore HE does not have Vaishamya Nirgrunya dosah, Bhagawan is uniform with regard to availability of HIS grace. This is lesson number one. And Lord Krishna says this in the Bhagavat Gita amo 'ham sarva-bhutesu na me dvesyo 'sti na priyah ye bhajanti tu mam haktya mayi te tesu capy aham I am uniform with regard to everyone. In an accident if someone is saved, it is not because I directed MY grace to some person and withdrew MY grace to some other. I don’t DIRECT and I don’t WITHDRAW. Then there would be this question: if Bhagawan’s grace is uniformly available for all people, how come only some people benefit and some does not in an adverse situation? How do you explain the disparity with regard to enjoyment of Bhagawan’s grace? In an accident some survive and some die; what is the reason for this disparity?
The scriptures say the differences or disparity is not because of Bhagawan. The disparity is caused by the individual jiva, they alone are responsible for the disparity with regard to availability and non-availability of his grace. Grace will be available for me only if I earn my grace. Only when I tap the grace, only then it will be available. And if I don’t tap I am only the loser. Grace is available for all; but you must know how to tap it.The disparity in grace is not caused by Bhagawan but by the individual jiva – by tapping or non-tapping, by earning or non-earning. Several examples are given in the scripture but let me take a modern one. Solar energy is available is everywhere. But if you want electricity, whether I should get or not that I have to decide and not the sun. I have to fix solar panels to avail this energy. The sun god gives the solar energy uniformly to all the people, but I have to work if I want to tap this energy for my electricity. Then I can light up my lamp. But if my neighbour’s lamps glow and mine does not, then I cannot complain about Sun’s partiality. I must fix these solar panels like my neighbor to access it. In Soundarya Lahiri, Sankaracharaya says,” O, mother you are like the moonlight available uniformly for all.” Therefore tapped grace alone will be useful for us. As long as we don’t tap, we will not be able to benefit from the grace of the Lord. Therefore TAPPING THE GRACE is required. As Lord HIMSELF says you can have MY GRACE by tapping it using a solar panel. The question is, what is the panel I need to fix, Can I just look at the picture of Lord and ask,” Give me 500 units of grace.” Grace is not available for asking but you have to deserve. By mere asking nothing can be gained. You can’t go to a shop and say,” Give me 5 kg of sugar.”
Many people falsely propagate that Lord will provide anything you ask.Thattuga Kadavu Tharaka Pattum; Kelunga and Kuttaka Padam (meaning Knock , and the door will be opened. Ask, and it will be given). That God is a karunamurthy and HE will give anything is asking is an exaggeration. We have to earn grace by putting forth the right effort; mere asking will not help. I read a joke in Readers Digest. A religious preacher was telling people about the glories of the Lord and telling them how kind HE is. You pray and ask; prayers will move mountains. You just have to ask, and the Lord will give.” This preacher goes to several villages and gives this talk. In a gathering there was a young boy. The preacher wanted to inculcate this Bhatkti to the boy. He told the boy,” The Lord is so great that HE will give you whatever YOU want. And I have got everything in my life through HIS grace.” The boy was very impressed by the talk and he looked at the beautiful watch of the preacher. The boy asked for the watch, he looked at it admiringly and the boy asked,” How did you get this watch?” The preacher said,” Everything including this watch is God’s grace. Whatever you want, lord will give.” The boy said,” Preacher, I will suggest this. I will take this watch, you can pray to the Lord and get another watch.” ……(laughs). After by praying, if you are going to get just like that, you will ask for a palatial bungalow in Nungambakam or in the centre of the city and you will get a house. God’s grace is definitely there but not merely by praying or asking but by earning, by doing appropriate karma. Therefore karma is compulsory for earning the grace of the Lord. In scriptures Lord HIMSELF has talked about different kinds of karma that will earn the grace of the Lord. Several karmas are suggested but we have seen one karma in our Gita classes, in the context of Karma yoga I have mentioned those “grace earning karmas” (GEK). GRACE EARNING KARMAS ARE CALLED PANCHA MAHA YAGNAS. I have to earn the grace of the Lord by doing one or two or three or all the Pancha Maha Yagnas. All with the pure motive of serving the lord, worshipping the lord, or for the welfare of the entire creation – loka skhemartham, sarva bhavantu sukinah.
Today’s puja was also “loka schema” with a pure and open motive of doing pancha maha yagna. Deva Ygnah, all kind of pujas I do and praying for loka skhema. Instead for praying for my children and grandchildren and family centric prayers, the more puja I do for loka skhema. Every such prayer will bring me grace in my saving account. Everyone has got a bank account in which Bhagawan deposits grace. If a devotee performs such selfless prayers, his/her grace amount will increase. The first is “deva yagnah”. “
Pitru yagna” is the second, all forms of service we do for our parents which is slowly dwindling now. Because of a nuclear family and no one is interested in taking care of the old parents – scriptures insist on that karma. Service to parents in particular and service to elders in general is extremely wonderful karma when it is done without any expectation. Without having an eye on the property; without hoping for any favours in the will of the parent! If I serve the parents for the sake of parents, matru devo bhava, pitru devo bhava that is another powerful grace earning karma.
These are all solar panels; second of the five panels! Deva Yagna is grace panel, Pitru yagna is grace panel, and the third is “Brahma Yagnah”. It means spreading the message of the scriptures especially this message of performing pancha maha yagna to as many people as possible. Brahma means Veda. Thus preserving and propagating the message of the Vedas will come under Brahma Yagnah. Even regular parayanam will come under Brahma Yagnam; chanting Vishnu Sahashranam or Gita or all of them. Any parayanam done without having any motive for one’s worldly gains but when done for loka samastha sukhino bhavatu. If this is the attitude before any chanting, then Bhagawan will deposit in my grace account. Since grace is invisible which we don’t see but definitely it increases.
The fourth one is called “Manushiya Yagnah”, any service done to any human being around. Any kind of social activity I do, even a simple smiling. Some people even in smiling are very stingy. What are they going to lose, even a simple smile is beyond them. If you smile, it makes the other person comfortable and Lord will add one unit of grace in your account. At the end of the class, do it freely….(laughter). Even a thought that when someone is suffering and I cannot do anything, a simple prayer: O Lord, may he/she have your grace. Such a prayer will come under manushiya yagnah.
Every service to other human beings is grace earning karma (gek) and the last one is “Bhuta yagnah”. This is very popular in our culture, service done to all animals that serve us. So many animals are serving us, we also have a duty to serve animals and plants. So many Mahatmas are undertaking “go samrakshanam”. Cow is such a sacred animal that it serves us even in its excretion. Even cow dung and cow’s urine are useful, only one animal whose excretion is fragrant. Any other species, it would stink. We will hold our noses and run away. So cow is worthy of worshipping and serving; sadly slaughter houses are increasing and in lacs and lacs they are slaughtered. So many people have started “go samrakshnam kedram” to protect aged cows that cannot give anything. Thus anything we do to protect the animals, plants, and environment which will in turn bless us will come under “Bhuta yagnah”.
Thus pancha maha yagna will help me deserve Ishwara’s grace. So if a person escapes an accident with God’s grace, it is not because of god’s favoritism but this person has got “tapped grace”. The other person, don’t say does not have grace, he does not have tapped grace. Whether I should tap god’s grace or not, who should decide? I or Ishwara? If Ishwara decides or makes some people to tap and others not to tap, then what will be problem? If that were to be the case then the Lord will be open to the charge of favouritism. Whether one should tap grace or not; Bhagawan will not and cannot decide. Therefore whether I should tap or not is dependent on my own freewill. We should accept every jiva has a freewill with which he/she can decide to tap or not to tap Ishwara’s grace. By doing what? PANCHA MAHA YAGNA.
That is why Lord Krishna says in the Gita: samo 'ham sarva-bhutesu na me dvesyo 'sti na priyah I am uniform to all. Arjuna if some people get moksha, it is not because I chose them. But they chose moksha. Therefore the choice is yours. You can get Bhagawan’s grace and accomplish all the goals that you want.
Here the scriptures add one more point. Tapping the grace alone is not sufficient because the tapped grace will not become operational instantaneously. Just as a seed cannot produce a tree or a fruit instantaneously; the seed can give benefit only after a duration and manifestation to become operational. Therefore the tapped grace will be there in the account of all living beings who chose to tap through pancha maha yagna. So in all our accounts, what kind of grace will be there? The tapped grace will be there, but it will require some time to become operational which is gestation period, incubation period, manifestation period. In Sanskrit it is called “Pari pakvam” which means to fructify. It is like some fruits we buy and wait for it to fully ripen. Tapped grace will not benefit you, but only tapped grace which has become ripened. Therefore TAPPED RIPENED GRACE will be available to me by giving me favourable situations and condition. Therefore TRG, whoever has more trg will have an extra advantage. And whoever does not have TRG or ERG (earned ripened grace) will not have that advantage. This earned ripened grace alone is called “pari pakvam punyam”. When an individual has ERG or pari pakvam punyam they will find all the situations favourable. Without that, they will not have that extra advantage. So grace requires two conditions: a) it should be earned grace and b) it should be ripened grace. Unearned grace will not benefit, earned and un-ripened grace also will not benefit; earned ripened grace called pari pakvam punyam alone will bless us. So when you find some people have advantages and so people don’t have that advantage, what should we understand? Don’t say Bhagawan is partial; or HE is blind and deaf; don’t complain against Bhagawan. It will only means that I don’t have enough in my grace account, ERG is missing. So we can all work for EARNED RIPENED GRACE only if we choose and practice Pancha Maha Yagna in our daily lives.
And lastly when we practice pancha maha yagna for pari pakva punyam or Ishwara Anugraha (both these words are synonyms) we can earn it for two types of purposes. This punyam can be allocated in both ways, just like in those charitable trusts. We can allocate money for building fund or temple fund etc likewise when we have Ishwara krupa; we have a freedom for any one of the two purposes. We have the choice. One for spiritual purpose, meaning I should grow internally and my mind should become purer and purer – kama, kroda, moha, mada, matsarya; all of them should get diluted. Sadhana Chatushtai Sampathi I should gain; my mind gets spiritually oriented. That I should get a spiritual guide so that I can pursue moksha; when I seek grace for that then it will come under “spiritual purpose”. Guru is available but I am not able to go? For what, you need HIS grace. For Shravanam, Mananam, Nidhidyasanam; I must have grace. So self-enlightenment and moksha is spiritual purpose. When I earn Ishwara’s grace, I can allocate it for spiritual purposes. That I should tell in my sankalpa:Annpurne sada purne shankar pran vallabhe Gyana vairagya siddhiartham; immediatelyGod will mark it for spiritual purpose. Suppose you say: Putra Pautra sidyartham, dhana dana sidyartham ….(laughter) promotion sidhyartham; so any non-spiritual things you mention that Lord allocates accordingly. One is called “Sreyah” and another “Preyah” – there are two types of anugraha Sreyah Ishwara Anugraha and Preyah Ishwara Anugraha. We can decide which one we want. Today we did puja, and when you offer flowers; watch your mind. If you pray for your son, daughter, father, mother while doing namaskaram, then the grace will be attached to it. But spiritual gain will not be there, we will be dying an ignorant person. Punarapi janam, punarapi maranam.Today’s puja will come under deva yagnah. And if you dedicate these prayers forJnana Yogyatha Prapthi. Jnana Prapthi, Jnana Nistta Prapthi then desire for knowledge of spiritual knowledge comes.
All these will come only from Ishwara’s grace. Can you use the right word? EARNED RIPENED ISHWARA ANUGRAHA (ERIA). This grace will bring you to Vedanta class. And ERIA will keep you awakened in Vedanta class. ….very tough (laughter). ERIA will help you understand the teaching. Therefore we should increase earned ripened Ishwara anugraha, flow must be there continuously. If you want continuous flow of ERIA, what should you do? There is only one way and that is you should do pancha maha yagna continuously.
Therefore Ishwara Angraha is available for some and not available for some not because Bhagawan is partial because some have earned and some don’t have the earned ripened grace. Let us all earn Ishwara’s grace and accomplish either preyas as you like or if you are an intelligent bhakta you can use it for jnanam and moksha.
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