Proper Motivation

My humble pranam to the Master and all his associates.

I am indebted to all my brethren and co travelers in the Natural Path for participating in this auspicious 132nd Birth day celebrations of the Grand Master Sri Ramchandraji Maharaj of Fategarh. U.P. India. The study and practice of the Natural path is extremely beneficial and useful because in general all the goodness of human life and all of the ability within the context of human life actually benefit others and affect others in a positive way. The Great Master revived Pranahuti and offered us the services of the Special Personality. There cannot be a better way of loving the entire humanity and we are indebted for ever in repaying the same with all consuming love and service to the Divine.

The purpose of human life is to realize its nature and then Master has laid the methods and principles to achieve the same. We know that the genetic code of any healthy organization is to have the purpose and principle clearly understood, articulated, and commonly shared. We have over the decade proved to ourselves by holding the purpose and principles in common that we can dispense with the hierarchy of command and control. Our group knows how to behave in accordance with them, and we are doing it in many creative ways and we are now a set people who are holding a vital, living set of beliefs propounded and enunciated by our beloved Master. We are fully conscious of the role of Pranahuti and are trying our best to prove the claims of the Master that his method is effective, less time consuming and efficient. It is a well known that as long as the followers of the way hold regular and frequent assemblies, in harmony they may be expected to prosper and not decline. I am happy to find that such is our fortune and may this last long till the entire humanity is covered under Masters' canopy. This auspicious day is another occasion we are utilizing to express our gratitude and love to the Master and share our knowledge gained through practical sadhana in a spirit of co-operation and harmony and have fully the grace of the Master.

According to the custom in our Path, offering prayer to the Great Master and expressing our gratitude to our Beloved Master Sri Ramchandraji Maharaj of Shahjahanpur, U.P. India precedes our daily practice. There are essentially three aspects to our sadhana.

1. We should have proper motivation.

2. We need to maintain proper posture and

3. Adopt correct and effective techniques of meditation that leads us to our goal.

   
   

We have had several occasions to share our knowledge and experience regarding the proper posture and adopting correct methods as given by the Master. Today I intend to speak on proper motivation that is required to progress in the spiritual path chartered by our great Master.

Proper Motivation:

When we speak of proper motivation we are talking of a state of mind which has a predetermined goal and a sincere dedication to the cause chosen by us out of our own volition. Now, we have all entered the gate of the Natural Path and that ensures that we do not have any negative motivation. We are very fortunate to have the motivation we do have, to practice the path. But, at the same time, because we are ordinary house hold people, at times our motivation may become somewhat impure. It is necessary, therefore, to turn inward, and to actually look at our motivation, and see what it really is. If our motivation is a good and genuine one, then we should delight in that and expand the same further.

But if we find that our motivation is a negative one, is based on a fixation on a self and so on, then we have to simply ignore and generate a pure motivation. This is a great technique that Master has given us when he advised us to ignore all the thoughts other than the Pure One which we have chosen to meditate upon. We thus generate pure motivation. This aspect of letting go the various thoughts that arise in us which affect our pure motivation was sought to be tackled in a similar manner by many other methods also.

There is in this method a hidden assumption: that as the Oneness is realized, the inappropriateness of the concepts that were dictating our mode of action and thinking processes will become apparent and would fall away. But we know that this assumption is not true and our persistent efforts in meditation and cleaning methods adopted by us have helped us little in this regard. We understand that it is easy to lose weight than will away unwanted memories, attachments and self concepts. Even when we see these mostly sub conscious self concepts as counter productive and fallacies, dissolving them have not been automatic; because these self concepts lie in sub conscious plane of the mind. The Sub conscious mind it is now accepted learns or associates situations, actions and outcome in one exposure but under ordinary circumstances does not forget them or unlearn them even as the right protected computer memory. The need for Pranahuti then becomes more evident as our daily practice and experience suggests.

But the subconscious holds within its bosom the pitfalls to grace. As the threat of the environment which is ever polluting the mental sphere becomes very obvious, we tend to seek seclusion and most of the meditators would have chosen the path of renunciation but for the effect of Pranahuti which informs every time the influx is had, that there is an essentially integrating and cohesive background behind all our apparently existing separate individual entities. The clarity regarding the goal to be achieved makes us maintain the pure motivation that is essential for success in sadhana.

Now, when we consciously generate a pure motivation, initially it may seem as though we are faking something, but in the long term we understand that we are not really faking anything, because by intentionally cultivating this technique gradually it becomes real and very much part of ours. And here, by pure motivation, we mean the attitude that we are doing the practice of the Natural Path in order to benefit ALL BEINGS. Because we possess the beginningless habit of fixation on the self, it is natural for us, as far as our motivation goes, to desire our own happiness and our own benefit as our primary wish or goal. This is not a bad, it is just a small-minded or petty motivation. The small scope of this wish is to benefit only our self which is of self centeredness, and is in no way helpful for development beyond into the realms of Cosmic and Para Cosmic consciousnesses not to speak of the Ultimate Consciousness. Even if we were to suffer this defect in our motivation and recognize it as such, again we need to ignore this and let go of the self-obsessive quality of it, and generate the intention that what we are doing is of benefit to all beings.

This motivation of wishing to practice and study in order to benefit all beings without exception is a type of mind that is required to practice the special technique of mediation on the point A. Without its purity of intention and motivation it will be futile to meditate on the point A: the path to the awakened mind. Those of us who try to do this meditation mechanically and as a matter of routine get frustrated because of this very reason. That is one of the reasons why many aspirants choose to ignore this most noble aspect of our sadhana.

And this type of mind has two characteristics. The first is that it has compassion directed at all beings, which is to say that our intention is to benefit all beings.

The second characteristic is that this mind has the intelligence or wisdom to know that the use of this means is to benefit all beings, for not merely a temporary benefit but for their ultimate liberation or their ultimate freedom.

Praying for relief from suffering and miseries of a person or group of persons then becomes very subsidiary and secondary goal to the noble idea "that all are developing true love and devotion to the Master" given to us by the Master in his method.

If any meaningful evolution towards a global consciousness or transformation of human beings into divine stature should happen first and foremost service we can do consciously is to participate by following this method with sincerity and devotion.

It becomes thus very clear that we aim at possessing this impartial compassion and this intelligence or wisdom. This motivation is the pivot for understanding the Natural Path of our Master in the real sense of term. For a proper appreciation of this nature of mind the practice of the Commandments of the Master is of paramount importance. Thus the goal fixed for us, to gain Oneness with God essentially requires pure motivation and the attitude that we are doing the practice and study of the Natural path essentially for the development of the Universal consciousness. The Commandment 9 of the Master in its essence is only this. That is the doorway to Brahmand and further stations in the Path.

The pure motivation means more than this. From very ancient times people were attracted to realisation or enlightenment though no clear understanding of the same is had by them. The yogis and mahatmas of the past and present are credited with paranormal faculties. The possibility of acquiring these faculties has been one of the major attractions of many people. However, great Masters from Sage Patanjali down to our beloved Babuji Maharaj said that though such powers may arise during the course of the journey to the goal, they are only side effects of development in the road to enlightenment and should not be confused with enlightenment itself. The Masters have cautioned and warned us that we would be side tracked if we seek such powers. The fact remains however that many persons seek such powers and others also request them to exercise them to their advantage. This is one of the negative motivations that sincere seekers should avoid.

But the philosophy of self-esteem which promotes development of ego is too attractive for the sadhaka to easily ignore such appeals and requests for showering grace on what is called 'deserving help' and it requires sufficient control over the jnana and karma indriyas including buddhi and manas to resist the same. Masters' protective hand alone has been saving persons who were faced with such requests for intervention. Surrender to the Will of the Master thus becomes absolute necessity in the more evolved persons.

Another notion about enlightenment is that it is state of transcendental infallibility and unflappability. Master has asserted that Kama and Krodha will continue but many aspirants take it to mean either as a permission to indulge in them or totally neglect the knowledge and prefer to hold on to the old notions of the same.

The notion that if anything can upset a person then such a person is not fully enlightened is the most commonly entertained thought perhaps based on scriptural authority and social convention. It is an acknowledged fact that being unemotional can be the result of drugs, depression, dementia or simply "who cares" attitude of persons. It is a fact that there are many enlightened persons in all traditions who loved their cause so dearly and fought for the same very aggressively and that they could also laugh, cry, play or over eat and also get angry if need be.

Perfect behaviour in accordance with the customs and traditions in a society is also considered as one of the main qualities of an enlightened person. But admirable behaviour however desirable is not essential to enlightenment. Once we understand the real purpose behind such behaviour the fact of outwardly despicable behaviour may prove to be a camouflage for an enlightened behaviour. There are in fact many traditions in spirituality where the Masters act as harsh and irascible task Masters. To cite a case: Once a disciple offered a cup of tea to his master. The master had two or three sips of the same and threw the remaining on the disciple. When the disciple looked amazed at this unconventional and rude behaviour, the master remarked 'you think the tea is good for my stomach and consider it dirt for your attire?' I do not here promote any bad conduct but only am stressing the fact that good conduct is not a part of enlightenment. Then questions like why Master has a hookah or Sri Krishna spoke lies and was known for unconventional ways of behaviour or how Balarama could be godly when he is a known drunkard would not arise the moment we accept their spiritual supremacy and Masterhood. Also you will be able to be kind to yourself when any such lapse occurs and continue with positive motivation. We need to know and acknowledge that we are not products of sin as some religions would try to convince us. Master says categorically in his message in 1970 that we are pure by birth because we descended from purity.

Enlightenment is not any of these or all these and we should understand that many notions about the same, affect us to maintain pure motivation to do our sadhana. Enlightenment or realisation is discovering our true and real nature and become the Real Man.

However many aspirants who have fixed up the goal when they start to practice, experience some apprehension and find they are not fit for the task. Master has clearly stated that such a fear is meaningless and stressed the need to have faith in oneself. He also stressed the need to have firm faith in the path and the Master. The method of meditation he has given us is simple and direct. The object of meditation should naturally be one in tune with the nature of the ultimate condition. All traditions stated that the nature of Ultimate consciousness is Light however differently they might have described the same. Master asks us to accept that idea of Light but not in any form and also says it is light without luminosity since that is finest and subtlest thought we can maintain.

One of the abhyasis wrote to me that he was asked meditate and live with the idea that it is Master who is meditating and he is doing everything in life as if Master is doing it for him. I think I need to share my views on this. Master has accepted the idea of meditation on the Master provided such a Master is perfect and merged in the Ultimate consciousness. If the goal of realisation of real nature is for enhancing the compassion towards the humanity in particular and all beings in general we naturally can adopt this method because we find the Master as the embodiment of compassion and love as every one of us have experienced. This method then would be a technique for enhancing our own love and compassion.

When we seek Oneness with the Master we understand that Master is not an external 'wisdom personality' but is essentially our internal sap which is the same as the Master. The fallacy of meditation on the form of the Master as external to us is what makes the method itself meaningless. When we adopt this method we should relate to Master as the embodiment of our own fundamental nature even as the last part of the Prayer suggests.

It is true in some techniques that we adopt in cleaning processes we visualize the Master above our heads and we externalize him, nevertheless, because we are fundamentally viewing him as the embodiment of all perfections of all the Masters, which nature is what we strive for in our own essential nature and we wish to reveal this nature by removing the dirt and stains which obscure our true and real nature, it is not an act of externalization.

In the meditation on the form of the Master apart from imagining that our true nature and that of the Master get merged we need to think of our body as his body, our speech as his speech, and our mind as his mind. Such a holistic and organismic and integral concept of Master is the basic format or basic technique of the meditation on the form of the Master. This should not be confused with any two or three dimensional versions of the form of Master who lived with us as one of us. The most essential and fundamental characteristic of this meditation is the awareness that Master embodies the peace and the all encompassing love and complete compassion. When we were asked to love the One who loves all, he was hinting this. The main advantage when we visualize our self as Master is we are not merely thinking of our body as a different type of body, we are relating to the body speech, and mind of the figure all at once. Now, in order specifically to relate to the Sri Ramchandras consciousness we should note that it is the light without luminosity that we are asked to meditate in the heart where the heart beats. It is necessary to have this pure motivation to love the Master who loves all in order that we progress in the path as part and parcel of the humanity and it is the whole of humanity that needs to evolve into the category of Real Man.

If we consider tranquility and the state of nothingness we are faced with during meditation the question whether such a state of nothingness is the real state we are to finally arrive at. Truly the relaxation of the mind in this way is the beginning of tranquility. When we are meditating, we need to relax into a state of stillness, which is to say where our mind is at rest, without impeding the mind's clarity or lucidity. And, while we are practicing, there arises a variety of experiences. Some of them are lucid; some of them are not lucid.

Among the experiences which arise, there are some that indicate defects in the meditation. To cope with wavering thoughts that arise in our minds during meditation is one of the problems we face. We are asked to ignore them but we find them as versatile as flying clouds, or comparing them with waves they are as mighty as the waves of the Ocean. We know the clouds and waves are not separate from the sky and ocean.

We know that our minds move frantically in voidness and we find it not separating itself from the Void. Yet in the experience of Void there are more practical difficulties. Once we know that the initial Stir or Kshob and our mind are of the same nature we can easily appreciate the thoughts and feelings which are not 'out in the open' but lying deep down in the heart and making us move on and on. Nearer the Centre the waves are subtle yet very powerful and do not permit any peep into the Sanctum. Master said he could have a peep and was pushed out.

Another difficulty is the experience of torpor, which has two varieties. There is what we could call torpor itself, and there is obscurity, which is a further development of that. Torpor is the absence of clarity, the absence of any cognitive lucidity in the meditation, and obscurity is even beyond that, where there is a thick dullness. Now, the problem with torpor and obscurity is that they obviously bring about the disappearance of mindfulness and, therefore, of alertness as well. This cannot be confused with the state of Nothingness which we arrive at much later.

The final state of Nothingness is a direct awareness of Nothingness. We may remind ourselves of the basic mathematical principle of Zero. Every thing in the world consists of positive and negative elements called by various names in various sciences. But it is Zero that makes a thing positive or negative. This is what our Master tried to explain in his philosophy. Zero is the essence of existence. Through both sides of Zero the whole manifestation happens. We experience Nothingness or emptiness and when look into that emptiness itself as an object and look for its essence again we find that it is empty of inherent existence. This is what is termed by mystics as 'emptiness of emptiness.' That is also the experience of many advanced persons amongst us.

Another problem that arises in meditation may be called excitement. Excitement is when the lucidity of the mind becomes too intense and becomes conceptual. And, therefore, the mind generates lots of thoughts, past, present, and future, and so on. They are so many and so intense that we can not stop them or let go of them. Now, this can be either a pleasant or an unpleasant excitement. It could be excessive excitement in being too happy or too enthusiastic: Or it could be a feeling of deep unhappiness or discontentment. In either case, the result is the thoughts which distract us. Now, there are, obviously, a lot of things that can go wrong with meditation, but basically all of them are included within these two types of defects, torpor and excitement.

When we look at torpor we need to use positive motivation to get rid of torpor and that will be effective, because the nature of torpor is a mental dullness which is, to some extent, a lack of motivation. Therefore, recollecting the qualities of the Master and recollecting the benefits of meditation can sometimes promote the clarity that will cut through the torpor. We should keep in mind that the' form of emptiness is the emptiness of the form'. Keeping the Master in mind always enables us to know this 'form of emptiness' as the state of devotion to Master. This is the state we find when the awareness of our self and that of the Master is had and we are not able to distinguish between the two. Out of Supreme love they appear to swallow up each other; but feel separate again for the joy of being two. They are not completely the same but neither are they different.

Remembering the Master Pujya Babuji Maharaj while we are feeling void is a superior method of constant remembrance. This is what I called earlier as being aware of the Master in his presence. While offering prayer we naturally invoke the Master and if we do not dwell in the thoughts expressed in the Prayer and are unmindful of the words in the Prayer we do get into a state of torpor. Many aspirants have told me that they seem to get into the state of restfulness even as they were repeating the Prayer. If we make a routine ritualistic recitation we will get into a state of torpor and would commit the same mistake of doing japa or mantra recitation.

I have tried to present the importance of proper motivation to practice the path and the ways in which we can handle some of the difficulties in sadhana based on my personal practice. I pray that all of us move further in the path and spread the message of the Master. We have the blessings of the Master and we shall prove worthy of being His disciples.