Thursday, December 18, 2008
Story 50 – Story of Dwaraka Nirmaanam - 13
Muchukunda continued:
O Lord! That which took me away from the bondages of kingly actions etc. is your compassion alone. People who know the truth (at least intellectually) will seek you alone.
Explanation
Realization of the indwelling Self (who is one with the Lord) happens when the seeker disassociates himself from the limited jeeva or Ego (“I” which is associated with the body-mind-intellect). Disassociation of the Ego happens when the seeker completely surrenders unto the Supreme Truth of Lord. Put in Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa’s words, this is NAAHAM NAAHAM TVAM TVAM (not me, not me – you alone, you alone).
When the jeeva is suffering in the illusory world, it is only compassion of the Lord that helps the seeker get out of the suffering. The compassion of the Lord works through various Mahatmas who become our Guru in giving us knowledge that will eventually remove ignorance and make us realized. It is about this compassion that Muchukunda is speaking in this part. Compassion of the Lord is like the rays of the Sun – it is always present. But if a person sits inside his house closing doors/windows and then complains that he is not getting sunlight, is it valid? Similarly in order for us to apprehend the compassion of the Lord, we have to open our hearts through complete surrender unto the Lord.
This surrender is when the seeker knows that he is suffering and that there is no way out of this suffering other than through surrender unto the Lord. Once the suffering seeker realizes that the Lord alone is blissful and he is the indwelling Self in all as well as that in order to realize this profound truth, he has to surrender completely unto the Lord, the seeker works towards the surrender thereby apprehending the ever-present compassion of the Lord. Thus surrender is essential in order to apprehend the compassion of the Lord.
Many people roam around the world saying that they haven’t found their Guru etc. These are foolish people as they haven’t opened their hearts through surrender and thereby aren’t able to identify the truth of Lord as found in the various scriptural works and Mahatmas who are ever there to help us at all times. Who is to blame other than ourselves if we don’t apprehend the ever-present compassion of the Lord and still wait for the right time to start the spiritual path?
Muchukunda had complete surrender in the Lord and hence he was able to apprehend the compassion of the Lord.
How did the compassion of the Lord liberate Muchukunda from sorrows?
Muchukunda was liberated from sorrows by cutting off bondages with the entire world. This doesn’t mean that we also have to get away from the world. This only means that Muchukunda knew about the truth of Lord (who alone can give us bliss) thereby he sought the Lord alone – nothing but the Lord alone. Rather than sticking or holding onto the worldly pleasures, Muchukunda held onto the Lord. This is what a real seeker of the truth will do – he will hold onto the Lord whatever happens. Irrespective of whether he is a grihastha or a sanyaasi; irrespective of whether he is jnaani or a bhaktha; irrespective of whether he is in an ashram or in hotel, he will ever seek and remember the Lord. The thought of the Lord doesn’t vanish from his mind even in diverse situations – this is real surrender and remembrance of the truth. Such a person alone will be able to apprehend the ever-present compassion of the Lord. Such a seeker will be lead to the truth through the Lord in his mysterious ways. We cannot expect the Lord to help us in the form of Vishnu or Siva or Krishna. When Uddhava asked Krishna as to how to perceive the Lord, Krishna laughingly told him that whatever is being perceived is the Lord alone.
The water seen in desert is desert alone – the dream world perception is perception of the dreamer alone; similarly the entire world is an illusion of names and forms in the Lord – this means whatever is perceived is the Lord alone.
Thus help for the seeker who has surrendered unto the Lord taking the vow never to forget the all-pervasive, non-dual reality of blissful Lord whatever may happen will be helped by the entire world – such a seeker will thereby very soon realize the Lord. As Muchukunda says, a true seeker (who has known that the truth of the Lord as the substratum of illusory names and forms of the Lord) will seek only the Lord – this is what we all as true seekers of the reality of Lord should seek.
Muchukunda continued:
O Lord! That which comes as a blessing for those who don’t want anything else is your paadapuja (worship of your lotus-feet). I don’t want anything else apart from paadapuja O Lord. People who seek the Lord who blesses the devotees with moksha in the form of complete cessation of sorrow cannot ask any boon which will bond the Self onto samsaara.
Explanation
Last day we saw Muchukunda saying that seekers of the reality want nothing apart from the reality. Today we find Muchukunda telling the Lord as to what is the boon that he wants and why is it that he wants it.
The only boon that any seeker of the reality will want is moksha in form of complete cessation of sorrow and ever-rejoicing in eternal bliss. This is the ultimate goal of life – the goal that we all irrespective of caste, creed etc. have been seeking and are seeking. This is the only goal that can satisfy us completely and give us full contentment. There is no other way to become fully satisfied other than when the seeker is ever rejoicing in eternal bliss (untainted by sorrow). As long as sorrow exists, there will be no contentment at all. Sorrow can be completely eliminated only when the seekers realizes his very nature of non-dual reality of Lord – that Lord who is the substratum of the illusory world of names and forms.
This is what Muchukunda as a real seeker of the truth is asking from the Lord as boon.
Is moksha the same as paadapuja of the Lord?
Yes, the feet symbolize the substratum or that which supports the entire body. The Lord is of the nature of Existence, Consciousness and Bliss absolute. This means that bliss or Consciousness or truth is what supports the Lord. Thus the feet of the Lord mean Bliss. It is this bliss that we term as moksha – that state wherein there is complete cessation of sorrow (sorrow doesn’t exist at all). Worship of the feet of the Lord is seeking and remembering bliss. This is equivalent of rejoicing in bliss. It is for this reason that any ardent seeker of the reality of Lord who knows the nature of Lord will be able to get a glimpse of the bliss whenever he remembers the Lord. Constant remembrance of the Lord wherein the thought of the Lord doesn’t vanish from the mind of a seeker is the state of moksha. When the Lord’s thought is present, the seeker is remembering that the world is an illusion and his very nature of Lord is the substratum-witness of the illusory world – this remembrance will always make the seeker blissful irrespective of whether he is encountering sorrows or happiness in the external world.
Muchukunda clarifies this by telling that a seeker of the reality will seek nothing that will bind the Self into sorrows. Samsaara is the ocean of birth and death wherein a seeker seems to suffer again and again. Realizing the nature of the world as sorrowful, a seeker will seek only the substratum of the Lord as that alone can give him eternal bliss – that bliss which will make him content and a state of done-whatever-is-to-be-done.
Actions will still happen; the world will still be there; the realized master will still have emotions at the worldly level – but internally he will be ever rejoicing in bliss as he knows that the entire world is only an illusion in the Lord and because he is ever remembering the Lord. Whatever happens externally, the thought of Lord doesn’t vanish from his mind. Anything that obstructs the remembrance of the Lord will be set aside by the seeker like Muchukunda setting aside the entire world and ever immersed in sleep (the state where there is no world).
And the Lord who is capable of granting the boon of moksha will give it to a seeker who really seeks it. Muchukunda really sought moksha and moksha alone – thereby the Lord granted the same to Muchukunda making him ever blissful.
O Lord! That which took me away from the bondages of kingly actions etc. is your compassion alone. People who know the truth (at least intellectually) will seek you alone.
Explanation
Realization of the indwelling Self (who is one with the Lord) happens when the seeker disassociates himself from the limited jeeva or Ego (“I” which is associated with the body-mind-intellect). Disassociation of the Ego happens when the seeker completely surrenders unto the Supreme Truth of Lord. Put in Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa’s words, this is NAAHAM NAAHAM TVAM TVAM (not me, not me – you alone, you alone).
When the jeeva is suffering in the illusory world, it is only compassion of the Lord that helps the seeker get out of the suffering. The compassion of the Lord works through various Mahatmas who become our Guru in giving us knowledge that will eventually remove ignorance and make us realized. It is about this compassion that Muchukunda is speaking in this part. Compassion of the Lord is like the rays of the Sun – it is always present. But if a person sits inside his house closing doors/windows and then complains that he is not getting sunlight, is it valid? Similarly in order for us to apprehend the compassion of the Lord, we have to open our hearts through complete surrender unto the Lord.
This surrender is when the seeker knows that he is suffering and that there is no way out of this suffering other than through surrender unto the Lord. Once the suffering seeker realizes that the Lord alone is blissful and he is the indwelling Self in all as well as that in order to realize this profound truth, he has to surrender completely unto the Lord, the seeker works towards the surrender thereby apprehending the ever-present compassion of the Lord. Thus surrender is essential in order to apprehend the compassion of the Lord.
Many people roam around the world saying that they haven’t found their Guru etc. These are foolish people as they haven’t opened their hearts through surrender and thereby aren’t able to identify the truth of Lord as found in the various scriptural works and Mahatmas who are ever there to help us at all times. Who is to blame other than ourselves if we don’t apprehend the ever-present compassion of the Lord and still wait for the right time to start the spiritual path?
Muchukunda had complete surrender in the Lord and hence he was able to apprehend the compassion of the Lord.
How did the compassion of the Lord liberate Muchukunda from sorrows?
Muchukunda was liberated from sorrows by cutting off bondages with the entire world. This doesn’t mean that we also have to get away from the world. This only means that Muchukunda knew about the truth of Lord (who alone can give us bliss) thereby he sought the Lord alone – nothing but the Lord alone. Rather than sticking or holding onto the worldly pleasures, Muchukunda held onto the Lord. This is what a real seeker of the truth will do – he will hold onto the Lord whatever happens. Irrespective of whether he is a grihastha or a sanyaasi; irrespective of whether he is jnaani or a bhaktha; irrespective of whether he is in an ashram or in hotel, he will ever seek and remember the Lord. The thought of the Lord doesn’t vanish from his mind even in diverse situations – this is real surrender and remembrance of the truth. Such a person alone will be able to apprehend the ever-present compassion of the Lord. Such a seeker will be lead to the truth through the Lord in his mysterious ways. We cannot expect the Lord to help us in the form of Vishnu or Siva or Krishna. When Uddhava asked Krishna as to how to perceive the Lord, Krishna laughingly told him that whatever is being perceived is the Lord alone.
The water seen in desert is desert alone – the dream world perception is perception of the dreamer alone; similarly the entire world is an illusion of names and forms in the Lord – this means whatever is perceived is the Lord alone.
Thus help for the seeker who has surrendered unto the Lord taking the vow never to forget the all-pervasive, non-dual reality of blissful Lord whatever may happen will be helped by the entire world – such a seeker will thereby very soon realize the Lord. As Muchukunda says, a true seeker (who has known that the truth of the Lord as the substratum of illusory names and forms of the Lord) will seek only the Lord – this is what we all as true seekers of the reality of Lord should seek.
Muchukunda continued:
O Lord! That which comes as a blessing for those who don’t want anything else is your paadapuja (worship of your lotus-feet). I don’t want anything else apart from paadapuja O Lord. People who seek the Lord who blesses the devotees with moksha in the form of complete cessation of sorrow cannot ask any boon which will bond the Self onto samsaara.
Explanation
Last day we saw Muchukunda saying that seekers of the reality want nothing apart from the reality. Today we find Muchukunda telling the Lord as to what is the boon that he wants and why is it that he wants it.
The only boon that any seeker of the reality will want is moksha in form of complete cessation of sorrow and ever-rejoicing in eternal bliss. This is the ultimate goal of life – the goal that we all irrespective of caste, creed etc. have been seeking and are seeking. This is the only goal that can satisfy us completely and give us full contentment. There is no other way to become fully satisfied other than when the seeker is ever rejoicing in eternal bliss (untainted by sorrow). As long as sorrow exists, there will be no contentment at all. Sorrow can be completely eliminated only when the seekers realizes his very nature of non-dual reality of Lord – that Lord who is the substratum of the illusory world of names and forms.
This is what Muchukunda as a real seeker of the truth is asking from the Lord as boon.
Is moksha the same as paadapuja of the Lord?
Yes, the feet symbolize the substratum or that which supports the entire body. The Lord is of the nature of Existence, Consciousness and Bliss absolute. This means that bliss or Consciousness or truth is what supports the Lord. Thus the feet of the Lord mean Bliss. It is this bliss that we term as moksha – that state wherein there is complete cessation of sorrow (sorrow doesn’t exist at all). Worship of the feet of the Lord is seeking and remembering bliss. This is equivalent of rejoicing in bliss. It is for this reason that any ardent seeker of the reality of Lord who knows the nature of Lord will be able to get a glimpse of the bliss whenever he remembers the Lord. Constant remembrance of the Lord wherein the thought of the Lord doesn’t vanish from the mind of a seeker is the state of moksha. When the Lord’s thought is present, the seeker is remembering that the world is an illusion and his very nature of Lord is the substratum-witness of the illusory world – this remembrance will always make the seeker blissful irrespective of whether he is encountering sorrows or happiness in the external world.
Muchukunda clarifies this by telling that a seeker of the reality will seek nothing that will bind the Self into sorrows. Samsaara is the ocean of birth and death wherein a seeker seems to suffer again and again. Realizing the nature of the world as sorrowful, a seeker will seek only the substratum of the Lord as that alone can give him eternal bliss – that bliss which will make him content and a state of done-whatever-is-to-be-done.
Actions will still happen; the world will still be there; the realized master will still have emotions at the worldly level – but internally he will be ever rejoicing in bliss as he knows that the entire world is only an illusion in the Lord and because he is ever remembering the Lord. Whatever happens externally, the thought of Lord doesn’t vanish from his mind. Anything that obstructs the remembrance of the Lord will be set aside by the seeker like Muchukunda setting aside the entire world and ever immersed in sleep (the state where there is no world).
And the Lord who is capable of granting the boon of moksha will give it to a seeker who really seeks it. Muchukunda really sought moksha and moksha alone – thereby the Lord granted the same to Muchukunda making him ever blissful.
# posted by vedanta : 5:48 AM
