Self

[sadananda]

I do not normally respond further, since it is you, Nagy, I am responding
again to make my statements clear.

Nagy wrote:
>Somebody told me to read the life histories of mahatmas. Sri Krishna in Gita
>says somewhere,  that people follow what their heroes did.  He advises Arjuna
>to fight not to run away.

Krishna's advice is not for the  people but more as a warning to the heroes
- People have a tendency to follow blindly.  So act, that in mind.  And He
gives himself as example. There is noting to gain for him in the three
worlds. Yet He acts relentlessly, because if He does not, people will
follow a wrong example, without understanding. It may also be a warning to
people  not to follow blindly someone even if he is a hero, unless one has
the same frame of mind!

> My friend sada gave a good response to my request
>but one thing I ldid not like.  He said never mind what Ramdas did or
>Raghavendra Swami did follow what your self. I did not reach the state to
>follow self.   Then why read about the biographies of saints and sadhus.  I
>disagree with him on this point.


My advice applies to you not to Siddhartha, since he did not ask me or any
one else.  He made the decision by himself that which is proper for him.
And he never regretted for that.  He knew that this wife and kid will not
be beggars on the street for him to worry about.  Do not evaluate the
mental state of Siddhartha.

Remember my advice was not voluntary.  Since the question came from you and
not from me, that automatically implies that your mind requires to develop
the necessary detachment to be able to leave the attachments.  The best way
to neutralize these is by working it out, through with proper mental
attitudes.

Sanyaasa as an ashrama is not for everybody.  It requires a certain frame
of mind.  If you have it, you would not ask me or any one for advice. You
just take it. In Hindu tradition, normally teacher gives it to you, only
after recognizing that the student is mature enough to take sanyaasa. We
also have examples wherein if teacher knows that the student has taken
sanyaas improperly, he sends him back to fulfill the obligations as
Gruhasta - as in Saint JNaaneswari's father's case.

 Bhagawan Ramana is an exception.  He was born with that detachment. And he
never asked any one either.  But when some gruhasta asked Bhagawan if he
should take sanyaasa for self-realization, He said no - not necessary.
Since the very question implies that, that gruhasta was not ready for
sanyaasa.

Reading the biographies of grate Saints and sages helps - It helps to
recognize that there is a higher purpose in life. It helps to develop
similar metal viveka and viaragya to be in position to follow their foot
steps. We can only read what they did, but we cannot evaluate their mental
state. We only infer using our mind.

It is you, who has to settle accounts with your mind.  Not Ramadas or
Bhagavan Raghavendra Swami.  It is not the same medicine for everybody.
Hence what Ramadas or Ramaanujam or Raghavendra swami did, not necessarily
applies to you unless you have the same purity of the mind as they have.
If you have it, then your question will not arise and no need of my advice.


>   Real renunciation I believe is giving
>up everything when you have it materially and live a hermit life with no
>desires except to know the truth.  We can not do that not even sada my friend.
>We worry about the paycheck and to get that pay check we have to go to work.

Nagy you answered you question your self.  When our mind is muddled with so
many desires, obviously taking sanyaasa is not the immediate solution.
Developing the mind to neutralize these desires is first thing to do.

I donot know if you are familiar with Madwa tradition in Udipi.  They give
baala Sanyaas who later become the maThaadi patiies of the 8 maThs.
Recently one of the MaTaadhipati left his MaTh, and married one beautiful
young girl, much much younger than him.  He decided that He did not have
that mental frame of mind necessary for a sanyaasi, much less for a
maTaadhipati.  In fact he is a great musician and I have his Bhakti music.
My wife went to their house and met both the husband and wife who were
extremely kind and in fact they are very evolved souls.  What they did is
right and what Siddhartha did is also right - both have settled accounts
with their minds.  That is why I said, donot judge swami Ramdas or Bhagavan
Raghavendra swami with your frame of mind.  There are thousands who get
solace from Raghavendra swami.  If you go to Mantraalaya you will see it
with your own eyes.  If you also have that frame of mind, go ahead do what
he did.  What counts for your mind is what you do.

>If you conectrate on meditation how  work going to be done.  People say do the
>work as puja to god.  Puja to god is different from devotion and
>concentration. There is no way one have attachments and live with false notion
>I am detached.

What you say is right,  There is no way to take a false sanyaas either when
the mind is not ready for sanyaas.  Till then have no false notion either
that you  are detached.  Karma, bhakti and JNaana yogas are the appropriate
means to develop the required mental detachment.

I think I have adequately addressed in my mail about the sanyaasiis asking
for money.

Now, even from your evaluation point of view, all these sanyaasiis have big
ego driven desires.  Then how can you justify that taking sanyaas will get
you out of attachments.  If all theses are false sanyaasiis, you can see,
that it is not the ashram for everybody.

Well this is my final posting on this subject. Realizing that it is easire
to give advice than follow it oneself, I will go back to my silence.

Hari Om!
Sadananda



K. Sadananda
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Naval Research Laboratory
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