Gurucharanam Saranam
How Can We Deny the Truths
of Nature!
(Guruvani- The Sacred Words of Navajyoti Sri Karunakara Guru)
We have behind us the
experience of many Ages of worship, knowledge and teachings. This process has
been going on thus over the long passage of time. At one point it is written (in
the scriptures) that somebody lived for 10,000 years, doing penance. Can it
happen in a human life? What is meant by this is the ‘karmagati’ (the karmic
propensity) of the soul earned through several lives of penance. Now, someone
has left this world earning the quality of evil in the soul. Thus, how many
billions do you think exist till date in the unfathomable account of the
Hindus, who speak of 330 million deities? Like this, how many myriads of epochs and
their karmas have we passed to reach
here?
A Yuga or Chaturyuga speaks
of a big time calculation. Seventy one such chaturyugas
constitute a Manvantara. After the passage of six such manvantaras, this is the 7th manvantara. The karmic residue of those bygone manvantaras,
resulting from what was learnt and heard, and from the actions performed
knowingly or unknowingly, is absorbed into this Nature. Do you belive it? It is
true. Nature has photographed this discussion of ours seated here today. Is it
so or not? How should you view this? You should not say that it is not there.
It is there. A non-existent thing has no name. Something is being discovered by
somebody all the time. What is discovered is given a name and such
identification has been going on. In that case we have behind us the karma denoted by the name we lived with,
grew and decayed. Do you believe it to be so?
There are our ancestors
who evolved a worship system based on a name and made us worship that identity.
The question is whether you have to be aware of the fact that these ancestors
and what they worshiped are behind us. It is a fact that these ancestors would
have carried into their birth the propensities from previous lives which had
gone into their blood and marrow through their thoughts, potential and actions.
A part of that ancestral karma gets
transmitted to our souls as well. I ask whether you have any doubt about this.
Then how do we get rid of it? There are many things that your parents,
ancestors or elders have learnt, professed or taught you logically. But this is
nothing. There is the karma (of
worship) of those who invoked and made us invoke (a deity) knowingly or
unknowingly. Where could it go?
The rationalist has
gone one way and the liberationist the other way. Let them go. There are many of us between them.
What is the way out for those? There is this area where you, others and I have
worked. I am asking whether we have the right to say that this area does not
exist. Doesn’t this natural reality of the particles of karma that went before us and will lead to other karmas after us exist? This is my question.
It is indeed there in Nature. If it is so, should we not think like that? It is
to transfer my experience to you. These are not empty words. It can be seen.
That is what is called experience.
I am giving the example
of your own children as proof of this experience. I have not brought them from
my house. Aren’t they staying here now? This is a confirmation after you have
received the experience (spiritual vision) that what I say is based on what is
revealed. The reason behind a disease is seen, and what is seen is
communicated. In other words, our ancestors and we ourselves pursued different
ways of worship and did good and bad. Our body is the natural result of the
experiences and actions of these souls. How can one nullify this? Our first
question is whether it is understood or not?
Disciple: Yes, it is true.
Guru: Then how should
we know that? I am explaining this in a way that you may understand. This is to
give you my experience. For example, take Narayana Guru, Sri Sankara, Chatambi
Swami, all of whom took birth in Kerala. There are some people who have faith
in them, with or without awareness. The faith and the karma that attracted that faith and the teaching behind that faith
also exist. Is it not? Shouldn’t we know this, or not? Thus, for observing such
a truth in the world, we need someone to give this knowledge to us. What kind
of a person should that be?
Disciple: It should be
a Guru.
Guru: Yes, it should be
Guru. It is Guru behind all this creation. All this is Guru indeed. Guru is
there in everything.
Disciple: Yes, the Guru
of spiritual realization.
Guru: When you say
spiritual knowledge, mostly it is, as l mentioned earlier, a spirituality
practised by tradition. The person who could judge on this is the one who has
known all principles in detail, and realizing the harm and damage, wishes to
enlighten us. Only such a person could enlighten us. Would it be alright to
practice gender discrimination, keeping away women and making it a men’s
privilege? That means we have not even thought about what rights women have.
Somebody please tell me if you believe that all mothers - women who have lived
as mother, wife, daughter or sister - have suffered. Only if you ask me could I
explain and help you realize. But if you say, ‘No, I am a rationalist and
nobody could enter my house’, I have nothing to say.
This is elucidated by
the Guru who gives the knowledge of the realms in this solar system as well as
the complexities of all spiritual planes including those relating to the human
and celestial worlds and that of the Supreme Being. Did you understand? If not,
I shall tell you. That is why I am asking. You should understand this clearly.
You are youngsters. What shall I do if you go somewhere and return as owners of
karma causing regret - having spent
your time in ignorance?
Are we not earning
hapless karma that leads to self-delusion?
How do we change this? If what has been so far transmitted is found in them
despite our agreeing or otherwise what are they to do? You should certainly
understand this. I am not referring to things which do not exist, but only
about those that exist. That too only what I have seen. You need not doubt this
at all. This conviction should come to you. Otherwise it would not be proper to
say anything. Suppose you take it to be a tall story - my words will be lost on
you entirely. Only if you believe could I tell you something about it. You have
faith, I hope. To talk to you, I am putting in an effort as I am not keeping
well. Why am I, in this state, talking to you about this? Grasp you must - that
is why.
There is a reality in
this nature that could show you the spiritual planes beginning from the plane
of the evil spirits to the plane called ‘Vetala
Nagaram’. This plane makes you realize the nature of ‘Vetala’. And then, there is ascension to the celestial, deva plane. From there you go to the Rishis. From there you ascend to the
plane of formless form - and you are shown how it is and how it is not. What
does it matter if you, somebody else or I accept or reject it? When we stand behind
its existence, shouldn’t be there a medium to show you its primordial form, the
reason behind its decadence, the ways in which the decadence set in, as well as
the existence in time and space of that ‘karmagati’.
Then do we have to believe it? We will experience the truth of it only when we
act with the conviction that there is truth in what we believe.
Now, what am I telling
you this for? I am telling you this for a purpose. Foreseeing the mistakes that
we are likely to make unless we pursue that path of truth, we need to take the
correct step. Otherwise we would pass away from this world in ignorance,
transferring the mistakes to the children we see growing up in front of us. In
this nature the souls of the dead start taking birth after a gap of one or two
generations. Thus the deviant souls are born again. If you say it is not so,
there is no use of my speaking. We take birth here and live and ultimately
leave. How we were in our childhood, how we are now and how we change with the
passage of time! We are the witness through these changes. Is there then an
entity present through the cycles of innumerable births and deaths? If it is
there, what is it? Isn’t this your question?
The consciousness by
which you are able to see - in jagrat,
swapna, sushupti (awake, dream and deep sleep states) - where did the knowledge come from, that makes you aware that you
slept well during deep sleep and in dreams? The joy in our body and the peace
in the soul that we got become the source of that knowledge. Isn’t it? Even in
sleep, consciousness convinces us. What can one say if someone argues, ‘how
could you say this, you who were sleeping last night?’ is this something of our
making?
This is not
rationalism, but the ‘ism’ of what is. We should at least accept the ‘ism’ of
what really exists. Then we might turn to the ‘ism’ of what is not. Am I right
or wrong? Therefore let us understand what is real. Later you can try to learn
what is unreal. We can learn about what does not exist. We should learn all
aspects from that source of knowledge that shows all that exists. Through whom
shall we learn this?
I do not say that all
of you know about it. But all people can hear about it. Some people realize it
in their soul. It is there and it is true. Beyond this also there is something
else. I could tell you only if you believe in this manner. I need to go into
this further only if you believe in whatever has been said so far. We have in
us the knowledge and ignorance inherited through the actions and inactions of
our ancestors. Isn’t it? We are attempting to realize the truth and falsehood
with these inherent limitations.
What does the Vedantin say? This does not exist, this
is passing; everything is therefore subject to destruction, and all this is
illusion - maya - caused by God.
Could he chop his body and discard it? If the body does not exist, why does he
carry this stinking body, bathing, clothing and covering? Even so, he goes
about saying that he has nothing to do. Isn’t it? May I ask you where this
pundit and this illiterate, who dissect words and interpret, uttering ‘soham’, would reach?
What is the use of my speaking
something if you do not realize this? You
at least think that is a man you have faith in. you can give him whatever name
you wish to. We should get the virtue of this soul - the fulfilment of
experience expressed through the medium of his body and soul. No matter
whatever way it is - through learning or otherwise, knowingly or unknowingly - he
has attained this. I do not say that I could show this to all of you. The
reason is the ancestral karmic
background about which I mentioned. We are the continuation of that karma accumulated through many births
and deaths. We should exercise our will and get what virtue we need to earn in
the soul and should remove its haplessness.
