Welcome to the Buddha Purnima issue of e-Sanai

 

by Sri Sandip Dasgupta

Dear fellow devotees,

Welcome to the Buddha Purnima issue of e-Sanai.  In this issue, I will restate one of Sri Sri Babathakur's teachings and try to reflect on it.  It is also pertinent to point out here, an excellent online resource for His teachings – a facebook page named “Followers of Prajnanpurush Sri Sri Babathakur”,  which can be found at https://www.facebook.com/saccidanandasocietypage?fref=ts

Sri Sri Babathakur had said ‘A man in general is never wholly satisfied by objective enjoyment in life.’ So what exactly did He mean?  Let us consider examples of certain things we do at all times.

We yearn for material wealth – money, objects, clothes etc.  When we get what we want, we appear to enjoy it momentarily – but then we begin yearning for more.  Permanent satisfaction is just not there!

•       If we have spare money, we feel like investing it in the hope of obtaining even more.

•       If we go on vacation to a luxury resort, we enjoy it.   That enjoyment however is gone as soon as the vacation is over.  We then begin planning our next vacation – perhaps at an even better resort.

•       We are always buying clothes that are in vogue – the fashion keeps changing, and we keep chasing the latest fashions. We just aren’t satisfied…

•       This cycle goes on and on – and hence Sri Sri Babathakur’s reference to the term 'whole satisfaction' – something that is complete and permanent.

•       On the other hand, Sri Sri Babathakur has repeatedly told us that I-Absolute or I-Reality is the Supreme cause of Jiva, Jagat, Ishwara.  We are all functioning on that supreme substratum – and all the objects that we see and experience are a reflection of that absolute substratum.  So in life, we should be thinking of every object, every event, every desire as being expressions of that Absolute I-Reality – rather than it belonging to us, the mortal being.  Then every result would also be His – and we whould be surrendering all the results to the Lord.

•       Lack of satisfaction arises when we think that we are lacking something - when there is perception of a void. But if we are aware that we ourselves are “whole” and already possess everything, the question of lack of satisfaction doesn’t arise.

•       So, let us remind ourselves of our Master’s saying that we are Sat-Cit-Ananda.   In other words,

        -   We are whole and Absolute (Sat)
        -   We should remain conscious of that wholeness at all times (Cit)
        -   We will always remain satisfied and remain in bliss (Ananda)

Joy Babathakur!  Joy Babathakur!  Joy Babathakur!