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(Continued)
Q. I have heard that even our religious texts glorify marriage ceremony. How would you justify it?
A. When a boy reaches a mature age he develops affinity for many young and/or attractive members of the female group. If he persists in establishing relations with few or more of them, then he will be an economical, physical, moral and a spiritual
misfit.
In order that these problems may not arise, our sages have taken a very wise step in glorifying marriage ceremony.
The following few and many other benefits accure from it: -
(i) The married person is more liable to conceoncentrate only one member of the opposite sex than an unmarried person. And this is within his reach with respect to all the aforesaid aspects (economical-spiritual). If he does dwell upon more than one yet his passions would surely be
minimized.
(ii) He is saved from a probable neurosis, psychosis and other physical disorders arising due to sexual pervasion and suppression.
(iii) The percentage of such a person being afflicted from venereal disease (V.D) tends to zero. It is due to free sex that in USA 50 million suffers from V.D. There are no complete cures of V.D. Only the sufferers know its terrors. Even their progeny is born handicapped. The people of the countries encouraging free sex are mostly the sufferers of V.D
Q. Among the benefits that you mentioned resulting from marriage ceremony, you haven’t spoken anything about spiritual gain as a benefit. So does it necessary for a householder want salavation to renouunce the world?
A. The mind of a person, having one wife is comparatively stable and thus a background for spiritual life is built up. He should take advantage of this spiritual background, by leading a pious and higher spiritual life.
King Janak and Amrish, Nasinh Mehta, Mirabai, Ramkrishna Paramhansa and many others were householders but were also stalwarts of the spiritual path. During the time of Bhagwan Swaminarayan, there were many householders who were spiritually more advanced than even the saints (renunciates). Bhagatji Maharaj, although a householder, broke the record by settling a place into the hierarchy of saints. Many of his disciples were saints. One of them, Shastri Yagnapurushdasji was very great dynamic personality. Bhagatji Maharaj was in fact the 2nd spiritual hierarch of Bhagwan Swaminarayan.
Though renunciation is helpful it is not necessary to renounce the world. The only
condition necessary for both the renunciates and td the householders is that they have to be sincere and honest. As they advance in the spiritual path the desire for flesh is totally erased.
Q. Can’t the saints in whom the desire for flesh no longer exists, preaches women?
A. They would not for the benefit of novices. A pregnant woman is capable of doing multifarious activities but would refrain from them to protect the fragile foetus easily susceptible to death. She eats, drinks and adjusts all her activities always keeping the child to be born in view. Similarly, the saint in whom there is no carnal desire adjusts all his activities keeping the beginners.
The seers who have laid down the moral tenets were benefactors of mankind. They have given peace to all those who came into their contact. They have no intention, whatsoever of beguiling the credulous group. They were fair in their dealings and their teachings were meant for all. Consequently their preachings lead towards bettermenment and peaceful ends. One of them is the observance of celibacy.
Q. How does it help the novices?
A. I will tell something from my experience. Even though I liked, respected and obeyed my guru Yogiji Maharaj I was inspired to observe eight-fold celibacy more through his practice of it, than his preaching.
Let us suppose that you smoke cigarettes. Someone approaches you and depicts scientifically the disadvantages of cigarettes smoking so that you may stop it. Now, if that person himself smokes cigarettes would your mind accept his advice positively? Certainly I will not, were I in your place.Thus a novice saint who loves and respects his master will not be at ease when his master does not practice what he emphasizes.
Q. Generally there are exceptions. Are there any exceptions to these codes of celibacy?
A. Yes. There is an exception. Bhagwan Swaminarayan has explicitly said, “At times when the life oife of a woman or their own is at stake, they should protect their life as also the life of the woman by talking to her or even holding her.
This is an exception and it should remain an exception.
Q. What type of celibacy are householders required to observe?
A. Bhagwan Swaminarayan has said that they shall not harbor desires of women excepting their wives. They shall not remain in private company with either their mother, sister or daughter of young age, except in emergency.
Q. What are your basic teachings?
A. Bhagwan Swaminarayan has proclaimed that he had come on this earth to redeem the people by annihilating their casual body. There are two other bodies, namely gross and subtle. The one, which we see having hands and feet is called the gross body. Mind is the subtle body. Whatever we experience in the mind are the reflections of the casual body; just as the light from the moon is in reality the reflection ion of the light of the sun. Casual body is the cause of gross and subtle bodies, all vices, all miseries, baser instincts (desires) and cycle of birth and death (metem-psychosis). When the casual body is exterminated a pure soul emerges. This is the brahmic state. But the divine bliss par excellence is experienced only when one in this brahmic state devotes to and serves God (Para Brahman). In this brahmic state, there is no hindrance, whatsoever in his sublime devotion to God.
In a nutshell the basic teaching teaching would tantamount to attainment of brahmic consciousness through the association of a brahmanised saint and with this consciousness devotion to God (Purushottam).
Hearing and delivering spiritual discourses, practicing and preaching the scriptural injunctions, propagation of Bhakti (devotion), rendering social services and all multifarious activities undertaken by Bhagwan Swaminarayan and this spiritual hierarchs lead ultimately, directltly or indirectly to the aforesaid brahmic state.
Q. I would like you to explain the basic teachings in simpler terms or in another way.
A. Pursuit for pleasure is prevalent in us. But we generally experience more unhappiness than happiness and whatever small amount of pleasure we get is coloured with
impermanence, imperfection and pain. Therefore, striving for achieving permanent, perfect and infinite bliss can be considered the basic teaching.
We try to abstract happiness only from the sense objects whereas happiness lies within. A striking example to substantiate the above mentioned statement would be that a soulless dead body experiences no happiness whatsoever. But a living body does experience it. Hence, whatever happiness appears to be present in the sense-objects in the soul within, the following examples should prove the point.
(i) A hungry person about to gobble down his tastiest food loses interest int in it when at that precise moment he hears the death of his only son in a car accident or any such mishappening. If there were happiness in food this would not be the result.
(ii) Supposing five sons inherited a grand palace, well furnished and equipped with all ultra-modern facilities, but amongst them one is permanently mentally retarded, another is absent-minded, two more are upset over long duration family quarrels, and only one is normal. Now, though they equally own that luxurious palace and the outside objects of enjoyment are same for all, yet, who would enjoy the most? Our answer would naturally be in favor of the normal son.
This shows that the degree of happiness is related to different states of mind. It is directly proportional to the soundness of mind. Science of Allopathy and Homeopathy claim, respectively that 60 percent and 100percent of the physical disorders (diseases) are due to mental imbalance. A sound mind can withstand all advdversities. Lust, ego and other baser instincts are the causes of an unsound mind. These instincts are rooted in the casual body, which can be said to be amalgamated with the soul. As soon as the obscuring casual body is removed there is a direct connection between God, soul, mind and body. The mind and gross body are transformed i.e. they become divine, The annihilation of casual body can be effected only, yes, only through the association of God or his brahmanised saint (God Intoxicated saint).
Q. How can a person realize his true self?
A. Through the contact of a person who has realized himself. On the contrary, if a person remains in the company of those people who are ignorant of their true selves, then his physical consciousness is strengthened.
A person may bawl out at the top of his voice that he is billionaire; but he cannot be so by merely bawling out. Similarly if a person merely goes on repeating that he is realized or he is Brahman,n, he cannot reach that state. It cannot be attained by merely learning or reading scriptures or by having sermons from the mouth of such people who have not attained the state of self-realization.Once who wants to become
realized should lovingly serve a realized person through thought, word and deed. Bhagwan Swaminarayan says, “One should be deeply attached to God and his brahmanised (realized) saint, like a king who has no child either with him or with his subjects over whom he rules. He, then, puts up with pleasures, all the misbehavior of his child either with him or with his subjects over whom he rules At no time does he show any aversion towards him, because of his deep attachment to him. Such deep
attachment to a brahmanised (realized) saint leads one to the path of self-realization, inspires in him, the glory and greatness of such a saint and helps him to attain
realization of God.
Q. HoHow does a realized person (saint) behave amongst other people?
A. First let us consider the attributes of such a saint and then his behaviors.
Such a saint has a balanced mind; he is clam, devoid of anger, friendly to one and all, implicitly obeying God’s orders, kind, devoid of all malice, patiently suffering the faults of others, living on the force of truth, devoid of all worldly desires, possessing spiritual wisdom, tender, pious, free from all possessions, unmindful of the bodily comfort, living on scant food, totally relying on God’s shelter only, remaining aware of his atma (self) separate from the body, agile, deep like the ocean, patient, ego less, offering honor to others, invincible, compassionate and active in spiritual wisdom.
(Ved Rahasya-Bhagwan Swaminarayan)
Such a saint behaves in an ordinary way so that we may be able to comcommunicate with him. If he behaves according to his stage, then, he would be a misfit for the society in which people like us live.
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