Devotion and Dedication

The Essence of Chapter 11 Volume 2

Om Sri Gurubhyo namaha!!!

How much ever effort we put to remove the wicked things from our lives, the same efforts will bounce back and make us to succumb to those ills. Holy people keep on doing good deeds so that they do not have a minute to think of anything foul. A sanyasi was asked how he was able to overcome desires, he answered that “whenever a Desire came knocking my door, I was busy in some devotional service and the Desire got fed up and left from the entrance itself”.

An idle mind is prone to wasteful conversations and casting aspersions on others. Desires raise their ugly heads and when good deeds are not performed, bad thoughts spring up in the mind. Satsang( union with truth or company of good) is the only remedy for the disease of dussang( bad company).

Constant performance of good deeds is important for the wickedness to be erased along with the roots from one’s heart. Scope should not be given for bad thoughts to enter the mind. It would not suffice if we just do japam(reciting holy name) and dhyana(meditation or contemplation). After sometime even japa and dhyana become mechanical and do to help in evolving. Reading biographies of great souls and writing about them is one good way of spending time.

Performing good deeds is an important limb of spiritual practice. In addition to this, we should completely dedicate ourselves to God. We are not afflicted by any business when we are in the sleep mode (sushupti). The moment we are awake, all our anxieties and relationships surround us completely. Moksha( deliverance) is a state in which we are not disturbed by any issues just as we are not disturbed in the sleep state about body, mind, society, government and the problems of the world. The sufferings undergone long ago do not affect us so much in the present.

Whatever are the sorrows and difficulties, the Upanishads say that we must perform our duties without fail with devotion and dedication.

If we are having suffering from any bodily diseases we should not dislike it, rather we should bear it with grit. The doctors prescribe certain restrictions when we are ill so that we are relieved of the disease. To relieve ourselves from the worldly sufferings, every act of ours should be done with complete devotion and must be dedicated to God.

The three most important basics for leading a conscientious life and attaining spiritual growth are – single minded devotion, constant performance of good deeds and dedication of the self. 

We should lead our lives by dedicating all our acts to God. 

Om tat sat!!!

Om Santhi Santhi Santhi hi!!!