Through the company of the wise or the good, there arises non-attachment; from non-attachment comes freedom from delusion; where there is freedom from delusion, there is abidance in self-knowledge, which leads to freedom while alive.
We seem to be swept away by the current of life and in the process, lose our focus on the true goal. The ninth verse tells us how to maintain that focus.
Satsangatve nissangatvam – The sanga or company of the wise, or of good people is called satsanga. The importance of satsanga is talked about thrice in Bhaja Govindam because the company we keep is extremely important.
The mind requires a suitable atmosphere to grow, in much the same way as a little plant does. As a sprout, it is very delicate and requires a lot of care and nurturing. Our mind is also like this sprout. It has to be taught and trained to follow certain values and priorities so that we get a proper perception of life.
Satsanga, or the company of those who are good and have wisdom and insight exerts a positive influence upon us. We need an inspiring atmosphere in order to maintain our enthusiasm in a conducive and positive manner. The mind is very delicate and is like a fine instrument that must be treated with care. Therefore, be careful about what you are exposed to. We should keep ourselves away from undesirable influences.
The influence of satsanga can completely change a person. Ashrams, gurukulams, temples etc. provide a suitable atmosphere and conducive environment that have a good influence on us. It is true that we are all born with our own peculiarities and samskaras or personalities, yet, both the place where we are born and the company that we keep have a tremendous influence upon us.
There is no better satsanga than the direct exposure to the teaching. Indirect exposures to the scriptures, such as listening to tapes, studying the books or participating in a study group is also valuable and provide ways to be in company of like-minded people.
That is how a new family grows, one that entertains the same kind of values and respects and reveres the same kind of scriptures, and one in which our sraddha is slowly enhanced. The most important strength that we have is sraddha, faith in the scriptures, faith in the wise, faith in the Lord, and faith in ourselves. This is the most important thing.
At any cost, we must avoid the company of the bad and the company of non-believers or those who can shake our sraddha. We should avoid discussion with others; there is no need for you to go around convincing others, or preaching to them. More often than not, they will convince you otherwise.
What is necessary is that we must grow and realize how important this self-growth is. Even your social company should become some sort of spiritual gathering in some ways, and become a means for self-growth. Thus, company at different levels is very important.
Thus, when I keep the company of the good, I slowly grow out of the influence of the bad. We always hear in Vedanta that we should give up attachment, but what is attachment? Attachment is dependence upon the world. Very often, people think that giving up attachment means giving up contact with the family, or running away from the world. In fact, you cannot run away from the world because it is present everywhere in some form or the other. Therefore, it is not the physical objects of the world, but your dependence on them that has to be given up.
To have love for your family, your wife or children, is not attachment. We should be able to discriminate between love and attachment. Love is something we should always have; attachment is that which pollutes this love.
People mistakenly interpret detachment as being an aversion to the sense objects or to the world. The teachers do not ask not to have any contact with the world. The world is meant for our enjoyment. They are only teaching us how to enjoy things. Enjoyment is having a relationship which is free from either dependence or demand, either attachment or aversion. Aversion is but a distorted form of attachment.
Therefore, attachment and aversion, raga and dve_a, are the two sides of the same coin. Both represent bondage and dependence. They lead to an unhealthy relationship in which I lose my objectivity to the situations of the world; I allow my happiness to be determined by the situations and objects around me.
In being attached, I superimpose a greater value on something than it has, and in having aversion, I see less value in it than it deserves. Thus, when it is said that we should become free from attachment, it also means that we should seek to become free from aversion.
It is satsanga, the company of the good that enables us to slowly become free from both attachment and aversion.
We do not really see the world as it is. We interpret it in the light of our own notions and superimpositions. In not being able to appreciate the thing for what it is, we find ourselves attracted to something or repelled by something else. What is meant by satsangatve nissangatva_ is that in the company of the wise, I slowly become objective. I learn to develop an objective perception of the world and deal with the realities of life, rather than living in a world defined by how I see it.
For example, when I call something mine, or say that it is yours, it is purely a notion in my mind. When I call something good or bad, or beautiful or ugly, it is, again, because of a certain notion in my mind. These notions are entirely subjective for the very simple reason that, what to me is beautiful may seem ugly to another, or what I think is delicious may not appear so to another person. Then again, even these notions are not constant because we are as though riding a fence in the mind all the time. Our whims are so fanciful that what appears to be appealing or beautiful today, may not seem so desirable the very next day and the mind does not want it anymore.
In satsanga, we are not only in the physical company of the wise, but also learn from their words and their actions. We see how they conduct themselves, how they relate to people and situations, and how they are able to remain free from reactions. We see that they are able to maintain their composure in various situations and realize that it is really the way of their life. This is how we also slowly develop composure of the mind and a freedom from the reactions of likes and dislikes. This is satsangatve nissangatvam.
Nissangatve nirmohatvam – As the mind becomes clear, it slowly becomes free from moha or delusion. A deluded mind superimposes an unjustified value upon the things of the world. As the mind slowly becomes free from this moha it becomes free from raga and dve_a. This is called purification of the mind.
To the extent that the mind is pure, it enjoys peace, serenity, and composure, and to the extent that the mind is composed, it enjoys balance or equipoise. Just as water becomes transparent and pure when you remove the dirt from it, so also, as the impure thoughts are removed from the mind, it becomes pure and serene, and we enjoy tranquility of the mind.
When do I know that my mind is pure?
Raga-dvesa or attachments and aversions are the impurities of the mind. A mind under the influence of ragadvesas is a reactive mind. When something confirms my attachment I get elated and when something contradicts it I get depressed. Elation is the product of raga and depression is the product of dvesa.
While I cannot see my raga-dvesas directly, when I find myself reacting I can see the product of these ragadvesas. These reactions could be anger, greed, resentment, repression, sadness etc. A reactive mind is an impure mind. As my mind becomes free from these reactions, I know that my mind is pure.
Nirmohatve niscalatattvam – When the mind becomes tranquil, it becomes objective. It is then able to understand the purport of the scriptures. Until then, whatever we hear is processed by a mind which is distorted by raga-dvesas. When those distortions are not there, the mind is able to truly appreciate the unfoldment of the vision of the scriptures.
When the attachment to raga-dvesas goes, the moha or delusion goes; when the delusion goes, the mind is able to understand clearly what the scriptures reveal. That is how the knowledge takes place and one slowly gains abidance in that knowledge.
Niscalatattve jivanmuktih. When this abidance in the knowledge happens, there is freedom even while one is alive. This is the growth that the scriptures present before us, the goal presented by Vedanta. The goal is jivanmuktiH, becoming free even when we are in this body. It is not the mukti or liberation after death, but the liberation or the freedom even while I am here.
Vedanta says very clearly that liberation or freedom has to come even when I am alive. Then alone can I be liberated after this body falls. It is satsanga, the company of the wise or the company of the good, which ultimately leads to jivanmuktiH.
A tree does not require any water or manure; it is free and itself a source of shade, flowers, and fruits. Similarly, the jivanmukta does not require anything. He becomes a source of love and inspiration for others.
HariH Aum __/\__
Courtesy : Sri Subramaniyam Balaji
Credit : Swami Viditatmananda Saraswathi Ji.
Source: https://ahambrahmasmi4.wordpress.com/2016/09/21/bhajagovindamverse9/
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