Posted on: 07 May 2016
Shri Karthik asked: I am adopting some special technique to attain peace by connecting myself (I) to pure awareness. Is it correct?
Shri Swami replied: It is certainly correct to attain mental peace by detaching yourself from the gross body and attaching yourself to the pure awareness. In this process, there is only self-effort. For scientists and atheists, this procedure is highly suitable because they do not believe in the existence of God, who is beyond this world. They believe only in the existence of this world and in the existence of themselves present as components of this world. Therefore, based on their faith, this advice can be given since no advice beyond this world is acceptable to them. When Shankara came to this country, everywhere only atheists existed. In such atmosphere, the maximum limitation of the advice can be only the self-association and the maximum benefit that can be given to them is only mental peace related to physical health in terms of absence of tensions. By this, tensions can be relieved because the self is detached from the external world and is confined to pure awareness only. No doubt, good health is maintained.
But, what will be the solution when a horrible and irreparable disease attacks the body? Such disease may be beyond even the hands of doctors. In such case, this self-association (Atma Yoga) becomes useless. Therefore, the best advice is that you catch God instead of yourself from the beginning itself so that all your effort and all your possible time is dedicated to God from the beginning itself. God can cure such disease in a fraction of a second to help you by maintaining peace in your spiritual progress. The peace you get by self-association is also given to you by God, which is nothing for him. You are earning Rs. 10. The employer, who gives you Rs. 100, can also give to you Rs. 10. Of course, you are expected to be a believer in God unlike the scientist and atheist. Even if you are a scientist or an atheist, you can start believing in God based on 50-50 probability. By attaching yourself to God, you are sure to get the mental peace (Rs. 10), which you are getting by self-association. The reason is that whether you are attached to self or God, it is immaterial because you will get detachment from the world in both cases and can get Rs. 10 in both cases. The general concept here is that if you are strongly attached to something, you will be relieved of all other things. By this, you are not losing Rs. 10 in this case (association of God) also. Moreover, you may get Rs. 100 (cure of irreparable disease) if the option of existence of God is true in 50-50 probability. In this option, even if God is absent, there is no loss to you because your association with self also cannot cure the irreparable disease. You loose nothing by associating with God instead of yourself. “No loss” is a common point in absence of God and presence of self. But, if the existence of God is true as second probability in 50-50 probability, there is a chance of cure of the irreparable disease in the option of associating with God. Hence, it is better you catch God from the beginning instead of yourself. Preaching of association with self by Shankara was inevitable because the then existing atmosphere was full of atheists at that time. Simultaneously, for theists, Shankara preached about association with God through several prayers. The Gita also says that the final result of self-realization is only mental peace and nothing else (Shamahkaaranamuchyate).