1988: The Crowning Virtue

The Crowning Virtue

7 January 1988

Everything abides in Dharma (righteousness). The presence of this Dharma cannot be established by sense of perception or through inferential deduction. It transcends the canons of logic. Its existence has to be derived from the Vedas (the authority of revealed scriptural testimony).

Dharma (Righteousness) and Moksha (Liberation) are transcendental---beyond the intellect and sense perceptions. The Vedas show that through good deeds and practices, one can acquire the competence to realise Dharma and Moksha.

Only those who practice Dharma are qualified to propagate it. It is because Dharma and Sathya have not been propagated by persons practising them that they have been eclipsed, as it were, and are not perceivable. It is only when they are practised in daily life that their true nature and value will be realised.

Among the qualities a man has to develop if he is to realise his divinity, the foremost is Kshama- --forbearance or forgiveness.

Kshama is acquired by practising four kinds of purity:

• Dravya Soucham (Purity of materials): All things used by a person--from clothes, food and cooking utensils to houses-- in daily use should be completely 
• Maanasika Soucham (Purity of the mind): This calls for total elimination of attachments and aversions from the mind. Hatred and envy should have no place. One should cultivate the largeheartedness to return good for evil and not to cause pain to anyone in any circumstance. This is a mark of a pure mind.
• Vaak Soucham (Purity of speech): One must speak the truth. He must be sweet and pleasant in speech and avoid using harsh words. Excessive talking should be avoided. Purity in speech implies avoidance of falsehood, garrulousness, abusive language, slanderous gossip and speech which causes pain to others.
• Sareera Soucham (Purity of the body): The body has to be purified by performing Aachamana with water (this ritual involves uttering the names of the Lord thrice and drinking three spoonfuls of water from the palm)

God helps if we pray with a pure heart

A mother and son were living in poor circumstances. The father died when the son was born. With great difficulty the mother put the son to school and made him reach the final year. Then he had to pay Rs.90 as examination fees. The mother was at a loss how to find so much money. She was shedding tears under a tree, when the son importuned her to reveal the cause of her sadness. When she said that the boy would have to give up further studies as she did not have the money for paying the examination fees, the son asked in his childish innocence, whether there was anybody who could help them. He would repay the amount later. The mother said: "God alone is the helper for the helpless. He is the source of all wealth and He is the universal provider." In his innocence, the boy asked his mother: "Where is that God? By some means or the other I shall get the money from Him." The mother said: "He is in Vaikunta." The boy implicitly believed in his mother's words. He ran to the post office, wrote a letter, bought an envelope, enclosed the letter in it and addressed it to "Sriman Narayana, Vaikunta." He was trying to post the letter in a post box which was fixed a little too high for him. The postmaster, watching his plight, came to his help and asked him: "To whom are you sending this letter?" The boy replied "Sir, this is a very urgent letter. I need money by tomorrow to pay my fees. Please see that this letter is dispatched quick." The postmaster took the letter from the boy and found that it was addressed to "Sriman Narayana, Vaikunta." He asked the boy who had given him that address. He related his entire story and what his mother had told him about Sriman Narayana as the refuge of the poor and the forlorn. The postmaster was moved to tears by the boy's story. He wondered at the innocence and pure heartedness of the boy and told him: “Dear Child! I shah post the letter. You come here tomorrow morning. The money will be received by then and you can take it." The boy was happy beyond words and conveyed the news to his mother. The next morning he went to the postmaster and asked him whether the money had come. The postmaster went in, brought Rs. 90 and gave it to the boy. He ran with the money to his mother. The mother wondered how he had got the money, whether he had stolen it or got it from someone. She asked him how he had got the money. He related what had all happened. He swore that the money had been sent by Narayana Himself. The mother then asked him to take her to the postmaster. The postmaster told her: "As soon as I saw your son's letter, God induced me to come to your son's help. The money has come from Him. I am only an instrument in His hands."

The moral of the story is that if we pray to God with a pure heart, God will make use of someone to respond to our prayer.

Points to Ponder

How to practice forbearance and righteousness in daily life?

Add two spoons of water to two seers of milk; the water too is appreciated as milk! So too, let your tiny drops of love for things material merge with the stream of love for God and be elevated. Have the love of God filling and thrilling your hearts; then you cannot hate anyone, you cannot indulge in unhealthy rivalries, you will not find fault with anyone. Life becomes soft, sweet and smooth.