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Aptavani-2
51
Aptavani-2
Hence the doer loses the ability to discriminate whether the action is right or wrong. So what can anyone do? When a person loses discrimination between right and wrong, that person will not understand the truth even in a hundred thousand lifetimes, no matter what he does."
'We were pleading with a tapogachha (one who believes in penance of physical means in order to attain the ultimate reality) maharaj. "If you feel offended, you can slander me all you like, but let me ask you one thing. are you doing penance for liberation?"
The Maharaj said, "Of course. What else would I be doing penance for?"
"We said, "The Lord has said, "Penance for liberation should not be a visible. No one should be able to see your penance. Your penance is like the heavy workouts in a gymnasium. Are you doing workouts? How can you call this penance? This is not the type of penance required for liberation The Lord has said 'no' to such penance." The Lord has said that unless the body becomes natural and spontaneous, neither will the soul. When the body becomes natural and spontaneous, so will the soul, or when the soul becomes natural and spontaneous, so will the body. When either one becomes natural and spontaneous, so will the other and that is when your work will be accomplished.
Why have idols been set aside? It is because apathy can set in, in idol worship. The idol is not going to get angry with you, is it? The idol is not going to question why you did not do samayik (introspection on errors committed), will it? At least the Guru will tell you off? But calling an idol inanimate completely changes the meaning for its existence. Idols are necessary and so are the temples. Until one attains the darshan of the formless (the Self), one cannot let go of the rope that keeps one afloat. Idol worship is a spiritual science of India. Only if there is an idol
will there be a temple and only if there is a temple will there be devotees.
The Lord has said that as long as there is artadhyan (adverse meditation occurring within one's relative self and raudradhyan (adverse meditation directed against other living beings), you should do darshan of an idol (murta) because until then you will not be able to see the formless (amurta) one. You will not be able to see the Shuddhatma, the formless Lord within
Questioner: An idol is a piece of stone, how can one benefit from doing its darshan?
Dadashri : It is helpful to many other people, is it not? The Lord has said that one should not have a narrow-minded perspective (ekantik) but a perspective of universal acceptance (anekantik). Anekantik means if a child is running around naked, no one will tell him off, but if a fifty-year old man does the same, people will get angry with him. The old man may question, "Why are you telling me off? Why are you not saying anything to this child?" We would tell him, "You sir! You are an adult. This child is small and at his age what he is doing is acceptable, whereas at your age, it is not." In this way it is necessary to look at everyone with a universal perspective.
Kabir Sahib used to live in a Muslim locality near a masjid. When it came time for the bangh (Muslim prayer rituals of reciting the prayers as loudly as possible at predawn hours)... have you heard them sing the bangh? They put their fingers in their ears and then they call out the bangh, do they not? Now Kabir Sahib was very knowledgeable and a prominent saint, so he proclaimed, "Do you think Allah is deaf that you are calling out your prayers at the top of your voice? He hears everything. If you were to put ankle bells on an ant, he can hear them. So why are you shouting at the top of your lungs? It really hurts my ears!" The Muslims became very angry
