________________
Aptavani-2
137
Pratikraman ends karma
If one karma discharges, then the entanglements will decrease day by day. If a person gets rid of one karma in one day, the next day he will be able to get rid of two. But instead people continue to increase karma and its entanglements everyday.
Do you think people drink castor oil? Why do they walk around looking as if they do? The moment one's internal state (parinati) changes, it shows up on his face; as if he just drank castor oil! This is because he blames others, although it is his own fault, and that changes the internal state. Vitarags have said that one should look at his own faults. They have said nothing else. Recognize your own fault and be free. This is the only thing that will establish You in the abode of liberation. This is all the Lord has asked you to do. It involves 'cash' (instant) pratikraman. People generally do 'on credit' pratikraman once a year during Paryushan. On the day of the Paryushan, they dress up in fancy clothes; women wear new saris for the annual recitation of pratikraman. In fact they walk around in a state of illusion and attachment (murchha). The Lord says that, that which arises out of such illusion is not dharma (religion). If you grasp the dharma of pratikraman, then it will not matter even if you do not have a guru. What do we mean by the dharma of pratikraman? If you say to this man, "You are a bad person", then you have to do pratikraman and recognize that you should not have spoken so. You have to invoke the vitarag Lord and recall the misdeed (alochana): "Dear Lord, I made a mistake. I repent for speaking in this way (pratikraman) and I vow not to do it again (pratyakhyan)." Avowal to not repeat the mistake is called pratyakhyan. If a person does instant alochana, pratikraman and pratyakhyan and not leave anything pending, he will be a spiritually rich man and go to moksha. It is important to perform this pratikraman of the Lord instantly, washing today's faults today and tomorrow's faults tomorrow. Just one
Aptavani-2
single word of a Gnani Purush liberates the person who accepts it and follows it, and if liberation does not occur then that word was not of the Gnani Purush. Only a single word needs to be taken in, not more.
138
If you say something negative about someone, you have to do pratikraman for sure, but the other person too has to do your pratikraman. His pratikraman should be, "I must have made a mistake somewhere that the occasion has arisen for him to insult me." He has to do pratikraman for his actions of his past life and you have to do pratikraman for your actions in this life. A person will indeed attain moksha if he does five hundred or so such pratikramans a day!
Such dharmadhyan and pratikraman are not to be found even in the upashraya (place where seekers of liberation gather) these days, but what can one do? Everyone has to suffer the effects of their past karmas, so instead of crying over it, is it not better to suffer with a smile?
'We' guarantee you with 'our' blessing that if you do just this much and not look for any other religion, you will not encounter any problems. 'We' will be by your side helping you all the way till you attain moksha. You have to be ready. All you need is to live by just one word of 'ours'.
You have to do pratikraman for any atikraman (aggression through thoughts, speech and action) that you do. If you have a negative thought about anyone, you should turn that atikraman around by saying, "This must not be so, I should have positive thoughts." Why should you think of other people as worthless? You have no right to judge whether one is worthless or not. Moreover, if you have to make a general statement at all then say, "Everyone is good"; you will not bind any karma if you say positive things. Saying anything negative is atikraman and so you have to do pratikraman for it.
You do not have a right to hit children; you have a right
