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I am the Soul
We need to strive from within so that the external reasons for joy and sorrow do not confound us. I have been telling you repeatedly, Brothers! To go through all this you need a tremendous effort from within. Reasons - nimittas - will arise aplenty. But you resolve that you will not get involved with them. Be silent in the situation, restrain yourself, look the other way and change your attitude. Then the reason - nimitta can do you no harm.
But these experiments makes great demands on your time, strength, alertness, restraint and caution. These are all its conditions. Only after all these are fulfilled can we free ourselves from the clutches of the “reasons' (Ffur).
So dear Brothers! Srimadji has explained here that this whole effort is essential for the achievement of Self realisation. But ensure that you first generate the state of mind which is full of renunciation and detachment and that beyond that point the effort has to be at a swift pace. This is not the point to straggle. The unaware jiva has to be made aware of the self. This calls for a tremendous effort. Of what sort, to what extent and until when?
Shraman Bhagawant Mahaveer knew at his birth, in fact, even prior to his birth that his soul would attain Moksa in that life (17969 HATT). That all his karmas would be dissolved in this very life. He made an incessant effort for 12 years and six months. Not even for a fleeting moment did he stop the effort. In such a long span of time he slept for just a couple of hours. I would like to know of you, had the Lord slept for 12 and a half years, would he not have attained kevaljnana (omniscience)? Why not? He certainly would have. That was destined so he would have.
Yet, as omniscience was certain, so was the period of his efforts. That only with this definite effort would the karmas be dissolved. Hence, he did not sleep. Brothers! How long do we sleep? We are asleep always. Even when awake we are as if asleep, our self is not awake. Our spirit is totally asleep. So, the
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