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I am the Soul
bear this in mind. Then you will be sorry. There will be nothing left but regret and it would still be very late. You can neither return nor get your children to turn back. But the society has made such false paths as means to achieving false prestige and you have taken to them. How can religion arise then? How will dharma touch your insides? And if it does not, then of course, there is the wheel of eighty-four!
Such degraded thinking and the ignorance of the greatness of religion, keeps a man from turning towards religion. He thinks what if I attract adverse publicity? What will the people say? And those who really do not want to pursue religion, do not do it themselves and condemn others who do. As a result afraid of being censured, one who pursues religion tends to run away from it and the sages.
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Thus these three reasons keep the jiva from giving up selfconceit. But there can be no elevation of the jiva without giving up self-conceit. Srimadji says -
पाम्यां एम अनंत छे, भाख्युं जिन निर्दोष
The Jineshwar Bhagwan who has become Veetarag by discarding attachment and aversion, has said that the jivas in the past, that is infinite jivas who attained Moksa, did so only when they gave up self-conceit and developed a dedication for the Satpurush, trudged the path shown by them, discarded all fear of prestige, never bothered about adverse publicity, gave up egoism and possessiveness and walked the true and noble path. That is the only way a jiva can attain Moksa in future too.
Brothers! Here we are discussing the 'Atmasiddhi Shastra'. Srimadji has placed a precondition that to attain Moksa, selfconceit should be discarded. If this is acceptable only then talk about attaining Moksa, not otherwise.
So now, in the next gatha Srimadji tells us what effort is essential to put a stop to the self-conceit that has been with us since infinite time.
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