________________
RELIEF FROM MSNTAL TENSIONS
123
without, in any way, feeling tired although a lot of energy had to be put in the work.
Freedom from memory enables one to collect energy, and to reduce its expenditure. A switch-over to the next
work thus becomes rest. Thus I saved a lot of energy. * Moreover, as soon as the time alloted to a particular task was
over, I believed that whatever I had to do had been done. If I remained worried by what was to be done, it will produce mental tension. There will be no end to these worries and my mind will continue to be tense.
Nobody is able to finish his life's work by the time he dies. Rāvaņa, the demon king of Lankā, remarked at the time of his death that his wishes had remained unfulfilled and that he could not do what he had wanted to do. This is the fate of every one. Those who do not live a life of the spirit do feel frustrated at the time of their death. Why should we worry? Will worrying be of any use to us? Unfinished work remains unfinished; you cannot help it.
Those who live a life of the spirit choose to die in a state of samādhi (self-absorption). They die with perfect satisfaction. They feel that they are leaving nothing unfinished at the time of their death. They feel that their life had been a happy journey. On the other hand those who do not live a life of the spirit always suffer from all kinds of tensions. They die a miserable death. They carry a bundle of miseries on their shoulders throughout their lives. They create troubles for their survivors also. How far is it reasonable to carry a bundle of anxieties on our shoulders and make our hearts heavy ? Sadhanā is a means of changing this kind of life. We can, through meditation, feel that life lived in the present moment is an ideal life.
The third kind of tension is emotional tension. It is a problematic tension. It is also caused by ārta and raudra meditations. We have already discussed the theory behind these two meditations earlier. Let us understand it practically.
Ārta dhyāna means to try to achieve that which has not been achieved and to remain absorbed in achieving it. The attempt to achieve that which is pleasant and to avoid that
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
