RISE AND FALL OF MAN

Man has made this world a glorious place to live in. All threatening and persecuting powers of nature have been tamed and harnessed to serve him. The comforts and amenities provided are almost heavenly. Man has been indulging in them without any restraint. However, sitting amidst this mountain of wealth and prosperity, man now lives a life of worry, anxiety and dissatisfaction.

This sad paradox has been the subject of investigation by the spiritual masters all over the world. They have discovered that uncontrolled and excessive indulgence in sensual enjoyments and material comforts causes dissipation of one's personality and leads to sorrow and misery.

The essential nature of man is absolute freedom. He does not relish being told what to do, or what not to do. He revolts against the very idea of any spiritual practice of self-denial. Little does he realize that freedom is essentially built on intelligent self-restraint and discipline. This inability to distinguish between  freedom and licence is at the root of the modern man's aversion to religion.

Religious text books are similar to the technical manuals, supplied along with a machine, for its efficient and proper use. They help us to do the adjustments and fine-tuning of the human machines, which are the most complex entity in nature. Man is given the liberty to follow these instructions for maximum happiness, or to disregard them inviting all sorrow and suffering, for himself. When there is an intelligent appreciation and faithful adherence to these laws, we maintain the right contact with the world and that alone can bring about a healthy life of dynamic existence.

Man, in his pilgrimage from the womb to the tomb, engages himself in an endless chase after 'Happiness'. Happiness is measured by the tranquillity of one's mind. There are 2 distinct and separate 'Paths' in life:

The Path of the Pleasant
(Preyas)
The Path of the Good
(Sreyas)
Pleases, fascinates and entices man.
Caters to man's self-gratification.
Provides immediate pleasures.
Ultimately, putrifies into enlarging ripples
of  disappointment and sorrow.
Based on sound religious precepts
and injunctions.
Resisted by human mind.
Is detested in the beginning.
Later on, it leads to greater happiness
and a sense of fulfillment.

Man is confronted with the choice of taking to one of these paths at every single moment of his life.The scriptures, like a true mariner's compass, always indicate the right direction.

What causes Stress and Strain ?
Life is defined as a series of continuous and unbroken experiences. Thus, the 'unit' of life is 'experience'. A successful life is that in which the individual can have a larger number of successful and happy experiences. Similarly, a life of failure is that in which the majority of experiences are sorrowful.

 Every experience consists of the 3 fundamental factors: the experiencer (subject), the experienced (object) and the act of experiencing. The modern scientists studied the objects; whereas, our Rishis studied the subject. The tireless Rishis proved that the world outside is only a projection of the active mind, and established the sovereignty of the experiencer over the experienced and the experiencing.

The experiencer is a composite structure of 4 different personalities - the physical, the mental or emotional, the intellectual and the spiritual. They all work so simultaneously and so quickly that the superficial observer fails to recognize their fine distinctions in a single action. Each one of these four entities is differently constituted and has its own values and demands. When the subject experiencer comes in contact with an object, all the four rise up yearning to experience it. The union may result in satisfaction for one or two of the personalities, but produce a sense of dissatisfaction for the other personalities. Consequently, a friction is generated in his total personality . Such friction causes the individual to suffer the stress and strain of life, which is a common malady in the world today.

What is the solution ?

The solution to the problems of stress and strain in life, lies in streamlining our experiences. Man can properly integrate the 4 entities in him into one synthetic whole and thereby enjoy a harmony and rhythm in the varied experiences of life. Our religious scriptures provide practical suggestions and exercises for this desired integration of personalities in every individual.The greater the integration, the greater is his happiness in life.

Of the 4 entities, the ' mind and intellect ' equipment is the actual experiencer that enjoys or suffers the objects with which it comes into contact. When this equipment is properly tuned up , man experiences a harmony and rhythm in life. The physical body and the spiritual consciousness are almost common in all human beings. The most variable factor in man is the ' mind and intellect ' equipment. Mind is the seat of all emotions and feelings, whereas the intellect is the discriminating faculty that distinguishes the good from the bad, the right from the wrong and the real from the unreal. The functions of the mind and the intellect are fundamentally divergent and opposed to each other.

Human Personality.

In the world today, the important aspect of the human personality lies neglected. The human personality is determined and defined by the quality and texture of one's mind and intellect. Religion helps to bring about a revolution in the individual's personality by chastening the mind and educating the intellect. All schemes and plans envisaged by religion for personality rehabilitation are meant to promote development and perfection of the 'mind and intellect' equipment in him.

The mind is the seat of impulses and feelings and it is common to all living creatures. Man alone has the capacity to discriminate and analyze his feelings as and when they arise. This power of judgement is the function of the intellect. The dignity and culture of mankind lie in the exercise of this faculty. When this wondrous equipmrnt is left neglected, man is bound to deteriorate to the lower status of an animal and suffer the consequences thereof.

In our day-to-day experience in the present modern and civilized society, most of our actions are governed by the mind. We do a thing simply because we 'feel like' doing it. The intellect is generally divorced from the mind. Such actions are bound to be detrimental and dangerous to our welfare and prosperity.

The mind is like the 'receiving clerk' in an office. He collects the papers and put them up to the Officer-in-charge, for his direction and advice for disposal. If the clerk (mind) chooses to take action directly, without consulting the Officer (intellect), there is bound to be confusion and chaos in that organization.

The 'secret of success' behind all 'Men of Achievement' lies in the faculty of applying their intellect in all their activities. Religion offers the 'Techniques of Development' of this faculty and leaves the 'choice' to man to make or break himself and his progress.

The quality and texture of the 'mind-and-intellect' equipment in us depend upon our inherent and innate tendencies or inclinations called "Vaasanaas". By purifying and reforming the 'vaasanaas', the mind-and-intellect get properly tuned up and perfected.

'Vaasanaas' in sanskrit means 'Fragrance'. Each individual has vaasanaas, distinct and peculiar to him, and they constitute and define his individuality. These vaasanaas are the prime mover of all his actions. Man has the unique capacity to exercise his 'Self-Effort' in choosing his actions. By a persistent and prolonged application of this great faculty, every human being can correct and improve his vaasanaas and reach the pinnacle of perfection.

The Law of Karma.

The 'Law of Karma' is one of the most significant contributions of Vedaanta to humanity. It is a law based on pure scientific reasoning covering the past, the present and the future. Many hasty readers have misunderstood this law as a mere 'Law of Destiny', and condemned it as a pessimistic and ineffectual theory, dealing only with one's past experiences in life.

Man is what he is because of his past actions. That is, he is a product of an effect of his own 'karma'. This is the 'Principle of Destiny'. It may be concluded from this that man is a mere victim of his past actions, over which he has no control. Destiny or 'Praarabdha' forms only one aspect of the 'Law of Karma'. Man is gifted with the capacity to choose his present action, which is called 'Self-Effort' or 'Purushartha'. In other words, the sum total of all past 'Purushartha' will be equal to his present 'Praarabdha'. 'What' one meets in life is Destiny and 'How' one meets it is 'Self-Effort'.

The 'Law of Karma' goes a step ahead of the 'Law of Destiny' and states that the future lies in the control of man, since he has the capacity to change it by regulating his 'Self-Effort' from now on. Thus, if he had chosen the 'Path of the Pleasant' (Preyas) in the past, he can now choose the 'Path of Good' (Sreyas) by using his 'Self-Effort". The future, therefore, is a continuity of the past, modified in the present. The freedom to modify the past and to create a future, either for the better or for the worse, is 'Purushartha' or 'Self-Effort'. His 'Self-Effort', when exercised, mixes with his Destiny to bring about an effect, resultant of their combination.

The above idea is better understood with the following example: Compare the life with the sailing in a boat in the river. The rate of flow of water is 2 miles/hour. The boat also will have the same speed. Suppose we fit a motor to the boat with an independent speed of 10 miles/hour. Now, in the downward direction, you will have a combined speed of 10+2=12 miles/hour. Towards upstream, the speed will be 10-2=8 miles/hour. The speed is thus conditioned by the flow of the river (Praarabdha) positive or negative. Motor is the 'Self-Effort'.

Looking back at the past, man is the product of it. Looking into the future, man is a producer. At the present, he is a 'Product-cum-Producer', just as he is the son of his father and a father of his son as well, at one and the same time.

The 'Law of Karma' applies not only to an individual, but to a community, society or a nation as well. Again, its application is not restricted to the present lives, but embraces those of the past and the future. This law enables one to view life in its entirety, which provides a meaning, a purpose and a rhythm to existence.



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