Gita Chapter 12

Shlokas 13 and 14

13 – 14:  My devotee who hates none, who is a friend of all, is compassionate, unselfish, egoless, remains balanced in pain and pleasure, forgiving, ever satisfied, constantly engaged in spiritual practices, having control over mind and senses, has firm resolve, and has offered one’s mind and intellect to Me is my beloved one.

             In the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, he said, “There are certain signs of God-realization.  A man who longs for God is not far from attaining Him.  What are the outer indications of such longing?  They are discrimination, dispassion, compassion for living beings, serving holy men, loving their company, chanting God’s name and glories, telling the truth and the like.  When you see those signs in an aspirant, you can rightly say that for him the vision of God is not far to seek.”

            Sri Ramakrishna continued, “The state of a servant’s house will tell you unmistakably if his master has decided to visit it.  First, the rubbish and jungle around the house are cleared up.  Second, the soot and dirt are removed from the rooms.  Third, the courtyard, floors, and other places are swept clean.  Finally, the master himself sends various things to the house, such as a carpet, hubble-bubble for smoking, and the like.  When you see these things coming, you conclude that the master will very soon arrive.”

            Thus, when God is going to come to a person, one can see values like compassion and love for all, truthfulness, control over anger, lust and greed, and others manifesting through the person’s life. 

            Swami Vivekananda, in his lecture “Raja-Yoga in Brief,” describes the following characteristics (an excellent free translation of the shlokas 13 – 19 of Bhagavad Gita, chapter 12) and says that ‘Such a one becomes a yogi’.

            “He who hates none, who is the friend of all, who is merciful to all, who has nothing of his own, who is free from egotism, who is even-minded in pain and pleasure, who is forbearing, who is always satisfied, who is ever devoted to yoga, who self has become controlled, whose will is firm, whose mind and intellect are given unto Me – such a one is My Beloved Bhakta.

            “He from whom comes no disturbance, who cannot be disturbed by others, who is free from joy, fear, and anxiety – such a one is My beloved.

            “He who does not depend on anything, who is pure and active, who does not care whether goods comes or evil, and never becomes miserable, who has given up all efforts for hiself, who is the same in praise or in blame, silent and thoughtful, pleased with what comes his way, homeless, having the whole world for his home, and steady in his mind – such a one is My Beloved Bhakta.”

Here, in the following shlokas 13 1nd 14, Shri Krishna describes twelve characteristics or virtues. To acquire perfection in these characteristics is not easy. We have to make sincere efforts to practice them along with our spiritual practices of prayer, japa, meditation, reading scriptures, Holy Company, and others. If we make sincere efforts, then God comes to help us as parents help their children who are struggling to stand on their own feet and walk. These characteristics are interconnected. If we practice one, we will be practicing the others also.

(1)  One who hates none:  Hatred is an anti-love feeling.  Religious fanatics hate people of other religions.  Many times people hate others who are not of their type in color, shape, or behavior. People hate others because they see them as obstacles to achieving their selfish motives.  People hate others when they misbehave towards them, or according to them, they do not fit their standards.  People cannot appreciate other people’s achievements, and so out of jealousy they hate them. People hate even good people because in front of them they look inferior.  However, people who hate others are not aware that they are giving these people a very special place in their minds. Nothing much happens to the people who were hated, but the haters suffer from mental problems and cannot take the best advantage of their minds.   

            Shri Krishna mentioned that the very first requirement to be a devotee is to hate none.  We may disagree with others, but that should not be a cause of hatred.  According to Shri Krishna, even if a person, like Arjuna, is forced into a battlefield to fight for the right cause, he/she should not hate others.  The usual practice for any army leader is to create strong hatred in the minds of their army before going to war. This way, they justify the killings of their enemies.  

Shri Krishna’s teaching to Arjuna is to perform his duty as a responsible army leader who was forced to go to war, but not to hate the people on the other side. In society, many people are expected to perform their responsibilities without hating people who are involved. For example, judges are not supposed to hate when they announce punishment to the offenders; teachers need not hate students when they give failing grades; nor are parents expected to hate their children when they ground them.   

            It is easy to chant God’s name round the clock for a day or two, to memorize the whole Bhagavad Gita and give lectures on it or write about it, but it is very difficult not to hate anyone.  However, it is not impossible to attain a state of absence of hatred.  There are several examples of people like Sri Ramakrishna, Holy Mother Sri Saradadevi, Swami Vivekananda, Mahatma Gandhi, and many Saints who practiced not to hate anyone, and they did achieve a state in which they hated none. 

Hatred divides people.  It creates negative and disturbing thoughts in our minds.  In the state of hatred, we cannot see things clearly and cannot think straight.  Hatred is a disease which keeps growing within our minds and finally destroys us.  Even for peace of mind, we should not hate anyone.

How to remove hatred?  Hatred comes from ignorance.  Many times when we know more about people whom we hate, we change our opinions and stop hating them.   Love removes hatred.  When one realizes Oneness with others, then hatred goes away.  If we know all are children of the same Father/ Mother (God), then sensible people love all as their brothers and sisters and do not hate anyone.  We should try to open our minds and allow ourselves to understand other people’s minds, the causes of their behaviors, and their faiths and cultures. Oneness comes when we realize that we all look different, but behind these varieties, there is only One Existence (call It Atman, Brahman, God, or Pure Consciousness). After this realization, one does not hate anyone.       

(2)  Who is a friend of all:  Suppose someone does not hate anyone, but he/she remains aloof and unconcerned about all.  Is that a better state of mind?  That is like becoming a stone, or an inert object.  Shri Krishna does not want a devotee to become a stone.  Therefore, immediately He says “is a friend of all.”  We have to build up a friendly relationship with all. 

Who is a true friend? A famous proverb says, “A friend in need is a friend indeed.”  A friend identifies himself/herself with his/her friend.  A friend is happy in his/her friend’s happiness and sad in his/her miseries.  A friend is one who puts aside one’s selfish interests and goes out of his/her way to help a friend.  A friend also constantly wishes for the good of his/her friend.  On the other hand, a friend will not be afraid to tell his/her friend an unpleasant truth for his/her good.   

            There are many examples of a true friendship.  One example that comes to my mind is of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.  He was an expert in “Nyaya Philosophy,” the logic of modern times.  He had his own school of philosophy, and students used to come from far distances to learn from him.  He wrote a book on this philosophy and decided to read it to his friend, who was capable of understanding the material.  Sri Chaitanya and his friend rented a boat, and he started reading his manuscript.  As Sri Chaitanya was reading, his friend was responding positively to the manuscript material.  At one point Sri Chaitanya became so engrossed in reading his book that he stopped noticing whether his friend was responding or not.  After some time, when Sri Chaitanya realized that his friend had stopped responding for a while, he looked up.  To his amazement, he found that his friend was profusely crying.  Sri Chaitanya was concerned and asked his friend the reason for his crying.  His friend was reluctant to tell the reason.  Upon much request from Sri Chaitanya, His friend said, “I am sorry to say this.  I am also writing a book on Nyaya Philosophy, the same subject.  But now I realized that after copies of your book being circulated, no one is going to read my book.”  Sri Chaitanya said, “O my friend!  Is that all?  For such a trivial matter, you should not be so sad.  You are my friend, and I love you more than my book.”  By saying this, Sri Chaitanya threw his handwritten manuscript into the river.  He then went to his friend and lovingly embraced him.  His friend could not believe that Sri Chaitanya’s love for him surpassed the desire for name, fame, and all future benefits.  The world lost the book on Nyaya Philosophy, but found a great Saint Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.

            Can we love all? Should we love all?  Sri Ramakrishna says that there is God in a tiger, but we cannot go and embrace the tiger. We have to salute ‘Tiger God’ from a distance. We have to avoid evil company and seek good and holy company. As a spiritual practice, we first try to see God in good people, and then, as we progress towards God or Brahman, we will start seeing God in all, good and evil people. Also, as we spiritually progress, from intuition, we will know how to behave with all people, without hatred and full of love.

            Without experiencing ‘Oneness of Existence’, such love is not possible.  Such love is not possible by loving individually, one person after another person.  When we go closer to God or Atman or Brahman, we naturally go closer to all, and such love for all comes spontaneously from within. 

(3)  Who is compassionate to all:  Compassion comes when we identify ourselves with people’s pain and suffering.  Compassion also includes concrete efforts to remove the sufferings of others once they are realized.  Naturally we have compassion for those whom we love or whom we consider our own.  But, Shri Krishna wants us to have compassion for all. 

After attaining Nirvana, a stage of cessation of all sufferings, a thought came in Lord Buddha’s mind to go out and tell all people how to get rid of their sufferings. But counter thoughts came in his mind: ‘Are people really interested in removing their sufferings and attaining Nirvana?’ ‘Who would listen to him?’ etc. As we read in the literature, finally, Lord Buddha’s compassionate heart won, and he decided to go out and teach people how to attain Nirvana and remove all sufferings of life. He helped people for forty years.  Jesus Christ was compassionate to all.  He gave up his life to help remove the sufferings of people.  We find that all great Saints and teachers of humanity were compassionate, and they sacrificed their own pleasures and comforts to remove the sufferings of all.  Sri Ramakrishna was suffering from throat cancer, but he kept on guiding his disciples to remove their sufferings and the sufferings of the world.  Swami Vivekananda wore out his robust body to remove the sufferings of the world and died at a young age of 39.  Mahatma Gandhi gave up his comforts to remove the sufferings of others. In Holy Mother’s life we find many examples of her compassion.         

            Compassion comes from Oneness, being one with all people.  Once a fisherman was beating another fisherman with a stick on his bare back.  Sri Ramakrishna saw this from a distance.  He identified himself with the victim’s pain so much that red marks appeared on his back.  If my left hand is hurt, the right hand will do everything possible to remove the pain of the left hand because it feels that both are parts of the same person.  Thus, a devotee feels that all beings, including animals and plants, are parts of him/her-self, and the pain of anyone is his/her pain.  This does not come through intellectual knowledge.  When a devotee makes spiritual progress, then he/she realizes that all beings are not different from him/her-self.  Then, they feel other people’s pain and make efforts to remove it.  This becomes as natural as a hand immediately rushes to the face when it is bitten by a mosquito. 

(4)  Who has given up “Me and My-ness”:   Some people think that if we get rid of “Me and My-ness,” then we cannot build self-confidence, which is very important for worldly success.  It is good to teach children that ‘You are something special!” and build up their self-confidence.  Youngsters who lack self-confidence develop a syndrome of inferiority complex and consequently mental problems. Thus, self-confidence is very important for success in any field.   

But, what is self-confidence?  Is it confidence in our physical bodies?  We call our bodies ours.  But we have no control over our births, including their places and time.  We were not consulted to decide who will be our parents, what will be our gender, and the types of our physical and mental structures.  We cannot decide how long we are going to live.  We have no control over our body systems like digestive, blood-pumping, comprehending faculties, and others.  Maybe not having control over them is a blessing.  Otherwise, we will interfere in their functions and die quickly.  We were not consulted about what kind of mind and brains we would have.  In this situation, what is the “self” for which we are confident?  Sages and Saints say that our “true self” or “Self” is our Atman or soul, which is divine.  The Atman is beyond our bodies and minds.  The Atman is the witness consciousness.  Its nature is the core of our existence or Consciousness, the Knower of all, and the ever-blissful.  Once we realize this Self, then and only then will we have real Self-confidence.  The confidence built on our bodies and minds and their related things will crumble down in the storm of doubts, reason, and problems of life.  The confidence built on our Atman remains immovable in any physical and mental storm.  We have seen the powers of Saints and Sages.  All these powers come from the power of Atman.   Giving up “Me and My-ness” means giving up the “false self” which consists of body and mind and establishing the “true Self” which is Atman.     

            Everything belongs to God.  It is a foolish idea to think that “I am such and such an individual and all these things belong to me.”  Since we have no control over ourselves, we should not even bother to think about controlling others, whom we label as ‘ours.’  That is why scriptures and Saints call this delusion of ‘me and mine’ as false attachment.  When we are attached to people, we go overboard in worrying about them, we try to possess them, and control them.  We get upset when we cannot control people whom we call “ours.”  Maturity is a state in which we realize that everything is created by God, sustained by God, and sooner or later will be taken away from us by God.  Once we realize this fact, then we come to our senses and behave respectfully and talk wisely. 

Sri  Ramakrishna said, “A man becomes liberated even in this life when he knows that God is the Doer of all things.  Once Keshab came here with Sambhu Mallick.  I said to him, ‘Not even a leaf moves except by God’s will.’  Where is man’s free will?  All are under God’s will.  Therefore I say: ‘O Mother, I am the machine and Thou art the Operator;  I am the chariot and Thou art the Driver.  I move as Thou movest me;  I do as Thou makest me do.’”  If God is the doer, then why and how should we work?  Sri Ramakrishna is not teaching us to become inactive and lazy in the name of God.  That will be a total misunderstanding of his teachings.  He tells us how, knowing the above truth, we should work in the world.

            Sri Ramakrishna said, “I tell people that there is nothing wrong in the life of the world.  But, they must live in the world as a maidservant lives in her master’s house. …Pointing out her master’s house to others, she says,‘This is our house,’ but in her heart she knows very well that it does not belong to her and that her own house is in a far-away village.  She brings up her master’s son and says, ‘My Hari has grown very naughty,’ or ‘My Hari doesn’t like sweets.’  Though she repeats ‘My Hari’ with her lips, yet she knows in her heart that Hari doesn’t belong to her, that he is her master’s son.  Thus, I say to those who visit me: ‘Why don’t you live in the world?  There is no harm in that.  But, always keep your mind on God.  Know for certain that house, family, and property are not yours.  They are God’s.  Your real home is in God.’  Also, I ask them to pray always with a longing heart for love of God’s lotus Feet.” 

(5)  Who is egoless:  Ego is a false pride which harms oneself and others.  This false pride could be of one or more of the following worldly things: education, wealth, worldly possessions, name and fame, heredity, physical appearance, strength, power, people, and others.  When the mind is possessed by ego, then a person magnifies one’s achievements (if there are any) and undermines others’ achievements or almost becomes blind to them.  This disproportionality of worldly achievements creates conflicts between the egotistic person and other people.  Such conflicts end up in painful and harmful activities and ultimately lead to self-destruction of the egotist.  Thus, becoming egotistic is an invitation to self-destruction.  This equally applies to an individual, to a society, and to a country.  Self-dignity and Self-confidance are different than ego.  True Self-dignity and Self-confidence do not harm anyone. Ego may appear as a false humility telling all that “I am very humble.”

            It is very difficult to control ego with mere intellectual efforts.  Sri Ramakrishna says that if you cut ego today, then it sprouts up again the next day.  Therefore, Sri Ramakrishna advised developing a ‘ripe ego.’  He said that unripe ego is the ego of worldly possessions, including body and mind.  The ‘ripe ego’ says, “I am a devotee of God.  I must practice values, take the name of God, and not harm anyone.  I cannot do wicked things.’ The ripe ego is mainly for self-discipline and inspiration for oneself to make spiritual development.  It checks the devotee from participating in unethical or harmful activities. The ripe ego is based upon the Self or Atman or one’s own potential divinity hidden within. With the help of ripe ego, a devotee focuses one’s mind and intellect on God and channels one’s energy in making spiritual progress.  Since the ‘ripe ego’ is a confidence in the Self, it evaporates after the spiritual progress of an aspirant.  Then one is not even aware that one is good.  Sri Ramakrishna says that God keeps a little ego in Saints like Shukadeva, Shankaracharya, and others to teach others through them. Such ego is harmless.

We can also check our ego by renouncing the results of our actions to God, thinking that everything belongs to God and we are fortunate to enjoy the results of our actions as ‘prasad,’ a gift of God given to us after our offering. Naturally, when one starts acquiring true knowledge, one becomes humble, and the person’s ego disappears. 

                Finally, we should remember that the subtle ego is called a seed of ignorance that separates us from the Infinite Reality or God.  This subtle ego disappears only in a state of Samadhi, a state of God-realization, or the union of oneself with Self or Atman.  Our ripe ego takes us to God within, and it finally disappears in the state of Samadhi.  

(6)  Who remains balanced in pain and pleasure:  When favorable things happen, we are happy, and when unfavorable things happen, we become sad.  Many favorable things may not be beneficial to us.  Some of the favorable things may even harm us.  But the mind has its plans to be happy.  These plans are created out of various desires picked up from the subconscious mind or from the company of people or from experiences.  If pure or unbiased intellect controls the desires of the mind, then all harmful or unnecessary desires can be eliminated. 

            We crave happiness, but do we ever analyze what kind of happiness we are seeking?  Sri Krishna describes three kinds of happiness in Bhagavad Gita (18.36-39).  He said that the superior joy is the one which springs from the realization of Atman after a long practice of self-discipline.  The efforts of self-discipline and spiritual practice give pain in the beginning like poison, but later it gives joy like nectar.  Such joy removes all the sorrows from one’s life.  The mediocre joy springs from the fulfillment of the sense pleasures.  It is pleasurable in the beginning, but it brings suffering with its consequences.  The inferior pleasure is derived from torturing oneself and others.  It is painful in the beginning, in the middle, and at the end. 

            As we start analyzing the causes of our pain and pleasure, we know more about our thinking patterns and thus get control over our mind.   This eventually helps us keep our mind balanced in pain and pleasure.  For a devotee, the goal of life is realization of God, or the immediate goal is to make spiritual progress.  Thus, for a devotee, anything that takes him/her away from God will be painful, and whatever takes him/her towards God will be pleasurable. 

It has been found that most of the time, sense pleasures make people forget God.  Such pleasures intensify the body consciousness and increase more and more desires to repeat these experiences and intensify them.  Also, when such desires are not fulfilled, then one feels intense pain.  On the other hand, when pain comes, people remember God.  They complain to God.  Not many praise God when they are happy.  If we examine the lives of great people, we find that pain has taught them more than pleasure.  We do not crave pain, but if it comes, we have to learn something from it.  A great devotee and Saint Kabir says, “People remember God when they are in pain.  No one remembers God when one is happy.  If one remembers God in happiness, then one will not feel pain.”  My interpretation is that when one remembers God in happiness, then one develops love for God and for him/her it will be easy to go through pain by holding on to God. 

Keeping the balance in pain and pleasure means not to deviate from the goal of God-realization in any situation.  For a devotee, it is least important whether his/her body and mind are getting sense pleasures or not.  For him/her, going away from God is a most painful moment and remaining in the presence of God is a most pleasurable moment.

(7)  Who is forgiving:  The famous proverb is “To err is human, but to forgive is divine.”  We all make mistakes, and from mistakes we learn.  A situation of forgiveness arises when we have the power to punish someone who has committed a mistake, but we choose not to.  A person does not even think to forgive because of one’s ego.  Sri Ramakrishna gave an example of an egotistic person.  Suppose a thief has stolen a ten-rupee bill from this person.  This egotistic person will catch the thief, take away his ten-rupee bill, beat him up, call the police, and make sure that the thief goes to jail.  He will say, ‘The thief does not know whose ten-rupee bill he has stolen!’ As soon as we see someone’s mistake, our ego senses some sort of superiority and enjoys looking down on this person.  We forget that we probably have made or possibly will make worse mistakes than this person.  In this world, everyone is a saint unless one gets caught doing an unsaintly thing. 

            Forgiveness is not an excuse to avoid our responsibilities.  For example, if judges forgive all criminals, or teachers forgive all failing students, or parents forgive their children who have done something horribly wrong, then they are not performing their responsibilities.  This will not be forgiveness.  Judges, teachers, parents, and others in similar positions should perform their responsibilities to help the involved people improve and thus help society.  Forgiveness should not cover our attachment.  Parents easily forgive their own children, but have a hard time forgiving others’ children.  Shri Krishna is talking to practice forgiveness towards all people.

            Forgiveness comes naturally when one loves all people dearly as oneself.  We may have to bear the pain in order to forgive.  There is an extreme story of bearing pain to forgive.  A Saint was taking a bath in a river and saw a scorpion drowning.  He lifted it up in his palm to take it to the bank.  But the scorpion bit him in the palm.  The Saint could not hold it in his palm.  He saw the scorpion drowning again.  The Saint again lifted it up, and again the scorpion bit him.  When the Saint was ready to pick it up third time a person from the bank of the river shouted, “Why are you trying to save this creature whose nature is bite people?”  The Saint replied, “This scorpion is not giving up its nature, then why should I give up my nature?”  This is an extreme example.  We may not be able to reach this highest state of forgiveness, but we may start forgiving people who have insulted us or behaved rudely towards us.

            Forgiving nature keeps our mind in peace.  If we do not forgive and keep grievances against all people who have done something wrong against us, then our minds will be filled with angry thoughts.  Whenever our minds are without any work, all these grievances and angry thoughts keep repeating in our minds.  The insults will keep repeating.  Thus, we will not be insulted only once, but thousands of times.  The pain will start affecting our mental peace and our physical health.  If we forgive the person who insulted us and pray for the good of the person, then we are out of the thoughts of the insult.  The alternative to forgiveness is punishment, vengeance, or revenge.  The idea of punishment and revenge multiplies the intensity of hatred in the mind, which ultimately creates disturbances.  Only love and forgiveness stop all these disturbances of the mind.  A devotee whose goal is spiritual progress and realization of God cannot afford to waste time and physical and mental energy on negative, temporary, and trivial matters.  If we hate a person, then that person occupies part of our mind.  A devotee does not want anyone occupying one’s mind except God.  Therefore, from the divine and practical point of view, forgiveness is a great virtue to practice.

(8)  Who is ever satisfied:  Worldly satisfactions come when we receive worldly benefits matching our expectations.  Those who crave very high worldly expectations, and those who keep multiplying their expectations, will never be satisfied no matter what worldly benefits they get.  Many times we cover our greed by nice names like ‘dream of life,’ ‘raising the bar,’ ‘higher standard of living,’ and others.  These things are good to develop our body, mind and intellect.  But if we do not check our worldly desires, wants, expectations, and greed, then the same things which helped us to develop our body, mind, and intellect will break them to pieces.  It has been proved again and again in human lives that material gain does not give us peace and satisfaction of mind.  Material gain gives little satisfaction and comfort to our body and mind, but immediately our desires, wants, and greed multiply our dissatisfaction a thousand times.  Thus, in the end, our satisfaction becomes almost negligible compared to our dissatisfaction, and as a consequence, no matter how much material benefits we gain, we remain always dissatisfied. 

            A devotee reasons all this and finds out that worldly benefits bring some comforts to the body and senses, but they cannot bring satisfaction and peace of mind.  It cannot answer all the fundamental questions of life, can never make a person fearless, and cannot make a person happy within.  Only the awareness of Atman or God within brings peace and satisfaction.  Only this awareness answers all the fundamental questions of life and removes all the doubts of the mind.  Only this awareness makes a person fearless and free in this world.  As a result, a devotee works hard in the world, but gets satisfied with whatever one gets in return. 

            If this idea of satisfaction is misunderstood, then there is a possibility that a person becomes lazy and unproductive.  A devotee is highly active and most productive.  Shri Krishna says (Gita 3.22-23), “O Partha (Arjuna)! I have no responsibilities in the three worlds.  There is nothing I want to obtain which I have not obtained.  Still, I constantly work.  If I do not work constantly, then people will follow my example (and thus become lazy).”  It is clear that Shri Krishna, by the word ‘ever satisfied ’, does not mean to be lazy or unproductive.  A devotee has to be careful not to set up a wrong example in the universe. 

Then, how could we reconcile working hard and remain ever satisfied?  A devotee lives a simple worldly life, meaning his/her worldly wants are minimal.  His/her clothes, food, entertainment, worldly pleasures and possessions are minimal.  Mahatma Gandhi has said, “Live simply so that others may simply live.”  Craving for more and more may be depriving others of their fair share.

A devotee works hard in the world to fulfill his/her responsibilities, demands money, brings out the best skill lying in him/her, but his/her livelihood is satisfied with minimum money and comforts.  The rest of the money or resources he/she will give back to society as charity or selfless service.  A devotee is constantly aware that his/her ultimate goal is spiritual progress and God-realization.  Therefore, gain or loss in worldly benefits does not disturb the devotee’s mind.  A devotee will accept whatever the results come as  “prasad,” a gift of God.  Even after working hard, he/she is fully aware that the result is in the hands of God and accepts the gain or loss as a gift of God.   

            A devotee is ever satisfied with the worldly gain or loss, but is dissatisfied if he/she cannot make spiritual progress.  In the matter of spirituality, he/she is just like any worldly person who is desiring the highest gain.  A devotee will not be satisfied with the spiritual progress until he/she realizes the Atman or God within.

(9)  Who is constantly engaged in spiritual practices:  It is good to begin spiritual practices with a little prayer in the morning and evening and occasionally visiting temples or listening to spiritual discourses.  But it is not enough if one wants to experience the spiritual benefits described in the scriptures.  Just repeating alphabets and not studying the language further, one cannot enjoy the beautiful poetry and have varied experiences produced by literature in that language.  Morning and evening prayer and visiting a temple or listening to spiritual discourses should inspire a person to go further on the spiritual path. 

            Progress in any worldly skill is related to the development of a part of the human mind, while spiritual progress is related to the development of the whole mind.  It is related to every thought we think, every word we utter, and every action we perform.  Thus, it is related to all the layers of the mind: conscious, sub-conscious, and beyond.  Therefore, as one makes spiritual progress, one understands that spiritual practices are 24/7/365 activities.  Neither one should get scared by this fact, nor should one ignore this fact. 

One may ask, ‘Do partial spiritual practices have benefits?’  Shri Krishna answers this question in the Gita (2.40). He says, “In this (spiritual practices) no effort is ever lost, and no harm is incurred (as a bad consequence).  Even a little practice of this Yoga protects one from the great fear (of death and others).”  When Arjuna asked Shri Krishna (Gita 6.37-38), ‘What happens to a spiritual seeker who is endowed with faith, but is not steadfast in Yoga and whose mind wanders away from Yoga without attaining perfection?  O Mahabaho (Shri Krishna)! Does he/she, as fallen from both, unsupported, and bewildered in the path of Brahman, perish like a riven cloud?”  Shri Krishna answers (Gita 6.40), “O Son (Arjuna)! Such a person does not get destroyed in this life or the next.  No grief comes to a person who does something good (some spiritual practice).”  Then Shri Krishna elaborates further, saying that if a person dies without attaining perfection or God-realization, then he/she is born in a family in which he/she gets a favorable environment, and then he/she continues the spiritual practices where it was left.  Thus, no spiritual practice is wasted.  Shri Ramakrishna says that on a hot summer day, when one is heading towards an ocean, one feels the cool breeze of the water, listens to the noise of the birds, and smells the water.  Similarly, as we make spiritual progress, we see many benefits such as peace of mind, satisfaction, clarity in understanding of ourselves and others, and control over ourselves and others.  The spiritual path is a great path.  There is nothing to lose, but so much to gain. 

            If we want the highest knowledge, unbroken bliss, and fearlessness, then we have to devote ourselves completely to spiritual practices.  It is not that we have to constantly sit and meditate or keep singing God’s glories.  We can be working like a normal human being and do 24/7/365 spiritual practices.  This is the reason we have four Yogas, namely Karma Yoga (Yoga of Action), Jnana Yoga (Yoga of discrimination and dispassion), Raja Yoga (Yoga of self-control and meditation) and Bhakti Yoga (Yoga of love for God).  Combining all these Yogas, one can work and remain in the world like a normal person, but transform everything into spiritual practices.  The motive of the work is important.  It has to be changed into a spiritual motive.  Then, we perform our responsibilities, but they become spiritual practices. We can also do this by simply offering all the results of our actions to God. As Shri Krishna said, peace immediately follows such renunciation.

(10)  Who has self-control:  Control on one’s senses and mind is needed for any success, whether it is worldly or spiritual.  In worldly success, partial control on the mind and senses may be enough, but that is not the case in the spiritual matter.  To attain the spiritual goal, one needs complete control over one’s mind and senses.  If we do not have control, then we lose whatever we have gained through spiritual practices.  If there are holes at the bottom of a pale, then no matter how much water we pour into, the pale will not get filled.  Having no control over our minds and senses, we do improper acts and create unfavorable thoughts in the mind which hinder our spiritual progress.  Shri Krishna said (Gita 6.36), “In my opinion, Yoga is extremely difficult to attain by a person who does not have self-control.  But, it can be attained by one who has self-control and who strives by right means.”  He also repeated this fact in (Gita 15.11), “The Yogis (who have self-control) realize the Atman within through efforts, but the undisciplined and thoughtless do not realize this Atman even though they make efforts.”

            To obtain total self-control is a long process.  But it is not impossible.  If we are determined and get proper guidance, then through constant efforts and the grace of God we can attain self-control.  We also learn so much about ourselves and our minds from these efforts.  Prayer also helps in gaining control over ourselves.  We have deep impressions of our past thoughts, speech, and actions.  They do not go away immediately.  But, by counter thoughts, counter speech, and counter actions, we make progress in self-control.  If we had run around for useless worldly hankering, now we have to run around for spiritual hankering.  If we had spoken harsh words and spent time in gossip, now we have to use gentle words filled with selfless love and sing God’s glories.  If we had spent time in dreaming and planning for worldly pleasures, now we have to spend time in thinking and planning for spiritual progress and to attain spiritual goals. All our thoughts, speech, and actions have to be integrated to one goal in life, which is God-realization.

(11)  Who has a firm resolve:  In Kathopanishad Lord Yama says, “Knowledgeable people tell that the spiritual path is an extremely difficult path.  It is as difficult as walking on the edge of a razor blade.”  We want to attain the highest that a human being can attain in human life.  Therefore, it is understood that the path will not be an easy path.  There are many obstacles in the path.

            In general, there are three kinds of obstacles:  (1) Obstacles in the form of natural disasters such as earthquack, tornado, flooding, femine and others, (2)  Obstacles from the people and body such as family problems, job problems, ill health, disease and others, and (3) Obstacles from our own mind, such as doubts, lack of inspiration, resistance of the mind and others.  Among these, the third kind of obstacles are major ones.  Most of the time, the nature, job, and family members are favorable or semi-favorable, but the third kind of obstacles throw us off from our spiritual path.  As soon as a person starts spiritual practices, one’s own mind creates a stream of thoughts against the resolve of spiritual practices.  The mind feels that it is going to lose its worldly charms.  The old impressions which have occupied the mind for many years and lives resist the new spiritual impressions.  In this situation, a person with a strong will wins the war.

A simple spiritual resolve may not help.  One needs a resolve like Buddha.  He sat under a Bodhi tree and made a resolve that ‘I am not going to get up from here until I attain Nirvana.  Either my body will drop dead, or I attain Nirvana.’  His mind created a tremendous storm within, but his resolve did not let him quit.  We all know that after this resolve, he did attain the Nirvana.  Such resolve came after a series of efforts and renunciation of the obstacles.       

            Our spiritual resolve becomes stronger when we understand the importance and necessity of spiritual progress and the spiritual goal.  Such understanding inspires us to do our spiritual practices regularly and gives us strength to hold on to them.  A firm resolve comes from a firm conviction. Company of people who have a firm conviction that the goal of human life is to realize God or one’s own divinity helps us. Regular spiritual practices such as prayer, japa and meditation, study of scriptures, holy company, reflecting upon the teachings of the scriptures and of holy people, make us understand the importance of the spiritual goal.  Ultimately we have to work with our minds’ resistance and lack of enthusiasm.  Once the mind is convinced, then our spiritual progress takes speed.  Shri Ramakrishna says that when one becomes restless to see God, then one realizes God.

(12)  Who has offered one’s mind and intellect to Me (God): The spiritual path is mostly related to the mind and intellect.  The body is just an instrument.  The body moves around according to the plans of the mind and intellect.  How do we know that we have offered our mind and intellect to God?  In the world, a slave offers his/her body and part of mind and intellect to his/her master.  But it is a forced choice.  A slave has not experienced freedom.  Once a person enjoys freedom, he/she does not want to be a slave.  In the spiritual path, one offers body, mind, and intellect to God to be free from worldly slavery.  We are slaves of our lust, greed, anger, jealousy, and attachment.  How do we become free from all these by offering our body, mind, and intellect to God? 

            First, we have to think about what we mean by offering our mind and intellect to God.  When we offer mind and intellect to God, then we think from God’s point of view, not ours.  One thinks ‘I should not do this, because God will not like it,’ and ‘I must do this because God will be happy if I do.’  The danger in this attitude is that we may get prompted by our worldly desires and transform them into Godly desires.  That is why we have to make all efforts to have Holy company, to study scriptures, to reflect on the teachings of Holy people and scriptures, do japa, and meditation.  Through these efforts we develop a sense of discrimination, called “Viveka,” which clearly separates the worldly desires from the Godly desires.  Our offered mind and intellect tell us which thoughts, speech, and actions take us towards God and which ones take us away from God.  Now God is the master, and to please God is the most important thing in life than anything else.  Living like this, all the actions of a devotee become worship of God.  Now there is no personal desire left.  When a devotee offers mind and intellect to God, then he/she is transformed into God.  One can feel God’s presence in the thought, speech, and action.  Shri Ramakrishna says that one should develop a relationship with God, such as God is my father or mother and I am His/Her child, God is my friend, God is my lover, God is my child, and God is my master.  Among all these relationships, the master-servant relationship is the best.  Great devotee Hanumanji has such a relationship with Lord Rama.

            When we offer our mind and intellect to God, then we do not have a feeling of ‘Me and Mine’ and of doership. Such a devotee thinks that everything belongs to God. ‘Me and Mine’ changes into ‘Thee and Thine’. Also, one realizes that God is the doer of everything. Such a devotee lives in the world joyfully and without any fear. He/she is aware that God is taking care of him/her.