Following the Path of Dharma will always lead One to Victory

Discourse of Sathya Sai Baba during the Summer Course in Spirituality and Indian Culture
held for College Students at Brindavan, Whitefield, Bangalore District in May/June 1974
Published by Sri Sathya Sai Books and Publications Trust
Web posted at Jun 20, 2002

When the mind which is comparable to a root gets destroyed, then the big tree of nature will fall. Thereafter man's desires grow in the form of big horns. This is the bare truth that I am telling you.

Premaswarupas, students, boys and girls! Today Veda which is the embodiment of the Mantras and the Brahmanas will be described by one of its many names and that is 'Prusni'. This sacred word Prusni has an inner meaning and through this inner meaning, it has been giving prosperity to the entire world. Prusni has got a meaning which indicates cleanliness, the cleanliness of the Anthakarana. The correct meaning for this word is clean, clear and unwavering. On the basis of the meaning of this word, many Rishis have been getting different kinds of strength from the Mantras. The Mantras are sacred and faultless and because of this, they are called by the name Prusni. By uttering these faultless Mantras, great Rishis were also described by the name Prusni. What is made up of such sacred Mantras is the Veda Rasi and therefore the Veda which is a conglomeration of such Mantras is also called by the name Prusni. The basis for this Veda Rasi is the aspect of Brahman and this has also been called by the name Prusni. Off and on, when we try to understand the real inner meaning and significance of this word Prusni, we realise that it represents everything that is faultless and everything that is clean and clear. The Maharshis who had mastered the Mantras and the Vedas will also be called Prusni and they have furnished the appropriate meaning for the word Prusni. Because these words signify the establishment of the clear and clean aspect of the Parabrahma, this word also refers to God in the common parlance.

There is another equivalent word for this Prusni and this is 'Ajaha'. Because our Rishis have been able to attain a stage without birth and death by uttering such sacred and faultless Mantras, they were also called Ajaha. Every individual who does Karma is after the fruits of work which he does. On the other hand the wise people, because of their wisdom, do not look for the fruit of their work but do it for the benefit and prosperity of humanity and because of this they are called Ajahas. One can get wisdom out of doing Karma but we have to understand that wise people undertake action for the benefit of the ignorant and whatever action they do it is for the sake of setting an example or an ideal to follow for the ignorant people. Because the sacred Rishis could hear the sacred word of the Veda through their Tapas and because of this they could also hear the sacred Mantras and hence they were sometimes called Tapoja. Because these sacred words of the Veda could be listened to only through the strength and the power of Tapas, these words have also been called Brihaspati, Vakpati and Vachaspati. The sacred words which could be heard because of the power of Rishis were described by these names.

The origin for these faultless Mantras has been Brahman himself and therefore Brahaman is also described as Prusni Garbha and it is not possible for such a sacred Brahman to have any faults. In fact, it is not possible for us to find any quality in Brahman which is a fault. We have the authority of the word 'Rasovaisaha' which is a description of the Lord. Out of Rasa, we can get only Rasa, that is, out of Brahman, who is full of Rasa, we can get only Rasa and nothing else. Therefore, what has originated from such a Brahman, namely the entire universe must be viewed as Brahman Himself. But what has originated from Brahman - faultless aspects of all creation which have come out of Brahman - if it is compared with what originates from us which is often full of faults, we find that there is no comparison at all.

In order that we may understand this aspect of Brahman, we have ourselves to reach a stage which corresponds to that aspect. We have made a statement that Rishis have acquired this aspect of Prusni with the help of Tapas. We have to ask ourselves whether they have by their power of Tapas outlined something which does not exist or whether they have revealed to themselves something which already exists. It is not possible for anyone to find something which does not already exist. What already exists has been learnt by the power of the Tapas. One can reveal the existence of something which already exists. In the same manner, we can try and understand something which already exists but no one can comprehend what does not already exist. The Rishis have understood this faultless aspect of the Brahman by means of their Tapas which only means that they have uncovered this faultless aspect of Brahman which already exists. It does not mean that they have uncovered something which does not already exist. There is a small example for this.

When one enters the elementary classes, one learns the alphabet A, B, C, D. While starting with this, we learn to combine these letters into words. The twenty-six letters can thus be grouped to form different words. When we undertake to compose one word God, we have to group three of the existing twenty-six letters to form the required letter. There is a very subtle aspect which we have to comprehend fully here. In forming this word God, we must ask ourselves whether we have used the letters which already exist in the language or whether we have used new alphabet in forming this word God. When we look at this with some care, we realise that our effort was only in picking up some letters and constituting them into a word like God. Taking the words Prusni, Apishtuhu, Thistuhum, we see that we are taking them out of the Mantras and by constituting them together we form another Mantra. In the same manner and as in this analogy, from what already exists in us in the form of divine strength, namely the aspect of Brahman, we pick up things and formulate other Sadhanas which go by the names Dhyana, Yoga, or Mantra. We are able to do this only by combining what already exists in us. We are observing the already existing divine aspect in some form. The form depends on the time, circumstances and on the country in which one is and after a certain time has passed, one may change this aspect because of change in environment, culture or country.

At one time, on a particular piece of land you may see that there is nothing green in it and on another day you may see that there is rain and as a result of the rain there may be green vegetation in its place. Barren land on which there was nothing green becomes green because of rain and because of seeds which were there already. What was present as latent seeds has now sprouted and become a green pasture. What is present in you as a desire in the form of a seed and out of this seed of desire sprouts a small plant which is your mind and out of this small plant namely the mind we get a big tree. Out of this big tree, we are attempting to get fruits and flowers. As in the analogy, out of the seed of Karma, action and work you will have to grow the plant of Upasana and through the plant of Upasana, you have to grow the tree of wisdom and from this tree of wisdom you can get the fruits and flowers namely Ananda or bliss. Therefore, what you find as the aspect of Brahman as a result of your strength and Tapas is not something which was not already present in you. In fact, it is something already present but latent and unseen. The Tapas simply uncovers what is already there.

For Prusni in this context there is another name 'Devayuvam'. This alternative word has come because people constantly fixed their mind on Deva. The Maharshis have also used the word 'Devayuvam' for the same thing. The meaning of this word is to have your objective as God and fix your attention on God and reach a stage when you regard yourself and God as identical and that stage is called Devayuvam. Thus, while having the aspect of God, the aspect of Brahman and the aspect of faultless Mantras within ourselves to spend our time as if we are ordinary human beings and on several occasions less than human beings, that is, as if we are animals, is a very wasteful effort.

'Veda Iti Dharmadi Itihi Vedaha' simply means that whatever expounds Dharma is Veda. In ordinary parlance it is also said 'Veda Ititi Vedaha'. The meaning of this is that what explains to you the meaning is Veda. However it is not clear what it is that the Veda explains. Whatever cannot be known by Pratyaksha Pramana or by direct evidence or by inference is that which Vedas will tell you and that is the aspect of the Parabrahma.

Because Veda tells you something which cannot be understood by either direct evidence or inferential evidence, these two aspects are called Dharma and Moksha. Of the four aspects Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha - Artha and Kama are matters which relate to the world or they are worldly transactions. We are attaching importance to Artha and Kama which are the common transactions in the routine world and we are neglecting Dharma and Moksha which are the divine aspects. Today what we see in the daily life as direct evidence are matters relating to Artha or wealth and lust and we should ask ourselves whether these two things are giving us any happiness. We see that these are giving us only sorrow, lack of peace and some types of anger. In the environment in which man lives, he has all the necessary strength - physical and mental - but we are not utilising any of these to realise the truth. Even if we use a very small part of the strength that we possess we will be able to get an infinite amount of happiness. Without realising the sacredness of our objective and without realising our own strength, we are also borrowing strength which we do not possess and we put on an exhibitionist appearance and we indulge in such things which are not backed by natural strength and frequently land ourselves in troublesome situations. In accordance with our culture, I will give an illustration which is common knowledge with young boys and girls.

It is customary in our country that when one goes to have Darsan of the Lord in a temple, one removes the shirt, pant and other appurtenances like shoes, tie etc., and puts on a simple apparel of only a Dhoti and an upper cloth. The inner meaning of this is that God is not attracted by your appearance but that God will look at the cleanliness of the inner self. This is interpreted by saying that you give up your external decorations and that God will see you in your natural condition. Another way of saying the same is that you have to give up whatever you have acquired as additions to your body before presenting yourself before God, but nowadays many somehow try to get hold of a special dress - even on hire - if need be to attend special functions. You can see for yourselves how degrading it is to borrow something on loan and put it on instead of giving up what belongs to you. The meaning of all this is that everything that is artificially created is bound to be full of faults whereas what is natural is bound to be good. What you borrow and add to yourself artificially will have no relationship whatsoever to you in the context of the divine.

We should realise that 'imitation is human while creation is divine'. Merely imitating what you see in the world around you is purely human and there is no divine aspect in it at all. On the other hand, what comes from your own Atma contains divinity. What binds man in all circumstances are these artificial attitudes but really, the divine aspect never lands man in bondage. What is contained in the Vedas must be accepted, adopted and put into practice. This is the Sadhana that is appropriate for the youth. Dharma is something which makes the entire world prosperous in addition to stirring your heart and body to right action. In the Mahabharata, there is a very good example for this.

The Kauravas and the Pandavas have made themselves ready in the battle array in the Mahabharata. They were all having the weapons and wearing dress appropriate for the oncoming war. They were blowing their respective conches and uttering their war cries and thus everything was getting ready for the battle. Their blood was boiling and even as the situation was so tense, Dharmaraja just looked at the Kaurava army and noticed his Guru Dronacharya and his grandfather Bhishma. Immediately he removed his shoes and his battle armour and started walking with folded hands and barefoot towards Bhishma. On seeing this, the Kauravas felt very happy and thought that Dharmaraja was coming to ask for peace. The Pandavas were also very disturbed at the sight of their eldest brother behaving like this at a very critical period and everyone became very angry. At this, Krishna who was on their side signalled to Arjuna and the others that they should also follow Dharmaraja as they indeed did on all earlier occasions. Dharmaraja would never do any meaningless thing. Whatever he did was always right. He had never done anything contrary to the injunctions of the Vedas and contrary to the right path because he knew all aspects of righteousness and had a name very appropriate to his qualities.

Following the orders of Krishna, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva also put down their weapons and followed suit. Dharmaraja requested the grandfather to bless them and said 'our father died when we were very young and ever since then we have regarded you as our father and it is not right for us to fight with one who has been like a father to us and so we request you to pardon us and bless us at this moment and give us permission.' Bhishma immediately recognised the Dharma in Dharmaraja and the right kind of conduct which he was adopting and was full of tears of joy. Realising that Dharmaraja was exhibiting the highest kind of Dharma, he blessed him and said 'Dharmo Rakshati Rakshitaha', Dharma will itself protect him who protects Dharma. Since you are following Dharma to the very letter, Dharma itself will protect you.

Thereafter Dharmaraja went to Drona and addressing him as Guru said that it is not right for them to fight with him as he was in the position of their Guru but on account of situations beyond their control they were forced to wage a battle with their Guru and requested him to give them permission and blessing. At this, Drona too was deeply moved as he recognised in this act of Dharmaraja an extraordinary quality of sticking to Dharma even in the most fearful conditions and said that this very quality will bring them victory in the battle. Because the Pandavas were full of Dharma, they went and asked Bhishma and Drona for permission and blessing and won. Otherwise, could anyone defeat Bhishma and Drona in battle? Only the path of Dharma followed by Dharmaraja brought victory to the Pandavas. If we look at the situation today, we find that the very first people with whom one wants to fight are one's parents and one's Gurus. Those who adopt a wrong path against the father, mother and Gurus and God are Kauravas and are not Pandavas.

In many ways Gandhari, the blind mother of the Kauravas tried to tell them to take the right path. Dhritarashtra, their blind father also tried to put them on the right path but they would not listen. God Himself, in the form of Krishna, went to the Kauravas on a mission of peace and tried to put them on the right path. Their Guru Drona also tried his best to put them on the right path but they did not listen. Such people who are not following the right path and who are not showing respect either to God or to the parents are to be described as the Kauravas and they cannot be called Pandavas. Like the Pandavas, we have to recognise the five aspects or the five Pranas that are present in us as divine and thereby we should recognise the aspect of Brahman. This is absolutely essential for us. I wish to bless the young people who are participating in this session and hope that they would give up foolish ideas and take to sacred ideas and try and understand what is being expounded as part of Indian culture in the form of Puranas, stories and Vedas.