Aptavani-9 by Dada Bhagwan (best english books to read for beginners txt) 📖

What is the outcome of running in a horse race? Today you may be first, but at some time or other you may also be last. So you should refuse even if God were to tempt you to run in a horse race!

Your personality will shine once you have moved away from the horse race. Horse race (competitiveness) and personality cannot exist side by side.

Once the short and sweet course of Akram Vignan is completed, your debt of infinite lifetimes is paid off in one lifetime. Then, there is fearlessness ( nirbhayta), non-association (asangata) and non-attachment (vitaragata).

7. Insistence (khench) : deceit (kapat) : point-man (the one who leads you astray)

Akram Vignan is the science of Gnani Purush’s experiences that is capable of solving all kinds of worldly or spiritual puzzles.

How should life be for the one who has attained Akram Vignan? Life should be without any insistence. When you make a true statement but no one accepts it, there should not be a need to prove it. And if insistence arises, on account of the effect of your baggage of previous karma, then by simply ‘seeing’ it, You will become free from it.

In the path of liberation, there is no law. Whatever happens naturally is correct! No law-law! Otherwise, while making a law, a whole mountain of laws will have to be created. Where there is law, there is no naturalness. Liberation is for the one who becomes natural (sahaj).

To start rivalry is like falling from your own position. If you are true but hold on to the truth; that too is considered as ego. The world’s truth is not the absolute truth; it is a relative truth. Why should you hold on to it? The Gnani Purush is completely without insistence.

Know that you are on the correct path if you become the one without any separation due to differences of opinion (matbhed); there should be no hold or insistence anywhere. He who bends to any shape is called straightforward (sarad).

Of all the kashayas ofanger, greed, pride, and deceit that obstruct right knowledge and behavior, deceit (kapat) is the toughest. This is because deceit has a sweet face and can’t be seen. All kinds of accounts of karma are created due to deceit (kapat). Deceit verily means that the owner (the one having deceit) is unaware of its existence and its operation and for that reason it is difficult to remove it.

To gain advantage in worldly life by pulling others towards your opinion and taking them into your confidence is called deceit (kapat). The person being deceitful does not know or is not aware of his deceitfulness. The constant awareness of ‘Except for liberation, I don’t want anything at all,’ will make deceit leave. Saying this five times every morning will let the awareness arise to defeat deceit.

Due to deceit (kapat) that exists and to finish the game of deceit, a person will win over others by employing craftiness (chaturai). The one who understands what is good for him and what is bad will not enter into this trap of craftiness.

By repeatedly and deeply keeping the intention ‘I want to get rid of all my faults, I want to attain final liberation (moksha) only,’ one can be free from deceit.

As long as any sweetness is experienced in worldly interaction, the uninterrupted awareness as the Self cannot prevail. Bitterness is not objectionable. With sweetness there will be interruptions and dozing in the awareness of the Self.

Having met the Gnani Purush, one’s train for liberation is on the main line to the final destination of liberation. But, if some ‘point-man’ comes across on the way, there is no guarantee of staying on course. The whole track may change! The ‘point-man’ talks in such a way, that you will not even know that the track has been switched.

The seeker will realize that the track changed when the Gnani Purush alerts him. Then, analyzing minutely, he will recognize where the change started, what happened, who did it, on what ground it happened and which intense insatiable greed (lalacha) within led to this, and when easiness ( nirakudata) left and when did uneasiness (akudata) set in. All this has to be known in the awareness (jagruti). The one whose worldly interaction (vyavahar) becomes unsteady, will become shaky in the Self (nischaya).

Progress is made when one is not swayed by anything that has no relation with the goal of liberation. This prevents the switching of the ‘tracks’, and ensures spiritual progress. Stick to only the talk that liberates. Any talk that sways from this goal and the right vision should not be allowed to enter the mind. The Gnani is not so guileless (bhoda). He will not be distracted if someone were to try to change the track.

Where there is deceit (kapat), there is guilelessness (bhodpan). Believing anything negative about anyone to be true is guilelessness. The remedy for this is to listen dramatically (to pretend to listen earnestly while really listening only superficially), not to object to it and to rely only upon the right vision. Everyone will speak according to what they understand but you should rely only on the right vision.

No matter what worldly obstructions may arise in the path of liberation, Akram Vignan is such and its path is such that one can surmount all of them. If one says, ‘it is difficult…it is difficult,’ then it will become difficult for him.

‘Why should I care?’ is one statement that should not be uttered by anyone. Saying this creates separation. Where ‘what do I care, what is it to me?’ exists, one should do pratikraman and turn it around. The one who says, ‘What do I care?’ has become (nispruha), rejecting attitude. This is a grave danger for the Self.

One has to ensure; be continuously aware that the path to final liberation is not missed.

The path to final liberation is missed if one asks, ‘what were they saying about me when I was gone?’ Let people say whatever they want to about you. Such questions come up only if one has deceit (kapat). To engage in such a practice is to hide the Self.

It is considered a grave disease to eavesdrop in order to catch something being said about you. The world will talk if you are at fault, so why should there be any objection? If anyone speaks negatively about you, let him, it is of benefit to You. You need to remain strong. Even a small mistake in this matter can create terrible problems. The deceit in you leads the mind to secretly listen in on other people’s conversation.

If you happen to listen to what others are saying about you, it will disrupt your sanity. The one talking might have said it casually without much thought, but look how it ruins your mind and sleep.

Some people say that they employ deceit and deception out of fear, but fear of what? The one with the fault will have fear, is that not so?

He who has the intense burning desire and craving for liberation will not be touched by any hindrances in the path of liberation.

‘I know’ is the biggest hindrance in the path of liberation! It causes death of the Self. ‘I know’ brings on intoxication that is very difficult to remove! The face of the one without the intoxication of ‘I know’ is attractive. The rising of the belief of ‘I know’ after Gnan is tremendous lack of awareness.

If one attempts to solve problems with the attitude of ‘I know’, it will only complicate matters further.

If sweetness prevails in ‘I know’, it will sprout. There, one should erase it quickly, as soon as it sprouts, pluck it out. Otherwise, this ailment will grow and it will ruin the awareness of the Self.

All the danger signals in the path to liberation should be known from the Gnani Purush. Then only, will the safe-side be maintained. Otherwise, there is no telling where the ‘ship’ will end up.

The law is: the one who wants to attain only liberation will always find the correct path.

8. Awareness (jagruti) : Desire to be worshipped (poojavani kaamna)

By matching our understanding with the Gnani’s understanding, we walk parallel to Him. If we don’t, there is no telling when the path to liberation will change direction. On the path to final liberation, not a single degree of an individual’s own understanding will work. One has been wandering around life after life because he has not attained the right understanding.

The answer to a seeker’s question can only be given to his satisfaction and full resolution, if the ego of the one answering the questions is completely gone. Even the discharge ego has to leave completely. The speech that accepts all viewpoints and does not hurt anyone to the slightest extent will not come forth as long as one tastes the sweet juice of doer-ship (garvaras). Thus, there should not be any ego or intellect in the speech that comes forth. People will not get any benefit if the ego of the one trying to preach is not gone. It will feel good to the listener’s ear, so he will praise the preacher but it will cause a terrible loss to the preacher. The ego will take all the credit and divert him from the path of liberation.

In the path of Akram Vignan the Gnani Purush shows the ‘red light’ (danger signal) to those who want to be preachers (updeshak). Dadashri gives this ‘red signal’: ‘If as much as a hair of ‘our’ knowledge is told to people, people will flock; people have not seen such bliss, they have not heard anything like this, therefore, they will flock here! But the ego that is sitting inside will laugh.’ If you want to achieve completion (the absolute state of the Soul), don’t show your immaturity by answering when anyone asks questions.

The fire is covered under the ashes. As long as the intellect has not been eradicated, as long as the ego has not been eradicated, as long as worldly desires are not eradicated and as long as there are thoughts of sexual pleasure (vishaya), there is no predicting when that fire will ignite. Unless the kashayas and vishaya that have been covered up are eradicated, preaching to people is very dangerous and risky.

One will not be able to find his mistakes as long as one is partial to his own self. Partiality towards the relative self will keep one in illusion and perpetuate the illusion. When the force of karma unfolds, one becomes absorbed in it, the awareness (jagruti)is blocked and the application of knowledge (upayog) is missed. There, the awareness will be regained if one remains in the satsang of the Gnani Purush.

Awareness (jagruti)is a different matter and Gnan (experiential knowledge as the Self), is a different matter. To awaken from sleep is called awareness. In awareness, kashayas are dormant but when kashayas are annihilated, it is called Gnan, anubhav. As the awareness increases, pending karmas do not remain and there occurs complete purity within.

As long as there is deceit for pride within, it will not allow awareness to surface. Deceit means to hide and to cover up and it always takes one on the wrong path. Deceit and ego that supports anger, pride, illusion and greed will take you on the wrong path.