[The next few weeks we have a guest poster (from the West Coast, thus the Lakers reference) who will be sharing their thoughts and point of view on making sabha stickier. Here is their thoughts on this week's Kishore/Kishori sabha topic of Samajan. This may really help make the MC sticky]
Congratulations, graduates! And congratulations, non-graduates for making it through yet another year! How does it feel to be done? As inviting as summer vacation is, it is not hard to become (just a little) nostalgic and think fondly about all of the good times while cleaning out lockers, signing yearbooks, or walking off campus with that diploma.
Today is a milestone - you have made it. In many ways, life is filled with milestones - your first step, your first day at college, your first internship, your first job, and so on. Milestones are not unlike Archimedes' "Eureka!" moment or the NBA Playoffs where the LA Lakers and Boston Celtics go to a game seven. All eyes are upon you as you start a new endeavor or approach the finish line.
But what about the journey there? More than Archimedes' Eureka! moment, I am interested in how he accomplished becoming a renowned mathematician, physicist, engineer, inventor and astronomer! Like many other successful persons in history, what disciplines and habits did Archimedes put into place in his own life to achieve such interdisciplinary know-how?
More than the Playoffs alone, when Derek Fisher expressed his deep gratitude for the game and his team, I immediately began thinking about the everyday goals (daily exercise, practice, focus, priority, diet, team-building, etc.) that he has remained committed to in order to share this statement:
This moment brings me back to Satsang - specifically to the topic of Samjan, and to the simple, yet highly complex question, Have we had our Eureka! moment yet?
As an analogy, Derek Fisher truly understands (Samjan) that his focus and dedication to playing well will bring his team success (Gnaan) and that success is very important to him (Mahima), and thus he is able to align his goals and actions over the course of a journey in order to achieve success.
In Satsang, when we truly understand (Samjan) Upasana and our spiritual goals (Gnaan), they become a central priority for us (Mahima).
In the same way, True Understanding is the Eureka! moment, but the Eureka! moment also comprises of a journey.
Take it another way. Our Aha! moment of solving a difficult math equation is just as important as the journey - all of those hours that you were trying and all of the years that we studied math.
What, then, guides the accompanying journey? Knowing, understanding, and realizing the importance of a particular goal may not always lend to a milestone, but the milestone is certainly made up of small victories.
Perhaps every instance where we practice Samjan in our daily lives (whether at home, or at work, or within our mandal, or even the basketball court) and live according the wishes of Maharaj and Swami, we achieve small victories - which, over time, add up to Eureka!
Yogi Bapa gives us many practical examples of Samjan throughout the Yogi Gita. Let us look at one:
Khamvu (On Letting Go/Accepting)
"Sadhutana gun shu? Khamvu. 'Tame bahu sara chho...' - Te khamvu em ne? - Naa. 'Tame akkal vagharnaa baardan chho...' Em koi kahe te khamvu, te sadhutana gun.
Motaa kahe 'em' to 'em.' - Em saral prakruti raakhvi. Te mokshmathi na pade. Dhaaryu chhodaave ne khotu laage te ko'k di padi jaay."
Translation: What is a virtue of a Sadhu? To let go/accept. 'You are great...' We should accept when people tell us comments like these right? - No. 'You are an ignorant fool...' When one says such things, we should let go, that is a virtue of a Sadhu. Regardless of what is being asked, one should maintain a straightforward nature of always following the words of an elder. In this way, one cannot fall from the path of moksha. However, when one feels hurt when one has to let go of one's desires, then one may one day fall from this path.
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