Dear Self,
Welcome to the second edition of the Self Score Newsletter!
We cleanse our body every day. Then, the question naturally arises about the mind: how about that, which matters even more?
A mother may have to pursue the young child if he or she is playful and does not wish to take a bath on a given day. However, as adults, we all understand the need for taking a regular bath.
It also helps us come closer to our true selves. Hence, we may enjoy it as well, not just carry out a routine task that we must perform.
Frankly, for me, it is one of the best activities or times of the day, right next to the meditation activity in terms of enjoyment and fulfillment. Probably because it is like a ‘micro-meditation,’ a topic we may address at some point in the future.
As a result, I cannot wait to take a bath every morning. Not just as a part of the routine, though, but rather something I look forward to.
I once heard Osho, the spiritual master, with whom the world loves to maintain love or hate relationships even long after he is gone, state that he loves his time in the bathroom, and I wondered why or how. I eventually understood the reason behind it.
We are happy to take a dip in the holy river, such as the Ganges, fondly known as the revered Mother Ganga in India; however, do we pause and reflect on what is next?
Well, taking a regular bath at home or an occasional dip in the holy river is external cleansing. How about internal cleanliness? That matters way more than our external appearance and cleansing.
Inner beauty is what truly shines in life, not just external beauty. Few of us recognize that truth, unfortunately. However, we actually owe it to ourselves to cultivate that inner beauty.
In the last newsletter, our inaugural edition, we touched upon the topic “Who am I?” Now, we start tackling why it is important to dig deeper into that age-old question and how to get there.
Sadhana, or spiritual practice, is a way to get there. It is a means, not the end. Most of us know God; however, many struggle to know who God is, where God is, why we look up to God, and when we can attain God or how to attain the Supreme. That is where sadhana comes into play.
So, first of all, why do ‘sadhana’? Why is it even necessary?
The simple answer is that it is our duty. We owe it to ourselves. We need to ‘realize’ or know our true nature. Why? It helps us live a happy, peaceful, and fulfilling life, live a life in a ‘sahaj’ (natural) manner with no or the least amount of agitation or problems, and be free from the bondages of life.
No one wants problems in his or her life. That is the part everyone will agree with without fail. We all want smooth sailing in everything that we do on a daily basis. If we need no choppy or turbulent waters in the Bhavasagar (ocean of life); when sailing, we must perform sadhana.
Mind purification is the name of the game. Yes, life itself is a game, nothing more, nothing less. Win or lose, just having fun is the real sport. Without that, life is filled with all sorts of strife and struggles. Without spiritual stamina, it is indeed hard to face the difficult circumstances of life.
Unfortunately, that can make a life a ‘tragedy’ instead of a ‘comedy’ in the absence of the ‘graceful’ handling of life matters.
Sadhana helps build that spiritual stamina. How exactly? By performing mind purification. How to purify the mind? What are the impurities of the mind? In Sanskrit, one of the ancient languages of the world, it is known as ‘shadripu,’ meaning six enemies of the soul.
What are those six enemies that we constantly face in our lives? It is also part of our Level 2 questionnaire at Self Score. These are kama (desire), krodha (anger), lobha (greed), moha (delusion), mada (pride), & matsarya (jealousy).
How do these impurities get inside us to begin with? A simple and short answer is via our five senses: seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, and touching using their corresponding five sense organs of eyes, ears, noses, mouths, and skin.
Imagine our mind as a head or a vessel that constantly gets filled with new ‘information’ via five sense organs. If every day the vessel keeps filling up with dirty water, guess what happens? There is no clean water left in there, only dirty water accumulated in our ‘swollen’ heads.
Our task on hand is to remove the dirty water from the vessel and refill it with clean water. That exactly is ‘sadhana.’ Our task is precisely a journey from a “bigger head and smaller heart” to a “smaller head and larger heart.”
How exactly do we clean the dirty vessel or dirty pot in the kitchen? We clean it with nice, fresh, and clean water, don’t we? We are happy to clean our vessels just like we are happy to clean our bodies. No exceptions.
The same applies to our mind, though, unfortunately, it is tended to least in the world. Hence, we see miseries all around in this world. So unfortunate!
Alternatively, let us imagine a pot full of dirty water or even mud. All we have to do is keep pouring new, fresh, and clean water into the pot, and voila… all of the dirty water is out. The pot is filled only with clean water now, edging out all of the dirty water and mud.
It is also akin to having a beautiful garden to begin with; if we do not tend to it, then weeds start growing and eventually outgrow the beautiful flowers. From an impeccable garden, it will gradually turn into a mini jungle. With that, the garden gradually loses its beauty and related fragrance as well.
Similarly, the individual loses his fragrance, and people notice. There is no doubt. On the contrary, an individual with a fragrance naturally draws a lot of people to him or her, just like a magnet. Such is the nature and power of inner beauty.
We need to become a beautiful flower emitting a fragrance, not a pile of trash throwing a pungent stink. Therefore, we must do ‘sadhana,’ or spiritual practice, continually. Thereafter, a true transformation begins to elevate our soul.