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WISDOM OF INDIA
ETERNAL
INDIA
encyclopedia
Yoga,
indeed, is not for one who eats in excess nor for one who
altogether abstains from food. It is, O Arjuna, not for one who is
accustomed to excessive sleep nor, indeed, for one who always keeps
awake.
For one who is disciplined in eating and recreation, who engages
himself in actions in a disciplined manner, who properly regulates his
sleep and wakefulness— for him yoga proves to be the destroyer of
sorrow.
When one's properly controlled mind becomes steadfast within the
Self alone and when one becomes free from all desires, then he is said
to have accomplished yoga.
"Just as a lamp in a windless place flickers not"-this is the simile tra-
ditionally used in respect of a yogin whose mind is properly controlled
and who practises the yoga of the Self.
Wherein the mind, restrained by the practice of yoga, is at rest; and
wherein he, seeing the Self through the Self, finds contentment within
his own Self;
Wherein he finds that supreme bliss, which is perceived by the in-
tellect alone and which is beyond the ken of the sense-organs; wherein,
being steadfast, he does not swerve from reality;
Having obtained which, he does not consider any other gain to be
greater than it; and being steadfast in which, he is not shaken by even
a heavy sorrow;
That state, one should know as the one called yoga— the disconnec-
tion from union with sorrow. This yoga should be practised with
resoluteness and with undepressed mind...
He who does not entertain hatred toward any being, who is friendly
and ever compassionate, free from all sense of "my-ness," free from
egoism, even-tempered in pain and pleasure, forbearing;
He who is ever content, the yogin, possessing self-control, of un-
shakable resolve; who has dedicated to Me his mind and intellect—he,
My devotee, is dear to Me.
He from whom the world shrinks not and who does not shrink from
the world; and who is free from elation, impetuosity, fear, and pertur-
bation—he too is dear to Me.
He who has no expectation; who is pure, dexterous, unconcerned,
and untroubled; who renounces all acts—he, My devotee, is dear to Me.
He who neither exults nor hates, neither grieves nor yearns; who
renounces good and evil; who is full of devotion— he is dear to Me.
He who behaves alike to foe and friend; who, likewise is even-
poised in honour or dishonour; who is even-tempered in cold and heat,
happiness and sorrow; who is free from attachment;
Who regards praise and censure with equanimity; who is silent,
content with anything whatever; who has no fixed abode, who is
steadfast in mind, who is full of devotion-that man is dear to Me.
From
The Bhagavad Gita (The Song of the Lord)
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The lamb brought to the slaughterhouse eats the leaf garland with
which it is decorated....the frog caught in the mouth of the snake desires
to swallow the fly flying near its mouth. So is our life. The man
condemned to die drinks milk and ghee....
He who knows only the Gita is not wise; nor is he who knows only
the sacred books. He only is wise who trusts in God.
When they see a stone serpent, they pour milk on it; if a real serpent
comes, they say, "Kill, Kill." To the servant of God, who could eat if
served, they say, "Go away, go away"; but to the image of God which
cannot eat, they offer dishes of food.
To speak truth is to be in heaven, to speak untruth is to continue in
the world of mortals. Cleanliness is heaven, uncleanliness is hell.
Sweet words are equal to all prayers. Sweet words are equal to all
penances. Good behaviour is what pleases God..Kindness is the root of
all righteousness.
Those who have riches build temples for Thee; what can I build? I
am poor. My legs are the pillars; this body of mine is the temple.
Sayings of Basaveswara
If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?
If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
then who is there to know what happens without?
Hari is in the East: Allah is in the West. Look within your heart, for
there you will find both Karim and Ram;
All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
From Tagore,
Songs of Kabir
No dignity is higher in the eyes of God than royalty, and those who
are wise drink from its auspicious fountain. A sufficient proof of this,
for those who require one, is the fact that royalty is a remedy for the
spirit of rebellion, and the reason why subjects obey. Even the meaning
of the word
Badshah
[emperor] shows this; for
Bad
signifies stability
and possession. If royalty did not exist, the storm of strife would never
subside, nor selfish ambition disappear. Mankind, being under the
burden of lawlessness and lust, would sink into the pit of destruction;
this world, this great market place, would lose its prosperity, and the
whole world becomes a barren waste. But by the light of imperial
justice, some follow with cheerfulness the road of obedience, while
others abstain from violence through fear of punishment; and out of ne-
cessity make choice of the path of rectitude.
Shah
is also a name given
to one who surpasses his fellows, as you may see from words like
Shah-
suwar
[royal horseman],
shah-rah
[royal road]; it is also a term applied
to a bridegroom-the world, as the bride, betroths herself to the king, and
becomes his worshipper.
Silly and short-sighted men cannot distinguish a true king from a
selfish ruler. Nor is this remarkable, as both have in common a large
treasury, a numerous army, clever servants, obedient subjects, an
abundance of wise men, a multitude of skilful workmen, and a super-
fluity of means of enjoyment. But men of deeper insight remark a
difference. In the case of the former, these things just now enumerated
are lasting. But in that of the latter, of short duration. The former does
not attach himself to these things, as his object is to remove oppression
and provide for everything which is good. Security, health, chastity,