॥ Shri Hari ॥
True Humanity
Tvameva Maata Cha
Pita Tvameva
Tvameva
Bandhusha Sakhaa Tvameva
Tvameva
Vidyaa Dravinam Tvameva
Tvameva Sarvam Mama Deva
Deva
Swami Ramsukhdas
True Humanity
To be happy in
one’s own happiness and sad in one’s own sadness is beastliness, while to be
happy in others’ happiness and sad in others’ sadness is humanity. Therefore, as long
as, a man does not develop the nature of becoming happy in others’ happiness, and sad with others’ sadness, he does not deserve
to be called a man. His appearance may
be like a man, but in fact he is not a man.
So long as a man
is happy in his own happiness and sad with his own sorrows, it means
that he has not developed humanity in him.
He who harms others for his own
happiness and pleasure, does not deserve to be called a man. A man is he who having renounced his
selfishness, does good to others or at least does not in the least cause any
suffering to others. Therefore the
lesson that needs to be learned is that let no one experience any pain or suffering, in the least
bit through our actions. Besides
trying to relieve the people of their sufferings, we should aim at their welfare,
keeping in the forefront, how they can be benefited? May all beings be
benefited! “Sarvabhootahiteh
rataah.” “Remain
engrossed in the welfare of all.” (Gita 5/25; 12/4). We are only responsible for the welfare of
others to the extent of our ability, power and resources. No one can make everyone happy. Even all the men in the world pulling all
their resources together, cannot make a single man happy. The reason is that as a man’s desire for
prosperity, pleasures, honor and praise etc., are fulfilled, the more they are
strengthened. In the Manasa, it is mentioned, “Jimi pratilaabh
lobh adhikaayi,” “The more a man gains, the more greedy he becomes.” Even on acquiring an abundance of riches, the
man can’t be satisfied. When the entire world
together cannot make a single man happy, how can then one man relieve all
people of the world of their suffering? However,
all can adopt the feelings and sentiments, of wishing well for other’s welfare,
i.e. “How can all be
happy?”, whether he is a
brother or a sister, young or old, rich or poor. No one is deprived of this right.
He who does good to others according to his power, God does good to him according
to His power. If
he applies all his power to do good to others, then God
also applies all His power to do good to him.
When God applies His powers, then how can he remain unhappy? No one can ever make him unhappy; and such a person attains
God. The Lord declares - “Te praapnuvanti
maameva sarvabhootahite rataah.” “Those who are engrossed in the welfare of all beings
attain Me.” (Gita 12/4). We
should wish -
“Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinah;
Sarve Santu
Niraamayaah |
Sarve Bhadraani
pashyantu,
Maa kaschid
dukhabhaagbhavet ||
“May
all be happy, May all be free from diseases, May all attain benediction and May
no one suffer in the least.”
He
who wishes everyone to be happy, healthy and totally free from all sufferings,
deserves to be called a human being. As long as he is not saddened by the
sufferings of others, till then he cannot be considered to be a man. Second point is that, he who empathizes and
identifies with the suffering of others, does not grieve
from his own grief. You all pay
attention! Only he, who does not have
compassion for the joys and sorrows of others, has to suffer. Only he who is a pleasure seeker, and hankers
after riches, experiences the void of and lack of happiness. But he, who is happy with the happiness of others, never has a shortage
of happiness. How? His desire for enjoyment
and pleasures perishes.
The desire for
pleasures and prosperity is the main obstacle to God Realization. Sense pleasures and hoarding, will not permit
man to realize God. The reason is that
when he hoards, he does this with his body, and when he enjoys pleasures, he
does so with his body. So if a man is
attached to the body, an effigy of bone and flesh, if he is a slave to these, how
can he attain spiritual enlightenment?
But he, who is happy in the happiness of others, ceases to have the
desire for happiness or pleasure, while he who is moved and distressed in the
sadness of others ceases to have the desire for hoarding.
On
being moved with the sufferings of others, man thinks of relieving the
sufferers of their sufferings. Just as
we spend money to relieve ourselves of our pain, similarly, we will be willing
to spend money to relieve others off their sufferings. We will
not be able to hoard too much money!
Even if it is accumulated, we shall not remain attached to it, by
thinking that it belongs to others. It
is therefore mentioned in the Bhagawat -
Yavad brhiyeta jatharam taavat svatvam hi dehinaam |
Adhikam yo’bhimanyeta sa steno dandamarhati || (7/14/8)
A
man is authorized to possess only the bare necessities of life. It means that the food which satisfies your
hunger, the water which quenches your thirst, the clothes and house which are
necessary for the bare maintenance of your body, are yours. One who lays a
claim to anything else besides these bare necessities of life is a thief and
will be punished. You may say that you
have not got these from somewhere else, these are your own. But how are they yours? Did you bring even a single thing with you when
you were born? Will you carry even a
single coin with you when you die?
Therefore all the extra things with us belong to those who have a
shortage of these. He who is sad with the sadness of others, never hankers
after pleasure and prosperity. His heart
is filled with compassion which provides him with such a relish or joy which
cannot be provided by mundane pleasures.
If
you amass riches, it means that within there is cruelty, lack of
compassion. Where there is compassion,
there is no amassing of possessions for one’s pleasure. Why?
Because he is naturally joyful! The happiness that comes from hoarding is of
the modes of passion and ignorance. The happiness which is derived by being
happy in the happiness of others is not changed into pleasures and prosperity,
but it is a kind of bliss! a very joyful feeling!
He
whose nature and inner sentiments (bhaav) are to
share in the sufferings of others, can never ever enjoy pleasures while others
are suffering. A person with a noble
heart can’t cook and relish delicious dishes, if his neighbor is starving. Under such circumstances, he can’t relish
food at all. But those people who cause suffering to others, will they suffer
on accord of other’s sufferings? Such people who cause suffering to others for their own
happiness, dishonor others for their own honor, blame others for their own
praise, dismiss others for their own position, don’t deserve to be called human
beings. They are not human beings at all.
They are animals! Animals that are so lowly, that they have neither horns, nor
tails. They possess human body and
beasty nature. Birds and beast are
purified by reaping the fruit of their sinful actions. But vile persons, who cause sufferings to
others, pave the way to hells by committing new sins. In the Ramcharitramanasa
Lord Rama says to Vibhishana –
Baru bal
baas narak kar taataa |
Dusht sang jani deyi bidhaataa
|| (Manas 5/46/4)
O’
dear friend, it is better to live in hell, but let providence not give us the
company of vile persons (Manasa 5/45/4)
It is vile to be
happy and sad with one’s own happiness and sadness. Our stay in hells will expiate our sins and
purify us, while company of the vile will lead us to different kinds of hells.
Animals don’t incur
sins by causing suffering to others because the ordinance of sins and virtues
is applicable to human beings only. Birds and beasts cause suffering to others
in order to satisfy their hunger, rather than for pleasure and prosperity. But a millionaire or a multi-millionaire that
goes on hoarding wealth by causing suffering to others does not deserve to be
called a human being. He is worse than
an animal. This human life aims at
purification. Those who cause suffering to others commit sins and they will
have to reap horrible fruits.
The inner sense of
those who don’t feel happy in the happiness of others and compassionate with
sorrow of others is impure. Their impure
inner sense paves the way to hell for them. The inner sense of animals is not
so much impure because they don’t kill beings for pleasure. They satisfy their hunger with the kill. Men are free to perform new actions while animals
have to reap the fruit of their past actions.
Men prepare delicious dishes and relish them and thus they incur
sin. True humanity consists in being
happy with others’ happiness and sad with others sadness. So every human being should have the sentiment
how can all beings be happy and how can they be relieved of their
sufferings?
नारायण
! नारायण
! नारायण
From "Ease of God Realization" in Hindi and English
by Swami Ramsukhdasji
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Books by Swami Ramsukhdasji, can be purchased
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