MAYA AS 'WOMAN AND GOLD' - THE BONDAGE OF SEX

[The bondage of sex—Sex and spiritual progress— How to conquer sex ?—Riches and the spiritual aspirant]

THE BONDAGE OF SEX

66. What is Maya ? It is lust which forms an obstacle to spiritual progress.

67. Is it Maya or Meye (woman, sex) which has devoured everything ?

68. Souls enmeshed in worldliness cannot resist the temptation of ' woman and gold' and direct their minds to God, even though these things bring upon them a thousand humiliations.

69. Be careful, O householders 1 Put not too much confidence in women; they establish their mastery over you very insidiously !

70. You cannot live in a sooty room, and at the same time escape being somewhat blackened in spite of all your caution. So also, if a man lives in the company of women, some carnality, however little, is bound to arise in him, to even though he may be very circumspect and has his senses under control.

In reading the sayings contained in this chapter and others, where reference is made to Kamini-Kanchana, 'woman and gold', one must specially bear in mind that the Master is propounding no cult of woman-hatred. The study of his sayings in their entirety, as well as perusal of the Introduction this Volume, will show that his attitude towards womankind was one of profound respect bordering on worship. For he saw in them a symbol of the Divine Mother of the universe in a special sense. It was in this light that he himself viewed all women, and he wanted his devotees also to cultivate the same attitude. But at the same time he impressed on his disciples that when viewed with a sensual eye, ' woman ' was the greatest danger to the spiritual aspirant. Of course, by ' woman ' he meant ' sex ' or ' carnality '; but the great teacher that he was, with deep insight into the workings of the human mind, he preferred to use the concrete for the abstract, and always spoke of the bondage of ' woman ' and not of ' sex '. His motive must have been purely psychological ; for speaking on the same subject to his women devotees, he used to warn them against the dangers from 'man '. Since his teachings were all recorded by men devotees, we naturally get warnings against dangers from ' woman ' only, and not from ' man '. Just as ' woman ' stands for sex, ' gold ' stands for the acquisitive instinct, and is a concrete representation of all the material things that men value and like to possess. The correct English expression for it is ' wealth ' or ' riches'.

71. If pitchers of ice-cold water and bottles of savoury sauces are placed near a man who is suffering from very high fever and is semi-delirious, do you think that it is possible for him, thirsty and restless that he is, to resist the temptation of drinking the water or tasting the sauces? Similarly the worldly man who suffers from the high fever of lust, and is thirsty for sensual pleasures, cannot resist temptations when he is placed between the charms of beauty on one side, and those of wealth on the other. He is sure to deviate from the path of devotion.

72. Once a Marwari gentleman approached Sri Ramakrishna and said, " How is it, Sir, that I do not see God although I have renounced everything?

The Master: Well, haven't you seen leather jars for keeping oil ? If one of them is emptied of its contents, still it retains something of the oil as well as its smell In the same way there is still some worldliness left in you, and its odour persists.

73. ' Woman and gold ', remember, keep men immersed in worldliness and away from God. It is strange that no one has anything but praise for his own wife, be she good, bad or indifferent.

74. As the monkey sacrifices his life at the feet of the hunter, so does a man at the feet of a beautiful woman.

SEX AND SPIRITUAL PROGRESS

Those who wish to attain God or make progress in their devotional practices should particularly guard them-selves against the snares of lust and wealth. Otherwise they will never attain perfection.

Nityananda asked Sri Chaitanya, " Why is it that all my teaching of Divine love produces no tangible result on the minds of men ? " Sri Chaitanya replied, " Because, due to their association with women, they cannot retain the higher teachings. Listen, Brother Nityananda, there is no salvation for the worldly-minded."

When does the indicator of a balance move away from the pointed needle attached to the top? When one of the scales becomes heavier than the other. Similarly the mind runs away from God and gets unbalanced when the pressure of woman and wealth is placed upon it

If there is a small hole at the bottom of a jar of water, the whole water will leak out. Similarly, if there is the smallest tinge of worldliness in the aspirant, all his exertions will come to naught.

Try to gain absolute mastery over the sexual instinct. If one succeeds in doing this, a physiological change is produced in the body by the development of a hitherto rudimentary nerve known as Medha (the function of which is to transmute the lower energies into the higher). The knowledge of the higher Self is gained after the development of this Medha nerve.

The mind steeped in affection for woman and gold ' is like the green betel-nut. So long as the betel-nut is green, its kernel remains adhering to its shell, but when it dries up shell and nut are separated, and the nut moves within, if shaken. So when the affection for woman and gold' dries up, the soul is perceived as quite different from the body.

When the mind is free from attachment to sense-objects, it turns to God and is fixed on Him. The bound soul becomes free in this way. That soul is bound which takes the path leading away from God.

When attachment for wealth and sex is wiped out from the mind, what else is left in the soul ? Only the bliss of Brahman.

HOW TO CONQUER SEX ?

As persons living in a house infested with venomous snakes are always alert, so should men living in the world be always vigilant against the allurement of lust and greed.

On coming across a snake usually we say, " Mother Manasa, please move away showing your tail and hiding your head." So also it is wise to hold aloof from such influences as have a tendency to excite sensuality. It is far better not to come in contact with them than to gain experience by a fall.

A disciple once asked Sri Ramakrishna how he was to conquer lust; for, though he was passing his days in religious contemplation, evil thoughts were arising in his mind from time to time. To him the Master said : "There was a man who had a pet dog. He used to caress it, carry it inabout his arms, play with it and kiss it. A wise man, seeing this foolish behaviour of his, warned him not to lavish such affection on a dog. For it was, after all, an irrational brute, and might bite him one day. The owner took the warning to heart and putting away the dog from his arms, resolved never again to fondle or caress it. But the animal could not at first understand the change in his master, and would run to him frequently to be taken up and caressed. Beaten several times, the dog at last ceased to trouble his master any more. Such indeed is your condition. The dog that you have been cherishing so long in your bosom will not easily leave you, though you may wish to be rid of it. However, there is no harm in it. Do not caress the dog any more, but give it a good beating whenever it approaches you to be fondled, and in course of time you will be altogether free from its importunities.'

' Woman and gold have drowned the whole world in sin. Woman is disarmed when you view her as the manifestation of the Divine Mother. God cannot be seen so long as one's passion for ' woman and gold is not extinguished.

Once a man attains God through intense Vairagya (freedom from worldly passions), temptations of sex disappear, and he finds himself in no danger even from his own wife. If there are two unequal magnets at an equal distance from a piece of iron, which of them will draw it with greater force ? Certainly the larger one. Verily, God is the larger magnet. What can the smaller magnet, woman, do against it?

Snakes are venomous reptiles. If you try to catch them, you are sure to be bitten. But to the man who has learnt the art of snake-charming by the use of magnetised dust, it is not a very difficult affair to catch them. He can play even with seven of them twisted together and coiled round his neck. (Similarly a man of realisation is immune from the dangers of worldly life.)

One day a Marwari gentleman went to Sri Ramakrishna and asked him for permission to present him with some thousands of rupees. But the Master had nothing but a stern refusal for this well-meant offer. He said, " I shall have nothing to do with your money; for if I accept it, my mind would always be dwelling on it." The gentleman then proposed to invest the amount in the name of one of Sri Ramakrishna's relatives to be used by him for the Master's service. To this the Master replied, " No, it would be double-dealing. Moreover, it would always be in my mind that I am keeping my money with so-and-so."

But the Marwari still persisted in his proposal, quoting one of Sri Ramakrishna's own sayings, " If the mind is like oil, it will float even upon an ocean of ' woman and gold'.

At this the Master retorted : " That is true indeed; but if the oil floats on water for a considerable length of time, it becomes putrefied. In the same way, even if the mind were only to float over the ocean of woman and gold,' the continuous contact of the latter for a long period would surely tend to vitiate the mind and make it give out an evil odour.

RICHES AND THE SPIRITUAL ASPIRANT

Referring to the fact that the pursuit of wealth diverts an aspirant from the path of God, the Master once said to a young disciple: " Like a man of the world you have accepted a paid appointment. But you are working for your mother. Otherwise I should have said, For shame ! For shame !' " He repeated this several times and then said, " Serve the Lord alone."

Referring to the degradation that service undertaken for the sake of money brings about, the Master said to a young disciple: "A change for the worse has come over his face. A dark shadowy film seems to have spread over it. All this is due to office work. There are the accounts and a hundred other matters to attend to.'

Money is an Upadhi (a deceptive influence) of a very strong nature. As soon as a man becomes rich, he is thoroughly changed. A Brahmin who was very meek and humble used to come here (Dakshineswar) every now and then. After some time he stopped his visits, and we knew nothing of what happened to him. One day we went to Konnagore in a boat. As we were getting down from the boat, we saw him sitting on the bank of the Ganges, where, in the fashion of big folk, he was enjoying the pure breeze of the river. On seeing me, he accosted me in a patronising tone with the words, "Hallo, Thakkur! How do you do now?" At once I noticed the change in his tone and said to Hriday who was with me, ' I tell you, Hriday, this man must have come by some riches. See what a great change has come over him ! " And Hriday burst into laughter.

Money can fetch you bread alone. Do not consider it as your sole end and aim.

There are some who boast of their wealth and power, of their name and fame, and high status in society ; but all these are for a few days only. None of these will follow them after death.

On two occasions the Lord smiles: First when the doctor comes to the bed-side of a patient who is seriously taken ill and is about to die, and says to his mother, " Why, madam, there is no cause for anxiety at all. I take upon myself the responsibility of saving your sons life." Next He smiles when two brothers, who are busy partitioning their land, take a measuring tape, put it across the land and say, " This side is mine, that side is yours.

There is nothing to be proud of in money. If you say you are rich, there are richer and richer men than you. in comparison with whom you are a mere beggar. After dusk when the glow-worms make their appearance, they think, ' We are giving light to the world." But when the stars begin to twinkle, the pride of the glow-worms is humbled. Now the stars begin to think, " We are illumining the universe.' But after a while the moon ascends the sky, and her silvery light humiliates the stars and they pale away in sadness. Again, the moon grows proud and thinks that by her light the world is lighted and bathed in beauty. But presently the dawn proclaims the ascent of the sun on the eastern horizon. And where is the moon now !

If they who think themselves rich ponder over these facts of Nature, they would never, never boast of their riches and power.

Water always flows out under a bridge but never stagnates; so money passes through the hands of the free, and is never hoarded by them.

He is truly a man to whom money is only a servant ; but, on the other hand, those who do not know how to make proper use of it, hardly deserve to be called men.

MAYA AS AHAMKARA OR EGOTISM - EVILS OF EGOTISM

[Evils of egotism—The difficulty of conquering egotism—'Ripe' ego and 'unripe' ego—How to conquer the ego—Ego in the man of realisation]

The sun can give heat and light to the whole world, but he cannot do so when the clouds shut out his rays. Similarly as long as egotism veils the heart, God cannot shine upon it.

Egotism is like a cloud which keeps God hidden from our sight. If it vanishes by the mercy of the Guru, God is perceived in all His glory. For instance, you see in the picture that Sri I\amachandra, Who is God, is only two or three steps ahead of Lakshmana (the Jiva), but Sita (Maya), coming in between the two, prevents Lakshmana from having a view of Rama.

Ahamkara and Aham —These two words have been variously translated here, accordingly to context, as egotism, the sense of ' I ', the 'I', the ego, the ' I-ness ' and so on. None of these is perhaps an exact equivalent. Indian philosophy and system of spiritual discipline understand by it the basic principle of individuation giving rise to the sense of 'I', the concomitant feeling of separation from God and other individuals, and all other psychical and physical developments following from it. The aim of spiritual life is to root out this prime source of all worldliness, and realise the unity of all existence.

Q. Sir, why are we in bondage like this? Why do we not see God ?

A. Man's ego itself is Maya. It is the veil that shuts out the Light. Verily, with the death of the 'I' all troubles cease. If by the grace of the Lord a man once gains the knowledge that he is not the doer, then he assuredly becomes a Jivanmukta, one freed in this very life, and transcends all fear.

If I hold this cloth before me, you cannot see me any more, though I am still as near you as ever. So also though God is nearer to you than anything else, because of the screen of egotism you cannot see Him.

As long as there is egotism, neither Self-knowledge (Jnana) nor liberation (Mukti) is possible; and there is no cessation of birth and death.

Rice, pulse, potatoes and other things put in cold water in an earthen vessel can be touched with hand until they are heated on a fire. The same statement applies to the Jiva. This body is the earthen vessel; wealth and learning, caste and lineage, power and position are like rice, pulse and potatoes. Egotism is the heat. The Jiva is made hot (haughty) by egotism.

Rain-water never stands on high ground, but runs down to the lowest level. So also the mercy of God re-mains in the hearts of the lowly, but drains off from those of the vain and the proud.

Egotism is so injurious to man that as long as it is not eradicated there is no salvation for him. Look at the young calf and the troubles that come upon it through egotism. As soon as it is born, it cries,

' Ham hai'—' I am', 'I am '. The result of its egotism is that, when it grows up, if it is an ox, it is yoked to the plough, to drag carts full of heavy load; if a cow, it is kept tied to its post and is sometimes even killed and eaten. But still, in spite of all this punishment, the animal does not lose its egotism ; for drums that are made of its hide produce the same sound of 'Ham', I. The creature does not learn humility until the cotton-carder makes bow-strings out of its entrails; for it is then that the animals intestines sing out ' Tu hai '—'Thou art .' The 'I must go and give place to the ' Thou ; and this is not achieved until man becomes spiritually awakened.

Freedom will come when your ' I-hood (egotism) vanishes and you yourself are merged in the Divinity.

When does a man attain salvation ? Only when his egotism dies.

Q. When shall I be free?

A. When that 'I vanishes from you. 'I and mine —this is ignorance; 'Thou and 'Thine'—that is true knowledge. The true devotee always says, " O Lord, Thou art the doer (Karta). Thou doest everything. I am a mere instrument in Thy hands. I do whatever Thou makest me do. All this is Thy glory. This home and this family are Thine, not mine; I have only the right to serve as Thou ordainest.

THE DIFFICULTY OF CONQUERING EGOTISM

The vanities of all others may gradually die out. but the vanity of a saint regarding his sainthood is hard indeed to wear away.

The cup in which garlic juice is kept retains the odour, though washed several times. Egotism is such an obstinate aspect of ignorance that it never disappears completely, however hard you may try to get rid of it.

The dyspeptic knows only too well that sour things are injurious to him, but such is the force of association that the sight of them is enough to make his mouth water. So, even if one tries hard to suppress the idea of I-ness and 'mine-ness , yet when one begins to act, the 'unripe ego asserts itself.

There are few who can attain Samadhi and get rid of the Aham—the feeling of ' I within. Generally it does not go. You may reason and discriminate without end, yet this I comes back again and again. Today you may cut down the Pepul tree, but tomorrow you will see it sprouting again.

Those who seek name and fame are under a delusion. They forget that everything is ordained by the Great Dispenser of all things and that all is due to the Lord and the Lord alone. The wise man says always, " It is Thou, O Lord, It is Thou" ; but the ignorant and the deluded say, " It is I, it is I."

'RIPE' EGO AND 'UNRIPE' EGO

There are two types of egoes, one 'ripe ' and the other ' unripe'. " Nothing is mine, whatever I see, or feel, or hear, nay, even this body itself, is not mine ; I am always eternal, free and all-knowing,'—such ideas arise from the ' ripe ego. " This is my house, this is my child, this is my wife, this is my body,"—thoughts of this kind are the manifestation of the unripe ego.

The ego that asserts " I am the servant of God is characteristic of the true devotee. It is the ego of Vidya (Knowledge), and is called the ripe ego.

What is the 'mischievous I? The 'I' which says, "What! Don't they know me? I have so much money ! Who is so wealthy as myself ? Who dares to surpass me?

The ' I which makes a man worldly and attached to lust and wealth is mischievous. The individual soul and the Universal Being are separated because this ' I comes in between them. If a stick is placed on the surface of water, the water will appear to be divided into two sections. The stick is the Aham—the I . Take that away, and the water becomes again undivided.