Suno! Suno! Sadhuji! – 7

An advice to the mind
Sadhana waved to her neighbor Prema, who was playing with her 8 months old son Harsha, as she walked towards the garden.
“ How cheerful small kids are! See this Harsha… he always seems to be so blissful”, she thought as she walked to find her mother Kirtana watering plants.
“Ma! How I wish I could be always happy like our little Harsha next door!” said Sadhana as she helped her mother with watering.
“Sadhana! You are not alone in this! Everybody wants just that and is indeed in constant pursuit of such uninterrupted happiness!”
“Ah! But no one seems to be happy always save these little tots who are yet to bear the burden of books and exams!” said Sadhana smiling.
“That’s right dear! Everyone wants to be happy, but they know not where to find such happiness unadulterated by even a speck of sorrow. And they shall remain searching forever unless they change the direction of their search!”
“That’s interesting ma! What do you mean by changing direction?”
“Sadhana! People think happiness lies in outside things. All that we see in the world are impermanent by nature. Pursuing happiness in these transitory things indeed becomes a source of misery! Unless one turns the search towards that which is imperishable and permanent, one cannot attain absolute happiness.”
“And what is that which is permanent and imperishable Ma?”
“Dear! Let me tell you all about this from the Kirtan of our Sri Sri Muralidhara Swamiji. Sri Swamiji lovingly admonishes the ‘mind’ and tells it a way to attain that Eternal happiness. He says,
Angum ingum uzhalaadiru manamey
Kannan kazhalgalil nilaiyai iru…
Idunaal varai alaindu alaindu kandadu ennavo?
Idai andrey arindirundaal aanandam allavo..
‘Oh mind! Stop wandering here and there restlessly!
Be established in the Lotus Feet of Sri Krishna relentlessly!’
‘What have you achieved by wandering in all these days of yore?
Bliss would have been yours had you known this before!
Sadhana! In the Bikshu Gita of Srimad Bhagavatam, the bikshu says,
‘NAyam jano me sukha dukha hetu: Na devatAtma graha karma kAlA: |
Mana: param kAraNamAmananti samsAra chakram parivartayed yat ||’
He says, none other than my own mind is the cause of all my joys and sorrows.
Sadhana! Indeed it is mind that is essentially the cause for one’s joy or sorrow. Mind tries to find happiness in things outside itself, while in reality mind’s source is indeed the fountainhead of eternal bliss! And this source is verily the Lotus feet of Sri Krishna!
Mind has to hold on to something to sustain itself. Swamiji asks, ‘all these days you have let your mind wander in the worldly pursuits in search of happiness. But have you attained it?’ The very fact that we are still searching shows that we have not achieved it! So Sri Swamiji says instead of holding on to things that are perishable (and thus are cause of pain), hold on to the Lotus Feet of Sri Krishna which is permanent, imperishable and the abode of eternal bliss and ever be happy!
Sri Swamji sighs, “Ah! Had one known this secret of happiness one need not have endured pain all these years!”
Since this happiness lies at the source of mind, Sri Swamiji next tells us what mind actually is and how to deal with it!
He says,
Naan enadu irandayum vittu vidu
Kannanidam unnaiye thandu vidu
Give up the thoughts of Me and Mine!
Give yourself to Sri Krishna and say ‘Am Thine’!
Sadhana! Mind is nothing but collection of thoughts. The very first thought is the ‘I’ thought. The feeling of ‘I’ is the root of all attachment and from this thought springs the feeling of ‘Mine’. We are first attached to ourselves and this in turn breeds attachment to things that we feel belong to us – like ‘my mother’, ‘my son’, ‘my house’, ‘my friend’ etc. These become a source of our joy and sorrow – Joy when desirable things happen to our dear ones and undesirable things happen to our foes, and sorrow when it is the other way round!
All work in the realm of spirituality pertains to subduing this ego! But since its not an easy task, Sri Swamiji says, surrender this ego to Sri Krishna and become a servant of Sri Krishna. Once you submit ‘yourself’ to His will, all that’s ‘yours’ shall be His and thus we become Sri Krishna’s responsibility! The lord takes care of the life of such a devotee in totality! Whatever has to happen to our ego shall also be taken care of by the Lord Himself!”
Sadhana interrupted, “Ah! What kind of faith and surrender this claims!”
Kirtana continued, “Indeed! Why not? Will not the Lord of this Universe take care of us better than we ourselves can? Sri Swamiji asks why worry?
Veenaana visanangalai agatri vidu
Kannan vachanangalai patri vidu
Let go of all unnecessary worries!
Hold on to nectarine words that are of Hari’s!
Sadhana! It is ironical that people entrust their lives to pilots, drivers and doctors but hesitate to entrust their lives to Lord Sri Krishna!
Sri Swamiji says, stop worrying about yourself and entrust yourself to the Lord
Once that’s done stop worrying about ‘how the Lord will take care’ or ‘will he take care’!
Has not the Lord himself affirmed?
‘ananyAshchintayanto mAm ye janA: paryupAsate |
teshAm nityAbhiyuktAnAm yogakshemam vaHAmyaham ||’
‘I bear the burden of that devotee of mine who entrusts everything to me and meditates upon me constantly’
Again he says,
‘sarva dharmAn parityajya mAmekam sharaNam vraja’
‘teshAm aham samuddhartA’
‘na me bhaktha pranashyati’
Sri Swamiji says, hold on to these wonderful, soothing and encouraging promises of the Lord in the case of His devotees and be free of all kinds of worries. He shall take care of our life here and hereafter!
And for this should we leave the world? No says our Swamiji!
Patratru ullagil pazhagi iru
Muralidharanaiye sadha patri iru
Move about in the world unattached
Ever to Sri Muralidhara be attached!
Sadhana! Be in the world but not of the world!
Sri Swamiji says ‘Hold on to the Lord’ and that will naturally loosen the grip we have on the world!
It’s like saying to a person holding on to a breaking branch ‘hold on to the other branch!’ rather than say ‘leave this branch!’
Attachment to the Lord is what one should have; dispassion for the things of the world follows naturally!
This indeed is the secret of eternal happiness says our Swamiji!”
“Wow Ma! That’s truly encouraging. Happiness is our nature and mind is the mischief monger. Leave it at the feet of the Lord and rest at peace and find the eternal bliss! How simple and yet profound this song of our Swamiji is! Can you sing it for me ma?”
“Sure dear!”
As Sadhana and Kirtana walked in the garden, Kirtana sang,

Ragam: saama
Talam: adi
Pallavi
Angum ingum uzhalaadiru manamey
Kannan kazhalgalil nilaiyai iru…
Charanam

Idunaal varai alaindu alaindu kandadu ennavo?
Idai andrey arindirundaal aanandam allavo..
Naan enadu irandayum vittu vidu
Kannanidam unnaiye thandu vidu … (angum)

Veenaana visanangalai agatri vidu
Kannan vachanangalai patri vidu … (angum)

Patratru ullagil pazhagi iru
Muralidharanaiye sadha patri iru … (angum)