PLACING CONTINUOUS EFFORT

Swami Chinmayananda in describing an accomplished yogi in his book "As I Think", published by the Central Chinmaya Mission Trust, Bombay 1985 reminds us of the achievement of Ramalinga Adigal. 

An accomplished yogi is one who has ended his contact with these inert matter assemblages and has regained his native glow as the pure infinite consciousness. Such a godly one may for the benefit of the world come to express through his previous equipments for a short number of years singing the song of the divine felt by him expressing the majesty of the infinite song rising in him roaring the victory of the spirit over the matter which he has accomplished. Such a one is called a real saint, prophet, messiah, buddha. After serving the world for a time.... the equipment of expression around him withers away and he the infinite exists. As spirit he expresses thereafter through all functioning in the entire universe.

He reminds us of both Agathiyar and Ramalinga Adigal's reminders to us to study and understand the tattvas that make us. He reminds us of both Agathiyar and Ramalinga Adigal's reminders to us to put in the effort or the sadhana.

Sadhana is the technique by which alone such a sacred inner temple can be built by each one of us within us.

Ramalinga Adigal comes to asks me to continue to do Nadi Suddhi some 18 years later after Agathiyar had taught me in my Nadi reading. Agathiyar comes to asks me to start doing the yoga asanas and breathing techniques taught to me by Tavayogi Thangarasan Adigal some 13 years earlier after he himself put a halt to it in 2011. On the other hand, the Siddha puja that he started me doing in 2002, followed by the ritual of lighting the Homa initiated by Tavayogi in 2008 and the libation or abhisegam of his idol in 2010, together with the activities of doing charity had all wind down in intensity towards the end of last year upon his command. What remains now is the weekly libation of his idol with water as dictated by Ma and Ramalinga Adigal and the annual vizha or celebration for Agathiyar that coincides with Thaipusam as requested by him. 

The emphasis these days is on doing sadhana in perfecting the breathing. They ask us to give importance to observe the breath, guiding it favorably, to move centrally and pierce the veil, hence opening the door to enlightenment. It would not be easy; neither will it be possible says Agathiyar. But he still wants us to attempt it. Both Supramnia Swami and Tavayogi too told us that our efforts shall not go to waste. With effort on our path and the magical hand of the divine one day, it shall eventually open to reveal to us the plain truth. But sadly, we always tend to shelf it for another moment or day. What if that moment or day does not come? To succeed on the spiritual path we are told that we need vairagya or determination. Sogyal Rinpoche in his book "The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying", HarperSanFrancisco, 1994, shares the story of Asanga, a famous Indian Buddhist saint, who lived in the fourth century, that puts us to shame our lack of dedication for the cause. 

Retreating into the mountains to meditate in the hope of having a vision of Buddha Maitreya and to receive his teachings, Asanga was saddened and disheartened that he did not get the vision he aspired for, having not had even a glimpse of Maitreya in even his dream, even after putting in six years of meditation in the harshest conditions. He thought that he would never succeed in his dream to have the vision of the Buddha and learn from him, hence he left his hermitage abandoning the noble venture. He had not gone far down the road when he sees a man rubbing an enormous iron bar with a strip of silk cloth. Asanga asked him what he was doing to which he received the reply, "I haven't got a needle, so I am going to make one out of this iron bar." Asanga was stunned and told himself "Look at the trouble people give themselves over things that are totally absurd. You are doing a really valuable spiritual practice and you're not nearly so dedicated." He turned around and went back to his retreat to continue his meditation.

Another three years went by and there was no positive sign that he would have a vision of the Buddha. He told himself, "Now I know for certain I am never going to succeed" and so saying he left his practice again. Coming down the road, at the foot of a huge rock stood a man busily rubbing the rock with a feather soaked in water. When questioned about his action, the man replied that the rock was stopping the sun from shining onto his home thus he was getting rid of the rock. Asanga could only revel at the faith and indefatigable energy he carried in him, and ashamed at his own lack of dedication he returned back to his retreat.

Three more years passed by and still, he had not even had a single good dream. He told himself that it was utterly useless and hopeless for him to pursue further, and left again. This time he came across a dog lying in the path of the villagers, snarling at all those who passed by, ready to sink its teeth into them although it had only its front legs and the hind legs were rotting away. Compassion came over Asanga. He cut a piece of flesh from his body and fed the dog. He knelt beside the dog, closed his eyes, and began to stick his tongue out to remove the maggots that had infested its flesh. But his tongue touched the ground. Opening his eyes he saw no dog. In its place was the Buddha Maitreya, envelope in a shimmering aura of light.

Asanga asked him why he did not appear earlier. Maitreya replied, "It is not true that I never appeared to you before. I was with you all the time, but your negative karma and obscurations prevented you from seeing me. Your twelve years of practice dissolved them slightly so that you were at last able to see the dog. Thanks to your compassion all the obscurations were completely swept away and you can see me before you with your very own eyes. If you do not believe that this is what happened put me on your shoulders and try and see if anyone else can see me."

Asanga put Maitreya on over his shoulder and went to the marketplace. He began to ask the people there what was it that he carried on his shoulders. None saw Maitreya seated on his shoulder. Surprisingly one woman told him that he was carrying the rotting corpse of a dog on his shoulder. Maitreya told him her karma was slightly purified hence she was the only one able to see the dog. No one saw the Buddha Maitreya.

Sogyal Rinpoche writes that finally, it dawned on Asanga that "the power of compassion had purified and transformed his karma and so made him a vessel fit to receive the vision and instruction of Buddha Maitreya.  Maitreya took him to heaven and gave him further teachings.