Power politics is exploitative

Participating in the 125th birth anniversary celebrations of Paramhansa Yogananda, JYOTISH AND DEVI NOVAK engage in a conversation with their colleagues in Pune, NAYASWAMI JAYA and ADITYA GAIT. The group interacted with SONAL SRIVASTAVA in Pune, on overcoming the sense of separation and othernessHow can we deal with the increasing sense of separateness, otherness?Jyotish: There is a tendency in all people both towards the separateness that is ego, and for unity, which is the soul, divinity. In this particular age, the force drawing people into egoistic separation is not only strong but is being used by people in powerful positions to bolster their power. So politicians are purposely trying to set one group against another group. They are trying to divide and increase people’s fear and they are doing it out of the motivation for power and for wealth. Frankly, that’s a terrible thing. But behind that current flow of separateness, is the strong desire in the human heart, to feel united with God. That force expresses itself as love, friendship and caring. The two forces of separation and egoistic power, and unity and divinity are universal forces and they are always in competition; this was the essence of the Gita. The separation that we see in the world will ultimately be helpful because, for the individual who wants a happier life, will renounce not only the separation but the egoistic thrust for power and wealth that underlines it. Devi: Any change has to come through personal self-transformation. If we want it to be a different world, every individual will have to see ‘What can I do in my life to bring about acceptance and unity.’ Jaya: People feel loneliness in their life; they feel a sense of isolation and that naturally causes a sense of separation. Essentially, they are separated from their own higher Self. Whenever, I feel isolated, I turn within and I find that Guru is within me. In the end, I always have a friend. Meditation leads us to the inner sense of homecoming. When we come to terms with ourselves, somehow, we begin to find friends outside also. Unless the inner world is brought into harmony first, we will be constantly searching outwardly. I was always talking to myself, ‘it is raining today’, ‘look at that building,’ but then I thought — who am I talking to? The question seems silly, but I had to think about it. I thought let’s make it my Guru. The real art of meditation is learning to listen and I am trying. Aditya: When freedom came in 1947, Gandhiji was not celebrating that night. He said that true freedom will come when people are more in control of themselves. His high wish was that people get swaraj, self-control. Every nation has to go through a phase when people are fighting each other initially, then they realise ‘we can be friends’; it’s a high goal often realised in small groups and communities. Political leaders today seem to target certain communities. Why is this happening?Devi: It’s just a reflection that dharma is not predominant now, but that doesn’t mean that people don’t have compassion in their hearts. Swami Kriyananda would quote President Abraham Lincoln, who was a Himalayan Yogi in his past life: “ You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.” Luckily, God put search for truth and dharma in our hearts. So we won’t be satisfied with false claims. There is the law of karma; we live in the world that we have created. Humanity is evolving. Non-believers often ask why God allows suffering.Jyotish: Ask, ‘why do I allow that person to suffer’; if non-believers practise compassion, their questions will dissolve. It’s an easy rationale to place the blame outside of ourselves. We can say the problem is ‘the politician, or God, I am fine but the problem is outside.’ There was a funny statement by CS Lewis, he said, “Many people would like to serve God and most of them in an advisory capacity.” Jaya: Ignorance is just the absence of light. It comes down to taking action and what we can do to bring more light into this world. We have to start with ourselves Devi: They say that the world is a play of light and darkness that’s the nature of maya, delusion. Paramhansa Yoganada would take his disciples to the movie theatre and he would point up to the beam of light from the projection booth. And at an exciting, dramatic part of the movie, the master would tap on shoulders and say ‘see just the play of light and dark.’ I read another anecdote, when the master said he looked up, and the man in the projection booth, was reading a book and not even watching the movie. I thought that’s like God, he is bored of this show. Guru Vandana At the 125th birth anniversary year of Paramhansa Yogananda, Ananda Sangha, Pune, recently organised an event titled Guru Vandana, a musical evening featuring classical maestros Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia and Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. The event was a fundraiser to support the Paramhansa Yogananda Charitable Trust, dedicated to restoring the dignity and divinity of the widows in Vrindavan. The performance happened on the birth anniversary of Lahiri Mahasaya, chosen by his Guru Mahavatar Babaji to disseminate the teachings of Kriya Yoga to the world.The jugalbandi between Shiv-Hari left the audience mesmerised. Bhavani Shankar and Vijay Ghate accompanied the duo on the pakhawaj and tabla respectively. Pandit Shivkumar Sharma gave credit to Ananda Sangha for “the great job they are doing in terms of social service and spirituality.” He said he was very inspired after reading Autobiography of a Yogi written by Paramhansa Yogananda, a book he had read many times. He also mentioned that Indian classical music and spirituality are two sides of the same coin. Follow Nayaswamis Jyotish and Devi atspeakingtree.in