PAST acronym – How to get past our past

[Hall Program at Brisbane, Australia]

Video:

Transcript

This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
today evening. And as mentioned, I will speak today on the topic of how to get past our past.
I will use an acronym P-A-S-T. And I will use a metaphor. We are getting past the past of this mic stand now.
With a screwdriver. The metaphor I will use is of a wall where graffiti is being written. And how we can stop that.
So the topic first of all, how to get past our past. What do I mean by that? From our past, various influences come upon us. At the start of this year, I was on a TV talk show on the topic of New Year resolutions.
At that time, I was quoting a survey which showed that 90% of the resolutions that people make at the time of New Year, 90% of the resolutions are not new. Most of the resolutions were something which we had made in the past, we kept it for some time, and then we couldn’t keep, so next year we make the same resolutions again. So, our past keeps coming back upon us.
It may be past habits, it may be past thought patterns, it may be past memories, of hurts, of wrongs, which others have done. So basically, how does the past impinge on the present and influence the future? It’s in two broad ways. We interact with the world, so we have done some things, and some things have been done to us.
And sometimes, some things that others have done may impinge upon us. How could he have done like that? How could she have spoken like that? Why did they do that? So things that have happened to us, they keep coming back again and again and again. Our mind keeps replaying it, and that can hurt us.
So, soldiers who go out on the war field sometimes get post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD. So basically, the things that they have seen over there, they keep getting reenacted in their minds. So basically, one aspect would be things that have happened to us, they come back upon us.
The second is, things which we have done, keep coming back to us. This can happen, say, to people who are addicts, and who are trying to recover from the addiction. Somebody may be alcoholic, somebody may be a compulsive smoker, somebody may be into drugs.
And they recognise, I want to give this up. But even when they want to give it up, the desires from the past, the cravings keep coming. So these are what we did, and those desires keep coming upon us.
So to understand how exactly the past comes upon us, we look at the model of the inner world that is offered by the Yuga text, such as the Bhagavad Gita. The Bhagavad Gita talks about a three-level model of the self. Three-level means there’s the body, the mind, and the soul.
So if you want to compare it to a computer system, the body is like the hardware, the mind is like the software, and the soul is the user. Soul is the spiritual side of us, who is operating things. Now, to understand this further, how our past keeps coming back to us, if, say, we have searched for a particular thing on Google, then that thing keeps coming back.
If, say, I have decided to, if I have repeatedly visited NY Times for looking for news, as soon as I type N, my browser will complete NY Times. Now, even if now I want to go to some other site, but even if I say I want to go to New Herald or whatever, but as soon as I type N, that will come as auto-complete. I have to say no to that.
I have to type myself. So in a computer browser, the past comes upon. Past comes upon us again and again.
And this past is individual. So, when I search something on Google and you search something on Google, and you search something on Google, all of us will get different results. Because Google customises the search results based on what we have searched in the past.
Similarly, for all of us, we may see something similar, we may hear something similar, we may watch something similar, but different thoughts, emotions, desires will get stimulated within us. So, the mind is like the software, which contains the reservoir of the impressions that we have acquired in the past. These impressions can be either because of what we ourselves have done, or they can be because of what others have done to us.
Either way. And the mind is what keeps bringing the past back to us. As an event, the past has happened and it’s over.
But as an experience, as long as the mind is caught in the past, or as long as the mind keeps going back to the past, we stay trapped in it. We stay, if not trapped, at least restricted by it. So, say somebody is an alcoholic, trying to recover from alcoholism.
As long as the cravings keep coming, externally, they may appear to be just as free as anyone else. But internally, they’re not free. As soon as they pass by a bar, others will just pass by without any thought.
But as soon as they pass by, craving starts pulling them, pulling them, pulling them. A tug of war goes on inside. So, they’re being pulled by the past.
So, this is the basic model, that the mind contains impressions. It’s like a software which keeps bringing the impressions back to us again and again. So, every single thing that we do, that creates some kind of impression in the mind.
The depth of the impression will vary depending on the intensity of the experience. If we look back at our past, the past is not like a symmetrical, homogenised timeline. In the past, certain experiences stand out.
They have peaks and towers. And most of the remaining past may not even be able to remember it much. So, that means that some experiences get deeply impressed on us.
And when they get deeply impressed on us, then they influence us. Are all of you able to hear clearly? Or is there some problem? No? Okay, fine. So, I will use the metaphor of a wall on which, say, graffiti is being written to illustrate what we need to do.
So, if somebody is some pranksters, there’s a nice, clean wall. Pranksters are coming and writing graffiti over there. Now, how do we deal with that? Basically, there’ll be four aspects to it.
That’s the acronym which I’ll be using, PAST. P-A-S-T So, first is, P-PURGE. If somebody has written something on it, try to clean it off.
Ebosh it. Scratch it. Try to purge off whatever is written over there.
Second is, APPLY. If that doesn’t work, just overpaint it again. Apply new paint on it.
And if you apply paint on it, then that will get removed. So, S is STOP. STOP means, stop the pranksters from writing on it.
That will require vigilance. And they will come. Somehow restrict them.
Don’t let them come at you. Come there. And last T is TRANSFORM.
Transform them so that they themselves don’t want to write it over there. So, if you want to deal with the problem of unwanted graffiti on walls, these are the four things you should logically do. Clean off.
Overpaint. Stop the pranksters. And transform them.
And each of them is progressive. It’s progressive in its own way. Sometimes, some graffiti may be written with some paint which is washable, cleanable.
We can remove it. With respect to our mind, as I said, whatever we watch, especially whatever we experience, we watch hundreds of things, but whatever goes inside the experience, that gets impressed. And, purging, instead of, in terms of removing the experience from the mind is almost impossible.
There’s a fundamental difference between the physical reality and the mental reality. In the physical reality, if I decide not to do something, if I decide, maybe I fear there might be some electric current in this hand. Or, this is very unstable, if I touch it, it will shake and create a lot of unpleasant noise.
So, I can decide I will not touch it. And I can not touch it. I can decide not to touch it and I will not touch it.
But, in the mental realm, we cannot decide not to think of something. Psychologists call this by various names. One of them is, they call it the Pink Monkey Syndrome.
They tell the audience, for the next 30 seconds, please don’t think of a pink monkey. Now, we may have never thought of a pink monkey till now. But, in those 30 seconds, we think of a pink monkey.
So, at the level of the mind, we can’t not think of things. What we can do is, we can think of other things by which that thing will not come in our mind. So, purging in terms of, say, if some impression is there within our mind, I have seen something or I have heard something, I have done something, and a thought comes, I will not think of this.
Just by thinking, I will not think of it. I am thinking of it. If an alcoholic says, I am not going to think about alcohol.
Not thinking about alcohol, in thinking that I will not think about alcohol, they are thinking about alcohol. So, in the mental world, purging is practically not possible. What has gone there, is in there.
Now, of course, everything in there is not really very influential. Because there are hundreds and thousands of impressions in our mind, most of them don’t register, and if they don’t register, they don’t return. Sometimes, we meet someone, and then we think, yeah, I met this person.
But if we try to recollect, it doesn’t come in the mind. So, there are some things which we don’t recollect, even if they are there registered. So, the first approach of trying to purge, through negation, I will not do this.
I will not think about this. With respect to the inner world, it will not work. We may tell someone, you know, okay, say someone has hurt me terribly, and I think, I will not think about that person.
Or we tell them, just don’t think about that person. How do I not think? I have to have something positive to think about. Only when I can fill my mind with the positive, then I can avoid the negative.
So, with the gravity, we can purge in terms of scratching off. But in terms of inner world, we can’t drive out unwanted thoughts. What we can do is, crowd out unwanted thoughts.
Drive out means, you get out, you get out, you get out, you get out. We can’t do that. We are thinking about them all the time.
But we can crowd them out. That means, if I have something else to think about, and I fill my mind with those thoughts, then whatever is the negative, that gets crowded out. It’s like if there is a glass here.
And if I want to say that, if I decide, I will remove all air from this glass. I might succeed in removing the air, but even after removing the air, for one moment, if I leave it open, the air will come in again. To create a vacuum is extremely difficult.
But, if I fill this with water, then, the air will automatically get removed. So, similarly, with respect to our mind, to try to empty it of any particular thought is very difficult. But what we can do is, fill the mind with positive thoughts.
With some other thoughts. And that’s where P-A-S-T A is apply. Apply means, there is some unwanted paint over there, apply new paint over there.
And as we apply new paint, the old paint goes off. And, applying new impressions on the mind is the essence of spiritual growth. In the spiritual path, there are different processes, there are different yogas.
The Bhagavad Gita recommends especially the process of Bhakti Yoga. Bhakti Yoga can be said to be the yoga of love, devotional love. Among various things that impress, that create impressions on our mind, those things where our emotions are involved, create the most impressions.
We may remember certain facts, but, and those that kind of objective, factual, informational memory is important in many situations. However, what registers fastest and deepest within us, is not informational memory, but emotional memory. If our emotions are involved in something, the impressions are formed much deeper.
So, the process of Bhakti Yoga is about creating positive, spiritual, emotional memories. We connect with the supreme reality, the supreme consciousness, Krishna, through the process of Bhakti Yoga. Through Kirtan, through meditation, through studying scripture, through various ways, we apply positive spiritual impressions.
And the more the positive spiritual impressions get applied, the more the negative impressions that are there, they go to the background. Like an overpaint, then whatever was there in the past, it just goes into the background. So, the impressions may not be deleted, but they will go so much into the background, that they will no longer influence us.
And as we keep applying more and more devotional impressions, to that extent, more and more, the past impressions start going behind. Now, what does it mean, applying devotional impressions? Our mind is not like a physical object where we can paint something. In the Bhagavad Gita, time and time again, the process of remembrance is talked about.
In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna says, always remember me, remember the absolute truth. Remember me, become devoted to me. This remembrance is not again intellectual remembrance.
Yes, we can memorise verses from the Gita, we can memorise some facts, they are helpful. But this is remembrance that comes from affection. When a mother loves a child, naturally the mother’s thoughts go towards the child.
When we love anyone, our thoughts naturally go towards that person. So we want to, in the process of Bhakti Yoga, develop a devotional attraction towards the Lord, by which the remembrance will become natural. And this application, we are talking about apply, application of devotional memory requires association.
To the extent we associate with others who are attracted to Krishna, for whom their thoughts are deeply impressed with Krishna, to that extent, our thoughts also become directed towards Him. Our desires are not just linear, they are also triangular. Linear desire means if I see a pizza, I see the pizza, I want it.
So I see the pizza and I want to eat it. But if I see some item, which I don’t know what it is, should I eat it, should I not eat it? Seeing it doesn’t create any desire. But if I see a friend, food is being served, the friend goes there.
Oh, delicious! Wonderful! Give me also, I also want to eat. So what has happened over here? Seeing the object did not create the desire, but seeing someone else enjoying that object created the desire. This desire is not just linear, but it is triangular.
And this triangularity of desires is used extensively by the advertising industry. When they use celebrity endorsements, a new smartphone comes up. So many smartphones come up now.
You may not be very attracted. But if some Hollywood star, some Bollywood star, some sports star, that person endorses it. I use this.
Oh really? I want to use it then. So our desires are not just linear, they are triangular also. And this triangularity of our desires needs to be tapped if we want to apply devotional impressions.
Because many times the objects which can give us positive spiritual impressions, they may not seem attractive at first glance. We may see a book of wisdom like Bhagavad Gita. Okay.
I have seen hundreds of books like this. It may be a good book. But if you meet someone who loves the Bhagavad Gita, delights in the Bhagavad Gita, who keeps getting newer and newer insights from the Bhagavad Gita.
Oh, what is there in this book? I want to know about it. Let me read it. If we chant some mantra.
Yeah, there are so many different sounds. I chant one mantra. But if we see somebody chanting that mantra with great intensity, with great joy, with great vigour.
What is there in it? I want to experience it. So our desires are triangular. That’s why, if we have to apply positive spiritual impressions, we need to associate with those who are applying those impressions on themselves and who are trying and who are inspired to keep applying them.
By their association, we will be inspired similarly. And thus, otherwise we may just do the, even but if we do them mechanically, just going through the motions, then we will do them, but no impressions will be formed. And if the impressions are not formed, new impressions are not formed, then the old impressions will keep coming.
In Bhakti Yoga, we don’t want to go through the motions. We want to go through to the emotions. We want to go through to the emotions.
That means you want to experience a devotional connection with the Supreme. And that emotional devotional connection is what will create new impressions. So P-A-S-T S is Stop.
Stop means, if some people are writing graffiti, then we find out who they are or we find out where they are coming from and block those channels, close the doors, instal better security so that they can’t come. Similarly, for us, we need to find out, okay, what are the sources from which my past keeps coming and influencing. And we need to stop it.
It may not always be possible to stop it entirely, but we need to minimise it. If we want to transform ourselves, ultimately transformation, if you want to say change our inner impressions, it’s an internal process. But, for the internal transformation, external change is almost always necessary.
Of course, external change is almost never sufficient. If I do only external change, that’s not enough. But external change is almost always necessary.
Suppose somebody is a recovering alcoholic and their house happens to be above a bar. Now, if they decide I want to give up alcohol, they may have to relocate. Without that, I want to give it up.
Yes, they want to give it up. But, our desires sometimes just pop up. And if the opportunity to indulge is very easily readily available, then during those few moments of weakness, the relapse happens.
So, the external source of temptation or the external avenue for indulgence, that needs to be minimised. So, if we have had some very painful experiences with someone or at some place, then it may well be necessary to just change that place. Cut off connection with that person.
Because otherwise, that past will keep streaming back upon us. So, stop. Stop the impressions from the past coming upon us.
Now, the impressions come in two ways. One is through external stimulation and second is through internal recollection. So, an alcoholic may get a desire for alcohol because they pass by a bar.
Let me have a drink. Or sometimes, there may be no external stimulus. Suddenly, the desire comes.
I want to drink. They may just be bored. They may be just having not much to do and the desire comes up.
So, when the external stimulation comes, we just stop. That means, we try to minimise the external stimulation. And stop can also mean when the internal recollection comes that we redirect our thoughts elsewhere.
But here, we are right now talking about the external miscreants or pranksters coming and doing the graffiti. So, stop. That means, from the external, we don’t let the impressions come further.
We need to stop that. And this stopping can actually provide a significant amount of relief. You say, no, even if that thought comes, I can resist it.
Yes, we may be able to resist it. But is resisting that the best use of our willpower? Our willpower is a finite resource. We don’t have infinite willpower.
So, every time, some thought comes and we resist it. Yes. We are saying no to it.
It comes again. I resist it again. It comes again.
I resist it again. Say, how long? Say, a student is studying for a for an exam. And then suddenly the student thinks, you know, is working on a computer, reading something and student thinks, let me see what’s the latest post on Facebook.
Or let me see what’s the latest sports news. Or let me see let me just see some movie clippings. Let me see some images.
Whatever. Now, if those thoughts are coming, student may be able to resist it. But yes, no, yes, no.
The mental energy is getting dissipated. That same energy could be better used to study. So, our willpower, we can use it to say no to the unwanted things.
But, in that, if the willpower gets expanded, then we don’t have enough willpower left to say yes to the positive things. So, if that particular thing is a weakness for a student, during this time, I’m just going to cut off net access. For the next two hours, I’m just going to study.
The world is not going to stop. Sometimes our mind makes us imagine, oh, if I don’t see some news, if I don’t get the latest breaking news, the world will break down. Nothing is going to break down.
I once saw a joke, there’s a man who is, it’s a cartoon, not a joke, this man is working on the computer late in the night. Wife is telling him, it’s late at night, you should sleep now. He says, no, something is wrong on the internet.
Something is wrong on the internet, I want to fix it. How? This is just, sometimes we may, we may get concerned more with what is happening in Tibet than what is happening in our textbook. We may get more concerned with what is happening in Serbia than what is happening to our spouse.
We just get completely distracted. So, stop. Whatever we are, particular source of the impressions coming from the past, the external stimulus, stop it.
And the last T is transform. Now, transform, what does it mean? When those same kids are coming and doing graffiti, we may stop them from coming, catch them, stop them from coming, but we still want to keep coming. But if you could just change them, and they don’t want to do that mischief anymore, then the world will become much safer, stay cleaner.
So now, it’s interesting when I’m talking about the wall and the pranksters. Actually, in our inner world, in a sense, the wall and the pranksters are the same. The wall is the mind where the impressions are formed.
But, again the desires, they come out again from the mind itself. So, with respect to transformation, we can’t transform the outer world. The culture is what it is.
The culture is unlikely to change. There are going to be hundreds, thousands, millions of temptations which are going to come. Millions of distractions that are going to come.
So, there are weapons of mass destruction and there are weapons of mass distraction. Mass distraction. That’s what we see in today’s world.
Now, we can’t do much about the extremists. But we can transform ourselves internally. That means that the mind which is somehow replaying the past pleasures we may have indulged in or, in a perverse sense, the mind is replaying the past wrongs that have happened to us.
If we could just change the tendency of that mind, transform that mind, then the inner struggle, the past coming back upon us would almost get eliminated. So, this transformation is the ultimate magical potency of Bhakti Yoga. At one level, I said Bhakti Yoga is about applying positive impressions.
But, it’s not just that. It also, if we keep practising Bhakti, keep connecting the mind with Krishna, by this, gradually, not only the impressions on the mind change, but also, the inclination of the mind changes. By inclination, we sometimes say that, I’m inclined towards music.
I’m inclined towards art. That means, I like it. My thoughts naturally go towards it.
Say, if this floor is inclined in a particular way, as soon as water falls on it, the water will flow in this direction. If I want the water to flow in this direction, then I’ll have to push the water. But, if I could reconstruct the floor, and make it inclined in this way, then the water would naturally flow in that direction.
Similarly, the process of Bhakti Yoga gradually changes the inclination of our mind. So, for example, if I feel, okay, this is enjoyable, but it’s not good for me. So, I’ll avoid it.
Then, that requires willpower. I like it, but it’s not good for me. So, I won’t do it.
But, if I could find something, which I like, and, which is also good for me, then, the struggle would no longer be there. So, when we start fixing the mind on Krishna, through the process of Bhakti Yoga, slowly, but surely, the mind starts realising that fixing the mind on Krishna, trying to lovingly serve Krishna, working in a mode of service to Krishna, that connection with Krishna gives the greatest satisfaction. Connection with Krishna is not just an otherworldly absorption, sitting in some yogic meditation.
That’s one part of it. Maybe one part of it. But, the connection with Krishna is more in terms of an intention.
I want to lovingly serve him. Whatever I do, I want to do it in a mode of loving contribution. So, once that connection with Krishna is established, and the mind starts experiencing, this is, this is enjoyable.
Why do I need anything else? Great saint Kulashekar says, he was a king in his previous life. He wanted to get past his past. He was, enjoyed royal opulences, and then he lived a simple life devoted to the Lord.
He says, far from feeling, oh, I was living in a palace with so much comforts and luxuries, now I’m living simply. He didn’t feel that. Why? Because, in the remembrance of the Lord, he says, I don’t know any pleasure better than this.
Better than what? What is this? He says, in the remembrance of my beloved Lord. So, by the process of bhakti, when you practise it sustainably, the mind itself gets transformed. Rather than getting inclined towards the past, the past pleasures we may indulge in, or the past wrongs we may be subjected to, the mind starts getting inclined towards Krishna.
How can I remember Krishna? How can I serve Krishna? How can I share Krishna? How can I do various things in a mood of offering for Krishna? When the mind becomes inclined in this way, with this transformation, then life becomes naturally joyful. The past is still there. But, the past doesn’t matter so much.
Sometimes, if we have a raw wound, the raw wound hurts. If there is a small scratch, it hurts. Now, sometimes some wounds are such that they will never go away.
But, if they are healed, they will remain as scars. The scar is there, but the scar itself does not cause pain, because the wound has been healed. So, it’s not that when we go past our past, we forget the past.
We may not forget it. But, devotional transformation creates a new way of remembering. Just like a scar is still there.
And I remember, I had a wound over here, because of which I got a scar. But, there is no pain involved. As long as there is emotional fixation in the past, there is, say, this person did like this to me.
How dare they did that? Sometimes, you may remember, 25 years ago, this person spoke like that to me. Still, our heartbeats are palpitating. How dare they did that? But, when we become absorbed in Krishna, whatever happened in the past, it’s a part of a higher plan, that is what contributed to making me who I am right now.
That person may have wanted to hurt me, that person may have hurt me also. But, if through it all, I grew spiritually, and I came to Krishna, then that person, actually, unwittingly, contributed to spiritually toughening me. And, rather than blaming that person for what they did, I just see that as a part of my spiritual evolution.
And thus, we remember the past, but we are not restricted by the past. We will always be products of our past. Our past has shaped who we are.
But, we don’t have to be prisoners of our past. We’ll always be products, but we don’t have to be the prisoners. Because, the negative influences of the past, will no longer restrict us.
Rather, taking those past influences as parts of the forces that shape our spiritual evolution, and basing ourselves in our connection with Krishna, we’ll move forward confidently. Having learned and toughened ourselves from the past, we move forward doing our best in the present, and creating a bright future for ourselves. In fact, it’s not just a bright future with Krishna, it is the brightest future.
The brightest possible future. Because, He is the source of the supreme illumination, and the supreme satisfaction. And by connection with Him, we make our life supremely illuminated, and supremely satisfied.
So, I’ll summarise what I spoke today, and then we can have a few questions. Is there any? So, I spoke on the topic of how to get past our past. And I took the to understand how our past comes upon us, either as cravings from the past we want to give up, or painful memories from the past, which keep hurting us.
Talked about how inside us, we have a three level model of the self, the body, the mind, and the soul. So, hardware, software, and the user. Just as our past searches come as auto-completes, our past choices come as auto-completes in our browser.
Similarly, our past keeps coming back in our mind, in the level of the software. And to change that, I talked about the metaphor of a wall on which graffiti has been written. What is the acronym past? P was? Yeah, paint is there.
Just clean it off, graffiti is there. Now, actually, with respect to the mind, we can’t literally purge. We can’t not think of things.
Because, when we do not think of things, also we are thinking of it. So, that will not work. Then the more positive solution is not to drive out the negative thoughts, but to crowd them out.
And that was A. A was? Apply. So, we apply paint and push the graffiti in the back. It gets no longer visible.
Similarly, we create positive impressions and those impressions will push the negative past to the background. And Bhakti Yoga is a process of creating positive impressions. By connecting with the supreme positive reality, Krishna.
And this connection requires not just the intellectual memory, but emotional memory. Whatever is remembered the most within our heart is within us is not just facts, but feelings. And to have that emotional connect with Krishna, we need to associate with those who are emotionally connected with Krishna.
Our desires are not just linear, but also triangular. And in the association of devotees, we can apply spiritual impressions on our consciousness by intensely practising Bhakti. S was? Stop.
Stop the pranksters from putting graffiti. Similarly, whatever are the sources from which the past cravings or the past memories are coming to us, we stop that connection. So, for internal change, we may say external change is not enough.
Yes, it may not be enough, but quite often it is necessary. It is necessary as a starting point. For a recovering alcoholic, staying near a bar is too risky.
And the last T was? Transform. So, our mind somehow tends to go back to the past cravings or the past hurts. So, that’s the inclination presently.
Water will flow in the direction the floor is inclined. Through the process of Bhakti Yoga, we are not just creating new impressions, we are also changing the inclination. The mind gets inclined towards that whatever it thinks will give it pleasure.
So, if by the repeated practise of Bhakti, we experience thinking about Krishna and living a life devoted to Krishna gives me higher satisfaction, then gradually the mind will become inclined towards Him. And as the mind becomes inclined towards Him, then the past hurts will still be there, but they won’t be like raw wounds, they will be scars. We will remember them, but not with any emotional fixation.
We will see them as parts that have contributed towards our spiritual evolution and we will stay fixed in connecting with Krishna in the present and thus creating the brightest possible future for ourselves. Thank you very much. Hare Krishna.
So, are there any questions or comments? With regard to stop and transform, I think the example sometimes if a devotee is being very rude or… If we are addicted to alcohol, then we can get out of there. That’s pretty easy. But in our devotional life, sometimes devotees or devotional ambulance itself could So, if you find the devotional ambience around us, some devotees are behaving rudely with us, then how can we either stop it or what can we do to transform it in that situation with respect to the externals? We have to know that our spiritual growth is our responsibility and the devotee association, whatever is there, it is meant to help us grow.
You two examples for this, if I go to a hospital, my purpose in going to the hospital is to get healed. Once I was in Pune and I went to a government hospital, I had some minor cough. I went there and there I got tuberculosis.
The cough would have lasted for three days, the tuberculosis has lasted for nine months. So, sometimes we may go to a hospital for getting healed, but we may get some disease over there. So, we have to be, at one level the hospital authorities have to be careful that they keep a hygienic atmosphere there, but at another level, we also have to be careful that I am going to the hospital and I have to be cautious, if somebody has an infectious disease, I should not go too close to them.
So similarly, the association of devotees, the spiritual movement, that is meant to be a hospital for healing us. The problem, however, is that when we go in spiritual association, we think or we imagine or we expect that everyone should be healed, but different people come with different forms of diseases and we go there primarily to associate with the doctor and to associate with those who are either serious about healing themselves or who have learned enough about healing to share about how to heal them. Somebody may not be a doctor, but somebody may be a nurse, somebody may be an assistant doctor.
They may also be able to help. So, if my purpose is clear, that I am going in the association of devotees to remember Krishna, to increase my attraction to Krishna, and if I find that by the association of someone, my, after I come back from the temple, rather than remembering Krishna, I am remembering how that person dealt with me, then I am not creating any positive memories for myself. So, in that case, I may have to decide that I will not associate much with that person.
You may have to keep a little distance. We don’t have to be disrespectful or offensive. We don’t even have to judge that person.
They may be having a particular disease. By disease, I mean that we all come from different conditionings and we are all going through different circumstances. All of us are carrying, all of us are carrying invisible burdens.
We all have our anxieties, our problems, our issues. Sometimes a person walks very erect, nicely, and some person may just slump down and walk. Just looking at them, we understand they are depressed, and just looking at them makes others feel depressed.
Sometimes people are like that, but if we saw some porter, say, who was carrying luggage on their back, and the luggage was very heavy and that’s why they were bent, then we wouldn’t blame them because there’s a big luggage. So sometimes people are emotionally burdened, and it may not be anything that we have done. Actually it may be something which they are going through.
At one level, our philosophy is personal. Krishna is a person, we are a person, we have to have a personal relationship with Krishna. At the same time, when others behave inappropriately, we have to learn not to take it personally.
In many of our interactions with others, the way others behave is not so much because of us, it is because of them. So, they must snap at us because of something that has gone wrong in their life. That’s why, don’t take it so personally, but if that’s what is happening repeatedly, then that indicates that they are not able to process their issues very well, so keep a distance.
Does that answer your question? Any other questions or comments? So, for the steps that you explained, the pathology and that applied, so after those three stages, is it necessary to apply Krishnamurti’s perspective because these days you see, when it comes to application, there are a lot of other alternatives and also there are also different cycles of people. So, I was just curious to find out those three stages. Okay, I got your question.
So, is it necessary to apply devotional principles when we are talking about purge, apply, stop? Can other things also work? Yes, there are many places where people do change themselves. Somebody who eats meat regularly, stop eating meat. They may also understand that being a vegetarian, being a vegan is better, but they may not give it up.
But then, they get a heart attack and the doctor tells, you want to decrease the probability of a heart attack again, stop eating meat. Next day, they give up meat. So, what happens is that we also have some willpower and if our willpower is nourished by our intelligence, then we apply not just spiritual impressions, but we apply just the knowledge, the application of the knowledge.
This is going to lead to this. I don’t want this. That can help somebody to give it up.
Similarly, if we consider there are three modes of material nature, ignorance, passion, goodness. So, sometimes some people may be able to replace something in ignorance with something in goodness. That’s also good.
So, for example, if somebody just spends, whenever they feel, whenever they feel a little depressed, a little lonely, they start drinking or smoking or taking drugs. If they can redevelop that habit and they decide that, now I’ll read and they find some good books to read. They may not be spiritual books, but just books of knowledge, books of interesting books, books which uplift in some way.
That can also help them. So, we need to basically apply positive stimuli. So, Krishna centred stimuli are the most positive stimuli because Krishna is the omnipotent spiritual reality.
So, connecting with him will give us the highest positivity. But that doesn’t mean that other sources may not work. They can work also.
The important thing is that without a connection with Krishna, there is not much ultimate benefit. There may be some immediate benefit. There may even be some intermediate benefit.
But the ultimate benefit is not there. So, it’s like if I’m sick and I’m having pain, I may take a painkiller. I may take a painkilling medicine, but I also need a curative medicine.
So, if I take the painkilling medicine, I feel relieved. And if the pain is a lot, the painkilling medicine is also required. But no doctor will recommend only the painkilling medicine.
As the pain medication and the curative medication both combine together. So, in some situations, some people may need some immediate relief. And say if a person can cultivate some healthy material habits.
It’s a regular exercise, regular overall regulated schedule. The regulation of a schedule or exercise or the regulation of diet. This may not necessarily be spiritual at all.
But even that can help. So, the non-devotional methods are often like painkillers. Not painkillers in the sense that they don’t work.
But they are also temporary. They may work for longer than a painkiller may work. But they don’t offer an ultimate solution.
So, that’s why there has to be, the key thing is the curative medicine. But if somebody finds painkillers working and they can use them, that’s fine. But the painkiller should never be the substitute for the curative medicine.
Does that answer your question? Thank you. Yes, please. Thank you.
All that sounds nice and well, you know. But when the person, you know, in Kali Yuga, you see Bhagavad Gita above all, at the best, if not worst, is dead, all the time, at the end. So, in amidst the frustration of dealing with one’s own issues and dealing with other people’s issues, in midst of that frustration, how can it be possible to think so logically as to do A, B, C, and I, B, O, K? Okay, that’s a good question.
So, when we are going through frustration, is it possible to think logically A, B, C? We also can try to develop some reflexive action that is spiritual. So, basically, we all have certain reflexive actions. Say, suppose I feel frustrated over something, then somebody may just decide to eat a lot and forget the frustration.
That is basically, we are not eating for nutrition, we are eating for comfort. We are eating for comfort. Some people just turn on a television and forget things.
Some people may start playing some video games. Some people may drink, some people may take drugs. Different people may do different things.
So, when there is an unfavourable stimulus that comes, at that time, we have a default response. So, we need to change the default response and make it positive. So, we may find out, okay, among the devotional activities, is there any devotional activity which I can connect with easily? For some of us, it may be kirtans.
I just like to hear these sweet kirtans. Then keep some kirtans which you like readily accessible with us. For some of us, it may be like the pictures of Krishna, some pictures of Krishna’s deities.
As soon as we see them, we feel devotion and emotion. Keep them ready. For some of us, it may be philosophy, some verses from scripture, or some quotes based on spiritual wisdom, or maybe some book and some passages within the book, or some devotees’ classes, or some points within some classes.
We keep them with us. And then gradually we train ourselves. As soon as I feel depressed, as soon as I feel negative, I do that.
I’ll need some relief, but instead of seeking relief this way, I’ll seek that way. So, that logical, reasonable reasoning and thinking may not be step-by-step possible. But there is a reflexive action that happens.
And if you can change that reflexive action, then that’s how we will become protected. And gradually we’ll become purified. So, if somebody is a new firefighter, and they go with a hose in their truck, and there’s a big fire, they become so panicky, they drop the fire hose and they just get panicky.
Now, when there’s a trained firefighter, still when they see a big fire, they may be alarmed, but their training kicks into place. And immediately, take the fire hose and start. Okay, attack the fire here.
Pour water over here. Then go over there, attack over there. So basically, there may be horror on seeing the fire, but that horror doesn’t last for long.
The training kicks into place. So similarly for us, as we keep practising bhakti, our reflex actions can become spiritual. And we have regular devotional activities, but we also need to find some devotional activities with which we can connect quickly.
And that can become our devotional reflex action instead of something else being our devotional, being our reflex action. And once we start doing the devotional reflex action, then gradually we start getting calmer. And once we become calmer, then we can think logically.
And then we can do other things also for corrective things. But we at least need, first of all, a structure to know what to do, and secondly, some system or some routine by which we can start off going in that structural direction. Does that answer your question? Thank you.
Yes, we had a question here. Yes, ma’am. So applying the positive takes a long time.
But it doesn’t seem to work for a long time. If it doesn’t seem to work, if the past mental impressions seem to be staying on for a long time, what do we do? The key thing for us is not necessarily the transformation itself. The key thing is the conviction to keep persevering.
So again with respect to our own lives, we will see that there are some areas in which the practise of bhakti has transformed us. And there are some areas in which the transformation has not yet happened. So we have to choose where we focus.
If we are feeling discouraged and disheartened, then we need to focus where we have actually been transformed. And that will give us the conviction. So, for example, some of us might have been habitually eating meat in the past, or maybe habitually taking some beverages, which we have thereafter given up.
Now, if we see somebody driving a train or a plane, and some neighbour starts eating meat, now that might be an item which we might have eaten in the past. But now, most devotees won’t feel any craving for that. So, prasadam is higher taste.
So, here the example is not that we have to apply willpower to change. The change has already happened. And the desire itself has gone.
So we have to find out areas in which we can see the process has worked. And by that we gain the conviction that the process is working. In some areas, some impressions may be very deep-rooted.
And that’s why they may take some more time. So, we need to direct our vision towards that which strengthens our faith, not that which weakens our faith. Of course, if in some cases the past is troubling us again and again, then we may have to see, am I doing something to trigger the past? Let’s say, if I had two rashes, say one on my left leg, one on my right leg, and I apply the same ointment, and the rash on the left leg has been cured, but the rash on the right leg is still there.
Now, why is it like that? Maybe here the rash was worse, so it’s taking time. Or maybe my right finger is too itchy. So, somehow, without my noticing, when the itch comes, it’s too itchy response, and I keep touching it.
And if I keep touching it, and I don’t touch it on the left side, but I keep touching it on the right side, and because of that, that is not getting cured. Sometimes, our past, we don’t, we say, I want to give this up, but somehow we keep connecting with it, and keep indulging in it a little bit. So, if that happens, then because of that, that past may not be going off.
So, we may have to see, what is the cause why it is continuing. But, even if we can’t find a cause, or even if we can find a cause, the important thing is, we just keep moving onwards. Draw faith from where the process has worked for us, and keep applying.
It’s not necessary, that just removal of the past influences, is the sign of success of the process. Sometimes, some influences of the past may remain, and they may push us, or impel us, to take greater shelter of Krishna. And if that happens, then that is positive.
So, rather than seeing that as a negative thing, we can see how that can inspire me, to take greater shelter of Krishna. Is the answer clear? Thank you. Yes, madam.
Last question. I don’t know in the context of, comes from a similar way, so she gave it to me. But, in the context of Pandavas and Gauravas, obviously, the injustice that happened, even in the past, let there be a matter of truth.
When it comes to gross family, in a similar way as, let’s say, Pandavas and Gauravas, your, sort of, acronyms around, stop and transform, are more about avoiding those people, or stopping from invading those people, and transforming yourself. So, the two are slightly different, or contrasting in that sense. And, I guess, I’m trying to understand, what’s a better path? Is it about, sort of, going to battlefield, or arguing, or is it about avoiding those people, and transforming yourself? Was that your question also? Sorry.
Okay. If we have time, we’ll take the last question after that. So, sometimes, if it’s the Pandavas, Gauravas, they’re, they had so much past issues, that eventually, they had to go to war.
So, I did not talk about that aspect, where we’re talking about stopping or transforming, but what if, there are some people in our life, that are not transformable. Then, what do we do about that? Yeah. When I talk about transform, the point there was, that, we can transform ourselves.
As I said, the mind is both the wall on which the impression is made, as well as the people, who are putting the graffiti over there. But, with respect to others, we have only finite influence on them. And, if somebody is not willing to be transformed, then, when we’re facing an unpalatable situation, we have broadly three options.
Say, if I come to a place, where, I find the weather to be very unfavourable. It’s too cold for me. Then, I have three options.
Tolerate, mitigate, or emigrate. Is it? Is it? Tolerate. Just, okay.
I’ll get used to it. Mitigate. Always make sure.
It’s too cold. I have warm clothes with me. I make sure that in my car, in my home, wherever I am, adequate temperature control is there.
I mitigate it. Or, I can’t stay here. Emigrate to some other place.
The same principle, same three options, we can apply to the social weather around us. That means, some people may just be very hostile. So, we have three options.
One is just tolerate, change ourselves. Or, second is, we, we do something to change the situation. That means, we report to someone, take assertive action, maybe, take some disciplinary action, or at least, do whatever is required.
Or, third is, I just don’t want to get involved in this. I have better things to do in my life. I’ll just move on.
Now, all these three options can be done in a mood of service, or all three can be done in a negative mood. In the Mahabharata itself, we see the Pandavas doing all these three options at different times. Initially, when Bhima was poisoned, or when the, when they were attempted to be burnt in Varanavarta, Yudhisthira told the Pandavas, this is a family issue, don’t bring it in public.
Just tolerate. But eventually, when Draupadi was dishonoured, eventually, when the Pandavas, when the Kauravas showed no signs of remorse or reformation, then, the Kauravas fought. So, the Pandavas fought a war.
But, they did not fight primarily for revenge. They fought for establishing Dharma. And third, eventually, when Krishna departed from the world, at that time, they decided enough.
Now, we also want to renounce the world. And they renounced. So, similarly for us, we have these three options.
Now, depending on what the particular situation is, what is really important for us. We may decide, okay, this person is just like this. And, I just have to become more thick skinned with this person.
Tolerate and move on. Sometimes we may decide, no, this person is hurting me and will keep hurting me. This person will hurt others also.
So, I have to take action. We take action not in a vengeful mood, but, in a mood of protection. Protecting ourselves, protecting others, and ultimately, protecting that person also.
If they keep hurting others, they are going to get the karma for that. They are going to get the reactions for that. So, we may take some disciplinary action.
Otherwise, we may decide that, I have better things to do in my life. Let me move away. Now, let me move on to something else.
Let me walk away from this. See, walking away is different from running away. Running away means, my mind is still there.
When we run away, our focus is, oh, I want to go anywhere except here. So, it’s not that I have something more important to do. I just have, this is so dreadful, I want to get away from here.
That’s not what we are talking about. Walking away means, okay, I can deal with this if I need to, but, why should I do it? I have better things. So, we, if we have that mood of, Krishna, you are my lord, I am your servant, please guide me, how best can I serve in this situation? So, with a prayerful service attitude, if we approach the situation, and then we can consider all these three options as ways of serving.
And we can find out, which is the most effective way I can serve. With that attitude, we will be able to find out, how best to move forward. Okay? Thank you.
Yes, ma’am. I feel, you know, like, when you said associate the devotees, the devotees are already spreading the mood of goodness. But, I think, shouldn’t we be spreading that mood of goodness to other people as well? So, that’s my question.
So, you know, when you come across something good, you want to take it out, you want to make more people aware of it. But, obviously, then all the problems come in, where people start resisting, people start getting down, and, you know, so, yeah. So, So, when we, find something good, we want to share it with others, but then sometimes some people are not receptive, they oppose.
So, how can we share in an effective way? Yeah, I would say that, yeah, yeah, we should, definitely, we should share, but, there is, there has to be some receptivity from the other players. Now, I can give an example for this. Suppose, somebody is trying to drive a car, and, somehow, the car is not starting.
Probably, this happens more in India than Australia. Then, the car doesn’t start, then, some people come along from the neighbourhood and they start pushing the car. They all push, push, push, and, then, the car starts moving.
And, then, by the pushing by others, and, by the trying to steer and move by the inside person, the car starts moving. But, suppose, the people from outside are coming and pushing, and, the person inside has gone to sleep, or, worse still, the person inside is pressing the brick. Then, the people outside realise, I’m wasting my time pushing over here.
So, similarly, when we learn something good, we want to share it with others. And, everybody, to make some change in their life, they need some push. So, we don’t need to push them, remind them, don’t do this, don’t do this, come here, come for this programme, do this.
But, if we do a little pushing, and, if you find that they are resisting too much, they’re not interested, then, we just stop it. We end the interaction of cordial note, let them feel, I met a nice person, I don’t want to do what they’re doing, but, I met a nice person. And, we move into others.
There are many people who are interested. In general, our mood should be that if people don’t know about Krishna, that is my problem. If people don’t choose Krishna, that is their problem.
So, we do want to share about Krishna, but, we can’t force anyone. So, we give them the information, give them the option, and, we have to do it in a non-imposing way. Because, if we do it in an imposing way, then, not only will they not do it, but, they will not even consider doing it in the future.
So, if, we just end the interaction on a cordial note, and, not on a judgemental note, okay, you don’t want to do it, fine, but, if you ever want to come, please let me know. We keep the door open for them. Sometimes, we open the door for them to come inside, and, if they are not ready to come, bang, we close the door in their face.
You are such a foolish person, you are so irresponsible, you are this, you are that. If we start labelling them, or demonising them, then, they become alienated. So, that just ended on a cordial note.
You have to understand that, even if something is good, not everyone is at the same level of spiritual evolution. All of us are souls, who are in a multi-life journey of spiritual evolution, and all of us are at different levels. So, depending on the level we are at, we will have a certain level of receptivity.
So, if they are not that receptive right now, just end the interaction on a positive note, and move on to someone else, who will be more receptive. Thank you very much.