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Point to ponder   

Dear Reader,

On May 16, I had the good fortune of meeting my guru after a gap of more than a year. The event was Buddha Purnima, and he was trying to enlighten us about the inner state of the Buddha.

The highlight of his sermon was that the Buddha was so calm and still from within that no external trigger could disturb his inner quietude. This was reflected in the way he slept in one position all night, without turning even once. Not even his subconscious was active while sleeping.

This sermon was being telecast live on Shraddha Channel as well as YouTube. However, no sooner had he taken his seat than the mic went off. Many attempts were made to fix the problem but the issue kept recurring. (Honestly, in my guru’s place, I would have felt flustered and embarrassed. After all, the sermon was being telecast live, and thousands were watching these mortifying glitches.) But there was not a single frown on my master’s face. He was full of cheer and joviality, and was taking everything in good humour. Each time the mic’s connection was resumed, he greeted his audience, not hesitating to repeat this gesture when the connection snapped again, only to be fixed once more.

This demeanour of his got imprinted on my mind more than his words. The state of supreme confidence, surrender, equanimity, inner peace, and balance was exemplary. The Buddhas come into our life to lead by example, to take us out of suffering and misery, but very few attempt to actually emulate them. We prefer to worship them, to receive boons and blessings, rather than focus on what they stand for.

This inner state is far more valuable than any material achievement we may aspire for. This is not to say that we must not work to actualise our dreams, but it is equally important to realise the transient nature of temporal reality. To be okay even if we lose our possessions. This balance is not easy to achieve, but who said that anything on earth is easy to come by? If we can toil to fulfil our worldly goals, we can also work to know the real cause of suffering and the method through which it can truly be overcome. For happiness is the ultimate pursuit of human beings, and who best to follow than the enlightened, to know where it exists and how it can be accessed?

Wishing you a happy June.

-Editor