Yard [0071] : Eureka

Dear Friends,

Namaste!

So far we have discussed the first three stages of our life, viz., “Brahmacharya”, “Garhastha” and “Vaanaprastha”. They occupy the first seventy five years. During this time we also pay off two debts, viz., debt of our parents (“Pitru Rina”) by giving birth to and grooming our progeny and debt of our teachers (“RishiRina”) by making a positive contribution to society based on what we have learnt and passing on our knowledge to the second line.

Now we come to the last (but by no means the least important) phase of our life called “Sanyas” – to be followed from the age of 75 onwards till we renounce our present body. However, before we plunge into the discussion of this last phase, it is critically important for us to understand what “Sanyas” means in Yoga in the first place!

Of all the Yoga jargon, this word “Sanyas” is the most misinterpreted.People often (wrongly) equate it with retirement, with detachment, with renunciation, with giving up all the enjoyments and luxuries life has to offer. So much so that the great warrior Arjuna also became completely confused because of the diametrically opposite real and colloquial meanings!

While Lord Krishna was unveiling the secrets of Yoga to Arjuna on Kurukshetra (the battlefield), He strongly and unequivocally advised Arjuana, “Tasmat YogiBhav Arjuna” (“Therefore, O Arjuna, become a Yogi!”).

Then the conversation went on in the form of Arjuna posing further questions and the Lord providing correct and revealing answers! In the flow of the conversation, Krishna once again reiterated, “Therefore, O Arjuna, you must become a Sanyasi”!

Poor Arjuna was totally perplexed when Krishna uttered these words because he knew only the colloquial meaning of “Sanyas”! He immediately intercepted the Lord, “O Krishna, just now you told me I should become a Yogi and do my duty by giving my hundred per cent. In the same breath you are now telling me to do the opposite, i.e., retire from active life, give up my responsibilities and spend the rest of my life in a jungle as an ascetic, as a loner. This has baffled me and I request you therefore to tell me only one thing that is most benevolent!”

The Lord saw the confusion and stated that “Yoga” and “Sanyas” are principally not different at all. In fact, they are synonymous!

Why did Krishna maintain that He was not telling two different things to Arjuna? To understand this, we must look at the real (and not colloquial) meanings of the words “Yoga” and “Sanyas”. We have seen the classical definition of Yoga as coined by Sage Patanjali. It is – “Yogah Chitta Vritti Nirodhah” (“Cessation of turbulence within  individual consciousness is Yoga”). In other words, Yoga is all about keeping our “Chitta” (individual consciousness) in equilibrium!

What does “Sanyas” mean? Literally, “Sama nyasati iti Sanyasah” (“Sama” – even, “Nyasati” – to keep). To keep even is “Sanyas”. To keep even what? Individual consciousness (“Chitta”) of course! When we remove all turbulence from our individual consciousness to keep it even or in equilibrium, it is called “Sanyas” – OR YOGA!!!

Another word related to “Sanyas” and also oft misinterpreted is “Vairagya”. The colloquial meaning is nonchalance, apathy, aloofness, detachment, disconnection, can’t-care-less attitude. The real meaning is acceptance of reality with equilibrium, empathy, caring and helping attitude – like that of Zen master Hakuin in the following story...

A beautiful yet unmarried girl in the village was pregnant. Her angry parents demanded to know who the father was. At first resistant to confess, fearing for the safety of her true lover, the anxious and embarrassed girl finally pointed to Hakuin, the Zen master whom everyone previously revered for living such a pure life. When the outraged parents confronted Hakuin with their daughter's accusation, he listened to them patiently and simply replied "Is that so?"

When the child was born, the parents brought it to Hakuin, who now was viewed as a pariah by the whole village. They demanded that he take care of the child since it was his responsibility. "Is that so?" Hakuin said calmly as he accepted the child.

For many months he took very good care of the child until the daughter could no longer withstand the lie she had told. She confessed that the real father was a young man in the village whom she had tried to protect. Ashamed, the parents immediately went to Hakuin to see if he would return the baby. With profuse apologies they explained what had happened. "Is that so?" Hakuin said as he handed back the child to them.

With this discussion paving the way, we are now all set to go over the fourth and final recommended phase of human life - to be embraced after the tender age of seventy five – “Sanyas”!

Tschuess...