Gautama Buddha was taking a satsang and as it progressed, there was
a devotee who nodded off to sleep.
Buddha: Are you sleeping?
Buddha: Are you sleeping?
Devotee: No. No. No.
So Buddha continued the satsang. After some time, the person
nodded off to sleep again.
Buddha: Are you sleeping?
Devotee: No. No. No.
The devotee sat up straight and tried hard
to keep awake. But in a short while, he nodded off for the third time.
Buddha: Are you alive?
Buddha: Are you alive?
Devotee: No, No, No.
Buddha looked at him and said, “By mistake, you gave the right answer.”
Buddha looked at him and said, “By mistake, you gave the right answer.”
This is a simple anecdote, but makes us think
about what makes us alive to this human opportunity, the human birth that we
have. Our entire lifetime
can pass without us knowing the purpose of our birth. It is only in a human
birth that we can realize the Truth. So, the two Padukas symbolize the Truth or Self-Knowledge, which we can realize
in our life.
Padukas &
Self-Knowledge
One Paduka
represents the Truth or Self-Knowledge in which the Master is established, which
lies dormant in our hearts and to which we have to awaken. The other Paduka is the symbol of awakening other
people. Just as a lit candle, lights up other candles, the Master too has realized
the Truth and His life is spent in awakening others.
When we worship the Padukas, we worship the Supreme Truth or Self-Knowledge. This Truth
is in our own hearts as Consciousness, which is the All-Pervasive, Omnipotent,
Omnipresent, Omniscient Reality, which we also call Ishwara. Even though we are yet to realize the Truth, by
worshipping the Padukas we pray that we
may wake up and awaken others.
Poojya Gurudev Swami Chinmayananda
explained the significance of the pada-pooja/paduka pooja in the following
ways:
“Just as a Shiva Linga represents Shiva and Shaligrama represents Vishnu, in the same way, the feet of the Teacher represent to the students, not the feet, but the underlying concept. What we are invoking is Brahman, the Lord. But we cannot go directly to Him. We want a symbol. At this time, there is no symbol more sacred than the feet/Padukas of the teacher. “
“Just as a Shiva Linga represents Shiva and Shaligrama represents Vishnu, in the same way, the feet of the Teacher represent to the students, not the feet, but the underlying concept. What we are invoking is Brahman, the Lord. But we cannot go directly to Him. We want a symbol. At this time, there is no symbol more sacred than the feet/Padukas of the teacher. “
Padukas & Humility
Another question that may strike us is How
can I realize this Truth? What is required to know it? Self-Knowledge is the direct means to Know the
Truth. To attain Self-Knowledge,
Humility is required. In the 13th
chapter of the Geeta, Bhagawan says – Amaanitvam
Adambhitvam Ahimsa Kshantihi Aarjavam – Amaanitvam means humility. Worship
of the Paduka represents humility.
When we touch the feet of the elders or the Guru, or when we worship the
Padukas, we bow down the highest part of our body (head) towards the lowest
part (feet). The head is the symbol of ego and so, by worshipping the Padukas, we
surrender. When a person becomes humble the person becomes very open, is ready
to receive knowledge, does not have pre-conceived notions, is not arrogant
about money, power, pleasure, body, beauty, fame; none of these. Such a person
comes to know the Truth, is ready to do what it takes to know the Truth. In
this way, the Padukas show the goal as
well as the path, which is through humility.
There was once a king who wanted to know
the Truth. He went to his Master and said “Can you please guide me to the
Truth?” The Master, who lived on the outskirts of the kingdom, said “You have
to live here, and since I don’t have accommodation in my cottage, you will have
to live in the pigsty outside.”
The king said “Pigsty? Not possible. I
can’t stay there.” He went back. He ruled the kingdom for a few more years.
However, he felt very uncomfortable and disillusioned that there was no real
happiness in the world and went back to the Master. The Master said, “I had
told you that you will have to stay in the pigsty. If you are ready then we can
start right this moment.” The king said, “I really want to know the Truth but
that is a little too much. If you permit me, I will build one more cottage next
to yours and I will stay there” The master replied “It is not possible.” So,
again the king went back and ruled for another few years. The third time when
he came, he didn’t go to the Master. He went straight to the pigsty. The Master
went there and said; “Now you are ready. Come, stay with me. The idea was not
that you had to stay there, but whether you
were willing to do what it takes to know the Truth.”
When we worship the Padukas everyday, we
surrender the ego. Every time we say Namaha, Namaha, Namaha with each name of
the Satguru, we surrender because namaha means na mama or not mine.
Poojya Gurudev Swami Chinmayananda was
personification of Humility. Once he
asked his hosts in Hyderabad, “how was the talk?” The hosts were surprised and wondered – What
did Poojya Gurudev mean by that question.
They said it was very good talk.
“Tapovan Swami Spoke Completely.”
He always said that the entire work of Chinmaya Mission is the glory of
Sri Swami Tapovanam. “I
shall consider myself fulfilled if my life and work become my message of
adoration and gratitude to my Teacher. Words can never gather Him in their
embrace. Love alone can. Let us all adore Him and work for His fulfillment
which is the goal of Chinmaya Mission”
Padukas
& Gratitude
The third lesson taught by the Padukas is gratitude. When a puja is done, it is
an expression of gratitude. We are grateful to the Lord that we have so many
blessings in our lives. When gratitude comes into our life, our life becomes
more fulfilled. Without gratitude, even if we have everything, life still looks
empty and we keep complaining, cribbing and victimizing ourselves. With
gratitude, even if we have nothing there is completeness.
It is commonly thought that prayer is only a
means to ask for something. A teacher asked
a child “Did you pray today?” The child replied, “I didn’t want anything today
so I didn’t pray.” Another teacher asked a student “ Do you pray before food?”
The student replied “No, my mother is a very good cook!”
Although one may attain things through
prayers, it is primarily an expression of gratitude. This is especially true
when we do the Guru Paduka Puja. In Vivekachudamani, Shankaracharyaji says that
three things are a sure sign that the Grace of the Lord is with us:
1.
Human birth – Manushyatvam
2.
A burning desire to know the
Truth – Mumukshutvam.
3. The Refuge under a Wise One - Maha-Purusha
Samshrayaha
The very fact that a Satguru has come into
our lives is a sign of the Grace of the Lord in our lives, as is the fact that
we are able to study, understand and share that knowledge with others. When we
do the puja we express that gratitude.
It is the Uncaused and Infinite Compassion
of the Satgurus, which makes them leave the quiet moments of Nirvikalpa
Samadhi, a life of seclusion and solitude and come down to live amidst us and
guide us to the Truth patiently. No
matter what we do for such masters it is always less because everyone in the
world makes a finite into a better finite entity. Eg. A poor man gets money, sick one becomes
healthy, ignorant gets knowledge etc.
But their sense of finitude does not go.
It is only the Satguru who transforms the finite into Infinite through
the initiation into Self-Knowledge. What
can we offer such a master who ends the
hunger of many lives and saves us from the cycle of birth and death? Gratitude
and service born out of it, is the least that we can offer.
In
the Kathopanishad and the Geeta, it is said Ascharyavad
pashyati kaschidenam – it is a wonder if somebody comes to know this Truth.
Self-Knowledge and everything associated with it - the student, the teacher,
the teaching, the methodology, the consistent seeking & Self-Discovery,
sharing the knowledge; each aspect is a wonder. So, to express that gratitude,
a puja is done to say, “We are blessed with this Self knowledge which is a rare
and divine blessing.” Very few people have that blessing. It is not that others
do not deserve it, but the time has not yet come for them to absorb that in
their life. In Vedanta it is said that their punya karma has to fructify, and then
this happens.
Whenever a child or anyone played the role
of Swami Tapovanam, Adi Shankara or Sri Krishna, Poojya Gurudev would touch
their feet because they are instrumental in invoking the bhaav of surrender in
Poojya Gurudev and so he would express his Gratitude.
When asked to describe His Guru Swami
Tapovanam, Poojya Gurudev Swami Chinmayananda would become quiet most of the
times. Once he said – ‘In whom I became
Silent.”
On another occasion He said –“ Chinmaya’s work is dedicated
to the Shruties(Scriptures) that told me what the Reality is, To Swami
Tapovanji Maharaj of Uttarkashi who guided me to the end and pushed me into the
Beyond,
And
to Sat Gurudev Swami Sivananda Maharaj of Rishikesh who showed me in his life
how to live and act in God as God!”
Padukas
& Hard Hittings
Fourth, the Padukas represent the hard hittings of the master. The world
pampers our individuality and encourages us to think more and more about this
individuality. It is only at the feet of the master that we realize, “I am not
this.” All the pride just goes away. The master delivers this message with love
and understanding, but it also hits hard. A saint said it very well:
Satguru mera suramaa, kare shabd ki chot.
Maare gola prem kaa, hare bharam ki khot.
My Satguru is an expert in hitting (the
ego) with words. He does it with love
and destroys delusion.
As Shankaracharyaji says in Bhaja Govindam,
to the old man, in his last few moments when he is still mugging up rules of
grammar – Bhaja Govindam, Bhaja Govindam,
Govindam Bhaja Mudha Mate- Oh deluded fool! Even when the master calls him
a deluded fool, it is out of compassion and not to insult or to belittle the
student. It is to actually shake him and wake him up from the slumber, through
words. The basis is love. Poojya Gurudev
used to do that to lots of people.
There is a quote: “The teacher does not look at our ability or inability, he wants our
availability.” If available, even the dullest student realizes the Absolute
Truth and if somebody is not available, even though the person maybe very
bright, nothing happens.
When a Vedanta course was completed and the brahmacharis were posted in the
field, Poojya Gurudev Swami Chinmayananda would say “In the field, one is
always surprised.” Because the brightest student sometimes would turn out to be
an absolute miserable failure and the dullest student would shine. This
happened only because the student was available and the bright one was still
caught up in the ego. In Vedanta there is a lot of knowledge that we have and
lot of people think that Vedanta is only intellectual, dry, subtle and boring.
We often think that Vedanta is separate from bhakti. Actually, Bhakti is the
most important component of Vedanta. If there is no Guru Bhakti, no
transformation can happen through Vedanta. Adi Shankaracharya ji would say, it
is “like a donkey carrying golden bricks.” All the informative knowledge is
like the golden bricks. It will only add more weight instead of reducing the
ego. So the fourth point is that it is the symbol of the hard hitting of the
master and one’s readiness to accept it.
Padukas
– Protection, Destruction, Realisation
Last one is the etymological meaning of the
word Paduka. ‘Pa’ means to protect. The grace of the Guru always protects the
disciple, whether the disciple knows and acknowledges it or not. The moment one
comes under the umbrella of a Satguru, of a Master who has known the Truth, the
grace of that Master always protects. It is not that the grace doesn’t protect
other people. Poojya Gurudev Swami Chinmayananda said that grace is like the
sunlight. Sunlight is always available. But when I surrender, I open the window
and allow the light to come in. Others keep their windows closed and complain
that it is dark. In this way the Grace
of the Master always protects. For a spiritual student, Grace is very important
because there are lots of weaknesses that we have, which we cannot overcome by
our effort. We may try very hard – anger, lust, jealousy, passion, insecurity,
the very sense of identification with the body - all these are very difficult
to overcome. Merely by self-effort it is not possible. Grace is necessary to
overcome these. The more the student invokes the Grace, the more that Grace
protects the student. Not just the student, but also his family, the people
around, the whole environment gets purified. In Vibheeshana Geeta (part of the Tulsi
Ramayana), there is a description about Vibheeshana getting very anxious that
Bhagawan is standing without any chariot, any armor, without any proper weapons;
only has a few arrows, bare-chested and stands barefooted on the ground. Ravana
has a huge chariot and missiles, an armor, sword and shield, etc. Vibheeshana goes
to the Lord to say, “Ravana Rathi,
Birathi Raghubeera” – Ravana is standing with such a huge chariot and you
have no chariot; how will you fight this Ravana? Bhagawan says, “ I have a
chariot which is invisible; courage and fortitude are the wheels of this
chariot. Satya and Shila are the flags of the chariot.” In this way He
describes the whole chariot and says, “what is the armor that I have?” – Kavacha Abhed Vipra Guru Puja – the impenetrable
armor is the worship of the wise person and the Satguru.
There are lots of arrows that the world
will shoot at us. It may be temptations, sense objects, negative vibrations
etc. It is very easy for the mind to get disturbed. How do I protect myself? Every
time I remember my Guru, I can protect myself. I need to ask one simple
question: “When I do this action, can I look at my Guru in the eyes? Will I be
ashamed of myself if I do this and go in front of my Guru?” If the answer is
yes, one has to stop. When one remembers the Guru at such a time, one gets the
strength to ward off temptation. Individually if I fight against it, the mind
is so weak and fickle that it will fall. But if I remember that I have
surrendered to the Guru, with His Grace, I can stop.
Pa means Paati, to protect. It is the grace
of the Guru that protects. Not only do
the Padukas protect, but the Guru-Padukas promise that they will establish the
seeker in the Kingdom of Dispassion and Detachment.
Poojya Gurudev said about Tapovanji Maharaj to the seekers –“Keep Him in your heart and let him purify you. His Grace is sure and unfailing.”
Poojya Gurudev said about Tapovanji Maharaj to the seekers –“Keep Him in your heart and let him purify you. His Grace is sure and unfailing.”
Du means Dunoti, it burns away. When the
worship of the Padukas is done regularly in my sadhana, it helps to burn away
my negative tendencies slowly and steadily because the devotion that grows in
one’s heart will burn away all the negatives and limitations. In the fire of Self-Knowledge, all my
ignorance is burnt away and karmas of many lives also get destroyed. Srimad
Bhagavad Geeta says in the 4th Chapter – “The fire of knowledge
burns away all one’s karmas, just as a small spark is enough to burn away huge
stacks of hay.”
Kaa means Kaashate - to shine. A person
shines in one’s own true glory when all the negativities are gone. The Self
within reveals itself and one gets established in one’s true nature. The Gurupaduka Stotram says that the padukas
establish a person in the state of Samadhi – the Self.
Negativities are divided into three –
1.
Mala (kama, krodha, lobha, moha, mad,
matsarya) –anger, greed, lust, passion, delusion and intoxication,
2.
Vikshepa or Wanderings of the mind
3.
Avidya - Ignorance – not knowing the Self/Truth.
These three impurities, when
burnt, a person shines in one’s own true glory.
Blessed are we that we were found by a
Satguru like Poojya Gurudev Swami Chinmayananda and taken under His wings. Many lives of Punya must have fructified for
this to happen. We pray that may our devotion to His Lotus Feet ever increase
in our hearts and lead us to the ‘Chinmaya’ within.
In summary, these are few aspects about
Padukas and when we do the Paduka Puja we invoke all these.
1.
It is the goal, which we have
to discover as humans.
2.
It is the means, that is,
humility.
3.
Helps us to invoke and express Gratitude
4.
Hard hittings of the master to
blast our ego.
5.
The word meaning – to protect,
to burn and to shine.
Om Tat Sat Chinmayaarpanam Astu.
