The End of Sorrow

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The End of Sorrow Page 45

by Eknath Easwaran


  Separateness: agitated mind and, 321, 356; and body-consciousness, 226; awakening from, 281–282, 287; battle against, 23–24, 46; brings anger, 330; brings insecurity, 327; brings sorrow, 136, 326–327, 359–360; bugs of, 356; building wall of, 106–107; extinguishing, 145, 166, 167, 177, 197, 212, 231, 256, 299, 315, 339; is a mask, 167; is ahamkara, 106; life seen through eyes of, 44, 67; mantram overcomes, 167; obstructs evolution, 39; putting others first overcomes, 256, 356; renunciation of, 298; Booker T. Washington on, 235. See also Consciousness, disunited; Self-will; Unity of life

  Sermon on the Mount, 16, 43

  Sex: and kundalini, 140; conditioning about, 115; control of, 140; is in the mind, 139; is sacred, 120, 121; memory of, 139. See also Kama

  Shakuntala, 262

  Shankara, 148, 176

  shanti, 140, 141–142

  Shiva, Lord, 176, 216

  Shivaratri, 176

  shraddha, 288–289

  shreya and

  preya: 27

  shunyata, 138

  Sita, 145, 169

  Skipping a meal, 83, 358

  Sleep: amount of, 186, 358–359; awareness of unity in, 309; in meditation, 16, 184, 210, 257–258, 354–355; mantram and, 17, 308–309, 359, 374; pistol-shot sound in, 366

  Slowing down, 18, 59–60, 138. Story: running to miss bus, 60

  Smara, 139

  Smoking: advertising, 311; and apara, 301–302; and physical consciousness, 61, 83; ritual of, 231–232

  Sorrow, see Suffering

  Spinal column, 16, 352–355

  Spiritual aspirant: and teacher, 54–55; must do the work, 340. See also Spiritual teacher

  Spiritual association, 20, 278, 298

  Spiritual awareness, 278–282: books cannot give, 281; drugs cannot bring, 382–383; E. absorbed his Grandmother’s, 279–280; is caught, not taught, 278; is seeing unity, 190; occasional flashes of, 281–282

  Spiritual disciplines, 16–20, 88–91, 286–287: benefits of, 40–41, 89, 91; goal of, is joy, 131; meditation leads to, 286–287; not anxious about results of, 91. Story: it all adds up, 303. See also Sadhana

  Spiritual engineering, 61, 234

  Spiritual evolution, see Evolution, spiritual

  Spiritual laws, 185, 187–188, 292. Story: flying over Lake Merritt, 187

  Spiritual life: benefits others, 81; ends boredom, 46; enthusiasm for, 192; goal of, is freedom, 331–332; good health essential for, 157; giving up, 382–385; hearing about, 79–80; is not ‘dropping out,’ 304; is not passive, 152; motivation for, 387–388; overcomes environmental crisis, 118, 297; postponement of, 341; practicality of, 188; transforms family, 38; two approaches to, 269–270. See also Meditation; Sadhana; Spiritual path

  Spiritual path, 16–20: association with others on, 20, 278, 298; attitude to mistakes on, 47, 184 192, 241, 286, 314, 341, 365; based on meditation, 334–336; choices on, see Choices; defeat impossible on, 30, 43; developing skill on, 261; difficulties on, 191, 252; doubts on, 53, 382–383; effort on, 261, 365, 381, 384, 386; emphasis on love on, 216; enthusiasm on, 192, 381; guidance on, 192–193; householders’ and monks’, compared, 269–270; incarnation leads back to, 220; is like mountain climbing, 337–339; need for being with people on, 298; need for hard work on, 151, 157–158, 298, 369; pace on, 192; patience on, 191; progress on, 192, 197, 303, 365, 379–380; requirements for success on, 35, 381; suffering leads to, 277; surrender on, 229; taking to, 55, 192. Stories: learning tennis, 261; swimming lessons, 379–380. See also Sadhana; Spiritual life

  Spiritual teacher, 54–55, 278–281: absorbing awareness of, 278–281; and satsang, 20; guidance of, 48, 49–50, 192–193; loyalty to, 54; pictures of, 16; points the way, 55, 289, 340; purpose of visiting, 55; selection of, 54; symbolizes the Atman, 280; tradition of, in India, 13, 215; within, 54–55. Story: the escalator, 192–193. See also Spiritual aspirant

  Spiritual tradition: unbroken in India, 13, 215

  Spiritual wisdom: effect of, on selfish desires, 302; is a raft, 283–284; is based on meditation, 286, 334–335, 391; is not intellectual knowledge, 302, 335; is revealed in action, 147, 301–302; path of, 147, 149, 334–335, 391; reduces unfavorable karma, 286; sharing, 277. See also para

  Spontaneity, 198

  Sri: defined, 28

  stena, 236

  Stillness of body, mind, intellect, 316. See also Mind, the still

  Stillness of Brahman, 137, 138–139

  sthulasharira, 69. See also Body, physical

  Stimulus and response, 63, 347–348

  Students at exam time, 236

  Subtle body, 70

  Success and failure, 242, 263, 312. See also Meditation, success in; Spiritual path, requirements for success on; Victory and defeat

  Suffering: for others, 47, 48–49; going beyond, 359–360, 363; is necessary for growth, 46, 79–80, 111, 131, 277, 359–360; source of, 326. See also duhkha; Pleasure and pain

  sukha, 85. See also duhkha

  sukshmasharira, 70

  Support: comes from within, 255, 261, 323, 339–340; giving, 27, 320, 338, 347

  Supreme goal: attainment of, 13, 329, 333; dedication to, 90–91, 381; harness energy for, 238; is awareness of unity, 12, 20, 326; Jesus’ description of, 330; makes personal satisfaction dull, 326; two obstacles to, 326, 330

  Surrender: must be complete, 256; yet taking precautions, 229. Story: Draupadi’s sari, 255–256

  svadharma, 197

  * * *

  T Top of Index

  Tamarind tree, 13

  Tamas, 93–94, 150, 180, 235–237, 245

  tanha 135, 203, 330

  Taste, 156, 160. See also Palate, control

  of

  Tat tvam asi, 9

  Technology, 116

  Television, 19, 210. See also Mass media

  Tension, 248, 348

  Thinking, 76: about thinking, 152. See also Mind; Thoughts

  Third eye, 373

  Thoughts: are action, 244–245; the Buddha on, 245; can wound or cure, 376–377; think us, 378. See also Mind, control of; Thinking

  Tibetan Book of the Dead, 328

  Time, 59–60: an illusion, 65; awareness of, in meditation, 60; deliverance from, 59, 145–146; tyranny of, 59–60

  Tranquilizers, 175, 325. See also Drugs

  Transformation, 211–212, 221–222. Stories: mystic who cried ‘wonderful,’ 222; San Francisco mime, 371. See also Meditation transforms; Consciousness, transformation of

  Truth, 67

  * * *

  U Top of Index

  Unconscious, the, 249, 354

  Unified consciousness, see Consciousness, unification of

  Unitive state: and selfless action, 294; and still mind, 41, 319; ends selfish desires, 103, 339; establishment in, 281–282, 339, 345; evolution toward, 39; is evenness of mind, 319; is freedom, 331; meditation and, 282, 360; transforms ordinary people, 41. See also Samadhi

  Unity of life, 11–12, 170–173, 287–289, 326–327: all actions must lead to, 277; and capacity to love all equally, 317; and vegetarian diet, 12, 134, 173, 286–287, 372–373; William Blake on, 171; conveyed to children, 172; desire to experience, 241; discovering in samadhi, 12, 289; E’s Grandmother on, 172; ecology is based on, 12, 287, 327; expressing, in all relationships, 39–40, 67, 170–173, 317; includes all life, 12, 134, 170–173, 282–283, 286–287, 318, 327, 372–373; is supreme goal, 12, 326; is yugadharma, 12; living in harmony with, 13, 39–40, 129, 289, 331–332, 347, 392; meditation brings awareness of, 20, 186, 235, 287, 289, 310, 329, 392; Meher Baba on, 11, 236; occasional flashes of, 281–282; realizing, in family context, 37, 39–40, 129, 265–268, 287–288, 336; result of violating, 12, 40–41, 326–327; underlies differences, 11–12, 189–190, 235, 349; violence negates, 189, 289; waking up to, 11, 281–282; Booker T. Washington on, 235. Stories: I am a bush, 318–319; Muka and the jackrabbit, 349

  University of California, Berkeley, 247

  Upanishads, 9, 14, 16, 104, 176, 189, 360. Stories: a spider brings f
orth its web, 176; the Lord was lonesome, 189. See also Katha Upanishad

  * * *

  V Top of Index

  vairagya, 380

  Varshneya (Krishna), 32

  Vegetarian diet, 12, 134, 173, 286–287, 372–373

  Venitgopala (Krishna), 228

  Victory and defeat: accepting both, 257; being alike in, 87, 98–99, 252–253, 257. See also Defeat; Success and failure

  View of life: illumined man’s, 134–135; through conditioning, 195; through the ego, 134–135, 313; when identified with the body, 313

  Vigilance, 46

  vikarma, 245

  Violence, 101: and disunited consciousness, 40; and violent means, 30; the Buddha on, 29–30, 251, 342; ceases by nonviolence, 29–30, 245–246, 251–252; conquest of, 249; negates unity of life, 39, 189, 289; renouncing in word, thought, act, 297; problem of the age, 23, 101. See also Nonviolence

  Vishnu, 15

  Vital energy: desires drain, 142–143; recalling, from past and future, 145; resentment drains, 137–138. See also prana

  Void, the, 138

  Vrindavana, 217

  * * *

  W Top of Index

  Walking, 116–117: and repeating mantram, 89, 93, 237, 274, 319–320, 333, 366, 373–374. See also Mantram, repetition of

  War: and concept of ‘mine,’ 143; and disunited consciousness, 40; in the home, 160–161, 330–331; is born in the mind, 331

  War within, 14, 23–47, 85, 104, 130–131, 331. See also Consciousness, disunited

  Washington, Booker T., 235

  Waters, the living, 96

  Worldly life, 90

  Wealth, 271–273, 276–277, 290. See also Money

  Welfare of all, living for: brings deeper resources, 170, 239–240; brings joy, 110, 220; brings security, 90, 170, 220; E.’s Grandmother on, 239–240; includes animals, 170–173; includes individual welfare, 11–12, 88, 111, 189–190, 310; is a choice, 27, 90, 110, 158, 231, 239, 240; is human dharma, 166, 220; is serving the Lord, 231, 262, 272, 290; using resources for, 271–273, 276–277, 290. See also Needs of others, sensitivity to; Putting others first

  Will: and effective action, 35, 147, 301; and grace, 351; enemy and friend, 340, 342; paralysis of, 34–35; restless mind and lack of, 137; strengthening, 110, 140, 354–355

  Will Quotient, 110

  Women, 19, 38, 161–162, 306: E.’s Grandmother on, 38

  Words are actions, 243–244

  Work, 94–95, 149–154: avoiding tension in, 247–248; concentration on, 95, 151, 159; E.’s Grandmother on, 157; getting caught in, 95, 150, 159; going beyond, 152–153; hard physical, 150, 157–158, 298, 369; harnesses energy, 94; is necessary, 94, 151, 157–158, 297–298, 369; likes and dislikes in, 151–152, 159–160, 196; under compulsion of self-will, 239, 240; without selfish motive, 158, 167–168, 257, 272, 276–277, 290. See also Exercise, physical; Occupation; Selfless action; Selfless service

  Worklessness, state of, 152–153. See also Inaction in action

  Wrong action, 245. See also Action

  Wrong situation, attitude toward, 102

  * * *

  Y Top of Index

  yajna, 159, 268–269, 271–273, 276–277

  Yama, 15

  Yield, capacity to, 107

  Yoga: integrated, 336; is evenness of mind, 64; is often misunderstood, 88, 291; is skill in action, 101. See also Bhakti yoga; Jnana yoga; Karma yoga

  Yogananda Paramahamsa, 344

  Yudhishthira, 29n.

  yugadharma, 12

  * * *

  The Books of Eknath Easwaran

  * * *

  Eknath Easwaran

  Eknath Easwaran (1910–1999) was brought up in the Hindu tradition and learned Sanskrit from a young age. He was chairman of the English department at a major Indian university when he came to the United States on a Fulbright fellowship in 1959.

  A gifted teacher and writer, Easwaran taught in the West for forty years, living out the principles of the Gita in the midst of a busy family and community life. His translations of the Indian classics, The Bhagavad Gita, The Upanishads, and The Dhammapada, are all best-selling editions, and more than 1.5 million copies of his books are in print.

  * * *

  The Blue Mountain Center of Meditation

  The Blue Mountain Center of Meditation publishes Eknath Easwaran’s books, videos and audios, and offers retreats on his eight-point program of passage meditation. For more information:

  The Blue Mountain Center of Meditation

  Box 256, Tomales, California 94971

  Telephone: +1 707 878 2369

  Toll-free in the US: 800 475 2369

  Facsimile: +1 707 878 2375

  Email: [email protected]

  www.easwaran.org

  * * *

  Essential Easwaran Library

  * * *

  The Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living

  Volume 2: Like a Thousand Suns (Chapters 7–12)

  Volume 3: To Love Is to Know Me (Chapters 13–18)

  * * *

  Passage Meditation – A Complete Spiritual Practice

  Train Your Mind and Find a Life that Fulfills

  “No extravagant claims, no pretentious jargon. Just a clear, insightful exposition of meditation, and an excellent guide to its practice.”

  – HUSTON SMITH, author of The World’s Religions,

  Easwaran taught passage meditation to thousands of people for forty years, including a course at the University of California, Berkeley. He based his method of meditation on the sixth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita, adapting it and systematizing it for modern needs.

  Easwaran’s classic manual on meditation is a unique source of practical spiritual support for new and experienced meditators, and gives all the instruction needed to establish a vibrant meditation practice and keep it going. In passage meditation, you focus attention on passages, or texts, drawn from all the world’s sacred traditions. You send them deep into consciousness through slow, sustained attention, prompting you to live out your highest ideals.

  Meditation is supported by the mantram and six other spiritual tools to help us stay calm, kind, and focused throughout the day. This book shows how, with regular practice, we gain wisdom and vitality, and find a life that fulfills.

  * * *

  Classics of Indian Spirituality Series

  * * *

  The Bhagavad Gita

  Easwaran’s clear, accessible translation, with a 63-page introduction.

  Other translations in this series:

  The Dhammapada

  The Upanishads

  “It is impossible to get to the heart of those classics unless you live them, and [Easwaran] did live them. My admiration of the man and his works is boundless.” – Huston Smith, author of The World’s Religions (Reviewing Easwaran’s translation, The Bhagavad Gita)

  * * *

  Wisdom of India Series

  * * *

  Essence of the Bhagavad Gita

  A Contemporary Guide to Yoga, Meditation and Indian Philosophy

  This completely new book is Easwaran’s distillation of the Gita’s teachings from the end of his life, based on talks given to his close students.

  Easwaran places Sri Krishna’s wisdom in a contemporary context and explores the nature of reality, the illusion of separateness, the search for identity, the meaning of yoga, and how to heal the unconscious. The key message of the Gita is how to resolve our conflicts and live in harmony with the deep unity of life, through the practice of meditation and spiritual disciplines.

  Sri Krishna doesn’t tell Arjuna what to do. He points out the prince’s choices, and then leaves it to Arjuna to decide. Easwaran shows us clearly how these teachings still apply – and how, like Arjuna, we must take courage and act wisely if we want our world to thrive.

  * * *

  Essence of the Upanishads

  A Key to Indian Spirituality (Formerly titled Dialogue with Death)

  The Katha Upanishad, one of Ind
ia’s classic wisdom texts, embraces all the key ideas of Indian spirituality within the context of a powerful mythic quest. A young hero, Nachiketa, ventures into the land of death in search of answers to the age-old questions: “Who am I? What is the meaning of my life? And what will happen to me after I die?” The King of Death emerges as the perfect spiritual guide, challenging, uncompromising, and direct.

  But the insights of the Katha, as with all the Upanishads, are scattered, hard to understand. Easwaran presents them systematically and practically, as a way to explore deeper and deeper levels of personality. Illustrating the wisdom of the Katha through analogies and everyday examples, Easwaran’s interpretation of this classic can help us to embark on – and sustain – our own quest into the meaning of our lives.

  Also in this Series:

  Essence of the Dhammapada

  * * *

  Other Books by Easwaran

  * * *

  Gandhi the Man

  How one man changed himself to change the world

  Eknath Easwaran grew up in India and witnessed how Gandhi inspired people of all races, backgrounds, and religions to turn anger into compassion and hatred into love.

  How had Gandhi done this? How had he transformed himself from an ineffective young lawyer into the Mahatma, the “great soul” who led 400 million Indians in their nonviolent struggle for independence from the British Empire? To find out, Easwaran went to Gandhi’s ashram and watched the Mahatma absorbed in meditation on the Bhagavad Gita, the wellspring of his spiritual strength.

 

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