View source for Spiritual Awareness in Hinduism

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[[Category:India |S ]]
[[Category:Religion |S ]]

=The aim of human life; The three strengths of the Mind=
[https://epaper.timesgroup.com/Olive/ODN/TimesOfIndia/shared/ShowArticle.aspx?doc=TOIDEL%2F2018%2F04%2F10&entity=Ar02204&sk=A32CA401&mode=text  Swami Niranjanananda Saraswati, Strength Of Mind For Spiritual Awareness, April 10, 2018: ''The Times of India'']


Cultivate spiritual awareness. Swami Sivananda has said, “The aim of human life is not God-realisation; rather, it is the cultivation of spiritual awareness.” How far you are able to go, does not matter. Do not think about one hundred per cent; try to obtain even half a per cent of spiritual awareness in your life and you will have obtained everything. When the mind is free from its sensorial, mundane and external attachments, then, it cultivates its own strength.

''' Three strengths '''

There are three strengths of the mind: iccha shakti, will power; jnana shakti, knowledge power; kriya shakti, creative power. Even now you have these three within you; however, you are not utilising them, as there is a dissipation of mental faculties and energies. Similarly, for example, when a bulb is turned on, the light spreads in all directions, it is dissipated. The light is there, no doubt, but there is no force in that light.

But, if you were able to focus the power of light to a single point, it becomes a laser beam and thus gains in strength. You can apply that laser beam to cut through metal, perform optical nerve surgery, and so on. It is this focussing of mental perceptions that you attain in dharana, which leads to the development of willpower, iccha shakti, and the mind gains its true strength and its true character.

How the mind, the ego or intellect works, we do not know, and we should not bother about it. We must know how we can handle the situations, circumstances and conditions that alter our perspective of ourselves.

Once the mind becomes as powerful as a laser beam, knowledge also becomes focussed. Right now all the knowledge that you have acquired is dissipated, but when it is focussed, it becomes jnana shakti. The simplest way to understand jnana shakti is as the quality of understanding. I believe the greatest strength in the world is not love, as many people say. Love is not a strength, nor is compassion or sympathy. The highest quality of life is understanding.

''' Root of life ''' 

If you can understand situations, if you can understand life, then all the best qualities flower spontaneously within you without any effort. Understanding is the root of life that has to be watered daily. Love, compassion and the other sattvic qualities are flowers and fruit of the tree of life, which you can admire and enjoy, but understanding is the root of the tree of life. Therefore, ensure that you give water and compost to that root of life on a regular basis. Protect the root of life from the insects and rodents that nibble away at it, which are not visible, being underground.

''' Highest quality '''

The highest quality that anyone can have in life is understanding. Everything else falls into place after that. If there is no understanding, you can be going gaga with love and that will not help at all. That love will have no meaning for you, that compassion will have no meaning for you.

Cultivate understanding. With the cultivation of understanding, that is, with jnana shakti, kriya shakti becomes predominant. And with that kriya shakti, creative and harmonious interaction between the individual and the world arises.