Question 14
QUESTIONER: YOU EXPLAINED TO US THIS SAYING OF JESUS: "BLESSED ARE THE MEEK, FOR THEY SHALL INHERIT THE EARTH" THERE IS ANOTHER SAYING OF JESUS: "BLESSED ARE THE PURE IN HEART, FOR THEIRS IS THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN." CAN YOU SAY SOMETHING ABOUT IT?
Yes, there is another saying of Jesus: "Blessed are the pure in heart, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." But there is a small difference between the two sayings: "Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth," and "Blessed are the pure for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." In fact, humility is the beginning and purity is the end, the attainment.
To be humble is to be on the first leg of the journey to purity. The humble has yet to be on the first leg of the journey to purity. The humble has yet to be pure; he is on his way to it. One cannot be pure without being humble, because there is no greater impurity than ego. One who is full of ego can never be pure, but one who drops his ego, who is humble, who is surrendered, is on the path that leads to purity. So humility is not enough; it only sets you on the road to purity that is innocence.
For example, a man is standing on the bank of a river. Say he is standing in the water on the river and a huge expanse of water is flowing before him, and he is thirsty. But unless he bends and reaches for the water his thirst cannot be quenched. If he is not ready to bend he will remain thirsty, though he is surrounded on all sides by water.
Then it is not the river but his ego that is responsible for his misery. If he only bends, all the water will be his.
So humility comes first; it is the beginning of innocence; it is the door. Humility purifies, because it negates everything that creates impurity. A humble person cannot have ego, he cannot be greedy, he cannot be angry, he cannot be sexual. To be greedy, sexual and angry, one needs to be aggressive; aggression is the prerequisite. So a humble person will be forgiving and generous; he will share his happiness, everything with others. He cannot be ambitious and dominating; he cannot be acquisitive, he cannot hoard. And a humble man will give up all self aggrandizement, instead. he will sink into anonymity.
And when humility comes to completion, innocence is complete. It is this state that Jesus is talking about when he says, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall inherit the kingdom of God."
There is yet another statement of Jesus which is similar. He says, "Blessed are the poor in spirit." It is a strange saying: "poor in spirit", but it includes both humility and purity. One is so poor, so empty within that there is no space left for any impurity to exist. To be arrogant, to be egoistic, one needs to have something -- money, power, prestige. And to be impure one needs things like avarice, anger, hate, and violence. It is significant that while anger is something, non-anger is just the absence of anger. Violence is something; non-violence is just its absence. If a person is utterly empty of everything -- greed, hate, violence, money, and fame -- he is really poor in spirit, and only such a person is really rich and affluent. And he will, as Jesus says, "inherit the kingdom of heaven. The poorest is the richest, he has everything worth having.
In this context there is yet another very significant saying of Jesus. He says, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and all else shall be added unto you." But when someone asks him how he can find the kingdom of God Jesus says, "Be humble and pure, poor and empty, and the kingdom of God is yours. After realizing the kingdom of God all else shall be added unto you." A strange condition: if you lose everything, you will gain everything. And if you save anything, you will lose everything. Those who are ready to lose themselves will gain everything, and those who will save themselves will lose everything.
This, according to me, is the meaning of sannyas: one who is ready to lose everything becomes heir to everything that is worth gaining.
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Next: Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 15
Energy Enhancement Enlightened Texts Krishna Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy
Chapter 10
- Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 1
Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 1, KRISHNA WAS ESSENTIALLY A SPIRITUAL MAN, BUT HE FREELY TOOK PART IN POLITICS. AND AS A POLITICIAN HE DID NOT SHRINK FROM USING THE TRICKS OF THE TRADE. IN THE BATTLE OF THE MAHABHARAT HE GOT BISHMA KILLED BY DECEIT -- A NAKED WOMAN WAS MADE TO STAND BEFORE THAT VENERATED OLD SAGE, WHO WAS A VOWED CELIBATE. IN THE SAME WAY, DECEPTION WAS USED TO KILL DRONACHARYA, KARNA, AND DURYODHANA. THE QUESTION ARISES: SHOULD A SPIRITUAL MAN TAKE PART IN POLITICS, AND IF SO, SHOULD HE BEHAVE AS ORDINARY POLITICIANS DO? AND, WAS MAHATMA GANDHI WRONG IN LAYING STRESS ON THE PURITY OF ENDS AND MEANS? IS NOT PURITY OF MEANS IMPORTANT TO POLITICS? at energyenhancement.org
- Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 2
Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 2, COULD HE NOT HAVE KILLED THEM STRAIGHTAWAY WITH WEAPONS, INSTEAD OF RESORTING TO DUBIOUS MEANS? at energyenhancement.org
- Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 3
Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 3, THERE WAS A KING NAMED PONDRAK IN THE TIMES OF KRISHNA. THIS MAN HAD DECLARED KRISHNA TO BE A FAKE AND HIMSELF TO BE THE REAL KRISHNA. CAN YOU SAY IF SIMILAR THINGS HAVE HAPPENED IN THE LIVES OF BUDDHA, MAHAVIRA AND OTHER ENLIGHTENED BEINGS? at energyenhancement.org
- Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 4
Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 4, WHY DID JESUS CLAIM? at energyenhancement.org
- Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 5
Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 5, THE LINE OF HINDU INCARNATIONS BEGINS WITH THE FISH AND CONTINUES THROUGH RAMA, KRISHNA, AND BUDDHA. EVEN THE COMING INCARNATION, TO BE KNOWN AS KALKI, IS INCLUDED IN THIS SERIES. BUT HOW IS IT THAT IN THIS LONG LINE OF INCARNATIONS KRISHNA IS SAID TO BE THE COMPLETE INCARNATION OF GOD, ALTHOUGH BUDDHA HAPPENED LONG AFTER HIM? WHY WAS BUDDHA DERIVED THIS HONOR? AND WHAT, FROM THE VIEWPOINT OF EVOLUTION, IS THE SECRET OF KRISHNA PRECEDING BUDDHA? IS IT SO BECAUSE THE MOVEMENT OF TIME IS CIRCULAR? at energyenhancement.org
- Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 6
Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 6, KRISHNA PUT UP WITH NINE HUNDRED AND NINETY-NINE INVECTIVES HURLED ON HIM BY KING SHISHUPAL, BUT HE KILLED HIM WITH HIS CHAKRA -- A WHEEL-LIKE WEAPON -- WHEN THE KING FIRED HIS LAST INVECTIVE. DOES IT NOT SHOW THAT KRISHNA'S TOLERANCE IS ONLY SKIN DEEP, THAT DEEP DOWN HE WAS INTOLERANT? at energyenhancement.org
- Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 7
Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 7, WOULD YOU NOT CALL KRISHNA A KIDNAPPING CHAMPION? HE NOT ONLY KIDNAPS RUKMINI AND MARRIES HER, BUT ALSO INDUCES ARJUNA TO KIDNAP HER SISTER SUBHADRA. WHAT DO YOU SAY? at energyenhancement.org
- Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 8
Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 8, ONCE WHEN KRISHNA IS ON HIS WAY TO DWARKA HE MEETS KUNTA WHO REQUESTS OF HIM A GIFT OF PAIN AND SUFFERING. BUT KRISHNA ONLY LAUGHS; HE DOES NOT EVEN SAY THAT SUCH A REQUEST IS NOT RIGHT. WHAT DOES IT MEAN? at energyenhancement.org
- Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 9
Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 9, IT ALL SOUNDS PARADOXICAL. YOU HAVE SAID MORE THAN ONCE THAT WHILE KRISHNA'S LIFE IS EXTRAORDINARY AND MIRACULOUS, LIKE A FLOWER IN BLOOM, FULL OF LAUGHTER AND PLAYFULNESS, THE LIFE OF OTHERS LIKE HIM IS MASOCHISTIC. FOR INSTANCE, NOBODY EVER SAW JESUS LAUGH. IN THIS CONTEXT HOW IS IT POSSIBLE THAT A DEVOTEE PRAYING FOR SUFFERING CAN HAVE A VISION OF THE KRISHNA OF YOUR CONCEPT? at energyenhancement.org
- Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 10
Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 10, AS YOU TALK ABOUT GOD AND HIS DEVOTEE, AND YOU CALL KRISHNA 'BHAGWAN', THE BLESSED ONE, A QUESTION ARISES IN MY MIND IF KRISHNA IS A DEVOTEE. IF SO, WHO IS THE BLESSED ONE HE IS DEVOTED TO? AND IF HE IS NOT A DEVOTEE WHY DOES HE SING HYMNS OF PRAISE TO DEVOTION? at energyenhancement.org
- Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 11
Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 11, WHAT IS THE TEST OF ONE'S HIGHEST DEVOTION TO KRISHNA? at energyenhancement.org
- Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 12
Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 12, KRISHNA INSPIRES ARJUNA TO FIGHT IN THE BATTLE OF THE MAHABHARAT. BUT IT IS SAID THAT ONCE IT HAPPENS, KRISHNA HIMSELF PREPARES TO FIGHT WITH ARJUNA. WHAT IS THE MATTER? at energyenhancement.org
- Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 13
Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 13, KRISHNA COULD ALSO SAY THAT SINCE BOTH OF THEM ARE HIS FRIENDS HE IS NOT GOING TO FIGHT ON ANY SIDE at energyenhancement.org
- Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 14
Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 14, YOU EXPLAINED TO US THIS SAYING OF JESUS: 'BLESSED ARE THE MEEK, FOR THEY SHALL INHERIT THE EARTH' THERE IS ANOTHER SAYING OF JESUS: 'BLESSED ARE THE PURE IN HEART, FOR THEIRS IS THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN.' CAN YOU SAY SOMETHING ABOUT IT? at energyenhancement.org
- Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 15
Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 15, WHY SHOULD ONE THINK OF GAINING AFTER LOSING EVERYTHING? at energyenhancement.org
- Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 16
Krishna, Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy Chapter 10: Spiritualism, Religion and Politics, Question 16, WHAT YOU SAY IS POSSIBLE ONLY IN A STATE OF ENLIGHTENMENT, AND WE FIND EVERYTHING OF THAT ENLIGHTENMENT IN YOU. YOU ARE UTTERLY HUMBLE, BUT WHEN YOU COME OUT AS A RELENTLESS CRITIC, WE ARE ASSAILED BY DOUBT AND CONFUSION at energyenhancement.org
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