STUDY CIRCLE FREE WILL OR DESTINY: THE AGE OLD QUESTION II DATE: SATURDAY, 12 TH MARCH 2016

Transcription

1 STUDY CIRCLE FREE WILL OR DESTINY: THE AGE OLD QUESTION II DATE: SATURDAY, 12 TH MARCH 2016

2 CONTENT Recap Acceptance of God s Will Individual Will: The Grand Unison Divine Will: The Final Word Conclusion Discussion

3 RECAP

4 RECAP FREE WILL OR DESTINY: THE AGE OLD QUESTION 1. Is there really such a thing as free will? Only God has free will but each individual has free will to act according to his intellect within the destined frame of life. 2. Do some people have more freedom of choice as compared to others? In reality, no one has more freedom but by one s intellect, one does good work and is responsible, more freedom is given in accordance to one s karma. 3. How can we change our destiny when face with utmost challenges? The strength of one's spirit can prevail over all obstacles. Bold action can conquer any obstacle from the past. Ultimate surrender to God is ideal.

5 RECAP 4. If everything happens by God's will, why is there so much evil in the world? When the world is ruled by God, how does he permit it to be so wicked and vile? The answer given is that God is not responsible for the grief and pain. The sins we commit are the progenitors of the grief we suffer. Joy and sorrow are the consequences of the good and the evil that man perpetrates. God is the witness. He does not punish, nor does he cause grief. - Sathya Sai Vahini, p.48

6 ACCEPTANCE OF GOD S WILL

7 ACCEPTANCE OF GOD S WILL Duty lies in acting to the best of one's ability. The results of actions are determined by God in accordance with karma and grace. We hold the freedom to act, but not to determine results. We may set our own vision, but we cannot determine the timetable for its realization. In fact, the success or failure of our deeds holds little importance in comparison to our motivations. Lasting peace and joy do not derive from worldly successes. They emanate from the inner being of a person attuned to God. Attachment to results feeds the ego and prevents us from discovering the divinity within

8 ACCEPTANCE OF GOD S WILL Engage yourselves in your duties as intelligently and as devotedly as you can; but carry out your duties as if they are acts of worship offered to God, leaving the fruit of those acts to His will, His grace, His compassion. Do not be affected when the results you anticipate are not produced, do not anticipate at all, but leave it to him. - Sathya Sai Speaks 8, p.172

9 ACCEPTANCE OF GOD S WILL As long as we continue to think that we are the doers then we got to accept the consequences. God does not interfere When we renounce self will, we will experience greater peace and contentment We should dedicate our actions to God We will then cease to experience the pain of unfulfilled desires.

10 ACCEPTANCE OF GOD S WILL Give up the idea that you are the doer and that you are the beneficiary. You can do this by dedicating both deed and fruit to the lord. Then no sin can affect you, for you are not the doer and the deed must perforce be holy. - Gita Vahini, p.98

11 ACCEPTANCE OF GOD S WILL We need to accept that God carries the burdens for us whether we are aware. Whether we worry or not, God bears our load. It does not alter the course of destiny. God knows best as He possess the vision of the past, present and future.

12 ACCEPTANCE OF GOD S WILL If only you surrender your wish and will, your fancies and fantasies to God, he will lead you aright and give you peace and joy. You must not run after diverse ends and flitting pleasures. Leave everything to God; accept whatever happens as his will. - Sathya Sai Speaks 10, p.260

13 ACCEPTANCE OF GOD S WILL Surrender to God requires constant practice. To fully accept divine will, we must travel far in realizing our own divinity. So we must strive continually to remain mindful of God. Mindfulness demands great faith, devotion, and practice of dedicated action. Surrender requires acceptance of joy or sorrow with equal fortitude. God knows best the formula for our transformation. He looks to our welfare if we accept His will.

14 ACCEPTANCE OF GOD S WILL There are three things which one should keep in mind, namely, I will not think of anything else except God; I will not do anything else without the permission of God; and I will have my attention completely fixed in God. It is only when you accept and put into practice these three things, that the Lord said he will look after your welfare. God has told us that if you respect and observe these three conditions and show your acceptance thereof by practice in your life, he will bear the entire burden of your welfare. - Summer Showers 1972, p.106

15 ACCEPTANCE OF GOD S WILL God knows what is best for each of us. By insisting on our own egoic resolution of events, we only damage ourselves. Only God knows the road to our largest fulfillment. If we depend on him, he provides the appropriate lessons for our growth.

16 ACCEPTANCE OF GOD S WILL Yearning leads to surrender, and surrender gives highest joy. Leave everything to His will,accept whatever happens whether pleasant or painful, for each has its role to play in shaping you in the image of God. - Sathya Sai Speak, 7, p.78

17 INDIVIDUAL WILL: THE GRAND UNISON

18 INDIVIDUAL WILL: THE GRAND UNISON Due to ego, we feel that we have free will and form our views. Ego is a shadow and formed from illusion. When we truly know ourselves, we recognise God as the real motivator of all deeds. He does not stand apart from us.

19 INDIVIDUAL WILL: THE GRAND UNISON The intimate relationship that exists between God and the jiva (individual) is indescribable. However, falling victim to his own ego, Man arrogates unto himself the authority for his actions. But in reality, it is only God who decides what action is to be performed by whom, at what time, at what place, under what circumstances, and with what degree of success. - Summer Showers 1979, p.43

20 INDIVIDUAL WILL: THE GRAND UNISON The atma resides above the ego, mind, and intellect. That divinity constitutes a facet of universal divinity. It is the source of consciousness and power. The light of the atma shines through the intellect (buddhi) and mind (manas), and is distorted by the egoic nature of the channels it must utilize. That power filters through the instruments of reason and motivates our actions. But the ego, which originates in the lower mind, claims credit for these actions. Like a pretender to the throne, the ego takes title to property that belongs to another.

21 INDIVIDUAL WILL: THE GRAND UNISON You think you are engaging in action, but it is your body doing so, or your mind, or your intelligence. But God is working through them. It is only the atma in you which is the source of action. The atma is God. - My Baba And I, p,215

22 INDIVIDUAL WILL: THE GRAND UNISON Each person has a role to play based on their personality. All are really instruments of the Divine Due to bound of ego, the body seeks pleasures and believes it can act independently The Divine nature is ignored Then suffering is what one has to endure

23 INDIVIDUAL WILL: THE GRAND UNISON God is using your intelligence, mind, and body as his instruments for doing that particular work. You write with a pen, or cut paper with scissors, but it is not those instruments that are doing the work. it is you who are using the instruments for the purpose of doing the work. Likewise, the instruments you call "yourself"- intelligence, mind and body are used by God for his purpose. - My Baba And I, p.215

24 INDIVIDUAL WILL: THE GRAND UNISON God directs the human play in such a manner that the divinity in everyone ultimately stands revealed. Our divine identity emerges from the cocoon of ego under his watchful eye. By renouncing ego, we slowly free ourselves from delusion. Desire originates in the lower mind. Higher consciousness works to rise above the illusion of ego. God's plan unfolds in a manner which frees us to experience our innate divinity and our identity with God.

25 INDIVIDUAL WILL: THE GRAND UNISON Man is but an instrument which the Chaitanya (God consciousness) wields. God is not limited by time, space or circumstance. But the physical body, the mind, the intellect, the senses, their longings- these are moulded and modified by time, space and circumstance. Without believing in this fundamental fact man falsely imagines, I am doing this." "I am planning this." It is the supreme all-pervasive consciousness that unfolds the skills, motivates the senses and operates the intellect. -Sathya Sai Speaks 11, Pg 196

26 INDIVIDUAL WILL: THE GRAND UNISON When we realise that our actions are determined by God, then we can release attachment of the results. If we need to learn from success, we will but if we need to learn from failure, it will arrive on time. Failure may benefit us by releasing our negative karma and help us grow in life. Success may however cause us to develop pride and attachment. It is foolish to be caught up in success or failure. It all rests with God.

27 INDIVIDUAL WILL: THE GRAND UNISON For one who recognizes that God is the basis of success or failure, gains or losses, there will be no differences between these aspects at all. - Summer Showers 1978, p.140

28 INDIVIDUAL WILL: THE GRAND UNISON God s wishes is hidden from our view He knows the intent of the drama he directs His priorities originates from a higher consideration than our own. We are unable to fathom His ways. Through His play, we can manifest our own Divinity. We just need to relax and play our parts well.

29 INDIVIDUAL WILL: THE GRAND UNISON The Universe is the field where God sports. Be aware of this fact every moment of consciousness, and there is nothing more you need for a happy existence. For you will then contact God in everything through every thought at every place and at every moment. His leela (divine play) is evident in the smallest flower and the most distant star. - Sathya Sai Speaks 9, p.227

30 INDIVIDUAL WILL: THE GRAND UNISON There is nothing other than the self in the universe. All the things you see as existing in the phenomenal world are but reflections of the One Self. - Indian Culture And Spirituality p.120

31 INDIVIDUAL WILL: THE GRAND UNISON If nothing but God exists in all creation, then God performs all actions, even evil deeds. True, but if one believes that, he must act on that belief with full faith. One who regards God as the doer of all actions must still act without desire for personal gain or gratification. It is not an easy excuse for one's misdeeds.

32 INDIVIDUAL WILL: THE GRAND UNISON You might infer that man too is not in the least responsible for the good and the evil that is done through him by the divine, that his real nature is beyond both good and evil, that his acts however evil were basically prompted by the Lord himself, for man has nothing he can claim as his act. True; but faith in this attitude that "nothing is done by you," that "it is all the Lord's will that is being worked through you," must be steady, sincere, deep and unshaken. There should be no trace of ego. If that is so, then certainly such a one has attained the highest goal in life. He is blessed to the uttermost. - Gita Vahini, p.112

33 DIVINE WILL THE FINAL WORD

34 DIVINE WILL THE FINAL WORD Although divinity resides within us, we do not experience the full universal consciousness of God. We fail to understand the divine play. We act without knowing the causes or effects of what we do. Like waves on the ocean, we ceaselessly roll along, seldom experiencing the peace of the depths. Thus we must resign ourselves to let the play unfold as it will. In truth, each person s destiny responds only to divine direction. Creation marches to the beat of God s drum. Our duty lies in discovering the Lord hidden in all of life s stages

35 DIVINE WILL THE FINAL WORD God is the director of this puppet show, the manipulator of the strings. Go behind the screen and see him. It is now hiding him; you have only to peep behind a flower, peer behind a cloud, to see him pulling the string to show us the beauty, to show us the darkness of heavy moisture. So also, you have only to peep behind your thought, to peer behind your feelings; you will find there the inner motivator! - Sathya Sai Speaks 7, p.119

36 DIVINE WILL THE FINAL WORD You are now in His hands, in God's care; but you do not realize it; this handkerchief is held by me; if my hand does not hold it, it falls. So too if God does not hold you, you fall. Whatever you do, where ever you are placed, believe that God has put you there for that work. Then it becomes an education, a sadhana (spiritual discipline). - Sathya Sai Speaks 9, p.20

37 DIVINE WILL THE FINAL WORD Although we may not understand our roles, each person performs a part in God's drama. However we may evaluate our lines and actions, we must realize the importance of performing our parts well. Our attitudes and willingness to learn offer us hope for spiritual advancement. We cannot readily change the course of our lives, but we can determine how we will react to events.

38 DIVINE WILL THE FINAL WORD The play is His; the role is His gift; the lines are written by Him; He directs, He decides the dress and decoration, the gesture and the tone, the entrance and the exit. You have to act well the part and receive His approbation, when the curtain falls. Earn by your efficiency and enthusiasm the right to play higher and higher roles. That is the meaning and purpose of life. Sathya Sai Speaks 7, p. 252

39 DIVINE WILL THE FINAL WORD Faith is the very breath we live by. Every being is the effect of some cause and has been created for some purpose. Man has been made man for some cause he has to serve. - Sathya Sai Speaks 11, pp

40 DIVINE WILL THE FINAL WORD Although we plan according to our own desires, the final results remain in God's hands. His will prevails. Our time is spent most "productively in attempting to understand his will for us, rather than in insisting on having our own way. He knows the course of greatest benefit for us. He sees the past, present, and future and directs our progress along avenues of greatest success. If we trust God and surrender to his will the journey is rendered more enjoyable. His plan will prevail with our acceptance or without it.

41 DIVINE WILL THE FINAL WORD God's decisions are always understandable and if man wants to do something and wants something to happen God often wants something else to happen. There is no meaning in man wanting something to happen and sticking to that plan. God decides and man has to adjust his plans according to God's decisions. It is not right for him to stick to his own plans and make decisions. - Summer Showers 1974, p.239

42 DIVINE WILL THE FINAL WORD When we understand our lessons, and learn to flow with divine will, we gain freedom of being. Freedom derives not in forcing the world to conform to our plans, but in learning to flow with the divine stream. Work done in accordance with God's will does not bind us. It becomes part of divine will and ceases to trap us. If we act without desire for selfish results, we realize our identity with God.

43 DIVINE WILL THE FINAL WORD And as long as my resolution lasts, the stream of karma will flow along. It can never go dry as long as I do not will it. All that you do is get drawn into this flood; why, you are but currents in this rush, or ripples or waves. My will has prompted all karma and so karma done in consonance with my will, becomes part of me. - Gita vahini, pp.l

44 DIVINE WILL THE FINAL WORD From the divine perspective, egoic will is an illusion. God decides what will happen. He is the doer of all action. Although man acts, his thoughts and motivations are determined by God. We may worry and fear and ponder over decisions, but such attitudes cannot affect the outcome.

45 DIVINE WILL THE FINAL WORD Our will flows from divine will. Our actions are tempered by God's plan. Within the divine will we experience some attitude for action but our motivation originates from God. For us to accomplish anything, the acceptance of God is required.

46 DIVINE WILL THE FINAL WORD People believe that every man has a freewill. It is an entirely wrong belief. They imagine that it is because of man's will, determination, sadhana (spiritual practice) and effort that he is able to achieve success. This is all due to the aberrations of their ahamkara (ego) and the reflection of their false sense of doership. - Indian Culture And Spirituality, p.126

47 DISCUSSION

48 DISCUSSION 1. Why do we object to the idea that our actions are predetermined? 2. What is the difference between divine will and human will? 3. Is destiny set by us or by outside forces?

49 CONCLUSION

50 CONCLUSION Only the divine has free-will. Man is endowed with a will, but not a free-will. When the divine free-will moves, the human will also operates. There are myriad leaves in a tree but not a leaf will move in the absence of the wind. The leaves have no freewill, but they have a will which can be swayed when a breeze blows. In the tree of life, human beings are like leaves. When the divine will blows, the human will begins to move. Thus, there is the need for the coming together of divine will and the human will. Then, there will be a blossoming of the human nature. Man can never achieve anything by his own efforts. There are some things which a man accomplishes without much effort on his part. There are other things which he is unable to accomplish even with his best efforts. What is the reason for this? It is on account of the play of divine will. - Sanathana Sarathi, Feb. 93, p.34

51 REFERENCES BOOK Pathways to God Volume II/ Jonathan Roof/ Pgs

52 END OF PRESENTATION A Presentation By, Sri Sathya Sai Baba Centre Queenstown