By There is a universal rule of mastery – it requires a fixed set of practice protocols. Look at the pianist whose fingers dance across the keys – behind that elegance lies years of focused practice, technique perfected by playing the same scales over and over again. It’s the same for the athlete who goes through countless hours of repetitive drills to put in a seemingly effortless performance on the field.
Spirituality is no different, for it is the art of mastering the trek through the rough terrains of life, to reach the peak of human experience. However, the practice cannot be left to an individual’s preferences (Swachhand). In fact, that can be a major roadblock on the journey, as Param Krupadu Dev has clearly disclosed in Shri Atmasiddhi Shastra. The spiritual path needs a framework that can serve as the foundational structure for every seeker’s practice.
The Path at SRM
At SRM, seekers already have a well-defined framework in place. The path outlines the 3 major aspects of a seeker’s journey – Seek, Experience, Return. And it is built on the foundational pillars of Prem, Seva, Sanyam, and Sadhana, supported by values like clarity and inclusivity.
On 17th May 2024, during a Friday Family Satsang, Sri Guru further solidified this structure by adding seven core beliefs – principles to guide our daily thoughts, actions, and feelings. These beliefs act as the guiding torch in any situation of a seeker’s life, and also give us a blueprint for an ideal life.
The Seven Beliefs
- For happiness, you don’t have to go somewhere, you have to become someone.
Throughout our lives, we have been dependent on external factors for happiness. But the most fundamental realisation on the spiritual path is that true happiness resides within us.
Practice: The key to discovering this inner wellspring of happiness lies in cultivating Love, which is a combination of three virtues: Shraddha (Faith), Bhakti (Devotion), and Vivek (wise judgement). As you nurture these virtues, your experience of Love deepens. The more you experience Love, the more you radiate it outward. And the more you radiate Love, the more you discover the immeasurable depth of your inner happiness.
- Prepare for Purest Best daily, not occasionally.
There is another rule of mastery – it requires consistent practice. And when the goal is to attain the Purest Best (experience of your true Self), this rule becomes nonnegotiable.
Practice: Life teaches us new lessons almost every day, often several times in a day. But our unaware minds and limited intellect might not be able to grasp them. Thus, it becomes imperative that we learn from someone who has already walked the path – an Enlightened Master. We can learn life’s most profound lessons through the various tools they provide, like Satsang, Bhakti, and Meditation. But being consistent in this practice is crucial.
- Purest Best waits for the right mindset, not the right time.
Spiritual progress isn’t a competition defined by age or years of practice. A teenager might show more spiritual maturity than a 30-year old. A relatively ‘new’ seeker might start experiencing freedom from vices and negative habits, while another seeker with decades of practice might still be stuck in the Mayic loop. The deciding factor is your mindset, not your age or the number of years on the path.
Practice: We often find ourselves busy amidst all the daily chores and responsibilities. But claiming to be ‘busy’ for your daily spiritual practice is just another way of saying that it doesn’t rank high enough on your priority list. The Purest Best requires an Arjun-like mindset – eyes totally fixed on the goal. There will be days when tough choices are necessary: disappointing a family member, sacrificing sleep, or even skipping a meal. Those are great signs! How can you expect to attain something extraordinary, if you live an ordinary life?
- Life should be lived on right principles.
Many people’s idea of freedom is to live a life that is not bound by any rules. But beneath the mask of such superficial freedom, we become enslaved by our own impulses, desires, social conditioning, and narrow beliefs.
Practice: When you receive the greatest blessing of having a Guru in your life, it becomes your duty to align your life with the principles given by them. Sri Guru has shared 3 key principles that are universally applicable across various different roles that we play in our lives.
- Goodness: It is good to be right than wrong.
- Kindness: It is better to be kind than right.
- Silence: It is best to be silent when kind.
When we keep performing good and kind acts, without seeking recognition, our hearts become open to receive Cosmic downloads – intuitive guidance that helps us on our unique journeys.
- Existence is like a magnet.
The Law of Karma – you reap what you sow – can feel confusing when our actions don’t lead to expected results. But this apparent discrepancy arises because the law is much more nuanced than it seems.
Practice: Guard your thoughts, because actions make up only a miniscule percentage of what we ‘sow’. Each thought we have adds to the canvas of our existence, and the collection of these thoughts creates a powerful magnet, attracting similar experiences into our lives. This might tempt us into thinking positive. But our thoughts should be in harmony with our feelings. You cannot attract the Purest Best by simply thinking positively while harbouring negative feelings like guilt or jealousy. So, think right and purify your feelings, in accordance with the principles shared in Belief #4.
- To step into the future, you must rise above the past.
The spiritual path is like a demanding uphill climb towards the peak of Love. Practices like Satsang and Meditation provide us with abundant energy for this journey. Yet, we often waste this energy by carrying a heavy burden – the weight of our past. This burden makes the ascent incredibly difficult.
Practice: Until we enter the stream of enlightenment, our life remains a ladder. To step onto the next rung (future), we must let go of the previous one (past), with one foot firmly planted on the current one (present). Remember, the past isn’t confined to incidents that happened several years ago. Even the moment that just went by is now in the past.
- My Life = My Responsibility
This belief is the culmination of the previous six. By integrating those principles into your life, this truth becomes naturally etched in your mind and embodied in your being.
Practice: Taking control of your life is a twofold process –
- Stop depending on others for your happiness.
- Stop blaming others for your suffering.
Param Krupadu Dev has beautifully captured this belief in Vachnamrut 37 – “जहाँ-तहाँ से राग-द्वेष रहित होना यही मेरा धर्म है”, which translates to “Freedom from attachments and aversions is my only religion”. And so should be ours.
Let the Practice Begin
Unlike the pianist or the athlete, a seeker’s practice and performance are not separate from each other. You must practise the art of living while you are living. And that makes this journey even more special.
So let this moment mark the auspicious beginning of the most beautiful trek of your life. Let these 7 beliefs, or ‘The Sevenfold Path’, serve as the trail. If you stick to the trail, you will continue mastering the climb, reaching ever closer to the summit; the summit where an unhindered panoramic view of the Purest Best awaits. And even if you stumble, or wander off the trail, there’s no need to panic. There is a silent Guide walking beside you at each step, infinitely more determined than you to ensure that you stay on course to witness that indescribable beauty for yourself.
Most profound message.
Need to practice living accordingly. Thank you Sri Guru for the clarity. You always hit the nail on the head.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.