Chapter 22§
Penance
प्रायश्चित्त
ITALIZED BY BHAKTI’S GRACE, A DEVOTEE’S CONSCIENCE IS AROUSED, BRINGING THE DESIRE TO CONFESS, REPENT AND MAKE UP FOR MISDEEDS. THROUGH DIVINE SIGHT, THE SOUL PERCEIVES UNWISE ACTIONS PERFORMED WHEN IN THE LOWER NATURE AS A HINDRANCE TO SPIRITUAL PROGRESS. TANTRAS ARE MANY TO RELEASE THE SOUL FROM THESE BURDENSOME BONDS. PENANCE WELL PERFORMED PROPELS THE SOUL INTO ITS NATURAL STATE OF BLISS. §
429 ¶Chakras look like lotus flowers. There are four petals on the mūlādhāra chakra, situated at the base of the spine. These petals unfold one after another as a person’s consciousness emerges upward from jealousy, anger and fear into memory, reason and willpower. Only then awakens the consciousness of religiousness and the ability to admit the existence of God and angelic beings. This new humility causes the devotee to admit that grace is needed to progress on the spiritual path and resolve unwholesome karmas of the past and that wisdom is needed to prevent making new unwholesome karmas in the future.§
The Four Steps of Atonement§
430 ¶The four petals of the mūlādhāra can be described as unrestrained devotion, confession, repentance and reconciliation. When penance is given, it must be fulfilled, especially when requested. Otherwise, the life of the penitent is vulnerable to the company of asuras. Penance is given after a certain amount of remorse is shown and the urgency is felt by the individual to rid his mind of the plaguing matter. All help is given by the divine devas to those seen performing a sincere penance. These devas that oversee those in a penitent state of mind are similar to doctors and nurses gathered to help their patient become well again. The angelic helpers surround their “patient,” assisting in the relief of mental and emotional illness caused by transgression of dharma and the guilt that follows. When the penitent is undergoing penance, it is a form of tapas, described by some as psychic surgery performed by the devas working together to bring the soul from darkness into light. It truly is a happy event, but only long after it is over. The guru of every pīṭham receives the verbal confession of śishyas and gives out the appropriate penance, prāyaśchitta. He recognizes Divine absolution, knowing the penance has been fulfilled, when the inner aura is bright as a new-born child, the face happy and the testimony on the result of the penance discloses true atonement. In our Church, the period specifically dedicated to confession, repentance and reconciliation is the third season, Moksha Ṛitau. §
Confession And Repentance§
431 ¶We all know the refined feeling of bhakti. Every religious person in the world has experienced this at one time or another. It is the total surrendering of oneself to God and the Gods. As the soul emerges out of the lower aspects of the instinctive mind, and the mūlādhāra chakra begins to unfold because of the bhakti that has been awakened through daily worship and sādhana, admittance and honest confession then brings up repentant feelings from the sub-superconscious mind quite unbidden. When this happens within the devotee, it is truly a boon, marking progress on the spiritual path. Confession, the voice of the soul, can now be heard. As the intellect clears, the honest truths of experience formerly hidden to oneself as well as to others are revealed. The soul, the conscience, emerges in all honesty and repentantly confesses the burdens it has been carrying. Yes, confession is truly the voice of the soul. Nothing is hidden to oneself when dharma supersedes adharma.§
How to Make a Confession§
432 ¶As a mature being in the higher nature above the mūlādhāra chakra, ever seeking higher plateaus through sādhana, the Śaivite seeks peace whenever the mind is troubled. How does such a Śaivite confess? How does one tell of the reactions to misdeeds performed in all innocence when but a child in the lower consciousness, living in the lower nature, below the mūlādhāra chakra? How and whom does one tell of misdeeds performed during a lapse of conscience even when living a life of dharma? A Śaivite confesses to God Śiva, the Gods or his guru. To confess to God Śiva, go to His temple and mentally, psychically place your burden at the holy feet of the mūrti in the sanctum sanctorum. To confess to Gods Murugan or Gaṇeśa, go to their temple and place your confession at their holy feet. Or go to your guru and tell him of your inner plight, holding nothing back. This is how a Śaivite confesses inner burdens as he emerges out of the instinctive mind of the lower nature into the purified intellect of the higher nature.§
Reconciliation Is Food For the Soul§
433 ¶Yes, reconciliation is food for the soul. After the soul has unburdened itself of the dross of the lower mind through honest confession, a resolution must be made not to reenter the lower states or rekindle the flames of the chakras below the mūlādhāra. To achieve reconciliation by apology for hurts caused another, or to atone by performing acts of penance if a long time has passed since the apology could have been made and received, is truly food for the soul.§
Penance, the Means of Reconciling§
434 ¶There are many forms of penance, prāyaśchitta, such as 1,008 prostrations before Gods Gaṇeśa, Murugan or Supreme God Śiva, apologizing and showing shame for misdeeds, performing japa slowly 1,008 times on the holy rudrāksha beads, giving of 108 handmade gifts to the temple; performing manual chores at the temple for 108 hours, such as cleaning; making garlands, arranging flowers; bringing offerings of cooked food; performing kavadi with miniature spears inserted in the flesh, making a pilgrimage by prostrating the body’s length again and again, rolling around a temple, and more. All these and more are major means of atonement after each individual confession has been made. The keynote in serious cases is asking one’s guru to give a specific penance once the problem has been revealed. Once the guru is asked for penance, the penance must be performed exactly according to his instruction. It should be done with full energy and without delay. Deliberate delay or refusal to perform the penance shows the devotee has rejected the assistance of the guru. Further advice and guidance will not be forthcoming until the instruction has been fulfilled. Therefore, a devotee in such a condition does not approach. One may, however, beseech the guru for assistance and continued guidance if one is in the process of fulfilling the penance over a period of time. §
May the Lord find pleasure in our song of praise! Priest among men, may he offer due homage to the heavenly beings! Great, O Lord, is your renown.§
ṚIG VEDA 5.13.3. VE, 854§
The Steps Of Atonement, A Summary§
435 ¶The inner cleansing process of unwanted vāsanās occurs in this order: confession, repentance—expressed by the showing of remorse and shame—and finally reconciliation. Therefore, each individual admittance of a subconscious burden too heavy to carry must have its own reconciliation to clear the inner aura of vāsanās and replenish the inner bodies for the struggle the individual has had to endure in unwinding from the coils of the lower, instinctive mind which block the intellect and obscures spiritual values. When no longer protected by its ignorance, the soul longs for release and cries out for solace. Prāyaśchitta, penance, is then the solution to dissolve the agony and bring śānti.§
Daily Sādhana Preserves Sublimity§
436 ¶All members without exception perform daily sādhana before dawn and read the daily lessons of The Master Course before sleep. All strive to manifest in their lives and homes the purified intellect of the higher nature. Keeping up with this sādhana keeps the entire subconscious clear so that meditation becomes a natural state of mind. The magnetic forces of the lower nature are indeed strong. Fear, anger, jealousy and adharmic beliefs, attitudes and actions are seen today as a way of life. Daily sādhana keeps each devotee free of these forces, and on the right track, of dharma, the perfect San Mārga of Śuddha Śaiva Siddhānta. Remember, when one’s true bhakti has begun, confession comes forth as the natural outpouring of the soul, and repentance for any past misdeeds is sure to follow. Reconciliation is the food for the soul as it replenishes its outer mind.§
Harmony, the Keynote of Religious Life§
437 ¶All śishya are instruments of peace wherever they are. We have zero tolerance for disharmony of any kind. Harmony is held as the first and foremost standard of living in all spheres. The striving for harmony begins within the home and radiates out into all dimensions of life, enhancing and making joyous and sublime each relationship of each devotee. Thus, each śishya strives to be kindly in thought, word and deed, to unfold the beautiful, giving qualities of the soul. Attitudes are never cultivated which give rise to hurting the feelings of others or pushing others down to make oneself look more important. The great Tamil Saint Tiruvalluvar offers the following sage advice in Tirukural verse 100: “To utter harsh words when sweet ones would serve is like eating unripe fruit when ripe ones are at hand.” If someone inadvertently hurts or offends another, the injured party never responds in a like manner but forgives and forgets the affront, remembering verse 152 from the Tirukural: “It is good to always endure the injuries done to you, but to forget them is even better.” All difficult feelings are resolved before sleep, lest they give rise to mental argument and germinate as unwanted troublesome vāsanās that cannot be totally erased, but only softened and neutralized through the mystic processes of atonement.§
Remedy to Dissolve Disharmony§
438 ¶If disharmony, also known as disruption of the harmonious prāṇic flow, does occur between any śishyas—anger, argument, back-biting, walking out of meetings, hurt feelings—it should be resolved before sleep. If the disruption is not resolved before sleep, then a kukarmaphala, fruit of wrongdoing, has been created. The hurt feelings and mental arguments continue to fester until the matter is brought up and openly faced to be resolved. Resolution is accomplished through the hrī prāyaśchitta: apology, the showing of remorse, talking together in small groups and giving gifts as reconciliation. Humility is the keynote. Resolution is accomplished most quickly by sincere apology for participating in argument or confusion. Even if one was not necessarily to blame, the karma was there that attracted the situation. Harmony is reinstated by honestly accepting apologies, by forgiving and forgetting with the firm resolve to never bring up the matter again. It is based on the common understanding that by working together on the firm foundation of love and trust all will progress in religious service and worship in the right way. Through these efforts, a sukarmaphala, fruit of right doing, is deliberately created. When two śishyas sit to settle a disharmony, it is often helpful for an uninvolved third party to be present to balance the energies. §
If a man first takes firm hold on faith and then offers his sacrifice, then in that man’s sacrifice both Gods and men place confidence.§
KṚISHṆA YAJUR VEDA, TAIT. S., 1.6.8.1. VE, 401§
Disharmony Extending For Three Days§
439 ¶If a conflict is not resolved within 72 hours, then the vāsanās, or subconscious inclinations, of the event germinate. It is the duty of the talaivar, kulapati, kulamātā, mukhya, gṛihiṇī or any member of the family or group to inform the Aadheenam of any conflict that has persisted for more than a 72-hour period. If the Aadheenam is not informed and the matter is concealed, this is considered a breach of the guru-śishya relationship’s established loyalties which will disrupt the progress of the entire group in which the disharmony occurs and negatively affect the broader community as well. The Pīṭham casts no blame and will help whenever informed of such difficulties, attempting to heal the breach, strengthen ties and resolve the matter. The fact that all have chosen to avoid facing the difficulty shows that more serious remedies are required to resolve it. §
Conflict in A Council On Ministries§
440 ¶If contention persists among a council on missions to the point where its kulapatis can no longer sit together in peace and harmony, then a special, severe remedy may be given by the Pīṭham: all mission activities are suspended for a minimum period of 31 days, allowing a time for healing. Successful recuperation requires that each kulapati in the mission individually communicate with his spiritual preceptor for personal guidance. Those involved in the kukarmaphala are encouraged to perform the vāsanā daha tantra to gain release from the subconscious burdens. All are enjoined to fulfill the remedy of showing of remorse, talking together in small groups, and the giving of gifts as reconciliation. When all contentions are resolved and the prāṇas are felt by all kulapatis to be flowing properly, the Pīṭham is informed and permission to begin mission activities is sought. After this, the problems should never be spoken of again. If by the end of the 31-day moratorium the reconciliations have not been made—due to an excess of the three big “A’s,” āṇava, avidyā and ahaṁkāra—another 31-day period is automatically added as an additional hrī prāyaśchitta. This could go on for three to six months or more.§
Written Confessions to Clear the Past§
441 ¶Śiva is the Life of our life, but what about the dead, decaying past? It is true that lower consciousness does not see this as any part of Śiva at all. Śiva permeates every place else but not here, we feel, in the secret corners of our own mind. This duality, this two-ness seeking oneness, cannot be conquered by air. It cannot be conquered by ākāśa. Mind cannot rationalize away the deep hurt of injustice, or even admit unto its most inner self that the same injustice experienced in this life was inflicted upon another in a previous life. It cannot be conquered by water. You cannot wash it away. It cannot be conquered by earth. It can only be conquered by fire. Write these grievances and confessions, clearly defined, and place them in an ordinary fire. Look at the fire. It is the only pure element today. Ākāśa is polluted with negative thoughts and heinous deeds on an overpopulated planet. The water is undrinkable, the air unbreathable. The Earth is hurting from the loss of its forests and all of Śiva’s creatures therein. In the heart of the Kali Yuga, we have only fire to depend upon. It is not polluted. It feeds upon the good things of the Earth, and on pollution itself. The ordinary fire, your mind going within it, will lift your own kuṇḍalinī fire for a moment and burn yourself free from negative attachment and all the past experiences locked in your subconscious. As fire burns within seconds, a kuṇḍalinī burst will destroy all of this within seconds.§
When Worldliness Prevails§
442 ¶Sādhana is the magic balm that soothes the nerve system, giving strength for each of my śishya to have forbearance with people and patience with circumstances. When sādhana is neglected, problems close in. Families find it difficult to see eye to eye. Hard feelings arise in even the simplest and well-intended encounters, for the neglectful individuals have become too externalized. When such difficulties repeatedly occur around a particular family, it is invariably found that the performance of daily sādhana has been all but abandoned within the home. Families who have been neglectful of gathering weekly for kula somavāra sāya, Family Monday Evening, and of fulfilling their daily sādhana sometimes work themselves into a state where no amount of counseling from peers and elders can help, because emotions run too high. At times like this, contentious, combative feelings are often a prevailing force in the home. Our Śaivite Śāstras give the following wisdom: “If a family did not live according to the Śāstras, which were not extremely strict, but wise, it was simply considered that they had entered another world and were no longer invited into a Śaivite home, temple or monastery. However, no ill feelings toward them existed, and when they began adjusting their life pattern and obeying the Śaivite law, invitations were then extended. This was generally decided by a senior minority of each family group surrounding a temple [council on missions] in cooperation with a swāmī and generally felt on an inner vibration by all as to the rightness or wrongness of the situation, for no Śaivite ever hurt anyone, they just avoided.”§
‘Come, come!’ these radiant offerings invite the worshiper, conveying him thither on the rays of the sun, addressing him pleasantly with words of praise, ‘This world of Brahman is yours in its purity, gained by your own good works.’ §
ATHARVA VEDA, MUNDU 1.2.6. VE, 414§
Two-Month Retreat for Recuperation§
443 ¶We have found through the years that a two-month retreat is a rewarding remedy for the conditions described above, to be applied according to the wisdom of the Pīṭham. The family is asked not to mix with other members during this time. They are advised to hold family gatherings often, remain unto themselves in a quarantine situation and settle matters in their own home, their shrine room, among themselves, and become fully reestablished in living the Śaiva Dharma. When the two-month retreat ends, a ceremony is held by the kulapatis and kulamātās of their mission welcoming them back into participation. Now private talks can resume with peers and elders when needed. This remedy, or prāyaśchitta, can also be helpful for two or more families who are having trouble getting along, who find themselves criticizing one another and causing upset to the mission as a whole. The retreat from mission activities gives time to do more sādhanas and temple worship to help them understand why the difficulty has arisen. §
The Power Of Spiritual Insight§
444 ¶Disruptions among śishyas can be avoided through vidyā—spiritual insight, intuitive knowing—which brings compassion and the ability to get along and work harmoniously with others. Vidyā overcomes ahaṁkāra—personal I-ness, or ego, and the need for personal recognition, the sense of I-ness, “me” and “mine.” Vidyā overshadows āṇava—the individuating veil of duality, source of ignorance and finitude—for the greater good of the whole. Vidyā by its own merit overwhelms ignorance, avidyā, for the goals of the group to manifest. What is this incredible force called vidyā? Vidyā is the grace of Lord Śiva given to all within His chakravāla. All kulapatis must sit in graceful, egoless servitude as clear channels for the divine forces to manifest the mission of the mission. §
About the Following Chapter§
445 ¶A grand departure from everything we have been studying in previous chapters is the next one. Money makes the world go ‘round, or so the song says. Once upon a time the Hindus held the wealth of the world and our religion thrived in extraordinary ways. Those were the days of the Mahārājas. In time, wealth was granted by complex karmas to the Muslim faith, then later to the Christians and the followers of Judaism. The Vishṇu power of preservation of material abundance is invoked through good deeds, and it is revoked when violence in thought, word and deed arises, leading to anarchy in the home, the city, the country. The high-minded concept of Hindu Heritage Endowment, as the next chapter will explain, is one service we offer to bring money back into Hindu institutions, artistic schools and halls of learning. By understanding wealth and its preservation into the future, each Hindu can make the Hindu world go ‘round in style. §
A man should think on wealth and strive to win it by adoration on the path of Order, counsel himself with his own mental insight, and grasp still nobler vigor with his spirit.§
Ṛig Veda 10.31.2. RvG, 459§
I am inclined to adore you, the two sages, the ministrants at the places of work and worship of men, from whom all the prosperity is derived. May you raise our offspring to a higher stature and help us to acquire precious treasures preserved amongst nature’s bounties, when the worship is being conducted.§
Ṛig Veda 7.2.7. RvP, 2355§
You who are worthy of men’s prayers, our leader, our God, rich in heroes— may we install you glowing and glistening! Shine forth at night and at morn! Your favor has kindled our hearths! By your favor we shall be great!§
Ṛig Veda 7.15.7–8. VE, 846§
For the purpose of protection of all, a Liṅga is variously caused to be built in villages by Gods, by seers and by ordinary men.§
Kāraṇa Āgama 10. MT, 66§
When in Śiva’s temple, worship ceases, harm befalls the ruler, scanty are the rains, theft and robbery abound in the land. Thus did my holy Nandinātha declare.§
Tirumantiram 518. TM, 225§
Virtue yields heaven’s honor and earth’s wealth. What is there then that is more fruitful for a man? Be unremitting in the doing of good deeds. Do them with all your might and by every possible means.§
Tirukural 31, 33. TW§
