Speech of HH Sri Datta Vijayananda Teertha Swamiji during Datta Kriya Yoga Camp – September 4, 2021 – Mysore
Compiled by Archana Penukonda
This is a good time – this time of Sandhya (dusk) is very pure. Sadhana undertaken at this time is very special. The time of the day certainly influences our sadhana. For discipline, do sadhana at stipulated times each day. This is important for DKY (Datta Kriya Yoga) sadhakas. There will always be a lot of work to do, but we must set aside time for sadhana. You have seen that we are very busy right now…it seems like we have no time to breathe even. What this really means is that we have no time to concentrate on our breathing. There are many unscheduled programs coming up (during this Chaturmasya and Chaturveda Yagna) but I am here because I did not want to upset you.
Every year, we get together (for DKY camp) and talk about what programs have happened so far, what else needs to happen in the future, how we promote DKY etc. You have somehow won for yourself a good time from me during this very busy schedule. We realize how blessed we are to have this time. That we are able to sit down for sadhana at this time, is itself a blessing. We need to be grateful to our Sadguru for this. It is a different matter how strong our sadhana is. But there is a desire and intent for sadhana.
Time is very valuable. We realize the value only when we have no time left. Everyone knows this, but they do not care. It is the maya of time. We should transcend that. We should put time to good use. Seva is a good way to do this. The more Seva we do, the more we increase our lifespan. Our lifespan is very small. Half of our life is spent in sleep. We do not even note it. We cannot live without sleep anyway. But we also lost time in eating, gossiping, unnecessary thinking etc. So strange! Time slips out of our hands, and we do not even realize it. It is like sand passing through an hourglass. Therefore, we should all think about how much time we are losing. The way to make good use of time is to do Seva.
If a person were born on Jupiter, one year of his life would be 24 years of our life on earth. The measure of time is different there. Our time is very small compared to theirs. Sage Baka Dālbya’s story in the Mahabharata is a good example. One strand of his hair got gray when one Brahma’s lifetime was complete.
Doing Seva increases life span. That does not mean you will live here forever. A king pleased the sun god and asked for 10k years life span. The sun god granted the boon and disappeared. The king witnessed all his people die and felt lost and desolate. He then prayed to sun god to also grant his people that long lifespan. This is a story from Markandeya Purana.
Increasing our lifespan means putting our life to good use. We should write down how much of our life we have put to good or bad use. You will be afraid seeing what is written. You will see that most of your life has been put to unproductive use. So, when you do Seva, you are working selflessly and therefore putting time to good use. That increases your merit. That Seva is like a thunderbolt that smashes the obstacles in the path of Yoga. How can you serve with DKY?
First, help yourself. Then, help others. How? Share DKY with others. Not only sharing but show them the example through your own life. You should act in a way that your life is your message. You should bring such changes in your life. Change is essential. Every day we should transform ourselves. God has given us intellect. Use it to transform yourself and witness the change. DKY is not merely to gain or lose weight or have black hair. That is trivial. Health is very important, but that alone is not the goal. The root of all this is Seva. All teachers must think about how Seva should be done. Think about how you can propagate DKY in the way you know. Take advice from senior teachers and think about what good ways would be to propagate DKY in accordance with what you know and what you experience is.
Kriya Yoga is always one to one. You must tell others about your experience. The teachers should thoroughly propagate DKY. That is very important. Many DKY students contracted covid, but they recovered. Most of them had mild cases, but some were even hospitalized. All of them recovered. Some doctors quizzed the hospitalized DKY students who revealed that they did Pranayama regularly. The doctors admitted that the Pranayama helped them recover. Kriya Yoga is fodder for mind and for intellect as well. Allocate time to your sadhana. Do not be afraid. DKY has the seal of Swamiji. You can simply share what you learned here, you do not need to make up anything.
Write down what Sadhana you do each day. You must all certainly write. Write down the duration and type of sadhana each day. Also write why you did not do sadhana that day, what came up that prevented your sadhana. Then, at the end of the year, you can look back and understand a lot. Then, the teachers in Mysuru can review that. Write down what makes you angry, what matters are you failing and winning in, what matters make you sad or happy, what makes you angry, write down all that. No one else needs to see this. I will see this next time you come. Put a pen to it, it becomes Saraswati Aradhana. It is also like a confession. There will be a mix of good and bad. Avoid naming people. If they pick up your journal, it will end up in a fight. Use common sense. This will be very useful to you. Do not detail every single thing, that could also lead to altercations if someone else reads your journal. Write the important points in a simple manner.
Also write down your experiences. Treat each experience in Swamiji’s life history as sadhana. You can even quote that instance in your journal. That will take your sadhana journey along with Swamiji’s life history. This will be a good exercise for you.
Report your DKY propagation regularly. You are teaching online. You can send count of how many students are showing up. Get feedback from the students. Follow up with them. The students will feel like you are taking responsibility for them. Do not keep doubts in your mind. Ask and get them cleared.
If we can make use of Brāhmi Muhūrtam well, we are set for the rest of the day. This is the time between 3am-5:30am. Yoga sadhana strengthens our Jnana. Yoga purifies the mind, and the mind can learn to be still.