‘तवैव कार्यार्थं इह उपजाता:। We are born here to do Your work’

The purpose of Bharat is to help humanity to evolve

Since the Vedic times, we see that the Rishis of Bharat had the well being of the whole world at their heart and that is why the prayers in Vedas are not individualistic but are always for the good of all and about what we are supposed to do for the good of the whole world. So whether it is the celebrated Gayatri Mantra where it is said that ‘let our intellect be awakened (धीयो यो नः प्रचोदयात् ) to see that One which is effulgent and pervading everywhere’. Or the Vedic prayer, which talks about going together, working together, having unity of purpose,  having hearts together to work for the good of all. Or whether the celebrated Vedic prayer लोका: समस्ता: सुखिनो भवन्तु... where it is said that let all the worlds be happy, means not only the human world but even the animals, the plants, the inanimate or even the worlds beyond our comprehension be happy and let all be healthy. All the prayers were in the interest of whole world. No one was derided or condemned to hell.

In Bharat, in any pooja, a sankalpa is done wherein, the space and time is located starting from the beginning to the present and then the reason for doing that Pooja is told. Whatever is the reason for the pooja, before pronouncing it, always, in sankalpa it is mentioned that it is for Ishvara – Ishwaraprityartham. When the Prana Pratishtha of Sri Ramlala was done in the temple rebuilt at Ram Janmabhoomi, first it was mentioned Ishvara Prityartham, Sri Rama Prityartham. So anything that is done is basically for Ishvara because we are born to do His work. We are born to realise our divine nature and at the same time to align our life in the service of the creation of Ishvara so that the creation goes on unhindered and is well maintained and man evolves.

The call – ‘कृण्वन्तु विश्वं आर्यम् Let us make the whole world Arya’, given by the Rishis, underlines the important purpose of our life. Arya does not denote the race as some persons would like us to believe. In Vedas, Ramayana, Mahabharat, puranas wherever Arya word is mentioned, it is always in the sense of a noble, cultured person.  So whether it is Mandodari who addresses her husband Ravan as Arya, Or Sita who also calls her husband Srirama as Arya; whether in North a mother is calling her child as Aryaputra or whether it is in the south that the mother addresses her child as Aryaputra, every time the word Arya meant noble. Therefore, Krinvantu vishwam Aryam – कृण्वन्तु विश्वं आर्यम्। means, let us make the whole world noble.

Oneness is the basis of nobility of character

How will the whole world become noble? Nobility can not be achieved if people resort to exploitation of nature, and weaker sections of the society or the simple people. Or when religions influenced by fanatic thoughts resort to conversion by force or fraud. Or if people are so selfish as to not to care for their own family members, society or the nation and are involved in exploiting society and nature towards their selfish interests. Or if people are totally insensitive to the caring nature like earth which nourishes, rivers which perennially flow for the good of all, the trees which give fruits or the air on which our life depends.

Nobility springs from feeling of Oneness and understanding the interconnectedness of the whole existence. If a man feels for the family, for the society, for the nation then he will sacrifice his selfish interests. If a person feels for the nature, the environment, he would take care of it and not exploit it. He, even, would  feel happy to be with the river, the earth, the trees, the plants, the birds, the animals. The nobility of heart and actions are rooted in Oneness. India always insisted upon and developed the way of life based on Oneness so that Vedant – philosophy of Oneness did not remain as a mere philosophy but could be practiced in life.

Each person is potentially divine and over many lives ultimately he or she has to realise his/her divine nature. Thus, even if it is over the centuries and many lives, man has to evolve; the humanity has to evolve to  acknowledge the higher values in human life and nobler intentions towards non-human world. This is ordained or it has to happen. The providence has chosen Bharat to fullfil this role of evolution of human being. Therefore, since the Vedic times, the  vision of Oneness, the values that spring from vision of Oneness and various life systems which are necessary to inculcate this Oneness and values, were evolved and nurtured in India.

Swami Vivekananda in his very first lecture after returning to India from the West said with conviction at Colombo , ‘If there is any land on this earth that can lay claim to be the blessed Punya Bhumi, to be the land to which all souls on this earth must come to account for Karma, the land to which every soul that is wending its way Godward must come to attain its last home, the land where humanity has attained its highest towards gentleness, towards generosity, towards purity, towards calmness, above all, the land of introspection and of spirituality — it is India. Hence have started the founders of religions from the most ancient times, deluging the earth again and again with the pure and perennial waters of spiritual truth. Hence have proceeded the tidal waves of philosophy that have covered the earth, East or West, North or South, and hence again must start the wave which is going to spiritualise the material civilisation of the world. Here is the life-giving water with which must be quenched the burning fire of materialism which is burning the core of the hearts of millions in other lands. Believe me, my friends, this is going to be.’ 

Swami Vivekananda reminded Indians that it is their duty to work towards it. He said, ‘Each Nation has a message to deliver, a destiny to fulfil and a mission to accomplish.’ Ishvara has nurtured Bharat to contribute towards making man and Arya, that is a man with evolved consciousness. The problems afflicting the humanity can be solved only if man is rooted in the vision of Oneness. He would therefore be less selfish and more caring for all. Thus, the Ishvari Karya is to work in the interest of the humanity for the regeneration of India rooted in her culture. 

Dharma is the life center of India

Swami Vivekananda had said, ‘Here in India, it is Dharma that forms the very core of the national heart. It is the backbone, the bed-rock, the foundation upon which the national edifice has been built. Politics, power, and even intellect form a secondary consideration here. Dharma, therefore, is the one consideration in India.’  Thus, for rebuilding of our nation we have to work to establish Dharma. The very fact we are born in India, indicates that we are born to work for Dharma. In Kendra Prarthana it is said तवैव कार्यार्थं इह उपजाता:  We are born here ( that is in India) to do Your (Ishvara’s) work only.

What is the Ishwari karya or the work of Ishwara?  It is three fold – for establishment of Dharma धर्म संस्थापनार्थाय, for protection of the simple and spiritual people परित्राणाय साधूनाम् and the third is specially destroying those thoughts, ideologies which provoke man to do cruel and destructive actions विनाशाय च दुष्कृताम्. Naturally, the question is what is Dharma? For easy understanding, we can say that Dharma has four components.

First component of Dharma is to behave with others with feeling of Oneness; it means behave with others as you would like others to behave with you. As the entire existence is interconnected, interrelated and interdependent, how a person behaves with others comes back to him. Generally, we do not like others to lie, cheat, hurt, humiliate, or ignore us. Therefore, we too should not lie, cheat, hurt, humiliate or ignore others. If others speak to us kindly, respectfully, truthfully and are considerate and helpful to us, we like it. Thus, we should also be kind, respectful, truthful, considerate and helpful to others. Why? Because what we do to others is actually, we are doing to ourselves and in real sense it comes back to us at some point of time. The first component of Dharma is therefore, the interactions with others and nature based on feeling of Oneness, empathy or compassion. There are none as ‘others’. What we regard as ‘others’ are extended forms of one’s own self. How I behave with others is in reality how I behave with myself. If I cheat others, I cheat myself. If I hurt others, I hurt myself. We all know in our heart what is right. But if we behave otherwise, then we get disturbed first. For example, suppose we abuse someone, then we are disturbed deep down. We know we should not have done that. Therefore, we try to justify that wrong action in our mind. After telling some wrong words to our own person we feel bad deep down. To overcome, it we keep saying to ourselves, ‘What I have done is correct. At least at some time, he should know what he is. Why should only I listen?’ etc. etc. But when we behave rightly, we do not need to justify that, so there is no grinding going on in the mind. Mind is peaceful.

A person’s behaviour with others creates his adrishtam – the unseen factor, Daivam, or ‘luck or fate’. It will at some point of time come back to him because he is not separate from others.  Dharma is primary. If man follows Dharma, his artha and kaama also will be successful in due course. Additionally, the practice of Dharma which is difficult also matures a person, cleanses his Chitta and thus gradually prepares him for Moksha. Therefore, man should behave with others with compassion, love, Oneness.

Second component of Dharma is performing one’s Duty towards Samashti. An individual is an ever-expanding consciousness that encompasses the whole existence. The expanding form of an individual is family; the expanding form of the family is society; the expanding form of the society is nation; and the expanding form of the nation is the whole existence. Collectives like family, community, organisation, society, nation and creation are the expanded forms of an individual. The second component of Dharma is fulfilling our duty towards each collective so as to maintain the harmony in these collectives.  Dharma is not just duty. It is something higher than duty. Suppose you are travelling in the train; someone is sick. In the strictest sense, it is not your duty to help him unless asked. But your Dharma is, you feel the difficulty of the person and help him in all possible ways.

The basis of Dharma is ‘aatmiyata’, Oneness. It is because of the sense of Oneness, of love, that one takes care of his parents. Parents take care of their children because parents love their children. We sacrifice ourselves for our country because we love our nation. Distant relatives are taken care of, the concern for anyone suffering, known or a stranger is expressed in help. This sort of Oneness makes one perform one’s duties easily, happily. We have words like Pitru Dharma, Matru Dharma, Putra Dharma, Putri Dharma, Sharir Dharma, Raashtra Dharma. The basis of all these aspects of Dharma is duty born out of love, ‘aatmiyata’.

If more emphasis is given on rights then it fragments the families, societies and other collectives. Thus, in Indian culture, there hardly was a discourse on rights of a person but always on Dharma of a person. In the practice of Dharma, the right of other persons is taken care of. For example, if a husband takes care of his Dharma, then the rights of his wife are taken care of. If the employer takes care of his Dharma, then the rights of the employees are taken care of. On the other hand, if wives agitate for their rights, they may get their rights but the relationship between the couples would get strained, families may disintegrate. If each follows his or her Dharma then there is no need for anyone to fight for his or her rights. The rights are taken care of and at the same time the harmony, love, Oneness are nurtured in the collectives. The simple and spiritual persons also get protection when Dharma prevails परित्राणाय साधूनाम्।

May be in the West for want of any better cultural practice like Dharma, they had to take recourse to the path of demanding their rights but, we should not imitate them when we have such higher view and aspiration for life.

The third component of Dharma is, that, in the need to choose between two duties, the interest of the bigger collective takes precedence. One has a duty towards the collectives like family, society, nation and nature, which are the bigger identities of an individual. But if there is a clash of interest say for example between the duty towards family and the duty towards nation, or clash of interest between personal well-being and the well-being of the family, then what should be done?

It happened in the life of Rama. He was unjustly asked to go to the forest for 14 years. Lakshman said, “How can they ask you to go to the forest? I will fight with father. I will imprison him. I will imprison Kaikeyi. I will make you the king. You are the most deserving of all four of us and you are the eldest also. It is the tradition of our family that the deserving eldest son becomes the king. So, you should become the king.” Dasharath himself pleaded with Rama, ‘I know I am doing injustice. You can imprison me and become the king. Though I have to order you to go to the forest, you can disobey me.’ There was a clash of interest: Rama’s individual advancement was at cross purposes with the family values and Oneness of the family. Sri Rama did not think of his personal interest. He went to the forest to keep the family intact. Had Rama imprisoned Dasharath and Kaikeyi to become the king, the whole family would have been shattered. May be some misgivings would have entered even in Bharat’s mind. In order to keep the family together, in order to keep the mind of the family members together, with due respect to the entire family, Rama took the decision to go to the forest.

Bharat realizes that if he becomes a king, Rama would never come back and the family would never come together. Not only that, he knew that his mother had taken a wrong decision. The whole family was getting shattered and separated because of that decision. Bharat decides not to become a king. He kept aside his personal interest. He could easily have become the king. That is what was promised by Dasharatha to Kaikeyi’s father a long time ago. So, it was his birth-right to become a king. Bharata sacrificed his personal interest for the sake of the family. He decided to do that in the interest of the family, the larger form of an individual. Thus, Sri Rama obeys his parents and Bharat does not, but both are called Dharmaatma as their decisions were in the interest of the family at the cost of their personal interest.

Why is it so? Dharma is always followed or practiced in a context. Dharma is not a set of injunctions and dogmas or norms to be followed forever. When a part does not follow the norms of the whole and becomes a threat to the very existence of the whole, then removing that part is also Dharma. For example, a patient with diabetes has to consent for the amputation of the gangrenous toe; otherwise, the whole body is in danger of infection. Thus, in a society if any group or any ideology is bent upon destroying the whole society, then it is Dharma to contain them. Ignoring them or treating them with compassion or tolerating their aggression or appeasing them is Adharma. Thus another essential part of Dharma is विनाशाय च दुष्कृताम्।

It is applicable in history too. The military strength of Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was less than that of the Muslim rulers including the Moghuls, yet he won. All the persons with him were imbued with the vision of ‘Hindavi Swarajya’ and श्रींची इच्छा – the desire of Ishvara. They kept aside their own interest. Tanaji goes with the marriage invitation of his son. Shivaji says, “Oh! Your son’s marriage is settled. We were thinking, we should get that Kondhana fort as early as possible.’ Tanaji says, “My son’s marriage can wait.” Tanaji goes and dies in the battle but he wins the fort. It was due to the sacrifice of such warriors who kept aside their personal interest, that Shivaji won several battles, won the war with the Muslim rulers and founded Hindavi Swarajya—the rule of the Hindus. Family’s larger identity is society. Society’s larger form is the nation. When there is a clash between the interests of two identities or two forms, the interest of the bigger identity –Samashti is chosen. Nation can be rebuilt and rise to glory when there are many persons and communities who give primary importance to the needs of nation.

The fourth Component of Dharma is sacrifice, tyaga. Dharma cannot be practiced maintaining one’s comfort levels, one has to sacrifice a lot. To perform one’s duties one has to take out time for it. Even the nurturing of the families has to be rooted in our culture, in our vision and values. Our family should become the place where our Sanatan Dharma also called as Amrita Dharma in Bhagavad Gita is nurtured and thus our families should become Amrit parivar. Fortunately in India we do take care of our family, we sacrifice for it but what is required today is we have to take out or say sacrifice our adequate time and energy for serving our nation, for enabling our nation to guide the world. That is Ishwari Karya. And we are born in India to do this and cannot lag behind in sacrifice. Swami Vivekananda said while stressing the importance of sacrifice, ‘Giving up the senses makes a nation survive. As a proof of this, here is history today telling us of mushroom nations rising and falling almost every century — starting up from nothingness, making vicious play for a few days, and then melting. This big, gigantic race which had to grapple with some of the greatest problems of misfortunes, dangers, and vicissitudes such as never fell upon the head of any other nation of the world, survives because it has taken the side of renunciation; for without renunciation how can there be Dharma?’

All the four components of Dharma are linked with each other. They are not one after other or one in itself. All four are to be practiced simultaneously. Tyaga is inherent in all the components. We need to sacrifice or give adequate time and energy to fulfil our duty towards family, organisation, society, nation and the whole creation.

शिवो भूत्वा शिवं यजेत्। Worship Shiva by being Shiva

To do noble work one has to be noble, one has to work also on oneself. To be able to practice Dharma with all its four components, man needs to prepare oneself, to train oneself. Therefore qualities that we should inculcate in ourselves are - Satya, Karuna, Suchita and Tapas. 

Satya - Our behaviour should be based on truth only. The transparency and integrity of a person is the basic quality for practicing Dharma. As per Bhagavadgita, Satya is always combined with priyam and hitam. सत्यं प्रियं हितं च यत्। Truth is to be told in such words and tone that it is palatable, acceptable प्रियं to the other person.  It should also be beneficial हितं to the other person and to samashti. Neither for our personal gain nor for fun we should resort to untruth or falsehood.

Karuna - Another essential quality is Karuna or compassion. Unless we feel for others and accept their shortcomings and failures we cannot serve them. 

Shuchita - Purity of motives, of money management, of speech, of character is required to be able to do Ishvari Karya. Tapas - If we want to do a great work we should strive hard. We should be ready to face  difficulties till we succeed in our endeavour. We should be ready to undertake all that is required for rebuilding of our Bharat. By Tapas alone the inner strength is enhanced which can bring any required change. First we should strive to manifest excellence in all our duties. To perform our duties well towards our own well- being, family, organisation, society, nation and creation. We should acquire required mental attitude, skills and knowledge with all-out efforts. A person cannot say 'I am like this, I cannot change'. Tapas is striving to become a better person to fulfil our duties well. If we remember and remind ourselves that we are born in India to do Ishvara's work then we would be ready to change ourselves. Secondly, with Tapas our life should  spiritually evolve, only then we become capable in guiding the world. 

What is the way do evolve spiritually or to strive for Atmavikas? Kathopanishad and Gita tell the sutra for it. Kathopanishad gives the simile. आत्मानं रथिनं विद्धि शरीरं रथमेव तु। बुद्धिं तु सारथिं विद्धि मनः प्रग्रहमेव च॥ इन्द्रियाणि हयानाहु: विषयांस्तेषु गोचरान्‌। आत्मेन्द्रियमनोयुक्तं भोक्तेत्याहुर्मनीषिणः॥’ – “Ãtmãnam rathinam vidhi shariram rathameva tu Buddhim tu sarathim viddhi marnaha pragrahameva cha॥ Indriyãni hayãnãhurvishayãnsteshu gocharãn Ãtmendriyamanoyuktam bhoktetyãhurmaneeshinaha॥ – ‘O Nachiketa! This body is the chariot and this Atma is its owner, the charioteer. The buddhi is its driver. The mind is its reins. The indriyas are the horses pulling the chariot. The objects of taste, touch, etc. are its path. Thus, the atma uses the indriyas and anthkaran as a means to enjoy worldly pleasures and also to cross the path. Understand in this way’ (Katha Upanishad 3/3-4).

So, the owner is separate from the chariot, driver, horses, reins, path and everything else. He is called the master of the chariot. Similarly, this Atma is totally different from body, indriyas, antahkaran and other things, and is the master, or head, of them all. As directed by Atman the horses are controlled by Buddhi with the help of reins i.e. mind. Suppose, these horses decide where to go, still worse if they decide to go in different directions and the reins also allow it, what will happen? The charioteer i.e. buddhi would be ineffective and the chariot would break. Therefore, Atman should direct the Buddhi, the mind should listen to buddhi and not the Indriyas only then one can enjoy the world at the same time can evolve in life. 

The same thing is explained in Bhagavadgita. 

इन्द्रियाणि पराण्याहुरिन्द्रियेभ्यः परं मनः।
मनसस्तु परा बुद्धिर्यो बुद्धेः परतस्तु सः॥ 3.42

Compared to the objects of enjoyment, the senses are supreme. Compared to the senses, the mind is supreme. Compared to the mind, the buddhi - intelligence is supreme and compared to the intelligence, the Atman is supreme. Thus in our life, senses should not direct the mind, or mind should not direct the intelligence to take decision. It would be opposite of spiritual life. It would be materialistic life. Atman will guide the intelligence, the intelligence would use mind to control the senses. One may find it difficult to understand the meaning of Atman. It is simple. Till we realise it, we should be guided by the manifested Atman that is samashti - well being of collectives like family, organisation, society, nation and creation. That is Tapas. 

It is a great fortune that we are born in Bharat. But any good fortune also comes with responsibility as we are born in Bharat, we also have responsibility to work for the two-fold, material and spiritual well being of the whole world. The spirituality cannot be taught. It can only be transmitted and radiated. Therefore, our life has to be a great penance, a great striving to inculcate the vision of Oneness and to practice the great values that come from it. Actually, the very fact that we are born in India, means we are born to do Ishvara's work. तवैव कार्यार्थं इह उपजाता:।

Vice President, VRM & VK
{Mananeeya Niveditadidi}
https://x.com/vkvk77