The Five D’s

Swami says any human being who has compassion for others, who adheres to the Truth, and who dedicates his body to the good of others will experience no serious trouble. The primary reason is one’s devotion to God. Devotion is not something that man can acquire by himself. It is, indeed, the inherent principle animating man. Devotion manifests itself as love. This love is the supreme treasure of man. We live in society, depending on it for our needs. So, service to society should be our primary duty. Concern for the welfare of all is devotion and awareness of the feeling that all people should be happy is true knowledge. 

The universe is in itself a university in which every human being is a student. Every student pursues one subject and acquires a degree. Each one chooses the subject he likes. But whatever different subjects they may study, they all have one common pursuit and goal—to obtain the degree of divine love. In an army there are a variety of jobs to be done and a hierarchy of ranks. But whatever the job, whether it is that of a washerman, an orderly, a sentry, or a commander, disciplined drill at the parade and the ability to use the rifle are essential requirements for everyone. Likewise in the cosmic university, though there are scientific, political, economic, and other studies, what is fundamental to all of them is spiritual knowledge.

Even in the spiritual field, there are special subjects. There is one group of subjects that may be described as the Five D’s: Dedication, Devotion, Discipline, Discrimination, and Determination. Those who have mastered the Five D’s are qualified to receive God’s love.

Dedication

Dedication means offering. As soon as Swami arrives (in the auditorium) teachers and students offer flowers and their salutations. The flower symbolizes the heart. When you offer the flower of your heart to the Lord, it should be free from the pests of desire, hatred, envy, greed, and the like. Only pure flowers are offered to the Lord or to those whom you revere.

The flower of the heart is subject to infestation by two evil creatures—one is ahamkara (self-conceit/ego) and the other is asooya (envy). Self-conceit is based on eight different factors: wealth, physical prowess, birth, scholarship, beauty, power, and penance. Of these, the arrogance born of wealth or scholarship is the most despicable. As long as this self-conceit is predominant, it is impossible to recognize the Divine or one’s spiritual reality. Self-conceit is a great barrier between the individual and God. It has to be destroyed.

Pride of wealth is a grievous human failing, which causes the downfall of man. All forms of pride based on birth, wealth, power, or scholarship must be eschewed. Only when egoistic pride is offered as a sacrifice at the altar of the divine can man discover his true nature. This is the dedication that is called for as the first step in the spiritual journey.

Devotion

Devotion is the highest form of love. “Service to Hrishikesa [another name of Krishna] is known as bhakti [devotion],” says the sutra [scriptures]. The term bhakti is derived from the root “bhaj” [to worship]. Devotion means constant and loving contemplation of God, repetition of His name, worshipping Him, and doing penance for Him. Service to the Lord is the highest expression of devotion. There is nothing that is not attainable through loving service to the Divine.

Once Tulsidas [author of the epic Ramayana] was meditating at the confluence of the three rivers, Ganga, Yamuna, and Saraswati. Rama and Lakshmana [hero of Ramayana and his brother] appeared before him as two young boys. They asked him, “Kakaji [uncle]! What is it you are doing?” Tulsidas replied, “Children! I am doing service to Rama.” The boys asked, “What is the use of doing service to Rama?” Tulsidas replied, “Through service I get a sweet.” They said, “What is the use of getting a sweet? Once you have eaten and digested it, nothing remains.” Then Tulsidas explained that the sweet got from others is digested in a brief time. But the sweet given by God is His love, which is not digested and cast away. When it is eaten, all hunger is appeased. The sweet of divine love illumines the spirit. When the oil of devotion is put into the lamp of the antahkarana (the indwelling motivator) and the wick of prajna (integral consciousness) is lit by the fire of spiritual inquiry, the flame of self-knowledge shines effulgently.

Devotion does not mean merely singing bhajans [devotional songs] or performing puja [worship]. These forms of devotion very often are based on some kind of self-interest and self-seeking. True devotion should be free from selfishness of any kind. To be a devotee appearing to be full of humility and piety on the outside, but whose heart is full of malice, is hypocrisy. Judging a student by his marks, he may have a high rank. However, his conduct may be a blank. 

Likewise, judging from external practices a person may appear to be a devotee, but his heart and mind may be filled with evil. This sort of duplicity should be eliminated. There should be the same loving devotion both inside and outside. Devotion is not something to be proclaimed or demonstrated. Exhibitionistic devotion may result in disaster. True devotion should be an expression of love both internally and externally.

Discipline

Discipline is most essential for students. From the moment you wake up, you must perform your morning ablutions, meditate on God, and then do your prescribed duties in an orderly manner without deviating from the regular routine. Variations in routine from day to day are undesirable. You should not wake up at one hour on one day and at a different time on another day. The day’s activities should be regulated by the same schedule. Immediately after finishing the morning chores, in the calm and serene atmosphere you should devote  at least a few minutes to loving meditation on God. The human estate is based upon regulations and self-control. These have to be strictly adhered to in daily life.

Discrimination

Discrimination is what separates man from animal. The world is a mixture of good and bad, of joy and sorrow, of right and wrong, and of victory and defeat. In a world replete with such opposites, man has to constantly make choices between what is right and proper and what is wrong and undesirable. A man who has no such discriminating faculty is an animal. Man should not let himself be guided by the mind. He should follow the directions of his buddhi (intelligence). As long as you follow the mind, you cannot obtain Madhava (Divinity).

Young people tend to follow the inclinations of the mind. They do not rise to the level of their intelligence. Consequently, they are subject to various agitations and frustrations. They have, therefore, to learn to use their powers of discrimination. “I am a human being. I am also a student seeking knowledge. In this condition, how should I conduct myself so that I may win the respect and regard of others?” These are the questions which each student should ask himself. He should make inquiries as to what the right course is and what should be avoided. He should decide on what he should do and where he should go after due inquiry.

Having acquired knowledge, he should not behave like an illiterate, uneducated person. His conduct should be in keeping with his learning. Humility is the index of true education. Without humility, scholarship will lack luster. Discrimination is essential for every student and educated man.

Determination

Determination is the fifth D. It is like the reins on a horse. When you want to achieve something, you must have the determination and persistence to secure it by all your efforts. There should be no room for doubts and hesitations. There is nothing on earth that cannot be achieved with firm determination.

Start with dedication and end with determination. There is no use relying solely on book knowledge or mere intellectual cleverness. Firm faith in God should be the basis of everything.

There is one kind of pest that affects the leaves and branches of a tree. There is another that destroys the roots of a tree. Likewise, hypocrisy is a human pest that can spoil a good man. The hypocrite leads a double life posing as a devotee. It is dangerous to associate with such persons. Many good men in the world have come to grief because of association with such pretenders.

Worldly and divine love

Love is of two kinds: One related to the physical and the other related to the divine. All the fears and delusions afflicting the world, all the chaos and violence prevalent today are due primarily to physical attachments. These are also responsible for the falsehood, corruption, and other evils rampant in society.

Preoccupation with the physical accounts for the evils in the administration and even for international conflicts. Divine love knows no differences between individuals or nations. Egoistic attachments and selfishness are at the root of all human troubles and conflicts. The Mahabharata [ancient Hindu epic] war was also the result of selfish and narrow attachments. Dhritarashtra [father of the evil Kauravas] made a distinction between his own sons and the Pandavas (the sons of his brother Pandu). This narrow attachment was responsible for the complete ruin of the Kauravas.

Physical love should be confined to strict limits. If divine consciousness were not present within, of what use would the body be? It would be as useless as a school without teachers, a farm without water, and a temple without a deity.

You must develop divine love. You must be resolute in striving to achieve what you aim for. Only then will your devotion and discipline bear fruit. There is no need to parade one’s devotion. The external human form has no significance. You must be human in your actions and feelings. By reforming your conduct and purifying your thoughts and actions, sanctify your lives. That alone is true education, which will lead you to self-realization.

Source: Sanathana Sarathi, March 1988