Dasara—October 11, 1997
The following explanation of Dasara is excerpted from a discourse by Swami given on this holy day in October 1992.
A Day of Victory
During the Dasara festival, the three Goddesses—Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati—are worshipped according to certain traditional practices. The 10th day of the festival is celebrated as the Day of Victory.
Durga represents the prodigious power of nature. Against the power of nature is the power of the spirit. When spiritual power is predominant, the power of nature is kept under control. When spiritual power is weak, the power of nature becomes predominant. This is illustrated by the example of smoke and fire. When smoke is predominant, the fire is suppressed. When the fire is blazing, the smoke vanishes. Hence, to enhance the power of the spirit and limit the power of nature, man has to cultivate vairagya (detachment). To the extent the power of nature is under control, to that extent spiritual power grows.
Control Over Nature
lchcha-shakti (the potency of will) arises from thoughts. This ichcha-shakti is the source of several other potencies like intellectual power, the discriminating capacity and others. To develop willpower, you have to worship the Devi (female aspect of Divinity). This calls for the cultivation of tyaga (renunciation or detachment). For instance, if you have desires for various drinks, you can bring the desire under control by, to begin with, giving up desire for some of them. Thereby, the willpower is developed, and in due course it becomes easier to give up other desires. In Vedantic parlance this is described as vairagya (renouncing all attachments). Vairagya is not abandonment of hearth and home and retiring to a forest. It means developing Godly thoughts and reducing worldly feelings. It is when this balanced development takes place that you acquire control over the powers of nature). When these powers are attained, a person’s mental power increases. Durga represents the power in nature, and Lakshmi represents the thought power. The power of speech is represented by Saraswati. To acquire these three powers, various forms of worship are performed during Navaratri festival (nine days preceding the Day of Victory). But prayers alone are not enough. Prayers issue from the lips. They should emanate from the heart. The heart symbolizes the ocean of milk _ Lakshmi emerged from the ocean of milk. When Lakshmi emerges, purity of speech follows. Whatever you speak conforms to truth.
Sathya and Ritha
There are two concepts: sathya (truth) and ritha (conduct based on unity of thought, word and deed). The triple purity of mind, speech and body is ritha. To adhere to ritha and speak and act accordingly is truth. What is uttered with this triple purity, not other words, is alone truth.
The ancients have declared that adherence to this truth is dharma (righteousness). There is no higher dharma than truth. Without the firm foundation of truth, the mansion of dharma cannot stand.
A life built upon desires cannot last. The mansion of desires must be converted into a mansion of Divine will. When will power is converted into the power of action, it results in jnana-shakti (the power of wisdom). Through this Divine wisdom, spiritual liberation is secured.
Divine Potencies
The Navaratri festival should not be observed as an occasion for worshipping the consorts of Vishnu, Shiva and Brahma. These goddesses symbolize Divine potencies. All three potencies are derived from Vishnu. The entire cosmos is a manifestation of the myriad forms of Vishnu. People must recognize this oneness underlying the different forms. All beings breathe the same air as their life breath. Likewise, the five basic elements are common to all. These elements are the stuff of nature. But in the Supreme principle—the Divine—these do not exist. The elements are mortal. The Divine is immortal. The easiest means of proceeding from the mortal to the immortal is the cultivation of Divine love.
The heart is like a sky wherein clouds in the form of thoughts hide the buddhi (the intellect) and the mind representing the sun and the moon. Vairagya is the means to get rid of thoughts and the desires arising from them. The Devi puja (worship of Goddess) performed during Navaratri is intended to get rid of worldly attachments and divert the mind towards God.
“Instead of talking about a hundred precepts, you should practice at least one of them. God is watching all your actions. You must do things to satisfy God from whom you have come and to whom you must return.”
~Baba
