The Divine and the Demon

Bhagavan Shri Sathya Sai Baba, in this discourse, enthuses devotees to understand the subtle symbolisms of the Deepavali festival, and various episodes in Lord Krishna’s life, and imbibe the role of truth in life.

What is the reason for all the violence in the world?
With the decline of selfless service, irrational desires have grown.
The pursuit of mundane desires without fear of sin
has led to a waning of the love for God.
Men have lost their humanness—
Consequently, peace in the world has been shattered.

“I am in the light; I am the light; the light is in me; the light is me.
The wise one who realizes this truth becomes one with the Supreme.”

Embodiments of love!

God is the One who manifests Him­self in the cosmos with a myriad heads, eyes, and feet. When this eternal Divinity is so near us (by His omnipresence), we are vainly searching for Him all over the universe. This is as foolish as the person who goes begging to his neighbor for milk while the wish-fulfilling Kamadhenu (the divine cow) is in his backyard. It is sheer senselessness on the part of man to search for God outside of him when the Divine is within him.

No one can comprehend or describe the glory and mystery of nature (prakriti). Nature is a reflection of the sport of the Divine. It is animated by the three gunas (characteristics), which are manifestations of the Trinity (Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva). God is nouri­shing and promoting nature by using the three gunas in multifarious combinations and forms. The purpose of life is to ex­perience the sacredness of nature as a projection of the Divine.

Value of time

Time is supremely precious. It waits for no one. Everyone has to submit him­self to time; it is not subject to any one. It is only when time is utilized properly through right actions that the human can rise to the level of the Divine. Man’s foremost duty is to make the right use of time through the bodily vesture given to him. Man is bound by actions in this phenomenal world.

While the Divine is all‑pervasive, man is failing to recognize it. He cannot grasp the air that surrounds him. He is unable to see the light that is within him. The reality that you are seeking everywhere in the outside world is within you. The Supreme Lord is present inside and out­side, everywhere in the cosmos. Man today looks only at the outside world like any animal. To look inward is the mark of the true human being. Obsessed with the external and losing the internal vision, man has forfeited his power of discrimi­nation.

When we enquire into the significance of the Deepavali festival that we are cele­brating today, we find that traditionally, it is a joyous festival to celebrate the de­struction of the demon Narakasura by Sri Krishna [a divine incarnation]. It is only when we first under­stand the meaning of the Krishna Princi­ple will we be able to understand the signi­ficance of the Naraka Principle. Krishna is the embodiment of the five elements (ether, air, fire, water, and earth). He is also the embodiment of the five life-bre­aths (prana [the vital breath], apana [generative force], samana [digestive force], udana [swallowing force], and vyana [lesser life force responsible for circulation]).

“Kleem‑Krishnaaya‑Govindaaya‑Gopijana-Vallabhaaya‑Swaaha.” This mantra [spiritual formula] contains the essence of the Bhagavata [the scriptural chronicle of Krishna’s life]. The five names represent the five pranas (vital airs). “Kleem” refers to the earth. “Krishnaaya” refers to water. “Govindaaya” refers to agni (the fire‑God). “Gopijana-Vallabhaaya” refers to vayu (air). “Swaaha” refers to ether (or sky). When we recognize that the Divine is immanent in the five elements, we will realize that there is no place in the cosmos where these five are not present. The human body is composed of the five elements. These elements, because they constitute the body, can affect only the body but cannot affect the atma [the soul] in any way.

Symbolism in Bhagavata

Many writers in commenting upon the story of Krishna in the Bhagavata have in­dulged in several misinterpretations. One such misinterpretation relates to Krishna’s wives.

In the human body, there are shad–chakras, six spiritual centers. Of these, the two most import­ant are: the hridaya-chakra (the heart centre) and the sahasrara (the thousand-petalled centre). The hridaya–chakra is also known as the lotus of the heart (hridaya–kamala) while the sahasrara is called the thousand‑petalled lotus. The [subtle] lotus in the heart has eight petals that symbolize the eight worlds, eight directions, eight guardians of the world, eight spirits (bhutas), and eight parts of the earth. Because Krishna was the lord of these eight petals, he was described as the husband of eight queens. The master is called “pati” and those under him are described as wives. This is a symbolic relationship and not a relationship between spouses in the worldly sense. The Bhagavatam was misinterpreted because the esoteric significance of these relationships was not properly understood.

It is also stated that [Lord] Krishna was wedded to 16,000 gopikas [the women who belonged to the cowherd families]. Who are these gopikas? They are not cowherdesses in physical form. In the human head, there is a [subtle] lotus with a thousand petals. Each of these petals has 16 kalas. The Lord is described as the embodiment of the 16 kalas. As the Lord of the sahasrara (thousand‑petalled lotus), He presides over the 16,000 kalas that are present in this lotus. The kundalini shakti [the subtle life-force], which starts at the bottom of the spinal column (moo­ladhara chakra), rises and merges with the 16,000 entities in the sahasrara. This is the esoteric significance and the meaning of the role of the Divine within the body. Oblivious to this inner meaning, people indulge in misinterpretations and perverse expositions.

Krishna and Naraka

Krishna’s encounter with the demon Naraka has also to be understood against this background. “Naraka” means one who is opposed to the atma. Naraka does not mean a demon. It is the name of a satellite that revolved round the earth. When people were apprehensive about the threat to the earth from this satellite as it approached the earth, Krishna removed their fear by destroying the satellite. Dangers from the planets are apprehended from time to time. For instance, some years ago, people expected great danger to the world from the combination of the eight planets (ashtagraha). Five thousand years ago, people dreaded the approach of a planet adjacent to the earth. To allay their fears, Krishna came to their rescue and averted the impending danger. The cele­bration of Deepavali as the day of delive­rance from Narakasura commemorates Krishna’s victory. The day is observed as an occasion when the Divine leads man­kind from darkness to light.

The legendary version of the Narakasura episode describes the demon as master of Pragjyotishapura. The symbo­lic meaning of Pragjyotishapura is that it is a place that has forgotten the atma. The inner meaning of this is that demonic forces dwell in any place where atma is forgotten. All the chaos and evil in the world today are due to the fact that men have forgotten the atma. Every man is conscious of the body and the individual soul, but is not conscious of the Divinity (Paramatma) within him.

From food to bliss

Man is encased in five sheaths (kosas): annamaya, pranamaya, manomaya, vijnanamaya, and ananda­maya kosas. The physical body is the annamaya sheath (the sheath based on food). Man takes good care of the body. Man also takes care of the pranamayakosa [vital sheath] as he cannot exist without the life‑breath. Without the manomaya kosa, (the mental sheath), man cannot accomplish any of his desires. Man today has progressed up to the stage of caring for the first three sheaths. Up to this stage his vision is turned toward the external. The vijnanamaya sheath calls for internal vision. It leads to the understanding of the anandamaya kosa (the sheath of su­preme bliss).

Starting from the sheath of food, man should progress toward the sheath of bliss, without getting stuck mid­way in the mental sheath. This is the reason for man getting filled with demonic qualities, which can only lead him to hell (naraka). The demonic qualities (symbo­lized by Narakasura) have to be destroyed to avoid being thrust into naraka (hell). By taking refuge in Krishna, the destroyer of Narakasura, man can get rid of the demonic qualities within him.

Significance of Deepavali

On Deepavali day, we light numerous lamps with one candle. The light with which other lamps are lit is a symbol of the Divine. The other lamps are jeevan jyotis (individual lamps). They derive their light from the one Supreme light. It is to teach this truth to men that the festival of lights is observed.

Thus every festival has an inner mean­ing and purpose. Forgetting this, the holy days are observed only as occasions for feasts and fun. Holy days in Bharat [India] are all full of spiritual significance. For­getting this, people are lost in meaningless observances.

According to the legend, Krishna killed Narakasura with the help of Sathya­bhama [one of Krishna’s wives]. What does this signify? Each of us has to fight and destroy the demonic forces within each by resorting to satya (truth). “Sathaymeva Jayathe—Truth alone triumphs; Speak the truth” declares the Upanishad [the Hindu scriptures]. Once Goddess earth went to [Lord] Vishnu and lamented that she can bear any kind of burden but not the burden of carrying those indulging in falsehood. One must be prepared to make any kind of sacrifice for upholding truth. That is the lesson taught by [king] Harishchandra, who sacrificed his kingdom, wife, and son for the sake of the pledged word. He stands out as the supreme upholder of truth.

Everyone should endeavor to adhere to truth. Truth is God. With faith in God and adherence to truth, all demonic forces can be vanquished.

(Bhagavan concluded His discourse with the bhajan, “Prema muditha Manase Kaho“)

Source: Sanathana Sarathi, Jan. 1990