Love and Reverence
The glory and majesty of the Lord is immanent in the universe, as fragrance in the air, of heat in fire, or as butter in milk. He is the string that passes through and holds together all the beads. To know Him as such, to realize that He is the source, sustenance and summum bonum of all this creation is the end and aim of human life. That is the sum and substance of the teachings of all the scriptures that man has inherited from the past, in all languages and in all climes. All religions are but essays at demarcating the path toward that consummation. All moral codes regulate human speech, action, and feelings in order to enable man to see the path more clearly and to make his steps firmer thereon. India is the land where this precious knowledge was gained and spread by ardent seekers and sages.
But today we have to deplore the decadence of these ideals and the downfall of Indians,who have descended to the level of ridiculing the heights of spiritual bliss these sages attained. The time has come now to revere the culture that granted them that vision and that victory, to rededicate yourselves to the pilgrimage toward truth, to discover in the jungle of manifoldness the basic unity, which is the reality. As equipment for this arduous journey, the sages have laid down various regulations, disciplines, practices, and paths. By adhering to them, man is able to remind himself constantly that he is destined to realize his essential divinity. The fast and vigil prescribed on Shivaratri day are examples of such disciplines; for the fast and the vigil are intended to lead the mind away from the senses and toward the Lord.
The sages have laid down, for the same high endeavor, five yajnas [spiritual sacrifices] for every human being, wherever he may be, to whatever denomination he may belong. These yajnas are not elaborate ritual exercises, accompanied by Vedic recitation, prescribed for the attainment of specific states of bliss in after-life or specific victories of a worldly nature. They are simpler and more democratic. They are being performed casually and without the awareness of significance by man everywhere. These yajnas do not ask for complicated credentials from those desirous of performing them. Anyone can enter upon them and succeed. They are indispensable steps in spiritual progress.
The five yajnas or sacrifices are: (I) sacrifice for God [daivayajna], (II) sacrifice to propitiate the sages [rishiyajna], (III) sacrifice to propitiate progenitors [pitryajna], (IV) sacrifice to propitiate strangers [atithiyajna], and (V) sacrifice to propitiate the animal companions [bhutayajna].
(I) It is commendable practice, the allotment of one small room for the shrine, while building houses. In every Hindu home, we have a domestic temple or altar or shrine, where the members of the family, singly or all together, can adore God. Usually, there is a picture or idol placed there to remind them of the vast immeasurable that it represents. Daily worship is offered at the shrine, prayers are poured forth before it, meditation is done in the quietness; God’s name is chanted and its sweetness enjoyed. This is the daivayajna; it purifies the household and brings God into the consciousness of man through all his activities.
(II) Rishiyajna is the term used for the activities of man that propitiate the sages. They are mostly: the study and practice of sacred scriptures that are the treasure of wisdom gained by the arduous asceticism of the sages. The Vedas [scriptures] are the earliest, the most compendious, philosophically deepest texts, the most practical of all scriptures, and the most universal. Then there is the Ramayana, the Mahabharata, the Bhagavata, and other narratives of the eternal struggle between right and wrong and the ever-present grace of God that helps right to triumph. These and other books cleanse and console, elevate and uplift, correct and convince, and fill the mind with courage and humility. It is indeed a tragedy that these vitalizing springs of strength are neglected and people read, instead, books that are rabid and ribald, debasing and vulgar, describing the insane behavior of demented unfortunates, without being aware of the harm they are causing to their own progress and mental health.
These books slowly bog man into the mire of sex and sin; they turn man back into bestial ways. Asserting that you are “men” is only half the task of life; one has also to prove through one’s actions, speech, and thoughts that one is not a beast! That is the obverse of the first assertion; it cannot be ignored. Be human, keep away the beast, control your senses, passions, and emotions with the reins of discrimination and detachment. That is what the good books teach. Go to them for counsel and inspiration.
(III) The third sacrifice is on behalf of your parents, the pitryajna. The command of the Vedas is: “Matr devo bhava pitr devo bhava”—“May the Mother be your God; may the father be your God.” The stanza is repeated ad nauseum today, but there is no sign of reverence toward the parents anywhere. A generation that does not respect and foster its parents is bound to end in disaster. Parents suffer great hardships, and deny various comforts for themselves in order to put their children through school and college; but the children are ungrateful; they taunt and tease, they cause mental pain and physical hunger to their parents by ridiculing their habits and attitudes, and dismissing their advice with neglect.
When the creators of your physical equipment and mental makeup are thus treated with sacrilege, how can one expect you to adore the Creator of the universe, God who provides for all? Honor your parents that your children learn to honor you.
There is a fine story mentioned in the Puranas [scriptures] about this. The Divine parents, Shiva and Parvati, once conducted a test for their two sons—Ganapati and Subrahmanya. They had to go around the whole world and return to them [the parents]; he who circumambulated first would win the prize. Subrahmanya started quick and fast and was pacing through highlands and lowlands; but Ganapati walked quickly round the parents and claimed the prize. He said, the parents are the entire world—and the statement was accepted as correct. Ganapati was installed as the deity supervising the acquisition of knowledge and as the deity who would save all aspirants from obstacles in their path.
The moral of this story is that parents have to be cared for and obeyed. That is the real pitryajna. They represent renunciation, tradition, the accumulated culture of the past, the permanent values, as contrasted with the fleeting vanities. That is the reason why Shiva is addressed as Samba-Shiva, Sa-Amba-Shiva, Amba meaning mother and Shiva meaning father, and indicating sathya [truth], sarvavyapi (omnipresence), sarvajna (omniscient) and sakshatkara (self-realization).
(IV) Atithiyajna means acts done to please and comfort the atithi (he who comes only for a day), that is to say, the stranger who comes to your door seeking food or shelter. Give him these as an act of worship. Treat him as having been sent by God or as God Himself. This is a sacred task enjoined by the Vedas. Share your meal with whomsoever asks for food when you are about to eat it. Appease his hunger before you appease your own.
(V) The last of the yajnas is the bhutayajna, steps to comfort and keep the animal happy—bullocks, cows, goats, horses, which help you by their toil, and dogs, cats, and other pets that make your home pleasant and full of joy. You should not keep them hungry or over work them. If any animal depending on you for love and care sheds a tear in your home or farm, remember you, too, will suffer greatly.
Love and reverence—these are the real springs for sacrifice or yajna. Let all your acts, words, and thoughts be filled with love and reverence. Then, you will have unshakeable peace and joy.
Source: Sanathana Sarathi, April 1969
