Self Study

Pawaka Nah Saraswati —RigVeda 1-3-10

Purport: You will achieve purification through the study of Holy Science given through Vedas and others.

Commentary:

Swa is Self: Adhyaya is study. Swadhyaya is Self study. You say, "My leg is hurt; my finger is cut". This clearly implies that you are not the leg; you are not the finger. Continuing the search further you will notice that you are not the body. Who is this "I" which says "my leg, my finger"? Who am I? Search him. This is Swadhyaya.

Someone hurled abuses at you. Someone played a dirty trick on you. Someone picked up the prize you aimed at getting. Someone stole a march over you. How are you going to react? Is it anger, hatred, envy, jealousy, greed? Or is it love, forgiveness, kindness? Intensify the search. Follow the Fivefold Path. Then you will establish yourself in the attitude of doing actions in unison with the Spirit that resides within. This is Yoga. This is Swadhyaya.

You cannot remain without action even for a moment. The action may be physical or mental. The law of Karma states "Reap as you sow". With every action you forge a fetter around you. The chain may be golden or iron but it is a chain. This ties you down to the cycle of birth and death. By non-attachment to the fruit of your action, you can transcend this law and cleave through the mountain load of past Karma. This is liberation. This is Swadhyaya.

The all-pervading Spirit could be cognized only through TAPA (self-discipline, austerity, purification). Tapa is the third aspect of the Fivefold Path. When the desires dry up soul vision dawns.

"When you wish to hear, IT assumes the function of the ear; when you wish to see, IT assumes the function of the eye."

TAPA intensifies your conductance for the voltage of Grace to manifest.


"The Spirit, the size of a thumb, resides in the hearts of men. He is deathless.
Even as you take out the blades of a reed separate Him from the bodily sheath."
—Kathopanishad 617

The Supreme Spirit is designated in the Vedas as THAT. Words cannot limit IT and hence IT could only be described as "not this, not this". THAT is perceived when the mind conditioning is blasted. THAT is perceived when the trinity of knower, knowledge and known is no more.

Vedas are the first revelation given at the time of creation. All the Divine Messengers that came later reiterated the same message in the language suited to the conditions in which they graced our planet by their manifestation. Vedas were revealed in Sanskrit. Sanskrit was nobody's mother tongue at any time. All the languages of the world contain words that could be traced to Sanskrit. Sanskrit contains no words from any other language. European scholars call Sanskrit the mother of European languages. The word Vedas comes from the Sanskrit root VID, to know. Hence, Vedas means knowledge. Vedas contain knowledge from amoeba to Almighty. But again, even if you know all the Vedas it is not enough. That which is to be achieved is beyond Vedas, beyond all scriptures, beyond words. Vedas serve as the total guide.