Untitled - the Divine Life Society

can remain without clothing in the icy Gangotri, this is highlycreditable indeed. But if your frame is delicate, if you attemptto stand before the sun in summer for some hours, if youthrow off your clothing in the Gangotri all at once, you willdie immediately of sunstroke or pneumonia. You should notattempt to take recourse to these hard practices. What littleyou will gain by Japa and meditation in this birth will be lostand you have lost one chance given by the Lord in this birth toreach Him, by your foolish practices or Tamasic Tapas.An aspirant gave up his clothing all at once. He developedrheumatism, malaria, enlarged spleen and died within a shorttime. During the period of sickness all cravings that weretemporarily suppressed asserted themselves with re-doubledforce. He became a slave of the tungue. He craved for manyvarieties of food. He could not suppress them. He ateindiscriminately and died of acute diarrhoea.An aspirant said, "I have not realised the Self though I didmediation for some years. I am going to commit suicide withthe Bhava I am immortal Atman. I have got full Vairagya. Nosin will cling to me, because my motive is pure. I will attainSelf-realisation." He is actually committed the abominable act.Do you think that he realised his Self by this act? Do you findsuch a statement anywhere in the scriptures? Certainly not.This is extreme foolishness. Some aspirants who have no ideaof the nature of true Vairagya, who have not lived under theguidance of their masters for some time, commit such ignobleacts. They can never get salvation by taking to wrong Tapasthough their Bhava (motive) may be pure. They cannotentertain the Bhava 'I am Atman' just at the time ofcommitting the act. Horrible thoughts will crowd at the criticaljuncture. They will have to share obviously the fate of Pretas(ghosts).The mind should gradually be weaned off its old habits andcravings. [f you cut off all at once its pleasure centres, it will184 LECTURES ON YOGA AND VEDANTA