FINDING ONE’S OWN TRUE PATH – EVEN IN THE MIDST OF DIFFICULTIES By Sacinandana Swami, May 2011 One of the most difficult tasks life places before us is finding our true path, our authentic way, the one essential thing that gives meaning to everything else. This path has one essential element: acting according to one’s dharma. Often our own true path becomes revealed fully only when we start walking. It can’t be planned “at home” at the “planning desk” – it becomes evident only in the classroom of real life. Dharmic principles are therefore a good starting point for our search. At the very least, they set us walking quickly toward the right path. Yet ironically it is the starting point of dharma that gives us a hard time. Dharma requires living according to higher principles, but we live in an environment where selfishness is key. People are all too often found to betray their ideals and even their fellow human beings, when their own interests are at stake. We too are conditioned to think mainly of ourselves, and what we consider to be our well-being. To keep our integrity intact in an adharmic environment is a serious challenge. Still, to encourage you to walk the path of dharma, I would like to tell you the story of Sita Devi: After the battle in Lanka, when Ravana had been killed by Lord Rama’s arrow, Hanuman was sent to bring back Sita Devi to her Lord. When Hanuman arrived at the Ashoka forest where Sita Devi was being held captive, the female demons still weighed on Sita Devi to renounce Rama. They criticized Rama and threatened Sita. Seeing this, Hanuman wanted to kill them, but Sita forbade him. She said, “I have been a guest in Lanka. How, then, can I see my hosts slaughtered? I am not like that hunter.” Hanuman immediately wanted to know which hunter Sita Devi meant. She explained, “Once there was a hunter who had killed many animals. As he was walking through the forest one day, he noticed that a large tiger was following him. Afraid, he quickly climbed a tree. Glancing up, he was terrified to discover that a dangerous bear was sitting on the branch above him. He was clearly in a dilemma: on the ground a hungry tiger and above him a dangerous bear. The tiger noticed the hunter’s predicament and called out to the bear, ‘Kick him down. Then I will have something to eat and leave you alone.’ After giving it some thought, the bear, however, said, “I can’t do it. He is my guest.’ At this the tiger changed his strategy and addressed the hunter: ’I only need to eat something today. Human or bear, I don’t care. If you kick the bear down, I won’t harm you.’ The hunter immediately climbed up and kicked the bear off his branch. The bear, however, managed to grab a lower branch and then climbed back to safety. Again the clever tiger changed strategies. ‘Don’t you see what a rascal the hunter is? You should never shelter a dangerous cobra. So kick the hunter down.’ The bear, however, again said, ‘No, the hunter may have acted wrongly – in fact, the whole world may act wrongly – but I do not have to give up my path. I never harm a guest no matter what he does.’” Sita added, “Hanuman, this is why I request you to spare the female demons. We always have to follow dharma. Dharma will protect us. Do not pay heed if others do not follow their dharma. Make sure you do!” I was encouraged by this story because it so clearly illustrates how important it is to follow our own true path even when others around us choose to follow their interests and seem to act against dharma. Those who do so are never troubled. But if we give up our true path just to please our whims or the whims of others, then many problems wait around the corner and we will surely meet them.
Posted on: Sun, 16 Jun 2013 21:30:33 +0000
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