bible Discourse 49 Follow me: Further counsel from Jesus on inner and outer renunciation

Discourse 49

Follow me: Further counsel from Jesus on inner and outer renunciation

And John answered and said, “Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name; and we forbad him, because he followeth not with us.”

And Jesus said unto him, “Forbad him not: for he that is not against us is for us.”

And it came to pass, when the time was come that he should be received up, he steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem, and sent messengers before his face:  and they went, and entered into a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for him.  And they did not receive him, because his face was as though he would go to Jerusalem.

And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elijah did?”

But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, “Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of.  For the Son of man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.”  And they went to another village.

And it came to pass, that, as they went in the way, a certain man said unto him, “Lord. I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.”

And Jesus said unto him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests;  but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.”

And he said unto another, “Follow me.”

But he said, “Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.”

Jesus said unto him, “Let the dead bury their dead: but go thou and preach the kingdom of God.”

And another also said, “Lord I will follow thee; but let me first go bid them farewell, which are at home at my house.”

And Jesus said unto him, “No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”

                                                                 Luke 9:49—62

 

And John answered and said, “Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name; and we forbad him, because he followeth not with us.”

And Jesus said unto him, “Forbad him not: for he that is not against us is for us.”

                                                                              Luke 9:49—50

Parallel reference:

And John answered him, saying, “Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name, and he followeth not us; and we forbad him, because he followeth not us.”

But Jesus said, “Forbad him not: for there is no man which shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly speak little evil of me.  For he that is not against us is on our part. For whosoever shall give you a cup pf water to drink in my name, because ye belong to Christ, verily I say unto you, he shall not lose his reward.”   Mark 9:38—41

Jesus said: Beloved disciples, Do not rebuke any person who is healing the possessed people through Cosmic Vibration emanating from Christ Consciousness i.e. in my name. All devotees who are in tune with Christ Consciousness work with harmony. As such they will not work against me. Truth is God and God is truth.

And it came to pass, when the time was come that he should be received up, he steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem, and sent messengers before his face:  and they went, and entered into a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for him.  And they did not receive him, because his face was as though he would go to Jerusalem.

And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elijah did?”

But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, “Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of.  For the Son of man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.”  And they went to another village.                                   Luke 9:51—56.

Jesus said: The Christ Consciousness in me which is in you. It is to redeem them from bondage to death and delusion. It is not to destroy the people but to destroy evil in them.

Be ye therefore wise as serpents and harmless as doves.                Matthew 10:16

The Divine Presence is often eclipsed by Satan incited anger, jealousy, revenge, and destruction.

Sasnotihaiva yassodhum praakchareeravi mokshanaat

Kaama krodhodhbhavam Vegam Sa Yuktah Sa SukheeNarah    Gita 5—23 

The Sadhak who is shedding his Arishadwargas (Kama—desires, Krodha—Anger, Lobha—greediness, Moha—Delusion, Mada—Pride, Maatsarya—Jealousy) in this birth itself before leaving this physical body, he is real Yogi and happy person.

The yogi who does yoga meditation or sadhana regularly morning and evening will also subjugate to senses, and sense pleasures. If you regularly eat neem leaf, then that bitter leaf also will be tasting sweet after some time period.  So the Yogi who does meditation or sadhana regularly without fail, facing all odds in opposition, shall definitely reach one day the goal of uniting Parabrahman.

Kaamakrodha viyuktaanaam yateenaam yatachetasaam

Abhito Brahmanirvaanam vartate viditaatmanaam            Gita 5—26

Those who have shed Arishadvargaas (kaama, Krodha, Lobha, Moha, Mada, and Matsarya), have controlled senses, knowers of Soul wisdom, shall be enjoying eternal beatitude with or without body.

1)Jeevanmukta:  The one who is liberated from all bondages, and not entangled with Karma, while still in body.

2)Paraamukta: The intense meditating yogi or Sadhak who has shed his physical body shall get rid of  his residual Karma in astral world.

Jesus came to expand human lives into the consciousness of eternal life of God.  Jesus told his distracters who brought him before the high priest Caiaphas, “Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and He shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?  To respond to hate and evil with more hate, and evil is not the way. The power of Satan can be conquered by God Consciousness.  God uses love to reform evildoers.  He did not use force. God is the embodiment of love. Sin can be dispelled by righteousness. Jesus is the embodiment of grand, humble, and almighty godliness. He utilized it to light man’s way out of darkness.

And it came to pass, that, as they went in the way, a certain man said unto him, “Lord. I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.”

And Jesus said unto him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.”                             Luke 9:57—58

Jesus Felt the universe as his body, and omnipresence as his home. India’s ideal of complete renunciation exemplified in the life of Jesus. Like saints of Bharat, Jesus considered no dwelling place as his home. He did not amass money. He required  of his apostles, also, the strict life of renunciation.

“And commanded them that they should take nothing for their journey, save a staff only; no scrip, no bread, no money in their purse: but be shode with sandals; and not put on two coats.”                                             Mark 6:8—9

“Sell that ye have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrupteth.  For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”              Luke 12:33—34

The corollary of outer renunciation is the non-attachment of inner renunciation.

Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on.                                        Matthew 6:25

Consider your body is part and parcel of God. Do not aspire for material consciousness within it. Spiritualize the human consciousness within it and transforms it into God Consciousness. You will realize that you are directly sustained by God and God only.

Jesus lived the life a renunciant and celibate. The west cares little to follow that. Jesus is understood more in orient (East) than occident (West). In west and East, yogis have exemplified the spirit if inner renunciation in secular life as well as the hermitages. Bhagavan Krishna emphasized how to live in the world without attachment. Swami Shankara exemplified devotion and renunciation. Jesus is also a sanyasi, renunciant.

Jesus said: whos is my mother? Who are my brethren?

Shankara similarly expressed his transcendent freedom:  No birth, no death, no caste have I.  Father, mother, have I none.  Mind, nor intellect, nor ego, chitta, sky, nor earth, nor metals am I.  I am He, I am He; blessed Spirit, I am He.

Jesus averred: “I and my Father are One. 

A follower of the monastic renunciant life forsakes his family name. The renunciants indicate their holy qualities. Yogananda: yoga divine union, and ananda indicates bliss through divine union.

The yogi is the paradigm of renunciant wanderers.

“Heaven is My throne, and earth is My foot stool: what house will ye build Me? Saith the Lord: or what is the place of My rest? Hath not My hand made all these things?” 

                                                                    Acts 7:49—50

Every one that hath forsaken houses , or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life.                           Matthew 19:29

And he said unto another, “Follow me.”

But he said, “Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.”

Jesus said unto him, “Let the dead bury their dead: but go thou and preach the kingdom of God.”                                         Luke 9:59—60

Always God first.  The duty to God should take precedence over attachment to family.

Jesus said: “Honor thy father and mother.”    Matthew 15:4

A renunciant belogs to God’s family. So he does not officiate the death of members of that family. But he may represent the family if need arises. It is no wrong. “Let the dead bury their dead.”  Spiritually it is not a sin for swami to perform the last rites. Swami Shankara, a renunciant, has done the last rites of his mother. There was nobody to perform the last rites of his mother. Swami Shankara came and performed the last rites. A first step in expansion of one’s love begins at home.   Renunciants go beyond spousal and familial caring to love and serve their expanded family. Jesus means that giving second preference to meditation and thereby contacting God tantamount to giving no preference to God.

Jesus said: The physically living may be spiritually dead and vice versa. One cannot ride on two horses. When the man is conscious of God is really living. How many can be said to live even in one year during the earth’s span.

During a life time of sixty years—30 years in sleeping, eating, and pursuing the comforts of the body.  –15 years in work—only another 15 years are left. In the remaining 15 years— ²/₃ ^rd i.e. 10 years will be spent for unproductive socializing, entertainments, and gossiping etc.  Only Five years is left. How many use those years to think of God? Only few minutes of parroted prayer  at most is spared. Rest of the time for some blessings for family members. While the mind is longing for sleep, you may say, “Please, Lord take care of me and my loved ones, but now I want to sleep.” Thus the time spent for God is really nothing. Yet you wanted the Kingdom of God.

*What is the MIND..?*

By and large Human Mind has two aspects one the subconscious and the other is conscious. Needless to say, our MIND pretty controls our LIFE.

The BIG Question is who controls Our MIND..?

Normally, by the time we are 20 years of age, our 80% of the subconscious mind is FULL and 90% of the time our subconscious MIND controls our thoughts.

Normally our thoughts are based on our emotions, understating, prevailing environment and predispositions.

A river starts its journey.. being "Pristine" and get “Substandard” by the time it passes through towns and cities. Similarly, we all are born with “AANANDHA” however, we lose it as we get conditioned by the ‘Collective - Ignorance’ and lose our True Nature of Happiness..!

So then the question becomes.., how do we get 'de-conditioned' and 'enrich' our most precious possession the MIND. There are many wisdom traditions. One of the most effective methods is…

Gyana-Yoga (wisdom of the self) and Dhyana-Yoga (Saadhana).

We become what we think, “As you sow, so shall you reap” …!

There are no short cuts or quick solutions.. but a systematic and intelligent evolution beyond modern collective IGNORANCE.

Budha was asked once..! What is the root cause of pain, misery and suffering Individually and Socially..! Budha said.. individual “INGNORACE..!”

So it is time to live a conscious LIFE…! Life is too... valuable to be wasted in IGNORANCE..!

“It is indeed the mind that is the cause of bondage or freedom, the mind that is attached to ten senses (indrias, ten heads of Ravanasura) leads to bondage while dissociating from these scenes leads to freedom (true-happiness and joy)..!” -Amritha Bindu Upanishad

  

And another also said, “Lord I will follow thee; but let me first go bid them farewell, which are at home at my house.”

And Jesus said unto him, “No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”                               Luke 9:61—62

Jesus chides the psychology of inner and outer renunciation. He says, you may be renunciating outwardly everything, but inwardly keeping the attachments intact, then what is the use? So one should renounce inwardly as well as outwardly. That is complete renunciation. At the call of death, you have to give up everything and go. Take the help of spiritual techniques of meditation. Commune with God while living in the world. Remember you are living this world to get out of this world.  You are permanent tenant of this world. Be of the world but off the world. Then you are “fit for the kingdom of God.”