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Objective of human life

CHENNAI DEC. 21 . "The Sun rises in the morning and sets in the evening with utmost regularity every day. The stars glitter beautifully in the sky in the night and hide themselves during the day. The wind blows incessantly and sustains the living beings without taking rest even for a moment. The rivers make pleasant sounds as they flow permanently. Who is the Master under whose sovereignty all these marvels are taking place? That is God and hence we should listen to His command and obey it," says a Telugu poem. Everyone is keen to know the objective of life but few succeed in their endeavour. One in a million will persist with strong determination not to give up till he realises the goal. Ordinary mortals, who however know the significance of the verse above, do not make efforts in this direction as they think it is something beyond their reach. Immersed in worldly pleasures, they fail to understand that there is a higher purpose in human life than these enjoyments.

It is necessary for a person to take efforts to acquire wisdom and experience Bliss. The Taittiriya Upanishad gives an analogy of a bird in this respect. Its head represents "steadfast faith" (sraddha). Its two wings stand for "Righteousness" (Ridham) and Truth (Sathyam). The trunk symbolises Yoga and the tail denotes the Self. Righteousness or virtue will remain unchanged in all periods of Time — the past, present and the future. Deep and sustained faith is very important as it results in gaining wisdom and the Lord in the Gita reiterates this. In the field of spirituality in particular this unwavering faith is very essential. The Upanishads have expounded the principle of faith (Sraddha) in varied ways. Wisdom attained through it will fetch liberation while knowledge obtained without it will bind men. The Taittiriya Upanishad teaches that the eternal principle of "Liberation" should be understood, practised and propagated.

In a lecture, Sri Sathya Sai Baba wanted everyone to strive for the purity of these three. For instance, when a glass chimney is placed over a lamp, after some time, a thin layer of soot is formed and consequently light becomes dim. Only when the chimney is cleaned there will be brightness. The soot that gets accumulated can be compared to the ego that envelops one's mind preventing the entry of Divine wisdom. Ego gets in when the path of Truth is abandoned and to drive it out, worldly thoughts should be kept under control.

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