Wonderment is the preface of yoga. It is the first step for unity with divinity. You can go and look at the Grand Canyon and say, “Wow! My God, this is super” because that’s all you can do there.

🌷 Katho Upanishad 🌷

      

       Chapter 3

       The grace of the divine

      🌻 Day 18 🌻

Vismayo Yog Bhumika

Wonderment is the preface of yoga. It is the first step for unity with divinity. You can go and look at the Grand Canyon and say, “Wow! My God, this is super” because that’s all you can do there. You cannot bring it home, it’s impossible. Everything that is magnanimous in this world is beyond your ability to capture. But the ego wants to capture things. It even wants to possess and capture the Guru. “Guruji, you do what I say” Instead of, “I will do what you say.” To be a Guru is not an easy job.

Once in Lord Rama’s kingdom somebody threw a stone at a dog. Rama’s kingdom was considered to be very non-violent and there was truth and justice for all. In that kingdom a dog was walking on the street and somebody threw a stone at the dog and chased it out. The dog went to ask for justice – animal rights! It went to Rama and demanded that the road is for everybody and dogs can also walk on the road. In those days horses walked on the road, elephants walked, so dogs also have the right. “How can somebody throw stone at me and not let me walk on the road? I want justice.” Lord Rama heard this and said, “That’s correct. The road is for everybody.” He summoned the person who threw the stone. In those days, the victim would decide the punishment for the culprit. So they asked the dog, “What punishment do you want to give to this person?” And the dog said, “Make him the head of an ashram.” Lord Rama said, “This is such a strange request.” The dog said, “I was alo the head of an ashram. On my own sankalpa, I became a dog. Let him go through that. Let him be made a head of an ashram.”

There are many who hear about spirituality, many who walk on the path. Still it is difficult to achieve. It is the same with the basic course. You see that many people have heard, many teach also, “Accept people as they are; don’t be football of other people’s opinion; don’t see intention behind other’s mistakes; live in the present moment.” It takes a whole lifetime to practise and to perfect this. Don’t think that just by doing basic course once, you have perfected the art. Don’t think that by teaching the course to many, you have perfected the art. Imbibing these five points in your life is a challenging for a lifetime.

Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankarji

Katho Upanishad