How to gain Eternal Joy and Wisdom?

We often hear about ‘perennial joy and perennial wisdom’. But these terms are supra worldly and do not pertain to our earthly life. Here on earth, pleasures constitute happiness or joy but it is like the lightening in the sky, momentary like the passing clouds. No joy of the world is retained forever. Whether it is a tasty meal or tasty dish, the feeling lasts only for a few seconds and it is retained as a memory in the consciousness. These memories trigger our desires whenever we have got a chance to enjoy the taste. Likewise, the music we hear lasts till the song is last. Afterwards, the pleasant sensation of the melody is retained in the memory and we hum the melody when we are in pleasant mood. Likewise all sensual enjoyments last for few moments only. People are often enamored by touch sensation. None would like to embrace others forever.

Every one of us is aware of the momentary nature of sensual gratifications. Hence, each and every time, we long for different taste, different melody, and different touch to sooth our feelings. From ancient days, people seek lasting happiness and they jump from one thing to another in order to enjoy lasting happiness. Finding that worldly things fail to give the eternal joy, man seeks elsewhere to get it. This quest has taken into the realm of spirituality. The psychology of all human beings is same. When he wanders in hot weather, he seeks shade. None would appreciate the shade if they had not gone out in the hot weather. People who live in cold climates always seek the hot sunny weather whereas those who live in hot places seek cool weather. There is a basic reason behind this. We have been created in the dual world. For everything, there exists an opposite nature. Thus day and night, pain and pleasure, wellness and illness, the various seasons which are different, wealth and poverty are natural in this world. When there is a hill, there should be a valley. This is the nature of creation.

Death follows birth, and pleasures are the intervals between two pains. Has anybody enjoyed the pleasures of life continuously? No! Even the autocrats and dictators had their share of grief and pain. They were mad after power and fame but how long they were in power. Hitler, Stalin and Mussolini like as well as saintly personalities and incarnations like Jesus, Prophet Mohammad and Guru Nanak, all of them left their mortal coil. Hence it is very much evident that earthly life is a mixture of good and bad. Without dualities, the world can never exist. If everything is white, it lasts its charm. Only the contrasting black color highlights the white color. Likewise, evil in the world highlight the good one. Hence in order to gain eternal Joy and Wisdom, one must relinquish the dualities and go beyond them. Like the invisible thread that ties various flowers into a garland, God is the invisible thread of the creation. In God, everyone is bound. Hence if we are to get perennial joy and wisdom, we have to seek these from the eternal entity which is the Self or god or Atma.

The truth about all being is simple, “All are embodiment of god”. Even a worst criminal has the spark of divinity inside which will not be visible to outer eye. Hence when we come across people, do not see their personalities or faults and develop prejudice against them. See the Lord in all. Then there won’t be any hatred. Why there are cruel animals in the forest? It is only to conserve the ecology of forest. If docile animals proliferate, there won’t be any space in the forest. Hence a judicial and periodic annihilation of created beings takes place. Sometimes we witness floods, avalanches, tornados, earthquake and volcanic storms. The purpose is to maintain the balance. Creation is sustained and finally annihilated. Even the universe undergoes destruction after each yuga. Again a fresh creation takes place from the beginning. Whatever is created is subject to decay and destruction. Hence we have only remnants of great empires in the form of some walls or pillars. Time wash out everything. Even Avatars end their earthly sojourn one day. Only the Self is immortal and survives forever. Self is eternal. Self is full of wisdom and remain ever in Bliss. Since we are all part and parcel of the self, we too seek perennial joy and wisdom as well as immortality.

It is quite possible for everyone to attain the grand state of merger with the Self when they constantly contemplate on the self alone! Yoga, meditation and chanting the name of any form of god, serving the society to the best of our ability, selflessness and sacrifice surely take us to the goal of Self-Realization!