Satsang?, Are You Really Attending
Just like the term "Yoga", which has, since its introduction to the West, has metamorphosed into everything save what it actually is and means in the Hindu scriptures and tradition, "Satsang" is the new sedative banal noun that is furiously making the rounds on the social media, having lost its intrinsic spiritual import.
In every nook and cranny, today, in the name of "satsang", people gather to perform some activities like singing hymns, bhajans, doing kirtans, and intellectualising and philosophising about so-called spiritual matters, which they dare call "satsang". Engaging in such spurious activities not only yields absolutely no results, but in most cases, they cause severe harm to one's spiritual life. Paramahansa Yogananda, commenting on such gatherings, says, "...people who assemble in the name of the Lord and then chatter, or while outwardly praying think of something else, or mechanically go through the motions of a scared ritual without inwardly communing with God, will not be able to feel (God who) pervades creation." (pg. 9, Seeking God Together by Paramahansa Yogananda).
But what is satsang really is? "...REAL Satsanga is with Sri Krishna through recitation of HIS Names," so says Swami Sivananda in His "Precepts for Practice" (pg. 15). In other words, being in the company of God is real satsang. However, as we all know, unless we are Sri Tukaram Maharaj, Gorakkumbar, Nivruttinath, Dnyaneshwar, Sopan and Muktabai, we are not going to get even a glimpse of the Lord.
That is why, Sri Adi Sankaracharya has unequivocally pronounced in His Bhaja Govindam that, "By keeping the company of great Mahatmas...one attains liberation or freedom". And, Sri Tulasidas has said in His Sri Ramacharitamanas, "binu satsauga viveka na hoa..., that is the intuition of wisdom does not come without having
Satsanga. Very confidently, He says, satasaugata muda maugala mala (=even the worst rogues are changed into virtuous men only through satsang).
To wit, by being in the company of self-realised and liberated mahatmas, one gets the same spiritual benefits as what Mirabai, Paramahansa Yogananda, Swami Haridoss had stood to benefit from their close association with God. However, what if one does not have even that rare good fortune of being in the exalted company of such spiritual giants? To that, Swami Sivananda assures us that "The books written by great persons WILL serve as Satsanga. You need not worry much about Satsanga." (pg. 15, Precepts for Practice by Swami Sivananda). By "great persons", looking at the meaning in the context in which it is said, He assuredly means "liberated souls" or "souls that have attained oneness with God"; nothing less.
The obstinate question still remains, nonetheless: can people, who get together to sing bhajans, do prayers, listen to some talks or opinions expressed by people who have casually and haphazardly read some articles here and there, or who have accumulated secondhand information from Google and Youtube (which is the norm today among people who claim that they have read widely) be said to be doing satsang or being part of a satsang? The categorical and logical answer to that unfortunate question is, "NO".
"Satsang", going by what we have just seen above, is not a time when people merely get together once a week or fortnight, to confabulate with one another, or to partake in some highbrow discussions about God and spiritual life; or come together to express sentimental feelings or be emotional about God. Criticising this brand of "psuedo-satsang", Swami Sivananda says, "...Mere Vedantic gossiping for one hour... with a mixture of some idle, worldly talk, some politics, some scandal-mongering and backbiting, some silly GIGGLING, GUFFAW, and namby-pamby sentimental outpourings in VAGUE platitudes is labelled as Satsanga...There is NO elevation and spiritual progress." (pg. 38, Satsanga and Svadhyaya).
He goes on to say, "Merely listening to eloquent, valuable spiritual lectures will NOT do in the spiritual path. You will have to ACT according to THEM. You will have to give your WHOLE heart, mind and soul to PRACTICE. THEN ONLY will you have progress in the path," (pg. 43, Light, Power & Wisdom by Swami Sivananda)
Adding to the castigation, Mata Amritanandamayi has instructed: "It ISN'T enough to read ABOUT living spiritual life, or to HEAR about it, or to just TALK about it---you have to put it into practice... In the same way, it's NOT enough to just take part in SATSANGS, or to READ the SCRIPTURES. To experience the Truth, you HAVE to LIVE according to those words." (pgs. 273, 292, Eternal Wisdom Vol. 2)
In point of fact, "This Atman is NOT attained through MERE study of scriptures, nor though INTELLECTUAL understanding not through much HEARING of instructions from others," so says Mundaka Upanishad 3:2:3. (Commenting on this verse, Swami Brahmananda says, "By committing them to memory and even by possessing the capacity to explan their literal and grammatical meanings, realisation of the Immutable is NOT possible." (pg. 94, The Supreme Knowledge). [Swamiji was a direct disciple of Swami Sri Sivananda Maharaj of Rishikesh])
Couple with satsang, which is like the fuel that moves the vehicle of life, one has to seriously engage in daily rigorous sadhana, which is akin to driving the vehicle of life. There is no point in filling the tank with unleaded petrol of satsang when one is not prepared to engage the gear of concentration, to safely propel one's vehicle to the destination of self-realisation. Avoiding the distractions of friends, family, colleagues, strangers and enemies in the vehicle of life, keeping the eyes away from the temptations of alluring sights outside it, one has to diligently, punctilious and punctually drive on till one sees one's beloved who comes to receive one the way He did when Sri Tukaram maharaj was ready to flee this duhkhalaya.
In every nook and cranny, today, in the name of "satsang", people gather to perform some activities like singing hymns, bhajans, doing kirtans, and intellectualising and philosophising about so-called spiritual matters, which they dare call "satsang". Engaging in such spurious activities not only yields absolutely no results, but in most cases, they cause severe harm to one's spiritual life. Paramahansa Yogananda, commenting on such gatherings, says, "...people who assemble in the name of the Lord and then chatter, or while outwardly praying think of something else, or mechanically go through the motions of a scared ritual without inwardly communing with God, will not be able to feel (God who) pervades creation." (pg. 9, Seeking God Together by Paramahansa Yogananda).
That is why, Sri Adi Sankaracharya has unequivocally pronounced in His Bhaja Govindam that, "By keeping the company of great Mahatmas...one attains liberation or freedom". And, Sri Tulasidas has said in His Sri Ramacharitamanas, "binu satsauga viveka na hoa..., that is the intuition of wisdom does not come without having
Satsanga. Very confidently, He says, satasaugata muda maugala mala (=even the worst rogues are changed into virtuous men only through satsang).
The obstinate question still remains, nonetheless: can people, who get together to sing bhajans, do prayers, listen to some talks or opinions expressed by people who have casually and haphazardly read some articles here and there, or who have accumulated secondhand information from Google and Youtube (which is the norm today among people who claim that they have read widely) be said to be doing satsang or being part of a satsang? The categorical and logical answer to that unfortunate question is, "NO".
"Satsang", going by what we have just seen above, is not a time when people merely get together once a week or fortnight, to confabulate with one another, or to partake in some highbrow discussions about God and spiritual life; or come together to express sentimental feelings or be emotional about God. Criticising this brand of "psuedo-satsang", Swami Sivananda says, "...Mere Vedantic gossiping for one hour... with a mixture of some idle, worldly talk, some politics, some scandal-mongering and backbiting, some silly GIGGLING, GUFFAW, and namby-pamby sentimental outpourings in VAGUE platitudes is labelled as Satsanga...There is NO elevation and spiritual progress." (pg. 38, Satsanga and Svadhyaya).
Adding to the castigation, Mata Amritanandamayi has instructed: "It ISN'T enough to read ABOUT living spiritual life, or to HEAR about it, or to just TALK about it---you have to put it into practice... In the same way, it's NOT enough to just take part in SATSANGS, or to READ the SCRIPTURES. To experience the Truth, you HAVE to LIVE according to those words." (pgs. 273, 292, Eternal Wisdom Vol. 2)
In point of fact, "This Atman is NOT attained through MERE study of scriptures, nor though INTELLECTUAL understanding not through much HEARING of instructions from others," so says Mundaka Upanishad 3:2:3. (Commenting on this verse, Swami Brahmananda says, "By committing them to memory and even by possessing the capacity to explan their literal and grammatical meanings, realisation of the Immutable is NOT possible." (pg. 94, The Supreme Knowledge). [Swamiji was a direct disciple of Swami Sri Sivananda Maharaj of Rishikesh])
Couple with satsang, which is like the fuel that moves the vehicle of life, one has to seriously engage in daily rigorous sadhana, which is akin to driving the vehicle of life. There is no point in filling the tank with unleaded petrol of satsang when one is not prepared to engage the gear of concentration, to safely propel one's vehicle to the destination of self-realisation. Avoiding the distractions of friends, family, colleagues, strangers and enemies in the vehicle of life, keeping the eyes away from the temptations of alluring sights outside it, one has to diligently, punctilious and punctually drive on till one sees one's beloved who comes to receive one the way He did when Sri Tukaram maharaj was ready to flee this duhkhalaya.
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