Contact with Learned Persons

Meaning: According to the line of Rigved 7/52/1 — "Man must always be in contact with learned persons, and keep alive the discretionary ability to discern truth from the untruth. Only the man who is benevolent like the sun, the earth and 'prana' (the life breath) becomes deserving of greatness.

Message: The deeds in human life are very strange indeed. Whatever a man thinks, he says it by his speech and what he says, he carries out by the body and he gets the result for what he does by his body. If man desires good rewards, he should do good deeds. If he wishes to do good deeds, then he should utter good words. If he wishes that only good words are uttered by him, then he should reform his thinking. Purify his mental processes, and raise his mental level. Man should not worry about controlling his body. The control of the body depends on the control of speech which depends on the control by mind. Therefore the greatest spiritual endeavor is for the control of the mind. Whatever thinking is going on in the mind is reflected in the speech and carried out by the body.

Therefore, we must decide on those mental attitudes on whose basis, humanness can be recognized. Total morality comes within this word 'humanness'. The range of morality is very vast. Therefore to adopt humanness, we will have to cleanse our mental activities.

All the animals living in water, earth and air are busy only in filling their bellies and in procreation. Man is the best amongst all the animals, and yet most men are also found leading the above kind of animal-like life only. Then what is the difference between man and animals? It is not that these animal-like activities are seen in only the uneducated persons. It is in fact found that the educated and the sophisticated people are also very much addicted to bad habits. They do not care at all for truth or untruth, appropriate or inappropriate and shame and restraint. They are able to do any lowly deed merely for satisfying their senses, in their desire for children, for money and for fame. They are not afraid of sins; they have no faith in God's system of rewards (or punishment) for deeds, and have no control of any type on their thinking. Then, how can there be an atmosphere of peace and happiness in life and how can spiritual uplift be possible?

Let us wish that we always remain in contact with knowledgeable and learned persons and develop intelligent discretion. Just as the sun and the earth always work for the welfare of man and they have no selfish interest in it, similarly we too must think of what is proper and improper. We should try to involve ourselves in deeds of welfare of all creatures on this earth. In this way bad thoughts and bad culture will not be able to overwhelm us.

Man's humanness lies in this only.

Aadityqaso aditayaha syaam

poordevatra vasavo martyatra

sanem mitraavarunaa sananto

bhavem dhyavapruthivi bhavantaha. (Rigved 7/52/1)