(Via Pinterest) Arunachala - On the path to Skandashram
A seeker abdicating the acceptance of the responsibility even for the care of his body, consigning all the burden of his responsibilities to the Lord saying, "All this burden is Thine" must tread the path of sadhana* with repose and tranquility.
* Sadhana: Spiritual practice
A seeker must entrust with full faith all the responsabilities that naturally fall to his lot like the burden of the family and the care of the family including that of his own body to the Lord and be carefree with neither concern nor worry. Otherwise neither Atma Vichara [1] as described in the first section of the Text “Reality in Forty Verses (Ulladu Narpadu)” nor total and single-pointed devotion towards the Lord will be practicable for him. Not doing so, in addition to bearing the burden of one self and one’s own family, assuming to bear the burden of the world also, becomes comical provoking ridicule and derision. Their minds shrouded by delusion, will not venture to indulge in such activities if they were to realize the Truth that the Lord God ordains, sustains and runs the world.
Here special attention must be bestowed to the jiva [2] being addressed as poliuyir - the pseudo self. The True-Being is the Supreme Lord, the Self, shining in the Heart. The jiva, a mere reflection of That, is not a separate entity; hence the jiva has earned the sobriquet “the chidabhasa”.
However this idea should not be misconstrued as to imply that service to the people of the world should scrupulously be eschewed at all costs. As advocated by Bhagavan in verse 5 of the Upadesa Saram, “Worshipping with adoration whatever is perceived by the eye in the whole universe and viewing it as the manifestation of the Lord in the eight-fold [3] form is worship of the Lord Himself, and is the best of all worship”. Worship of the world as the manifestation of His Form and Glory is conducive to spiritual evolution and does not pamper the ego-sense into flamboyant growth.
— In commentary by “Who” (K. Lakshmana Sarma) in Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi’s “Reality In Forty Verses - Supplement” (Ulladu Narpadu Anubandham), verse 17
[1] Atma Vichara: Self-Investigation, Self-Enquiry “Who am I?”.
[2] Jiva: Individual soul.
[3] The eight forms mentioned above are earth, water, fire, air, space, sun, moon and living beings (jivas), all of which are forms of God, the one reality underlying the appearance of this whole world.
