Respect for 'Working for Enlightenment'
Understand, even if somebody is not enlightened, if he is working for enlightenment, he is also worthy of respect. That is the important thing you need to understand. See, if a hundred people are running, only one will win, but that does not mean that the people who ran are not worthy of respect. One person can win only if a hundred people can run. If you stop the very tradition of running just because ninety nine are defeated you can't expect that one person will win. No. Only if thousands of people dedicate their lives, that group consciousness, group energy happens which gives inspiration for people to run, then one or two may achieve.
So understand, if I have achieved something in my life it is not just by me, it is by all the sannyasis, all the sādhus, all the acharyas, they all have contributed to me directly or indirectly. Even the confidence which I received by seeing them was the reason for me to continue my running, continue my journey.
I always tell people, understand my enlightenment or whatever I achieved is the gift from this whole tradition. When I saw so many sādhus, so many enlightened Masters, so many mahatmas, so many swamis, I got the confidence I should also become a swami, I should also take up this life.
The group indirectly inspires you and gives you confidence and courage.
Recently we had a Kumbha Mela in Bharat. I took all my brahmacharis and swamis to the Kumbha Mela. I told them, 'All of you should come.' They asked, 'Why Swamiji? We have so much work in the ashram. One batch can go and one batch can be here.'
This Kumbha Mela is attended by sādhus. Totally the estimated crowd is with sādhus and sannyasis. I told them, 'Only when you see the sādhus, you will understand and have courage and confidence on this philosophy of sannyas.'
So acharyas are also responsible for enlightened beings happening on the planet earth, for people achieving the arihanta state and siddha state. That is the reason we bow down to acharyas also and I bow in reverence to upadhyayas.
Whoever is carrying that philosophy, whoever is carrying those Truths, may not have experienced them inHis life. A librarian may not have read all the books and become an intellectual person inHis life, but he takes care of the library so that other people can experience it. If somebody becomes a great scientist by using a library, the librarian has also contributed. He himself may not have become a scientist, but the person who preserved all the literature is also responsible for that scientist becoming great. So we bow down in reverence to all the upadhyayas.
I bow in reverence to all sādhus, all the monks and nuns who have dedicated their life to this goal. Understand, this is the only tradition which respects the people who are even traveling in the path of enlightenment. I bow in reverence to all sādhus, namo loe savva-sahunam. It is actually a great inspiration for all the people who are in the path, who are in the spiritual journey. He says, 'I bow in reverence even to the sādhus, monks and nuns who are working towards the great goal, the great Truth.'
Surrender the 'I' and 'mine'
And the next line, beautiful line, this five-fold salutation destroys all sins. Naturally, when you respect the great Masters, the idea to respect their teachings also starts going in you and those teachings will naturally destroy all the sins, engrams in your life. Understand, sins does not mean the acts which you committed. It is engrams which you carry, samskaras which you carry. When you bow down, when you offer the 'I' and 'mine' to arihantas, simply the samskaras which you carry will be destroyed.
Patanjali says beautifully, 'You don't have to create a canal to get water, just remove the obstruction.' Just remove the obstruction, the water will flow towards you. So you don't have to achieve enlightenment, just remove the obstructions which you are having, the 'I' and 'mine', and you will have enlightenment. It will simply happen in you. You are only stopping it.
The 'I' and mine is the blockage, surrender it at the feet of arihantas. One more thing, when the arihanta is alive, it is difficult to surrender. You will be afraid that he may take your 'I' and 'mine' away. It is very difficult to surrender when a Master is living.
Let me tell you a small story:
A blind man was trying to find a stick for walking. He was searching for something to hold on to; somehow by mistake he got a frozen snake. He was staying in the Himalayas; in the cold a snake had frozen. He thought that was a stick and he started using it for walking.
An enlightened Master saw this and told him, 'Hey, drop that. In one hour when the sun comes up, the snake will come back to life and it will bite you. You will be killed, please drop the snake. You are not carrying a stick, you are carrying a snake.'
The blind man said, 'No, no, I know it is a stick, you take care of your work, leave me.' The Master said, 'No, no, you are carrying a snake, leave it.' Then the man started shouting, 'I think you don't have a stick, that's why you are asking me to drop mine. The moment I drop it, you will pick up this stick!'
But the Master felt it wasHis responsibility to protect the blind man fromHis ignorance. So he forced him to drop the stick even though the blind man beat the Master with the same snake.
Understand, in the same way when an arihanta says drop 'I' and 'mine', you may think, 'He doesn't have what I have. That is why he is asking me to drop it so that he may pick it up when I drop. If I drop my 'I' and 'mine' he might take it away!' No.
The arihanta is not asking you to drop for himself. And now we don't even have that problem, because we have only the presence of Mahāvīra. So understand, sincerely offer yourself at the feet of these great Masters. You will see the conscious transformation starts from this moment. From this moment, whatever samskaras, sins you have will be washed away, will be destroyed.
Understand, the best thing you can ever do in your life is dropping your 'I' and 'mine' at the feet of enlightened beings. The sutra says the best thing which can happen to your life is dropping the 'I' and 'mine' at the feet of arihantas.
So now maybe we will take a few minutes, integrate the whole being and offer the whole thing at the feet of the great enlightened Masters, arihantas, siddhas, acharyas, upadhyayas and sādhus. Let us do it with full sincerity.
Understand, do not think, 'I chanted this mantra lakhs of times, what is going to happen now? I know this mantra.' No. Now do it with intensity. Tell the Masters, 'Please use this body, radiate in this body. I have abused this body enough. I abused whatever I have, 'I' and 'mine', it is time you all take charge of this, and let you all use this. Let me offer the 'I' and 'mine' at your disposal, at your feet. Let you all fill this body and mind, whatever I have, 'I' and 'mine'.'