"Atmano Mokshartham Jagat Hitaya Cha” – This line is from the part of a sloka from Rig Veda which means that for one’s own salvation and
for the wellbeing of the Universe. The ideology consists of the eternal principles of Vedanta. that is modern in the sense, universal for the whole humanity and practical for applicability in day-to-day life to solve the common problems.
Weakness is the main cause of immorality, evil and suffering in life, and the cause of weakness is
ignorance about one's factual temperament as the Atman. A knowledge of the Atman gives us
marvelous potency to overcome our weakness and lead a virtuous life. Through knowledge of the Atman, fear and weakness can be overcome and from there the process of man-making education
begins.
According to Vedanta, the physical universe is a manifestation of Almighty. Hence, there is no
distinction between the sacred and the secular. What this statement means is that all work is sacred. Even menial work such as cleaning of toilets or mending shoes is to be done with as much
attention, dedication and devotion as work in the shrine.
In Srimad Bhagabat Gita it says that
aham hi sarvayajnyaanaam bhoktaa cha prabhureva cha |
na tu maamabhijaananti tattvenaatashchyavanti te ||
- 9. 24 ||
For I am the recipient and also the lord of all sacrificial rituals, but they do not know me in
spirit and they fall.
Most people worship god with a hope of limited rewards, but ultimately, all their prayers reaches
the unlimited Almighty. And the results obtained through worship are only limited. Therefore,
when we act in this world, we should always bear in mind that the recipient of any action is almighty who is infinite. When we feed someone, care for someone or help someone in need, we should
remember that ultimately we are feeding, caring for and helping the almighty and so as to minimize our ego or Aham (I- ness). Moreover, our emotions such as pride, greed, selfishness and jealousy
are caused because our Aham, which compels us to think that we own something, or we covet something that others own. If we know that the ultimate owner of everything is the Almighty, it reduces
our sense of attachment and “mine-ness”. Ego and attachment are great obstacles in the path of
liberation, salvation and emancipation, of Atmano and pulls one down wards.
Everything encompassing Almighty is the ultimate source of all work and the enjoyer of the fruits of all sacrifice. Hence all work is to be done as worship and the fruits of actions are to be offered to the Lord.
One of the important principles of life is Shiva Jnane Jiva Seva, 'to serve Jiva (the living being) as
Shiva'. Since man is potentially divine, service to man is indeed service to Almighty. Instead of
looking upon a needy person as an object of pity, it should be looked upon as an object of
worship. Such an attitude elevates both the giver and the recipient. He who sees Shiva in the poor, in the weak and the diseased, really worships Shiva; and thus Shiva is more pleased than with the man who sees Him only in temples. Love and concern for the poor should be continued as a
directive principle of all our life. And the lies the practicability of religion and rituals in mankind.
When work, any work, is done fulfilling the above conditions, it becomes a spiritual discipline: the mind gets purified and the potential Divinity of the soul manifests itself more and more. Thus
work done as worshipful service benefits the doer himself spiritually: it becomes a spiritual
discipline or Yoga. It is with this understanding of work as a spiritual discipline or Karma Yoga
that all the service activities, such as giving food and clothing to the poor, nursing the sick etc and whatever it is the service done as worship of God .Moreover it helps in two ways primarily it helps physically or mentally the person who is served, and simultaneously it helps spiritually to that
person who serves.
Literary meaning of Moksha is mukti or liberation or freedom from Sansara. This freedom is gained when one realizes the nature of Atma (Self) is of the essence of Sat (eternal Truth), Chit (infinite
consciousness) and Ananda (bliss). Since the desire to seek freedom is inherent in our nature, we try to find ways and means to gain this knowledge that liberates.
The Vedas speak highly of specific karmas that yield a variety of fruits. But do any of these give
Moksha, one may ask. Scriptures also say that Moksha is the ultimate fruit which is a state of
transcending bliss far different from the pleasures and enjoyments in this world. So the knowledge
(Vidya) of the varieties of karmas and their fruits does not lead to liberation. But knowledge of our true nature releases us from the ignorance that binds us to Sansara. When caught in Sansara, we are
involved with it to a great extent. Moreover, Sansara is perceptible to the senses and not distant or
remote, and since we are engaged in it in our day-today activities, we cannot ignore it.
This involvement compels us to act and thereby also face the consequences of our actions.
We should constantly remind ourselves that the body is not identical with the Atma. Atma is inside
the body and prompts it to act. Atma jnana is swayam prakasa. Water is colourless and tasteless but assumes the qualities from association, Atma assumes the body’s qualities. The eye, the ear, or any other sense organ or for that matter, the body itself incorporating the mind and intellect, is a mere
instrument whose functioning is made possible by the Atma.
Worldly life is sustained by the senses that easily attract and enslave human beings. As long as
individuals succumb to the pleasurable aspects of senses, they are in bondage. To get liberated from the dominating role of senses that cause karma in people, one has to learn to renounce the sense
enjoyments with great determination. True sanyasa is the ability to see the defects in the gratification that senses provide, no matter however attractive they might appear. The mind has to reach a stage where it no longer has even an iota of longing for sense enjoyment. Only then can it turn a blind eye to all the attractions it is tempted with.
Purpose of life
What is the purpose of life? Some will say it is to live a merry life and take in as many pleasures as
possible. A youngster will want to spend his days pursuing trivial pleasures. A middle-aged man begins to worry about his future, and all he wants is to get the support of his children in
his old age. But he also wants to ensure a secure future for his children. So he will answer that
providing for one’s children is the purpose of life.
There is nothing wrong in seeking to be happy in life. There is nothing wrong in being merry and
cheerful. In fact, we must be happy, because of the wonderful world that Almighty has given us. But enjoyment is not the purpose of life. Souls are brought into this world, so that they may make use of birth in this world to liberate them from the ignorant state they had been in. A person born in this world must use the opportunity provided to him to free himself from sansara and attain moksha.
But while we occasionally acknowledge that there is a higher purpose to life than merely carrying
out our everyday duties, we are taken in by the glamour of wealth and fame and forget that all of it
is temporary. So we spend our young age in acquiring wealth and pursuing power, and then when
we are old, we feel sorry for having given so much importance to wealth. The pleasures of youth are like the little bubbles on the surface of water. When the rays of the sun hit them, they turn attractive, emitting many colours. But suddenly they break, and then what is left? The pleasures of youth are as temporary as these bubbles are. The waves of the ocean look huge from a distance, but when they crash on the shore, they are not so huge. Likewise, wealth seems significant when we set out to
acquire it, but it can get depleted to nothing soon. So we should keep in mind that the purpose of
life is not making money; it is to make use of this human life and work towards moksha - An
emancipation of one's self and the good of the universe"
