Why We Expect so Much

We tend to get caught in sense illusion. We feed illusions and mistake that for fulfillment. The minute what we expected to achieve does not happen, it makes us feel disturbed. And if the same situation turns in our favor, it excites our senses. However, joy and sorrow are never permanent. They have tendencies to change in accordance to the situation. So whatever is bound to change is not real and what is not real cannot be true.

What, then, is truth? Changing situations are always the reason for our happiness or unhappiness. But neither the changing situations are real nor the joys and sorrows. They are just relative terms. These are creations of our avivek or lack of discrimination that makes us float on the surface, preventing us from knowing our true nature. The five subtle organs of sense, that of touch, smell, taste, hearing and sight keep us occupied all through life and we are unable to look beyond these.

The world is bound by causation of changes; therefore nothing is permanent. Environmental changes are seen in the shifting seasons, alternating day and nights and the movement of the earth signifies these changes. On the physical plane these are present in the form of positive or negative emotions. Positive feelings fill us with joy whereas being caught in the web of negativity reflects unhappiness, insecurity, uneasiness and in its more intense form irritation and anger.

We get caught in a whirlpool of being happy or sad due to ignorance of our real self. Our true nature is love and that is concealed in pure consciousness. Depriving us of this true nature draws us to experience unhappiness and discontentment. Once we become aware that the changes are meant to be only on the surface or at the gross body level it is slowly revealed to us that we are but pure consciousness. We always exist with it. Only the discriminative power is absent.

The causes which are exact opposites are limited and occasional whereas the joy of Brahman is self-existent, universal and independent of particular causes and objects. There is no obligation to be pleased with success and pained with failure; both can be met with perfect equanimity. Our attitude to pleasure and pain is determined by force of habit. Actually it is ego-consciousness that enjoy and suffers. It continues to do so as long as it is bound up with the use of life and body and is dependent on them for its knowledge and action. But when the mind becomes disinterested and free and sinks into a secret serenity, when its consciousness becomes illuminated, it gladly accepts whatever happiness, knowing full well that these contacts come and go.

The illuminated consciousness removes avidya or ignorance and the glory of truth is revealed; the sat-chit-ananda. Deliberating on this reality gives us true insight into our pure self. Sat is truth or existence, chit is intelligence or consciousness and ananda is bliss. By constant and conscious reminders one could work towards dwelling in this permanent Truth. When all penetrating existence that is formless shapeless, Supreme energy in Creation become one with the intelligence or experiences the aspect of pure consciousness, one enters into a state of eternal happiness and divine bliss or ananda.