The word KAMA refers to DESIRE mainly. In its negative sense
it means lust or a desire for physical satisfaction of the senses! It is the
first and the most dangerous of the ARISHADVARGAS – the inner enemies that
exist in every human being! Its preeminent position as the first is because all
the other enemies viz Krodha-anger, lobha—covetousness, moha—attachment,
mada—arrogance and matscharya—hatred issue out of it! The purpose of our life “
is not for fulfilling our wants, not for scholarly and intellectual talents,
but for spiritual development”, exhorts Bhagawan Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba. “ “
Desire is bonfire that burns with greater fury asking for more fuel! Desire is
the sole cause for sorrow and distress. Desires, disappointments and despair cause diseases. Filling the mind
with the thought of God is the curative drug.
When you have lesser number of desires, you have greater freedom.
Perfect freedom is absolute desirelessness. Desire leads to ultimate ruin. It
can never be destroyed by fulfillment. Dispel desire, develop true
love!”counsels Sri Sathya Sai!
Desire is the
root cause of Samsara or family life. Our existence cannot continue without
desire or wants. One desire leads to another. When that is satisfied another
raises its head. It is like the waves of the ocean that rise one upon the other
in a never ending series. Therefore people say that the best thing for a calm
and peaceful life is the extinction of desire.
“ asa asa paramam dukham nirasa paramam sukham” The more you desire the
greater is your misery; absence of desire leads to perfect happiness! Desire is
the chief disqualification for realizing God. One has to satisfy his minor
desires and avoid the major ones by right reasoning and discrimination.
The world is
full of temptations for man who is drawn to them very easily. Like a person standing by the brink of a deep well is always careful
lest he should fall into it, even so should the worldly man be always on his guard against its temptations.
Once you fall into the well of temptations or Desire, there is no salvation.
You are battered and bruised. Are desires totally bad or wrong? Not at all. So
long man aspires for worldly and ephemeral pleasures they lead him astray! The
lust for material things should be transformed and sublimated to a hankering
for God! You should be angry why God is not revealing himself to you! Once
Mandodari, wife of Ravana, king of Lanka suggested that he should take the form
of Rama and try to have Sita as his queen! The answer of Ravana weaknesses vanish of their own accord when divinity
increases! One with intense Vairaya—detachment is quite significant: “ Can I
stoop to the pleasure of senses while I am in the form of Rama?” was his reply
to his wife’s question. It is the unrestrained mind that leads man into
trouble. One has to control the galloping of the senses with the discrimination
of the Mind
How to control
Desires? It is through detachment from worldly things. Arjuna refused to fight
against the Kauravas fully knowing that they should be killed. But his resolve
suffered because of his ‘mamakara’ or attachment to his kith and kin, teachers
and others! He was ready to beg even instead of eating a bloody meal! It
required a Krishna and the Bhagavadgita to dispel his delusionand wake him up
to instant action! Attachment makes one forget his duty! Attachment to God is
the best type as it slowly leads to God realization. When man develops partial
perfection by non attachment and control of desires, he should not mix with the
worldly and remain in the midst of temptations. He should remain pure by living
out of it. Like the petals that drop off voluntarily as it develops into a fruit,
human is unaffected by temptations and is in no danger even from his own wife!
The smaller magnet—woman is no where before the larger magnet God! The DESIRE
for God is the only panacea that outweighs all other worldly and material
pleasures!
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