“Good and bad, which are part of the illusion created by Hari, cannot be removed without worshiping Hari. Keeping this in mind, worship Rama and renounce all desires.” (Dohavali, 127)

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हरि माया कृत दोष गुन बिनु हरि भजन न जाहिं
भजिअ राम सब काम तजि अस बिचारि मन माहिं

hari māyā kṛta doṣa guna binu hari bhajana na jāhiṃ
bhajia rāma saba kāma taji asa bicāri mana māhiṃ

1. Do Not Enter

“You know, I visit that coffee shop quite regularly. I always choose the drive-thru. I don’t know, something about parking your car, getting out of it, picking up your order, carrying it back to the car, trying to get the door open, without spilling everything – it is too much for me. There is a peaceful continuity offered by the drive-thru process.

“But today, the line of cars was insanely long. I decided to take a chance. I exited the line and parked my vehicle. I went inside and someone was polite enough to ask what I was waiting on. They recognized the name and smiled, saying they were expecting me in the drive-thru line. I explained to them what happened, and then I merrily went along my way.

“I chose to take a different way out of the parking lot. The drive-thru empties into a different exit. I noticed that there is a ‘do not enter’ sign on the other side. This explains why two cars can occupy the entire space when turning. I guess it would be a giant headache if you had so many cars entering in the same place where others are exiting. It makes sense to me now.”

2. One Way

“A long time ago, I was visiting various dealerships in search of a new vehicle. The parking was nonexistent in this one place. I couldn’t figure out where to go. I decided my only option was to travel down this one-way street and then abruptly turn around. Then I could align my vehicle with the other ones parked on the side. When I went inside the dealership and explained the situation to one of the salespeople, they said it is a known issue. They said that police love to roam the area and issue tickets for driving the wrong way. To me, it was an innocent mistake. It is almost like they are trying to trap people.”

3. Wrong Way

“I once heard a talk radio host explain something about driving safely on the highway that I had never considered before. He was previously a traffic police officer. His experience was from the state of California, in America, where the highways tend to be rather large. You can have six lanes or more, and I guess people get confused sometimes as to which way to enter and which way to exit. Seems a little dangerous to me, and maybe I am not the only one.

“The radio host advised against cruising in the far left-hand lane. This is because when someone is intoxicated, they often mistake an exit ramp for an entry ramp. There are so many signs warning against this practice. There is one ‘wrong way’ sign after another, but since it is late at night and their senses are not totally with them, they proceed anyway.

“Since they are intoxicated, they feel the safer move is to drive in what they think is the far right-hand lane. Well, that means they are actually travelling directly against traffic in the far left-hand lane. Those cars are usually going pretty fast. You can imagine the tragedy that ensues. Pretty scary, if you think about it.”

…

The above describes different markings which serve as warnings. The context is specific to operating a motor vehicle on a public road, but we can apply the same concept towards understanding piety and sin, in general. Someone might have a bad experience with religion precisely because of the disproportionate attention given to sin, from the followers. They offer the following testimony:

“I don’t know, man, I get a bad feeling from these people. Everything is fine if you go to their house of worship, if you sign on the dotted line for their hostage statement, wherein you agree that their savior is the only one and that every other worshiper is falling in front of a false god. But I have noticed that as soon as you mess up, they are quick to apply a label. They warn that you are a ‘sinner.’ Trouble in your marriage? Having difficulty with controlling desires? Made a serious mistake over the weekend, that you now regret? Too bad. You are a sinner. Better tell everyone else. Better repent in front of everyone. I don’t know, but it seems like a sting operation. They are just waiting to tear other people down. Is that what religion should be about?”

The Sanskrit equivalents are punya and pāpa. Punya refers to pious credits. Pāpa is sin and the accompanying reactions. Guna and dosha make a similar pair. Guna can refer to good deeds or that which you are supposed to do. Dosha is the opposite; it is bad or prohibited work. The label applies based on the potential in consequence. Shri Hanuman uses guna and dosha to describe how the future destination of the individual gets configured.

गुणदोषकृतं जन्तुस्स्वकर्म फलहेतुकम्
अव्यग्रस्तदवाप्नोति सर्वं प्रेत्य शुभाशुभम्

guṇadoṣakṛtaṃ jantussvakarma phalahetukam
avyagrastadavāpnoti sarvaṃ pretya śubhāśubham

“Driven by a virtuous or evil purpose, each living entity performs some work, which has consequences associated with it. After death, the same person steadily reaps all those auspicious and inauspicious results.” (Hanuman speaking to Tara, Valmiki Ramayana, Kishkindha Kand, 21.2)

Hanuman also mentions another pair: shuba and ashubha. These refer to the state or condition upon following guna and dosha. From our example above, disobeying the road signs means running afoul of the law. You might get arrested. You might accidentally collide with another vehicle. These are inauspicious conditions, or ashubha. If you follow the warnings, if you obey the law, then you are in the proper condition. It is auspicious because things go according to plan. No one intentionally tries to ruin their travel plans. They would like to safely reach their destination.

We can expand on the same example to place piety and sin in the proper perspective. What happens if someone should make a mistake on the road? What if they intentionally violate the rules? Does that mean they are forever doomed? Should they be condemned within their community? Or should they be corrected and advised to change course? Whether an outside observer casts judgment or not, the negative consequence takes care of itself. There is nothing extra that the judgment will do.

If we consider the vast timeline of the creation and the infinite nature to the existence of the individual, who is spirit soul, then there has been constant toggling between good and bad. So many pairs of guna and dosha, with shuba and ashubha consequences. We are still here. We are still vibrant. We still carry the potential for final release, which is known as moksha.

This provides a clearer understanding of real religion. As Goswami Tulsidas describes, this pair of guna and dosha is part of the illusion, or maya, created by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is known as Hari. Only the same Hari can remove the illusion. Notice that the recommendation is not for Hari to fix our speeding ticket, so to speak. It is not to have God move us from ashubha to shuba or take care of our temporary enjoyment. Rather, the wise person hopes to rise above the duality of piety and sin and always stay in the association of the one who is the source of everything.

In Closing:

Not that speeding ticket to fix,
Or away the negative to kick.

Disproportionate attention given,
Whether condemned or forgiven.

Rather the good and bad to size,
Saint on will of Hari relies.

That above the illusion to take,
And life in transcendence make.

Categories: the maya of hari, the three

Tags: dailyprompt, driving, poem, poems, poetry, religion, sin