For rapid spiritual
progress, the seeker should undertake the spiritual practice of the next level
of spiritual maturity that follows the one he is at presently. This principle
is elaborated in the following table:
|
Spiritual Level % |
Spiritual Practice |
| 20 |
Absent |
| 30 |
Physical Worship - such as Ritualistic
Worship (fasting, performing sacrificial fires, attending mass service in church,
offering namaz, etc.), visiting places of Worship, reading Holy Texts. |
| 40 |
Mental Worship - chanting* the Lord's
Name |
| 50 |
Remaining in Satsang |
| 55 |
Service to the Absolute Truth (Satseva)
and acquiring a Guru's Grace. |
| 60 |
Sacrifice of wealth (Tyag) |
| 70 |
Spiritual love (Priti) |
| 80 |
Stance of a spectator (Sakshibhav) |
| 90 |
Mission after Self-Realization |
On the Path of Guru’s Grace, the next stage in spiritual practice after
chanting is Satsang.
Satsang
Definition
Sat means Truth and Sang means company. Thus, Satsang literally means to
be in the company of the Truth, or to experience the Truth.
Since the only truth
that has passed the test of time is God, Sat refers to God. Hence, to be in Satsang
means to experience God or to be in spiritual company that helps one’s
experience of God.
Importance
The relative importance of chanting with effort is
5%, satsang is 30% and satseva (Service to the Absolute Truth) is 100%.
Types
The various types of Satsang, in descending order
of importance and effectiveness, are as follows:
Satsang with God Satsang with Saints or
the Guru Satsang conducted by seekers, where one can get clarification of doubts and
guidance for one’s spiritual practice Reading spiritual texts written by Saints or Holy texts Visiting temples or places of worship Attending spiritual discourses
Benefits of Satsang
Many people in today’s society do not believe in Spirituality. Some
even talk against it. This may cause doubts in the mind of the beginning seeker,
making his faith waver. Attending Satsangs regularly helps overcome such doubts. A healthy competitiveness develops among seekers to progress spiritually. The spiritually pure (sattvik) environment of the Satsang helps improve the
seeker’s spiritual practice (chanting, meditation). There is the presence of Divine Principles during the Satsang due to the spiritually
pure environment. The spiritual purity and divinity benefits the seekers in terms
of experiencing an improved mental state, Bliss, increase in energy, increased
motivation to do spiritual practice, increased perseverance on the spiritual
path, etc. Feeling of closeness develops towards other seekers. This feeling goes on
increasing to take one towards the expansive feeling of unconditional love, characteristic
of Holy people, that ‘The whole universe is my home’. Due to the cumulative effect of the spiritual purity of all attending seekers,
a spiritually pure environment is created. This increases the spiritual purity
of the individual seeker, facilitating his spiritual growth. All those gathered around a campfire receive the warmth of the fire. Likewise,
all those attending a Satsang are spiritually nourished by it. Just as air is
essential to keep a fire burning, Satsang is essential to sustain one’s
spiritual practice.
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