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Attention: Resonance Youth Shibir 2025 in the presence of Guruji! - Aug 7-9 at Cherry Hill Dham
What is Satsang?
Satsang is akin to a key that can be used in our everyday lives. It is a helpful guide on how we should proceed in our lives and the path of spirituality. When we are faced with a tough situation or do not know how to proceed in life, satsang is the guide that lord Swaminarayan provided his devotees to abide by in order to live a fulfilling life. Our Lord Swaminarayan was no stranger to the depths of inner and outer well-being. Hence, Maharaj himself designed Satsang to be both beneficial in our everyday lives and spiritual lives.
What is a life of satsang?:
A life of Satsang is a life based on morality. Morality is a key foundation for a healthy & prosperous life. Lord Swaminarayan proposed that following these five values would ensure well-being in this world and the next. The values:
No Addictions
No Meat
No Adultery
Honesty & Morality
Firmness in Commandments
These values ensure that we can care for the spiritual and social needs of ourselves, our family, and society. Changing times create complex challenges regarding culture, family, and character. By using the power of devotion, puja, meditation, spiritual assemblies, and other such means of worship, we are giving the current generation ways to overcome these spiritual and societal hurdles.
No Addiction:
An addiction is something that you cannot live without constantly having in your life. What does a life of no addictions help in? In our society, we have commonly seen the impacts of having an addiction.
Those who allow themselves to be consumed by drugs or alcohol start to lose control of themselves until they can no longer control themselves in the absence of their addiction. They need them to stay functional and will constantly crave what they are addicted to. These additions will result in the person losing control of their body and succumbing to their desires. Addictions don’t have to be major like drugs or alcohol either, a phone addiction or an addiction to a certain food item are also considered addictions.
Enjoying something is not considered a problem however, being addicted to it and not having control over its uses is when problems arise. For example, a phone addiction will result in a weaker attention span because phones constantly feed the user stimulation to keep them hooked, such as a never-ending Instagram feed or TikTok videos.
This results in the person needing strong stimulation or constant willpower to pay attention to something. Needless to say, addictions are detrimental and best to avoid overall if one desires a fulfilling life.
No Meat:
Not eating meat is a constant for those who are vegetarian, but let's look at why it is detrimental to eat meat outside that scope. In the process of gathering meat, a life form must die, be it a cow or a chicken.
This will require said life form to meet a premature death and be hunted down. In addition to this, we believe in the cycle of life and death, meaning that there is a soul inside the animal just like there are souls inside humans. So by killing an animal, we are making a soul suffer and ending their lives prematurely, which is a grave sin. Even if a person does not kill the animal personally, their demand for the meat of the animal will yield the same outcome for the animal.
Lastly, we believe in food being able to transfer emotions such as anger, which is why lord Swaminarayan forbids us from eating garlic or onions as he says these foods make us more prone to anger. It is the same for meat, as the emotions of the animal will affect the eater when consumed. In essence, there is no need to burden oneself with the sin of hurting another, and it is always great to take the load off oneself.
No Adultery:
Lord Swaminarayan says that one should not associate with anyone other than their wives intimately.
The goal of this rule is to keep the individual pure. When an individual cheats, they are also hurting themselves by dirtying their souls. This will weigh the individual down and make them spiritually weaker.
When a soul is weighed down it is akin to filling it with trash, and this corrupts them, which will lead them to feel discontent. Pureness through Satsang will make the individual lighthearted, essentially removing the trash. They will naturally feel content and joyful from such a state.
Overall, there are only benefits to be had both internally and externally when keeping oneself pure from the unwanted corruption in this world.
Honesty and Morality:
If one is not honest with others, how can they be honest with themselves? What benefit is there in lying to oneself?
When we build a reputation for being honest, it allows for people to trust us more. This is an outward benefit, but inwardly it will allow us to be more honest with ourselves. If a person is not honest with himself, then he will be unable to develop his inner self.
The first step to solving a problem is to acknowledge the problem, and it is only through honesty that we can accept the problem. Morality is useful in keeping one's own identity intact and never faltering in the face of adversity.
Let's look at an example of someone who is not morally inclined, and they decide to let go of their morals to make money. In their minds they decided to loosen their morals just this once to make money so they can live comfortably, however this is an incorrect mindset.
When has there ever been someone who decided to only loosen their morals one time and stuck to it? Abandoning your morals once is like losing a chunk of the armor that protects your identity. After that first crack in your armor, it is easier to do something wrong the next time and then the next and so on.
It is equivalent to digging yourself into a hole of your own making. Once again, let's ask: what benefit is there in lying to oneself? All external benefits you may gain are overshadowed by the internal strife you will have to pay.
Firmness in commandments:
Lord Swaminarayan has given many commandments for his devotees to follow, but besides pleasing God, what are the personal benefits of following these commandments?
Let's look at the goal Lord Swaminarayan had for his devotees. He wanted his followers to excel both spiritually and in society. If one is firm in the commandments, it will help to build up their mental resilience.
Mental resilience is beneficial in advancing in the path of spirituality and also in the landscape of society. For example, mental resilience will help reduce procrastination, which in turn will help make you more productive. This is overall a net positive in society.
Jay Swaminarayan!
These commandments have been curated for the betterment of our everyday lives and, in turn, society as a whole. By adhering to these, we bring about a better present for us and everyone connected to us. It is with this pure intention that these principles are propagated to enlighten our lives along with our very being.
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