Tripura Rahasya

Sage Dattatreya

The Goddess Continued..

But the question arises how this determined belief will be possible when faith is wanting. Therefore cut at its root. What is its root? Want of faith has its root in unfavorable logic. Give it up and take to approved logic as found in holy books and expounded by a Guru. Then enlightenment becomes possible and faith results. Thus ends the first evil propensity.

The second propensity, namely desire, prevents the intellect from following the right pursuit. For the mind engrossed in desire cannot engage in a spiritual pursuit. The abstraction of a lover is well known to all; he can hear or see nothing in front of him. Anything said in his hearing is as good as not said. Desire must therefore be first overcome before aspiring for spiritual attainment. That can be done only by dispassion. This propensity is manifold, being in the forms of love, anger, greed, pride, jealousy etc. The worst of them is pursuit of pleasure which, if destroyed, destroys all else. Pleasure may be subtle or gross. Neither of these must be indulged in, even in thought. As soon as the thought of pleasure arises, it must be dismissed by the will power developed by dispassion. In this way, the second evil propensity is overcome.

The third, known as dullness resulting from innumerable wicked actions in preceding births, is the worst of the series and hardest to overcome by one's own efforts. Concentration of mind and understanding of truth are not possible when dullness prevails. There is no remedy for it other than worship of the Goddess of the Self (adoration, prayer, meditation etc.). I remove the devotee's dullness according to his worship, quickly or gradually, or in the succeeding birth.