Discourse on Seeking your Purpose

“You are a function of what the whole universe is doing, in the same way

that a wave is a function of what the whole ocean is doing.” – Alan Watts

Seeker:  Fancy way of saying you are part of something bigger with a part to play, right ?

Maladkar: Nothing can be further from the truth. You are not a drop in the ocean but rather an ocean in the drop. You are part of the Universe and the Universe is in turn part of you.  Your existence is part of Universal plan for itself. Do not underestimate yourself ever. You are bigger than you think you are. I am referring to your soul and not to your worldly materialistic position in life. That is inconsequential. What is consequential is your soul. Your soul matters as it is part of the grand plan as you rightly said. That grand plan is of the Universe and the Universe tries to realize itself in you. Yes, in each and everybody the Universe tries to project its beauty, its fragrance, its whole so that an individual can blossom into what the Universe’s grand plan was for. Self-realization of the Universe takes place only through self-realization of the individual. And know well that though you are just playing a part, that part is a significant part for the Universal plan. Everybody and everyone counts, mistake not. Good and bad, creation and destruction, beauty and ugliness are all part of the yin and yang of the Universe. At the same time, balance is the key and way of the Universe. Nothing more or nothing less is how the Nature or the Universe operates. Once a visitor asked Ajahn Chah if he was an Arahant. He said, “I am like a tree in a forest. Birds come to the tree, they sit on its branches and eat its fruit. To the birds the fruit may be sweet or sour or whatever. But the tree doesn’t know anything about it. The birds say sweet or they say sour, but from the tree’s point of view, this is just the chattering of birds.” The Universe works in the same way. It bothers not what you or me think and plan. It will go about its own grand plan in a grand way. It will not bother about your chattering thoughts. So when you realize this and surrender your doings to the Higher power, your life will begin to blossom. You will tend to be more happier, peaceful version of yourself. You will become an Arahant. So rightly Prophet Mohammed (pbuh) has said, “O Jabir! Allah created the Light of prophethood before all existence.” He added: “This Light was created at a time when there was no heaven or hell, or angel, or sun, or moon, jinn or human being.” This Light represents the doer, i.e. the Universal Consciousness that I am referring to. We are literally sparks of the Universal Light. Taittiriya Upanishad so correctly points out, “From joy we have come, for joy we live and in that sacred joy, one day we shall melt again.” So our existence begins in the Universe and into the Universe we shall merge again. From stardust to dust the cycle continues. The Universe goes on as does our life. The grand plans of Universe are carried out precisely as per its laws and not as per laws of man. The laws of the Universe will bring about necessary changes whenever there is excess or deficit. The grand show will go on. We are visitors on the planet Earth and we should restrict ourselves to that role. Ideal is, we should remain an observer rather than trying to be a doer or rather trying to play victim to the grand plan of the Universe. Let us learn the art of acceptance and bathe in the goodness that the Universe has got to offer us. Let us keep on our search for true purpose for our existence. Once we find that we will find that elusive peace.