- We are all part of a guru lineage that guides us on the path of attaining jñāna while actively engaging in worldly life and performing our karmas.
- This is not an easy path. Within the 24 hours given to us each day, we must perform our duties and fulfill our family responsibilities. To overcome the challenges of this life, we must gain strength through uninterrupted practice of sādhanā.
- For those with high personal expectations or who desire immediate results, this path may bring confusion and frustration.
- However, for those who are willing to accept reality and walk this path with understanding and sincerity, it becomes a simple and direct way.
- If you feel intense sorrow or guilt when your sādhanā is disrupted, it indicates the presence of ego or attachment—the belief that “I am the one doing this.” Such a mindset only creates unnecessary inferiority complex and suffering.
- If you abandon your sādhanā and believe that “My Guru will take care of everything,” or “Only if the Goddess grants her grace will I be able to practice,” then know that you are caught in ignorance and tamas (inertia).
- When we perform sādhanā along with the consequences of karma and daily responsibilities, obstacles are natural. The correct attitude is to restart the practice immediately, without dwelling on the reason for the interruption or trying to find excuses. Any reasoning or justification is to be avoided.
- Initially, one must practice continuously for 45 days without compromise to build the discipline of regular sādhanā.
- Regardless of external circumstances, one must carry a small version of the practice—a shortened form (e.g., chanting each mantra 27 times)—that can be performed during travel, or any other situation.
- Even during times when one hasn’t bathed, is traveling, or is in a state of ritual impurity, this brief protocol should be followed so that one affirms inwardly, “I have not abandoned my sādhanā.” However, such shortened practices should not be counted in the formal japa tally. Only when you perform the full practice as per your accepted sankalpa (e.g., 108 repetitions daily), should it be recorded in your japa count.