#172 Am I enough? (Learning on Akshaya Tritiya)
In the Mahabharata, there is an episode when Sage Durvasa and his disciples visited the Pandavas in their hermitage in the forest. Since Draupadi, the wife of the Pandavas had already eaten by the time Durvasa arrived that day, there was no food left to serve him. Atithi devo bhava – A guest who arrives unannounced is to be treated like a devata and more so when the guest is a sage. Since this sentiment is so prevalent in the culture, the Pandavas became anxious. They did not want to compromise on the hospitality and seva that such a sage deserved.
While Durvasa and his disciples were away bathing at the river, Draupadi desperately prayed to Krishna for help. Krishna immediately appeared before Draupadi saying he was extremely hungry, and asked her for food. Draupadi grew exasperated and said she had prayed to Krishna precisely because she had no food left to give. Krishna then told her to bring the Akshaya Patra to him. When she did, he partook of the lone grain of rice and piece of vegetable that he found stuck to the vessel and announced that he was satisfied by the “meal”. This satiated the hunger of Sage Durvasa and his disciples, as the satisfaction of Krishna meant the satiation of the hunger of all living beings. Sage Durvasa and his disciples then quietly left after their bath, without returning to the Pandavas’ hermitage. They did not want to appear impolite and disrespectful by refusing the food that would be served to them.
Akshaya Patra is a vessel that is inexhaustible. It is also said that Bhagavan Surya gave the Akshaya Patra to Yuddhishtira so that there was a never depleting supply of food for the Pandavas in the forest.
To honor this and many other incidents signifying auspiciousness and never ending prosperity, Akshaya Tritiya is celebrated as the third day in the month of Vaishakha leading to the full moon.
The whole day is considered auspicious and many new ventures and new beginnings are made on this day including investments, buying gold, contributing with donations etc.
We may not have the same Akshaya Patra that Draupadi had. Then is there any Akshaya that one has access to? The answer is yes. Both, at an absolute level and at a relative level.
The Atma that is you is not subject to any decline or being diminished. Hence Atma is Akshaya.
Until the absolute is discovered, how can we see Akshaya operating in our world?. A colloquial word for Akshaya is fullness or abundance. A sense of feeling that I am enough and I have enough. This is not forcing oneself to have false contentment but to appreciate oneself and all that one has been given. The rich biodiversity and teeming life forms in the forests and oceans declare the abundance of forms, functions, colors, sounds and so on. In a few inches of land life expresses itself through the millipede making its way through the blade of grass, the weaver carefully making her nest, the fungi breaking down the decaying leaves, the roots of the plant absorbing water, the leaves releasing carbon dioxide.
Suppose I ask you –
Are you enough? There will be hesitation.
Do you have enough?
As harsh as it sounds, a beggar too believes that she is not enough and she does not have enough.
We think like a beggar with a mindset of scarcity because we do not recognize the abundance in our lives. What abundance you ask?
When we were born we did not have to come with cylinders of oxygen. We came into this world and found that the elements that sustain the creation were given. As we progressed in life, when there were difficult situations there was always a way out somewhere, somehow – some supportive person, some supportive situation, perhaps in terms of good health, perhaps in terms of good education, perhaps in terms of an opportunity and experience that made me us move forward. The recognition of abundance, a sense of fullness comes from being very pragmatic, objective to reality.
The abundance of possibilities in every situation, the abundance of iccha shakti, the power to want and desire anything and everything.
We have an abundance of kriya shakti, the power to do, make choices and act on our desires.
We have an abundance of jnana shakti, the power to know, reason, remember, analyse and synthesize.
These shaktis that we have been given are not restricted by the gender or community you belong to. Nor are these shaktis denied at certain times of the day or in certain phases of our lives.
They are fully available for us to tap into, utilise and maximise depending on our pursuits.
It is this objectivity to what is given that unlocks the blessings of life.
Objectivity about what has been given, transforms what we have, into enough and more.
“Enough”. A simple, unassuming word but a powerful one.
Enough — it’s all we need.
Objectivity about what we have done in different situations in our lives helps us recognize that we did what we did with the knowledge and experience that we had then. Perhaps it was enough.
Objectivity in our work helps us see that given the timelines, the resources and the support, we did what we could. If we had more time and more resources things might have been different. Perhaps it was enough.
Objectivity in our relationships helps us see that we can contribute to each other’s happiness, well-being and growth. We don’t expect the infinite from a finite relationship. Perhaps it is enough.
Objectivity in the way we use our time helps us see that I can use this limited time on earth to recognize the limitless that I truly am. Perhaps it is enough.
Objectivity in our experiences help us incorporate the learning from our mistakes which fertilizes our growth. The experience came and went. The learning enriched you. Perhaps it is enough.
Sure, you may want more to sustain your family but wanting more is not tied up to the constant sense of dissatisfaction and denial of one’s blessings.
Wanting more is not in opposition to ‘enough’.
Transforming what we have into ‘enough’ can turn a meal into a feast.
Seeing the laws that govern different situations may transform chaos into order.
Sharing what we have can change a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.
The truth is — I have enough. I am enough.
A traditional word for it is prasada buddhi – a glad, cheerful acceptance of oneself and one’s situations. This includes accepting that I cannot accept situations that are painful. And yet it is enough for now.
The unease, restlessness that we are so habituated to slips away when you remind yourself – I have enough and I am enough.
It does not make one complacent but more open and receptive to possibilities of whatever needs to be done.
Out of this sense of abundance comes a willingness to be of service.
The focus shifts from what can I get to what can I give.
The focus shifts from – what shall I do for the sake of fullness to what can I do out of the fullness of blessings that I have been given.
So, while Draupadi was given an Akshaya patra, our Akshaya patra might well be the never ending flow of blessings in the form of this body-mind and choices that we can make.
I was always enough and more.
All the way we enjoy the abundance of life and see that the Atma, I was never subject to any decline.
