Why People Pay Money and Avoid Standing in Queue at Temples

We saw how Uttanka, despite a wrong suggestion by those around him, did not exceed the instruction that his Guruji had given him. How he used his discretion to ascertain what is dharma and what is adharma.

It was a very tricky situation, you see. But then he arrived at the right decision, which was appreciated by his Guruji, Veda.

Veda told Uttanka, 'I am very happy for you. You have been such a good shishya. What should I do for you? Anyway, I am blessing you that you will achieve all your desires. Other than that, what do you want me to give you?'

See, what you should understand here is, when you say you will achieve all your desires, what desires is Uttanka going to have? It will be mostly around knowledge, being able to conduct himself righteously in the world, not being trapped into doing any sin.

He may have lokeshana – that he should attain a world after his death where noble people go.
He may have putreshana – that his vamsha parampara continues.
He may have artheshana – so that he is able to take care of the needs of his family, dependents, particularly the students who are going to be with him.

He is not going to have an ambition that 'I will set up Uttanka Foundation. I will acquire hundreds of acres of land, build cottages where disciples from Holland and Denmark and Seattle will come and stay for weeks, learn meditation techniques, pay me in dollars. I will buy more land and buildings, set up satsang centres all over the world.'

'Govt says you have to spend 85% of whatever donation I receive that year itself, on the activities for which the foundation is set up. Only 15% you can carry forward. My team of ingenious professionals will find out ways to circumvent this. I will amass thousands of crores worth of properties. I will move about the world in my own flight. I will proclaim that I am an avatara. And people will actually believe and pay me more and more. On top of this, I will act as a conduit for converting black money into white money and earn commission out of it.'

Uttanka will not have such ambitions. They were simple people.

Uttanka told his Guruji, 'I don't want anything. I have everything. What can I do for you, Guruji, so that you become happy?'

Why should there be anything? Guruji is already happy – to have had a shishya like Uttanka.

Veda said:

धर्मतो हि शुश्रूषितोऽस्मि भवता तेन प्रीतिः परस्परेण संवृद्धा

'You served me very well, with dharma buddhi, not because you wanted to gain something from me. You did it because you knew it is the duty of the disciple to serve the guru – not because you wanted to impress me or get privileges.'

We see in big temples: if you pay more money, you don't have to stand in queue. We are in a hurry to get out of the place. Can't tolerate the divine presence in that place for long.

Real devotees say, 'I want to sit at your feet perpetually.' They want just the God's presence – to be with him or her. That is why you are going to the temple in the first place.

You don't consider the temple as a physical body of the God, as a manifestation of God. The asuri shakti inside you wants to get out of the place as early as possible.

There is a mantra in Atharva Veda:

नैनं रक्षांसि न पिशाचाः सहन्ते देवानामोजः प्रथमजं ह्येतत्

It is the rakshasas and pishachas who cannot tolerate the presence of God.

So you pay money – even bribe – to get out of the temple as early as possible. You go around boasting also:

'I have got contacts there. They take me in directly. I come out in five minutes. The ordeal is over in five minutes.'

I mean, what is this? Why are you even going there, if you can't recognize and enjoy the divine presence?

Here Uttanka replies with another great point:

यश्चाधर्मेण वै ब्रूयात् यश्चाधर्मेण पृच्छति
तयोरन्तरः प्रैति विद्वेषं चाधिगच्छति

If the intention of the guru is to take advantage of the shishya...

Someone wanted to take deeksha of a particular mantra. I said, 'Why don’t you give to this institution? They are famous for initiation into this mantra.'

He said, 'I went. They said, you first serve here for 10 years, then we will give you the mantra.'

Probably this seeker was not aware of this principle:

सेवामनिच्छन्तं गुरुमर्थेन तोषयेत्

If the Guru doesn’t want your service, make him happy with money.

He should have asked them, 'How much?'

What how much?

'If I don’t want to do service and still get deeksha, then how much?'

They would have given him that option.

This kind of guru and shishya – where the guru wants to take advantage of the shishya... and the shishya – the shishya has heard that the guru is coming out with version 2.0 of his successful sadhana program. Shishya wants to steal it and launch it in his own brand name. This is what the shishya is coming for.

This kind of shishya...

Uttanka says:

They will only become enemies of each other, because the intention of neither the guru nor the shishya is pure.

The relationship between Veda and Uttanka, as guru and shishya, had no such kalanka. That's why they had preeti towards each other.

Ramaswamy Sastry and Vighnesh Ghanapaathi