Sadhana, to Unclutch from Depression

Whenever you are caught up with depression, unclutching or separation from being absorbed into suffering or from that depression, is called as feeling connection or bhakti . This has to be practiced with a conviction that does not pull you down. Please do not disconnect yourself from this bhakti and sadhana (spiritual practice). Let it become a survival need within you rather than a choice. One of the biggest mistakes made by my devotees is that they keep thinking – why do I need to practice it, Nithyananda is in my heart. But if you do not do sadhana, the bhakti you have towards me will be destroyed because it is only by sadhana that the bhakti is strengthened and grows. In the absence of regular sadhana, the layers and layers of suffering increases until suddenly one day you are completely disconnected and not able to relate with me at all. Even the strong remembrance of me will not be able to put you into the joy and ecstasy of bhakti. It will make you think that you lost your spiritual strength thus you end up succumbing into your suffering and falling into depression.

Everyday, hundreds of people lose the ability to unclutch from suffering, nor are they able to retain the bhakti just because they did not do their sadhana regularly. Bhagwan Sri Krishna (Incarnation worshiped as a Hindu God now) reiterates this in the Bhagavad Gita (Hindu religious book with universal significance) that you should be the friend of your Self through continuous practice, if not your own Self will be the enemy. Practice the presence of God continuously to unclutch from suffering and the other things that pull you down.

It is very unfortunate that you enjoy the suffering because it gives the feeling that you can always put the blame on somebody else. However when that same suffering is repeated again and again until it becomes a pattern in you, your life is destroyed. Gaudapada, a great spiritual master who was Adi Shankara’s paramaguru, another great spiritual Master from ancient India, beautifully describes the power of continuous sadhana when he said that just as the ocean can be emptied with the help of the tip of the blade which can hold just a drop, so also can the control of the mind be brought about by the absence of depression. Hence it is very much possible. Do NOT stop your practice of unclutching from suffering. Do NOT let anything disturb your bhakti because a broken spiritual practice signifies that you are allowing your mental patterns to pull you down.  By practice anything is possible.  You can even empty the ocean with a kusha grass with continuous effort for years. Same way, why not conquer the mind by the absence of depression? It is possible. And sadhana is the way.

Taken from Nithyananda’s  Daily Morning Discourse on 23th September, 2012 in Thiruvannamalai Ashram, India