Dharma Shiksha - Class 19

Jai Jinendra everyone!

Welcome to the recap of yet another super inspiring and fun Dharma Shiksha class. We started this class with the Alochana Sutra (Icchakaren Path) and its meaning. We were only able to take up the first few lines and we're listing them with their meaning below.

Alochana Sutra (Icchakaren Path)

Meaning~

Icchakaren Sandisah Bhagwam:

This means - Oh Guru Maharaj ji, please give me your consent...

Iriyawahiyam Padikkmaami:

To do pratikraman (alochana) of every action of mine committed while sitting, standing or walking that may have led to violence (himsa) in any form.

Iccham Icchami Padikkmiun:

I wish with all my heart that walking on the path showed by you is always my topmost priority.

So basically, this sutra is all about seeking forgiveness for unintentional harm caused by us to living beings around us. Now the question arises, how can we conduct ourselves in such a manner that any form of himsa caused by us is minimized?

The simple answer to that is - "YATNA."

What is Yatna?

In simple terms, yatna means living mindfully and carefully with the goal of protecting ourselves from collecting bad karma.

It involves doing each and every task with utmost care and compassion so that no living being (no matter how big or tiny) is unnecessarily harmed.

You must have noticed our sadhus and sadhvis wear mukhpattis all the time. Have you ever wondered why?

Well, they wear it so that they do not unintentionally harm tiny airborne organisms with their breath!

Isn't that one of the greatest forms of yatna?

Now we know you probably can't follow their example and wear mukhpattis for life. But what you CAN do is try to practice yatna (self-control and mindfulness) in little everyday tasks.

For instance, you can start by talking with yatna. Don't speak too loudly as that might disturb others. Don't use harsh words that may hurt other people.

Likewise, you can practice mindfulness or yatna while walking, sitting, standing, sleeping, cleaning and even while picking up or putting back objects.

If we perform these everyday tasks carelessly, we might be hurting a few or maybe even infinite number of living organisms.

Some examples of Yatna:

🪶 While Walking

Walk carefully so you don’t accidentally step on ants, snails, or other tiny beings on the ground.

🧹 While Cleaning

When wiping a table or sweeping the floor, check if any small insects are there and gently move them away first.

🍽️ While Eating

Take only as much food as you can finish — wasting food means not respecting the effort and life that went into making it.

💧 While Drinking/Using Water

Before drinking, look carefully to make sure there are no tiny insects in your glass. Also, avoid unnecessary wastage of water. Turn off the tap while brushing your teeth, and take short showers instead of long ones. Remember — every drop counts!

🗣️ While Talking

Speak softly and kindly. If your words can make someone smile, that’s also yatna!

🎨 While Playing or Crafting

Use paper, colours, and water carefully — don’t waste them, and clean up gently so you don’t harm anything living around you.

🌱 While Being in Nature

Water plants without breaking their leaves. Observe insects and flowers with love — don’t pluck or hurt them.

Now let us understand the concept of yatna even better with an interesting story!

STORY TIME

Once upon a time, there was a boy named Ramit.

Now Ramit was a super naughty boy — the kind who’d rather chase butterflies than do his homework!

Every evening, when Mom asked, “Ramit, did you finish your homework?”

He would grin and say, “Of course, Mom!” — even though he hadn't even touched his notebook!

One day, Ramit’s teacher asked everyone to submit their notebooks. When she opened Ramit’s notebook, her eyes grew wide.

“Ramit!” she said, “You haven’t done even half of your work!”

And to make things worse, there was a test that day. When the teacher asked Ramit a question, he scratched his head and said, “Umm… can I phone a friend?”

The teacher frowned.

“No, young man. You can go stand in the playground — all day!”

At first, Ramit was thrilled.

“Yay! No test, no homework, just fun in the playground!” he thought to himself.

But after a while, the fun ran out.

He started getting bored, kicked some pebbles, dragged his feet on the mud… Soon, a tiny pit formed on the ground where his feet dragged.

This excited Ramit and he started scraping the ground again and again until the pit grew deeper.

Then Ramit got another naughty idea.

“Hmmm, the teacher won’t even know if I sit down!” he whispered. So, he sat cross-legged, picked up a twig, and started digging further. He even started plucking the grass around him.

Just then, he heard his teacher's voice...

“Ramit! Why are you sitting and plucking grass? I thought I told you to stand,” she scolded.

“Sorry, ma’am,” Ramit mumbled and stood up immediately.

But the moment she left… he sat again and continued his little pit project.

Soon, it was recess.

Ramit’s friends came running with his lunchbox. When he opened it, he groaned loudly.

“Ugh! Healthy food again! Why can’t Mom pack junk food like pizza or chips? She knows I like that better!”

He gobbled half his lunch and threw the rest into the pit.

Within minutes, ants came marching in — one, two, three… a whole army! But Ramit didn’t even notice. His eyes had found something new — a water bottle lying nearby.

“Ooh! I can play bottle flip!” he said excitedly.

But since the bottle was full, he decided to pour out half the water — right into the pit! He didn’t even notice the poor ants swimming for their lives below.

He flipped the bottle. Once. Twice.

“Woohoo! I did it!”

But soon… he got bored again. Then came his next big idea.

“What if I fill the pit with water and jump in? SPLASH! That’ll be fun!”

So he poured more water and jumped — SPLASH! SPLISH! SPLOSH!

Just then, the teacher came marching again - and this time, she looked super mad!

“RAMIT!"

She marched over and pulled his ear gently but firmly.

“You naughty boy! You’ve killed so many tiny creatures — the ants, the insects! They feel pain too, you know!”

Ramit crossed his arms.

“No, they don’t!” he argued.

The teacher plucked two strands of his hair — and Ramit screamed - "OUCH!"

"See?” the teacher said. “When you plucked the grass, it hurt the grass too.”

Then she raised her hand as if to pull another strand, and Ramit quickly stepped back, scared.

“Just like you’re afraid I’ll hurt you,” she said softly, “the insects and grass around you were scared too when you hurt them. Every living thing feels fear and pain."

The teacher then wrote a note in his diary and said, “Show this to your mother. And remember — kindness counts.”

At home, Ramit showed the note to his mom.

But instead of feeling sorry for his actions, he said angrily, “The teacher is too strict, Mom!”

However, his mom knew him too well, so she asked him to narrate what had happened.

Ramit told her everything, and after hearing the whole story, his mom sighed.

“Oh dear, Ramit. Looks like you were wrong this whole time.”

She thought for a moment and said, "Maybe you should meet Guru Maharaj ji. Maybe he can make you understand what’s right and what's wrong.”

So off they went to sthanak. Luckily at that moment, Maharaj ji was telling everyone about four kinds of people:

1. Those who follow dharma but aren’t good citizens.

2. Those who don’t follow dharma, but are good citizens.

3. Those who follow dharma and are good citizens.

4. And those who do neither!

Ramit listened and wondered, “Hmm… which one am I? In school, nobody seems to like me. At home, Mom’s always upset with me. Maybe I’m in the last group!”

Just then Maharaj ji asked the crowd, “What do you think doing dharma means?”

People shouted different answers —

“Doing pooja!”

“Reciting mantras!”

“Doing samayik!”

But Maharaj ji smiled and said,

“No. True dharma is mindfulness — it means doing everything with yatna.”

Then Maharaj ji recited a BEAUTIFUL shloka --

This shloka means - we should walk mindfully, we should sit and stand up mindfully, we should eat mindfully and we should talk mindfully. If we do all these things, we won't be attracting any bad karmas!

Now walking mindfully means, we should always see 6 feet in front of us while taking steps to make sure no tiny living beings get crushed under our feet.

Sitting and standing mindfully means making sure our actions don't harm other creatures. Like if you're throwing away something, make sure it is in a place where no living beings would be harmed.

Eating mindfully means eating only to satisfy our hunger. It also includes keeping our portion sizes in check and consuming foods that are healthy and good for our bodies.

Talking mindfully means always speaking the truth and never saying anything that might hurt the sentiments of others.

Any person who lives by these rules is following true "yatna" and is walking on the path showed by our great Tirthankars!

When Ramit heard these words of wisdom from Guru Maharaj ji, he thought of the little ants, the grass, the pit… and how he had hurt so many little "jeevs" without even noticing. For the first time, Ramit felt truly sorry.

That day, something changed inside him. He decided to be careful, to be kind, and to never let his naughtiness harm anyone again — not even the tiniest ant.

And yes… he even started finishing his homework on time - no more complaints from mom or teacher!