In plain words
Human Life Is Not for Artha and Kāma
The puruṣārthas are four: Dharma, artha, kāma and Mokṣa. Of these, the first is Dharma and the last is Mokṣa. People today forget these two and crane their necks only for artha and kāma, which lie in between. So man's life today is an existence with neither “head nor tail”. What is life? We think life has come just for food, drink and the like. No, no. Life is most precious and sacred. Life has come so as to make manifest our eternally true principle of the Ātma. Man has taken on a body so that he may cross over, not so that he may wed the world. We must live an ideal life.
The Difference between Ānanda and Santōṣa
Today we long for Ānanda. What kind of Ānanda? Is it temporary? If it is temporary, it is not called “Ānanda”. What comes when we gain lasting joy is Ānanda. What comes when we gain a passing joy is santōṣa. That is exactly why we call it “sam(some)-tōṣam”. Sam means ‘a little’. Mistaking such a passing thing for something lasting, we sink ourselves in it. This is the very fault in us. Ānanda means Bliss; santōṣa means Happiness. Between these two there is a great difference. Happiness gives satisfaction only for the moment. Here is an example: you are hungry. If you go to the canteen and eat two chapātīs, you gain satisfaction and santōṣa. But how long does this santōṣa last? It lasts only two hours. After that, hunger begins again. So to desire such passing santōṣa is not the goal of human life. We must desire the lasting Saccidānanda.
The Principle Made of the Three Guṇas
Sat, Cit and Ānanda: these three are not separate. Here is an example: fire has three qualities; one, red colour; the second, brightness; the third, the power to burn. Yet these three are not separate. These three are joined in the one thing. In the same way, the three guṇas, sattva, rajas and tamas, lie within man. They show themselves in three kinds of situation. But these three are in the one person. What does that mean? When eternity is shown forth, “Sat” shows itself; when fullness is shown forth, “Cit” shows itself. The union of these two is “Ānanda”. When you mix sweet sugar into water that has no taste, what you get is not sugar, not water: you get a sweet drink. In the same way, when Sat and Cit, the two, come together, Ānanda arises. That is why man is full of Ānanda and thirsts for Ānanda. Whatever work he does, he longs for Ānanda. But this Ānanda is not easily had. Only when man recognises his own true nature does Ānanda come.
Light the Flame within You
The inner meaning of this Dīpāvali is this: moment by moment man is sinking into the ‘darkness’ of grief. When you enter darkness, you must light a flame. You must always light the flame that is in you. Wherever you go, that flame within you will itself show you the way.