Four Directions, One Yoga: Humility, Friendship and the Search for Sita
In the morning satsanga of October 13, 2026, Swami Jyotirmayananda taught how a devotee's anger becomes righteous indignation, why devotion deepens humility, and read the army sent out in four directions in search of Sita as the four yogas of one integral sadhana.
The satsanga opened with invocations and the meditation verse on Lord Rama, the Lord of the Raghu dynasty, whose complexion is like a blue lotus, tender and delightful in appearance, with Sita seated at His left side and a powerful bow and arrow in His hands. After the Hare Rama mantra, Swamiji read a poem of unveiling. O Ocean God, do not veil yourself by the illusion of howling waves; reveal your boundless depth. O Sun God, do not veil the adorable orb with the illusion of myriad rays; reveal your glorious light. O Divine Mother, do not veil yourself with the illusion of multiplicity; reveal your infinite beauty. O absolute Self, do not veil yourself with illusory names and forms; reveal yourself as Satchidananda. Thou art myself, I am thyself. Aham Brahmasmi, I am Brahman.
When Anger Becomes Righteous Indignation
Swamiji drew a simple, profound message from the episode. When things create certain expectations and those expectations are not fulfilled, "Then immediately, anger develops in your mind." The mind decides it will fulfill its wish by force. In that state there is no real evaluation of the situation; one no longer sees it as it is.
But when a person has developed devotion to God, as Sugriva has in his friendship with Rama, that same force turns into righteous indignation. What is good for one's friend is never forgotten. Here, Swamiji said, the importance and the spiritual power of friendship are highlighted.
Rama, for His part, has not turned away from the word He gave to Sugriva, that He is his friend. He will not turn away from it, no matter how great the challenges are.
The Devotee Who Does Not Count His Deeds
Swamiji then offered several insights into Sugriva. All that Sugriva had been doing was good and righteous, in harmony with Rama's mission. Yet when he was rebuked, he did not defend himself by pointing to what he had already done. That, Swamiji explained, is the devotee's way.
No matter how much one has done, "Never develop egoism." The more devotion grows, the more one turns away from the ego personality. The greater one's insight into the soul's involvement with mundane work, the more one becomes detached from the world, and "The more humility enters." If anyone praises the devotee, the devotee shows humility and says, in effect, do not praise me.
The more you succeed, Swamiji taught, the greater becomes your awareness of the negative qualities of your worldly personality. This does not mean the devotee is truly the worst of people. It is an expression of graciousness. God gives blessing, and the devotee cries out to God, "Who can be worse than me?" Thereby he is recognizing and glorifying God. The deeper that humility, the greater the power of devotion and the miracle of grace.
The Army in Four Directions
Turning to the reading, Swamiji gave a mystic insight into the search for Sita. The monkey and bear army represents spiritual strength. "Monkey is conscious mind," he explained, and the bear is the subconscious. That army is sent out in four directions, and each direction is a yoga.
East is karma yoga. One begins the day with invocation and with prayers to the gods and goddesses, and in that spirit one's actions become karma yoga.
West is raja yoga. The mind is dedicated to archana, worship, and to purifying the unconscious. For that there are worship and yoga exercises, which remove the impurities gathered from the environment.
North is bhakti yoga. Its leader is Shatabali, whose name Swamiji read as the recitation of a hundred names of God. This is devotion that is unshakable.
South is jnana yoga, led by Angada and Hanuman. Angada represents vishwas, trust, and Hanuman represents shraddha, faith: two types of spiritual strength. "Boundless the strength of trust and faith." They are assisted by Jambavan, Nala, Nila and others. That is why, Swamiji said, the southern direction has become so important.
Integral Yoga
By these four aspects comes integral yoga. Action, will, emotion and reason, which before were involved in the personality without being yoga, now all become blessed by God's grace. The soul, Sri Rama, destroys ignorance. Once integral yoga enters, the whole personality becomes a channel of yoga, and "yoga leads you to union with God." It removes all troubles, and the craving for worldly enjoyment falls away.
These, Swamiji said, are very subtle insights: the higher Self creating an army of four aspects, jnana, dhyana, bhakti and karma. The more you integrate the four, the further you go. "If you progress in any particular yoga, the other automatically join it." You cannot progress without having them all together. The body cannot move unless the legs, the trunk and the head work together. Though the movement looks like the work of the legs alone, all are acting in harmony.
The satsanga closed with a prayer for the grace of God to shower over all, and the peace chant for the welfare and well-being of every being.
Terms in This Satsanga
- satsanga — the company of truth; the gathering in which these teachings are given.
- archana — worship; in this reading, the work of the western direction, raja yoga.
- vishwas — trust; represented by Angada.
- shraddha — faith; represented by Hanuman.
- integral yoga — karma, raja, bhakti and jnana yoga advancing together, as the four directions of one search.
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