Today, our perception has become so limited that we pay attention only to ourselves and our loved ones, and hardly spare a thought for other fellow creatures. God has created every part of nature for a particular purpose, and they all play a part in our lives. So, we must never ignore nature. A holistic spiritual life is intricately woven with nature. In fact, the three paths which lead us to self-realisation help us to correspond with nature — Jnana Yoga (the path of knowledge) teaches us how to understand nature, Bhakthi Yoga (the path of devotion) instructs us about how to revere nature while Karma Yoga (the path of divine action) tells us how to express this understanding.
There are five basic elements which comprise all parts of nature — earth, water, fire, air and ether — and when we were in our mother’s womb, the same elements wove our body around the soul. That is why it is very important to make sure that we balance them within us as and in the environment around. There are certain spiritual techniques that all of us can use to do this.
Earth: Mother earth is the home for all beings. Every morning, we must pray — “Oh mother, I lead my entire life on you, by sitting, sleeping and even treading you. Please bless me to take my first step on you today and bless me to live on your surface another day, filled with peace, contentment and joy.” When we begin our day this way, we are completely in tune with the earth element.
Ether and air: This technique is a part of Jnana Yoga. Immediately after we wake up in the morning, we must open all the doors and windows to allow a free flow of air (vayu) and ether (akasha) in the house. Fresh air removes all the residues of carbon di oxide that we have exhaled during the night. By and large, the carbon di oxide that we breathe out when we sleep has to go out of the house within half an hour. Otherwise, our lungs and skin are adversely affected.
Water: This is part of Bhakti Yoga. Before we brush our teeth in the morning, we must take a little water in the right hand and sprinkle it over our head saying — “This is the water of the holy river Ganga. May it wash away all my impurities.” This will bring the Ganga water through all the taps. You may disagree here and say that the water flowing through the taps is not really from the river Ganga. When we invoke Ganga in the water in our homes with complete devotion, her vibrations immediately purify us and transform the water flowing through the taps into Ganga herself.
Fire: Only humans have the ability to light a fire and keep it under control. As soon as we are up in the morning, we must have a bath and light the oil lamps in the shrine room (pooja room). When we light the stove for the first time each morning, we must the lord of fire by chanting — “Om Namo Agni Devaya Namaha.” A few decades ago, all the cooking was done using firewood in India. They would worship the wood stove using sacred turmeric and vermillion powder before they lit it. Sacred symbols (rangoli) would be drawn on the ground in front of the stove to invoke divine forces. When we pray before lighting the stove, the fire is completely sathvic (pure) and the food that is cooked on it is pure sathva. Invoking agni like this is a part of Karma Yoga.
When we follow these methods, we will constantly be aware of the five elements and will be able to lead a happy life with no troubles.
(This article has been taken from His Holiness Shri Shri Nimishananda Guruji’s website www.shrinimishamba.org)