The Potency Of Tradition
This is one of the reasons that religious tradition is very, very important. Modern existential thought tells us that we can do anything we want to; we don’t have to follow tradition. Out of such a belief comes a great sense of loneliness, a schism between the individual and all his ancestors, all the generations that preceded him on this planet. Out of such a belief comes the breaking up of culture, society, religion and families.
Tradition allows you to go through life’s experiences in a controlled way, rather than just throwing yourself into life and upon life without forethought and preparation. When you respect tradition, you call upon the collective wisdom of tens of thousands of years of experience. When you follow tradition, you share the solutions of untold problems, solved once perhaps before recorded history began in order that future generations might avoid them. Tradition is wisdom of the past inherited by the men and women in the present.
Our religion has a vast tradition, and not everyone can or does follow the entirety of it. There is the greatest freedom within Hinduism. You can choose to not follow tradition, but tradition is there to be followed when you choose to do so. Of course, we can take the path of trial and error, testing every single precept before adopting any. That is a tedious path which leads slowly to the eventual goal. By depending on our Gods, on our forefathers, on our religious ancestors, we move more swiftly along the spiritual path. In the early stages we tend toward untraditional ways. That is natural. Experience later shows us another way, and we begin to become traditionalists. This maturation comes to all souls over a series of births as they learn to perfect the intricate patterns of Hindu culture and religion.
There are certain traditions that can be broken up, that are lost and forgotten, covered over by the sands of time because they are traditions that men put in motion. Some traditions set in motion by people to solve certain problems at certain times have no relationship to our circumstances and in our times.
The Hindu tradition is initiated and administrated from the inner worlds, from the Devaloka. The Deities are the source of most tradition. They ordain the proper way to chant and the mantras to be used. They establish the language, the music, the dance, the systems of worship. Following the Hindu traditions better and better over the years attunes your mind to the great, positive mind flow of over one billion people on our planet.
Ours are the world’s most ancient traditions. They are the most profound, based on an esoteric understanding of man and his purpose in life. Tradition guides experiences in life. It is a protective mind structure. Any experience that you have to go through is gently guided by this great mind structure. The old ways are world patterns that have come down through thousands upon thousands of years, which you have, in previous lives, lived through and known.