In the Shiva Sutras, Shiva gives us techniques to achieve this innocence. If you follow Shiva’s life as is described in the Hindu mythological stories, you will not be able to see any social or traditional innocence in him. But there will be the pure and ultimate innocence. The place where he lives or the way in which he lives is not directly related to his purity or innocence. Shiva lives in a cemetery where bodies are cremated, surrounded by spirits and ghosts. The word Shiva in Sanskrit means causeless auspiciousness. This causeless auspiciousness, the energy to create bliss wherever he is, wherever he happens, arises out of his innocent inner space.

In the Vedic tradition, there are scriptural writings called Upanishads. The word Upanishad in Sanskrit refers to teachings of a master to his disciples as they sat with him. There are 108 such Upanishads. They are the essence of the enlightenment science handed down by the great masters of the Vedic times.

One of these, the Chandogya Upanishad describes a beautiful story:

A boy by name Satyakama goes to a master seeking enlightenment. The master gives him four hundred cows telling him, ‘Take these cows. Go live in the forest and look after them. When these multiply into a thousand cows bring them back to me.’

Satyakama goes to the forest and lives with the cows, waiting for them to multiply. It takes many years for the cows to multiply to one thousand.

For all those years he sits not talking to anybody, just being with the cows. Soon, he forgets the human language. In deep silence, not relating with any human being, he slowly loses his outer world identity. By the time one thousand cows happen, he forgets how to count. He simply sits waiting, with a beautiful feeling of ecstasy.

Finally a cow comes to him and says, ‘Sir, we have become one thousand now. We can go back to master.’

He replies, ‘Is that so? Alright.’

Satyakama is in ecstasy. He has forgotten the way back. The cows lead the way.

On the way back, animals, birds and even the fire that he kindles to cook his food instruct him on the nature of the Brahman, the ultimate Truth.

When Satyakama returns to the master, the master looks at him and smiles. He says, ‘You look so radiant like the knower of the Truth, Satyakama. Who taught you?’

Satyakama tells him how he had understood the Truth through animals and birds and requests the master to teach him the Truth in his own words.

The master says, ‘You already know the Truth,’ and blesses him.

The story says that just by being, just by listening to what nature has to say, Satyakama established himself in the Truth. He became enlightened. Total innocence leads to enlightenment. Satyakama asks the master for enlightenment and the master asks him to multiply cows! Many of you will ask, what do cows have to do with enlightenment

All your suffering is because of logic without intelligence

Fortunately Satyakama was not so intellectual. Fortunately he did not receive formal intellectual education. So he did not ask this question! He was simple, innocent and humble, ready for the transformation to happen. He had no logic to use. Understand, unless you are without logic, or tired of logic, you cannot be ready for the transformation. Logic cannot help you understand even your own life. Logic cannot help you look even into your own mind. How can it help you change?

If you place the decisions that you make in the morning and the decisions that you make in the evening together in front of you, you will see a politician sitting inside you!

People ask me, ‘Swamiji, why are you against logic?’

I am not against logic. I am only telling you that all your suffering is because of logic without intelligence. Your logic creates so much politics inside you from morning till evening. What is politics? It is nothing but differing opinions on the same subject, is it not? Now watch your mind. It says one thing in the morning and a different thing in the evening on the same subject. This creates the dilemma in your mind. Your mind itself is such dilemma.

People say that in all spiritual organizations there is so much politics. I ask them, ‘What do you mean?’ There is politics inside the very persons who make this statement! To create politics, you don’t even need two people. One person is more than enough. One single person with logic is enough because in the morning his logic will say something and in the evening it will say something else! Naturally the fight between you and you is politics! Am I right? Then why are you making the statement that even spiritual organizations have politics? If you place the decisions that you make in the morning and the decisions that you make in the evening together in front of you, you will see a politician sitting inside you!

Logic does not allow you to be simple and innocent. It does not allow the transformation to happen easily. Logic has to be overcome for the transformation to happen. Only when there is no logic there can be innocence. Innocence is the space for transformation to happen.

Intellect always questions. Innocence straightaway starts practicing what the master says.

In the case of Satyakama, fortunately he was not bitten by logic. The disciple goes to the master for enlightenment and the master tells him, ‘Alright, take these cows, go to the forest and stay there till they become one thousand cows. Then come back!’ If today’s seeker was in that disciple’s place he would have said, ‘I think the master is trying to exploit me. He wants a thousand cows, which is why he is telling me to do this work. He is using me to get his work done.’ Innocence is lost to logic! That is why no modern day seeker receives such amazing techniques.

Understand, this is not a mere story. It has got a great truth behind it. With innocence, Satyakama simply followed what the master said. Further, he lost his logic of counting. He was completely lost in ecstasy and joy. The mind stopped functioning. He didn’t care about one thousand or two thousand. Just the innocence and acceptance caused the greatest happening of enlightenment in him! When you completely accept, you don’t need the mind. The mind is necessary only when you live with struggles, only when you are fighting.

source: Living Enlightenment