The Trinity of Self-Development: Upavas, Upasana, and Anusthan

With the arrival of the month of Sawan, Hindu culture has a tradition of practicing Upavas, Upasana, and Anusthan. Through this article, an attempt is made to understand the relevance of Upavas, Upasana, and Anusthan in today's context. This article is inspired by the book "Upasana, Samarpan Yoga" written by Pandit Shriram Sharma.

Upavas

It is not merely the renunciation of food; it is a means to purify the mind, speech, and conduct. When we control our senses, our thoughts and emotions also become disciplined. Through it, the energy that usually goes into digestion can be redirected to remove mental indigestion and correct distorted thoughts. This infuses the personality with *sattva* (purity and harmony), and we turn toward higher life goals.

Upasana

Just as physical cleanliness is necessary for physical health, inner purification is equally important in human life. When we include Upasana in our daily routine, the process of inner cleanliness continues without interruption. It is the practice through which a person purifies his/her thoughts, feelings, and behavior to feel closer to higher goals. It's also the practice of inner concentration, faith, and surrender.

Anushthan

It means planned, systematic activities done at specific times for achieving particular purposes. These can be any activities that a person or group does in a special way, with discipline, at specific times for physical, psychological, social, or behavioral development and improvement.

How Upavas and Upasana Work Together

Upavas and Upasana help integrate sense control, time management, financial discipline, and mental restraint into our lives. As Upavas and Upasana become regular habits, our willpower grows stronger and becomes an integral part of our nature. Just like when we press a key on a keyboard, that letter appears on the screen - similarly, our mind's thoughts and feelings show up in our actions.

We all know that a new bull, horse, or monkey is trained through force, fear, and proper methods to perform tasks effectively. Similarly, we sometimes need to use the same discipline and systematic approaches to control our minds and channel them toward productive work. Upavas and Upasana are part of this process. Gradually, when the habit is formed, controlling the mind and engaging in spiritual practice or higher level of activities becomes possible. Adding a fixed time and place to this routine makes controlling the mind even easier. Upavas and Upasana help our body, thoughts, and emotions move toward coolness and purity. This also helps in purifying our thinking, feelings, and speech, and we keep moving toward higher life purposes.

Moving to Anusthan

After Upavas and Upasana become regular, the next step is Anusthan. Just as an athlete trains in a camp after regular practice to elevate their level, soldiers conduct war drills periodically beyond daily exercises, and employees, despite learning something new through daily work, undergo specialized training to enhance their efficiency. Similarly, if we want to give more strength to our self-development and move forward, we should perform Anusthan at regular intervals.

If we view Upavas, Upasana, and Anusthan in this context, we will realize that they are not merely religious traditions—they are a scientific process for purifying our body, mind, and emotions. How scientific the process is! Just as inputted data in a computer becomes output, the thoughts and emotions stored in our minds manifest in our behavior and actions. By adopting this, we can not only achieve new heights of self-development but also make life more meaningful.

The Importance of Purpose

Both a labourer and a wrestler do physical work. One gets tired while the other's body develops. The difference is simple - one does it out of compulsion while the other does it for physical development.

Just as wrestlers gain strength, athletes gain agility, and soldiers gain alertness through regular practice and training, which helps them advance to the next level, Upavas, Upasana, and Anusthan help an ordinary person become more physically and mentally robust, agile, and fit. Therefore, having a higher purpose for Upavas, Upasana, and Anusthan is equally important. If the purpose is only to fulfill desires, it's like being a labourer. But if done for self-improvement, self-development is certain.

Creating the Right Environment

The right environment during Upavas, Upasana, and Anusthan is very important. We must maintain a clean, peaceful, and pure atmosphere during Upavas, Upasana, and Anusthan. Our mind is like a grasshopper - just as a grasshopper's body turns green in green grass and brown in dry grass, similarly, in a good environment, our mind awakens positive thoughts, while in a negative environment, it activates lower-level thinking.

The Transformation Process

We can say that Upavas, Upasana, and Anusthan are processes of self-development through which our thinking and emotions are refined and properly organized. As our thinking and emotions become more refined, we begin to feel more peaceful, cool, and pure. This way, Upavas, Upasana, and Anusthan not only help us increase our inner strength but also help us raise the level of our aspirations.

Practical Applications in Daily Life

In everyday life, as we keep adopting materialistic perspectives, the feeling of exploitation becomes stronger, and our self-control and good qualities gradually decline. Upavas, Upasana, and Anusthan help us move toward cooperation and thus develop our self-control and good qualities. Maintaining continuity in Upavas, Upasana, and Anusthan is also equally important. Upavas, Upasana, and Anusthan can take various forms. For example, reading good literature daily, or selfless social service, can also be a form of Upavas, Upasana, and Anusthan if its purpose is self-development, the cultivation of wisdom, and the upliftment of society.

Conclusion

Just as ploughing, sowing, and weeding at the right time and in the right environment make crops flourish, similarly, Upavas, Upasana, and Anusthan at the right time and in the right environment make human life flourish.

Let us all together explore and identify our methods of Upavas, Upasana, and Anusthan —whether it is daily prayers, meditation, service, or study. What matters most is that we make it an integral part of our lives.

The key is to start small, be consistent, and gradually build these practices into your daily routine. Remember, the goal is inner transformation and developing a stronger, more disciplined mind that naturally gravitates toward higher purposes in life.