The two great enemies
Man has two enemies, one being " ahamkara" and the other " mamakara".
Ahamkara causes one to say " I" , " I" while Mamakara gives rise to the feeling of " mine". Whenever some object is perceived , then the feeling, " this is mine ", is due to Mamakara. Likewise, when one does something, the feeling, " I did this", is due to Ahamkara.
There is an incident related to this where his holiness Sri bharathi teertha mahaswami explains.
When swami was once touring in Andhrapradesh, he graced a kshetra. That place, though sacred , had not attracted many pilgrims because it lacked conveniences for the public. One adhikari ( officer) took up the job of rectifying this. He made a lot of arrangements, after which people started visiting the place in large numbers. When acharyal went there, the adhikari kept pointing to things, boasting to swami that everything was his handiwork. Swami remained silent for a while. On coming to the main entrance of the temple, however, he stopped. He looked at the gopuram and asked the adhikari " do you behold this gopuram?"
Adhikari : Yes, I do.
Mahaswami : How high is it?
Adhikari : Very high.
Mahaswami : where are we when compared to it?
Adhikari : On a very low level.
Mahaswami : Do you know why such Gopurams are built? It is to make us realize how insignificant we are so that we can get rid of our Ahamkara. When we think of Ishwara, the creator of this wonderful universe, and look at ourselves, we will realize that what we can achieve is insignificant compared to His magnificent deeds. Therefore, it is meaningless to hold on to ideas such as " I did this".
( from teachings of bharathi teertha mahaswamigal)
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