JDW - Satsangh Talk- "Devotion for God"

Dear All,

A satsangh talk on " devotion for God" is coming up on coming Saturday, Oman time 7 AM, India time 8.30 AM

This is a milestone session by itself

Kindly attend online

Love

Nothing happens without the will of God

 Dear All 

An important satsangh talk on “ nothing happens without  God’s will 

A must watch talk by any sincere bhakta 

Love 

Vivekachudamani-Post 73

The questions which you raised today are excellent , accepted by those  well versed in the sastras , aphoristic, full of hidden meaning and such  that they are fit to be known by all seekers.(67) 

When the student asked his questions (as stated in verse - 49), the Teacher, instead of replying directly and immediately, indulged in a long and exhaustive discourse upon the futility of mere discussion if it were not accompanied by an all out enthusiastic  effort at straightening oneself from one's inner deformities. 

This was no idle digression on the part of the Teacher but it expressed  his deep concern that his disciple should not misunderstand and  misuse the freedom given to him to ask questions to get his doubts  cleared. There are always in society, a set of wise looking foolish  disciples who misuse the freedom given to them and abuse the  privilege of discussing with their Teacher. 

The most important thing for a student to know is to give point-blank question. And that is what the student has done here; sutra sutraprayaḥ; the shortest number of words the question is presented; then it means the thinking is very clear. Therefore your question is like that. Sutra prayaḥ; then niguḍharthaḥ; it is very significant and that is why each question requires long answers. 

The question is raised in one verse; and that is the 49th verse; and the answer is given from verse No.50 to the end of   this treatise. That means it is not a question; it requires one line answer, but it requires elaboration. 

So they are pregnant questions; significant questions; pithy questions; and therefore niguḍharthaḥ; very significant and not only that; jnatavyah cha; mumukshubhi. The answers are relevant not only for you; but the answers are relevant to all the seekers, which can be dealt with in public. 

In this verse, the Master once again, compliments the student  on the intelligence of his questions and the beauty and precision  that graces the very form in which they are framed. The glories  that are enumerated here by the Guru are the perfections that come  about, when a chiselled thought is packed in appropriate language  and offered at the feet of true wisdom. 

When a true disciple reaches  his Master's feet, he feels so choked with admiration, reverence,  devotion and love for him that he dares not disturb the divine  atmosphere of tranquillity around the Teacher with thoughtless  blabbering and empty talk. 

A fit student has got his ideas crystallised and after logical  self-analysis, has come across certain insurmountable obstacles  for the removal of which he has approached the Teacher. Since  the doubt was really felt and thoroughly digested by him, the  student could present it in the fewest number of words, indicating  at once the logic of his thought. 

If on a dark night you fall into a wayside well, indeed, your  condition is unenviable. You are extremely anxious to extricate  yourself from the situation. At this moment, you hear approaching  footsteps and you cry out for help. 

Save me, O! please save me. Help me, save me, save me.' Any  other cry will be unnatural. Similarly, when a student who has  understood that in the darkness of ignorance he has fallen into a  dry well of limitations and sorrows, when he sees the Master, he  will have no stories to tell, no idle discussion to indulge in. His  one heart-rending cry is 'Save me, O Master! save me'. 

Sankara, through his compliments to the disciple, is advising  generations of seekers not to be too wordy when they approach a  Master. This does not take away from us our liberty to talk to the  Master in our attempt to evaluate him. 

Sankara only means that  having accepted him as your Teacher, when you approach him for  correct initiation into the subtle truths of Vedanta, you should not  destroy the sanctity of the atmosphere by an exhibition of your  knowledge or sentiments. 

The questions asked by the student were all couched in a  precise aphoristic style, indicative of his independent attempts  at understanding the preliminary thoughts in the philosophy.  These questions pregnant with secret thoughts, are not obvious  in their literal word meanings. 

 These topics are of interest only to those who wish to get  away from their limitations, to experience the essential freedom of their own pure nature as the Self.

Love

Yoga sutra1-2

 Dear All ,

This talk is on the yoga sutra chapter 1- verse 2 

The verse n its translation can be seen in the above thumbnail 

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Siva Rahasya - Part 1

 Dear All

Talks on one of the ancient and most sacred treatise - Siva Rahasya , is being shared part by part 

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Patanjali Yoga Sutra- chapter 1 sutra 23

 Dear All,

Description of yoga sutras in fewer words and this verse is given in the description in the YouTube shared with you all.

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Vivekachudamani- post 72

Therefore, an intelligent seeker should , as in the case of illness and  so on , strive hard by all the means at his disposal to be free from the  bondage of births and deaths. (66)

The ideas in the preceding ten verses are now being concluded with  this eleventh sloka. Naturally the term 'therefore' with which this verse opens, is a sequel to all the reasons shown and explained in  the previous verses. 

In verse 56, Sankara started this discussion. All through, he has emphasized that self-effort is essential and said that, compared to it, mere sastras studies and the capacity to discourse upon them were not sufficient. 

Because of these reasons, it can be logically understood that each seeker must, for himself, strive with all sincerity and regularity in the right direction, so that he may come to realize in himself the eternal godhood of his spiritual nature. 

The simile used in this verse  is very significant. Like a sick patient, we are to consider ourselves as infected with the microbes of ignorance. 

Health is the real nature of all living beings. Illness is the unnatural condition of the body, when it has, for reasons known or unknown, fallen away from its essential health. 

Therefore, health is not to be created, but all our efforts should be to remove the causes that created the disease. A body rid of its disease germs comes to manifest full health and vigour. 

Similarly, ignorance creates in us all the maladjustments through which spiritual dynamism, divine glory and supreme perfection are veiled from us. 

In the case of disease medicine cannot be consumed by even the nearest or dearest ones; it has to be consumed by the sick person alone; in the same way, guru cannot help; sastram cannot help, even Bhagawan cannot help. They can all support you; but you must do, you alone have to do.

In one corner and samsara also will remain. There will be a peculiar co-existence of scriptural study and samsara. Even though they should not co-exist, they will co-exist because we have not put forth any effort to assimilate it. And therefore, he says: sarvaprayatnena; with all your sincerity, wholeheartedness, yatnah kartavyo; effort must be put forth. Wholeheartedly means I should give quality time; 

Sankara emphasizes svena eva; by oneself alone; for what purposes? Bhava banda vimuktaye; for freedom from the bondage of samsara, which expresses in the form of sorrow; which expresses in the form of anxiety; insecurity; fear; anger, depression.

Even intellectual problems. Intellectual problem is the basic question: why am I born? Why should the Lord create the universe? If the Lord is Omniscient and Omnipotent; why can't he create a wonderful universe? 

All the above questions can afflict a person; that is intellectual bondage.  All put together is called bhava bandaḥ. And vimuktih means removal. So, for this removal of bhava banda, effort should be put forth by oneself alone.

The teacher through the student is giving a general advice to all the seekers or all the people. Tasmat. Therefore, therefore means even though moksha is your very nature you need not get it from outside, but still the nature you have to own up; this requires your initiative

Love

Vivekachudamani-Post 71

 

Verse 65 continued....

Brahmavidopadesa; the first stage is bramavidya upadesah. So a trustworthy guru has to convince me through his teaching that he is in Me; security is in Me, he has to convince; this process is called bramavidya upadesaḥ; otherwise called śravaṇam. On the part of the teacher it is upadesah; on the part of the student, it is śravaṇam.

And after receiving the teaching from the teacher, and what is the next stage, mananam; I should touch my heart and ask, am I convinced that I am free here and now; and mind will never say Yes; it will come up with so many excuses.

I should understand that atma, anatmanayoho itareshaḥ adyasaha is the problem; and thus,  each knot, I have to unwind. 

Then finally dhyanadhibihi; dhyanam means nidhidhyasanam; nidhidhyasanam is not thinking process; the difference between mananam and nidhidhyasanam; in mananam, logical thinking is involved; rationalization is involved; in nidhidhyasanam; there is no rationalization. No thinking is involved. Then what? It is seeing the fact or remaining in the fact for a length of time.

In other words, in the spiritual treasure hunt, the endeavor of digging is  made with the pickaxe of thought and the spade of discrimination.  

With these, we remove the earth - the attachments with the body, mind and intellect, which are the effects of the ignorance of the  Self. Avidya creates in us various misunderstandings and it is these agitations of the mind and negative thought veilings of the  intellect that conceal the Treasure Divine, the Self. These can be removed by reflection and meditation. 

Faithful to his arguments, honest in his convictions and obedient to his experiences, Acarya Sankara cries out that this is  the only path for complete and permanent Liberation from the  chaotic confusions created by our ignorance of the underlying  divinity in ourselves. 

Naturally, he points out the hollowness of all other methods and the immaturity of all other techniques which  are, according to him, putrefied logic, soured reason, distorted  vision and false assertion compared with the perfect philosophy  and detailed practicality of Vedanta.

Love

Post - Patanjali Yoga Sutra- Verse 1-26

Dear All,

A satsangh talk on chapter 1, verse 26, Yoga sutra is sharted 

The verse goes like this 

स पूर्वेषामपि गुरुः कालेनानवच्छेदात् ॥ १.२६॥

sa pūrveṣāmapi guruḥ kālenānavacchedāt 

He is the Teacher of even the ancient teachers, being to limited by time.

 

Love

Vivekachudamani- Post 70

A treasure hidden deep below under the earth can be found only when the exact site is known, excavations carried out and the earth, stones and so  on, hiding it are removed; never can it come out if merely called by name. 

Similarly , the pure truth of the Self which lies hidden beneath our delusion  and its effects can be attained through the instructions of one who is a knower  of Brahman, followed by reflection, meditation and so on. But never can the  Self emerge and manifest itself as a result of repeating perverted arguments. (65)

In the course of the last several verses, Sankara has been trying  to bring home to us the utter necessity and urgency for self effort  undertaken in the right direction. 

That no amount of study and  philosophical dialectics can take one, even by a fraction of an  inch, nearer to the divine experience which is life's fulfillment,  has already been elaborately discussed. 

The same idea has been  brought out here which, we may consider, is the summary of a  library of books on spiritual literature. 

In order to explain this idea, Sankara paints the picture of  one digging for a treasure. One may wonder how the treasure  hunter's activities can be a theme by which spiritual technique can  be explained but a poet always sees much more meaning in a factual  happening than an ordinary matter-of-fact observer does. 

Sankara  says, three stages are required to own up the richness. Three stages are required to own up the richness; the wealth; the first stage is somebody must come and tell that the treasure is underneath; and he should give enough proof and enough data to convince me that there is treasure. 

Otherwise initially I will say you are bluffing; you are pacifying; how can there be treasure what is the source; I will ask umpteen questions; so the first stage is somebody should inform that there is a treasure and not only inform, convince also; this is called aptoktih; or apta vachanam; statement of a reliable person; a trust worthy person.

And what is next stage required? Now I know that there is treasure. So, I need not beg from anyone; I need not work to get money; it is already mine; and what is required; I have to acquire it; therefore what is the second stage; khananam; khananam means what digging; to remove all the earth which is covering the treasure. 

So, the earth is the obstacle, and therefore the earth has to be removed. So previously lack of information or ignorance was the obstacle; now the ignorance- obstacle is gone; because I know there is treasure; but the obstacle is now what? mud is there; therefore, I should go on removing the mud and after removing the mud, the job is called khananaṁ.

Then there is a third stage involved; what is that? When the actual treasure comes; for further protection lot of rocks are placed; protect it; and therefore final stage is removal of the rock covering the treasure; siladi utkarshanam; sila means rock; which are solid; previous obstacle was mud; which can be removed; relatively easily but later pratibandas are solid rock; 

once you remove the rocks also; then the wealth is in your hands; all the ornaments and diamonds jewels you can put on yourselves; all the money you can use for buying food and you can eat sumptuously.

So what are the three stages; removal of the ignorance regarding the treasure, removal of the mud and removal of rock??

Continued...

Love

From the prison of Humiliation to total freedom

 Dear Reader, 

If you have ever suffered insult / humiliation for no fault of yours , if you have complained to God ever as to why such things should happen to you , then , this talk is a must for you to listen and experience total freedom !!!!

Love

Vivekachudamani-Post 69

Without eliminating his enemies and without bringing the entire land of his kingdom under his sway, by merely repeating I am the emperor ', one cannot become an emperor. (64)

Even God is transferring the self-knowledge to us only by one method; what is that; the upaṇiṣadic words. And therefore remember, words are extremely important; but what Sankara says is words are important as a means but words are not ends in themselves. 

Therefore do not hang on to words; do not hang on to books which are only containers of words; and what should you do? Give sufficient importance to the words as a means but do not give it more importance than that. From the words you have to come to what; from the śabda, the sādhanām, you will have to come to the artha, which is the sādhyam.

But generally what happens? in the case of seekers is: there are two extremes. One extreme is a person says knowledge is important, words are not important; so they do not study the śāstra itself. This is one extreme. Those who claim knowledge is important, words are not going to give liberation; therefore I would not go a guru; I would not study scriptures, etc. and I would do meditation; this is one idiot.

So without words coming from the guru; if the means is not there; how can a person get the knowledge? Therefore one extreme is what; those people who reject the words totally.

And there is another extreme group; those who hang on the words and words and words, study the upaṇiṣads by heart; bhāṣyams by heart; there are people who tudy the sub-commentaries byheart; all that is not necessary; but they hang on to the words and continue to be a samsāri; that means what; another extreme hanging on to words.

Who is the right person? The one who does not totally reject the scriptures and the one who does not hang on to the words of the scriptures, but the one who uses the word, grasps the meaning and drops the words.

In this verse, the Acharya is throwing a flood of light on the previous declaration. By an apt example, he is trying to make us understand that by mere verbal repetition nothing will be accomplished. A fool who, without annihilating his enemies and without bringing with his own might and power, all the provinces under his sway, just repeats that he is the emperor, can never become one for all his loud claims. 

Certain necessary conditions must be fulfilled before he can hope to gain the scepter and the crown and be recognized as the emperor. An emperor has no enemies within his own empire and everyone living in his empire is directly under his will and command. If these conditions are accomplished, he need not even announce or declare that he is the emperor, the world will do it for him. 

Similarly, if a seeker has successfully destroyed all his inner enemies of desires and thoughts, physical demands, mental appetites and intellectual wanderings and if he has established mastery over the vast province of the  waking, dream and deep sleep states of consciousness, he need not thereafter repeat 'I am Brahman'. For every cell in him, every  thought and every idea that rises in him will sing in chorus his sovereignty overall, always and in all conditions. 

The idea that man's self-effort in the right direction alone can make him rediscover for himself the spiritual essence in him to be  divine and all-powerful, is vividly brought out by the following exquisite verse, pregnant with suggestion, rich in melody, perfect  in flow and rhythm. 

Love

Vivekachudamani-Post 68

Without achieving the disappearance of the entire pluralistic world and without realizing the real nature of the Self how can one achieve full Liberation by a mere repetition of the word, 'Brahman'? Surely, it will end only in a wasteful effort of speech. (63)

The conditions preceding the full state of Liberation are  explained here. In the white heat of intense meditation, when  the mental rays of the individual have been made single  pointed and turned completely inwards to recognise the  Self within, the world of perceptions gets eliminated in the  experience; just as the world of the dream naturally rolls away  from the waker's comprehension. 

We perceive the pluralistic world from the levels of the body, the plains of the mind and the peaks of the intellect. With the body, we recognize the waking state world of names and forms; with the mind we perceive the world of feelings and emotions and with the intellect 

we recognize and experience our world of ideas which has no declared boundary.  

Let us get deeper into the initial line of today’s verse- “Without achieving the disappearance of the entire pluralistic world”

The appearance and disappearance of pluralistic world is analyzed with reference to “dream state” in almost all Advaita treatise.

A verse from panchadasi says, “This world of duality is like a magical creation, with its cause incomprehensible. What matters it to the wise man who does not forget this, if the past actions produce their results in him?”

As a daily practice one ought to recall to the mind the dream one has experienced and analyze the dream.  Questioning the reality of the objects experienced there in dream one arrives at their unreal nature.  

This questioning involves considering how the dream objects and events appeared ‘so real’ but only vanished, ended, when the waking occurred.  They were ‘as real’ as the waking objects and events; their reality was never questioned, doubted, then.  Yet, upon waking, they all ended.    

Now, let us connect the two lines of the verse –“ Without achieving the disappearance of the entire pluralistic world and without realizing the real nature of the Self how can one achieve full Liberation……”

Let us see what Sri Ramana has to say on these lines exactly, which is a revelation itself from the Maharishi

Bhagavan said, “It is said that Brahman is real, and world an illusion; again it is said that the whole universe is an image of Brahman. The question arises: how are these two statements to be reconciled? 

In the sadhana stage, you have got to say that the world is an illusion. There is no other way, because when a man forgets that he is the Brahman, who is real, permanent and omnipresent, and deludes himself into thinking that he is a body in the universe which is filled with bodies that are transitory, and labors under that delusion, you have got to remind him that the world is unreal and a delusion. 

Why? 

Because his vision which has forgotten its own Self, is dwelling in the external material universe and will not turn inward to introspection unless you impress on him that all this external, material universe is unreal. 

So long as a man does not see his own Self which is the origin of all, but looks only at the external world as real and permanent, you have to tell him that all this external universe is an illusion. 

However, When once he realizes his own Self, and also that there is nothing other than his own Self, he will come to look upon the whole universe as Brahman.  There is no universe without his Self.” 

Regarding the wastefulness of merely repeating “Brahman” in speech/ talks, we have already dealt with the same in the previous 2 verses and hence, we wont get into detail of the same.

Love

Sathya Sai explains “ Amar Prem “

 Dear all, 

A beautiful incident shared by an ardent devotee, Geeta Mohan Ram where, Swami explains what is "Amara Prema" when a discussion on an old movie titled "Amar Pram" comes and up and the discussion itself is very interesting!!!

Love

A talk on Connecting with SAI

Dear All,

A talk on connecting with SAI every moment is brought to you on this new year day.

Love

Vivekachudamani-Post 67

A disease is not cured by merely repeating the name of the medicine and without taking it. Without direct Realization, by a mere utterance of the word, 'Brahman', none can be liberated.(62) 

Jnana is the knowledge learned by applying the mind, senses, and intellect. In contrast, vijnana (wisdom) is the knowledge gained through spiritual practice, it is a direct experiential realization; and should not be misunderstood for intellectual knowledge. An example to explain this is honey kept in a sealed jar. We have heard that honey has the sweetest taste that is incomparable to any other sweet. But unless we open the jar and taste it, we will not get the experiential realization of its sweetness.

Likewise, the Guru gives us jnana, which is the theoretical knowledge of the scriptures. Yet, we need to practice sadhana as per the acquired jnana, which would consequently purify our mind. Only then, vinjana (wisdom) knowledge, through self-realization will be attained.

Swami chinmayananda writes:-

How and why mere chanting of a mantra is by itself, considered impotent is explained here. Any person suffering from ignorance cannot expect to be cured by merely repeating the word 'Brahman',  the name of the absolute Reality. Repeated utterances of 'aham brahmasmi' or a mechanical murmuring of endless 'sivoham' cannot by themselves produce any cure. However effective the  medicine may be, no patient is known to have been cured only by repeatedly reading a prescription. 

By merely repeating for hours the word 'aspirin', when one  is suffering from headache, one can only increase it. The only cure is to take the medicine and assimilate it till it becomes one with  the patient. By this alone can he get complete relief. 

Similarly, a mere repetition of the sacred Truth of Vedanta  is futile without the struggle to raise ourselves to the subtler joys  of a higher culture and a divine way of living, by individually  assimilating the Truth of the Upanisads and becoming one with it by  intimate personal experience. Subjective Realization, most intimate  and immediate, total and permanent, is called 'aparoksa anubhava'  of the Self. No doubt, this must be preceded by an intellectual understanding of the Truth called in Sanskrit 'paroksa jnanam'. 

Paramahamsa Yogananda wrote:-

“Knowledge of the scriptures is beneficial only when it stimulates a desire for practical realization; otherwise, theoretical knowledge gives one a false conviction of wisdom. Unrealized knowledge of scriptures may thus become a detriment to the practical realization of spiritual truths. 

But when theoretical scriptural knowledge is continuously converted into inner perceptions of wisdom, that knowledge is a source of redemption. Many pundits and learned professors—for all their mental acumen— daily demonstrate by their uncontrolled lives their failure to put philosophy to any practical use. 

A man without scriptural knowledge or inner realization is sadly ignorant. A person with a theoretical knowledge of scriptures but without Self-realization is like a man who eats much food but cannot digest it. 

The man with divine realization, even if lacking scriptural knowledge, has attained God and is a worthy example to society. A man possessing both scriptural knowledge and Self-realization has not only attained God but is an admirable teacher for imparting God-consciousness to others. 

Right study of the scriptures (svadhyaya) leads to emancipation. A true devotee does not suffer with mental indigestion as does one who gorges himself on scriptural lore without understanding its meaning and without assimilating it into his life. Theoretical study is helpful when it inspires a devotee to practice the holy teachings. Wisdom thoughts are faithful guides and protectors when they become one's constant companions. 

Most intellectualists thus become bound by their own conclusions. Seek knowledge from a true guru. Decide upon the best and quickest method of meditation as taught by the great saints and God-realized gurus of India, and then meditate deeper and deeper every day, praying to God with a burning heart, "Reveal Thyself!"”

Intellectual appreciation is the way to reach Truth and a full subjective apprehension of the Self is the goal. Liberation from our delusions can come only when they have ended in pure Knowledge.  Darkness can end only in the presence of light.

When Sri Ramana was asked, what all scriptures one must read in order to progress towards self realization, Maharishi asked the devotee, “How many mirrors you need for your shaving”?. The devotee said, only one.

Maharishi said, you may study few treatise for gaining intellectual knowledge of what Brahman is. Thereafter, you must engage in meditation to ultimately realize SELF.

From own experience, author can share that he had read only few treatise- Vivekachudamani,  part of Yoga vasishta, Ribhu Gita and may be one or two  Upanishads and then went on to meditate on the essence of all these treatise continuously, day and night, for the next 2-3 months before God graced him with the subjective experience of SELF.

Love