Sri Sathya Sai Baba

                                          Sathyam Jnanam Anantam Brahma.

(Truth, Wisdom and Eternity is God.)

Truth is jnana. What does jnana mean?

Adwaitha Darshanam Jnanam.

(The perception of Non-Duality is Jnana.)

It is not two. It is One. That only is Truth. Its meaning is: such a Truth will be gained through jnana. This jnana means: that which is infinite is jnana. 

The jnana that is read, this or that much, through books, is not jnana. Jnana is an infinite form. It has no beginning or end. That which teaches such an infinite nature of jnana is Truth. 

Hence, Truth is not what we experience physically, speak, or the inner meanings of words. The essence of the Vedas is Truth. The birthplace of the infinite Vedas is Truth. So the very form of the Vedas is Truth. 

Whatever meanings are taught regarding Truth is jnana. That jnana only is Truth. So if inquiry is continued in this way, there is so much inner meaning in Truth. Hence, if we give up Truth there would be no world. 

From ancient times numerous great sages, ones who achieved austerity, renunciates and yogis spent life by taking refuge in Truth spent their life with happiness. 

All prosperity, wealth and all sense pleasures are contained in Truth. Therefore, Truth doesn’t mean conversing worldly meanings. 

For such a Truth not only in the present day, from ancient times, in order to search for Truth sacred sages gave up all wealth and comforts, went to the forest, undertook austerity, and recognized the true form of Truth. 

( Extract from Divine Discourse - Oct 2002)

Essence of Vedanta - Part 25

Dear All,

We continue with the learning on the God / the state post God realization, as JNANAM.

Two kinds of knowledge exist -  conditioned and unconditioned knowledge. Conditioned knowledge is the knowledge about the objects in the world, which keep on changing from time to time.

Ganges water-filled in different bottles. The knowledge of water in different bottle are conditioned by the different shapes of the bottle but the essential ganges does not have a shape. 

Similarly, though the knowledge of objects vary, depending upon the changes in the objects but  THE KNOWLEDGE PER SAY, IS ABSOLUTE. 

The SELF is the light, the knowledge, which illumines itself and illumines various objects in the world, in various states of consciousness. 

Another example - sunlight - which blesses the entire world with its light, not discriminating between the qualities of different objects and rationing its light accordingly. 

Prajnana, Sujnana, Vijnana, Jnana



Prof. Anil kumar narrating his conversation with Swami in a book on Prajnanam Brahma.

  

Anil kumar : - This is also a Mahavakya (a Divine Axiom). It is not difficult to remember. I want all of you to keep this statement in mind and reflect upon it. It is a beautiful statement. 

I don’t need to learn a complicated language at this age and complicate my life, no. I can manage with my language. I can manage with my ideas. I can make God understand and get replies to questions I have. So, I don’t need to know Sanskrit except for certain statements, which are very simple and easy to remember, like ‘Prajnanam Brahma’. 



“Ah, Swami, please explain this Mahavakya, this great statement, a very profound statement, ‘Prajnanam Brahma’. What does it mean, Swami?” 



He asked, “How do you understand it?” 

He wanted me to explain in order to expose me to everybody. (Laughter) Very well, I take delight in this. Why not? If I am a source of entertainment for God and my students, what more could I want? (Laughter) If in my answering, everybody laughs at my expense, then very good! I want every evening to be like that, yes! At least I am not a killjoy. 

In fact, I am entertainment for God. God laughs and the boys laugh. Why not? If laughter is the remedy, seriousness is the sickness. Bliss is God; misery is the world. So, why can’t we laugh? 



Then Bhagavan said, “Tell me what you understand about ‘Prajnanam Brahma’.”
 





I said, “Swami, ‘Knowledge is God’. Prajnanam means ‘knowledge’ and Brahma is God. So it means, ‘Knowledge is God’.” 



Swami said in His usual way, “You are completely wrong!” (Laughter) 



Very good! I was not shocked, as I am always wrong. But I congratulated myself because my wrong answers provoked Him to speak further along these subject lines. Yes! So I always hope to give the wrong answers. Why not? All right, let Him say what He wants to. 



Bhagavan explained, “There are four forms of knowledge. First is Jnana, second is Vijnana, third is Sujnana and fourth is Prajnana.”

“Oh I see. I didn’t know there were four types of knowledge.” 



Swami began to explain, “First, Jnana, what is Jnana? All information, all knowledge, all worldly information is Jnana. Everyone has this. Material knowledge, secular knowledge, education, humanities, science, technology -- that is all Jnana.” 

“Second, Vijnana. Vijnana is the knowledge based on investigation, cause and effect, experimentation, observation and inference. So, Vijnana is science and technology. 

The third one is Sujnana. What is Sujnana? Sujnana is spiritual knowledge.” 

“The fourth one is Prajnana. What is Prajnana? Prajnana is your very being. Prajnana is your very Self. Prajnana is awareness. Prajnana is ‘Constant Integrated Awareness’. That Supreme Self, knowledge of the Self, awareness of the Self, the very core of your life, the very being of your life, that is called Prajnana. That Prajnanam Brahma, that Prajnana is Divine. That’s the reason why Vedanta says, ‘You are the Children of Immortality. You are the Children of Eternity. You are the embodiments of Divine Atma.”




Continued.......

Swami Krishnananda

Do you aspire for God Realization?

(A talk by Swami Krishnanada)

Do you aspire for God realization? What is your aim? Do you aspire for God realization? Do you want to enter into the bosom of the creator of the cosmos? What is it that you are thinking? What are you keeping in your mind? Suppose the Absolute calls you, saying, "Come on, I want you." Will you go? 

The Absolute calls every atom of the universe. This is what you call evolution, as scientists would say. Every atom is moving in some direction. This is the evolutionary process. It is a call from the almighty supreme that the world has refused.

We are restless; nobody has peace of mind. This restlessness is caused by the finitude of the personality. You feel limited. You are limited physically, intellectually, emotionally, socially, politically, and finally your span of life is also limited. So there is nothing unlimited in this world.

But there is a longing from inside to break this limitation, to break the limitation of space and time itself. You do not like to be confined to a little space. You would like to conquer the whole of space. You want to go to the sun and the moon and the stars and beyond even the limits of space itself. 

What you really want is to have the longest duration of existence, endless permission to live, together with the greatest of intelligence, not like a tree or a stone or a pig. And the greatest of intelligence implies the highest power also. 

The greater the knowledge, the greater the power. So omniscience, omnipotence and omnipresence is what you want. Here is the essence of the whole matter. 

Now, briefly, they say this is God. One word. It is impossible to describe what it means. It is a word connoting something which is indescribable and yet impossible to avoid. You are searching for that. In that you will never be cut off by the time process and you will not be limited to a little space. 

There will be all space and all time and all knowledge. This is attributed to what people generally call the Supreme Absolute. 

What do you call this condition? At all times everywhere everything. Can you contain this thought? If you can contain this you are a super-person, you are not a human being. And you will not be a human being after all. You are something different. The whole world will be reflected in you. 

The power of the universe is vibrating through every cell of our bodies. But through egoism, self-assertiveness, pride, foolishness, idiocy—whatever you call it—we repel the entry of the cosmic force into us. We have closed the windows of our house, and therefore the breeze of the cosmos does not enter. 

We're an organism. So there is some sense in people saying, "God only is." Many people say, "God only is; nothing else is." What does this mean actually? This whole universe is animated by one consciousness in which you are also included because you are not outside the universe. What exists finally? Neither I, nor you, nor anybody. But everybody still is. 

Millions of cells are operating in this body and many cells put together make one human being. But when I say, "Who is coming?" you don't say, "Many bundles of cells are coming." You don't say that. So likewise the multitudes of the universe, the trees and mountains and rivers, the sun, moon, stars, galaxies, whatever you can think of, are only part and parcel of the limbs of this cosmic organism which is animated by a supreme intelligence. 

That alone is, that's all. And nothing else can be, because everything is a part of the universal process. You cannot stand outside the cosmos. And that whole cosmic intelligence includes your intelligence, and your destiny is in its hands. And the more you love it, the more blessed you are. Here is the whole of religion, all philosophy, all bhakti [devotion], all yoga, or whatever you call it. Without using words like that, in simple language I told you what the truth of the matter is. 

Your heart will throb by hearing all this. 

God bless you.

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Author's note

(Dear Readers, It was an herculean task for the author to reduce this talk, to remove many paragraph to bring the talk to the above , which itself may seem longer for few.

In Kaliyuga, in between 1900 to 2010, Swami Krishnananda is one of the VERY FEW saints who has not compromised in his writing/ works, who has not come down to the level of a normal human being. He roars from the sky, beckoning a sincere aspirant to fly and reach him, rather than coming down to the level of a jiva and trying to pull him to the level of sky. Salutations to this Saint who attained Self realization under the feet of Swami Sivananda of Hrishikesh)

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