PERSEVERE IN SADHANA

                                 Persevere in Sadhana 

Let the sadhana (spiritual practice) always be regular, continuous, unbroken and earnest. Not only regularity but also continuity in sadhana and meditation are necessary if you want to attain self­-realisation quickly.

A spiritual stream, once set going, does not dry up unless the channel-­bed gets blocked, unless there is stagnation. Be vigilant eternally. Meditate regularly. Annihilate the under­current of vasana (habit­-patterns).
Patience, perseverance, courage, determination, discrimination and dispassion are needed to tread the spiritual path. Put away thoughts, stimuli, perceptions, intentions, emotions, feelings, preoccupations and deliberations arising out of the senses and the sense objects.

You will attain supreme blessedness or the peace of the eternal. Keep the flame of thy aspiration ever kindled bright. Let purity, serenity, compassion, truth and oneness, manifest in thy thoughts and actions. Through penance, prayer and meditation the soul ascends on the divine chariot to the realms of infinite bliss, to God's halls of wisdom.

Regularity is of paramount importance in spiritual practice. Spiritual aspirants must be arduous and efficient in performing their tasks without a break. Pray without a break. Have unshakeable faith.
Remember vairagya (dispassion) and abhyasa (constant practice). Prayer is the wing by which you fly to God. Meditation or intuition is the eye by which you see God. Pray fervently unto the Lord. Pray for the Lord's light and guidance.

Meditate on the great truth within. Strive ever to keep thyself close to the divine centre. Day by day draw nearer unto the Lord. Strive inwardly to grow into the likeness of the divine ideal.

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WHAT IS VEDANTA

                                       What is Vedanta 

Om. Vedanta is that bold philosophy which teaches the unity of life or oneness of consciousness. It is that supreme philosophy which boldly proclaims, with emphasis and force, that this little jiva (human being) is identical with the eternal or Absolute. It is that sublime philosophy which elevates the mind at once to magnanimous heights of Brahmanhood, divine splendour and glory, which makes a man absolutely fearless, which destroys all barriers that separate man from man and which brings concord, unruffled peace and harmony to suffering humanity. It is the only philosophy that can really unite (on the basis of one common Self in all) a Hindu and a Mohammedan, a Catholic and a Protestant, an Irishman and an Englishman, a Jain and a Parsee, in a common platform and in the core of their own hearts also. It is the only philosophy that, when properly understood and practised, can put a definite stop to world wars and all sorts of dissensions, splits and skirmishes that exist in nations and communities.

Vedanta is a magnetic healing balm for the wounded and the afflicted in the dreadful battlefield of this dire samsara (phenomenal existence). Vedanta is the divine collyrium which removes the cataract of ignorance and gives a new, inner eye of intuition or wisdom. Vedanta is the direct, royal road to the domain of felicity; it is the supreme abode of immortality and eternal bliss. It is a panacea, a 'cure-­all' for those who are being burned by the three fires and the five afflictions of this miserable mundane existence. It is the Himalayan herb that can bring immediate life to a dying man. It lifts a man, at once, to the status of Emperor of emperors, King of kings -­ even though he has nothing to eat; even though he is clad in rags.

Vedanta gives real spiritual strength; it inspires, renovates, vivifies, invigorates and energises. It eradicates ignorance -­ the root cause for human sufferings. It puts a stop to the never ending wheel of birth and death and confers immortality, infinite knowledge and bliss. It gives hope to the hopeless, power to the powerless, vigour to the vigourless and joy to the joyless.

Vedanta is the only universal, eternal religion. Vedanta means 'end of the vedas' or the essence of the teaching of the srutis (scriptures).

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ESSENCE OF VEDANTA

                                     Essence of Vedanta

Vedanta is expressed in the mahavakhyas (great sentences) of the Upanishads as "Tat twam asi" - "Thou art That"; "Aham brahma asmi" - "I am the self". Vedanta says, "O little man! Do not identify yourself with this perishable body. Give up 'I­-ness' and 'mine-­ness'! Do not hate your neighbour or brother. Do not try to exploit him ­ he is your own self. There is a common Self or common consciousness in all. This is the same in a king and a peasant, in an ant and a dog, in a man and a woman, in a cobbler and a scavenger. This is the real immortal entity. Mind is the dividing principle. It tempts and deludes. Kill this mischievous mind. Control the indriyas (senses) which drag you out to the external objects. Fix the mind in the source. Rise above body and mind. Eradicate desires. Learn to discriminate the real from the unreal. Identify yourself with this immortal, non­-dual, self­-existent, self-luminous essence. Behold the one Self in all. See the one in many. All miseries will come to an end."

Vedanta speaks of the one Atman or Brahman or Self who exists in the past, the present and the future, who has no beginning, middle and end, who is the support for everything, who is the embodiment of wisdom, peace and bliss. The seers of the Upanishads have expressed their realisation in glowing terms. They have given out their inner experiences after long research and mighty struggle. All these have been collected in the form of the Upanishads. This constitutes the subject of vedanta philosophy.

Although vedanta is the direct royal road that takes one to the goal, it should not be prescribed for all in a wholesale manner. There are four types of aspirants. They are the karmic (active) type, the bhakti (devotional) type, the mystic type and the rational type. Karma yoga should be prescribed for people of karmic tendencies -­ for the busy and active men who have mala (impurities) in the mind; bhakti yoga for men of devotional temperament - in whom the emotional element predominates; raja yoga for men of mystic temperament; vedanta yoga for men of reason and will -­ for people of intellectual temperament.

Vicara (enquiry, "Who am I?") can only benefit that aspirant who is free from impurity and tossing of the mind, who is endowed with bold understanding, gigantic and tremendous will, sharp, subtle intellect and the four means. It is certainly not meant for all -­ it is meant for the select few only who can really understand and realise the full significance or import of vedanta and reap the fruits.

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GOAL OF VEDANTA

                                         Goal of Vedanta 

The goal or aim of life is self­-realisation which confers immortality, highest bliss, knowledge and supreme peace. Fixing the mind on the source or inner Self and getting it absorbed there is the highest yajna (worship), the highest charity, the highest karma (action), the highest bhakti (devotion), the highest yoga or knowledge. Now the little self-­arrogating 'I' vanishes. Just as the river joins the ocean, the little self becomes one with the ocean of bliss. With the disappearance of the little illusory 'I' comes the disappearance of 'you', 'he', 'this', 'that', time, space and causation, 'mine' and 'thine', the pairs of opposites, the ideas of jiva (soul), Isvara (God), prakrti (nature), etc. The whole world presents itself as Atman. This grand vision this magnanimous samadhi (super-consciousness) is atma-­darsan (vision of the ultimate reality), which is beyond description. Many have attained this vision -­ why not you also? Apply diligently right now in its achievement.

There is something dearer than wealth; there is something dearer than wife or son; there is something dearer than your life itself. That dearer something is thy own Self (Atman), inner ruler (antaryamin), immortal (amrtam). He who dwells in this eye, who is within this eye, whose body this eye is, whom the eye does not know, who rules the eye from within, is thy self, inner ruler, immortal.
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The vedantic method of meditation on the formula 'anomayoham' (I am all­-health) or the enquiry, "Who am I?" is the most efficient, patient and best method for eradication of all disease and ensuring perfect health and a high standard of vigour and vitality. This is the king of all physical cultures. For those aspirants who practise the "Who am I?" enquiry and who are not able to keep up good health by this method alone, I prescribe the practice of asana (posture) and pranayama (yoga breathing).

The aspirant who has got citta suddhi (pure mind) will only be able to hear the still, small voice of the soul or self. If there is no purity he will certainly mistake the voice of the self. He will be misguided ­- he will blink and grope in darkness. The help of a realised guru is indispensably requisite in the beginning for the aspirant who treads the path of jnana yoga.

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ROOT OUT ATTACHMENT

                                    Root Out Attachment 

Atman is Brahman or Absolute or infinite or supreme being. It is existence absolute, knowledge absolute and bliss absolute. It is eternal, perfect, pure, self-luminous. It is self­delight and self­-knowledge. It is bodiless, formless (nirakara) and attributeless (guna-less). It is all­-pervading, all-­full, imperishable. It has neither beginning nor end. It exists in the present, the past and the future. It is svayambhu (self­-existent). It is the source for the body and the mind, prana (life), indriyas (senses), vedas and the universe. No one can deny it because it is the Self of all beings.

Selfishness retards spiritual progress. If anyone can destroy his selfishness, half of his spiritual sadhana (practice) is over. No samadhi or meditation is possible without the eradication of this undesirable, negative quality. Aspirants should direct their whole attention in the beginning towards the removal of this dire malady by protracted, selfless, disinterested service.

Never say 'my body', 'my wife', 'my son', 'my house'. Attachment is the root cause for the miseries and sufferings of this world. Discipline the mind carefully. The old habits will creep in -­ destroy them at the very root. Lead the life of mental non-­attachment. This is the master­key to open the realm of Brahmic bliss. Non-attachment is dispassion or indifference to sensual enjoyments.

It is the mind that creates the ideas of 'I­-ness' and 'mine­-ness'. It is the mind that links the body and the jiva (soul) and creates intense deha adhyasa (body­-consciousness) and the man thinks, "I am the body". If the binding link in the mind is destroyed, you can remain wherever you like -­ you can roam peacefully, in any part of the world, unattached, like water on the lotus leaf. Nothing can bind you. The whole mischief is wrought by the mind.

Introspect. Look within. Try to remove your defects. This is real sadhana (practice) -­ you will have to do it at any cost. Intellectual development is nothing. But the former needs a great deal of struggle for many years as many vicious habits have to be rent asunder.

Keep up the unbroken current of meditation. Avoid mixing. You will soon get over body­consciousness. A little more drastic sadhana is needed for a month ­- unbroken silence. Do not allow inertia or laziness to overpower you.

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MEDITATION IN VEDANTA

                                   Meditation in Vedanta

Preliminary meditation for six months:

1.  On the blue expansive sky, all­-pervading air or ether, or light, or Himalayas, or infinite ocean.

2.  On abstract qualities -­ mercy, patience, generosity, etc.

3.  On abstract ideas -­ indivisibility, existence, wisdom, bliss, truth, eternity, immortality, infinity, purity, etc., will render the mind subtle and sharp and prepare it for deep abstract meditation on Atman.

Just as one thread penetrates all flowers in a garland, so also one Self penetrates all these living beings. Behold the one Self in all. Serve all. Love all. Give up the idea of diversity. You will be established in Brahman. When one Atman dwells in all living beings, then why do you hate others? Why do you use harsh words? Why do you try to rule and dominate others? Why do you exploit others? Why are you intolerant? Is this not the height of folly; is it not sheer ignorance?

Behold the "One in all". Feel, "I am the all", and "I am in all." Feel, "All bodies are mine; the whole world is my body, my sweet home". Feel, "I work in all hands; I eat in all mouths". Feel, "I am the immortal Self in all".
Repeat these formulas mentally several times a day. Repeat Om mentally and feel oneness of life or unity of consciousness when you play football or tennis, when you drink and eat, when you talk and sing, when you sit and walk, when you bathe and dress, when you work in the office or answer the calls of nature. Spiritualise every movement, action, thought, feeling. Transmute them into yoga. Gradually names and forms will vanish and you will feel, "Aham asmi" (I exist). The balance or residue left will be Atman.

A jnani sees Atman everywhere; there is no thought of self; the lower self is entirely annihilated. He lives to serve all. He feels that all is himself only. He has cosmic vision and cosmic feeling. He is free from worry, trouble, difficulties and sorrow. He is always happy and cheerful.

In the formless vedantic meditation of advaitins (non-­dualists) there will be an abstract mental image in the beginning of sadhana (practice). This will vanish eventually. When you meditate, deny names and forms, do neti­-neti (not this, not this).

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BRAHMAN OF VEDANTA

                                     Brahman of Vedanta

Brahman cannot be approached by argument. He is unknowable. He is without any limiting adjunct. He is the source of the world, vedas, body, mind and prana (life).

Brahman is the only abode of eternal peace and purity. He is the instrumental and material cause for the universe, though He Himself is causeless because He is beginningless and endless. He is one without a second. He is attributeless. He is free from birth and death.

Brahman is absolute, infinite. He is the supreme being. He is the highest self. He has no attachment; He has no connection with anything - He has no connection with bodies, minds, etc.  This is his supreme yoga which ordinary mortals can hardly understand.

Brahman dwells in every heart. He is boundless, unfathomable and immeasurable. There is neither subtle desire nor craving nor sense-hankering in Brahman. He is an embodiment of purity. His name or symbol is Om. He is the silent witness of the activities of the world and the activities of all minds. He is imperishable.

Brahman is absolute consciousness, the indwelling Atman. He is the one great indivisible bliss - satchidananda. He is awake when people sleep at night. He is the passive spectator of this world-show or cosmic bioscope. The aspirant finds full and eternal satisfaction in Brahman. All his desires melt away like mist or snow before the rising sun.

There is something behind life, matter, energy, mind that is the ultimate reality ‑ it is eternal and unchanging. The finite mind cannot solve certain problems of life and the riddle of the universe. On account of egoism we persist in our vain researches and experiments. But our boasted intellect has failed to satisfy our yearnings and equip us with real knowledge that will dispel our ignorance and give us real peace of mind.

We bow our heads before the inner ruler who dwells in the chambers of our hearts, who is the source of matter, life, energy and mind, who is immortal, eternal, bliss absolute, knowledge absolute and existence absolute. May He now give us real enlightenment. May He grant us that highest knowledge of Self through which alone we can get full knowledge of all secular sciences. Our silent salutations to that highest self, the Brahman of the Vedanta.

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GUIDE TO SADHAKAS

                                      Guide to Sadhakas

No complete knowledge is possible as long as there is the relationship of subject and object. When the subject and the object merge into absolute union there are no doubts or questions. When you enter the consciousness of the infinite you will have no problems. You will have no questions to ask, for the questioner and the questioned will be one -­ subject and object will be dissolved.

Only when action is quickened with love and illumined with knowledge, then the pilgrim in the spiritual path finds his destination and end. The one you seek is he who seeks you. The essential craving of the heart is the inner light. He who has faith, he who is tranquil and self-controlled, he who meditates on the Atman attains immortality and eternal bliss.

So, reduce your wants to the utmost minimum. Adapt yourself to circumstances. Never be attached to anything or to anybody. Share what you have with others. Be ever ready to serve. Lose no opportunity ­- serve with atma-bhava (feeling that the Self is all). Speak measured and sweet words. Have a burning thirst for God-realisation. Renounce all your belongings and surrender yourself to God.

Keep your soul strong and fresh and give it spiritual food ­- prayer, japa (repetition of God's name), selfless service, etc. Feed your mind with thoughts of God, your heart with purity, your hands with selfless service. Remain soaked in remembrance of God, with one-pointed mind. Repeat the Lord's name with faith and devotion. Meditate on his form and surrender your heart and soul to him.

Let the thought of God or reality keep away the thought of the world. Forget the feeling that you are so­-and­-so, that you are a male or a female, by vigorous brahma­-cintana (contemplation of God.) Never postpone a thing for tomorrow if it is possible for you to do it today. Do not boast or make a show of your abilities. Be simple and humble. Always be cheerful. Give up worries. Be indifferent to things that do not concern you. Fly away from bad company and discussion. Be alone for a few hours daily.

Control the emotions by discrimination and vairagya (dispassion). Maintain equilibrium of mind always. Give up backbiting and fault­-finding. Find out your own faults and weaknesses. See only good in others. Do good to those that hate you. Shun lust, anger, egoism, moha (delusion) and lobha (greed) like venomous cobras.

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THE RIDDLE OF THE WORLD

                                 The Riddle of the World 

You yourself have made your life complex. You have entangled yourself in this quagmire. You have multiplied your wants and desires. Every day you are forging new links in the chain of bondage. Simplicity has vanished. Luxurious habits are daily developed. People are dying of starvation; there is depression and unrest everywhere. There is devastation by earthquake. The divorce courts are increasing. One nation is afraid of another nation. Life has become a matter of uncertainty. It has become a mass of confusion and bewilderment; it has become stormy and boisterous.

You can escape from these troubles and difficulties if you lead a life of dispassion, self­restraint, purity and selfless service, if you develop cosmic love, if you make a habit of developing the right point of view, right thinking, right feeling, right action, with the right mental attitude and if you practise meditation and devotion.
If you have no sustained vairagya (dispassion) you will find no improvement or progress in spirituality. Vows, energy, austerities and meditation will leak out like water from a cracked pot. You have spent eight hours in sleep and the rest in idle gossiping, telling lies and deceiving others. How can you expect spiritual good or immortality if you do not spend even half an hour in the service of God, in singing his name and in divine contemplation?

Is there pain or pleasure in this world? If there is pleasure, then why do young educated men retire into the forests? If there is pain, why do young men run after wealth, position and women? Mysterious is maya (illusion)! Mysterious is moha (delusion)! Try to understand the riddle of life and the riddle of the universe. Acquire viveka (wisdom). Have satsanga (holy company). Enquire into the nature of the Atman. Study the Yoga Vasishta and the Upanishads. Then you will have a comprehensive understanding of the problems of life. There is not one iota of happiness in this world.
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Real freedom is from birth and death. Real freedom is freedom from the trammels of flesh and mind. Real freedom is freedom from the bonds of karma. Real freedom is freedom from attachment to the body, etc. Real freedom is freedom from desires and from egoism.

Sivananda Ashram, Rishikesh

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BE ONE WITH ALL

                                        Be One With All

Mere intellectual conception of identity or oneness will not serve your purpose. You must actually feel the truth of it through intuition. You must become fully aware of the real self, the basis or substratum or bedrock of this world, body, mind, prana (life) and senses. You must enter into consciousness in which the realisation becomes a part of your every day life. You must live the ideal spiritual life daily. Your neighbours should actually feel that you are an entirely changed being, a superman. They should smell the divine fragrance in you. A full­blown yogi or jnani can never remain incognito. Just as fragrant fumes emanate from scented incense sticks, so also spiritual fragrance emanates from the body.

There is no such thing as inanimate matter. There is life in everything. Life is involved in a piece of stone. All matter is vibrant with life ­ this has been conclusively proved by modern scientists. Smile with the flowers and the green grass. Play with the butterflies, birds and deer. Shake hands with the shrubs, ferns and twigs of trees. Talk to the rainbow, wind, stars and sun. Converse with the running brooks and the waves of the sea. Speak with the walking stick.

Develop friendship with all your neighbours, dogs, cats, cows, human beings, trees, flowers, etc.  Then you will have a wide, perfect, rich, full life. You will realise oneness or the unity of life. This can hardly be described in words ­ you must feel it for yourself.

A strong mind has influence over a weak mind. Mind has influence over the physical body. Mind acts upon matter. Mind brings bondage. Mind gives freedom. Mind is the devil. Mind is your friend. Mind is your guru. You will have to tame the mind. You will have to discipline the mind. This is your important duty.
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There is only one caste ­ the caste of humanity. There is only one religion -­ the religion of love, the religion of vedanta. There is only one dharma - the dharma of truthfulness. There is only one law - the law of cause and effect. There is only one God -­ the omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent Lord. There is only one language ­- the language of the heart; the language of silence.

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KNOW THYSELF NOW

                                      Know Thyself Now

Man is a soul and has a body. Man's true nature is God. You are pure consciousness. Through ignorance you have imposed limitation upon yourself. Reflect and abide in the Absolute or Brahman.

Man's innermost essence is Atman or the divine spirit. Realising the spirit, man achieves security, certainty, perfection, freedom, independence, immortality and bliss eternal. Man and his life become the starting point and the end of philosophy. Man is of the nature of his faith. What his faith is, that verily is what he is.

Physical body and intellect depend on the soul within about which man knows little or nothing. Personality is the sum total of man. A man of good personality has a number of good qualities. He behaves quietly and politely. He has confidence in himself. He has the capacity to win other people's cooperation. He has the capacity to draw others towards himself. Hunger, libido and fame are the fundamental urges in man. Unless man is liberated from the bondage of the mind and matter he cannot have knowledge of the Self and of God.

The head and the heart must be wedded ­ then alone there will be perfection and integration in man. Faith, virtue, piety, dispassion and honesty are the greatest treasures of man.

Every man must arise, purify, meditate, and declare freedom unto himself. Man says, "When this (worldly activity) is over then I will have time to do that (meditate)". But it is never done because something new turns up all the time to distract him. The past cannot be changed. The future is yet in your power. Truth is not outside you, it is within you. It dwells in the cave of your heart.

You are a truth of God, a work of God, a will of God. You are unfettered, free ­ eternally free. Roar Om. Come out of the cage of flesh and roam about freely.
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When the cause of illusion is pulled away by the roots, when knowledge annihilates ignorance (without a possibility of a remnant or reminiscence)  -­ then there is not an ego, a body or world to be experienced. When there is the cloud of ignorance you cannot see God, but you cannot say that there is no God.

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LEARN FROM SLEEP

                                       Learn From Sleep

Study the condition of deep sleep, where there is neither the play of the mind nor the senses. There are no objects; there is neither attraction nor repulsion. Wherefrom do you derive ananda in sleep? This experience is universal; everyone says: "I slept soundly. I knew nothing. I was very happy in sleep." During deep sleep you rest in satchidananda Atman and enjoy the atmic bliss which is independent of objects. The difference between deep sleep and samadhi (super­consciousness) is that in deep sleep there is the veil of ignorance and in samadhi this veil is removed.

From sleep you draw four conclusions:

     You exist. There is a feeling of continuity of consciousness.

     There is advaita (oneness).

     You are ananda svarupa (bliss-­itself).

     The world is mithya (a play of the mind).

Names and forms are illusory. The world is mere play of the mind. When there is mind, there is world. If you can produce destruction of the mind consciously through yoga sadhana (practice), the world will disappear and you will feel the Atman everywhere.

Even in the daytime you become one with the Atman whenever a desire is gratified. When you enjoy an object you become mindless for a short time. You rest in your own Atman and enjoy the atmic bliss. Ignorant persons attribute this happiness to the objects. Just as the dog which sucks a dry bone foolishly imagines that the blood comes from the dry bone - whereas in reality the blood oozes out of its own palate, so also foolish persons imagine that happiness comes from external objects, while they actually derive the happiness from their own Atman within. They are deluded owing to the force of illusion and ignorance.
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Have no longing for objects. Reduce your wants. Cultivate vairagya (dispassion); it thins out the mind.
Do not mix much. Do not talk much. Do not walk much. Do not eat much. Do not sleep much. Control the emotions. Abandon desires and vasanas (tendencies). Control irritability and lust.

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THE ONENESS OF ALL EXISTENCE

                               The Oneness Of All Existence

Realise the totality and all­-inclusiveness of your life. Your being is cosmic. You inhabit all the worlds ­- all the worlds are your spontaneous expression. One's love for friends, sons, etc. is not for the sake of others, but for one's own self. Therefore love for Self is the highest and hence full of supreme happiness. The more you give up your hankerings for objects and try to realise your identity with the true Self or Atman, the more you will realise your true happiness.

The path of evolution is from unconsciousness to life; from life to consciousness; from consciousness to self­-consciousness; and from self­-consciousness to super-consciousness.

Mysticism is the art of union with the reality. A mystic is a person who has attained that union with the reality, or who is aiming for that attainment.

What is this ego; what is this little 'I'? Is it your foot or flesh or hand or blood -­ or any part of your body? Reflect well. You will know that there is no such thing as 'I'. The 'I' will vanish into nothingness. What is left is the pure, infinite Atman. When the ego perishes, the supreme soul reveals itself in all its pristine glory and splendor.

Do not seek to satisfy the ego -­ offer all your life and actions as sacred sacrifice to the supreme divine. You yourself are passing a death sentence on yourself -­ you are creating a hell by your own evil thoughts. It is useless to look up to the skies to find the divine. Turn inwards. In your own heart dwells the eternal.
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COSMIC POWER HOUSE

Individual souls are like electric light bulbs. The bulbs get their light from the power house. The jivas (souls) get their power from Brahman, the infinite cosmic power house. The bulb imagines that it is independent and boasts of its effulgence and power. It has no idea of its source. When the current fails it hangs its head in shame and weeps. Even so, the jiva drags out his egoism. O fool, O dunce, know the source through purity, devotion, tapas, meditation and enjoy supreme peace and eternal bliss.

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ONE - POINTED MIND

                                      One-Pointed Mind

(Siva was very busy attending to the dispatch of free books. He suddenly stopped and looked up.)
From the time I got out of the morning class I have been going on thinking of writing a few poems, but I do not find time. I am doing this work, but my mind is still working on the poems. Even when I was taking my milk, I was busy within sifting the points for the poems. Only when I finish the poems will my mind know rest.

Are you all keeping a note­book to record your thoughts? First of all you should note down in this book all the new points that you learn in the class. Then there are parallel ideas that might strike you; or ideas arising out of those expressed by others in the class. These may be new, novel and unknown to others. These should at once be noted down. Are you keeping such note­books?

Evil should not have time to dwell in your mind. What if someone refuses to give you milk, to give you food? What if some one scolds you? Always repeat: "I am not this body; I am not this mind; I am the eternal immortal satchidananda Atman".

Bear insult and injury. If some one slaps you on your cheeks, you should not even mind it; you should not even be aware of it, so to say. This is very difficult. But this is most important. When the other man is scolding you, your mind should be engaged in vicara. After a while this man will realise: "What is this? I have been scolding him several times; he does not get irritated, he does not retort. There must be something in him, which I should learn." Then he will fall at your feet and apologise. You have conquered.
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That which draws out this hidden consciousness of Atman, is the highest knowledge. The teachings that break your bondage and bestow on you freedom, are the teachings of the ancient rsis (sages) which lay bare the mysteries of the universe. On the dawn of true knowledge, the veil of ignorance is lifted and, with it, all illusory appearance of phenomena is sublated. What is left is only the perceiving self, the negator of all negations ­- which is no other than Brahman, existence, knowledge, bliss absolute.

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PERFECTION

                                Perfection

The essential qualification for a sadhu (man of renunciation) is that he should adapt himself to all conditions and circumstances, causing no inconvenience to others. His is the duty to serve -­ not to worry others. Very few sadhus know what they are and what they should be.

This morning an old sadhu from Swarg Ashram came here. He was there when I was there, too. He is aged 80 now. Today they did not prepare roti here. There was only rice and curry. But, the sadhu would not take. He wanted only roti (bread). It seems rice will produce wind. If you allow him, he will lecture to you for half an hour on the evil effects of rice­-eating. But he will refuse to be reminded that a very large population in India and the world lives on rice alone.

This is all that he has understood of sadhana (spiritual practice) during all these thirty years of sadhu life: "Rice should not be taken; roti alone is good for health and meditation." All their life these people will waste on this one thought of the right food and the wrong food. What is there if one day you do not get your food to your own liking. Even your own wife will not tolerate you for a day if you are so particular about what food you should have.

It is the special duty of a sadhu not to cause any inconvenience to householders. We are not to be a burden on householders, but to be of some service to them. When will the sadhu understand this. Some sadhakas (seekers) here also have that impression that they are living in an asrama and that one consideration ought to be sufficient to open out the gates of Kaivalya (liberation) to them. I assure you: even if they live many hundreds of their lives near the greatest saint in the world, they will not improve even a bit. They must themselves exert. Each one must think for himself, act for himself. There have been some sadhakas here whom I myself trust and put in charge of the affairs of the asrama -­ then I myself used to dread to approach them. If, for instance, I go to them and ask them to prepare a little more of what they give me for my food in order that I may give the extra quantity to someone else, I would be refused. What I do on those occasions is to reduce my own consumption and distribute this to the others.

If a sadhaka gets real samadhi (super-consciousness) in a hundred births, that is a very great achievement. God is perfect; and unless and until all the evil qualities are eradicated and divine qualities acquired to the degree of perfection, there will be no samadhi.

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THE SADHANA THAT HARDENS

                               The Sadhana That Hardens

(A letter was on Siva's table: a great European yogi had written to Siva requesting him to invite him to India. This was needed to obtain a passport.)

What a big show of themselves do these so-called saints make. Flying from this country to that country: everywhere they go, parties, receptions and farewell parties, again. It is not?

Some of them should be received with a unique honour. Instead of flags and festoons adorning the reception entrance, people should hang old shoes and broomsticks.

We should not wait for the thing to happen actually. We should train ourselves. I have done so. I have beaten myself with shoes severely. This I used to do especially on birthdays -­ just after returning to my kutir after the meetings where people will praise me, glorify me, deify me, I will go into my kutir and beat myself nicely with a pair of shoes: "What are you? You wretched flesh-­blood-­excreta made body? Do you want garlands? Can you not wear torn clothes? Do you think that you are great? Do you want to be prostrated to? Now, take these garlands."

Suka Deva was tested by Janaka like this. He was a great jnani. When he went to Janaka for instruction, he was made to wait outside the palace uncared for, without food, without shelter and without any honour. Then he was attended upon by the ladies of the court and the Maharanis. In these ways Janaka tested Suka Deva's tranquility of mind. Suka was above all these things. He had preserved his equanimity all through. Such should be a sadhaka.
I have heard this said of St. Francis of Assisi also. He used to call his body 'Mr. Ass'. What a tremendous vairagya they all had.

Even this occasional shoe­-beating is not enough for me. I should give this body a dose of this hardening-medicine at least once a week.

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WORDS OF WISDOM

                                       Words Of Wisdom

One's individual ego, preconceived notions, pet ideas, prejudices and selfish interests should be given up. All these stand in the way of spiritual progress. Lord's grace begins to work only when you learn to discipline yourself, subordinate your selfishness and surrender fully to Him.

Why dost thou try to find thy God in deities and temples when thou has kept thy visible gods standing outside, hungry and naked? Regarding Him as manifest everywhere thou shouldst serve all creatures with intense bhava if thou wishest to attain the highest perfection. Indeed, thy love towards the Lord should engender love for the whole universe -­ for thou must see Him in all.

Kindle the light of love in thy heart for love is the immediate way to the kingdom of God, the vast domain of perennial peace and joy. Where there is love there is peace. Where there is peace there is love. Life and death are the two scenes in the drama of life. All is passing; all is sorrow; all is pain; all is unreal.

This world is merely a play of colours and sounds. Hence, O man, seek the permanent, the all­-blissful, the real, which is ever­-shining in the chambers of thy heart, which is self-luminous, infinite, unchanging and eternal. Moksa (liberation) means nothing but the destruction of the impurities of the mind. The mind becomes pure when all desires and fears are annihilated. Lead the divine life. Light the lamp of divine life everywhere.

Thy aim should be to maintain an unshakeable sweetness of disposition, to be pure and gentle and to be happy in all circumstances. To be always conscious of the divine, always to feel the divine presence, to live always in the awareness of the supreme being in the chambers of your heart and everywhere around you is verily to live a life of fullness and divine perfection, even whilst on earth.
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This body is a lamp. The heart is the wick. The oil is your love for the Lord. You can build a temple in your heart by the absence of anger, by the practice of humility, compassion, forgiveness, faith, devotion, meditation, prayer and recitation of the Lord's name.

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MAYA

                                     Maya

There is no duality in reality. All modification is illusory; multiplicity is an illusion.
Maya (the illusory power of the Lord) projects multiplicity. Maya creates division ­- division between the individual soul and the supreme soul.

Maya is a tremendous, delusive power of God. Maya is the material stuff of this world. Maya is the source of the physical universe. This world of names and forms is a false show kept up by the jugglery of maya. Just as a stick burning at one end, when waved round quickly, produces an illusion of a circle of fire, so is it with the multiplicity of the world. Maya deludes us. Maya creates havoc in the mind. The things that we perceive all round us are only mind in form or substance. The world is a product of the mind. The whole World is an expansion of the mind. The entire universe arises and exists in the mind. Nothing of the world is outside the mind. Earth, mountains and rivers ­- all are fragments of the mind, appearing as it were, to exist outside. The world does not exist by itself. It is not seen without the aid of the mind. It disappears when the mind ceases to function, as in deep sleep.

It is imagination alone that assumes the forms of time, space and motion. Space and time have no independent status apart from Brahman or the self, which is pure awareness. There is no space without time, and there is no time without space. Space and time go together. Space and time are interdependent. They are both unreal. Time and space are mental projections, as unreal as dreams. However real they may seem to be, they are not ultimately real. Timeless, spaceless Brahman is the only reality.

Brahman alone is. It is Brahman alone that shines as the world of variegated objects, like water differentiated by the waves into many kinds of foam, bubbles, etc. Brahman appears as the world when cognised through the mind and the senses.
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Maya conceals the truth and presents an error ­ it veils the reality and shows the world. Mistaking the body for Atman or the Self is called maya. Maya screens the knowledge of Atman and therefore man mistakes one for the other. This is the cause of bondage ­- we have the erroneous consciousness that we are objective beings, that our actions are objective expressions projected in time and space.

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WORLD IS THE BODY OF GOD

                               World Is The Body Of God

The universe is a mirror in which is reflected the being and beauty of God. God's universe is ruled by his eternal laws. In the East, the law of cause and effect is called the law of karma. In the New Testament it is expressed in the words: "Whatever a man sows, that he will also reap." What is written is written and no man can change the eternal plan. That which is decreed by God's will occurs on this earth. There is system, method, order, regularity everywhere in this universe because the universe is, ultimately governed by God.

This world is the body of the Lord. This world, though it really is not, appears to be. Know that it is nothing but a reflection. When you know the rope, the snake­-knowledge disappears. Even so, the world does not really exist and yet appears to be existing through ignorance. It disappears with the knowledge of the Atman on which the illusion of the world is superimposed. In Brahman or the Absolute, this world shines falsely, owing to ignorance. It is not true, even as dreams under the influence of sleep. It is because of illusory superimposition on the part of the individual that the empirical names and forms appear to be real. When, by the power of meditation, the effect (world) is negated as unreal, the cause (Brahman) also ceases to be a cause. The certitude or conviction that the universe is not the supreme Brahman is itself avidya (ignorance). Hence the certitude that, "The universe is Brahman alone", is emancipation.

The world is a spirit manifested in space and time. When you look at the Absolute, through the senses, it appears as the universe. The puryastaka (body) is composed of the eight -­ that is mind, egoism, intellect and the five objects of the senses (sound, sight etc.). All these, composed of the five elements, are appearances only. So also is time through right discrimination. In this mortal world, everything perishes, but the ideas and the ideals do not perish. Ideas are more enduring than objects, which are perishable, but Atman, the immortal soul endures forever. Just as the universe appears dark to the blind, and shining to those who have eyes to see, so it appears blissful to the sages and painful to the ignorant.

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IGNORANCE

                                Ignorance

The mind is a creation of avidya! (ignorance) and it is the effect of avidya. The mind is filled with delusion - this is why it tempts you and makes you go astray. If you can destroy the cause of the mind by getting knowledge of the Supreme Self, the mind is nowhere; it dwindles into an airy nothing.

The whole experience of duality, made up of perceiver and perceived, is pure imagination. There is no ignorance apart from the mind. On the destruction of the mind, all is destroyed. The mind's activity is the cause of all appearance. On account of illusion you think that the outside objects are separate from you and real.

As long as there is mind there are all these distinctions - big and small, high and low, superior and inferior, good and bad, etc. ­- but the highest truth is that there is no relativity. If you can transcend the mind by constant and profound meditation on Atman you will be able to attain a state beyond the pairs of opposites wherein lies supreme peace and highest knowledge.

The first thought is the 'I-­thought'. As this 'I-thought' is the base of all other thoughts, egoism is the seed for the mind. The idea of 'I' brings in its train the idea of time, space and other potencies. With these environments, the name 'jiva' (soul) accrues to it. And contemporaneously with it there arise buddhi (intellect), memory and manas (mind) which is the seed of the tree of desire.

You cannot realise God if you have the slightest trace of egoism, or attachment to name and form, or the least tinge of worldly desire in the mind. Try to minimise egoism little by little. Root it out by self­-sacrifice, by karma yoga, by self­-surrender, or by vedantic self­-enquiry. Whenever egoism asserts itself, raise the question within yourself: "What is the source of this little 'I'?" Again and again ask this question and, as you remove layer after layer, the onion dwindles to nothing. Analyse the little 'I' and it becomes a non­-entity.
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The ego is the Lord for whose entertainment the dance is performed and the objects of the senses are his companions. The intellect is the dancing girl and the senses are the persons who play on the instruments which accompany the dance. The saksi (witnessing soul) is the lamp which illumines the scene. Just as the lamp, without moving from its place, furnishes light to all parts -­ so too, the saksi from its unchangeable position illumines everything situated inside or outside.

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BODY IS NOT " I "

                                          Body Is Not 'I'

This is a world of diversity. Intellects are different; faces are different; sounds are different; religions are different; faiths are different. Colours are different; faculties are different tastes and temperaments are different. But one thing is common to all ­ every one of us wants nitya sukha (eternal happiness), infinite knowledge, immortality, independence and freedom. These things can be attained by knowledge of the Self alone.

Everybody wants happiness that is not mixed with sorrow and pain, but he does not know where he can get this supreme bliss. The best means to acquire this knowledge is by the enquiry, "Who am I?". This has the potentiality of producing the quiescence of mind which will enable it to wade through this ocean of samsara (cycle of birth and death). It demands a sharp, subtle, pure intellect, bold understanding and gigantic will. The commonplace 'I' that everyone is glibly talking about and relishing acutely every moment of his life, from the babbling baby to the garrulous old man, must be clearly understood.

The physical body is not the 'I', it is the product of food ­ it lives on food and dies without food. It is a bundle of skin, flesh, fat, bones, marrow, blood and a lot of other filthy things. It does not exist before birth or after death. It lasts for a short intervening period. It is transient. It undergoes changes such as childhood, youth and old age. It has six changes ­ existence, birth, growth, modification, decay and death. It is not of one homogeneous essence; it is manifold, insentient, inert. It is an object of perception, like a chair or a table. You continue to live even when hands and legs have gone.

How can the body be the self-existent, eternally pure Atman, the knower, the silent witness of the changes that take place in the body and in all things, the inner ruler of all?
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You have learned that body and mind are not 'I'.
You have learned that prana is not 'I'.
The world is unreal, this thou hast understood.
Thou hast understood that Brahman alone is real.
Now meditate on the formula 'I am Brahman' -
Lose thyself, unite with him.
Rest there peacefully, joyfully.
This is the proper place, the abode of the pure.

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AM I THE "I"

                              Am I The 'I'?

You say, "This is my body" ­- this indicates that you are different from the body and the body is your instrument. You are holding it just as you hold a walking stick in your hand.

In sleep you exist independent of the walking stick in your hand (body). In dreams you operate through the astral body without having any concern for the fleshy body. Through ignorance you have identified yourself with the physical body and mistaken it for the real 'I' which is ever­-pure, all­-pervading, self­-existent, self­-luminous and self­-contained, which has neither beginning nor end, which is changeless, beyond time, space and causation, and which exists in the past the present and the future.

Prana (vital force) is not 'I'. It is the effect of rajas (energy). It is inert. It cannot welcome a man while you are asleep, though it is flowing. It increases and decreases. You say, "My prana" -­ this shows you are different from prana. It is your instrument only. You can control the breath by pranayama. The controller is different from the controlled (prana). Prana is not 'I'.

Mind also is not 'I'. It gropes in darkness. It borrows light from a higher power. It gets puzzled and confused. During shock and fear it becomes insentient. It is the effect of satva. It is your instrument. You say, "my mind" ­- therefore mind is different from 'I'. It is full of changing ideas. It has a beginning and an end. You can control the mind and the thoughts - ­ the controller is different from the controlled (mind). It is as much your property, and outside of you, as your limbs etc., or dress, chair, etc.  In sleep there is no mind, yet you wake up with a feeling of continuity of consciousness. There is no mind in delirium or coma, yet 'I' remains. Mind is a bundle of thoughts and all thoughts are centred around the false egoistic little 'I'. The root thought of all these thoughts is the 'I' that is full of vanities.

Talking of myself, I always speak of 'I'. The sheaths in which I am happy, old, black, a sanyasi (monk), etc., are incidents in the continuity of the 'I'. They are ever changing and varying but the 'I' remains the same -­ unchanging amid the changing.

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BRAHMAN AND MAYA

                                    Brahman And Maya

Like the pot and clay, waves and the sea, ornaments of silver and gold, the universe is non-different from Brahman. The cause does not lose its being by appearing as the effect. The world is not an illusion, but it is non­-different from Brahman. Like heat is inseparable from fire and identical with it, so the universe which is of the nature of Brahman is identical with it.

The world is dependent on Brahman and independently the world is nothing. The play of cit (consciousness) alone shines as this universe. The universe was, is and always will be. There is no beginning or end to creation.

Behind the impermanent material world there is the invisible source of all things, pure, unchanging spirit or Atman. In the presence of God, maya (illusion) creates the world, even as in the presence of the superior officer, the subordinates do their work. Just as a carpenter cannot work without the instruments, and the instruments themselves also cannot do any work without the carpenter, so also, Isvara (God) cannot create the world without maya, nor can maya create the world without Isvara.

This world is an overflow of the love of God. This is the view of a bhakta (devotee). This world is an overflow of the bliss of Brahman. This is the view of a vedantin or sage. Love and bliss are one; God and Brahman are one. This world is nothing but the expression of God's love for Himself. This world is an expression or manifestation of God.
It is the outcome of the spontaneous play of love and joy. God expands Himself and manifests as the world.
Atmic sankalpa (the will of the self) makes this universe shine and constitutes it. Every object is surcharged with divine significance. Everything in this world has got a spiritual message to convey. Learn from everything. All is Brahman. When this truth is intellectually recognised and intuitively realised, then all feelings of differences end forever.

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BRAHMAN

                                 Brahman

Whatever has a beginning or an end is unreal. That which exists in the past, the present and the future is real. Only Brahman exists in these three periods of time. Hence Brahman alone is real. The reality underlying all names and forms, the primal one from which everything originates is Brahman, the Absolute. Brahman is the soul of all joy, all bliss. Brahman transcends phenomena. Production and destruction are only phenomena, the jugglery of the mind or maya (illusion).

Brahman is infinite, eternal, immortal. Infinity is one ­- only that which is unchanging, indivisible, non­-dual, beginningless, endless, timeless, spaceless, causeless, can be infinite. There can be no parts, no differences, no distinctions in Brahman.

Brahman is self-­luminous, self­-existent, self-­contained, self-­established, self­-revealed. Brahman illumines itself by itself; by its nature it is ever illumined. Individual souls and the world are unreal -­ nothing save Brahman is eternal.

Immortality, knowledge, bliss purity, independence, perfection, etc., constitute the very nature of Brahman. He resides in your heart. He witnesses the activity of the buddhi (intellect). Word, speech, mouth, may not approach Brahman. Mind also cannot go there. Supreme Brahman is impersonal, formless, all­-pervading and subtle -­ but He can be reached through meditation, through the eye of intuition, by one who has purified himself and who is endowed with the four means of salvation.

God cannot be seen with the physical eyes -­ but He reveals himself to His devotees. He is one though called by countless names. Realise the reality of the one existence, the one life that throbs in all atoms, in all beings -­ the one power that creates, sustains and dissolves this universe.
When the heart of the devotee is united in the Lord, no difference between them remains.

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Before saturating the mind with thoughts of Brahman you will have to assimilate divine ideas first.
Remember this triplet always:
     Assimilation  ­-  Saturation  -­  Realisation.

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SELF - REALISATION

                            Self-Realisation

There is no other duty for man except meditation on the self. Dismissing all else, one should establish oneself in the Self. There remains nothing to be done or attained when the Self is experienced. For, that Brahman the immortal is before, behind, to the right and to the left and stretched forth above and below.

Brahman is all this. The real alone is an enduring being, and this real is experienced through meditation coupled with knowledge. Whatever a man of purified mind makes clear in his mind, and whatever desires he desires, that he gets and that he fulfils. One should therefore have pure and perfect resolves.

The Supreme Self is experienced in the fourth state of consciousness. It is neither this nor that ­- it has no quality in particular, and yet it is everything. It is peaceful, blessed and non­dual. It is the cessation of all phenomena. It is the Atman that should be known and realised. That is the purpose of life. The liberated sage experiences that he is everything - ­ the tree, the mountain, the sun. He is the food and the eater of the food. He is the knower, the knowledge and the known, in one. He is the whole universe in himself.

Bliss is the ultimate nature of reality -­ from bliss all this comes forth. All the bliss of the world is only a shadow of Self­-bliss. The Self is the source of all bliss ­- it is everything -­ all knowledge and all bliss. All this is based on consciousness and is guided by consciousness. Consciousness is Brahman. I am Brahman. That thou art. This Self is Brahman. Only the infinite is bliss. There, one sees nothing else, hears nothing else, understands nothing else. That is the infinite fullness.

The Self is an ocean without a shore and a surface. It is merely existence, consciousness and bliss. When there is duality one can speak to the other, but when everything is but one's own Self, then who can speak to whom? Who can see whom?
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Atman is pure consciousness -­ it is the unchanging witness. It is realised within your heart as existence, knowledge, bliss absolute. Realise this Atman within the temple of your own heart and enjoy immortal bliss.

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ATMAN

                                   Atman

The Atman (Self) is most ancient, hard to perceive and abides secretly in the innermost cave of the heart or intellect. This Atman or supreme soul fills all with his radiance. This Atman is incorporeal, pure, invulnerable. He is untouched by evil. The Atman is the supreme seer and thinker, immanent and transcendental. This Atman is the immortal spirit, the common, unifying entity present in all. You live, because the supreme Atman is. You understand, because the Atman is intelligence. You enjoy, because the Atman is bliss.

Atman is the reality itself - it is of the nature of pure consciousness. It is undifferentiated, pure awareness and pure experience. Atman is secondless; it alone is; all else which appears to be is not. Atman is the one which appears divided; the changeless as full of change; the timeless as temporal; the infinite as extended and fragmented in space.

Atman is one. It is the root, the reality itself. Atman is pure consciousness, calm and infinite like the waveless ocean. That Atman which is impersonal, changeless, like unto space, by nature purity itself - verily, verily, that am I. The one who is the eternal, the Atman, exists. He is all in all. This Atman is so mysterious that it cannot easily be grasped. This Atman can easily be grasped when the science of the Self (brahmavidya) is taught by a guru who has attained Self-realisation.

This Atman is subtler than the subtlest and so is not attained by arguments. Like butter hidden in milk, this mysterious Atman is hidden in every being. Realise this Atman by the churning of meditation. The Atman is unborn, ageless, immortal, deathless and fearless. He who knows this Atman becomes Brahman, the fearless.

Atman is Brahman - absolute, infinite, the supreme being. It is existence absolute, knowledge absolute, bliss absolute. It is self-delight and self-knowledge. It is bodiless, formless and without gunas, all-pervading, all-full, imperishable. It has neither beginning nor end. It exists in past, present and future. It is self-existent, the source for body, mind, senses, prana, the vedas and the universe itself. No one can deny it; it is the inner Self of all beings.

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SATCHIDANANDA

                            Satchidananda 

Brahman is satchidananda. Sat is truth ­- that which exists in the past, the present and the future ­ which has no beginning, middle or end -­ which is self­-existent, self­-created ­ which never changes. In truth the world abides, from the truth the world comes forth and in truth the world dissolves. Truth is the only substance that underlies and pervades this world of beings. Truth is, and gives immortality and fearlessness.

Cit is self-knowledge. There are no indriyas (senses) in cit. It is self­-luminous and imparts light to the mind, intellect, senses and the skin of the body, the sun, moon, stars, fire, lightning and all objects.
Ananda is bliss itself. There is no enjoyer in ananda. It is enjoyment itself.

When you are in the company of women, say: "There is satchidananda Atman in all these names and forms. Names and forms are false. They have no independent existence. Their support is the one satchidananda Atman." Lust will vanish; sex ideas will disappear. Practise, feel and realise this truth. One grain of practice is better than a ton of theory. Practice is better than precept.
The snake in the rope vanishes when you bring a lamp. So also the illusion of the body and the world disappears with the advent of the sun of wisdom. All fears, miseries, and troubles melt away. You have regained your original pristine glory.
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Pure consciousness is Brahman or the Absolute -­ it is always the witnessing subject. It can never become the object of perception -­ it is always the knower. Mind can only know the external objects. How can mind, effect, know the cause, Brahman? How can the finite know the infinite? How can mind know the knower? You cannot jump on your shoulders. Fire cannot burn itself. If Atman becomes the object of perception, it will become a finite object. The denier of the pure consciousness does always exist (sat) -­ he is just like the man who denies or doubts his tongue when he is talking. This proves Brahman always exists. Existence is pure consciousness (cit). Pure consciousness is also immortal bliss (ananda).

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TIME IS A TRICK

                           Time is a Trick

Time is the mode of the mind. It is a mental creation. Time is a trick of the mind. It is an illusion. Brahman is beyond time. It is eternity. Go beyond time and rest in the timeless, eternal, imperishable Brahman.

'Up and down', 'within and without', 'high and low', 'big and small', 'thin and stout', 'virtue and vice', 'good and bad', 'pleasure and pain', 'here and there', are all relative terms. They are mental creations only. Up will become down and down will become up. This stick is small when compared to that big stick, but that big stick will become small when compared with an even bigger stick! Within will become without and without will become within.
What is good at one time is bad at another time. What is good for one man is bad for another man. What is dharma for one is adharma for another and, what is dharma at one time is not dharma at another time.

Brahman is neither thin nor stout, neither big nor small. In Brahman there is neither within nor without, neither virtue nor vice, neither pleasure nor pain, good nor bad. It is a homogeneous essence of bliss and knowledge where there is no play of the mind, neither time nor space, east nor west, past nor future, Thursday nor Friday.

Tomorrow becomes today and today becomes yesterday. Future becomes present and present becomes the past. What is all this? This is a creation or trick of the mind only. In God, everything is in the present only; it is here only.
There is neither night nor day, yesterday nor tomorrow in the sun. It is the mind that has created time and space. When you are happy, time passes quickly. When you are unhappy, time hangs heavily. All this is only a relative world.
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Life is not a question of creeds but of deeds well done. No life is free from difficulties -­ it is a series of conflicts. Face them boldly through the grace of the Lord and the power of his name. Change is the law of life. Truth is the law of life. Love is the fulfilling of the law of life. Death is the gate to another life. Life is endless.

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VIVEKA

                                                 Viveka

Viveka is discrimination between the real and the unreal, permanent and impermanent, Self and the not­-Self. Viveka dawns in a man on account of the grace of God. The grace can come only when one has done incessant selfless service in countless births with the feeling of Isvararpana (offering unto God). The door of the higher mind is flung open when there is awakening of discrimination. There is an unchanging permanent principle amidst the ever-changing phenomena of the universe and the fleeting movements and oscillation of mind.

The five sheaths are floating in the universal consciousness like straw on water. The five changing kosas (sheaths) are mixed up with the eternal Atman (Self). There is childhood, boyhood, adolescence and old age for this physical body. But there is an unchanging background for this ever­changing body and mind, like the blackboard or screen in a cinema which manifests various forms and figures. The witness or the silent spectator of these changes of the body and mind is permanent and unchanging. He is like the all-­pervading space. He pervades, permeates and interpenetrates all these changing forms like the thread in a garland of flowers. This eternal essence of Atman is present everywhere and in everything -­ atoms, electrons, mustard, nay in ants and mountains. He dwells in the chambers of your own heart. He is the soul of this tree, stone, flower, goat, dog, cat, man, saint or Devata (God). He is the common property of all, be he a saint or a sinner, a king or a peasant, a beggar or a baron, a scavenger or a cobbler. He is the very source for life and thought.

The aspirant should learn to discriminate between the eternal and unchanging substratum of all objects and the ever­-changing names and forms. He should seriously engage himself at all times to separate the eternal unchanging self. He should try to separate himself from the changing, impermanent five sheaths, from the passions, emotions, feelings, thoughts, sentiments, nay from the oscillating mind itself. He should distinguish between the mind and the witness who moves and illumines the mind, between ordinary sensation, feelings and sentiments and perfect awareness of pure consciousness which remains unaffected and unattached, between personality and individuality. He must also separate himself from the adventitious false superimpositions of the body, viz., position, rank, avocation, birth, caste, stage, and order of life. These are all accidental appendages of the false personality.

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MEDITATE ON THESE FOR WISDOM

                          Meditate On These For Wisdom

The aspirant should separate himself also from the sad­urmis (six waves in the ocean of samsara (worldly life), viz., birth and death, hunger and thirst, exhilaration and grief). Birth and death, belong to the physical body; hunger and thirst belong to the prana (life); exhilaration and grief are the attributes of the mind. The soul is unattached. The six waves cannot touch the Atman (Self) which is subtle like the all­-pervading ether. He should also separate himself from the indriyas (senses). He should not take upon himself the functions of the indriyas. He should stand as a spectator and witness of the activities of the mind, prana and the indriyas. The indriyas and the mind are like iron pieces in contact with a magnet. They function by borrowing the light and power from the source the eternal Atman.

Meditation on the following slokas (verses) of and on the special formulae of Sri Sankara will pave a way in the development of your viveka (wisdom) and in separating yourself from the illusory vehicles, viz. indriyas prana, mind and the five sheaths.

The formulae of Sri Sankaracharya are, "Brahman (the eternal) alone is truth -­ this world is unreal; the jiva (soul) is identical with Brahman". The Gita says, "The unreal hath no being; the real never ceaseth to be; the truth about both hath been perceived by the seers of the essence of things." (Chapter II -­ Verse 16). Reflection on this sloka will infuse viveka.

"I do not do anything -­ so should the harmonised one think, who knoweth the essence of things. Seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, eating, moving, sleeping, breathing, speaking, giving, grasping, opening and closing the eyes, he knows that the senses move among the objects of the senses." (Chapter V -­ Verses 8, 9). You can separate yourself from the indriyas by meditating upon the meaning of these slokas.

"All actions are wrought by the qualities of nature only. The self, deluded by egoism, thinketh, 'I am the doer'. But he, who knoweth the essence of the divisions of the qualities and functions holding that 'the qualities' move amid the qualities, is not attached." By meditating upon these two slokas you can separate yourself from the three gunas (qualities of nature). "He who seeth that prakrti (nature) verily performeth all actions and that the Self is actionless, he seeth." (Chapter XIII ­- Verse 2).

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BE FIRM IN WISDOM

                                     Be Firm In Wisdom

Viveka (wisdom) gives inner strength and mental peace. A viveki (wise one) gets no troubles. He is always on the alert. He never gets entangled in anything. He has far­-sightedness. He knows the true value of the objects of this universe. He is fully aware of the worthlessness of these shallow toys. Nothing, nothing can tempt him. Maya (illusion) cannot approach him now.

Associations with mahatmas (holy ones) and study of vedantic literature will infuse viveka in man. Viveka should be developed to the maximum degree; one should be well established in it; viveka should not be an ephemeral or occasional mood in an aspirant. It should not fail him when he is in trouble, when any difficulty stares him in the face. It must indeed become part and parcel of his nature. He should exercise it at all times without any effort. If one is careless in the beginning, viveka may come and go. So the aspirant should live in the company of sages for a long time till viveka burns in him like a big steady flame.

Maya is very powerful. She tries her extreme level best to lead the aspirant astray. She throws many temptations and obstacles on the path of young inexperienced aspirants. Therefore the company of sages and mahatmas is like an impenetrable fortress for the neophyte. Now no temptations can assail him. He will undoubtedly develop true and lasting viveka. He will then have permanent and spontaneous viveka.

Then only he is truly and perfectly safe. The dangerous zone is past. Only a true viveki can claim to be the richest, happiest and most powerful man in the world. He is a rare spiritual gem. He is a beacon-­light and torch­-bearer. If viveka is developed, all other qualifications will come by themselves. From viveka is born vairagya (dispassion).
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Discrimination is the faculty which distinguishes between the real and the unreal. The whole world outside and the universe that is inside, are unreal. Earth, water, wind, fire, the sky, the ocean, our bodies and the vital force animating them, our minds, our consciousness of ourselves ­- all are but airy nothingness. The only real thing is the Atman (Self) or Brahman, the Absolute.

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VAIRAGYA

                                               Vairagya

There is a way to the immortal abode and supreme happiness. There is a way to the fourth dimension. That way is vairagya. Follow the way. Vairagya is dispassion, desirelessness or non­-attachment. It is indifference to sensual objects herein and hereafter. It is born of and sustained by right discrimination.

Vairagya is the opposite of attachment which binds a man to the wheel of births and deaths; vairagya liberates a man from bondage. Vairagya purifies the sensual mind and turns it inward. It is the most important qualification for a spiritual aspirant. Without it, no spiritual life is possible.

The two currents of the mind -­ attraction and repulsion -­ really constitute the world of births and deaths. A worldly man is a slave of these two mighty currents and is tossed about hither and thither like a piece of straw. He smiles when experiencing pleasure; he weeps when in pain. He clings to pleasant objects and runs away from those which cause pain.

Wherever there is sensation of pleasure, the mind gets glued, as it were, to the object that gives pleasure. This is what is called attachment and brings only bondage and pain. When the object is withdrawn, or when it perishes, the mind suffers unspeakable pain. Attraction is the root­-cause for human suffering.

A dispassionate man has a different training and has a different experience altogether. He is a pastmaster in the art or science of separating himself from the impermanent, perishable objects. He has absolutely no attraction for them and constantly dwells in the eternal. He stands adamantine as a peak amidst a turbulent storm, as a spectator of this wonderful world­-show. A dispassionate man has no attraction for pleasant objects and no repulsion for painful ones. Nor is he afraid of pain. He knows well that pain helps considerably in his progress and evolution, in his journey towards the goal. He is convinced that pain is the best teacher.

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