Satsang Bhavan Lectures, Message 10
Satsang Bhavan Lectures of Swami Sivananda
20. Patience / 21. Sankirtan Yoga / 22. Music Yoga
20. PATIENCE
Patience is a very important virtue for both the yogic student and for the worldly man, for success. A lady needs tremendous patience to make a sweater. How patient a sculptor is who works at the marble statue! If these people are impatient, they cannot attain success.
For a yogic student patience is extremely necessary. He determines to meditate for one hour, but he gets up after fifteen minutes, not because he is tired of meditation, but because he is impatient. In the Kathopanishad you will find that this Atman is situated in the heart and is of the size of a thumb. No doubt, the Atman is all-pervading, but for the neophyte it is easier to practise concentration on the Atma as being of the size of a thumb. Later on they can meditate on the all-pervading pure consciousness. After describing the self as having the size of a thumb and is situated in the chamber of the heart, the Kathopanishad says that one should draw the Atman out from one's own body with patience—dhairyena—as one draws the pith from the munja grass. Patience is necessary for the yogic student.
A first class aspirant can attain realisation in a second like dattatreya. He only once heard the mahavakya 'Tatwamasi' and immediately went into nirvikalpa samadhi. Even Swetaketu was a middle class aspirant. His father repeated nine times the mahavakya 'Tatwamasi' with various examples to show the identity of the individual soul with the supreme soul, and then only Swetaketu realised Brahman. There are pratibandhas that obstruct meditation.
Even the great rishis Vamadev and Jababharata had to take three births on account of pratibandhas. In his last birth Vamadev had wisdom even when he was dwelling in the mother's womb and he talked on matters of the soul. This you will find in Aittareyopanishad. Even Jadabharata had to take three births. If that be the case with great souls, what to speak of ordinary persons! They must have patience.
You can have realisation in the twinkling of an eye if you are a first class aspirant endowed with spiritual qualifications to a maximum degree. You can realise the self within the time taken to squeeze a flower with the thumb and the index finger. You can realise within the time a grain rolls down from a pot. But for ordinary people, who do not even viveka and vairagya, it will take a long time. So you must have patience. If you have patience you will have success. Spiritual life demands extreme patience.
Once Sage Narada met two devotees. They enquired when they would get salvation. Narada replied to one of the devotees that he would get salvation after three more births and to the other, Narada replied that he would get salvation only after being born as many times as there were leaves in a yonder tamarind tree. The first devotee was drowned in sorrow when he heard that he should take three more births to attain salvation, and he even thought of giving up his sadhana, while the second devotee jumped in joy at the thought that he would after all get salvation, no matter even if it came after as many births as there were leaves in a tree. Pleased with the patience of the second devotee, God appeared immediately before him, and he attained salvation in that very birth. So patience is indispensable to aspirants.
There is no barometer to measure your spiritual progress. You will not be able to measure accurately your progress. Sometimes progress may not be visible at all. But, do not be disappointed or impatient. Every bit of sadhana has its own fruits. No effort goes in vain. Do not complain therefore that your efforts do not yield results. Once a lady was advised by an astrologer that she would beget a son if she did perambulations around a pipal tree. The over-anxious lady did one perambulation around the tree and examined her stomach to see if she had conceived a baby. Impatience is one of the factors for the failure of many aspirants in the spiritual path.
Self-realisation is an arduous and protracted process. It is often compared to the task of crushing one's own bones and extracting oil out of them and burning a wick with oil for a long period. This analogy is given only to bring home to the aspirants the need for assiduous, painstaking, patient effort for attaining the goal.
In the Gita also it is stated,
"kalena atmani vindati".
na hi jnanena sadrisam pavitramiha vidyate,
tatswayam yogasamsidhah kalena atmani vindati. (IV.38)
There is no purifier in this world like knowledge of the self. He who is perfected in yoga finds the knowledge of the Atma in himself in time.
When the proper time comes knowledge will dawn of its own accord. Therefore, carry on your sadhana patiently and diligently. Do not be impatient. Perfection is the result of evolution and not of revolution.
Once a bird laid eggs on the sea-coast. The waves came and washed away all the eggs. The bird grew angry. In revenge, it set about emptying the ocean with its tiny beak. Rishi Narada was then coming by that way. He was surprised on seeing the bird busily engaged in taking the sea water in its beak and pouring it on the land. When questioned by him, the bird related to him the story. Rishi Narada was very much pleased with the courage and patience the bird possessed and through his help the bird got back all its eggs from the sea. So, everything is possible for one who possesses patience. God's grace is upon those who possess this virtue. Therefore, develop this virtue to the maximum degree.
Meditate on the virtue 'patience' as soon as you get up in the morning. Think of the benefits of possessing this cardinal virtue, patience. And when you work in the world, feel and assert, "I am patient. I will not get irritated. I will have full patience." This is the way to develop patience. If you meditate on the Lord, Saguna Brahman or Nirguna Brahman, you will develop all kinds of virtues including patience.
Through patience you can control anger, you can control irritability, you can control annoyance. Patience develops will power. If you have patience, all other virtues will cling to you. So be patient. Cultivate this virtue to a maximum degree and attain success and God-realisation. OM.
21. SANKIRTAN YOGA
In this kali yuga, vedanta and kundalani yoga are more of tall talks. They are not practicable for all ordinary aspirants. Vedanta demands gigantic will, deep enquiry and wonderful power of understanding and analysis. Very few possess these talents or faculties. For kundalini yoga one needs great spiritual vigour, absolute brahmacharya for awaking kundalini and taking it through the chakras to the sahasrara. These are more in theory. Practice is rather difficult.
So, in this kali yuga, iron age, sankirtan is the easiest, safest, cheapest and surest way for attaining God-realisation. Sankirtan and the practice of the formula, 'Be good, do good'—this alone will give God-realisation.
This alone can be practised by the vast majority of persons. Even those who practised vedanta, they have all come down to the practice of sankirtan and namasmaran, always remembering God. Even if there are breaks, doesn't matter.
We can have remembrances and eventually we will have uninterrupted remembrances like the bell-sound.
You will have continuous remembrance and will rest in God. You will attain the super-conscious state which the yogis enjoy.
You can study kundalini yoga and imagine that kundalini is passing from muladhara chakra. It is some kind of acid passing through. Do not mistake it for kundalini sakti. Do kirtan. Kundalani awakens itself and others' kundalini can be easily awakened by chanting divine nam, guru kripa, guru mantra, but of all these things sankirtan yoga is the best. Though vedanta is good for talking and good for lectures, for a spiritual man nam is very pleasing. He likes japa. Nam strengthens. Nama is a great potential tonic. Yajnanam japayojnosmi—'Of all yajnas I am japa yajna'.
One who does kirtan need not deliver lectures on navavidha bhakti, the nine modes of devotion. All bhaktis or modes of devotion are in the singing of kirtan. The veil of ignorance will be torn asunder by doing kirtan.
They have prescribed karma yoga for removal of mal or impurity. Upasana for removing vikshepa or oscillation of the mind and meditation on vedantic formulas for removing the veil of ignorance, avarana. But sankirtan removes all the three, mal, vikshepa and avarana. That is the reason why sankirtan is the best and easiest yoga.
May all take to the practice of sankirtan yoga and attain the summum bonum of existence, viz. God-realisation, not tomorrow, but today, this very second.
22. MUSIC YOGA
Music yoga is the easiest, surest, safest and cheapest method for attaining God-realisation. Music yoga controls the mind marvellously. That is why Kabir, Guru Nanak, Surdas and many others took to this music yoga. All minds are captured by music. Music yoga is nada yoga. Music has got a tremendous influence upon the mind. Just as a hunter catches a deer through melodious sounds, this mind is captured through sweet music, rhythm and thal.
Plato had his scheme of education. First he included physical exercise for developing the muscles. Then he prescribed music. It produces harmony in the system. He who knows music will have a soft heart, a kind heart. Music fills the mind with satwa, purity and renders it fit for God-realisation. And after the fiftieth year one will have to study philosophy and become a philosopher king. Only a philosopher is fit for administration and ruling a kingdom. So music is there in his scheme of education. Nowadays also you will find in Lucknow and other places dance schools, music schools. There is music M.A., music B.A. Twenty-five years ago we did not have this music course. But they found out the influence of music, and so now in various places there is a revival of music, dance and drama. Dance is nritya yoga. Through drama high philosophical thoughts are given in a most attractive form. The beautiful sights and the sweet music in a drama keep your interest for hours together. Through art you can realise God. Through dance you can realise God. Through drama you can realise God. Through music you can realise God.
There is no need to practise hatha yoga, standing on the head for three hours, controlling the pranas, etc. These are difficult yogas. Only in those hard days of Ravana and Kumbakarna, people could practise these difficult yogas.
Now music yoga is the best. The physique of the modern man is not fit for difficult yogic practices. Sit on a chair and take a cup of tea or cocoa, and hear music, rapturous and delightful music.
Shakespeare also says that the man who hath no music in himself nor is moved by the concord of sweet music, is fit for treasons, stratagems and spoils. Let no such man be trusted. You should not trust a man who has no taste for music.
All creatures are attracted by music. If you sing nagavarali, snake will come, attracted by the sound. Even beetles produce sound of various ragas. Perhaps they are singing, though we may not be able to understand and appreciate their music.
We are thankful to Padmavati,* and we request her to make Ananda Kutir her permanent abode. She will remain here, and for six months she will go out and do prachar. I have given her standing invitation. Whenever it pleases, she can come here to do japa and pranayam and recharge the battery, so that when she goes out she will have tremendous energy. What she can do in two hours, she can do in a shorter time if she practices Om chanting and pranayama.
Brahmari pranayama is very good for improving the voice.
*Born in 1918 in Kolhapur, Padmavati Shaligram is one of the senior most vocalists of Hindustani music. She was groomed in the Jaipur-Atrauli tradition by her father and uncle who were students of the legendary Alladiya Khan, the founder of the gharana.
She has good, sweet voice. Her music captured all our minds, which used to wander in various places. That is the power of music. We are grateful for her wonderful music, with wonderful rhythm, wonderful melody, wonderful tal.
All these things were beautiful. We were more or less in avikelpa samathi, and some were in nirvikalpa samadhi, though some who have no interest in music might have been sleeping. Taste for music means taste for nada yoga. It is laya yoga, for it produces laya or dissolution of the mind very easily. Through hearing music, the mind becomes one pointed, and purifies at once. For a music yogi, there is no sravan, manan, nidhidhyasam. He need not go to Uttarakasi, hear the Srutis, and meditate for twenty-five years. In music yoga the fruit is immediate. In half an hour you are elevated and transformed. Because God's name is there.
Mal (impurity), vikshep (oscillation) and avarana (veil) are all removed at once by music, and samathi supervenes. We have all had samathi, but the effort should be continued, so that we will be established in samadhi. All have attained samadhi through the sweet music of Padmavati. But some purushartha is necessary. Do a little bhajan, self-surrender, singing of God's names. Along with the grace of the Lord, you should do purushartha only. Vasishta in his Yoga Vasishta advocates purushartha only. Grace and purushartha together give mukti and salvation. May you all through music yoga become jivanmuktas.
In addition to music, home nursing is also necessary. If bacteria enters your system and produces disease, you should know how to treat. So an elementary knowledge of anatomy, physics, home nursing, home remedies, all these are necessary. As a musician, if your throat is affected, and you cannot sing, you must know how to clear it. So the yoga of synthesis is needed. Home nursing, a little knowledge of bandaging etc. are all necessary. We shall pray to God for the health and long life of Padmavati and the whole world.
Satsang Bhavan Lectures of Swami Sivananda
20. Patience / 21. Sankirtan Yoga / 22. Music Yoga
20. PATIENCE
Patience is a very important virtue for both the yogic student and for the worldly man, for success. A lady needs tremendous patience to make a sweater. How patient a sculptor is who works at the marble statue! If these people are impatient, they cannot attain success.
For a yogic student patience is extremely necessary. He determines to meditate for one hour, but he gets up after fifteen minutes, not because he is tired of meditation, but because he is impatient. In the Kathopanishad you will find that this Atman is situated in the heart and is of the size of a thumb. No doubt, the Atman is all-pervading, but for the neophyte it is easier to practise concentration on the Atma as being of the size of a thumb. Later on they can meditate on the all-pervading pure consciousness. After describing the self as having the size of a thumb and is situated in the chamber of the heart, the Kathopanishad says that one should draw the Atman out from one's own body with patience—dhairyena—as one draws the pith from the munja grass. Patience is necessary for the yogic student.
A first class aspirant can attain realisation in a second like dattatreya. He only once heard the mahavakya 'Tatwamasi' and immediately went into nirvikalpa samadhi. Even Swetaketu was a middle class aspirant. His father repeated nine times the mahavakya 'Tatwamasi' with various examples to show the identity of the individual soul with the supreme soul, and then only Swetaketu realised Brahman. There are pratibandhas that obstruct meditation.
Even the great rishis Vamadev and Jababharata had to take three births on account of pratibandhas. In his last birth Vamadev had wisdom even when he was dwelling in the mother's womb and he talked on matters of the soul. This you will find in Aittareyopanishad. Even Jadabharata had to take three births. If that be the case with great souls, what to speak of ordinary persons! They must have patience.
You can have realisation in the twinkling of an eye if you are a first class aspirant endowed with spiritual qualifications to a maximum degree. You can realise the self within the time taken to squeeze a flower with the thumb and the index finger. You can realise within the time a grain rolls down from a pot. But for ordinary people, who do not even viveka and vairagya, it will take a long time. So you must have patience. If you have patience you will have success. Spiritual life demands extreme patience.
Once Sage Narada met two devotees. They enquired when they would get salvation. Narada replied to one of the devotees that he would get salvation after three more births and to the other, Narada replied that he would get salvation only after being born as many times as there were leaves in a yonder tamarind tree. The first devotee was drowned in sorrow when he heard that he should take three more births to attain salvation, and he even thought of giving up his sadhana, while the second devotee jumped in joy at the thought that he would after all get salvation, no matter even if it came after as many births as there were leaves in a tree. Pleased with the patience of the second devotee, God appeared immediately before him, and he attained salvation in that very birth. So patience is indispensable to aspirants.
There is no barometer to measure your spiritual progress. You will not be able to measure accurately your progress. Sometimes progress may not be visible at all. But, do not be disappointed or impatient. Every bit of sadhana has its own fruits. No effort goes in vain. Do not complain therefore that your efforts do not yield results. Once a lady was advised by an astrologer that she would beget a son if she did perambulations around a pipal tree. The over-anxious lady did one perambulation around the tree and examined her stomach to see if she had conceived a baby. Impatience is one of the factors for the failure of many aspirants in the spiritual path.
Self-realisation is an arduous and protracted process. It is often compared to the task of crushing one's own bones and extracting oil out of them and burning a wick with oil for a long period. This analogy is given only to bring home to the aspirants the need for assiduous, painstaking, patient effort for attaining the goal.
In the Gita also it is stated,
"kalena atmani vindati".
na hi jnanena sadrisam pavitramiha vidyate,
tatswayam yogasamsidhah kalena atmani vindati. (IV.38)
There is no purifier in this world like knowledge of the self. He who is perfected in yoga finds the knowledge of the Atma in himself in time.
When the proper time comes knowledge will dawn of its own accord. Therefore, carry on your sadhana patiently and diligently. Do not be impatient. Perfection is the result of evolution and not of revolution.
Once a bird laid eggs on the sea-coast. The waves came and washed away all the eggs. The bird grew angry. In revenge, it set about emptying the ocean with its tiny beak. Rishi Narada was then coming by that way. He was surprised on seeing the bird busily engaged in taking the sea water in its beak and pouring it on the land. When questioned by him, the bird related to him the story. Rishi Narada was very much pleased with the courage and patience the bird possessed and through his help the bird got back all its eggs from the sea. So, everything is possible for one who possesses patience. God's grace is upon those who possess this virtue. Therefore, develop this virtue to the maximum degree.
Meditate on the virtue 'patience' as soon as you get up in the morning. Think of the benefits of possessing this cardinal virtue, patience. And when you work in the world, feel and assert, "I am patient. I will not get irritated. I will have full patience." This is the way to develop patience. If you meditate on the Lord, Saguna Brahman or Nirguna Brahman, you will develop all kinds of virtues including patience.
Through patience you can control anger, you can control irritability, you can control annoyance. Patience develops will power. If you have patience, all other virtues will cling to you. So be patient. Cultivate this virtue to a maximum degree and attain success and God-realisation. OM.
21. SANKIRTAN YOGA
In this kali yuga, vedanta and kundalani yoga are more of tall talks. They are not practicable for all ordinary aspirants. Vedanta demands gigantic will, deep enquiry and wonderful power of understanding and analysis. Very few possess these talents or faculties. For kundalini yoga one needs great spiritual vigour, absolute brahmacharya for awaking kundalini and taking it through the chakras to the sahasrara. These are more in theory. Practice is rather difficult.
So, in this kali yuga, iron age, sankirtan is the easiest, safest, cheapest and surest way for attaining God-realisation. Sankirtan and the practice of the formula, 'Be good, do good'—this alone will give God-realisation.
This alone can be practised by the vast majority of persons. Even those who practised vedanta, they have all come down to the practice of sankirtan and namasmaran, always remembering God. Even if there are breaks, doesn't matter.
We can have remembrances and eventually we will have uninterrupted remembrances like the bell-sound.
You will have continuous remembrance and will rest in God. You will attain the super-conscious state which the yogis enjoy.
You can study kundalini yoga and imagine that kundalini is passing from muladhara chakra. It is some kind of acid passing through. Do not mistake it for kundalini sakti. Do kirtan. Kundalani awakens itself and others' kundalini can be easily awakened by chanting divine nam, guru kripa, guru mantra, but of all these things sankirtan yoga is the best. Though vedanta is good for talking and good for lectures, for a spiritual man nam is very pleasing. He likes japa. Nam strengthens. Nama is a great potential tonic. Yajnanam japayojnosmi—'Of all yajnas I am japa yajna'.
One who does kirtan need not deliver lectures on navavidha bhakti, the nine modes of devotion. All bhaktis or modes of devotion are in the singing of kirtan. The veil of ignorance will be torn asunder by doing kirtan.
They have prescribed karma yoga for removal of mal or impurity. Upasana for removing vikshepa or oscillation of the mind and meditation on vedantic formulas for removing the veil of ignorance, avarana. But sankirtan removes all the three, mal, vikshepa and avarana. That is the reason why sankirtan is the best and easiest yoga.
May all take to the practice of sankirtan yoga and attain the summum bonum of existence, viz. God-realisation, not tomorrow, but today, this very second.
22. MUSIC YOGA
Music yoga is the easiest, surest, safest and cheapest method for attaining God-realisation. Music yoga controls the mind marvellously. That is why Kabir, Guru Nanak, Surdas and many others took to this music yoga. All minds are captured by music. Music yoga is nada yoga. Music has got a tremendous influence upon the mind. Just as a hunter catches a deer through melodious sounds, this mind is captured through sweet music, rhythm and thal.
Plato had his scheme of education. First he included physical exercise for developing the muscles. Then he prescribed music. It produces harmony in the system. He who knows music will have a soft heart, a kind heart. Music fills the mind with satwa, purity and renders it fit for God-realisation. And after the fiftieth year one will have to study philosophy and become a philosopher king. Only a philosopher is fit for administration and ruling a kingdom. So music is there in his scheme of education. Nowadays also you will find in Lucknow and other places dance schools, music schools. There is music M.A., music B.A. Twenty-five years ago we did not have this music course. But they found out the influence of music, and so now in various places there is a revival of music, dance and drama. Dance is nritya yoga. Through drama high philosophical thoughts are given in a most attractive form. The beautiful sights and the sweet music in a drama keep your interest for hours together. Through art you can realise God. Through dance you can realise God. Through drama you can realise God. Through music you can realise God.
There is no need to practise hatha yoga, standing on the head for three hours, controlling the pranas, etc. These are difficult yogas. Only in those hard days of Ravana and Kumbakarna, people could practise these difficult yogas.
Now music yoga is the best. The physique of the modern man is not fit for difficult yogic practices. Sit on a chair and take a cup of tea or cocoa, and hear music, rapturous and delightful music.
Shakespeare also says that the man who hath no music in himself nor is moved by the concord of sweet music, is fit for treasons, stratagems and spoils. Let no such man be trusted. You should not trust a man who has no taste for music.
All creatures are attracted by music. If you sing nagavarali, snake will come, attracted by the sound. Even beetles produce sound of various ragas. Perhaps they are singing, though we may not be able to understand and appreciate their music.
We are thankful to Padmavati,* and we request her to make Ananda Kutir her permanent abode. She will remain here, and for six months she will go out and do prachar. I have given her standing invitation. Whenever it pleases, she can come here to do japa and pranayam and recharge the battery, so that when she goes out she will have tremendous energy. What she can do in two hours, she can do in a shorter time if she practices Om chanting and pranayama.
Brahmari pranayama is very good for improving the voice.
*Born in 1918 in Kolhapur, Padmavati Shaligram is one of the senior most vocalists of Hindustani music. She was groomed in the Jaipur-Atrauli tradition by her father and uncle who were students of the legendary Alladiya Khan, the founder of the gharana.
She has good, sweet voice. Her music captured all our minds, which used to wander in various places. That is the power of music. We are grateful for her wonderful music, with wonderful rhythm, wonderful melody, wonderful tal.
All these things were beautiful. We were more or less in avikelpa samathi, and some were in nirvikalpa samadhi, though some who have no interest in music might have been sleeping. Taste for music means taste for nada yoga. It is laya yoga, for it produces laya or dissolution of the mind very easily. Through hearing music, the mind becomes one pointed, and purifies at once. For a music yogi, there is no sravan, manan, nidhidhyasam. He need not go to Uttarakasi, hear the Srutis, and meditate for twenty-five years. In music yoga the fruit is immediate. In half an hour you are elevated and transformed. Because God's name is there.
Mal (impurity), vikshep (oscillation) and avarana (veil) are all removed at once by music, and samathi supervenes. We have all had samathi, but the effort should be continued, so that we will be established in samadhi. All have attained samadhi through the sweet music of Padmavati. But some purushartha is necessary. Do a little bhajan, self-surrender, singing of God's names. Along with the grace of the Lord, you should do purushartha only. Vasishta in his Yoga Vasishta advocates purushartha only. Grace and purushartha together give mukti and salvation. May you all through music yoga become jivanmuktas.
In addition to music, home nursing is also necessary. If bacteria enters your system and produces disease, you should know how to treat. So an elementary knowledge of anatomy, physics, home nursing, home remedies, all these are necessary. As a musician, if your throat is affected, and you cannot sing, you must know how to clear it. So the yoga of synthesis is needed. Home nursing, a little knowledge of bandaging etc. are all necessary. We shall pray to God for the health and long life of Padmavati and the whole world.
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