Cast Aside Your Self-denigrating Thoughts

Dentam koom tyagi nar apno swarup dekhi
Tu to sudh brahma aaj drishya ko prakashi hai
‘Cast aside your Self-denigrating thoughts
and awaken to your Real Self,
You verily are the unborn pure Brahman
That brings to light this visible world.’
(The Vicharassagara: 6.12)

O man! You are the consciousness personified Atman. You alone illumine all ‘seen’ objects of consciousness and then impressed by it you yourself get entangled therein. You yourself imagine a thief in a stump of the tree and then you yourself are scared of that. You yourself imagine a snake in a rope and then you yourself tremble with fear. Similarly, you yourself project your own self-created imaginations on your Real Self, the Pure Consciousness, the Supreme Brahman, and you yourself are entangled therein just like the spider who makes a cobweb from out of its own body and gets entangled therein, which becomes its death-trap. We too get trapped in our own beliefs created by our own mind, viz. ‘What will people say, if I don’t do this… I must do this, it is my duty….’ You have so many duties. But where have these duties come from?

You are imposing on yourself make-believe duties owed to the make-believe world. Your first and foremost duty is to realize your Real Self. You say, “God made this world and God is Pure Consciousness.” But is God your friend or foe?

He is your supreme well wisher God, our supreme friend, has made this world. Then why is there so much misery in this world? There is absolutely no misery in this world. But, Yato Yato nischariti manaschanchalamasthiram. ‘from all those objects after which the restless and fidgety mind ruins…’

(The Gita 6.26), it is verily the unsteady and restless mind that wanders and regurgitates all kinds of imaginations and takes their burden on its head. Otherwise, there’s no trouble in this world at all. If man wants to remain joyful, every situation in this world is full of joy; but his mind wants lie to fit into its imaginations. Imaginations is born out of ignorance and ignorance is unread, Unsubstantial. And thus, one’s life is driven by one’s own imaginations. Even if one reaches is fancied goal, one finds his mind still yearning for something else.

Many people labour under the delusion, the misunderstanding that we can not live without worldly things, without coming into contact with the materials of the mundane word. Vedanta tells us that we can not live without renouncing the worldly things and relationships.

You can sleep only when you renounce all things of the world. From sleep alone you gain some vital energy and become capable of living the next day. You can live without establishing links with the world, but you can not live without renouncing the world. You renounce the transient things transient relations, kins, fiends, spouse, children and all else to get the comfort of sleep and become rejuvenated and capable to live. Similarly, if you renounce the world and steer clear of your imaginations; and then instead of going to sleep get into Samadhi, it will fill your life with perennial happiness.

BY renouncing all relations, when you go to sleep, you gain enough vitality for a day. If you take time off from worldly relations and repose in your Real Self, you will come by the eternal life. Whereupon, you become deathless. The body has to die; everybody dies. And interestingly indeed, all are afraid of the physical death and strive to save themselves from it, but nobody has been able to do so. They alone can save themselves from death, who transcends the body to get established in their Real Self That is free from desires. Do not consider the death of the body to be that of yours and realize your immortality; when there is no rebirth, where is the question of death?

The mind is extremely restless. It is really difficult to control the mind, but this too becomes easy with practice. We should take a retrospective look at our actions everyday and sincerely repent for the inauspicious or sinful ones. We ought to persuade the mind, ‘O mind! You have committed numerous offences till today. You misled the senses to depravity, thereby causing degeneration and ruination. And how strange it is that even after the passage of the most precious years of life you are still reluctant to refrain from the wrong doings! Fear the Lord. Have faith in Him. The Lord Supreme is beholding all our actions.

‘O mind! If you do not acquiesce, it will be difficult for you to find a place even in hell, let alone that in heaven. Your certificates, wisdom and temporal knowledge won’t protect you against the onslaught of sorrows. O debased mind! You have brought my degeneration. You have made me fall for the momentary sense pleasures, thereby depriving me of true happiness and destroying my strength, intellect and health. If the offences that you have forced me to commit be revealed to the people, they will curse me and admonish me with contempt.

‘O depraved mind! On account of having committed evil deeds and made evil resolves in association with you, I am being cursed today. How can I face them with dignity who know my evil acts? Yet, you are not ready to acquiesce in and tempting me to evil deeds!

‘O kind-hearted Lord! Give me patience and wisdom. Guide me on the righteous path. My depraved mind has ruined me. My human birth has gone in vain. The depraved mind is a devil.’ Keep persuading the mind in this manner constantly, whereupon the mind will lose its sway over you and come under your control. If you march on the path of Truth, justice and honesty, salvation it not difficult.

Never trust you mind. Given a free reign, the mind will put your very life into jeopardy. A goad has to be used properly in order to keep an elephant under control. Similarly, in order to keep the mind under control one needs to take regular recourse to satsanga, virtuous contemplation, pious study and translating the precepts thereof into life. Make a time-table leaving no room for the mind to be empty. Bind every moment of your life with the shackle of punctuality giving no freedom to the mind. You must sincerely regret for the time you have already wasted. The supremely gracious Lord is very kind. Take refuge in Him and He will certainly protect you. Though humans, we lack in humanity. Everywhere it is barbarousness that meets the eyes. In order to become true humans, bring self-restraint in your life. Mansa sivayati eti manushya: - ‘A human being (manushya) is one who can forge a relationship with God through the mind (manas).’

May the Lord endow everyone with noble intellect and make them true humans. Hari Om peace…..
(From ‘Nirogata ka Sadhan’, a book published by the ashram-currently not available in English.)

Divine Answers from a Benign Heart….

Question: Who is the Supreme well-wisher (friend)?
Answer: God

Question: Which is the Supreme Knowledge?
Answer: Self-knowledge

Question: Which is the biggest power?
Answer: The power of Truth.

Question: Which is the greatest virtue?
Answer: Altruism.

Question: Which is the most genuine relationship?
Answer: That between the Soul and the Supreme Soul.

Question: Which is the most selfless relationship?
Answer: That between the Sadguru and a worthy disciple.

Question: Which was the seed-mantra that emanated from Krishna’s flute and captivated its listeners?
Answer: The seed-mantra ‘klim’.

Question: How does one attain power and competence?
Answer: Through peace and meditation.

Question: What depletes power?
Answer: Worldly pleasures and sexual intelligence.

Question: What is the biggest dependence?
Answer: The biggest dependence is our inability to live without a thing or individual.

Question: Who is the biggest miser?
Answer: One who hankers after the world having no time for God is the biggest miser.

Question: Which is the most excellent music?
Answer: The Ajapa Gayatri.

Question: What is the method of practicing Ajapa Gayatri?
Answer: Mental incantation of ‘so’ during inhalation and ‘ham’ during exhalation is called Ajapa Gayatri. Not even a single breath should go unaccompanied by such incantation.

Question: Who is the greatest physician?
Answer: Fasting.
Question: When does man wake up?
Answer: When finding the worldly pleasures and luxuries to be worthless and trivial he develops love for God.

Question: Which is the biggest form of Freedom (self-reliance)?
Answer: To be happy and satiated in one’s own Self with no dependence on anybody else for one’s personal happiness is the biggest form of Freedom (self-reliance).

‘I have my beloved Lord in my heart,
Whenever I wish, I can see Him.’

Divine Knowledge and Bliss through Divine Contemplation

Lord Krishna says in the Gita:
Machhita Madgatprana Bodhyantah Parasparam
Kathyantasch maa nityam tushyanti ch ramanti ch

‘With their minds fixed on Me, and their lives surrendered unto Me; enlightening one another about My greatness and speaking of Me, My devotees ever remain contented and take delight in Me.’ (10.9)

Such darling devotees of God are immersed in the Supreme Lord of the universe. They not only live happily in the world but also after death, they get liberated becoming one with Brahman, the Supreme Self, in Whom their minds are ever engrossed.

The Lord says, “My devotees, with their minds fixed on Me and their lives or prana that is a part of Prakriti surrendered unto Me… i.e. such devotees submit themselves along with their bodies made of nature to Me and on meeting one another, discuss, contemplate and recollect My divine qualities, potencies and play, besides talking about the ways and means of realizing Me. Their constant engrossment in divine contemplation and spiritual discussion gives rise to divine virtues, divine Knowledge, divine peace and divine bliss in their hearts. Then in due course of time, they realize the Divine Tattva (essence) and attain salvation becoming one with Brahman, the Supreme Self.”

It is a unique property of the mind that it can not think of two things at a time. The mode of happiness and mode of sorrow can not exist simultaneously in the mind. They are mutually exclusive. And when there is modification of mind in the form of God. Divine Opulence, Divine Knowledge and Supreme Bliss arise in our mind. When we think of the world, when we have the lowly knowledge of ‘I’ and ‘my’, ‘you’ and ‘your’; we are full of vices like attachment, hatred, worry, sorrow, greed, fear of losing what we have and then of course jealously with our superiors in worldly possession; whereas thinking of God fills our mind with divine virtues.

The cowherds and cowherdesses were enamored of the Lord. They would talk of the Lord and get filled with devotional Bhava, and at times shed tears out of love for the Lord. Thus, conversing about the Lord, their minds were always inundated with divine Knowledge, divine peace, divine bliss and divine joy.

Therefore the Lord says: Machhita Madgatprana… ‘With their minds fixed on Me, and their lives (prana) surrendered unto Me…’

The loving devotees of God live for God and do whatever they do verily for God alone. All their endeavors are for God and their only goal of life is God. The Gopis churn the curds and take out butter only for the pleasure of God. They hawk curds and butter calling out, “Curds for sale… Butter for sale…’But when they say ‘butter’ they are thinking of Govinda and under the loving influence thereof they are calling out, “Govinda for sale… Madhava for sale…” At times, while milking the cows, the memories of Sri Krishna come to their mind and they happen to have a glimpse of the Lord in the pot of milk. Thus, those enamored of the Lord, the darlings of the Lord, the loving devotees of God don’t set their minds on anything other than God. They see the Lord’s benevolent grace at play wherever they find virtue.

Land is the ground of all trees. Water is the source of all waves. The Sun is the source of all lights. Similarly, whatever virtue or power is seen, God is the source of them all. A devotee, when faced with troubles, thinks that the Lord is purifying him. When he gets facilities, he thinks that the Lord is encouraging him through His grace. Thus, the loving devotees of the Lord, His darlings, His beloved ones see divine grace behind all things and circumstances. Whatever good or bad, auspicious or inauspicious, peaceful or vicissitudes they find in life, they attribute everything to Divine grace and compassion.

You may say, ‘While it is OK to see the divine grace behind good things, but how can one see the same even in evil things?’

You light a lamp. The moths start hovering around its flame. The moths are enjoying it, but you know they are all set to get burnt and suffer pain. So you put out the lamp. The moths will however, take it wrong, though you extinguished the flame for their good only. Similarly, worldly people, like these moths, are ruining their lives in this delusive world due to their attachment to their wives and sons. SO, God creates troubles for them. There will be strained relations between spouses or clashes between father and son. Or else, He may create some problem on the business front. Whenever and wherever you get attached and set to any circumstances, know that some trouble is but imminent. This, in fact, is Lord’s compassion. The sorrows and hurdles are parts of the divine arrangement to save your life from going waste under the infatuating delusion of this world.

‘I am in the pink of health, my wife is soft-spoken; my son is obedient; my daughters are well set in life; I am very happy.’ But then, happy days will pass and the strokes of death will snatch away everything you have. The more pleasures one enjoys in life and the more attachment one has towards the world, that much more the pain does he suffer at the time of death. Thus, he will fail to make foray into the realm of spiritual experiences. But the darling devotees of the Lord make best use of the separable things and meditate upon the inseparable Atman.

If one doesn’t get elated in favorable circumstances and does not become distressed in the face of unfavorable one, considering both of them as gifts of God and remains equanimous always; he transcends happiness and sorrow and becomes one with God. In thinking of happiness and sorrow, one forgets God. Constant recollection of God makes the mind divine and the effect of happiness and sorrow is significantly reduced. If somebody walks towards the sea, at first, he gets to feel the winds of the seashore. As he goes nearer the sea, the winds become increasingly humid; and on going further ahead, his feet become wet. Then, he gradually goes on losing himself into the sea-water. Similarly, our matching towards God and contemplating and recollecting Him, makes our mind spiritualized, engrossed in God and then it slowly gets immersed and lost in the love divine. Then mental modes of happiness and sorrow, friends and foes become morror. Modes of sorrow and enmity lose their hold on the mind with mode of the Lord alone resigning supreme in the mind. Thereupon, God’s Opulence, Knowledge, Peace, Love and Bliss start growing in our mind. Worldly pleasures and opulence stand nowhere in comparison thereto.

Therefore, fill your mind with divine Knowledge and divine bliss through constant recollection of and love for the Lord to attain the blessed state of ultimate fulfillment. Accomplish the mission that you have come for.

Steps to a Successful Life

One is the action-born pleasure, the sensual pleasure, which is derived from eating, drinking and clothing the body. Eat, drink; not for pleasure, otherwise you will suffer ailments caused by overeating. Sex for the purpose of procreation is okay; but will invite premature old-age if it is done for pleasure. In this, you merely enjoy some momentary pleasure, only to repent in the end. A momentary phase of amorous dalliance between a husband and wife is followed by fatigue, strife and misery. You enjoy drinking liquor or eating meat and end up with health hazards. Similarly if you wallowed in the joy of being praised, you will but cry when slandered.

Sight, smell, taste, touch and hearing are the five kinds of action-born or sensual pleasures. If one develops the habit of seeking happiness from worldly objects, one will meet his and very soon. It is better instead to observe self-restraint and get the joy of Bhagwad Bhava, devotional sentiments, japa or meditation. But then, even japa or meditation cannot be continued perennially. Nor can the same kind of Bhava or spirit of devotional love be maintained forever, as emotions will keep changing. They actually commit a grave mistake who say, “I used to have such and such experiences in meditation. Bapuji! I could see You in my dreams but now I do not have such experiences any more. Alas! I am lost. “These are, after all, emotional joys and emotions keep changing. Happiness, whether external or emotional cannot remain constant and those who wish to keep them constant, create misery for themselves. “I should look beautiful forever.” Well, that is impossible, for beauty belongs to Nature and hence is ephemeral.

Superior to emotional joy is the pleasure derived through vichara, i.e., spiritual reflection, as it involves (comparatively) less efforts. The joy of reflection is derived by moulding the mind in accordance with the principle that has once been assimilated.

Greater even than that joy is the bliss derived through knowledge. On realizing the very genesis of that bliss as one’s real ‘I’ –

Purna guru kirpa mili, purna guru ka jnan
asumal se ho gaye, sanin asaram
jagrat swapna susupti cete,
Brahmananda ka ananda lete
‘Blessed with the grace of the Perfected Guru;
And the knowledge of the Perfected Guru having descended upon Him,
Asumal was transformed into Sai Asaram,
As a witness to the three states of walking,
Dream and deep sleep;
He revels in the Brahmic Bliss.’

The waking state comes and passes, while various events in waking state come and pass; but the ‘I’, the witness to the events of the waking state, does not pass. The dream state came and many trains, people and other good and bad things were seen in it. All this came and passed but the ‘I’, the witness thereto, still exists. Same is the case with deep sleep. I went to bed and quickly fell asleep at about eleven in the night and woke up around quarter to four in the morning. Now, sleep did come and go, but isn’t the witness to the arrival and departure of sleep still present?

Jagrat swapna susupti chete brahmananda ka anand lete
‘As a witness to the three states of waking,
dream and deep sleep,
He revels in the Brahmic Bliss’

In contrast to these fleeting states of awareness, I am the eternal Brahman, the consciousness Absolute.

Khate pite mauna ya kahate,
Brahmananda masti men rahate
‘While eating drinking, being silent or speaking,
He revels in the intoxication of Brahmic Bliss.’

Practices like visiting pilgrim centers, temples or mosques do not help as much as the satsanga helps.

‘A single Ghadi (24 minutes) or even half, nay be it halved again,
Spent in the company of a saint, frees us from innumerable sins, says Tulsidas.’

The mind and the intellect of one sitting silent get repose. Where does repose come from? You get tired after a whole day’s work and when you completely cease to work in the night, it is the same Atman wherefrom you get the energy to work on the next day; but you remain oblivious to it due to sleep. Nevertheless, you do gain in enough energy for the next day’s work. The repose, attained in meditation by becoming quiet after chanting ‘Hari Om’, gives us enough power to eradicate our vices and experience divine Bliss.

The Vedas teach us to laugh and dance leading a joyful life; but not by indulging in evil deeds rather practicing devotion to God and remaining engaged in altruistic activities. Lord Shiva dances playing His damru, Lord Krishna plays His flute, Devarshi Narada – his lute and Gauranga dances clapping his hands, while Tukaramji Maharaj would do so playing the cymbals… life should be full of joy divine.

The sensual pleasure enjoyed by drinking and eating meat leads the jivatman to ruin and down fall; while the joy of devotional Bhava elevates the jiva. The joy of knowledge enlightens one to stay in the higher states of elevation. The bliss of Love makes one recognize the most unalloyed bliss. Just a single step above this is the bliss of Self-realization. The Bliss Divine elevates the jiva. The nectar of divine knowledge unites the jivatman with God.

Yoga of Divine Recollection Charity and Discrimination

Notwithstanding its numerous demerits, Kaliyuga has one excellent merit. With lust, anger, greed, attachment, diseases, deceit, loss of peace, wars discord between brothers and spouses, etc. ruling the roost in the ali-age, it has become a ‘Filth-age’ in effect> but then, it has an enormous excellence too in the form of ‘Smriti Yoga’, i.e., recollection of the Lord or the yoga (union) through the name divine.

Irrespective of how small a means of sadhana you take recourse to, if you earnestly aim at attaining God driven by a firm conviction of – ‘God alone is mine’, all defects of Kaliyuga are automatically nullified. Then the incoming wealth would not be wasted on unworthy pursuits but would duly be spent on good endeavors alone. The wealth that is not spent on righteous endeavors is sure to be wasted on evil pursuits, viz. indulgence in alcohol, non-vegetarian foods, gambling etc. or else would be mindlessly squandered away by one’s progeny; otherwise end up falling into the taxman’s net.

Three things are supremely important in Kaliyuga. One of them is of course – ‘Smriti Yoga’, i.e. remembering the Lord along with the japa of His name divine; while the second one is ‘Dana Yoga’, i.e. exercise of charity. ‘Danam kewalm kaliyuge i.e. ‘Charity is the only means in Kaliyuga,’ One possessing wealth should donate it. One should possessing wealth should donate it. One should serve if he is able. A knowledgeable person may go ahead and enlighten the people. But it should not be a mere bookish knowledge enabling him to deliver discourses. He should first imbibe and assimilate the Knowledge of his Guru by leading a life of total obedience to Him. Donations of peace, knowledge, devotion and love are all essential virtues. Once virtues are developed, vices will automatically vanish and the heart will be purified as a matter of course.

If you experience an interesting peace of mind, are treading the path of dharma and utilize your money in dharma oriented pursuits rather than wasting it on mindless pampering of your fanciful desires, your money will prove to be a saviour to you. But in case your money is spent only towards bringing sense pleasures and luxury to you, it would but prove to be a degrader to you.

The two means of ‘divine recollection’ and inclination towards good endeavors lead one to salvation.

And the third important thing is to awaken discrimination by reflecting on the matters like – what ultimately do the worldly achievements bring us?... What after all do we get by amassing a large sum of money?... What truly worthy do we get even after having amassed a sizeable amount of wealth? After all, everything has to be left behind when the body crosses the portals of the grave. Hence, before death overtakes us we should make it a point to realize the deathless Self. Let us know and comprehend That Peace Absolute and Consciousness Absolute Self, Which does not die even after the death of the body.

Fie unto the wealth, irrespective of its magnitude, if the owner thereof is not driven by a penchant for some higher objective. He doesn’t deserve to be called wealthy man in its true sense, but is actually a man yearning wealth to put it in the simplest manner. The wealth, power or beauty are of no real importance, what is actually important is the goal, which must be of God-realization alone. The actual objective of man is attainment of eternal happiness. What actually is meant by God-realization? The answer comes that eternal happiness is the other name of God-realization; or in other words what brings one the eternal happiness is verily God-realization. That which relieves one forever of the pangs of miseries is called God-realization. The only original demand of man is but God-realization, Irrespective of whatever goal man resolves to attain, he invariably aims at eradication of miseries and attainment of the Supreme. Be it the goal of getting married or completing the MBA course, all one wants there from is but relief from miseries and attainment of happiness. But the freedom from external miseries and the attained happiness don’t last for long. If you attain this stage of real happiness then your miseries cannot survive. If the goal is not pure, one can’t get pure happiness, one is enabled to develop the pure goal only through pure satsanga. Only when one stays in the shelter of a great man while obeying his commands with due diligence, does one develop the penchant for the pure goal. There only he gets hints on the right sadhana for him. Set yourself the lofty goal of attaining the bliss of the inner Self. The joys of marriage are but all worthless, while treading the unrighteous path only leads one to sure degeneration – with all this becoming very clear, one should aim now for the happiness of righteous life.

Just go on chanting Om… Om…. Om…. And repose progressively in peace. You will come by inner inspirations, while your fate lines would undergo positive changes. And this is something that everyone can do. Is there anything difficult in it? As much time you spend doing this japa, do make it a point to sit quiet for that much time also. Look at the Lord or Guru with a fixed gaze. In case there comes some thought in the mind, don’t worry, just contemplate that thoughts come and go but you belong to God (forever). Look at the sky and thereafter become quiet. This is a sadhana of the highest order. There is absolutely no worth in the futile talks of the world.

‘Talks, talks and endless gossiping,
Such worthless talks won’t help you
When you are kicked by the god of death.’

SADHANA AND ITS OBJECTIVE

Irrespective of whatever name a man gives to the purpose behind his action, the only real motive behind it is removal of misery and attainment of happiness.

Some people think, ‘On having amassed such and such amount of gold, silver, diamond and pearls; our miseries will be removed and we will be happy. But if you rack your brains, you will realize that even those who are already in possession of all these things have yet not attained freedom from miseries. Even the so-called rich people, business tycoons, property magnates and money lenders of society admit that they are not happy. ‘I will be happy if I get this much’ – this is but an absolutely false notion and has its roots in ignorance.

‘I will be happy if I pass my exams…’ what great will you achieve by passing the exams? ‘I will be happy if I get a job…’ Are they happy who have a job? ‘I will be happy if I get married….’ Are they happy, who are married? ‘I will be happy if I begot a son… If my son gets married, how happy I would be! I wish my son is separated from me, I would then be happy…’ You can be happy only if you know your Real Self, or else there will be misery, and nothing else but misery for you!

Some say,’ We will be happy if we get these objects of enjoyment.’ I know people who over indulged in sense pleasures and died suffering from tuberculosis, asthma, blood-pressure and insomnia; but failed to attain happiness.

By indulging in sensual pleasures, people have become afflicted with diseases and died a miserable death but never attained happiness.

Somebody said, “We will be happy if so and so much of our business assignments is completed.” But these business assignments have never been completed in anybody’s life. One assignment gives rise to another and so on.

Just as a child is born out of a (grown up) child and a tree out of a tree, so also does one assignment give rise to another and that goes on till the very end of life.

A mantra in the Rigveda says,

Balam dhadhan Aatmani

“Invoke power in yourself.” (9.113.1)
Attain the strength to protect yourself from carnal pleasures and passions,
Attain the strength to obtain real happiness.
Another said, “I will be happy sitting quiet.” If it were so, stones would have been the happiest! Go and become a rock then if you want to sit quietly!
Man should have a shelter (of Knowledge) that would keep him bliss personified, both in Samadhi and distraction, richness and poverty, action and inaction, enjoyment and renunciation, quiet and disquiet, sleep and waking state. May the bliss of the Atman be constantly available to you while waking or sleeping, while in Samadhi or engaged in activity. May the benign grace of the Lord Absolute enlighten your being. That alone will see the accomplishment of your purpose, i.e. complete eradication of misery and attainment of bliss. If you assign the accomplishment of your purpose to the attainment of a particular object, viz, ‘I will be happy if the circumstances are such and such… or if I become so and so… or if it doesn’t happen that way…’, you are absolutely wrong. Actually, you have no relationship whatsoever with the objects and circumstances of the world; and you are never distant from the Bliss-personified Self.

The happiness derived from the finite makes you finite, dependent and inert, for one cannot experience pleasure without identifying oneself with the inert. The pleasures experienced through sensual gratification will make you debilitated. The trivial external objects that project happiness will entangle you and make you miserable in the end.

When you wake up in the morning, convince yourself, ‘None of my relationships in the world is real; while the Truth Personified Self, the Supreme Soul, is not apart from me’, and thus repose in your Supreme Self.

It doesn’t matter how small a particular sadhana is, provided it is aimed at the goal. No matter how big a sadhana is, it is not preferable if it deviates one from the goal.

Even the best kind of sadhana will lead one to downfall if the goal is anything other than Divine Bliss; and even a simple looking sadhana will lead one to liberation if his goal is the Bliss Divine.

Shandili served her husband beholding him as God and she became great. Her husband was a drunkard and meat-eater; and would order her to take him to a particular prostitute. He was lame and Shandili would carry him to the prostitute. She served her husband as god. By virtue of the power of this penance, Shandili had stopped the movement of the Sun. Even the Trinity – Lords Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva manifested themselves before her.

The goal of dharma, devotion or yoga is not to increase attraction for the world or sense pleasures, rather its goal is to decrease all these and find repose in the Lord. All means of sadhana are verily meant for restraining and interiorizing the mind in this manner. Dharma sets a limit to your actions, while upasana checks the escalation of your desires.

Thus, observance of dharma will limit your actions, while upasana will check your desires. Then knowledge will eradicate ignorance, thereby ushering you into the realm of Absolute Bliss!

Everything is verily a manifestation of God; where then do differences, delusion, misfortune and misery exist? They exist in the ‘seeing’ without right knowledge. For as you see, so is the world. It is the same creation, the same Atman and the same five elements of nature as well. The difference is in the perception of the enlightened sage and that of the ignorant jiva. It’s verily for this reason that saints have extolled ‘recollection of the Supreme Soul’ as the highest among all means (of sadhana). The Truth-Consciousness and Bliss Absolute Being permeates every place, every moment and every jiva in the same measure and content, but those who stick to the master means of recollecting God with constant awareness are alone able to revel in the joy and ecstasy of that Bliss personified Consciousness. Japa of the Lord’s name too reaches the highest level only when it is done with due remembrance of god. All the scriptures, dealing mainly with the subject of salvation, have generously eulogized this beautiful means.
Krite yad vatsarathsadhayam punyam madhavtoshnam
Tretaya masaat sadhyam dvapare pakashato nripa
Tashmadashgunam punye kalo vishnusmriterbharvet

“The merit of propitiating Lord Vishnu which could be accomplished in the course of one year in Satayuga, could be accomplished in a month in Tretayuga O King, and the same in a fortnight in Dvaparayuga. Whereas ten times that merit can be achieved through mere remembarance of Lord Vishnu in Kaliyuga.”
(The Skanda Purana, Vaishnava
Khanda Vaishaka Masa
Mahatmya: 22.20-21)
Smarantah smrayantascha mithoghogharam harim

“May all remember and remind each other of Hari, Who annihilates the mass of sins instantly.”
(The Srimad Bhagawata:11.3.31)
Devarshi Naradaji considers extreme – agitation in moments of forgetfulness of the Lord – as verily a sign of steadfast devotion.
Tadwismarane parmavyakulta
(The Narada Bhakti Darshana: 19)

While emphasizing on the importance of taking recourse to this means for the attainment of divine bliss. Guru Arjundevaji says in the ‘Sukhmani Sahib’:

“I may remember God, and by so remembering, obtain true happiness.”

Start with recollecting the name through whispering and then proceed by recollecting it in the throat and finally remember the name in the heart. This is a very easy means to reveal the Self Bliss_in the heart.

Repeatedly read the books ‘Sri Narayan Stuti’ and Bhagwannam Jap Mahima’ (both presently not available in English), which deal with recollection of the Lord’s name as a means. Swami Ramasukhadasaji, who was well aware of the significance of recalling the Lord, would repeatedly make the audience pray in the course of his satsanga, “O Lord! My Lord! May I never forget You.’

This means becomes easy when one learns the various techniques to avail himself of its benefits. If you cast a retrospective look at your daily activities, you will find that you do happen to slander someone or the other, you might also have praised somebody, at times succumbed to anger, reviled somebody, done some work for somebody, loved or hated somebody and then went to sleep or rest without fail after getting tired. This means doesn’t prohibit you from doing any of these activities such as slandering, praising, loving, fuming, hating, reposing, eating, drinking etc. It just asks you to do a very easy and simple thing; and you all are absolutely free to do it.

Whenever a fit of anger, slander or hatred arises in your mind, divert it towards the Lord and say, ’O Lord! What are you doing? Don’t You do anything for the suffering masses oppressed by the hefty price rise? Will you keep sitting like this as a dispassionate witness to the increasing violence, poverty and antipathy? Has Your heart become devoid of sympathy and compassion?”

On one occasion, Oriya Babaji vented his anger on the people doing kirtana: “Why are you people calling out to God in vain? Where is your God? You have defaced your cymbals by using them just too much, and gone deaf playing the mridangam, singing praises of the Lord and dancing day and night in His name.”

Revered saint Kokil Sai was present at that time in the ashram. He asked, “Have you had a quarrel with God today?”

The Baba then revealed that he had visited a hospital. There, he was no overcome with compassion and sympathy at the sight of groaning patients lying in rows of cots that he became very angry with God. In this way anger, etc. should be vented on God alone.

Now, didn’t the Self-realized saint, Oriya Babaji, know that the patients at the hospital were only reaping the fruits of their own past actions? He did. But such divine sports of liberated saints do play a great role in revealing the mysteries of the scriptures to the devotees.

Kamakrodhaabhimanadikam tasamannave karanium

‘One should turn all his desire, anger, pride, etc. towards God alone.’
(The Narada Bhakti Darshana: 65)

Oriya Babaji says: “God never anybody of his misery. Had He been doing so, nobody should remain unhappy in the world. He alone, who on becoming miserable remembers God, is relived of his misery. Hence recollection of God is the only panacea for all miseries.”

Whenever you feel like reproaching someone, remind yourself that the person whom you want to revile is just a puppet in the hands of that divine Consciousness alone. It is the Consciousness Absolute, the Supreme Self, Who is pulling the strings behind the scenes. Hence I will rather reproach Him alone. When even a great saint like Tulsidasaji doesn’t see anything wrong in reproaching the Lord by saying:

‘My heart is Thy abode my Lord,
Many thieves have broken into it,
They are just too strong and obstinate
To yield to my humble requests,
Says Tulsidasa, listen O Rama,
The robbers are ransacking Thy house.
I am just too worried,
Lest this should give a bad name to Thee.’

Why then should we see anything wrong in doing so? When we taunt our mother or God, it churns out their special love, compassion and grace for us, thereby inundating us with bliss and joy.

When you are overcome with fear in the face of some adversity, call out to God alone, just as Gajendra, the king of elephants, had called out fervently to God when he was caught by a crocodile. If you want to call out to God and praise Him, then learn this art of eulogizing Him by reading the ‘Srimad Bhagawata Mahapurana’ and the book ‘Sri Narayana Stuti.’

If you have a feeling of love, divert it towards the Lord, because He alone is truly worthy of being loved. He nurtures, sustains and gives consciousness to all.

In this way, we should constantly keep recollecting God by just any means so that ‘Nasto Mohah smritirlabdha….’ ‘My delusion having been destroyed, I have now regained my memory…’ these words of Arjuna may become our own experience, whereupon we shall gain memory of our true Being and say good-bye forever to our forgetfulness of the Supreme Being.
‘Recollection of the Lord does bring happiness,
Recollection of the Lord does remove misery.

Says Kabir, by recollecting the Lord, one becomes one with the Master,’

Sleep and Samadhi

There is no might or power that doesn’t emanate from a complete exertionless repose. All kinds of psychic power and happiness are available through exertionless repose alone.

There are three types of exertion-physical exertion, mental exertion and intellectual exertion. Suppose one is sitting idle, his mind and intellect may still be at work if the process of weaving a web of resolves and counter resolves continues within.

Mind you, it’s not sleep, but the state of exertionless repose; this alone is called Samadhi. What is the difference between sleep and Samadhi? The pleasure of sleep is tamasic in nature and it removes fatigue, while the bliss of spiritual peace (Samadhi) is sattvic in nature and it increases the ojas that eradicates ignorance. One wakes up from sleep relieved of physical fatigue but remains the same as he was before sleeping. The level of his mental and intellectual being after waking from sleep will be the same as it was when he went to sleep. But on coming out of Samadhi, having exertionless repose by meditating on the Supreme Self, one finds the mind and the intellect sublimated with a change in wisdom and surfacing of elevated thoughts and lofty ideas.

In sleep, some people droop forwards while others droop backwards. If the head droops forwards, it means that the mind is concentrated in the heart and one is overcome by sleep. If the mind is overcome by inertia the head will droop backwards. In Samadhi, the head remains straight.

In the Satayuga there was a majority of yogis and Self-realized saints. They didn’t sleep. They meditated for eight hours which, apart from being a mode of sadhana, fulfilled their requirement of sleep as well. In any case, if one practices meditation perfectly for 4 hours, he can make do with 2 hours of sleep.

I have seen Ghatwale Baba holding spiritual discussions till midnight or 1 a.m. and then he would wake up at 3 a.m. to go into the jungle where he would meditate and carry out spiritual practices. Whenever he felt tired, he would take a nap for one or two hours. For a yogi, 4 hours of sleep is more than enough. 8 and 6 hours of sleep are sufficient for a child and a worldly or pleasure-seeking man respectively.

Samadhi is of two types-savikalpa Samadhi and nirvikalpa Samadhi. However, there are many subsidiary types of Samadhi as well; such as bhava Samadhi, vicharanugata Samadhi, anandanugata Samadhi, etc.

If one starts experiencing bliss while chanting ‘Om Om Bliss Om….’, doing pranayama, meditating, gazing one-pointedly at the idol of God or Guru or the sky, it is called ‘anandanugata Samadhi’, Then one forgets even ‘Om Om Bliss Om…’ and experiences absolute peace… he doesn’t feel like even getting up, no laziness, no sleep, no ideas… this is called ‘nirvikalpa Samadhi’.

But the recollection, ‘I belong to God, God is mine nay everything is God Himself,’ Such contemplation, “Vasudev Sarvam” i.e., reposing in the conviction that it is the Lord Vasudeva abiding in all, puts an end to all troubles forever. Good and bad are all but divine sports of Lord Vasudeva. Just as the good and bad people and things seen in a dream are nothing but the play of the consciousness of the dream state, so also, all that is seen in the waking state is the play of the consciousness of the waking state. Thus, one experiences peace and has no complaints regarding anything in life. Do what is necessary and appropriate while conducting yourself in the world, but maintain the inner conviction that everything is Lord Vasudeva Himself – ‘Everything belongs to Thee…’

Infinite is the glory of Lord Hari
• He alone becomes all what we call the world.
• Becoming parents, Guru and master. He keeps admonishing us,
• Becoming son, wife and servant. He renders diligent service to us.
• At times in the form of a disease. He raises the temperature.
• He alone becomes the doctor and prescribes drugs therefore.
• He alone comes as pleasure, happiness and honor to inspire men and women.
• At other times in the form of mountain-like misery. He tries them to frighten.
• Then as a saint by showering. His grace through His eyes on all.
• He nullifies the miseries of numerous births as are set to befall.
• Also does He incarnate Himself on earth for the good of the saintly.
• Unique is His sport, His remembrance delivers one doubtlessly.
• He assumes countless forms, glorious indeed is the Lord Supreme.
• So supremely great is His grace divine, repeatedly do I bow to Him.

In children, grown ups and the aged, it is You alone My Lord. My Vasudeva! My Govinda! My Gopala! Hari! Achyuta! Bliss Om… Vasudeva Om… Everywhere Om…

Om namo bhagavate vasudevaya, pritidevaya, santidevaya, sarvadevaya, bliss… bliss…. peaces… self-repose….