Spiritual discipline (sadhana)Spiritual discipline (sadhana)

- role of Guru; - karma and upasana dharma,- dhyanam (meditation) and thapas (sacrifice)- Viveka (discrimination) and Vairagyam (de-tachement);- wish, will and effort (sama, dama, uparathi, thithiksa, sraddha and samadhana)- Atmavichara (reflection, concentration contemplation and meditation);- the six enemies (kama, krodha, lobha, moha, mada and matsarya);- seva- Karma, Bhakthy, Raja and Jnana yoga- Moksha or Liberation (mukti or Self-realisation)- Satchidananda (Being-Awareness-Bliss)

Sadhana in Dhyana Vahini

13 (DV) Taming the mind and the intelligence

Today, people with new fangled ideas argue how meditation is to be done and even why it should be done. But they know neither its taste nor its purity. That is why there is so much criticism and cynical laughter. My present intention is to instruct such people. Therefore, I am revealing this. See!

Everyone in the world has the nature of behaving and acting in two different ways: one outside

and another inside. This is known to all, though generally people do not show this publicly.

Just as people lose even the little joy that they have worrying over the factions they may have in their family, so they losetheir internal peace when faced with physical obstacles and troubles.

For example, consider a cart. It cannot move by itself,can it? It can move only when two bullocks are yoked to it.And the cart can move safely only when the bullocks aretrained to pull carts and when they are used to the road onwhich they have to walk. Instead, if they are ignorant of theprocess of pulling carts, if they have not walked on the road,if they have never stepped out of their shed, or if they havealways moved only round and round the post to which theyhave been tied, in their own mire, the journey cannotproceed! And the cart will itself face danger!

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So also, the inner consciousness (anthah-karana) cannot move

of itself; it must be attached to the externally related bullocks, the intelligence (buddhi) and mind (manas). Then

only can it move forward, following the bullocks’ tracks.

So, earlier than the journey, the bullocks —intelligence and mind— should be conversant with the road to the village that the inner senses are eager to reach. They must be trainedto proceed in that direction. If this is done, the journey willbe easy and safe.

Instead, if the draught animals have no knowledge of the pathways of truth, righteousness, peace, and love (sathya, dharma, santhi, and prema), and if they have never once trodden that path, the cart, the inner senses themselves,might come to grief! Even if they are prodded to proceed, they will only drag the cart to the familiar post and theaccustomed mire of confusion, injustice, cruelty, indiscipline, and falsehood! What then of the journey? When is the arrival to be?Therefore,

intelligence and mind (buddhi and manas) have to be taught the art of pulling the cart and moving

steadily along the road. This has to be done by repetition of the Lord’s name (japa) and meditation (dhyana).

18 (DV) The method of meditation

Meditation should be performed enthusiastically, with full faith and care, and strictly according to the disciplineslaid down. If this is done, it will bestow not only allhappiness and all victory but even the vision of the Lord.

This is bound to the science of Supreme Spirituality(Vedanta) and also to the science of nature (prakriti). Thesetwo are different in only one respect. The students of nature(prakriti) are immersed in the objects of life; the studentsof Vedanta are immersed in the basic truth of life. And peopleare bound to both of them!

Nature is related to sense objects (vishaya); Vedanta is related to one’s Self-reality (swa-rupa).

If people desire to transform their lives, internal as well asexternal, into one of splendour, meditation is the best

spiritual discipline (sadhana) they can adopt.

The place for meditation should be a little elevated — an inch or two— from the ground. Place a mat of dharbha grass (a

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matty, long grass grown in India) on it, spread a deer-skin on the mat, and lay a thin white cloth on the skin.

Sit on it in the lotus posture (padmasana). The right foot must be above the left and the left foot above the right. The fingers of the hand must be in close touch with one another and the hands should be placed in front. The eyes must be either half open or fully closed.

Then, by means of mental massage, relax the neck, shoulders, hands, chest, teeth, stomach, fingers, back, thighs, knees, calves, and feet. After this,

one has to meditate on one’s own favourite name and form, with Om added. When this is being done, there should be

no mental wanderings; one must be stable and quiet.

No thought of past events, no trace of anger or hatred, and no memory of sorrow should be allowed to interfere. Even if they intrude, they should not be considered at all; to counteract them, entertain thoughts that will feed one’s enthusiasm for meditation. Of course, this may appear difficult, at first.

The best time for meditation is the quiet hours beforedawn, between 3 and 5 a.m. One can awake, say, at 4 a.m.

First of all, sleep has to be subdued. This is very necessary.In order to keep the hours unchanged, one may set the alarmclock for 4 a.m. and rise. Even then, if sleep continues tobother, its effect can be overcome by means of a bath incold water. Not that it is essential to bathe; it is needed onlywhen sleep gives much trouble.

If in this manner the path of meditation (dhyana) is rigorously followed, it is possible for one

to win the grace of the Lord very quickly.

- acquiring one-pointed attention on the Lord

Spiritual aspirants (sadhakas) all over the world will naturally be engaged in repetition of the name (japa) and meditation, but first one has to be clear about the purpose of repeating the name and meditation. Without this knowledge, people believe them to be related to the objective world, capable of satisfyingworldly desires, and hope to demonstrate their value by means of sensory gains! This is a grave error.

Repetition of God’s name and meditation are foracquiring one-pointed attention on the Lord, for casting

off sensory attachments, and for attaining the joy derived from the basis of all sensory objects.

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The mind should not be wandering in all directions, indiscriminately, like the fly. The fly dwells in the sweetmeat shop and runs after therubbish carts;

the fly that has such a mind has to be taught to understand the sweetness of the first place and the

impurity of the second place, so that it may not desert the sweetmeat shop and pursue the rubbish cart. When

such teaching is imparted to the mind, it is called meditation!

Look at the other type, the bee! It has contact only with sweetness; it approaches only flowers that possess nectar; it is not attracted to other places; it does not proceed there at all. Similarly, one has to give up all inclinations towards sensory attraction, towards the rubbish cart of the untrue and the impermanent.

As far as possible, one has to direct the mind to all holy things, which yield sweetness and the joy associated with the Lord. To attain these, time is needed, of course. How long that time will be depends on the activities of thought, word, and deed as well as on the motives that impel those actions.

22 (DV) Gauge meditation by its inner impact

The main things to be considered are not at what expense one has prayed to the Lord, nor the number of years one has been engaged in it, nor the rules and regulations one has followed, nor even the number of times one has prayed over. The main considerations are: with what mind one has prayed, with what degree of patience one has been awaiting the result, and with what single-mindedness one has craved for Godly bliss, regardless of worldly happiness and delay, with no lassitude and with constant attention to oneself, one’s meditation, and one’s task.

If one examines deeply the success in getting rid of allidea of self, one can oneself gauge the progress made.

Instead, if one is engaged in counting the rules and addingup the time spent and the expense incurred, such

meditation can belong only to the objective world; it can never come into the subjective and spiritual fields.

23 (DV) The three paths of meditation

There are three ways by which aspirants try to enter the path of meditation: - the path of truth (sathwika-marga),- the path of passion and emotion (rajasika-marga) and - the path of ignorance (thamasika-marga).

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1) The pure, serene ( sathwic ) path . On this path, one considers repetition of the name and

meditation as a duty and suffers any amount of trouble for its sake; one is fully convinced that all this is just an illusion, so one does only good under all conditions and at all times. One desires only the good of all and is always loving towards all; one spends time uninterruptedly in the remembrance and meditation of the Lord. One does not crave even the fruit of repeating the name and meditation; one leaves it all to the Lord.

2) The passionate, restless ( rajasic ) path . Here, one craves for the fruit of one’s act at every step. If the fruit is not available, then, gradually, laxity and disgust overpower the spiritual aspirant and the repetition of the name and meditation slowly dry up.

3) The ignorant ( thamasic ) path . This path is even worse. The Lord will come into the memory only in times of danger or acute suffering or when one is the victim of loss or pain. At such times, such a person prays and vows to arrange this worship (puja), offer this particular food, or build this kind of temple to the Lord. One will be calculatingthe quantity of food placed before the Lord, the tribute offered at His feet, the number of prostrations performed, and the number of times the shrine was circled —and ask for proportionate awards! For those who adopt this attitude in meditation, the mind and intellect can never be pure.

Most people now follow only the passionate, restless (rajasic) and dull, ignorant (thamasic) paths in repeating the divine name and meditation. However, the very intention of repeating the divine name and meditation is to purify the mind and the intellect. In order to achieve this, the first path is best: pure, serene (sathwic) meditation.

25 (DV) The need for bodily and mental training

There is a close mutual relationship between the attitudes of the body and the attitudes of the mind. So, people’s inner feelings will be evident from their physical bodies. The stance and the appearance of the body help us to discover these feelings.

Take one example. With the loins girded, the sleeves of the shirt rolled, and the palms rounded into fists, it is not possible to exhibit love or devotion. With bended knees, the eyes half-closed, and the hands raised up over the head with the palms joined, is it possible to show one’s anger or hatred or cruelty? That is why

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the ancient sages (rishis) used to tell the spiritual aspirant that it is necessary during prayer and

meditation to adopt the appropriate bodily pose. They saw that it is possible to control the waywardness of the mind by this means.

Of course, for the expert spiritual aspirant, meditation is easy in any pose; but for the novice, such physical means are essential. This bodily and mental training must be undergone only to be later discarded as but a means to attain the true and eternal Atma. Until this is realised, spiritual discipline has to be consistently practised.

Until the goal of meditation is achieved, the wellestablished discipline of sitting postures (asanas) has to be followed.

The curriculum has to be adhered to till then. After attainment of the goal —that is, after the mind (manas) and the intellect (buddhi) have been conquered and brought under control— one can be immersed in meditation wherever one finds oneself: on the bed, in the chair, on a rock, or in a cart.

Once you learn to ride a motorcycle, you can ride on any road and under all conditions. But when you are just learning to ride, for your own safety and for the safety of those around you, you have to select an open parade ground. And you have to follow certain principles of balance; this is essential.

So too, those who engage in meditational practice (sadhana) have to follow a certain course of training. No change can be made in this. So,

the passionate, restless (rajasic) and the dull, ignorant (thamasic) forms can never be considered

meditation. If the spiritual practice becomes fully pure and serene (sathwic), that is best.

To describe anything in words is difficult; it might even cause boredom. But to demonstrate it by deed is easier and more pleasant! To make people understand by doing meditation is better than by talking about it! My writing on it and your reading it will not make it easy.

Through meditation, people reach the divineexperience of realising the Atma within themselves.

- purity of the inner life of the spiritual aspirant

Through meditation, spiritual aspirants are able to cast off sheaths of ignorance, layer after layer. They withdraw their sense perceptions from contact with worldly objectiveexperiences. The process that aims at this holy consummation

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deserves to be called meditation.

For this process, one must be equipped with goodhabits, discipline, and high ideals. One must be full of

renunciation towards worldly things and their attractions.

Whatever the situation, one should conduct oneself withenthusiasm and joy. Whatever is done must be dedicatednot for the eking out of a livelihood but for earning Atmicbliss (Atma-ananda).

One should train oneself to adopt a good sitting pose (asana), to avoid tension of the body, and to ease the mind from the weight and pressure of the body. This is what deserves to be called pure meditational practice (sathwika dhyana sadhana). Discipline is very necessary for this.

The troubles and tribulations that come in the wake ofan attempt to destroy the undesirable activities of the mindwill disappear through the strict course and rules describedabove. What remains is only putting them into actual practice by the spiritual aspirant.

Even the most powerful drug cannot effect a cure when it is brought to the bedside of the patient. The sufferer has to take it in, little by little, as per schedule, with all the attendant care, and try to assimilate it into the system. The healing principle of the drug must pervade the entire body; the body must be suffused with the drug.Similarly, the authoritative texts (siddhanthas) and theVedanta have no power to destroy individual faults and weaknesses.

If full results are wanted, then one must give up all false and low feelings and act according to the true teachings of the Vedanta and the siddhanthas. If one does, one will attain the fruit.

The secret of success in meditation lies in the purity of the inner life of the spiritual aspirant.

The success is proportionate to the importance the spiritual aspirant gives to right conduct (san-marga).

Everyone has the right to achieve this high degree ofsuccess. I do not say this in just a quiet tone; I declare thisloud enough for all quarters to hear. Knowing this, meditateand advance! Do meditation and progress! Realise the Atma!

32 (DV) Reaching the goal through meditation

Through meditation, it is possible to bring into memory the paradise that is one’s empire, discarding the transitory creations

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of the mind as a dream and a delusion. By engaging oneself systematically and calmly in meditation, meditation can be made effective and tranquil. Thus, the road towards the highest experienceis laid. A new understanding dawns, clear and unruffled.

When the heights of meditation are reached, this understanding becomes so strong that one’s lower

nature is destroyed and burned to ashes! Then, only “You” remain! The entire creation is a delusion of your mind!

One alone IS truth (sathya), the Lord, Being-Awareness-Bliss (satchidananda), the highest Atma; the One is the Self (Shivoham).The truth (sathya) is so subtle and so soothing. Once it is reached, there is no meditation and no meditator; all merge into One. That is the fixed, illumined experience.

Exulting within that one is pure knowledge, the wise one (jnani) will be aware only of Atmic bliss (Atma-anubhava). That is the goal, the fruit of immortality. Attaining this transcendent experience, the yogi finishes meditation and moves among people resplendent with divinity! In the yogi, the Vedas find fulfilment. The yogi is transformed into apure being.

Only meditation has the capacity to make onetranscend the vicissitudes of time and space

and make one ever the same equanimous individual, as if one is another Creator himself.

Once the individual (jivi) is on the way towards the goal, the individual will derive full contentment from himself and discover within himself the source of bliss. The cravings and ambitions, delusions and falsehoods, and animal needs and antics that were worrying the individual till then all vanish.

Since the Atma pervades all, equally and steadily, the individual also loses the “I-ness” and gets immersed

in its inherent divine status. Such a person is the real great soul (mahatma), a liberated soul (jivan-muktha).

Fullness is bliss (ananda); bliss is peace (santhi).

Those who do not give up the path of discrimination (vichara marga) receive the grace of the Lord, and they also realise the Atma. They will always be seeking the eternal truth that lies behind the dream-like illusions of this world.

34 (DV) The method of “inward living”: eschew the tenfold “sins”.

The spiritual aspirant (sadhaka) must first learn thesecret of the “inward sight”, the “vision directed inward”,and take his attention away from the exterior.

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You have heard far little about the inner world, but divine life is nothing but this method of “inward living”. Just as the baby,after learning to watch and understands, tries to toddle here and there at home, so also the spiritual aspirant learns to toddle the inner world and understands it. A healthy baby in the cradle waves its arms and legs in glee and lisps in joy, watching the lamp on the wall. Similarly,

the spiritual aspirant, also healthy in body, mind, and soul, lying in the cradle of life, watches the inner world and claps the hands ceaselessly in

great glee at that inner joy. This has to be done.

The meditator (dhyani) considers the realisation of Atmic bliss as important, but the promotion of the welfare of the world is also an equally important aim. For carrying out that aim, he must bring certain physical, verbal, and mental tendencies under control. These are usually known as the tenfold sins: the three physical, the four verbal, and the three mental.

The physical tendencies are: injury to life, adulterous desire, and theft. The verbal sins are: false alarms,

cruel speech, jealous talk, and lies. The mental attitudes are: greed, envy, anddenial of God.

The person intent on following the path of meditation must take every care that these ten enemies do not even approach. They have to be eschewed completely.

The person needs tendencies that will help progress and not those that drag back. One must speak and act only good (subha), for good alone is auspicious (mangala) and the auspicious aloneis Siva. This is what the scriptures (sastras) also say. The good is the auspicious. The auspicious is the spiritually helpful. The good is the instrument for merging in Siva.

Through the good, the meditator can achieve this worldand the other; the meditator can promote his own

welfare as well as the welfare of others. Welfare is the fruit of knowledge; illfare is the fruit of ignorance.

Through welfare alone can peace, joy, and progress be attained. One’s very basic duty is the welfare of all beings! Promoting it and contributing to it is the right task. Living out one’s span of life in discharging this task is the ordained path.

37 (DV) First, good qualities; later, the absence of qualities.

The passing show (jagath) is based on illusions (maya). That is

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why it is branded “false”. But do not conclude that mere recognition of the falsity of the world or an awareness that one has certain shortcomings will lead one on the higher path and take one to the highest truth.

Without a good character full of sterling qualities, one can never achieve progress in the spiritual field.

Progress depends on the worth and quality of the individual, just as the harvest depends on the fertility of the field.

Upon such a worthy piece of land, sow the seeds of sterling qualities and irrigate with the waters of reason and analysis; the plentiful harvest will be ready in due time! On lands where the seedlings of good qualities are not planted and tended, useless weeds multiply; and where orderly gardens could have been formed, thorny bushes create a jungle of impenetrable confusion.

Even if a person, through perversity or blind conceit,has thus far not cultivated good qualities, the person

can at least make a try or make efforts to secure them!

If this is not done, the excellence of life cannot be tasted and life is a waste; its worth is nil.

38 (DV) accumulate wealth of character

Some try to be devoid of qualities, but they achieve only living death. Their pale faces reveal only lack of zest and interest. This is the result of unreasoned haste in spiritual discipline. Though becoming quality-less is ultimately needed, there should be no hurry to reach the goal. Eve though a person may have the ardour, it very often leads to dilemmas, which many solve by means of suicide!

First, one must accumulate wealth of character. Many stalwart aspirants have lost their way and not

regained it in spite of years of effort because they evinced no interest in earning this qualification! Others have

slipped into the morass through which they were wading!

You can see that the path of “achieving the absence of qualities” is strewn with dangers. One cannot exist without activity, so one must of necessity act through “good” qualities. One must put down all desires and become free. The mind filled with good qualities will help in this process, for it will bear other’s prosperity gladly.

It will give up doing injury; it will seek opportunities to help, heal, and foster. It will not only suffer; it will also pardon. It will not inclinetowards the false; it will be on the alert to speak the truth. It will remain unruffled by lust, greed, anger, and conceit; it will be free

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from delusion. It will always seek the welfare of the world. From such a mind will flow an uninterrupted stream of love.

45 (DV) The will and the eight gates

The destruction of the modifications and agitations of the mind is the prerequisite for getting an audience with that ruler. His reception hall has eight gates through which one has to pass for the audience:

control of the inner senses, control of the outer senses, sitting posture, breath control, mind control, concentration,

meditation, and superconsciousness (yama, niyama, asana, pranayama, prathyahara, dharana, dhyana, and samadhi).

Of these eight gates, meditation is the seventh and super- consciousnes is the eighth. Meditation is the royal road to super-consciousness.

After the mind has been brought under control by theseeight disciplines, the will can easily be developed.

The will is the nature of the Lord; it is also referred to as the Lord’s ordinance. The Lord, by mere willing, can do anything immediately and easily. But one cannot realise this will as soon as it is entertained.

The power of the will is the deciding factor. The will is generally not so overpoweringly strong; when one achieves

that power, one gets something equal to the power of the Lord. That is the meaning of merger (laya).

Such merger is made possible through meditation (dhyana).

47 (DV) No past or future

The aspirant must be patient and bear things with fortitude. Therefore, the aspirant must develop within himself enthusiasm, faith, activity, and joy.

Keeping the great big result of effort constantly in view, the aspirant must boldly discard all difficulties

and temptations. Since the latter are but short-lived and weak, with a little patience, they can be overcome with

ease. If the aspirant is not vigilant and patient, all already-achieved success will melt away in an unguarded moment.

Spiritual aspirants, yogis, and renunciants (sanyasins) have to climb a ladder, the steps of which are: argumentation,

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no argumentation, analysis, non-analysis, agreement, etc. (sa-vitharka, nir-vitharka, sa-vichara, nir-vichara, samatha, etc.)

The knowledge of the world is not real knowledge. It is relative knowledge, the knowledge of the non-real.

The knowledge of the eternal Absolute is the real knowledge. That is acquired by meditation.

The fire of meditation and yoga will reduce the sapless activities of the mind (manas) to ashes. Immediately thereafter, the knowledge (jnana) of the Real will flash; it will shine with undiminished effulgence; its light will never go out.

For those established in this real knowledge, there is no past and future; all ages are in the

present, in the actual moment of experience.

62 (DV) Avoid no-pointedness and many- pointedness

It is not correct to say that the qualities and attainments needed for temporal progress and spiritual progress are different from each other.

The spiritual is only the purification of the temporal. Success or failure in both depends on one-pointedness (ekagratha). For every item of work, one-pointedness is

very important.This too is but spiritual discipline (sadhana).

There are two paths along which this spiritual disciplinemay proceed: no-pointedness and many-pointedness. Nopointedness is the stage of sleep; it is also called the quality of ignorance (thamoguna). Many-pointedness is the result of the restless quality (rajoguna), turning the vision of the opened eye on creation and its sights.

Avoiding both of these, without falling into these two extremes, if the eye is neither closed as in sleep nor opened wide as in the fully awakened stage, but half-opened and directed to the point of the nose, the pure quality (sathwa-guna) will become one’s nature, and concentration of the mind can also be easily acquired.Of course,

this does not mean that mere fixing the sight on the tip of the nose is enough. Fix it there in the beginningand then turn the vision to the name and form you

have in mind; that is meditation (dhyana).

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68 (DV) Three stages of growth or spiritual development

There are three stages of spiritual development:- first, the hazy uncertain stage; - then, the active stage of striving; - and last, the highest stage.

These are the stages of passivity (thamas), activity (rajas), and purity (sathwa).

When growing out of the first stage into the second, it is unnatural for a person not to improve step by step.

The period from childhood to adolescence need not be seriously taken into account.

One need not worry much about it.

With the dawn of adolescence, one enters upon the first hazy uncertain stage and engages in many fruitlessactivities.

Later, one attains ripeness and strength. This is the stage between the uncertain and the certain. It is when one has reached this intermediate stage that one must yearn for the fulfilment that is possible in the final stage.

In the rules for penance (tapas), this law is also observed. At first, ritual worship (puja) is associated with divine energy (sakthi), and the subsequent stage of worship is connected with Siva. That is to say, the period when one is under the care of the mother is over and the period of paternal care —the protection of the Renovator and Guardian of the universe, Siva— is reached.

When the stage of paternal care is come, one should not soil the body and mind, as during the period of maternal care.

In the intermediate stage (that is to say at that particularage), one will have certain natural propensities and tendencies

that are not desirable and have to be eschewed. These are: conceit, mischievousness, obstinacy, inquisitiveness, lust,

greed, shame, fear, vengefulness, disgust, etc.

As long as one has these, one cannot surrender oneself to Siva. These tendencies have to be uprooted completely, or at least there should be a systematic endeavour to get rid of them. Such aspirants will have to be swimming against the current (Vyathireka pravaaha gathi).

Proceeding against the current is the means to reach the

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Source; floating with the current means getting farther andfarther from It and losing sight of the Goal. Of course, swimming up the river is a bit hard, but every stroke takes you nearer to and not farther from the goal.

To overcome the strain, one must have the raft called meditation.

Through meditation, the weakness of the physical frame can be overcome, the wayward speed of the mind can be

controlled, and progress towards the seat of grace is made easy; one can attain the primordial divine Force (adi-murthi).

Instead, if one cares more for the ease of the journey and floats along the current, one would be travelling away from grace, turning their back on it.

The primordial divine Force will gradually become distant anddisappear. People who float along with the current will get lost in increasing misery. And for what profit?The evil tendencies mentioned above are the causes for this tragedy. If only they had been overcome, the divine Source could have been certainly reached.

Without striving for that, all activities will end in failure. Moreover, the world loves only good people, people endowed with goodqualities; it keeps bad people at a distance.

Exterior charm attracts the animal; internal charm, resulting from character, pleases the Lord.

Do not be tempted by the low tastes of the world and the cheap regard that people bestow.

Strive for the holy grace and love of the Lord.

The affection that people shower is inconstant, for it depends on their likes and dislikes. But the love that the Lord bears to you depends on your good qualities alone. It can also give you permanent joy. Those who are enamoured of the external will tumble into disappointment and sorrow every now and then.

Beauty consists in character, not in anything else. There is nothing more charming than that.

85 (DV) Success in meditation from uprooting impulses

Some aspirants say to themselves that in spite of manyyears of steady practice, they have yet to acquire success in meditation and concentration. The reason is easy to pointout: they have not been able to uproot the impulses (vasanas)! Therefore, such practitioners must strive to conquer their innate tendencies. They must fortify themselves with greater

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faith, and act.The aspirant who is disturbed now and then

by impure impulses must overcome them by will-power and spiritual exercises.

The liberated soul (jivan-muktha) has burned out impulses, but the householder (grihastha) is cultivating them. There is no profit in simply controlling them; a cobra becomes harmless only when its fangs are plucked out; similarly, their roots must be burned. Then only can the aspirant attain the Brahman. Of course,

even pure desires are a bond. But they are not hindrances, however many they may be. A thorn is removed by another

and both are thrown out afterwards, right?

So also, when impure impulses (vasanas) are overcome through the influence of pure impulses, one has to outgrow both. This means that even the purest of impulses, the craving for liberation (moksha), has to disappear in time.Only then can you become That.

A shackle is a shackle, whether it be of iron or gold. One has to be free from both.

That is to say, one should attain a stage when neither goodnor bad will attract or repel. Anyone aiming at the realisation of God should practise the diminishing of impulses, the curbing of the mind, and the understanding of the fundamental principle. One of these is not enough for liberation (moksha).

In the liberated soul (jivanmuktha), impulses persist, but only as fried seeds. They will not cause further births.

95 (DV) Monkey meditation: harmful to spiritual progress

The wayward mind wanders hither and thither, but it is possible to fasten it on one fixed point by means of steady discipline and persistent training in spiritual discipline. This condition is called onepointedness (ekagratha). It is also referred to as single-mindedness (dharana).

The uninterrupted flow of oil from one vessel to another is a fine symbol of the mental process

called single-mindedness (dharana).

For novices in spiritual practice, concentration appears to be very difficult to attain because, after some progress is won, they do not usually keep up the practice. Instead, they give it up; even though they do not have peace of mind on days

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when they desist from spiritual practice.

Concentration endows one with divine joy, wisdombeyond measure, inner vision, insight into the deeper

truths, clearer understanding, and unison with the Godhead. This science of spiritual discipline (sadhana)

is more wonderful than the three worlds!

The mind plans and executes innumerable deeds androams over vast expanses, all in the twinkling of an eye! Itoperates with unimaginable speed. It conceives an objectand dallies with it a little, but it soon discards it for anothermore attractive object towards which it flees and aboutwhich it begins to worry!

The spiritual aspirant (sadhaka) has to be ever watchfulof this tendency of the mind. When the mind flits from

object to object, it must be brought back to the right path and the right object. That is the correct spiritual

practice, the path of concentration and meditation.

If, however, the aspirant does not struggle to achieve this one-pointedness but leaves the mind to itself, following its vagaries from this to that and that to this, the process deserves to be called monkey meditation (markata dhyana), a type of meditation that is indeed very harmful to spiritual progress.

- concentration and meditation

In short, the chief purpose of concentration and meditation is to minimise the travels of the mind and force it to stay in one place. Holding it on that fixed stage, one should continue the spiritual practice for a long time. Then there is no limit to the peace and joy that one can have. For example, when you meditate on a table, your thoughts dwell on the wood, the size and measurements, the style, the mode of manufacture, etc. No other thought pertaining to anything else should be allowed. If the thought hovers round a cot, the idea of a table becomes hazy, and the cot is also imagined incompletely. Both get confused.

The state of mind must be single-pointed. So too, when the Lord’s form is meditated upon,

the mind must dwell upon the form of each part andits beauty and splendour, and these ideas must be

coordinated and combined into the complete picture.

That is the modus operandi of meditation. Persistentperformance of this meditation will result in the emergenceof a particular form.

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Contemplating on that form, looking at it and seeing it for days and days, finally a stage will be reached when

the form will disappear and you will forget yourself. That is the super-conscious (samadhi) stage.

In that stage, if one feeling or ideation alone persists, it is called the superconscious state with ideation (savikalpa-samadhi).If no feeling or thought persists, it becomes what Patanjali, in the text on raja-yoga (Rajayoga- sastra), designated as the end of ideation (bhava-nasana).

While doing meditation the mind should not be allowedto wander away from the target. Whenever it flies off at atangent, it must be led back to the form meditated upon.

Finally, if you so desire, all things can be subsumed in that form itself. Nevertheless, only one form has to be meditated upon in the beginning. You should not change daily from one to another. Again, during the spiritual practice, you should not indulge in thoughts about things you do not like, that cause pain, or that shake your faith. If any such peep in, learn gradually to welcome them as beneficial and seek to grasp the good in them, instead of the bad.

100 (DV) Cultivate good habits before concentration

Form (rupa) is fundamental for concentration and meditation. Even in the absence of the form in front of you, you should have the capacity to visualise it. This is not so difficult for those whose concentration is correct. But some practise concentration without first cultivating good habits and right conduct, that is a sign of incomplete knowledge.

Concentration must have the pure qualities (sathwa-gunas)as the basis. The mind has to be purified by proper treatmentof the character through good habits.

Concentration has to follow this purification process, not precede it. All effort for concentration without

cleansing the mind is a sheer waste of time.

Many great men have ruined their careers by aspiring early for concentration, without the discipline of good habits.

- Make slow but steady progress

Again, in concentration you must be careful not to have as the object something your mind does not like, for however

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hard you try, your mind will not stay on it. Therefore, in thebeginning, have some object that is a source of joy.

Sit in the lotus (padmasana) pose and fix your eyes onthe tip of your nose. In the beginning, for a minute; then for

three minutes; some days later, for six; and after some time,for as long as nine minutes. Thus, the concentration has to

be strengthened gradually, without undue hurry. In this way,it can be held for even half an hour, with the lapse of time.

But do not force the pace. Slowly and steadily, the disciplinemust be developed. With practice, the mind will get fixed and the power of concentration will increase. To attain concentration and acquire one-pointedness, you must undergo exertion to some extent.

You must fasten your mind on the Lord and keep offall other thoughts from the mental plane. By constant

exercise of this type, your vision will be firmly fixed on the Lord residing in your heart. That is, verily,

the goal; the full fruition of meditation.

101 (DV) Remove Defects in Character

Concentration, according to yoga scriptures, is the fixing of the mind on one object, without any deviation.

Concentration alone can make meditation successful. Its very nature is one-pointedness; its power will

negate hesitation. It is caused by spiritual bliss. The name is essential for meditation, for that

alone can insure quick success.

Even if complete faith is not forthcoming quickly, the practice must not be given up or changed, for practice will certainly yield victory. Meditation is spiritual strength, the strength that will keep off the disease of worldliness (samsara). But

you should avoid the difficult obstacles in the path of meditation, viz, anger, pride, conceit, the tendency

to discover the faults of others, mischief, etc.

These operate even subconsciously, as the currents in the depths of the ocean.Spiritual aspirants (sadhakas) must be vigilant not to lose their temper on even small things, for that will block their progress. They must cultivate love towards all, and meekness. Then, undesirable habits will fall away from them, since anger is the parent of all wrong behaviour.

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Anger can turn any person into bad ways, any moment, and in any form. So it should

be sublimated first by systematic effort.

Spiritual aspirants must welcome gladly the announcement of their defects by anyone; indeed, they must be grateful tothose who point them out. Aspirants must never entertain hatred against them, for that is as bad as hating the “good”.

The “good” has to be loved and the “bad”discarded. Remember, the “bad” should not

be hated. It has to be given up, avoided.

Only people who can do this can achieve progress in meditation and spiritual wisdom.

Conceit, jealousy, the passionate (rajasic) exhibition of one’s superiority, anger, the craving to inform oneself of the weakness of others and their failings, trickery —

all these are obstacles in the path of meditation.

Even if these are not patently exhibited, the inner impulses urging one along these wrong directions are latent in the mind.

Just as a room kept closed for a long time is found dust-ridden and foul-smelling, is opened, cleaned, and made habitable by elaborate sweeping and dusting, so the mind has to be cleaned by meditation.

105 (DV) Follow Krishna’s advice and meditate

In the third age of humans (the Dwapara-yuga), Krishna said,When you start fixing your thoughts on Me, all thoughts that agitate you will be stilled through My grace.

“Mathchiththah sarva dhurgani mathprasaadhaaththarishyathi.”

This discipline of meditation must be rigorously followed. In fact,

dhyana (meditation) means “discipline”.Discipline, regularity, steadiness,

these are the essentials of meditation.

A spiritual aspirant who keeps these things in view can achieve quick results.

Meditation is a firstclass cure for the illness of worldly existence (bhava-roga). Along with it, another

drug must also be taken; its name is contentment.

If there is contentment in the mind, one enjoys an endless festival.

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106 (DV) The three guards: peace, contentment, discrimination

At the gates of liberation (moksha) and Self-realisation(sakshathkara), three guards are posted to ask you for your credentials. They are 1) peace or mental equilibrium, 2) joy or contentment, and 3) inquiry or discrimination

santhi, santhosha, and vichara.

Even if one of the guards is made to become friendly, the others will facilitate your entry. First in the series is peace. If you make peace yours, contentment (thrupthi) is yours, and contentment is the highest source of joy and the most valuable possession. It is as much as an empire.

Without contentment, desire (kama) and greed (lobha)attain dangerous proportions and will overwhelm

the power of discrimination itself. Desire easily becomes greed, and greed degenerates into miserliness

and lust, which make you flit from object to object in mad pursuit of the evanescent sensual joy.

How can people with such qualities develop the faculty of concentration? And without the capacity to concentrate, how can they engage in meditation? And without meditation, no one can get Godhead (Daivam).

Advise the mind that flows so swiftly in so many directions: “Oh mind, do not drag me along the floods of objects, along the path of sensual desires, and spoil my career. Instead, take me to the Lord. Flow in that direction, please.” Giving up all other desires and being ever content, dwell on His name and His form only, to the exclusion of everything else.

Meditation on the name and form is real peace (santhi), genuine contentment (santhosha). Contentment will not make anyone an idler, remember. It is an attribute of true pure (sathwic) character. It will make the mind turn always towards the Lord. It will save you from the tribulation to satisfy the unimportant wants and to cater to selfish needs. It will direct human talents towards efforts that elevate. The contented person will also be truthful and will therefore be in constant communion with the Atma. That is to say,

the contented person can be immersed in meditation for long periods without rest or the feeling of tiredness.

Meditation is the only method of counteracting the mental activities that surge forward in a

thousand directions; there is no other method at all.

Do not worry about the unsatisfactory environment you may have.

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Of course, the place may have some drawbacks and it may not be ideal. But it is no use trying to run away from all that. You can overcome the drawbacks by training your own mind. Stay in your environment and pray to the Lord! Pray that He may fill you with His thoughts and His vision, making you ignore the defects of the environment.

Do not seek comfort, for comfort might not be conducive to meditation.

Learn to be comfortable in any place; that is better. Live in joy wherever you are; that is the way. Revel

in the realm of your mind; worship in the mind the Lordyou have chosen as your goal and be free of all the defects

of the natural or human environment! Then, no spot can be irksome to you, nor will any place seem disgusting.

- Concluding admonitions

Pride is an insidious vice, so at the slightest inkling ofthe disease, try your best to eradicate it by retiring into alonely spot and engaging yourself in meditation. Delay isdangerous. “Even divine nectar (amritha) becomes a poisonif the dose is delayed,” says the proverb. Remember thisand act swiftly.

Meditation stills the agitated mind and makes it clear and full of joy. Many in this world, even among the learned, do not spend their allotted span of life in the pursuit of certain selected ideals. Hence, their earthly careers are like the voyage of a storm-tossed ship that has lost both its anchor and its compass and is caught in mid-ocean. They are torn between opposing ideals and goals; they listen to diverse appeals; and their lives end in waste and failure, for theysay one thing and do another in their ignorance and fear.

Meditation gives them fixity of purpose, courage, and also wisdom.

The feelings that arise in the mind, which are classifiedas serene, restless, and ignorant (sathwic, rajasic, and

thamasic), also have to be watched and cleansed. The restlessness and ignorance have to be uprooted.

Meditation is the weapon for this task.

The path of meditation (dhyana-marga) will destroy ignorance (a-jnana), and it will grant the individual union with the Godhead (Brahmaikyatha).

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Sadhana in Prasanthi Vahini- role of Guru; - karma and upasana dharma,- dhyanam (meditation) and thapas (sacrifice)- Viveka (discrimination) and Vairagyam (de-tachement);- wish, will and effort (sama, dama, uparathi, thithiksa, sraddha and samadhana)- Atmavichara (reflection, concentration contemplation and meditation);- the six enemies (kama, krodha, lobha, moha, mada and matsarya);- seva- Karma, Bhakthy, Raja and Jnana yoga- Moksha or Liberation (mukti or Self-realisation)- Satchidananda (Being-Awareness-Bliss)

21 (PrsV) Tapas for santhi

What sadhakas have to do now is this: 1) viveka (discrimination) is to be developed: that is

to say, the capacity to distinguish the eternal from the transitory, and to decide which is worthy.

2) a sincere attempt has to be made to experience what is so chosen as worthy and true.

3) that attempt should not be given up, whatever comes in the way.

These three can be called genuine tapas (austerity). From this tapas alone is born real santhi and joy. Now, everything from ant to Almighty is undergoing some change or otherevery minute. There is no object, no live thing that is an exception to this law.

Creation is ever changing. But this change is of two kinds, external and internal. The

external change can be easily cognised. The internal is not so patent, not so easy to understand.

That is why it is necessary to: first train oneself to understand the external changes

which are clearer; and then, gradually approach the problem of controlling

the changing interior.

Of these two, whichever you are at, do it with a full heart, tothe satisfaction of your own conscience, not to earn theesteem of others, or to please them, or to get praised bythem as a great bhaktha (devotee). Such an attitude is treason to the Self, Atmadroha (going against the dictates of the soul).

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- Inner feeling

The Lord loves the Inner, not the Outer. But you shouldnot neglect the outer; even in the outward behaviour andact, you should manifest the inner feeling. That gives a chancefor experiencing the feeling of quietitude and santhi in fullermeasure, for the taste of that santhi must be enjoyed throughthought, word, gesture and deed. It is only when santhi isenjoyed in all these four, that it becomes paripoorna, orcomplete. In other words,

then the manas (mind) fades awayand the stage designated as genuine

santhi or yoga is reached.

Philosophy that cannot be understood, scriptures thatare not practised—the present world is full of such—it is awaste to talk of these. Real change must be made in thedaily conduct and behaviour of man, for these are within the experience of all. They can be easily practised and theirpurpose can be clearly grasped. It is only when these aretransformed that the inner Atma, deeper, more mysteriousand more essential, can be understood.

In every little act, activity and word, one should discriminate and adopt the best.

That is the sign of the genuine sadhaka.

Neither santhi, nor the bhakthi (devotion) that gives it,can be got through another. It has to be created anddeveloped, each one for himself. Still, one should have alsothe grace of the Lord, which is fundamental. As said in theUpanishad, “Yameva vrunuthe thena labhyah.” (He whomHe chooses, He gets it.) But the sadhaka may doubt, “Whatthen is the need for sadhana (spiritual discipline)?” He whothinks of the Lord with devotion can overcome any type ofPrarabdha or Sanchitha, inherited or accumulated karma.With His Grace, he can experience even unattainable ananda.

Do not doubt the usefulness of sadhana. It can never befruitless, no, for anyone. Hold firm to that conviction.

Unshaken bhakthi will win the grace of the Lord.

Gajendra is an example of this.Each is born for some task, but all can exist only on the self-same food and drink, santhi; for without it, there isno ananda. - Santhi embellishes every act. - It softens the hardest core of man. - It takes you to the footstool of the Lord and wins for

you the vision of God. - It knows no distinction. - It is a force that establishes equality.

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- It is the honey of prema in the enchanting flower of Life. - It is a prime need for the Yogi and the sadhaka.

Having acquired it, they can realise the Reality, tomorrow, if not today. They should put up with all the obstacles in the way and santhi will give them the strength needed for it.

Through santhi alone can bhakthi expand and jnanam (highest wisdom) strike root. Jnanam,

born of santhi is the one and only means of living the full life or the life that knows no death; for, the

inquiry, “Who am I?” clears the path for Realisation.

So, man must wait patiently and quietly, placing his faith on the Grace and Wisdom of the Lord. Such an inquirer will beever earnest and penitent. Man becomes fearless andtherefore full of santhi through another conviction also,that the Lord is everywhere, visibly present.

25 (PrsV) experience and methods of old

The sadhakas and bhakthas of old reached their goalthrough santhi only. Santhi gave Ramdas, Tukaram,Kabir, Thyagaraja, Nandana, etc., the fortitude needed tobear all the calumny, torture and travail that was their lot. If sadhakas base their efforts on these examples, they will be free of anger, despair or doubt. The accounts of theirstruggles and successes, if contemplated upon, are moreuseful to the sadhaka than the contemplation of the powersand accomplishments of the Lord. They will help him to tryout in their own experience the methods which these othersdeveloped.

One can attain santhi by recalling how they overcame handicaps, bore troubles, and what paths they trod to cross over to the other bank.

It will be found that santhi was the main instrumentwhich saved them from the coils of anger, pain, conceit,

doubt and despair. Therefore listen, Oh sadhakas! Acquire the instrument, santhi, by the Grace

of the Lord. Direct all efforts to that end.

Whatever the trouble, however great the travail, persistand win, by means of Smarana (memory). RememberBhishma! Though prostrate on a bed of arrows, he bore the pain patiently, waiting the dawn of the auspicious moment.He never called out to God in his agony, asking Him to putan end to his suffering. “I shall bear everything, whateverthe pain, however long the agony. I shall be silent until themoment comes. Take me when it dawns,” he said. For

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Bhishma was the chief among the Santha-bhakthas. He layfirm and unshakeable.

27 (PrsV) Pure Mind

An unruffled mind is very necessary for every aspirant who is marching forward. It is one of his beneficial qualities. Such a mind gives real strength and happiness.

Strive to gain it, though you may fail even in seven attempts. You are sure to succeed in

the eighth if you refuse to be dispirited.

The story of Bruce who drew inspiration from a spider, and won the honours of victory at the eighth attempt, is worth remembering. What is it that gave him the victory? Santhi, the unruffled mind. He did not yield to despair, cowardice or helplessness. He was calm throughout, and he secured success.

Even if calamity befalls, the sadhaka should not lose heart. The mind must ever be pure, untarnished and calm, full of courage. No weeping for the past, no faltering in the

performance of the task at hand, that is the mark of a sadhaka.

Be prepared to have gladly any obstacle in the path. Only such can realise the goal.

29 (PrsV) The use of prayer

The bhaktha can well pray for and ask from the Lord,the gift of such a santhi, and also the Sadgunas (virtues, good qualities) necessary for its growth. Why, the sadhakahas as his capital for earning any of his goals, only this onething, prayer.

Some people may have some doubts related to this.Of what avail is prayer? Will the Lord gratify all that we askfor in our prayers? He can give us only what, according toHim, we need, or what we deserve. Is it not? Will the Lordlike to give us all that we ask for, in our prayers to Him?Under such circumstances, what is the use of prayer? Ofcourse all these doubts can be resolved.

If the bhaktha has dedicated his all, body, mind andexistence, to the Lord, He will Himself look after

everything, for He will always be with him. Under such conditions there is no need for prayer.

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But have you so dedicated yourself and surrendered everything to the Lord? No. When losses occur, or calamities come, or plans go astray, the bhaktha blames the Lord. Some, on the other hand, pray to Him to save them. Avoiding both these, as well as the reliance on others, if complete faith is placed on the Lord at all times, why should He deny you His Grace? Why should He desist from helping you? Men do not rely fully and unswervingly on the Lord.

- faith

Therefore, though you have to be the agent and the instrument doing everything, keep on praying with devotion and faith.

Faith is the product of santhi, not of haste and hurry. For the acquisition of the Grace of the Lord and the

resulting Awareness of the Reality, the qualityof santhi is the prime need.

Every sadhaka is aware how Droupadi deserved the Grace of the Lord, through her dharma and her santhi. Though her husbands were mighty heroes, and far-famed monarchs, she sought refuge in Lord Krishna, feeling that all others are of no use. But Prahlada did not seek refuge, under similar circumstances. He had surrendered all at birth to the Lord. He knew that the Lord was ever by his side and that he was ever by the side of the Lord. So he had no need to call out to Him, for protection. Prahlada was unaware of anything except the Lord. He could not distinguish between one function of the Lord and another.

So, how could he pray for protection, he who did not knowthat, He was punished? For all such God-intoxicated anddedicated souls, prayer is unnecessary. But until that stage is reached, prayer in an attitude of santhi is essential for sadhakas. Prayer of this type will promote equanimity, or samarasa.

The Lord can be prayed to by means of 1) kirthana (concentrated contemplation of the glory of God),2) japa (repetition of the name of the Lord),3) dhyaana (meditation) 4) or bhajana (spiritual songs).

In every one of these, the chief item is the Divine Name.

33 (PrsV) The true bhakta.

The true bhaktha will always be dwelling in God. Hehas no time to know or feel his welfare or worries.

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Attaining the Lord, is the one and only idea in his mind. It is hard to understand this nature, except by examples. A small child runs about in fear shouting, “Amma, Amma,” searching for its missing mother. The mother takes it up in her arms and places it on her lap. The child stops crying and is free from all fear. But can the child calculate and find out the difference between its previous state and its present relief? No. Nor is it necessary to do so.

So too, he who seeks ever to serve the Lord willimmerse himself in it when the glorious chance comes. In

that Presence, no anxiety or trouble can disturb him.

Anxiety and trouble pester only until the moment of attainment. Then, all attention is diverted to the Experience. The past struggle and travail are forgotten.Therefore, sadhakas and bhakthas must ignore and forget all the thousand troubles that have gone before, and be engaged in the thoughts of the Lord only. Immerse yourselves in them and derive joy therefrom.

Bhakthi has no other reward. It is the cause and it is also the effect: there are no two.

Bhakthi is itself the Realisation.

34 (PrsV) The chithsakthi

Through the Jnana Path also, when the veil of Ajnana(ignorance) is removed, the self-same Realisation occurs. In the Bhakthi Path, one derives no jot of joy from any source, except the Lord. Every obstacle in this Path can be overcome by Chithsakthi (Grace, principle of intelligence).

The Chithsakthi is weakened by ahamkaara (egotism) and mamakaara: the feeling “I am the enjoyer,” “These

things are mine,” etc. So long as one has this consciousness one can have no real contentment.

One will be driven to seek for things which will give even more joy.Every bhaktha hopes ultimately to experience the joyof Supreme Bliss, as a result of his sadhana. But that Blissis not something newly earned or acquired, some newexperience to be won by sadhana. It is always with him, inhim. Only he is not able to taste it now, due to the obstaclesof the Ego, which acts as a screen hiding it from view. Onehas to rend that veil asunder. Sadhana, that is all that thesadhaka has to do.

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- ahamkaara and mamakaara

Then the ever-existing Bliss can becognised. It does not arise anew. It is there always.

What comes and goes is the screen of “I” and “mine” which covers the Bliss.

While trying to remove the screen of ahamkaara andmamakaara, the sadhaka should not hasten frantically andworry overmuch if he does not discover the Bliss expected.At such times, santhi is an unfailing help. If santhi is cultivatedwell at first, then you can succeed in any task, howeverdifficult.

Everyone is entitled to acquire and benefit by santhisuch as this. All are children of santhi; however many theprogeny she is “mother” to each of them. For every one ofthem, old or young, great or small, she is “mother” in anequal measure. When they call her, each one has to addressher as “mother.” Children brought up by santhi avoid allpain and sorrows, bear all varieties of happiness, and atlast, lay their heads on the lap of the “mother” in perfectsecurity.

36 (PrsV) Jnana, Karma, Raja and Bhakti Marga

All are children of santhi; however many the progeny she is “mother” to each of them. For every one of them, old or young, great or small, she is “mother” in an equal measure. When they call her, each one has to address her as “mother.” Children brought up by santhi avoid all pain and sorrows, bear all varieties of happiness, and at last, lay their heads on the lap of the “mother” in perfect security.

To win such perfect security, one has to follow the path of full bhakthi, dedicating oneself to the Lord. It cannot be got by any other means.

The path of Jnana is possible only for one in a million, is beyond the reach of all.

Is it possible to negate the body and the objective world, sopatent to the senses, by repeating, “Nethi,” “Nethi,” “Notthis,” “Not this?” And unless this is possible, how can theNethi, Nethi argument be applied? Under present conditions,Jnana Marga (Path of knowledge) is indeed very difficult.

Then, the Karma Marga (Path of action) too is not quite so feasible. It is also full of difficulties.

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To do work in the proper spirit, love and devotion, bhakthi and prema are essential for success. So too the Yoga Marga (Path of yoga), it also bristles with obstacles.

Therefore, the Bhakthi Marga (Path of devotion) is the smoothest, the most conducive

to success and the most bliss-yielding.

- Bhakthi has to be realised in your own experience

Even this Bhakthi Marga, no one can define anddemarcate, as such and such. Since it has many forms,many roads and many types of experience, it is impossiblefor anyone to describe it accurately and fully.

Each bhaktha gets ananda only through his individual experience. Through the experience of other bhakthas,

he can get, at best, only encouragement and guidance.

The experience changes from one person to another, and so it eludes comparison, and even description. If anyone is able to describe it by examples and limits, then one can be sure that his experience is not real.

The limited soul is immersed in the limitless Love of the Lord, and how can words describe that experience called by the Upanishads as “Akhandaikarasa,” the Unbroken Uniflow of Sweetness? Man cannot express in human language that state of Unbounded Bhakthi. By outward signs which can be cognised by the senses, one can feel that the bhaktha is in a high state of Bliss; but who can gauge the depth of that Joy?

That has no relation with the senses at all. Bhakthi has to be realised in your own experience, though great souls can illumine the path a little for you by their examples. You can grasp something of the Path, with their help. But always remember that words fail, when they approach the Beyond. They are useful only for purposes of the objective world. They are instruments of no value in regions of experience where comparisons are impossible. Still consider a few such illustrations.

1) Maitreyi, one of the foremost of bhakthas among women, compared the mind of a bhaktha to a still lake, that is to say, all agitation is stopped, the mind becomes Jada, inactive, ineffective so to say, worn out into nothing. 2) Kapilamaharishi, speaking of the same bhakthi, compares it to a flowing stream. Streams, and rivers like Ganga and Godavari, flow uninterruptedly without rest or any other thought towards

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the sea. So too from the very moment of birth, the bhakthayearns to reach the sea of the grace of the Lord. Bhakthi isthat unbroken relationship.

Whatever the task on hand, whichever road is trod, the mind dwells on the goal alone, the goal of attaining the Lord.

3) Again in the Devibhagavatham, it is said that bhakthi is as the flow of oil, from one vessel to another, thailadharavath. This is more or less like the image of the river.

4) Sankara characterises bhakthi differently, in the Sivanandalahari. Like the piece of iron that is drawn towards the magnet, the Jivi (resident of the body) is drawn towards the Lord and it attachesitself firmly to the Lord. All modifications of the mind get merged in the Feet of the Lord.

5) Ramanuja explained that bhakthi as well as dhyaana done through prema are essentially the same.

Though each interprets it differently, all interpretations are correct, for they are all based on actual experience, which cannot be negated. These statements do not exhaust the types.

There are many more, for bhakthi is of a thousand forms. It flows along a thousand streams, to reach the ocean of the Lord’s Grace. The goal of all the forms is the merger

of Jiva and Brahma, an absorption which is an experience.

Many people are disheartened by the fear that such merger is beyond their reach in this Kali age, however much they may try. But this is a type of weakness and nothing more. It is not a question of the path of yoga adopted.

51 (PrsV) Wish, will and effort

If the two paths, Jnana and Bhakthi, are compared, itcan be said that

the Lord’s Grace is won more easily by bhakthi, than by the other path. In bhakthi sadhana, there is the need

to grasp the reality and its inner meaning, fully and clearly.

For this, the objective world is itself the proof and argument, the effort and the means. To know this, spiritual inquiry has to be pursued. Such an inquiry will grant unshakeable santhi. Inquiry alone can reveal the Truth behind all the objective world. It is your experience, is it not, that when you do some task carefully for a long time, correcting your mistakes as and when you discover them, avoiding the repetition of the same while continuing with the task, you invariably achieve even

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more success than you hoped to get?

What is wanted is just the unflagging desire to achievevictory. That will lead you to discover the means

thereof, to develop earnestness and care in the pursuit of those means, and to get success. The wish must be

strengthened by the will, and the will by the effort.

Well, take the example of a person anxious to becomestronger. If the wish is powerful, he will first learn the meansof realising his aim—the exercises, the diet, the disciplines,etc. Then, when he practises them his will is changed tosteadiness in effort. But one important thing must be noted.

- “one wish”

There are many who say that the absence of wish and will isthe best. This is not so good as having one wish, more than all others; or, rather “one wish” and one alone, to the exclusion of all else. Even more superior is the person who has steadiness of effort, in realising that one wish. For he can promote not only his own good, but even the world’s good.

Let your wish and will and effort be directed to yourown good. Do not divert them to worldly pleasures,

for that will cause harm and destroy santhi.

79 (PrsV) Sadhana confers the greatest degree of contentment

Santhi is the manifestation of the greatness of prema (love). It will endow all who come under its authority with tremendous power for good. It can place God within man’s grasp and manwithin God’s grasp.

Sadhana can confer no higher power. It is the very secret of the life-principle in creation. It is the highest individualisation

of the glory of the Atman. It is the magic wand in the hands of the bhaktha, with which he can master the entire world.

Besides, it confers the greatest degree of contentment.

But santhi does not mean inactivity, the mere inert lifeof eating and squatting. You should not spend your time ineating and sleeping, saying to yourself that the Lord willcome to your help, when the need arises. You must ariseand work.

Work is the mission of man

God helps those who help themselves, and Hewill help no other. Learn from the life-history of Prahladathe lesson, that the Lord alone is to be loved. Learn also the technique of that process.

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Do the work that has fallen to your lot, sincerely and efficiently. Give up everything that is outside the service

of the Lord. Follow the footsteps of Prahlada. You can win, through the Grace of the Lord the joy of santhi,

the thrill of Fullness and the Bliss of Immortality.

Work has to be undertaken, in order that time might not hang heavily on you and be a burden. Work is the missionof man. Without it, man will get lost in the darkness ofignorance and he will be overwhelmed by thamas (inertia,dullness). Ignorance will multiply his doubt. These have tobe chopped off with the sword of jnana.

On one occasion, when such mystic subjects weretaught to Arjuna, he got puzzled and asked Krishna, “Atone time You say that we should renounce all karmas. Atanother time, You say that Karma Yoga has to be adopted.Now, tell me which among these two paths is the better?”For this, Krishna answered thus:“Sanyasa and Karma Yoga both lead you to the samegoal of liberation, Oh Arjuna, but know this. There is greaterjoy in doing work than in giving up work. Sanyasa and workare not contradictory. They are interdependent,complementary. By giving up work, man will only decline,without the progress derived from activity, and the trainingachieved through it. The real sanyasi is he who does notdesire one thing or hate another. The word sanyasa canwell be applied to work done without regard to success orfailure, profit or loss, honour or dishonour, to any activityengaged in as offering to the Lord. Mere inactivity announcedby the gerua (ochre) cloth and the shaved head is no sanyasaat all. He who has avoided the duality of joy and grief, ofgood and bad, he alone deserves the name. So, better thanthe giving up of karma, is the renunciation of the fruits ofactions; it also yields greater joy. That is the best path.Therefore, of these two, Sanyasa and Karma Yoga,whichever is followed, the fruit of the other too, can bewon. For there is ananda in karma. There is ananda too inrenunciation.”

Sanyasa devoid of Karma Yoga will lead to grief. For,how can anyone get away from karma? However much youmay avoid karma, is it not necessary at least to engageyourself in the remembrance of the Lord, in dhyaana orjapa? That too is karma. If these are given up, there is nojoy in life. Whoever he be, man has to do some karma,whatever the form of the work.

He who engages in Karma Yoga, renouncing all idea of action and following the discipline of

silence, can, within a short time, realise Brahman.

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Karma will not stick to such. Karma for them is akin to breathing. Life is impossible without the karma of breathing,so too for the sadhaka, work is essential. Asanthi comesonly when the fruit of action is desired. If the fruit isdisregarded and joy is derived from the very karma itself,then one gets Prasanthi (undisturbed, inner peace). No onethinks of the results and benefits of the karma of breathing,is it not? So too,

when karma is done, never worry about its result. That gives real santhi.

91 (PrsV) True Ananda: the Bliss of One’s Own Real Reality

Therefore, merely knowing about Brahman, or santhi or sathyam or Saakshaathkaara (goal of life) leads nowhere.You may even know that there is ananda in these, but all that is of no use.

You have to dedicate your life to win that ananda and experience it and enter upon the discipline needed to acquire it.

Then only do you deserve the Grace of the Lord and the attainment of Brahman. Then only can you get the true ananda.

It is this subject that the Vivekachudamani also teaches in many ways. He who follows its teaching, without deviation, can taste the nectar of Atmic Bliss, can attain the goal of Life. Devoid of the sorrow that is inevitable in dealing with sensory objects, having no intentions and desires, one should be immersed in the Bliss of One’s Own Real Reality. Man alone, of all creation, has the qualification to achieve this Supreme Joy.

What a sad tragedy that he should neglect his right and wander about seeking petty pleasures, empty tinsel! Like children playing with dolls and sticks, calling them elephants and horses, man plays; but does not make them real elephants and horses. Ignorant men play in all seriousness, imagining the objects ofthe world to be real, and they laugh and weep, in joy and in sorrow, they blossom and droop while up or down. But that does not make the Maya Jagath (world) less unreal!

When you are immersed in Sushupthi or deep sleep,what happens to your joy and sorrow, your profits and

losses? They have no reality then; nor have they any reality,later. At both times, they are but the creations of your fancy.

He who knows this secret, will always exult in the Joy ofCompanionship with Oneself, the Contemplation of One’s

Own Inner Reality. That is real permanent Joy.

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Therefore, listen, all sadhakas! You, whose Real natureis Atmic! Seek to discover your true Self, your genuineReality. Attain the knowledge that You are the Atman itself.Exult in the Atman alone. Taste the Undiluted, Incomparable,Unlimited Bliss of the Awareness of the Real Self. Let Timemerge in Him whose Form is Time; that is the legitimatetask of Man.

94 (PrsV) Nirvikalpa-mounam or the state of the Muni

Always enjoy the santhi that is the result of the stoppageof all mental agitations.

Do not allow the mind to run after this and that. Train it to keep quiet. Keep away and afar, the mental

reactions caused by contact with the external world.Then, you can become mere Existence, Sath.

That is the state of the Muni or the state beyond the realm of the senses, where their fiat does not run. That is the real Saakshaathkaara, that is the Goal of Life.

“Mounam bhajaswa” it is said. But what is mounam?Not the keeping of the mouth shut. It means, the gettingbeyond the influence of all the senses and getting establishedalways in the consciousness of one’s own Reality. Perpetualananda is also perpetual santhi.

When the mind withdraws from the external world, the tongue too becomes silent. All senses

follow suit, that is the genuine Mounam.

This stage cannot be described in words. It cannot becommunicated to others as “such and such.” It belongs to the realm of experience.

Mounam means “the Parabrahma swarupa that is beyond all this.” He who has reached it will be in the

highest santhi and the highest ananda. If the activitiesof the intelligence are stilled, and if the intelligence is

harboured in Brahman, one will become suffused with Brahman, “Parabrahma-mayam.”

When the buddhi is tranquil, santhi envelops man. He is immersed in tejas, splendour. He is in the Akhanda paripurna ananda. This stage is also called Nirvikalpa, the Nirvikalpa-mounam (eternally established in the divine).

- Udaaseenabhava, the stage of Disinterestedness

Therefore, may all sadhakas, by their disciplined livesand ceaseless effort, establish themselves in the knowledge

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of their own Swarupa, their own Reality. May they keeptheir minds away from the drisya world, contemplate on theParamatma always, acquire peace of mind, withdraw fromall contact with the sensory world, saturate themselves inananda, and know themselves as the One, without a Second.This is the Udaaseenabhava, the stage of Disinterestedness, the condition of the person who has grasped the Truth. There will never more be, another, everything that is, is himself.

The holy Suka, Sanaka, Sananda and others achieved the Bliss of this incomparable santhi. They have no affliction or doubt or distraction, because they have no need for further thought or inquiry. They are not bothered by any change or modification, for the Atman has no such!

Once a person has tasted this sweetness, he will never more give ear to any other word or disturbing argument.

He will never more entertain any distracting thought. He will never more be drawn towards any diversionary

attachment. He will hold on, steadfastly, to his conviction.

100 (PrsV) repeat the Name of the Lord

The name of Hari is as the effulgence of the RisingSun, which scatters the darkness of delusion. It is asluminous, as universal, as sacred. Do not misuse that sacred Name even for a second. Do not let pass even a second, without bringing that Name to mind. Remember, the sweetness of that Name, when repeated by Prahladaoverpowered the hearts of the Asuras who heard him. Thechildren of the Asuras repeated the Name along withPrahlada, and led by him, they began to sing and dancewith joy, arming themselves with axes to defend their leader!

The Name of the Lord that can transform the asuriccharacter and purify it into nectar is verily the heaven ofsanthi for all, for the world. To repeat that Name without

break, to love that Form and that Name with intensity, that is what deserves to be called bhakthi.

Bhakthi means the highest, purest prema, directed towards the Lord. Anyone can attain this bhakthi.

The door of Bhakthi Yoga is open to all. The only passport needed is the desire for liberation, for moksha.

That desire entitles man to his heritage.Of course, such prema will dawn only after knowing the glory and the splendour of the Lord as well as His InnateCharacteristics of Omniscience, Omnipotence and Immanence

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in all Creation. He who is endowed with prema of this nature, who lives always with the Lord, he will certainly be liberated.

What does it mean, the expression: “to know God”?It means “to love God.” Knowledge without devotionproduces hatred. Such knowledge leads to power that ismisused. It is not knowledge worth the name. It is ignorance,mistaken for its opposite.

It is only through bhakthi that jnana becomes stabilised and deep-rooted.

103 (PrsV) Jnana and bhakthi

Jnana is a concomitant of bhakthi. It is its component part. Love fixed on God is most beneficent. It produces the greatest subha (good). It will not bind man to the earth.It will take him, by the hand, along the road to moksha. Itwill release one from all types of bonds and attachments,automatically. One has to strive only to avoid evil company.Constant association in good company will promote thefeeling of detachment.

More than the adherent of the path of karma, jnana oryoga, the follower of the path of bhakthi is declared fortunate

and superior. He is better than the yogi, the sanyasi, thejnani and the sadhaka who takes up the discipline of karma.

This is the reason why Krishna directed Arjuna in theGita to become a great Yogi. He also said besides, “AmongYogis, he who meditates on the Self as merged in Me,steadfastly, is indeed with the highest bhakthi.” Then, Arjunaasked Him, “Among these, those who worship Thee everlike that and those who worship Thee as Indestructible,Imperceptible, etc....who among these, Oh Lord, havetriumphed in yoga more?” For this, Krishna replied, “Whoeverfixes his mind on Me, and worships Me, whoever is steadfastand exulting in this, he has achieved greater success.” So

sraddha (faith) is ever essential, in matters spiritual, relatedto God. Sraddha has no limitations and so, its results too

have no decline. The fruits of all acts done in the pursuit ofGod-realisation depend upon sadhanas, jnana more on internal sadhana and bhakthi more on external sadhana.

- Sravana, Manana, Nididhyasana

When Brahman itself is the object, it becomes jnana.- Sravanam, or listening to discourses on Sastra, etc., - mananam or calling to mind what has been heard and- nididhyasa or ruminating on things thus recalled to memory...until bhakthi is fully developed, these have to be gone through

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without interruption.

Instead, bhakthas often deal with God in a bargaining spirit or in the spirit of a tradesman! This attitude should be given up. Whoever he is, he should not ask from His God, or Isthadevatha,anything other than bhakthi or prema. If he does he is notrue bhaktha.

Uninterrupted flow of prema towards the Feetof the Lord, that is real surrender. Such surrender alone

guarantees santhi, and ensures santhi, the genuine santhi.

105 (PrsV) Teaching and the Eight Stages of Raja Yoga

Teaching is of two kinds: indirect and direct. 1) The teaching through the Vedas and the Vedangas, deduction and induction, reasoning and inference, is indirect. 2) When this understanding is experienced and realised, it becomes Direct.

The Parabrahma (The universal absolute) which is Sathyam, Jnanam and Anandam is self-evident and so, its understanding can at best be only indirect.

Looked at from one point of view, the Brahman knows neither indirect nor direct. It is unique, being beyond both.

To obtain this direct knowledge of the Absolute the first requisite is sadhana. And the first step in this sadhana is the service done

to the Sadguru (the true teacher), with full faith and full submission.

The Sadguru too should be instructing the sadhaka alwaysand in simple ways, the nature of Brahman.

When the disciple grasps this instruction, it becomes Paroksha-jnanam or Indirect Knowledge. This Paroksha-jnanam itself can be transformed into Aparoksha or Direct Knowledge by constant manana, or recapitulation.

Turning over in the manas or mind. The Indirect Knowledge is as shifting as letters drawn on water, while the Knowledge

gained in the Aparoksha way is indelible like letters carved on rock.

- Namasmarana

When the sound “horse” is heard, the form of the “horse” presents itself before the mind. So too, at the word, “Brahman,” the nature of Brahman will come into the consciousness. This is what is called dhyaana, by those versed in the Sadhana Chathushtaya, or the First Principles of Sadhana.

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- Sama and Dama

To be stabilised in dhyaana, the aspirant should cultivate the control of the senses and the passions, that is to say, sama, and dama and also, the attitude of acting without any desire for the fruits of action. Whoever is an adept in the Six Qualifications, sama, dama, etc., can easily see with the mind’s eye the swarupa of Brahman as soon as he hears the exposition of Its nature.

Phalabhogaviraga or renunciation of the desire for the enjoyment of the fruits of one’s action is also essential. When this vairagya is rooted deep, the Chitta (consciousness) becomes pure andUparathi or Withdrawal of the senses from the objective World is made possible.

- The eight stages of yoga

Yoga too is of two varieties: Raja yoga and Jnana Yoga.

In Raja Yoga, there are Eight Stages which have to be well-cultivated, and realised. Of these, some are

external, some internal. This is the Aryan path.

In the Jnana Yoga, there is no “external” at all. Both these yogas have as their goal, the stilling of the agitations of all levels of consciousness. For those who have calmed all these agitations, everything is Brahman. Primary for this purposeis Jnana Yoga more than Raja Yoga. At least that is the opinion of the Knowers of Brahman: they say, “that is the thing to be known, to be reached.”But according to the Wisdom of the Upanishads

the direct knowledge of the Brahman can be got by the Eightfold Yoga of Yama, Niyama, Aasana, Pranayama,

Prathyahara, Dharana, Dhyaana, and Samaadhi.

1) Yama:

Yama includes 1) ahimsa (Non-violence), 2) sathya (Truth), 3) astheya (Non-stealing), 4) Brahmacharya (Celibacy), and 5) aparigraha (Non-acceptance).

This is the usual meaning given to Yama, but I would say instead, that

Yama means the giving up of attachment to the body and to the senses.

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The Brahma entity (which is devoid of Name and Form, and Qualities, which is without end, without joy or sorrow, and without modifications, which is eternal and of the Nature of Sath-chith-ananda [Being-awareness-bliss]) appears, as a result of delusion, as all this Creation (endowed with all qualities and modifications, viz.

Name, Form, transformation of rise and decline, joy andsorrow). This appearance has an End. It has various otherlimitations. It appears to be ever-moving and so it is calledSamsaara (flow of time). Thus,

this Brahma entity appears in both the individual form of Vyashti and the collective form of Samashti

and deludes even great scholars and pandits.

One single Chaithanya (consciousness) becomes manifest in different ways as all this multiplicity. Therefore, we speak of the particular and of the collective, i.e. a collection of particulars. Of course, the particular (the Vyashti) is a superimposition on the Brahman, a superimposition, like seeing the snake on the rope, the lake in the mirage. Each of the three bodies, the Sthoola (gross), the Sookshma (subtle) and the Kaarana (Causal), is itself, for the knower of Brahman, a superimposition. To say that it is real or unreal is not correct. It is neither real nor unreal, it is mithya. The ignorant man caught in the meshes of this delusion believes that Samsaara is everlasting and a source of happiness.

Falsely identifying themselves with the body, men suffer in the coils of attachment towards their

mother, father, wife, children, relatives and friends.

They do not realise (through the constant contemplation of the Brahman having the characteristics of Sath-chith-ananda (Being-awareness-bliss), through the never-ceasing discrimination between the changeless and the changing, through association with the good, the service of the wise, and the acquisition of purityof intelligence) that they have neither body nor senses, thatthey are Brahman: the sustenance and support, the Adhishtaana (foundation) of the threefold Body and everything else.

The establishment of one’s intellect in this Consciousness is the real renunciation or vairagya of the body and the senses, implied in the word, Yama, as defined by me earlier. This is what is called Yama, in the Jnana Yoga.

Joy in times of good fortune and sorrow in times of bad, mistaking the pain of the body and the senses as one’s own, such dual attitude and feeling must be overcome.

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Step by step, the identification with the body and the senses has to be given up.

This is the sign of one’s acquiring the Angam (body) of Yama. This Angam is the very foundation of Jnana Yoga.

2) Niyama:

Niyama means purity, being always full of joy, engaged in thapas or japam. That is what is mentioned in Raja Yoga; 1) soucha (purity),2) santhosha (joy), 3) thapas (sacrifice),4) swadhyaya (study). 5) Eswarapranidhaana (Surrender to the Lord),

these are the components of Niyama. But I would explain it in the following manner.

Niyama is the condition of steady prema in the Paramatma or Godhead,

at all times and under all conditions.

Saa parama prema roopaa, it is said in the Narada Bhakthi Sutra. “It is the highest form of prema.” It is only when such

steadfast Love towards the Absolute is gained, that the soucha or purity, the santhosha or joy, the thapas, the Swadhyaya or

study, the Easwarapranidhaana or Surrender to the Lord,mentioned in the Raja Yoga will also be got.

When Yama is won, ananda and santhi will become the possession of man through the source of all ananda

and santhi, the Sath-chithananda Parabrahma Entity.

For these two are not derived from the dry worldly material objects. Rasovai sah, He is Sweetness, Ananda vai Brahma, Brahma is Ananda, says the Upanishads. It is in and through Brahma that the material world is endowed with even the tiniest modicum of joy. Without the basic Brahma, which is the most complete and the fullest sweetness and joy, this fleeting evanescent appearance thereon cannot be so sweet and joy-giving to the worldly minded! It would have been, without that basic rasa (sweetness), terribly bitter.

For this little sweetness that material objects give, that Oceanof Nectar is the cause.

The association with the knowers of Brahma, the discussion with them of the nature of the Absolute

in a spirit of humility and earnestness, a thirst to realise the Reality, unwavering prema towards the Lord, these

are the characteristics of those established in Niyama.

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Such stalwarts will not be affected by derision or praise, bywind or sun or rain, by honour or dishonour. They will tread the path of liberation free from all attachment to anything except the one single aim of realising the ananda of unison with the basic Brahma.

He who has realised the stage of Niyama will be readyto sacrifice everything for the acquisition of jnana. He willrun to any distance to listen to discussion of Brahman. Hewill obey every instruction of the wise. He will attach himselfto those who teach him the science of Ultra-consciousnessor Chinmaya-thathwa, as if they alone are his most intimatefriends. He will put up with any trouble in fulfilling their wishes. These are the signs of the Niyamastha, or person who has achieved Niyama.

3) Asana:

One should have a steady pose in sitting, that is to say, one should not either shake or sway. But even if one sits like a rock, motionless and with all joints locked, it can never be called Asana. That is not the sign of real Asana.

Asana means both steadiness of the physical frame and inner joy that blooms in the heart.

So whatever the pose adopted by the sadhaka of yoga, it must be both steady and comfortable. That is why Patanjalihas advised, Sthirasukham-aasanam (Steady comfortable posture). I am telling you the same thing, in another way:

which is the best and most success-yielding Asana? It is that pose in which one is most unaffected by the external world. It is that pose which comes of the practice of the moral life,

meritorious in the world and in accordance with the Vedic path.

It is absolute lack of interest in matters unconnected with Paramatma. When someone whose ways you do notappreciate comes near you, there is no need to find faultwith him. There is no need either to laugh at him or showhim your contempt. It is enough if you continue to do yourwork, unaffected by his arrival.

Let those whose behaviour you do not appreciatefollow their path, leave them alone. That is the

Udaaseenabhava, the attitude of unaffectedness.

After the dawn of love to the Absolute, the aspirant gets this bhaava (mental attitude, feeling) towards all worldly things. To be more exact, one should constantly be turning over in the mind, the Reality of Brahma and the Unreality

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of the jagath, Brahma Sathyam Jaganmithya.

One must avoid comradeship with the bad and too much of friendship with the good, even!

Attachment of this nature will drag one down from the Centripetal path, the Nivrithi Marga (Path of detachment)

to the Pravrithi Marga (Path of attachment).

Give up attachment with the momentary, the things clothed with the trappings of Name and Form. Once you have achieved this Udaaseenatha, or attitude of unaffectedness, you will haveunshakeable santhi, self-control, and purity of mind. You will have the steadiness and stability of Asana.

4) Pranayama

Pranayama means usually the control and regulation of the inhaling and exhaling of the breath. In the Yoga Sastras,this is explained as rechaka (exhalation of breath), pooraka,(inhalation of breath) kumbhaka (retention of breath), etc.comprising the various stages of pranayama (breath control).But I explain it this way:

The control of the pranas or pranasamyama is possible only for those who consider this whole universe as “unreal.”

We are seeing golden ornaments of various types and styles, all are made of the same metal, gold. But still, one likes one ornament more, another ornament less, not all the things equally. We have ourselves given various names and forms to these articles according to the needs and fashions, likes and desires. Yet, we are bound by a meaningless delusion which blinds us to the actuality. When the ornaments were thought of, when they were being manufactured, when they are in use, and whenthey are finally melted into a lump, they are and remain “gold,” is it not?

Likewise, so many names and forms appear and reappear in this world, rise, grow and get destroyed, but that which is the basic substratum, the eternal, persists in and through all this change and remains eternal.

Just as the multiple forms create the illusion and arouse feelings of hatred and love, so too these forms and

names delude and create attachment. They make us believe that they are themselves the source of joy.

But do not the Sruthis say, the Universe is nothing but Brahman, the Beginning-less, the Endless, the Unblemished, the Ever-pure? They declare that the ornaments are passing phases, that Gold alone is eternal and real and true. Therefore, you must take everything to be Brahman and Brahman alone.

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Convince yourselves that all appearance is the product of Maya (illusion), practice always that type of discrimination, evince great interest in knowing the reality and be ever alert to recognise the truth that everything is Brahman.Of course, in the deluded stage, the world appears as real and Brahman as a meaningless concoction. In the stage of intelligent clarity, the jagath is grasped in its true sense as unreal.

The Fairy of Delusion overpowers you by her charms and by her arrows of falsehood and gilt.

It is only the person possessed of the vision of universal Brahman that can soon escape her wiles.

Such a person fully knows that names and forms arose a little time ago and disappear a little time after. In the Gita too it is said, “these Oh Bharatha, appear in the middle only.” (II-28)

The world is subject to evolution and involution. To understand this, one need not wait till the end of the world. It is enough if the angle of vision is corrected. That is the gateway to real knowledge. That is real control of pranas, the consciousness that the world is unreal, or mithya.

The genuine master of Pranayama will picture the world like letters written in pencil many years ago, indistinct, hazy, misty. Knowing that Brahman alone is all this, he will never be drawn

towards his environment however fascinating it may be.

Earnings, wealth, property, everything is unreal, valueless, not worthwhile. This conviction is the best sign of Pranayama.

5) Prathyaharam:

The tongue tastes, the eye sees, the ear hears, the skinfeels and the nose smells, each sense acts thus throughoutlife, is it not? The senses have to be withdrawn from theexternal objective world and turned towards the internalMental Consciousness or Intelligence known as chitta. Thisprocess is called by Patanjali in his Yoga Sutras asPrathyaharam. However, I shall define it in anothermanner also.

The inward activity of the chitta, that is to say, theperpetual insight of the chitta, the fundamental directive force of all the senses, that is the real meaning of prathyaharam.

It is only when the chitta, or the Mind stuff realises that this is all Maya-born and Maya-maintained that

it will draw back its feelers from the sensory world and give up its worldly selfish attitude.

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The general nature of the chitta is to waver and hesitate and flutter in its search for happiness and peace. When it knows that the things it ran after are transitory and meaningless, it grows suddenly ashamed and disillusioned.

Then, it begins to illumine the consciousness and to clarify it.The sadhaka who has attained this stage will be watching the outer world as a huge pantomime. His inward look will give him such joy and contentment that he will repent for all the time wasted in external activities and pursuit of sensory joy. So,

the straight, sharp, single-pointed vision of the chitta towards the Atma within, that is the real Prathyaharam.

6) Dharana:

Patanjali has explained that when the chitta is fixed in one place, it is named Dharana. I would say that it means more the undeviating attitude of the chitta, its unwavering character.

When the chitta gives up the attachment to externalobjects, when it is saturated with repentance for past

foolishness, when it is filled with remorse, renunciation andunderstanding, when it directly fosters the development of

the progressive qualities of head and heart, then truly itbecomes fit to join the Ideal. It contemplates only the Ideal.

Such fixed attention is what is meant by Dharana.

To whichever place the chitta may wander, instruct it to find only Brahman there. Whatever ideas and pictures it may form, instruct it to find only Brahman in those creations of the mind stuff.

Treat your chitta as a little boy. Bring up that boy,training it to become wiser and wiser, caress it into good

ways, make it aware that all objects that are “seen” are justproducts of one’s own illusion, remove all its fears and

foibles, and focus its attention steadily on the goal only.

Never deal forcibly with the chitta. It will yield easily to tenderness and patient training:

- Correct its waywardness by means of the attitude of renunciation. - Destroy its ajnana (ignorance) by means of the instruction in the knowledge of the

Atma. - Strengthen the interest it is already endowed with,towards the

realisation of Brahman, let it give up the attraction towards the evanescent and the false, the mirages created by fancy and fantasy, turn its face inwards away from the external world.

By these three methods, Dharana can be established firmly.

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During both the waking and the dream stages, as well as during all the process of mental spinning and weaving of colourful pictures by the

imagination, the chitta has to be watched and trained.

It must be made to flow, single-pointed and steady, like water from a sluice, towards Brahman and Brahman only. That is real Dharana.

7) Dhyanam:

Jnana that flows in a single direction is dhyana. I havealready described its various characteristics in previousarticles.

Dhyanam, in short, is the uninterrupted dwelling ofthe consciousness in jnana, the consciousness itself

becoming thereby Jnanaswarupa. All this is Brahman.

The ocean of amritha is everywhere amritha. Whether in the well, or in the tank, or in the river or the ocean, water is water. So too, when all is Brahman, all is the same substance appearingunder a multiplicity of names and forms. Akasa (sky, ether) is there, inside the pot as well as outside it, and it is the same akasa though it appears as two, interior akasa and the exterior akasa!

The Brahman, too, appearing as various bodies with their own individual characteristics, is One and One only. Like akasa inside the pot as well as outside the pot, it is One.

Experiencing that One and only Brahman, avoiding all feelings of difference and distinction, that is the sign of dhyana, the essence of the dhyana

experience, however much individuals may vary.

8) Samadhi:

When form is ignored and meaning alone is felt, that issamadhi. This is the opinion of Patanjali. This can beexplained in another manner also. When the person engaged in dhyana, forgets both himself and the fact that he is engaged in dhyana, then it becomes samadhi.

That is to say, when he is merged in the thing he meditates on, he enters into the stage called samadhi. Dhyana fulfils itself, becomes complete, in samadhi. Dhyana strives, proceeds through effort, but samadhi comes effortlessly. It is the culmination of the eightfold discipline, the Ashtanga.

When one knows that there is absolutely no iota ofdistinction between the Jiva and the Atma, that they

are one and the same, then it is the highest samadhi.

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It is the fruit of ripest dhyana, the dearest moment of Yogis, the destroyer of ajnana, the signal of the Grace of God. Incessant thirst to know the Atman as all, is worthy to be encouraged and welcomed, for, it is the path through which all doubts can be eliminated.

Samadhi is of two types, Savikalpa, Nirvikalpa. 1) In Savikalpa, the Thriputi, or the Threefold nature of

Knower, Knowing and Knowee will still persist. 2) When it is realised that the Knower is Brahman, Knowing

too is Brahman and the thing to be known is also Brahman, then there is no more Vikalpa or Agitation or Activity; that is the Nirvikalpa Samadhi.

Samadhi is as the ocean to which all sadhana flows.The seven streams of Yama, Niyama, Asana, Pranayama,Prathyahara, Dharana and Dhyana all find their consummationin it. Every trace of name and form disappear in that Ocean.

He who serves and He who receives the service, he whomeditates and He who is meditated upon, all such duality is dispelled and destroyed. One will not experience even

the experience, that is to say, one will not be aware that he is experiencing! Oneself alone, naught else—that will be the samadhi.

If there is aught else, it cannot be samadhi. It is something like a dream, a fantasy, a passing vision at best.

Samadhi can admit of nothing other than Brahman.

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Sadhana in JNANA VAHINI

- role of Guru; - karma and upasana dharma,- dhyanam (meditation) and thapas (sacrifice)- Viveka (discrimination) and Vairagyam (de-tachement);- wish, will and effort (sama, dama, uparathi, thithiksa, sraddha and samadhana)- Atmavichara (reflection, concentration contemplation and meditation);- the six enemies (kama, krodha, lobha, moha, mada and matsarya);- seva- Karma, Bhakthy, Raja and Jnana yoga- Moksha or Liberation (mukti or Self-realisation)- Satchidananda (Being-Awareness-Bliss)

7 (JV) Guru sastras and tapas

All doubts that afflict the mind have to be solved by consulting those who know, or the Sadgurus(Philosophers and guides) one has the chance to meet.

Until one gets firmly fixed in the path that guru (teacher)or Sastras (category of scripture) has shown, one has toobey the rules and directions steadfastly and be in theircompany or be associated with them one way or other.

Because one can progress very fast if one keeps close tothe Wise Person who has realised the Truth, one must, with

unrestricted renunciation and sincere earnestness, follow the instructions of the Teacher and of the Sastras.This is the real Tapas (asceticism). This Tapas leads on to the highest stage.

When Ignorance and its concomitant Delusiondisappear, the Atma (soul, inner motive force) in everyone shines in Its own splendour.

9 (JV) Obstacles to the Vision of the Atma

To realise this Atma, this Jnanaswarupa(Embodiment of wisdom), there are four obstacles to be

overcome: Laya (sleep), Vikshepa (waywardness,ignorance hiding truth),Kshaya (decline, disappearance),

and Rasa Aaswaadanam (enjoyment of bliss).

Let us take these one by one.

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LAYA (Sleep): when the mind withdraws from theexternal world, it enters into deep sleep or Sushupthi, onaccount of the overpowering influence of Samsara(change or flux).

The Sadhaka (aspirant for spiritual progress) should arrest this tendency and attempt to fix the mind on to Atmavichara,

or the inquiry into the nature of the Atma. He must keep watch over the mind, so that he may keep awake.

He must discover the circumstances that induce the drowsiness and remove them in time. He must start the process of Dhyana (meditation) again and again. Of course, the usual producer of drowsiness and sleep during Dhyana is indigestion. Overfeeding, exhaustion through too much of moving about, want of sufficient sleep at night, these too cause sleepiness and drowsiness. So it is advisable to sleep a little during noon, on those days when you wake up after a sleeplessnessnight, though generally all those who engage in Dhyanamshould avoid sleep during daytime. Do not eat, until youfeel proper hunger. Practise the art of moderate eating.When you feel three-fourths full, desist from furthereating; that is to say, you will have to stop even whenyou feel you can take a little more. The stomach can beeducated in this way to behave properly. Over exercisetoo is not good. Even walking can be overdone. You canwalk until you conquer drowsiness; but remember youcannot plunge into Dhyanam, immediately after you havewarded off sleep.

VIKSHEPA (Waywardness): the mind seeks to runafter external objects and so, constant effort is needed toturn it inwards, away from the attractions of sensoryimpressions. This has to be done through the rigorousexercise of the Intellect, of Inquiry.

Discriminate and get the conviction driven into you that these are evanescent, temporary, transformable, liable to

decay, and therefore,unreal (Mithya) not Sathya (truth).

Convince yourselves that what is sought after as pleasurable and avoided as painful are only the fleeting products of sensory contacts.Train yourself in this way to avoid the distractionsof the external world and dive deep into Dhyanam.A sparrow pursued by a hawk flies in despair forshelter into a house; but it is anxious to fly again into theouter world, isn’t it? So also, the mind is anxious to goagain into the outer world, from the Atma where it takesrefuge. Vikshepa is this mental attitude, the urge to runback into the world from one’s shelter. The removal ofVikshepa alone will help the concentration of the mindin Dhyanam.

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KSHAYA (Decline): The mind is drawn with immenseforce by all the unconscious and subconsciousimpulses and instincts of passion and attachment towardsthe external world and its multitudinous attractions. Ittherefore experiences untold misery and might even getlost in its depths. This is the stage called Kshaya or Decline.The state of inertia into which one is driven bydespair cannot be called Samadhi; or, one might evenindulge in daydreaming in order to escape from presentmisery; or, one might start building castles in the air.

All this is due to attachment, to the temptations of the outerworld. There is another type of attachment too, the attachment

to the inner world, the planning within oneself of various schemes to better oneself in the future as compared to the past.

Both these form part of what is called Kshaya. The basis for both is the attraction of the outer world. Attachment brings about desire, desire leads to planning.

RASA-AASWAADANA (Enjoyment of Bliss): When Kshaya and Vikshepa are overcome, one attains the Savikalpananda, the Bliss of the Highest Subject-Object Contact. This stage is what is called Rasa Aaswaadanam or the Enjoyment of Bliss. Even this is not the Highest of the Supreme Bliss, which one does not attain or acquire, but simply IS, becomes aware of, so to say.

The Rasa, or the sweetness of the Subject-Object Samadhi is a temptation one has to avoid, for it is only the second best. It is enough joy to act as a handicap.

The joy is as great as that of a person who has just deposited a huge load he has been long carrying, or as that of a greedy person who has just killed a serpent guarding a vast treasure he wanted to grab.

The killing of the serpent is Savikalpasamadhi. The acquisition of the treasure, that is the

Nirvikalpa Samadhi, the highest stage.

14 (JV) Inner vision and external vision

The Atma is there, in all living things, in the ant as well as the elephant. The whole world is enveloped and sustained by this subtle Atma.

The Sadhaka (spiritual aspirant) has to direct hisattention away from the external world and become

insighted, he has to turn his vision towards the Atma.

He must analyse the processes of his mind and discover for

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himself wherefrom all the modifications and agitationsof the mind originate. By this means, every trace of “intention” and “will” has to disappear.

Afterwards, the only idea that will get fixed in the mind will be the idea of Brahmam. The only feeling which will occupy the

mind will be the feeling of Bliss, arising out of its establishmentin the Satchidananda (Being-Awareness-Bliss) stage.

Such a Jnani will be unaffected by joy or grief; for, he will be fully immersed in the ocean of Atmananda (bliss to the soul), above and beyond the reach of worldly things. The constant contemplation of the Atma and its glory is what is connoted by the terms, Brahmabhyasa and Jnanabhyasa, the practice of Brahmam or the cultivation of Jnana (wisdom).

The mind is so influenced by the passion for objectivepleasure and delusion of ignorance that it pursues with amazing quickness the fleeting objects of the world; so,

it has to be again and again led on towards higher ideals.

Of course, this is difficult at first; but with persistent training, the mind can be tamed. Then it will get fixed in the perpetual enjoyment of the Pranava, OM.

- Atma Jnana can be won only by the triple path

The mind can be trained by following the methods ofquiet persuasion, the promise of attractive inducements,the practice of withdrawing the senses from the outerworld, the endurance of pain and travail, the cultivationof sincerity and constancy and the acquisition of mentalequipoise, that is to say, the methods of Sama, Dama,Uparathi, Thithiksha, Sraddha and Samaadhaana.

The mind can be turned towards Brahmam andthe constant contemplation of Brahmam by the study of

the Upanishads, the adoption of regular prayer, the sharingwith others of the ecstasy of Bhajan (devotional

singing), and the adherence to Truth.

Very often with the progress of Dhyana, new desires and new resolutions arise in the mind. But one need not despair.

The mind can be broken, provided one takes up the task in right earnest and follows a regular routine of training. The

final result of this training is Nirvikalpa Samadhi or theUnlimited, Unmodified Bliss-Consciousness.

Nirvikalpa Samadhi gives full knowledge of Brahmam; and that, in turn, results in Moksha or Liberation from

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birth and death. The mind must be attuned to the contemplation of Brahmam, one must strive to tread the path of Brahmam, and live in Brahmam, with Brahmam.

Atma Jnana can be won only by the triple path of: 1) “giving up Vasanas,” 2) “uprooting the mind” and 3) “the analysis of experience, to grasp the reality.”

Without these three, the Jnana of the Atma will not dawn. The Vasanas or instincts and impulses prod the mind on towards the sensory world and bind the individual to joy and misery.

So the Vasanas must be put down. This can be achievedby means of discrimination (Viveka), meditation on the

Atma (Atmachintana), inquiry (Vicharana), control ofthe senses (Samam), control of the desires (Damam),

renunciation (Vairagya) and such disciplines.

36 (JV) the discipline of Jnana

There is no doubt that sage Mathanga is a greatascetic. Does not the Ramayana declare that he taughtthe woman Sabari, the secret of the sacred doctrine ofBrahmam? Is that statement false? Coming to this ageitself, who does not know that the scholarly wife ofSureswaracharya contended with Shankaracharya himselfin philosophic discussion of Brahmam? So,

the chief qualification for the Path leading to Jnana is only Sadhana, the Tapas one is engaged in, not the

irrelevant consideration of caste, creed or sex.

Leaving all other matters aside, one should concentrate on that Sadhana and that Tapas.

The Lord is accessible and available to all. He is All Mercy. No one except the Lord has the authority to declare any one unfit for the discipline of Jnana. If you reflect a little deeper, you will realise that the Lord would not deny anyone the chance to reach Him.

To sparks of the same fire, or drops of the same sea, how can the flame or the sea deny refuge? The Lord will not refuse or reject. A father with four sons cannot state that one of them has no right to a share in his property. It won’t be just or proper. Then what shall be said of the Lord, who is devoid of the slightest tinge of partiality or prejudice and who is full of mercy? To attribute favouritism to Him is to commit sacrilege.

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Referring to this question of who is entitled and who is not entitled to Brahmavidya,

Krishna said in the Githa, “I have no favourite, nor do I dislike anyone. Whatever might be the caste, whether the person

is man or woman, whoever worships Me with faith and devotion, will reach Me; nothing can stand in their

way. I too will manifest in the hearts of such.”

Is the Githa, therefore, meaningless? No, the Githa speaksprofound Truth.

There is another wrong belief current today. It issaid that in order to be entitled to the practice of the

Sadhana for the realisation of Brahmam, like Japa andDhyana, one must adhere strictly to certain modes of daily

conduct laid down in tradition and thus attain purity.

I do not agree. For, medicines are essential only for thebedridden. How can they become hale and healthy withoutfirst taking a course of the medicine? To say that a person must be pure and good and following certain codes of conduct before he could tread the path of God is to say that he must be free from disease in order to deserve medical treatment! This is absurd.

Purity, goodness, etc., are all the consequences of the journey towards God. They cannot be insisted upon,

as essential for even starting upon it.

The taking in of the drug will gradually induce health and cheer. Health and cheer should not be insisted upon before the drug is even prescribed or supplied! This obvious fact is ignored by many.That is a serious malady indeed!

39 (JV) Castes and sadhana

Though born as a Sudra (the worker caste), a person does attain Brahminhood, through Brahmamward struggle and Sadhana. Though born as a Brahmin, if that ideal and the effort to attain it are not found, the person becomes Sudra.Anushtana and Nishta (conduct and discipline) these two are the criteria, the deciding factors.

The Inner Atmic Principle is the same in all. It knows no caste or class or conflict. To realise that the Self is beyond all

these subordinate categories, Bhakthi is the first requisite.

Bhakthi merges in Jnana and becomes identified with it. Bhakthi ripens into Jnana; so do not speak of them as different. At one stage it is called Bhakthi, at a later stage

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we refer to it as Jnana. Once it is cane, later it is sugar.

Through Bhakthi, the Jiva is transformed into Siva or rather, it knows it is Siva and the Jiva idea disappears. To posit oneself

as Jiva, that is Ajnana. To know oneself as Siva, that is Jnana.

A white cloth that has become dirty is dipped in water, soaked in soap, warmed and beaten on a slab, inorder that it may be restored to its colour and condition.So too, to remove the dirt of Ajnana that has attacheditself to the pure Sath-Chith-Ananda Atma, the water of unblemished conduct and behaviour, the soap of Brahmam– reflection, the warming of Japam and Dhyanam and theslab of Renunciation are all necessary.

Then only can the fundamental Brahmamhood of the Atma shine forth.It does not help if the soap is good when the water is soiled. All that soap and all that bother of heating and beating are sheer waste, for the cloth continues as dirtyas ever. This explains why many aspirants fail. Though they have meditated on Brahmam for many years and studied about it for long, their modes of behaviour and conduct are all wrong. The fault lies in the water, not in the soap!

The daily habits, acts and activities are meanand low; the Dhyana on Brahmam is all a waste.

People in their ignorance hesitate to accept the rigours of spiritual discipline, considering them as so many fetters to free living. They decry the Divine Command and denounce the Grace of Divine. That Command is not understood and appreciated. It is disobeyed and even fought against. But the wise man who plants wheat will be blessed by a harvest of wheat. The fool plants tearsand weeps because wheat does not grow.

41 (JV) Seva (service) or Nishkamakarma

A set of persons with curious ideas have cropped up recently and they strut about with great pride, for they have no yearning for God, even no use of God; they are Sevaks (servants, helpers) and they are satisfied with Service! But the essence of Seva (service) is selflessness and abnegation of the fruit thereof.

The Sevaks have no right to look down upon the Godly and the Spiritual aspirants as inferior. For that is but reaching for the fruit while neglecting the tree! Selfless service is the final fruit of the Godward Discipline. That is the attitude of Nishkama Karma (renunciation of the fruits of action).

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How can the fruit be gained, without the long and laboriousnurture of the tree?

The very foundation of Nishkama Karma is the Prema towards all beings, Prema that seeks no reward. Without spiritual

experience of this higher Love, selfless service is impossible.

At present, the world is full of persons who clamour for good profit for themselves but are unwilling to give good value for the things they receive. They want God, but are engaged in the cultivation of some other crop! They do not seek it and strive for it day and night.They have, on the other hand, installed the god of wealth in their hearts and spend all their time and energy worshippingit and praying for its favour.

How pure is the heart full of Bhakthi to God and Prema towards all things! Selfless Service is possible only by such.

The rest only prattle about it and pretend to be impelled by it.

Only those who are well-established in the faith that all are children of God, that He is the Inner Motive Force of every being, can include themselves in that class of Social Servants.For those who say they have no use for God or for Bhakthi, egoism is the core of personality, exhibition its outer rind. However much is written and read, that egoism will not wither away.

Ego consciousness leads to self-aggrandisement; and when self holds sway over the heart, no deed worthy

to be styled Service can emanate from him.

It is sheer selfish greed that makes him label his deed as Service.

44 (JV) Practise the Ghita

Before everything, be pure and holy. Of aspirantsand sadhakas, there are plenty; but, of those who are purein heart, the number is few. For example, observe thisone fact; there are many who religiously read the Githaover and over again. There are many who expatiate onits meaning for hours and hours, but

persons who practise the essence of the Githa are rare. They are now like gramophone records, reproducing

someone else’s song, incapable of singing themselves, ignorant of the joy of song. They are not sadhakas at all.

Their sadhana does not deserve the name.

47 (JV) Sath-Chith-Ananda

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The Lord is in every heart, in the subtle as well asthe gross forms. So the Jnani, who has had a vision ofthe Atma presiding over the Inner Stage will never beaffected by sorrow. It can never hold sway over him.The Atma is in the ant and elephant, in the atom as well as the atmosphere. Everything is saturated with Brahmam.

The seeker must divert his attention inwards from theexterior world. He must find out the origins of the agitations

of the mind. This process will diminish and destroythe activities of the mind which make you doubt, discuss

and decide. From that stage onwards, the exhilaration of being Brahmam oneself will be constant.

This will stabilise the Sath-Chith-Ananda, arising from that experience. Such a Jnani can never be affected by joy or sorrow, however big; he will be immersed in the ocean ofAtmananda, blissfully unaware of the world around him,far above and beyond its coils.

This is the discipline called Brahmabhyasa, that is to say, the ever-present exercise of remembering the basic Brahmam of the Universe, praying to the Form-ful Aspect of that Brahmam, speaking of His Glory, being in His Company and living always in His Presence. That is why the Panchadasi says, “Thath chinthanam, thathkathanam, anyonyam thath prabodhanam, ethath eka param thwam cha, Jnanabhyasam vidur budhaah.”

“Thoughts dedicated to Him alone, speech devoted to Him alone, conversation centred on Him alone,”

this onepointed existence is referred to by the wise as the Discipline of Jnana.

65 (JV) the Sadhana Chathushtaya or the Four Qualifications

To entitle one for the inquiry into the Atma, one must be endowed with the Sadhana Chathushtaya or the Four Qualifications. Scholarship in all the Vedas and Sastras, asceticism, mastery of ritual, dedication to japa, charity, pilgrimage—nothing will help in granting that authority.

“Santho dantha uprathi thithiksha…,” says Sruthi; so, equanimity, self-control, withdrawal of the senses,

steadfastness…these alone confer that title, not caste, colour, or social status.

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Be it a Pandit versed in all the Sastras, a Vidwan or an illiterate, a child or youth or an old person, a Brahmachari (beginner on the Path), Grihastha (householder), Vanaprastha (retired person) or Sanyasin (renunciate), Brahmin, Kshatriya (warrior), Vaisya (merchant class), Sudra (working class), or even an outcast, man or woman, the Vedas declare

“Everyone is qualified, provided one is equipped with the Sadhana Chathushtaya.”

Mere reading of the Sastras does not entitle one.The attainment of Sadhana Chathushtaya mentioned therein is essential. The doubt might then arise: how cana person who has not read the Sastras attain SadhanaChathushtaya? My answer is, how does the person whoreads them, attain them? “Because he knows the Sastras,he does act in a spirit of dedication to the Lord, getsmental purification thereby, and acquires Vairagya orrenunciation and other qualifications in increasing measure. Now how can these be cultivated by one who does not know the Sastras?” it is asked. Why can he not cultivate them?

By the accumulated fruit of the educative influences and good deeds in the past births, it is possible

to get qualified for Atmavichara (inquiry into the nature of Self) in this birth, without Sastric study.

Now the question might arise, how, when efforts in previous births are rewarded and one is endowed as a result of these with the Four Qualifications, study of the Sastras here and now do not help! Some persons also are handicapped by the evil effects of past Karma and they do not get fruit from Sastric Study. But, as far as character and bent of mind are concerned, the lucky ones who have engaged in good deeds in past births are at an advantage.The student whose study is handicapped by past samskaras (inborn impulses) is as unlucky as the aspirant who has failed to develop a spiritual bent of mind by his activities in past births.Well!

Even when one has mastered the Sastras, ifone has not taken up Sadhana, he cannot

grasp the Atmic basis of existence.

Of course, he who has understood the scriptures has greater chances of entering upon a course of Sadhanas and practising them more steadfastly.

The merit acquired in past births appears now as a keenthirst for Liberation, as a sincere endeavour to approach

a Guru, as a determined struggle to succeed in Sadhanaand comes to fruition with the realisation of the Atman.

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Success comes to those who have sraddha (steady faith)more than anything else.

Without Sraddha, the promptingto translate what has been read in the Sastras will be

absent and scholarship will hang as a burden on the brain.

Since Vairagya (renunciation), etc., are the qualificationsfor realising Atma, scholars and the rest are both equally entitled to it. Is it not through Sadhana alone that the Atma can be known? Then, why bother with the mastery of all the Sastras? Well, to know the Self, Sastras are not indispensable; having known it, they are unnecessary. But, all that is inferred from Sastras are only indirect experiences. Direct perception is impossible, by any means other than Sadhana. Direct understanding alone is Jnana.

67 (JV) Atmavichara

What exactly is Atmavichara? Not the study of the attributes of Atma, as given in books, but the analysisof the nature of the “I,” laying bare the envelopingsheaths, the Panchakosas, through concentrated discrimination, directed inward. It is not the Vichara of the external world or the outer objective world, or the academic scholarship directed towards the interpretation of texts.

Atmavichara is the analytical penetration of the secret of the Atma, achieved by the keen edge of intellect.

Is it then impossible to realise the Atma through study of the Sastras, it may be asked. The answer is, it is not possible.

1) The Atma is of the nature of Sath-Chith-Ananda. 2) It transcends

the Sthula (gross physical body), Sukshma (subtle body) and Karana (Causal body) Sariras;

3) it is the Witness of the waking, the dream and the deep sleep stages;

Can a mastery of the meanings of these words give the direct vision of Atma? How then is it to be seen? By unravelling the Five Sheaths that cover up the personality, by negating each of them and experiencing, “Not this,” and passing beneath and beyond to the substratum of the Atma, the Brahmam, which all the while appeared varied and manifold.

Anything misplaced in the home must be searchedfor in the home itself. How can it be recovered by a searchin the woods?

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The Brahmam hidden by the Five sheaths must be searched for in the Five Sheathed Body,

not in the woods of Sastric lore.

Though Brahmam cannot be discovered in the Sastras, they tell you of the Pancha Kosas or the Five Sheaths and of their identification marks and characteristic; andso by the exercise of the intellect, it is possible to reach down to the Atmic Truth. Then, how can one not versed in the Sastras master the process of this analysis and this consummation, it may be asked. He can learn it from a Guru, or an elder Sadhaka, is it not? But one fact has to be emphasised again.

The Atma principle is beyond the reach of even the most profound Pandit who has learned the Sastras. It can be understood only by direct experience.

That is why it was said, that even a person who has had the Vision has to approach the Guru. Without guidance

from such a teacher, the Atma cannot be grasped.

Even Narada had Sanathkumara as Guru and Janaka had Suka, and other Saints had other Gurus.

When one has the Grace of the Lord, the Guruhimself becomes very often superfluous;

He makes everything known.

Maitreyi the consort of Yajnavalkya and the unlearned Leela and Choodala are examples to show that, without prolonged study of the Sastras, even women in the past learnt the Atmavidya from the Guru and attained success. Of course,

whatever else a person may not have, if he is blessed with the Grace of the Lord, he can certainly have a Vision of the Atma,

however deficient he may be in the usually accepted qualifications.

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Sadhana in Prema Vahini

- role of Guru; - karma and upasana dharma,- dhyanam (meditation) and thapas (sacrifice)- Viveka (discrimination) and Vairagyam (de-tachement);- wish, will and effort (sama, dama, uparathi, thithiksa, sraddha and samadhana)- Atmavichara (reflection, concentration contemplation and meditation);- the six enemies (kama, krodha, lobha, moha, mada and matsarya);- seva- Karma, Bhakthy, Raja and Jnana yoga- Moksha or Liberation (mukti or Self-realisation)- Satchidananda (Being-Awareness-Bliss)

14 (PV) Sadhana: the Way of Life

There have always been, there are, and there will always be teachers who reveal to man and who instruct him to attain the heights which he can reach by the fullest manifestation of his physical, mental and intellectual powers, through one-pointed steadfastness.

The mind of man revels in external objects and in purposeless observation and criticism of the outside

world. How then can it be trained to be steadfast?

Each one should ask himself the question: “Mahatmas and Mahapurushas were also persons like me, they were also embodied beings. When they could attain perfection, I can also succeed, if I follow their method. What profits me if I spend my time in discovering the faults and weakness ofothers?” Therefore

the first sadhana (spiritual practice) is, searchfor the faults and weaknesses within thyself

and strive to correct them and become perfect.

The unceasing toil of each succeeding day has as itsaim and justification this consummation; to make one’s lastdays sweet and pleasant. But each day, too, has its evening.If the day is spent in good deeds, then the evening blessesus with deep sleep, invigorating refreshing sleep, the sleepabout which it is said that it is akin to Samaadhi (superconscious state, transcending the body, mind and intellect).

Man has only a short span of life, here upon earth. But even in this short life one can, by

wisely using the time with care, attain Divine Bliss.

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15 (PV) The Real Nature of The Life of Man

To a superficial observer, the life of man appears as a rotation of eating and drinking, toiling and sleeping. But verily life has a much greater meaning, a much deeper significance.

Life is a sacrifice, a yagna. Each little act is an offering to the Lord. If the day is spent

in deeds performed in this spirit of surrender, what else can sleep be, except samaadhi?

Man commits the great fault of identifying himself withthe body. He has accumulated a variety of things for theupkeep and comfort of the body. Even when the bodybecomes weak and decrepit with age, he attempts to bolsterit up, by some means or other. But how long can death bepostponed? When Yama’s warrant comes, each has todepart. Before Death, position, pride and power, all vanish.

Realising this, strive day and night, with purity of body and mind and spirit, to realise the Higher Self, by the service of all living beings. The body must be

preserved as a vehicle for this service. But remember, you are not this body. This body cannot be you.

17 (PV) The feeling of I and Thou will soon disappear

Man must be happy that the Purushothama (Lord of all) has placed around him newer and newer materials forserving Him and gets done through him Puja in variousforms. He must pray for newer and newer opportunitiesand exult in the chance that his hands receive. This attitudegives immeasurable joy. To lead a life suffused with this joyis indeed bliss.

Whatever is done from sunrise to sunset must beconsecrated, as if it is the worship of the Lord.

As care is taken to pluck only fresh flowers and to keep them clean and unfaded, so too ceaseless effort should be made to do deeds which are pure and unsullied.If everyday, this vision is kept before the mind’s eyeand life is lived accordingly, then it becomes one longunbroken service of the Lord. The feeling of I and Thouwill soon disappear; all trace of self will be destroyed. Lifethen transmutes itself into a veritable Hariparayanam.

“I am the sevaka (servant). This world is the offering. God is the master who is worshipped”—when one attains this stage of thought, feeling and action, all

difference between mine and thine will disappear.

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19 (PV) the Purushothama Yoga

Therefore each individual deed must be full of the spiritof Seva (service), of Prema (Love) and of Jnana. In otherwords each group of life’s activities must be saturated withKarma, Bhakthi and Jnana. This is verily the Purushothama(Highest of the Purusha) Yoga. It has to be acted in practice,not merely spoken in words.

Sadhana (spiritual practice) should be done constantly with an ever-expanding heart full of Bhakthi and Jnana.

The sweetness of nectar of the Lord’s name is the charm of life. The internal joy derived from the Name

is akin to the external joy of the outer life.

When one performs a kriya (action) as an offering to the Lord, his good, the higher good and the highest good,Swartha, Pararatha and Paramaartha, all become one.

First I and you become we. Next we and He become identified.

- Om Thath Sath

The Jiva (i.e., the Individual soul, I) should accomplish identity, first with the Creation (i.e., the Prakriti, You) and then with the Paramatma (i.e., the Supreme Soul, He). This indeed is the significance of the manthra (sacred formula, mystic syllable), Om Thath Sath.

Today, yesterday and tomorrow Om Thath Sath is, was and will be. “He” and “I” are there always. The Sadhana

is also there always. Just as the sun is inseparable and isnever apart from its rays, under no circumstances should

any aspirant be without his sadhana.

It is only when the Saadhaka (spiritual aspirant) adheres to his sadhana in such an incessant manner can he be said to be one with Om (the Pranava, the original sound).

21 (PV) yagna, dana, tapas

Puja is not merely the plucking of a flower and placing it on top of the image. The gardener who toiled to nurse theplant that gave the flower is also a worshipper. It is onlywhen food is given that the body can function. Even themeans for a sacrifice is yajna.

All Karma done for the sake of three entities is sacrifice, viz., to utilise the world for the worship

of the Lord, to establish peace and justice in society and to control and coordinate the functions of the body.

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- The first is called Yagna (sacrifice),- the second, Dana (charity) - and the third, Thapas (penance).All human acts must subserve these three needs.

23 (PV) Sathya and Viveka

In this material world, one cannot appreciate the value of spiritual endeavour if he has had no experience in such aspiritual life and its purity. It may be said that one canundertake spiritual endeavour only after appreciating its value but this is like saying that one would get into water onlyafter learning swimming. Swimming can be learnt only bygetting into water, with a float attached to the body. In thesame way, with some float attached to the mind, plungewithout fear into spiritual sadhana. Then you will yourselfunderstand the value of spiritual endeavour.

The nature and conditions of the spiritual path are known only to those who have journeyed along the road. They know

that the path of Sathya (truth) and Viveka (analytical reasoning) leads to Paramatma. Those who have not trodden that

path and those who are not aware of its existence cannot explain it to themselves or to others.

Paramatma alone is real. Paramatma is Truth.Paramatma is Love, Meditate on Him as Truth, as Love. Itis possible to realise Him, in whatever form you meditateupon. Be always in the company of his devotees. Throughthis sathsanga (company of the good), viveka and vairagya(detachment, renunciation) will be implanted and increased.These will strengthen the spirit and endow you with innerPeace. Your mind will then merge in Paramatma.

In everything that you do, use all the strength and talent with which you are endowed, speaking and acting

truthfully.At first, you might fail in this and you might encounter difficulties and sufferings. But ultimately, you

are bound to succeed and achieve victory and Bliss.

I remember here the true statement, Satyameva Jayathe, Nanritham. By your behaviour, through your way of life, you can realise the Truth, you can realise Paramatma.

26 (PV) the teachings of the Vedas

Mere panditry is of no use at all. The Vedas, the Upanishads and the Sastras are doctrines for living out in daily practice. So, without this practice, whatever the wealth of words,

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whatever the standard of scholarship, it is all a colossal waste.

To bring the teachings of the Vedas, Upanishads and Sastras into one’s actual life, one has to scotch the feeling,

“I know,” and open one’s eyes to the real Essence and introspect on it. Then, one can attain Bliss, without fail.

The Panchanga (almanac) might indicate that ten unitsof rain will fall, but even if the calendar is folded ten timesand squeezed, not even a drop of rain can be extracted.The purpose of the calendar is not to give rain but only togive information about rain and its quantity. Its pages donot contain the ten units of rain. Rain is in the clouds above.

- The secret of salvation

So too, the Sastras can give only information about doctrines, axioms, rules, regulations and duties. The sublime characteristics of the Vedas and the Upanishads and Sastras are that they give instruction in the methods of attaining peace and liberation. But they are not saturated with these essences of Bliss, so that one can collect them by squeezing the texts.

One has to discover the path, the direction and the goal as described in them. One has to tread the path, follow

the direction, and reach the goal. If however, the Iconsciousness produces the pride, “I know all,”

a fall is inevitable; the delusion causes death.

The secret of salvation lies in the realisation of this danger. Rebirth is inevitable if this danger is not averted.

Aware of all this, if you get immersed in spiritual practice, the world and its worries will not affect you. It is only when you are far from this truth, that you suffer, feel pain and experience travail. At a distance from the bazaar, one hears only a huge indistinct uproar. But as we approach it and walk into it, one can clearly distinguish the separate bargainings. So too, until the reality of Paramatma is known, you are overpowered and stunned by the uproar of the world. But once you enter deep into the realm of spiritual endeavour, everything becomes clear and the knowledge of the reality awakens within you. Until then you will be caught up in themeaningless noise of argumentation, disputation andexhibitionist flamboyance.

28 (PV) Aspirants On The Bhakthi Path

Every aspirant who seeks the Eternal through the path of Bhakthi should strive to acquire the following characteristics:He must

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1) keep away from the turmoils, the cruelties and the falsehoods of this world and 2) practice truth, righteousness, love and peace.

This is indeed the path of Bhakthi.

Those who seek union with God, those who seek the welfare of the world should discard as worthless

both praise and blame, appreciation and derision, prosperity and adversity. They should courageously keep steady faith in

their own innate reality and dedicate themselves to spiritual uplift.

No one, not even a Mahapurusha or Avatar (incarnation of God) can ever escape criticism and blame. But they do not bend. They hold on to truth. Truth will not yield to threats. The real nature of the Mahapurusha or the Avatar is realised by those who indulge in criticism or blame only after wading through unbearable trouble, and then they too start to praise.

39 (PV) Agama, Samchita, Prarabdha

The sky might be reflected in a pot of toddy, but thetoddy does not defile it. Similarly, in this vehicle, the body,the Atman dwells pure and undefiled. The fruits of action,good or bad, fair or foul, adhere to the vehicle, not to theIndweller, the Seer.

When such Jnana dawns, the dark shadows of the threetypes of Karma:1) the Agama (Karma of the future), 2) the Samchitha (Karma of past), 3) the Prarabdha (Karma we are presently undergoing);flee before it. Yes, even Prarabdha karma can be overcome. For, the Will of God is omnipotent and for omnipotence there can be no limit or exception.

When through Sadhana (spiritual practice), you win the Sankalpa (resolve) of the Lord, you can with

that Sankalpa achieve victory over Prarabdha also. Do not be discouraged on any score.

The suffering and travails of this world are illusory and transitory. Fix your mind firmly on this great fact andset out bravely on the path of Sadhana, the Sadhana of Devotion.

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45 (PV) mind ever dwells with the Lord

Twenty hammer-strokes might not succeed in breakinga stone, the twenty-first stroke might break it. But does this mean that the twenty blows were of no avail? No, each of those twenty strokes contributed its share to the finalsuccess. The final result was the cumulative effect of all thetwenty-one. So too, the mind is engaged in a struggle withthe world, both internal and external. Needless to say success might not always be your lot. But

man can attain everlasting bliss by getting immersed in good works and by saturating the mind with the love

of God. Infuse every moment of life with that love. Then evil tendencies dare not hamper the path.

Since his mind ever dwells with the Lord, he will be drawn automatically towards good deeds only. The object of all sadhana is the destruction of the mind and someday,some one good deed will succeed in destroying it, just asthe twenty-first blow broke the stone. For this triumph, allthe good deeds done in the past have contributed. Eachlittle thing counts. No good deed is a waste.

While struggling in the spiritual field, you should take on Parameshwara Himself as your protector.

To instil courage in the child, the mother persuades it to walk a few steps and turn about, but she will not allow it to fall. If it totters and is about to lose balance, she hurries from behind it and catches it ere it falls.

Ishwara too has His eyes fixed on the Jivi. He has in His hand the string of the kite which is man. Sometimes, He may give it a pull. Sometime, He may loosen the hold. But whatever He does, be confident and carefree, for it is He that holds the string. That faith ever present, that feeling hardening into a Samskara, will fill you with Premarasa (flavour of love).

The string is the bond of Love and Grace. The kite orJivi is thus bound to Iswara. You must do and earnauspicious Samskaras in order that the bond of Love and Grace may exist and get tightened.

62 (PV) for a saadhaka, today is his but tomorrow?

People usually delay doing some things, today’s till tomorrow, and yesterday’s till today. But the tasks of sadhana are not of such a nature, for them, there is no yesterday and no tomorrow.

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This very moment is the moment! The minute that has elapsed is beyond your grasp; so too,

the minute that is approaching is not yours!

It is only that Jivi which has engraved this understanding onits heart that can merge in Siva. Without assimilating thistruth in the heart, the Jivi is immersed in aims of today andtomorrow, based on the assumption that the body is allimportant. It thus lays the foundations for worldly attachment; and so, it is born again and again with body and continues to have the Darsan of Yama!

It is the right of the Saadhaka to have Siva-darshana and not Yama-darsan! He will not wish for it, nor

even contemplate it. Only those who have this relationship of the Deha and the Jiva are Men.

Those who have realised this principle will not flag, even tothe slightest extent, in their sadhana. These days, man iscontent with visualising and experiencing evanescent worldlyjoys. He has no rest. Spending the nights in sleep and thedays in eating and drinking, he grows and grows, until, inhis old age, Death pursues him. Then, he cannot decidewhere to go or what to do. All his senses have weakened.No one, nothing can rescue him; so he ends as obedientmeat to the jaws of Death!

How sad it is that this human life, precious as an invaluable diamond that cannot be priced at all, has been cheapened

to the standard of a worn-out worthless coin!

There is no use repenting, after wasting time without profit,without meditating on God, or practising any sadhana torealise Him. What is the use in planning a well, when the house has caught fire? When is it to be dug? When willwater become available? When is the fire to be extinguished?It is an impossible task!

If at the very start, there was a well ready, how helpful it would be on such critical occasions! Beginning to contemplate on God during the last moments is like beginning to dig the well. So, if from now on, one equips himself by the contemplation of God off and on, it will stand him in good stead when the end approaches.

Start today the sadhana that has to be done tomorrow! Start now the sadhana that has to be done today!

One does not know what is in store the next moment. Therefore, there should be no delay in engaging

oneself in the sadhana that has to be done.

Physical stamina is also necessary for this sadhana,

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and so, the body has to be tended, though overtendingcauses damage. To the degree that is essential, it should be looked after with great care.

64 (PV) Path for a Bhaktha to Become a Mukta

This human birth is very difficult to attain. It cannot be got for a song. The body is as a caravanserai, the mind is its watchman, the Jivi is the pilgrim. And so, no one of these has any kinship with the others.

The pilgrim is bound to Salvation City, Mokshapuri. For a trouble-free journey, there is nothing so reliable as

Namasmarana, the remembrance of the name of the Lord.

Once the sweetness of that name has been experienced, the person will not have exhaustion, unrest or sloth. He will fulfil his pilgrimage of sadhana, joyfully, enthusiastically and with deep conviction. Still,

for achieving this sadhana, Sabdhava or righteousness is very important. Without fear of sin, righteousness cannot

originate; love of God, too, cannot develop. This fear produces Bhakthi which results in the worship of the Lord.

Stupidity is the root cause of man’s downfall. It is likesheepishness! When one rolls into a pit, all fall into the same pit. That is ruinous. Avoiding this, it is better to think about the good and the bad, the pros and cons of whatever is done and then jump.

66 (PV) Vikaras and the sadhu nature

Man is experiencing joy and misery, through the ear.Therefore, avoiding the cruel arrows of hard words, oneshould use words that are sweet, pleasant and soft; andwith that softness, add the sweetness of Truth. To make theword soft, if falsehood is added, it would only clear theway for some more misery. A person who has become aSaadhaka should use very soft, sweet, true and pleasantwords. Such persons can be recognised by their goodqualities themselves. Thus,

of those who have become Saadhakas, the Manas (mind) is Mathura, the Hrudayam (Heart) is Dwaraka, and the Deha (Body) is Kasi. At the seat of the tenth gate, it is

possible to realise the Paramjyothi, the Supreme Effulgence.

All efforts are of no avail if the heart is not pure. Look at

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the fish! Living as it does perpetually in water, has it rid itself of its foul smell to any extent? No.The Vasana (cravings, attachments) of man will not disappear even if he is immersed in many heart-purifying sadhanas, so long as the heart is full of the illusion of egoism.

Such a man, if he is desirous of getting rid of the feeling of “I” and “Mine,” must worship Hari. He must

become a Saadhaka, without likes and dislikes.

Vikaras (agitations of the mind) like these cannot coexist in the same heart, with the Sadhu nature. Light and darkness can never coexist at the same place, at the same time, isn’t it?

- the group of Six Passions

He whose heart is ruled by the group of Six Passions can have only Ahamkaara, as his Manthri (minister)! Those who have such a Manthri are worse than foolish men, however great they claim to be as Pundits, Sadhus, or Sanyaasins.

“Can a donkey carrying perfume become an elephant?”Can an ass change into an elephant, simply by carrying abundle of sandalwood? It can appreciate the weight and notthe scent! But the elephant pays no regard to the weight, itinhales the sweet scent. So too, the Saadhaka or theSanyaasin or the Bhaktha will take in only the pure truth, thepure essence of good activities, of Godliness, and of theSastras, Vedas and Upanishads. On the other hand,

if for the sake of mere scholarship, learning and disputation, one goes on arguing, he will know only the weight of logic,missing the scent of Truth! The onlookers may praise them

as the embodiments of the Sastras and the Vedas; but whereeven the essentials are lacking, how can there be an embodiment?

For those in search of the essence, the burden is no consideration. If mere reason is employed, nothing worthwhile is gained.

- single-mindedness and equanimity

Love (Prema) is the one big instrumentfor the constant remembrance of the Lord. To keep thatinstrument safe and strong, the Saadhaka needs no otherappliance than the scabbard of Viveka, discrimination.

There are many in the world who utilise their vast learning in disputations and believe they are superior. This is a great

mistake. If they are really so learned, there will not be so much disputation at all. They will assume silence as the

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honourable course, because, those exalted in learning will have experienced the essence of the Vedas, Sastras and Upanishads.

They will see that the nature of that essence, its core, the purity of the Godhead it proclaims, are all One, however one may realise It. They know that God appears in whatever form He is taken to have, and that He manifests in action to anyone, the feelings which he associates with Him.

Of these two, what is important is the acquisition of single- mindedness, equanimity, free from Viakra, i.e., likes and dislikes, and not the acquisition of argumentativeness.

- Why have we all these sadhanas, all this japa (repetition of Lord’s name), dhyaanam (meditation), bhajana, etc.? - Is it not for acquiring single-mindedness, one-pointedness? Once that one-pointedness has been earned, human effort becomes unnecessary, its inner significance will then be revealed to him. So,

those eager to become Saadhakas, to attain salvation, should not yield to arguments and counterarguments.

They should not be enticed by the wiles of bad feeling. They should see their own faults and not repeat them again.

They should guard and protect the onepointedness they have acquired, with their eyes fixed on the goal they are

after, dismissing as trash whatever difficulties, defeats and disturbances they might encounter on their path.

- the two chief enemies of the Saadhaka

One must dwell on such subjects as would give enthusiasmand joy, and not waste valuable time, building up doubtsregarding all things, big and small. Whatever else isunimportant, these two have to be attended to as essential:(1) The conceit that one knows everything. (2) Doubt, whether it is, or is not. These are the two chief enemies of the Saadhaka.

What does it matter who these enemies are?One should decide for oneself that one is firmly fixed inone’s Reality. If that is pure, everything is pure. If that istrue, everything is true. If you wear blue eyeglasses, though Nature is resplendent with many colours, you see only the colour you have worn, isn’t it? If the world appears to you as with differences, that is due to the fault in you only.

If all appears as one Prema, that too is your Prema only. Forboth these, the feeling in you is the cause. It is only becauseone has faults within himself, that he sees the world as faulty.When there is no knowledge of fault in oneself no fault canbe found even by search, for should they not know which

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are the faults?

Now, a question may arise whether the Lord Himself has faults, because He too searches for faults? But how canit be said that the Lord is searching for faults? He searchesfor goodness only, not for faults and sins. Those are basedon the standard of the Gunas (qualities) of each.

The Lord will not examine the wealth, the family, the Gothra (lineage), the status, or the sex. He sees

only the Righteousness, the Sadbhava. Those endowed with such Sadbhava, He considers as deserving His Grace,

whoever they are, whatever they are.

Therefore, develop Sadbhava, goodness and righteousness. Live and act in joy and love. These two are sufficient; salvation can be attained without fail.

90 (PV) sahajamarga, sadhanamarga, not the same

The Saadhaka should note the distinction betweenthe conduct of the natural man and the aspirant.Sahaja man is one without Sahana or Fortitude, with Ahamkaara, or conceit, and one who is full of desiresrelating to the Jagath (changing world) by which he is trying to have a contented Janma (birth).

The Sadhana man is he who is engaged in Sarveswara chinthana (contemplation on the Almighty) as ceaselessly

as the waves of the Sagara or sea, who accumulates the Dhana of Equality and Equal Love to all, who is

content in the thought that all is the Lord’s and nothing is his.

- the characteristics of a Sadhana man

The Sadhana man will not, like the Sahaja man, easily bend before grief or loss, anger or hatred or selfishness, hunger, thirst or fickleness. One should master all the above things as much as possible, and journey through life in fortitude, courage, joy, peace, charity and humility. Realising that the tending of the body is not all important, one has to bear patiently even hunger and thirst and be engaged uninterruptedly in the contemplation of theLord. Instead,

quarrelling for every tiny little thing, losing one’s temper, becoming sad at the slightest provocation, getting angry

at the smallest insult, worried at thirst, hunger and loss of sleep, these can never be the characteristics of a Saadhaka.

Rice in its natural state and rice that is boiled, can these

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two be the same? The hardness of natural rice is absent in the boiled one. The boiled grain is soft, harmless and sweet. The unboiled grain is hard, conceited and full ofdelusion. Both types are Jivis and men, no doubt.

Those who are immersed in external illusions and Avidya Maya are “Men.” Those who are immersed in

internal illusions or Vidya Maya are “Saadhakas,” and God is immersed in neither, devoid of both.

He who has no external illusions becomes a Saadhaka and when he is devoid of even internal illusions, he can be termed a God. Such a person’s heart becomes the seat of God. Therefore, it is possible to deduce that all is pervaded by God.

Though, of course, the Lord is situated in every heart, sadhana is necessary so that they may discover it for themselves, isn’t it? It is not possible for us to see our own face! We must have a mirror to show us its image! So too,

a basic Marga or path, a sadhana method is necessary to become devoid of gunas

(human characteristics, qualities).

92 (PV) the harvest of a saadhaka

There is, in this world, no thapas higher than fortitude, no happiness greater than contentment, no punya (meritorious act) holier than mercy, no weapon more effective than patience.

Bhakthas should consider the body as the field, gooddeeds as seeds and cultivate the Name of the Lord, with the help of the Heart as the ryot (farmer), in order to get the harvest, the Lord Himself. How can one get the crop without the cultivation? Like cream in milk, like fire in fuel, the Lord is in everything, more or less. Have full faith in this. As the milk, so the cream; as the fuel, so the fire; so also, as the sadhana, so the Sakshathkaara (Self-realisation), is it not?

Even if the attainment of Mukthi is not directly realised as a consequence of taking up the Lord’s name, four fruits are clearly evident to those who have had the

experience. They are (1) The company of the great, (2) Truth, (3) Contentment and (4) The control of the senses.

Through whichever of these gates one may enter, whether he be a householder or recluse, or a member of any other class, he can reach the Lord without fail. This is certain.

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Men crave for worldly happiness. Analysed properly, this itself is the disease and sufferings are but the drugs we take. In the midst of these worldly pleasures, one rarely entertains the desire for attaining the Lord. Besides,

it is necessary to analyse and discriminate every act of man for, the spirit of renunciation is born out of such

analysis. Without it, renunciation is difficult to get.

- Miserliness is like the behaviour of a dog, it has to be transformed.

- Anger is enemy Number One of the Saadhaka, it is like spittle and has to be treated as such.

- Untruth is even more disgusting. Through untruth, the vital powers of all are destroyed. It should be treated as scavenging itself.

- Theft ruins life. It makes the priceless human life cheaper than a pie. It is like rotten foul-smelling flesh.

- Moderate food, moderate sleep, Prema, fortitude these will help in the upkeep of the health of both body and mind.

Whoever he may be, in whatever condition he may be, if he gives no room for dispiritedness, if he has no fear at all,

and if he remembers the Lord with unshaken faith and without any ulterior motive, all suffering and sorrow will fall away from him.

The Lord will never enquire at any time the caste towhich you belong or the Achara (practice) which youtraditionally follow.

95 (PV) The qualities a saadhaka should cultivate

It is not the nature of a Saadhaka to search for faults in others and hide one’s own. If your faults are pointed out to you by anyone, do not argue and try to prove that it is right, or do not bear a grudge against him for it. Reason out within yourself how it is a fault and set right your own behaviour.

Instead, rationalising it for your own satisfaction or wreaking vengeance on the person who pointed it out, these are certainly not the traits of a Saadhaka or Bhaktha.

The Saadhaka should always seek the truthful and the joyful. He must avoid all thoughts of

the untrue, the sad and the depressing.

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Depression, doubt, conceit, these are as Rahu and Kethu (mythical snakes that supposedly swallowed the moon and sun during lunar and solar eclipses) to the spiritual aspirant.

When one’s devotion is well established, even if these appear, they can be easily discarded. They will only harm one’s sadhana. Above all, it is best that the Saadhaka should be under all circumstances, joyful, smiling and enthusiastic. Even more than Bhakthi and Jnana, this pure attitude is desirable. Those who have acquired it deserve to reach the goal first. This quality of joy at all times is the fruit of the good done in past births.

When a person is ever worried, depressed, doubting, he can never attain bliss, whatever sadhana he may do.

The first task of a Saadhaka is the cultivation of enthusiasm. Through that enthusiasm, he can derive any variety of

Ananda. Never get inflated when you are praised, never get deflated when you are blamed.

Be a spiritual Lion, regardless of both. One must oneself analyse and correct one’s faults, this is most important.

- Namasmarana in Pathivratha Bhakthi

Now, even in matters relating to the realisation of God,one has to be careful. Whatever inconveniences one mayencounter, one must try to carry on one’s sadhana, withoutany break or modification in the disciplines. One shouldnot be changing the Name that one has loved and cherishedand selected for Smarana (remembering). Concentration isimpossible if the Name is changed once every few days.The mind will not attain one-pointedness. All sadhana hasthis one-pointedness as its ultimate aim. So,

avoiding constant adoption and rejection of Names and Forms of the Lord, one single Name

must be used throughout for japam and dhyaanam.

And one has also to get the strong conviction that all the Lord’s Names and all the Lord’s Forms are but the Name and the Form which one is repeating in japam and meditating on, during dhyaanam. That Name and that Form must not give any the slightest feeling of dislike or disaffection.

Taking all worldly losses, sufferings and worries as merely temporal and transitory, and realising that all this japam and dhyaanam is only to overcome such grief, the Saadhaka should keep the two things separate, without mixing up that with this, and this with that. He must understand that the loss, suffering and worry are external, belonging to this world, and

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that japam and dhyaanam are internal, belonging to the realm of the love for the Lord.

This is what is called Pathivratha Bhakthi, or Chaste Devotion.

The other variety, where the Saadhaka selects one Name and one Form and after some time discards them

for another Name and Form, is called Vyabhichara Bhakthi,or Unchaste Bhakthi. It is not a fault if it is done in ignorance;

but having once known that it is wrong and harmful,

and after continuing dhyaanam and japam with that Nama (Name) and Rupa (Form) faithfully, if they are subsequently changed, it certainly is wrong.

Sticking faithfully to the Nama and Rupa is the highest vow, and the highest austerity. Even if elders advise you, do not give up the Path approved by your mind! Of course, which elder will suggest to you that you should change the Name of the Lord and give up the Name that you adore? Do not consider those who tell you to do so as an elder. Consider them as dullards. Again,

see that as far as possible, the time and place of dhyaanam and japam are not changed and shifted.

Sometimes, as while travelling, even if it becomes necessary to change the venue, the time at least should be kept unaltered. Even if one is in a railway train, or a bus, or some such inconvenient surrounding, at the specified time, one must, at least, recall to one’s mind the dhyaanam and the japam done by oneself, at the same time in the past. In this way, accumulating spiritual wealth, one can surely become the Master, and attain the Atma.

100 (PV) Brahmanishtas

If the culture of the ordinary man himself results in such elevation, each one can judge for himself how muchmore purified and holy will be the character of those whoare engaged in spiritual exercises and the incessantcontemplation of God! For both these types of people, thequality of their character is the important criterion.

There is a great difference between the Brahmanishtas (those established in God-contemplation) of the past

and the Brahmanishtas of the present day.

First, it is necessary to grasp the greatness of Brahmanishta itself. It is because this has not been done by the present-day

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holy men, that poverty has come upon us.

In the past, this greatness was realised, and they were immersed in experiencing holiness.The question may arise why such holy feelings do not arise now, but they are not absent. For fire to increase or decrease, fuel is the only cause; there is no other reason. The more the fuel, the more the illumination! In all humanity, every individual has the undisputed right to feed his fire with fuel! Fire has the power to give light, by its very nature. So too,

in the fire of the Buddhi of the aspirant and spiritualpractitioner, the fire which emanates the light of wisdom,

the fuel of renunciation, peacefulness, truth, mercifulness,forbearance and selfless service has to be constantly placed.

The more they do this, the more efficacious and effulgentthe Saadhakas can become. Only trees growing on fertilesoil can yield good fruits. Those which grow on saline soilswill be poor. So also, it is only in hearts which are unsullied,that such holy feelings, power and gifts can shine insplendour.

The difference between the Brahmanishtas of the past and the present is just this: the present-day Brahmanishtas

are practising the same dhyaanam and the same Pranava as their namesake in the past, the difference arises in the

decline in self-control, so far as the field of sadhana is concerned.

When the number of Mahapurushas who engage themselves in unflinching meditation of God in solitary places declined, then many a suffering descended upon the world. Those who exist today are damaging their Brahmanishta by themselves arranging for the accumulation of all obstacles for the carrying through of their sadhana, by getting enslaved to mean praise and fame, by becoming entangled in delusion, and by restless endeavour to earn glory and to expand the institutions they have founded. But

those who yearn to establish themselves in Brahmanishtamust seek solitude, and practise dhyaanam and japa at

specified times, and acquire one-pointedness through thesespiritual exercises, and always be anxious to do deeds that

will bring about the welfare of all created beings, ever engagedin performing work without any concern for the fruit thereof.

- Sadhus and “great” men

It is only when such men come upon the earth that allsuffering will cease. This is the mark of Kritha Yuga.Just as in the world, kindhearted doctors run medicalinstitutions here and there, and serve the diseased and curethe afflicted, if, here and there, we also have Ashramas of

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holy personages, who are experts in the treatment and cureof the “birth-and-death disease,” then, people can be curedfrom the afflictions of ignorance, untruth, immorality andself-aggrandisement.

The ignorance produces wickedness and it can be cured only by the medicine of Brahma Jnana with

supplementary doses of the drugs, Santham, Sama,Dama (Peacefulness, Fortitude, Self-control), etc.

Instead of this, the “great men” of today give those who approach them the medicines they demand, and the drugs their patients relish! They thus become the instruments of their followers; and for the sake of name and fame, they behave like doctors dictated to by the patients!

The so-called “great” fall into perdition, even before they taste the Bliss themselves, on account of their weakness and foolishness, becoming a prey to the wiles of the greed for name and fame! The main reason for the contemporary poverty is just this. Presentday Sadhus and “great” men have not understood this fact and do not act according to it.

That holy essence has to be experienced and realised.One’s selfish needs have to be sacrificed. There must beconstant effort to do good to others. One’s desire should

be to establish the welfare of the world. With all these feelings filling the heart, one must meditate on the Lord.

This is the right path. If “great men” and those in authority are thus engaged in the service of humanity, and in promoting the welfare of the world, the thieves of passion, hatred, pride,envy, jealousy, and conceit will not invade the minds of men. The divine possessions of man, like dharma, mercy, truth, love, knowledge and wisdom will be safe from harm.

The police and the rulers can overcome only external foes,they have no power to destroy the internal enemies; theywill find the task impossible. They are not the authoritiesfor that.

The internal foe, the six enemies that operate insideman, the Arishadvarga, can be uprooted only by the

teachings of good men, the Love of God and knowledge of the Lord, and the company of the Holy and the Great.

108 (PV) contemplation of the Divine

To realise this knowledge of the Atma, caste is not a criterion, nor monkhood, nor rituals, nor scholarshipgained by study of the Sastras. Brahmanishta is the onlycriterion. It is this that the Upanishad text too emphasises:

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Naasramam kaaranam muktheh, darsanaani na kaaranamThathaiva sarvakarmaani jnaanamevahi kaaranam.Jnana alone is the cause of liberation, not Ashrama orphilosophy.

For the establishment of oneself in the contemplationof the Omnipresent Lord, there are no limitations of time

or space. There is nothing like a holy place or a special timefor this. Wherever the mind revels in the contemplation of the

Divine, that is the Holy Place! Whenever it does so, that is the auspicious moment! There and then, one must meditate on the Lord.

That is why it has been announced already before:

Na kaala niyame yaathra, na desasya sthalasya chaYathraasya ramathe chiththam, thathra dhyane nakevalam.For meditation on God, there is no fixed time or place.When and where the mind so desires, then and there, is the time and place.

The world can achieve prosperity through such disciplined souls whose hearts are pure and who represent the salt of the earth.

Everyone should pray, from this very minute, for the advent of such men and try to deserve the blessings of the great and endeavour to forget the sufferings of the day in the attempt to promote the welfare of the world.

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