M O K S H A - J U N K Y A R D - Dialogs With The Living Master Akshara

2010-09-17T02:55:00.012+05:30

"total awareness is called that way because
it is without fragmentation but full"

Vedic literatures have the knack of objectifying god at the start as someone other than you and subsequently bring the identity of god pretty close to you as part of you. In the vedantic texts such as upanishads, the authors dare the readers by saying that god is not just part of you but it is verily you.

Disciple : This one thing always makes me proud to hear !
Master : What is that actually ?
Disciple : That I am god myself !
Master : To be god is not a thing of pride or
even a pleasure but it is just a state of Being.

People think of god as a all powerful man sitting inside a control tower surrounded by CCTV screens and lots of plugs and wires. If someone has to be born god needs to just plugin and some one has to go then unplug, that powerful. Most religions create an imagery of god as the monopoly of power and authority.

Disciple : But if god is not powerful how he
created this world and all this we see every day ?
Master : May be god is powerful but god does not
brag or boast that power like you might want to.
Disciple : Why god does not brag about his power?
Master : Because he does not know how to.

Man's major task in life is to become powerful and throw his weight around whenever and wherever he can. Its because he always feels power less about him. Most people even worship gods because they think the gods are powerful. This division between man and his need to be powerful makes him flaunt the little powers he may assume in life, as money or people under his control.

Disciple : So god is not separate from power ?
Master : Exactly ! He was always with the
powers to create or sustain or destroy so he
does not know how to flaunt it like the neo rich
man controlling a government of some drug mafia.

Ishwara is god but nowhere near to the images of god people have created since their lifestyle inside caves, where they used rocks as weapons, to kill and eat animals many thousand years ago. Ishwara cannot be defined into one single form or name, but all forms and all names that exists in the entire universe.

2010-03-10T20:16:00.006+05:30

"the awareness presently appears divided as bits and pieces
to you, instead of being complete and undivided"

Individual awareness is always about something grosser and tangible. Its like being aware of the tree but not the wood in it. Being aware of the ocean but not the water in it. Being aware of the wife but not the woman in her. Such an awareness remains individual awareness and not total awareness.

Disciple : This total awareness is always a complicating one to understand?
Master : Yes because total awareness is not to be understood !
Disciple : If not understanding how else I know of it ?
Master : "Fire burns" can be understood and felt as well but
both are different from each other. Similarly understanding
and awareness are different kinds of phenomenon !
Disciple : But why cant I understand awareness ?
Master : Because awareness alone makes you understand
and that's why you can never understand awareness be it
individual or total !

The individual awareness is incomplete awareness because it lacks depth and is fleeting. Its more localized and is missing the pervasiveness. Though everyone is capable of individual and localized awareness, they seem to miss the pervasive total awareness. But of course even to be aware of the fact that one has the localized awareness can be the best possible step forward towards a undisputed total awareness.

Disciple : Does it mean that I can ignore my individual
awareness henceforth and focus on my total awareness ?
Master : You cant do that actually !
Disciple : I quite expected such a reply from you !
Master : Because whenever you ignore any single part
then what you focus cannot be total !
Disciple : Unless I give up the focus on localized awareness
how I can shift my focus to total awareness ?
Master : Neither you can shift nor you can focus
when it comes to total awareness !

Localized awareness is easier to focus as the awareness is definite and limited. But the total awareness is not fixed and is unlimited. You can only expand and include and never shift or focus. This happens only as a result of the habit mind has been infatuated with the idea of "focus" for a very long time.

Disciple : Without shifting can I be totally aware ?
Master : Exactly ! That's the only way it seems !
Disciple : I am asking to know if I am eligible for this
total awareness to happen to me within this lifetime ?
Master : Yes, from the moment you stop wasting your time on
such sentimental dialogs and start expanding from within !
Disciple : You don't seem to have compassion for me anymore?
Master : I would not be talking to you still if not for that !

2010-03-05T22:26:00.000+05:30

"awareness of self always happens to you
but not so completely"

Nobody is ever totally lacking awareness. Everyone is aware of something or the other of one's self. But the question is are you aware of your self fully? There are more than few reasons for you to misunderstand what exactly is self awareness and miss realizing your self fully.

Disciple : Does it mean I have some awareness already ?
Master : Certainly !
Disciple : I always thought I lack awareness !
Master : To know the lack of awareness is awareness too !

Self awareness is not about a Self which is independent of you. The word SELF mostly is objectified as a thing that is to be captured from within. Mostly it is visualized like some shining object, like some ping pong ball, with hues of violet and white rays, located somewhere close to the heart region or between the brows. This kind of weird imagery of the Self leads to complicating the process of awareness.

Disciple : So Self is not a shining ball of fire?
Master : Not at all ! Its not an isolated object !
Disciple : Does it have any color patterns to it?
Master : I said self is not an isolated object !
Disciple : What does it actually mean?
Master : Self includes your body, breath, mind
and the consciousness which holds them all together !

Most times you are aware of the comfort and discomforts of your body and mind. You know your physical weaknesses and strengths, feelings and emotions, abilities and debilities, right and wrong, good and bad. But the awareness of your self is still incomplete as you have not yet known the substratum of your body and mind parts.

2010-02-27T01:07:00.001+05:30

" there is only one thing that makes you different from
rest of creation and that's called awareness "

You hear often that to be born as a human being is so rare and is a special blessing. But most of your life time you wonder how special it is, especially when you see ants, rats and crows appear lot more happier and free. Even those who keep repeating about this speciality of human birth may not have known how exactly it is special.

Disciple : Yes even I wonder how I am special
compared to the rest of creation ?
Master : Exactly for that reason you are special !
Disciple : For the reason I am wondering ?
Master : Yes, no other species can wonder the way you do !
Disciple : How does that make special ?
Master : When you begin to wonder, you are actually
beginning to get your awareness of your self !

Wondering is a effective beginning that leads to contemplation and meditation and eventually end in self awareness. If you look around in wonder at this creation, the way you can perceive, understand, admire, discriminate, decide, plan, participate, achieve, lose, console, identify, fantacize and empathize with all the happenings everywhere, then you have already began the process growing in self awareness.

Disciple : Why self awareness is important ?
Master : Because it brings your life into a full circle !
Disciple : Can you explain further ?
Master : Till self awareness happened, you would continue to
feel a sense of incompleteness about you, no matter what you do !
Disciple : So being self aware I can feel complete about myself?
Master : Exactly !
Disciple : Is that what pragnya all about ?
Master : Sure, it is ! Its a beginning of the end !
Disciple : End of my life ?
Master : End of all your seeking and searching in this life !

The true purpose of any spiritual exercise is only to arrive to this point of self awareness. Upon reaching to this point of self awareness, your mind attains equanimity, where you feel complete knowledge about your own self. Since you feel complete about your self the urge to find fulfillment ends too.

Disciple : Well, it sounds like some kind of mutation ?
Master : It is not just a change occurs in a chromosome but
its a transformation of the trait attaining its completeness !
Disciple : Does it end my survival instincts and the need
and urge to live happier and healthier and successful?
Master : It does not end your happiness but certainly end
your need to feel successful and happy !
Disciple : What happens to my life after wards ?
Master : You dont make a living anymore but
life is simply lived through you there after !

2010-02-04T02:25:00.001+05:30

For a enlarged version, click on the image - Ed

2010-01-28T02:23:00.002+05:30

Click on the image to enlarge - Ed

2010-01-02T02:29:00.001+05:30

Click on the thumbnail to see the big picture - Ed

2009-12-10T12:31:00.000+05:30

"your mind is never confined to your head
but spills all within you and around you"

Mind is understood differently by different people. The science declare mind as epiphenomenon of the brain and manifests as the stream of consciousness. The philosophy advocate many theories of dualism and monism. Religions either condemn mind as the cause for bondage or glorify mind as the medium to know god.

Disciple : I am always baffled about my mind !
Master : All minds are baffling indeed !
Disciple : Are the definitions you mentioned
are right or wrong about mind ?
Master : They all are right and wrong simultaneously !

The function of mind is comprehended by mind only. That's where the difficulty lies. While mind can cognize, explore, experiment, contemplate and discover a million other things, it simply gropes in darkness about its own function and definition. As your eyes can see everything but themselves, as your tongue can taste everything except itself, the mind can understand everything else but its own self.

Disciple : I realize the difficulty mind facing !
Master : So be considerate to it henceforth !
Disciple : Whats a total mind or Hiranya Garbha ?
Master : The sum total of all minds of all human
beings is called Hiranya Garbha in Vedic tradition !
Disciple : What does Hiranya Garbha actually mean?
Master : The "Golden Womb" is the literal meaning !

The total mind is called womb because that's the beginning of manifestation. The creation of universe begin from that golden womb of the total consciousness. Its the splitting point of unmanifested world manifests itself. Just like a child in the womb of a mother manifests after 10 months, this magnificent universe too manifested in stages which happened through the womb of the creator.

2009-12-04T18:03:00.001+05:30

click on the image to enlarge for better reading -Ed

2009-11-22T19:10:00.002+05:30

2009-11-02T19:08:00.000+05:30

click on the image to see the enlarged size - Ed

2009-11-02T04:46:00.004+05:30

"thoughts are same with everyone but when
you wrap some thoughts with a "I" coat
then they become your patented thoughts"

Human body is always well defined. Its birth, growth, health, illness, pains, pleasures, urges and death are quite understandable. When it comes to mind the picture gets little fuzzy, one can never tell the source, nature and end of thoughts. That makes human mind to be more subtle in the whole of creation next to Consciousness.

Disciple : Does it mean mind is
the nearest to Consciousness?
Master : In fact mind is the only
medium to comprehend Consciousness !
Disciple : A body cannot comprehend without mind?
Master : The body may never know
even when the mind comprehended IT !

Just like how the air you breathe cannot be meant exclusively for you but you only share with everyone else, mind too is without a defined boundaries. The considerable time spent within your body, the breath becomes "yours" but in reality the breath of air cannot belong to anyone. The mind as well contains many thoughts which spends a brief time in your personal space. Every time a bunch of thoughts cross your head they become "your" individual thoughts.

Disciple : This is scary. All my thoughts are not mine ?
Master : They are yours only so long they linger
in your individual body !
Disciple : What do they do after that ?
Master : They just leave impressions as they pass by
before venturing into other minds too !

The time when collective mind spends in a individual is called Taijas. Its the same time the individual makes the mistake of branding them as "my" thoughts. When the thoughts are branded as "my' thoughts, they leave a string of "impressions" while lingering. The impressions cause a havoc later as "tendencies" in the individual and drive him to perform actions based on those tendencies.

Disciple : Does it mean my thoughts can be read by someone else?
Master : The thoughts never belong to you, it is for everyone !
Disciple : But I know my thoughts so intimately as mine and
how can they belong to someone else too ?
Master : Some of its contents and details may change
but the thoughts can be felt by everyone with same
intimacy as one's own personal thoughts !

All the experiences of the mind is same for everyone. They can vary only in intensity and longevity, based on the perceptions developed earlier by the individual. Just like how a crossing breeze enters in to many houses without any one's permission, thoughts too enter on their own without asking permission.

Disciple : Is it not my choice to think my thoughts ?
Master : Even to think like that is not your choice !
Disciple : But I think thoughts take
shape the way each one wants ?
Master : You cant think in the first place but
thoughts come and go on their own !

2009-10-29T16:24:00.000+05:30

Note - Click on the image to see original size - Ed

2009-10-08T01:54:00.000+05:30

2009-09-25T10:56:00.003+05:30

2009-09-19T12:02:00.006+05:30

"stars, suns, moons, clouds, mountains
rivers, sands, plants, animals, humans
all of them look different from each other
but made up of the same five elements"

The Five Elements
1. Space (Akash)
2. Air (Vayu)
3. Fire (Agni)
4. Water (Jala)
5. Earth (Pritvi)

This is exactly the same sequence followed in creation of this universe. From subtlest to the grossest or from the thinnest(space) to the thickest(earth). Not only they were created separately but also were included in everything created again. Which means a plant is placed in space, breathes air, sustained by fire (sun rays), nourished by water and air and rooted in earth. Also the same plant contains all the five elements inherently within. So also the stars and moons and rivers and mountains and more importantly the human beings.

The whole physical world despite their differences in their outward appearances, all of them contain the five elements. While the ingredients that have gone into making the various living beings same, they all assume a unique name and form which make them appear different from each other.

Disciple : I have a basic doubt !
Master : Shoot it right away !
Disciple : Why space was created first ?
Master : To create the rest, the space was needed !

Space Is The Basic Element
For anything to be created, sustained or even destroyed you need space. This whole universe in contained in space for functional purposes and contains the same space too. That's why space is the nearest to consciousness. It is almost like consciousness. So also the rest of elements, they are inseparably layered one on the other, that they are found wherever there is creativity happening in the universe.

Disciple : How does this knowledge help me ?
Master : To know that everything you see is
made up of same things, is the greatest help !
Disciple : Does it alter my perception?
Master : A lot ! You will no more see this world
as a place to compete and conquer. But understand
deeply that there is actually no competition possible !
Disciple : I am afraid to think that way !
Master : Why is it so ?
Disciple : Where would I be if I don't compete and conquer?

Master : The greatest conquest without any competition happens
to you when you stopped comparing, competing and conquering !

2009-09-18T17:38:00.000+05:30

2009-09-09T00:34:00.000+05:30

2009-09-03T02:32:00.001+05:30

Click on the image to enlarge - Ed

2009-09-02T03:12:00.014+05:30

" Universe is one but its machinery can run
only with its contrasting terrains, climates,
cultures, races, religions, regions and the
people who apparently conflict each other"

The world is a place of varied experiences. All living organisms experience life on earth in their own unique ways. Of the lot, mankind is capable of more experiences than rest of creation, only because of its special ability to interpret life always. Curiously enough, every human being experiences life quite different from the rest of others. The gross world experienced by a individual human being can be suitable termed here Vishwa.

Death Of The Gross World
Vishwa is perishable on a daily basis. It expires every time the individual enters deep sleep. The individual gross world has very limited life and is bound to change always while its alive and experienced. Totally dependent on individual's altered states of mind, Vishwa comes to surface, creates a web of life and then soon faces death as the individual hits the bed.

Disciple : How does Vishwa perish ?
Master : Vishwa is a reality only
till you are awake and then when you
go to sleep it folds itself into nothing !
Disciple : Even if I slept, someone else
may be still awake, then Vishwa is still around?
Master : Certainly ! But its not your Vishwa !

The Vishwa (world) experienced by your five senses can be dramatically different from Vishwa experienced by your own family members. On a night when the whole family is slept deeply and if some issues still keep you awake, then its just yourVishwa that stays alive and the worlds of your kith and kin already folded right inside their heads as they slept.

Disciple : So the world is not singular but
there are many worlds within one world?
Master : Somewhat like that !
Disciple : Can this be called individual
interpretation of life on earth as his world?
Master : Instead it is about the gross physical
experience of an individual in this world !

You Create You Destroy
Blue skies, fluffy clouds, noisy cities, streaming traffic, crowded restaurants, loud music, quiet neighborhood, aromatic kitchen, spicy food, all that you see, smell, taste, touch and hear constitute Vishwa. Upon your deep sleep, when you dwell in your unconscious state of mind, the senses fail to make any sense any more. The birth and death of this gross world exist only as you are conscious or unconscious about it. In other words, its not just the world that keeps you alive but in turn you keep the world alive or perished.

Disciple : Amazing to hear this !
Master : That's right. Its your own world !
Disciple : But cant there be two worlds
of two people look and experienced alike?
Master : Most likely not, there can be
shades of similarities but never the same !
Disciple : So are there billions of world
everyday created and destroyed by billions of
people on this planet ?
Disciple : yes, these worlds come alive when
people are awake and perish when they go to sleep !
Disciple : What about all the worlds together?
Master : They all coexist sometimes in
conflict and other times in harmony !
Disciple : How do we term these worlds together?
Master : In Vedic terminology, its called Vaishwanara !

2009-08-28T08:40:00.007+05:30

" you are just one more drop in the
ocean, one more leaf in the tree "

Collective view points
Everyone wants to believe at some point of time in their lives, what they think and do is the most perfect than others, but that's just a view point, thankfully no one can be perfect. Samashti is the collective view points of all people and that's why it is even more slippery and tricky to understand than vyashti.

Disciple : Do you mean to say collectiveness include only
view points of the human beings ? Does it not include the
animal and plant life too ?
Master : Need not be. Apart from humans there is none
that carry a singular or even a collective view point !
Disciple : Vyashti and samashti are only about view points?
Master : Exactly they are about just the perspectives,
propensities, both exclusive and collective of humans only !

View points of animals
Animals or plants do not have a sense of exclusiveness or individual view points. They function by simple impulsive mechanism and cannot interpret situations intelligently. The impulsive mechanism of a tiger does not allow itself to change its eating habits from meat to mushrooms. The elephants can never turn to meat eating for extra protein. Their lives are pretty much choice less and changeless too.

Disciple : My life has been pretty choice less too. I eat only
that which comes to my plate. Does it make me less intelligent?
Master : But the food that lands in your plate can excite or
exhaust you and you have a choice to complain or compliment !
Disciple : Ah yes ! I forgot that part. I do a lot of cribbing at times !
Master : That's when your personal view point is showing !

Care but not carried away
If you can pack every one's understanding together about life on earth and create a palette, you will end up with something you can never explain. Its always going to be difficult to arrive at a common conclusion only because the collective view points of people are always changing. They never remain the same. The setting of the sun feels romantic for someone and can cause fear to someone else.

Disciple : Enlightened men know all these view points collectively?
Master : Instead he would drop all these view points totally !
Disciple : You mean he may not have a view point for himself ?
Master : Like everyone he would want to comment about the food he ate!
Disciple : Whats the difference then ?
Master : He is not bothered if anyone agrees to it or not !
Disciple : He can be insensitive to others if he does not care their views?
Master : He may care their views but does not get carried away by them !

Truth has no view point
Truth is neither single pointed nor multi pointed. Truth has neither a particular view nor a exclusive point. But the man who knows the truth appreciates all the view points and does not hold on to any of them. He wastes no time trying to prove his point right and other's wrong. He may appear to have certain views about life always but even as he expresses his view point he is aware of the futility of it and would not make his view point conclusive.

Disciple : In other words he can change his views often?
Master : Not as a rule but he changes his views from time
to time just like everyone else to make his interactions
with others more meaningful !
Disciple : But a man of Truth should not change at all ?
Master : If someone does not change then he missed
the Truth and in fact has distorted the Truth already !
Disciple :Then whats difference between the man of
enlightenment and or ignorance ?
Master : Nothing much except that the awareness of
the truth present beyond the view points is known to
this man of enlightenment always !

2009-08-22T04:58:00.012+05:30

" Most certainly there is no one else who
could see the world the way you see it "

You understand yourself in a unique manner quite different from how rest of the world understands you. In fact often you think no one understand you well. Yet there are times you have feeling that you fail to understand your own self. This quirky and slippery exclusiveness is vyashti.

Disciple : Its true I don't understand myself many times, why is it so?
Master : As vyashti, you always keep changing your individual self !
Disciple : Who do I keep changing myself always ?
Master : You don't change yourself but it gets changed by itself !
Disciple : What are the things that change in me like that ?
Master : Your moods, feelings, perceptions, beliefs and many more !
Disciple : Why they keep changing always ?
Master : Because they are relative and by nature they change !

The Two Self Phenomenon
You are a combination of two selfs. One is relative and full of changes. Another absolute and unchanging. The relative self is ego and the absolute self is consciousness. Relative self is bound by the world and many times suffer and enjoy the sequences of life in the world. Almost as if the world rules your relative self. Your understanding about you happens only through your relative self and that's why your opinions keep changing about you and others.

Disciple : How do I know the world rules my relative self ?
Master : Because when there is a traffic jam you seem to
suffer and when the traffic jam cleared you feel relieved !
Disciple : OK I understand that situations in the world decide
my disposition all the time. I change as the world changes ?
Master : Very well said !

Exclusive Version Of Life
Every one experiences life on earth day after day but rarely two people undergo them alike. Even the sadness of two people can vary in degrees. There are gradations to happiness, from screaming excitement to serene silence, which makes no two happy people same, like each member of the family watching TV react differently to the same family drama. This uniqueness of each individual is vyashti. A exclusive version of a person, despite conditioned by the same conformity of a well defined society. In vedanta it is also a ego or ahamkar which seem to suffer isolation from totality. A partial and limited vision of existence leaves this individual incomplete and unfulfilled.

Disciple : Does it mean that only change ?
Master : Everyone changes, physically, emotionally,
intellectually, socially and economically too !
Disciple : Is this really a problem ?
Master : Mostly yes because two people dont match always !
Disciple : So vyashti is problem part of me ?
Master : It is limited part of you so it can appear that way !

Many Worlds In One World
Its not just you who is exclusive but the world also appears in a particular way to each one. No two people see the world similarly. Each one lives in a world so unique and singular. Just like him his world too keep changing from his microcosmic point of view. To be trapped in this individual view point of self and world is bondage. spirituality is to find a way out of limiting self and explore the other self which is more complete and unchanging.

Disciple : Which one is better, changing self or unchanging self?
Master : If you change often people dont trust you in fact !
Disciple : And If I dont change at all then what happens ?
Master : People may get bored with you soon !
Disciple : So which one I should go for ?
Master : Both at the same time is the best way !
Disciple : How can I be both at the same time ?
Master : Coping with changes by holding on to the unchanging !

2009-08-14T02:09:00.006+05:30

fear leads to worship
worship matures as prayer
prayer enables grace
grace brings contemplation
contemplation results in meditation
meditation triggers self-awareness
self-awareness ends in God realization

narayana suktam
DEFINING GOD
Part 17

Disciple : It seem like a long way to God realization for me ?
Master : What gives you such an impression?
Disciple : I think I still pray to God at times !
Master : So how does it matter ?
Disciple : When will I cross all the steps and realize God?
Master : If you are willing, it could happen this very moment !

verse 14 - defining god
Narayanaya vidmahe vasudevaya dhimahi,
Tanno Vishnu prachodayaat

narayanaya - (the Truth called) Narayana
vidmahe - (may we) explore
vasudevaya - (the ultimate) God
dhimahi - (may we) meditate upon
tanno vishnu - (supreme consciousness) Vishnu
prachodayaat - (may) guide us to reach (Narayana)

summary - may we explore the Truth called Narayana
May we meditate upon the supreme consciousness Vishnu
who may guide us to reach the ultimate goal Narayana.

Lord Vishnu in dynamic sleep

Disciple : To realize God one should have grace of God?
Master : True, it cant happen otherwise !
Disciple : Why cant God give me the grace ?
Master : It is for you to draw grace from God !
Disciple : How do I do that ?
Master : By being available to grace !
Disciple : How do I make my self available?
Master : Read all the episodes from the start
and if you really understood what you read,
that moment you are beginning to make yourself
available to the grace of God !

2009-08-13T18:02:00.010+05:30

"God is both form and formless and to choose
only one of them is to still remain incomplete "

narayana suktam
DEFINING GOD
Part - 16

All the forms seen by you including your own body came from the same formless source. It means that all the forms are equally divine as the formless. while Vedas begin with the glorification of forms at the start, but ends with chapters dedicated to the formless. Anyone who pulled out any odd page and tried to understand the entire Vedic scripture is going to be misled and confused. This is the plight of most people today who question the manifold approach of Vedas.

Disciple : I am so confused whether to accept the idols or not as real !
Master : Both ways you are wrong. You neither accept them nor reject them !
Disciple : What should I do then ?
Master : Understand them that they are only reminders that all
the forms you see around you are nothing but divine expressions !
Disciple : What should be my attitude when I see idols ?
Master : An attitude of reverence because they tell you
all the forms are necessary for you to know the formless !

verse 13 - defining god
Ritam satyam param brahma purusham Krishna pingalam,
oordhwaretam viroopaksham vishwa roopaya vai namo namaha

ritam - cause for forms

satyam - present forever

param - ultimate

brahma - collective consciousness

purusham - (of) creator

krishna - darkness (of night)

pingalam - red sun (of the day)

oordhwaretam - up right

viroopaksham - having a third eye (of intuitiveness)

vishwa rupaya - the manifested world

namo namaha - salutations

summary - Salutations to the ultimate consciousness
manifesting as many forms in this world during both
dark night and bright day which contains the Truth.

Disciple : Whats the significance of the dark
night and bright day spiritually ?
Master : Dark night represent the formless
and day light represent all forms !
Disciple : Should I recognize both as important in my life ?
Master : Yes, in darkness the differences are
not visible so its formless and in the day time
the differences are vividly visible so its all about forms.
You should be able to see divinity in both
in order to find fulfillment in life !

2009-08-12T16:32:00.005+05:30

"greatness of the vedic wisdom is that it does not
restrict truth to a single God or a single religion"

narayana suktam
DEFINING GOD
Part - 15

The many Gods that occupy the vedic chapters are only functional aspects of life in this world. Vedas encourage the seeker to see the presence of divinity in every aspect of life while he is living now. It is this basic tenet of vedas in defining God where the seeker is enabled to experience higher realms of consciousness now and here without delay.

Disciple : The many Gods represent many paths?
Master : Many Gods represent many possibilities !
Disciple : What possibilities are they ?
Master : Possibilities to rise in the realm of consciousness !

verse 12 - defining god

tasya shikhaya madhye paramatma vyavastitaha
sa brahma sa shiva sa hari sendra sokshara parama swaraat

tasya - that
shikhaya - flame
madhye - in the center
paramatma - universal consciousness
vyavastitaha - is located

summary - In the center of the flame of the heart,
the essence of the universe is present.

Disciple : Is the Consciousness not present in other places?
Master : It is present everywhere but in the heart
of the heart it is present at it most subtlest form !
Disciple : Is it my own personal Consciousness too ?
Master : Consciousness is never personal but it gives
an impression that there is personal Consciousness !
Disciple : Does everyone have similar Consciousness?
Master : Yes, everything including animals and plants
contain the same Consciousness !
Disciple : Upon death it would move away ?
Master : Upon death the body and mind move away
and the Consciousness remains wherever it is !

sa brahma - its (the source of)brahma
sa shiva - its (the source of) shiva
sa hari - its (the source of) hari
sendra - its (the source of) indra
sokshara - its (the source of) akshara
parama - its the ultimate
swaraat - ungoverned by anything.

summary - This Consciousness is the essence of all gods like
brahma, shiva, hari, indra, akshara and is not under any one's control.

Disciple : So even the Gods have the same consciousness as me?
Master : Exactly. Even the Gods are various
manifestations of the same Consciousness only !
Disciple : Whats the difference between God and Consciousness?
Master : Consciousness is un manifest Truth and Gods are

instrumental factors in manifesting the Truth of Consciousness !

Disciple : I think I understood but not exactly !
Master : Does not matter, keep contemplating and
it may just dawn upon you someday soon !

2009-08-10T00:32:00.014+05:30

"since God created the world of good and
bad, it stands far above the good and bad"

narayana suktam
DEFINING GOD
Part - 14

If God created this universe, then God is certainly something more than creation itself. God existed even before its "creation". The creation is good or bad is not a clear idea to anyone. Sometimes when you are in trouble the creation of this world may look like a wrong idea. But its all perfectly fine when everything seem to go right for you. The good and bad are such slippery ideas that God cannot be trapped into it. Perhaps since God has been the instrumental in driving people to define good and bad, we must grant God as someone who is beyond both.

Disciple : So God is neither good nor bad?
Master : In fact nothing in creation is good or bad !
Disciple : Is it not sunlight and rains are good?
Master : May be till certain limit and when it shines
or rains beyond a point you may start cursing them !
Disciple : Good and bad do not apply to nature?
Master : Your good and bad does not remain the same
at another point of time in your life !

verse 11 - defining god

neelatoyadhamadhyasta dvidyullekheva bhaaswara
neevarashookavatanvee peetabhaswatyanupama

neela toyadha - the dark cloud
madhyasthad - in the middle
vidyullekheva (vidyut+lekha+eva) - like a streak of lightening
bhaswaraa - shining
neevarashookavat - like the tip of a paddy grain
tanvee - sharp and subtle
peeta - golden hue
anupama - subtle like atom
bhaswati - effulgent

Summary - Like a silver lining in a dark cloud, God is present in a very subtle form(like the tip of a paddy grain) shining with golden hue.

is God really good ?

Disciple : If God is not good then God can be bad?
Master : That's my question to you !
Disciple : I don't understand this really !
Master : If you say God is good then you mean
God is actually not bad. Am I right ?
Disciple : Yes, you just said it !
Master : Which means you are saying that
God can actually be bad but presently is good ?
Disciple : I never thought that way !
Master : That's OK, anything which is good
now can be bad at other times !

2009-08-09T02:40:00.000+05:30

" you can neither forget nor remember God "

narayana suktam
DEFINING GOD
Part - 13

God is not just a name or a person to remember or forget. God is not a memory of a distant past event or of someone who lived in the dead past. Memorizing God's name can bring peace to the flustered mind but will never help realize God. Its a reality which keeps this existence throbbing now at this time, every time. Narayana is just the name of that reality, which cannot be accessed by any memory, but only by razor sharp easy awareness, just about everything you are in touch with now.

Disciple : Is it a waste of time to memorize the many mantras ?
Master : Its not a necessity. You can do it without memorizing
anything except some emergency telephone numbers !
Disciple : I see many people who recite mantras from memory ?
Master : Let them recite, if you keep reciting they get memorized
on their own in you. You don't have to try hard and remember them !

verse 10 - defining god

tiryagoordhwa madhash sayee rasmayas tasya santata
santapayati swam deha mapada tala mastakaha
tasya madhye vahni shikha aneeryordhwa vyavasthitaha

tiryag - crisscrossing
urdhwam - upwards
adha - downwards
shayee - spread (everywhere)
rashmayaha - rays
tasya - that (flame)
santata - pervading always

summary - That flame is crisscrossing from upwards,
downwards and spreads its rays everywhere all the time.

Disciple : Can this flame be called Consciousness?
Master : Yes, it can be called that way !
Disciple : So the Consciousness is like a flame ?
Master : The flame does not exist, its only a imagery !
Disciple : Though not seen, still it functions pretty
much like the descriptions in the above verse?
Master : Yes, it pervades in every direction. But
it has a place of origin as heart where it apparently begins !

The rays of the heart pervading everywhere

santapayati - warms up
swam deham - your body
apaada - from foot
tala - (to) the tip of head
mastakaha - everything

summary - (that flame) keeps the human body
warm and alive from head to toe always.

tasya madhya - in the center (of the heart)
vahni - firey
shikha - flame
aneeyordhwa - standing gently
vyawastitaha - placed.

summary - this fiery flame is gently burning in
the center of the spiritual heart.

Disciple : It amazing to know that something so close
but still everyone is searching for it everywhere else?
Master : The burning flame in the heart in fact drives
the senses and humans to search everywhere else !
Disciple : Why it is that way ?
Master : Perhaps Narayana is having some fun !

2009-08-08T00:43:00.002+05:30

click on the image to magnify - Ed

2009-08-06T01:20:00.008+05:30

" a believer of God may never find God "

narayana suktam
DEFINING GOD
Part - 12

A believer keeps believing that there is a God and stop seeking and finding the same. A believer of God usually lives in a fantasy world created by his own limited mind about God. In contrast to a non believer who has a slim chance of questioning the existence of God and as a result might find some day. A believer stagnates on the path with his self glorification and end up as a loser.

Disciple : Oh my God ! I have been so proud that I have been a believer !
Master : That pride alone is what you get and nothing else !
Disciple : But at least I am not having difficulties with the existence
of God as I already believe in it unlike the non- believer ?
Master : If you thought a life without difficulties is what
one has to achieve on the spiritual path then you have a point there !
Disciple : Then is it about having difficulties on the path ?
Master : Neither, but to rise above the difficulty and know the divinity !

verse 9 - defining god

tasya madhye mahanagnirvishwachir vishwatomukhaha
sograbhugvibhajantishtannaharamajara kavihi

tasye madhye - in the center (of the lotus like heart)
maha agni - the great flame
vishwachi - spreading its light
vishwatomukhaha - in all the directions

summary - In the center of the heart, the flame is
spreading its light in all directions.

Disciple : To believe what you said just now is wrong ?
Master : Its neither right nor wrong but if you only
believe what I said now then you are incomplete in your
understanding about God !
Disciple : So what should I do instead of believing it ?
Master : You should try to realize it for your self

flames of a spiritual heart (imagery)

sograbhug - (this flame is) the actual consumer
vibhajan - and then distributes (as energy)
ahaaram - of the food (you eat)
tishtan - and remains steady
ajara - also remains unattached
kavihi - and as the knower of all

summary - This sacred flame consumes the food you eat and then distributes equally to all parts of your body and sustains life in it. However this flame remains steady and unattached to your body while knowing it and supporting it all the time.

Disciple : How do I realize this flame ?
Master : is it a problem to you ?
Disciple : Somehow believing seem easier !
Master : Do you believe your hunger when you have it ?
Disciple : How I can believe my hunger? Its so real !
Master : How would you know when there is hunger in you ?
Disciple : I just know it, I guess I realize it !
Master : Well, do the same with this flame of existence in you !

2009-08-02T23:51:00.004+05:30

"below the heart man is like an animal
and above the heart he is like God"

narayana suktam
DEFINING GOD
Part - 11

Spiritual heart is link between man's animal tendencies and divine propositions. The copulation, accumulation, fear, survival are the priorities of a man when he functions from below the heart. He is known to be spiritual only when he begin to express from his heart center. For the first time the man begin to feel and express love instead of competition and comparison, when his energies rise to the heart center.

verse 8 - defining god

Santatagam shilabhistu lambatya kosha sannibham,
Tasyante sushiragam sookshmam tasmin sarvam pratishtitam.

santatagam - from all (four) directions
shilabhihi - the nervous system
lambati - hanging
akosha sannibham - lotus flower like heart

summary - the lotus like heart is hanging with the help of all the nerves running from all the directions (ending at the center of the chest).

Disciple : Sometimes you said that the highest form of energy is
flowing at the top of the head, now you mention as the heart region?
Master : The energy is same. But at heart it is a raw energy
and when it is processed at the head it becomes very subtle
and refined energy. But in essence its the same energy !
Disciple : I understand that now. The mode of functioning
keep changing at different parts of the body ?
Master : Very well said !

(the symbolic image of a lotus indicating the spiritual heart)

tasya ante - inside that (heart)
sushiragam - very minutely
sukshmam - very subtly
tasmin sarvam - (source of) everything
pratishtitam - is located.

summary - In a very subtle manner the very origin of this creation is present inside the spiritual heart of your body.

Disciple : Is it the same with every spiritual heart of everyone ?
Master : Yes, structurally its the same with everyone !
Disciple : Why only some come to know it ?
Is it a kind of disappointment with the
world which drives them to search
for this spiritual heart !
Master : Disappointed people will only search for solace
or solution. But only those who are disenchanted with what
world has to offer, can actually explore the spiritual heart !

2009-07-29T16:49:00.003+05:30

"Narayana pervades the whole human body
but some parts seem more divine than rest"

narayana suktam
DEFINING GOD
Part - 10

Truth is encompassing the whole manifested universe but certainly some places and times, seem to vibrate more with the obvious spiritual energy. Early morning hours can be very suitable for spiritual contemplations. In fact just after a good cold shower the mind is more amicable and well behaved. Places of worship where people come with a more quieter minds also are ideal places for mediation and seeking Truth. Wearing plain clothes without too many frills and colors triggers similar contemplative nature. Eating plain food without spice or meat also can help a seeker become more restful to recognize his true nature.

Verse 7 - defining god ( divine hub of human body)

Adho nishtya vitastyaante nabhyam upari thishtati,
Jwalamaalaakulam bhati viswasya ayatanam mahat

adho nishtya vitastyaante - downwards adam's apple in half a foot distance
The description of the location of divine spark in human body begins with opening lines which is direct without ambiguity. Measuring half a foot's distance, downward from the adam's apple is the first pointer.

nabhyam upari tishtati - located half a foot above the naval
Its also the same distance from the naval upwards at half a foot, at a equidistant from adam's apple and the naval, the divine space is vibrating quietly.

Disciple : If its a flame burning, then who started this flame?
Master : A flame is just symbolic representation !
Disciple : So it is some kind of object present there?
Master : In fact there is NOTHING present there !
Disciple : How can such a NOTHING be the divine spark?
Master : Because it is dormant with all the creativity !

jwaalamaalaakulam bhaati - (essence of god) is surrounded by string of flames
Located between the two chests, half a foot equidistant from adam's apple and the naval, atma (the essence of god) is protected by a string of flames burning.

vishwasya ayatanam mahat - the source of the whole universe has taken abode within
The divine spark is present in everyone whether recognized or not, those who don't recognize remain unconnected with their own self and as a result will be buffeted by the onslaught of a superfluous thought current.

Disciple : I am wondering if there is a flame burning
in the center of my body, how come I don't get the
burning sensation ?
Master : They are not real burning flames but only a
imagery to explain the presence of the inexplicable !
Disciple : If it is present there does it mean its not
present elsewhere in the human body ?
Master : Not really ! Its present everywhere, but
various parts of body has various grades of
sensitivity. This part is the most sensitive of all !

2009-07-27T01:37:00.001+05:30

2009-07-26T00:39:00.005+05:30

"God is a nothing and at the same time everything"

narayana suktam
DEFINING GOD
Part - 9

God is most peculiar entity in whole of creation. Here, there and everywhere, yet the seeker has to 'search' and 'attain' this God. If you thought God has a plan behind this hide and seek game, then most certainly not. There is never any hiding or seeking needed to know God in the land of Truth. Everything you sense is God already, but you refuse to acknowledge instead position an imaginary God too far away from you. This is sheer ignorance.

Disciple : Who causes this ignorance ?
Master : Ignorance is not an effect of something !
Disciple : Is it not God helping some people to
get enlightened and others not ?
Master : God cannot help anyone
but people can derive help from God !
Disciple : My little hope of seeing God is now getting shaken.
Please tell me if God has any role to play in my life ?
Master : The fact you separate God from your life
has caused your ignorance about God !

Verse-6 - defining god

anantam avyayam kavim samudrentam vishwasambhuvam
padmakosha prateekasham hrudayam chapyado mukam

anantam - endless
God is endless which also means that God is beginningless. Narayana has no particular starting point or ending point. Since Narayana is present everywhere, happens to be present in you too, whether you know it or not.

avyayam - beyond destruction
Narayana cannot be destroyed because there is nothing bigger than narayana to do so. Besides that the truth is that there is nothing other Narayana alone is present everywhere in so many forms.

kavim - the source of all knowing
All that everybody can know everywhere is supported by Narayana. Without Narayana the knowing even the location of keys on the computer is not possible.

samudrentam - present even at the deepest point under ocean
If you thought God lives only on high mountains like Himalayas, then you make it sound as if God has allergy for oceans. But highest and deepest points are equally pervaded by Narayana.

Disciple : So If I dive in to ocean I can see Narayana there ?
Master : You may see a whole new world, all contain Narayana in them !
Disciple : Is there a place I can see Narayana exclusively in this world?
Master : Every place, everything you see is exclusively Narayana alone !

vishwa shambhuvam - enabler of the world to function
If the universe is never running out of gas the credit, must go to Narayana. Unlike man made gas stations, Narayana never dries up this massive machinery running day and night without break.

Location of Narayana in human body

hrudayam cha api- the spiritual heart
Located at the center portion of human torso, between two chests, this spiritual heart contains the most subtlest aspect of Narayana.

do mukham - facing downwards
this spiritual heart looking down (as if due to the weight)

padma kosha pratikashakam - tender bud of lotus flower
The spiritual heart is like a very tenderly lotus bud with very soft petals located right within your self. Using that portion of the body to meditate helps to quieten the mind, in order to comprehend the all pervasive Narayana.

Disciple : Now as you describe the location of Narayana
I'm more hopeful again to see Narayana in my meditation !
Master : When you reach to the point of this spiritual
heart, the same world you see now will reveal to you
the manifestation of same Narayana !
Disciple : Do you mean I cant see Narayana inside my heart?
Master : Certainly not !

2009-07-24T02:11:00.002+05:30

click on this image to view it in a magnified size. - Ed

2009-07-23T20:12:00.008+05:30

"narayana is not a noun but verb"

narayana suktam
DEFINING GOD
Part - 8

Narayana is not a name but a description. Its a state of being. Being is not a noun but a dynamic on going existence. But the same Narayana gives life to all the nouns too. A River is a noun but when Narayana enters in it, then it becomes "flowing'. The nouns are only manifested Narayana and the nouns are empowered by same Narayana to function and perform.

verse 5 - defining god

Yachcha kinchid jagat sarvam drusyate sruyatepi vaa,
Antarbahischa tatsarvam vyapya narayana stitaha

yat tha kinchid - Whatever that is tangible
The creation is generally known by its tangibility. Everything the senses can comprehend is usually called the creation.

jagat sarvam - this whole manifested universe
Everything that can be congized by the senses is called as Jagat. Some religions refuse to call the manifested world as part of God and isolate the divinity divorced from the manifested world as a exclusive entity.

Disciple : Do you mean that God is not accepted as seen by eyes?
Master : Yes, they consider God to be always a unseen entity !
Disciple : What is the problem in that?
Master : When you push divinity as unseen then all that is seen
loses divinity and as a result there is no reverence possible !
Disciple : What is the loss if there is no reverence for creation?
Master : When there is no reverence for creation then it may result
in destruction of this creation !

drusyate sruyatepi vaa - all that is seen and heard
The sense of seeing and hearing are the most powerful cognizing faculties which are most active through out the waking hours. The sense of touch can overpower when triggered and cause catapult the supreme positioning of seeing and hearing when, skin start to respond to touch.

Disciple : How does the skin over power the seeing and hearing?
Master : When it is too hot and if the skin is burning, then the
seeing and hearing may not function exactly the same but little
differently. Whatever you see or hear in a burning
condition can irritate you or get you mad !
Disciple : True, is it the same with extreme cold temperature ?
Master : Yes when its too cold, you not want curl up and go to sleep !
Besides when lust is triggered by skin, the seeing and hearing may
lose their balance and one can behave in a erratic manner at that time!

Antarbahischa - inner and outer
Narayana is not just hidden somewhere far away from the manifested world but is present in everything in the external world.

tat sarvam - everything

vyapya narayana stitaha - Pervaded state of Narayana
Narayana does not belong to a state. Neither solid nor liquid but a stateless state. It is both moving and unmoving, seen and the unseen, heard and the unheard, inside and outside, dead and alive.

Disciple : This is where the difficulty rises !
Master : Difficulty of what ?
Disciple : In understanding the nature of Narayana !
Master : That's why Narayana should not be understood !
Disciple : Why Narayana should not be understood?
Master : Because mind cannot comprehend all pervasiveness !
Disciple : So what should I do ?
Master : Shut up, sit down and BE !

2009-07-22T21:09:00.004+05:30

"while most scriptures advocate praying and worshipping
of God, only Vedas talk about invoking God from within"

narayana suktam
DEFINING GOD
Part - 7

The sophistication of Vedic approach towards God is far more subtler and supreme in class and character. But a restless reader will always conclude with first few lessons of Vedas as childish and drift away impatiently losing out on the most precious wisdom gushing from it eventually.

Disciple : But why the first few lessons are childish
or gross in the Vedic portions regarding God ?
Master : Its not a mistake of Vedas but it is the compassion
of Vedas to start that way in a grosser manner !
Disciple : Compassion for whom ?
Master : For the seeker who is gross in his understanding
at the beginning of his spiritual learning !

Verse 4 - defining God

Narayana paro jyothiratma narayana paraha
Narayana para brahma tatwam narayana paraha
Narayana paro dhyata dhyanam Narayana paraha

narayana para - the supreme Truth called narayana
Narayana is the most sought after Truth by anyone. Narayana alone is called in so many different names by different people in different religions. While some realize Narayana as one's own self, others perhaps out of ignorance see Narayana as a God worshipped in temples and miss out on the Truth.

jyotiratma - enlivening all lives
Stars, suns and galaxies are not great by themselves but because of the life force present in them. Humans are not the most advanced race unless all their faculties are empowered and enlivened by the same vital force. That vital force is Narayana.

brahma tatwam - the all pervading principle
Whether creation or dissolution in the whole universe, Narayana is one singular factor present all the time without being created or dissolved. That Narayana alone is the Truth and to comprehend that Narayana is ultimate human desire.

Disciple ; But every religion is saying the same
that there God alone is the most supreme ?
Master : While they speak of their God, Narayana
does not belong to any particular religion or
region but is all encompassing which leaves every
other religion and its God totally oblivious !

dhyata dhyanam - meditator and the object of mediation is Narayana
The ultimate Truth is pronounced in these two simple looking words. Narayana is present inherently in both the meditator and the object of meditation. In other words it means that the meditator does not travel anywhwere as a spiritual journey to attain something new but only realizes from where he is sitting that this while universe contains the same Narayana no matter whatever he may choose to meditate upon.

2009-07-21T01:43:00.000+05:30

"it is your need to search for a God
and God does not have such a need"

narayana suktam
DEFINING GOD
Part - 6

Searching for something is primarily an indication of a incomplete mind. It runs everywhere seeking for something to make itself complete. It presently feels half and looks for other half just to feel a sense of completeness. Money, power, social contacts, marriage, family, work, religion, spiritual life are some of the ways it tries to fix the other missing half. God on the other hand is already complete and has no need to search for anything because there is nothing missing in God.

Verse 3 - Defining God

pathim vishwasyatmeshwaram sashwatham shivamachyutam
narayanam mahajneyam vishwatmanam parayanam

pathim vishwasya - The governor of the universe
Being present everywhere and as if hidden in just about everything, God is described as the governor because God seem to be the inherent force which drives this universe to function the way it does now.

atma eshwaram - positioned as god of individuals too
Though drives the whole universe, still accessible to individuals at a more personal level makes this God a more inexplicable.

Disciple : I have a question at this point?
Master : Ok ! go ahead with your question !
Disciple : You said God has no need to search anything
but does God have any questions about humanity ?
Master : God cannot question anything because
whatever happens is only because of the God !
Disciple : God may have answers then ?
Master : Questioning and then finding answers is
all plain human endeavor and God is present in you
when you raise a question and is present again when
you find a suitable answer from somewhere !

shashwatam - always present

While everything is born and dead in this universe, God factor is quietly supporting all the changes without changing itself, this way its always present before and after any change happened.

shivam - full of auspiciousness

though present everywhere but still not available to everyone, God is such a rarity and anything absolutely rare is auspicious too. Besides, God seem to be the ultimate goal for humanity which automatically makes God a very auspicious by default.

atchyutam - holding tightly

Sustaining the Universe from falling but keep it running endlessly. Keeping stars and moons and suns on the endless skies as if studded everywhere makes God more gripping aspect of life than anything we ever know.

Disciple : Yes its a wonder how the stars and all the
planets are in their axis always without getting shuffled !
Master : The fact you can stand steady without falling is even
greater wonder which is handy work of the same God !
The breath to enter back into your nostrils without fail
all the time is a sure evidence how God holds everything together !
Disciple : Then why someday the breath stop going inside ?
Master : God must have decided to give a break finally that day !

mahajneyam - most worthy thing to know

You may try to know anything in the world but nothing can make you feel full and complete except knowing God. Thats ultimate knowing.

Disciple : Does it mean that I would not want to know
anything anymore because I come to know God ?
Master : You may not bother about what you know
and what you may not know once you know God !

vishwatmanam - the source of everything in this universe

The various objects in the universe have same source. They all srpung from the same source. Like hundreds of sparks thrown from fire works in the sky. all the sparks come from the same source. The vedic example is more beautiful, like all the waves rise from the same oceans and drop and die in the same ocean. Infact the waves are nothing different from the ocean. All the waves in the ocean, including the ocean contains the same source called water.

parayanam - best place to abide

This source is the best object of abidance for any seeker who is looking for the missing parts of his happiness and fulfillment. Abiding in such a inherent God brings fulfillment and freedom.

2009-07-20T03:33:00.000+05:30

" true God is beyond any religion and
only Vedas have the courage to say that"

narayana suktam
DEFINING GOD
Part - 5

verse 2 defining God

Vishwata paramanithyam vishwam narayanam harim,
Vishwamevedam purusha stadvishwa mupajeevati

vishwata - Beyond this manifested world
God is not just down to earth, in you and me but is present in whole universe and in fact is even beyond this manifested world, as if unseen to the naked eyes.

Disciple : In some religions they say
God is only in heaven and not on earth ?
Master : That's just incomplete understanding.
Vedas declare there is only one God and its
all pervading. From here to everywhere !
Disciple : This God Narayana is in heaven also?
Master : Its present in the hell and even beyond that !
Disciple : Does hell and heaven exist ?
Master : Only ignorant people out of delusion
divide the one truth as many while in the same
breath talk of ONE God !

paramath - the ultimate
God as truth is bigger than the biggest and subtler than the subtlest. It is the most supreme.

nityam - ever present
Gods feature in most religions are limited and are stuck up in some heaven. But this Narayana is unlimited and hence is forever.

vishwam narayam harim - (manifested) as world and is present in the same world.
Unlike Gods described in most religions, the vedic description is the most finest description ever, where God not only created this world but is also present in it all the time.

vishwamevedam purusha - (Narayana) is this whole Universe modified in so many shapes and sizes.

tadvishwa mupajeevati - (Narayana) brought life to this whole creation, without whom it would be a dead place.

Disciple : Should I worship Narayana or pray to Narayana ?
Master : They both are totally alien to the Vedic traditions.
Instead you should meditate upon such all pervading Truth !
Disciple : I thought worshipping is very much prevalent in Vedic traditions?
Master : Never. The prayer and worship concepts came from middle
eastern traditions and influenced the Vedic traditions a great deal !
Disciple : Then what was in practice among those
who followed the Vedic culture in the early days ?
Master : They only invoked the divinity and meditated upon !

2009-07-19T08:28:00.000+05:30

"God is still away from you even if you
understood so well about who God is "

narayana suktam
DEFINING GOD
Part - 4

The verses describing God.
Sahasra seersham devam viswaksham viswa sambhuvam.
Viswam narayanam devam aksharam paramam padam

sahasra seersham - God has thousands of heads.
All heads of humans and animals are functioning pretty much same way structurally. Through those heads God can see, smell, taste, touch, feel differently.

devam - that which illumines
Universe is a big sheet of darkness. But if you see sparkling suns and stars in many galaxies, then they are illumined by consciousness or God.

vishwaksham - ability to experience this world
If you see, smell, hear, taste and touch anything in this world, then its God who made it possible(not you).

vishwa shambhuvam - functioning of the universe
sustaining the universe while holding the various planets in their orbit, God (not you) runs this universe without any weekend breaks.

vishwam - as the world
God as creator created this world and entered into it while creating it. Like when water kept in the tray becomes Ice cube inside fridge, creator became solid as universe from a gaseous unseen entity.

narayanam - residing in humans
Creator also called as Narayana is present within humans.

Disciple : I have a doubt here !
Master : And whats that ?
Disciple : You said Narayana is present everywhere

but now you say only in humans?

Master : Only humans can be aware of such a thing thats why !
Disciple : I got it now !

aksharam - indestructible
The Creator or Consciousness or God (Narayana here) is not subjected to any destruction. It only modifies itself in different forms. But it may appear as destruction and creation to a limited mind.

Disciple : If a building is destroyed then narayana will vacate from it ?
Or if a person die, narayana will not be inside him any more ?
Master : Without Narayana building cannot be destroyed or
a man cannot die. Narayana facilitates such things by being there !
Disciple : Why God should destroy at all?
Master : Destrution and Creation is human interpretation but
Narayana only modifies from one to another form !

paramam padam - the ultimate state
the state where humans can be in total awareness of this creator or God called Narayana.

Disciple : What state is that and is it located in Himalayas?
Master : It is the most quietest state of your mind. It is located
nearer than your own breath and thoughts in you !

2009-07-17T01:09:00.006+05:30

"defining God is to distort God"

narayana suktam
DEFINING GOD
Part - 3

What exactly is God? Is God a he or she or it? How does God look and feel like? God is good or bad? Can God protect and nourish my life? Can God shower love and compassion on me? God can show me a way ? Will God lift me on his shoulders when I cant walk? Can God provide all that I ask for?

Disciple : Exactly, these are all my questions in fact !
Master : Not just yours but everyone asks the same !
Disciple : I am happy that I am not alone that way !
Master : More you know God more alone you become !

God is most alone entity of the universe. Because according to Vedas, there is nothing other than God present. Even created world is occupied by same God. In every bit of creation there is presence of same God. Vedas describe such a God in so many names depending upon situations.

Disciple : But can God really protect me ?
Master : Instead I can tell you what God does not do !

God does not...
protect you
destroy you
show mercy on you
shower love on you
punish you
award merit to you
show path to you
extend your life
fight your enemies
pay your bills
avoid accidents
take you to heaven
send you to hell
get you rich
make you poor
help you make babies
find good school for your children
chase bad neighbors
etc

Disciple : Then what else he does ? I'm totally shattered now !
Master : God just facilitates all of these through you and others !
Disciple : But others not independent of God you said !
Master : Exactly, If so, then why you depend on God for all that?

God cannot discriminate right from wrong. The discrimination faculty belong only to human mind. No doubt, even mind is just a manifestation of same God but these actions are never originated from God but only from human mind. God only make action happen, but does not originate action.

2009-07-16T01:09:00.000+05:30

nara = human
ayana = to reside
narayana = that which resides in human

Narayana Suktam
DEFINING GOD
Part - 2

Gods in Indian tradition are very colorful and full of stories. They resemble and even behave like humans that Gods are almost identifiable by anyone who read them. Vedas have descriptions of how various Gods look and behave too. As if Gods are like your neighbors or a bunch of mysterious relatives.

Disciple : Is it not bringing God to something very worldly and small?
Master : Yes, that's the idea !
Disciple : Please explain for God's sake ?
Master : While most religions talk of God as the distant reality, Vedas
bring them down as one of you and as part of your daily life !
Disciple : Whats the use in such a understanding ?
Master : So that you have reverence for small things in this world and
encounter God in all small insignificant situations in your life !
Disciple : But whats the use in having reverence for human beings ?
Master : So that you don't ill treat them or kill them like dogs !

When you push God too far away from you, then you may lack any mercy for anything you see on earth. This exactly what leads to all the rat race, communal hatred, world wars and the holocaust. The one who cannot appreciate the presence of God on earth can never find God in his life time. He has to wait till he die some day. And sadly there is no guarantee of seeing God after death. Its now and here while alive or possibly never elsewhere.

Disciple : Now I'm under pressure to see God as I cant delay it !
Master : Under pressure you cant see God but must see only a doctor !
Disciple : Perhaps If I try to see God in him ?
Master : Sure, if you can see God in him even after you received
the bill, then you can certainly see God everywhere after that !

The catch in bringing God down to earth is one may just ignore how big the God factor is. We even start to treat God like our newspaper boy and may not comprehend the magnitude of such a God. This is how Vedic Gods are imprisoned at times inside some ancient temples as assumed by people. While bringing God to a sanctum sanctorum helps people to comprehend the Truth at a micro level, such people almost always miss out Godliness of blue expanse spread all around them.

2009-07-14T00:16:00.008+05:30

" The mighty God is not a person
but the presence in all persons "

Narayana Suktam
DEFINING GOD
Part - 1

Introduction

Human beings like clear description about things they dont know. Especially when it comes to God. But thats exactly where in Advaita and Vedanta things can get ambiguous. Infact they can get very contradicting and paradoxical too. Without enough contemplation if one begin to read Vedas, the conclusion can be just obvious, "Gods must be crazy".

Disciple : But why the Vedas cannot define God appropriately ?
Master : Because God cannot be defined. If defined it is not God !
Disciple : But most religions have clear descriptions of God?
Master : May be so, thats why they are popular among masses !

You have to be courageous enough to comprehend God described by the Vedic literature. A kind of courage where you may not be protected even by God. Sort of left abandoned by everything and everyone. Such a state does not occur to many and thats why Advaitic descriptions of God is not understood by many though it appears to have gained popularity globally.

Disciple : But God is meant to protect and care for us?
Master : Thats pretty much the biblical understanding which
came to existence at later period. It also was a instant hit among
people who searched for their soul or God till that point of time !
Disciple : But I cant think of God as something other than protector !
Master : Protect from what ? Anything other than God exist?
Disciple : If not protection, then God creates problems ?
Master : Neither. To feel secure or insecure about God is
one's own making. God does not do either of them !

Its a myth that Vedas described God in the form of human being only. It only indicates that a human being contains the essence of God in himself. In the same breath it also points out gently that human beings are worthy enough of your reverence only because they contain the essence of God in them.

Disciple : Why then there is idol worhsip in Vedic traditions ?
Master : The idols represent the manifest world. You have to
recognize the divinity in the manifested world first inorder to
realize the unmanifest divinity present in the universe !
Disciple : According to Advaita, God is unmanifest or manifest ?
Master : It is both. Thats where the complications begin too !

2009-07-13T01:52:00.009+05:30

Await the new series on "Defining Indefinite"
from the master soon here. This topic is based
on the ancient Vedic hymn Narayana Suktam. - Ed

2009-07-01T00:06:00.007+05:30

"If you slept during AUM chanting
you would feel the most refreshed"

pranava mantra
AUM
part - 10

While sleep is a curse for most spiritual seekers, it would sound outlandish to know that to sleep during or after a good attempt at meditation is always a blessing. Such a sleep during meditation usually do not last longer. Even if it happened for a short time, still it would be very refreshing.

Disciple : But why do I get sleep when I meditate?
Master : That's because of a heavy backlog of sleep
accumulated many years due to disturbed sleeping !
Disciple : But why does it come during meditation?
Master : When mind is quiet during meditation
it become conducive for the accumulated sleep !
Disciple : To sleep during that timer is not a problem ?
Master : Problem is only when you don't sleep but keep fighting it!

Till the accumulated sleep is totally exhausted meditation will remain as a challenge only. But the uninformed seeker mostly end up fighting the sleep and cursing himself for being sleepy and end up neither doing meditation nor sleeping properly. The best thing to do when sleep comes is to sleep.

Disciple : How long am I to sleep while meditating?
Master : Till the day you stay awake without sleeping !
Disciple : Will such a day come to me any time ?
Master : Yes, without a doubt ! Just you need to have
patience to go through those sleepy sessions of meditation !
Disciple : So meditation helps to sleep well too?
Master : Yes as much as it helps you to awaken someday !

Same meditation process leads to both sleep and awakening too. Those who neither sleep nor awake might get busy with some imaginary and fantasy trips while mediation. Such imaginary meditation can be quite entertaining but seldom it brings awakening to the inner self.

2009-06-29T18:25:00.008+05:30

"While chanting AUM if sleep
comes then you better sleep "

pranava mantra
AUM
Part - 9

However hard you may try to stay awake during chanting or meditation, the sleep can shatter your efforts and sprawl you on the floor. Not only it defeats your efforts but also leaves you with some sense of guilt for not having done the thing called meditation. Sometimes it leaves you with a defeatist attitude too.

Disciple : When I want to sleep I never get sleep but
when I try to meditate, I get lots of sleep, why is that?
Master : When you 'want' to sleep, you are making effort
but when meditating you stop making efforts, then sleep
enters. Its only a thin line between sleep and meditation !

Sleep and meditation are apparently identical yet there is a distinct difference that can separate them miles apart. While sleep pushes you to ignorance about your surroundings, meditation causes awareness about your being as well as the surroundings.

Disciple : Meditation and sleep are identical?
Master : In fact meditation is the cause and sleep
is the effect although they appear to be identical !
Disciple : How do I understand this better ?
Master : Meditation is the common meeting ground
for both sleep and awareness. One may turn any direction !
Disciple : OK ! I understand that meditation leads to
either sleep or wakefulness. Am I right ?
Master : Yes that's what "awakening" is all about !

True meditation wakes you up to every small movement and sound around you. You can hear the sound more qualitatively than before, you become lot more sharper and subtler than before. You r awakening to the outer world and inner self can be explosive and mind blowing experience too.

Disciple : But why do I fall asleep when I sit for meditation?
Master : For many reasons.
1. Your understanding of meditation and its purpose is incomplete.
2. You don't sleep well usually and left with lots of sleep.
3. Your method of meditation makes your mind dull hence you sleep.
Disciple : Is it wrong to doze off during meditation ?
Master : Not really. Its a natural phenomenon and is ok !
Disciple : What should I do if sleep comes ?
Master : Sleep it off well !

2009-06-27T01:50:00.000+05:30

"from lowest pitch to a very high pitch the
chanting of AUM drop again to NOTHING"

pranava mantra
AUM
Part- 8

There is some intelligence needed when you repeat the chants of AUM. A skillful deliberation to turn the mind from fleeting to stillness. Subtle variation in pitch is always welcome to keep the mind awake. Totally awake but filled with awareness of the present where the mind and body sync up to the soul within.

Disciple : Whats a pitch and how I can follow it ?
Master : Pitch here is just the tone. You tone down
and tone up while chanting for the variation !
Disciple : Why this variation is necessary ?
Master : If there is no change in tone then mind
can enter in to sleep and inertia !

The purpose of AUM chants is not find peace of mind but to bring a certain awareness and keep the mind awake. In order to make the mind more aware of things around, it is necessary the chants of AUM does not induce sleep. The change in pitch and pace and method of chanting of AUM must be applied constantly to keep the sleeping mind awake.

Disciple : I thought AUM chanting is
meant for peace of mind?
Master : Not exactly ! It is for a
much higher purpose !
Disciple : So peace of mind is not
possible with chanting AUM ?
Master : It may be is possible but
that's not the actual purpose!
Disciple : But If my mind become
peaceful, is it wrong then ?
Master : May be not but if mind is
peaceful then it may go to sleep !

Awareness is the key in exploring the hidden consciousness. But if the mind attains peace, it may lose its subtlety to probe and seek to find the Truth. Using AUM chant for just peace of mind is like using your computer to calculate how many times you ate in a day.

Disciple : The variation in pitch and pace
can help to stay awake and be aware of everything?
Master : It need not be everything but just the Self !
Disciple : That sounds simple ! I am always aware of my self?
Master : Not necessarily. You are only aware of
other things mostly and not so much of yourself !

2009-06-25T23:11:00.007+05:30

"the AUM chanting begins from the
pelvis and end in the forehead "

pranava mantra
AUM
Part - 7

Chanting is not about just the sound of AUM mantra made loud, but it also involves quite a bit of participation from breath and physical body too. AUM is like a thread that weaves body, breath and mind together and integrate them. The body, breath and mind are always active but independent of each other. When AUM is recited, they all come together and that's the beginning of meditation.

Disciple : I think I understand now what you say !
Master : But this is only the beginning !
Disciple : But please explain more on this integrity?
Master : What has been always active is now introduced
with a synchronized activity like chanting AUM and as
a result the body, breath and mind connect to the self
more easily than before !

There are particular ways to bring this integrity of BBM (body, breath, mind)which eventually result in exploring the self within. This is the whole idea of any form of chanting. Following are the basic steps during such preparation..

1. keep the body still
2. breathe deep in to the lungs (as if it reached the abdomen)
3. release the breath with the sound AUM
4. Focus your mind as you do all of this.

Disciple : what the mind should actually focus on ?
Master : It has been always focused on something
externally, but now focus on the body and breath !
Disciple : Ok ! but if the mind goes out again ?
Master : Bring it back !

When the mind focus on the body, breath along with the sound, the remarkable thing happens. Your mind seem to suddenly let go all that it has been hanging on to. It suspends all its actions and become quiet.

Disciple : Perhaps it start exploring the inner self ?
Master : That sounds like some activity !
Disciple : Is it not an activity ?
Master : The more and more mind stops being active
the deeper it enters in to your own self !
Disciple : Is it not an activity again?
Master : Its an activity that happens in total
suspension of all activities by the mind !

2009-06-24T23:47:00.006+05:30

"beginning of AUM you are full of action and
at the end of AUM you enter into inaction "

pranava mantra
AUM
Part - 6

The recitation of any mantra involves your body, breath and mind together. Even if one of them is missing in action while you chant, you cant claim your chanting to be complete. The sound of the mantras attain a very special quality when it is made with proper understanding and effort.

Disciple : But you told me meditation is
not about doing anything but just being ?
Master : Well ! the chanting is a BIG job.
A lot of doing is involved!
Disciple : What exactly is "done" during the chanting ?
Master : You breathe deep, vibrate your body
and focus your mind on the sound!
Disciple : That's a lot of action !
Master : Yes for sure. That's why people
get caught up with those actions and forget
to actually be in meditation eventually !

Meditation is a peculiar activity because you begin with some major activity and then suspend it totally to remain doing NOTHING. These are two contradicting stages and most seekers fail to distinguish them and get trapped in to either of them. Chanting AUM too has its own methodology but the advantage in AUM is that the sound is formed in such a way it also ends quite naturally by itself.

Disciple : I understand now that beginning of AUM is
the beginning of all activities and end of AUM is the end
of all activities. Did I say the right thing ?
Master : Yes indeed. You put yourself through some action
when you recite the AUM and when it ends you drop all the
action and stop trying anything but just be as you are !

The difference between activities during meditation and other times is that you are totally focused with what you do while you do meditation and other times you may not be that focused. The chanting of AUM needs a lot of focus and that kind of focus helps you to withdraw from other activities you were involved with till then.

Disciple : Its becoming more and more clearer to me now !
Master : Its important you know the methodology and the
purpose well before you resort to do anything !
Disciple : Your comprehensive explanations help that way !
Master : Sometimes the seeker gets into a hurry and wants
to do it right away and cant listen to the preparations
which leaves him with lot of doubts and confusions at the end!
Disciple : True, it has happened to me on several occasions !

Don't bother about when to stop your practice when you just started. Same time don't bother when to start again while you have just suspended the practice for a brief time. Both can be spontaneous and the focus should be only what you do at that time and nothing more or less. We will see the coordination of body, breath and mind while chanting the AUM in the next dialog.

2009-06-23T22:36:00.012+05:30

" the AUM chanting is not meant for
forgetting or remembering anything "

pranava mantra
AUM
Part - 5

The Vedic chants have a charm not only to the listener, but to the one who recites it too. Though it appears to be a monotonous activity, the incantation of AUM is quite an exercise and unlike the popular belief, you have to apply a lot of your mind in it than just making it dull sleepy.

Disciple : How does meditation happen
if the mind is awake and active?
Master : True meditation is where
the mind is totally alert and awake !
Disciple : Is it not mind should rest
and feel bliss and empty all thoughts?
Master : Never ! That is only when the
mind has become very dull and inert !
Disciple : Does AUM make the mind quiet
or make it very active and alert ?
Master : Chanting AUM makes the mind
totally alert and awake to everything !

Its a unfortunate twist people brought in to the process of meditation where the end result is supposedly a blinding ignorance. Sleep like, empty minded, thoughtless, zombie like disposition, which seem to have caught the fancy of most seekers. The AUM chants do not make you dull and make your senses numb but it does something exactly opposite.

Disciple : But whats the purpose of staying
alert and awake during or after meditation?
Master : Only when you are awake you can
capture the essence of consciousness in you !
Disciple : All along I was taught that the
actual purpose of meditation is to forget
the life for sometime and feel happy !
Master : Forgetting stress and sorrows can
bring happiness but what you forget will
soon be remembered too, then what would you do?

Meditation is not about forgetting sorrows. The chanting of AUM is neither to forget anything nor to remember anything. Only the dead past can be remembered or forgotten. But AUM should bring freedom from forgetting or remembering by lifting you far away from the tormenting time and space factors.

Disciple : In other words AUM brings one's attention
from past (and future) to the present moment totally?
Master : Well said ! Having brought to the present
moment it makes you aware of everything that happens there !
Disciple : Does god or consciousness reside only in the present?
Master : Even to call it present is wrong but its a "no time"
space or a "no space time". That's the greatest experience you
can think of in all your lifetime.
Disciple : Now I am truly inspired to chant AUM.
Kindly tell me the ways to chant this sacred mantra !
Master : Now that you are genuinely interested yourself
nothing can stop you from reaching the space in you where
time has no any relevance at all. Let me tell you the
simpler ways to recite AUM for the start in the next session !

2009-06-21T01:38:00.005+05:30

"God does not wake up from sleep
if you recited some mantra on earth"

pranava mantra
AUM
Part - 4

No god is ever interested in listening to your mantras. Only because the creator has no plans to operate this world based on your mantras and prayers. The most absurd human thought is to believe that God will listen to the prayers and mantras and work things out accordingly.

Disciple : This is a very shocking and rude statement !
Master : But a plain truth and certainly God does not
get hurt by such statements !
Disciple : Then why the whole world prays for everything ?
Master : I am not against prayers or mantra chanting but
Iam vehemently against the idea of waking up some sleeping
god through prayers and mantra chanting !
Disciple : Then whats the real purpose of prayers or mantra
chanting if God does not really hear them out ?
Master : The prayers are meant for finding inner strength
to go through whatever is worked out by god for you !
Mantra chanting is meant for finding clarity of mind
which will get you attuned to the ways of god without
trying to change or alter the "God's plan" !

As a human being you have only two options, either you plan and when your plan does not work, be prepared to change it, or don't plan at all and take life as it comes. Prayers are such selfish attempts if they are meant to make God behave according to your fancy. Similarly mantra chanting does not make gods move even their little fingers.

Disciple : Prayer and mantra chanting are different?
Master : Prayer helps you find inner strength
and mantras help you find inner clarity !
Disciple : Strength and clarity for what purpose ?
Master : To face life and to swim through the high
and low tides of life without much fear and excitement !

The pranava mantra AUM is not a secret formula of a prayer which can entice God to perform miracles in your life. It only can transform your mind from being trapped in petty fears and frivolous temptations and meaningless agitations to a calm and silent and complete instrument. The calmness of the mind brings balance to it and balanced state of mind is equipped well to go through everything dished out in life to you.

Disciple : That seem to take the fizz out of my life ?
Master : That's not fizz but just plain fuss !
Disciple : So chanting the AUM brings calmness and clarity
to my mind which can be used for higher purposes ?
Master : Exactly ! When the mind attains clarity it can
comprehend the hidden Truth of existence more easily !
Disciple : Whats the Truth of this existence ?
Master : You should find out yourself !
Disciple : How do I find out ?
Master : One best way is to recite AUM !
Disciple : How do I do it ?
Master : There you are ! Let me explain to you !

2009-06-19T12:50:00.007+05:30

"mantra chanting is more effective when
you understood its purpose and limitation"

pranava mantra
AUM
Part - 3

Different mantras carry different context and meaning, but they all have similar purpose and a similar limitation. Mantras do not play a role beyond certain stage and when stretched can become an obstacle in itself. But as long as they are used well within their limits, they are bound to to serve a great benefit.

Disciple : What are the different purposes of mantras ?
Master : Apparently mantras are recited for various purposes.
Some for seeking god, some seeking wealth, long life, goodness,
freedom, enlightenment, even some mantras are recited for rains !
Disciple : But you said they all have similar limitations ?
Master : They all have to end at some point in order to put
the mind of the seeker in a particular state where they attain
a sense of silence from within !
Disciple : Does that silence make them achieve the purpose
for which they began their chanting?
Master : Need not be ! In fact they become so quiet
that they may not even remember the purpose of their
chanting those mantras after some time !

Any sincere seeker begins with clear purpose but during the process of mantra repetition or recitation, the purpose drops out of his mind without even his knowledge. That's the indication of a very well followed mantra practice. Begin with a purpose but end in an all conquering silence without any particular purpose.

Disciple : That's very deceptive ! Does that
what a mantra supposed to do to a seeker ?
Master : Yes it transforms the mind from seeking
to just Being. That's why its called as "Mantra" !
Disciple : May I know what does "mantra" mean ?
Master : That which transforms the mind
(from agitations to silence) is Mantra !
"Mananat trayate iti mantraha"
The wealth and long life cannot stand a chance in front
of transformation the mantra brings to mind !
Disciple : So the wealth and long life can never be
achieved through mantras ? Are they meant only to
quieten the mind?
Master : You may still gain a lot of wealth and a long
life, but that is not necessarily because of the mantras !

The multi pointed, ambitious mind usually gets scattered due to its search for many things in the world. Set upon so many goals to reach, the mind gets trapped in its own search. The Vedas conjured up different ways to bring a seeker to accept the need to chant various mantras. Eventually Vedic mantras culminate at the same point where the seeker is devoid of all seeking and come to his own Being.

Disciple : Now you almost exposed the truth behind mantra chanting
and how does the reader trust a mantra and recite them in future ?
Master : At least it should bring clarity to the reader about the
real purpose of mantra chanting and once they realized it,
there is no need for them to get 'deceived' by the mantras.
Disciple : Let me ask one last time, are you sure mantras don't
make our lives better by bringing wealth and preventing sorrow ?
Master : The answers from me is the same even if you asked a
million times. They cant change your financial status, but definitely
they can drive you through the ups and downs of your financial
conditions with you remain unruffled. That's the greatest blessings
you can receive from these sacred mantras !

2009-06-17T02:44:00.005+05:30

"AUM is not an object of worship
but only a pointer to the Truth"

pranava mantra
AUM
Part - 2

The pranava mantra or the AUM is not used for the worshipping of gods. In fact to think AUM to be the god is absurd. It is only a technique in the form of a mantra which can help you become more aware of the hidden consciousness. At the same time it should not be just reduced to some mindless gross tool which you can use like how you use your washing machine.

Disciple : I wish to get some things straight !
Master : I will appreciate that !
Disciple : Why AUM is considered auspicious when it
is just a technique and nothing more than a sound ?
Master : It is auspicious only because it takes you
to a very auspicious destination, quite effortlessly !
Disciple : May I ask which is that destination ?
Master : Your own hidden self unknown to you !
A part of you but you still not aware of it !
Disciple : Is it a body part like heart, liver and kidney?
Master : It is the very cause all these parts exists !

AUM positions itself much higher than most mantras for this simple reason that it can lead you to inner self without much fuss or delay. It is complete by itself and simple to use. The effects are instant when the AUM is recited with full heart and throat. This is for the same reasons that every composition in vedas began with AUM at the start.

Disciple : I always wanted to ask why the AUM
precedes every lesson in Vedic literature ?
Master : Starting with loud and clear reciting
of AUM prepares the student to understand the
subtle meanings of the other mantras which would
follow in the lessons taught by his teacher !
Disciple : How does AUM prepare a student
just by chanting it loud ?
Master : By bringing sufficient quietness !

Vedic compositions have very subtle and significant meaning to them. Unless the student is alert and extra ordinarily contemplative, the lessons may give a different grosser meaning. The same lessons can sound differently to different students sitting around the same teacher at the same time. When all students recite the AUM together then all their minds reach similar quietness and it brings certain collective awareness to face challenges thrown in by upcoming vedic teachings.

Disciple : You said AUM is enough to chant and all
mantras are contained in it. Then where is the need
to learn other mantras that follow AUM ?
Master : True ! AUM contains everything but other
lessons are meant to unfold the complex fabrication
of this unique sound called AUM(pranava mantra).
Disciple : Do you mean that AUM is not just a sound
but has lot of inner meaning to it?
Master : Exactly !

2009-06-15T22:17:00.012+05:30

"The only true sound that can
take you to true silence is AUM"

pranava mantra
AUM
Part - 1

While most sounds have the quality of scaterring your mind, there are certain sounds which can integrate your mind. They are usually called as mantras. The mantras have certain intonations which when followed while chanting, it would quieten the mind. Of the mantras found in the Vedic literature, AUM or the pranava mantra occupies the primary spot as the most sacred of all.

Disciple : Firstly may I ask you the purpose chanting AUM ?
Master : Just like any mantra, AUM too serve the similar purpose
of making your mind more self integrated and bring quietness !
Disciple : Why this mantra more sacred than the rest ?
Master : Because whatever sound human beings could make is
already contained in AUM. It encompasses total sound realm !

Though it appears and sounds like a mono syllable, AUM is made up of three individual Sanskrit alphabets. Pronounced together it can sound like a single alphabet. Its very subtle beginning and the smooth fading at the end enables this mantra to be the most ideal one to transform a distorted mind to a peaceful mind.

Disciple : Then what does pranava mean ?
master : It has two prominent meaning.
When you split pranava as pra + nu,
it would mean "rise and expand" and
also "hum that glorious sound" in Sanskrit !
Disciple : Can I say If I hum this sound
my mind would rise and expand to glory ?
Master : Yes indeed, you can say that !

While in ancient days the mantra was purely used for the purpose of contemplation and meditation only, it slowly assumed a object of worship, prayer and eulogy. What was originally used as the means to quieten the mind, gradually became a deity itself among many seekers.

Disciple : But whats wrong worshipping something glorious and sacred?
Master : Nothing wrong, except that you will not reach your spiritual
destination, if you are busy worshipping the
vehicle which is meant to carry you !
Disciple : I always gave up my spiritual pursuit at this point !
Master : Why is it ?
Disciple : I just cant understand what to worship and why to worship?
Master : Worshipping is a certain ritual that happens as an important
stage in your spiritual pursuit ! But to get obsessed with it may not
serve any purpose to you in the long run !
Disciple : Then why I should worship the gods at all ?
Master : Worshipping is just to recognize the presence
of certain power that exists beyond your understanding.
Once recognized well you should stop worshipping !
Disciple : What, may I ask you, I should do after that ?
Master : Contemplate on it !

2009-06-07T02:50:00.006+05:30

" Even a simple act of eating can
become a offering to the creator"

yajna
OFFERING
Part - 3

The essence of god is splashed in to everything in creation. Be it a silent rock sitting atop a hillock or tiny ant crawling under your feet, they all have a piece of god inherent in them. Man is little extra ordinary in the whole of creation because he has this unique ability to be conscious of his various experiences.

Disciple : I have heard this many times before but I still
don't understand what it is to be conscious or aware ?
Master : You understand that you don't always understand and
that's called awareness. Nothing else in creation can make
a statement "I don't understand" and that makes you different !
Disciple : Yes ! I got it now !
Master : Again, no animal or tree can say that !

The upanishads talk about the state of awareness as the only way to find freedom from binding forces. Usually when you perform a action, you are aware of the action only. But when you become aware of the person in you who is performing it, then your awareness level is heightened. Still better, if you can try to be aware of the invisible force which is driving the person in you to perform then you awareness is complete.

Disciple : This one boggles my mind pretty much !
Master : Sure ! Total awareness can even blow your mind !
Disciple : But I still don't figure exactly how to go about ?
Master : Ok ! Let me ask you some simple questions !
Disciple : But your simple questions are always difficult to answer !
Master : It happens, but I'm sure you will find the simple answers soon.
Tell me does the spoon eat the food when you have lunch ?
Disciple : No ! The spoon only helps me to get the food !
Master : Does your hand eat it then ?
Disciple : Not really, it only lifts the spoon !
Master : Then is it your mouth that really needs food ?
Disciple : I think it only likes to munch and grind something always !
Master : Is it the tongue or the throat that needs food?
Disciple : They are quite happy passing the food I guess !
Master : Which means who exactly needs the food ?
Disciple : Perhaps the stomach which grumbles often without food ?
Master : But what causes the stomach to grumble for food
and then digest the food once it is eaten ?
Disciple : The mechanism of the body to function that way ?
Master : Who designed the mechanism and make it function that way ?
Disciple : I told you these are mind boggling matters for me !
But is that what is called as Consciousness ?

Call it by any name, but there is something invisible which governs and directs the faculties of all living creatures to perform actions. The same unseen is both the propeller of actions and the recipient of the results of all actions. When you realized this, you would perform all your actions with an attitude of an offering to the unseen hidden in you.

Disciple : So nothing belong to me ?
Master : Nothing really belong to you !
You neither initiate an action or receive
the results of the actions !
Disciple : Its good news and bad news at the same time !
Master : Why so ?
Disciple : Good news because all bad results are not meant
for me and bad news because all good results go to someone else !
Master ; But when you offered them all to the unseen consciousness
then there is nothing good or bad news in your life anymore !
Disciple : Then what do I do if I offered everything ?
Master : Just relax and enjoy life doing what you are supposed to.
Disciple : Sounds exciting. Is this called enlightenment ?
Master : Yes! You can say that !
Disciple : What do I get as a result of this ?
Master : Bliss, total freedom from your hangups and fulfillment !

2009-06-06T01:20:00.010+05:30

"Your whole life is nothing but
only an offering to the creator"

Yajna
OFFERING
Part - 2

Vedic scriptures always have the knack of guiding the seekers from gross to the subtle. While the earlier portions of vedas describe in details about how to perform a yajna to attain something material, the later portions change the tone completely and announce that everything that happens in your life is nothing but yajna only.

Disciple : Why dont they teach the subtle portions right away ?
Master : Vedas comprehend that most seekers are gross in their
understanding about spiritual concepts. So they start exactly
where the seekers are trapped for long !
Disciple : Is it to make the student or the seeker feel familiar?
Master : Exactly !

The seekers at once feel comfortable with the vedic teachings when they begin from the very beginning. They are more like commandments. Like some step by step, user friendly manual, rich in rituals and orthodox in context. But as it proceeds, the teachings get subtler and more precise, devoid of conventional methodologies.

Disciple : Somehow I have never understood the vedas that easily and
I always felt that its teachings contradict themselves many times !
Master : For the beginner it always will appear so. Though begins
with physical act of performing yajna, at the end the vedas declare
that every action of yours is nothing but only an yajna !
Disciple : Wow ! you should have told me that in the start. Now
I need not waste my time. But I don't feel the yajna in my actions?
Master : Exactly ! Since you lack the yajna attitude in all your
actions, it is necessary to perform the grosser version first !

The end portions of the vedas unfold the secret as how the man of total awareness can live a life of yajna every moment. Every word spoken, every object seen, everything felt and tasted and heard is all nothing but just the performance of a subtle yajna happening in one's life all the time. Only a man of self awareness is in tune with such subtle yajna and the rest are still sitting around the smoked out fire pits, trying to attain something by hiring the holy men to chant those verses.

2009-06-05T02:36:00.005+05:30

" when you offer anything with reverence
then you are performing a yajna "

yajna
OFFERING
Part - 1

Traditionally the yajna (spelt as yagnya) is performed after creating a small pit of fire where various things are thrown into fire as a offering to the lord. The yajnas are performed always in order to attain something. Usually people offer milk, cereals, vegetables, clarified butter and flowers in the fire with strict list of do's and dont's to follow, in the backdrop of vibrating mantras recited by the appointed priests.

Disciple : Most of the times I see only smoke in such
places so I never understood what exactly happens there !
Master : That's why the vedas give specific instructions
about the place where the fire pit should be located in
order to have cross ventilation of the passing air.

But in modern days these yajnas are held within the premises of homes where people live. The closed doors and windows makes the yajna procedures quite complicating for the priests too. In ancient days the yajnas were always performed in the open space. The yajaman or yajna karta (the beneficiary of the yajna) invites everyone in the neighborhood to witness the proceedings.

Disciple : I always missed the yajnas conducted at home
because by the time I woke up everything usually got over !
Master : Its good that way. If you were to be present there
you should have got readied early morning with fresh new clothes
and a quiet mind for sitting in meditation. Either you attend
with cleanliness or remain in bed sleeping. There is no in between !
Disciple : But my mom told me that god will never be happy with me?
Master : God will not be happy either, even if you attended !

The yajnas are conducted not to please god but remove the negative atmoshpere set in the house or to be precise, in one's own mind. The outward yajna is only a symbolic attempt at purifying one's own antakaran (mind). The fire in the pit is considered as the fire of knowledge and all the oblations or offerings represent the various impediments or negativities one wishes to remove.

Disciple : So all the offerings are only the negative things?
Master : Yes ! That's why its a not a very happy situation for God.
In fact God has nothing to lose or gain in this whole process !
Disciple : Whats is the gain for the performer of the yajna ?
Master : When the negativities offered in the fire, they get
burnt and restore all that is positive in your life. So if
you slept during a yajna it is you who is the loser and not God !

2009-05-31T18:41:00.004+05:30

" Though creator has no form but is
present in all the forms of its creation"

nama - rupa
NAME AND FORM
Part - 3

Everything in creation has same source and that source is god or creator. But whatever description we may use for creation may fail when we try to describe creator in the same breath. It is man's futile effort to give names and forms to the creator because he is so much used to these two all his life.

Disciple : Now what should I do ? Should I seek the creator
or try not to see the names and forms in creation ?
Master : That's all the same. Both are simultaneous !
Disciple : How come these two different actions can be the same?
Master : When you drop seeing the forms and names then you
naturally begin to see the connectedness of this universe !
Disciple : Is that seeing God or creator too ?
Master : Exactly !

The seeker can never remove the names and forms from the face of this creation. It would exist as long human mind exist too. But surely he has an option to see the forms and names and still comprehend the nameless and formless hidden in creation.

Disciple : Wow ! That sounds fantastic. But how can I do that ?
Master : Firstly let this knowledge sink in well. Then try to
see yourself without a name and form !
Disciple : This is tricky thing now. How do I do that ?
Master : Come to a clear understanding that you are not
just your name or the form or shape you carry !
Disciple : But what is the evidence for that to believe?
I need some proof of understanding !
Master : Simple ! Your name can be changed to anything
and your form can change too on a daily basis, but you
will still remain. You will not disappear when your name
or the form suddenly changed tomorrow !
Disciple : Yes, even If my name changed to Idi Amin,
I would be still eating only raw vegetables for dinner,
I get your point now !

Start with you first. See how much you are identified with your name and form. You need not have to destroy your form or change your name but just look deeper at you beyond your name and form. You would still have a name and form but certainly not bound by it. That's when you begin to see beyond the name and form in others and in creation too.

2009-05-30T20:00:00.006+05:30

" Name and Form are wrappers that
hide Truth from your vision "

nama - rupa
NAME AND FORM
Part - 2

If Name can distort Truth, the Form can divide it further. You are seeing this world as only shapes and sizes or as forms. Each form has a name and these two variables can hijack the Truth completely out of your sight. Every thing which has a name has a unique shape and size too. Hence your seeing gets divided whe you move around the world.

Disciple : How does just seeing the shapes divide my seeing?
Master : The various shapes gives you an illusion that they
are all different from each other.
Disciple : But aren't they different from each other?
Master : Apprently yes, but inherently they are same !
Disciple : Do you mean my chair and table are one and the same ?
Master : Outwardly they are different but the source is from the wood only !
Disciple : But how can me and the chair Im sitting be the same ?
Master : You came from your father's seed and your chair came from tree
which also come from a seed. Both seeds came from earth only !

The source of this whole universe is one and the same but when it manifested as the universe, it multiplied. Just as a single seed become many branches and leaves and flowers and fruits of a tree. All humans, animals, plants, plastics, metals, stones, fibres, chemicals, gases, smokes, lights and sounds, everything took shape from one common unchanging factor.

Disciple ; Whats is that one common factor known as ?
Master : Many call it as god. Some say it is consciousness !
Disciple : Then God has many names too !
Master : Thats the irony we have to live with !
Disciple : The God has many forms too ?
Master : The gods with names and forms are essential
to understand that all the forms and names you see
contain the same source. The gods help that way !
Disciple : But in reality does god have any shape ?
Master : It has no any particular shape by itself
but it can take all the shapes and has become
this world of names and forms?
Disciple : Can you give me an example ?
Master : The simple example is water.
It has no shape but can take the shape of
any vessel it enters.
Disciple : I think it is beginning to make sense now !

2009-05-28T13:50:00.007+05:30

" Two things that separate you
from God are the Name and the Form"

nama - rupa
NAME AND FORM
Part - 1

Did you notice everything around you has a name ? Just about everything, computer, keyboard, printer, table, wall clock, hands, legs, sky, stars, sun and all the rest. Can you imagine anything in the world without a name? Even a child is named much before its birth. If its not named properly by a single name even as it is born then it may end up having different names called by different people.

Disciple : That's why I call myself Anamika (nameless),
when someone asks me. I even sign like that in public forums.
Master : That's a beautiful name indeed.
Anamika is a popular Indian name always !
Disciple : So what can I do now?
Everything needs a name it seems !
Master : Exactly, that's the point !
Disciple : What should I do to not having a name?
Master : Nothing. Just understand that the name is NOT you !

The problem is not with the name but your identification with it. When you see a thing you just don't see it as it is, but always associate it with its name. When the name enters your perception then it corrupts the way you look at it. You see more than what is actually there and this difference between whet IS actually there and what is seen by you causes trouble to your understanding of life.

Disciple : I always thought, whats in a name after all ?
Master : Its not just the name but its whole attribution
that goes with it. The name includes the description also !
Disciple : Oh its getting more difficult for me now !
Master : Suppose if I say the name 'car' what are the
things that come to your mind ?
Disciple : Come to think of it, I get so many thoughts on car !
Master : Fair enough, just tell me a few !
Disciple : 1. My car has become old
2. My dream is car is a BMW.
3. The guy who parks his car in my lot has to be warned.
4. This is not the ideal time to sell my car.

Its the same with every name that you know. The name does not limit just to the object but expands to its attributions too. House, traffic, Friend, office, money, news, movie and you can just pick any of them, they all will unwind volumes of information inside your head. In Vedanta literature, this Nama and Rupa are said to be the weapons wielded by Maya to cast a spell on humans and keep them under illusions.

Disciple : I never thought just a name
could spell so much distress !
Master : Its not over yet, because we
have not explored about its accomplice !
Disciple : Who is that if I may ask ?
Master : Rupa or simply known as form !
Disciple : You mean shapes and sizes ?
Master : Precisely, its yet another
exciting but silent demon that
keeps you away from truth !

2008-09-03T01:54:00.011+05:30

" when a sanyasin stopped witnessing but realize
what he witnessed all along is just his own self as the
consciousness then he would rise above all the phases
in life and merge one with the total consciousness again "

s a n y a s a
WITNESSING
Part - 3

Witnessing the world without getting influenced by it is a much evolved state but certainly not any realization of the self. The phase of sanyasa is crucial in terms of realizing the truth sooner or later. Its mainly because during the phase of sanyasa, the individual withdraws his self from distraction of the external world and perhaps begin to live within his self like living in some cocoon.

Disciple : Sanyasa is perhaps a preparation for realization ?
Master : Not as a rule but technically speaking yes !
Disciple : But all sanyasins are not necessarily close to
realization just because they wear the sanyasa robes ?
Master : Need not be. Far from it, they would still be
struggling in the world of multiplicities !

The struggle of a sanyasin is to stay afloat in the world without drowning in it. He may develop resistance from drowning but there is always a threat from within his mind which push him often to perform and get trapped in dualistic nature of the world. There is no fixed period of time for a sanyasin to cross the phase and rise above all the phases.

Disciple : A sanyasin is not automatically
qualified to get realized his self ?
Master : He may be qualified but he is
usually unsure of the time taken to get
out of the phases and live a life totality !
Disciple : How is the man of totality
known as ? What phase of life he lives in ?
Master : He does not belong to any phase
anymore, he is called as avadhuta !

A brahmacharin, grihastin, vanaprastin and sanyasin follow certain social etiquette but avadhuta acts without consideration for standard social etiquette. He may appear unconcerned and indifferent to the everyday happenings of life. But he is neither trying to witness nor participate but just goes about life as it comes. He may not fear the consequences of his behaviour but will do and say what come to him and be prepared to face the consequences too.

Disciple : I wish to know of this man
called avadhuta. It is intriguing !
Master : OK ! Some time soon !
Disciple : Is it a fine line between a
sanyasin and a avadhuta ?
Master : In fact there is no line
that divides any of the phases !
Disciple : Oops. So what actually
divides them from each other ?
Master : Just their interpretation
of life around them psychologically !

The division between the phases or the ashramas is almost invisible and does not really exist. Only because the same individual may go through all the phases in his life in a day from moment to moment. The realization of the self is not something independent and a separate state from other four ashramas but only a realization that ashramas are only meant for one self to live a life of regulation and control without getting hurt by this world but to make a happy and intelligent living in it.

2008-08-28T18:49:00.009+05:30

Brahmacharin - when you read the news paper
Grihastin - when you drive that car on the road
Vanaprastin - when you remove your shoes
Sanyasin - when you slept off finally

s a n y a s a
WITNESSING
Part-2

Sanyas happens on the daily basis to you. Most certainly during the sleep. You have renounced the whole world and just remain a silent witness without any active participation. You dont relate to anyone or even know anyone, you may not even who you are. Without any question or doubt or emotions, you just sleep. Sanyasi is supposed to be like that while living in this world.

Disciple : But I see so many sanyasis are busy in
building ashrams and actively particpating in
public life, how is that to be understood ?
Master : Thats why a sanysin cannot remain a sanyasin but he
also become a brahmacharin or a grahastin or a vanaprastin. The
four ashramas are inseperabale and blended well with each other !

A sanysasin contains all the four ashramas and can visit any of them at will. When you become aware of the four ashramas well and witness them happening in your and others lives, then you have entered the sanyasa ashrama fully. But if the phases are understood to be divided and compartmentalized, strictly based on age, then it will lead to a lot of confusion in life.

Disciple : But you said during the sleeping
time everyone is a sanyasi ?
Master : Thats true. The sense of - I - is not
so strongly present then. So it is like some
kind of renunciation phase called sanyasa !
Disciple : If sleeping is the criteria then
I am a sanyasin most of the times in a day !
Master : It is heartening to hear that !

All phases are equally important in their own ways. No phase is superior than the other. If someone thought to be great because he has finally reached the phase of sanyasin, then he has been making a fool of himself all along to conisder that he lived a less evolved state till then. The evolution of man is a combination of all these phases and not from the first phase to fourth phase.

Disciple : I understand well that the phases are interconnected
and is happening all the time in my life, is there anything more
I should know about the various phases of my life ?
Master : Yes, to be aware of the phases as they take place will
eventually get you out of the phases and go beyond them !

When you are not aware of the four phases, you are bound by them and when you become aware of them, you transcend them. But even after transcending you would still have the four phases playing in your life, but you will not be influenced by the outcome of those phases anymore. Unifluenced by the phases but dealing with them in total awareness enables the seeker to rise above the bondage and taste the nectar of bliss in the form of freedom.

2008-08-27T15:23:00.001+05:30

Click on the image to magnify - Ed

2008-08-23T16:18:00.008+05:30

" sanyas does not indicate enlightenment
but just a state of total detachment "

s a n y a s a

WITNESSING

Part - 1

It would be absurd to conclude that a sanyasi is a enlightened individual. He has only learnt the knack of withdrawing from everything and may not allow anything to influence him anymore. He has just managed to master his mind. But that does not amount to any form of realization yet.

Disciple : OMG, I was under the impression
that all sanyasis are enlightened?
Master : Thats ok. Nothing to lose in
such a thinking. but get real now !
Disciple : Whats the difference between
a vanaprastin and a sanyasin?
Master : Vanaprastin is withdrawing from the
world and a sanysasin is witnessing the world !

To witness the world one should have withdrawn from it sufficiently. In other words if you learnt how to participate then you are a brahmacharin, if you actually participate in this worldly events then you are a grihastin, if you withdraw from participating, then you are a vanaprastin and when you have fully withdrawn and just witness the whole world go by, you have become a sanyasin.

Disciple : Does it mean the sanysasin will never
participate in anything in his life
Master " Not really. If so, then when the food
arrives in his plate he would just watch it and
may not have to eat it !
Disciple : I wonder if anyone can do that ?
Master : Exactly. Every body participates
but with sanyasin there is a difference !
Disciple : May I know what is the difference ?
Master : While others have too many choices
he may not have many choices but just
eat what comes to his plate ! He stops himself
being choosy about everything !

Witnessing the world is not standing by the roadside like lamp post and watch everything. But to be in the world and not get influenced by its stifling changes. He does not relate to the world emotionally or sentimentally. He observes all the emotions, his own included, but never identify with them. But physically he seem to be part of everything despite not influenced by any of them.

Disciple : Is this the highest state of human life?
Master : Somewhat getting close to it, but
still distances have to be crossed !
Disciple : Is it ? I thought this is the last ashrama ?
Master : Sure this is the last and final phase !
Disciple : Then what about self realization? Does it not
happen in this ashrama, if this is the final phase ?
Master : Realization of the self is not any phase
but is just beyond the four phases !

The sanyas is kind of preparing the ground for that elusive thing called enlightenment, but certainly not enlightenment. Sanyas is one more phase in life and need not necessarily lead to any awakening even after that phase as a rule or condition. If someone imagined to be enlightened just because he changed his name and the color of the clothes, it would spell disaster to him on the path to the real awakening.

Disciple : But if this is the last phase in life then
it should be automatic to get enlightened just after that?
Master : It would be so nice if it happened that way
but unfortunately things are quite illogical and
indefinite when it comes to this enlightenment zone !

2008-08-19T01:55:00.001+05:30

Click on the image to enlarge - Ed

2008-08-15T01:23:00.012+05:30

" your renunciation does not change

anything externally except a quiet

inner psychological transformation "

v a n a p r a s t a

RENOUNCING

Part - 4

You neither can renounce this world, nor can renounce your body, breath, mind or even the ego, but you can only renounce incredible projections of your mind about life and people. Your perceptions of life based on your various emotions alone can be renounced. When the projections ended, you begin to see life as it is. Withdrawal from a long nurtured projections are always difficult and hence the individual usually is found as bound, despite his knowledge about renunciation.

Disciple : The renunciation and the need for it must have
been taught even during the phase of brahmacharya ?
Master : Yes, but perhaps is understood much later in life !
Disciple : But the modern education have no place for
such a thing called withdrawal or renunciation ?
Master : Its true ! The education these days is
mostly directed towards more active participation
and somehow not about the need for renunciation !

When life is only about the participation and success and never about withdrawal and peace, then it can drive an individual to face endless challenges throughout his life. This may result in a sense of incompleteness. Obviously the modern day education has ignored this phase unknowingly.

Disciple : But renunciation is understood as
some kind of inability or a failure by many ?
Master : That's the present day education all about !
Disciple : What could be the reason for it?
Master : Juts the thirst for success and happiness
drives people to ignore the other side of life !
Disciple : Renunciation cannot bring happiness?
Master : It can bring only peace, but the
participation in life brings happiness or sorrow !

However, its important to know when to renounce and how to renounce than just renounce blindly. The priorities can never be interchanged. Grihasta and vanaprasta are totally paradoxical in nature and should be understood well before entering into their phases.

Disciple : Do vedas have the details of such

intricate information about when to

participate and when to renounce ?

Master : Yes. The vedas in assorted portions

explain in such exhaustive details about the

different phases of an individual

quite comprehensively !

when the inseparable nature of the varnashramas is understood and recognized well, you can incorporate them eventually in to your daily live and find fulfillment in the present moment itself. There may not be a need to wait till 40 years to renounce to find peace but it can happen well within a day and night efficiently.

2008-08-12T14:11:00.004+05:30

" you cannot renounce this world
because it is not attached to you ever "

v a n a p r a s t a

RENOUNCING
Part - 3

The suffering of an individual comes from his own wrong understanding of the world and his relationship with it. Mostly it is misreading the relationships with people that causes a great share of suffering. Man finds it easy to renounce the inert objects, but always not so with human relationships.

Disciple : What should be the reason for it ?
Master : Primarily due to the improper
understanding of what exactly renunciation is !
Disciple : What is exactly is the mistake they commit ?
Master : They mistake that they have to stay out of
sight of an object or a person in order to renounce it !
Disciple : Can you give an example ?
Master : You can decide to give away your clothes
to someone because you thought of renouncing them
but the actual renunciation is not the clothes but the
thought you carry that you own those clothes !

People somehow get trapped with a strange idea about the world and start to own up a few things as one's own and reject the rest. Rarely it strikes them that they cant renounce anything externally but all that they can renounce is their ideas about the world and people in it. As a grihastin you have to attach to the world and as a vanaprastin you just detach from it. Both times, it just your thoughts that make you think that you owned or disowned this word, the world remains just the same as always.

Disciple : So the renunciation is only the ideas
about the world and not the world itself?
Master : Exactly. Only because the world does
not know you owned or disowned something !
Disciple : Its almost clear but not really !
Master : If you thought the TV you watched
at home belonged to you, it is just your thought
and the TV does not know that it belonged to you !
Disciple : I got the point !

Besides, there is a good number of people who think that to renounce something is to keep it away from sight or get away from its sight. They seldom try to find out whats the problem actually in dealing with a particular object or a person. They go on insisting their ignorance in the form of jumping to extremes from infantilized attachments to rip off from it out of frustrations. They just don't let things as they are, but either suffocate it out of love or shy away out of hatred.

Disciple : So there is nothing to rearrange
anything in the world for one's own renunciation
but only correct one's own perception ?
Master : Very well said !
Disciple : Do you say that the renouncing
ideas towards other human beings is more
difficult than with other objects ?
Master : Truly so !
Disciple : What could be the reason ?
Master : Because of the human ability to
emote, one start to take the emotions of
others for real and get trapped in them !

2008-08-10T11:53:00.002+05:30

" whenever you go to sleep,

you are in the phase of renunciation "

v a n a p r a s t a

RENOUNCING

Part - 2

The phase of renunciation happens invisibly all the time to you. When just closed a book from reading, shut off the TV from watching, put down telephone from a long and winding gossip, push the plate away on table at the end of a fulfilling lunch, leave a city or a country you visited, quit a job, close a bank account, divorce the married life, leave the seat you occupied for some one else, park you car at the lot after a hectic driving are some of the many symptoms of renunciation in a daily life.

Disciple : I think you are talking about me here ?

Master : That's just a self important thought from you !

Disciple : Why do you say that ?

Master : Because the whole world does the same, not just you !

Disciple : So Im withdrawing from many things always ?

Master : True. But also go back to them later on !

The phases or the ashramas are functioning in a cyclical fashion. Constantly renouncing something and constantly adapting to something else. Unless you renounce something, you cannot progress further in life. You renounce the breath in the form of exhalation so that you have inhale a fresh new breath of air. You leave a step behind so that you can take the next step forward.

Disciple : Which is the most distinct form of renunciation

one does in the scheme of every day living?

Master : Sleeping. It demands total renunciation

of everything you held on to till that point !

Sleeping is possible only after you withdrew from everything completely, that includes even the thought about sleep. That's total renunciation from the manifested world to the unmanifest, but without sufficient knowledge about it. The sleep happens on its own and one does not make an effort to sleep. Hence it is not actually a conscious renunciation but however it still helps you to get a taste of what renunication is like.

Disciple : But sometimes how much ever

try, the sleep does not happen ?

Master : Exactly, its a natural phenomenon

and happens on its own. You cant force it !

The reason why the vanaprasta ashrama was fixed at a much later age is only to indicate that the renunciation can happen more naturally at that time. Also the mental faculties of learning and retention and retrieval of what was learnt can slow down as the age advances. The urges also die away a more natural death when you cross the 40 age milestone.

Disciple : But I see people behaving like children at 40 too?

Master : True, they mostly grew up with unwarranted fantasies

and such fantasies can never become a reality, their brahmacharya

phase was not a proper one because they never learnt the right thing !

Disciple : What is the plight of such people ?

Master : They will catch a much delayed flight to the destination !

2008-08-08T19:14:00.005+05:30

"when you reverse the course of grihasta,

you will enter the next phase"

vanaprasta

RENOUNCING

Part - 1

After the phases of learning and applied living, the third phase emerges in one's life. Presumably the phases are so exclusive and unique in their design and function. While the brahmacharin learns the knack of survival in the world, the grihastin actually applies his learning and lives his life in the world. But up comes the next phase which demands the grihastin to turn to a whole new phase called vanaprasta.

Disciple : But how can turning off a TV be related to this phase ?

Master : Simply because of the fact you decided to withdraw from

watching TV, you enter the vanaprasta phase !

Vanaprasta is all about withdrawal from the world. As grihastin, you participate in life's events and as a vanaprastin you withdraw from the same life. They both are contrasting each other in a direct manner. While turning on the Tv can be compared to grihastin, turning it off is about being vanaprastin. They complement each other and cannot exist without each other.

Disciple : Whats the age group meant for this phase ?

Master : Chronologically speaking, it is between 40 to 60 !

Disciple : What is the literal meaning of the word?

Master : Vanaprasta means 'withdrawal into jungle' !

Disciple : Why with draw into jungle ?

Master : It was a way of keeping away from the

world during the gangetic civilization when the

vedic proposals to the common man was in peak practice !

Disciple : The vedas were composed during that period ?

Master : Much ahead, but people started using it during the

gangetic civilization at a more intense pace !

Disciple : Which period the gangetic civilization belong to ?

Master : 3500 to 5000 years ago and Vedas were apparently

composed even before that !

The subtler understanding of the vanaprasta ashrama needs a practical mind, which is more centered in the present than some glorious past. The relevance of the vedic statements in to day's context of living remains as important as the days when they were composed. In the present day's context, vanaprasta phase is practiced throughout the day and night, every time you withdrew from some activity.

Disciple : But I dont seem to withdraw from anything ?

Master : Not really. You withdraw all the time from many things !

Disciple : Im surprised to hear this, because I always wondered

how renunciation or withdrawal will ever happen in my life ?
Master : You need not wonder because its always happening

to you in your life daily. Just that you dont notice that well !

The varna ashramas are like a cyclical process. The wheels of this phases will spin forever in a man's life till the day he liberates himself from all the ashramas. This wheel of transformational phases, itself can cause bondage. The best way to break the shackles of this wheel of phases is to understand their functionalities well and apply them in your life fully with awareness. Soon you would find yourself grown out of all the phases.

2008-08-04T17:26:00.006+05:30

" whenever the world leaves an

impact on you, you are a grihasta"

g r i h a s t a

APPLIED LIVING

Part -2

As a student (brahmacharin) the world is not so much of a threat or even a challenge, in fact you never encounter the world like the way you do as the house holder(grihastin). Grihasta literally means, owning a house. But in order to own a house, you should essentially undergo lots of experiences in life, which indicates the applied living more appropriately. You come face to face with the world only in this phase. You face it, fight it out, win and lose, be successful or a failure, but cannot escape the world while passing through this phase.

Disciple : So the brahmacharin does not face the world at all?

Master : Mostly not. His problems are well confined to academics.

If he had to face the world in any form then at that moment he is

only a grihastin and no more a brahmacharin !

Disciple : Can you give an example to understand that ?

Master : If a student earned his own money to study then he is

living through the phases of brahmacharya and grihasta together !

Two most difficult things in life happens during the grihasta's phase, namely, building a home and living a married life. There is a endless onslaught of challenges thrown at the grihasta during the phase. But when the grihastin has enough knowledge learnt during the phase of brahmacharya to back himself, he would sail through the phase more easily. The knowledge gathered come handy to apply in the times of crisis.

Disciple : But is it a must to pass through

these phases in a systematic manner?

Master : That may not be possible. In

many developing nations, under aged

children are faced to work for living

without any primary education.

Their grihasta phase start very early.

Disciple : But what do they apply when

they don't have any knowledge ?

Master : perhaps that's how they are

being exploited so early in their lives !

The phases or the ashramas are not always followed in a fixed sequence of certain years, but it is only meant for that moment, according to the need of a situation arising at any point of time. Meanwhile, the grihasta phase is not just about pain, grief and challenges but the individual under go every possible sensual pleasures without inhibitions too. While the brahmacharya phase demands more focus on academics, there is little chance for sensuousness. But grihasta is all out to enjoy this world and he would not hesitate to do everything to make it possible.

Disciple : Does brahmacharya also teach

how to enjoy the sensuality of life?

Master : Rather they focus on how to stay in control

of such sensual experiences. They come to help

then the grihastin sometimes get out of control !

2008-08-03T19:48:00.007+05:30

"when you decide to settle down in life, you

enter the next phase called grihasta ashrama"

grihasta

APPLIED LIVING

Part - 1

While the first ashrama dealt with the learning phase of your life, the second phase follows close on heels, with its unique characteristics, such as finding ways to make a living in this world. As a student learning within the secured walls of the school, now the student has completed his studies and contemplates on career, profession, marriage and importantly a family.

Disciple : But why do you call it as applied living ?

Master : Because the student now applies his

knowledge learnt in his school as a brahmachari !

Disciple : Does it mean he did not live a life before?

Master : He did. But not independently, but with

the support of his parents and the guru at the school !

Entering girhastashrama is to find ones own independent ways, mostly in consultation with elders, to make a living in this wide and wild world. Earlier on as a brahmachari, he lived a life without the worry about food and clothes as he was protected by his parents and other guardians. But now as he grew up and crossed the first 20 years, its time he would test his own skills at making a living and support his parents and others in turn.

Disciple : What is the age group meant for this phase ?

Master : Technically speaking, from 20 to 40 is the period !

Disciple : But these days students study well in to their 20's too ?

Master : True, they have more history and more information to study !

The reason why the age group for the various phases cannot be fixed is because of this reason. It may change from time to time. That's why it is more appropriate, when seen from a subtler perspective of living through the phases within a span of the day. Besides, you cant expect one to live for 80 years to complete all the phases in a natural manner.

Disciple : I understand that the phases divided within 80 years

can be just figurative understanding and cant be always real ?

Master : Well said. Because it appears that one has to always

wait for 80 years to complete all the phases successfully !

The grihasta ashrama begins right from the time you plan about your future life. Whenever you get busy about planning your life, you are passing through the phase of the applied living. Technically it is also called as the phase of the house holder. Its because, you plan to settle down in the form of getting a job, marriage and family and find a home to live your life applying the various things you learnt in life.

Disciple : But which are the times

one becomes a grihasta in daily life?

Master : Whenever you step out of

your house to go to work, to earn money,

whenever you felt the need for a man or

woman in your life, a home to live and

children to parent and protect, and

secure your life for all of your future,

then you are entering into the

grihasta phase of your life !

Within a day, when you remembered about your house tax to be paid, electricity bill to be cleared, the pending visit to the bank about your loans and account, the school fees of the children to be paid, thoughts about work, office, boss, colleagues, buying properties, house rent, change of job, promotion, increment, going through old pay slips, entering int o some business, or expanding the existing business, counting money in the locker, shopping, cooking, are some of the many many occasions when you display distinct quality of a grihasta.

Disciple : I seem to do all of that all the time ?

Master : That's OK. Its not wrong, just that

at this point of time you are predominantly

expressing as a grihasta !

Disciple : To be a grihasta is to be less evolved ?

Master : There is no less or more, when it comes

to this varna ashramas. They are all same !

2008-08-02T18:11:00.007+05:30

"whenever you learn something in life,

you enter in to the phase of brahmacharya"

brahmacharya

LEARNING

part - 2

While the first 2o years dedicated to the learning process, the learning does not end there. One keeps learning all through one's life. Every time a individual happened to learn something, he passes through the phase of brahmacharya all over again. And the learning happens all the time, that's why separating ashramas based on age factor can prove to be a grosser exercise.

Disciple : I have a pertinent query in this connection ?

Master : Thats alright, as long as you understand what

you ask about, then all queries are pertinent only!

Disciple : I always thought brahmacharya is about

maintaining one's celibacy. In fact I was told that way.

How do I understand the connection here ?

Master : Usually brahmacharya ashrama is slotted

in the first 20 years when there is little chance of

any sexuality naturally. But such a natural state

has been stretched far beyond the need and became a

sole meaning to that particular phase !

The celibacy is a not a need for children, who have not yet matured as adults for exercising the sexual freedom. That means there is no question of practicing celibacy as a rule for the growing child. It was just a bit of distorted thinking that gave this false singular interpretation to brahmacharya as a strict abstinence from sensuousness. The ashramas do not govern one's life as a thumb rule, but only indicate the various psychological phases possible in a seeker's life.

Disciple : So how exactly I'm to know that

I am a brahmachari even in my family life ?

Master : Yes, even in a married life, the

phase of brahmacharya is possible, every time

you read the news paper in the morning !

Disciple : How come reading news paper can be

an exercise of brahmacharya? It baffles me !

Master : When you read news paper you tend

to learn something about this world which you

did not know before. That's precisely when you

become a brahmachari !

Not just the newspaper, even watching TV or just browsing the internet, or just gossiping in the office, whenever you came to know of a new thing, you have spontaneously slipped in to the mode of learning. Even if you are a married man, at that time, you are just a learner or brahmachari only. A man on the death bed decided to learn meditation and some breathing exercises, then he is no more a man of retirement and death but a fresh learner of meditation and thus a brahmachari.

Disciple : So it can happen any time ?

Master : Yes even when you learnt a

new recipe from the cook book !

Disciple : Truly amazing, to know

one can be a brahmachari all his life !

So the scriptures also propose a time table for the individual in its karma kandas (section of vedas that describe the art of living through various rituals). When you wake up, the mind is fresh and ready to absorb new information. So the scriptures talk of early morning, as the ideal time to practice brahmacharya, in the form of learning and practicing spiritual exercises. The quality of learning is at its best only during the freshness of the early morning even though anytime is suitable for learning.

Disciple : In my case, learning

never happened in the morning !

Master : It must have happened

just before the early morning ?

Disciple : How did you now that ?

Master : Most people choose either

early morning or late night for

the learning purpose !

Disciple : But they are so much in

contrast with reference to time ?

Master : Not really. The late night

and early morning are divided by

just a couple of hours only !

2008-07-31T01:43:00.004+05:30

"brahmacharya ashrama is a phase

of learning and not about celibating"

brahmacharya

LEARNING

Part -1

Literally speaking, this phase of human life is usually the first 20 years when the young novice is set upon seeking ways to know his essential self. Though labeled as 'soul searching', the brahmacharya is about learning a lot of material sciences too. Young children who were initiated in to the studies of the self, had lot more to learn about their world, than just about one's Self.

Disciple : That's quite early to search for the soul ?

Master : Yes, but only when you start early, you

may end up finding it before you get too old !

Disciple : usually I have seen people planning their

bit of soul searching, at much later stages in life !

Master : True, it may happen any age or stage.

The learning indeed goes on all the time !

A brahmachari learns all that which may guide him to find out the nature his own self. Of the many sciences taught, there were prominent ones such as, Dharma Shastra - Moral science, Arta Shastras - Material sciences, Samkhya Shastra - Intellectualism, Shastra Shastra - Science of Weaponry, Neeti Shastra - Jurisprudence, Shilpa Shastra - Iconography, Vaastu Shastra - Science of Spaces, Nyaya Shastra - Science of Logic.

Disciple : That's awe inspiring list of wisdom for

the children to learn, so early in their lives !

Master : Quite rightly so. All the learning were

tailored to put the child on track of existential truth !

As part of their initiation in their studies, they are taught how to live a life of dedication and determination. Symbolically they tonsured the head of the child, who entered the school of wisdom, leaving just one portion of hair as tuft. Traditionally speaking that small tuft of hair indicates the singlepointedness of the child in learning. They may not focus on anything else but just the learning.

Disciple : I thought the tuft was meant for the guru to

catch the erring student, especially if he runs away ?

Master : Yes sometimes, it must have worked that way too !

Disciple : But why these days such disciplined phase of

life is not made available to children ?

Master : The format must have been changed, but even today

the child has all the facilities to learn everything under sun

within their stipulated 20 years or even more !

Even if the education is generally made available to the child in the modern days, still the dedication and determination of a student in schools of wisdom during the days of yore, has been always unmatchable even today. Mainly because of the spiritual intonations of the teachings imparted to the children.

2008-07-28T14:30:00.006+05:30

" Vedas divide your your life in to phases

and then it unifies you as one whole "

ashrama

PHASE OF LIFE

Part- 2

The four ashramas classified by vedas are not independent of each other. They are very closely woven together that they cant be separated. While the grosser understanding of ashramas is classifying the span of one's life, it also subtly conveys that the ashramas are just various states of mind that you may pass through within a day several times.

Disciple : This is news for me. Are you saying the

all the four ashramas can be lived within one day ?

Master : Not even one full day, but within minutes !

Disciple : That's heartening to hear, because I am not

sure if I'm going to live for 80 years to complete all

the four ashramas properly without leftovers !

Master : Precisely for the same reason, the vedas

inculde the various periods of time in a day

encompassing different ashramas !

Its also important to understand that you will not renounce the earlier ashrama, as you enter the new ashrama. Instead, the proper understanding will be, that you set yourself upon a particular ashrama, suitable to a particular mode of mind, demanded by the present situation at that time.

Disciple : Do you meant to say the ashramas

are just human psychological divisions ?

Master : Yes, primarily it is that way, but in a

much grosser sense, it is divided in the total

span of life time of an individual !

Psychologically speaking, the mind undergoes various modifications within moments endlessly. Every psychological predisposition can be attributed to any one of the ashrama at any given point of time. A thorough understanding of the various ashrama and their individual characteristics is vital in capturing them playing in your own psyche.

Disciple : Now this seem to be getting interesting.

Some kind of mind game for me to perform ?

Master : You need not perform any mind game

because they are going on already. You just need

to recognize them when it is at play !

The brahmacharya, grihasta, vanaprasta, sanyasa are the milestones in the journey of life. Only difference is perhaps this journey of life does not go in a straight line but in a circles. In the sense that there is no beginning or end to this cycle.

Disciple : Sounds quite intriguing, wish to

explore this one at the earliest !

Master : Yes you will, As you explore you

should be able to incorporate your findings

in your every day living in small ways at least !

2008-07-22T12:54:00.011+05:30

" life is a nonstop flow, but the seeker's

life is phased conveniently without

disturbing the fabric of his worldliness "

a s h r a m a

PHASE OF LIFE

Part - 1

Consciousness is undivided by itself. But every thing that envelops it seem to have defined divisions. Like the many seasons that return year after year, like the different age groups people classify their lives into, like the trees have many stages of springing, flowering and falling, like the animals having various seasons for various reasons, human life too has been phased well and compartmentalized.

The Vedic scriptures have a knack of dealing with lives of seekers in a more practical way. In fact vedas have elaborated every human aspect to such finest detail, that the magnitude of vedas had become bulky and enormous and appears very exhaustive today. Among its various proposals to humanity, vedas suggest to phase out one's life in such manner, that there is a organized way of living and seeking.

Disciple : You said vedas 'propose', why is that ?

Master : Yes, they dont dictate or declare or

even command but makes plain proposals !

Disciple : What happens if they command ?

Master : The commandments may not liberate

but can enslave. Commandments are for slaves !

However, vedas too emphasise the need to organize one's life, in order to make it a wholesome affair, especially when it comes to 'self realization' resonating with every day living. It has divided human life in to four stages such as brahmacharya ashrama (learning phase), grihasta ashrama (implementing phase), vanaprastha ashrama (withdrawal phase), sanyas ashrama (renunciation phase).

Disciple : Now this sounds too contradicting !

Master : How come ?

Disciple : You went on saying that realization

happens just in the moment, when someone

lived without any division. But this ashrama

concept sounds as if one has to divide all over again ?

Master : Precisely, you divide your life till that moment

of realization comes, then you divide no more !

Scriptures, religions, gurus play just their bit to organize the seeker's life, in order to get him to that moment of realization. The concept of ashramas in one's life is capable of giving certain discipline, as the seeker approaches truth without any unwanted hangups nagging him secretly. A proper and complete understanding of the dynamics of ashramas is a must before one start to follow them.

Disciple : What are the age groups alloted to each ashrama ?

Master : Roughly speaking every 20 years, the individual gets

promoted to the next ashrama, assuming that the average life span

of human being stands at 80. These days it could be less too !

Disciple : Which means I already missed out one ashrama ?

Master : You need not lose your heart, because the ashramas

are so flexible, that they function efficiently in multi dimesions !

Disciple : May I know how is that ?

Master : One need not wait for 80 years to complete

all the ashramas, but within the span of a day all the

ashramas can be effectively explored.

2008-07-08T05:21:00.008+05:30

" meditation is not meant for finding peace and calmness

but to stir yourself enough to wake up to your true self "

d h y n a m

M E D I T A T I O N

Part - 43

Ironically, we want to consider meditation or spirituality meant to provide soothing effects. Perhaps relaxing to the nerves which are stressed, like listening to some pleasant music or reading some heart warming story. Either a promise thrown in that all problems will be solved when you wake up in the morning or some hope is thrusted where things would change real soon.

Disciple : So to be spiritual is essentially
living with the problems is what you say ?
Master : not really ! I mean the problems you
have are not of any significance is what I say !
Disciple : But when the mind attains calmness,
it can experience self all the more better ?
Master : Not really, one can go to sleep too !
Disciple : Seeking peace of mind is not spirituality ?
Master : Absolutely not. But if you understand that
you have to otherwise seek noise and disturbance will
be again immaturity and jumping to extremes in life !

If you found peace of mind every time you meditated, then you should know that your meditation is not complete. The soothing effect will make your mind dull and will only put you to sleep. While it is harmless to sleep as you meditate, in the long run it may not serve you the true purpose.

Disciple : So what exactly I should do in meditation
instead of searching for peace of mind or calmness ?
Master : If the mind remain awake then it can explore
and realize the self. But a sleepy mind due to the
soothing effect may not be able to comprehend the self !
Disciple : Then why the peace of mind is glorified so much ?
Master : Because of the lack of knowledge about the self !
Disciple : What does it mean by self here ?
Master : The Consciousness or Atman is called as self here !

Meditation is not against the idea of a peaceful mind, but certainly it is not the end result one should attain from it. One should not rest in the peace found during meditation but must make use of it to proceed further towards the awareness of the self in its unmanifest, original state.

2008-07-04T13:22:00.010+05:30

" greatest revelation during meditation is

to know that you cant decide your life but can

only follow what is decided by the existence "

d h y a n a m

M E D I T A T I O N

Part- 42

Its a strange and weird behaviour of the mind to believe that life is a decisive process, even though every moment is screaming loud of impermanence. The freedom to decide and then to execute towards success seem to be the hidden agenda among many seekers. The consciousness is 'Non-Decisive' and will always be so. If the consciousness is Non-Decisive, then its expressions would be the same too.

Disciple : I did not understand everything you said

but i know you are making an important point there !

Master : I said there is nothing concrete about this life !

Disciple : True, I agree and also experience that always !

Master : Then what makes you think you can live a decisive

life, in this non decisive world of happenings all around you ?

Disciple : I got the point now. But somehow it does not sink in !

Master : The meditation is meant just for that purpose indeed !

But for all strange reasons, meditation is practiced among many seekers in order to decode some secret formula, by which they can decide their own course of lives. This freedom to chart the course of one's own life is result of the stunning ignorance of mind. Meditation is a process where this ignorance will be exposed and the truth of the life is experienced directly.

Disciple : It is difficult to accept such a knowledge

that I cannot decide the course of my own life !

Master : Why whats the problem in that ? After all

you need not break your head always about decisions !

Disciple : I may feel somewhat teeth less or spineless

or perhaps worthless with such a knowledge !

Master : This is what the self help, new age schools

of wisdom have done to most people these days !

Disciple : Is it wrong to believe in oneself ?

Master : Where is the need to believe in oneself

when you experienced the self itself as you ?

Authentic meditation is meant to experience yourself than believing in your self. You believe in something which is other than yourself. But there is absolutely no need to believe in your own self. Because believing your self to be successful or peaceful can bring relief, but does not settle other issues which will keep troubling you from time to time.

Disciple : How does the experience of the self help me ?

Master : It will bring clarity to your clouded mind about

the crucial decision making in your life !

Disciple : I never thought they are both connected !

Master : True. I know you never thought that way !

Disciple : Can you please elaborate ?

Master : Belief in the self brings only the pressure to make

right decision and avoid wrong decisions in life !

Disciple : I understood that part. But does it mean the

experience of the self prevents me from decision making ?

Master : In fact it will only tell you that you don't decide

anything in your life, but simply confirm or don't confirm

to the various situations which appears like decision making !

2008-07-04T12:57:00.000+05:30

2008-06-29T09:40:00.006+05:30

"Authentic meditation is not a journey from outside to inside

but an realization that there are no inside or outside to Truth"

d h y a n a m

M E D I T A T I O N

Part - 41

The endeavor of moving from outside to inside has been the pinnacle of most spiritual sciences, in order to find the 'hidden treasure' . Meditation is also used for the same purpose among many seekers, who have learnt the knack of slipping in to their own selves, in search of that elusive consciousness. But least they know that the inside/outside differences are simply the assumptions of their own mind.

Disciple : But you have been talking

about the inner consciousness too ?

Master : Its a language used originally

to appeal to the divided mind of the seeker,

So I may continue that language even now !

Disciple : Does it mean there is actually

no inside and outside differences exist?

Master : True, the true meditation should

lead the seeker to this knowledge ultimately !

The spatial differences of inside and outside are built up by the mind, which is so much used to divide and then see, since time unknown. Though meditation appears to be a journey at the start, from outside world to the inner consciousness, upon reaching the apparent core or the so called essence of the self, it comes to discover the Truth, that there are no sides to the all pervading consciousness.

Disciple : Why is this faulty vision by the mind happens ?

Master : It is not faulty. The mind is designed perfectly to

perceive things only that way, to divide and see !

Disciple : Then who discovers the undivided consciousness ?

Master : The same mind only will have to do that too !

Disciple : How can the mind function different from its

original design and discover undivided consciousness?

Master : That's the challenge, that's why the spirituality

appears to be such a task or a difficult thing !

The seeker can have the freedom to divide as inner and outer, till some stage in his seeking, but when he is matured in the process of meditation, it crosses his head one day, like a shooting star in the dark night sky, that something is amiss or simply incomplete in him. Thats when the real break through in seeking happens.

Disciple : Why cant this be told in the start itself

and make the seeker's meditation a lot more easier ?

Master : Chances are that he may never seek further

or ever meditate again in his life, if the Truth is told as it is !

Disciple : But you seem to tell me the truth now,

does it mean I'm matured enough to know ?

Master : You are matured enough to ignore Truth as of now !

So its OK, but someday these words will ring a bell during

your journey from the 'outer' world to the 'inner' self !

2008-06-22T13:19:00.003+05:30

" There is nothing to lose or gain permenantly

in meditation but only connect what appears

to be disconnected presently "

d h y a n a m

M E D I T A T I O N

(Part - 40)

Self awareness will remain as a distant reality as long as you practice meditation as a tool to drop or pick things. If you sat for meditation hoping to gather many good things and get rid of all the bad things, then you should know that you are under the illusory impact of maya. As you know maya is that non existent slippery thing which makes you think act and talk the way you do presently.

Disciple : What are the things usually people

want to pick from meditation ?

Master : Among the many things listed,

good long health, reading other's mind,

become intuitive, solve most difficult problems,

easy life without struggle, and choicest

blessings of god, peace of mind

focus of mind, concentration etc !

Disciple : Don't they happen ?

Master : They may happen, many times

even without meditation !

Disciple : OK, what are things usually

people want to drop ?

Master : dropping the ego, diseases, stressful

problems, casting of evil eyes from others,

psychological blocks etc

Disciple : Don't they happen ?

Master : Yes, they can happen

even without meditation at times !

While meditation has lots of benefits, a true seeker is never impressed with just these benefits and would want to rise above them to fulfill the actual purpose of meditation, even as he enjoys the various benefits that come his way. The seeker is dead in someone when he just concluded that meditation is meant to provide some peace of mind for the next few minutes.

Disciple : What is the wrong if someone seek the benefits ?

Master : Its not wrong to seek the benefits, but it is wrong

to conclude the meditation to serve just those benefits !

Disciple : Do you say there is no need to deny the benefits ?

Master : Yes indeed. No one need to deny the benefits as long

as it is happening as the result of meditation practices !

Disciple : But you seem to condemn the benefits ?

Master : I condemn not the benefits but limiting

the benefits of meditation to only very trivial things !

The final culmination of meditation is to strike a balance between your body , mind and the consciousness within. In other words, learning to attune the body and mind to the existence of the inner consciousness. Till such a time the other benefits should not blind the seeker and should not prevent him from exploration.

Disciple : What happens when my body

and mind is not in tune with consciousness?

Master : You find yourself incomplete and

will push yourself to search and find many things in life !

Disciple : So is it not good that way

that we can find many things ?

Master : Yes. But also we land in many

problems as we find many other things !

Disciple : I think i get your point !

Master : Whereas, to attune the body and

mind to the consciousness is to find the fulfillment

from within, which alone will make your search end !

2008-06-18T02:24:00.005+05:30

We welcome the readers to explore more wisdom

from the master with the new blog

http://www.noctemplations.blogspot.com/

Questions that were forgotten to be asked,

contemplations which will shape your

spiritual progress and guide you to the point of Truth - Ed

2008-06-05T11:54:00.007+05:30

" Meditation is done not to give up the ego
but to know that there is something beyond the ego
which is quietly supporting the ego "

d h y a n a m
M E D I T A T I O N
Part - 39

Body and mind themselves do not need any meditation. They are OK themselves. But body and mind undergo meditation only to discover their own hidden, unknown part located on the other side. When meditation does not happen, the mind and body think they exist alone. They seldom realize the fact that there is a big daddy who actually is the big boss, without whom the body and mind have no existence of their own.

Disciple : That means the meditation does not
help the body and mind per se ?
Master : It helps them but not for their own sake
but to find out the hidden consciousness only !
Disciple : But you told earlier that mind can
never meet the hidden consciousness,
If I remember right ?
Master : Yes, it can never meet but only can realize !

One may never become politically wise or economically richer, or even as intelligent as Einstein, or compassionate like Jesus, or wise like Buddha or even as clever as that self help guru Dale Carnegie. There is not such a definite 'becoming something' in this process called meditation. Your mind comprehending your inner self does not guarantee a place in any famous people's list.

Disciple : Do you mean that after
meditation, I can never become famous
or rich or smart or even compassionate?
Master : Nobody is stopping you in fact
from becoming any of them as you wish.
But do not think meditation will
automatically elevate you there !
Disciple : Does it prevent me being elevated ?
Master : It just stops you bothering
about any rising and falling in life!
Disciple : What happens when I stopped
bothering about rising and falling in life ?
Master : When stopped rising or falling
you will become steady and balanced !
Disciple : How does that help me in any way?
Master : When you are steady and balanced,
you may have the first glimpses of hidden
consciousness, which is steady and balanced itself !

When your body and mind is active, they can only relate with the active world outside. They can never comprehend a silent, unmoving self within. Perhaps meditation is that process, where the body and mind come to certain point where they become inactive and quiet. That results in the realization of the Inner Self (Consciousness, Atman, God).

Anything that helps to arrest the mind from drifting outside can help you detect a bit of the consciousness. But meditation is certainly the most proven and most lasting than rest of everything else. Drugs, sex and alcohol can show a faint glimpse of what the consciousness is but meditation done out of proper understanding enables the mind to realize the self in the most concrete and lasting manner.

Disciple : Sex and drugs and alcohol also can help?
Master : They can, but they also can leave you
with the hangover, which can take you too far away
from the consciousness when the effect of the sex,
alcohol or drug disappeared from the body and mind !
Disciple : What is the outcome of this mind
realizing the inner consciousness ?
Master : The realization is the outcome and
there is absolutely nothing more left to know
or experience in life !

2008-06-01T18:22:00.016+05:30

" meditation does not make you happy in the future
because it is not meant for what is coming ahead
but what is happening now "

dhyanam
MEDIATION
Part 38

Future seem to hold the key to liberation for the all of humanity. The mad rush to know what lies ahead, has put the machinery of this world on the top most gear, busy predicting and prophesying all the time. Astrological predictions, meditative insights, prophetic visions are all considered as high quality spiritual stuff.

Disciple : Why everyone is keen about the future,
Even I seem to be more curious to know my future ?
Master : One main reason is that most of them don't
find the present moment as something great !
Disciple : So whats the point sticking on to the present,
when it has nothing great to offer to me now ?
Master : True. But the catch is when your mind is tuned
to seek the future, it would continue to seek the future
even when the good times arrived at your doorstep !

Mind always is habitual. It gets in to habitual patterns always. Longer the period, greater the habit is. When it is habituated to expect good times ahead, hope for a better future always, then it forgets to recognize the good times and better future, when they actually come knocking at the door some day.

Disciple : How does one miss a
good time from recognizing ?
Master : Just like now. You are
failing to recognize your good
times just this moment, despite
the fact they are plenty !
Disciple : Plenty ? You are kidding.
I don't see any good times here !
Master : If you fail to see now,
take my word, you will never see
them even in the future times,
as you plan to capture them some day !
Disciple : Gosh ! this one sounds scary !
But there is lot of bad elements mixed
in the present moment and perhaps
that's why I fail to see the good elements ?
Master : True, it would be the same always, the
good and bad always will be mixed up !

The good and bad times are always mixed up inseparably. If the mind is negatively poised then all the bad times are always highlighted. However tragic, your mind if positively tuned, will see goodness in that situation. If it is tuned to hope and expect that good times are yet to come and see presently only bad things, then most likely it would continue to see the baddies when the prospective future finally arrived.

Disciple : So meditation is to tune
the mind to see good things always ?
Master : Never ! Not that way !
Disciple : So what exactly is meditation
used for in the present context ?
Master : To rise above the good and the
bad experiences rattling you all the time !

True meditation in the advaita tradition is meant to get you out of all possible habitual hopes and expectations of an unborn happy future time yet to come. It is meant to get your mind freed from the habitual thinking and bring it intact to where it is supposed to be.

Disciple : Ok. then what happens
if the mind gets back to the present ?
Master : Meditation happens without effort.
Besides, your mind gets liberated from
the arresting hopes and expectations.
That would mean mind moves from emotions
to awareness and that's what precisely
the meditation is meant for !
Disciple : May I know what
is this awareness about ?
Master : Just about everything your eyes
could see, ears can hear, nose can smell
and skin can feel, tongue can taste !
Disciple : Sensing the moment fully?
Master : yes. But the most important
than that is the awareness of your
your own thinking presently !
Disciple : Can that be
called as total awareness ?
Master : Not until the awareness
happened about your own hidden self !

2008-05-24T20:49:00.004+05:30

" meditation does not prolong your life

or terminate those deadly diseases "

d h y a n a m

M E D I T A T I O N

Part - 37

Human life is the most precarious and highly susceptible and vulnerable of the entire creation. Man can catch cold if he did not cover his head, he may have his teeth decayed, if he did not brush his teeth every time he ate something, he has to always wrap himself in some kind of clothes, wear goggles in sun, carry umbrella or a trench coat if it rains, has to live in a house locked up from inside, may not go for a morning walk if his car had flat tyres, always protect himself from his own environment. But unfortunately, disease and death can still sneak in and can steal his life away.

Disciple : But spirituality and meditation come to rescue is
the popular thought. I know you are going to refute that !
Master : May be I'm not part of the popular belief system !
but what rescues from what ? You never mentioned that ?
Disciple : Meditation rescue or at least delay the process
of illness or death. This is a popular belief. I was even told that
the body of a dead one does not decay because the diseased
had meditated deeply all his life ?
Master : It is just sheer attachment with the idea of an
immortal body, that one resort to claim such silly things !
Disciple : But it happened to a great master in the past ?
Master : Unfortunately the master never lived to claim that
but everyone around did so to suit their own fancy !

Meditation is done in order to tune up to the natural living and natural dieing. But somehow it has been promoted to be understood differently. Stretching life span(at least by a week or so), body may smell like sandal wood despite the death, direct access to land of the gods, reading every one's mind around the world, while sitting on the pee pot, travel to any place without immigration hassles and tickets at will are some of the benefits many people think meditation can bestow. While such sweep staking promises can bring more people towards meditation, it can also rob the seeker of his natural right to realize his self as a result of all these confusing notions.

Disciple : So there is no physical or
tangible benefits of meditation at all?
Master : If there is any tangible benefit,
it is only an offshoot of meditation and
cannot be the primary benefit!
Disciple : The longevity is
not decided by meditation ?
Master : What does that really mean ?
Disciple : The spiritual masters
lived longer due to meditation?
Master : Self realized masters
never craved to live longer !
Disciple : Does it mean that
they wanted to die early ?
Master : They never planned
to stretch or shorten their
lives with the help of meditation
but only realize their true self !

The main purpose of eating food is only to satiate hunger. But over a period of time, we may forget that fact and start attribute eating to various other reasons like healthy living, losing weight, or to add weight, to try something new, for the sake of the taste buds, because its aromatic, because its a famous dish etc. Its true that eating has all those hidden reasons. But primarily it is meant for fulfilling the hunger only. Meditation too is meant primarily for the purpose of self realization but over a period of time we have lost the sight of it and shifted the priorities.

Disciple : But whatever we eat, for any reason, still
the hunger gets satiated automatically. So is meditation?
Master : Unfortunately not. Meditation for peace of mind
or stress relief, healing illness, sharpening memory etc
may never find you fulfilled with yourself.
Disciple : So what is meditation exactly meant for ?
Master : To know your true hidden nature regardless of
your healthy or unhealthy living. It does not matter
whether you are rich or poor, famous or infamous,
big or small, tax payer or tax evader, It is just
meant for enabling you to experience the unknown
hidden inside you deeply as whatever you are !
Disciple : What happens if I know this hidden self ?
Master : Life will come to a complete circle !
Disciple : Is that what I seek or want ?
Master : Yes. But you look for it everywhere else !
Disciple : If that happened then I don't need
anything else? Will I become rich or bankrupt ?
Master : We may have to wait and see !

2008-05-21T01:47:00.008+05:30

" meditation makes you to neither progress nor regress

but only captures the 'real you' in that moment totally "

d h y a n a m

M E D I T A T I O N

Part - 36

Meditation in the strictest advaitic sense will not drive you to become famous or successful and it may not even make you a pauper and carry the begging bowl from one village to another. Success and failure are just the ambitious mind's play. Self awareness has nothing to do with any of them. When you grew in self awareness, as you spend more time tuning up to your meditation, you will realize the play of your own mind more clearly.

Disciple : So meditation does not make me successful ?

Master : Meditation does not make you successful !

Disciple : Then perhaps a failure or a drop out ?

Master : Your dropping in and out is totally

independent of your meditation in life ! Do not

mix up meditation with success and failure !

Disciple : Then why I should Meditate ?

Master : To be aware of your inner self which is

a way beyond both your success and failure !

Disciple : Will my life get any better if

I become aware of my inner self ?

Master : If you become aware of your inner self
then you would not be bothered about your life
getting better or worse than what it is now !

Meditation does not make you rich and progressive and at the same time, it does not stop you from becoming one. All rich and progressive people need not have done any meditation. The dumb and the downtrodden need not have practiced meditation to reach wherever they are. It is incredibly an weird idea to consider yourself, the millionaire on the making, just because you know how to meditate 'productively'.

Disciple : So meditation does not help my financial status
grow or rising on the social rungs to be some special one ?
Master : You may twist the same question in any manner
but the answer is the same. Meditation is not meant for that !
Disciple : But I hear of people teaching abundance through
meditation ? They give techniques to hit the jackpot !
Master : Perhaps they can become wealthy and progressive
as they teach you such techniques of abundance !

Its kind of a spiritual comedy, staged by the few 'abundance' experts for a quick and easy buck, dishing out some 'powerful' meditation techniques out of ignorance. Meditation efforts initially can bring about certain focus in life, which may help you to do your work with a bit more involvement. But no one can conclusively claim or guarantee for wealth and abundance.

Disciple : But I was taught somewhere that If I entertain
thoughts of wealth in my mind during meditation, then it
would happen in real life too ?
Master : May be so. I have never tried that. But whatever
wealth means, still meditation is not meant for that purpose !
In fact because you entertain the thoughts of wealth during
meditation, that you may create a big block and do not
allow meditation to happen to you in a simpler manner
and as a result the wealth may also get prevented from
coming to you !

A mind without any agenda alone can allow meditation to happen more easily. The worst of all the agendas is to get rich quick or trying to protect what is already there. Both ways, the mind is only planning and not meditating. You cannot meditate because of anything. There is no cause involved in the real advaitic meditation. There is no purpose derived from the authentic meditation. You cant wait for some result in such real time meditation.

Disciple : All this sounds unbelievably impossible !
Master : True. Its next to impossible to sit quiet
without an agenda or a purpose or without a
result, unplanned and devoid of any strategies !
Disciple : What happens If I managed to sit like
the way you describe meditation to me now ?
Master : To sit like that even a for a passing moment
can be such an impossible task. But if you really
managed to sit, then you may not even bother to
question the happenings in your life !

The day when your total silence on the seat of meditation happened is the day of real abundance for you. The day when you can enter meditation without any agenda, you have already started knocking on the doors of abundance. Only hitch is that you would not be bothered to enjoy such an abundance. But it is meant for all others to enjoy. You may not hand out or supply abundance of bliss or fulfillment through a pipeline, but the world knows how to draw it from you.

2008-05-19T21:30:00.008+05:30

" all the visions that you see during

meditation are made in your own

production company called mind "

d h y a n a m

M E D I T A T I O N

Part - 35

Sometimes it gives a enormous high to have some grand visuals, without moving an inch from where you are, all in the name of meditation. Visually inclined seekers who think that some day they will have private audience or at least a brief face off with god, tend to see many 'things' during meditation within their closed eyes. Its a game of cat and mouse for such seekers, who think someday they will capture the good lord, red handed in his hideout.

Disciple : I was under the impression that

these visuals are indicators of something ?

Master : Yes it indicates that your mind is

capable of streaming imaginations and fantasies !

Disciple : So whatever I may see during my

meditation as visuals are just my imagination?

Master : Yes its all an in house production

running on your own mind screen !

The sub-conscious mind linked to your memory can procure zillions of visuals from within. They are being flashed all the time on your mind screen, but you get to see them more clearly during the meditation. When they get really flashed on your mind screen, either you call it a plain disturbance or the sacred vision, depending upon the nature of the visuals.

Disciple : Even visuals of gods and

holy places are just my own making?

Master : Without the slightest doubt,

you created those gods in your mind!

Disciple : Is it wrong to have such visuals

created in the mind during meditation?

Master : The right and wrong is applicable

only in your dealings with the world !

Disciple : Oops. Then how do I describe

these visuals spiritually speaking?

Master : In spiritual terms, they must

be known plainly as false. Because when

it comes to spirituality, you can consider

only the TRUTH AND FALSENESS of life !

The remarkable change in your perception of life happens, when you get spiritually inclined in the form of seeing life around you with only one division, namely true or false. All the good and bad, right and wrong, big and small, rich and poor, man and woman differences may not hold your attention so much anymore, even though they may continue to exist on the surface.

Disciple : It appears to be the indicator

whether I have become spiritual in my

perceptions about life too ?

Master : Quite rightly said. The best way

to test your worldly or spiritual stand is

to see how you divide this world in your

perspectives and discrimination !

Disciple : Now how do I relate this new

understanding to my meditation ?

Master : Learn to discriminate the visions

you get during meditations as True or

False than as holy or unholy, calming

or calamitous, disturbance or divinity !

The streaming visuals and flashing images have nothing to do with the hidden consciouness, but only a handiwork of the mind. At the most the kind of visuals you get during meditation can best desctibe the status of your mind at that particular time. If you have a tired and stressed mind, you may get certain disturbing visuals (includes various colors and patterns) and if you are fresh and had slept well before the meditation, then the quality of the visuals can have a telling difference. But sacred and sacrilegious, all visuals are uncompromisingly false.

Disciple : But how do I stop these visuals from appearing ?

Master : You need not stop, since you never started them !

Disciple : Some visuals are stareted by me, it appears attimes ?

Master : You think that way. But no visual can be started by you !

Disciple : If i can neither start nor stop, then what do I do ?

Master : First allow them to happen as they happen, next

stop glorifying them as godsent, then just ignore them as

totally false and finally learn to look beyond those visuals !

The panaromic visuals that appear on your mind screen need not be blamed as bad or a blunder, but to be understood as the outcome of an active mind. The mind is so creative, that it keeps throwing up these visuals at all times, with the help of the data it has gathered, through all your senses in this grandstage called world.

Disciple : But I have heard from you many times

that there is no such a division called truth and false ?

Master : Yes, that is only when you have known the truth.

Till such time, the differences indeed exist to the seeker !

2008-05-15T04:05:00.000+05:30

" the thoughts rise from consciousness
and they contain no trouble themselves,
till you claim them as exclusively yours "

d h y a n a m
M E D I T A T I O N
Part - 34

Every bit of creation has some relevance to life in general and has been created naturally. The thoughts inside the head too have a great relevance to human beings, because they have played a crucial role in the way man lives today. Everything that you use from the time you wake up, such as the tooth brush and tooth paste, the towel, shower panel, soap, brush, your clothes, the TV, the chair, the cup and the coffee in it, your car, the road, city, parks, malls and movie house, everything is a result of thoughts only.

Disciple : You said they are all created

naturally ? I thought these were man's

creation and hence they are artificial ?

Master : There is nothing which is

unnatural or artificial in this creation !

Disciple : Can we safely call that what

ever created by man is artificial ?

Master : But is man artificial or natural ?

Disciple : He is part of the nature indeed !

Master : If he is natural, then how come

what he creates become unnatural or artificial ?

The thoughts occurring in the mind are as natural as the heat of the midday sun. Its all the time happening. But you become aware of the presence of thoughts more clearly during the meditation. Just like your heightened awareness about the high noon sun, when you step out of the home. It does not mean that sun light or heat did not exist, till you stepped out. Because you are aware of the thoughts during the meditation, it does not mean that thoughts come only at that time.

Disciple : So it is unnecessary fuss about the thoughts?

Master : In a way, it is just a unwanted fuss !

Disciple : So what exactly is the problem with the thoughts then ?
Master : Thoughts have no problem, but when you claim them

as yours, that very moment problem starts !

The thoughts rise without your want or need, all the time. They give shape to man's life in numerous ways as he grows up. But somewhere along the line, man starts to identify with the thoughts, as his own and he can become a defined ego with a limited perception.

Disciple : Why does this man do this ? Is it by design or by choice?
Master : By design only. There is no choice in this !
Disciple : How does identifying with the thoughts happen ?
Master : The familarity only. You are so familar to your body
and mind. So you tend to make that mistake some day !
Disciple : Whats the mistake exactly ?
Master : Instead of 'having' a body and mind, you become
the body and mind yourself. Whatever happens to the body
and mind, you think its happening to you exclusively !

The mistake is twofold.
1. Thinking that you are only the body and mind
2. Being ignorant about the hidden consciousness

Disciple : Does it mean that Im not the body and mind ?
Master : Yes you are the body and mind !
Disciple : Whats the problem in this ?
Master : The problem is you have ignored to

identify the hidden consciousness as you !

Meditation is precisely the process, where you come to know, that you are not just the body and mind which you could experience at any time, but you also come face to face with the hidden consciousness as your own self. Thats probably the peak of meditation. The peak can be reached in no time or would take a life time, depending upon the seeker's ability to understand, the subtleties of meditation and apply them during meditation diligently.

2008-05-12T15:58:00.007+05:30

" if mind is empty, then it cannot be called as mind "

d h y a n a m

M E D I T A T I O N

Part - 33

Mind is always the hot topic of attention and discussion in any spiritual circuit, mainly for its influences exercised in human life. The rest of creation is not influenced by a mind, because they don't possess a potent mind such as the human being. Krishna of the immortal spiritual literature Bhagavad Gita suggest in a candid manner, " Mind is your friend that lifts you up and mind is your enemy that puts you down too " . Mind seem to be under constant threat, either way, you make it or break it. That makes the need to empty or get rid of the mind seem very convincing.

Disciple : Do you say that only human
beings can suffer in this entire creation ?
Master : Also only human beings can enjoy,
can get hurried or worried or married too !
Disciple : So it is the thoughts that humans
carry, makes them different from the rest of
species on earth ? Perhaps something unique?
Master : Precisely. The thinking faculty of man
makes him stand out from the rest of creation !
Disciple : Why the thinking is only meant for
human beings? What is the reason behind it?
Master : There is no any reason. He was just
born that way ! As how the birds are born
with wings, man is also is born with thoughts !
Disciple : Birds have wings for the purpose of flying !
Master : Is it ? Then man has the thoughts to think !

All species on earth are born with varied characteristics unique to themselves. When it comes to survival in the water, or in air, man is far inferior to the fish and the bird. He may fly in an aircraft designed and built by him, 40 thousand feet and above in the space, on a daily basis, but he cant grow his own wings and perch atop a tree. That somehow makes him an inferior creature. he cant even run as fast as the automobile, created by himself.

Disciple : Do I miss anything here?
Master : In case you thought, that
mankind is superior than the rest
then you can be quite wrong !
Disciple : OK ! You are saying that
mankind is not something very special !
Master : Neither special nor ordinary !
Just one more of the creation !

The faculty man is blessed with can also turn out to be the curse at times. The mind should be ideally conjure up some magical living to mankind, but several times, it drives mankind insane and letting men loose on each other, fighting wars with big toys that can wipe out this earth of all its life, many times over and over again. If he cant wipe this earth, he would make sure to wipe out all the harmony and happiness within the four walls of his living room or the bedroom, with his own family !

Disciple : But what is the connection
between empty mind and fighting wars?
Master : Man thinks by emptying his
head, he can find lasting peace !
Disciple : OK ! So this emptying
idea stems from this fact that life
gets on to his nerves at times ?
Master : Exactly, he thinks it is not
just idle mind that's a devil's workshop,
but now he thinks even a functional mind
is a breeding ground for disharmony and

the conflicts, hence the empty mind
appear holier and more appropriate !

2008-05-12T10:51:00.008+05:30

" Meditation is not emptying
the thoughts, but using the same
thoughts to know their source "

dhyanam
M E D I T A T I O N
Part - 32

Man's ignorance is beginning less. He has been ignorant about many things since time unknown. One such major display of his ignorance, comes in the form of attempting to empty the mind, especially when he gets spiritual in life, especially when he began to meditate. Little does he know that the mind is never empty or never can be emptied. It has layers and layers of thoughts in the form of memory. These thoughts would spring up non stop, every time there is an emotion, a feeling, or a sensory perception occurred to you.

Disciple : Even emotions and feeling are thoughts ?
Master : Sorrowful thoughts make you emote sorrowful
and happy thoughts make you feel and emote happiness !
Disciple : So If I forcibly entertain happy thoughts,
I can get happiness forever ?
Master : Yes, for sometime. Later you may get
lot of stress and tiredness in life for forcing it !
Disciple : so there is no way to remain happy forever ?
Master : You cannot be happy or sorrowful always !
Disciple : I have to experience both of them
even after my regular meditation ?
Master : Who knows, you may get over with both of them !

Forcing happy or sad thoughts are as difficult as emptying the mind and make it thought free. It is somewhat like trying to empty the breath from your body. Its like chasing all the animals away and still call it a zoo. For someone who gets busy with this immature idea of emptying the head through meditation, spirituality can spell differently as disaster.

Disciple : Why such an idea of emptying come ?
Master : Probably the misreading of the belief
that consciousness is like emptiness !
Disciple : But is consciousness(atman, inner self)
really empty as many describe it to be ?
Master : Consciousness is empty of all that you
already know and already have experienced,
but certainly it contains the very seed of the
whole creation, it contains the blue print of
this entire universe !

Truth (undivided self, consciousness, atman, god) is not an emptiness, understood usually by a mind harrowed by the onslaught of worldly experiences. The thoughts are here to stay, till the last gush of breath slipped out of the body. In fact Upanishads say, that the thoughts then bundle up in the most subtlest form and get ready to find another body for a fresh new life to express.

Disciple : How can the pure consciousness be experienced
without emptying the thoughts from the mind ?
Master : If you can empty the right thing, then you can
experience the pure consciousness quite spontaneously !
Disciple : May I know what is the right thing to empty?
Master : The coat that every thought wear called ' I '
tailored and stitched by 'you' needs to be emptied !
Disciple : OK. You mean every thought has a sense
of ' I ' created by me, which should be emptied ?
Master : Then whatever thought remains free from
the ' I ' coat is called as pure consciousness !

Every thought inside you is wrapped by a sense "my thought' by you. That's why when the thoughts of sorrow comes, you claim "I am sorrowful". You also " I am Happy " and "I am excited " according to the need of the hour. Your identification with each thought as 'mine' has caused this layer of you wrapped around every thought, which spring from inside. When the ' I wrappers' fall off, the pure consciousness will shine bright in every thought that might arise in you.

Disciple : So should I stop
trying to empty the mind?
Master : Because even to
empty the mind is just
a thought only !
Disciple : But sometimes
I feel I'm empty and blank
inside, how is that ?
Master : Its just a thought which
says that its empty !