WELCOME TO THE JANMASHTAMI ISSUE OF E-SANAI

by Sri Sandip Dasgupta

I am delighted to report that by His Grace, the North American volunteers of Saccidananda Society organized a wonderful evening of His revealed bhajans at the LePetit Trianon in San Jose, California, on May 29, 2011. The function was attended by close to 110 individuals which included local devotees and seekers, as well as followers from New Jersey, Colorado, Canada, and Luxembourg. In this editorial, I will try to briefly describe that joyous evening.

As the attendees entered the venue, they were greeted by a life-size picture of Sri Sri Babathakur blessing everybody with both His hands. A beautiful Rangoli of fresh flowers had been offered at His lotus feet by Ms. Aditi Mukhopadhyay. At the registration booth, attendees were handed a folder of Saccidananda Society containing a CD entitled “Voice Divine” that included selected quotes of Sri Sri Babathakur. Each attendee was also given a specially prepared brochure containing a short introduction to Sri Sri Babathakur, Saccidananda Society, a list of publications and the meaning of the emblem of the Society. The brochure also contained translations of the bhajans that were to be presented later that evening. Several attendees browsed through the publications and the CDs of Saccidananda Society – some also chose to purchase a personal copy for themselves. The stage had been beautifully decorated by Mr. Tapan Kundu who enlarged a photograph of our Master (approx. 4ftx5ft in size) and got it printed on canvas. The elegant floral decorations for the stage were also done by him. (see picture below).

The program began with Mr. Partha Guha giving an inspiring speech on the All-Divine Master Sri Sri Babathakur, His unconventional teachings, and His ‘missionless mission’. He introduced the theme of our program, ‘I-Reality,’ and explained the original nature of the revealed bhajans, stressing the fact that these were not composed bhajans but had rather been revealed to Sadguru Sri Sri Babathakur at different times, mainly after prolonged samadhis (a state of deep trance). Mr. Guha concluded his speech by introducing the artists -- Ms. Shaoni Mitra, an accomplished singer from Kolkata, India, accompanied by the equally well-known Mr. Debashis Ghosh on harmonium, Mr. Pritimoy Goswami on tabla and Mr. Tapas Rajderkar on the Manjira.

Ms. Shaoni Mitra began by paying homage to our Sadguru through an excellent rendering of the bhajan --- ‘prem se bhaja mana sri guru charana .…’. Ms. Swapna Banerjee, who had the good fortune of being in contact with the Master for a very long time, came on stage next to introduce the DVD of Sadguru Sri Sri Babathakur . The DVD was subtitled in English, enabling the audience to follow Him easily.

The video captured our Sadguru singing one of His revealed bhajans – ‘vishudha cid ekarupam sadasat vilakshanam ….’ followed by a speech explaining the meaning of the bhajan in English along with the description of the True Nature of the Self. One of the most poignant moments of the presentation was our Master asking, ‘I accept all of you as my Self, can you accept me as your Self?’ Further expanding on the True Nature of ‘I-Reality’ and the ‘Science of Oneness’, He emphasized that ‘the I is all positive and all negative’ and that the ‘universe is a passing show’. The DVD ended with the Master singing another revealed bhajan --- ‘bhulo na mon, bhulo na mon ….’ (Do not forget, O mind … forget not your very own Self I-Reality ….).

The video presentation was followed by a brief note from Soubhik Patranabis, an old devotee of the Master, speaking of his experiences with the Master and pointing out His philosophy of ‘many in many, many in One, One in many and One in One’, which summed up the idea of the ‘Science of Oneness’ as revealed to and explained by Prajnanpurush Sri Sri Babathakur. Soubhik then introduced the next two bhajans to be sung by Shaoni Mitra and the DVD presentation of Mr. Kedar Bodas, singing the bhajan --- ‘nahi hoon main jiva kabhi ‘(This body is not the Real I). Mr. Kedar Bodas, a veteran classical singer and the son of the eminent musician Mr. Narayan Bodas, had learnt the bhajans under the direct tutelage of the Master and has single-handedly rendered most of Sri Sri Babathakur’s revealed bhajans. Unfortunately, he was unable to attend the program because of visa-related issues.

Shaoni Mitra rendered two more bhajans -- ‘anande bhaja mana’ and ‘giridharilal mere madan mohan’ each of which was preceded by the translations read out by Swapna Banerjee. Soubhik Patranabis further introduced the last video of Sri Sri Babathakur’s discourse on I-Reality emphasizing that everything we experience in our everyday life is only possible because of the eternal presence of the Real I. Without the existence of our very Being (our True Nature), we cannot have any experience. He strongly reminded us that we are not the slaves of our mind. We have to rise above it and discover our True Nature within us which is always with us even if we are not aware of It.

Finally, Mr. P.C. Lahiri, an ardent follower of Sri Sri Babathakur, recited the ‘Song of I-Reality’ that reveals the True Nature of our Real Self; how and why have we forgotten our ever-pure, ever-free, ever-fulfilled and ever-blissful True Nature which is, was, and shall always be Sat-Cit-Ananda (Saccidananda); how can we regain this lost paradise to be completely free from the ignorant, mischievous, and painful game of our mind, intellect, and ego (inner being).

The program concluded with the recitation of the purna mantra by Sri Subbu Venkatakrishnan. As per Sri Sri Babathakur’s instructions, Prasad was served to all attendees. The success of the program left all attendees filled with a deep sense of bliss and fulfillment. The thirty odd volunteers felt blessed to have received an opportunity to organize such a unique event.

We (the volunteers of Saccidananda Society) surrendered completely to Him, and He ensured the success of the program. The attendees continue to provide positive feedback on the content and the quality of the program. The volunteers of the North American Chapter sincerely hope to continue with this effort and opportunity to share Sri Sri Babathakur’s message with an eager and wider audience.

Om Tat Sat!

Saccidananda! Saccidananda! Saccidananda!

Déjà vu

by Sri Ramen Basu

The title is French and means ‘already seen’. Quite a few times in this span of life, I have come across faces and places that appear to be uncannily familiar. I experience vibrations that produce a feeling of having seen that/been there before. Magical, that is.

Esoterically it is said that we are all connected to each other in one form or other since there is an affinity of souls. One I–Reality manifests as many and vice versa. To elucidate the point - there is One in many, and many in One. We are all units of consciousness personified and well connected to the collective soul, which is a part of Saccidananda Absolute, the Undivided Whole. This manifestation of Consciousness (i.e. Shakti or energized Consciousness or Creatrix) , is Maya at the outer gross plane, Mahamaya at the inner plane of consciousness, and the inherent source of Energy (i.e. Yogamaya of the Self). In scientific parlance, creation falls under the ‘Big Bang’ theory. First there was matter, then the evolution of various species followed. The mother is ‘Matter’ and the father is the ‘Supreme Being’, Puroshottama. This is the principle of creation. As a unit of awareness, we play the same role - knowingly or not. The not-knowing trend is solely due to our unawareness.

Basically the cosmic mind creates through imagination. The individual mind being part of the Cosmic mind, is participative in similar imagination. The Cosmic mind has a ‘will to do’, ‘will to enjoy’ and ‘will to know’. As a part of the cosmic mind, the individual mind has a similar faculty although not as powerful as that of the Cosmic mind. The brain is mind in the gross form which maintains body functions through sense organs and vital forces. The subtle functions of the brain are psychological - namely emotional and rational. Now-a-days, research on the functioning of the brain has discovered many things previously unknown. The mapping of brain surface contains information previously unheard of. Optic nerves induce image processing in the brain and storing of images in the memory cells (i.e. in the grey matters of the brain). A person’s recollects of something he sees, feels and enjoys is only possible due to mind’s consciousness. It’s as if a computer file along with its contents was recalled, and after enjoyment put back in the memory cells. No wonder pattern recognition is possible as we all experience déjà vu. With proper control of the brain, either by Yogic processes or through other scientific processes, man can ride a time machine or become a witness to his/her past lives through Hypnotic Therapy.

On any spiritual path deification is very common. It is beyond doubt that a personal form with attributes can be formed out of the impersonal form without attributes. So far so good! Trouble begins when one’s own imaginative icon clashes with the others. This iconic humdrum is owing to the spiritual ignorance of the unaware individual. In this connection, image formation and image processing technique is very helpful. Some love Krishna, some love Kali, some love Jesus… all these symbols are very healthy as far as faith, devotion and sincerity are concerned. Trouble comes when ‘my’ one is considered the only ONE and others are of a different kind.

Sri Sri Babathakur told us about I-Reality. This I-Reality is in you, in me, in every one. That is the background Consciousness of all. Various names and forms arise from there. On this I-Reality, superimpositions of 24 tattvas by the help of the Triple Gunas create enormous amounts of diversity that the I-Reality enjoys. So, do we understand (and pay attention) to the variations of the qualities that are due mostly to the Triple Gunas? The material elements are basically 5 in number, along with 5 organs of action and 5 organs of sense perceptions. Connected by 5 vital forces are five objects of sense perceptions and 4 aspects of inner sense-organ. The Purusha aspect of Jiva (man) has ‘Will to do’, ‘Will to be’ and ‘Will to know’ as they are parts of the “Sameside Sportful Game of Self-consciousness as the Divine will”, one of Sri Sri Babathakur’s dictums. This mind and memory, intellect and ego, the four inner organs, are manifested to feel the play on earth.

The idea of anything lies in one’s own innate desire in the mind. I-Reality is the Self Consciousness. Thus the playoff of the Real- I is sportful and sameside. One can rather easily quote that, but to live it requires help from the Sadguru who teaches us how to see the world. There lies the basic difference – no ‘my’-ness, only ‘I’-ness. There are three different states of our Being, namely:

1. Absolute Truth (Absolute Truth is transcendental)
2. Apparitional Truth (Apparitional Truth is the dream state/ meditative state)
3. Empirical Truth (Empirical Truth is the awaken state where the Relativity is the law)

Empirical Truth falls under material science - or rather under objective science. For this objective
science, I am the subject. Thus taking objectivity inward, to make all the objects in one’s own
consciousness self surrender, is possible. In this world of connectivity, it is statistically natural to
experience a similar kind of situation or to have the same kind of idea, which is often repeated just to tell us something. Déjà vu is quite common to a meditative soul, for the ideas imprinted at heart is often similar. Since space-time-event is stored in the brain cells, similar events at different space-time context can easily be pattern recognized. All we can say is: Deja vu

The illusory phenomenon repeats itself, making us more aware of the impermanence of the event along with its repetitive nature. By reason, we can penetrate the magic behind, but for an ordinary mind it is simply magic!

The Concept of Beauty in Hinduism

by Sri Ajit Halder

The adoration of Beauty involves an appreciation of both its subjective feeling and its objective features linked with real life illustrations. The opening paragraphs leading up to the discussion of the theme of this article are presented as an aid for the preparation of the reader to benefit from a deeper understanding of the Hindu view of Beauty. Additionally, it is hoped that these observations will help the reader’s perception of beauty inherent in human creative arts and in what Nature provides for our senses.

Beauty is God’s gift to humans – we believe that there is sacredness and serenity associated with beautiful objects. We note that the sound of the word ‘beauty’ is heard every time the sweet sounding word ‘beautiful’ is uttered. The expression ‘beautiful’ may refer to the adorable body features of a person or an object. We are always drawn to beautiful sights, feel attracted to the beauty of scenic landscapes and to the beautiful paintings hung in art galleries. We listen to the beautiful melody of music and never fail to appreciate the ‘beauty’ of human forms. We stand in admiration in front of Michael Angelo’s sculpture of the angelic figure of David. Hence the concept of beauty is intimately connected and inseparably linked to beautiful objects.

The phrase ‘Beauty is skin deep’ is taken as suggesting that beauty is merely what appears to the eye or something which gratifies the senses. But to people with a taste for arts and culture, beauty is something deeper than the ‘sensory’ or ‘sensual’. It is closer to the art’s vision of beauty. These people will explore beauty in layers deeper than the skin, somewhere beyond its colour, tenderness, smoothness, wrinkles or roughness - all of which belong to the surface. Beauty in context to art is more or less the vision of the mind of the beholder admiring an object of beauty and he(she) translates this into a form, or rather to a transform beyond the object’s physical appearance.

Keats wrote – ‘A thing of beauty is a joy forever; its loveliness increases; it will never pass into nothingness’. The famous saying: ‘Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder’ and similar other utterances about beauty are mentioned lavishly in literature. Quotes about beauty are not just about the physical beauty of the outer appearance of a person, but are also about the inner beauty of the human form or about the subject under observation. None of these quotations though ever seem to answer the question - what is beauty? No doubt it is difficult to answer this question as there is no one factor that defines beauty. While outer beauty and appearance is made up of factors like health, slim features, youth, symmetry of the face and skin complexion (and these are the very components that attract the eye and cause a pleasing sensation in the mind) - physical beauty is always enhanced by a measure of the inner beauty of a person.

Moreover, any answer to the question – ‘What is beauty?’ is a subjective answer making it impossible to come up with a precise definition of beauty that is universally appealing and acceptable. It is interesting to know that amongst the various cultures of the world, the perception of beauty has many similarities. All cultures appreciate the beauty of nature and admire the beauty of the female form. In short, Beauty delights universally, beyond barriers.

Love for the most beautiful human forms and of objects can be seen in Indian artistic renditions mainly pertaining to the physical body. In ancient India, the focus on the beauty of the female form can be seen in the sculptures of Bharhut and Sanchi. The hair and body of the female is richly adorned with jewellery. Along with the beauty of the human form, the beauty of nature is also found in intricate details in the foliage and landscape described in poetry and sculpted in stone.

In the Hindu context, Beauty comprises one of the triads of ideals - Satyam (Truth), Shivam (Shiva is the name of a major Hindu god), Sundaram (Beauty). In Hinduism, Beauty has been closely linked with Godliness (Shiva). The set of three ideals describes the feeling or experience of ananda or delight at seeing or experiencing a beautiful object. One important view about beauty is that to experience beauty is to come face to face with Sat (Eternally Existing God), Chit (Consciousness) and Ananda (Bliss). So Godliness and beauty are indissolubly linked with Sat or Truth eternal [Truth is Beauty, Beauty Truth’]. The underlying idea is that appreciating beauty fully is to experience Brahmananda, the joy of being one with the universal spirit. Hence there is a strong belief that what is beautiful does not only give us joy, but can also lead to our Moksha, liberation from the bondage of worldly life.

The fact that stands out from the description of beauty in Indian religious writing is that comparisons will invariably be made with Nature and her creations. The beauty of women has often been compared with moon; for most persons, the moon is only a celestial body in the sky. However with a poet, the moon is his beloved’s face radiating white moonlight, signifying purity and brilliance.

Indian scriptures and epics have dealt with the concept of beauty, and in particular with the beauty of women. The ideal of beauty in ancient India was a favourite theme amongst poets who seemed to write extensively on the different parts of the female anatomy as well as about the male body. One may refer to Kalidasa’s description of the gait of Parvati expecting a divine child in Kumarsambhavam Kavya. In these descriptions, beauty has been endowed with heavenly form as well as the form of human beings. However, Indian religious paintings or writings are not about carnal beauty as such, but endowed with a high degree of spirituality.

One typical illustration to support this view is the hymn, the Saundarya Lahari composed by Sankaracharya. The title of the hymn means ‘wave of beauty’ and the verses graphically describe the beauty of the goddess Tripurasundari. The hymn in vivid categorization depicts beautiful features of the entire body form of the Goddess. This hymn and other similar ones enable the chanter to enjoy spiritual delight being in a state of union with the divine. The experience brings home the truth that physical beauty is transitory whereas Saundarya, the divine Beauty, is eternal.

Lastly, Beauty in the Indian religious context is equated with ‘rasa’- emotion or poetic sentiment. Indian aesthetics defines nine rasas but the fundamental rasa is the appreciation of Beauty leading to Ananda (Bliss). Brahman is rasa, the ultimate essence of all life and being, and humans find themselves in that blissful existence by gaining the aesthetic experience of Beauty as elaborated in Hinduism. This also indicates that one can achieve liberation by gaining union with the Supreme Self (Brahman) through the experience of spiritual beauty.

Welcome to the Janamashtami edition of e-Sri Sanai for the year 2010.

By

Sri Sandip Dasgupta


In the previous issue, I had written about how I feel that Sri Sri Babathakur was
indeed Lord Krishna, especially as I listen intently to the discourses on Bhagavat
Gita given by Br. Prabodh Chaitanya of Chinmaya Mission, San Jose. Hence,
Janamashtami being the birthday of Sri Krishna is a very very special occasion for
all of us – and even more special is the fact that He gave us the chance of coming
in contact with Him and receive the Light of Knowledge from Him. What a pity
that we couldn’t absorb that light – but we can at least reflect on what His words.

So, on this auspicious occasion of Sri Krishna Janamshtami, let me
attempt to translate another one of Sri Sri Babathakur’s revealed bhajans. The
bhajan is called “Krishna Bhaja Mana…” and is in rendered in Bengali.

Get intoxicated in the Love of Lord Krishna and chant His name,
Love everybody dearly and serve them as if you are serving Lord Krishna
Himself.

With joy in your mind, repeatedly chant (Japa) Lord Krishna’s name,
Give up your ego (the individual I-Reality) and chant His name

Think of Lord Krishna as your very own and reflect on Him,
Surrender your individual I-Reality to Him.

Consider everybody around you to be Lord Krishna
You will then be able to see Lord Krishna everywhere – inside and outside

How beautiful! And this can again be summarized by His famous words:

“All Divine For All Time As It Is” – the essence of the Science of
Oneness – the Supreme Wisdom revealed to and unfolded by Sri Sri Babathakur

By His divine grace, I was able to attend an evening of bhajans revealed
to our Master, that was held at Toronto on Jun 25, 2010. As soon as I entered
the hall, I was greeted by a bigger than lifesize portrait of the Master. Sri Kedar
Bodas and Ms. Shaoni Mitra rendered these bhajans in a deeply devotional
manner. These bhajans portrayed the theme of I-Reality. Ms. Arupa Lahiry also
performed a couple of superb Bharat Natyam numbers, accompanied by the
bhajans. They were very well supported by Debasish Ghosh on the harmonium
and Pritimoy Goswami on the tabla. Sri Sri Babathakur had personally selected
the bhajans that were presented at this program. He had also personally taught
Ms. Lahiri the mudras to be presented at the dances! Mr. Prosenjit Lahiry
presented the “Song of I-Reality” in a very captivating manner.

The program was a huge success – thanks to the untiring efforts of Mr.
Partha Guha. The quality of the program and the grand success of the program
was possible only through the Divine grace of our Master. His presence could be
felt at every aspect – Mr. Guha’s energy and persistence, the quality of prosad
(particularly the hot samosas), excellent rendering of the bhajans by the artists etc.

Our Master was also instrumental in ensuring deep support from the members of
the trustee board of Saccidananda Society, Kolkata.

Attendees received a beautiful folder containing a picture of Sri Sri
Babathakur and a CD titled “Voice Divine”. This CD contains selected quotes
of Sri Sri Babathakur (which have been published in the booklet “Voice
Divine”), eloquently presented by Mr. Roshan Seth. Copies of this CD maybe
obtained from Mr. Partha Guha (1-416-432-1194). The whole event has been
professionally videotaped and a DVD is expected to be available for distribution
by Dec 2010.

The programs in Canada were preceded by three Satsang sessions held in
California. Although we had budgeted for about 1.5 hours for each of the sessions
– each session ran for at least 3 hours as the audience listened attentively to Mr.
Prosenjit Lahiri speaking spontaneously about our Master Sri Sri Babathakur.
He also read aloud from Sri Sri Babathakur’s book “Science of Oneness” –
there were instant requests for some copies of these books. Unfortunately these
books are now out of print, but we were able to procure five copies to meet the
immediate demands of the audience. So, successful were these sessions that
there were repeated requests to hold these sessions on a regular basis. A second
year student of University of California, Berkeley (who was hearing about Sri
Sri Babathakur for the first time, because his mother had dragged him along),
offered to hold a session with the youth the next time Mr. Lahiri would come
to California. Again the success of these sessions could only be possible by His
grace and we could constantly feel His presence the entire time of these events.

LIFE OF A GREAT REALIZER

By
Sri Subbu Venkatakrishnan

In the modern history of India, Bhagavan Ramana Maharishi is recognized as one of the greatest spiritual masters who inspired and continues to inspire millions of seekers all over the world. His teachings are very simple, yet profound. When a student goes to a master, the teacher gives Upadesa. Depending on the preparedness of the student, a different Upadesa is given. The teachings of Bhagavan are summarized in a text called Upadesa Saram. Upadesa Saram literally means the essence of all Upadesa or spiritual advice.

It is common practice that whenever we study any scriptural text, we not only study the
text but also try to understand the author. For example, when we study the Bhagavad
Gita, we also learn about Bhagavan Shri Krishna. In this way we come to know that His
life embodied His teachings in its entirety. Just as we come to understand the author
through his teachings, knowing about the life of the author helps us comprehend his
teachings.

Bhagavan was born on Dec 30, 1879 in a town called Tiruchuzhi in the Ramnad district
of Tamil Nadu. It was the auspicious day of Ardra Darsanam, a festival day for Lord
Shiva. He was born to Alagamma and Sri Sundaram Ayyar, a lawyer by profession.
He was given the name Venkataraman. He was an ordinary child who enjoyed good
health. One aspect that is noteworthy is that He used to sleep like a log totally oblivious
to everything around Him. I am sure many of us can relate to this. But His sleep was so
deep that his friends would play some mischief like moving Him physically to another
location without waking Him up. Some people believe that He was in samadhi during
these times.

Having lost his father at a young age, Venkataraman and His older brother moved to
Madurai to stay with their uncle. Madurai, as we all know, is the city of the famous
Meenakshi temple. His life was spent in studies till age sixteen. Other than the fact
that He displayed an excellent memory, there was nothing extraordinary about His
scholastic abilities. He had the opportunity to read Sekkizhar’s Periyapuranam-----a
devotional treatise describing the lives of several Shaivite Saints. The extraordinary
devotion of these saints touched Him very deeply. Some of these saints had composed
hymns to Sri Arunachala, considered to be an embodiment of Lord Shiva. The name
Arunachala evoked great reverence in young Venkataraman. In 1895, a relative visited
them and when asked where he was coming from, he replied, ‘Arunachala’. The name
brought a thrill to Venkataraman. Until then, he had not known that there was actually
a place called Arunachala. So, he asked, ‘Where is it?’ The relative was surprised at his
ignorance and replied, ‘What! Don’t you know Tiruvannamalai? That is Arunachala’.
Unwittingly, this had left a deep impression in the child with a desire to visit Arunachala.

Arunachala is considered to be the Kailasa of the South. The whole mountain is looked
upon as the form of Lord Shiva. In the evening of the full moon day of the month
of Kartika, a great lamp is lit on the highest peak of the mountain, and thousands of
devotees visit it that day to perform Giripradakshina. Venkataraman looked upon
Arunachala as the divine Father.

Once Venkataraman was sitting in a room on the first floor of His uncle’s house.
Although there was nothing wrong with His health, a sudden violent fear of death
overtook Him. There was no reason for such a fear to occur nor did Venkataraman try
to find any reason for it. He just felt, ‘I am going to die.’ The shock of the fear of death
drove His mind inward and He, as though said to Himself mentally, without actually
framing the words, ‘Now death has come. What does it mean? What is it that is dying?
The body dies.’ He dramatized the experience of death. He imitated a corpse. He lay
there with his limbs stretched out stiff, held his breath and shut his lips tight so that no
sound could emerge. He then said to Himself, ‘Now this body is dead. It will be carried
still to the cemetery, burnt there and reduced to ashes. But am I dead with the death of
the body? Is the body “I”? The body is motionless and inert but I feel the full force of
my existence. I feel the voice of “I” within me, apart from the body. So I am the Spirit
distinct from the body. The body dies but the Spirit that transcends it cannot be touched
by death. That means that I am the deathless Spirit.”

Bhagavan Himself described this experience later on and added, ‘All this was not dull
thought; it flashed through me vividly as living truth which I received directly without
any thought-process.’ From that moment onwards, the “I” became the focus of attention
in Venkataraman’s life. The fear of death vanished once and for all. For him the past or
the future did not carry much meaning. Everything was in the ‘NOW’.

For a few weeks after this experience, he remained with His family, leading outwardly
the life of a schoolboy although all other values had lost meaning for Him. He no longer
cared what he ate, accepting with like indifference whatever was offered. Now He started
regularly visiting the Meenakshi temple and praying before the Lord, with tears in His
eyes, to grant Him unswerving devotion. As far as possible, Venkataraman conformed
to the norms of the life-style of a school-going boy, but His elders saw in Him a lack of
interest in studies and other household activities. The reprimands from the elders did not
change him. Venkataraman’s indifference and the elders’ resentment reached a climax on
August 29, 1896. Venkataraman was writing an imposition from English grammar and
the work was disgusting to Him. He bundled up the book and tossed it across the room,
closed His eyes and started meditating. The elder brother who was in the same room
watched Him in silence for a while and then broke out with a rebuke, ‘What business
does a fellow have here when He behaves like this?’ The rebuke struck home. ‘True’,
thought Venkataraman. ‘I have no business here. I will leave home, relations and
everything for good.’

What He remembered then was Arunachala. He made up his mind to go away to
Tiruvannamalai. He took three rupees out of the money given to Him to pay his brother’s
school fees and took a train northward, leaving behind a note which ran as follows: ‘I
am going to seek my Father by His command. As the purpose is meritorious, no sorrow
need be felt for the absence of this and no money need be wasted in searching for this.’
The note was unsigned. Venkataraman found His funds insufficient to cover the entire
journey. He alighted the train at a station in between, walked a distance of ten miles,
pledged the only ornament He wore, a pair of golden earrings, and again took a train
to Tiruvannamalai. As soon as He reached that place, He proceeded straight to the
temple of Arunachala, entered the sanctum and offered himself to the Lord with these

words, ‘Father, by Your command have I come here before You.’

He came out of the temple, got His head shaved, threw His clothes, remaining money and
His sacred thread in the holy pond outside the temple. He went to the thousand pillared
mandapam in the temple and started doing japa. Venkataraman reached Tiruvannamalai
on Sept 1, 1896, and from then, till the day of His maha samadhi, April 14, 1950, he
remained there for fifty-four years. He observed total silence for the first eleven years as
He moved from the temple to caves in Arunachala mountain, a mango grove, a saint’s
tomb etc. This young ascetic attracted the attention of devotees and sadhus alike. People
used to bring food for Him. During the years of silence, He came to be called by different
names, Bala sannyasi, Bala Yogi, Brahmana Swami etc.

There is an interesting incident that describes how this young swami broke His silence.
In 1907, the acclaimed poet-scholar, Ganapati Muni came to Sri Ramana for darshan.
He came running and prostrated at the feet of Sri Ramana, who was sitting alone outside
a cave. Ganapati Muni said in a choking voice, ‘I have read whatever there is to read.
I have done a lot of japa. But till today, I have not understood the real meaning of the
word tapas or spiritual practice. O Lord, I submit myself to your guidance.’ Sri Ramana
looked at the Muni for fifteen minutes and then broke the silence of eleven years with
these words: ‘Enquire into the very source from where the aham, the I-notion, arises. The
mind will abide there. That indeed is the real tapas.’ ‘While chanting the mantra if you
focus your attention on where the sound emerges from, the mind will get absorbed. That
is tapas.’

These proved to be the words of great blessing for the Muni. His doubts got resolved.
The Muni discovered that the original name of the Brahmana swami was Venkataraman.
He gathered everyone and said to them, ‘Brahmana swami is a seer. We shall call him
Ramana Maharishi from now on.’ Since then, Sri Ramana was known as Ramana
Maharishi.

After having lived in various caves etc., Maharishi finally moved to the foot of the hill.
His mother came to reside with Him. An ashram grew up around Maharishi. A number
of scholars used to come to Maharishi. Ganapati Muni was the most prominent of them.
Another was Sri Jagadishwara Sastri; a great scholar of Vedanta. He lived with Maharishi
for 25 years and gave discourses to people on the Upanishads etc. Maharishi would sit
and listen. He confirmed what was said in the scriptures. He also wrote a few original
Tamil poems in praise of Arunachala and other works. There are several works written
about Maharishi, like Day by day with Bhagavan, Talks with Ramana Maharishi etc.

Sri Ramana was a simple, free, person; He loved animals around, especially the cows of
the Ashram. He was engaged in all sorts of activities around the Ashram like cooking,
cutting vegetables, cleaning etc. It was easy for everybody to relate to Him; there was no
need for scholarship. He had a great sense of humor; it was always a joy to be with Him.

Generally He would sit in a hall in silence and talk very little. People would come and sit;
there wouldn’t be much talk. He used to instruct people through silence. ‘Summa iru’
(remain silent), He would say; or ‘Vanda Vazhiye Po’ (go back from where you came).

Other instructions were given depending on the preparedness of the student. Maharishi’s
teachings were very simple and based on His own experiences and understanding. He
mainly advocated two paths, one of self-enquiry and the other of surrender. May we seek
the blessings of the great Master.

Sri Sri Babathakur and Eternity

By

Sri Arun Kumar Ghosh

1

[August 2007]

‘You are in the eternity and THE ETERNITY IS IN YOU’. I heard the clear voice,
the misucal vibration of a human voice, very rhythmic and poetic. I am alone in this house,
located in Mahisila – a locality of Asansol – in Burdwan district of West Bengal. I have
occupied this house since September 2006, a sprawling house with three rooms, a meditation
space where I have kept the images of Tara Maa of Tarapathi, Devi Durga and Pawan
Nandan Hanumanji who is the great devotee of Lord Rama as per the epic Ramayana. In
addition, there is a picture of Radha and Krishna – a very lively image. I practise meditation
here. I maintain a small library in this house, with mostly books on the English literature.

Today I have returned from Kolkata; as I returned home from work and entered the house, I perceived an effulgent halo and developed an urge for meditation. No sooner had I sat down for mediation, that I heard a voice and my mind indescribably filled with joy as I perceived a divine presence! I saw the presence of a HUMAN FORM in white apparel – placid contours of a Rishi – as He smiled and said, “Today is My turn to give you company to this course. Yesterday, while in Kolkata, you read Dante’s ‘Paradiso’. But that’s an incomplete picture. I shall help you in experiencing the DIVINE JOURNEY to encounter directly the heart of HIRANYA GARBHA, out of
which came the CREATIVE REVELATION of SPACE and TIME.”

I did my obeisance, and the spirit of the house (with which I have gotten acquainted over the last several months - and that assumes the form of a bird) helped me in the process of meditation. He urged me to call him PAKHI (a very illuminating SUN-like effulgent being] and told me that the Mahatma is Sri Sri Baba Thakur.

Hearing His name I was overwhelmed, because I was merely acquainted with Him through my sister-in-law CHINUDI of New Delhi, who happened to visit Kolkata years back
just to see Baba Thakur. I had no specific opinion of Him and I never ever considered meeting Him. But it was quite puzzling for me, for His presence overwhelmed me with DIVINE AURA. My entire existence was steeped in ecstatic exuberance and Sri Sri Baba Thakur merely grinned at me in a divine manner.

“Presently our journey shall start. Before that let me tell you of our physical reality.
Just as Quantum Mechanics puts all elementary particles as either FERMIONS or BOSONS,
and this is very important in understanding physical systems such as lasers, metals and superconductors (electrons are fermions; photons are bosons), similarly, the direct
manifestation of divinity is Hirangarbha – which then assumes various forms – as you shall
see.”

He told me many more things which my understanding failed to grasp. Then He came
closer and merely touched me. I found myself in a great whirlpool, under tremendous speed which is beyond comprehension in the physical plane (and beyond word-power to describe). Sri Sri Babathakurstayed very close to me during the entire process. I saw millions of galaxies with varied planetary bodies in various resplendent colours and high illumination, heavenly bodies with incomprehensible dimensions. All along I heard various musical emanations which Sri Sri Babathakur urged me to specifically note. In that course, I came across various angelic forms mostly in dancing poses; however that encounter was so evanescent, I do not remember much of the experience. Then, we came to the boundary line of a certain limitless effulgent halo, and Sri Sri Babathakur compassionately smiled at me and said, NEXT IS THE ARENA of BRAHMALOK where you are not permitted. Now, we have to go back. The joy of this journey is unfathomable, diving to the core of ecstatic revelation or the sea of DIVINITY.

But while returning, Sri Sri Babathakur made me see the Zone of Dark Halo – the creative
fluxes or the ‘Anti-matter’ as He said. I then came across a vast reality of flowery domain
and hilly tracts, the speciality of which was the splashing of colours along with the divine
musical stains.

By the time I came to my senses out of meditation, the night was over and the silver
lines of the ecstatic dawn were visible, accompanied by the musical choir of the chirping birds.

2

[November 2007]

Chinudi’s son was getting married, and we had to go to Delhi. Accordingly, I applied for leave and one fine November morning, I along with my family reached Delhi. The marriage was to be solemnised the next day.

After lunch, Chinudi suddenly told me, "Arun, today Sri Sri Babathakur shall deliver a
lecture – would you like to come?" I was startled. ‘It must be the call from the Mahatma’ – I thought. However, I did not disclose my aforementoned experience to her.

In the evening, I accompanied, by my son Arijit went with Chinudi and her son Abhijit,
who happened to be a lecturer in England, to the venue where Sri Sri Babathakur was to deliver
this lecture. Sri Sri Babathakur came on time, and I was thrilled upon seeing the very same personality whom I had encountered in the meditation. Seeing me from the dais, He raised his hands and blessed me. For almost four hours He talked about the purpose of our life and the manifestation of DIVINE GRACE. Before leaving I went close to the dais and He showered me with the same graceful glances, very divine indeed, that I had the pleasure of experiencing in the course of meditation. And last of all, He gave a divine grin.

3

[October 2008]

While returning from Ladakh, we took rest in Delhi for a few days. Chinudi invited us
to the house of one of Sri Sri Babathakur's devotees where some bhajans were to take place.
We went around 11 am; the bhajan had already started. I sat near the door outside, where in
a narrow space lay a cot, below which I found an almost octogenary being in the garb of a
devout dog in trance. In no time, I had a vision of Sri Sri Babathakur, who told me that presently He was very close to me. I understood what He meant. I did my ‘pranam’ to the dog, and to my good luck, the dog responded gracefully. Later on I learnt from the lady of the house that the dog as per their estimation was a good soul.

It was remarkable - after the bhajans were over and the programme declared concluded, the dog left. Before leaving, he stared at me geacefully. I was overwhelmed by seeing DIVINE GRACE in his eyes. Automatically, from my lips came out the words, "JOY BABATHAKUR!"

4

[April 2010]

The Divine halo of Sri Sri Babathakur is a guiding force in life. The mundane cataclysm
disturbs our mind. When I am very much perturbed, I meditate and in no time the grace and
compassion of Sri Sri Babathakur fills my heart, my whole being. Now I understand the meaning
of what Sri Sri Babathakur told me during our first encounter – "you are the eternity …"

THOUGHTS ON QUOTATIONS

By

Smt Susmita Devi


One of the important joys of reading books is the inspiration one derives in the process. Reading books gives one lots of ideas about for example about survival problems, human mind work, nature, history and great people. Since my very childhood, I have been reading a wide variety of books - from child fantasies to biographies, travelogs etc. One of the last ones I read was called Family Wisdom by Robin Sharma. While reading it I found many sayings, which would be relevant for all of us. Some of the quotes could also relate to the teaching of Sadguru Sri Sri Babathakur, propounded as the 'Science of Oneness'.

The first one I got hooked on was: 'We were put on earth for one purpose and that is to make it a better place. We should therefore be contributing members of society. And if the earth as a result of our having been on it, is a better place than it was before we came, then we have achieved our destiny'. That, I think is valid for all seekers of the Self (God) in a variety of ways. Much talk about destiny has and is always going on - but what is the purpose if it? For a spiritual seeker, the prime object is to realize the 'I' inherent in all, the Divine Self, which enables us to experience a 'destiny'. Learning from the happenings in life - both good and bad ones - is one way. Another is to cultivate Satsang.

A key words in the quote is 'contribution' - but as we strive for economic or emotional security in our daily lives, we often forget to contribute. By the word 'contribution', I'm not refering to the support of charitable organizations only. Not at all. To 'give' of one's individual self is even more important than to give money or goods to the poor. And based on my observations, many sorely lack the willingness to give of themselves - love, compassion, a helping hand, and maybe just time to listen to others' outpourings. Another reason for various ailments is that we no longer live according to the laws of Nature, which are so well organized that one must be in awe of them. Sri Sri Babathakur often reminded His followers that the 'Right use' formula (see Nectar of Wisdom and other publications in Bengali) ought to be inmbibed and considered as one of the ways to realize the Self. Common man seems to have forgotten the very reason they have got a human body, which is to develop Self-conscious Awareness.

An ancient philosopher, Democritus, wrote about happiness: 'The happiness or unhappiness of a man does not depend upon the gold he wins. Happiness or misery is in one's own soul...' On the same topic Robin Sharma wrote: 'Happiness does not arrive when you achieve certain things. It comes when you think certain thoughts. Happiness is nothing more than a state of mind that you create by the way you process and interpret the events of your life'. The pursuite of happiness is often uppermost in minds of common people, but can happiness be clearly defined? The concept of happiness varies widely from society to society - so what really constitutes happiness other than a fleeting feeling of gratifiction? Sri Sri Babathakur made his followers aware that happiness is of a quite volatile character. Self-knowledge however can be consiously developed and has a lasting effect on how we live our day-to-day life. Happiness actually lies not in the getting what we desire, but in the anticipation of getting it. As soon as one situation/thing/emotion has occurred, the next pops up in mind - duly prompted be one's ego. None can ensure that 'happiness' will be the trend of one's life: 'We need to define our priorities - the values, endeavours and dreams that guide us ... We must take responsibility for ourselves and the world we live in...'.

The next quote reflects my personal attitude: 'Rather than living day-to-day with no sense of direction, living by chance, hoping that everything will work out fine is about as smart as playing Russian roulette with your life'. Said in another way by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow: 'Lives of great men all reminds us we can make our lives sublime ...'.

The spiritual personalities remembered for their sayings or doings through books, followers projecting their master's words or electronic media are capable of helping in unveiling the inheret Divine Self. That Self is free from all biazes and prejudices, all judgement and all aspects of the lower self, the mundane ego. Culled from the book: 'Every year of my life, I grow more convinced that it is wisest and best to fix the attention on the beautiful and the good and dwell as littl as possible on the evil and false. What makes us human, at the end of the day, is the power each and every one of us has to choose our response to a specific situation'. Gandhi, following the same trend, once uttered: 'I will not let anyone walk through my mind with dirty feet'. (what you let into your mind affects your life style and thought pattern).

In conclusion one needs only to be reminded that every person has much more power than she/he thinks... if the direction of the thoughts is right and draws upon the necessary support from the source(s) available. So, just go ahead with your personal evolution towards realizing the Self.

Homage to all the great souls and Sadguru Sri Sri Babathakur.

THREE TEMPERS

By

Sri Ramen Basu


Searching on the causes of diseases, I came across certain facts related to the roots of diseases in the scriptures of ancient times. The word 'disease' is in general pronounced dis-ease (and not disease/sickness/illness) by most non-allopathic medical practitioners, as they consider not only the symptoms, but also the root cause for the dis-ease.

The Tripura Rahasya states: ‘Diseases are due to a loss of harmony in the three tempers of the body: Vayu (wind), Pitta (bile) and Kaph (phlegm). Dis-eases remain latent in all bodies because of disharmony in the tempers. This disharmony can’t always be prevented, although by being aware of how one’s body functions, one could adjust one’s behavior and food intake accordingly. In modern terminology this is called ‘lifestyle modifications’. Tempers are affected by food consumed, clothes worn, negative thoughts, words uttered or heard, sights seen, objects contacted, changes of season and travel to different countries and their various climates. Sometimes unavoidable, the dis-harmony of tempers need not claim one’s constant attention. The Ancient Rishis of India developed several healing remedies like Ayurved as well as physical praactices like Yoga, acupuncture, acupressure etc. to relieve the discomfort associated with disharmony of the tempers. After the industrial revolution in the West, such remedies were rather neglected. They're however again coming into vogue to help with non-surgical cases.

Delusion and/or hallucination have origins in the neurochemistry of the brain, which may be of varied character. Any food, gross, subtle or subtler, can restore harmony and thus health when well digested. Otherwise the same food may result in discomfort. All of the above three tempers/humors are divided into five sub- divisions. The tempers/humors take care of the autogenerated functions of the body if absorbed in proper quantity and quality, in proper time and in a proper way. In case one temper gives trouble, the other two can makes up for it and make well the third. If there are malfunctions of two of the humors causing severe dis-eases, it is quite difficult to restore their harmonious function. If all three tempers are out of harmony, one's survival rate is questionable.

One ought to co-relate ‘dis-eases’ with disharmony. A body is an organism, which is functionally synchronized to behave normally and at ease. When the gross, subtle, causal or subtlemost effect eventually manifest, the constituents of the body malfunction and we call it a disease. However it is quite often in fact, a dis-ease of the humors. Harmony is the key word in life to prevent illnesses, mood disturbances and thus behavior. Sadguru Sri Sri Babathakur has graciously given his followers and devotees an easy-to-remember formula - the formula of ‘4-fold H’. The first H is hand, the second H is head, the third H is heart, and the fourth (all the other three synchronized) is Harmony.

Sri Sri Babathakur says, ‘The Knowledge of Oneness’ reveals when the right understanding is present. By ‘right understanding’ - and use is meant use with spontaneous awareness of Oneness. Right Knowledge or understanding reveals spontaneously only when the right use of six aspects of life have been achieved. The aspects are:

Right use of Life Energy

Right use of Education

Right use of Time

Right use of Money

Right use of Environment

Right use of the above five together

There is a need in both inner and outer nature to communicate (for example the static part of the nature, i.e. Purushottama, wants to commune with the becoming part of the nature). Similarly the human nature wants to commune with its inherent Divine Nature, and that can only happen when the mind and body are steady and serene. Only inward and outward steadiness and serenity will result in harmonization of man with the Universe and Nature. Dis-ease will then not be a problem as huge as it has become in today's world, where disharmony has grown to unmanagable proportions.

Life’s teachings from a true REALISER

By

Sri Partha Guha



“You already possess everything necessary to become great” – Native American Maxim

Even though this is a well known Native American maxim, my Master has always
encouraged us to live life along those lines. His teachings have evolved around knowing one's true self and the need to look inwards in our pursuit of God. In this sequel I am going to share a very recent experience with you all on how a common believer like me experienced this awareness (which I consider to be a miracle).

Generally speaking I consider myself to be by any sense of imagination, a mediocre
performer in all spheres of life. Given the level of competency I associate with myself, taking on the task of arranging the first ever programme based on His
teachings of I-Reality anywhere outside India was not only a dream, but also a very
humbling and overwhelming experience.

Going back a few years (to sometimes in 2008) - during a discussion with Our Beloved Master Sri Sri Babathakur, I had brought up my wish to be able to arrange a programme in Canada similar to the ones held in Kolkata, India. His instant reaction was, “have you thought it all through properly?" I replied with a shaky “yes”. He asked me to start working on it and to keep Him informed on the progress.

It required a lot of preparation and work to get to the point when I could go back to Him with some updates. Then after seeking His blessings, we started off with all the detailed preparations immediately. However somehow the programme scheduled for the summer of 2009 did not happen. I was of course very heartbroken and went back to Him for His guidance.

The essence of His guidance was that I need to tap into my own self, be more confident in my actions, and create the path for the Almighty to play within. After listening to Him the only conclusion I could come to was to work with an attitude of ‘total surrender’, accept whatever happens and not get influenced by any negativity. He would always say, “Life is a sportsful, dramatic, same side game of self consciousness”, and I was blessed to be able to experience this in my own way on 25th June this year.

That was a very important day, being the day of our main programme. Artists, members, friends and followers were all there from India, USA, and Luxembourg and locally here from Canada. There were approx 220 guests who were being introduced for the first time to His teachings, self revealed divine songs (bhajans) and dances, while I remember seeing myself standing there simply watching the miracle unfold. The Divine presence was surely felt as the programme went on without a single problem. Originally scheduled for three and a half hours, it actually ended after four and a half hours - but none complained.

While the majority of them stayed on till the very end (except for a few handfuls of them who had to leave earlier), the artists, members and volunteers working behind the scene never for once showed any signs of exhaustion and performed their duties to perfection.
For me this was an experience of witnessing The Divine at play, He taught me how we
can experience the many miracles in our life of knowing our own hidden abilities only
by entrusting our unconditional faith at the Lotus feet of a real Guru (Master). I have not only learnt so many things, but more importantly experienced a kind of happiness which I have no words to describe.

I would like to end today with a quote from Him, “Self Awareness is the Nectar of
Wisdom”

Joy Babathakurer Joy…………………………………………………………………….
( … to be continued)

The canvas remain uneven

By

Prof D.Patranabis


When I write, the pen seems to move just fine
The mind that helps does not appear to shine,
There is a discord, things do not turn out well
We aspire to reach heaven but end up in hell.

Wonderful things are around, I want to be a part of it
But I cannot mingle up with the whole, I become discrete
This makes the canvas uneven, the picture loses charm
It does not promise peace, instead, causes more harm.

I feel – the note I play does not rouse my soul
I remain an individual and not a part of the whole
The whole is Complete, One, Infinity, the Absolute
My failure can not make me a witness who is mute.

I cry foul, raise alarm, try to establish right
The horizons I try to paint pink move out of sight
I can not accept all, look around with a sheepish eye
With all efforts I made I could not change mine into ‘I’.

Welcome to e-Sri Sanai, Janmashtami, 2009

by Sri Sandip Dasgupta
______________________

Welcome to the Janamashtami issue of e-Sri Sanai. This is the holy day when Sri Krishna took birth as a Poorna Avatar. He descended upon this planet to set Dharma onto a firm footing and also to spread the message of Universal love, based on Premleela (Love-game) with His devotee lovers.

We have had the good fortune of coming in contact with Sri Sri Babathakur and His unique message of “All Divine for All Time as It Is”. Let us try to study this in slightly greater detail.

Since every individual or object in this universe is a manifestation of the same all-pervading Brahman/I-Absolute, He emphatically declares that everybody and everything in this world is “All Divine”. If we keep this in our mind always, the differences we have even with our strongest foes will disappear. So please keep that in mind when you harbor ill-feelings against anybody in the future - be it at work, at home, on the streets, or even at the shopping malls.

Sri Babathakur further emphasizes that this I-Absolute always remains unchanged with the passage of time. Men and women may come and go from this earth, but the substratum behind them always remains the same. This is similar to the case of the electric current which despite producing different effects when flowing through different electrical objects, in essence remains the same. When flowing through a bulb, electricity produces light. When flowing through a kettle, it produces heat. When flowing through a refrigerator, the same electricity cools the objects inside. The various forms of life in this universe are mere expressions of the same I-Absolute and the relationships between these forms are temporary. The only permanent relationship is the one between I-Absolute and the individual forms. When Sri Sri Babathakur says “All Divine for all time” - He is saying that essentially we are all Divine, and we shall remain Divine with the passage of time.

Lastly Sri Sri Babathakur also points out that the Divine nature of I-Absolute (and hence that of all of us) does not get altered at all. As one traverses through space, the nature of the Divine remains the same. As time passes, the Divine does not change. Since the nature of the Divine (which is the essence of all of us) does not change from one life form to another, does not mutate with time or space, It is absolutely homogeneous. Thus if there is sameness amongst everybody, then there is no reason to have differences amongst the various life forms. This is indeed the message of universal love - whereby one must love everybody, all the time.

On this holy occasion, I am happy to announce that the “Saccidananda Society USA Chapter” has begun functioning as an “Unincorporated Association” as of June 28, 2009. Sri Subir Purkayastha was personally present to guide us through the formation of the chapter, the drafting of its constitution and the formulation of its bye-laws. We are currently in the process of obtaining tax-exempt status from the Internal Revenue Services in the USA. We are also happy to inform readers that we are in the advanced stages of registering the “Saccidananda Society Canada Chapter” as a charitable organization in Canada.

“Manam oru Kurangu...”

Smt. Latha Subramanium
______________________

“Manam oru Kurangu...” is a song I often heard while growing up in Chennai in the seventies. The songs says that the mind is a monkey. It was probably written even before I was born. Yet, I wonder how the poet/singer could describe my mind so precisely. My mind is indeed a monkey! Some days, it is like a monkey on many cups of mocha. Thoughts come and go so rapidly. My mind leads me to the past. It can race back several decades in a few seconds, and leaves me exhausted with anger and sorrow. It can also zoom forward into the future and leave my heart pounding with fear and anxiety. My body stays in the present, but the mind that travels through time makes my body feel the ravages of time travel!

In addition to this overactive mind, I have always felt this intense thirst, a longing, a craving, an undefined yearning for something. I never felt complete. School, college, family, work did not fill this void. Clothes, jewelry, movies made me more miserable. I found myself strolling through library aisles, searching for the missing piece that was going to make me complete. The library introduced me to Zen Buddhism. I started reading books written by many great Buddhist monks. My readings gave me more insight into the workings of my mind. “Living in the present,” is a concept I understood through my intellect, but could never adhere to it.

Then by God’s grace, a teacher entered my life. While my children attended Balavihar classes conducted by the Chinmaya Mission, I started attending lectures on the Gita. I would sit at the very back of the lecture hall. Initially I wouldn’t even be sure about making it through the entire one hour of Swamiji’s discourse on “Bhagavad Gita”. However a miracle happened. I begun sitting through the lecture completely absorbed. The first chapter of the Bhagwad Gita talks about Arjuna's grief. I somehow could relate to him and my heart went out to Arjuna. I started attending the lectures regularly in the hope of finding peace for Arjuna. Over a couple of years, Swamiji's brilliant lectures made me see myself as Arjuna, and I started looking forward to Sunday morning sessions with my guide and friend , Lord Krishna. The Gita slowly guided me to other texts like Chandogya Upanishad, Tattva Viveka, and Upadesha Saram. When Swamiji chants the verses in Sanskrit, a feeling of nostalgia settles within me. I always have this feeling that I have heard it before and it fills me with a strange calmness. Bhajans, chanting sholkas, reading the scriptures, thinking and reflecting on them has helped me anchor my mind for a few minutes every day. Now, meditation seems to come more naturally to me. I train myself to remain in the “present” through these brief periods of the day, hoping that this will slowly enable me to stay absorbed in whatever I am doing through the day.

My mind continues to be a “monkey.” But a shift has occurred. I am able to observe and witness the antics of my mind. I must confess that sometimes I find it pretty funny. I have also learnt that the repertoire of thoughts that goes through my mind is limited, quite predictable and repetitive. The feeling of emptiness gets filled with fleeting moments of “mindfulness,” when my mind and body are completely synchronized.

Getting lost at Vaishnodevi

by Sri Siddhartha Dasgupta and Sri Sandip Dasgupta
__________________________________________________

In June 2006, during our annual trip to India, my family decided to go to Vaishnodevi.

An Introduction to Vaishnodevi:

Vaishnodevi is a famous place of worship in India, located on a hill in the state of Kashmir. The temple is situated at an altitude of 6600 feet above sea level. Millions of devotees visit Mata Vaishnodevi’s temple every year. It is said that one gets to go to Vaishnodevi temple only when the Mother beckons you (“Mata Ka Bulava” as they say in Hindi). My parents had been desirous of visiting the temple for a few years – but it hadn’t materialized until the summer of 2006.

The pilgrimage starts from the bottom of the hill in a place called Katra. Most people hike from Katra to Vaishnodevi - however a few go on horseback or in a helicopter. There is a “structured” walkway to reach the shrine, but there are also steep steps to take as “shortcuts”. Thousands of people can be seen hiking to the temple and back - all throughout the day and night. The hike is 14.5 kms long and takes about 4 hours without stopping.

A special ticket to enter the temple is needed. One has to purchase the ticket at the basecamp in Katra. The ticket is checked at a couple of places on the way to Vaishnodevi. Once you reach the destination, a special line is formed for people to enter the temple. Entry to the temple is based on group numbers assigned to an individual. More details can be found from the following website:
https://www.maavaishnodevi.org/new1/index.html

The story of my experiences of visiting Vaishnodevi:

We decided to visit Vaishnodevi as a group of seven consisting of:
• My grandmother
• My parents
• Sunetra Aunty and her daughter Dolly
• My brother (Raja) and I

We left Delhi by train on June 28, 2006 before sunrise. After arriving in Jammu, we rented a car to reach Katra. We reached Katra around 5pm and decided to begin our journey immediately. Our plan was to hike throughout the night so as to beat the heat of summer at Katra.

Some people in our travelling group bought “walking sticks” at Katra to help them hike up to Vaishnodevi. I had chosen not to use a stick to help me climb the hill. My father had engaged a porter who would help us carry our luggage up the hill. The porters began hiking at a much faster pace than us. My brother was trying to keep pace with them. My father and I decided to increase our pace too. It was still very hot and humid. I could not keep up with the pace as my stomach started hurting. My father advised me to “walk at my own pace”.

The weather remained very hot and humid. As I was walking up, I found many staircases which were meant to serve as shortcuts to the shrine. So, I took most of the shortcuts and arrived at the top quickly - meaning, I arrived at the top earlier than anyone else in our travelling group! I didn’t know what to do – whether I should go to the Darshan line or go to the Guest House. All the signs were in Hindi, which I can neither read nor understand. All the people around me were speaking in Hindi!

I walked a little bit back down in hopes of spotting someone from our group, yet I couldn’t see anyone. I then walked back up & contemplated over my situation for a while. After pondering for a bit, I decided to just go for the Darshan. Upon arriving at the Darshan entrance, I asked the ticket taker/Darshan Guard if “Sandip Dasgupta had arrived at this place?” However he didn’t seem to understand much English and spoke only in Hindi. Both of us were confused, kept staring at each other while the devotees walked past us for their Darshan.

After a while, I went to the Darshan entrance again and asked, “Has Sandip Dasgupta entered here?” Finally, the guard put me into some Darshan line (which my parents reckon was some sort of a “VIP Darshan Line”!). I did the Darshan and came out with Prasad & a red mark on my forehead. I then walked back to our guest house – where we had a booking to stay for two nights or so. At that point of time, it was the early morning of June 29th, 2006, before sunrise. I had thus completed my journey to the top and Darshan without a bite to eat and without a drop of liquid!
I asked for my father’s name at the guest house and they confirmed that my father had a booking there. But they could not give me a room because my father had to first pay the money for the room. I decided to wait in the lobby of the guest house.

Suddenly, my mother & brother found me at 4am on June 29th 2006. They had all assumed that “I WAS LOST!!!”. They were overjoyed to see me. My father was then informed by the security folks that I had been “found”. Gradually all the other members of our group were informed and we were all happily united together. Now I was the experienced person in the group and I led them all to the temple for Mata’s darshan.

The parents’ side of the story – by Sandip Dasgupta

When I told Siddhartha that he could walk at his own pace, I had always assumed that he would be walking slower than us. The pathway to Vaishnodevi is very well structured – no forks or merges. Since my wife, mother, Sunetra and Dolly were walking at a slower pace, Siddhartha would always be in between Raja and myself. After walking for about an hour, we found that foot traffic had been stopped because of a landslide. So, we decided to stop and wait for the other members of our group. After about 45 minutes, we spotted the rest of our group members except for Siddhartha.

My heart started skipping beats and my wife became very nervous too. We approached the security booth and they offered to send out an alert to all their posts. They also began making announcements – but in Hindi. They also allowed me to make announcements in Bengali. My wife and I decided to go back to the basecamp in Katra on horseback to retrace the path and see if Siddhartha was to be found anywhere on the way. We knew he did not have any money, we knew he did not know Hindi and we all were feeling the extreme heat – so we were trying to imagine his situation, lost in a completely unknown place. We were unsuccessful in finding Siddhartha.

We lodged a formal complaint with the police and decided to climb up to meet the rest of our group members. We got tremendous support from the porters, the horse owners, the security men and the police. They all emphasized the fact that nobody had ever got lost at Vaishnodevi. Even a two year old who had got lost at one time was apparently found at the temple! They simply asked us to keep faith, not lose sight of our objectives and continue our journey to the temple. They insisted that we would certainly find him. Just as we began to gather our courage, we found out that three humans and five horses had died in the landslide. The dead bodies were carried away in front of us. That made us even more anxious.

We mustered the courage to restart our journey up the hill as advised by everybody around us. Suddenly we came to a fork. We decided to break up into two groups and proceed on two different paths to the temple. This would allow us to look for Siddhartha in a methodical way. The two porters told us where to meet at the top. The two subgroups were now accompanied by a porter each as a guide. Sharmila and Raja decided to go on horseback. The rest of us decided to walk. Since my mother has difficulty walking, I had asked her to climb very slowly. I began rushing up the hill with the hope of finding Siddhartha. My mind was also thinking of next steps if we were unsuccessful in finding him amongst the thousands of people that were streaming past us.

One thing that was common amongst all the devotees – they were chanting “Jai Mata Di” all through the journey and I wasn’t. So, I decided to start the same too. A hailstorm began – but that did not deter me. I kept climbing the hill and arrived at the meeting point – hoping to find Siddhartha or at least Sharmila and Raja. They were expected to reach faster because they had decided to ride on a horseback. When I did not find any of them, I was really worried. I had now lost touch with three of my family members.

Suddenly I heard my name being announced on the PA system. I was being asked to report at the nearest security station. As soon as I identified myself, they gave me the news that Siddhartha had been found and that he was at Gauri Bhawan, the hotel I had booked. My joy knew no bounds. I rushed towards Gauri Bhawan. On the way, the various horse owners and porters who had seen my plight throughout the night came up to me and gave me the good news too. I was touched to see how personally they got involved in helping me – God bless them is what I instantly wished. I found Siddhartha, Raja and Sharmila happily chatting. I checked them into the room and rushed back to give the news to Sunetra and Dolly. Then I rushed down to find my mother and gave her the good news. She had only reached halfway to the top of the hill. She had been struck by a boulder during the hailstorm and had fallen down. However, she had managed to get up and continue the pilgrimage.

After checking into the hotel, we took a shower and decided to go for the Darshan immediately as the lines were quite short. This time the experienced pilgrim in the form of Siddhartha was guiding us to the temple. We had a beautiful but hurried Darshan. Soon after that we began to feel extremely hungry as we had not eaten for over 15 hours.

My conclusion – Siddhartha Dasgupta

We ate lunch at a restaurant, which my mother thought was the “DIRTIEST” restaurant she EVER SAW! However, we all (except for my mother) ate bowls of “CHHOLE” and freshly fried Bhaturas. Our stomachs survived the food.

My conclusion – Sandip Dasgupta

The Cholle Bhature was indeed great in taste and freshness. We decided to skip the two nights of stay we had planned at Vaishnodevi and head back to Katra immediately. On the way back I saw that there were steep stairs down all the way to Katra. It was these staircases that Siddhartha had climbed up as a shortcut – I guess he took full freedom of my statement, “Walk at your own pace”.

The Bhagwad-Gita’s first shloka

by Sri Abhijit Mandal
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The first shloka of Bhagwad-Gita is perhaps its best known verse amongst those having a casual familiarity with this most spiritual of texts. Yet it can be argued that few are aware of the true purpose and significance of the opening shloka:

Dhrita-raashtra uvaacha
Dharma-kshetre kuru-kshetre samveta yuyutsavah
Maamakaah paandavaa-schaiva kimakurvata sanjaya

Typically, this shloka is treated as an introduction to both the context and the background of the imminent war between the two factions of the Kuru vansh – the Kauravas, and their cousins the Pandavas. It tells us that the proceedings of the war are going to be narrated by the blessed Sanjaya to the aged and blind Dhrita-rashtra.

Beyond this obvious meaning, one can search for significance. The traditional and rather easy interpretation of the shloka is that there are two sides involved in the fight - the good and the not-so-good (evil). And that physical (as well as mental) blindness is perhaps leading the king (i.e. Dhrita-rashtra) to covertly support the ‘wrong’ side.

Most well-known commentaries on the Bhagwad-Gita ignore the significance of the first chapter all together. For example, Shri Adi Sankaracharya’s commentary of the Bhagwad Gita begins with the second chapter when Krishna starts speaking about the Man of Wisdom. The first shloka of the first chapter does not even bear a mention in Sankaracharya’s classical text.

However, as a student of ‘I’ and its manifestations, one could perhaps take a closer look at this shloka whose real significance is to introduce us to the obvious symptoms as well as the manifestation of spiritual blindness.

More specifically, if we were to focus on the first part of the second line of the shloka, we would find it alluding to Dhrita-rashtra discriminating between those on his side (maamakaah) and those presumed to be on the other side (Pandavas). Clearly we have a person here who is not only physically blind, but also spiritually blind. This blindness becomes apparent when evaluating Dhrita-rashtra’s loyalties using two approaches. From a traditional Advaita perspective, Dhrita-rashtra is someone engaged in the wrong sort of discrimination – one that’s leading him to view the Kuru clan as comprising of two separate factions pitted against each other in the pursuit of material and emotional gains. Given his limited spiritual vision, he is incapable of perceiving the unity underlying all of mankind. He does not realize that all men (or for that matter all beings) are but different manifestations of the All-pervading One.

An analysis using the ‘I’ approach leads one to a similar conclusion. The two sides ready to go to war against each other, the motivations behind the war, and the anticipated material and emotional gains (from either Arjuna’s or Dhrita-rashtra’s point of view), all manifest from the participation and activities of the weak and external 'I'. As long as this weak ‘I’ is captivated and engrossed in the play of the external 'I’, I should not hope to achieve anything more than a fleeting moment of peace. From the standpoint of the eternal and omni-present ‘I’, this is just the play of the dynamic nature of the true ‘I’. To be spiritually aware means that I recognize this and not associate/identify with it, irrespective of participating in the play or not.

In Pursuit of Knowing the Self

by Sri Subbu Venkatkrishnan
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As spiritual seekers, we are often urged to do our sadhana. Let us start by trying to understand some things about what sadhana really is. The most common meaning of the word sadhana is, ‘the means by which something is achieved.’ The end desired to be achieved is called sadhya. The one who is trying to achieve a desired end is called a sadhaka. The sadhya or desired end is always kept in view by the sadhaka or seeker who connects himself or herself with the sadhya through sadhana.

Life can be looked upon as a series of ends which have already been achieved and/or which are yet to be achieved. Usually, more than one mean is available to achieve any given end. These means may be righteous whereby the seeker takes into account the moral and ethical codes of his or her conduct. The means may be unrighteous whereby the seeker tramples upon the rights and requirements of others. As a human being, one is endowed with the faculty of choice and so one can choose the means he/she considers to be the most appropriate. My writing is open to my choice. You also have a choice to read or not read this - you can choose to sleep or do something else instead of reading. If I want to reach a particular place, I can do so either by walking, by driving a car, or boarding a bus.

When we analyze the pursuits of our life, we find that the end or the sought is always something other than the seeker – i.e. what I want to achieve is something other than myself. The end may be money, wife, children, name, fame, power, etc., which I do not have at the moment and which I wish to gain. When the end is something other than me - that is, separated from me by time and place - the end as well is open to choices as are the means. When the end or goal of life is not understood, the ends keep on varying. Then, every small end assumes the proportion of the end. But when that end is achieved, it yields its place to yet another end, and so the cycle goes on and on. The ends become endless, and bring about an end to the life of this person. Everyone usually has a long list of what is to be accomplished in spite of all one has achieved so far, because they haven’t yet discovered that one true end of life!

So, what is the real end that I am seeking and that seems to elude me at all times? It must be the end that frees me from all of my desires because I entertain a desire not to keep it going but to fulfill it. In our discussion of sadhana here, it is this end which we shall address ourselves to and not the limited ends such as wealth, fame etc., which perpetuate the wants. We are interested in that end which can be called the end. And with regard to this end, the human being has no choice. This is the end that is desired by everyone, at all times, in all places, and under all circumstances. Even if a person appears to be pursuing various ends, this is the end that is in the background - the end behind all ends. The means of achieving this end is what we mean by sadhana in this discussion.

Life should be meaningful, purposeful – i.e. I should see the meaning of life, and then the whole life becomes the means to achieve that end. If I know the end, the other ends in life such as a house, or an industry, or a spouse, or a child can be seen in their proper perspective. They can all become the means to achieve the ultimate end. The sadhana, i.e. the mean becomes meaningful only when I know the sadhya, the end. If I want to see a form, the eyes become the means. If I want to hear a sound, my ears become the means. Once the end is clear, the mean also becomes clear.

As discussed earlier, the real end behind all ends is to end one’s desires. There are three approaches towards ending a desire: 1) by acquiring the object of desire as followed by a samsari, 2) by giving up the desire as followed by a tyagi, and 3) by growing out of the desire as followed by a sannyasi.

The one who goes about fulfilling the wants as they arise in the mind finds that more wants keep cropping up even before one want is fulfilled. No one end seems to satisfy him because he finds that an end loses its significance by the time it is achieved. No particular end seems to give him freedom from dependence. Such a person who finds himself as dependent upon the fulfillment of desires is a samsari.

A tyagi is the one who has given up an object or a desire either because of an ideal or because of a bargain to get something better. However a tyagi still retains a taste for the object. For example, take the case of a boy playing with marbles. Marbles are the most precious thing to him and he would not settle for anything else, not even money. If his father asks him to stop playing with marbles, he may do so only because he has value for his father’s word or because he is promised something that he ends up deeming even better (e.g. a cricket bat). This is not a mature way of getting rid of desires because the dependence on things desired is not totally eradicated.

The same child, when he grows old has no craving for the marbles. He has grown out of his desire for marbles. He is no more tempted by marbles. He may play with marbles with his child, but he will not feel happier upon winning them or feel a loss upon losing them. He has neither a raga or a dvesa. He is a sannyasi with respect to marbles. A sannyasi is one who has grown out of wants and who therefore enjoys real freedom. A sannyasi is not dependent upon any external object or situation for his happiness. Everyone is a sannyasi with respect to a few things. For example, we are sannyasis with respect to the banana peel, but not with respect to the banana.

In our life, the sadhya and sadhanas keep changing but one thing remains constant - that is the sadhaka or the seeker. Do I always want to remain the seeker? Do I want to remain dependent upon objects and situations for my happiness, or do I want to be free? Everyone no doubt wants to be happy, but everyone also wants to be free. There is happiness in freedom and unhappiness in dependence and hence everyone wants to be like the sannyasi (who is not dependent upon anything else for his happiness). This total freedom is called moksa which means liberation or total release from dependence. Only when I discover an adequacy, fullness, a richness that is not other than me, do I feel fulfilled. The sadhana must be such that it attains the sadhya, the lasting fulfillment that every human heart yearns for.

The question that naturally arises is, ‘What is the mean to this end?’ No one will undertake a pursuit unless one knows it will achieve the desired end. The nature of the mean depends upon the end. Therefore, the end must be ascertained before one can decide upon the proper mean. What everyone wants is absolute freedom, the fullness, the limitlessness. But we find that in all our pursuits of acquiring and enjoying, there is invariably a loss associated with every gain. If I acquire power, I lose the money or the resources with which I bought the power. If I acquire a car, I have to give up my savings. If I get married, I lose the freedom of bachelorhood. From the standpoint of what I acquire, there is a gain - but from the standpoint of what I spent for it, there is a loss. Even if it is the gain of swarga, there is the loss of punya. Thus we find that every gain is limited, and there seems to be no way of achieving absolute gain by means of fulfilling the desires.

If a person cannot achieve this absolute gain, this completeness, can he or she give up the seeking? No, because this is a natural urge like hunger or thirst. A cultivated or an acquired desire can be given up by reasoning with the mind, but a natural desire cannot be given up through deliberation or force. On the one hand I cannot achieve the absolute gain through actions. On the other hand, I cannot give up the seeking to achieve the absolute gain. There appears to be a fundamental problem here! Only when I appreciate this problem and realize that the usual means and ends cannot give me what I seek in life, do I become a true sadhaka. At this stage, one wants to do something odd because all normal and accepted things have already been tried out. We think this fulfillment, the so-called enlightenment, is an event in time that will hit us as we do something strange – perhaps while sitting under a bodhi tree!

However one cannot gain completeness by merely becoming or achieving something because completeness means an absolute gain and no loss. I cannot become complete through a process of becoming - because any becoming involves change, and change means giving up the previous state and reaching a new state. Thus in a change there is a gain and a loss as well. A child wants to become an adult so that he/she can be complete, but the adult loses the freedom of a child. By getting a Ph.D, I am not going to be complete. In fact, I will be more keenly aware of the areas in which I am ignorant. Any sadhana that achieves a sadhya can fall only within the framework of time and space. So, no process of change can make a person complete. Since becoming complete is not possible, there remains only one possibility – and that is the possibility of me already being complete! However if I am already a complete being and still want to be complete, it means I do not know myself. From self-ignorance, there is a disowning of the self and hence this predicament.

It is a fact that I disown myself and then search for myself. I have concluded that I am incomplete, and also realize that any addition to myself or change in myself only leaves me incomplete. What sadhana then can remove this assumed incompleteness? The sadhana must be such that it removes this self-ignorance. That sadhana or the means can only be self-knowledge because knowledge alone can remove ignorance. Knowing my real nature is the only means of eliminating self-ignorance and the assumed incompleteness arising out of it. Hence the primary means of achieving completeness, fulfillment, and freedom is the knowledge of the Self.

In the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, there is a statement that says, Atmanastu Kamaya Sarvam Priyam Bhavati-----whatever is dear to me is dear because I love myself. This statement shows that I always love myself and therefore my innate nature is happiness since everyone including me loves happiness. It further shows that I love the things and beings of the world not for their sake, but for the sake of the Self. So, happiness or ananda is what I am seeking in and through the pursuits of gaining things and through the relationships in my life.

That happiness is my true nature becomes clear when we analyze an experience of happiness. When I am happy with an object, I feel at home with the object. At that moment, the mind does not demand anything and is quiet and content with itself. I like this state of mind because it reflects my nature which is absolute peace, contentment, and freedom from desire. Any object that creates such a condition of mind becomes an object of my liking. I am not happy with an agitated or demanding mind because it does not reflect my true nature. Thus I like myself and therefore also a mind that reflects my true nature. My true nature is happiness because I like happiness and dislike unhappiness. Everyone is happy with what is natural and unhappy with what is unnatural. I cannot be comfortable with a dust particle in my eye or a bug in my ear – they are foreign to me, they are irritants and so I want to get rid of them. Similarly, I find that I am not comfortable with unhappiness because it is an irritant and is not my true nature. I never want to get rid of happiness or ananda and so ananda must be natural to me. Similarly, being free is my nature because I love freedom and want to get rid of all shackles. I am limitless because I cannot stand limitations. However even though I am limitless, I do not enjoy limitlessness because my nature is covered by ignorance. Ignorance can only be removed by knowledge and so Self-Knowledge is the primary sadhana.

To gain any knowledge, we must have a valid and adequate means of knowledge. The type of knowledge sought determines the nature of the means of knowledge one should adopt. For example, to perceiving colors, eyes are the means. To perceiving sound, ears are the means. What I want to know is ‘I’ the Self - not the limited little self I take myself to be, but rather the limitless, complete Self. The primary means of knowledge at my disposal, the sense organs, are capable of knowing only the external world. They can give me only perceptual knowledge. The capacity of sensory organs can be improved or enhanced by the use of instruments such as telescope, microscope etc., which enable us to perceive the objects that cannot be seen by the naked eyes. But the Self is the Subject behind the senses---i.e. the senses cannot objectify the Self. Other means of knowledge such as inference, presumption, comparison, etc., are also not applicable in case of the Self, because these means too are based on sensory data. For example we can infer the presence of fire (the cause) when we see smoke (the effect) or we can infer the presence of a rat (the whole) when we see its tail (a part). Self is not connected with anything in terms of cause and effect or in terms of whole and part - and so these indirect means of knowledge are also not applicable in the case of understanding the Self.

All the means of knowledge available to me are of no use in knowing the Self. But it still has to be known – i.e. I must know I am full and complete in order to overcome the sense of limitation and inadequacy. So, we have to look for an external means of knowledge and this means is the Vedanta or Upanishads----vedanto naama upanishad pramanam. Vedanta is in the form of words and it is also called sabda pramanam, a means of knowledge in the form of words. What cannot be perceived by the sense organs or inferred by the mind can be revealed by the words. Hence the Self is called the ‘Being revealed by the Upanishads’. How do the Upanishads reveal the Self to Me? By changing the vision about myself, by removing the notions I entertain about myself. I take myself to be a limited, helpless being, a seeker of freedom. This self-judgment keeps me away from being the Self. The Upanishads reveal, “You are not different from what you want to be. You are not limited or inadequate. You are indeed the limitless, complete being. That You Are (Tat Tvam Asi)”.

This removes all the notions I have been entertaining about myself and removes my ignorance. Removal of ignorance is the same as knowledge of the Self - so the primary means of Self-knowledge is enquiry based on the Upanishads. What should I do to know the Self clearly without any error or doubt? First the teaching of the Upanishad has to be listened to, sravanam, followed by reflection, mananam, followed by meditation, nidhidhyasanam. By mananam, the knowledge gained by sravanam is assimilated, and by nidhidhyasanam it is made free from error. Most of us would ask, ‘How does Self-knowledge not take place in spite of hearing about the Self so often?’ The words of the Upanishads do not seem to create the direct knowledge they are supposed to create. It appears as though I have understood all that the words have to say and still find something lacking. Do I have to do something else? Eyes are the only valid means for realizing the knowledge of color, and yet if we cannot see colors properly, we must do something to correct the eyes rather than trying to gain this knowledge through the ears or any other organ of perception.

Similarly, the words of the scriptures are the only valid means of knowledge to make me realize what I am. They must give me direct knowledge because the subject of knowledge, I, is already available. This is not like the knowledge gained by someone when he hears about a laddu. If he does not know what a laddu is and I describe the laddu using words, his knowledge will at best be indirect. Once he does something else, i.e. taste the laddu, he gets direct knowledge. This is not so for Self knowledge, because the Self is already obtained. The words therefore directly reveal the Self. There is no second step. The second step is needed in case of the laddu example only because the object is different from the subject.

However, if I don’t get direct and immediate knowledge from the words, I must look at them again, just like checking the eyes if they do not produce the knowledge of color. So, vichara or enquiry must be performed again and again to ascertain the meaning of the scriptures since words are the only medium to communicate the Self, and enquiry must be conducted repeatedly until we realize the essence of the Self. Direct knowledge has not taken place if one hand I think I have understood the Self, while on the other hand I don’t ‘feel’ like a complete and limitless being. There is no business of ‘feeling’ here, there is simply knowing.

If I am not able to see the meaning of these words, which is myself, there must be something wrong with my mind where the meanings are seen. Unless I see the meaning of the sentence as myself, it is a meaningless sentence. It does not become meaningful in spite of repeating it several times. That means that the intellectual discipline or preparedness of mind is lacking. Take the case of consoling a man who has lost a near and dear person. In that sorrowful state, if we tell him, ‘You are ananda’, he wouldn’t be able to appreciate it - in fact it will upset him. Even if he sees the reasoning of how he can be nothing but ananda, the sorrow remains. The words do not create any impact. Similarly, the words of the scriptures do not create an impression on my mind if it (i.e. my mind) is not ready to see the meaning.

Ignorance is the main obstacle to Self-knowledge and the words of the scriptures are meant to remove this. But when the words are not able to create knowledge, it shows there are some other obstacles. These secondary obstacles are two-fold - one is impurity of the mind or mala, the second is distraction of the mind or viksepa. Action performed with the attitude of worship (karma yoga) is prescribed by the scriptures to eliminate the impurities of the mind, while mental worship, chanting of the mantra, meditation etc, (all of which can be called as upasana) are recommended to eliminate the distraction of the mind. When one becomes free from the obstacles of mala and viksepa, the meaning of the words of the scriptures is directly understood and Self-knowledge takes place. Performing our sadhana is concerned with removing the obstacles of mala and viksepa. Upon their removal, the mahavakyas of the scriptures are directly understood and Self-knowledge takes place.

Om Namah Shivaya.