since the Self, which is pure Consciousness, cognizes everything, as stated in the classification above, it is the ultimate Seer. All the rest: ego, mind, etc., are merely its objects.
The subject in one line becomes the object in the next; so each one of them except the Self or pure Consciousness is a merely externalized object and cannot be the true Seer. Since the Self cannot be objectified, not being cognized by anything else, and since the Self is the Seer seeing all else, the subject-object relation and the apparent subjectivity of the Self exist only on the plane of relativity and vanish in the Absolute. There is in truth no other than the Self, which is neither the seer nor the seen, and is not involved as subject or object.
Your words are not as important as you think
The only way you can ever have true happiness and true peace and true love, is by keeping quiet. For love, happiness, joy, the Self, pure awareness are all synonymous, they present themselves when you are quiet. They present themselves when you are quiet. You therefore have to make up your mind.
Do I really want to awaken?
It's so simple, yet so difficult. If you really want to awaken, you have to keep that thought first in your life. It comes before everything. If you really want to awaken, something within you will tell you what to do.
You will know.
For the reality, which you are, is already done. Therefore it will tell you from within what to do, to be yourself. All you have to do is to keep quiet.
You know you can carry on a conversation and still be quiet. When you speak words and you don't really put any effort into them, you don't really feel them, you have no emotion in them. Then you are quiet. Everything I am telling you, you can do mentally.
I'm not saying you should take a vow of silence. I'm merely saying, do not put any emotion into the words that you speak to someone. Do not take the words seriously. You have to live in this world. Therefore talking is necessary. But do not believe every word you say has something to do with your life or anybody else's life or any thing else.
Keep your words down to a minimum.
If someone talks to you and tells you something you don't have to elaborate, you can say, "yes," or "no." It's like going back to your childhood. It's rather funny, as we grow up we try to be intelligent and we want to know many words and have long talks and great debates and we want to express ourselves so someone can understand us. Yet, has anyone ever understood you?
Does anyone care about the words you speak?
They're interested in their words, they want you to hear them. And you want them to hear you. So you talk and talk and talk and talk and talk and talk and talk and talk and talk and talk and talk and talk and you become frustrated, never getting anywhere. You believe somebody will appreciate you if you explain yourself well. Well, you've explained yourself, has anybody appreciated you?
Nobody cares. They just want to hear themselves talk. Drop it. Be rid of it.
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Power starts from zero, but reality is beyond
Brahman in its original, unmanifest aspect is the reality. When Brahman becomes active, it manifests itself as Maya.
The nature of Maya is zero-it doesn't really exist. So you have One (Brahman/reality) and zero (Maya). In Vedanta, Brahman plus Maya is called Ishwara, which Maharaj refers to as the power. (Note here that one plus zero is still one!)
The power is free to create as many forms as it needs to satisfy its innate urge to expand indefinitely. To accomplish this, it creates beings with sense organs of increasing degrees of refinement. However, all the time that this is going on, the basis remains zero.
For this reason, nothing is permanent, everything is impermanent. Whatever appears, sooner or later has to return to the zero from which it appeared. For this reason, every experience is fleeting. Nothing can be held; it all slips away like water through the fingers.
Nothing that the power creates is true, because it starts from zero.
However, reality, Brahman, is One and it is nitya, eternal. It never comes and it never goes away.
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ife is never the same, it's like the truth that you can never step into the same river twice
"The night that has passed away will not return back, just as the stream of the Ganga flowing towards ocean will not recede back. Death accompanies you in your walk, sits down when you sit, travels long distance with you and returns with you. You rejoice at the rise of the sun and feel delighted at the approach of night, but do you not understand that your life by this has been shortened?
Eating, drinking, sleeping, little laughter and much weeping. Is that all ? Do not die here like a worm. Wake up. Attain Immortal Bliss." - Sri Swami Sivananda
Waking, Dreaming and Deep Sleep
Dream is called Sandhya or the intermediate state, because it is midway between waking and the deep sleep state, between Jagrat and Sushupti.
The dream world is separate from the waking one. Deep sleep is separate from both the dream world and the world in the waking state.
The sun is the source and the temporary resting place of its rays. The rays emanate from the sun and spread in all directions at the time of sunrise. They enter into the sun at sunset, lose themselves there, and come out again at the next sunrise. Even so, the states of wakefulness and dream come out from the state of deep sleep and re-enter it and lose themselves there to follow the same course again.
As soon as you wake up, the dream becomes unreal.
The waking state does not exist in the dream. Both the dream and the waking states are not present in deep sleep. Deep sleep is not present in the dream and the waking states. Therefore, all the three states are unreal. They are caused by the three qualities, Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. Brahman or the Absolute is the silent witness of the three states. It transcends the three qualities also.
It is pure bliss and pure consciousness. It is Existence Absolute.
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WAKE UP TO BE WITNESS
wake up to become the witness
He is the silent witnesser who has control of the three states, viz., Jagrat, Svapna and Sushupti (waking, dreaming and deep-sleep states).
Wake Up and Realise
We can learn to be the witness of your thoughts in the waking state, to be conscious in the dream state that we are dreaming. We can alter, stop or create our own thoughts in the dream state independently. We will be able to keep awake in the dream state. If the thoughts of the waking state are controlled, we can control the dream thoughts also.
Do not allow the mind to run into the sensual grooves.
Fortify yourself by developing the intellect through enquiry of Brahman, reflection and contemplation. The intellect will serve the purpose of a strong fortress. It will not allow the sense-impressions to be lodged in the causal body. It will not allow the impressions of the causal body to come out. It will serve a double purpose.
Brahman alone is really existent.
Jiva, world are false. Kill this illusory egoism. The world is unreal when compared to Brahman. It is a solid reality for a passionate worldly man, even as dreams are real to the childish. The world does not exist for a Jnani or a Mukta.
You dream that you are a king. You enjoy various kinds of royal pleasures. As soon as you wake up, everything vanishes. But you do not feel for the loss, because you know that the dream creatures are all false.
When we know the real Tattva, Brahman, the waking consciousness also will become quite false like a dream. Even in the waking consciousness if we are well established in the idea that the world is a false illusion, we will not get any pain.
Wake up and realise my dear!
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A spectacle of Sorrow
A worldly man is always drowned in sorrow. He is ever struggling to get something, some money, some power, some position, and so on. He is always anxious as to whether or not he would get it. Even when he is in actual possession of the thing he so passionately longed for, he is very anxious lest he should lose it.
A rich man has great wealth, but he has no children. And so he is pained at heart. A poor man has fourteen children, but he has nothing to eat, and so he is miserable. One man has wealth and children, but his son is a vagabond, and so he is worried. One man has riches and good sons, but his wife is very quarrelsome.
No one is happy in this world.
The session judge is very discontented. He thirsts to become a high court judge. The minister is also discontented. He longs to become the premier. A millionaire is discontented; he yearns to become a Croropati (Billionaire). The husband is discontented; his wife is black and thin; he wants to marry another wife with good complexion. The wife is discontented; she want to divorce and marry a rich, young husband. A lean man is discontented; he wants to put on fat and gulps cod-liver oil. A fat man takes antifat pills.
No man is contented in this world.
A doctor thinks that the advocate is very happy. The advocate thinks that the businessman is more happy. The businessman thinks that the judge is more happy. The judge thinks that the professor is more happy. No one is happy in this world.
An emperor is not happy. A dictator is not happy. A president of a state is not happy. God Indra is not happy.
Who is happy then?
A Sage is happy. A Yogi is happy. He who has controlled his mind is happy.
Happiness comes from peace of mind. Peace of mind comes from a state of mind wherein there are no desires, no Moha, no Vishaya, no thoughts of objects. You should forget all ideas of pleasure before you enter the domain of peace.
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Behold The Light of Lights
By sri Swami Chidananda
“There is a light that shines bright in every one of us. To see that light in others, you don’t need glasses, just compassion.” - Charles Glassman
Dipavali or Divali means a ‘row of lights’. This festival falls on the last two days of the dark half of Asvina (Sep.-Oct.-this year 2022 it is Monday, October 24th). For some it is a three-day festival: the first day is Naraka-Chaturdasi, the second is Lakshmi-Puja on the New Moon day and the third is Bali-Padya.
The festival of Dipavali is observed as the joyous commemoration of the victory of the Divine forces over the dark ones. On this day, according to ancient tradition, Sri Krishna killed the demon Narakasura. In our own bodies, egoism or Ahankara is the real Narakasura. Kill this egoism through the sword of Atma-Jnana or knowledge of the Self, and merge in Sri Krishna, the Supreme Light of the world, and thus enjoy the spiritual Dipavali or inner illumination.
Many Dipavali festivals have come and gone, and yet the hearts of the vast majority of people are as dark as the New-Moon night. The houses are lit with brilliant lights, but the hearts are full of the darkness of ignorance. O Man! wake up from the slumber of ignorance, eradicate your ego or Ahankara (the real Asura -*the real evil tendency is in our minds), completely, and realise the eternal Light of the Soul, through meditation, and Vichara or enquiry, and dispel the darkness of ignorance, and attain full inner illumination.
The screen that obscures the splendour and the light of the Atman is called the veil of Ajnana or Maya.
Maya is Trigunatmika, viz., Sattva, Rajas and Tamas combined, Ajnana is manifest in the individual consciousness in three forms: Mala (impurity), Vikshepa (distraction) and Avarana (veil). After the destruction of the first two, it is on the final piercing of the Avarana that all dualities cease to be and the highest non-dual consciousness of the Atman alone shines there in all its radiance and brilliance. This truth is brought out to us by the battle between the Atma-Sakti as represented by Sri Krishna and the demon Narakasura, who is annihilated in the end.
The ultimate aspect of Ajnana (Maya) is nothing but the human ego which continues to persist to the very last, and it is a prolonged struggle by which the Sadhaka ultimately overcomes it and has Aparoksha Anubhuti or direct realisation. The ego of man persists right up to the threshold of Nirvikalpa Samadhi.
We are told that ever, in one of the highest types of Savikalpa Samadhi, when all other aspects of Jiva-consciousness are completely eradicated; the mere feeling of ‘I am’ (Asmita) persists. We learn from this that it is only when we begin to go deeper and deeper into Dhyana that certain obstacles, deeply hidden Vasanas and Samskaras of bygone experiences, begin to make themselves felt. In the first superficial stages of meditation most of the deeply submerged Vasanas do not come up in the form of Vrittis, because they are deep down in the unconscious of the individual. It is only when the meditation proceeds and becomes deep that these hidden Vasanas suddenly spring up into life and begin to distract the inner meditation of the Sadhaka. It is the keen one-pointedness of the meditative mind, the absolute fixity of concentration, the Tivra Ekagrata, the Brahmakara-Vritti which is generated and held steadily that overcomes: the last attack of the suddenly aroused hidden Vasanas, in a final assault.
End of Part I
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the first Son of Maja
"The fragrance of flowers spreads only in the direction of the wind. But the goodness of a person spreads in all directions." - Chanakya
Behold The Light of Lights - Part II
From the foregoing a great truth is revealed to us, viz., the ego is very hard to identify, to pin down, to catch and to destroy, for we do not know in what particular form it actually persists. Therefore, even the greatest of wise people, the most earnest and sincere of seekers and the cleverest of Yogis are, too, often deceived by the different forms and disguised shapes, which the Bahurupi (all-formed) ego assumes.
It is a master-strategist.
We will be looking for the ego in some particular form with a particular notion of its nature; but we will find that it is not there. And we will be caught unawares; we will be careless with a false assumption that the ego has now been completely removed. But to our surprise we will notice that the ego has always been there, that it has so completely changed its form that we do not find it in the form we thought of, but is in a totally different form which we did not at all recognise.
Ego is the first son of Maya, it is a superb actor. No vigilance is too much on the part of the seeker, if he is determined to track down the ego to its last stand and destroy it.
The ego can deceive and enslave all parts of the seeker, but not that part which is formally and wholly given over to the Divine. The Divine cannot be deceived. The only insurance against the deception of the ego is a whole-souled giving ourselves to the Divine, so that we become completely merged in the Divine and allow the Divine to take complete possession of us.
For, it is the Lord alone who can ultimately overcome Maya.
No amount of individual cleverness can ever be of any avail in rooting out this product of Maya, ego, because the very fact of individuality is within the realm of Maya. Individual consciousness flows from Mula-Avidya (primordial ignorance). While you are in Ajnana, you can never perceive its nature in all its subtle aspects. It is by a complete handing over of ourselves to the Divine that we shall be able to get beyond the pale of our ignorance or Avidya. This is a very subtle truth which will be apparent only after much reflection, Vichara.
One should develop keen Vichara-shakti (power of discrimination).
Vichara is the greatest friend of the aspirant, well-wisher and guide at every stage of Sadhana, right up to the very end, until he is merged in Samadhi.
Progressive aspects of finer and finer Vichara-Sakti are indispensable companions to the Sadhaka on every stage of the ascent. If the leader is given but the army is not united in its willingness to accept him, there is bound to be dissension within the ranks, and this will hamper the smooth progress and outcome of the campaign.
Even so, if the personality of the Sadhaka is divided against itself, and there are some parts unwilling to accept the new implications of the answered prayer and the working of Grace, these little parts can bring about a great deal of delay in the progress, spiritual evolution and the expansion of consciousness.
With Vichara-Sakti constantly active, with resolution firm, with faith abiding and deep in the Lord, one will have to pass through the critical stage; and once there is a total acceptance of the Grace and total surrender at the feet of the Divine, there can be no fear. Here it is the play of the Divine, and the part of the individual is one of only a mute, willing follower. From now on the Sadhana proceeds on a higher plane.
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Turn a new leaf in the book of your life
“Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.” - Rumi
Behold The Light of Lights - last Part
Here the ultimate annihilation of the ignorance is brought about. We may equate this stage with the Pratyahara, Dharana and Dhyana stages of the Yoga way, where the destruction of Ajnana in its finer aspects takes place. Again we are told in the scriptures that Brahma-Jnana is not a thing to be acquired, it is something which is already there in us eternally. The only requirement is that the thing which obstructs it has to be removed.
The truth which the different sacred observances and festivals symbolise is better understood and glimpsed when their scriptural background is impartially studied.
Start regular daily meditation (those of you who are not regular, make a resolve on the sacred occasion of Dipavali) and Vichara, and feel for yourself the wonderous power that you derive therefrom. This is the real power of powers. It will guard you from all dangers, give you infinite strength to overcome all obstacles and take you to the very pinnacle of splendour, power, peace and illumination.
*For meditation - Brahmamuhurtha (* a period between 3 am and 6 am), is the ideal time.
O Man, Awake, Arise! Sing the Names of the Lord. Worship and meditate on Goddess Lakshmi, the Abode of all virtues. Do Vichara. Turn a new leaf in the book of your life. Light the lamp of wisdom in your heart and dispel the darkness of ignorance–the perception of name and form.
Behold now the Light of lights, the Atma within yourself. May all men’s hearts be illumined with wisdom!
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Nishkamya
“The first step in spiritual life is to have compassion. A person who is kind and loving never needs to go searching for God. God rushes toward any heart that beats with compassion-it is God’s favorite place.” - Amritanandamayi Ma
The perfect ruler
What is Nishkamya - It is a form of bhakti or devotion to God without seeking any favor. It is selfless service, the highest form of Love to God. It is the essence or the central message of the Bhagavad Gita.
You cannot remove ignorance through Karma, because Karma is not the opposite of ignorance or its enemy or antidote. It is knowledge alone that can dispel ignorance. Just as heat removes shivering from cold, so also the fire of knowledge destroys Ajnana. Therefore, exert to get knowledge of unity.
Brotherhood Bhava leads to the attainment of Vedantic Unity or oneness in the long run.
Every act of purification in any sect or community promotes the well-being of the whole, of which they form a part and therefore desire encouragement.
A Jnani is only an ideal Karma Yogi. A Jnani only can perform actions with perfect Nishkamya spirit. See how Raja Janaka lived. He lived the life of a practical Vedantin while ruling the kingdom. You cannot conceive of any man busier than Raja Janaka. He was ruling over millions of people and yet he was a Sage, a deep thinker, a profound philosopher and a practical Vedantin. He had no attachment to his property or body or his family people. He shared what he had with others.
He moved with all. He had equal-vision and a balanced mind. He led a very busy life amidst luxuries. He was not a bit affected by external influences. He always kept up a serene mind. He held discussions with various Sages on transcendental matters. That is the reason why he still lives in our hearts. And why, even in this Kali Yuga, see how the veteran Nishkamya Karma Yogi and the seeker of Truth Mahatma Gandhi lived!
The sun, the flowers, the Ganga, the sandal, the fruit-bearing trees, the cows—all teach Vedanta only to the world.
They live for serving humanity in a selfless spirit. The sun radiates its light alike over a cottage of a peasant and a palace of Maharaja. The flowers waft their fragrance to all without expecting anything. The cool, refreshing water of the Ganga is drunk by all. The sandal tree wafts its aroma even towards the man who cuts it with an axe.
All fruit-bearing trees behave in the same manner. They please the gardener who nourishes them as well as the man who cuts them.
The cows live to nourish the babies, the children, the invalids and convalescents. Imagine for a moment when the world is devoid of cows for six months or the race of cows has become extinct. How miserable and weak you will become! The world will abound with anaemic patients.
O selfish ignorant man, learn lessons from these practical Vedantins and become wise.
Everyone is Narayana!
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Happy Deepavali
"Lead us from untruth to truth, from darkness to light, from death to immortality on this auspicious day." - unknown
This article is a chapter from the book "Hindu Fasts and Festivals". By - Sri Swami Sivananda
Deepavali
or Diwali means “a row of lights”. It falls on the last two days of the dark half of Kartik (October-November). For some it is a three-day festival. It commences with the Dhan-Teras, on the 13th day of the dark half of Kartik, followed the next day by the Narak Chaudas, the 14th day, and by Deepavali proper on the 15th day.
There are various alleged origins attributed to this festival. Some hold that they celebrate the marriage of Lakshmi with Lord Vishnu. In Bengal the festival is dedicated to the worship of Kali. It also commemorates that blessed day on which the triumphant Lord Rama returned to Ayodhya after defeating Ravana. On this day also Sri Krishna killed the demon Narakasura.
In South India people take an oil bath in the morning and wear new clothes. They partake of sweetmeats. They light fireworks which are regarded as the effigies of Narakasura who was killed on this day. They greet one another, asking, “Have you had your Ganges bath?” which actually refers to the oil bath that morning as it is regarded as purifying as a bath in the holy Ganges.
Everyone forgets and forgives the wrongs done by others. There is an air of freedom, festivity and friendliness everywhere. This festival brings about unity. It instils charity in the hearts of people. Everyone buys new clothes for the family. Employers, too, purchase new clothes for their employees.
Waking up during the Brahmamuhurta (at 4a.m.) is a great blessing from the standpoint of health, ethical discipline, efficiency in work and spiritual advancement. It is on Deepavali that everyone wakes up early in the morning. The Sages who instituted this custom must have cherished the hope that their descendents would realise its benefits and make it a regular habit in their lives.
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The Insight
“Mediation applies the brakes to the mind” – sri Ramana Maharshi
The whole secret of knowledge is concentration!
Hit the brakes when it gets too much for you, or better put on the brakes in time before it gets too much. Concentrate and focus on what really is.
Concentration is the essence of all knowledge; nothing can be done without it. Ninety per cent of thought force is wasted by the ordinary human being, and therefore he is constantly committing blunders; the trained man or mind never makes a mistake.
When the mind is concentrated and turned backward on itself, all within us will be our servants, not our masters.
The Greeks applied their concentration to the external world, and the result was perfection in art, literature, etc.
The Hindu concentrated on the internal world, upon the unseen realms in the Self, and developed the science of Yoga. Yoga is controlling the senses, will and mind. The benefit of its study is that we learn to control instead of being controlled. Mind seems to be layer on layer. Our real goal is to cross all these intervening strata of our being and find God. The end and aim of Yoga is to realise God.
To do this we must go beyond relative knowledge, go beyond the sense-world.
The world is awake to the senses, the children of the Lord are asleep on that plane. The world is asleep to the Eternal, the children of the Lord are awake in that realm. These are the sons of God.
There is but one way to control the senses—to see Him who is the Reality in the universe. Then and only then can we really conquer our senses.
The whole secret of knowledge is concentration!
- Swami Vivekananda
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HARI AND HARA
aster: how one can realize God through all paths?
Ishan: Both Hari wnd Hara are derived from the same root. The difference is only in the pratyaya. In reality, He who is Hari is also Hara. If a man has faith in God, then it doesn't matter whom he worship.
The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Paramaatm
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Nondual mindfulness embodied is both a way of being and a method to relieve the deepest levels of suffering. Nondual mindfulness is a way of living from a naturally embodied unity of the infinite and intimate dimensions of our being. Awakening is learnable and available as the next natural stage of human development. In this experiential workshop we will learn tools to access our
effortless, awake loving nature and know the intelligence of your body from within.
• How to access the “off switch” for your chattering mind
• Awareness yoga, moving awareness through the body and mind
• Moving and relating from new operating system to begin to stabilize awakening
• Ways to liberate difficult mental and emotional states by accessing openhearted awareness and welcoming all inner parts of you.
