'Patanjali Yoga Sutra for today's man' is today's topic for the discourse. Before going to the Yoga Sutra (Yoga techniques), I like to introduce certain concepts to you all.

We call today's program as "Open the door, let the breeze in" discourse series called Dhyanasatsang (group of highly committed people who meditate in search of truth). Let us first see what Dhyanasatsang means and how to derive the benefits from it and then we shall begin the program.

Dhyanasatsang is not just a spiritual discourse. In spiritual discourses, again and again we receive words. But in Dhyanasatsang we push out the words which are inside us. In an ordinary spiritual discourse or lecture, we grasp the message and the knowledge. In Dhyanasatsang, we learn out of direct experience. We not only grasp the message, we also grasp the technique and learn out of direct experience. It is easy to grasp the knowledge but it is very difficult to get the direct experience. The place where we learn out of the experience is called Dhyanasatsang.

If we can deeply and truly involve ourselfves in this Dhyanasatsang, these three days will be a turning point in our life. It will transform our life. So let us involve ourselfves completely and deeply in this Dhyanasatsang.

Really, the biggest problem which most of us face in life is not ignorance. The biggest problem is that we know too much. Only when we know too much, we find it difficult to put what we learnt into practice. Knowing ten good messages and following the same is enough. But we are aware of thousands of good messages and we don't practice even one of those messages. We are unable to apply these messages in a practical way and turn it into a reality in our lives.

A small story about a Zen enlightened Master.

A professor goes to a see a Zen enlightened Master. This professor is a highly educated and knowledgeable person.

He asked the Zen Master: Master, how do I reach God? What is the purpose of life? What is reality? What is truth? Please explain.

The professor continuously and hurriedly asks these questions.

Please understand that when a person is asking questions in such a hurry, we can be sure that the person who is asking the questions is not asking with an intention to receive the response. If he asks one question and waits for the answer and then asks the next question, we can be sure that he has some interest in receiving the responses. But, if someone is

asking questions in a hurry, it means he is not interested in receiving the answers. He just wants to show off his knowledge.

A small example, actually this truly happened.

As soon as he came hurriedly he asked me: Master, please tell me, what is meant by God? What is divinity? Is it true, that I can realize it, only if I am destined to realize it? Is it possible to realize divinity through self-work? Is prayer good or meditation the apt thing? In a similar manner he asked me about five or six questions. I did not answer any of his questions, but I asked him questions about his well being, how his business was, how his family was. He began answering my questions and spoke about his mother, wife, and his children. After sometime he completely forgot about the questions which he originally asked. After that we spoke about lot of other things for about one and half hours. But till the end of our conversation, that man did not ask for answers to his original questions. In fact, he did not even think of those questions. He did not ask those questions for the second time. He did not open that topic at all. Initially, when he asked those questions, he asked with such intensity, but moment the conversation was diverted, he forgot all those questions completely. From this we can understand that those questions have not become a quest in him. These questions have not come from the bottom of his heart. These questions have been asked just to express whatever he knew. These are just superficial questions.

Most of the times, if we see, questions are not asked with an intention to know the answer. Questions are asked to show our knowledge on the subject. Questions which are asked with an intention to know the answers are very less. The questions which are asked to show others what we know are more in number. Only these kind of questions are asked more often.

This man who came to me asked me only such type of questions, to show others what he knew. He must have bought some books and read a few words about the divine, the soul and God. Since he has read something related to this subject he has to show others that he knows something on the subject. He himself did not have the serious intention to know the answers. He did not have the deep search in him to know the divine. Since he did not have the deep search in him, when the conversation was diverted to some other topic for about two minutes, he forgot that he had asked those questions. He not only forgot the questions, but he also forgot that he came to me only to ask questions. Most of us, in our lives, have only these kinds of questions in mind.

This professor in the Zen story also asked such superficial questions. The enlightened Master smiled and without responding to his questions, ordered his disciple to get a cup of tea. His disciple got the cup of tea and placed it in front of the Master. There was already a cup of tea in front of the Master. He took the cup of tea, which was already in front of him and started pouring this tea into the cup of tea which the disciple had brought. Already the cup was full of tea. But the Master continued to pour some more tea into the cup.

The professor started shouting: Master, the cup is already full of tea and it is overflowing and is now onto the floor. Please stop pouring more tea. The cup is full. The Master said: So are you. Like the cup which is overflowing with tea and cannot store any more tea inside it, your brain and your mind are already filled with a lot of messages. You will not be able to get my message, since your brain and mind are already filled with many messages. You will not be able to internalize what I say now.

If we go to an ordinary spiritual discourse or a lecture, we will get more words; we can learn many messages. But Dhyanasatsang is not a place where we learn these words or messages. It is a place where we learn life's lessons out of experience. It is a place where we learn the techniques to make the lessons into an experience in our life. Here for the next 3 days, the Dhyanasatsang will be a place, which gives the techniques to learn life's lessons and have spiritual experiences.

If the message given by the speaker is superficial the crowd will be more. If the message is deep the crowd will be less. If we see, in Dhyanasatsang, it is only a hand full of people who participate. Why? Dhyanasatsang is not a social gathering. It is not a public meeting. This is a place, which completely deals with the individual person's life. This is a place where we learn about the messages which helps us to make our lives better, to make our lives prosperous and to make our lives joyful. Dhyanasatsang is a place where only people who have a clear understanding and a deep search for a great life, gather. At a place where superficial rituals happen or a place where public meetings are held, we can see different types of people gather in large crowds. But in a place where Dhyanasatsang happens, only individual persons can be seen. Just because we are all sitting here and forming a crowd, does not mean this is a crowd. This represents a group of individuals.

Group of individuals is different from a crowd. Both these are different. Group of individuals means a place where every individual has come with a search for making his life joyful, to improvise his life. We have not gathered here for any public or social reasons. There are two types of crowds. One type of crowd gathers for a social or a public reason. The other type of crowd gathers for bringing the awareness in the individual's life. We cannot achieve anything for the world by a social revolution or public revolution. Only due to the awakening or transformation of an individual, we can achieve anything in our life and in this world. Changing our own self and improving our own life is the only way to change the society.

Many devotees come and ask me: Master, what is the way to change this world? I tell them, before changing the world, let's first try to change ourselves. If the world has to be changed, the only way for changing it is by changing ourselves first. When we change the world will automatically change. By a social revolution, it is not possible to change the world. It is possible only by awakening or transformation of an individual. All of us are individuals. Every one of us is an individual. This is the group of individuals. Here answers are given to inspire people to pursue a quest for living a blissful life. Questions such as :What can I learn from this program? How much can I learn from this program?

How can I improvise my life? are asked. Only people who ask such questions can get the complete benefit out of the Dhyanasatsang.

If we want to get the complete benefit, if we want a big change in our life, just have this fundamental thought about the awakening of the individual, Then start contemplating by asking questions like, how much these points will be useful for me, how much can I put into practice, how much shall I practice?

Generally, if we go to any spiritual discourse, when we are listening to the discourse we will think: Okay as soon as I go home, I should tell this to my wife. Or we may think: I should tell my mother-in-law or I should tell my daughter-in-law about the message from the discourse. Instead of thinking about telling other people, we must contemplate only on how much we can internalize these points. We must see how much these points will change our lives and how these points will be useful for our lives. Without worrying about how to publicize this to others or thinking as to how this should be useful to others, we must deeply analyze how this will be useful in our life, how much change we can bring in our life with this message. We must make an attempt to internalize these points in our life. If we make an attempt to internalize these points in our life, then the Dhyanasatsang will bring about a major change in our spiritual life, in our mental setup and in our entire life.

Now let us begin the Patanjali Yoga Sutra. Firstly, let me give an introduction to this book. Let me introduce this book through a story. The story is about how this book was written.

Patanjali was a great enlightened Master, a rishi (sage), who lived in a place called Chidambaram in south Bharat. To enable others also to have the similar enlightenment experience which he had, the techniques were written by Him and this lead to the creation of the book called, Patanjali Yoga Sutra. How did he write this? To explain this, there is a wonderful story. Let us not worry whether this story is true or false. But the philosophy or the essence of this story is truth.

Patanjali is considered as the incarnation of Adhiseshan (a snake with thousand heads). Don't worry whether this story is true or not. The core meaning and the essence behind this story is wonderful.

Patanjali decided to explain his enlightenment experience.

He called for all his disciples and said: I cannot explain my enlightenment experience just by this single tongue. I shall take my true form, the Adhiseshan form, the form with thousand heads and thousand tongues and share my enlightenment experience. But when I am sharing my experience with thousand tongues, since I will be in the Adhiseshan form (snake form), the poison that comes out of my mouth, will destroy you all. To avoid that, I shall put a black screen in between me and all of you. So please properly make a note of whatever I say.

It was decided that thousand disciples would attend and all of them would take notes of whatever He spoke with His thousand tongues. That is, the techniques spelled out by one tongue, will be written by one disciple and the technique spelled out by another tongue will be written by another disciple and so on.

After this decision, the time for the discourse was nearing. At this time, Patanjali had a small doubt that in spite of being in front of him, the disciples may fall asleep or they may walk out from the class.

He thought :I will be behind the screen and giving out the techniques, but if someone walks out during the middle of the class, what to do? As this thought crossed his mind, immediately, he made an order that nobody should go out of the class for any reason whatsoever.

He said : If someone gets up and goes out, I will curse them.

Also, he made one more order: Nobody should remove this screen whatever be the reason. If you do that, then all of you will be destroyed.

Two conditions: One is no one should remove the screen and the other is no one should walk out of the place.

Patanjali started speaking about the techniques and the words were flowing like rain. All the thousand disciples were writing down quickly.

When it was almost over, one of the disciples, for some reason walked out of the class. To inform Patanjali about the disciple who walked out and to know the punishment to be imposed on that disciple, the head of the disciples removed the black screen without even informing Patanjali.

As soon as the screen was removed because of the poison which was emitted out of Patanjali's mouth, all the nine hundred and ninety nine disciples were destroyed. Along with the disciples, the notes which the disciples wrote also got destroyed. Seeing all this, Patanjali was deeply in distress that everyone was destroyed and everything He spoke also got destroyed.

Not knowing as to what to do beyond that, He came back to His original form, ,the human form, and sat down confused. As He was sitting, He noticed one of the disciples walking towards Him.

He asked the disciple: Where were you all this while?

The disciple replied: Master, I just went out.

Then Patanjali asked: That's okay, at least show me what you wrote.

The book, which we are going to discuss, Patanjali Yoga Sutra is the book written by that one disciple. Don't bother whether this story truly happened or if it's a rumor. But just understand the truth behind this story. This story has been written to tell that, a small drop, out of a great massive subject which cannot be explained, has been explained here. Whether the story is true or not, the message is truth. The great wonderful state, the path to the enlightenment state, the unexplainable state, has been first time scientifically explained by Patanjali.

Patanjali is the only inner world scientist among the enlightened Masters. All enlightened Masters expressed their enlightened state or the true knowledge in different ways. To enable others also to attain the enlightened state or the true knowledge, all the enlightened Masters wrote various books and explained about the enlightenment or true knowledge. But Patanjali is a great enlightened Master, who explained His enlightenment through science. Nobody before or after Patanjali has written such a great book on spirituality or enlightenment. And nobody has written a book that is so scientific on enlightenment.

Now let us deeply understand what is meant by Sutra (techniques). Enlightened Masters designed techniques to enable the enlightenment experience which happened in them, to be created in others. The words which were used to explain such techniques are called Sutra. Thus the words which explains the activities which one will have to do, to undergo the experience, which the enlightened person underwent is called Sutra. To enable such an enlightenment state, the blissful state, which happened in Him, to happen in others also, enlightened persons designed the techniques, which we can follow.

Similarly, Patanjali Yoga Sutra are the techniques described by Patanjali, which speaks about the techniques and ways to experience enlightenment. Patanjali is an inner world scientist who had great clarity. There is none like him in the past. And there can be nobody like him in the future. He has explained the enlightenment techniques with such a great depth, with such intensity and such clarity in the book Patanjali Yoga Sutra.

Generally, amongst people there is an opinion that scientists are considered as very practical people and that the principles, which they declare are also considered to be practically applicable ones. However enlightened persons are considered to be people who live in their own dream world. But if we deeply analyze Patanjali, we will understand right away that Patanjali is beyond any of today's Quantum Physicists. Because he himself has searched for the ultimate experience directly, and he has lived the techniques used for experiencing enlightenment in his life. These techniques can be followed in our daily life.

Please understand this basic thing first. To enable others also to have the blissful state, which they had experienced, enlightened Masters have devised various techniques. All our physical, mental and emotional problems are due to the fact that we have not followed these techniques, which the enlightened Masters have left for us. When we start following the techniques, which the enlightened Masters have devised, then whatever we call as problems in our lives, all such problems will automatically disappear.

One more question, which will arise in everybody's mind. Really is this Yoga (the technique for relaxing this restless mind) required for today's man? Many people come and ask me, 'Master, amidst all the problems, is meditation required to be done? In our everyday routine itself, we have to face lot of problems. We have to struggle for our livelihood and comforts. We have a lot of other work to do. We have a lot of problems. Amidst all this, should we do meditation and Yoga. How is this going to be beneficial to us?' Superficially if we hear this question, we will think that this question is a very good question.

Let me answer this question through an example. A patient went to a doctor and asked: Doctor, I have many physical complaints and many other diseases,, do I have to take these medicines?

How stupid this question sounds to us. We all know that actually only a person who is sick, should take these medicines.

Similarly, only a person who is in stress and who is in depression needs meditation and Yoga. If in our everyday life, we feel that we don't have any problems, we are very peaceful, then we don't need Yoga or meditation. This means that in someway, Yoga or meditation has entered our life. Practically if someone is facing many problems, and is not living peacefully, then only for such people, Yoga and meditation are required. Just as only a patient will require medicines, similarly, only people who are facing many challenges and problems in their life, need meditation and Yoga to face these challenges and problems.

Yoga is an alchemy process. An alchemy process is a process, which transforms iron into gold. Similarly, if we bring Yoga into our life, our life will be completely transformed. I had a chance to read a book by a great doctor named Maslow, who treats patients with depression. It is a wonderful book. He has written in that book, depression, which could not be cured by many medicines and people with depression whom he could not help, were not only completely healed but also such patients were in joy because they did meditation. When they had a glimpse of conscious experience they were able to completely come out of the depressive state. For all our physical ailments, mental problems, a glimpse of a conscious experience will lead to great results. We need not have to do meditation all through our life. It is not necessary we will have to keep our eyes closed all through our life. Just dedicatedly doing the meditation once and having a glimpse of the conscious experience once is enough. It will change our body and mind completely.

Since the doctors abroad realized the benefits out of Yoga and meditation, in America teaching Yoga has become very popular business. Many American doctors and psychologists have come to Bharat and learnt the meditation techniques. They have translated the same to their language and are doing the business of teaching Yoga and meditation in America. By this statistics we can understand how beneficial Yoga and meditation are to the people.

This Yoga and meditation are the biggest donations, which Bharat has given to this world. But the sad part is that we have given to the world as a donation and we have forgotten to use it ourselves. Since we have given it as a donation, we have forgotten to use it. That's what has truly happened. In our lives, just few seconds if we can allow ourselves to do meditation and if we can involve ourselves in meditation; we can have the greatest experience of changing our body and mind completely. We can get immersed in the complete energy ocean, which gives us a complete physical and mental well-being.

This is a very beautiful verse in the language, called Sanskrit (one of the oldest languages in Bharat. Many of the hymns and songs in the olden days were sung in Sanskrit). The above Sutra means: Now let us understand about Yoga. Why is this first sentence uttered? By this Patanjali means that people who are really interested to know these techniques and people who have the true dedication to follow these techniques in their life, alone shall listen further.

One important thing, if we just internalize only those messages, which we intend to follow in our life, our life will be in joy.

Some people come and tell me: Master, I listen to many spiritual messages, I am able to know more. But I am not able to follow these messages practically. I don't know what to do.

Please understand that it is not a problem if we listen to just the good and relevant messages. But we try to listen to all the information and the countless messages, which are unnecessary and are not required for us. Since we try to internalize all the unnecessary messages also, we are unable to follow the necessary messages, which are required.

One person came and told me: Master, a month back, I read a book which spoke about harmful effects of cigarette smoking, I left it after that.

I asked him: Oh that's good to hear, so have you left cigarette smoking? He said: No Master, I quit reading these kind of books which confuse the mind. Really, ignorance about knowing what is good and what is bad is not a problem for us. We don't just get the relevant and good messages, but we get to know all the messages, those messages that are not necessary as well. Our mind is completely overflowing with unnecessary information. So naturally, we are not aware as to what should be done and what should not be done. Because of too many unnecessary words that enter us, in our lives we are unable to follow the necessary words.

Ramakrishna (an enlightened Master from West-Bengal, in Bharat) beautifully says: It is okay, even if your senses do not work. But do not permit unnecessary words into your self.

Even if our eyes and ears do not function, it's okay. Or if any our senses do not work, it is okay. But by permitting the entry of unnecessary words into ourselves, we are not leaving space for necessary and good messages.

There is a beautiful verse in the Upanishads (Sacred texts that embody the experiences and ecstatic realizations of great seers who perceived the reality and enjoyed it), which says that only if the food is pure, our mind becomes pure. Please understand, by using the term food here, it does not only mean the food that we eat through our mouth. The incidents which we see through our eyes are also food. Even the music, which we hear through our ears, is food. The fragrance which we smell through our nose is also food. Whatever we take inside us through the five senses are all food. So understand that all the TV programs, whatever we see are all food. Whatever noise we hear through the ears is also food. Whatever our nose smells is also food.

I always say: Do not watch any television program which puts in you sorrow. The more we watch programs which put us in sadness, the more deeply we are immersed in sorrow. Because, whatever messages we are getting inside us, only those thoughts relating to those message will be working inside our mind. Whatever messages enter inside us through our senses, only those messages will be acting inside us without our awareness. If we watch any horror movie in the night and go to bed, suddenly at 12 in the night we will feel that the cat is meowing**.** If the screen moves due to breeze, we will fear that someone is walking in. Because whatever thought we have put inside in us, only that thought will work inside us. Whatever thoughts go inside us will work inside us. For any reason whatsoever, let us not permit any thoughts which put us in sorrow, misery and worry to enter us.

In those days, our ancestors, used to light the lamp in the evening and do meditation. They do this because, in the evening, whatever thought we put in our mind, it will sprout out as a tree. Whatever thought we put inside us, it will grow as a big tree. But nowadays, what we do in the evening? We see some serial on television and start crying along with the programs in the television. Let us not permit ourselves to watch any program that can put us in sorrow. There is nothing wrong in watching a program which gives us joy. We do not have to disassociate ourselfves from everything or avoid everything. Let us not associate ourselfves with any programs of media, which put us in sorrow, or any incidents which depress us. Be it any type of media like television or any movie or newspaper or even the internet; let us not take in any information or news which puts us in sorrow or anything which depresses us.

Generally, if we see, many people first read the obituary column or they read the news on accident or murder in the newspaper or magazine. What is the reason for this? It is because in many of us the revenge taking attitude is there in one corner of our mind. We try to satisfy or quench our revenge taking attitude when we come across any negative news.

Is any murder or robbery not going to happen? Any day we open the newspaper; this kind of news will always be there. The only difference between the news of yesterday and today is that the same incident would have happened in a different place and there would be different victims in the incidents Please understand that it is going to be the similar news but we constantly associate ourselves with these kinds of incidents and thus put ourselves into sorrow. Let us not take in any news or incidents or information, which puts our mind into sorrow and depression. Let us try to be involved, as much as we can, in good messages, good news and let us place our mind in a high plane. Our mind, will act according to the information it has received. When we receive and store the unnecessary and negative messages, there will be no space for positive and good messages.

That's why Patanjali beautifully says, 'Decide clearly whether you need Yoga in your life? That's the reason for this first technique. Only if we feel that we have to change our life, we must read this further. If we do not have the search or the deep quest for making the change or transformation in our life, we need not bother about what is going to be said further. Just to make us understand this clearly he declares the first technique, Atha Yogānuśāsanam which means now let us understand about Yoga.

Now let us begin the Yoga.

The next technique is a wonderful technique.

It is a beautiful technique.

The translation for this is ;The evolvement of the mind in different forms and in different creations is stopped by Yoga.

Patanjali explains the essence or the main core of the Yoga in this technique. Mind is a big monkey. Not just an ordinary monkey. Vivekananda (an enlightened Master, also disciple of Ramakrishna) beautifully says that mind is equal to a monkey, which is possessed by a ghost, which has drunk liquor, and which is stung by a scorpion.

There was a monkey, somehow it got a pot of liquor and it drank the liquor. We know, how these monkeys are! In spite of being normal, they jump. To add to this, there was a ghost, which possessed this monkey. And a scorpion stung this monkey. The way the monkey was jumping around due to the impact of the liquor, the ghost and the scorpion sting, the same way our mind also jumps and oscillates.

If we look closely into our mind wherever we are physically present, our mind will not be there. When we are brushing our teeth in the morning, we will be thinking about our office. Thoughts such as : After I go to office what should I do? What will happen in the office today? What should be done at work? arise in the mind. Then after we go to work we worry about school lessons to be taught to our children after coming home. Then once we come home after work and start teaching our children, we begin to think about the television programs. Then when we watch the televison program, we will then think about the next day's routine.

Please understand that the very nature of our mind is not being present wherever we are present physically. Our mind constantly jumps, oscillates and asks: What next? What next? What next? It will not be there wherever we are physically present. That's why Vivekananda says: Mind is similar to that of a monkey which is possessed by a ghost, which has drunk liquor and which is stung by a scorpion. Our thought flow keeps oscillating. The biggest problem in our life is only our mind. Our mind is the biggest problem in our life. If we are able to know how to operate this mind and bring this mind into our control, we can discipline this mind. Then our life will become blissful and heavenly.

Mind is like a car. If we know how to operate it when there is a need, that is if we know when and how to turn left and turn right or go straight and if we know how to apply the breaks and stop the car, then it means we are driving the car. We sit in the car and drive the car, we take the left and right turns and stop the car when we want to. If we can apply the breaks and stop the car when we want to, then it means that we are driving the car. But if we are unable to apply the breaks and stop the car when we want to, then it means that the car is driving us. Just by this one thing we can understand whether we are driving the car or the car is driving us. If we can stop the car whenever we want to stop, then it means that we are driving the car. If we are unable to stop the car and the car keeps on moving, then it means that the car is driving us. Our mind is also like that. If we can stop the mind when we want to, if we can bring our mind into our control then we are living

with our mind. If we are unable to bring the mind into our control, then it means our mind is using us. That's all it means and nothing else.

If we drink less, then it means that we are drinking with some self-control. However if we drink without any self-control, then it means the drink will swallow our life. As long as we smoke less it means that we are in control. But if we go beyond the limit, then the cigarette will control us. If we are at such level, where we can stop our mind, then it means that we are living with our mind and that we are in control. If we go beyond that point where we cannot control our mind, then it means that our mind is living through us. Our mind will be using us.

Thus the Sutra, Yogaha Chitta Vritti nirodaha, means going to the no mind zone. It is the state at which the thoughts which arise in the mind disappear. Thus Patanjali says, 'Being in peace, without any thoughts in the mind, being in such a blissful state is Yoga'.

Firstly, we should understand whether this is possible in our lives. Most of us don't have confidence in our lives or in ourselves. There is no self-confidence. We never think that we can do something. We ourselves don't believe in us. If good fortune happens in our life, we do not have the courage and the maturity to accept it. Why is that? Because generally we don't even believe that something fortunate could ever happen to us. If we deeply analyze our lives, if we search in a relaxed manner in our lives, we will know the depth of our lack of confidence. Without the confidence, how much ever prosperous and wealthy we become in our lives, it is of no use.

Let us see this small story.

A poor man luckily won one million in a lottery. But he had a heart problem and had a weak heart. So, his wife was afraid to tell him that he had won one million because hearing this he might get a heart attack. But what to do, she had to tell him. She was looking for someone through whom she could convey this news to him. There was a priest in that town who was also an astrologer. He was a very popular person in that town. She went to the priest and told him her problem and said that somehow she wanted to convey this news to her husband.

She told the priest: This news has to be very carefully conveyed to him, since he has a heart problem. By you conveying this message nothing should happen to him.

The priest replied: You don't worry madam, I will take care. I know your husband for the last 30 years. I know how to break the news to him carefully. That's not a problem. I will take care.

The priest confidently went to their house and began talking to him.

He said : I think you are going to get a fortune.

Like this the priest slowly began the conversation, and then finally he changed the topic and asked him: If you get one million in a lottery what will you do?

That man replied: If I get one million, I shall give half of it to your temple.

Hearing this, the priest fell down and died.

Similarly, when fortune and luck come to us, if we don't have the maturity and the confidence and the stability to take it up, even if it comes, it is not useful. In the world there are hundreds of lucky draws and lotteries going on. I have visited many countries and as far as I know, there is nobody who has become wealthy due to a lottery. Money will come, however it will go back the same way it came. To maintain the fortune also, we need the ability and the capacity. We need the self-confidence. In our lives, most of us don't have the confidence, that's why; we are living a very superficial life, wondering whether we can achieve something in our life.

Being in the state of thoughtlessness, being in the state of peace and in the state of bliss is called Yoga. The moment we hear these words, the thought which run in our mind is: Is this all possible for us to do? Is it possible for us to practice this in our daily lives? Is it possible for us to be in a thoughtless state and peaceful state? We are not able to sit quietly for ten minutes. How can we do Yoga and meditation?

By thinking like this, we ourselves are pulling us down. There are two things: One is listening to the arguments and then giving the judgment and the other one is deciding the judgment and then collecting arguments to support the judgment we have decided. If we have already decided that we don't have self-confidence and that we cannot achieve anything in our life, then it means we really cannot achieve anything.

For example, if we had already decided that we cannot achieve or do any Yoga or meditation, then may be we will make a small attempt and if we are not successful in that attempt, then we will convince ourselfves that we have made a try and that we cannot try any further. If we decide like this, then this becomes an argument in support of the decision, which we had already made. Really, with an open-mind, with a confident and stable mind, with clarity in thought, if we make an entry into meditation, make an entry into Yoga, then we will know if it is possible or not possible to be in a thoughtless, blissful zone.

One important thing, we should understand. Mind is not a thing. It is an incident, which happens inside us. For example, we walk and once we reach the place we are supposed to reach, we sit in a chair. Once we sit on the chair, the act of walking which we did disappeared. That same moment we sat on the chair, the very act of our walking disappeared. That is, once we perform the incident or the action called sitting, then the incident called walking disappeared. Similarly, mind is an incident, it is not a thing. It is a program or an incident. Continuously some thought process keeps happening inside us. When we sit, the event of walking is no more. Just as the act of walking disappeared as soon as the act of sitting was performed, similarly, as soon as you come to the state of Yoga, the incident called mind will disappear.

Yoga means the techniques relaxing the oscillating mind, soothing the mind which is suffering due to wounds. The mind keeps oscillating up and down and in all directions. The technique for relaxing this restless mind is what we term as Yoga. Yogaha Chitta Vritti nirodaha. Yoga means attaining the state of thoughtlessness. This is the introduction, which Patanjali gives for Yoga. The only introduction, which we all should

know is to understand that Yoga, does not just mean the physical movements and exercises which we do. Doing or making physical movements is just a part of Yoga.

Really, what is Yoga? Blissful state is always there inside us, the techniques that express this Nithya Ananda (eternal blissful) state, which is already there in us, is what is called Yoga. The techniques that help attain that state of Nithya Ananda are what is termed as Yoga. Mind is an incident, the techniques, which are used to calm down that incident, are called Yoga. This is the basic explanation for Yoga. The state of 'no mind' is termed as Yoga.

To attain this state of Yoga, there are eight steps or eight levels to it. Through these eight steps, one can experience the state of Yoga, step by step, clearly and confidently. Thus experiencing the state of Yoga through the eight steps is what Patanjali calls as Asthenia Yoga. This means the eight steps to attain the state of Yoga. When you go step by step following the eight steps, towards the state of Yoga, you can clearly and confidently, experience the eternal bliss.

In the next few chapters we shall discuss these eight steps, which take us into the sate of Yoga.

What is awakened state? And what is sleeping state

I welcome you all with my love and respects.

Today's topic is, 'Wake Up!' As soon as I said this, the next moment the question, which will come to our mind is, 'Does it mean that we are all sleeping?' Whether we accept it or not, or like it or not, the answer to this question is, Yes, we are all sleeping. May be the intensity of the sleep might have come down, but we are not truly, completely in the awakened state. May be its true that it is not as deep and intense as the sleep in the night, but we are not completely awakened. This is the truth.

What is the awakened state? And what is the sleeping state? When our common sense and our clear intelligence are not within our control, then we call that state as sleep. We cannot get into sleep by ourselfves. We can only fall into sleep. When our common sense and our thought flow is not in our control then that is the sleeping state. When our common sense is not in our control but if it still functions then that is the dream state. If it is not in our control and it is also not functioning then that is the deep sleep state. If common sense is not in our control, but it still functions, then that is called the dream state. In the dream state, our thought flow and our common sense will not be in our control, but, they will function. In the deep sleep state, it will not be in our control and it will not function also. But in the dream state, our common sense and our thought flow will function, but both are not in our control.

What is waking or the complete conscious state? When our common sense, our mind and our thought flow are in our control, then this is the waking state. Are these in our control? For this question, if we deeply search for the answer for this question, then we will know the answer, which is inevitably 'No'. We should understand this clearly, when our common sense, our mind and our thought flow are not in our control, then it means that we are not in awakened state. We are still in the dream state. May be we are at a dream state at a higher plane, not that much intensity as in the night. That's all. Sometimes if we see, when we dream we will know that we are dreaming. When we are dreaming, we will have the awareness that we are actually dreaming. Even if we are not in complete consciousness and awareness, we will have the awareness that we are dreaming. When we are not in the awakened state or in the conscious state, then we will not be in complete control of our common senses.

It is enough if we understand these basic few points. In deep sleep, our common sense will not be in our control and also it will not function. In dream state, our common sense will not be in our control, but still it will be functioning. A true waking state or awakened state is a state at which our mind, our common sense and our thought flow are in our control. In our lives if all three have not come under our control yet, then it means that we have not completely woken up. The complete awakened state has not yet happened in us. There is something called degree of consciousness to measure how much our mind and our thought flows have become straight. If our thoughts flow as per our wish and if it keeps our life in a joyful and blissful state then our consciousness will be at a higher

plane. If our consciousness is in a higher plane and in a blissful state all the twenty-four hours, then, it means that we have all woken up. That's why, in Sanskrit (one of the oldest languages in Bharat. Many of the hymns and songs in the olden days were sung in Sanskrit), there is a word called Jagrat. Jagrat means awakened state.

The word Jagrat is also used for describing the state of the enlightened people. Why is it called like that? It is because, when we have truly woken up, it means that we have attained the complete, whole, blissful and enlightened state. Only when we are not truly awakened, our life is full of sorrow and dullness.

Okay, then what is the way to wake up? What is actually happening in our lives? What are we going towards? Only when such kinds of questions of clarity are created in us, we come to the awakened state. We should understand this basic thing. We are living neither in a state at which we are awakened nor in a dream state, but we are living in a dull state.

If we see carefully our thoughts do not flow in a free and clear manner. Just deeply observe the mind. We will understand clearly that our mind will be functioning in the same setup, in the same way and in the same manner. It does not think anything new. It does not have direct approach. It does not run freely. Our mind itself will function like a tape recorder. In those days, there was the gramophone. When a needle is placed over the gramophone disk, it will keep rotating and playing. If there is any scratch over the disk then the gramophone will repeat the same line again and again. I had been to one of our devotee's house. He had an old gramophone record, we asked him to play the gramophone. The song in the disk kept playing the same line. The line was: Varavu yettana, varavu yettana, varavu yettana …..(Income eight paisa, Income eight paisa, Income eight paisa….) This is an old Tamil (One of the languages spoken by the Dravidians in South Bharat) movie song. The gramophone kept repeating the same line because of the scratch.

I told him: This seems to be a very good gramophone; this speaks only of income not about any expense!

He replied: Master, we are really frustrated spending for this gramophone, hence we decided not to spend any more money on this.

An old gramophone plays the same line again and again, similarly, our mind has the same setup and acts in the same manner. If we observe our mind, we will understand this. We will understand how our mind functions in a pre-determined and fixed manner like the tape recorder. For example, when we are brushing our teeth in the morning , we worry about our office then when we are about to leave for work we worry about all the tensions in our office. After we go to work, we worry about teaching our son, his school lessons. When we are teaching our son, we worry about the provisions which have to be bought for our home. So once we are doing all the household related work, we worry about the next day's schedule.

Our mind will be used to this kind of mental setup and thus a mental habit will be formed. So when we are used to this kind of thinking pattern, then even on a Sunday, when we need not have to go to office, when we are brushing our teeth in the morning,

automatically thoughts about our office come up. Even if we tell our mind: Don't worry about work now, today there is no office and you need not have to go to office today. The low mood or the depressive state which is present when we were in worry, will settle in our mind. Even if we ourselfves tell our mind that today is a holiday, since it is a mental habit to get worried, when the particular time comes, the mind automatically goes to a low mood and feels depressed.

After writing exams, getting the results, passing out, getting a job and getting married, after 5 years we dream that we have not written our exam. Or we dream that we have failed in the exam. It would have been years since our life changed, but our mental setup would not have changed. When we see, in many cases, this will apply. If we have the habit of taking coffee at seven in the morning, automatically there will be ring from inside us for coffee, even without seeing the clock. Then we will know that it is seven o' clock in the morning.

Mind will go in the same track, which is already recorded. Mind does not have its own natural course. It does not have its own freedom of choosing the path. Whatever we have recorded, it will use that same path. If we have the habit of sleeping at eight in the night, as soon as it becomes eight in the night, even if we don't see the clock, we begin to yawn. Our body automatically functions in the same routine way. If we observe deeply, mind is not a free, independent entity by itself. It is just a recorded system.

When we are functioning in this recording system, how we can say that we have awareness or we have the freedom to act the way we want. No. Really, our life is being spent in a very dull way. A devotee asked me: Master, which one will win in our life, is it fate or intelligence? I say : It is intelligence that will win, provided you have it. There is no doubt that intelligence will win. But whatever we have is not called intelligence. Of course, it is intelligence, which will win. But when will it win? When our mental setup and thought flow are in our control, only that time the intelligence starts working. Until then the intelligence does not work at all. Until then whatever was working was fate, which was calling itself as intelligence.

There is a beauty in this. There are some women who will run the family in such a way that no one will know that they are in control of that family. The husband will think that everything in the family is in his control. But even without the husband's awareness, she will control him. Some women know to hide the truth to that extent. Their actions will expressly prove that they are in charge. Some women are very smart, even without the husband being aware of it they will be in charge of him.

Our mind is like these smart women. That is the mind will show that we are free, But in reality it will control us and we will not have the freedom. That is a very dangerous situation. At least if we know that we are not free then that is okay. But if we don't even know that we are being controlled by the mind it is very dangerous. At this stage mind works at such an unconscious level. We won't even know that we are in sleep and we will be in sleep.

Once we come to clarity, first we should understand that we are in sleep. One more devotee had asked me a question yesterday, 'Master, I am trying to meditate. But when I begin to meditate, my mind is oscillating very fast. Am I really progressing in meditation?' We should understand one thing clearly, the moment we found out, that our mind is oscillating then it means that we are progressing in meditation.

During the new moon day, will we be able to see the black patches on the moon? No, we will not be able to see it. We can see that only on a full moon day. On a full moon day, the stains on the moon will be visible, due to the light from the moon itself. Similarly, when our consciousness or the intelligence starts working, then we will know that in our mind limitless thoughts are oscillating. During the new moon day, the stains on the moon will not be visible. It will be visible only on a full moon day, due to the light from it.

Similarly only when our intelligence and consciousness is in place, we will know that our mind is oscillating uncontrollably. When we sit in meditation, if we feel that our mind is uncontrollably oscillating, it is be clear that we are progressing in meditation. We have started progressing in our life. We have started bringing our mind in our control. Getting to know what is happening, is the first step to waking up.

If we dream of a tiger or an elephant chasing us, we will first come to the state of clarity that it is just a dream and only then we will come to the state of waking up. If we are usually haunted by dreams, we will know this. Firstly we will understand that it is a dream and then we will actually wake up. Similarly, the first thought which will come to us is that our mind is uncontrollably oscillating, that is, in our example, the first thought was that it was a dream. The clarity that it is a dream or that our mind is oscillating will come first. Then the second stage of waking up will happen.

There is a beautiful word in Sanskrit, which says, Buddha. Buddha means the awakened one. If we get the complete awareness and are in the awakened state then we become Buddha, else we will be Buddhu (fool). There is no big difference between Buddha and Buddhu. One is the awakened one and the other is the sleeping one.

We should understand deeply as to how we are sleeping. If we look into our life deeply, mostly; we do the same mistakes again and again. It is not wrong to do these mistakes, but doing the same mistake again and again is wrong. If we are doing the same mistake again and again, then it means that we have not learnt anything out of that mistake. Doing a mistake and not learning anything out of that mistake is the biggest mistake. There is no mistake, which is as big as doing the same mistake for the second time.

We should learn about two words, in our life, one is experience and the other word is experiential wisdom. Experience means the collection of incidents, which happen. If many incidents happened in our life, then it means we are a very experienced person. Experiential wisdom means the number of lessons, which we have learnt out of those experiences. Many times, we only age physically, but mentally we never grow. The physical ageing will increase our experience. Whereas only mental ageing will increase

the experiential wisdom our experiential wisdom depends on the lessons, which we learn from our life's experiences.

Let me give an example. First time we touch fire in the gas range and understand that fire in the gas range will be hot. This is called an experience. Next we touch the coal stove and understand that even this stove will be hot. Then we touch a lighted cigarette and conclude that the fire in the lighted cigarette will also be hot. Then we touch a lighted match stick and conclude that even the fire from the match stick will be hot. By the time we touch every form of fire and conclude that all forms of fire will be hot, our body will be ready to get burnt. We will be ready to go to the burial ground. We will become old.

Touching the different sources of fire and finally concluding that fire will burn is what is called experience. Whereas understanding the first time when we touch the fire in the coal- stove, that all forms of fire will burn, is called experiential wisdom. Thus touching one form of fire and concluding that all forms of fire will burn is called experiential wisdom and touching all forms of fire and then only concluding that all forms of fire will burn, is called experience. Please understand that coming to a clarity based on one lesson, which we learnt is called experiential wisdom. Experience is different from experiential wisdom. There is a difference between experience and experiential wisdom. In our life, if we see, we face different experiences, but experiential wisdom does not happen.

This morning I was reading a very good book called Technology of consciousnesses. They have clearly explained that if a person is affected by cancer, then it means that at least thousand times he should have destroyed his body. Only then there is a possibility that one can be affected by cancer. Our body's immune system is extremely powerful. Though again and again we cause destruction to our body and we put our mind in sorrow, still the body has the ability and capacity to revive itself. It has the capacity to safeguard itself. Don't think God has trusted us and given this body to us. Since He did not believe us, He has packed our bodies with the immune system. If He had given this body to us, without the immune system, then within two days our body will stop functioning. He knows clearly that body should function in spite of us. The immune system in our body is an excellent system. How many ever times we might disrespect or cause destruction to our body, still the body immune system helps in renewing us again.

We may wonder, when are we disrespecting or causing destruction to our body? If we think deeply we will know. We are awake till twelve in the night and watch television. Our eyes will water and during the advertisements our eyes will automatically close. Eyes will literally plead for rest but what do we do? We force ourselves and open our eyes and continue to watch the programme. Then next, take the gonkura chutneys (spicy paste made of spinach). Our tongue will burn and stomach will pain, but since it is tasty, we keep on eating it. In spite of our ears pleading, we play and listen to music even if it tears our ear drums. This is what I call as disrespecting the body. It means for our sensory pleasures, and for our comforts, disrespecting the body and destroying it. How much ever disturbance and destruction we cause to our body, it has got the ability to renew itself again and again.

In that book called Technology of consciousness this has been beautifully explained. Diseases like cancer have an impact, only when it goes beyond a point where the body itself cannot bear the abuse. That is very true. Don't think any disease comes by itself. Many people come and tell me, 'Master, I have never cursed anybody or thought harmful things for others; I don't know why I was infected by this disease. I tell them, you might not have thought harmful things for others, but you have thought for your own body. Even without our awareness, we begin to insult and disrespect our body. We are disrespecting our body.

The great enlightened Master Thirumular says: Body is a temple. However we don't treat it like a temple. But now, there is a big problem. Since he said that the body is like a temple, people started disrespecting the temples like their body! People started disrespecting the temples, like the way they disrespect their body.

The verses, which we are going to see today, Patanjali beautifully says that maintaining the purity of the body is a penance. Purity here does not mean physical cleanliness. That is easy to do. Maintaining or safeguarding the body means not causing destruction to the body or disrespecting the body for our sensory pleasures or for our comforts. In our life, we don't respect our body.

Another important thing which we should understand clearly is that the moment we look at somebody's appearance and think : That body or the physical appearance is beautiful, then by that very act itself, we lose the respect for our body. I am not talking about the opposite sex attraction. I mean a male having an actor as a model for his physical appearance. To make sure that his body becomes like his model, he goes to gym and does all sorts of exercises. I am not saying we should not go to gym or do exercise, it is not wrong to do exercise or yoga to keep ourselfves healthy and fit. However the moment we think that our body should become like someone else's body, then it means that we have begun to disrespect our body. God has given the necessary, required physical structure and beauty to all of us. But, we apply extra makeup and do exercises so that we look like others. Please understand that all this just mean that we are disrespecting our body.

One person asked me: Master, why didn't God make everyone beautiful? I told him : How do you know that God has not made everyone beautiful? You decide a scale of beauty and also decide what beauty means. If someone is not according to that scale, then you categorize them as not looking beautiful. God is not an engineer who does mass production. If he was an engineer he would have made one mould and made mass production people. God is an artist, who has painted each one of us individually. If He was an engineer, then He would have done a mass production based on Mr. World and Miss. World. He would have given an order for mass production and gone to rest. But God is not an engineer. God is an artist. He has created all of us in dif erent forms, dif erent methods, dif erent shapes and dif erent angles. Each and everyone of us has a complete and beautiful body.

The moment we think that this body is not good and that we should make some changes to the body, we start to carve on this side, we color on one side and dye our hair, paint the lips, bleach the face, color our face and constantly start to hate our current physical structure. We begin to create a gap between us and our body. The moment we create this gap between us and our body, then without our awareness we begin to disrespect our body. Without our knowledge we begin to disrespect our body.

The moment we think that our body is not according to our wish then from that very moment we have begun to disrespect our body. If we are comfortable with our body, then it means that we are at ease with our body. If we have created a gap between us and our body, it means that we are not at ease with our body. The moment we are feeling uneasy with our body, this un-easiness is what is expressed as disease. Our mental setup is the fundamental reason for all our diseases. This is the truth. We shall discuss this point in detail today in our technique for discussion today. Today's topic for the discourse is related to this.

From the part, Sadhanai Padham, 26 th technique.

It is a beautiful verse.

Let me tell you the meaning of this.

'The constant, uninterrupted acquiring of wisdom (vivekam) is a way to destroy ignorance', is the meaning of the above verse.

We should understand the relationship between this verse and today's topic. The questions which create clarity in our wisdom (vivekam) like, 'What is eternal and what is not? What is permanent and what is not? How to live our life? What has to be achieved in our life truly?', will pull us out of ignorance.

Let me tell you an incident, which actually happened. If I narrate this, then this particular message will become clear. I met an American devotee in America. He is a Hindu who lives in America.

Some of us think that the people there are very happy. It is our imagination. The people who are here think that the people who are there are very happy. The people there think that people who are here are happy.

Anyway, let us come back to the incident. That devotee came and spoke to me : Master, I came here eight years back. When I came to America, I had a list of things to be accomplished. I had imagined that I should buy two houses, two cars, that I should have so much of money, and a good family environment. I came here with this kind of mental setup and plans. I had calculated that to achieve this it will take ten years. But due to my hard work, I achieved this in three years only.

This is actually a very good thing. So far, whichever countries I had visited, I have sensed that Hindus have earned a good name. Truly, Hindu people are real hard workers, probably when they go abroad, they start working! People in all countries respect Hindus because they consider Hindus to be very honest, hard working and have a good conduct. Truly, they are hard working.

Anyway, coming back to the incident, that American devotee said: Whatever I had listed, everything I have accomplished, but I did not achieve the goal, for which I wanted to achieve all this. Whatever I had planned to accomplish, like buying a house, buying a car, earning money, the family environment, everything I had accomplished. But I achieved all these thinking that I will get the bliss, but I didn't get that bliss.

Most of us are actually confused with our goals. Since the goal is not clear, we don't know as to how our life goes on. At the age of forty or fifty, most of us go into this mental setup and worry: What did we achieve in our life? It looks like the entire life is wasted. The great enlightened Master Appar Himself says, *Kurikhol illaadhu Ketaen (*I have destroyed myself without a goal). If we see in our lives, we are not clear as to what is eternal and what is not? What we want to achieve? And such kinds of goals are not clear at all.

I am not saying we should not have desires. I am only saying let those desires have clarity. There are two kinds of desires, one is 'Clear desires' and other one is 'Unclear desires'. Clear desires are desires where we have the clarity in our life that we want to achieve something. For example say we want to earn one million. When that desire is clear to us, two things will happen to us. First thing is, before getting onto the desire itself we will know whether we can achieve that desire or not. If we think it is possible, we will pursue it. If we think we cannot, we will just drop it. So in the beginning itself, root of sorrow is completely cut off. Then there is no problem.

As an example, let's take this desire of earning one million and analyze. If we are running a business now, we will know if it is possible to earn one million or not. If we think it is possible then we will work towards it. If we think it is not possible then we will change our goal accordingly, like earning five lakhs or ten lakhs which may be less than one billion. Then we get the clarity to set our goal. If it is a business with which it is possible to earn one billion, then we will start working towards earning that. After earning that, we will settle down with the clarity where we feel that it is true that we earned one billion, but we did not get the joy and the bliss, which we thought we will get.

There are two things which we need to understand. First thing when we know that it is not possible to achieve a certain desire then that desire itself will leave us. Second thing, when we know it is possible to achieve our desires, if we start pursuing our desires, after achieving the desires we will come to a clear understanding that by achieving these desires we are still not feeling fulfilled.

Our ancestors say dharmam, artham and kamam (desire). Let us see what Kamam is. Kamam means a desire. When a desire crops up, if we deeply analyze it and we come to know that it will not be fulfilled, then we come to a clarity that it will not happen and we will drop it and focus on something else. Then it is fine. There is no problem. If we think it will happen, then we will achieve that desire and once we accomplish the desire, we

will come to a clear understanding that even after fulfilling the desires, our life is still not fulfilled. Both ways it is good. If our desires are clear and are at a conscious level, then firstly our life will be peaceful from the beginning or secondly it will at least show the way towards peace.

That is, if in the beginning only we know, that achieving that desire is not possible, then at that very moment we will forget that desire and work in another direction. If we think it is possible to fulfill that desire and pursue it then after achieving the desires, we will at least realize that running behind desires will not give us the fulfillment in our life. In some way, there will be clarity. Either we will know it today or we will know it after ten years. At least we will realize it after ten years. That itself is a big thing. But most of the time, we don't even get those desires to the conscious level.

Let us see a small example to understand this further. Do any of us feel upset that we are unable to become like Bill Gates, the richest man in the world? Does any of us cry and yearn for it? But there are people who are upset that they are unable to earn like their brother. Bill Gates is wealthier than the brother. But we are not upset that we are unable to become like Bill Gates. The reason is that we are very clear that it is not possible to become like Bill Gates. When the clarity comes, there is no room for being upset. Since there is a possibility that we can become like our brother, we get worried. In the beginning itself when we get that clarity then there is no room for worry. Since that clarity is not there in the beginning, we are traveling towards worry.

Please take this as home work and do this. Sit alone for about half an hour and start contemplating and writing down what all we want to achieve in our life?

Our wishes will fall into any of these categories: First one is desire for the physical comforts, like tasting a sweet or wanting to visit some place or some kind of pleasures connected to the body. This is the first type of desire.

Second one is desire for recognition, name and fame. We feel that everybody should praise us and everybody should acknowledge us and praise us that there is no one like us in this world. That's why, when some people donate a tube light to a temple, they mention not just their names as donors, but they also mention their ancestors names, in a way the light from the tube light is blocked! The details of the donor with his ancestor's names and the date on which he donated and all other possible details will be mentioned on the tube light in dark letters, in such a way, when it is switched on, there won't be light from the tube-light, only the shadow of the dark lines will be seen on the walls! This is the desire for recognition, name and fame.

Third one is the desire related to the inner world. It is the desire for spiritual growth. Please understand that desire for spiritual growth is also a desire. Esanodu Aayinum aasai arumin says an enlightened Master. These are beautiful lines. It expresses the desire for a peaceful and blissful life. But this desire is a good desire. A desire towards spirituality will burn the other desires.

The fourth kind of desire is the one, which does not fit into any of the above 3 desires. That is the desire for giving trouble to others. That is a desire which implies, 'Even if I don't get anything good in my life, some one else should not get it. Anger, violence and terrorism all these fall under this category.

All our desires will fall in any one of these categories, nothing other than these. If we segregate all our desires, it will fall into any of the above categories. There is nothing else other than these above mentioned categories.

Please do this homework. Let us make a list of our desires under each of the above category. After we write down our desires and make it clear to ourselves, we will have a major clarity in our life. We might wonder, 'Master, what is going to happen, by writing down all the desires?' Please don't think this way. When our mind gets clarity about our desires, we will decide clearly the way our life should flow. Unnecessarily, our energy will not get wasted in all sides. We will come to a clear clarity. We will come to a clarity that, 'These are my desires and this is what I should work towards'.

When we start getting the clarity on our desires, two things will happen. One is that we will get the energy to fulfill the desires and we will begin to work towards it. Or secondly, we will get a clarity that we cannot fulfill it. Whatever happens, it is good. But the fundamental thing which should happen is the clarity which we should have over our desires.

Wisdom (vivekam) is the basic need. Power without intelligence is stupidity. Power without intelligence will lead only to terrorism and violence. That is of no use. Similarly, intelligence without power will make us dull and a coward. The power without intelligence will be harsh and rough. And our life will be haphazard and violent. It will not have any clarity.

Why do you think most of us are diabetic? Having sweets without any discipline and eating it vigorously. We don't taste these sweets deeply and joyfully. When we don't taste the sweet deeply and joyfully, then we start having more sweets, thinking that the next sweet will give more joy and so on. Be very clear, eating more is due to not eating properly. We might wonder: What? Are we eating more because we are not eating properly? How is that? If we eat patiently taking care to taste and enjoy every bit of the food, we cannot eat beyond a particular limit. If we tie the cow in the place where the grass is stored, the cow will never eat more? We may tie the cow in the place where the grass is stored, but still a cow will not eat beyond a limit. Even if a dog is sitting close to its food, it will still not eat beyond a particular limit. Man is the only exception to nature, acting beyond his limits. Acting beyond limits happens only in the life of human beings.

This is actually a funny story. There was a middle-aged man. He hated both his wife and her pet cat. He wanted to sack both this wife and her pet cat. Unfortunately he could not sack his wife, so he planned to sack the cat. One morning, he escaped his wife's notice and he took the cat to a forest which is ten miles away from the city. Happy and relieved he drove back home. Much to his shock, he sees the cat at home. The cat came home much faster than him. Next day he takes the cat to another place which was in another direction about 20 miles away. He drove back home and ten minutes after he reached home he heard the meowing noise of the cat. The cat was back home again. The angry man on the third day thrust the cat in a bag and drove his car in different directions, left and right and haphazardly. After a long time he reached a forest and this thought passed his mind: This forest is a new to me. I myself have come here for the first time. So definitely the cat will not know the way.

So happily he left the cat behind, and proceeded towards home. On the way he had a doubt and called his wife through his mobile and asked her if the cat is at home. She replied: Cat? Oh yes, the cat is very much here, right next to me. He said: Oh, then please ask the cat the way back home, I have lost the way!

Please understand that man is the only animal who has moved away from nature. No other animal has moved away from nature. Eating beyond a particular limit comes due to experiencing something in a harsh manner, in a rough and tough way without any discipline. We do not enjoy in a relaxed and sensitive way. Most of us are always rough and tough. In our lives, if we see, even when we are talking in a loving manner to someone, the words that we use will be as though we are fighting. The other person will not know whether we are fighting or talking with love.

When we are eating food, if we can deeply, patiently and joyfully eat the food then we will not eat beyond a particular limit. We are either watching TV or reading the newspaper while eating. Or else only while eating all our past memories and future dreams will come up in our mind. It is either dreaming about past memories or imagining about the future. When we are not deeply involved in anything, for example, when we eat, if we are not focused on what we eat then we will not know how much we ate. If we fill our snack bowl and switch on the TV, when the program is over the plate also will be empty. We will not know how much we ate or what we ate. And in the process we will not know even if we have gulped any insects, since we are so engrossed in watching TV! The reason is we are watching TV and something else is going in through the other side. We don't even know the taste of what we ate. The moment we enjoy things without any sensitivity and in a crude manner we are actually destroying the body.

There is a beautiful Upanishad (Sacred texts that embody the experiences and ecstatic realizations of great seers who perceived the reality and enjoyed it) mantra (sacred words).

The meaning of this is, 'Food is like God, Don't waste it. Don't disrespect food. Please follow this religiously, like a Vratham (a commitment). Vratham is a duty done towards God, to show our gratitude to God. Wasting food does not only mean throwing the food in the dustbin. Without respecting the food, if we gulp down the food quickly, be very

clear that is also equal to throwing the food into the dustbin. Without eating the food deeply, joyfully and patiently, if we dump the food in urgency into our stomach, then this is also similar to dumping the food in the dustbin. At least by dropping into the dustbin we will not put on weight, dropping into ourselfves increases our weight leading to other diseases.

I used to visit many of our devotees homes. They will place many items on the plate and tell me: Master please eat, if you don't eat then all the items will be wasted. I tell them: If the food which is external is wasted, then only the food will go waste. If the food is dumped into the body with an intention not to waste then be very clear, not only the food will go waste even our body functioning will also go waste. Experiencing something in an insensitive way means that we are insulting and ill-treating both the body and the mind.

Intelligence and wisdom (vivekam) and clarity should first come in our thought flow and desires. If we can come to a basic clarity that is enough.

Be very clear, this does not mean controlling our desires. Understanding what our desires are whether we can achieve such desires and thus arriving at this clarity is enough. Half of our problems will disappear. If we have clearly come to the conclusion that it is not possible to achieve those desires then such desires will disappear. We need not have to worry about that. That desire will settle in the back of our mind and get dissolved. To get that wisdom (vivekam) and intelligence is the basic requirement in our lives. The clarity, wisdom (vivekam) and intelligence as to what is required and what is not required is the basic requirement to be achieved by every one of us.

The fundamental duty of every man is wisdom (vivekam). Most of us think that if our parents have earned the required wealth for us to live our entire life, then their duty towards us is over. No, that is wrong. I always tell people: the duty towards your son is not just earning the wealth for his living. You are responsible for giving him the intelligence and the wisdom (vivekam) to run his life. Really, that is the duty of the father towards his son. Be very clear the duty of the parents towards their children is to provide them with the intelligence, clarity and wisdom (vivekam). But if we don't give them the intelligence, even if we transfer wealth valuing millions, we ourselves will be spoiling our children. Most often we see that if the father earns, the son will spend lavishly.

Actually a true story. Henry Ford is one of the richest persons in America. Many of us may have heard of him. He is the founder of the Ford Motor Company. He usually goes to a hotel. Generally he stays in an ordinary room, which is not a deluxe room. But if his son goes to the same hotel, he will stay in a deluxe room with all the luxuries. The manager of the hotel asked Henry Ford: Sir, you always stay in the ordinary rooms, but your son always stays in the luxury rooms.

Henry Ford replies :His dad is a rich man, but my dad is not a rich man.

Please understand that the biggest wealth, which we can transfer to our children or to our next generation, is intelligence and wisdom (vivekam). Let us not think that our duty ends just by providing our children school education or transferring our wealth to their names. The most important thing which we have to transfer to them is the mental clarity, the ability, the wisdom (vivekam) and intelligence to handle their life and live their life. Provide them with meditation and knowledge. That is our basic duty towards our children. The moment we give them the wisdom (vivekam), intelligence and the clarity, he will earn whatever he wants. But if we just give them the wealth without giving the wisdom (vivekam) and intelligence, then how many ever millions we transfer to them, they will ruin the entire wealth. Since we earned it we know its worth. But this wealth goes to our children as a gift so they will not know the value of it.

Let me tell you an incident which happened. All of us know Bill Gates, the richest man in the world. He has just transferred 1% of his wealth to his children and he has written a will to donate the rest of his wealth towards charity. Actually he has really done it. He has created a trust to handle this. People are asking him as to why he transferred just small negligible portion of his wealth to his children and the balance has been allocated for charity.

He replied: Just because he has the credit of being my son, the entire wealth cannot go to him. He will not respect the wealth. He will know the worth, only when he earns it by himself.

By this is does not mean that we should not transfer our wealth to children. But before transferring the wealth we must give them the mental setup which is needed to handle the wealth. Give them the mental state needed to handle the status. If we transfer the wealth without giving the needed mental setup then they will not be able to retain the wealth. The first thing that we have to do is bringing the intelligence, clarity and wisdom (vivekam) into ourselves and transferring the same to our next generation. That is, the clarity and maturity to handle life should be brought into us and then the same should be transferred to our next generation.

That's what Patanjali beautifully says: Only when we bring in the wisdom (vivekam) into our lives, we wake up from ignorance. As long as wisdom (vivekam) does not come into us, our life will be immersed in the darkness of ignorance. The word, 'Wake up!' means this. We must bring our mental setup into wisdom (vivekam). The moment we bring our mental setup within wisdom (vivekam), then we will not face the same pain again and again. If we see, most of us will be facing similar kind of pains in our life.

For example, as soon as a person gets up in the morning, he smokes a cigarette and in the evening he feels guilty for having smoked the cigarette. Again the next morning, he smokes the cigarette and so on the mental pattern continues. Some people have this habit of drinking in the evening and feeling guilty in the morning that they are unable to stop the drinking habit. Both habit and guilt rotate like wheels. Both of them keep coming alternatively. First the desire to enjoy then after that the guilt will come and so on alternatively. It will keep rotating. Breaking free from this cycle of desire and guilt is

called wisdom. The moment we bring in wisdom and clarity, we should not immerse ,ourselves in sorrow by doing the same mistake again and again.

Waking up from the ignorance of immersing ourselves in sorrow constantly is the basic meaning of the words, Wake Up. 'Wake Up' does not mean just waking up from sleep, it also means pulling ourselves us out of the sorrow and having the maturity to wake up from ignorance. That is what is meant through the words, 'Wake up'.

There is a beautiful hymn in the Bhagavad Gita (a spiritual book in which Lord Krishna explains the science of self-realization and the exact process by which one can establish the eternal relationship with the supreme).

This hymn means that we ourselves should bring us up from misery. We ourselves should wake us up. We ourselves should pull ourselves out of sorrow. We think that someone else will bring us out of sorrow. Nobody else can do this. How can someone else eat on behalf of us? Only we should take care of our mental setup. May be someone else can earn for us but nobody can eat on our behalf. Similarly, we ourselves should earn the wisdom in our life, the clear mental setup, and the maturity to run our life. Nobody else can do that for us. Nobody else will be able to do that for us. Only we can bring the clarity, maturity and the ability to live life.

Living our life blissfully is the ultimate goal of our life

Next we shall get into the discussion on the eight steps. All these eight steps are the essence of Yoga (the technique for relaxing this restless mind). Let us begin the eight steps.

Yama Niyama Asana Pranayama Prathyahara Dharana Dhyana Samadhayo Vashtangani.

Beautiful Stotra (hymn). The meaning of the above stotra is 'The eight parts of Yoga are: Yama, Niyama, Asana, Pranayama, Prathyharam, Dharana, Dhyanam and Samadhi'.

We shall learn the meaning of the eight steps as we discuss each one in detail.

Five thousand years back Patanjali has described the way in which life has to be lived beautifully. As early as five thousand years, he has explained to live our life very clearly. This is the beauty of spirituality. Our enlightened Masters and sages have provided the solution for life for the forth coming generations as well. That is they have showed how to live life for the people who lived, who are living and people who are going to live. For all the three generations they provide life solutions very clearly.

Let us see the meaning of this hymn step by step.

We shall begin with the first step. Let us see the first step of the eight steps: Yama (discipline). Technique for this first step: Ahimsa, Satya, Asteya, Brahmacharya Parikrahayamaha.

Patanjali explains about the five characteristics. Patanjali was so far explaining that wisdom is required, clear knowledge is required. He explained that we ourselves should free ourselves from sorrow and misery and thus keep ourselves blissful. There is no treasure, which is equal to knowledge. The straight way to attain the goal is wisdom.

A small story.

There was a hunter and a king who were entering into a forest. On the way they saw the dart boards on which archers shoot their arrows for aiming, while practicing. These dart boards will have circles drawn on it. There will be a big circle and there will be smaller circles drawn inside it and then a smaller one inside it, until it reaches the smallest circle. The drawing will look like a spiral. The archers use these kinds of dart boards for practicing shooting and aiming.

The king and the hunter saw ten boards like those and on all the ten boards, exactly at the centre the arrow had been shot. Both the hunter and king were surprised to see this. They

wondered how one could shoot the arrow at the center on all the boards. As huntsmen it was impossible for them to shoot it at the center on all the boards.

They began to wonder: Who is the expert in archery here? Who is the soldier? Who is the expert whose aim is so perfect that he has shot all the arrows correctly at the centre. So thinking they start searching for the warrior. There was an archer who was shooting his arrows against the board.

The king went to him and shook hands with him, saying, Oh warrior, nice meeting you. Please join my army. How were you able to correctly shoot all your arrows at the center on all the ten boards? I am sure you must be a great archer. Tell me how you learnt the archery so well.

The archer replied: I first shoot the arrow and then accordingly I draw the center circle and other circles. That's all.

Even in our life, we search for the goal after living. If we had searched for the goal, before living, then that is different. But we start our search for a goal, only at the end of our life. That is like drawing the circles after shooting the arrows. That will not help in life. Before shooting the arrow, we should have drawn and observed the circle. Even before living our life we should know the goal clearly. The intelligence, wisdom and knowledge which shower the clarity on the goal. This will bring us out of the ignorance, worry and miseries in our life.

Patanjali explains beautifully the mode and the maturity of living. Firstly, he explained what Yoga is. Then next he explains the techniques to reach that. The ways to reach that are given in the eight steps. The techniques under the first of the eight steps are: Ahimsa Satya, Asteya, Brahmacharya, Parikrahayamaha.

The first step is a beautiful step. In which He explains five fundamental characteristics which are required for a man. To achieve anything these five characteristics are required. Here let us split the above verse for explaining them in detail one by one. They are: Ahimsa, Asteya, Satya, Aparigraha and Brahmacharya. He says all these five are required. Let us see every characteristic in detail.

Ahimsa means not causing trouble to others physically, mentally or consciously. It means not causing trouble to others and not putting others in sorrow. Ahimsa does not just mean not hurting anybody physically. But it also means, not hurting others through painful words. This is an important thing which we should understand. Ahimsa also includes not uttering words which will hurt someone.

One person asked me: Master, terrorism is at its peak, how we can eliminate terrorism? I answered him: Don't worry about the terrorism in the country. First handle the terrorism which happens at home. Let us worry about the terrorism in the country later. Let us see the violence in our own house. Look at the way we are hurting each other through our words. Look at the way we are causing pain and misery to each other through our own words. Nothing is going to happen if we talk about terrorism in the country. But

there is every chance that we can eliminate the violence in our houses. But most of us have the habit of talking about something which we definitely cannot do. We never talk about something which can do.

One person told me: Master, I love the whole world. I told him: It is easy to love the whole world, but it is dif icult to love your neighbor. Is there any difficulty in loving the whole world? No. It is actually very easy. However it is very difficult to love our neighbor. We can utter impractical words continuously. Some people come and tell me: Master, I have not caused any harm to others or even to small insects. It is very easy not to hurt any insects or ants, but it is difficult to be without hurting our spouse. Of course, we think we should not trouble the insects and ants, but only as long as those beings don't cause any trouble to us.

If we see in our lives, we will involve ourselves in talking and even in doing impractical things. From morning till evening we keep talking that the country has become bad and violence has increased in the country. We don't do anything which is possible for us to do. It makes sense to talk only if we can do something about it.

One of our devotees had come from America. When I went to visit a town, he accompanied me. That was his first visit to Bharat. He was sitting in my car with me. We were crossing a few villages on the way. On the way in the corner of the road some people were sleeping.

Seeing this he asked me: Master the time is 11 O'Clock in the morning and how come people are still sleeping?

I told him: Don't worry about that. It is not a surprising thing in our country. After some distance we stopped for a break and we saw that there were about 20 people sitting in front of a tea shop and chatting for quite some time.

He expressed his surprise to me saying: Why so many people are sitting here and chatting for a long time? Again I told him: This is quite common here.

In our lives we complain saying: The country has become bad and violence is too much in the country. We constantly worry about the country. But this is not in our hands. However, there is something which is in our hands and which is possible for us to do. And that is changing our own house. But we never do that. The moment we start reducing violence and terrorism in our homes, then automatically the country will change. There is no separate entity called country. All our houses put together form a country. Am I right? Country is a collection of all our houses. Only by bringing about change at home, we will be able to change the country. But without working to bring about change in the house, if we complain all the time, we cannot change the country. If any good has to happen, first we have to take the step towards it.

For example, if a village has to be cleaned, the first step most of us would take is going to the complaining mode and end up in blaming each and every official and authority. We always think of blaming others. We never think about what can be done by us. If we decide, we can actually clean one street at least. If we decide, may be at least we can keep one house clean or a garden clean. Without attempting to do something that is possible

from our side, we blame as many people as possible. If we can usefully utilize that time which we spend from morning till evening for complaining on various things, that itself is enough, half of the problems in the country will disappear. Country will improve by fifty percent. Nothing else needs to be done. Instead of thrusting the responsibility on other people, let us bring the responsibility into our life.

Ahimsa means whether by words or actions or mentally protecting others by not causing any problems and sorrows to anybody. We may think: Okay we understand that not causing trouble to anybody is a good principle. But how is that going to make my life blissful? This question would have arisen in most of our minds.

Let me tell you a small incident, which happened in Paramahamsa Yogananda's life (an enlightened Master). One day He noticed a rose plant in His garden. There were few roses in the plant and many thorns.

He went near the plant and said: Oh Rose plant, why are you wasting your energy in generating so many thorns? Use your energy to generate flowers. Nobody will cut your flower or trouble you, I assure you, please don't waste your energy in generating thorns*.* Like this he spoke to the rose plant for about five minutes.

Some of us might think this is stupidity.

We might wonder: How can someone talk to a plant? Is he mentally alright? Please be very clear, it has been proved scientifically that our feelings and thoughts are understood by plants and trees.

Paramahamsa Yogananda is a great enlightened Master. He sat next to the plant and conversed with the plant for about five minutes. This incident truly happened. They have captured a picture of the plant. After ten days the thorns which were in the plant started falling.

After two months the plant was completely decorated by flowers. There were no thorns. This has been captured in the scientific records. He did not do any black magic. He had a deep conversation with the plant and encouraged the plant by saying: Nobody will trouble you, this is a place of Ahimsa.

The plant was inside his ashram.

He just said: You don't need your thorns, no one will trouble you. Use your energy to generate more flowers. Don't generate so many thorns.

Since the ashram was a place of Ahimsa and due to the effect of the good words and thoughts, without spending the energy on growing thorns, the rose plant spent the energy on growing flowers. If we could also generate good thoughts meaning generate Ahimsa in ourselves and not waste our energy on the thorns, that is on sorrows and chattering about the problems we face in our life then we can use our energy for creating a blissful flower. Thereby we can create a beautiful, blissful life.

Few days ago one man asked me: Master, my mind is full of sorrows. How do I come out of this?

I asked him: Did someone pass their sorrow to you?

He replied: No master, I have created the confusion for myself.

I asked him: Tell me the reason for that*.*

He said: I am unable to find the reason. Some times my mind keeps oscillating.

The moment I got the confirmation from him that he is confused from his own mouth, I asked him: If you are confusing yourself, can't you make it alright by yourself. He felt like he was given a shot and he said: That's true Master. It is me who has put myself in confusion, so I can make it alright. Then I replied: Good then make it alright. That's all. There is nothing else in life.

Please understand, the moment we get clarity that only we cause confusion then half of the problems will be over. Since we are unable to come to that clarity that we ourselves are the causes for our confusions, we are unable to arrive at the solutions.

A King went to see Buddha. He sat before Buddha and he was shaking his legs. Some of us have the habit of shaking our legs. Understand when someone is shaking the legs, it means that the mind is oscillating. The restlessness which is inside is expressed out in this manner. Because the mind oscillates, the legs keep shaking. This is due to the inner restlessness.

Now let us come back to the story. During the conversation Buddha keenly focused on his legs. The moment the King understood that Buddha was observing him shaking his legs, he stopped shaking the legs. The legs that were shaking had stopped. After sometime the king asked Buddha: Oh Buddha, my mind keeps oscillating. It is always immersed in sorrow. Please tell me a way out. Buddha replied: Did you notice the incident which happened sometime back? You were shaking your legs. The moment you realized that I was observing you; you stopped shaking your legs. Similarly, if you come to the clarity that your mind is oscillating, the oscillation of the mind will stop.

The moment we come to the clarity, that we are immersing ourselves into confusion, the confusion stops. Only until we get the clarity, we will have the confusion. Once you have the clarity there will not be any confusion. In our lives, if we start using our energy towards clarity, there will not be any space for confusion. If we direct our energy towards Ahimsa, towards bliss, then we can avoid the generation of thorns of violence. Why am I stressing the need for Ahimsa? If we don't direct our energy towards the path of Ahimsa, then the energy by itself will find its path through Himsa (Violence).

If our energy does not go through the good path, then it will take the bad path. One important thing which we all should understand is that Ahimsa is not a message, which is told for the well-being of others. It is actually told for the well-being of every one of us. Uttering good words towards others means is not just good for others, it is good for us also.

Let me explain the reason behind this. In Psychology an important message is said. We use the same words that we use on others when we are angry with them, on ourselfves when we are angry with ourselfves. This is a very important message from Psychology. When we are angry and violent, if we use harsh words against someone, then we will be using the same words on ourselfves, when we are upset with ourselfves.

Be very clear, we don't have two minds, we just have one mind. So please understand that the words which we use on others are the same words that we use on ourselves. When we are angry, if we scold others with harsh and violent words, then be very clear, when we are guilty of some mistake, we will be using the same words over ourselves. If we see deeply, people who are short-tempered will have more guilt feeling. Just observe the people, who are very short-tempered, if we get to know about their personal life, we will know that they have more guilt feeling. They will have guilty feelings like: Oh, I have made a mistake. They are always hard on themselves. Whenever they are guilty of any mistakes, they constantly beat themselves through words.

Ahimsa is not just told for others well-being, it is also told for our well-being. There are two words, sadist and masochist. Sadist is a person who finds pleasure in other's sorrows. A person who finds pleasure in other's sorrows will suppress himself also in sorrow. Why do you think we are causing problems for others? It is because of the pain inside us. We are trying to exhaust the pain in this manner.

Without any reason, one person was cursing spirituality, a devotee who was sitting next to that person complained to me: Master, he is disrespecting and insulting spirituality, I am sure he will go to hell. I replied to him: No, he will not go to hell, don't worry. Shockingly he asked me: How is that, Master? I answered him: He is already in hell.. He cannot go beyond that*.* Understand that the moment we insult others or put them in sorrow, then be very clear, that we are already in sorrow.

Only if we have something, we can give that to others. If we are giving sorrow to someone, it means that we ourselves are already immersed in sorrow. It means that we are already in hell. We need not have to go to hell separately. The mental setup that wants to immerse others in sorrow is by itself hell. That's what is meant by hell. There is no place such as hell. The anger, violence and pain that put others into sorrow is hell.

A small story.

A great warrior went to an enlightened Master.

He asked Him: Master, What is hell?

Without answering his question, he questioned the warrior: What is your profession? The warrior replied: I am a great warrior.

Sarcastically the Master laughed and said: You? Are you a warrior? Who appointed you as a warrior? You don't seem like one.

The warrior was mad in rage and pulled out his sword, and said: How dare you tease me? See what I will do to you in a minute.

So saying he was about to seize the head of the Master.

The enlightened Master laughed and said: Son, this is hell.

The moment the enlightened Master uttered these words, the warrior understood the message and felt bad for his action.

So begging for His forgiveness he said: Master, please forgive me for my actions. Then immediately the Master said: Son now this is heaven.

Understand when anger and violent actions are at its peak, we get the mental setup of suppressing others in sorrow and putting others in misery. Only when pain and sorrows enter us, we suppress others in sorrow. If we are getting angry with someone then first understand clearly, that there is some problem or some mistake from our side.

For example, if someone blames us by saying that we have stolen 100 million from a bank, will any of us get angry? No. But when someone blames us that we are a shorttempered person and we are impatient, most of us do get angry. This means, when we were blamed for stealing 100 million, we didn't get angry because we know that there is no truth in it. But when we are blamed for being short-tempered and impatient then we get angry. Then what does it mean? In the first statement there is no truth. But the second statement is true to an extent. That's the reason we get angry. When we were blamed for a bigger cause, we didn't get angry for that, because we ourselves know that it is a complete lie. But the second blame is based on minor reason, like being short-tempered and impatient. But the moment we were blamed, anger swells within us. The reason is that there is some amount of truth in the second blame.

If we get angry and we are taking a step towards putting others in sorrow or in misery, then please be very clear, that you are in hell. Without us entering into sorrow, we cannot pull someone else into sorrow. A man who is in bliss, cannot use harsh words on others and lead them to sorrow. He can never say that. Only when someone is in sorrow, he puts others also in sorrow. When someone is immersed in sorrow, then by nature he feels like suppressing others also in sorrow. He is called sadist meaning, putting others in sorrow and deriving pleasure out of it. Masochist means putting one self into sorrow and deriving pleasure out of that. We are not only immersing others into sorrow and misery, we are immersing ourselves as well in sorrow.

So please understand that Ahimsa is not a word which talks about the well-being of others from our point of view, but it also refers to the actions which we do towards ourselves. Do not put others in sorrow. We should not drown ourselves in sorrow. Not putting others in sorrow means not doing any action which immerses someone in sorrow, or the actions which insults someone, be it physically, mentally or consciously. Not drowning ourselves in sorrow means to maintain and run our body and mind in a proper way. We should not give sorrow to ourselves.

We should not always think about what others will think of us. Like for example: 'What will he think about me?' or 'Why was he gazing at me?' or 'What was he thinking about me?' or 'What would they have spoken about me?'

Some people will have spy armies to find out what others are thinking about them. They will send their spies to others to find out what he/she is thinking about them. It has become our job to worry about what others think about us. There is a beautiful proverb,

which says: Don't worry about what others are thinking about you, because they are worrying as to what you are thinking about them. This is truth in our lives. We are worried what someone is thinking about us. That particular someone is worried as to what we are thinking about him. Like this, we are constantly torturing ourselves in various ways. Stopping to torture ourselves and stopping to torture others, is called Ahimsa.

Next is Asteya. Asteya means non-stealing. Then you will ask me: Are you saying that we are stealing? The answer is ,'Yes'. Though not directly, indirectly we are all stealing. Let us understand this deeply to know how.

The moment we eat one spoon more than what is allotted to us, then it means that we are stealing from others food. When we eat beyond a limit, then it means that surely we are stealing someone else's food.

Mahavir (an enlightened Master from Jainism) says beautifully: Whatever things and materials are required for us to live in this world are also sent along with us when we are born.

When someone hoards something too much then others are deprived of it.

Things are there in this earth to satisfy our requirements. All the things which are required to fulfill the need of millions of people are in this earth. But the whole world is not enough to fulfill one person's greed. Assuming in this world six billion people are there. Then all the things which are required for them are definitely there in this planet earth. However we cannot satisfy the greed of a single man even by giving him the whole planet earth.

Need is different from want. God has given whatever is required for us, to satisfy our needs. But it is not enough to satisfy our wants too. Even if the whole earth is given to someone who is greedy, even then he will not be fulfilled. Need is different from want. When we live just with 'need', then it means we are non-stealers. However, when we go beyond the needs and start hoarding things, we start stealing though not directly.

Thus Patanjali gives a beautiful social philosophy. Our sages and enlightened Masters have given societal rules. We all should understand this. Our sages and enlightened Masters care greatly about the society. That's the reason they have given so many societal guidelines, disciplines and truths.

When I was talking to one of our devotees I was telling him: All our youngsters will know the value of our country, only when they are sent to other countries and made to stay there for a year. They will realize the worthiness of our social philosophies. Like respecting elders, taking care of elders, taking care of parents. Some of us think, the moment the parents get old, they are a burden. But in foreign countries, people go into depression for not being able to live with their parents. Living as a joint family, taking

care of elders, respecting elders, all these are ways through which we can avoid ourselves from falling into depression. Please don't think the elders are a burden.

Generally some of us think that our parents or elders are a burden. We will know when we go to other countries and live there. After becoming old and facing loneliness, they will begin to feel bad that they have not taken care of their parents. The social setup of those countries itself is different. Only when we go there and see the pain they are undergoing, we will know the value of our social setup. Immediately after getting married, leaving the parents behind is a horrible mental setup. Most of us will not know the impact of it now. In our old age, when the next generation does not take care of us, only then we will know the impact of it. The life style as designed by the sages and enlightened Masters is a beautiful way to live. This life style is designed based on the solid truth.

Now let us come back to Asteya. Just this one word, Asteya meaning non-stealing, is a social philosophy. Stealing does not just mean taking others things without awareness. Hoarding beyond our requirements is also stealing. Living with whatever we need is freedom. That is actually the biggest freedom in our life. This is a wonderful quotation by an enlightened Master which all of us should know. He says: If you have any thing in your house which you had not used in the last six months, then please donate it to some charitable institution. If you have not used it for six months then are we ever going to use it? That is true. We are not going to use it. But we fill our lofts with all the things.

Apart from this, going for shopping is a major disease. The moment their purse gets heavy some people cannot sit quietly. Actually it's really a disease. Only when they empty the purse, they feel satisfied. Buying something and stuffing the house. Actually if we see, to hide the insecurity which is inside us, we keep buying and stuffing the house. Psychological analysis has been done on this. Going for shopping is a major disease in foreign countries. Psychologists who have done the research on this say: To hide the insecure feeling which is inside us, we buy the things from outside and stuff our house. Buying things giving some reason like: When my daughter or son gets married, we need this. For an event which is not going to happen in the immediate future, hoarding and storing things much earlier in time, is an expression of the insecurity. The expression of insecurity is in the form of stuffing things, which are beyond the immediate requirement. Hoarding things beyond the requirement, is called Asteya. Patanjali says: Hoarding things beyond our requirement is a mistake not only at social level but it is a mistake at the mental and spiritual level also.

If we can implement this message in our life to an extent, may not be at a bigger level, then our life and social setup will also change. But most of us don't think that this is possible. Even before beginning to do something, we ourselves decide that it is not possible to do it. We ourselves decide that all those are difficult things to be achieved. Please understand that possessing things beyond our requirements will remove the bliss and joy from our lives. It will make our lives dull. If we see, a person who lives with too many comforts, a person who brings plenty of comforts into his life, he loses the nature and sensitivity to enjoy the comforts.

Initially when we are using a two-wheeler, we will dream about a Maruti car. After buying a Maruti car, we dream about a Maruti esteem car. If we buy the Maruti Esteem, then we dream about a Qualis car. If we have bought the Qualis, the moment we sit in the car, we dream about a Benz. The mental setup which asks: What next? what next? will make us insensitive to enjoy these things which we already possess. It will make us insensitive to enjoy the things which we already possess.

A person is highly absent-minded and is very forgetful. He was reminding himself that moment he reaches home, he has to do three things. He tied three knots in his dhoti (a traditional dress worn by Hindu men), so that he will remember to do these three things. Once he reached home, he could remember only two of the chores. After doing the two jobs promptly, he removed the two knots. But he was unable to remember the third job. He kept thinking as to what it was. He thought: Oh God, I was able to carry out the first two jobs, but I am unable to remember the third one, what it could be? Like this he was thinking about it the whole night. Ultimately the next day morning at 4 o'clock, he was reminded of it. The first point which he wanted to do was to go home and eat well. Second thing was to settle the accounts of the house and the third point was that he has to sleep well. He had done the first two jobs. He had taken his food and tallied the accounts also. Only in the early morning he was reminded that he wanted to sleep peacefully. Thinking that he may forget to sleep, he had tied the knot, finally he had lost his sleep.

In our lives also, we spend our life and ultimately lose our life. Trying to buy a big mattresses, we forget to sleep. We sell our eyes to buy an art. We sell our legs to learn how to dance. We sell our sleep to buy a mattress. Most of us are doing this in our lives. Immediately after getting something, we run to get the next thing. Therefore the thing which was got first is not experienced and enjoyed. If we have an ordinary chair, we never sit and relax on it. The moment we sit on it, we dream about a sofa set. Then is it possible to sit peacefully on this chair? Not possible. If someone cannot sleep peacefully on a mat, then he cannot sleep peacefully on a mattress. Please be very clear about it. The quality of sleep does not depend based on the mat or mattress. It depends on our mental maturity. Most often, some of us lose our sleep in the process of trying to buy a mattress. We begin to spend our whole life trying to buy things beyond our requirements and ultimately end up losing our lives. We lose the sensitivity to enjoy things. When we add more and more comforts, both the mind and the body lose the sensitivity to enjoy the comforts.

If we see there are people in the rural areas or people who live in huts and in the cities. People live in the river banks amongst the mosquito bites or amongst other bacteria. We don't even have 1% of the resistance power that they have. When we become more and more comfort driven, more and more dependent on comforts, both the mind and the body become weak. We don't have the mental energy and physical energy as much as those people in the huts. We don't have the maturity to live life as much as they have. We don't have the ability, the confidence and the solidity to experience the life, which they have.

The reason is as the number of material things or the quantity of the things increases, the quality of life decreases. In our lives as and when the number of comforts increases, the quality of such a life decreases. A man, who lives a simple life, lives his life completely and thus he is fulfilled.

We shall end with these two techniques, Ahimsa and Asteya in this part and we shall see the rest of the techniques and other steps subsequently. May these messages deeply immerse in you, may these messages act in you, and grant the eternal bliss to you and I pray that you may attain the eternal blissful state, the Nithya Ananda state. Thank you. Be Blissful.

I welcome you all with my love and respects.

Today's topic for discussion is Agam (mind), Igam (Present), Sugam (Bliss). We are in such a situation that we have to understand these three words deeply. What is meant by Agam? Where is Agam located? Where is the source from which Agam is created? Asking all these questions, if we can search for the form, source and the reality in Agam, then truly, Agam will reach Igam completely and finally merge with Sugam.

Until we start our search, Agam i.e. our mind makes us dull and dizzy. But if we start searching for its location, if we can try and find its depth, then by nature, it will fall into the Igam i.e. present moment and give us the state of bliss or the Sugam. Until we start our search, Agam will stay behind the screen and keep torturing us. When we start the search it will end in Igam and gives us the Sugam or the bliss.

Ramana Maharishi (an enlightened Master of the twentieth century from Thiruvannamalai, in southern Bharat) says beautifully in a song, Manathin uruvai maravadhu usaava, manam ena ondru illai, undhipara. If we start searching for the location and the place of our mind, the depth of our mind and go more deep into this search, we will be down to the present moment and thus experience the blissful state.

What is mind? Mind is nothing but a collection of past memories and expectations or anxieties about the future. Mind is a grouping of the past memories and imaginations and expectations about the future. If we can stay without our past memories and our future expectations for a minute then we can go beyond our mind and reach the state of bliss.

Some people even come and tell me :Master, is it possible for me to go beyond the mind and stay in the state of bliss? It is possible for enlightened people like you or it is possible for people who can afford to spend time for this. How can I do it? Understand that even before starting the process of trying to stay in the present moment and even before starting to proceed, we decide that our life is over and we cannot do it. That is the reason why, most of us don't achieve anything in our lives.

There was a Zen enlightened Master. He and his disciple went to a river to take a bath. The disciple accidentally fell into the river and began screaming to the Master for help. Without making any attempts to help him, the Master stood on the shore and said: You stupid fellow, stand up, help yourself.

The disciple screamed again: Master, this is not the time for your philosophy. First save my life. I am drowning. First save me then you can teach me philosophy. Please save me. Again the Master said: You idiot, you can save yourself. You don't need my help. The disciple cried: Master, I am drowning, please save me.

There reached a point when nothing else could be done. The Master screamed at the top of His voice: You stupid man, get up!

Hearing the Master scream, the disciple stood up. He just noticed that the water in the river was knee deep!

He understood that the water was just knee deep after he stood up. Not knowing the depth of the river, he was under the imagination that he was drowning. By his imagination and illusion, he was just drowning himself into sorrow by drowning in the river.

Truly most of our problems are just knee deep. Even in our lives, the moment we just stand up courageously, we will know that whatever we think as hurdles in our lives which cannot be crossed are just up to the knee level. Whatever we think as sorrow, or as problems, or as impossible ones is all so small in size. They are similar to the insignificant knee level water. Similar to the disciple who fell in the river which was knee deep and was struggling to stand up; we also struggle in our lives. Even if we get the simple and ordinary clarity in our life, that's enough. We will be able to stand up. The truth declared by all the people who have stood up in their lives is that all the problems in our life are just up to our knee level.

Not only one enlightened person from each religion, but all the enlightened people, sages and ascetics from all the religions declare that this world is blissful and this life is blissful. We can run and operate our lives beyond all the sorrows. It is enough if we get the confidence that we can run our lives beyond sorrow. It means that we have won fifty percent in our life. Nothing else needs to be done. We just have to achieve the maturity to be in the present. We need the stable ability and the courage to be in the present moment, without being pulled by the past memories and the future expectations. This is enough to change the direction of our life.

A beautiful Sufi story.

There was a Sufi enlightened Master who was doing penance in a forest. A disciple went to visit Him in the evening. He chats with him for a long time. Suddenly he realizes that it is dark. The disciple was worried as to how to go back.

He said: Master, I will have to walk for about ten miles to reach the city. Please do something and show me the light to go back, so that I can reach the city safely. The Master said: Don't worry, keep this lantern light with you, it will show you the way

as you walk and you will be able to cross the forest and reach the city safely.

The disciple was puzzled and said: Master, this forest is about ten miles long; you are giving me the lantern light which will throw the light rays only for ten steps. How will this lantern light show me the way for ten miles? Please show me a way through which I will have light for ten miles.

The Master replied: Don't worry; this is the magic lantern. Take this in your hands and move on, you will see the light for all the ten miles.

Listening to this, he took the lantern light and proceeded towards the city. After he walked ten steps, he could see the light for the next ten steps and so on. Peacefully and comfortably he reached the city.

The disciple was thinking that the Master had done some magic, that's why the lantern showed the light for ten miles. But truly, there was no magic. The message from the above story is that we should not club and combine all the problems in our life and see it in one shot. Most of us are trying to see the light in the whole of the ten mile forest at one shot. Similarly, we club all the problems in our lives and see it as a whole and try to find the solution at once, at the same time. In one moment, at the instance, like instant coffee, if we want to solve all our problems, will that happen?

Let us begin to confront our problems, minute by minute, one by one. Confront just the problem which we are facing now. Let us not burden our mind with all the problems. Let us not put our mind in sorrow, Let us not see our entire life as a burden. If we bring all our problems and all the matters to be solved within our eye sight and see it at one shot, we will portray our whole life as a big burden. But if we can see one problem at a time and solve the problem as it comes and if we can live our life in the present, our life will become free, complete, joyful and blissful.

The moment I say live in the present, the doubt which arises in most of our minds is :If we live just in the present, then who will solve all our problems which we may have to confront tomorrow?

Let me tell you a small example to make this clear. All of us have lived for a particular number of years in this world. Has any one of us lived without problems? No. We are living in this world even after having faced and solved many thousands of problems. Say for example, someone is fifty years old and they were able to face all the problems in their life for the last fifty years and were able to live beyond all the problems then they are living in spite of all their problems. Already, our mind has got used to confronting all the problems in the last fifty years. Can't it face the problems for the next fifty years? Definitely it can, now it has got the experience of facing all the problems in the last fifty years.

If we see our lives, failure is not a problem. But the problem is the fear of failure. Also, facing a misery is not a problem, but the anxiety about facing a misery is the problem. In our everyday life, due to the anxiety about facing a misery, fear of facing a problem, we create major sorrows in our lives.

Understand this clearly, whether we realize it or not, accept it or not, we have strong mental energy and mental strength. If this mental energy and mental energy is spent for fearing about the future, then we will start creating such problems for which we fear with our imagination power. The reason for this is that we have the mental energy to do what we think. Unconscious mind has unlimited power. If there is some fear about something or some worry about the future which is clinging on to us, then please be very clear, that we are not just worrying or fearing about it, it means that we have already started working towards creating the ground for the happening of that event which we fear about.

For example, if we fear about a business or a financial loss, the moment we face that fear, let us not think that we just fear about the future event which may happen. We are

actually creating the mental setup, which will create that particular event which we feared about. A student who fears that he might fail in the exam will definitely fail. There is no other way out. But even if he passes the examination, he will not get the marks in accordance with his education, with his intelligence and ability. The moment any anxiety, any fear, any worry in life comes up in our mind, we will start creating the event for which we were scared or worried about.

As an example, let me tell you an incident which actually happened. A few days ago, a middle-aged woman was scared that someone had applied some black magic techniques on her. Due to that fear she was suffering from some diseases, physical problems and mental problems. Distressed she came to see THE SUPREME PONTIFF OF HINDUISM BHAGAWAN SRI NITHYANANDA PARAMASHIVAM.

I gave her a mala (a string of beads which are made of red sandalwood) to wear around the neck and the yantra (a copper plate with a mystical diagram drawn on it for protection) and consoled her saying: Don't worry ma, all the black magic problems which were working on you are now gone, you are relieved of it, nothing will work on you from today.

After a month she became completely alright and there was no problem. She came and asked me: Master, what magic did you do? I am now completely alright. You have some miraculous powers. Please tell me what magic you did. I told her: I did not do any magic. Earlier you had the belief that you were being tortured by black magic and now you believe that you not af ected by black magic. That's it and nothing else. As long as you had the belief that you were possessed by some black magic, your mind was showing everything as black art and ghosts The same mind that made you believe that you were af ected by black magic shows you the clarity that it is not true that you were af ected by black magic. The belief may be due to going to temples or meeting some spiritual Master. Please understand that it is the clarity which has to happen in us.

There is a beautiful proverb which says: Anything which is negative has got no other power other than the power of our belief over it. It could be any thing negative like evil spirits or death fear or fear about life or fear of ignorance or any other fear or sorrow. The ghosts or evil spirits will have an effect over us based on our belief over it. As high as our belief is, that high would be its effect over us. The moment we stop believing it, then by nature it cannot rule us. Anything which happens in our life is based on our past memories or future expectations. If we can just seize the past memories and future expectations, the ignorance which is there in us will fall down without any base similar to the tree which has no strong root.

There were two kings who were enemies to each other and lived in neighboring countries. One day they happened to meet in a forest. They both had gone for hunting in the forest. Nobody else was there except the two kings. The moment they met each other, a lion appeared there. As soon as the lion came there, one of the kings attempted to run. Then the other king asked him: Do you think you can run faster than the lion? The king who attempted to run said: It's not required that I should run faster than the lion. It is enough if I can run faster than you, because the lion will catch you.

Like the king in the story who thinks it is enough if he runs faster than the other king, similarly even in our lives, it is not required to solve all the problems. It is not required to cover up everything. It is enough if we can do whatever is required for now. It is enough if we can make this day happy. If we think that we will be happy after solving all the problems in our life, we can never be happy. Just make this day happy. The moment we run our life based on the Igam (present moment), then the bliss will start flowering in us.

The art of living in the present is explained by Patanjali in the eight steps. We have started our discussion with the first step of the eight steps called Iyamam. There are five parts in Iyamam. They are: Ahimsa Sathya Asthaeya Brahmacharya Parikrahaya maha. We discussed about two parts of Iyamam called Ahimsa and Asthaeya in the last section. In this section, we shall see the other parts.

Next we shall see about Sathyam (truth and honesty). What is Sathyam? Sathyam as thought by most of us means speaking the truth. Thiruvalluvar (an enlightened Master who wrote the great book, Thirukural) gives a beautiful explanation for Sathyam.

Vaaymai enappaduvadhu Yadhenin yadhondrum theemai iladha Solal.

This is a beautiful explanation for Sathyam. The above verse means that: Truth through words includes those words that do not cause harm or does not insult or disrespect others.

Only in the language Tamil (One of the languages spoken by the Dravidians in South Bharat), there are three words to indicate Sathyam. They are Vaaymai, Meimai and Unmai. Vaaymai means holding on and following the truth through the mouth or verbally. Meimai means holding on and following the truth through body or physically. Unmai means holding on and following the truth through the heart.

Sathyam does not mean just speaking truth through words. Speaking the truth through the mouth alone cannot be considered as truth. Truth has to be followed at all the three different levels. Being truthful from the heart means living our life with a clear flow of thoughts and not being a hypocrite. It is knowing what our thoughts are, knowing how to treat someone, knowing how the relationship between us and someone else should be, the way our life should be run and coming to clear conclusions and following the same. That's what is meant by being honest from the heart.

There are two kinds of relationships. The first one is where one always thinks :'How would someone be useful for me?', 'How to exploit him?', 'What to get from him?' All these questions are asked if we lead a selfish life. That is we are bothered about our benefit alone. The second kind of relationship is where we ask these questions: 'What can I do for him?', 'What can he do for me?' This is a business. The first kind of relationship is really terrible and selfish. The second kind of relationship is a business relationship. The second kind of relationship is okay. The third kind of relationship is when we ask: 'What can I do for him?'

For the people who belong to the first category, truth will never appeal to them. Such people, like blood suckers will just think as to what they can take from others. They will never think whether they can contribute something towards the well-being of someone else. This is one kind of mental setup. The second category of mental setup is based on business, as to what one can get from someone else. That at least is okay. There is nothing wrong in that. Socially it is good. But the mental setup which can completely change our life comes when we think: 'What can I do?' The moment we think what we can do? Unmai (truth) will start flowering in us. That is following the truth at heart level will start flowering in us.

Next is following Vaaymai (truth through the mouth, i.e. through our words). I need not have to explain much about this. All of us know about this. Truth through the mouth means expressing whatever we are thinking as it is. Understanding what others say as it is, without adding any juice to what others say and also expressing what we think as it is, is called Vaaymai.

Let me tell a small story to explain Vaaymai.

There was an farmer in Punjab, in Bharat. He was very proud and egoistic that he owned a large acreage of land. For some reason, he went to America. There he met another farmer. The friendly conversation began among them.

Punjab farmer was constantly boasted about himself and said:, Our land is called 'land of five rivers'. We are doing agriculture three times more than what is being done here, The American farmer did not speak much. He was very simple.

Slowly the Punjab farmer spoke about his vast agricultural land. He started talking about his vast agricultural land. Finally, the American farmer asked the Punjab farmer: How much land do you have?

Punjab farmer answered that he had about 10 acres at the front of the house and 10 acres at the backyard. He was very proud while declaring this. Having 20 acres of land in Punjab is a big thing.

The Punjab farmer asked the American farmer: How much land do you have? The American farmer replied: For me? After having breakfast in the morning, if I start my tractor and go around my land, I would be able to reach the end of my land only during sunset.

Punjab farmer could not bear the answer and so he said: Oh is that so. I also had a tractor like that. But it was worn out and would not run properly.

Since the mind of the Punjab farmer could not accept the size of the land of the American farmer, he was blaming his tractor. That is, not understanding something which was told in the same manner as it was intended to be conveyed, doing jugglery with the words, is false. Not doing such jugglery with the words, understanding the words in the same manner as it was intended to be conveyed, and expressing the answer or the explanation to such an understanding accordingly, is called Vaaymai. Not only we are expressing the truth, but also being on the same understanding and taking the direct meaning of the

other words is called Vaaymai. We speaking truth, but not being on the same understanding with what others say is not called Vaaymai.

Next is Meimai. Meimai means following the truth physically i.e. through the body. This is something very important which all of us should know. If there is Meimai in our lives, we can solve any problems in our lives. Only when Meimai is missed, all problems begin. The root of all sorrows is because of missing Meimai. Meimai means following the truth through the body. The courage to live the way we think is right and apt for us, is called Meimai. We might wish to be a doctor, we are clear that we can take up that only. But if we take up the engineering profession for the sake of our parents, then what do you think will happen? Our whole life will become a lie. Using our body for the reason for which we want to live and using our body for achieving what we wanted to achieve, is called Meimai. Courageously living the path which we want to live is called Meimai.

Most of our lives, we wait for the acceptance and certificates or praises or recognition from others. To get such recognition we even change the direction of our whole life. For the words which others utter towards us, for the acceptance from others, we don't hesitate to change the direction of our life. That is the biggest problem. Truly, all the sorrows in our life are because we do not live based on this truth (i.e. truth through body). The courage to live completely the way we think as right is called Meimai.

Let us see a small incident which happened in the life of the great scientist Albert Einstein. If we listen to this incident then we will understand the truth in Meimai. He was a great scientist of the last century. Nobody else could go beyond him in the field of physics. He is still considered to be the greatest scientist of the century. Though he is not there today, all his principles are still alive and being used in different ways by others.

When Albert Einstein was in his death bed, his assistants and students were around him. They asked him: Sir, if you take the next birth, what do you want to be born as? The moment this question was asked, everybody thought that Einstein would want to be a great scientist.

But much to the surprise and shock of everyone, he answered that he wanted to be a plumber in his next birth. Everyone was surprised.

They asked him: Why sir? Are you not fulfilled being a scientist? Being born as a scientist and having earned so much of praise and recognition, why do you want to be born as a plumber?

Einstein replied: All my life from my childhood, I always dreamt of becoming a plumber. I dreamt of working for a few hours and then having fun and enjoying the rest of the time. Since my childhood days, I dreamt of being a plumber. Due to some circumstances in the place where I went for a job, my boss beat me and I escaped from him and started studying. Since I had to live amongst the scientists, looking at them and observing them, I got inspired to compete with them due to jealousy. I studied hard, became a scientist and achieved everything. Of course because I was a scientist, I have earned wealth, recognition and social status. Even after achieving all these, I feel that I have lost my entire life. So if I have a chance to take the next birth, it will be enough if I have the freedom to live my life the way I want and feel the fulfillment in such a life.

Truly if we see, whatever we think as big things in our life and are running behind it, like may be, money, recognition and social status, the moment we achieve these, then we will know that there is no juice in our life. Until we acheive these, we won't understand. Because Einstein achieved all these, he says: There is no juice in whatever I achieved, at least had I lived the way I wanted, I would have felt the fulfillment of having lived my life. He also said beautifully: If we have achieved the fulfillment of having lived our life, even if we happen to die in a platform, we can leave the body courageously with the complete satisfaction of having lived our life and thus can face death boldly. But instead if we don't have the fulfillment of having lived life, but have earned the wealth, recognition and social status, even if we die in an upscale hospital, we will have to struggle while leaving the body. Looking at the way some one has died, we can come to know the way he must have lived. The nature of his death will show the nature of the life he lived. Had he lived with complete fulfillment, then he will leave the body with complete satisfaction. But had he lived without fulfillment and lived his life in a dull way, he will struggle to leave the body at the time of his death.

We all should understand something which is very important. The most important thing which we all have to achieve in all our lives is the fulfillment of having lived our life. The fulfillment of having lived life is an important thing which we all have to earn in our lives. Whatever other things one has achieved in his life, will not accompany him at the time of his death. But the fulfillment of having lived life will change our life and the consciousness and take us towards the state of bliss. The moment we have the fulfillment of having lived life, we can understand the inner meaning of the words satisfaction, joy and bliss.

But we don't have the fulfillment of having lived life. How ever happy we think we are, we will only be thinking that we are in joy and bliss. We can never actually attain the state of bliss. The gap between two wars cannot be considered as peace. If a war ends in 1900 and in 1901 another war begins, then the time gap between 1900 and 1901 cannot be considered as peace period. It only means that during the gap, they are getting ready for the next war. Similarly, the gap between two sorrowful situations cannot be considered as a blissful state. It is we who call this period between two sorrowful situations as joy and bliss. That's all. Understand the time between two sorrowful situations or two miseries is not a joyful period. That is the time during which we are getting ready for the next sorrow. The time gap between two diseases cannot be called a healthy period. It is the time gap during which we are getting ready to be infected by the next disease. That's all.

In our life only when we get the fulfillment of having lived life and having the fulfillment of having achieved what we wanted to achieve, we can have a conscious understanding of bliss. Until then, we cannot consciously feel the state of bliss. Meimai means living life as we think it to be right, as we consciously understand it to be true and thus living life courageously. Some people come and tell me that they want to attend the meditation camps, but they are not permitted to attend by their relations at home. It is true that we have to adjust to many things in our life. It is true that we have to take care of our family.

But if there is something which will help our mental and physical well-being, only we can take care of it. Just because someone is not permitting us to meditate, if we are not meditating or progressing in our spiritual life, then if we are affected physically or mentally, who will be there to support us? May be the people around us can provide us with medication or food, but who will bear the pain? Only we have to face the pain.

That's why, however societal we may have to live our life, life as such is an individual life. Even if the trees are in a grove, every tree is an individual tree. Meimai is living our life the way we want. The courage and the confidence to live our life the way we want, will give the fulfillment of having lived our life. Attaining Meimai and being in Meimai, is the basic requirement of everyone who wants to live his life, be it a normal life or be it a spiritual life.

Next is Aparigraha. Aparigraha means living a simple life. Why should we live a simple life? As said in the first part as the quantity of maerial things and comforts increases the ability to enjoy reduces. If we stuff our tongue with too may sweets, then the tongue will lose the sense of tasting. When the body is experiencing comforts beyond limits, the body will forget the sensitivity while experiencing the comforts and become insensitive to the pleasure derived out of such comforts. It will go the state of insensitivity.

That's why, Patanjali has devised this principle of enjoying the comforts in a proper way, and enjoying with as much comforts as is required. One more important thing which all of us have to understand is that whenever we don't go along with the mind and whenever we say 'No' to our mind, and bring our life into our control, during such times, we are taking a step towards bliss. We take a step towards misery, whenever we follow the mind and say 'yes' to the mind. Whenever we say 'No' to mind it means, that we are taking a step towards bliss. If we just follow the footsteps of the mind blindly, we will not know where we are going to end up.

In Kato Upanishad, there is a beautiful comparative poetry. In our body there are five sensory organs, i.e. the eyes, ears, nose, tongue and the sense of touch. These five sense organs are like the five horses tied to a chariot. Intelligence is the charioteer. Mind is the bridle with bit and reins. If the bridle (the mind) can be handled by the charioteer (intelligence) to tackle the five horses (the five sense organs) then we can reach the destined place. But if we handle the bridle (the mind) in a haphazard way then we will reach the place where the horses (the fives senses) take us. We will not reach the place where we want to reach, but we will reach the place where the horses (the five senses) want us to reach. If we want to reach the place where we actually want to reach, then the bridle (the mind) has to come to our control. Whenever we say 'No' to our mind and bring the mind into our control then in all those times, we are taking a step towards bliss. Whenever we are just following the mind then at all those times, we are taking a step towards misery. Patanjali explains this through Aparigraha.

Part 2: Journey in Bliss_English_part_2.md

Next, we shall see about Brahmacharyam. This word is a beautiful word. It is a word which has to be understood by all of us. Let us see this word in two parts. Brahma and charyam. Brahma means Divine or God. Charyam means living. The word, Brahmacharyam means living like God. Most of us think that by Brahmacharyam it means becoming a Sanyasi (ascetic). That is most of us think that living alone without getting married is called Brahmacharyam. But the meaning of this in Sanskrit (one of the oldest languages in Bharat. Many of the hymns and songs in the olden days were sung in Sanskrit) is different. It means living like God. Truly, the meaning of the word Brahmacharyam means renouncing the imaginations and dreams in our mind and thus living with reality.

One person asked me: Is it true that, we can attain divinity and bliss only if we renounce everything? I told him: You need not have to renounce what you have, just renounce what you don't have. There is no necessity for us to renounce what we have, but if we can renounce what we don't have, then immediately we will reach the state of bliss. Please understand this deeply. What is meant by renouncing what we don't have? Anything that we possess does not put us into problems. Things which we don't have, but which we feel we should have, are the ones, which trouble us and put us in misery. If we can just renounce those things, which we don't have, then immediately we will be showered with bliss.

Please understand that we are not required to renounce anything we possess now. It is not required of us to renounce our wife or our husband. If we can renounce our fantasies about the way our husband or the wife should be and if we can renounce the dreams and fantasies about our prospective spouse, then we can reach the state of Brahmacharyam or the state of bliss. To reach the state of bliss, it is not required of us to renounce our husband or our wife. It is enough if we can renounce what we don't have i.e. our imagination and fantasies.

We all collect lot of fantasies and imagination from our childhood. We collect all possible fantasies and imagination from all possible magazines, TV channels, movies or internet or any other media and imagine as to how our future life should be and how our would be should be. But if the husband or the wife is not as per the imagined figure, then we start chiseling them to fit the figure of our imagination. If the wife is not as per the husband's imagined figure then the husband starts chiseling her to make her resemble the imagined figure. Any sound which we hear in our houses is just the noise due to chiseling. The husband is chiseling the wife and the wife is chiseling the husband. You are chiseling her with a chisel and a hammer and she is also chiseling you with another hammer and chisel. In our life, if we can drop the hammer and chisel and stop chiseling others to match our imagination, then we will automatically reach the state of the Brahmacharyam or the state of the bliss.

Brahmacharyam does not mean renouncing of the external man or woman. It means renouncing the imaginary inner man or inner woman. It is not required of us to renounce the external man or woman. It is enough if we can renounce the imaginary man or the imaginary woman which we are dreaming about. By nature, we will be able to reach the state of Brahmacharyam or the blissful state or the state at which we can live like God.

In Shiva Sutras (A book in which the techniques for enlightenment are given by Lord Shiva, the God responsible for dissolution of the universe), Lord Shiva says beautifully, 'When the husband and the wife live without dreams, fantasies and imagination about each other, then the husband will reach the state of Shiva consciousness and the wife will reach the Devi consciousness'.

Vayathul Vaazhvangu Vaazhvaar Vaanuraiyum Deivathul Vaikapadum.

The first few words Vayathul Vaazhvangu Vaazhvaar means not having any imagination or dreams about the husband or the wife, loving the real wife or the real husband. As long as we have imagination and dreams about how our wife should be for that long we will not feel like loving our wife. The moment we drop our dreams and imagination, we will feel the love and thus care for our wife. Similarly, the moment we drop our dreams and imagination about our husband, we will feel true love and care towards our husband.

As long as we have dreams and imagination, we will not feel love and care towards our spouse, who in reality is with us. By watching some TV serial when the husband coaxes the wife to be like the heroine of the serial, by saying, 'Look how the heroine is so responsible. What are you doing at home? You are doing nothing. You are not fit for anything', then the wife will also compare the husband with a hero of the serial and blame the husband.

This is a small incident that actually happened.

A father told his son who was twelve years old, 'Son did you know, at your age, Abraham Lincoln started earning on his own, but you are still dependent on me'. The son replied, 'Dad, but by your age, he had become the president of America. But you are still here.'

Similarly, the moment you compare your spouse with someone, your spouse would do the same to you. When you compare your wife with some heroine in the TV, she will start comparing you with a hero in some TV program. All of us are thrusting our imagination and dreams over others and trying to chisel them, so that they would resemble our imaginary figures.

Really, if you want to reach the state of the Brahmacharyam or the state of the bliss, the first and only work to be done is to drop all our imagination and dreams. Not required of us to renounce our spouse who is with us. It is just enough if we can renounce our

fantasies and our imaginary inner man or woman. Brahmacharyam means living like God. This is what Thiruvalluvar means by saying,

Vayathul Vaazhvangu Vaazhvaar Vaanuraiyum Deivathul Vaikapadum.

By this Thiruvalluvar means that in this world, if we can live with our husband or wife happily and have a joyful relationship without any of our dreams and imagination being thrust upon them, then that means we are living a spiritual life.

I have seen some couples. They would have lived together for thirty years, but still the husband will not know what the wife's needs are and the wife will not know what the husband's needs are. As soon as the husband gets up in the morning, he will pick up his chisel and hammer and start chiseling the wife. Similarly, she will also pick up her chisel and hammer and start chiseling her husband. The home which has to be a place of bliss and peace will become a war ground. When such of couples who live with each other for many years, without understanding the needs of others, come to see me, I used to tell them: After you die you will not enter into hell, because you are already in hell. Even if it comes, you will not feel the dif erence. There will no dif erence or anything new in hell. It will be similar to the life you are living now.

Similar to the canoe which is oscillating due to problems, our life is also oscillating due to dreams and fantasies. The ability to renounce what we don't have will give us the maturity to deeply enjoy the things that we possess. This is what Thiruvalluvar means by saying,

Also the word, Brahmacharyam means the same. The meaning which we can practically apply in our life is also this.

If we can keep our life partner, or other relations in our family happy and have a joyful relationship with them then that is called living like God. Beating the children is against the concept of Brahmacharyam. Please understand this carefully. Brahmacharyam does not just mean a cordial relationship between the husband and the wife. Having a cordial relationship with everybody around us, without any dreams and imagination about all of them is called Brahmacharyam. Beating the children is due to a mental disease. If you are a person who beat the kids, please understand this clearly, it is not the kids who are to be beaten, but it is you, who will have to be treated for your mental disease. The first thing to be done is giving treatment to you. Beating the kids is a kind of mental disease. That is, a mental setup which derives pleasure out of controlling others. That is expressed out as the arrogance of beating the children.

Let me narrate an incident which actually happened. If we can understand this incident, then that is enough.

This happened in the life of the King Shahjahan. Shahjahan was a great Moghal king. Shahjahan was arrested and imprisoned by his son, Aurangazeb. After about six months, Aurangzeb went to supervise the prisons. There he saw Shahjahan, who was worn out physically and mentally in sorrow. Whatever it is, Aurangzeb was the son of Shahjahan and so looking at the plight of his father he felt sad for him.

So feeling sad, Aurangzeb told him :Whatever it is you are my father. Because I wanted the kingdom, I had to throw you behind the bars. If you can promise me that you won't create any problems for me, then I shall let you inside the palace. Be my minister. But if you act against me after coming there, immediately your head will be seized. You will lose your life. If you accept to this condition, then I shall have you in, what do you say? Shahjahan replied : I don't want to take that risk, even if someone gives you any wrong information that I am doing some mischief then I will have to lose my head. So I don't want to take that risk. But just do me one favor, if you can send about thirty students to me, that is enough for me.

Even though Aurangzeb was puzzled, he agreed to his father's request and generously sent fifty students to Shajahan.

After one month again Aurangzeb went to supervise the prisons. He was surprised to see Shahjahan's status. Shahjahan was looking like a king. Though Shajahan was not wearing royal clothes, his body language had changed. The flow of his words had changed. His life style had changed, the shine in his eyes, everything was like that of the kings.

Aurangzeb was puzzled as to how that was possible. Now again he looked like a king. How did he get so much of enthusiasm and body language like those of the kings? He questioned the guards of the prison: Tell me what happened and how it is possible for Shahjahan to be like a king again.

The guards replied: From morning till the evening, Shahjahan runs his own government with the fifty students as though he is the king; he runs his own kingdom. Out of the 50 students, he has appointed one as minister, other one as head of the war troops, another as treasurer. He instructs those children to act the way he wants. In the evening he creates two teams and makes them fight like soldiers. In the night again he holds the committee meeting and discussion. Thus he runs his own kingdom.

From morning till evening by dominating and ruling the children, he retains his kingship. The mental setup is in such a way that it gets pleasure out of controlling someone. Only if we have the mental setup of controlling others, we will torture others. If you beat the children or if you have the habit of beating children, then be very clear, that you are also suffering from this disease. Please do not beat your wife or children. If you are a person of that category, your first requirement is to consult a psychiatrist. Then surely you need treatment for that disease. This is a kind of mental disease, where you derive the pleasure out of physically torturing others. Causing destruction to others for satisfying one's own ego is the biggest disease. Insulting others and deriving pleasure out of that, will be the worst disease that one can be infected with.

So far we have seen the five *viratham (*i.e. the five techniques specified under the first step). Now we shall enter into the next step called Niyamam.

Sauchasvang Gajugupsa Paraisamsthararga. Beautiful hymn.

Let me narrate another hymn and then we can see the meaning of the two hymns together.

The above hymns talks about the mental setup which surrenders, the internal and external purity, happiness, satisfaction, stainless chanting of mantras (sacred words) and all other possessions, to the divine. Let us understand deeply about the mental setup to surrender. It will be enough if you can understand just this point.

As long as the thought 'I' is there, any acts which we do, will either directly or indirectly will end up in causing trouble to others. When the importance is placed over the ego that is the 'I" thought then every activity that is done based on this will end up in giving trouble directly or indirectly to others as well as to us. But if we can get the mental setup of surrendering the responsibility; again and again not burdening our head with responsibilities; if we can place down such responsibilities and be relaxed then we can save ourselves from unnecessary miseries.

Let me narrate a small story to make this concept clear. One person was traveling in a train. He had placed his box over his head.

After sometime someone sat next to him. He said: Sir, you seem to be so tired, why don't you place that box down?

The first person replied: The train can bear just my weight. How can it bear even the box's weight?

He has not realized that he himself is sitting in the train with his box. He did not have the clarity that the train which carries him is carrying the box as well.

The moment we hear this we laugh. But please understand that most of us are doing the same in our lives. God, who has given the air for us to breathe always, won't that God provide us the food three times a day. The God who has created and provided the air, which we can't be without even for a few minutes, will He forget to satisfy our food needs. But we never believe that. We don't believe that the supreme energy which has provided us with air can run our lives as well. Only if we see deeply, we will understand this. Similar to the passenger in the train who did not believe that the train which can carry him can carry his luggage also, we also do not believe that the cosmic energy or the divine energy, which has given this life to us, which has granted us so many things for us, which has helped us to run our life will provide us with the basic requirements as well. Will such supreme energy forbid us of our basic requirements? We don't have such belief at all. We question: How will it come? It is we who have to take care of all these. True, that we have to take care of all these and of course we are only going to take care. But, when we believe that the cosmic energy will take care and that it will help us to get it done and if we have such a mental setup to surrender, we can save ourselves from

unnecessary problems and mental depression. We can protect ourselves from unnecessary miseries.

One person had an important task to be done on the other side of the river Ganges. He sat on the boat. The boat started moving and he was walking up and down inside the boat from one corner of the boat to the other corner.

Looking at him the boat rider said: Please don't move like this, if you constantly walk like this, the boat will start oscillating and I will not be able to balance the boat. The man who was restless said: I have an important work to be finished. I don't have time to sit. That's why I am walking fast. It is okay, you don't bother. Please continue to row the canoe.

Walking inside the boat does not help in any way. Similarly beyond a particular level, however fast we walk, nothing will happen. We can try only up to the point of entering into the boat. Then after that it becomes the work of the boat rider. Only if we sit quietly without moving around, the boat will move faster. But if we keep oscillating inside the boat, the boat rider will not be able to row the boat. Beyond a particular point, lowering the burden from our head, placing down the head weight, happily surrendering and relaxing is the way to run our life.

There is one more wonderful thing that we will have to understand. Niagara waterfalls are the biggest waterfalls in the world. It is in Canada-America border. Anybody who has slips into that water falls have never survived. A man who is very much involved and who has undergone extensive training in meditation and Yoga jumps into the waterfalls to prove a point. By God's grace, he came out of the falls alive, without any fractures. Everybody is surprised. TV, magazines and other media interviewed him. They asked him: How did you escape from this dangerous accident? He answered very beautifully: I gave up my ego and surrendered myself completely to the water energy. Since I could do this, I became a silent observer of my body which

moved like a wood flowing on the river.

It does not mean that we have to jump into the Niagara water falls. It is enough if we can properly and happily walk on the ground. Our act of surrendering need not have to be that courageous so as to make us jump into the Niagara waterfalls. It is enough if it can give us the courage to make us peacefully walk on the ground. The cosmic energy or the divine energy or Lord Rama or Lord Krishna or Jesus or Allah or Mahaveer or Buddha whatever names we want give to it we must realize that it is the same one energy. Trusting that energy, dedicating ourselves to that energy and being relaxed will reduce our miseries and stress in our life. This will make our mind simple, light and blissful.

Now we will enter into the third step called Aasanam. The word, Aasanam has also got a very in deep meaning. Aasanam means being relaxed and being confident and solid. Keeping our body relaxed and confident is called Aasanam. Aasanam does not just mean the Yoga (physical exercises accompanied by breath control techniques). Aasanam means maintaining and operating the body in a blissful state for twenty-four hours. I had told in the first chapter of this third part that if we disrespect and insult our body by comparing our body with someone else's then we will start creating a gap between ourselfves and our body. We will break the relationship between ourselves and our body. We must trust that each one of us is enough onto ourselves and each one of us is beautiful. We are beautiful to ourselves. There is no need for us to decide whether we are beautiful or not by comparing ourselves with others. Each one of us is an individual flower. Can we compare two flowers and come to a conclusion, that one of the flowers is ugly? No, not possible. It is also wrong to do so. Each one of us is an individual flower. If God was an engineer, He would have done a mass production. With one mould he would have manufactured every one of us. But God is an artist. That's why He has made everybody different. He has made everyone of us in different ways. Every one of us is enough onto ourselves. Every one of us is beautiful to ourselves. Arriving at this clarity is the way to make ourselves be in the state of bliss. That is called Aasanam.

Next is Pranaayaamam. Praanaayaamam means bringing our breath into control. This is an important step. Many people come and ask me: How to control anger? How to control anger which is due to boiling of our emotions? Please understand that this technique is for controlling the swelling of emotions. Regulating our breath is equal to controlling our mind because both the breath and mind are closely connected to each other. If we can bring our breath under our control then our mind will completely come under our control. Whenever the feeling of anger swells in us, it will be enough if we can bring our breath under our control. This technique is not only for dealing with anger but it can be used for any swelling of emotions like arrogance or lust. Enough if we can just slowly and deeply breathe ten times. Nothing else needs to be done. That feeling will disappear. That swelling of emotions will disappear. Whenever any swelling of emotions happens our breathing cycle will be very fast. When we regulate our breath flow and bring it under our control by breathing deeply and slowly then automatically our mind will come under our control.

Pranaayaamam is a beautiful technique to keep our mind under control. With the help of this technique we can keep our mind in our control for all the twenty-four hours. Pranayamam has many other techniques, but if we can follow just this simple technique of breathing slowly, deeply and lengthily then whenever the emotions like anger, vengeance, restlessness, stress, depression or sorrow swells, that is enough. Our mind will automatically come to a relaxed and peaceful state without even our awareness. Controlling the mind through regulating the breath is called Pranaayaamam.

Next is Prathyagaaram. The mind oscillates between various things and incidents in the world. To bring such an oscillating mind under control by focusing on one thing is called Prathyagaram. That is focusing the mind on one thing. If we observe our thought flow deeply, it never runs uniformly. It does not run like a clear stream. All our thought flow runs very superficially without any discipline.

This small example will make us understand this. If we can understand this then we will know about the pattern of our thought flow. We will know the speed of our thought flow. Assuming we are walking on the street and we are seeing a dog. As soon as we see the dog, we will be reminded of the dogs that we saw and got scared of during our childhood.

The next moment we will think about our childhood. Then we will think about our school teacher. Then we will be reminded of the house she lived in. Our thought flow will keep flowing like that.

If we see carefully is there any connection between the dog that we saw on the street and our school teacher? There is no direct relationship. Finally we will forget from where we started our thinking. Just for five minutes if we sit alone and start writing our thought flow, then we will know that we are all running a big mental hospital in our mind. Just do this for five minutes. Be it any thought, we need not have to show it to anybody. If we write whatever we think of continuously and read what we have written on the paper for ourselves, we will see that the thoughts are unconnected to each other. Thoughts flow randomly without any connection with each other in our mind. Similar to the bubbles which come up in a lake, in our mind unconnected and unrelated thoughts keep coming up.

We may be sitting in one place, suddenly we feel we are in our native place, the next moment we feel like going home, suddenly we think about our business. There will not be any rational and sensible connection between any of the thoughts. If we just analyze our mind once then we will know that we are running a large scale mental hospital within ourselves. We think that we have locked all the mad people inside the mental hospital and raise a big wall as a protection. Whereas the mad people think that they have left all the mad people outside and raise a big wall as a protection and stay peacefully within the walls.

We are all outside the compound and they are inside the compound. That is the difference. Probably another difference is that as far as number of people is concerned we are the majority. That's why we have locked them all inside the compound. We do not have any other extra ability other than being more in number! Only when we see our thought flow we will know that our thought flow is unconnected and unrelated. This is what is meant by manageable mental disease. This mental disease is in such a way that it can be managed. That is the reason why we are moving on.

It is the time during which Bharat just got the independence. Nehru was a popular prime minister of Bharat then. One man heard about Nehru again and again and suddenly he began to feel that he himself was Nehru. He started acting, talking, walking and living like Nehru. He wore a rose flower on his shirt like Nehru. If he had stopped at this level, then there is no problem. But he started writing letters in the name of Nehru to all the authorities. There started the problem. He was admitted in the mental hospital. He was given treatment for about six months. He became better. The day, on which he was to be discharged, incidentally Nehru happened to visit that hospital.

The doctors of the hospital decided to introduce him to Nehru and brought him before Nehru and said: Sir, this man was calling himself as Nehru. He was here for his treatment. Now he is cured and he is getting discharged today.

The patient looked at Nehru and asked him who he is.

Nehru replied: I am Nehru.

The moment he heard that he said: Oh, don't worry, be here for six months. They will make you alright.

The people who are inside are thinking that we are mad and we are thinking that they are mad! There is no way to find out whether someone is sane or not. There is no scale to measure the sanity.

Prathyagaram means focusing our mind onto one thing. The moment we start focusing our mind onto one thing, we will know the extent at which our mind oscillates in all directions and the way it has run without any control so far. Be very clear that only when mind is brought into control, man becomes man. Until then, he lives like an animal or a useless thing or a mad man.

Let us look into our lives deeply. If someone throws out a harsh word towards us, we become mad in rage. Nothing else needs to be done to make us angry. If a harsh word is thrown towards us, then we become mad with rage. The moment someone says: What are you doing like a mad person? Then the next moment we will prove that he is right, by shouting at him. Our actions and our impatient activities will portray that we are mad. Only when we focus our mind onto one thing, we move up to a higher plane from the state of madness. When the mind runs and oscillates the way it wants, without our control over it, then it is clear that we are living a mad life to an extent. That's all it means. Anger is part-time madness. When someone is angry, he will not know what he is doing. Even a mad man will not know what he is doing. Part-time madness is called anger. Full-time anger is madness. That's all!

Only when we bring our life and our thought flow into control, we are considered to have proceeded towards a higher plane. Until then our life will go on madly. Of course it is manageable madness! That's why life seems peaceful.

Next we shall get into Dharanai. Dharanai is a beautiful message. It means that mind has to get centered. Prathyagaram means focusing the mind onto one thing from outside. Dharanai means centering of the mind on something. Whatever we want to achieve in our lives, Dharanai has to happen. If we want to become a popular cardiologist, we have to be centered on knowing about the heart. We will have to focus the center of our attention on the functioning of the heart. If we want to become a great civil engineer, our mind has to focus its attention again and again on the architecture. Whichever profession we want to achieve, Dharanai has to happen in that profession. Even if some one wants to steal, even then one has to do Dharanai, there is no other way. If we use the Dharanai in good ways, we will attain the state of bliss. If we use it in bad ways, it will end up in sorrow and misery. But Dharanai has to happen in our lives, only when Dharanai happens in our lives, we will begin to achieve anything in our lives.

Albert Einstein says beautifully on this. Reading his atomic philosophy, other scientists asked him: How were you able to discover and express this great truth? Einstein answered: When my mind was completely and deeply involved on this subject,

something inside me opened and I experienced a different feeling. Based on that experience only, I was able to declare this truth.

Please understand that this experience which happened in him is called Dharanai. He expressed this experience of Dharanai as his message.

When Newton was sitting in the garden an apple fell down. Most of us would have eaten that apple or sent it to the kitchen or may be we would have ignored it. But Newton started focusing the centre of his mind and thought as to why it fell down? The results of such questions led to the inventing of the law of gravitational force. Even in our lives, many apples are falling down, but we are unable to be a Newton. What is the reason for us not becoming a great scientist like Newton? The reason is Dharanai had happened in him and it has not happened in us. That's the reason.

Even in our lives, many opportunities pass by, but since we don't have the Dharanai, we are unable to capitalize on those opportunities. If we have the Dharanai energy, we will definitely achieve something in some field.

One of our devotees is a doctor. He has built a hospital. He was telling me: Master, my college mates who studied medicine with me are still reading the newspaper from morning till evening, but I was able to create this big hospital just due to my hard work. It is true. Even in the field of medicine, not just the studies, but only when the Dharanai happens, they are able to excel in that field. Be it the field of medicine or architecture or be it any other art or profession or science, only when Dharanai happens, we start excelling in that field. Dharanai, the centeredness of the mind on something is the basic requirement for everyone.

The next step after Dharanai is Dhyanam (meditation). We cannot explain about Dhyanam in mere words. We can understand about Dhyanam only if we have experienced it. Only people who have experienced meditation can understand about Dhyanam. Only such people can understand that it is possible to reach a higher plane in life, physically, mentally and consciously. Today, we are going to learn a simple meditation technique, which is practically possible for all of us to do. If we do it regularly, then we will understand the benefits of meditation.

The next step after Dhyanam is Samadhi. Samadhi as most of us think does not mean the tomb which is built for someone on his death. Being deeply immersed in Dhyanam, forgetting the thought 'I' and merging with that bliss is called Samadhi. We cannot understand about Samadhi by just talking about it. Just by talking about Samadhi we cannot completely understand about Samadhi. Only when it is experienced, Samadhi can be understood. The messages which can be understood by experience have to be understood only by experience.

I explained the first five steps, because those are the steps which we have to know and follow, but the last two steps are something which have to happen by itself. If a rose has to flower, we can root the plant. We can water it and apply fertilizers. We can do that much only, we cannot do anything else. We can create an environment for it to grow and we will have to be patient. We cannot make it bloom by trying to open the buds. If we try to make it bloom by opening the buds, ultimately it will not be a flower.

A small story:

There were three monkeys which got hold of one mango. We know, what will happen to the state of a mango if it is caught in the hands of one monkey. Imagine the plight of the mango if it is caught in the hands of the three monkeys. Immediately they started fighting as to who will have which part of the mango. The three monkeys went to a sage to solve their problem.

The Sage answered: It is not possible for three of you to divide the mango amongst yourselves. So bury this mango in the ground. A big tree will grow and all three of you can have as many mangoes as you want.

The monkeys felt this was good idea. They buried the mango.

The first monkey was responsible for watering the plant. The second monkey was a responsible for sprinkling the fertilizers everyday. The third monkey was responsible for safeguarding the plant by being a security to the plant. It was six months since they planted the mango and there was no sign of any growth of the plant. All the three monkeys started doubting each other. Anyway, all three go to meet the sage, who gave them the idea of planting the mango. They complained to the sage that the plant did not grow.

When the sage asked them about their daily activities which they did towards the plant, the first monkey replied: Sir, I am watering the plant without fail, every morning. The second monkey said: I have sprinkled fertilizers in the evening every day. I have not missed a single day.

The third monkey replied: All the twenty four hours, I am there near the plant to safeguard it. Not only that, at least once a day I make sure to check whether anything has sprouted from the seed, by digging out the seed from the ground.

If the mango seed has to grow into a tree, we have to water the plant, sprinkle the fertilizers, and patiently wait for it. Just by the very act of digging the ground, the act of sprouting will not happen. If a tree has to grow or a flower has to bloom, we can accordingly make the environment conducive for its growth and we have to be patient.

Similarly, both Dhyanam and Samadhi are like a flower which have to bloom within us. Both those are flowers of bliss which have to bloom in us. They are fruits of knowledge which have to ripen within us. If the flowers of bliss and fruits of knowledge should bloom or ripen in us, our job is to set the suitable environmental conditions by following in a disciplined way the first six steps (i.e. Iyamam, Niyamam, Aasanam, Pranyamam, Prathyagaram, Dharanai) and patiently wait for the flower of bliss to bloom and the fruits of knowledge to ripen. Instead if we keep digging every time to check if it has grown the plant will not shoot up. Only the first six steps can be worked on and acted upon. The last two steps, Dhyanam and Samadhi have to happen by itself. If we can do the first six steps properly then definitely the last two steps will happen.

Let me tell you the summarization of the Patanjali Yoga Sutras discourse, please listen to it deeply. Whether you have heard or missed any of the first few chapters, don't bother. But please internalize the few words which I am going to say now.

Firstly, we started by understanding the glory of Patanjali Yoga Sutra. To enable us to experience the bliss which he enjoyed, Patanjali has written the techniques in this book called Patanjali Yoga Sutra. Next we saw that the mind again and again, gets suppressed in ignorance, sorrow and misery. So such a mind has to be encouragingly lifted up by ourselves, by our advice. Thirdly, to enjoy and experience the complete bliss in our life, we have to move forward through the above eight steps. Iyamam means discipline, Niyamam means not just the physical discipline, but it means surrendering to the divine. Aasanam means maintaining the body joyfully. Pranayamam means controlling the mind by regulating the breath. Prathyagaaram means to make the oscillating mind to think in a straight way and function in a disciplined way. Dharanai means getting the centeredness of the mind on one thing and traveling completely towards the goal to be achieved. Vivekananda beautifully says: When you have decided to achieve something, deeply meditate over it, again and again, let those messages deeply immerse in your body, mind, bones, and blood. Let your breath breathe thinking about the goals to be achieved. Let your every heart beat, beat towards that goal. You will achieve the goal definitely.

If we can understand the basis of these steps and it is enough even if we try to follow these eight steps. It is not necessary that we have to do it completely. It is enough even if we can make an attempt. How much ever we can, we must try to that extent. Try it whole heartedly. That alone is enough. Don't worry about the result. Always the divine energy is waiting to support and lift us up. If we take one step towards God, He takes a thousand steps towards us. If we make one attempt then we get help from different places, in different ways, from different fields. We will be blessed with the support of the divine energy.

So I pray to the existence that the messages which Patanjali has delivered through the eight steps, for the eternal bliss which happened in Him, to happen in others. May we follow these steps. May these words of wisdom and intelligence be immersed in us. May both state of Nithyam (eternality) and Dhyanam (meditation) happen in us and may the state of bliss which is beyond this flower in us. Thank you.

There is a big difference between philosophy and Tantra (techniques).

I welcome you all with my love and respects

'Open the door let the breeze in' discourse series – Dhyanasatsangam (group of highly committed people who meditate for their spiritual evolution).

Let me start by giving an introduction to the word Dhyanasatsangam. Dhyanasatsangam is surely not an ordinary discourse or a spiritual discourse. Discourse means playing with words. In a discourse there will be a constant flow of words. Dhyanasatsangam is not a discourse. Generally from a discourse we will get to know various philosophies, rules and guidelines. But Dhyanasatsangam is not a place where we learn philosophies, but it is a place where we learn Tantra (techniques). There is a big difference between philosophy and Tantra (techniques). Philosophy is made of and decorated by words. It is burdened with words; it is derived out of playing with words.

Before beginning the discourse, let me explain the meaning of the word Tantra. Tantra means the techniques that are used for digesting the group of words that we have collected and stored in our heads, into experience. That is called as Tantra. Philosophy is made of or decorated by words. It is composed of and derived out of words and thus it is a magic played with words. However, to learn the way to transform such philosophies, whichever we have heard and are stored in us into experience and then to learn the lessons out of such experiences is why we need dhyanasatsangam.

So, we should deeply understand the word Tantra. In the language Tamil (One of the languages spoken by the Dravidians in South Bharat), the meaning for the word Tantra is given in a negative sense. Like for example, it used as Tantra nari, (Tantra means cunning, nari means fox), that is used as a word with a negative meaning. The word Tantra, as we think, does not indicate anything negative. Tantra means the techniques for meditation. This is what is meant by the word Tantra. Generally due to the words that we hear in the lectures and spiritual discourses our thinking keeps oscillating everywhere.

Swami Vivekananda (an enlightened Master from Bharat) beautifully says: It is a big mistake to tell a person to be good, to be a spiritual person and follow good messages. We may wonder how? Vivekananda explains: It is easy to tell a man to be good, to be honest and to be spiritual. However it is difficult to teach him how to be good. It is easy to tell a man to be good, but teaching him how to be good is tough.

Generally, we hear words like, control the anger, love all, involve in spirituality. However we also feel that it is not practical. According to us, those words have not become practically possible in our lives. It does not seem possible. Why is that? Though we hear those words again and again, why are those words not becoming experiences? Why are those words not becoming a reality in our lives? It is because the words which we hear are impacting just our brain. It is only an intellectual understanding. It is just a logical understanding. It is not being internalized deeply. It is not settling down in us deeply. Since we take in just the words, they just appeal to us intellectually. They have not become a conscious understanding. Learning the techniques and ways needed to transform such words into experiences at a conscious level, is what is called Tantra Shastra. Such techniques and ways are declared by the book Tantra Shastra.

Dhyanasatsangam is not just an ordinary discourse. Generally when we come out of a lecture or a discourse, we come out with the additional burden of words, in addition to what we knew before entering the discourse. The reason is that we would have heard the words from the person who was giving the discourse. Hence we come out with a heavier head due to weight of the words. In a way, discourses are programs which increase the weight of our head. Dhyanasatsangam is a program, in which we shed the weight in our head by learning the techniques to digest those words into experience. Dhyanasatsangam is not held for thrusting words into our head. Dhyanasatsangam reduces the weight of our head by transforming the words into experience and converting such experiences into life's lessons.

Generally most of us are under the wrong impression that we are all traveling towards the experience and that we do need spiritual experiences. But truly, we imagine about spirituality and spiritual experiences only in our dream. However in reality we tremble at spirituality. In practical life we are not accepting spirituality and spiritual experiences. We are ready to do any action superficially. We are ready to do any action and we call it as spirituality. But we are not ready to take any step that will transform us largely.

A man went to the post office and held the collar of the postmaster and screamed: What are you doing? My wife is lost for the past two days.

The postmaster replied: This is a post office; you have to give a complaint in the police station.

But the man who complained said: No, I will not repeat that mistake again because the last time I complained in the police station, they promptly found her and brought her home. That's why I want to complain elsewhere.

Like this most of us are ready to take any action that will not give any result. We are afraid to do any action that will give results straight away. In the story above, though he was ready to lodge the complaint, he was not ready to face the result. He thought that they will find his lost wife and he will have to live with her ultimately. Because he cannot live with her, if they find her, he has decided to lodge the complaint in the post office instead of lodging the complaint in the police station.

Even in our lives many a times, though we know the path to truth and honesty, we have turned our focus, turned our attention to a different path and direction because of the lack

of courage, strength, stability and dedication to face the truth and live in the path of truth. This has become quite a natural phenomenon in our lives. This has become quite common in our lives.

Let us deeply understand the word, Tantra. Generally names of the books written in the olden days will end with words like Dharisanam (religious doctrine) or Puranam (sacred narrative) such as Vedanta (philosophical) dharisanam, Gnaya (honest) dharisanam, Yoga (physical exercises combined with breath control techniques) dharisanam, Koorma (an incarnation of Lord Vishnu, God responsible for protecting the universe) puranam, Varaha (an incarnation of Lord Vishnu, who is responsible for protecting the universe) puranam, Shiva (God responsible for dissolution of the universe) puranam, like wise all the books were named as a dharisanam or a puranam.

But first time this Tantra Shastra, is a book composed of the message as advised and delivered by Lord Shiva to His beloved, Devi Parvathi (mother of the world, according to Hindu mythology). This book is delivered by the first Master, an enlightened Master. This book contains Shiva's advice to Devi Parvathi.

Shiva has named this book as Tantra Shastra. Why? Why is this book named as Tantra Shastra? Generally, Dharisana or philosophies are fun with words and hence can be understood intellectually. Dharisana are derived out of intellectual understandings. Purana are derived out of the heart, written to appeal for emotional type of people. Tantra Shastra are derived out of consciousness. Dharisana are derived out of brains, they are from intellectual understanding. Questions and understandings like, ' What is meant by Aathma (soul)? Who is God? God is everywhere in the universe. Aathma is filled everywhere. The world is an illusion.' are derived from intellectual understanding. They are derived from the brain level. Tantra Shastra are the words from the experiential understanding of an enlightened Master. These are wonderful messages, when read deeply they give us great joy.

However in practical life, we are unable to experience this practically. Most of the times, not knowing the spiritual message is not a problem, knowing many spiritual messages is a big problem. Most of the times, knowing about Aathma(soul), Paramathma (God as the Supreme Being), we are struggling to follow it in practicality. There is a big gap between the intellectual understanding derived out of the brain and clarity in life. Intellectual understanding derived out of the brain and the clarity in life are functioning in different directions. Thus sometimes we suffer from mental depression. When the intellectual understanding of spiritual message is there but the clarity to apply that message practically in our life is lacking both guilt and depression crop up in us.

Many people tell me: Master, I love the whole world, I tell them: It is easy to love the whole world, but it is dif icult to love your wife or husband, who is near you. When we say we love the world, we just have to utter those words. We need not have to do anything to prove it. But when we say we love our wife then we will have to take care of her. We will have to smile at her. We will have to exchange some good words with her. We will have to maintain a good relationship with her. It is easy to just utter a few words saying that we love the whole world but it is difficult to love the person who lives around us, like our wife or our neighbor.

The reason for the big gap between the words that we utter and the practicality in our life is due to the fact that our spiritual knowledge is just an intellectual understanding.

Dharisanam means the explanation from an enlightened person about His enlightenment experience in words. We internalize those words, but we don't understand that for Him it is an experience but for us it is just words. If Bhagavan Ramana Maharishi (an enlightened Master from Thiruvanamalai in south Bharat) says that: The world is an illusion and it is God who runs everything, It is the truth and experience for Him. But when we listen to such words, can we sit simply without doing anything, thinking that the whole world is an illusion? We cannot do anything practical with those words.

Once Ādi Śa�…kara (an enlightened Master, from south Bharat) went on a prilgrimage by foot. He suddenly felt thirsty. He is an enlightened person without any bodily senses. It was His body which felt thirsty. He did not feel thirsty. He turned and looked around everywhere. He found a grove where arrack was being made. The people there were sending the pot of arrack down to the earth.

Ādi Śa�…kara asked them: I am thirsty, give me something to drink.

They said: Sir, we have only arrack.

He replied to them: It is okay. Anything will do for thirst.

Uttering these words, he drank the arrack. He drank as much as he wanted, almost a pot full of arrack. Seeing this, whatever most of us here are feeling now was felt by some of his disciples too.

The disciples felt: Ādi Śa�…kara himself has drunk arrack, so even we can drink. So thinking all of them drank to their satisfaction. But even if Ādi Śa�…kara has drunk the pot full of arrack, his mind and walk were steady. But the disciples started stumbling after drinking. Shankara did not advise them. He laughed to himself and proceeded on his pilgrimage.

They continued to walk and it became evening. Again he felt thirsty. He looked around everywhere. There was an Ironsmith who was melting iron.

Ādi Śa�…kara went near him and told the ironsmith: I am thirsty.

That man replied: Sir, I do not have water, I only have molten iron.

Then Ādi Śa�…kara took the molten iron and drank the as though He was drinking water. Like the way he drank the arrack, he drank the molten iron also. After drinking it, He turned towards His disciples and said: If any of you is thirsty, you can drink this. Even when they were not thirsty they immediately drank the arrack. But when they saw Ādi Śa�…kara drinking the molten iron, they escaped from that place. For Ādi Śa�…kara, enlightenment was a reality; it was an experience for him. Both arrack and melted iron were the same for Him. Ādi Śa�…kara is an enlightened person, who has realized that both are one and the same for Him. Since He is a realized person and has seen this, for him it's a darisanam. When we listen to His words, for us it is just words.

In Sanskrit (one of the languages spoken in Bharat. Most of the hymns and poetries in the olden days were sung in Sanskrit), there are two words which explain this further, Aparoksha Gnanam and Paroksha Gnanam. Aparoksha Gnanam means the reality, which has been experienced deeply. Paroksha Gnanam means the words delivered by a person who has experienced something. All darisanam are the darisanam as experienced by the enlightened people, however for us they are only words. They are nothing beyond words. They are just words. There is no direct transformation or direct experience in life from such words. The biggest problem in our life is, knowing too many spiritual messages without the spiritual experience.

In America a devotee asked me: Master, if you take the mathematics field, there is not too much confusion, when you add two and two it is only four. Whether it be in Bharat or America or Australia, anywhere you go, there is no big confusion in the field of Mathematics. Similarly in Science or Geography or History, there is no big confusion as such. However in the field of spirituality why there is so much of confusion? Every religion has different a message. When asked about re-birth, one religion says the concept of rebirth exists, another religion opposes it. Each one declares a different message, What is the reason for that? Why is there so much of confusion in spirituality? Understand, the reason for so much of piled up confusion and problems in spirituality is because of the spiritual preachers who just take in the words of the enlightened Masters, without internalizing it as a reality and experience. It is because they preach without being enlightened. They just play with words and spread such words. Really, the only problem and the biggest problem in spirituality is not ignorance but knowing too much. Knowing too many words and when such words don't become a reality and turn into an experience, they become a burden in our heads.

If the food that we eat in the morning gets digested, then it is good for the body. The body gets the energy; it is good for our stomach. Our stomach will also be light and empty. If it is not digested, then what will happen? It is not good for our stomach. There will be indigestion problems. Similar to this is, knowing too many spiritual messages. When we know the apt techniques and digest the spiritual messages properly then such messages will become energy. It becomes the energy that can give life to our life. But if such words are like the undigested food then such words will be heavy in the head, like the undigested food that is heavy in the stomach. Not only our head will be heavy, we will constantly vomit these messages on people around us. Like the way, the undigested food causes problem to us and to the people around us. The undigested spiritual messages will cause problems to us and to the people around us. These dharisana are just an intellectual understanding.

Purana are messages, which are based from the heart. Purana are derived from the heart. Both Dharisanam and Puranam indicate the goals to be achieved by man and the state after reaching the goal and do not specify anything else. Dharisanam indicates the goal to be achieved and Puranam indicates the state of bliss in which one will be after achieving the goal.

Seeing these two, Lord Śiva has clearly specified the techniques, guidelines, directions and ways, which every person may follow to attain in reality the truth, honesty, self realization, bliss, the divine state, the feeling of wisdom, all of which are mentioned in the Dharisanam. The techniques or the guidelines, which he has framed, are called Tantra. Such techniques are declared in the book called Tantra Śāstra.

If we understand this example, then it will be clear to us. Newton is a sage; he is a scientist of the outer world. Let me explain this further. To make everybody else understand that experience which happened to him, he devised and declared it as a rule to others. Let me narrate as to what had happened. When Newton was relaxing in his garden in an evening, an apple dropped down from the tree. An apple falling down is a casual event but his mind deeply analyzed why the apple fell down and why it did not go up? The result of such analysis is that he devised the 'Law of Gravity'. Newton is the scientist who has explained clearly the experience which happened in him in the form of techniques, so that it is useful for others to make it as their reality and experience.

Please understand this clearly. If a person writes the techniques to make others understand the experience which happened in him and also make others undergo such an experience which happened in him, then we call such a person as a sage or a great seer or an enlightened one. Based on this understanding, it is clear that Isaac Newton is a scientist of the outer world, who wrote the Law of gravity. Every scientist explains to others the experience that happened to him and has enabled such others to understand and experience it in reality by devising techniques.

Similarly, Tantra are the techniques, the ways, devised by the enlightened people to make such enlightenment experiences, spiritual experiences, blissful experiences which happened in them to bloom and become a reality in others. This is what is called as meditation. Because He felt that the deep, blissful experiences that happened in him, should happen in others also, Lord Śiva devised and provided the techniques which are called Tantra.

For example, Ramaṇa Maharishi, based on the death experience which happened in Him, and the enlightenment which happened due to this experience, has created the self enquiry technique, the question Who am I?, To make the reality and experience which happened in Him blossom in others, Ramaṇa Maharishi has devised the wonderful self enquiry question technique. Similarly, Lord Śiva, the great-enlightened Master, to make the enlightenment experience, the blissful experience, which happened in Him flower in others, has devised the techniques called Tantra.

A devotee asked me: Master, you are saying that Lord Śiva is an enlightened person, is He not God? By referring to Him as an enlightened person, are you not degrading him? Is it right?

Let us understand this deeply. By referring to him as an enlightened person, we are not de-grading or disrespecting him. Surely we are not degrading him by referring to him as an enlightened person. Let me explain this with an incident which happened in Swami Vivekananda's life.

A devotee asked Swami Vivekananda: Master, you are saying that Ramakrishna (an enlightened Master, who lived in West-Bengal, in Bharat) is an enlightened person. But you are calling Him as God and an incarnation, is this right?

Vivekananda asked him: By the word 'God', what do you understand?

That person replied to Vivekananda: God is someone who knows everything. He can do everything. He is all pervading. He is omnipotent, omnipresent.

Vivekananda asked further: What do you mean by saying that he is omnipresent? That person replied: He is present every where, be it a big pillar or a small atom.

Vivekananda further asked him: If he will be there in a pillar or an atom, what do you mean? How will He be there?

Now that person was slightly confused and he asked: Master, I don't understand what you mean?

Next Vivekananda asked: Okay, you say God knows everything, He can do everything, He is omnipotent. He has all the powers. So tell me what you understand by those words clearly.

That person slowly backed off saying: Truly, Master, I don't understand it, I have read a few words about all this in some book and that's all I remember.

Vivekananda answered beautifully: By God we truly do not understand the broader and deeper meaning. Ramakrishna is bigger than our imagination about God. That's why I say Ramakrishna is bigger than your imagination about God.

That is, by saying that Ramakrishna is bigger than God, Vivekananda means that Ramakrishna is bigger than our imagination about God. Generally even many of us don't understand the bigger meaning for the word God. In many Dhyanasatsang, the often repeated question which people ask me is: Whether God exists or not? Understand, whoever argues that 'God does not exist', is ignorant and whoever says that 'God exists' is ignorant. Both the sides are ignorant. God is not an object whose existence can be answered through arguments. He is a feeling that should be experienced by one, by going beyond oneself and living inside oneself. Vivekananda says: Whatever we have imagined as God, Ramakrishna is beyond all that, that's the reason I call Him as an incarnation, which is beyond our understanding of God.

That's why I refer to Lord Śiva as an enlightened person. By referring to Śiva as an enlightened person, we are not de-grading Him. We are not insulting Him. He is a full composed energy, which is beyond all words. This energy cannot be intellectually understood. When I say Lord Śiva, what form people will think of? Utmost, people will imagine a man with four hands, a snake around His head, and a human figure in meditation. That's all we can think about. But understand that Lord Śiva is the energy beyond all this. He is the energy beyond whatever figure we have imagined as Lord Śiva. Whomever this energy possesses, such people have attained the state of Śiva. Such people are in Śiva consciousness. Same way, an enlightened person who has attained the state of Śiva consciousness has realized the divinity, God within Him. He who has

attained the Śiva consciousness, who is in the form of Śiva, has delivered the Tantra Śāstra to Devi Pārvati.

One more point. Why Tantra Śāstra has been delivered to Devi Pārvati? Lord Śiva has given his advice to Lord Muruga (son of Śiva), to Nandhi (the bull, the mount of Śiva placed on a pedestal facing the sanctum sanctorum), to other great seers. To the great seers, Śiva has advised the Upaniṣad (embody the experiences and ecstatic realizations of great seers who perceived the reality and enjoyed it). Even to Nandhi and Muruga, Shiva has showered his advice. But only to Devi he has delivered the Tantra. Only the philosophies or word related messages are delivered to others, but He has showered the techniques required for transforming those words into reality only to Devi. The reason is because only Devi had the deep sense of surrendering. Only when the deep sense of surrendering is present, we can internalize the Tantra and accept them. To internalize the philosophies and words, surrendering is not required. Just intellectual understanding is enough. Logical understanding would do. But to internalize the Tantra, a mental setup for surrender is required.

Let me explain the reason to indicate the importance of surrender. Through a story it will be clear. There was a man who was born blind.

He went to a doctor and asked: Doctor, can you do something and help me get back my eye sight?

The Doctor said: Don't worry, it can be done. I will perform a small operation and then you will get your eye sight. After getting the vision you will not need your stick to walk. That blind man did not understand.

He asked: Doctor, I can understand that after the operation, I will get my eye sight, but I don't understand how I can walk without the stick.

The blind man is used to walking with the help of a stick, and so he asked further: I don't understand, what is the connection between the stick and the eyes? I can understand that I will get my eye sight back, but how can I walk without the stick?

The doctor replied: Sir, I cannot make you understand just by words, let me do the operation and after you get the eye sight, you will understand that you will be able to walk without the help of a stick. You will understand how you can walk without the stick only after you get the eyesight. Before getting your eye sight you will not be able to understand it.

However the doctor tried to explain that the blind person can walk without the stick after he gets back his vision, the blind man will still be confused and will still question constantly about the possibility of walking without a stick. Only after he gets his eyesight he will know that he can without a stick.

Similarly, when a Tantra is given to us we must try it. Until we experience it ourselves, we will not know the impact it can have on us.

Sometimes I tell my devotees: Do meditation you will get money.

They ask me: How is it Master? I can understand that if we meditate, we will be relaxed, we can get mental clarity, our body will be healthy, all these you have proved scientifically and we can understand these. However we don't understand as to how money will flow in? That is not clear. How will it happen? I tell them: Please, do the meditation without questioning.

Actually, when they do meditation by nature they get the clarity in the mind and the confidence. By nature their business will flourish.

What do we mean by business? It mainly involves the ability to make clear decisions. When we have the ability to make clear decisions with confidence, then by nature Goddess Lakshmi (Goddess responsible for showering wealth, as per Hindu mythology) will be with us. By nature money will be with us.

When we have the ability to make clear decisions with spontaneity and with the attitude of taking responsibility then by nature wealth will flow towards us. We will start feeling the fulfillment with whatever wealth we have. If I straight away tell you: Meditate and you will get wealth, the relationship between these two will not be clear. When I tell the above statement to people, they start questioning: How is it Master, we are not able to believe what you say.

I tell them: Please don't question, please do it and then you will realize. If he does meditation for two months, he will realize it by himself.

One thing we should understand clearly, without the mental stability and clarity if we get money, it is very dangerous. It is very risky.

A small story:

A person has won five crores (Crore: Hindu rupee denomination to indicate 1 million) in a lottery, but the biggest problem is that he is a heart patient. His heart is very weak. So his wife is afraid to tell him this news.

She thought: What if something happens to him if he knows about this? He will not even be there to enjoy the money.

That lady is filled with worry.

She did not know what to do. Even if money comes, it is a problem.

There was a priest in the village temple.

She consulted him and asked him: Sir, please tell me what to do? Tell me a way out.

The priest told her: Don't worry ma, I know your husband very well. He is my friend for the last thirty years. I will carefully convey this news to him. Don't worry. I will tell him in the right way.

The lady replied to him: Okay sir, but please tell him slowly and carefully, take care that nothing happens to him.

The priest said :Don't worry; I will take care.

So saying the priest proceeded confidently. He was chatting with the man (the husband of the lady who requested him) for a long time. After some time the priest asked the man: Sir, what will you do if suddenly God makes you fortunate and showers money on you? The priest slowly began the topic this way.

The man replied to the priest: Sir, if I become fortunate, then I will be able to live a comfortable and peaceful life. The conversation between them proceeded in this manner.

At one point of time, the priest said: I feel you are going to be fortunate in a big way. I dreamt that you are going to win a lottery. Now tell me, what will you do if you get about five crores (equivalent to 5 million) in a lottery?

That man replied innocently to the priest: Sir, if I get five crores, I will give half of that amount to your temple. Hearing this the priest fell down and died out of shock!

Without the courage to face the situation and the clarity to safeguard the money, even if money flows in, it cannot be retained. If there is courage to hold the money, the clarity to safeguard it and the stability, confidence and solidity in mind, wherever be Goddess Lakshmi(the Goddess of wealth in Hindu mythology), she will come in search of us. By nature, this will happen.

If I tell this straight away, sometimes it will not be clear. That's the reason for the necessity for it being revealed as a technique or a way, that's called as Tantra. Such techniques that can unlock the spiritual treasure and the treasure of enlightenment which is within us is what is called Tantra. Such techniques are declared in the books called Tantra Shastra. For Devi, who surrendered to Him completely and for such Parashakthi (Supreme energy) who accepted Him completely, Shiva advised the Tantra Shastra. This is a very major Shastra. We are going to see the small portion of three parts of the Tantra Shastra in these three parts.

We are going to discuss about Tantra Shastra under the three topics called Nithyam (Eternal), Dhyanam (meditation) and Anandam (Bliss). Our discussion is going to revolve around these three small topics. These three are the basic requirements, for a person to live blissfully.

First requirement is Nithyam. What does Nithyam mean? The ability to analyze the difference between Nithyam and Anithyam (non-eternal or impermanent) and the stability, which we get due to the clarity in decision-making is what I mean by Nithyam. The strong, solid and stable nature for making clear decisions is what I mean by Nithyam. The clarity is what I call as Nithyam. That is, a clear mental setup.

Understand that our mind generally does not have the clarity of thought. We always thrust ourselves into mental depression. Truly, if we see deeply, we cannot be without worries. Only in the beginning we will worry based on some reason, then after few days we will start searching for reasons to get worried. Even if we don't get any reason and everything is going on smoothly then we start thinking: Today everything is going on smoothly. Don't know what will happen tomorrow.

We are so clear that if on a particular day everything is going on smoothly, then we think that the next day we are going to face a big problem.

Let me explain more clearly. If there is a reason then we will get worried for that reason. But if there is no reason, then we think about the next day and get worried. Whether there is any reason or not, to worry is our routine mental pattern. It is a strong and stable mental habit. First, we decide to get worried. After that we start looking for reasons. Only in the beginning we worry for a reason, then after getting the PhD or doctorate in the field of worrying, we don't need any reason, we create reasons within ourselves for getting worried.

Some people come and tell me: Master, I am not able to find the reason, but my mind is filled with worries. Don't know what to do. This is nothing; it is just that we have got used to worrying. Because we got so used to being in the low mood, even if there is no reason, we just sit with a sad face. Even if there is no reason, kids will always laugh. But for us even if there is no reason, we will be dull. That's the reason why we never sit alone. Either we will be sitting with someone or will be in front of the TV. We never sit alone. We do not have the courage to sit alone. Always we spend time with all the people in the world, but we never spend time with ourselves. We never do that. Even if there is no other work, even if there is no program to watch in the TV, we will read the newspaper from morning to evening. We will read the same newspaper from the first page till the last page.

Sometimes, I have seen retired old people, who don't have any work, they cannot sit with themselves. From the morning they will be reading the same newspaper till the evening, without leaving a line in between using big glasses. Even the editor of the newspaper would not have read it so much. The old man's sons and daughters would have been married, even his grand children would have been married, but he would be going through the matrimonial column. He does this because he is unable to sit with himself.

Even we are unable to sit with ourselves alone, constantly we are occupied doing something because we are just unable to sit with ourselves. Anithyam is the mental setup, which travels downward or takes us in a downward direction. The mental setup which goes down day by day towards worries, low mood and takes us to a lower plane is called Anithyam. The mental setup which travels towards the higher plane, bliss, happiness and joy, day by day is what I call Nithyam.

The first thing that we have to get in our life is the clear mental setup that is Nithyam. By clarity of mind I mean knowing what Nithyam is and what Anithyam is and hence taking clear decisions.

The second thing is the intellectual understanding which we get regarding the clear mental setup and which has to be transformed to a conscious level and that's called Dhyanam. Nithyam means just an intellectual understanding. It is very important as a first step. For example, knowing that smoking is injurious to health is Nithyam. To get the ability to come out of the smoking habit is called Dhyanam. Very often, we stop with the intellectual understanding.

One person came and told me: Master, a week back I read a book which speaks about the harmful effects due to the smoking habit. After reading that, I stopped. I asked him surprisingly: Sir, so you have left the habit of smoking? That's really good to hear*.*

He replied: No Master, I left reading such books which confuse the mind.

More often, we stop with intellectual understanding; we don't take steps to make transformation at the conscious level. The intellectual understanding is Nithyam and to transform such intellectual understanding to a conscious level is called Dhyanam. The technique and way to transform such intellectual understanding is called Dhyanam. If Nithyam and Dhyanam happen in our lives, automatically Anandam (bliss) will be expressed. The reason why I use the word bliss is because in every one of us the bliss is always flowering in us, we just have to experience it.

To do this first we have to get a clear mental setup and we have to internalize it by understanding it at the conscious level. When we act in Nithyam and Dhyanam, by nature bliss or the Anandam is expressed. Bliss starts flowering in us.

Dhyanasatsang should not be a place where we just come and collect news and get an intellectual understanding. However if it becomes a place where we understand at the conscious level, then this book will change our life. How much we internalize is what is important. How much the message helps the individual to change his life is important.

A person asked me in one of our programs: Sir, I am reading your articles in this magazine called Kumudham (Magazine in Tamil, in which THE SUPREME PONTIFF OF HINDUISM BHAGAWAN SRI NITHYANANDA PARAMASHIVAM's messages are published); I saw your picture in that book, in which you look young. But the articles that you write in that magazine are very solid and mature. So I had a doubt, whether is it you who is really writing those points or your picture is just pasted there and someone else is writing in your name.

Some people come in only for checking out the truth. Some people who attend my discourse come with this attitude of doubting.

Please understand that I am not saying it is wrong if you come here with a doubt. Naturally, the relationship will start in that manner. It is not wrong, however if you stop with such intellectual understanding then you will not get the complete result of the Dhyanasatsang. Please do not stop just with the intellectual understanding, be courageous to go further.

One young man asked me: Sir, have you seen God?

Without answering him, I questioned him: Are you asking this after reading about the stories of Ramakrishna and Vivekananda?

Then the young man replied: Yes, I am asking you like the way Vivekananda asked Ramakrishna. So similarly, I am asking you. Have you seen God?

I replied to him: The moment Ramakrishna said that He has seen God, Vivekananda left everything and went behind Ramakrishna. I am not only saying, that I have seen, I will also show you, please come with me.

The moment I said this that person disappeared from the crowd.

We are only ready to check the Master, to see if he has got the requisite qualifications. We should also check whether we have the courage and the quality to follow His teachings. Some of us who check the qualifications of the Master never check our qualifications before checking the Master's qualifications.

So it is not wrong if we check the Master. The moment we check the qualifications of the Master be ready to see the feet of divinity as well. Don't stop just looking for the capacity; be ready to see the feet of divinity. We must be ready to go into these messages deeply for the spiritual messages can transform our life. Spiritual messages can penetrate into our lives. The power of meditation can transform our life. So for this bliss to flower in us, we must be ready to let the bliss flower in us.

Only when the seed ruptures, the plant will sprout. Similarly, only when our old mental setup breaks, the new mental setup can enter. Only when the old mental setup breaks the new life style, the blissful way of life, divine way and spiritual energy will start expressing in us. However, we are not ready to let the old mental setup break. We might do meditation, listen to few discourses, read one or two books and visit one or two temples; but we still retain the old mental setup. We are tightly holding onto the old mental setup. We do not let the old mental setup break.

A lady asked me: Master, there is no peace in our house; please tell me a way out. I replied to her: Ma, the first thing that you have to do is that every night start having dinner together in your house. Just start talking to each other, start chatting with each other and start playing small games amongst yourselves. Let a good relationship flower within you. By nature, peace will start flowering in your house.

That lady said: Master this will not give any results. All these will not be okay. Please suggest some other rituals or Pooja (adoration of the deities with rituals such as lighting lamps, chanting the sacred words). Currently, everyday I do Varalakshmi fasting, please suggest any other fasting methods. Please suggest some other rituals.

Understand all the rituals or fasting is all good. But such rituals should bring about a change in us. The moment she enters the Pooja room (prayer room), she will start performing the pooja (prayer) for Goddess Lakshmi. The moment she is out of the room her husband will get the offerings in the form of scolding. How will there be peace at home?

As long as our mental setup does not change, no rituals or fasting will change our lives.

Generally we hold onto the old mental setup, we do not let it change. We just polish this side and that side of the mind, mend it a bit and we see if we can carry on with this mended mind. That is not possible. Only if the seed bursts out, the plant can sprout up. Only when we leave the old mental setup, can the new life style bloom in us. A new clarity will be born in us.

Some people tell me, I will retain half of my old frame of mind and the balance I will have it from the new one. Please understand, only if half of the seed bursts, the plant will not sprout up. The plant says: Only if the seed bursts, I will be able to come up. The seed says: Let the tree come out first and then I will burst. What happens first? Only when the seed bursts first, can the plant shoot up. Similarly, only when our old mental setup breaks, we can enter into the new mental setup. We can enter into the blissful state. For the old mental setup to break and the new frame of mind to be created, the clear techniques or ways given by Lord Shiva are called Nithyam.

Be very clear that this is not advice. Everyone wants to give but nobody is ready to take. Guess what that is? That is advice. These points are not advice. These are techniques of alchemy. In the alchemy process to convert copper into gold some chemicals are added to copper. It is heated in fire and then by nature, the copper becomes gold.

Similarly, with our confusion (copper in our example above) filled mind, if we add these messages (the chemicals in our above example), and if we heat it with meditation (fire in our above example), then our mind and consciousness become twenty-four carat gold. We have to add these messages in our lives to transform our consciousness and mind into twenty-four-carat gold, to transform our lust to spiritual energy, to transform our anger into love energy, to transform the arrogance into kindness, for this spiritual alchemy to happen in us.

Please play with these messages. We do not have to believe in these messages. Please don't believe in these messages. If we believe in these messages, it will do no good to us. Two things, if we don't believe in these points then these points will do no good to us. Even if we believe in it, again it will not do good to us.

If a person does not believe then he will ignore the words and let it go into the air, he will only think: Let THE SUPREME PONTIFF OF HINDUISM BHAGAWAN SRI NITHYANANDA PARAMASHIVAM speak, let Him say whatever he wants, I will leave it. We came here to spend time. We listened to it. That's all, it's over. This will be the thought flow of a person who does not believe. On the other hand, a person who believes may think: Whatever message THE SUPREME PONTIFF OF HINDUISM BHAGAWAN SRI NITHYANANDA PARAMASHIVAM delivered was good. Truly they are all good messages, but those are for enlightened people like Him and not for us. Those are for great seers like Him and not for us. Is this all practically possible for us? Let's leave it.

We can escape from an enlightened person in two ways. One is by crucifying Him to death. That is, by killing Him, that's what Jews did. They did not like Jesus. They did not like His teachings. So they crucified Him to death and thus escaped. The other way is to escape is by praying to Him. One way is to kill Him and escape and the other way of escape is by praying.

Let me explain the second technique of escapism further. In Bhagavad Gita (a spiritual book, in which Lord Krishna, explains the science of self-realization and the exact process by which one can establish the eternal relationship with the supreme), Lord Krishna (the incarnation of Lord Vishnu, who is responsible for protecting the universe) delivers a beautiful message. Most of us think that these are beautiful messages and we believe that we can't practice all these. We also think that it is true that Krishna is a great God, so we can decorate Him with a garland around His neck. We can light camphor in front of Him. However we cannot follow all his messages in our life.

Generally what we do instead of following Krishna's Bhagawad Gita, we garland him and start adoring Krishna. Then we proceed to say: Wow, such a wonderful book is this the Bhagawad Gita where Krishna has declared great truths, but we cannot follow all that. May be we can just pray to Him. So thinking we pray to Him: O Krishna, please help me to follow all these messages. Thus by adoring and praying we easily escape from the truth.

There was a principal who was sitting near the school and praying to God. The school was on fire and his eyes were closed and he was in prayer.

A person came running fast towards the principal and asked him: Sir, what are you doing? The school is on fire and you are not taking any action.

The principal replied: What are you talking? How can you say that I am not doing anything? I am praying to God, to shower rain. Is this not enough? The moment I start praying, am I not taking the steps towards solving the problem?

Please be very clear that prayer will not straight away be a solution to a problem. If we truly want some solution to take effect then understand that three things are required. They are physical energy, mental energy and spiritual energy. Physical energy means that we have to work hard with our body. Mental energy means using that physical energy with clarity. Spiritual energy means the divine power. Only when the physical work and mental clarity are present, divine power will be showered on us. However, without physical work and mental clarity if we just think that it is enough if we pray to God, then will it make God buy us vegetables? Will God shower a fortune over us? Surely not! If we think that we could simply sit and pray to God, it is enough and that God will shower a fortune over us, surely nothing will be showered upon us.

Be very clear that only after we exhaust the body strength and only after using the mental clarity completely, if we surrender to God saying: O, Lord, I have done my best, the rest I shall leave at your disposal, only then the spiritual energy will be showered upon us. The spiritual strength will be granted to us.

Truly if we see, we are easily escaping from God in the name of prayer.

I have seen many people including our devotees. They will have a big picture of mine in their house. They would have put a garland also around the photo. When I see them, I ask them: Sir, are you meditating? They would answer me: No Master, I put a garland on your photo everyday and I do the prayer everyday. They do not follow the meditation, which I had taught. They do not listen to the messages delivered. They think: Master is a great enlightened person and all His words are wonderful. So we can start adoring Him and praying to Him.

Through these rituals like Pooja, we escape from God. When we do Pooja the mind will say: He is a great seer. Whatever He says will be applicable for Him and not for us. It is not practically possible for us. This is a very tricky way to escape from enlightened Masters and spiritual messages. There is a saying in English: Worship is the worst form of crucification! I tell such devotees, Please understand crucifying in the cross and hanging my photo on the wall are both the same! I also tell them: If you cannot do meditation, please do not hang my photo in your house. Just hanging the photo in your house will do no good.

There is a beautiful word in Tamil, Vazhipadu, which has two meanings. One of the meanings is performing Pooja and adoring and the other meaning is following God or the Master's steps. Only when we follow the way as shown by the Master, performing rituals or pooja will be meaningful. Only when we follow the message as told by Krishna in the Bhagawad Gita then there is meaning in performing the Pooja for Krishna. However if performing pooja serves as an inspiration to follow God or the Master's teachings then it is okay. Then pooja will help us and as well as help others. But without following His teachings just garlanding His photo and lighting the camphor are all just rituals. That will not help in our life.

Whatever our ancestors have created are techniques. These techniques will transform our lives. One of the techniques given by our ancestors is that on the full-moon day we should to go around the sacred hill called Arunachala in Thiruvanamalai in south Bharat. That is a beautiful technique or a Tantra. The reason is that generally when we sit, our mind will not be relaxed. It will be oscillating. However when we move around giving work to our body, we can make the mind sit and be calm. If we move our body fast and make our mind calm, then the mind will be calm. That's a beautiful technique.

In our meditation camps (Ananda Spurana Meditation – ASP, in which seven different meditations to deal with the various emotions are taught by an acharya(person who lives the teachings of the Master) ordained by THE SUPREME PONTIFF OF HINDUISM BHAGAWAN SRI NITHYANANDA PARAMASHIVAM), we make people do this meditation. We ask people to make the mind focus in one direction and ask them to just move the body. Within 10 minutes, the mind will be relaxed completely. Just within 10 minutes, the mind will be relaxed. When we make our mind focus on divinity, focus on the supreme energy and move our body alone then what will happen is, by nature our mind will be relaxed completely.

The act of going around the sacred hills of Thiruvanamalai, by itself is a technique. Whatever our ancestors have devised is a technique or a way to experience the ultimate truth. To enable the enlightenment experience, which happened in them to flower in others, the techniques that they expressed are the techniques or ways or the Tantra. Let us not think this is an ordinary phenomenon. Let us contemplate on these thoughts. Let us ask ourselves and contemplate often: Truly, is this world an illusion? Truly is the world a dream? How can that be? Some say it is a reality, and some say it is a dream? What can it be?

Let us think about these messages and keep debating about these points within ourselves and we shall discuss the result in the next chapter. Thank you.

I welcome you all with my love and respects.

We will start with a small story.

There was a great learned man who was narrating Harichandra's (According to the Hindu history, Harichandra was the ruler of Ayodhya, in Bharat. He was a very straight forward, God fearing, noble king who at all costs spoke only the truth) story for 6 days and it was the last day.

After finishing the story, full of pride he asked some one sitting in the front row: What did you learn from the story?

That person replied: Even if death approaches, one has to speak truth is what I learnt. That learned man felt more proud as he thought people have grasped the right message. He asked one more person next to him: Sir, what did you understand?

That person answered: Sir if there is an emergency then there is nothing wrong even if you sell your wife is what I learnt.

In Harichandra's life, he was in a situation where he had to sell his wife for the sake of truth. Same story, same discourse, same event, but understood by different people in different ways. Everyone understands different lessons or different meanings from Harichandra's story. Either we can understand that we have to speak only the truth or we can learn that in case of an emergency, we can sell or pledge our wife. From any news or story, either we can learn from the point of view as Nithyam (eternal) or we can learn from the point of view as Anithyam (Non-eternal or impermanence).

In the first part of the book Tantra Shastra I had requested all of you to run a debate in your mind. Let me summarize the first part of Tantra Shastra. I had requested you to deeply reflect on the questions like: Is this world a reality or an illusion? Is this a dream or reality?

Understand the reason for running such a debate is not to know the result. We cannot know the result. We can only feel and experience the result. But, when these points deeply immerse in us, the root of ignorance which has been planted in us will start shaking. Wherever we keep the chemical called phosphorous, it will burn anything which is kept around it. If we keep it in a wooden box, it will burn the wooden box. If we keep phosphorous near camphor, it will burn camphor. If we keep it near cotton, it will burn cotton. Wherever we keep phosphorous, whatever is there around it will get burnt. Similarly when these spiritual messages are preserved and locked inside us, it will burn the stain of ignorance. It will shake the root of ignorance.

Firstly if we get a doubt about whether whatever we see in this world is true or not, then that is enough. It is not even required that we should get the clarity whether it is true or not. Not even the clarity whether this world is a dream or reality is required, just the

doubt is enough, half the work is done. Even if the doubt arises, that arguments which support the doubt will arise in our mind. Generally, I do not straight away give the results.

Let me tell you a small story then it will be clear as to why I am not giving the results straight away. One person came to see me at the ashram. He asked me: Master, can I stay here in the ashram for four days. I told him: Oh sure, you can stay here, no problem. The moment I told him to stay, he started placing his arguments to support as to why he cannot stay. He said: No Master, I have to do work at home. I have to go somewhere. Then I told him: It's okay sir, you may leave. The moment I told him to leave then he said: No Master, it looks like it will be good if I stay here. This place is so beautiful. I can take healing from you. I feel that I can stay here for four or five days. Then I told him: Then it's okay, please stay.

Then again he said: No Master, I have some work at home.

Understand that the mind always gets the arguments ready against whatever we say. Many a times I have seen people ask me a question because they are confused. If in the above example, he had already taken a decision, whether to stay or not, he will not question me at all. He would have told me clearly whether he is going to stay or not. He is already in a dilemma and that was why he had asked me. But whatever solution I gave him, he brought up the argument against the solution I proposed.

The mental setup itself is like that. The mental setup is in such a way, whenever any solution is given to us, our mind will always bring about arguments against the stated solution. The grass on the other side is always greener. When we are on the other side, the grass on this side will seem green. This is our very nature. That's why, whenever any spiritual message is given to us as a decision or a solution, our mind will gather all points against the given solution. That's the reason, I did not give it as a result, but I gave it as a point for debate.

I want to stress on and repeat these points again. May these points sink in us. May both sides of the arguments keep happening in us. When both sides argue and debate in us and when the doubt also arises in us, by nature, a deep search will happen in us. The job of Nithyam is to create that act of search in us.

In the first part we discussed the three steps: Nithyam, Dhyanam and Anandham. That is we must understand that there is a stage which is very blissful. That stage is beyond the mental stage at which we are in currently and it is possible to reach that stage. To create this kind of search in us is the first step. This first step is the job done by Nithyam. Let us go into this subject deeply.

Now let us understand the Sutra (techniques) and the translations of Tantra Shastra (techniques). Before that, I wanted to tell you all something. Again, I want to remind you that this is not advice. In the first part of the book Tantra Shastra, I had mentioned, that

in the whole world if there is something, which everybody wants to give and nobody wants to take, it is advice. These are techniques, ways and methods. If we listen to these points and keep debating over these points inside ourselfves that is enough. Nothing else needs to be done.

Let us see this small example understand how our mental setup functions. Sometimes when any of our close friends or relatives dies, we start hating life and we begin to contemplate: Oh what's this. He has died. One day this is going to happen to me also. Life is only so much. Thinking in this way, a certain emptiness creeps inside us. But this emptiness will stay only up to the stage of completion of dead person's funeral formalities. Not after that!

Thirumular (an enlightened person from South Bharat) says beautifully,

Paerinai neeki pinamenru paerittu, Ooraiyellam koodi olikku azhudhittu Paerinai niki pinamenru paerittu, Sooraiyan katidai kondupoi sutitu, Neerinil muzhgi ninaipozhindhanarae.

It means when someone dies, people crowd around the dead person, they show their grief; they call the dead person as corpse. They then burn the corpse and then dip themselves in the water and clean themselves. By doing so, they get rid of the emptiness that had occupied them. The thought about the emptiness will stay in them only up to the stage of taking the bath. The moment they take a dip in the water; they get rid of the emptiness and involve themselves in routine life. Sometimes the emptiness which occupies us has got the ability to create the clarity in us.

Sometimes even grief can teach us. Even sorrow can give us clarity about life. Even sorrow can become our teacher. Sorrow can teach life's lesson. Sorrows have the ability to provide us with a clear mental setup.

In a Pooja ritual (adoration of the deities with rituals such as lighting lamps, chanting the sacred words) there is a chant in Chandi homa (a kind of fire ritual), Anaisvariyaya namah, which means 'I pray for poverty'. Why should someone pray for poverty? We may think if we pray for wealth or to Goddess Lakshmi (Goddess responsible for showering wealth, according to Hindu mythology), it is fine. Why should we pray for poverty? In the commentary for the above, the Bashyas (people who wrote the elaborate commentary on philosophical and grammatical treatises) write that sometimes even poverty can make us think again and again about God. Sometimes even diseases will help us move toward spiritual clarity.

Let me explain this further with an incident which truly happened. One of our devotees had come to heal his psoriasis. I gave him healing for about four or five days and he became better. During that phase, he also participated in one of the meditation camps (Ananda Spurana Meditation – ASP, in which seven different meditations to deal with the emotions are taught by an acharya (person who lives the teachings of the Master) ordained by THE SUPREME PONTIFF OF HINDUISM BHAGAWAN SRI NITHYANANDA PARAMASHIVAM).

After participating in the meditation program, he said: I just forgot this disease, I don't feel the necessity of the disease being cured. If I was not affected by this disease, I would have missed you. So, in a way, this disease has been good to me.

In some way, poverty or disease can teach us some lessons in life. Even sorrow can teach us some good lessons about life.

We can either accept anything we confront in life as a message from God or from the Master and grow in life or else we can curse every incident we confront in life as our opponent, fight against it and make life itself hell. Only these two options are there. Everybody faces some incidents in their life. Be it good or bad incidents, it will happen. There is nothing like no incident will happen. Either we can learn from the incident, improve our lives, make our life blissful and attain a heavenly, spiritual level or we can consider the event as our enemy, constantly fight against it and make our life itself a hell. Only these two options are there in our hands.

The mental setup, which helps us to confront life, to learn from every event, to improve life is what I call as Nithyam. Our Vedanta (philosophies) talks about getting the clarity into our mind as to what is permanent and what is not?

Let me give you an example. Sometimes when we think of death, we may get some clarity that this world is not something which is permanent. When such thought comes to our mind, our mind will say: Yes that's true, nothing is permanent in life. Everything is going to be destroyed. When the breath that goes in does not come out then for whatever we ran in life for and for whatever things we made our lives a hell, such things are going to be a waste and such things are not going to be there. Life is not permanent. When such thoughts come into us, there is a chance of some calmness, peace entering us. We may get the clarity which tells us: Yes it is true; there is no necessity to run behind everything in life, there is no necessity to trouble ourselves and that we should enjoy life. We will earn as much as we require and whatever comes with that, we will live happily with that. Let us not create unnecessary burden of sorrow, mental depression, mental stress, which creates a pressure to run our lives. This kind of clarity may come to us sometimes.

When this clarity arises in our mind, if that clear understanding becomes part of us, and stays inside us, then it is fine, but it does not happen that way. The next moment our mind will say: If you keep thinking like this and sit simply, you cannot buy a car like the neighbor. Then the next moment the thought about neighbor flashes in our mind, then the old pattern of thoughts start running into our mind again and all the debating which we did on life permanency will also disappear. We don't let the peace that comes from the depth in our search or some calm state that enters us, stay in us. We let some other thought pull us out from that state.

There is a beautiful explanation for the word, 'experience'. We cannot be called as an experienced person, based on the number of incidents, which took place in our life. How much we have learned from those experiences determines whether we are experienced or

not. Be very clear, those people who have accepted their lives as the Master are only considered as experienced people.

Let us enter into the Sutra.

Samas sathroucha mithraecha Samo Manama mana yoho Brahmana pariviradhi Thathvath ithi gnanathva suki bhavae

Wonderful Sutra. Let us see, what is meant by Samas sathroucha mithraecha Samo Manama mana yoho. It means: Be it joy or sorrow, be it your friend or be it your foe, be indif erent. This is a very deep message. If we just see this superficially, the message will not be clear.

Really, if we see, most of us misunderstand the point, when we say, 'being indifferent'. Even buffalos will be indifferent. Whether it is raining or whether it is sunny, they will not act. They will not move. They will stand wherever they are. They will not respond to anything. But the indifferent state at which buffalos are in is not the actual indifference which we are talking about. Buffalos are in state of insensitivity. That is feeling less. It is an indifferent nature due to insensitivity. That's the not the one which is meant here. Indifference is something which happens due to complete sensitivity.

Let us deeply understand the concept of indifference due to complete sensitivity and insensitivity.

There are three kinds of characteristics. They are Thamas, Sathvam and Rajas. Thamas refers to a dull state, a state at which one is lethargic; at such a state one does not do anything. Rajas refer to an over-active state, it means a state at which one runs actively and faster, oscillates restlessly to do something. Sathvam means a state at which one does everything, and amidst doing everything, one holds on to peaceful and blissful state. The characteristic Sathvam does not refer to lethargy. This is a state at which all the work is done completely, getting involved in all the activities completely, but one is not bound by any activity emotionally. If we see superficially we may feel that both Thamas and Sathvam characteristics resemble each other. Both dull state and meditative state may resemble each other. In the state of meditation, body will function and mind would be calm. Whereas in the dull state, body will be quiet but the mind will be functioning. In Sathvam, body will function and mind would be calm. There is a big difference between insensitivity and complete sensitivity.

Now let us deeply understand the message from the above Sutra. Let us see, where we are losing the required fundamental message in our lives. In our lives, we create our expectations and our own views and opinions for every incident. Be it a person, be it a situation, be it any event, we create our opinion about that person or situation. Only if a person or situation fits into that opinion, we will accept that person or situation. Else we

will not accept that person or situation. We don't respect or accept such a person or situation as he/she is or as it is, whole-heartedly.

In our lives, we create a set of rules as to how we should be treated. We think we should be treated in accordance with such rules. Wherever we go and wherever we are, we expect to be treated in accordance with such rules of treatment, which we have designed. If such rules are broken or we feel that we are not treated as per such rules or we feel that we are not treated the way we should be treated, we will create our own opinion over the incident and such other people.

One more thing, even the scale of respect will not be the same everywhere. It will increase according to the place we are in. In some places, we will expect someone to respect us at a particular scale. If they respect us at that expected scale, then the next time we will expect at a higher scale. For example, the first time, when someone respects us, we will consider it as respect, then the second time; we will decide that it is our birthright to be respected. The moment we think it is our birthright: we start expecting much more than the first time.

Let me give you another example, to make it clear. When we get the first month's salary only we will have the satisfaction of having got a job. When we get the second month's salary, we will yearn for more salary. Assuming, we were getting Rs.2000 as our salary per month. Then after some time we quit from this job and move to another job, which pays us Rs.10, 000/per month. Even then, that joy and happiness remains only for one month. Then next month our mind will think that it is our birthright to get this amount as salary. Then after that we will be wondering: What next after this?

There is a beautiful hymn in Sanskrit (one of the languages spoken in Bharat. Most of the hymns and poetries in the olden days were sung in Sanskrit), Thathakim, Thathakim, Thathakim means 'What next?' 'What next? 'What next?' Whatever comes or whatever happens our mind will always look for, 'What next?'

For example, we will be traveling in a two-wheeler and due to some good fortune, we will buy a fiat car. As soon as we sit in the Fiat car, our mind will dream about a Maruti esteem. When we sit in a Maruti esteem car, our mind will dream about sitting in a Qualis car. If we sit in a Qualis then our mind will dream about a Benz. We always think, 'What next?'

Please understand that it is not wrong to grow by thinking 'What next? What next?' But in the process of growing we forget to enjoy what we have. That is the biggest problem. So the sensitivity to the experience is lost. We lose the sensitivity to experience life.

When we are in college we think: Once we get a job, life will be joyful then we can enjoy life. Once we get a job then we think: After marriage life will be joyful and then we can enjoy our life. After marriage we think: Our life will be joyful once we own a house. After owning a house we think: After having a child, our life will be joyful and then we can enjoy our life. After the birth of the child we will feel: After the child's studies are

over, our life will become joyful and then we can enjoy life. After the child's studies we will think: Once the children are married, our life will be fine and then we can enjoy life. After the son's marriage, we will lose the sensitivity to enjoy life. At the end we will carry a heavy burden of memories and we will only be able to notice the mental setup with which we lived.

Understand it is not wrong to work for the material things of the outer world. Those are things which we have to experience and enjoy. But in the process of creating the material things in the outer world, we lose the sensitivity to enjoy those materials.

For example, even if thousand sweets are placed in front of us, if we don't have the tasting sensitivity in our tongue, is it possible to enjoy those sweets? No, it is not possible. Similarly in our lives how much ever property, wealth and comforts we earn, if our mental setup does not have the stability, calmness, peace and bliss to enjoy those things, is it possible to experience those comforts completely? We are going to enjoy this life only with our mind. How we will enjoy the experiences of our life is determined by the maturity of our mind. We experience our life with our mind. With whatever mental setup our mind has been created, only with that mental setup, we enjoy this world. Most of the times, we sell our eyes to buy a painting. We sell our sleep to buy a mattress. We sell our legs to learn dance.

Please understand that there is nothing wrong in acquiring property or money or wealth in our lives. However the mistake is in our mental setup and in our thought flow which we possess while acquiring such wealth. If we don't have the proper mental setup, then by nature we lose the sensitivity to experience or the nature of experiencing something in life. The ability to hold such sensitivity to experience our life and to make our life joyful is what I call as Nithyam. It means not losing the sensitive nature to experience life.

A small Zen story:

A King based on some rumors thought a Zen enlightened Master is wrong and ordered that the Master should be hung the next day.

It is easy to spread rumors about enlightened people, since they don't object much to anything in life.

In the above story even after the judgment, the Zen enlightened Master continued with His everyday routine.

One of his disciples asked Him: Master, the King has passed a judgment to hang you, are you not aware of this? Are you not upset about this? You are going to die tomorrow. The Master replied: I am living in this moment and this second only. I feel thinking about the next second itself is not possible. It is too much for me. How can I think about something that is going to happen after twenty-four hours? It is too much for me. Who has got the time to think beyond twenty-four hours. Just leave it.

If we deeply listen to this, we can understand. The enlightened Master says that he does not have the time to experience this second, this moment and this minute. He says this moment itself is wonderful and overwhelming. When we cannot enjoy and experience this moment completely, how can we enjoy the next moment?

Generally most of us think that tomorrow we will be fine, tomorrow we will be peaceful, and tomorrow our sorrows will be wiped off. By this we postpone our mind which means postponing the bliss. Bliss is always knocking our doors. Peace is always knocking our doors. We are not opening our doors. We keep postponing the bliss and joy. Our mental setup is like that. Our mental setup is such that if anything gives us peace, bliss and joy, we take that for granted. We just think, 'this is what it is supposed to be' or 'this is what is expected out of this'. However when any sorrowful event happens, we brood over it. If someone praises or respect us, we never think of it again and again. However if someone disrespects us, the same words they uttered will be ringing in our ears for three days! The same words will repeat in our mind.

Whichever channel we tune our TV to, we will be able to watch only that channel. Similarly we will observe that emotion to which we have tuned our mental setup. In our life, both sorrowful and joyful incidents happen. Both good and bad incidents happen. Whichever mental setup we tune ourselves to, we will let only that mental setup run inside us. If we expect bliss then we will again and again attract blissful incidents or blissful events in our life.

If you see, there are some people, who will buy only crime novels or books with a front cover which has pictures indicating some kind of violence like murder, blood stains. They will buy books like these only. In fact they will search for books and movies, which depress them in sorrow, such books, which cultivate the violence and violent thoughts in them. Already there is enough sorrow in them and they want to add some more sorrow!

There is a beautiful Upanishad Sutra (embody the experiences and ecstatic realizations of great seers who perceived the reality and enjoyed it), which says Aagaara Sudhi (purification of what we in-take). The Upanishad explains that by Aagaara Sudhi our mind will get purified. Generally we think Aagaara Sudhi means purification of the food we eat. No. Aagaara means and includes whatever gets inside us through the five senses. The programs that we watch through our eyes are also food. Whatever we hear through our ears is also food. Understand, whatever we intake through our mouth is not the only food. Whatever we intake through the five senses are all food. So, whatever we see whether it is through TV or movies or newspaper or magazines or any form of media are all food.

One more thing after listening to the above, one person asked me: Master, how will I get to know the happenings in the country or the latest news which are happening around us, if I don't read the newspaper or watch TV? I questioned him: Don't you know what is happening in this country? If you open the newspaper today you will get to know murder, theft or any accident which happened somewhere in the country. If you read tomorrow's newspaper, you will get to know similar type of news. May be the place of happening or the name of the victims would have changed at the most. That's all. There is not going to be any other change. What are we going to do by reading and knowing this kind of news again and again?

So we must only watch those programs which give us bliss. We must read only those articles or magazines which give us bliss. We must read only those messages which lighten our mind.

A taste or interest or some kind of liking has come inside us to attract such miserable incidents. That's why if you see there are some people, as soon as they open the newspaper, they read the obituary column. These kinds of mental setup are setups which are deeply rooted in us. Attracting sorrowful words, collecting miserable news, welcoming thoughts of misery, all these indicate the nature and depth of our mental setup.

There is a wonderful book called 'Synchro destiny' written by a great scientist. He is an American doctor who has done research on Hindu Shastra. In the book, he says, be it any accidents or disease which we are impacted by or infected with, it is actually we who welcome those accidents or diseases. He says that actually there are no accidents in life.

Let me stress on something. Whatever he said is the truth. He says even accidents which we encounter are created by us. We may wonder: Will we invite disease or accidents? Is this really the truth? We may be puzzled about this.

Our thought flow again and again welcomes negative incidents which are beyond our control. The American doctor says that the pleasure which happens in us while listening to negative news, while knowing negative information, while experiencing negative words uses our energy for all these negative incidents. Hence by nature we attract negative incidents in our lives.

If we tune our TV to a private channel then we can watch programs related to that specific channel only. If we tune the TV to some other channel, we get to see that other channel. Though all the elecro magnetic waves pertaining to all the channels are always present; we get to see the channel we tune the TV to. We see what we want to see. Similarly, to whichever incident we tune our mental setup to, our mind will act according to that.

Generally, if we see any negative incidents or negative programs, there will be a huge crowd. Once, Winston Churchill was giving a talk and there was a huge crowd. One of the press reporters asked him: Sir, such a massive crowd is gathered here; does this not show people's love for you?

Churchill replied to the reporter; Oh no, don't say that, if an order is passed tomorrow to hang me to death, if that happens as a public event and then there would be a crowd which is four times the present crowd!

Understand that there is always an attraction towards negative incidents. Our mental setup also relishes the collection of negative information. That's why many people find it interesting to spread rumors. It seems very relishing for many people. That too, it will be negative information and not positive information. They gossip only on negative issues.

Let me repeat this again. The pleasure that happens in us while listening to negative news and while knowing negative information and while experiencing negative words uses our energy for all these negative incidents. Hence by nature we attract negative incidents in our lives.

In our mediation programs we used to conduct a small game. We would make the attendees form a circle and sit. I would whisper something into one person's ears. That person should pass this as a secret to the next person and it would be passed on like that to the next person and so on. Not even once the original message what I had conveyed came out the same way from the last person. The original message has never returned back the same. The original message was always distorted and it never came back as the same original message conveyed by me. Only fifty or sixty people would be playing this game but the original message will never come back as it was. At every passing of the secretive message there will be some spice added to it. Finally when it comes out, the final message will be double the original message that I had initially conveyed. I might have conveyed just four words but when it comes out as a final message, it will come out as big news.

A small story:

One day a mathematics teacher did not come to school.

The first student conveyed this to the second student: Do you know, today the mathematics teacher has not come to school.

Hearing this second student conveyed this to the third student: Oh, the mathematics teacher always comes to school regularly. He has not come to school today. May be he is sick.

Then the third student told to the fourth student: Today mathematics teacher has fallen sick, so he has not come to school.

Then that student adding some spice to the above statement told the fifth student: Don't think mathematics teacher would take leave just for any normal illness, may be he would be very seriously ill.

Then fifth student told the sixth student: Mathematics teacher is very seriously ill, so in that case he would have been admitted to the hospital.

Then that student who heard this, informed the seventh student: Do you know mathematics teacher is admitted to the hospital.

Then the seventh student told the eighth student: Mathematics teacher is in the emergency ward in the hospital.

Then that student told the ninth student: If he is that serious, by now he must have expired.

Then the ninth student said: If he has passed away then all the funeral formalities would be over.

After some time the tenth student finally declared: The mathematics teacher has passed away; I just attended his funeral formalities.

As he was saying that, mathematics teacher was walking into school. He was late by ten minutes that day!

Please understand that our mental setup also relishes the collection of negative information. That's why it is an interesting act for many people to spread rumors. This is the very nature of man. Pulling any incident in a negative direction, creating an incident in a negative direction, expressing the incident in a negative manner is our mental setup. It is an unconscious mental setup. We all might laugh at this story. But we should deeply think, as to how many times we have done this in our lives. Some of us might direct the news or information towards a negative direction to add more spice to the original information. If everything goes normally then there is nothing to talk about. Only when something is abnormal it gets spicy. Some of us may relish doing this.

Let me narrate a small incident which truly happened. Before proceeding to the incident let me tell you something. I keep repeating some stories again and again. People who have attended our meditation programs would know this. One person asked me: Master, you seem to be repeating the same point and same message again and again. Why is that?

Let me answer that question through an incident, which happened in the life of Buddha. A disciple of Buddha asked Buddha: Master, forty years you have been talking, and you have been repeating the same message again and again in the last forty years. Why is that? Buddha gave a beautiful answer: Because you did not listen to the message the first time, I had to repeat it the second time. I would not have repeated the same thing again and again, had you listened to the message the first time. Understand, only when the message is repeated again and again, the message gets internalized. That's why I repeat some of the messages again and again.

Actually whatever Buddha had spoken for forty years has come in the form of a small book and it contains 780 hymns. So understand that he has spoken the same message again and again for forty years.

Let me now continue with the incident. One person came to me. He was around 35 years. He asked me: Master, I am planning to divorce my wife, please bless me.

I replied to him: I can only bless for a marriage not for a divorce.

He said: No Master, I am unable to tolerate all this, please bless me.

I asked him: Actually what's the problem? Tell me.

He said: Master this morning, my wife placed a cup of coffee on the table in such a way that it spilled over my dhoti (a traditional dress worn by Hindu men). We had an argument over this and it ended up in a fight.

Puzzled, I asked him: Is just spilling of coffee, a reason for divorce? What is this? Is that a big reason for divorce? Are you not able to find a better reason?

He narrated further that as soon as the coffee spilled, he shouted: Don't you have sense, are you getting all this from your dad's house? I have earned all this, and you have wasted my money.

She has replied back to him: Just stop shouting and drink the coffee. For your ability and your potential, me serving you coffee itself is too good for you.

So on the conversation got tough and it ended up in a fight.

I told him: Even if the coffee is spilled over your dhoti, it is she who is going to wash your clothes, then why do you want to worry about it? Why do you want to make that a big issue?

He hurriedly said: No Master, today she spilled coffee, tomorrow she might even spill acid! She is that dangerous. You don't know about her.

Understand that even we are also doing similar mistakes. Now we laugh at this person, but many a times, we are also doing similar mistakes again and again. There is no connection between coffee and acid. But what our mind does is connects the real incidents with the incidents which we saw on TV or in a movie.

Let us see another example, to explain this further.

The daughter-in-law might have seen a mother-in law who plays a negative character in some serial. She will unconsciously project the character of that mother-in-law onto her mother-in-law. Actually the mother-in-law may not be that bad! Even if the mother-inlaw enquires about her generally, she will immediately think that the mother-in-law is trying to dominate her. Similarly, the mother-in-law does the same projection on the daughter-in-law after watching a negative character of a daughter-in-law in some TV serial. Actually the daughter-in-law may not be that bad!

Like this we are increasing the sorrows beyond limit. We are increasing the scale of the sorrows. We are giving life to all sorrowful thoughts. Let me tell you one more example to indicate how we increase the scale of our sorrowful thinking and negative thinking.

One day, the husband of the house would have come home late by half an hour due to some extra work in the office. During that half an hour, the wife runs all kinds of negative thoughts in her mind by bringing in all the villains she saw in the TV. She imagines whatever possible negative thoughts she could think of. Finally she decides that her husband is into some wrong activities. So concluding on her analysis, she will finally be ready with all her arguments to fight with the husband as soon as he comes. Like this she has not only step-by-step increased the scale of her negative thinking, she has also given complete life and power to her negative and miserable thoughts.

Coming back to the devotee's divorce problem, I told him further: Don't you understand yourself, why do you want to connect coffee and acid? Can't you see for yourself, that this is a very small matter and you are making a big issue out of nothing? Is this right? He answered: No Master, you don't know how much I have struggled for the last ten years.

Like this he has built up and added more and more words in the last ten years. Please understand that he has increased the scale of his sorrows. He had not been aware as to what happened when the thoughts were flowing into his mind. Understand that we are also doing the same; we are not consciously observing the thoughts, which run in our mind. Thoughts related to the scenes which we see on TV or read in the books keep oscillating in our mind. The same words and the sentiment related to such words runs in our mind. We never think whether for this particular situation this thought flow is required? We never confront any situation directly. We never see a situation as it is. We never confront the situation straight away. We always compare every situation, with the incidents and situations, which we have already seen and then only confront any situation.

I told that devotee: Sir, see for yourself, how your mind is functioning. Understand that your thought flows are running at such an unconscious level. Anyway I told him: Okay don't use any general words, tell me some specific incidents, then we can analyze and see what happened and we can get some clarity over the issue. He proceeded to tell an example.

Before narrating this further, let me tell you about a traditional event which happens during Hindu marriages. During Hindu marriages, a small game is conducted amongst the couples. A small finger ring is put inside a pot of water and the couple is asked to pick up the ring at the same time from the pots. They have to insert their hands into the water and search for the ring at the same time. Whosoever gets the ring is the winner and shall own the ring. This small game is conducted to zero down the distance between the husband and wife. Since during those days the husband and wife would not have met or spoken before the marriage since most marriages were arranged marriages then, such games will be conducted to make them feel comfortable with each other. Such games are conducted so as to reduce the mental gap between them and to introduce them to each other.

Let us come back to our devotee's problem. He said: Master, in our marriage during that ring pick up game, we put our hands into the pot and at that time itself she scratched my hand with her nails. That time itself I came to know about her arrogance.

Just see his mental setup. He has maintained a log of complaints like a police complaint report. Something that happened ten years before, he remembers that like a police record. Like I said earlier, the game is basically played for fun. It is just for zeroing down the distance between the couples. So she might have scratched his hand for fun. He has formed an opinion about the wife. Since then onwards he was collecting arguments to support his original decision. Hearing this, I thought it is better for that wife to stay alone rather than live with this kind of a husband! It will actually be liberating for the wife rather than freedom for him.

Our mind, again and again keeps magnifying the sorrowful incidents and events. The miserable events are blown up by the mind. Understand that our mind has in depth power. Don't think the thoughts that run in our mind are very ordinary, they have tremendous power.

Let me tell you an example to indicate the power of our mind and it will be clear as to how our thoughts affect situations and outer space. A research was conducted in America. Similar to the ECG, there is a machine, which is used to detect the vibrations, which happens in trees. There were about 20 trees in a grove, and on all these 20 trees, a machine similar to the ECG machine was fixed and vibrations of the trees were being recorded. The vibrations, which happen at different instances like, when the wind blows, when water is poured, when the sun rises were all being analyzed and recorded. A thought flashes in their mind as to how the vibrations will be when a tree is cut. They decided to cut a particular tree and so they called for a tree-cutter. The tree-cutter came inside the grove with his axe, with an intention to cut a particular tree. In fact the tree cutter did not even come near the tree. But as he entered the grove, the movement in the graph relating to that particular tree was haphazardly vibrating and oscillating. Please listen to this. This is not a story, but a research that was conducted.

The scientists did not understand what was happening. They just thought that this was happening casually. So they asked him to walk in and out, again and again and the movement in the graph was accordingly oscillating. Then they decided to send him off. But they asked him to send another tree-cutter to cut another tree. Then second tree-cutter was informed that he should cut a particular tree and was asked to come in. As soon as the second tree-cutter walked in, the movement in the graph related to the selected tree, was haphazardly and vigorously vibrating.

This research was done not just once or twice, but it was done for more than 20 times and the scientific data which was recorded every time, showed that, the graph relating to that tree, which was considered for being cut was oscillating up and down vigorously.

One more research was done. Three similar roses were considered for a research. Under conditions of similar fertilizers, same type of mud, same type of pot, same type of water and similar type of weather conditions, they were all placed in three different rooms. One person would go to the first rose's room and sing in praise of it, by saying: You are a nice rose. You are beautiful. You will bloom well. We might wonder if the rose can understand our language. Whatever the language, he has communicated his point. Then he would go to the next room and he won't speak anything. He would sit there quietly for 2 minutes and come out. Then next he would go to the third room he would start firing the rose: You are fit for nothing. You will never do anything properly. Whatever you do, it will always fail. You can never bloom. You have only thorns. You are just a thorn bush.

They have done this as a research. This was done for about 21 days. This same process of praising one rose, keeping silent in another rose's room and scolding the third rose, was done for about 21 days. The result of the research was surprising and stunning. Whichever rose he kept praising, that particular rose had grown by about twice it's original size. The rose which he had looked at silently had grown slightly to an extent. The rose which was being fired constantly had died. This research was not done once. To make sure about the results, the same research was done for about eleven times.

In America, they don't just agree based on results from one research. They had done the research about eleven times to make sure about the result. Again and again, they found and they proved that the rose that was fired constantly died. The rose that was praised grew to a great extent. The rose that was treated neutrally grew to an extent. This had been proved scientifically.

Our thoughts have great power. Our thoughts have deep strength. With whatever mental setup we form our mind, we attract only such type of incidents in our life. Like the way, the dish antenna attracts the satellite waves; our mind setup attracts all the incidents into our life. Our thought flow affects the world around us. Please understand this carefully, don't think that our words flow and thoughts flow do not affect others. It not only affects others, it also affects our life. Generally, we never give importance to our thoughts flow. We always think that no one will come to know about whatever we think inside us. We think if we speak good words that is enough.

Here is a small story to make this concept clear. There were four friends who were chatting. They were actually abusing someone in his absence. After some time, one of the friends got up and went away. Then the three other friends gossiped about the person who got up and went. Then after sometime another friend got up and went for some work. Then the remaining two friends were abusing the second friend who got up and went. One of them got up and moved on, the friend who was sitting back showed faces towards the friend who went out last!

Understand this is the mental setup of people. They abuse someone who is not present in the situation.

One more thing praising a person upfront and backstabbing him after he moves, we think that the other person will not come to know that he is being abused. We speak behind someone thinking that the other person will not come to know, so it's okay. But please understand due to our back stabbing and abusing whether it is bad for him or not, it turns out bad for us.

Let me explain, as to how it turns out bad for us. We have just one mind. With just one mind we are living. If we use that mind as a knife to torture others, we will be using the same knife to torture ourselves. It is a double-edged sword. Whichever words we use over and over to others, we use the same words towards ourselves also. If we use abusing and insulting words on someone when they make a mistake, then if we make any mistake, we will be using the same words to abuse and hurt ourselves. The thought flow inside us will run with the same abusing words. Whatever words we use over others, we will be using the same words on ourselves also. Understand that our words and thoughts have deep power. Whatever words and thoughts we use in our lives; accordingly we will attract only those types of incidents in our lives. Both our thought flow and word flow play a very major role in our lives. Both the honor and dishonor which we confront in our lives is due to our word flow and due to our thought flow.

Some people wherever they go, they carry their visiting cards with them, to boast about themselves, to indicate, 'do you know who I am'. The size of the card will be small, but it will have 25 designations, indicating that he is the president of some society or even ex president of some club. In fact some committees will have only four members! I usually say, the visiting card is not just a card, it is a poster. Though the card will be small, the titles in that will indicate, 'Do you know who I am?' Wherever they go, they carry the

'Do you know who I am?' card. Luckily, they will not be able to carry a big poster. Else they will start carrying big posters wherever they go.

Since such people with the attitude, 'Do you know who I am', it will seem like that they are being disrespected wherever they go. When people don't notice them, they feel that nobody respects them, nobody welcomes them.

Especially in Tamilnadu (a state in South-Bharat), the host who conducts the marriage, suffers so much because of the expectations from the guests. As soon as the guests arrive the host is expected to welcome them as they enter the marriage hall. Then again during the feast he is again expected to invite them into the dinning hall from the marriage hall. Guests have to be attended to and respected constantly during any event or marriage party.

Apart from this when a person goes to invite somebody for a marriage, if only the man goes to invite them, then only the man of the house will attend the party. Only if both the men and women go to someone's house to invite them for the party only then the lady of the house will also attend the function. There are many ceremonies, rituals and formalities like this.

The moment we hold the 'Do you know who I am' card, wherever we go we will feel that we are disrespected. If we leave the 'I' feeling and become a person of a casual and humble nature, a person with simplicity and joyful nature, then wherever we go, we will always be joyful. Wherever we go, we will always feel that we are highly respected. Wherever we go, we will always be blissful.

A small beautiful Zen story.

There was a great warrior, who went to an enlightened Master and asked Him: Master, what is meant by hell?

Without answering him, the enlightened Master asked the warrior: What are you doing? He said: I am a warrior.

The enlightened Master: Are you a warrior? You don't seem to be one. I don't understand who appointed you as a warrior. Which idiot is paying your salary?

As soon as the warrior heard this he became furious and the next moment he pulled out his sword saying: How dare you say that? Let me show who I am.

At that moment, the enlightened Master said: Son, this is hell.

Then it flashed to him: Okay the anger which aroused in me due to my ego being hurt is what is called hell.

The moment he understood that, he realized his mistake and put back his sword in its cover and begged for forgiveness.

The enlightened Master replied: Son, this is called heaven.

Thus he gave a beautiful explanation for heaven and hell.

Please understand one more thing. Wherever we feel upset or wherever we feel that we are disrespected there actually might have been some mistake from our side. Let me explain with an example. If someone blames us saying that we have committed a scandal

for about hundred crores, will we get angry? No. But there is every chance for us to get angry when someone blames us for being short-tempered or stingy. This means that in the blame of hundred crores scandal there is no truth. That's the reason why we did not get angry. But when we are blamed for being short-tempered and stingy, we get angry. What does this mean? It means that there is some truth in those words. If there is some truth in the words uttered towards us, only then we feel upset and angry about it.

We attract words of honor and dishonor. Both honor and dishonor are based on our mental setup. If we observe our lives most of our energy is wasted when we don't have any clarity about ourselves. Only when we don't have clarity about ourselves, we start living with unlimited ego. The moment we get clarity about ourselves then we won't live with such a high ego.

In the Sutras, Lord Shiva says: Being indifferent to both honor and dishonor*.* Being indifferent to both honor and dishonor means residing in a state of clarity which says that: I am unaffected by any honor or dishonor. Really, why do we pay so much attention to the words what others have uttered? Why do we expect others to respect us? Why do we expect others to praise us? Actually if we see, we don't respect ourselves. We don't have clarity about ourselves. That is the reason why we try to understand ourselves based on what others say about us. Not only we ask others directly as to what they think of us, but at times we will also have spies to get to know what others are talking about us in our absence. We appoint people as spies to go around and check as to what others think of us.

A small example to make us understand this point.

We have seen small children building castles out of playing cards. Similarly, we are also building an opinion about ourselves based on the certificates given by others. People literally die for recognition. People are ready to die for praises and recognition. Do you know why? As the number of recognition certificates produced by others increases, the opinion about us in our mind also gets better. When the number of certificates produced by others decreases then we have a low opinion about ourselves. We don't have clarity about ourselves. We form an opinion and we make decisions about ourselves based on what other people say. That is why we crave for others praises and certificates. Our whole life becomes a signature campaign. We will carry a big notebook which says: I am a good person, And with this we beg others for their signature towards that for various reasons. So when more and more people sign and agree that we are a good person, we then conclude that we are a great person. Or else we feel we are inferior people. We gauge ourselves based on what others say about us.

Please understand that there is nothing wrong if someone praises us. I am not asking others to stop praising us. But if we base our life and mental setup based on what others say then we might fall down any time. It is similar to that of a building without a foundation. Like a building that is built without any proper foundation we may fall down any time. The mental setup which is framed based on others opinion will also not be a solid one. In our everyday life we frame an opinion about ourselves based on what our family members say.

If someday, someone who is not at all related to us tells that we will never come up in life, listening to that we will be depressed for two days. Even strangers words can put us in depression. If we pull one card out of the castle built by the kids with playing cards, the whole castle will collapse. Similarly if we build our personality based on the certificates awarded to us by others then if someone takes back his certificate, then our self image will collapse. Whenever we are shaken mentally if we check it out someone might have removed his certificate. Whenever we fall down in misery or depression, just look back, someone might have taken back his certificate.

I always say, please don't waste your life worrying about what others think about you, because, the other person is worrying and wasting his life as to what you are thinking about him. Truly, if we see, when we are worrying what he is thinking about us, he is also worried as to what we are thinking about him. Please understand, worrying what others might think of us is the place where majority of our energy gets wasted. Our thought flow oscillates about this and gets wasted.

One person came and asked me: I am unable to be happy, be it my business or my personal life. Please give me one piece of advice, just one message as to what I can do to make my life joyful.

I told him: If you ask me just for just one piece of advice then I tell you, please don't waste your mental energy, your thought flow, your time, thinking what others will think about you because he is also wasting his time, thinking as to what you are thinking about him.

Generally for about 12 hours a day our thoughts keep flowing. This is excluding the dream state and the sleep state. Of course even during the sleep state and the dream state, our thoughts keep flowing. But our thoughts do not flow clearly during those two states. If we have the mental energy for about twelve hours then actually only for two hours this energy will be utilized for something useful. The remaining ten hours are used for worrying about what others think about us and are spent for making plans as to how to improve our image in others minds.

.Let me repeat this. We waste most of our energy thinking about what others think about us. We think as to how we can improve our image in others mind. Ramana Maharishi says beautifully: As long as we don't know who we are; we frame an opinion about us based on what others are say about us. For example, if we are sending a parcel from here to Chennai (a place in south Bharat), then firstly they put the stamp in the local post office, then in the head post office they will place their stamp, then in Chennai again they place their stamp, then again the local post office they place their stamp, then the parcel gets delivered. By the time the parcel gets delivered to the destined location, the parcel will have about 4 or 5 stamps over it. After 4 or 5 stamps over it, the parcel would start thinking that it is a collection of all those stampings over it. It will not think that it is actually the content inside the parcel, which has made the parcel, but just a collection of stamps. Similarly, society has put various stamps over us, like good person, bad person, stingy person and generous person. We combine all these and think that we are just a

collection of stamps. No, it is not so. We are actually the content inside the parcel. We do not represent the stamps put over us. As long as we think that we are nothing but the group of the stamps, our whole life will be spent for acquiring the right stamps, it will not be spent for acquiring the right kind of mental setup inside us.

Most of our time is spent for creating an image rather than framing our character. Two things: creating an image and creating character. We spend most of our time in creating our image, but we don't spend time to create our character. Character creation is what is called as Nithyam and creation of an image is called Mithyam. Mithyam means that which is not permanent. Creation of an image is not permanent. Anything that is created based on Mithyam may remain today, but tomorrow it may collapse. But creation of character is Nithyam. Creation of a clear mental setup is truth.

Truly, if we spend ten percent of the time which we spend for image creation, for creating character then the image will automatically be framed. Image is really like a shadow. If we forget it, leave it and carry on with our work, it will follow us. However if we run behind it to grab it, it will constantly escape.

Our image is like a shadow. If we forget about the image, leave it behind, and focus on our work, it will follow us. But if we think we need the image and run behind to catch it, we can never catch it with our hands. It will constantly escape us.

As Lord Shiva says in the second Sutra, Samas sathroucha mithraecha, Samo Manama mana yoho. Understanding the deep meaning behind this Sutra, which says, eliminating the false mental setup, the false personality, the false image, the false prestige, which has been given to us by others and which has been created by others in us and thus understanding ourselves clearly, is what is called Nithyam. This is what gives bliss. Let us create such a mental setup within us. We shall end Nithyam and enter into Dhyanam.

I welcome you all with my love and respects.

Let us begin with a story.

There is a joint family, comprising of mother, father, son, daughter-in law, grand son, and grand daughter. As a family, they go to a theater to watch a movie. The movie was going on. During the climax of the movie, the grand father was suddenly crawling on the ground searching for something. He was so involved in searching that he was disturbing the people who were in the same row in which he was sitting. He was searching for something under everyone's feet.

The little grand daughter started shouting: Oh Grandpa, sit quietly, what are you doing? You are disturbing everybody. What are you searching for?

The grandfather replied: No dear, my chewing gum fell down and I am searching for it. Grand daughter replied: Keep quiet grandpa, don't disturb others, nobody is able to watch the movie. If you sit properly and quietly, after we go home, I will give you a chewing gum.

Grandfather replied: No. No, I want that chewing gum only.

Grand daughter asked: What is so special about that chewing gum? I am telling you that I will give you another chewing gum. Why are you still searching for it?

The grandfather replied: No, no, my false teeth are stuck in that chewing gum! The grand father is not just searching for the chewing gum alone, though he says he is searching for the chewing gum, he is searching for the teeth that are stuck in that chewing gum. Same way we think that we are searching for money or recognition in our lives but we are actually searching for the bliss that goes with that. Though we think in our lives, that we are searching for money or recognition, actually we are in search of the bliss associated with it. We are not just searching for money and recognition alone. If the grandfather is searching for just the chewing gum, then he can take another chewing gum. If he just needs the chewing gum, then he can buy another chewing gum. However he is not just searching for the chewing gum. But he is searching for the false teeth set which is stuck to the chewing gum.

Actually we seem to be searching for money or recognition, but we are not really searching for money or recognition. Truly, we are searching for the bliss which is associated with it. The search for the bliss is portraying itself in different ways, as a search for money, as a search for recognition, as a search for relationships or as a search for comforts. Whatever be the search for, whatever be our way or type of search, we are not searching for the chewing gum, but we are actually searching for the teeth that are stuck to the chewing gum. We are not just searching for money, recognition or things of the outer world, but we are actually searching for the bliss associated with it. By searching for bliss, we keep wandering everywhere.

In Tantra Shastra, Lord Shiva (God responsible for dissolution of the universe), beautifully explains about it. He explains the above concept in just two words. If we begin to search for bliss inside us then we will not need any material things. If we are not able to reach the bliss which is within us then nothing in the outer world can provide us the bliss. He just finishes with these few words. If we are able to realize the bliss inside us then no other things in the outer world can give the us bliss. If we are unable to realize the bliss inside us, then how much ever we search outside, it is of no use.

All the enlightened Masters again and again, say that the bliss is inside us. In the world, there are so many enlightened Masters, yogis, rishis (Hindu mystics). Every one of them has a different opinion about life. For example, if we ask some of them as to what kind of food should be taken, one of them might say that we should eat only vegetarian food. Then another person may say that we can eat non-vegetarian food also. If we ask another person he may say that it is not good to eat vegetarian and non vegetarian. He may sight fasting as the best thing to do. Similarly, every enlightened Master will have His own opinion. For example regarding marriage one enlightened Master will say that being an ascetic without getting married is right. Another enlightened Master will say that it is okay to get married once. Another Master may say that there is nothing wrong in marrying even four times. Each person will have His own opinion.

About every thing in life, each and every enlightened Master will declare his opinion. It is tough to make all the enlightened Masters agree on a common point. There is saying that if two enlightened Masters say the same thing then please understand that one of them is fake. No two rishis(sages) will say the same thing or agree on a point commonly. By nature, whatever one enlightened Master says the other person will always say something else. It is difficult to make the rishis or enlightened Masters agree on a common point. But all the enlightened Masters agree on one common point. What is that point? That point is: Heaven is inside us. The bliss is already inside us.

Be it Jesus, Krishna (Incarnation of Lord Vishnu, the God responsible for protecting the universe), Mohammed (an enlightened Master of Islam), Mahaveer (an enlightened Master of Jainism), Buddha (enlightened Master from Buddhism), Rama (Incarnation of Lord Vishnu, the God responsible for protecting the universe) or Ramakrishna (an enlightened Master from West-Bengal, a state in Bharat), all of them accept this point and declare the same in their messages. The message is: Heaven is inside us and the bliss is already inside us. Again and again this point is being told. But, it does not seem practical in our lives. It has not become an experience in our lives. If asked whether this has become a reality, an experience and truth in our lives, the answer is: No. Why? What is the reason for this to not happen in us? Where have we missed it? Where is the mistake?

We are going to see the answers for the above questions. If all the enlightened Masters agree to this point then it means that message should be a very important and fundamentally needed message. Since it is fundamental need or fundamental message all the enlightened Masters agree on this point. Otherwise, one Master will agree and other Master will oppose it. This is a message which all the Masters agree. Why are we losing this? What is the reason? Let us do a deep research. Why are we missing this? Why have we not achieved this bliss in our lives? Asking such questions and doing a deep search will help us understand further.

First thing, we don't even believe that we can be in bliss. Firstly, the fundamental reason or the basic reason why our life is not in bliss is because we don't believe that even we can be in bliss. We don't believe that even we can have a blissful life. We are always searching for reasons which lead us to sorrow. Again and again we are searching for reasons so that we can be in sorrow all our lives.

Let us deeply look into the natural thought pattern of our mind. In the morning as soon as we wake up, we will wake up thinking about a problem. When we get up in the morning, the mind will come back and settle in our body by thinking of some problem. As soon as we get up, we will get into actions for solving the problem. If we are able to solve that problem, then we will not stop with that. Before solving that, we will have two or three problems in line to be solved. Only after keeping two or three problems in stock we will get into action for solving the first problem. What will happen if the first problem gets solved? Our life will seem empty. Sometimes if we see, when there are no problems we will feel our whole life is vacant. It will look like we are not living according to our nature.

We will create our wishes and hope that all the outside events should happen according to our wish. But for such wishes to be fulfilled the way we want to do it, is not to take any responsibility. Truly, there is nothing wrong if we desire. Tantra Shastra beautifully says: Do not control your desires. Tantra Shastra says: Desire is energy. There is nothing wrong in having desires. But we don't take steps and use our energy to attain our desires. When we are in the process of achieving our desires, we are not ready to take up the responsibility to handle the obstacles. That is the truth. Truly if someone comes to the place where we are seated and keeps the sweet in our mouth, we will feel really good.

Two lazy people were chatting with each other. One person said: Hey, as soon as we get up in the morning, if there is a machine and on a press of a switch, if the machine brushes our teeth, gives us a bath and does all the work for us, feeds us food and finally also makes us lie down on the bed and massages our leg, how nice and comfortable it will be? In he field of science and technology they find so many things, why can't they find something like this.

The other lazy person replied: If that machine also switches on by itself, how nice it will be. Without us having to switch it on; if it switches on by itself, that will be nicer.

In our lives, we don't take responsibilities in accordance with our wishes. We don't express our energy to that extent. The problems are not due to our desires. Truly, if you see deeply, desires are life energy. If there is no desire, one cannot even breathe. Even the very breath happens due to our desire. Only if we desire, breath happens. Desire is a basic energy in our lives. Then why desire is giving problems both ways?

Tantra Shastra ordinarily classifies desires into two categories. Bhavanai (Thought) and Karpanai (Imagination). Bhavanai means the clear desires which we are able to feel

Part 3: Journey in Bliss

consciously, the ones which we know about and the ones which are there inside us. We will know that we have such desires inside us. We will know that we are wishing for such desires.

Next is Karpanai. Karpanai means such desires which are inside us unconsciously, without our awareness. Such desires will be inside us and we will not be aware of those desires. That is called imagination. Such desires which are there inside us at an unconscious level and are there inside us without our awareness and torture us are called imagination.

The desires which are there at a conscious level and those which are clear to us are called Bhavanai. The desires which are there at an unconscious level and which we are not clear about are called Karpanai. If we understand these two, then we can solve big problems in our life.

One person asked me: Master, I have lot of problems in my life. What will I do by attending all these Dhyanasatsang (group of highly committed people who meditate for their spiritual evolution) at this time?

I answered his question through this story.

One person asked a doctor: Doctor, I have lot of physical complaints, what am I going to do by coming to the hospital now and taking these pills?

Only a person who has got some disease is supposed to go to the hospital and take the pills. Similarly, a person who has lot of problems has to attend the Dhyanasatsang and do the meditations. Because for the person with physical ailments, the cure would be the hospital, similarly, for a person with mental ailments, Dhyanasatsang and meditation would be the cure.

Some people might think: I think I am fine at the mental level, then why do I need meditation and meditation discourses? Really, when we mean that we are healthy at the mental level, it means living beyond our mind and body. Really, if all the twenty-four hours the bliss is flowering within us, then it can be said that we are mentally healthy. If it is not that way and if there is something missing in that then it means we are not mentally healthy.

Understand the two kinds of desires, Bhavanai and Karpanai and we will be able to solve the biggest problems in our life. Understanding these desires are wonderful techniques, that help us understand ourselves, that help us to be in bliss and throw out the pain which is inside us. Karpanai indicates such desires which are inside us at an unconscious level, which we don't know that it is inside us and we won't even agree that it is there inside us. We must understand that we won't agree that we have such desires and we don't know that we have such desires. These desires will not just stay inside us, but it will also direct our life without our awareness.

We won't know why we took a particular decision most of the times. But only after making the decision, we will be cursing ourselves, as to why we took such a decision then. Is it possible for us to take a decision without our awareness? Not possible. Please

understand that such desires are at an unconscious level and we are not aware of those desires. Why are we not aware of such desires? It is because the society does not accept such desires. Since society does not accept such desires, we are not letting those desires to be expressed out. We suppress our desires. We constantly control such desires. Just because we control such desires and keep it inside ourselves, it will stay inside the dream body.

For example if we try fasting for about four days, on the fifth day, we will dream of having a big feast. People who have been on a fast will be able to appreciate this. If we control something at a conscious level, it will show its face in our dream. What is dream? It is a place where we fulfill our desires, desires which we are unable to fulfill in reality. For example when the pressure inside the cooker is too much, it will find its way out through the safety valve. Similarly, when the desires inside crosses beyond a limit and we control such desires fearing society, then such desires express itself in our dream. The desire fulfills itself through dreams. The nature of the desire is that, if we don't fulfill such desires it portrays an unfulfilled life. Such desires show emptiness in our life. Even if we experience such desires then we feel that we are doing some mistake. Hence we feel guilty about it. Thus these are such desires which stay inside us without our awareness and which torture us.

The other kind of desire is Bhavanai. We will know that we have such desires and we will be working towards it. These kinds of desires don't torture or trouble us in our life. They don't put us in sorrow. These desires don't create any sorrow in our life. Bhavanai are such desires which will be residing in us with our awareness. What such desires will do is, if such desires are something which can be fulfilled then we will work towards it. If those are such that, it can never be fulfilled, then we will forget those and turn our focus towards something else.

Let me explain this with an example. Do any of us have any desire to be the richest man in the world? Do we constantly worry, thinking about it? No. None of us feel jealous about Bill Gates. Because we know for sure that we cannot become like him. We are very clear about it. When we have such clarity in some decision, we don't torture ourselves for that. The problem lies when we have a dilemma regarding something. The problem is when we are confused as to whether we can achieve something or not.

Let us see again if any of us feel bad that we are not like Bill Gates? No, nobody feels upset for that. Bill Gates is the richest man in the world. Do any of us all feel bad that we are not like him? No. But we feel upset that we have not become like our neighbor. The reason for this is that we have clearly taken a decision that we cannot become like Bill Gates. When we have such clarity in our decision, we don't worry or feel upset about it. So there is no problem. But as far as the neighbor is concerned, it is possible that we can become like our neighbor. There is a chance that we can become like him. Then only the anxiety comes.

We will have to understand something very deeply in our life. Failures actually do not affect us. It is the fear of failure which actually affects us. Please understand this deeply.

Even a very big failure does not affect us largely. When there is a failure by nature our mind has the ability and the strength to face it. Our mind can overcome the failure and stand up again. Even failures don't affect or cause worry to us largely. But it is the fear of failure that will be torturing us. Even defeat does not upset us, but it is the anxiety about being defeated which upsets us in our life. The constant fear of failure and the constant fear that we will lose something, it is that which puts us in biggest sorrow in our life.

When we know clearly that we cannot become like Bill Gates, we don't have any worries about it. But when we know that there is a chance for us to become as rich as our neighbor then our mind keeps thinking whether it will happen or not. Our mind keeps oscillating: Whether this will happen or not? Whether we can achieve this or not? Whether we will become or not? So thinking puts us in sorrow. The anxiety keeps torturing us.

If we see deeply, when we know that (Bhavanai) such desires which we are aware of can be fulfilled then we will work towards it. When we know that some desires are not possible to be fulfilled then we will forget it and do something else. That is, these desires are such desires for which we have clarity whether it will happen or not. When we are consciously aware of our desires, we will be able to save more than 50% of our mental energy. Instead of wasting our mental energy, we will be able to save it. 90% of our mental energy is just spent in imagination. More than 90% of our thought power is getting wasted in imagination. We don't know what desires are there inside us.

In America, one of our devotees said: Master, when I came to America, I had a list of things to be accomplished. I had a desire to earn a certain amount of money, own three cars, and I had a desire to create a particular kind of family environment. I had calculated that, to achieve this it will take twenty years. But due to my hard work, I achieved this in eight years only.

If we see really, Hindus work very hard when they go abroad. So far whichever countries I have visited, I have always heard that Hindus have earned a good name. Not just in countries like Singapore, Malaysia, but even the people in countries like America, Brazil and other countries have high regard for Hindus. The reason is because Hindus do not go into unnecessary issues and fraudulent activities. Hindus still trust and live based on truth. May be there could be some exceptions. But generally if we see the basic nature, like truth and justice are still prevalent amongst Hindus.

As per one of the international survey reports, the number of crimes in Bharat is proportionately less when compared to the population in Bharat. There is a general ratio, relating the population and the crime rate. But this ratio is less in Bharat, because by nature, Hindus are truthful and just. Of course there are some exceptions to this. But as a rule, the principles of truth and justice are prevalent in Hindus minds. They adhere to such truths in addition to working hard. Hence people in foreign countries trust Hindus. Many American companies just employ Hindus alone. Similarly, the small countries which are still under the rule of kings employ Hindus as their personnel assistants or in a trusty worthy positions in their inner circle. Still, there are many countries which are under the

rule of kings. In those countries Hindus are employed in trustworthy positions such as an accountant or personal physician. The world trusts the ability and character of Hindus.

Let us come back to the American devotee's point. This person told me: Master, I achieved whatever I wanted to in eight years instead of taking twenty years to achieve as I had planned. He had achieved everything in eight years. Whatever he had mentioned in his list, he had achieved all of them. But he said: Whatever I had listed, I had accomplished all of them. But I don't know for what I wanted to achieve all this. Whatever I had planned to accomplish, like buying a house, a car, money, the family environment, everything I had accomplished. But I achieved all this thinking that I will get the bliss, but I didn't get that bliss.

Please understand that this person achieved such desires which were there in his conscious level (Bhavanai). But without his awareness there were desires at his imaginary level (Karpanai). Please get this concept clearly. At this stage we should get the clear understanding of Bhavanai and Karpanai. Bhavanai means such desires which are in us, which we are consciously aware of. Karpanai are such desires which are in us without our awareness.

As far as Bhavanai is concerned, he had achieved everything that he wanted to achieve. But with regard to Karpanai, he had not accomplished it. Whatever feelings and emotions he had dreamt of, whatever mental state he had imagined of, he did not experience or achieve. Whatever he wanted to achieve in the outer world, he had achieved, but whatever emotion or feeling or the mental state he had dreamt of he could not achieve and experience.

The problem is looking at both the objects of the outer world and the feelings or emotions of the inner world as one and the same. Most of us what we think is that when we see the outer space or external materials which are according to our preference, we will achieve the mental state or the emotion of our preference. That is the biggest mistake. The moment we face a situation of our liking, we think we will be in the emotion or feeling of our preference. This is the biggest mistake.

For the choice of our outer space things, we work and earn. Similarly for a mental structure or the emotion of our choice, which is in our inner world, we have to work and earn. To accomplish our preferred outer space, like the house, car, and other comforts, we work, earn and fulfill our desires. For the choice of our mental setup, we should clean our mind, do meditation and create a clear frame of mind. If we focus only with the outer space things or environment, a proper mental setup will not be formed. Just with the outer space, the inner space will not be formed. When we say heaven, generally what do we think? We think it is place where we get whatever we want. It is a place where we get whatever we think of. It will be like the way we think.

Many people come and ask me: Master, please bless me that whatever I think should happen. Any idea what will happen if such a blessing is given to him. The first thing that will happen is that he will put himself into trouble.

There was a person who kept asking God that whatever he thinks should happen. God finally agreed to his request and said: I will show you a tree i.e. Karpa Vriksham (a metaphysical expression - a tree which fulfills all the desires) which fulfills all your desires. That person walked towards the tree and sat under that tree.

As soon as he sat there he thought: I am really hungry, I need good food. Then immediately food appeared in front of him and he ate delightfully.

After he ate, he thought: It will be good if there is a cot here so that I can sleep. There appeared a cot in front of him.

Then he thought: It will be good if there are maids to massage my legs. The maids appeared and massaged his legs.

Suddenly he thought: Oh whatever I think is happening, what will happen if a tiger appears here, kills and eats me.

That's all. A tiger appeared and killed him.

Please understand that without the ability to control our thought flow, if we have the power to achieve whatever we want, then we will be the first ones to face problems.

St. Francis of Assisi, an enlightened Master from Christianity says beautifully: God blesses us sometimes by granting our wishes and sometimes He blesses us by not granting our wishes. Sometimes God grants us our wishes and blesses us and sometimes he does not grant those wishes and blesses us. Some of us might wonder as to how He is saying that by not granting the wish, God blesses us. If a child asks for the sun for breakfast what can we do? Is it possible for the mother to grab it and give it to the kid? Even if she grabs it and gives it to the kid, can the kid eat it? It cannot. The kid, who asked for sun as its breakfast and goes towards the sun will die. Similarly in our lives are asking for many things, which we actually cannot handle or accept. Truly, we ask for many things that are not directly useful for us. We search for things which are not directly useful for us or things which are not going to give us any benefit. We search for many things which actually do not give us any bliss directly.

First thing we will have to understand is that it will be the biggest mistake if we think that we will achieve the mental state or mental set up, when we achieve the our choice of objects in the outer world. All of us think if whatever we think happens, we will be in bliss. Some of us might think that if we are able to achieve the outer space of our choice, we will have the inner space of our choice. Please understand that it is not possible at all. We must analyze our mind deeply, just once. We will know the pattern of our thought flow. We will know that it runs from one corner to the other corner. If someone grants us the boon that whatever we think will happen then the next moment we would have created a big mad market. Because the thought pattern in us is flowing wildly inside us.

If we understand this small example then we will know the pattern of our thought flow. We will know the speed of our thought flow. Assuming we are walking on the street we see a dog. As soon as we see the dog what happens? We will be reminded of the dogs that

we saw during our childhood. Whichever dogs we saw and got scared, we will be reminded of those dogs. The next moment we will think about our childhood. Then we will think about our school teacher. Then we will be reminded of the house she lived in. Then we will be reminded about that house. Our thought flow will continue in this manner.

Sigmund Freud, the psychologist calls this as association. Truly is there any connection between the dog we saw on the street and our childhood teacher? There is no direct relationship. We are just associating and linking. Our mind does not act logically. Mind does not function based on common sense or in a straightforward manner. Sigmund Freud has kept a wonderful name for the mind. He is the father of psychology. He says more than 97% of the people in this world do not really think, they only do this kind of 'association'. Maximum only 2.5% of the people do the actual thinking. He also says that only such people who do the thinking rule the world. Let it be in the field of money or recognition or business, any person who actually thinks rules the world. Through any field whoever rules the world such are the people who do the actual thinking. Only such people, who think, rise up to the stage of ruling the world. Sigmund Freud says that the rest of the people don't think at all. They only do association. If you see, our thoughts do not flow in a clear manner.

Like in the example above, seeing the dog on the road, we are reminded of the teacher, then we are reminded of the house she lived in and so on the thoughts keeps flowing, without our awareness. Each and every thought is not created with our awareness, control and consciousness. Sigmund Freud calls this as association. When this kind of association happens in us, just imagine what will happen, if God grants us a boon that whatever we desire will happen? Actually it will not be a boon, but will be a curse.

The first thing to do is making the thought flow and our mental setup clear. Once we have a clear frame of mind then with whatever power we have and whatever situations we encounter, we will be in bliss. Please don't imagine without such a clear frame of mind, if our outer space comes to a better status, the quality of our life will improve. A person in the middle class thinks that if he gets a car or a house then he will be in joy. He works only for that. But really, if we see, if it is possible that someone can be in joy, by a car or a house, just come to our ashram and see, how many cars come to our ashram everyday.

As far as I have seen, bliss comes due to a mental setup and not due to outer space situations. Let me tell you a story to make this concept clear.

There was a great king, he goes to Lord Buddha. Truly, only kings can go to Buddha*,* because they have seen the the outer world and all the things in it. Whatever they wanted they have seen everything completely. Then once they come to a clear understanding that there is nothing in the outer space and something is wrong with their mental structure and mental setup, then they start searching. There is a beautiful word for that called 'depression of success'. Given a normal scenario, any person, who had worked hard, earned and accomplished whatever he wanted in life, will face the depression of success at any age of forty to forty-five. You all might have heard of depression of failure. That is

you would have heard of the mental suffering due to failure. That is an ordinary thing. That is bearable. There is no problem in that. However there is a depression due to success, which I call 'depression of success'.

Many people come and tell me: Master, I have everything, a house, a business and all the outer space things. Everything I have, but still I feel like I am missing something. There is everything, but still I feel I don't have something. That is called depression of success. Whatever we wanted in the outer space, we would have accomplished. But we will not have the mental structure, the mental setup or the mental plane which we desired.

Please understand that we are wasting our life and constantly miss a chance to live life, since we don't know the difference between these two. I was talking about the devotee whom I met in America, who said, that he worked for eight years and earned everything. He said: Now only I understand that I had not been working in the right direction and have wasted my life. I feel I have been running fast towards something which I had not actually desired for.

Understand only when people face the depression of success, they look back and think: I have been running in life so far towards something and achieved it, truly why did I run for this and achieve this?

Only when they look back and think about it, they get a mental clarity to look beyond their life. Only when someone faces depression of success, truly he will be able to turn towards spirituality.

Now we come back to the story.

When that king decided to go to Buddha, the queen asked: Oh king are you going to Buddha for peace in your life?

The King answered: I am frustrated in my life; I am going to Buddha in search of peace. She said: I understand that you are going in search of peace, then in that case do not go as a king, go to him as a simple man. Only then you will get the help you need. That is good for you.

But this king is not ready to give up on his status and prestige. As soon as he reached the boundary of the place where Buddha was, he sent his message in a chit through the messenger that the king of a country had come. In the chit he had mentioned his name, and that he is the king of such and such a country.

Buddha saw the message and said: I don't have any necessity to see this person. Please send him back.

As soon as the king heard this statement of Buddha through the messenger, he felt very ashamed about it. But the king is intelligent. So even in that embarrassment, he had the ability to think. He knew that he made a mistake somewhere. Then immediately he took back the chit from the messenger and leaving his name there on the chit he removed other details about his country. Then he gave the chit to the messenger again and asked him to take it to Buddha again.

As soon as Buddha saw the message, He said:Oh! has he come? Please bring him here. I am waiting for him only.

It was the same person, same chit. As long as he used the designation, there was no permission for him. Once he decided to leave the designation as king, Buddha said: Come in.

The king then asked Buddha: Master, why didn't you permit me to come inside the first time?

Buddha replied beautifully: A king does not have any work here. The king has his duty only in his kingdom. This place is for people who are in search of spiritual wisdom. What work will a king have here? There is no work for him. But the moment you leave your designation that you are a king and come here as a simple man, then whatever you had been searching for and for which have come here, then you will really get it here. Then the king joins Buddha and he gets enlightened.

Only a person who has faced depression of success, only a person, who has seen whatever he wished for in the outer space come true can come to clarity that the external things cannot lead to a clear mental structure and a clear mental setup. Only when this understanding that things achieved in the outer space cannot lead to bliss in the inner space happens within us then we begin our search for such a mental setup. As long as we search for the external things, we will think that heaven is outside us. Only when we begin our search for the clear frame of mind, we will realize the truth based on the words, 'Heaven is inside you'.

One more thing, without our mind coming to a higher plane, how many ever things we acheive in the outer space we will not have the bliss. In Tantra Shastra, a wonderful research on comfort has been done. Tantra has done a wonderful research as to 'What comfort is'.

One person desired to have a candy. He searches for that candy everywhere. Finally he gets the candy. When he is in the process of searching for the candy, the frequency of his thought flow would have been very high. He would have been restless when he searched for the candy. His thought flow would have been oscillating at a high speed. As soon as he got the sweet and placed it over his tongue, the frequency of the oscillation in the thought flow will come down. When the speed of the thought flow comes down, then by nature, it will seem that the mind is in peace and in bliss. The human mind will form a relationship that this bliss and peace is due to the candy. When this connection and relationship is established, again and again, one will constantly search for the next candy.

Really, if the joy is in the candy, that candy should constantly give joy. But is the candy giving joy constantly? No. Beyond the fourth candy, if we take the fifth candy, we feel uneasy. Sixth one will nauseate us. Seventh one will make us throw up. If the joy is due to the candy, the joy should increase as the number of candies, which we eat increase. Am I right? But it does not increase. So really if we see deeply, the joy is not due to the candy. When we place the candy on the tongue the speed of thought flow comes down; the frequency of thought flow comes down. So please understand when the thought flow

comes down there is joy. The pleasure is due to the frequency of the thoughts coming down. So by nature the mind comes to rest.

Tantra Shastra has beautifully and deeply done a research on this. Here is a small test that we can try on our own. Let us bring the complete attention of our mind to our tongue. Let us not think about any other part in our body. Let us focus on our tongue alone. Let us focus the complete attention of our mind on our tongue, Think and concentrate on our tongue. After bringing the complete aqttention of the mind on the tongue place a chilly at one end of the tongue and place a sugar cube at the other end of the tongue. Observe deeply how it feels at both these ends. If we see, both will have the same effect. However it is our mind which will say that the chilly is spicy and the sugar cube is sweet. Without making such a stamp in our mind if we observe deeply and with a clear mental set up, we will know that when the green chilly and the sugar cube are placed at each end of the tongue, in both the places the same kind of chemical reaction takes place. The same kind of reaction happens in both the places. It is we, who stamp the chilly as being spicy and the sugar cube as being sweet.

A small story.

To spread Christianity, a Christian Father goes to Africa. He got caught in the hands of the tribal people who ate human beings. The tribal folks were getting ready to slaughter him and eat him.

The Father thought that he was very intelligent and told them: Oh my son, please understand that I don't taste very good.

The tribal people asked him: How do you say that? Generally fathers are sweet to taste. He replied: Okay if you want to check me out, I shall give you a sample piece for you to taste.

So saying he took a knife and cut his leg and gave it to them. The leader of the gang tasted that and spat it out. The father was released. The father lived among the tribal folks for about five or six years.

One day, another person came to that tribal village from another place. He was surprised to see the father alive there.

He asked the Father: Father, how did the tribal people spare your life? By this time they would have killed you. How come you are still alive?

Father then replied: Oh it is very simple. As soon as I came, I cut a portion of my leg and gave it to them as a sample for them to taste, since they didn't like the taste, they spared my life.

The other man asked: How is that? I don't understand.

The father then showed his legs to him. His legs were false legs made of plastic. Father had already lost his legs in an accident and was using false legs made of plastic. He had given a portion of the plastic leg to the tribal people for tasting. Naturally, plastic will not be sweet.

Whatever stamping we have done as sweet or bitter is actually done by our mind. Spend ten minutes and do this just once. Let us focus the attention of our mind on our tongue. At one end of our tongue let us place the green chilly and on the other end let us place a

sugar cube at the same time. Once we place both we will observe that the chemical reactions after keeping both on the tongue will be the same. It is our mind which stamps separately that the chilly is spicy and that the sugar is sweet. But once we have stamped it we will search for the sweet taste and never search for the spicy taste. Until we mark our stamp, both the feeling would be the same.

This is explained by Tantra Shastra that bliss is a feeling which is expressed from within. It is not something that the material things of the outer world give. For the word 'Bliss', there is a beautiful explanation. A feeling that does not reduce is called Bliss. A feeling which is always there in us, a feeling, which does not reduce or change is called Bliss. Let me repeat, a feeling which does not reduce is called Bliss. This Bliss should flower in us and be in us, and it should not be created due to any external circumstances.

Again a small story.

Even though it is a small story, it is a beautiful story. This happened in the life of a Sufi enlightened Master. Sufi enlightened Masters are the enlightened Masters of Islam. Abdullah is a great Sufi enlightened Master. His specialty was that he was always smiling in bliss. Without any sorrows, he was always in eternal bliss. He was always in ecstasy, in joy and in bliss.

One of his disciples asked him: Master, you are always in bliss. How is that possible?

Before I proceed, let me tell you something. Actually the toughest thing is for the disciples to trust the Master. Please understand this clearly, anybody can trust the Master, but if the disciples trust the Master, then we can know for sure, that he is a true Master. Really, if you see, the disciples will know the entire business. They will know the inside business. If the disciples trust, then be sure the Master is a true Master. If you want to know whether a Master is a true Master, then just observe the way the disciples treat the Master. It is enough if we know whether the disciples have respect for the Master.

It is easy for devotees who are outside to respect the Master, because they see the Master for half an hour or fifteen minutes. That is, only for a short span they get to see the Master. It is not surprising for devotees to respect the Master. But it is tough for the disciples who are with him always to respect him. If the disciples respect Him, then we can be sure that He is an enlightened Master who lives a pure life. We can correctly gauge the enlightened Master based on the respect his disciples give the Master. We need not have to do anything else. These disciples are always there with the Master for twentyfour hours. Twenty-four hours a person cannot act the way others want. May be for ten minutes he can keep smiling or acting the way others want. But how long can someone act? He can act as though he is in bliss for ten minutes. It is easy to act as though we are in bliss for ten minutes. If we laugh for more than ten minutes then our mouth starts paining. That's why, if we observe the disciples who are with Him, the way they treat Him, then we will know whether he is a true Master or not and we will know about His life as well.

Let us come back to Abdullah's story.

In this case, the disciple himself had a doubt, he asked: Master, everybody in this world has got problems and they have no peace in their life. Even here we also have a lot of problems; different kinds of people come here. They also have different problems, lot of incidents keep happening, but you are always in bliss. How is that? The enlightened Master gave a beautiful explanation for that.

He said: Oh that is very simple, you know what I do, as soon as I get up in the morning, I call myself and then ask myself: Abdullah today do you want to be happy or be sad? What do you want to do, tell me? By nature what will our mind say? It will say: Be happy. When it says so I will say: Okay is it so? Then be happy.

This looks very ordinary when we listen to it. It looks very simple and easy. Sometimes when we listen to it superficially, we will not even understand this.

He said: As soon as I get up in the morning, I will ask my mind, 'Do you want to be happy or sad for the next twenty-four hours? Mind will say that it wants to be happy. Then I will say okay then be happy, that's all.

The disciple further asked: Oh Master how is it possible? So many problems are there and there is no peace, so many sorrows are there, how is it possible to be happy? Tell me something which is practical.

He answered beautifully: For the next twenty-four hours you know roughly what is going to happen in your life. Is it not? Everyday some accident is not going to happen, only when it happens accidentally it is called accident. You have a fair idea how the next twenty-four hours will be. You know what problems you are going to face and how many good things are going to happen. You know you are not going to face a problem as serious as a ship sinking nor are you going to gain any fortune which is worth crores of rupees in the next twenty-four hours. Those two incidents are incidents that happen rarely. Those are incidents that seldom happen. Both fortune and misfortune are events which happen rarely. You know the events which might happen in your life for the next twenty-four hours.

Abdullah said: Roughly, we know as to what is going to happen in the next twenty-four hours. Then we can ask ourselves once, as to how we want to face that next twenty-four hours. By nature our mind will say, let us face it joyfully, then what? Just face it joyfully. That's all!

Abdullah also said one more thing: Please don't decide the same for forty-eight hours. Don't decide for two days. If you decide, you will forget it.

Please understand this clearly because this is the magic key which has the ability to change our lives. We know what is going to happen in our life roughly in the next twenty-four hours. We will know that this is the way our life is going to go in the next twenty-four hours. When we know that then we have a choice as to whether we want to confront that life joyfully or sorrowfully. By nature we will know for the next twentyfour hours what we should do.

As soon as we get up in the morning we know that we will go to work, we will have the usual items for breakfast, we will go back to the same house, the same wife will serve food and we will live the same way. So we know what will happen in the next twenty four hours roughly. In the next twenty-four hours only the events which we are aware of

are going to happen. Do we want to encounter this life worrying that something is not happening the way we wish? Or do we want to encounter this life with a clear and joyful mental pane? This choice is with us. The choice is definitely with us. It is not with anybody else.

Some people come and tell me, that they will do meditation for the entire life but they never meditate. I know that very well. In our meditation campaigns, some of the participants will have the blissful experiences.

In that enthusiasm, they will ask me: Master, I want to do all the seven meditations everyday, tell me how to do it?

I tell them: No, no, not required to do the entire seven, just do one in a day that is enough. They will say: No Master, I have decided to do all the seven for sure.

They will be adamant.

Then I tell them: Okay, if that be the case, do it as per your wish.

Then after a month or so, if I see them somewhere, I will ask them: Sir, have you started doing the meditation? Are you doing the meditation regularly?

They will say: No Master, I am yet to start. I call the initial enthusiasm as the honeymoon period! The enthusiasm is only in the beginning. This enthusiasm and eagerness are there only in the first few days. After that it is not there.

Most often when a person decides that he is going to do meditation forever in his life, then it means that he is never going to begin. If he decides that he will do meditation for the next few days, then you can be sure that he is going to do something. There is a saying: Too good to be true. This means that there will be certain things which will be too good, but which might not be true. In movies we see that villain flying in the helicopter and the hero catching him by a bullock cart. This is too much. It is not a practical truth. Similarly, when we decide for big things, it never happens. Let us not decide that we are going to be in joy the entire life. If we do that it will not happen. So just decide that for the next twenty four hours alone we will try to be in joy.

Some people may think what am I going to do by being in joy. What difference is it going to make? There are three beautiful words in Sanskrit (one of the old languages spoken in Bharat. Most of the hymns and songs were sung in Sanskrit in the olden days) called, Sat, Chit and Ānandam. When we speak about God we use these words. Divinity is explained using these words. Sat means clear knowledge; Chit means energy. Ānandam means blissful feeling or the blissful state. Actually if we have the clear knowledge, then we will get the energy and bliss. If we get the energy then we will get the knowledge and bliss. If we are in bliss, then we will get the energy and clarity. All these are the same energy but have different names. That is, if our energy from the being is expressed through the brain then it is knowledge or clarity. If it is expressed through the heart, then it is energy. If it is expressed through our consciousness or feeling, then it is bliss. That's all. It is the same energy. Based on the different ways by which it is expressed, it is called by three different names.

Please understand this clearly, if knowledge comes, then energy and bliss follow. If energy comes, then knowledge and bliss happen. If bliss happens, then energy and knowledge happen. All these three will come together. In our everyday life, just begin to be in a blissful mental plane. That itself will become a meditation, thus bringing the energy and knowledge. We may think how I am saying that by being happy we will get the energy. Some of us may wonder about this. This concept may not be very clear. It may not seem believable. Please understand, when we are in bliss, unnecessary thought flow is automatically reduced. We don't waste our life thinking about the past and future. Our energy is not wasted by us focusing on the pains of the past or the anxieties of our future.

As of now 80% of our energy is wasted by our thought pattern which oscillates between the past and the future. As soon as we get up in the morning, when we brush our teeth, we will think about our office problems. As soon as we go to work, we will think of what has to be done at home. We will think about teaching our son his school lessons since he is not studying well. When we are at home teaching our son we will think about going to the temple in the evening. As soon as we are at the temple, we will think about when to go back home. After we reach home, we will think about going to work the next day. The clear truth is that wherever we are, our mind is elsewhere. If our body is here then our mind is not present here. This is the clear truth. Wherever we are in a particular place, our mind will be elsewhere.

The basic reason why there is no joy in our lives is that, wherever we are, except that place, our mind thinks of everything else. If we are here then we can be for sure that our mind is everywhere else, except here. It can be anywhere. Being anywhere other than the place we are in, is what is called worry. And mentally being present wherever we are, is what is called bliss. If our mind is there wherever our body is then that is called living in the present. Living in the present is what bliss is all about. When we are in bliss, we are living in the present. If we are in the present then we will be in bliss.

To understand this more deeply, let me give you a small example. If we are near one of our friends with whom we are completely comfortable with, whose company we enjoy, then we will not know how much time has gone by since we were with him. Even after a few hours have passed, we will wonder how so many hours have gone by? We will wonder as to how the time went by so quickly. But, if we are with someone whom we are not comfortable with or a person who is not entertaining to be with, then we will be glancing at our watch every five minutes. We will be wondering as to why the time is not passing by quickly. We will wonder as to whether our watch is in working order. We will be wondering as to why the time is inching along. Why? Because when we are near a person whom we don't like then the frequency of our thoughts will be high. Our thought flow will be rapid. We will not be in the present moment. We will be oscillating between the present and the future. When we are with someone whom we like then we will be in the present moment. So when we are in the present moment, we will not know as to how the time has passed. When we are in bliss, truly, we will not know how time went by. We say: I was in bliss, forgetting myself. When we are in bliss, we will not know as to how time went by. The reason is that the frequency of thoughts will be less. If we think as to why time is going very slowly, then we can be sure that the frequency of our thoughts is high. Be sure that your mind is restless. Only when our mind is restless, we constantly think

that the clock is ticking very slowly . If our mind is there where our body is then we will be in bliss. If we are in bliss then we will have the clear knowledge to face every second of our life. Actually, if we are in bliss then the mental energy will start piling up within us. When the mental energy is piled up, if in the future any problem arises, we will have the clear knowledge to solve the problem. Knowledge and energy to solve the problems will be there in us.

There is a beautiful word called spontaneity. That is the maturity to face the present. We don't have the maturity to face the present because always our mind keeps oscillating between the past and the future. Either it is thinking about our past or longing about the future. It is only bothered about the past and the future. There is nothing else. That is why we don't have the energy to face the present moment.

By deciding that we will live the next twenty-four hours happily the blissful feeling will happen within us. The elevated mental state will give us the maturity to face life directly. We will face every event that happens in our life with clarity. Now, truly, the biggest problem in our life is that we want to solve all our problems at one shot. We want to decide everything at one shot. We will be able to break the broomstick, if we take the sticks out one by one and break it. But if we want to break the broomstick as a whole in one go, it is not possible. When we face all our problems at one shot, we ourselves give strength to our problems. After that we try to destroy the problems and then it becomes impossible.

A small story.

There was an enlightened Master who was doing penance in a forest. A traveler lost his way at night. He came to the Master's hut.

He asked the enlightened Master: Oh Sage, how much distance would I have to travel to reach the country?

The enlightened Master said: Son, you will have to walk for about 10 miles.

The traveler pleaded: Sir, please help me, with your powers. Can you do something by which there will be light in the path way which I have to take to the city? I have urgent work in the morning; hence I have to reach the city by morning. Please can you help me with your powers?

The enlightened Master said: Don't worry son. Take this lantern light with you. You will be able to see the path and you will be able to reach the city without any problem.

The traveler was puzzled and he asked :Oh Sage, what are you saying? This lantern will show the light only for ten steps, but I need to walk for 10 miles, I asked your help for showing way for ten miles, but you are just helping me only for ten steps.

The enlightened Master said: No son, this is a magic lantern. Take this in your hand and start walking; you will be able to cross this forest without any problem.

The traveler agreed and he said: Ok is it so? Then I will move on.

So saying he walked towards the forest and found that every ten steps he took, he was able to see the next ten steps. By walking like that, he crossed the entire forest and reached the city.

We must face every problem one by one and live everyday. However we don't live everyday and we don't face every problem one by one. We see our life as one big bundle. We see the whole of our life as a big bundle of problems. When we see our life as such a big bundle then what will happen? The confidence which we have by nature will also wither away.

In the Hindu epic Ramayana, there is a monkey character named Vaali. There is a boon which Vaali had. The boon was that he will get half of the powers of the person who opposes him directly. Similar to this is our worry. Our worry is like Vaali. Our mind is a monkey i.e. Vaali monkey. If we face our mind directly and see all our problems and worries together then whatever half of the mental strength we already have, even that will go to him, i.e. will go to our mind. When half of your mental strength goes off like this, then the balance mental strength will be spent in worrying. We will not be able to succeed. We will not be able to go beyond the mind. Unable to go beyond mind, we will be depressed in our mind. We should not face our life as a whole. Let us not try to win all our life struggles in one day. Let us face our life as every single event, every single day and every single moment. That is, if we see life as a whole, then we begin to worry and start to search for the solutions to problems which we have not yet encountered.

A small story.

Two friends were sitting and chatting.

The first friend said: I have won thousand rupees in a lottery. I am planning to a buy a buffalo. If I buy it then I will sell the milk and run my life.

The other friend said: Oh what a stupid you are, if you have won thousand rupees in the lottery, then use that money to buy a half an acre of land and do agriculture. Had it been me, I would buy land and do agriculture.

The first man said: Agriculture is not that great, buying a buffalo is the best thing. The other person said annoyingly: If it is me, I would go for agriculture.

The first man angrily said: I will graze my buffalos on that agricultural land.

The argument continued and finally ended in a fight.

Actually they didn't buy the buffalo or the land. But the conversation between them increased the intensity of the non-existing problem.

Similarly even in our lives, there is no buffalo or land. But we are the people who are on both the sides and we argue mentally to ourselves about imagined situations.

Like for example, we think: I should do this activity tomorrow.

Then our mind argues for the other side: What will happen if I am unable to do that tomorrow.

Then we counter argue within ourselves: No whatever it is, I should do that tomorrow. If that problem comes I will fix it in this manner.

And so thinking we find a solution for that.

Then again we think: What if some other problem comes.

By thinking in this manner, we ourselves play both the sides.

In our meditation campaigns we conduct a small program. We take a subject for a debate. But the same person should talk for both sides. It is like a block and a tackle game. The moment people play that game, they will know how much their mind is torturing them. Actually we can talk for both the sides. Be it any event, our mind can talk from both the sides. It is the habit of talking from both the sides that makes our lives hell. We are unable to stick on to a decision with clarity. Only when we take a decision, we will be aware of the positive points on the other side. Mind always shows what we don't have as valuable.

For example, after starting a handloom business only, we feel that the iron business is more profitable. If we start up the iron business, within couple of days, we begin to feel that the handloom business is very good. The root of mind is dilemma. Oscillating nature is the root of the mind.

The reason why bliss is not flowering in our life is that we ourselves spend half of our energy towards joy and half of our energy towards sorrow. One half is spent for joy and the other half is spent for sorrow. We ourselves play with our thoughts. The thoughts and questions like: Whether it is inner space or outer space? Should we work for the inner space or outer space? Should we search for the inner space first or the outer space first? Thus oscillating between these thoughts we are struggling.

One more thing, because of this kind of oscillation struggle, we start enjoying within ourselves. We start enjoying that state. The undecided state puts us in a comfortable stage. Because if we take a decision, then we will have to take up further responsibilities. Any decision we take, we have to take up the responsibility. If we don't take up any decision and just get by then we can enjoy and be in a comfortable stage. The moment we begin to act according to situations then due such our cowardice and fear of facing life directly we will not have the courage to go beyond that fear. If that being the case, will anything happen? No only if we are strong and courageous to face the consequences of our decision, things will happen*.*

Tantra Sastra beautifully says, how many times we say no to our mind, so many times our mind has become stronger. If we say no to our mind a hundred times, then we will become solid to that extent. As many times as we agree with our mind, we will be flowing with it. If we want to achieve something, it is enough if we say 'No' to our mind. But what do we do? If the mind shows the other side as greener, then we run towards that side. This is sheer cowardice. It shows us that we lack the courage to face life.

Here is a small story.

A short and thin man left his cycle outside a hotel. He went inside the hotel and was having his food. After having his food, he came out and found that someone had poured paint and some colors over his cycle.

He came inside the hotel and shouted: Who dares to pour the paint over my cycle? There was a well-built strong man inside the hotel who was having his food. He was at least twice the size of the cycle owner.

He got up and said: Yes, it s me, who did that, what do you want to do? Looking at this man and his well-built body, he did not want any trouble with him. He told him: Oh is it you sir? I just came here to inform you that the first coat of paint has dried if you want, you can do the second coating.

Here we see how the flow of words changed immediately according to the situation. First, he shouted as to who poured the paint, but after seeing the well-built man what was his reaction? He says that the first coat has dried and invites the well-built man for the second coat. If we act according to our minds pull, we flow along with our mind. As long as we search for the outer space, we will be moving according to the pull of our mind. As long as we place importance on the outer space, the inner space never happens in our life. But when importance is given for our inner space, the outer space automatically happens.

Please understand this clearly. When the blissful feeling happens in us, the outer space happens outside automatically and clearly. This is because bliss gives us knowledge and clarity. The blissful feeling gives us courage, strength and energy to face our life. There is a beautiful verse in Tantra Sastra. An enlightened Master by name Aatmananda Saraswathi gives a beautiful commentary on this technique. Let me give you the verse and explain the technique.

Aham Itham Sarvam Avasthitham. Kim thathvam indra jalasya. idhi thathyaha chaman vrajae

The direct meaning for this is, 'Change, Change and Change. This is what the mind is'. Just as in jugglery or magic anybody who understands the change which happens in the mind, is the person who has realized the self. The commentary has been very beautifully written for this. When we face the world with a joyful mind and in a blissful manner, we will have the mind, which does not change due to any change. But two things which are beyond the above will happen.

If we are in bliss, a wonderful energy will flow from within us. That's why Buddha says, 'Laughter is a big meditation'. There is statue called 'Laughing Buddha'. This is very popular in Japan. People buy that statue and keep it in their house, since there is a belief that it gives luck. Understand that it is not enough if we just keep the idol, we also buy the laughter along with it. Buying the statue and keeping a gloomy face does not help. We should also buy the laughter and express it in our face. That idol should be placed in our mind. That blissful feeling is energy.

What will happen when the blissful feeling comes within us? He explains that two things will happen. The energy that makes us realize our dreams into reality and the intelligence to understand that this reality itself is a dream happens within us. When we face our life with joy, two things will happen. One is, the energy to make our dreams into reality and secondly, the intelligence to understand that the reality itself is a dream. Both will come to us.

I was talking about the Abdullah meditation. That enlightened Master finally said: Take a strong decision that for just next twenty four hours you will live your life in joy. Every morning, once you get up, just call yourself by name, and ask yourself: Today do you want to be happy or sad? Decide for yourself. As I said, roughly, you know what might happen till tomorrow morning. No big change is going to happen. So decide whether till tomorrow morning, you want to be sad or happy, that's all. By nature mind will say: Be happy. Then start being happy, that's all. Nothing else is there.

When we hear this, we might find it difficult to believe. That is the big problem. The greatest truths are very simple. When something is very simple, we do not believe it. Some people are happy going round the sacred hills of Thiruvannmalai (the hills in South Bharat). That is not a difficult thing for them to do. But if you tell them to sit and meditate for twenty minutes, they will say: Master, it is very difficult to meditate.

We will be able of accomplishing difficult things. Why is that? This is because, the ego gets a satisfaction. We can tell people that we went around the sacred hill everyday. For the sake of ego and prestige, we can do that. Many people come and tell me: Master, for the past eighteen years, I have been going to Sabari hills (a holy place in South Bharat, where the temple of Lord Iyyappa is built) or some people come and tell me: Master, for the past thirty years, I have been going to Tirupathy hills (a hill in South Bharat where a temple for Lord Vishnu is built) by walk. Please understand, if we do such acts as a meditation technique, it will make a big difference. But if it is not done like as a meditation, but just done for pride or just done superficially, nothing will happen. I am not trying to disrespect any of the rituals, which are done. I am only saying please do it with complete dedication.

If we see, in our life it is very easy to do difficult things, because we get an ego satisfaction. But it is difficult to do simple things, because the ego does not get fulfilled. If I say, 'Be in bliss', it is a very simple thing. But it seems that being is bliss is very tough. Dedication does not mean belief. Believing the words of the Master is different. But trying that out is what I call dedication. I always say: Don't believe what I say. If you start believing, you will not do it. Just have the dedication to try what I say, that is enough. Scientists will have the spirit of discovery in them. They keep searching. They have the interest to learn different things. If we have that searching attitude in us, then that is enough. Nothing else is required. With that attitude of search and curiosity, do this small meditation.

Every morning as soon as we get up, let us call ourselfves by our name, and ask ourselfves: Today, do I want to be happy or sad? Let us decide for ourselfves. We will roughly know what might happen in the next twenty-four hours. Only specified events will happen, whether we spend that day in joy or sorrow. So let us ask ourselfves: Should we be alive and fresh by facing this event in bliss or should we be sad as usual and face the events? By asking ourselfves in this manner we must decide. As much as we decide to be in bliss, bliss lays a strong foundation in us. Thus the decisions, which we make will be clear and will have the depth. Tremendous energy will start flowing from us. Many participants from our meditation campaigns used to tell me: Master, earlier, per day if I work for five hours only, I used to get tired. But now I am able to work for twelve or thirteen hours, I don't know how this happened. This is because, when the unnecessary wastage of the mental energy is stopped, then energy will overflow in our body.

With this small example we will be able to understand this. Just for one hour, just sit simply without doing any physical work and keep worrying about something. Then after sometime, we will see for ourselfves that our shoulders start to pain. We need not have to do any work, but just deeply worry about something. Our shoulders will start paining. The depth of our worry makes our body tired.

In Bhagavad Gita (a spiritual book, in which Lord Krishna explains the science of selfrealization and the exact process by which one can establish the eternal relationship with the supreme), Lord Krishna beautifully says,

That is, we should keep bringing ourselves out of the sorrow. We should bring ourselves to the higher plane. We should move ourselves into bliss. If we bring ourselves to a higher plane, then we are our best friends. If we don't bring ourselves to a higher plane, then we are our big enemies. We must bring ourselves to a higher plane. Then naturally, the number of times we fall in sorrow will come down.

Again and again, let us just decide just for twenty four hours. Let us not decide for forty eight hours. Let us decide it as soon as we get up in the morning. Decide what we want to do till the next day morning. When we start living in bliss, the clarity and knowledge to live our life and the energy to live that life will always keep flowering. The knowledge to live our life is Nithyam (eternal) and the energy to live that is Dhyanam (meditation) and the joy, which happens while living in Nithyam and Dhyanam, is the bliss. If we are able to bring the Nithyam (Eternal), Dhyanam (meditation) in our life then Anandam (bliss) will happen in us. The knowledge and clarity to face life and the energy to live life, will make eternal bliss to flower in us. Being in bliss itself is a spiritual achievement. Being in bliss for twenty four hours itself is a spiritual achievement.

That's what He calls as, Yathbhavam Thathbavathi. This is a verse in the Upanishad (embody the experiences and ecstatic realizations of great seers who perceived the reality and enjoyed it). Again and again on whatever we meditate, we will come in tune with that. If we meditate on blissful feeling constantly, if we meditate on the blissful mental plane and if that meditation keeps happening in us, if that meditation keeps flowering in us, naturally, the clarity in knowledge and the energy to live our life will keep flowering in us. So 'Be Blissful' are not just ordinary words. It is a spiritual achievement.

So I pray to the ultimate divine to make you feel the Nithyam (eternal). May you be deeply involved in Dhyanam (Mediation) and express the bliss. Be in the eternal bliss and become the eternal bliss. Thank You.

THE SUPREME PONTIFF OF HINDUISM BHAGAWAN SRI NITHYANANDA PARAMASHIVAM

• For the word, 'Bliss', there is a beautiful explanation. A feeling that does not reduce is called Bliss. A feeling which is always there in us, a feeling, which does not reduce or change is called Bliss

• Laughter is a big meditation

• Sat means the clear knowledge; Chit means the energy. Anandam means blissful feeling or the blissful state

• It is very easy to do difficult things, because you get an ego satisfaction. But it is difficult to do simple things, because the ego does not get fulfilled

• When unnecessary wastage of the mental energy is stopped, then energy will overflow in our body

• The clarity in knowledge to live your life and the energy to live that life, will always keep flowering. The knowledge to live your life is Nithyam (eternal) and the energy to live that is Dhyanam (meditation) and the joy which happens while living in Nithyam and Dhyanam is the bliss

• Being in bliss just for twenty-four hours itself is a spiritual achievement.