Chapter 3🔗

What happens in the multiverse most often goes unnoticed by our meager human eyes. Planets collide into each other. A loophole from one dimension to the other suddenly opens. A gigantic star implodes and creates an enormous gravitational pull, sucking any matter that surrounds it into its depths. These cosmic happenings only show up on our radar as a microscopic blink - and what's more, we only come to know about them thousands, or perhaps millions, of years after they take place. It is only by chance that we even realize that somewhere, something phenomenal has actually happened. Then, just for one chilling moment, we grasp the enormity of this grand universe.

The happening of The Avatar on planet Earth is such an event - except that it is a million, trillion, times more impactful and meaningful for the universe. While a black hole emerging might be irrelevant in the grand scheme of our lives, the advent of The Avatar is directly relevant to every single form of life. Through the eleven dimensions, the Cosmos itself, the pure Consciousness, accepts a human body to interact with the most advanced form of life, and raise life itself to the next level.

Therefore, the moment of recognition of this grand event is proportionally more profound. The beings who understand the significance of The Avatar buzz with excitement. Bhudevi, Mother Earth herself, rejoices that the feet of her beloved Father, from whom she came, are gracing her surface.

All of life that understands the Happening, relishes this momentous occasion, and vibrates with the single sentiment that The Avatar Himself reverberates with upon His arrival on Planet Earth:

Celebrate!

Worship 'through' the deity

In Hinduism, we have over three crore (thirty million) deities that have a history and following of their own. On a daily basis, they are worshipped in temples all over India. Every family and every community has a separate deity that has been worshipped for generations. Every concept, every theory, every energy has a deity. For example, each of the nine planets has its own presiding deity, as well as each of the constellations. Hinduism is a religion that recognizes the divinity in everything on planet Earth. Even the milestones placed on highways by the British in India during the 1800s were worshipped as Shiva lingas (symbolic forms of the Hindu God, Shiva) in the rural parts of India, and decorated with traditional garments and turmeric paste!

The concept of many gods unique to the Vedic tradition stems from this view that everything in the world, including oneself, is a worthy vessel for the Divine energy. To commune directly with the energy is not easy for the average human mind, but to connect to it through a beloved form is a joy for the devotee. The thirty million deities that make up the Hindu pantheon of gods symbolize this very idea: that the Divine can be worshipped and attained through any desired form. When the Hindu worships his ishta devata - chosen deity - he is not worshipping the idol itself; rather, he is in direct communion with the Divine energy expressing through that idol - a subtle truth that many miss, and therefore condemn the worship of idols in the Vedic tradition.

Hinduism is an inclusive religion, open to all who walk in; there is no exclusivity of beliefs in Hindu philosophy. It is a journey of inclusive acceptance, not a destination of exclusive belief. There is a plethora of deities, but if we don't find one we connect with, we are welcome to create our own. Whatever we feel as God, we can build a temple for it!

Jeeva, agat, Ishvara

The concepts of jeeva, jagat and Ishvara play a role in deity worship as well. While the jeeva remains, you, 'the self', Ishvara is what you want to become - God. Jagat - the world - is how you will make what you want into reality. These concepts recognize the natural inner ambition that we feel to expand, grow and become our highest reality. When we worship Sadashiva (Lord Shiva), we accept that He is our highest reality. He is what we want to become. Since the beginning, in order to fulfill this ambition, we created temples and temple- based communities. As Bhagavan describes, to maintain the Arunachaleshwara Temple and environment, the citizens formed sixteen communities, each community taking one responsibility through which their connection to the Divine thrived. In the same way, people gravitated toward temples all over India and created a beautiful civilization that was engineered for enlightenment right from the beginning.

A typical South Indian temple tower featuring the many deities of Hinduism

PRANA PRATISHTA I am doing the prana pratishta process for Ganesha during the Ganesh brahmotsav celebrations on 28 September 2016, Bengaluru Aadheenam

Deities, therefore, are integral to the Hindu lifestyle. Our enlightened Gurus and Avatars who continue to happen in India energize deities through a process called prana pratishta. While priests can conduct only the 'mantra pratishta' - energizing deities through the chanting of mantras (sacred verses), only enlightened beings can perform the prana pratishta, which literally means 'infusing life breath into the deity'. In the biggest temples, all over India, it was always only an enlightened being who installed the energy in that temple. Temples are monuments of spiritual liberation, and among the ultimate achievements Hindus accomplished as a result of eons of journeying within.

The energies of an ordinary human being get exhausted whenever they are repeatedly expressed. For example, grief or joy exhausts itself when expressed through tears; pitta (the fire element in the body) exhausts itself through anger; lust exhausts itself through the sex act; the power of speech exhausts itself in the very saliva, the moment words are uttered. All these energies of expression become exhausted as soon as one uses them.

But an Avatar's energy of expression cannot be exhausted through any of these means - or any means - because He is the inexhaustible Source of energy in human form. That is why He is the ultimate being fit to perform prana pratishta. Only a being who can function without the help of his body is capable of creating a true sanctum: one that will bless, heal and manifest miracles in exactly the way he does. Because Avatars do not need a body to execute their work, they can continue to do the things they do, even after they leave their physical body. The sanctums and deities created and energized by them radiate inexhaustible energy, which nurtures everybody who seeks it.

Once the prana pratishta has been performed, the deity is a living, independent intelligence; not stone, five-metal, or marble. The deities are living, like human beings; only more so! Therefore, when we offer puja, abhisheka (sacred bath) or conduct the marriages of deities, we are not worshipping mere stone: We are worshipping 'through' the stone - worshipping the Cosmic energy that exists beyond it. The deity is a beautiful way to connect to that energy, and create a sweet divine space inside us called bhaava samadhi. Devotion is this sweet space that is alive and develops between you and the deity.

There are thousands of miracles which show that this process is not simply a sacred sentiment; it is scientific and real. Deities are living entities who talk, eat and respond just like we do. Ganesha drinks milk in temples all over the world. Mahakaleshwar in Ujjain accepts your offering of alcohol by drinking it when you keep it near his mouth. In Udupi, Krishna turns his entire body in order to give darshan to a sincere devotee. Devi reduces her height so that she will fit through the wooden door when the priests take her out of the garba mandir (sanctum sanctorum). You can hear the anklets of Devi Meenakshi in Madurai and the anklets of Nataraja in Chidambaram!

As Bhagavan Paramahamsa Nithyananda says, "Puja is the ultimate shaktipada process." Shaktipada is an energy-filled space of Oneness that you experience with the cosmos through a physical form, either with the form of your Guru or a deity. Ultimately, your prayers and worship are not a bargaining method with the Divine. Even when you pray, you need to recognize and celebrate the fact that you are divine.

We are all divine. We are all the expression of the universal energy. Whether or not you accept Hinduism as your faith, the truth is that divinity is your true nature. We manifest our reality out of the cognitions that we have about ourselves, the world around us, and life in general. Whether you manifest a lower reality or the ultimate reality of being Sadashiva: you are the Ultimate, because it is YOU who manifest, and not because of what you manifest.

In the Agamas, as revealed by Sadashiva Himself, practice is the key. As we saw before, The Avatar compares the Veda-Agamas to an electric circuit: you cannot understand the electric circuit just by the on-off switch. It is convenient when the on-off switch is working, but what happens when it is not? You must know the entire electric circuit. In the same way, we must practice everything prescribed by Sadashiva in the Agamas, so that we can experience Oneness and shaktipada with him. Puja and worship is that entire circuit. Following yogic practices, offering puja, listening to the great truths in Hindu scriptures and living them with integrity - all of these are daily disciplines that Sadashiva reveals as necessary for enlightenment. This, in essence, is why we offer deity worship.

The devotion that is a result of this, is the perfect gift from the Divine. Devotion blossoms like a flower from within, and from the flower, nectar oozes. It is sweetness multifold. By chanting the words that invoke Sadashiva and merging with the energy of Sadashiva ourselves, puja is offered to the Divine from this space of Oneness. It is the ultimate process that starts our whole day off in bliss.

The right foundation It is with this foundation in His very blood and ancestry that Paramahamsa Nithyananda began His life on planet Earth. Puja, deity worship and devotion to Sadashiva were the pillars on which Bhagavan built His whole life, setting an example for the entire civilization of Nithyananda Yogis that was to come after Him.

From the time He remembers His life on the planet, Bhagavan remembers being around the temple with deities and puja.

The young Avatar went to the temple every day, riding on His grandfather's shoulders. It was here that He listened to the Hindu Puranas (Hindu narratives of actual happenings in the universe) for the first time. Raju Mudaliar would narrate stories of Prahlada, Markandeya, Nachiketa and Dhruva, child heroes from the Puranas of Hinduism. It was with the same devotion that Raju Mudaliar performed his puja, and took the young Avatar to the temple every single day. He adored his grandson, and knew that He was no ordinary child. He did not take Him to the temple to teach Him the culture and stories from His heritage. He took Him to the temple because he knew that was where God belonged. Bhagavan remembers these trips fondly even today.

PUJA Everyday morning, people from around the world offer puja as part of their morning routine

TIRUMANJANA GOPURAM South-facing temple tower of Arunachaleshwara temple. This is the road we would take to enter the temple going from My grandfather's house

MY MATERNAL GRANDFATHER Raju Mudaliar

He told Me stories from the temple pillars When I was just three, My grandfather would carry Me on his shoulders to the Arunachaleshwara Temple. He would take Me around the temple and tell Me all the great epic stories - Puranas. I was fortunate enough to have such an amazing person as My grandfather. I still remember him holding Me on his shoulders. He would take Me to every pillar in the Tiruvannamalai Temple and explain the stories of the figures carved on them. Some of the great stories I heard from his own mouth are: Markandeya, the great Saint Kannappa, Nachiketa and Bhakta Prahlada. I am going to honor all those stone pillars by replicating them in the Bidadi temple, with a statue of My grandfather carrying Me on his shoulder and showing all those and explaining! Thanks to the time he spent with Me, explaining all those beautiful ideals, even before I entered the human society. What an amazing preparation he did!

THE TEMPLE PILLARS These are the very pillar-depictions my grandfather pointed out and narrated stories about

ARUNACHALESHWARA TEMPLE Tiruvannamalai

I still remember: when I went back home, I would have to repeat the whole story to My family. That was the way I was trained as a speaker! Apart from speaking, it was also that these great ideas were getting into My system. Before the age of three I started giving satsangs (discourses)! Now I am revealing to you one of the important truths: never have I read any great Puranas! I would simply start narrating the story! Later on, when I got the chance to read the book, I would see that it is exactly right! Whether it is stories of temples or people, I would simply start telling the story. But later on, when I got the chance to read the book, when I read, it would be exactly the same, verbatim!

He taught consciousness, not conscience I am so happy that I was born in such an atmosphere and brought up with these great ideas. At such a young age, all these great ideas and truths were put inside Me. Somehow the Eastern society, at least in the villages, not in the cities - the cities can't be called Eastern society - in the villages, you are not given morality; you are given truths. My grandfather used to explain things to Me in detail through the stories. Whenever you are made to understand, it doesn't remain as conscience - it becomes part of your being. But when it is given as a rule, it becomes mere conscience.

Today nobody is there to talk to you; you are just given laws straightaway. Mother is busy in the office, father is busy with his job, and you are sitting here with laws, over! So, naturally, you will try to break them. Somehow, I was fortunate. My elders used to tell Me clear stories... what it is, what for it is done... it used to be an inspiration.

Recently, we got a book that I used before My enlightenment, which was there with some of My friends. So many things I have written down in that book! When I read it, I was shocked at how many people have inspired Me; in how many ways I derived inspiration! Throughout that book, I have not written a single moral. I have written many stories, with only inspiration, never laws. If you receive techniques, it will directly lead to consciousness. If you receive only instructions, it will lead to conscience. Teachings create conscience; techniques create consciousness.

He had such faith in his own body and mind Today, the whole world is contaminated by the idea that old age is retirement, and you destroy your body and mind with this. I tell you: My grandfather used to have such faith on his own body, mind and consciousness! In his whole life, he was hospitalized only twice. Such a hardworking man! Please understand: your body is actually a mechanism. What you cognize about your body, mind, and you is a mechanism. Whatever you cognize becomes reality. And I have seen the faith he had about himself. I am so thankful to him, because he took care that the idea of sickness never settled inside My system. By seeing him and living around him, health became My basic cognition. He was the only active earning member of the family. He had everything in his hand. But he did not own a car even till his death; such a simple personal life! And till the end, he used to say, "I will go walking and come back walking." Till his last breath, he had everything under his control, and gracefully exited.

I learned how not to 'settle down' in life My mother's side is highly cultured. My grandfather was such a spiritual man. Even on the day he died (he was in his nineties), he did his puja, went to the hospital and died! I have never seen him miss his puja; cold, cough, family reasons, nothing will make him miss it. He went walking to his office in the morning, and attended to his daily office routine. Till the last day, he had the bunch of keys, meaning the control over the whole organization, which he built from the beginning. He came home from office one Saturday afternoon as usual by walk, felt uneasy and rested. They had to admit him in the hospital. He passed away on Monday. So literally, till the day he died, he attended office!

When I saw My grandfather, My great-grandmother, all of them, I saw that the concept of 'settling down' never existed for them. It is good that I was brought up by them. Now, these modern-day IT people think, “I will work till forty and then retire. I will make money, buy a flat and a car, and settle down by forty.” It means that even while they are studying, acquiring knowledge, the goal is just to acquire some comforts and luxury and drop out! This is the kind of inspiration they have about knowledge and life. Then, their knowledge will be so heavy on them. They will only try to constantly find cunning methods of how to know less and make more money, because the purpose becomes money, wealth, luxury, comfort. The purpose of being active or having knowledge should not be just acquiring some wealth, or luxury or comforts. I am not saying don’t acquire. I am only saying that alone should not be the purpose.

He taught Me not just integrity, but charity too My grandfather was a person of such charity. Every night, even if it was one o’clock, two o'clock in the night, only after signing the ledger and completing the accounts of the shop, he

would go to bed. I learnt that habit from him. In those days, there was no computer; it was only in the notebook. And the most important thing was - he had a box. On that box, there would be a board called magamabandu. It means, he would put ten percent of his net income in that box every day, and that was kept aside for charity. So when people came asking for donations for any temple function, religious function, temple inauguration or annadaan (free food distribution), based on their expense level, he would give a donation.

Once, I asked him, “What is the use of giving money like this, of giving donations like this?” He said, “The result of giving donations is: more people will come to receive more donations, that's all.”

Understand: reward for wealth is more wealth; reward for love is more love; reward for work is more work; reward for charity is more charity opportunities; reward for integrity is more integrity. Cognizing the joy that integrity brings in you, the powerfulness you experience through integrity; cognizing that integrity is the ultimate, will lead to not having blind spots.

MY GRANDFATHER'S RICE SHOP Mandi Street, Tiruvannamalai

KANNI KOVIL STREET Now called Raja Rajan street, this is my grandfather's house street

MY GRANDFATHER'S HOUSE

MY GRANDFATHER'S HOUSE This is the very hall where sadhus were served food

In anything, whether in your relationship with your body; or your relationship with life; or your relationship with Existence; or your relationship with the ultimate Source; or your relationship with society; or your relationship with humanity and its laws, at every level, cognize integrity as your strategy - be true to the thought current you are living.

He fed the sadhus every day My mental setup of giving food to people, I got from My grandfather. He would go to the temple every day; search for sadhus (monks) near the temple; bring them home, make them sit down and recite some stotras (devotional songs) or verses from the Puranas, like Shiva Puranam; offer them arati (ceremonial waving of lamps); offer them dakshina (money), then feed them, and only after that, he would eat. He never taught Me anything, but he was such a strong influence on Me!

Once, I caught a guy who had come to our house dressed as a sadhu doing something else during other times. I came home and told My grandfather that he was not a sadhu. My grandfather just said, "Don't bother. Even for that half an hour, if he is wearing all the Shaivite symbols like kumkum (energized processed turmeric) and rudraksha (sacred beads), just give him food. At least for the sake of food, he will remember Shiva, and will be tuned to our tradition. Then slowly, he may become that way permanently!"

In India, if you live like a sadhu, all the basic needs will be fulfilled. That trend should be maintained in the society. I learnt that mental setup from My grandfather. Now that I have the money, thousands of sadhus are given free food in our Aadheenams!

I can say one thing for sure: in the whole world, the lifestyle of sharing food freely at no cost exists only in India. It is part of the Vedic tradition, because we are a grain-based civilization. All religious ceremonies include the sharing of prasadam (consecrated food) and sharing food is not just part of social or religious ceremonies; it is a lifestyle.

I grew up in ten houses!

In Indian villages, you don't grow up in one house; you usually live in ten to twelve houses - the houses of relatives, neighbors, friends! For four or five days, you stay in one house, and then for four or five days, you stay in another house! Saturday and Sunday, you stay in another house. That is the way we all grew up and there will not be any particular reason for it! Just like that, I would go to My grandparents' house, and would not come back home for even twenty days! I would just stay there, because My school and everything would be close by.

And I have seen that all those houses would be always open to everyone, whether they are visitors or guests or sadhus or beggars. All the villagers who came on business to the town would straightaway walk into My grandfather's house and have their meal and leave. And it is not as if they would inform My grandfather beforehand about their arrival. If they were coming to town, they knew that in Mudaliar's house, food would be available. And My grandfather or grandmother would not even ask who they were or where they were coming from - nothing! There would be an area allotted specially for guests. If anybody came and sat there, the two or three ladies of the house would first serve them water and then ask, "Have you eaten (lunch or dinner or breakfast)?" And the guest would say, "No, I came here to eat only." So they would bring a banana leaf and start serving them food. It was the regular routine.

In Indian villages, this was the normal lifestyle. Only when I describe it now, it looks like a big thing. Actually, only when I started traveling outside India and saw the lifestyle in other countries, I even understood that it is such a big thing! I saw that even if it is your own son's house, you have to make two phone calls and confirm that you are coming at such and such a time! I was really shocked.

Sharing food is the most dharmic principle. Research says that the most common past-life causes for morbid obesity are: starvation in one or more past lives that leads to the constant desire to overeat, and fear or guilt from past lives of depriving others of food. Both lead to karma that lands in your system and create the effect of making you overeat. So, sharing food should be a lifestyle in our sangha (spiritual community). In all your houses, the kitchen should be open for anybody who is hungry. It should be a rule.

He lived an enlightened lifestyle

I can tell you, the enlightened lifestyle is much more than enlightenment! I can tell you from My experience - whatever I started living after enlightenment, My grandfather used to live it very casually. I have seen it. Sometimes I look back and think, "God! To live this way it took enlightenment for Me, but My grandfather used to live it so casually!" His idea, his way of thinking, his way of functioning, was so casually centered on this.

MY GRANDFATHER Yellammal and Raju Mudaliar

I learnt this habit of reading a few pages of the sacred scriptures before falling asleep from My grandfather. He used to go to sleep at midnight, but even at that time, he would sit and chant Tirujnanasambandar's Thevaram before sleeping. He couldn't read English; he could read only Tamil books. He was not a great pundit, but he would chant the few mantras, stotras (devotional songs) and shaastras (Hindu scriptures) he knew. Sometimes it would be in Sanskrit; sometimes it would be in Tamil. For half an hour or one hour he would chant and nobody else in the room could sleep! He used to sleep in the hall. And he would be sitting and chanting so beautifully, just lost in himself, reciting the verses on Mahadeva! I was very close to him. I would sleep next to him only. He was My favorite, and I used to be his pet, because I had been given his name: My pre-monastic name is his name.

He had a beautiful voice. He would chant Tirujnanasambandar's Thevaram and Manikkavasagar's Thiruvasagam, the sacred sentiment verses. The last few years before his passing away, he lost his eyesight. He could not read. So he trained two of his sons to read these verses out to him. One nice thing is that My uncles also learnt how to recite these verses properly for him, and every night they would sit and recite at least one hour for him.

Tiru jnanasambandar

Thodudaiya seviyan vidai yeriyoar thooven mathi soodi kaadudaiya sudalaip podi pusiyen ullam kavar kalvan edudaiya malaraanmunai naatpaninthe ettha arul seitha peedudaiya piramaapura meviya pemmaan ivan andre

The God with a ring in His ears appears on the sacred Bull He has the moon on His head He wears the ash of the burned bodies in the cremation ground He- that thief- has stolen my heart He blessed Brahma, who is on the Lotus, when he prayed Him in the past He is that Lord of the great Piramapuram

Tirujnanasambandar is one of the sixty-three nayanmars, who are the greatest devotees of Sadashiva. He contributed greatly to the volumes of poems that make up the composition - Thevaram. Along with him, the saints Thiruvanavukkarasar, Manickavasagar and Sundarar contributed to the Thevaram. These verses, which first reverberated in their inner space, are now recited on the lips of every Shaivite, yearning for the same deep reverence and devotion.

I picked up that exact lifestyle from him. I never slept without reading a spiritual scripture, till I started My public life, till I realized My Avataric mission! After that, I was not able to read for more than one-and-a-half to two years. Then, when I started My public life, naturally when you are falling into samadhi, there is no need to read any books. After I started teaching, I started reading for the sake of teaching. But till then, I never missed reading a spiritual scripture before going to bed.

When something goes inside you when you are a kid, and becomes part of your bio-memory, and muscle-memory, it becomes an experience, a cognition; you just radiate it with so much of strength and power! Just recently in the temple, a Gurukul (residential Vedic school) kid was chanting mantras for homa (fire ritual). I stopped him and said, "You are doing inauthentically. That is why you are not able to bring rain. Sit and bring yourself to completion and start chanting." The kid realized he had some incompletions, went and completed with everyone, and came and did the homa. It started raining! Understand: It is an experience for kids! It is not just a story! It is an experience!

The little bit of Tamil knowledge I have in Thevaram, Tiruvasagam and all such verses, was what I learnt from My grandfather, from chanting every night. I tell you: read some sacred sentiments, like these spiritual scriptures, before going to bed. It enriches the quality of consciousness in which you sleep, in which you function, in which you act and in which you flow- in which you carry your whole day!

You may think, "Oh, I know all these ideas... what is there?" No! Your brain needs to be reminded all the time, again and again and again, because forgetfulness is the basic quality of your mind. Reminding yourself again and again is the highest spiritual practice.

My Grandfather's Puja Room Door

He put the seed of puja inside Me

When I was young, I used to hear the Shiva Purana being sung on the loudspeaker every day in the temple. Growing up, it was literally the background music to My life. My life started with puja.

It is Ganesha puja with which My whole life started. Actually, had I not taken up public life, I would have been a pujari - temple priest! Not author or orator, only pujari. I would be doing only puja! I would have been a pujari just sitting in some remote corner, of a Shiva temple, from morning till night, maybe just sitting and pouring water on the Shiva linga, or chanting some shlokas or the mantras I know. That would have been My favorite time-pass or life-pass!

In a way, I owe My whole mission to My grandfather! From the time I remember Me, I used to be with him for puja. When I was just a few months old, My mother used to put Me where he does puja. So, only hearing his morning puja bell, I would open My eyes! Most of the days, his puja's naivedyam (food offering) would be milk, and it used to be the first food I would consume. I really thank him for the sincerity in puja, which he put inside Me. Fortunately, it grew, it was nourished by My other mentors, and culminated in completion with Arunagiri Yogishwara's blessings!

Venugopal (Venu), the second of the three maternal uncles (mother's brothers) of Bhagavan, shares his brief observations of Him as a child, when He would come home and interact with His grandfather, Raju Mudaliar (Interviewed on 31 October 2017):

My father would do all the pujas. At that time He (Swami) would be standing and watching. Sometimes He would sing songs. He would sing Shiva Puranam. Shiva Puranam is the song that my father taught all of us.

My father would wake up at five a.m. and perform the Ganesha puja every morning at six a.m. At that time, he would ask us to compulsorily sit, and he would teach and make us sing the Shiva Puranam.

After puja, my father would have breakfast and go to the shop. He would return only in the night. Then he would read books related to spirituality for some time before going to sleep. Swami would also come and participate in the pujas during functions like Deepavali, Pongal, Saturday worship, etc. We would offer puja to Lord Venkatachala pathy during the Tamil month of Purattaasi.

Jnanashekaran (Jnanam), the youngest of the three maternal uncles of Bhagavan, who is only five years older to Him, recalls Him involving in the puja of Raju Mudaliar as a child (Interviewed on 7 November 2017): He would mingle a lot with my father. He would be familiar with all at the temple. He liked that a lot. From a young age, His entertainment was inclined only towards the temple and its activities. He would sit with my father during his puja, learn all the songs, and help as well. After my father poured water on the deities, He would drape the cloth around them. He would help in applying sandal paste on the deities and so on.

JNANASHEKARAN, Maternal Uncle

MY GRAND FATHER (4th from the right) At a public function

Anbazhagan (Anbu), son-in-law of the family, Bhagavan's mother's younger sister's husband who took responsibility for Him many times alongside His father till He went to the polytechnic institute, also mentions the 'grandfather relationship'. His more detailed sharings will be found across this volume and the coming volumes (Interviewed on 7 Nov. 2017). From a young age, He would have a lot of devotion to God. Whenever His grandfather, Raju Mudaliar thatha ('grandfather' in Tamil), went to the temple, He would go along with him. propriate seasons. In the Tamil month of Margazhi, we listened to songs like Tiruppavai and Tiruvenpavai.

ANBAZHAGAN, My mother's sister's husband

Senthil, Bhagavan's older brother, an eye-witness and playmate during the days spent in Tiruvannamalai, is exhilarated to share about the times in grandfather's house. Needless to say, Senthil's memoirs are spread across this volume, with many instances recounted in all their delightful details! (Interviewed on 21 December 2017) We used to hardly be in our house in Tiruvoodal street. We would be only in grandfather's house most of the time. Our grandfather used to take Swami and me to the temple every time he went. Inside the Goddess Unnamulai Amman shrine, he would point out the depictions of Hindu saints on the pillars and the wall paintings, and narrate their life stories to us. I recall hearing stories of Kannappa Nayanar and Bhakta Prahlada. I remember that one of the paintings portraying Kannappa Nayanar was donated to the temple by my grandfather and it would carry his name on it.

Our grandfather would come home late from the shop. He would always read books before going to sleep. We learnt everything only in our grandfather's house, whether it was reading or chanting or singing devotional songs. The Shiva Puranam was an integral part of our life. Like how the morning prayer was to school, Shiva Puranam was to our life! Initially our grandfather sat us down and taught a few lines for us to repeat. Then, we picked up from him singing aloud during puja, and later, we would sing and he would do puja! We also learnt devotional songs on Lord Ganesha like 'Paalum theli thenum...' and on Lord Muruga like 'Yerumayil yeri vilayaadum...' I recall listening to Skanda shashti kavacham and Venkateshwara suprabhatham during the ap

SENTHIL KUMAR, My brother, 2 years older to me

to his decision to live

My grandfather was a rice merchant. Rice loads would come from the villages in bullock carts at night. Using a fire torch or lantern, they would unload the rice bags. In those days, lorries were not that popular. On many days, he would come home from his shop only at one o'clock in the night. Even then, he would wash himself, do the achamana (ritualistic cleansing), apply vibhooti (sacred ash), perform the anushthana (rituals), do the night puja for ten or fifteen minutes, keep the shop key at the feet of Mahadeva, and only then go to sleep.

No matter what time he went to bed, the next morning he would be up before sunrise; it is called brahma muhurta, the auspicious time when a Shaivite is supposed to wake up. I have never seen him missing this till the day he left the body! He would take a bath, do his anushthana, come back to the deity and offer his morning worship. Even when he had to go to any program at five o'clock, he would wake up at three and finish everything before five. I have not seen him doing yoga, but I have seen him doing pranayama (a formal breath control practice). He would do pranayama and start his puja.

I learnt this from My grandfather: Decide for what you believe as pleasure, life, joy, bliss, and take continuous responsibility for it. That is what is 'making the decision to live'! So first, you need to have a clear understanding of what you consider as life. It is not just deciding to breathe, inhale and exhale; it is what you consider as joy, the purpose of your life, inspiration for your life, excitement for your life

Nothing is right or wrong. For instance, deciding for political power is not something wrong. Deciding for money is not something wrong. Deciding for enlightenment is not something wrong. Nothing is right or wrong. Your decision without conflict makes everything right. Your decision with conflict makes everything wrong. If you have self-doubt, self-hatred, self-denial - what I call SDHD - even if you decide for Advaita, it will be wrong! If you don't have SDHD (Self Doubt, Self Hatred, Self Denial), even if you decide for money or political power, or any mundane or so-called ordinary thing, it will not be wrong. Finally, it boils down to the strength of your decision. One should decide to live in this world for hundreds of years, all the while doing one's deeds dispassionately as sanctioned by the scriptures.

MY GRANDFATHER With his peers

MY GRANDFATHER'S RICE SHOP You can see the bags of rice arrived here after their long journey in bullock carts from the fields in the outskirts of Tiruvannamalai.

MY GRANDFATHER'S DEITIES These are a few of his deities - Ganesha and Shiva linga

It was My grandfather who taught Me the spiritual routine. He is the one solely responsible for whatever revival I am doing through deity worship today.

I had the good fortune to sit with him during his daily puja. He had a beautiful family of deities: Mahadeva, Devi, Ganesha, and two or three other deities, like a small deity of Subramanya, Surya and Nandi - the Shiva Panchaayatana (the 'five supports' or five deities worshiped as part of Shiva worship). He also had Vishnu, Ranganatha and Venkateshwara (deities from the Vaishnava tradition). Venkateshwara was also our family deity. So, all of them were there!

He would do his puja in very relaxed way, spending a lot of time, not in a hurry. He spent his time washing and cleaning the deities, clothing them, putting jewels on them, applying sandalwood paste, and offering flowers or a bael leaf, and then the naivedyam He did this elaborately, in a very relaxed way. And he would do long rituals – eleven times super-brain yoga for Ganesha and eleven times for Shiva. When he finished with each deity, I would move that deity from this side to the other for accounting purposes - signifying that he is done with that deity!

integrity to puja

After puja, he would pick up the key, seeking the deity's permission, and then go to his shop. Every time he took major decisions, or left the house for even a small action like going to the local temple, he would take the permission of the deity first. Once he came back, he would wash his feet, except when he was coming back from the temple. He would go to the shrine again where the family deities were kept, do namaskar, respond to them, or report to them what he had done; only then he would continue with his other activities.

For around eighty-two years, not a single day he missed his morning puja. I don't know whether he had the idea of enlightenment or anything, but his sincerity - such an amazing sincerity - has gone into My head. That has gone into My system. I tell you: just this one seed back then! I remember, unless I sat with him for the morning puja, I would not feel that day is going smoothly. And if anything happened - if I lost My pencil or pen - I would think, "Oh, today I did not attend the puja!" So that was My life - and after some time, because the very inner self was enjoying it, it became such a big joy. I tell you: it is from him that I learnt the uninterrupted spiritual routine. I am so happy that he did it till the day he died.

He literally did not even cross the district border in his lifetime, except for a few pilgrimages. When he was in his late eighties, he came to Bangalore to see our ashram. He himself used to say that after Kashi and Rameshwaram, he stepped out of Tiruvannamalai only to come to Bangalore.

The Avatar remembers spending many of His most joyful childhood moments with His grandfather. From the morning puja to the time He went to bed, He would be around him. Even when His grandfather went to his shop, he would take his beloved grandson with him, where He witnessed all the negotiations that went on. His grandfather was an example of a highly integrated and ethical businessman. Finally, when they wrapped up for the day, His grandfather would take Him home, feed Him dinner and put Him to bed. In their home, they even had a beautiful routine of chanting from the scriptures before resting for the night.

With the sincerity and discipline instilled in Him by His grandfather, the little Avatar began His own daily and immensely fulfilling personal worship. From the tender age of three, He started to perform puja for every one of His deities. They each had their own abhishekam (sacred bath), their own vastram (clothes) and abharanam (jewelry). He reveals that He never once felt that the deity was just a stone!

MY GRAND FATHER At a temple function

MY GRANDFATHER'S RICE SHOP Very table where he sat

From the time I can remember, from the moment I started thinking, I have enjoyed this ritualistic worship so much. Understand: I never thought - not only logically, even unconsciously - that deities are just representations of God. I always felt that they are alive! I never ever thought that I am doing this as a technique for enlightenment, or that it is a great thing. Sadashiva saved Me! Fortunately, at that time I did not know about enlightenment! So I did not develop the logic that I am doing the rituals and puja everyday so that God will give Me enlightenment one day. That foolish nonsense was not in My head. All I knew was: here is a deity that I have to take care of. That's all. Here is God; I have to attend to Him - over!

These are the few deities My grandfather gifted Me: There are two Shiva lingas - one green, another small one in metal; I think it is panchloha (an amalgam of five metals). The green one was gifted to Me by My grandfather. The deity of Annapurani, he brought from Kashi. When he went on a pilgrimage to Kashi, he bought that deity and gifted it to Me. All these deities are still with Me.

MY GRANDFATHER'S DEITIES, The circled ones are what he gave me. The rest I collected.

My spiritual life started with Ganesha

My spiritual life started with Ganesha; Ganesha eating the food I offered is the first spiritual experience that happened in My life. And I can say, My spiritual journey was successful and unfolded with all its glory, beauty and depth after that. It was Ganesha who inaugurated My spiritual life.

When all these truths get into your own system when you are a kid...when you are fresh and about to start life... nothing like it! It gets into your very bio-memory! I tell you, it gets into your very bio-memory!

This whole revival of deity worship of Sanatana Hindu Dharma, which I am doing now, started just with one small Ganesha gifted to Me when I was the age of three. If that same Ganesha or even a bigger Ganesha was gifted to Me when I was eighteen, I don't think this revival would have happened. Just that one Ganesha at the age of three got into My very bio-memory, became an experience! That is why I could transmit that experience to tons and tons of people, and this whole Sanatana Hindu Dharma is revived!

GANESHA - MY FIRST DEITY This is the Ganesha that ate the food I served! This Ganesha is part of my personal puja altar even today

SHOPS SELLING DEITIES OUTSIDE THE TEMPLE

Ganesha was My first deity.

On My third birthday, My father and grandfather were both carrying Me to the temple. In villages, they will carry the kid on the shoulder or on the chest. Usually My grandfather would carry Me to the temple. On that day, because it was My birthday, My father also came along. (When I say 'grandfather', I mean My mother's father. My father's father passed away even before My father's marriage. Of course, in India, you usually get kids after marriage! I wanted to clarify that it would usually be that way!) Even though My grandfather was a very devoted person, he was a miser! He would not spend money. So, many times, when My grandfather carried Me to the temple, I would show the shops outside the temple where they sold small Ganesha deities. I would point with My hand and say, “I want Ganesha, I want Ganesha.” That day, My father was also there. My father was not a great devotee, but he was a spendthrift! The moment I asked, he said, “Come on, I will buy and give you!” He would spend money left and right, and a lot of spending for pride also, just to show, “See how well I treat people!” So he bought and gave Me the Ganesha! I started giving satsangs even before the age of three! When My grandfather took Me to the temple, I heard some preachers and priests reciting a story. I came back and repeated it verbatim! The Ganesha deity was given to Me by My father because I narrated the whole story of Shiva and Ganesha.

ARUNACHALESWARA TEMPLE FESTIVAL Ganesha in procession

I remember the first incident related to wealth that happened in My life soon after I received the Ganesha. In Indian villages, during festivals, the uncles and aunts would give money to the kids. My brothers and I were given some coins by My uncles. I asked My father, "What should I do with this?" My father said, "You can buy whatever you want." I said, "I wanted a Ganesha and I already got it; now what should I do?" My father said, "You can give it to anyone you like." I thought, "Okay, what is there in this? I can use it if I want; if not, I can give it away." So I called My cousin and he just grabbed all the coins from Me! This is the first memory I have of wealth, and I still live by it. I have not created any relationship with wealth; I have neither created any joy nor created any suffering in My relationship with wealth. I just know that wealth is always living with Me.

I can say, the most worshiped deity in India is Ganesha. Almost every street has a Ganesha temple! You don't need a big ritualistic puja for him. A village lady, after her bath in the river, comes and offers water to the Ganesha deity on the banks of the river, worships him and goes away. You cannot worship any other god like this, without much ritual. Ganesha is the most beloved and friendly God from the Hindu tradition. His very form is so nice! You can relate to him in any way you want. He is unassuming and non-demanding. He is the most easily

accessible - bhole baba! He is so easily pleased - ashutosha! He is a powerful, divine being, pleased just by the offering of a coconut. Ganesha is still the sweetheart of Hindu children, especially school-going children who are writing exams. From the time I remember, all my examinations were written only by Ganesha!

Ganesha outlives all philosophies. He feels all philosophies are boredom. He is like a modern day teenage kid who eats left and right, sits with Facebook all the time and does not bother about any serious philosophy, but who has all the powers! He doesn't come under any rule or regulation, but he has all the powers and is the embodiment of satchitananda - auspiciousness, intelligence and energy. Above all, he is a being close to our hearts. There cannot be any philosophical explanation about him. He is just a part of us, that's all!

Whether it is Vyasa, the first master, or a more recent master, Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi, all of them have to start their work bowing to Ganesha! Whether they are going to sing a stotra or give a teaching...even if they have to teach the enlightenment science which says 'God is formless', they have to start with Ganesha! Even if they have to express that 'God is nirguna bramhan (beyond the three basic human attributes)', they first have to say, "Let me bow down to Ganesha to express these great truths properly."

I didn't just worship Ganesha - I lived with him!

When I woke up in the morning, I would wake My Ganesha up. Before I took a drink of water, I would offer water to him. After I brushed My teeth, I would use a small brush to brush his teeth. His original tusk was gone, because I used to brush it so hard - grgrgrgr! I used to think that it is a big tusk, so I have to clean it properly. Then, after I took a bath, I would give him also a bath. Once I put on My clothes, I would put on clothes and jewels for him. Once I applied the holy ash, I would apply holy ash and sandalwood paste on him. When I ate, I would feed him also - meaning, I would offer naivedyam to him.

I had not yet started school, so there was no routine for Me - other than playing with Ganesha! I would make a small chariot for him, put him in that and drive him around. I would be playing with him the whole day. I even used to go to bed with him, under a small mosquito net. I was living with him; he became part of Me.

I would do puja every day to Ganesha. I would pour water on him, put a little food in front of him and offer arati: wave the lamp before him, wave the camphor before him. It was not like I was just doing a small puja or anything; I had such a strong feeling-connection with him that I felt that Ganesha was actually there...that the deity was not just a stone; it was Ganesha Himself!

If you are just doing puja for some other reason, you will never enter that place again that day. I have seen many people doing puja. In the morning, they go into the puja room, roll around with the deity and pour water or do whatever needs to be done. But once they come out, they would never even go that side again, because it would be such a heavy routine for them; they would never make the mistake of entering into that room again that day! But for Me, it was like living with him. The whole day I would be sitting with Ganesha, fanning him, or doing whatever I could. Anything given to Me, I would bring and put it in front of him. I was a small boy living with God!

Leela Dhyana - meditation on the Divine play

Many of our devotees tell Me, “Swamiji, I was cooking, washing and doing all my work, but as an undercurrent, your memory was there inside me, Swamiji! It is so sweet; I am just filled with You! I don't know why, but I am not able to forget You.”

This is what we call in Sanskrit as leela dhyana, constantly being in meditation on the Divine Play! When the leela dhyana gets mature, you enter into samprajnata samadhi. That was what was happening with Me and Ganesha. I would be centered on Ganesha; whatever I did the whole day, I lived with him. Leela dhyana - meditating on or strongly feeling connected to a deity's form - starts building the right reasoning, vitarka, in your life.

nambiyandar nambi

One day, I went to the temple. In the Arunachaleshwara temple in My hometown, almost 300 out of 365 days of the year, there would some festival: deities would be going around in procession, or there would be some spiritual lecture.

During My childhood, I used to attend many satsangs (discourses). One day, the speaker was narrating an incident from the life of Nambiyandar Nambi (a Shaivaite scholar) when he was a young boy. He was born and brought up in Tanjore district of Tamil Nadu, in South India. His life-story is very beautiful!

These are typical stories. You will see that, in every State of India, there will be at least ten stories like this! See, when a whole civilization is interested in football matches, just because the entire country is interested, huge football stadiums are built; amazing football players are created. Because so many people are dedicating their energy to it, football literally becomes a religion!

In the same way, if there is a huge crowd interested in God, and in the divine sciences, then naturally, a large temple infrastructure is created. Thousands of the best saints who can relate with God are created! That's all! If people ask Me, "How can hundreds of saints happen in one country? How do you have so many saints, and so many stories about so many saints' lives?" I also ask them, "How do you have so many football players, or so many car companies?" That's all! In the U.S., they don't care much about Benzes or BMWs. They are there for regular use. In the same way, in India, saints are there for regular use! Too much is available! In India, it happens! Come on, we are a 'God-producing' country - the country, the civilization which produces gods, which produces incarnations, saints!

I still remember that speaker's name - Selva Ganapathy! He was a famous religious speaker in Tamil Nadu. The first story that impressed Me was about the scholar Nambiyandar Nambi. When Nambiyandar Nambi was a child, his father used to offer worship at a Ganesha temple every day. He was a temple priest. One day, the father was sick, so he told his little son, "You please go and offer worship at the temple today."

So Nambiyandar Nambi went to the temple with the food offering and all the worship articles. He performed all the rituals, like the sacred bath, dressing up the deity, decorating it with flowers and finally, offering the food. He placed the food in front of Ganesha. He thought that Ganesha actually eats the food every day. He was offering food for the first time, and he thought that Ganesha was supposed to eat it! He did not know that his father brought the food back home every day. So, with all his innocence, authenticity and integrity, he sat there, waiting for Ganesha to eat the food.

Half an hour, one hour, two hours went by...and the food was still there! The boy started worrying and asked Ganesha, "What happened? Did I do anything wrong? You are not eating! Come and eat! I have to go back soon...my father is sick." Of course, there was no response. Then he said, "If you don't eat, my father may scold me; he may shout at me - please do something! If I have made any mistake, forgive me, and please eat!" Of course, Ganesha was very silent. Nambiyandar Nambi became very serious. He told Ganesha, "No, no, no! You have to eat! Please eat."

OPEN SPACE IN FRONT OF ARUNACHALESHWARA TEMPLE Where the spiritual talks used to happen in temporarily erected stages

The Kathopanishad beautifully says Shraddha vivechah (authenticity) happens when you are possessed by a certain truth. The Upanishad describes Nachiketa, the hero of the Upanishad, who confronted Death itself, possessed by shraddha - authenticity, the Truth.

Sometimes, when you face a difficult time in life, you suddenly decide, “I will be very straight, honest and dharmic. I will not bend.” You might know that if you adjust a little bit, or tell one lie or alter one word, you can escape from the situation, but you suddenly feel, “No, I am going to be very straight, come what may.” In those few moments, you are possessed by shraddha - authenticity, the Truth.

So, shraddha vivechah happened to Nambiyandar Nambi. Suddenly, he felt, “Ganesha has to eat!” He started weeping. He said, “Till you eat, I am not going to leave this place.” Five to six hours went by, but the food was still there. Ganesha was just sitting there. Then he went to the extreme: a suicide threat! He said, “I will bang my head on these temple steps and die if you don't eat!” And he really started banging his head on the steps!

At that time, he just knew that Ganesha was going to eat; even a slight doubt did not exist in him. He started banging his head on the steps - and the story says, suddenly Ganesha appeared and ate the food and blessed him!

You will find hundreds of such stories about saints. It is not a story; it is history, truth!

When the boy went back to his father, his father asked, “What happened? Where is the food offering?” Nambiyandar Nambi said, “Ganesha ate it.” The father could not believe it. He asked, “Did Ganesha eat it, or did you eat it?” The son responded, “No, Ganesha ate it! If you come with me, I will show you.”

my ganesha eat!

When I heard this story, I was shocked. The whole story became part of My inner space, part of My bio-energy. Something in My bio-energy got kindled. Whatever is inside you will be kindled by even a spark from outside. It awakened something in Me so strongly! It is like when kids go to Disneyland, they literally feel that all the characters they see on TV – like Tom and Jerry – actually live in Disneyland!

Something happened in My inner space because of that story. I thought, “Then why is My Ganesha not eating? I am giving him food every day, but he is not eating! Then what am I doing?” I ran back home. In those days, there were not many four-wheelers on the road. Now it has become a big town. There were mostly only two-wheelers and cycles at that time. I still remember, I hit two cycles that day when I ran home to feed Ganesha!

Understand: when you are in integrity, you will respect every person's words, even if they are non-integrated! You will trust that the word is out of integrity, because you don't know anything other than integrity! If you are established in integrity, not only will you have the power to make your words into reality, you can make even others' words into reality, even if the other person is non-integrated.

Because I never experienced the space of lack of integrity in My life, I simply trusted the speaker's integrity. I suddenly decided: I will also make My Ganesha eat!

And it was not just for the fun of it; I felt that because he had not been eating, he must have been very hungry all these days, and he must be really lean. At a young age, we learn from our parents that if you don't eat, you will die! I had learnt three or four things: if you don't eat, you will die; if you don't eat, some ghost will come and take you away; if you don't eat, a crow will come and make its droppings on your head! So I thought, “There may be a ghost possessing My Ganesha. Maybe he is sick; that is why he does not walk on his own and I have to pull him!”

Understand: when I heard the story, I decided, “I will also make My Ganesha eat.” This is tarka, simple logic: when he made Ganesha eat, why not Me? It is simple tarka.

So I ran and told Ganesha, “Don't worry, from today I will give you food. You should eat it properly.” Because he was more like a friend to Me, I started talking to him, “You should eat properly and you should be healthy.” And I also thought, “He is a child Ganesha; he has to eat and become like the big Ganesha in the temple!” I would tell him, “Only because you are not eating, you are not growing!” That was My argument with him!

The temple Ganesha deity was five or six feet tall! Especially in the Arunachaleshwara temple, there is a very big Ganesha. His name is Sambandha Ganapathy! So I used to tell, “You should become like that Ganesha. Only if you eat properly, you will become like that Ganesha.” I told this because My people used to say to Me, “Only if you eat, you will become big like us.” So I also thought, “Only if Ganesha eats he will become big, like that Ganesha in the temple.” I told him, “Don't worry, you eat, and I will build a temple like this for you.” I think My commitment to Ganesha is why I am now building big-big temples and installing big-big Ganeshas! I am fulfilling My word to Ganesha!

But Ganesha was not eating. Maybe he heard Me, but he did not respond. For two or three days, I was sitting and convincing him about why he should eat. Maybe that was the time that matter was melting into Consciousness - meaning, the word was moving the world. By again and again saying, “Eat! You should eat!” to Ganesha, it became a declaration. When I started declaring again and again that he should eat, I think Ganesha also started giving his listening! Understand: when your declarations are very strong, even if there is a stone in front of you, it will listen!

Shraddha Vivechah – Authenticity - possesses Me Anyway, the Shraddha Vivechah happened! I became possessed by shraddha. When you are possessed by shraddha , you will not have kutarka (negative logic) at all. You may ask Me, "When you heard the story of Nambiyandar Nandi, you tried it out, but you are telling us not to try it!" See, in My case, there was no kutarka at all. If there is no kutarka, then you are also a professional; you can try it! But inside, in one corner of you, there is kutarka. That is why I am saying don't try till that kutarka disappears, especially these risky techniques.

I decided to take the next jump, from integrity towards authenticity. Understand: whenever you move from integrity to authenticity, it will not always be completely authentic. Your efforts may be inauthentic to start with, but later you will move to authenticity.

Anyway, I decided, "I have to make him eat!" See, in My house, it was a joint family. One of My grandmothers... she was a distant relative. If the kids didn't eat, this old lady would threaten them. In the center of the garden, there was a huge well, a village-type well. She would shout, "If you don't eat, I will put you inside the well!" She would take the kid by the hand, take a little food in the other hand, show him the well and say, "See? I will drop you inside!" The kids would cry with their mouth wide open and she would put the food inside! That is the way she would feed kids.

So, I had heard only that logic. Naturally, what would I do? I decided that I would also do the same thing with Ganesha! I went and put a little food in front of Ganesha and told him, "Eat now!" When I saw that he had not eaten even after half an hour, I started using the same technique. I told him, "I will put you in the well!"

Please understand: the teacher taught Me tarka; the old lady from My family taught Me kutarka. She was My father's periamma (elder aunt). So I started shouting in the same way! She would use all the old Tamil words to threaten us kids. I started using all those words: "Better eat now, or you are going to be in the well!"

I lower Ganesha into the open well I took Ganesha in one hand and kept some food in the other hand. I showed him the well and told him, "See this well? I will throw you inside." I tried this two or three times. But he was not opening his mouth! There used to be a bucket with which they would draw water from the well. I put Ganesha in the bucket and started lowering him into the well with a small rope, and threatening him, "See? I will really drown you!" Within ten feet the water was there. It was a village well, and the groundwater level was very high. Especially in Arunachala, even with three hundred and sixty-seven tanks all around the hill, the groundwater level was still very high, just ten feet!

When the bucket was about to touch the water, I suddenly realized that he might have changed his mind and might want to eat, but I had not put any food in the bucket! If he changed his mind now, how would he eat? I had seen My uncles: they would carry the kid and show him the well and tell him, "I will throw you inside right now!" Then the kid would cry, "No! No! I will listen to whatever you say!"

So suddenly it struck Me, "If Ganesha has changed his mind now, how will he eat?" So I brought him out, placed some food also in the vessel, and started lowering him again. The bucket was almost touching the water surface, but nothing was happening. I did not have the heart to put Ganesha into the water either. It was too much. He really meant a lot to Me! He was no more a stone deity for Me. He was life for Me! If your child plays with a Barbie doll, you will understand what I am saying. For a child, that Barbie doll is a member of the family. In the same way, Ganesha was part of Me; he had become part of My very cognition! It was a very strong relationship, so I could only threaten him; I could not actually put him in the well! So, what to do? Finally, I took him out.

Then I thought, "Maybe he did not like the cooking; he did not like the food." See how kutarka works! Kutarka will say, "Everything is wrong except you!" Understand: that is kutarka. So I started thinking that maybe the food was not right; maybe My mother was not cooking properly.

Then I dropped the plan of feeding him that day, took him out and left him in the small temple which I had, and then I went to Arunachaleshwara temple. In the temple, they offer food to the deities every day. I thought that the food was actually eaten by the deities every day, so I went straight to the temple cook. I used to do a lot of voluntary work, like washing vessels and cleaning the floor in the temple. That was My only entertainment! You all have a separate entertainment track, right? In My life, entertainment also was related to the temple only. Spiritual things were entertainment for Me. No cinema, no drama. I have never played goli (traditional Tamil game with marbles) or catapult with the boys! All children play these games, right? But there was no such play in My life. From birth, the purpose of having come was My only focus! For what purpose I came, only that I attended to. I did not attend to anything else. These things may seem like small things. But these are major components. If other boys are playing, there will be at least a natural inclination to play, right? There was no question of that. From then till now, only one relationship existed for Me – disciple! No other relationship! At that time also, the boys around Me were disciples only!

So I asked the cook, "Will you give Me a little food for My Ganesha?" He said, "Why only a little food? Take a lot!" He gave Me a lot of it. I brought it home and said, “See! I have brought you the same diet which you eat in the temple every day! Now there is no reason, no excuse... come on, eat!” I was continuously thinking that deities ate the food in the temples! I never even imagined that they would just show the food to the deity and then bring it away! So I was sitting, sitting, sitting, for maybe three to four hours; he was not eating.

Then I said, “I have brought the right diet now; I am not going to let you go today.” Again, I put him in that bucket and started the same drama. By then, I had memorized all the abusive words My grandmother would utter to make a child eat! All those words I memorized like a shloka (chant) and started repeating them! I really thought that those words were very powerful and they would make him eat. All the techniques that I tried with My old diet, I tried step by step with this new diet. The bucket was almost at the water level. From above, I shouted, “Are you listening to what I am saying?” But of course, he was not eating. And I could not drown him, because I had a very loving relationship with him. So, what to do? Again, I took him out..!

SUNDARAMOORTHI Now retired from the temple service, Sundaramoorthi is the cook who served at that temple kitchen at the time, from who, I got the temple food to feed my Ganesha.

MADAPPALLI Arunchaleshwara temple kitchen

I can say that I was really depressed and very worried. In a completely low mood, I was just sitting. I had practically fixed all the problems. Whatever I was supposed to do, I had done. When My grandmother did all those things to any child, the child ate. And I knew only those techniques; I didn't know any other technique. I had not read any book on how to feed Ganesha or how to feed kids. Whatever manual was there in front of Me, I had worked out fully. But nothing was working. Ganesha was lying there, and I was sitting.

One nice thing with shraddha is, even if you start with kutarka, the power of trust is such, the power of shraddha is such, that it will turn the whole thing to vitarka - right logic, because 'trust' is not just energy or logic, it is intelligence.

Tarka is logic, kutarka is negative logic, constantly negating, and vitarka is trust with positive energy and logic. The shraddha was so powerful that suddenly, something clicked in Me. Oh God! I can say this was one of the most powerful clicks that happened in My life; a very strong click! When I decided to make Ganesha eat, My efforts were inauthentic. But, only from there you can move to authenticity. Even with inauthenticity, if you take responsibility and enrich, I tell you: the cosmos will appear as the Guru and give you the shift towards authenticity.

The cosmos finally gave Me that click. At that moment, the inner awakening happened in Me, “Maybe something is wrong inside Me.” I realized that Nambiyandar Nandi, the boy-saint who made Ganesha eat, had tortured himself, not Ganesha. He sacrificed himself! Here, I was torturing Ganesha, not Myself! That was the inauthenticity. I had to take the responsibility. I could not be constantly putting the blame on others! With this strong click, the kutarka became vitarka. The wrong reasoning became right reasoning. When that click happened, I thought, “Yes! Nambiyandar Nambi found fault only with himself when Ganesha did not eat, not with Ganesha or with the diet or with something else. He was not complaining about the outside; he turned inside.” In My case, I was complaining about Ganesha. I was trying what My granny was trying. I was talking about the diet. I was thinking that My mother was not cooking properly. I was thinking about everything in the outer world. I was finding fault with everything external. Suddenly, I realized, “Yes!” And I turned and looked in, understanding that the problem must be within Me. Let Me work on it.

For every achievement, the inspiration is only from inside. For every expression, experience is from only inside. Look in! Turn in. Looking in, turning in, you will find the solution for everything. That is the only way to inner awakening! You are so obsessed with looking out, you never look in - because you were never told; you never tried; you never believed.

Look in! That is the essence of life! As long as you think others are the source of a problem, it will never be solved. I realized: I am the Source; I am responsible; I should sacrifice; I should take the responsibility and I should enrich.

Understand: the biggest transformation that can happen to any human being is realizing: ‘I am the Source’. Just you understanding, ‘I am the Source’, and taking responsibility, will transform your inauthenticity into authenticity.

Kutarka, shraddha and vitarka That vitarka, that click, that right reasoning, happened in Me! It is a contemplation, a blissful flowering and the state of pure awareness. Please understand: it was a very strong click. “Yes, in Nambiyandar Nambi's case, he did tapas (spiritual discipline), but in My case, I was torturing Ganesha! No, let Me do tapas.”

Shraddha is like a loaded gun. When the right vitarka happens with shraddha, it is like triggering the gun. Without shraddha, without the strong trust, kutarka can never become vitarka; the wrong reasoning can never become the right reasoning.

See, the way in which thoughts are created in your system, if it leads you to the experience for which you are hardwired, you are having vitarka, right reasoning. When one thought leads to another thought, which leads to another thought, and suddenly you are in such a deeply relaxed feeling or experience, it is called vitarka. Any thought which creates negativity or ill feeling about yourself, and which radiates the same ill feeling about others, is called kutarka. If you are going against that for which you are hardwired, it is kutarka. If you are going in the direction for which you are hardwired, it is called vitarka.

So with shraddha, when the right reasoning happened, the trigger was pulled! Suddenly the click happened - “It is time I look inside; it is time I turn inside and change something inside Me.”

Then I decided, “I am not going to eat till Ganesha eats.” It was a strong will, authenticity. Even in those days, I used to be very strong-willed. Once I decide, it has to happen, that's all. It is Meenakshi's gift! With her authenticity, Meenakshi was just able to go straight to Kailash and finish off even Nandi!

Two days pass by... I don't give up! So I brought the food again and arranged everything. I actually used to have a small shrine, a kind of a temple, in the rear of the house. It was My own. I would be staying there and spending My time only there. I can say that is the first ashram I built for Myself and My deities! I used to spend My time there, so that nobody would disturb Me. Usually they would send My food there, or I would go and bring My food when it was time. Otherwise, I would be spending the whole day there. So I sat there with all the arrangements for Ganesha to eat.

One day passed - and the food was still there! I was very strong about no question of Myself eating. So I would go and bring food, keep it in front of Ganesha, remove the old food, throw it away, and sit and wait. One day and one night passed. I was not even sleepy; I was sitting. I had a strong will from My young age. If I decide, I decide, that's all. Even now, no one can influence My opinions! No one can impress upon My decisions. At the most, they can only request. The only way to dilute Me is by a request! The only heat, which can melt this steel, is a prayer or request, nothing else!

Again, the second day also passed. I was very strong. See, usually, for a small boy, without food, naturally the logic will become imbalanced; the willpower will come down. But I said, “Nothing doing. I am going to do it. I am not going to eat till he eats.”

We both sat. I did not have the doubt or the desire or the temptation of: “It’s OK, I will eat.” No! It was 'sitting with authenticity'.

the explosion happens!

Maybe on the third day, I touched the zone where trust and vitarka - right reasoning - both became part of My very bio-memory, My very system. That is when the explosion happened! I could see very clearly that My mind had risen to the level of bhava samadhi - the zone where solid is not solid, liquid is not liquid. It is like when ice and water meet and melt...that zone, neither formless, nor the physical form... Suddenly, I can say, I fell into some state, surely not unconsciousness, and I saw very clearly - Ganesha sitting in front of Me and eating! I have to tell you the truth: when I opened My eyes and saw, I promise, there was no food. The food had disappeared!

In whatever way you want to understand it, you can understand it, but the food was not there. And I know Ganesha ate it. People with kutarka might say, “Who knows, when you were closing your eyes, some rat could have come and eaten it!” Whether Ganesha ate it, or his rat ate it, let the kutarkis think about it! I know for sure: Ganesha ate it!

I experience the prasada he gave Me! When Ganesha eats what you offer, he gives you some prasada (sacred gift); he gives you some benefits, some boons. Strong trust and extraordinary ecstasy are the prasada, the gifts or boons that I received: “If I have received the prasada, it means he has eaten!” The whole being was in ecstasy! As a three-year-old boy, this experience gave Me such strong confidence and courage in the inner world. When I looked in, I got it: even God comes down to fulfill our request!

Samprajnata Samadhi Please understand: when I heard that saint’s story and started thinking, “When he can, why not Me?” That is tarka - right logic. When I started trying the wrong method, the wrong technique, it was kutarka - negative logic. And because of My trust, when the right thing clicked, it was vitarka, and it led to samprajnata samadhi - samadhi experienced through a beloved form.

What I had was samprajnata samadhi (being one with the Divine form) with Ganesha. He came out and started eating - that is called samprajnata samadhi, one level of samadhi. It is like a spiritual experience with the form of a deity, with a form of Existence.

All the enlightened masters’ forms are expressions of Existence. If you have samadhi experience with that form, it means that all other thoughts have disappeared, and only your Guru’s form is there in front of you; you are having samprajnata samadhi.

When Ganesha was himself eating, I had entered a different frequency. Those two-and-a-half days when he was not eating were normal, but when he was eating, for one or two hours, I was in a different frequency. When I came down from that experience, the food was not there. In this frequency also, the food had disappeared! When he was eating itself, I was not in the frequency of seeing any other object; I was not seeing the place where he was eating, I was not seeing the plate, I was not seeing the food; I was in a different frequency. In that frequency I saw only Ganesha eating. So except Ganesha, there was nothing in Me at that time. When I came down to the normal frequency, I saw the same Ganesha and the same plate, but the food was not there. So, in both the frequencies, the incident happened, but I experienced it in the higher frequency. When I came down to the lower frequency, I saw that the food was not there. We may think some rat ate the food. In that case, the darshan (vision of the Divine) would not have happened. We may think the darshan might have happened in some trance. But then there is no chance that the food also would have disappeared. So, since both have come together - the darshan and the food going missing - it can be confirmed that the incident is the truth.

I share about this miracle to Yogananda Puri This is the first miracle that happened in My life. The food was not completely missing. There were grains strewn here and there. When the elephant eats it will splatter it here and there right? It was like that. And the whole place became so fragrant and with a new kind of a feel!

See: when I narrate the story, what happens inside you depends on the state of your mind. But inside Me, it created a deep and ardent faith. If something creates faith in us then that is the truth only. It cannot be anything else.

Later, I told this incident of feeding Ganesha to Yogananda Puri. He could neither believe it nor disbelieve it. He came and saw the place where it happened. When he came and saw, he not only prostrated several times in that place, every time he came he would come to that spot and only then leave; he had so much respect for it!

The four tattvas: Integrity, Authenticity, Responsibility, Enriching

The possibility or incident that Ganesha came and ate in Nambiyandar Nambi's life was a reality for Me. I never questioned the factuality of that incident. I was very clear, because of the trust, that if he did not eat, there was some problem with Me, that's all! The kutarka, which happened with the actualities of our Puranas, is the worst thing that has happened to the Indian consciousness. Whether it happened because of themselves, or because of some foreign invasion teaching them, it is the worst thing that has happened to Indians.

Please understand: with the power of Integrity, I decided to feed Ganesha. With the power of Authenticity, I took the Responsibility of making him eat. After that experience, the joy of Enriching - sharing with the world - had started happening in My system!

I work with thousands of patients, meaning people with different kinds of diseases. I am well known for healing different kinds of patients and diseases. In My experience, I have understood many important secrets about the body and mind. I have read many of them in the Upanishads or the Puranas, or the traditional scriptures, but I have started realizing them experientially now. Please understand, literally what you believe as your body and mind becomes reality in your life in ten to twenty days. I have seen this happening.

The tremendous trust in the power of Integrity

Many times, people ask Me, "If I just say I am complete, how can I be complete?" You can, because you are nothing but the bunch of words you utter consciously or unconsciously to yourself or to others. Unfortunately, 99.99% of your words are unconsciously uttered. That is where the problem starts. So, many times you don't recognize the power of the words you utter, especially towards yourself. You should have tremendous trust over the power of your words, over the power of your integrity. You always feel, "I am integrated, but I still need to evolve".

If you declare completion now, you are complete. But if you say, "No! No! Now I am saying I am complete, but I am not complete." Then you have already decided that you don't want to be complete! Declare that you are complete! Roar like a lion and stand on completion! I tell you: you are nothing but the words you utter.

So understand, the first lesson you need to learn from this story is the ability to trust the power of your integrity. If you say, "I am free," you are free! If you say you are bound, you are bound! If you say you are a liar, you are a liar! If you say you are enriching, you are enriching! It is just you! If you utter the words, "I am efficient. I am powerful," you are that! If you utter the words, "No! I am powerless. I am inefficient," you are that!

The words you utter to yourself and to others is life! What a big relief! This can be good news for you if you start believing it. It can be great news for you if you start living it. It can be bad news for you if you start worrying about it.

The second truth you need to know is about the power of your authenticity. Even in the initial level, what you do might look like inauthenticity, but just stand by it; it will rise to the next level of authenticity. In this story, in the beginning, when I started feeding or planning to feed Ganesha, it was inauthentic. But, even if it was inauthentic, when you are authentic towards your inauthenticity, it will lead to authenticity!

The third important lesson you need to know: when you take responsibility, when you decide to become responsible, the whole cosmos simply listens to you, follows you! With responsibility, even if you sit in one corner, the very space changes the way the world responds towards you.

Vivekananda beautifully says, "In India, even if we want wealth, we sit under a tree and create the space. It happens around us!" He told these words in the U.S., the country which teaches you that you have to work so hard to accumulate wealth, and that if you sit with yourself, you may accumulate peace, but not even a piece of bread!

What do you think I did in My life? I just sat under the banyan tree at Bidadi and created the space. See the city happening here! Do you know that when this land was donated, it was infested with 1,800 snakes?! There was a snake farm here. Before donating this land to us, the owner moved the snake farm out. When he was welcoming Me to this land, he told Me, "Swamiji, we have moved almost all the snakes out. We had 30,000 snakes earlier. But during the transition, 1,800 snakes escaped, Swamiji!" Today, a city has happened! It took us two-and-a-half years just to get a telephone connection! But now, anything I speak sitting here, people are listening, sitting all over the world! I just created the space! Now this place has become the model, the source, for multiple spiritual cities to happen all over the world! So, when you take responsibility, when you sit and create the space, and you are ready to sacrifice, the world will simply move based on your word! The world moves as you want! The fourth truth you need to learn from this is: when Ganesha ate, I saw the tremendous joy, the inspiration to raise Myself to the next level, to enrich Myself and enrich others. It is not that after that, I kept quiet. I started creating a group of people who would go around and worship every Ganesha in the city and village.

BANYAN TREE, BENGALURU AADHEENAM I am under the Banyan tree at the Bengaluru Aadheenam on 2 Aug 2016, on the day of Guru Peyarchi, when, as per Vedic Astrology, the planet Guru moves from one house to the next

The experience of Ganesha eating gave birth to Ganesha in Me. After that, I remember - wherever Ganesha was seen, I would see that he was literally happening in Me! In Tiruvannamalai, every street will have ten Ganeshas! In that one year, that habit, that pattern of worshipping Ganesha that got developed, was there in My life till I left Tiruvannamalai.

Even if I went to school, which was at 8:30 in the morning, I would have to start from home at seven o'clock itself. The school was only two kilometers from My house. My elder brother would drive Me on a cycle.

Only later on I discovered that because the 'right side - left side' separation was not there in Me, I could not ride a cycle. Especially on a bicycle, you need to feel a separation between the right and left sides of you, because you need to give separate signals and balance it.

Only if your left side is suppressed, you will get the balance between left side and right side. For all of you, the left side will be suppressed because of others constantly telling you, "Don't touch with your left hand. Don't eat with your left hand. Don't do with your left hand." The left side becoming suppressed is a very big reason for you becoming normal human beings. When you are born, you are God only. When the left side becomes suppressed, you become normal humans. One portion of your body becomes suppressed. For Me, that suppression never happened. I never allowed that conditioning. From then till now I will eat with both hands. I can write with both hands even now. If you see Me during programs, I will autograph with both hands! I will give energy darshan (energy transmission) with both hands. But because the right and left are not separated, there would not be balance in the body. I would not be able to tell between right and left sides. The whole body would be like a single organism. There would be no split of right and left inside the consciousness, so I will not be able to balance; I would not be able to ride a cycle.

Till the end, My elder brother drove Me to school. Even after he left school, he would still drop Me. And he would curse Me, because at every spot, even at corner houses, where for the sake of vaastu parihara (remedy in Hindu system of architecture); or for warding off evil eyes, they would have placed a Ganesha deity, I would stop and worship! I would not leave even those Ganeshas! I would do all My shodashopachara puja (ritual of sixteen offerings), vandana (worship), namaskara (joining the palms in humble obeisance), and what not! I had My own protocol also - three times this, three times that - it was almost like ten minutes of akhada (physical exercise)!

For Me, it had become an experience. But this poor fellow, My elder brother...it was such a big torture for him! But he had to take Me to school every day! If he did not take Me, I had no problem, because I did not want to go to school anyway! But they wanted Me to go to school. See, the time it took for him to take Me to school, even that much time I would not spend in school itself! And the funny thing is, I would do the same thing on the way back also! Sometimes, if I was late, the school watchman would not even search for Me anywhere else. He would straightaway know that I would be doing this to every Ganesha!

From My house to the school, at least twenty-five Ganeshas were there. Without missing even once, try to do these three actions, three times each, twenty-five times - then you will understand! It is equivalent to doing akhada in twenty-five places! The Ganesha would be hiding in a small place, and I would stand in a corner so that I could see him! People would laugh seeing Me!

For almost a year, Ganesha was living with Me So in every one of you, the Divine has to incarnate. Sometimes, even a powerful click, a concept clicking within you, makes this incarnation happen inside you. Sometimes, even the darshan of the Guru makes the incarnation happen in you. Whether by the darshan of the Guru, or by the words of the Guru, or by the nearness or presence of the Guru, or on your own; sometimes, with even just a book, or some strong suffering, or some separation, or feeling of insecurity, or some accident, or some disease... Even these strong actions in life can make the incarnation happen in you. But in some form, in some way, the incarnation has to happen in you.

The vatavarana (ambience) matters! Whatever is in you is awakened by the external happenings or information. I have seen one of My friends... he was so interested in politics, that even at the age of eight, wherever political meetings happened, he would go and listen. Once the speaker left and the crowd dispersed, he would get onto the stage and give the same speech! He would scream in exactly the same way, "Soda! Soda!" (Usually, when the politicians spoke, they would ask for soda.)

We both had an agreement: he would help Me in My puja, I would assist him by giving him soda! I used to be his assistant when he gave his political discourses. When I did My puja, he would be My assistant, getting My flowers, making the sandalwood paste and all that. So, whatever is in you is awakened by the external happenings or information.

The western world kids are taught to live with Barbie dolls or cartoons that they see on television. Fortunately, God saved Me! I was born in a village in South India. From a young age, I was living and practicing the presence of God. What I understood about Ganesha at the age of three, and what I understand about Ganesha now, is different. But that understanding at the age of three only has led Me to this understanding. If I was too busy with Mickey Mouse, Tom and Jerry at the age of three, I would have been disillusioned at the age of thirteen that Tom and Jerry don't exist, but I would not have reached any higher under-standing.

Because I started living with Ganesha at the age of three, even at the age of thirty-five I had a higher understanding of Ganesha, which has led Me to higher and higher planes of existence - ishta nishtha and leela dhyana - practicing the presence of God, living with God!

I am talking on Ganesha at the every day morning satsang during Ganesh Brahmotsav on 5 Sep 2016 - Ganesh Chaturthi day - the celebration of Ganesha's birth.

In Hindu tradition, there is a concept called atma moorti, meaning 'my own version of Shiva' (or any deity). It means, “He is just my own version; nobody else is allowed.” This is called ishta nishtha or leela dhyana. Srimad Bhagavatam acknowledges this process as a very powerful spiritual practice. So having your own version of the Guru or God, and relating to it, is a very powerful process! It is called leela dhyana, literally 'living with Me'!

I have seen so many ordinary villagers in India, living with their chosen ideal and living the highest form of enlightened life, without even knowing the words Integrity, Authenticity, Responsibility and Enriching! Without knowing any of these words, they radiate enlightenment! I tell you, just this one truth, ishta nishtha and leela dhyana, has made millions of Indian villagers enlightened! Millions of Indian villagers practice the presence of God. So understand, unknowingly, you are practicing the presence of God!

But understand one thing: My Ganesha ate, but I cannot go to the temple and make that Ganesha eat, because the temple Ganesha belongs to the whole world. I cannot tell the temple Ganesha, “I will put you in the well!” But, I can play with My own version of Ganesha. I can tell him, “I will put you in the well!” I can do anything I want with him! I tell you, with your atma moorti, spiritual life starts. But you should take care that when you go to the temple, you don't lose that feeling-connection with the temple moorti also! You should understand that the temple moorti has space for everyone!

KARPAGA VINAYAGAR TEMPLE

The problem is, in your inner space, if you have place for one person, you don't have place for anybody else. That is why you go on believing that I am also like that! You are a house connection; I am a transformer! Understand: in your house, the electricity connection that you have, you can use only in your house; you cannot light up the whole city. You are a house connection; I am a transformer! I have place for everyone!

truths back to life

When an enlightened person happens in the body, he brings all the great truths to life. He brings everything back to life. Sometimes people ask Me, "Why did you do so much tapas, so much of spiritual practices, Swamiji? Why do you need to do all these things, like puja and feeding Ganesha? You are after all born enlightened; You could have expressed Your enlightenment directly." Understand: expressing enlightenment is one thing; bringing all these truths back to life through every incident, through every ritual, through every technique, is another thing. That is the purpose of an enlightened being landing in the human body!

INITIATION Manifesting shaktis happens from a space of Oneness

Paramahamsa Nithyananda is experienced by millions worldwide as The Avatar of this day and age, bringing permanent, precious solutions from ancient Hindu sacred texts for the global crisis being faced today. His Holiness is reviving sacred yogic sciences from Sanatana Hindu Dharma - including awakening of the kundalini shakti - our own highest potential energy, the third eye, and the expression of extraordinary powers. He works tirelessly to awaken individuals and communities to their highest possibility - a stress-free life of high achievement, power, bliss and advaita... Oneness.

The life of Paramahamsa Nithyananda is a living example of the shastras that were written so long ago by Bhagavan Sadashiva Himself. Every teaching He elaborates on today is a result of His intense practice on Himself and the resulting success. Out of His extraordinary compassion, The Avatar landed on Earth to once again revive the sacred secrets from Sanatana Hindu Dharma.

Ever since the beginning of civilization, Sanatana Hindu Dharma has been the cradle of enlightened beings and highly advanced sciences. It is where the science of enlightenment and powers (shaktis) were lived and taught as a lifestyle. Sadashiva speaks on 463 various shaktis including:

seeing through the third eye reading the past and the future through Akashic Readings creating alchemy products for spiritual evolution scanning bodies for disease and healing remote scanning for retrieving lost items levitation materialization of objects

Ebook ISBN: 979-8-88572-052-6

NITHYANANDA GURUKUL The center for creating a new species of power-manifesting humans. Featuring students of the gurukul demonstrating their powers in December 2016.

The initiated disciples of Paramahamsa Nithyananda express much more than just these powers through His powerful deekshas (initiations). These powers manifest from the ‘feeling connection’ and ‘integrity’ to the Divine, from the space of Oneness with the Divine. Through this, Paramahamsa Nithyananda re-establishes the ancient era of power manifesting beings on the planet.

Bhagavan Sadashiva refers to this Oneness as shuddhadavaitam.

He reveals in Vijñāna Bhairava Tantra, sutra 113, dhāraṇa 87:

Translation O Devi, listen to this sacred tradition, I shall reveal it you vividly, completely. Just keep your eyes completely wide open, do not see or perceive anything, by simply keeping it fixed with a steady gaze (on the reality within). By this, the state of aloneness [kaivalya], the Oneness that expresses as extraordinary powers and experiences will occur immediately.

Summary: In this sutra, Sadashiva reveals the technique of experiencing Oneness with Him and from that Oneness awakening the powers of the third eye.

The shaktis cannot be unlocked by the reading or studying of the agamas. It can happen only through initiation from a living incarnation.

One cannot taste the nectar by speaking about it. In the same way, the science of Oneness and the powers revealed by Sadashiva in the agamas, can be tasted, experienced and celebrated only from the Guru, who gives us the nectar of Oneness with the Divine that he embodies.

A Nithyananda Gurukul Student explains: “The moment I close my eyes, I just get into the space of Oneness with Swamiji. When I get into that space it’s a different realm, a different world altogether. So in that space it’s that reasonless, causeless joy. Then when I am asked, ‘where is the lost ring?’ I just see the whole scene happening, like a playback video with audio. And the moment you express these powers, your whole body, your whole being, just gets into a space that cannot be described. So much of sweetness and calmness; nothing can shake you!”