Discourse on Yoga Vasishtha
Day 102, February 22
Jaya Guru Datta
Sri Ganesaya Namaha
Sri Saraswatyai Namaha
Sripada Vallabha
Narasimha Saraswati
Sri Guru Dattatreyaya Namaha
Sri Ganapati Sachchidananda Sadgurubhyo Namaha
asato ma sadgamaya
tamaso ma jyotirgamaya
mrityor ma amrtam gamaya
Om Santissantissantihi
Please lead me from untruth to Truth, from darkness to light, from death to immortality. May there be peace.
Yoga Vasishtha Dhyana Slokas:
yatassarvāṇi bhūtāni pratibhānti sthitāni ca
yatraivōpaśamaṁ yānti tasmai satyātmanē namaḥ || 1
jñātā jñānaṁ tathā jñēyaṁ draṣṭādarśana dr̥śyabhūḥ
kartā hētuḥ kriyā yasmāt tasmai jñaptyātmanē namaḥ || 2
sphuranti sīkarā yasmāt ānanandasyāṁbarē vanau
sarvēṣām jīvanam tasmai brahmānandātmanē namaḥ || 3
Om santissantissantihi
Without Jnana, life is worthless. Those who have no interest in obtaining Jnana, will have the tendency to commit any type of action to satisfy their own desires and needs for physical comforts. This will lead them to commit sins and eventually suffer the consequences of their sins in hell.
Many people curse others to go to hell and suffer. Once this body is given up, we continue without the body to suffer the results of our sins. The horrible descriptions of hell are given to deter us from committing bad deeds.
The question whether hell and heaven really exist, is irrelevant. Do we question whether our country, our town, our village and our home exist?
Garuda Purana especially gives a vivid description of the Raurava Naraka. Its purpose is to caution us to mend our behavior so that we do not fall into the state of having to suffer hell and its torments.
We also wish good things for our ancestors. Swarga is heaven. We pray after completing the meal (we first offer food to living creatures before consuming the meal) for the welfare of the ancestors who are stuck in hell and pray that they proceed to heaven. Giving charity grants great benefits. If we fail to engage in charity, we end up in hell. We must seek spiritual knowledge. Boasting that one is a Jnani, is harmful.
After the description of hell is given, the lifestyle and the nature of Jnanis is described. Every one of us seeks happiness. The moment we get fever, we feel the discomfort and try at once to get rid of it. Being free from discomfort is happiness. How do Jnanis manage to remain happy and contented all the time? How do they view the world? They look upon the activities of the world as if they are all part of a movie.
Before Sivaratri, we were discussing the 12th sarga. Jnana was extolled as the highest in the world. We have not yet reached the state of desirelessness for worldly things. Jnana is the most important thing in this world. In any field, to be successful, one needs intelligence and proper knowledge. Without knowledge, life becomes worthless.
Even a piece of paper thrown in the dust bin, still contains some information which may be useful to someone. Never should one feel that what one knows is sufficient. We are never content with the food we eat. A few hours after we have eaten, we look forward again to obtaining some tasty food. With acquisition of knowledge, one should retain consistent eagerness to learn more. Unless one continues to learn, progress stops.
A plant kept in the shade seeks sunlight and bends towards the source of light. Such a great lesson it teaches us. That is why Swamiji exhorts us to plant trees and protect trees. Because of deforestation, our water resources have dwindled. The roots of a tree dig deep into the earth to find water. We are often suppressed from progressing. We must, like the tree, dig deep and find our strength to grow.
Hanuman Chalisa Parayana is continuing.
Jaya Hanuman Jnana guna sagara …the first line of Hanuman Chalisa extols the greatness of Jnana.
Hanuman had developed all his virtues and also had become an ocean of knowledge.
Every night, one should review the day’s events and learn the lessons of the day. Every single day, the day’s mistakes have to be corrected and avoided in the future. In Surat, in a diamond factory, it is noticed how, due to consistent polishing, the diamonds become brilliant.
Bajarangi means radiant and strong like a diamond. That is how Hanuman is described. Regardless of how high one rises in life, the effort to gain knowledge must continue. Without knowledge, we cross our boundaries and resort to bad behavior such as abusing one’s own parents, gurus, deities, and resorting to all kinds of misbehavior. One who is knowledgeable will avoid such actions and such wicked behavior and its unfavorable consequences.
One must always be willing and eager to learn spiritual knowledge. Otherwise, the tendency is to identify oneself with the body and pampering it at any cost. Initially, people were concerned about the well being of the nation, then the community, and then it dwindled to concern only for the family. But now, one has degraded oneself to be concerned only about oneself and none others.
One must sit quietly with closed eyes and contemplate upon one’s consciousness. Unless hell is described and we are made to fear retribution, we will not have any fear of doing evil.
This description, such as what is given in the Garuda Purana, should not be read at home, it is said, because some weak-hearted persons may not be able to tolerate the graphic descriptions. It is permissible to read it in temples and other wide open places.
yatra ..
After entering hell, the description is given as to what might be found there. The cinemas give us some vivid pictures of what to expect in hell.
One is very hungry. When food is asked for, a large plate is placed before one. When the cover is removed, not idlis, but rocks will be there, served as food. They will force one to consume those. Knives are sharpened and heated and the bodies are sliced. They push one down a cliff. When the torture becomes unbearable, they will massage with rocks that are thrown at the persons from a distance. The persons are fried in hot oil. They place ice boulders on the body and insist that one should bear the torture and appear calm and satisfied. If any discomfort is shown, more torture will be applied. The way sandal paste is made, the body will be ground to paste for those who torment their parents.
They tie up a person between two trees and make one embrace a thorny bush. In hell, they torment the body till it disintegrates. They expect one to receive sharp arrows into the body with pleasure, or else, the punishment increases. The ignorant ones are placed in scorching heat of the sun. Policemen will endorse this terrible torture. One is tied up and ice water is dripped onto the forehead one drop at a time at regular intervals.
One must pretend as if the hellish punishments are actually enjoyable. If not, one gets beheaded. One should accept the chopping off of the head as if one is simply being put to sleep.
One is made to endure tortures which make the bodies grow big, or shrink terribly.
Many people are negligent and disregard these cautions and engage in terrible sins. The people who do not accept the notion that hell can occur after death, are made to be born again to suffer hell while living in this world.
In this Sastra, why are we introduced to these descriptions of tortures? This cycle of birth and death is constantly rotating. It is not a topic that deserves any ridicule. Those who make fun or speak frivolously of this serious topic will suffer unbearable consequences, O Sri Rama, says Sage Vasishtha.
How does one contemplate upon truth? One must listen, understand, and apply the knowledge in one’s life. Those who practice what is learned are the best. Those who understand the topic are of medium merit. Those who do not even understand are the worst.
Suppose water slowly drips into a bucket, when you are trying to fill a bucket, would you wait patiently? Or, would you get impatient and go elsewhere to fetch water from a well?
As soon as knowledge is gained, it should be put into practice in one’s life. One must only engage in beneficial acts and ever avoid any actions which cause harm.
Sri Rama, there is one other thing I wish to tell you. There are many scholars, pundits, sages, saints, seers, ascetics, and Rajarshis, who are wearing a shield called Knowledge that protects them. We are all engaged in battles daily. Life is referred to as a battlefield. To win this battle, one requires the shield called Knowledge.
All these worthy people appear very noble. But why are they still choosing to live in the body? We feel the same way about our Sadguru. For the enlightened, this worldly life is not painful. They are always comfortable and at peace. Their knowledge of Truth keeps them blissful. Their aim is only to share their blissful knowledge with others.
Samsara kadanartham ..
They and we live in this same world. We are all surrounded by the same people. We keep crying. But they remain blissful. What is the difference? Their knowledge is their bliss. Bliss and Truth are inseparable. This entire Sastra/scripture is aiming to tell us that everyone is in need of this knowledge. The last four verses describe the persons who are enlightened.
vikautukaaha..
Some people are ever curious, to an excessive level. They are always tense. They are curious about other people’s affairs. But such persons are not concerned about knowing about themselves. The enlightened are not concerned about the secrets of other people. Once you learn the secrets of others, there is an eagerness to share the secrets with some others. It leads to a complicated life.
The minds of the enlightened are always pure and uncontaminated. They are not bothered about the affairs of others.
Their minds are free from unrest and disturbances. The enlightened are like Brahma, Vishnu, and Siva. They are pure and pristine. They are the best among men.
Sri Rama is the best among men.
The enlightened have the inner light glowing brightly.
We think that our breath is the source of our lives. What is longevity? What causes one to live a certain duration of time? It is longevity. Some live for a hundred years. Some live for 90, or 60, or 30 years and some die inside the womb itself. For various reasons people die. What determines the lifespan? Our breath keeps us alive. What causes breathing? Our consciousness. Our soul. Our Chaitanya, the eternal flame that exists within us. The body is merely a cover around it. The enlightened are aware of its presence within.
Karma determines the lifespan for us. Karma regulates our lives. This body came to us due to karma. We keep paying rent. Once the lease expires, we have to leave the body. Performance of good deeds grants a good body and a long lifespan.
The enlightened remain happy and blissful always. We will also enjoy such bliss if we also acquire enlightenment. The Jeevanmuktas are described here in the next 3 verses. We will continue tomorrow.
All of you must chant the Hanuman Chalisa. Now a big group has gathered here. Please chant along. We must reach the target set by Sri Swamiji of 130 crore repetitions of Hanuman Chalisa. Please spread the word in your hometowns also.
Jaya Guru Datta
Sri Guru Datta
Om Santissantissantihi