Discourse on Yoga Vasishtha
Day 9, July 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
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
Yesterday we learned some important points taught by Sage Valmiki in the 3rd sarga.
Bharadwaja prayed to Valmiki to teach him how to attain Moksha.
Speaking about liberation, it seems to us as if Sage Valmiki took us to the very depths of an ocean all at once. We feel as if even at the outset he has disclosed to us a very valuable secret. How we swim in the ocean will vary according to our knowledge of its depth. If we know the height of a mountain, we will adjust our pace of climbing it accordingly. Sage Valmiki wanted to caution us beforehand so that we do not become too daring and dive in too hastily to our detriment. Out of compassion towards us, he has alerted us that to attain Moksha, we have to first discard the baggage that we have burdened ourselves with, and secondly that we have to understand that whatever appears before us as the world, is not real.
In the Guru Gita there is a verse that extols Siva as one who assumes the forms of the seen, the seer, and seeing, and also that He is with and without form. – Drgdrsya ….
Remove this world from your mind, we are told. That is the state of liberation. It is difficult to grasp this idea and it is in fact quite difficult to put it into practice. It is to facilitate this that the Vedas have come up with the procedure of worship of a form. It helps us to visualize the Paramatma. In our temples we have deities with form. By offering worship with concentration to the deities, the mind becomes steady and one-pointed. The Guru Gita elaborately describes the importance of Sadguru and lays emphasis on first focusing the mind on Sadguru’s form.
Aapaadamouli paryantam …
From the foot to the top of the head, by visualizing the form of Sadguru, the hurdles in the path to liberation get removed, and success will result, the Guru Gita declares. This technique is actually ‘envisioning one’s own form’ – Swarupa Dhyana. There is a huge difference between visualizing form and visualizing one’s own form.
Swarupa means bliss. The Almighty’s form is bliss. Sadguru’s form is bliss. The bliss obtained by the visualization of Sadguru or Paramatma is not obtained by the visualization of the form of other individuals.
In a bhajan composed by Sri Swamiji, the sentiment is expressed that when the form of Mother Goddess is envisioned, the mind gets filled with her divine beauty and bliss. Why does this happen?
Generally people like to think of those who are superior to themselves. They wish to be like them in looks, qualities and prosperity. Deep contemplation about a movie star, for instance, will not change the looks of the person who is engaged in such contemplation; he does not acquire the glamorous looks of the movie idol. However, when Mother Goddess is deeply contemplated upon, certain radiance is acquired by the person. One gets attracted to such a person.
Why is this so?
The movie star’s face that you contemplate upon is a made up face. It is not the real appearance of the actor or actress. The moment they wash their face after the movie shooting session is over, they appear ordinary. Also, the movie star is not aware that you are thinking of that particular person at length.
But God knows when you deeply contemplate upon Him. He reciprocates by gracing you with a wave of energy. That wave of energy envelops you by His grace and brings about a transformation in you. It fills you with bliss and comfort. That is the benefit of Swarupa Dhyana.
Hence, when Sadguru is meditated upon, it is not contemplation of a form, but a contemplation of one’s own form.
Such contemplation results not only in bliss and a sense of comfort, but also in the removal of obstacles in the path towards liberation, such as, listening to Vedanta, seeking liberation, in the removal of sorrows, and the experience of oneness with God. Desires get fulfilled. One, who has obtained such supreme bliss, will not even entertain any worldly desires. He ever remains happy and contented.
Drsya maarjana – sounds nice to listen to, ‘sweep out all that is seen’. But it is not that easy to accomplish.
It is not like taking a broom and sweeping a small room, or a large prayer hall, nor even the entire city of Mysore. What if you are asked to accomplish the latter in a matter of half an hour? It is next to impossible.
Therefore, we begin to question how such a task can be accomplished. We have been witnessing this world for so many years. How can we just wipe out this world from our awareness and experience?
If we find it difficult to do so, we are told to begin by Saguna Upasana, worship of God with form. What is important is that we realize that there is a stage to aim for, a state of being where the world picture is wiped away from the mind. As the form of Sadguru or the form of a deity is contemplated upon with steadiness and one-pointed focus for a certain length of time, gradually that form fades and an effulgence and divine bliss are experienced. Even when a divine form is focused upon, it is the same result that is obtained, which is an experience of bliss. Sometimes a seeker brushes away this experience out of fear. To prevent that, here the seeker is being introduced to the experience by Sage Valmiki ahead of time as to what a seeker may expect.
The next step is to get rid of the vasanas/inborn tendencies which afflict the mind. It is these which cause repeated births. If the tendencies do not get exhausted in one lifetime, then another birth occurs to give a chance to exhaust them. It is mind that causes repeated births.
What does it mean when it is said that mind alone is responsible for both bondage and release? This is what it means. When the sense organs cease functioning and the body is given up, the mind still exists and continues to function and becomes the cause for another lifetime is past tendencies remain in it.
This entire life experience is nothing but the play of our own mind. The tendencies that adhere to the mind have to be totally removed. That is what is called Moksha/liberation.
Yesterday we were given a beautiful example as to how this happens. Just as when summer begins, the snow melts even in the Himalayas, when the vasanas/tendencies leave the mind, the way the winter season leaves, the cycle of births and deaths disappears, melting away like snow.
Ayam vaasanayaa deho..
Why should the vasanas be exhausted? What harm is caused by them? They are the danger. It is not that they cause danger. Why are they considered harmful? Once mind harbors desires/vasanas, a cage inevitably gets constructed by the mind as if to imprison the bird. The mind fabricates the body-cage that will facilitate its satisfaction of the desires it entertains. The moment any desire takes hold, the five elements come together to form the body-cage.
An example is given. The mind acts like the thread that holds together all the pearls to make a string of pearls. It does this with the help of the vasanas. The substance that constitutes Mind is nothing but vasanas/tendencies. This must be clearly understood. To experience liberation, mind should be obliterated.
The next question that may be raised is this:
When we sweep the floor to clean it, we keep all the essential items intact and only remove the dust, trash, and the unwanted debris. We do not completely clear the floor including the essential items. But you are asking us to clear the mind of everything. Should we not keep what is desirable and discard only what is undesirable?
The answer is given.
There are two types of tendencies, no doubt. Certainly the wicked and harmful tendencies we are ready to reject and discard. But there are also those tendencies that give us pleasure.
But, even good things become undesirable if they are in excess. Even incense can become oppressive and cause us to sneeze, cough or suffocate. Then it may asked, what if the good tendencies are maintained at a comfortable and pleasing level?
Good tendencies will cause us to be born at a location where it is convenient to pursue the study of Vedanta to eventually attain liberation. Those with wicked tendencies will get thrown into hellish locations which will give them a life of torment. Lord Krishna says so in the Bhagavad Gita. The wicked mind itself searches for a suitable location to be born where it can indulge in satisfying its evil desires.
Because it is difficult for us to understand that it is our mind that is searching for either bad or good locations to take birth in based on the tendencies cultivated, the Bhagavad Gita says that God grants these as Jnana Swaroopa/manifestation of spiritual wisdom.
Your own mind determines as per its nature and aptitude where it is to be reborn. The mind preplans everything. It is yourself/your mind that has preplanned all that is occurring now, including that you are eagerly listening to this lecture on Vedanta.
It is difficult to grasp that it is we who are responsible for all that happens to us. To make it easy to understand, it is said that God preplans everything as per our actions. We are told that we have to go according to whatever He has ordained.
God is described as Manonatha/Lord of the Mind. If our mind is surrendered to Him, then He will determine to have us perform good deeds and to have us develop good tendencies so that we take birth in a good location.
In the Muktikopanishad, Sri Rama gives this same instruction/Upadesa to Hanuman. Evil tendencies cause repeated births. Clean tendencies eventually lead to the end of births.
When children ask us why they should study, we tell them: if you study, you will have a comfortable life. If you do not study, you will suffer in life. This is similar logic.
What strategy we use is up to us. This is called yoga. We need to lay down a path to lead a good life. For a good worldly life we need to follow the path of Dharma. Suddha Vasana/clean tendencies will propel us towards the path which will lead to the cessation of births. Therefore, it is important to cultivate such pure tendencies.
Some may say: Why should we avoid rebirth? We are enjoying this life on earth.
Those of us who have reached this stage spiritually should not speak like that. We have to have better discretion than the ignorant. We must understand that not being born is the state of bliss.
Ajnana ..
What form do the wicked tendencies of the mind take? They take the form of an escalated ego. They take the form of atheistic arguments. They take the form of a denial of the existence of God. They create highly self-centered personalities which look down upon all others. Their minds insult even the Vedas and God. Ghanaahankaara/bloated and strong ego is certain cause for rebirth, since a person with this tendency firmly believes that he is the doer of all things that he considers as great.
It is further explained thus: When you plan a crop, after the soil is prepared and after sufficient rains have moistened the earth, you sow the seeds. If Ajnana/ignorance is the field, the seeds called bad tendencies have been planted there and have been supplied with water called Ragadwesha, meaning attachment and hatred. Ego is the fertilizer that promotes their growth. What kind of a crop gets harvested there? Nothing other repeated births filled with nothing but grief.
Only by the acquisition of Jnana, the bad tendencies will get destroyed.
If we wish to grow a useful crop, we must first clean the land. We must first remove all the harmful weeds which give bad odor, are harmful, serve absolutely no useful purpose, consume all the nutrients from the soil and prevent the growth of any good crop. This idea is most important in Vedanta. Before getting highly ambitious about what is going to be planted, we should first and foremost remove all poisonous and harmful weeds from the land. We must get rid of all the bad tendencies.
Punarjanma..
Suppose the entire crop is burned to ashes. What happens then? All the seeds in the ground also get burned. They will not sprout again. Even if you carefully collect the seeds and sow them, they simply will not sprout. They are like seeds that are fried and have lost their life force.
The good vasanas/tendencies are like such burned seeds. They will not cause rebirth.
What will be the state of such a person who has burned to ashes all his tendencies? He will be a Jeevanmukta/liberated while still living. His body will still remain. It will not simply crumble and disappear. How does that happen?
Apunarjanma …
A wonderful example is given. A potter’s wheel keeps turning as the potter shapes the clay pot. Even after he removes the pot from the wheel, the wheel continues to turn until its momentum reduces and it naturally comes to a halt. Why does the wheel keep turning even after the pot is taken off? It is the nature of the wheel to turn, so it turns.
Similarly, a Jeevanmukta is one who has removed the pot from the wheel. He has exhausted all tendencies. But the wheel keeps turning until naturally it comes to a stop. Since he has worn a body, it continues to exist for a while until its karmas are all exhausted, but it does not cause rebirth. The turning potter’s wheel does not by itself create another pot until the potter initiates the process afresh with fresh clay.
This is the state of a Jeevanmukta.
People, without understanding the state of a Jnani, assume that the life of a Jnani is like that of an ordinary individual, and hence, do not get motivated to attain Jnana/spiritual enlightenment. It appears as if the Jnanis/enlightened ones are not liberated. But they are liberated and they live in a state of bliss. The wheel is simply turning. That is all. The body simply exists until its time is up.
Ye suddha ..
Who are Jeevanmuktas? They are the ones who experience bliss even while they are alive.
Many people are not attracted by the prospect of attaining liberation after death. They wish for a taste of bliss while they are still in the body. How does that state of eternal bliss feel? Has anyone had such an experience? Yes. Certainly. Incarnations as Lord Krishna and Lord Rama, Sages like Vasishtha, Rajarshis like King Janaka, Avadhootas like Suka, and such. There are several examples of Jeevanmuktas. Our own Sadguru is a Jeevanmukta.
They are not subject to the misery called rebirth. They may opt to assume a body of their own free will at any time. They feel no unhappiness in their lives. When you look at the hardships faced by Swamiji in his early life, we wonder. But he went through those circumstances deliberately for the purpose of showing us the process of spiritual evolution. He suffered no pain while going through the incidents of his life. We feel that he had suffered a lot. He never viewed it as suffering. Had he really thought of it as suffering, would he be like this today, grown to perfection and uplifting so many souls all over the world? His is the state of Jeevanmukti. He has realized whatever there is to realize. He does not announce to the world his status by wearing any crown or outward sign. When we approach Him, we feel peace, we experience bliss, and we feel like ever remaining close to Him. He removes our difficulties and our restlessness. All these we experience. But in his physical form there is no change. His attire is even simpler than ours and hence, he may appear a little different from the rest of us. That is all.
A Jeevanmukta has gained the highest knowledge. His intellect is most highly developed. All His vasanas are exhausted, except the minimal quantity required to maintain his the physical body. Once this body is given up, he will not be burdened with another body.
The strange wheel that is talked about here has a depression at the center. We are placed there and we keep constantly running and going round and round in place while the wheel is turning. Sometimes they show a mouse running in place on a wheel generating enough power to light a light bulb. Like that, we keep running while the wheel of birth and death turns endlessly and we find no way of getting off from the wheel to get any respite.
Sage Valmiki told Bharadwaja that he is now teaching him the yoga that would give him the state of a Jeevanmukta where old age and death will not bother him and he will enjoy peace and bliss.
This does not mean that the aged person becomes young again. It is true that with Jnana, the person does become radiant and will revive youthful energy. At 90 some persons appear as 19 year olds, not physically, but mentally. All the burdens and contaminants are lifted from both body and mind. Another birth with its accompanying old age and death are certainly averted.
You have earned all the qualifications required to study this science by which you will attain all types of knowledge and manifold benefits. You are disciplined, loyal, well-read, humble, and most eligible, said Valmiki to Bharadwaja. He continues with the narration of Rama’s story.
Rama returned from Guru Kula/boarding school after completing his education and approached his father King Dasaratha.
Sage Valmiki beautifully describes the way Rama prostrated to his father in all humility, affection, and eagerness.
Rama was likened to a swan. He approached the feet of his father which were like lotus blooms. The toe nails were like the stamens of the flowers.
Rama was as pure as a swan. We must become pure as swans to be able to grasp this highest knowledge. Never belittle yourselves by saying: We are not even like crows. How can we turn into swans? You must make an attempt and then you will succeed. A swan possesses the unique capacity to separate milk from water and consume either the milk or the water as it chooses.
In life we must develop similar discretion to distinguish between what is pure and what is impure.
Sri Rama’s devotion towards his father was most remarkable. Dasaratha was very happy to see Rama and to receive his obeisance.
In Yoga Vasishtha, Sri Rama’s first words are spoken here: “Father, I have a strong urge to visit all the important pilgrimage centers, visit all the temples, take a dip in all the oceans, and bathe in all the sacred rivers of the country.”
Sacred precincts have a definite purifying effect on the mind. That is why it is said that Vedanta discourses should be heard in temples, ashramas, or at home in a sanctified spot. We must visit our nearby temples at least once a week. There will be powerful spiritual vibrations there which will have a beneficial effect upon us. If the surroundings are unholy, our minds get spoiled.
A pilgrimage is equivalent to performing a Yajna. The mind gets cleansed. The bad tendencies of the mind get removed and good tendencies will be acquired.
Take your children to the temple in the evenings. If some programs are taking place there, have them sit there and attend the programs. The vibrations in the temple will help the children. Their fears, tensions and stress will be reduced. Give children an opportunity to play. But do not leave them in front of the television. Never think that if the children are occupied in watching television, then you can freely engage in your gossip without any interruptions. If you cannot take the children to the temple, at least sit with them in the puja room at home for a few minutes every day. That is the purpose of the Puja Room.
Here it is shown how the elders should be approached with our requests. It is important to first recognize and acknowledge the great characteristics possessed by them and express them to them. This is not meant as flattery but as a desire to imbibe such virtues ourselves. That is the purpose of enumerating their virtues.
“Father, no one has ever approached you asking for a favor, and gone away empty-handed. That is your greatness. That is why I am seeking your permission now to go on a pilgrimage.”
Dasaratha consulted his guru Vasishtha, and with his approval, chose an auspicious date and sent Rama and his brothers on a pilgrimage accompanied by a small entourage. As Rama walked along the royal highway at the commencement of his journey, the people of the city showered white puffed grains upon his head to wish him bon voyage. Valmiki poetically describes this incident. Rama appeared like the Himalayan Mountain with snowflakes falling upon his head.
Rama did not treat his pilgrimage like a picnic. He took holy baths in all the sacred rivers, oceans, ponds, and hot springs.
In Tirupati, there is Jabali Teertha. It is one amongst hundreds of holy ponds. These days it is pathetic that people are polluting these sacred waters by washing clothes there with soap using the holy water. How is it possible for us to take a holy dip there? What is it we can do under such circumstances? We can begin to clean up the place. The same thing happened to us when we went to Kadiri. We used flashlights and began cleaning up since it was getting dark. Seeing us, a hundred people of the town came there. The city officers came there inquiring what was going on. Learning of our attempts to clean up the place, they promised to clean it up and to maintain it properly hereafter. If we take the initiative, others will follow our example.
What should we do when we visit holy places? We should give charity to the needy; we should honor the scholars with gratuity; we should bathe in the holy waters; we should offer worship; we should chant mantras; and we should meditate. That is what is prescribed as Kriya Yoga when we visit holy places. That will complete the pilgrimage. That is what Yoga Vasishtha is reminding us to do.
Rama performed all these prescribed activities as he traveled to the various shrines and holy rivers and lakes, traveling through cities, towns, forests, mountain ranges, and wildernesses. He bathed in all the four seas, visited all the 64 Harihara shrines, saw lakes such as Manasarovara, worshiped at temples like Kedar, Badari, visited ashramas of holy sages in forests like Naimisharanya, had darshan of deities at Swami Malai, Srisailam, Muktinatha Kshetra, Hayagreeva Kshetra, etc. Some holy places he visited again and again.
The way Siva returned to Kailasa, Rama returned to Ayodhya. Siva is mentioned here to remind us of the oneness of Siva and Vishnu. Siva has transcended all desires. He is a symbol of dispassion. Being thus, He fulfills all of our desires.
Rama left Ayodhya looking like Vishnu, fully adorned with ornaments and looking regal. But he returned looking like Siva devoid of all adornments, disheveled and unkempt. He laughed for no reason. He failed to be amused at what others considered as funny.
When Rama was in Chitrakuta with Sita and Lakshmana during his exile later, he was described as resembling Siva, with Sita appearing as Parvati, and Lakshmana as Nandi.
Rama appearing as Siva, upon his return received Upadesa from Sage Vasishtha and shared that sacred knowledge with all of us.
We will continue tomorrow with the 4th sarga.
Jaya Guru Datta
Sri Guru Datta
Om Santissantissantihi