Discourse on Yoga Vasishtha
Day 121, March 31
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
The advantages gained by questioning about ourselves has been explained to us. Vichara is either asking ourselves for answers about our true identity or else approaching Sadguru or other enlightened persons for answers. The disadvantage of not inquiring about oneself has also been clearly stated. When we travel in an unfamiliar territory, such as in a dense, remote forest, it is best to seek guidance to avoid pitfalls. Those who neglect to engage in self enquiry are like the blind and the mute. Even great souls have attained liberation and enlightenment through Vichara alone. Great peace of mind will descend upon one who engages in Vichara.
Sage Vasishtha blesses Sri Rama. He praises Him that His mind is pure, unblemished, restrained, and focused, and hence He is seen to be fully established in Shama. We are at the end of this section.
The next topic is Santosha Niroopanam.
vichara
Engaging in inquiry is a great occupation. Those who follow this sadhana are much appreciated by the elders, just as everyone appreciates the sweet mango fruits. The disciples who ever are contemplative are looked upon favorably by Sadguru.
vicharakaantamatayaha
The forest is dense and dark. We have no lamp with us. We have no guide. Our journey through life is like that. It is very helpful to have a knowledgeable guide. In the Ramayana, Kabandha gives great advice to Sri Rama. Rama, you have no friend here to guide you. Lakshmana is with you. But he knows no more than you about this forest, or about Ravanasura. Lakshmana is valiant and strong, no doubt. But you need a friend who has the knowledge that will help you in your quest (for Sita). Good friendship will get you out of your difficulties. Sadguru is the best friend. He has the knowledge and the capacity to get you released from your troubles.
A wealthy man who has the resources but cannot understand your problems, will not help you. Hence, you need to seek the friendship of a suitable individual who is not arrogant, but will sympathize and offer help.
The forest has deep pits and concealed wells. You may take a wrong step in the forest and end up in danger without a lamp or a guide. One must light up one’s knowledge by the help of a guide. In the Himalayas, travel is treacherous. One has to have a guide.
Sorrow is a deep abyss. To avoid falling into that, one needs an efficient guide who knows the way. Kabandha gave directions to Sri Rama on how to travel towards the Pampa Lake and how to find Sugriva near the Matanga ashrama.
Those who travel under the guidance of a good guide will have a smooth and comfortable journey.
verse
Without proper knowledge, the traveler is the loser. Even a sick man will not weep with such intensity as one who has lost his way. Hundreds of dangers beset one who does not engage in Vichara. One must keep seeking answers. Atma here does not mean only soul. The term is used here to indicate our life’s journey. Our life itself gets wasted if we do not seek and learn the proper way of traveling through this wilderness.
Children must be taught to ask appropriate questions. A disciple must ask Sadguru and clear his doubts.
kardama
A frog keeps croaking in the mud. It attracts insects to eat with the sounds it makes. Such a frog is better than a person who never enquires about himself. The person who has not inclination for Vichara is worse than the germs and insects that live in excreta.
We use a mere 7-8% of our mental capacity. Our DNA got accustomed to such a low usage of our mental resources. Our great ancient seers have used their full intellectual capacity to learn and discover great secrets.
A serpent that never sees the sun light because it lies inert in a dark cave is better than a person who never asks about his own situation and plight in life.
sarvanartha
The tendency to never ask must be given up. The ego that prevents you from asking others, must be got rid of. The inferiority complex expressed by many that they are incapable of learning, is a wrong way of speaking. It is ignorance and foolishness to say that one lacks the capacity to learn. Unless one keeps the foot in the water one would not know how deep the water is. It may after all be very shallow. Sadguru must be approached for answers.
Great souls will remain aloof from those who are disinterested in learning. One must make an attempt to find out.
One must get close to Sadguru’s heart. One must keep serving with a pure mind and a genuine interest. Being physically close to Sadguru is not sufficient. It is more important to get an intimate place in Sadguru’s heart. Guru should remember you even in His dreams. One should not waste this precious lifetime.
One should walk in the path of devotion, dharma, and self-enquiry. Then your place gets reserved in Sadguru’s heart. We all wish for a comfortable life and a painless death. Vichara is the way to achieve those.
verse
Our situation will go bad if we avoid contemplation about ourselves and the nature of this life.
verse
Each person thinks that he is great. No one thinks that he is useless. He may say otherwise. But the greatness that lies within must be brought to light by constant contemplation and continuous exercise of caution.
In worldly matters, in education, business, and employment, one is constantly alert and cautious. But in spiritual matters one is careless. To get this human birth, one has expended great effort. We do not realize that. Instead of doubling this merit, we exhaust this merit on worthless things. This very valuable human life must be put to full use. The intellect must be constantly kept working in a useful manner. Those who chant the Hanuman Chalisa hundreds of times each day, will certainly chant the prayer in their dreams also. The prayer will get embedded in their hearts.
Great yogis require only an hour’s sleep because their minds are so restful and serene always.
The one who falls into a dark cavern will snatch some support and extricate himself. Vichara prevents such a fall in the first place, and if by some misfortune one falls, he will find a way to get out of his plight through Vichara.
verse
In some circumstances, it is very difficult to control and restrain the mind. Yes. The mind is a beast. It runs away like a deer. Even a tiger cannot always catch a deer that it chases. You have seen that in the Discovery channel. This life’s target is to overcome the delusion called this worldly life, by controlling the mind. The mind-beast has been chasing after likes and dislikes and is running towards the individual’s destruction. The mind must be restrained and pulled aside and rescued from perishing in that powerful current that draws it towards peril. When you have rescued the mind, you have rescued yourself.
koham
What should one ask about? Not about when one will get married, or when one will get a child.
Ask: Who am I?
This is most important. The Upanishads say that the individual soul and the Supreme Soul are one and the same. Then why am I caught in this miserable situation? What is troubling me and why? If I am divine, then where is this flaw emerging from that is destroying true bliss which is said to be my true nature?
Akhanda mandalakaram … Guru is Jnana which is all-pervading. That is Paramatma. It is easy to simply hear the words. But to understand the essence will take a lifetime of Vichara.
Dehe jeevatvamaapannam … There is a soul imposed upon this body. How to bridge the gap between the individual and the Supreme?
Tat is Paramatman. Asi is the bridge. Tvam Asi. Then you go from Tvam to Tat. Then you will understand the meaning of Tatvamasi – the great statement of the Upanishat.
The answer will come during this study after a couple of years perhaps. It cannot be explained now. We have to reach that stage through continuing this study.
The knowledge should become a total personal experience. During this journey, many doubts will trouble the mind. Sadguru will dispel all those doubts.
There is a king of all questions. It is: Who am I? There is no greater question than this. All other questions will emerge from this. This is the mother of all questions.
verse
A blind man is not really a blind man. The one who does not pose the above question is the really blind man. The physically blind man is actually very intelligent and sharp. We realize the value of our eyesight only when we find ourselves in pitch darkness.
The man who never asks this question, is the most hard-hearted of all persons.
Kausalya asked: Has my heart been fashioned out of stone by Brahma? Why is it not splitting after knowing that Rama is going away to the forest for 14 years?
bhaava abhaava
Real and unreal have to be distinguished. Even a stone we worship because we see God in it. We see consciousness in the stone. It has been worshiped for 2000 years, we have been told. If one can see God everywhere, and if one can see every stone as a Siva Lingam, it is great. But do not ridicule such a belief. It is not a frivolous thought. It is not an idea to be made fun of.
This world, this universe, are all unreal and impermanent. We must accept and acknowledge only the real. Unless this difference is recognized and grasped, between what is real and what is unreal, it means that one still lacks proper discretion. In the spiritual path, in the path of knowledge, Vichara alone grants this clear understanding.
Now, it is emphasized that Tatvam – spiritual awareness and serenity of mind will occur only through Vichara. Other paths involve stress and strain. The path of Vichara is free from any physical stress and strain. It bestows peace of mind. All sorrows will disappear. This is what everyone wishes for. Everyone wants all sorrows to go away. No one wishes to preserve a few sorrows and safeguard them in their cabinet.
This is the final conclusion. In the last verse, Sage Vasishtha is blessing us all as he blesses Sri Rama.
verse
It is only through Vichara that one obtains the complete benefit. Doing abhishekam in Kasi will promote devotion within us. But devotion alone is not sufficient. It will not liberate us. The battery in the torch light will function for only 2 hours. But that is not sufficient. We need a battery whose charge will last till sunrise. Otherwise when the battery runs out, we will be left in the dark.
If action alone is performed, without devotion, it may yield only a small reward. The small amount of focus and contemplation that we employ as we do our prescribed karma/action, will make the action yield us the full reward. That is how important Vichara is.
Purnaphala offering is a complete surrender to God and giving the responsibility to God of rescuing us from our troubles. Leave the manner of fulfillment to Him. Mother may use a vegetable in sambar or she may make a chutney with it. She will feed it to you in some manner.
Vichara will empower one fully. In worldly affairs, in pious activities, and in spiritual awakening, Vichara plays a pivotal role.
The poetry in this work is exceptional. Those who relish the poetic style and the beauty of the Sanskrit language will totally appreciate the manner in which this deep subject is handled so beautifully in poetry.
Sri Rama! Merely restraining the mind is not sufficient. It should be directed to move in the proper direction. An elephant cannot be kept tied up all the time. It should be tamed and then taken for exercise along a proper path. Cows are tamed, trained and then left free to walk. They do not then go astray.
Sri Rama, Vichara is most important.
A detailed analysis, description, and praise have been given about Vichara with the final instruction to Rama that He should continuously engage in Vichara with absolutely no respite. This is a very notable, worthy, and crucial activity.
Next, we deal with Santosha – happiness. That is the next topic. Once sorrows vanish, happiness is what remains.
santosha
We will continue when we meet again after my return from the tour.
On April 6, Sri Swamiji is giving a concert at the Sydney Opera House. It will be shown live at the Nada Mantapa. Please do not miss watching it live on the appropriate channels at home also. Swamiji Himself has said that this has been His dream to perform this concert. It will also be in a different format. A very important concert that one must listen to, without falling asleep. Sri Swamiji proceeds from there to New Zealand. He is expected to return to Mysore around the 16th.
Sri Bala Swamiji will be stopping in Malaysia on His way back from Australia. He will then proceed to Chennai. Tamil New Year’s Day will be celebrated in Chennai. In Nadupalani a new Kalyana Mantapa will be inaugurated. On the 16th of April, he will return to Mysore.
April 23 is Sri Jayalakshmi Mata Aradhana. There will be a week’s time in between, hopefully, to speak about Santosha/happiness. Remain happy till then. Do not wait for the discussion about happiness, to experience happiness. One should always be happy. Troubles, after all they come and go. For a spiritual life, remaining always joyful mentally is very important. Laughing outwardly alone is not useful. One should never be morose and anxious.
Deliberately suppressing laughter and trying to appear overly solemn will not benefit in any way. That is a huge mistake. Happiness is a natural state. Be smiling and relaxed. I pray that Sadguru should bless everyone with happiness.
Jaya Guru Datta
Sri GuruDatta
Om santissantissantihi