Discourse on Yoga Vasishtha
Day 48, September 6
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.
Guru Dhyanam: Gurur Brahmaa, Sri Bhooyuta.. , Ajnana .. Akhanda, Dehe …, Akhandam ..
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
Brahmanandam, Sri Vasishtham Namami, Ramaya, Aapadaamapahartaaram, Om Purnamadah,
Om Santissantissantihi
26th sarga – Deva durvilaasa varnana in Yoga Vasishtha.
Datta Kriya Yoga training camp is being conducted here as a part of the Chaturmasya Deeksha program. More Telugu delegates are here. So I am going to begin the discourse today in Telugu and then continue in Kannada language.
Deva/Daivam/Kala/Yama/Niyama and his wife Niyati/Maha Kala/Mrityu Devata – are all the names applied to Time. We serve him with reverence. He is beyond our reach. Time entices us to follow the wrong path. We must not allow ourselves to be misled by the temptation placed before us by Time. With determination we must travel inward towards our soul, and not outward towards worldliness and destruction. Sri Rama describes all the pitfalls that we face when we succumb to the temptations of Time. He also gives us the positive picture of what we gain when we resist the temptations of Time/Daiva Durvilasa.
There is a memorable sloka that one should keep in mind.
Daivena deyamiti kaapurushaa vadanti – some people expect that without any effort on their part, God should grant them all good things all the time. They constantly blame God that He has not given them anything worthwhile. It is very wrong. They forever complain about the evil effects of Time.
Daivannihatya kuru paurushamaatma shaktyaa
God has given you immense personal strength. What more can you wish for? Kick Time in its face boldly and aim for success in your endeavors. Purusha is present in each one of us as our own immeasurably powerful and pulsating life force. He is there in men and women equally. Utilizing that power, you step forward to achieve. Success is not always guaranteed.
Yatne krite yadi na siddhyati kotra doshaha?
Okay. You have made the effort. It has not succeeded. So what? What is wrong in that? You have the satisfaction that you have done your best.
A man had one hundred stones. He threw 99 of them to make the mango fruit fall to the ground. He failed. In frustration, he left the last stone without aiming it at the fruit. What is the use? He should have made that last attempt also. Perhaps he would have got the fruit. Another person who threw all the 100 stones will go away even if he failed to get the fruit, with the satisfaction that he has not left even one stone without throwing it.
Unless you make an attempt, how will you ever succeed?
It is very tough to overcome the powerful force of Time, of Death, or Mrityu. Physically it is impossible to transcend Time. But it is possible to do it with the intellect. In relation to the immense power of Time/God, the five elements which make up our physical body are extremely weak and powerless. When even the sun and moon and all the spheres in the cosmos are withdrawn into Him, to imagine that with the physical body one can transcend Time is nothing but foolishness. It is similar to the foolishness of Trisanku. We should not make such an attempt. We should utilize the intellect which is more powerful than the five elements.
To explain in modern terms: In a computer, the hardware such as the monitor may be malfunctioning. It is possible to replace such parts if we save the chip/mother board or the sim card (if it is a telephone). The intelligent part of the computer that stores all the information is what is more valuable and useful. The body is like the hardware. The intellect is like the software.
Sri Rama reveals this secret to us.
Before Creation, only Paramatma/Supreme Soul is here, who is beyond Time. He is Mrityunjaya/beyond Death, Kaalaateeta/beyond Time, and Mahakaaleswara. With Creation, Time began. With Creation, destruction co-exists. Whatever is created comes always with an expiry date.
Suvilaasa is orderly sport. But Durvilaasa is sporting without any rules. It is reckless play. He/Time or Death kicks us between the goals of birth and death as per his whim and fancy. With body it is impossible to conquer him. The body that is built of the five elements lacks the capacity to overcome Time. Only the intellect is capable of winning over him. Yoga and Jnana are one and the same. With them he can be conquered.
Once, Yama himself came to take a man. The man was happily enjoying himself. The man said to Yama: Do not be so merciless. I am not ready to go yet. Yama said: your name is first on the list. I have to take you away. The man said: Please stay and let us discuss the matter. The man offered him coffee. Yama obliged. He drinks the coffee of the ocean of deluge. But he still accepted this regular coffee. Yama fell asleep. The man, using common human mentality, mixed a sleeping tablet in his coffee. The man took Yama’s list and struck off his name at the top of the list and placed it at the bottom. Yama woke up. Being happy at the offer of the delicious coffee by this human, Yama said: I have taken pity on you. I will follow the list in the reverse order. One can never trick death. We found that Yama shows no mercy on anyone. All those who have tried to conquer death with the body, have failed to do so. The soul has to merge in the Paramatma. That is the goal of Yoga and Vedanta. That is what we should pursue to achieve.
We have already learned about the negative aspects of childhood, youth, old age, the attractions between men and women, and endless desires for worldly enjoyments.
We must give up our pursuit of worldly things. We must follow the instructions of Guru and capture the essence of His wisdom. It is difficult to grasp. We must relentlessly pursue our learning of spiritual wisdom.
The sense organs are our enemies. We must never be under the control of the senses. The senses have to be kept engaged in good deeds and must be kept under our control. For each sense organ, we must give good duties. If we allow the sense organs to remain idle, they will spoil the mind. The ears must be made to listen to good things like the glories of God. The eyes must be forced to view only good things, like have the darshan of God. The tongue must be made to sing the praises of God. If the senses are properly engaged, they become our friends. A child who is not given a proper education will turn against us. A youth, who is not given a proper occupation, will begin to cause harm to the country itself.
One, who is devoted, uses his sense organs and limbs only in the service of God. Devotion is very important in Yoga. Without devotion and faith, no Jnana can be obtained. It is foolish to give up devotion. It is ignorance to think that devotion is not a requirement in life. The enemies are our sense organs. The path of devotion is effective in keeping the senses properly occupied.
Mind is one’s greatest friend. Mind is also one’s worst enemy. This is very important to remember. The mind should always be under a close observation. It should always be kept on the right track deliberately. That our own companions, our sense organs become our enemies is Deva Durvilasam. They prevent us from seeking Truth. They obstruct our journey inward. They make us engage in actions which give us only negative results. We must guard ourselves against their bad influence.
The ego destroys your clear vision. It puts a curtain before your eyes. The Intellect thinks of pale and unworthy things and ignores the advice given by Sadguru about Truth. Our own body causes grief to our mind. This is Daiva Durvilaasa. The ego degrades us into a low level and projects an inferior picture of ourselves. It gives a distorted and ugly picture of ourselves. It is like seeing a good reflection in a proper mirror and seeing horrible distortions in a crooked, concave or convex mirror. Children get frightened also, looking at such reflections. They keep such mirrors in some museums. Such wrong reflections cause fear in us. The ego similarly shows us a false picture of us as if we are the instruments of our success. This picture limits our potential to our estimation of our capacity. A real reflection will reveal to us that we are actually the instruments in Sadguru’s hands and that we are as unlimited in our potential as Sadguru Himself. Ego thus puts a stain on our personality. Ego should be given up.
In childhood, youth or in old age, the individual is only drawn towards the pleasures of the world.
Why are we breathing? How is the soul controlling me? We have to travel inward with our inhalations and exhalations. Many things that appear as great are attributed false values in life. Our mind-house and our entourage of senses lead us the wrong way. Truth appears as falsehood and falsehood appears as truth.
We torture our minds and bodies. We torment ourselves. Our mind itself is our enemy that drowns us in distress. The mind is the enemy of the soul. It always leads us in the opposite direction to Self-realization. It makes us forget our true nature. We become arrogant and as a result see ourselves as what we are not. We boast about our bad deeds and claim them as good.
We must give up the notion of ‘I am doing’. ‘I am an instrument in God’s hands’ is the truth.
Tatpurushaya – He is there only as a witness. He does not do anything, this Paramatma. But He is the cause of all actions.
Mahadevaya – He has descended to the level of Sadguru to grace us. He is of the form of the Trinity, Brahma, Vishnu, and Maheswara.
Rudrah – He has come to chase away our troubles. He is praised as possessing innumerable forms.
The greatest amongst those who destroy our grief is Sadguru.
Understand that those who wish for eternal happiness and those who wish to become Yogis must have the conviction that it is only Sadguru who does everything good through us.
Man uses only 5% of his intellect. If we were to use our entire intellectual capacity, the world will be filled with Einsteins. The animals are given only 5% of the intellect that we have and they used 4.9% of what they have been given.
Scientists are creating things to be used. But we do not even know how to properly use even a telephone. We do not know how to turn the telephone off. God, who has given us such a great intellect, makes us use so little of it. That is Deva Durvilaasa. We must not conserve and store our intellectual power without putting it to use. We must brush off the cobwebs of our intellect. We must use the sharpness of our intellect and put it to full use.
Men and women are infatuated by one another. That is nothing but Deva Durvilaasa. We use our interest towards objects and not towards God. Some try to even deceive Sadguru. People pretend and flatter Sadguru trying to falsely impress Sadguru. That is not cleverness. It is idiocy. Sadguru is never fooled. He laughs at such foolishness. What is the use of such egotistical cleverness? Devotees must change their ways. They have to be honest and straightforward. Your deception will never succeed with Guru. If they are unable to follow the instructions given by Sadguru, they must pray fervently for help. They should not lie and give false impressions.
We must develop the knowledge of our Atma/soul. If the mind is always traveling outward, we lose the taste of the bliss of the soul. The mind is concerned about the taste of ‘rasam’ whether curry leaves are added or not, but there is no concern for the taste of the bliss of Self-realization. You eat street food and become sick.
We must take our mind and surrender it to Datta, not to the ego. We keep ignoring the fact that all this is impermanent. We are thinking that what we see is permanent. We are ignoring the eternal entity of Paramatma. Because we lack harmony between the mind and the intellect, because we lose concentration, we feel troubled and uneasy. We have not developed even a little bit of dispassion or interest in our real nature.
Our eyes are filled with the dust called ego in the form of Rajo Guna. A student, who thinks that he knows, will ignore the words of the Guru. Arjuna was given advice by Krishna that he should give up his cowardice. Had Arjuna listened, he would have got up and fought at once. But he asked why he should kill all the assembled warriors. Krishna then explained to him the reasons when Arjuna acknowledged that he did not have the answers.
When we assume that we know, the teacher’s words will fall on deaf ears. The mind of the student wanders and he sleeps. The teacher will begin a new topic and the student will totally miss out on learning the new subject. You assume that you know this bhajan and that you have heard this wisdom before. But Guru begins to teach a new concept and you miss it because you have left his presence out of arrogance.
Anger is caused by Rajo Guna. It causes diseases. Satva Guna is not cultivated by us. Only if Satva Guna is there, Tatva will be understood. Otherwise, Tatva will remain out of your reach.
Our position is unsteady and uncertain. Our courage is shaky. We must keep telling children that courage will not come overnight. Guru’s words must be listened to over and over again. Friendship with Sadguru is the only hope and direction for us. Without it, truth will be out of our reach. Due to the bad influence of Time, Deva Durvilasa, only bad company is sought by the individual.
Some happiness and encouragement should be given to those who are doing good things. Even if it is an enemy, if you appreciate his good work, he will continue to do good things. That way society will improve. Those who keep seeing negativity everywhere will only cause harm to society. You must cultivate the habit of appreciating good qualities wherever you see them.
Do not talk lightly or disparagingly of those who give to charity and show compassion towards others, as if they are weak-minded or doing it for show off.
When Tatva goes away from us, then lowly qualities will take shelter with us. We get caught in the sport of this god of death. We do not even realize that we are caught in this cruel game. It is rare to find the company of pious souls. Sri Bhagavatpada and Swamiji include all types of precious gems in their writings, be they bhajans, Stotrams/hymns of praise, or here Sri Rama has given us this mighty work Yoga Vasishtha.
This sarga is most important. We must be good citizens. We must follow our dharma. Our duty we must never ignore. Understanding ourselves is our most important duty. Only those who seek the knowledge of our soul will attain liberation.
Before marriage, youth spend their time imagining their pleasures with women. Man has no interest in or love for his own soul. He is only thinking of outside objects and not about his true nature. If you do not travel inward, you will never reach your goal. You will only become weak. You are only consuming what is harmful to you, and deceived by the temporary tastes that appeal to your sense organs. We entertain an excessive obsession with things of the world. We cheat ourselves of the real rewards of life.
You ignore totally the existence of your soul, as if its existence and knowledge are not significant for you. Yoga will never woo you if you behave like that. You believe that your body is your permanent companion. You have dedicated your body to your ego. It plays as it likes, like an intoxicated elephant. The objects of the world deceive you.
Let us consider the sun and the moon. Even they are perishing. They also are impermanent. Even the scientists give them a limited lifespan. This is Deva Durvilaasam. Is it not? We must understand the immense power of God compared to our insignificance. Unless we recognize what is impermanent, how will we turn our attention towards what is eternal? We do not know the relationship between the permanent and the temporary. Everyone knows that in old age diseases come. Then, after becoming ill you think of Yoga to maintain your health when it is too late.
Sri Rama began this whole discourse to teach us of the discretion to know what is permanent and what is not. We have to strengthen our understanding.
The mind is always agitated. Aaku/leaf comes from ‘aakulam’. A leaf is ever trembling in the breeze. The mind keeps flitting about. It does not apply itself steadily either to work or study. We must train the mind to be steady. Desire becomes excessive and leads to diseases. We have attachment to Mysore so we have come here. But if our attachment is excessive to our own homes, then we will not leave the house to come here.
Rajaha – is Rajo Guna or dust also. It causes the ego to escalate. With that we get blinded as with dust that has fallen in our eyes. Ego puts a veil before our eyes. After Rajo Guna, Tamo Guna takes over. Gossip begins to appeal to us. Inertia and laziness take over. Demons are guided by Tamo Guna always. If the Tamo Guna increases within us, we turn into demons.
Only Satva Guna will give us Jnana. Compassion, truth, discipline, and kindness are its traits. Tatvam/Truth remains far away unless Satva Guna is strengthened. It will remain beyond our reach due to our Rajo and Tamo Gunas.
Fear of the future and the feelings of uncertainty which trouble us are caused by Deva Durvilaasa. Sri Rama says this is the effect on our minds caused by the wicked play of Time. We lose courage all the time. To give up fear, we must listen to Sadguru. Only by the acquisition of spiritual wisdom we overcome fear. Many people complain to Swamiji about their fears. You must keep faith in Sadguru’s words. Merely listening to His words is not sufficient. You must understand and place faith in the words of Guru. You cannot simply place the entire burden on Sadguru of removing your fear with no effort or faith at all on your part. What kind of a devotee are you if you expect that? Are you even a devotee?
You desire the undesirable and neglect what is desirable. This body is perishable. Old age begins its journey to lead us to the end. Youth comes rushing upon the body and bad company appears attractive during that time. Good company is avoided. Discretion leaves the mind. The mind is attracted to evil company and sinful actions. It leads to ruin. That is Daiva Durvilaasam.
Not even an iota of interest is there to seek truth. If someone is doing something good, there is no interest in acknowledging it or praising the person who is doing it. There is no appreciation for anything good. For example: Yesterday a child played violin. At his age to play like that is commendable. Whether his rendition was perfect or imperfect is not the question. Some day he may become a good musician. It is good to encourage the child. We should not discourage and speak critically of the child’s lack of perfection. Some people have nothing good to say of anyone or anything. That is a sign that they are filled with Rajo Guna and Tamo Guna. They have Satva Guna lacking in them. Such persons have not climbed even one step on the spiritual ladder. People entertain a bad attitude. ‘I am not happy. Why should he be happy?’ If such are our thoughts, we are demonic in our traits. Some people have such strong feelings of enmity towards all others.
Rama sent a request to Ravana to set the time for the battle as per astrology, since Ravana was considered to be an expert in that field. Lakshmana objected. But Rama trusted Ravana’s integrity. Ravana is said to have set the best date for victory for Rama. Rama has shown us the way how to appreciate good talent when it is found even in an enemy. Ravana did not seek to offer this service. But it benefited Rama.
Compassion enhances fame. It grants us a great future. Avarice destroys compassion. Greed prevents kindness. The two are enemies. God will not look upon with grace towards those who are avaricious. Friendship, compassion, and praise for those who deserve it must be cultivated. Maitri/friendship, Karuna/kindness, Mudita/happiness, Upeksha/aloofness from evil.
Indifference towards evil is to be developed. Many are under the mistaken notion that to cure a drunkard, you have to sit with him and drink along with him, to reform him. You will become an alcoholic in the process, if you adopt that method. Truth moves far away and evil that is far away will move close, if we follow the wrong path. Constant fear will become our companion. If the mind is filled with bad luggage, Sadguru cannot come to us. If we invite Sadguru for Pada Puja and our home has no place to seat him appropriately, he will not come. When our virtues are strong, Sadguru will adjust to our situation. Sri Rama is giving us great advice.
Birth and death are the constant companions of this body. If someone yawns or sneezes, we also do it at once. But if someone says ‘Rama’, or ‘Datta’ we are not drawn towards joining in and chanting the sacred names. That is Daiva Durvilasa/illusion. We must fight this negative with our Atma svabhava/our true nature of associating with the soul.
Illusion takes over. We seek bad company very easily. We give up good company very quickly. Does anyone say that only the old people should go to an ashrama? Many people, not Datta devotees but outsider, ask: Why do you go to the ashram while you are still so young? If you do not cultivate good habits and values at a young age, you will never learn them. There is no minimum age restriction to visit an ashrama or to be associated with pious company. If you do not develop this good association when you are young, then, in old age, you will have no other recourse but to be admitted in a Vriddhasrama/old age shelter.
I feel very proud of parents and grandparents who bring their children and grandchildren to the ashram. Those who come and spend much time here and attend the major functions here for days on end, do wonderful at studies. Those who study night and day outside, and never come to the ashram, do not do so well in their exams.
I wonder about these students. I do not see them with their books. They earn spiritual merit and the concentration that they develop in the presence of Sadguru helps them immensely to do well in studies. Only a few people have discovered this secret. This is also Daiva Durvilasam. The entire city of Mysore has not found out this secret.
At the same time, these students should not develop an over-confidence and leave everything of Sadguru’s shoulders and expect Him to write the exams for them. They must do their part and make the required effort.
It is not easy to find the association of Sadguru. It is because of Deva Durvilasa.
The entire Yoga Vasishtha is filled with priceless gems. But in my estimation, this section is most useful. This is great teaching coming to us directly from Sri Rama. If this is printed and distributed, it will be beneficial to everyone. This commentary on life, this explanation of how we are led astray by the cruel play of Time that tries to act against our best interest, will help us to be alert and not become victims to its negative influence.
We should not rush through this. In Yoga and Vedanta we cannot rush as if we are formally doing a course to earn a certificate. Yoga means union with God. It cannot be done in haste. No matter how many years it may take, we will proceed slowly and we will learn the subject thoroughly. The study of Yoga Vasishtha has told me that this is not a running race. It has changed my perspective. Today you have listened to many things. Every single point is important. We may not need everything today. A time will come when we will need all the points. It is like keeping extra soap bars at home for a guest who may suddenly come. We must collect all the precious gems and keep them in storage in our minds. We will find a use for them. The seed will sprout when the time comes. Even if you have heard it before, you have to listen again. Sometimes a point will have a reference in another section. This is a course called Life. This is our Travel Plan. As we carry dry fruits and trail mix when we travel, this is food for the mind. If we do not feed our intellect, the intellect will feel that we have no use for it, and it will leave us.
Read, listen, and understand. I love to listen if someone else is willing and ready to explain things to me. Someone grows a harvest, someone else sells the produce, someone else cleans it, someone else cooks it, someone else serves it, and someone else consumes it. Like that, I have prepared the meal and am serving you this delicious food. Some topics may not be understood now. Later their significance in your life will reveal itself. The reason to tie the Purnaphala is to offer a prayer to make it easy for me to learn the essence.
The whole coconut at first will appear useless. The water from it will taste so sweet when you access and drink it. We have our ego hidden inside us like the coconut. We offer it to you. You please break this coconut, remove the ego, and offer us the juice inside. We must also strive to remove all the layers that hide the essence and arrive at the core of the coconut.
Discuss more about how to propagate Datta Kriya Yoga. Our society badly needs this at this time. Children do count here. This is not voting. Many of you have learned Kriya Yoga as children. Datta Kriya Yoga is for persons of all ages. Be good, dedicated teachers. Be determined to be more committed as teachers. I pray to Swamiji to fulfill your purpose.
Jaya Guru Datta
Sri Guru Datta
Om santissantisantihi