Discourse on Yoga Vasishtha
December 20 2015
Sri Sadgurubhyo namaha
Om Santissantissantissantihi
Kannada:
Now, Brahma Pratipaadana is the topic being discussed. Srishti Krama, the process of Creation has been described and proven and established as being nothing but imaginary. It has to be treated as Paramatma Himself and nothing else.
Four-faced Brahma or Hiranyagarbha first emerged and all other creation emerged from him. But none of them have a gross physical existence constituting the five elements. Sri Rama asks if there is a difference between Four-faced Brahma or Hiranyagarbha and ourselves. The answer is given that only in the intention or concept there may be a difference but there is no substantial difference.
Bhoga and Moksha are two different types of desire. They are all different in different individuals. Sri Rama questions about this. Vasishtha gives the answer:
All Sankalpas/intentions either in Brahma or the individual creatures, originate from Paramatma.
Sri Rama asks: Great souls accomplish things effortlessly. How does it happen? Whereas, we have to put in great effort to accomplish our goals. Why is it so? The answer is given: It is also by the intention of four-faced Brahma. There is no such entity as an individual. You imagine that there is, you impose an ego upon it, and you carry on affairs in the imaginary world, and ask these questions. All that exists is Brahma. That is what you must experience, the Guru says in conclusion.
Telugu:
In the Utpatti Prakarana – which is actually an uttutti Prakarana – uLak. Nothing here. It may sound funny. But this is the Truth. This world is nothing, non-existent.
Then what is Truth? Brahma alone is Truth.
Swamiji has asked all the scholars to speak only about Creation in this year’s Gna Na Bha Yoga Conference. All the pundits are only speaking on this topic. We are discussing this topic now for a few months.
Everyone is curious about the origin of this Creation. A certain process was described. But we are told and what we understand now, is that it is more important to learn about the individual’s origin, and not about this Creation.
Unless we understand about Creation first, from what has been said in the Vedas, we will not proceed to ask about ourselves. That is why Swamiji is making us first learn about Creation.
Jeeva, the very first individual who emerged on his own, has a body constituting of the mind alone. He has no gross, physical frame. From him, all other individual souls have emerged, like sparks flying out of fire. Each spark then imposed upon itself a sense of separateness and limited itself. This sense of separation is the origin of this Universe.
Only some rare great souls remember their experience in the womb. But most of us do not remember our birth or the first two or three years of life. Many of us don’t remember our very early part of life. Our memory is very weak. Jeeva refers to any living creature, without any distinction of male, female or species. Creation has emerged from the individual.
From Brahma, the first Jeeva emanated and developed a sense of ‘I’. Ego separated him from Brahma. Once the sense of separateness is let go, we merge in Paramatma.
We are all in our own spheres or limitations just like the four-faced Brahma. It shows that we also have intentions, and achieve our intentions because we hold in ourselves an aspect of Hiranyagarbha. We may not have the same immense power as he. But in our limited worlds we have a certain power. A spark also is fire. The sense of separation is what limits its scope. This is how all individuals emerged out of Hiranyagarbha. We also become inferior like the tiny sparks, in our capacity and power because of ego.
We are not different from the substance from which we have emerged. Nothing is really separated. How can we be different from the First Jeevi, or the subtle perceptions, or the five gross elements, which are all products of Brahma? Not possible.
There is no cause for the origin of the Creation. Therefore, it does not exist. When there is no cause, there can be no effect. It is all your fantasy. What does it mean then, that we see and experience this world? It is just imaginary. It is illusory. You are perceiving Brahma not as He is, but as something else.
If Swamiji sends for Somu Gangadhar, the artist, and commissions him to paint a certain picture, at once, in the artist’s mind there is a picture imprinted. It got transferred from Swamiji’s mind to the artist’s mind. But it has not taken a gross form yet. That is how this world is. Although the picture is not yet visible to us, it is already seen by the artist. So many undrawn pictures exist in the mind of the artist. Similarly, Innumerable pictures exist at the mental level of Brahma. Brahma does not require tools or an artist to give a tangible shape to the pictures in his mind. Just by his intention, this entire creation takes shape and appears as if it exists. It has no tangible substance to it. It is only imaginary.
Now, with this comparison, we are able to grasp this concept.
We are all a part of the dream of this Svayambhu Brahma. He is in the dream of Paramatma. Dream is not real. Therefore, the dream inside another person’s dream can also be only imaginary. If we dream, and in our dream, a person is seen dreaming, can any of the dreams be real? No. Our dream is not real. And the dream of the one we are dreaming about, is not real either.
When four-faced Brahma himself is merged and dissolved in Paramatma, how can you and I have any actual existence?
But we feel that we exist. We exist as Brahma. But we do not realize it. All that exists is Paramatma.
We are all not substantial beings. We are all only imaginary beings as beings in a dream. This experience is given by Sadguru alone.
Brahma Pratipaadana is the topic we are currently discussing.
Ajnana, or delusion has no reason why it exists. It just exists.
Suppose it is explained that a past life is the reason for our ignorance. Then what about the ignorance of the past life? What was the reason for it to exist then? This chain will go on endlessly. Memory, impressions formed by the interaction of the sense organs with worldly objects, etc. are mentioned as reasons for our Samskaras. All are false. We do not know why this disease called ignorance has occurred. It has no beginning. It has always existed. No explanation will satisfy us of the reason for ignorance and karma performed as a result of it.
All you should be concerned about is, how to get rid of the disease. It is more important to cure the disease. First the sages discovered how to cure the disease. Later the sages searched for the cause of the disease.
A snake entered the house. First, you throw it outside. Later, you investigate the reason how and why it came into the house, through the doorway, window, gutter, sewer line, toilet, etc. You may take all precautions but still the snake may enter. What is required is to remove it from the premises. How many holes can you close? How tightly can you secure the house? No matter how hard you may try, closing all the windows, doors, and drainage holes, a snake may still enter from any unknown direction. What is required, is to put the snake outside first. The sages may explain how the snake entered. But the answer will not be satisfactory. So do not worry about how it entered. It is futile to search for a reason how ignorance came into existence in the first place.
Upadesa is given to us, how to get rid of our ignorance.
At first, it was explained how the Creation came into being.
To see God as the Creation itself, in the path of devotion, first you have to be free from all likes and dislikes. Begin with this Sadhana. Liberation is simply the awareness that Brahma alone exists. Liberation does not mean going away somewhere to a different world or a different plane of existence. Liberation simply is knowing and experiencing Truth. Self-realization, it is called. Self-realized souls are the Jeevanmuktas.
Adi Jeeva has many names. He is so immense from whom the entire Creation and all creatures emerge. Yet, he is only imaginary.
sokudya
There is a wall reflected in the mirror. But it is not seen. Four-faced Brahma is free from the Triputi – the threesomes, such as seer, the object seen, and the act of seeing. Deed, the instrument of doing and the doer, etc.
When the first Jeeva has no Triputi, he cannot create or do anything else. He is neither the seer, the seen, nor the act of seeing. Brahma is absolutely free from any type of Triputi. Triputis are infinite.
pratipada
From one light any number of lights can be lit. At Deepavali we saw the Koti (ten million) Deepotsava. Deepo deepaantaram yatha, we learned in Guru Gita. One light lights another. With one lamp a million lamps may be lit. Guru fills the disciple with light. God fills the devotee with light. Just as so many lights were lit by one light, Svayambhu Brahma is the source of all individuals. He is the origin of all sounds. He is the life and energy of every sound syllable and its meaning. That is why sound was born. Veda is sound. It was heard by Brahma. It reminded Brahma how to create. At once, he remembered how to create.
First the name came, and then the object associated with it came into being. An artist first has a concept in his mind. He gives it a name. Thereafter he translates it into a work of art. Brahma is the soul of all that exists.
Tree – at once brings to mind all the attributes of the tree. Bhuhu – the earth concept at once emerged, with all its features. It took shape in his mind. All of this nothing but Paramatma or Brahma.
Why are we speaking of a Creation that does not even exist? Because, for us to learn of the non-dual Brahma, we must first learn about Creation. As all lamps are lit by the first lamp, all creatures are created by that first created being, four-faced Brahma. This is important for us to understand. He is the soul and goal.
Sankalpa
From one dream, emerges another dream. Paramatma’s idea gave rise to four-faced Brahma. From his idea or intention, all other creatures have emerged. But Brahma’s body is not a gross physical body, made up of the five elements. It is a most subtle body. He is made up of mind. If our mind goes to America, are we in America or are we not? If you say, yes. It is yes. If you say no, it is no. We think Sun, and at once our mind travels to the sun. Mind is so powerful. Mind is all-pervasive. It needs no vehicle to travel. Even a rocket created by a scientist is launched, but when it will reach the destination, we do not know.
Mind is the cause of this entire Creation. Yogis attain this power through Sadhana. By intention, they travel to different places and appear there physically. Many devotees declare that they saw Swamiji during their surgery. Whereas, we have to travel physically to go to different places.
This world is only conceptualized in the mind. It has no concrete existence. Four-faced Brahma’s conceptualization is this world. He cannot be captured or grasped physically. He was born from the sky, Aakaasaja. We have learned that earlier. One who is born from the sky, must be only made of the substance called space. How can you grasp such a one? How can you capture one who has taken birth from the sky?
Manoj we hear the name, one who is born of the mind.
All this is just your conceptualization. This is all Brahmaakaasa, the sky-like appearance of Brahma. In this, you see the space which is one of the five elements. Why do you see it? It is your idea to see it, so you see it.
Asmaat
A vibration occurred in Brahma and all creatures burst forth. When one moves a burning log, sparks fly out. But in creation, no such supportive action of moving a log occurs. It was mentioned only to make you understand. It just happens by itself. We are all not actually separate from four-faced Brahma. This vibration or movement is not a physical movement. It is only a mental vibration.
verse
No cause and effect are there at all. That whole concept is dismissed. They are absolutely non-existent. Then what is this world? It is a great illusion. Because an individual thinks, ‘I’ am, this world exists for him, along with his body. Who is responsible for your existence? You alone are the cause for your existence.
Many people are afraid that once they become enlightened they will die. That does not happen. Jeevanmuktas or Self-realized souls continue to live. You know it yourself, that is all. You become a Jeevanmukta. After that, only to the extent of your remaining miniscule amount of Avidya, or ignorance, your body remains. Once the body falls away, you become a Videhamukta. Then you merge in Paramatma.
Brahmeebhoota, they say. It means becoming Brahma But even that should not be said, if you ask me. There was never anything existing except Brahma. Then how can one become Brahma? Nothing that was not Brahma ever existed. You have realized the truth about yourself. Sadguru has opened your eyes to Truth. The fence that had built around yourself was removed. You remain as you are, where in ignorance you were before, now you exist in knowledge. Sadguru merely removes your ignorance. You then experience Truth. It is not death. There is no need for such fear. Four-faced Brahma is also illusory. He is only a figment of our imagination. All creatures are conceptualized forms of this illusory Brahma. We have created our Creator, Brahma.
Why do the Vedas then say that Brahma exists? Yes, only to make us understand. This is an easy way to do so. Till you know that it is only a rope, the snake exists in the rope, while you imagine its existence and you fear it. Did this Creation take place? No. Did this never exist and is it totally non-existent? Yes, it exists. Both statements are given. It creates confusion. But the world exists as long as you remain ignorant. Once you experience the Truth, the world vanishes. When the fear existed, the snake existed. When fear was dispelled, the snake vanished.
This situation is similar. Just as branches grow from a tree, by the conceptual vibration of Brahma, the individual is born. Without a supportive action, it happens. This nullifies all theories of cause and effect. Therefore, there are no different entities existing, as four-faced Brahma, and the creatures which emerge from him, since all that exists is Paramatma and nothing is separate or distinct from Paramatma. The many galaxies in the cosmos and Paramatma are not different. Oh, what a relief! What happiness! But a lesser individual is unwilling to accept this great truth.
A son stole something that belonged to his father. He was afraid of getting into trouble. A sibling complained to the father about the theft. Father came and contrary to what the son had anticipated, declared that all that belongs to him, belongs to the son as well. The two of them are one and same. The boy had been afraid of punishment for no reason. Now he is happy and relieved.
You are the same as Paramatma. Go ahead and accept it. Do not be afraid of Him. He likes it when you identify yourself with Him. He alone exists. Nothing else exists. We misinterpret this statement sometimes ignorantly and show arrogance. That is very wrong. He is not different or separate from us. Nothing is different or separate from us.
Go ahead and accept the fact. In the name of devotion, do not bring God down to a human or an inferior level. Do not become distanced from Him and treat Him as someone separate from you. Feel that you are one with Him. He alone exists. You have no separate existence. This is Truth.
This Truth is revealed by Yoga Vasishtha. Upanishads reveal this secret. To reveal this secret, Swamiji has arranged this conference. Learning about the outside world will not help you one bit. We learn about this creation only to learn and understand that it does not exist. Does anyone in the world gain anything by learning about the origin of the five elements? No. May be to a small extent, to produce some things for convenience and for deriving physical pleasure. But even without those the world exists. In just the last five decades or so, many gadgets have been created. But even before that Creation existed.
But unless we first learn about this Creation, that we must learn about the living individual does not occur to us. Why? We are under the mistaken notion that the world was first created and that an individual was created afterwards to inhabit the world. That is why we are led from that false notion to arrive at the actual fact. That is why we are told about the four-faced Brahma, who is like a product emerging from the sky. Then we were told about the subtle perceptions and their gross counterparts as the five elements. Only then, one gets interested in knowing the origin of the individual.
Except for ignorance, there is no other reason for the existence of the individual. The sense of his separateness, as ‘I am standing apart from this Creation’, is the source of the emergence of the individual.
Just as we experience torments, Prahlada was also subjected to all those tortures. He was thrown in the sea, he was tossed into fire, and he was made to be stung by snakes and crushed by elephants. Yet, Prahlada did not suffer. The torments did not touch him. He identified himself with Paramatma. He kept his conviction that he was not different from Paramatma. Sage Vyasa told the story of Prahlada just to teach us this truth. Vyasa, who composed the great Brahma Sutras, came down to the level of a story teller, only to drill this fact into our heads.
Swamiji, who is a personification of Jnana, is once again teaching the Bhagavatam in Hindi. Why? The stories in the Bhagavatam, which are apparently very simple teach us deep spiritual truths. The hard to grasp concepts are conveyed through interesting stories, the way a child is given a bitter pill wedged inside a piece of banana. Bhagavatam is the banana. What is inside is Advaita – the non-dual philosophy. It is taught very subtly, imperceptibly. Think about why Prahlada remained unhurt. God protected him. Good. We are happy. But how? God does not take a form. An incarnation is different. Then how did God protect Prahlada? Prahlada’s belief that he was not separated from God protected him. God protected him by granting him that strong conviction. We must also develop that feeling.
They speak of Viswaroopam – the Universal Form of God. We then imagine that we are all a small part of the Universal form of God. We are His limbs. We are occupying some part of God. The entire body is one. What difference does it make, which part of God’s body you have emerged from? That is one way of thinking, whether you are born from the face, the thighs, arms, or the feet, it makes no difference. In the path of devotion at least, become close to God. We are not different from God.
When you serve parents or Guru, you are actually serving yourself. You may think that you are separate from the others. But you are not. That is why it is important to serve others. Serving humanity is the same as serving God. You are the one who derives the benefit by serving others. Service done selflessly is most important. How can serving man be equated to serving God? We say God is omnipotent and omnipresent. That is why He is in everyone and everything. Even the worship of God as the Universe will also eventually lead us there. But what is Truth is Paramatma. The Universe is not Truth. It is not Brahma. But serving God, considering Him as the Universe, will eventually lead one to the path of Jnana, spiritual wisdom. Enlightenment is the experience that will reveal that Brahma is not the Universe with all its differences and attributes, but is the one undifferentiated Pure Consciousness.
Brahmaivaadyo
The first four-faced Brahma is none other than Paramatma. He Himself appears as this Creation. Earth and the other elements are untrue. Only Paramatma exists as Brahmaakaasa, the Supreme Sky (not the space element of the five elements). Jeevaakaasa is false and imaginary.
Remain established in the calm, and settled understanding that He alone exists. Let there be no turbulence or restlessness in the mind. This is most important in Dhyana/meditation.
Sri Rama asks a question: Hiranyagarbha and the individual are so far apart. How can they be considered as being one and the same? Later Vasishtha will give the answer.
Again in the conference, we will hear about Creation. Now we proceed to Sri Chakra Puja.
Jaya Guru Datta
Sri Guru Datta
Om Santissantissantihi