Sunday, September 13, 2009

Self Realisation[meditation occasion]

Self Realisation


From Svetasvatara UpanishadTranslations by Swami PrabhavanandaThe Rishis (seers of truth) inquire within themselves:

What is the cause of this universe? Is it Brahman (the Supreme Reality)? Whence do we come? Why do we live? Where shall we at last find rest? Under whose command are we bound by the law of happiness and its opposite?

Time, space, law, chance, matter, primal energy, intelligence- none of these, nor a combination of these, can be the final cause of the universe, for they are effects, and exist to serve the soul. Nor can the individual soul be the cause, for being subject to the law of happiness and misery, it is not free.The Rishis (seers of truth), absorbed in meditation, saw within themselves the ultimate Reality, the self-luminous Being, the one God, who dwells as the self-conscious power in all creatures. He is one without a second. Deep within all beings He dwells, hidden from sight by the coverings of the gunas -sattwa, Rajas, and Tamas.

He presides over time, space, and all apparent causes. Like oil in sesame seeds, butter in cream, water in the river-bed, fire in the tinder, the Self dwells within the soul. Realise Him through truthfulness and meditation.Like butter in cream is the Self in everything. Knowledge of the Self is gained through meditation. The Self is Brahman (Supreme Reality). By Brahman is all ignorance destroyed.Fire, though present in the firestick, is not perceived until one stick is rubbed against another. The Self is like that fire; it is realised in the body by meditation on the sacred syllable OM (AUM). Let your body be the stick that is rubbed, the sacred syllable OM the stick that is rubbed against it. Thus shall you realise God, who is hidden within the body as fire is hidden within the wood.He who is realised by transcending the world of cause and effect, in deep contemplation, is expressly declared by the scriptures to be the Supreme Brahman. He is the substance, all else the shadow. He is the imperishable.

The knowers of Brahman know Him as the one reality behind all that seems. For this reason they are devoted to Him. Absorbed in Him, they attain freedom from the wheel of birth, death and rebirth.Matter is perishable. The Lord, the destroyer of ignorance, is imperishable, immortal. He is the one God, the Lord of the perishable and of all souls. By meditating in Him, by uniting oneself with Him, one ceases to be ignorant. Know God, and all fetters will be loosed. Ignorance will vanish. Birth, death and rebirth will be no more. Meditate upon Him and transcend physical consciousness. Thus will you reach union with the Lord of the universe. But you must know this. Nothing further is there to know. Meditate, and you will realise that mind, matter, and Maya (the power that unites mind and matter) are but three aspects of Brahman, the one Reality.To realise God .... To realise God, first control the outgoing senses and harness the mind.

Then meditate upon the light in the heart of the fire - meditate, that is, upon Pure Consciousness as distinct from the ordinary consciousness of the intellect. Thus the Self, the Inner Reality, may be seen behind physical appearance.Control your mind so that the Ultimate reality, the self-luminous Lord, may be revealed. Strive earnestly for eternal bliss. With the help of the mind and the intellect, keep the senses from attaching themselves to objects of pleasure. They will then be purified by the light of the Inner reality, and that light will be revealed.The wise control their minds, and unite their hearts with the infinite, the omniscient, the all-pervading Lord. Only discriminating souls practice spiritual disciplines.

Great is the glory of the self-luminous Being, the inner Reality.Hear, all ye children of immortal bliss, also ye gods who dwell in the high heavens: Follow only in the footsteps of the illumined ones, and by continuous meditation merge both mind and intellect in the eternal Brahman. The glorious Lord will be revealed to you.Control the vital force. Set fire to the Self within by the practice of meditation. Be drunk with the wine of divine love. Thus shall you reach perfection.Be devoted to the eternal Brahman. Unite the light within you with the light of Brahman. Thus will the source of ignorance be destroyed, and you will rise above karma.

Sit upright, holding the chest, throat and head erect. Turn the senses and the mind inward to the lotus of the heart. Meditate on Brahman with the help of the syllable OM. Cross the fearful currents of the ocean of worldliness by means of the raft of Brahman - the sacred syllable OM.With earnest effort hold the senses in check. Controlling the breath, regulate the vital activities. As a charioteer holds back his restive horses, so does a persevering aspirant hold back his mind. Retire to a solitary place, such as a mountain cave or a sacred spot. The place must be protected from the wind and rain, and it must have a smooth, clean floor, free from pebbles and dust. It must not be damp, and it must be free from disturbing noises. It must be pleasing to the eye and quieting to the mind. Seated there, practice meditation and other spiritual exercises.

As you practice meditation, you may see in vision forms resembling snow, crystals, smoke, fire, lightning, fireflies, the sun, the moon. These are signs that you are on your way to the revelation of Brahman.As you become absorbed in meditation, you will realise that the Self is separate from the body and for this reason will not be affected by disease, old age or death. The first signs of progress on the path of Yoga are health, a sense of physical lightness, clearness of complexion, a beautiful voice, an agreeable odour of the person, and freedom from craving.As a soiled piece of metal, when it has been cleaned, shines brightly, so the dweller in the body, when he has realised the truth of the Self, loses his sorrow and becomes radiant with bliss.The yogi experiences directly the truth of Brahman by realising the light of the Self within.

He is freed from all impurities - He is pure, the birthless, the bright.He is the one God, present on the north, the east, the south and the west. He is the creator. He enters into all wombs. He alone is now born as all beings, and He alone is to be born as all beings in the future. He is within all persons as the inner Self, facing in all directions. Let us adore the Lord, the luminous one, who is in fire, who is in water, who is in plants and trees, who pervades the whole universe. At the periods of creation and dissolution of the universe, He alone exists. Those who realise Him become immortal.The Lord is one without a second. Within man, and within all other beings, He projects the universe, maintains it, and withdraws it into Himself.

His eyes are everywhere; His face, His arms, His feet are in every place. Out of Himself He has produced the heavens and the earth, and with His arms and His wings He holds them together.He is the origin and support of the gods. He is the Lord of all. He confers bliss and wisdom upon those who are devoted to Him. He destroys their sins and their sorrows.He punishes those who break His laws. He sees all and knows all. May He endow us with good thoughts!This vast universe is a wheel. Upon it are all creatures that are subject to birth and death and rebirth. Round and round it turns, and never stops. It is the wheel of Brahman. As long as the individual self thinks it is separate from Brahman, it revolves upon the wheel in bondage to the laws of birth, death and rebirth. But when through the grace of Brahman it realises its identity with Him, it revolves upon the wheel no longer. It achieves immortality. The Lord supports this universe, which is made up of the perishable and the imperishable, the manifest and the unmanifest.

The individual soul, forgetful of the Lord, attaches itself to pleasure and thus is bound. When it comes to the Lord, it is freed from all its fetters. Mind and matter, master and servant- both have existed from beginnigless time. The Maya that unites them has also existed from beginningless time. When all three- mind, matter, and Maya- are known as one with Brahman, then is it realised that the Self is infinite and has no part in action. Then it is revealed that the Self is all. O Lord, Thou hast revealed Thy sacred syllable OM, which is one with Thee. In Thy hands it is a weapon with which to destroy ignorance.

O protector of Thy devotees, do not conceal Thy benign person. Thou art the Supreme Brahman. Thou art infinite. Thou hast assumed the forms of all creatures, remaining hidden in them. Thou prevadest all things. Thou art the one God of the universe. Those who realise Thee become immortal.I have known beyond all darkness, that great Person of golden effulgence. Only by knowing Him does one conquer death. There is no other way of escaping the wheel of birth, death and rebirth.There is nothing superior to Him, nothing different from Him, nothing subtler or greater than He. Alone He stands, changeless, self-luminous; He, the great one, fills this universe.Though He fills this universe, He transcends it. He is untouched by its sorrows. He has no form. Those who know Him become immortal. Others remain in the depths of misery.The Lord God, all-pervading and omnipresent, dwells in the heart of all beings. Full of grace, He ultimately gives liberation to all creatures by turning their faces forward Himself.He is the innermost Self. He is the great Lord.

He it is that reveals the purity within the heart by means of which He, who is pure Being, may be reached. He is the ruler. He is the great light, shining forever. This great Being, assuming the form of the size of a thumb, forever dwells in the heart of all creatures as their innermost Self. He can be known directly by the purified mind through spiritual discrimination. Knowing Him, men become immortal.This great Being has a thousand heads, a thousand eyes, and a thousand feet. He envelopes the universe. Though transcendent, He is to be meditated upon as residing in the lotus of the heart, at the centre of the body, ten fingers above the navel. He alone is all this- what has been and what shall be. He has become the universe, yet He remains forever changeless, and is the Lord of immortality.Without organs of sense, yet reflecting the activities of the senses, He is the Lord and ruler of all.He is the friend and refuge of all. He resides in the body, the city of nine gates. He sports in the world and without in innumerable forms. He is the Master, the ruler of the whole world, animate and inanimate. He moves fast, though without feet. He grasps everything, though without hands.

He sees everything , though without eyes. He hears everything, though without ears. He knows all that is, but no one knows Him. He is called the Supreme, the Great One.Subtler than the subtlest, greater than the greatest, the Self is hidden in the heart of all creatures. Through His grace a man loses his cravings, transcends grief, and realises Him as Brahman Supreme.If the truth of these scriptures are meditated upon by a man in the highest degree devoted to God, and (devoted) to his guru (spiritual teacher) as to his God, they will shine forth. They will shine forth indeed!

pranam ji........

Why Should One Pray ?

Why Should One Pray ?
Translations by AJ Vekaria


Many people are heard to say: "I believe in God and virtuous life, I do my duty I am honest and charitable. But I do not believe in all these rituals organized religions want us to do. And I don't think it is there, he will look after everyone and we do not have to ask him for anything. Prayer is just a sort of flattery. God does not expect us to pray to him. You can't please Him by flattery". This may appear to be a rational and reasonable argument. But it is not quite

so. Let us see how we can counter this argument.
Firstly let us find out what we know about the name or form of god. Let us consider only those aspects of God on which there is universal agreement. Briefly stated, God is kind and benevolent, omnipotent and omnipresent. These aspects of God are universally accepted and no religion in the world refuses any of these except you to pray to Him? Will He shower his mercies on you only if you pray to Him? This is the question many people may ask. Will not the God be pleased with you if you are a good man and will he not look after you even if you do not pray to Him?
Yes, IF you are really honest, kind, dutiful, sincere, service-minded, disciplined and have all the virtues and none of the vices definitely God will look after you. But how can you be all that? The world is full of temptations. However virtuous a man may be there if likelihood of committing sins, of succumbing to the temptations and God cannot be expected to tolerate ADHARMA. Is it not then necessary for a man to think of God, for then alone he can save himself from committing sins? If one has to get the thought of God on such occasions, one has to spend sometime in meditating on God and his prayers to God "O, LORD LEAD US NOT TO TEMPTATION" is more directed to himself (a sort of auto suggestion) than to God. For God has given you a free will, This prayer, if regularly done, cannot but give you tremendous will-power to The thought of God can desist you from doing wrong.

Secondly, when do most people pray? Of course, when they are in grief. "God, save me!" is a very common prayer. What purpose does this prayer serve? If you believe in KARMA, you have to face the results of your actions, enjoy or suffer depending on your actions. God, when you cannot escape the results of the past Karma? argument. But what should you do when in great trouble when you have nothing else to look for? If you go to someone and tell him all your troubles, the person may show some sympathy, may offer you some help, but not every time. There are some occasions when no one can help you and your telling someone all about your troubles may give you relief but you are actually hurting the other person by making him listen to all the unpleasant things. So pray to God, "Oh, God, save me !" When you say God is all powerful and merciful, is it not reasonable to except Him to forgive you and save you from the troubles, the results of your past action? Of course, you MUST be sincere and genuinely repent for what you have done and if so, God will forgive you, provided you will not repeat the wrong acts for which you were made to suffer. One may argue that even this is not necessary. God will automatically forgive you and save you even from your troubles which are the results of your KARMA. if you are now good, virtuous etc. But by praying to God at such times, are you not again re-assuring yourself that there is god who alone can and will save you? Will not that give you confidence and courage to boost your morale and enable you to withstand all the miseries? Here again the prayer is more directed to yourself than towards God.

So prayer is no flattery of God. It is very much necessary for us to lead a virtuous life and to withstand all the trials and tribulations in life. But praying to God (in whichever form you figure Him in Your mind and whichever form it pleases you, whichever method you adopt-chanting his name, singing in praise of Him, offering flowers etc., visiting temples and prostrating before the deity- all are equally effective) everyday you develop a habit of remembering God always which could stop you from committing wrongful acts and also give you the courage and confidence to bear all the miseries because you constantly remember that God is there to forgive you and save you.

Like the moon during the lighted fortnight, calamities increases for him who is a slave to his senses. The king who wishes to control his counselors before controlling his own self, or the king who wishes to subdue his adversaries before controlling his counselors, fights a losing battle, losing his strength. A king should first subdue his own self. He will then never fail to subdue his counselors and later his enemies. Great prosperity waits upon him who has subjugated his senses, or controlled his soul, or who is capable of punishing all offenders, or who acts with discernment or who is blessed with patience.

Paths to the Highway

Paths to the Highway


A common western view is that India is ascetic, otherworldly and life denying. This is however not true. India has not condemned enjoyment as evil. Hindu scriptures claim that there is nothing wrong with pleasure; it is one of the legitimate ends in life, but one must see that pleasure is fulfilled as richly and aesthetically as possible.

It is inevitable that when man pursues pleasure he must one day realise that pleasure is not all that he wants. A man of maturity knows that pleasure is not wicked, however he does conclude that it is too trivial to satisfy man’s total nature.

Hindu philosophy knows that one cannot gain by suppressing desire or by imagining that it does not exist.

All Hinduism asks is that one has an awareness of the above facts. Then one can go after desire and pleasure in a prudent manner and deal with people and circumstances with the fair play it deserves.

During the stage where man is involved in pursu­ing worldly goals a Spiritual master is not likely to disturb the aspirant beyond offering some suggestions as to how to deal with the mundane problems of his everyday life.

When man follows the desire of fame and wealth to its hilt, another stage unfolds in his life when he asks: "Is this all? Am I going to leave all this that I own or have achieved behind, when I die?"

Man realises deeply that he does not want to die. Sometimes one may find oneself driven to suicide but no one really feels happy about dying.

Man wants to be immortal and man seeks Joy. These two desires together coin into one word Mukti or Liberation -- a liberation from the sorrows of Life and Death.
Hinduism not only promises infinite being and infinite joy but also claims that they are already his.

Why is this then not obvious, one may argue?

The Hindu sages claim that the reason that we are not aware of the infinite joy that is within us is because of the dust of distraction and false ideas that cover the light of our infinite centre.
Jesus Christ also claims that the "Kingdom of God is within you."


The Three Pathways

But how does one reach that Infinite Ocean of Bliss which is now hidden deep within us.
How does one start his journey towards divine perfection?

The Hindus have prescribed three different paths to purify one’s personality and to guide people to a higher state of being.

If the goal is one, should there not be one path to it?

Different starting point is determined by the kind of person one is, by the kind of personality one possesses.

There are, according to Hindu analysis, three different kinds of persons.

Some are basically reflective; their way to God would be through knowledge.

The second kind is primarily emotional. Their way to God would be through Devotion and Love.

The third kind is essentially active. Their way to God would be through work and service.
The Path of Knowledge

Such people follow where their Intellect leads. By prolonged intensive reflection such personalities touch upon the unchanging element in themselves, which Hindus call the atman.
By constant introspection they pierce through the various identifications of the roles, that they have played, i.e. as father, as son, friend, husband etc.

By doing so they touch upon true self, which is synonymous with peace and joy. With it they finally identify and merge.

Bhakti Marg - The way to God through love.

This path is dominated totally by Love. Love for love’s sake and not for any other ulterior motive. This love for God will automatically weaken the world’s grip of attachment and desires.
This path knows only to give of oneself totally without asking for anything in return.

Karma Marg - The Way to God through Action

It is needless to state that the human body was made and meant for action. People who are idle or made to retire from their profession are generally not very happy personalities.

Hinduism does not believe that one must take to the woods in order to worship. We must in fact turn each activity of ours into a thoughtful movement, which takes us closer to God and to our ultimate goal.

One must come to feel that one is only an instru­ment through which God’s work is done. That way the ego is kept at bay. One must work like a person who loves and does everything for his beloved seeking nothing for himself but taking pleasure in service alone.

Activity is an essential function of life and when one looks closely it becomes obvious that the way of knowledge and the way of devotion are both comple­mentary. Both are required to round up a personality to perfection.

Hence the conclusion, one may be predominantly a follower of one path, but all the paths must even­tually join into one main Highway.

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