Experience Him Through Sadhana

Embodiments of love,

In this world of three attributes, the human life where there is combination of pain and pleasure we, we are not able to recognize the divinity within. The whole world is full of attachment. The day that man gives it up, he will be happy. This attachment is because of ego. It puts one in disrepute and pain. So long as you are egoistic you do not receive love from anyone. That day you become detached you will get love from all. Therefore, start gradually to reduce attachments. If you have anger, you will have no peace. For happiness and peace one has to control the anger. The man with anger achieves nothing. He will commit mistakes and sins and will be shunned by people. For progress in the spiritual field one must control his anger. The more he reduces desires, the more happy he becomes. Life is a long journey. Less luggage makes travel a pleasure. So discriminate in this life what is necessary and what is not.

One is happy when desires are fulfilled and unhappy when not fulfilled. Difficulties and pleasure go together. It is not possible to separate hardships. Hardships fructifies and give happiness. Pleasures and pain are like two cotyledons of a seed, or two sides of one coin. So pleasure is an interval between two pains. Without pain you cannot have any happiness. This world is full of pleasure and pain, profit and loss. This is the main quality of human life. Face it. March ahead. We need God's Grace.

What takes you away from God? When one loses control over actions and looks. See no evil, see what is good. All are looking with bad eyes. All are seeing only other's faults. What kind of a human are you if you seek other's faults. Rectify your own faults. As is the thought, so is the feeling. Therefore, if our feelings are good all actions are good. Once, the guru, Dronacharya, asked Dharmaraja (the Pandava King) how was everything in the kingdom. Dharmaraja said that all were good with sacred ideals. They were extolling their regime. They loved the king as they loved their own parents and they were pure and selfless, he said. Next Duryodhana was called. He replied that he never saw one good man. All were bad he informed the guru. Thus Dharmaraja's vision was of a sacred outlook so everything appeared sacred. Duryodhana's vision was mean so everything appeared bad. So good or bad are not in the world but only in thought and counter thought. If you have good looks, everything appears good. This entire creation is created by God. God is the cause and creation the effect. Therefore, universe is pure and pious. It is extolled.

Narada extolled it as, "Pure, Attributeless, Eternal, Unsullied." Out of the ocean we get different forms of waves. They all come from the one ocean. So every individual is like a wave. That is the ocean of Sath, Chith, Ananda. Wave is same water (form) as ocean. Therefore, in all there should be Sathchitananda.

Gold is one though ornaments are many
Mud is one though pots are many
Milk is one though cows are many. >

The world of many forms is only Vishnu. The entire creation of man is of God along. The nature is kriti - act of God. It is made of five elements which is distributed in all equally. "God is in all beings" - "Easwara Sarva Bhuthanam". When an individual practices oneness, there will be no anger. The love will be the same. We will experience love in all. Sugar is one but sweet meats are of different types (shapes and forms). When once you recognize the divinity in all, you will be able to recognize the Divine. Only, one is present though forms may be different. Only due to basing on name and form, we notice forms (differently), therefore, our vision is diverse.

One should not criticize. Those who point others mistakes do not know their own. By knowing our own mistakes, divinity will shine. The love between mother and child is attachment. The love between husband and wife is affection. Love between friends is called friendship. Love between God and devotees is devotion. As it is used differently, it has different names. But the love is one only. What do we need to develop this love? Penance and meditation is only for mental satisfaction. All spiritual activity are undertaken with the mind only. True love is beyond the mind. Divine love is only one. Names and forms may be many but the one self is in all. One is in crores and crores. Many zeros are added to one it goes from 10 to 100 to 1000 to 10,000 - where did the zero get its value? Only from "1".

Remove 1 and all are zeros
1 is the hero
World is the zero
1 Hero + 0 = value
1 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 1.

This oneness is yoga (combining) or bringing together is yoga. One is unity of individual and divinity. That is to be taken as yoga. Physical exercise is of no value. Only the complete control over the mind can be termed as yoga. To know the nature of mind, one should have less desires. That day we have less desires we will attain happiness. Unlimited desires lead to diseases. For instance, the normal body temperature is 98.4 degrees. If it is 99 degrees, there is fever. The normal blood pressure is 120/80. If it goes to 90 there is diseases. Therefore, life is under limits and you are safe and secure under limits. Once you cross the limits you can go mad. Therefore, make every effort to control senses. Once a poet prayed, extolling the tongue, "O tongue you are divine and sacred. You do not revel in lies. How to extol your sacredness?" Such a tongue, how are we making use of it. We should not harm anyone with our words. We should speak softly and blame no one. The tongue commits three sins:

1. Falsehood
2. Excessive talk
3. Accusing others.

For example, Keechaka (character in Mahabharata) had bad looks and ultimately lost his life. No one will ever keep the name of Keechaka because of his bad reputation. The Ramayana teaches this lesson. Mantara, the servant maid of Kaikeyi, poisoned the mind of Kaikeyi on the eve of the coronation. The bad feelings and words of Mantara made the sacred heart of Kaikeyi unsacred and ultimately she lost her husband. Mantara got a bad name. No one will keep the name of Mantara because the world dislikes Mantara. Therefore, never listen to bad things.

Duryodhana had bad thinking and so his entire clan was ruined. He signified bad thinking. In the whole of India, no one will have the name of Duryodhana. There are many men of Duryodhana's nature but no one will have that name. In the stories of Bharath there are many good ideals. Ramayana teaches many good ideals. Ravana, the demon king, was expert in sixteen forms of knowledge, but had no human values. What is the use of all this education? Having learnt everything, a foolish man does not know his own nature. Although he has high position, mean man makes no change. All his knowledge only helps him to argue cleverly. We study endlessly till death. Study only that which teaches you to become immortal. So, Ravana, who never gave up all bad deeds and thoughts caused the ruin of the entire clan even. Among all the people in Bharath, no one will keep the name, "Ravana".

Liberation is extremely subtle. Devotion is very easy. Liberation is so close and intimate. God is the nearest and dearest. We are forgetting this near and dearest friend. Basing on positions and status, we call people 'Friends'. Today's friends are tomorrow's enemies. God is always with us, in us. Develop that devotion with God within. What is the reason for restlessness? The loss of self confidence. It leads to misery. So we should have self confidence, self satisfaction, self sacrifice and ultimately, self realization. The first, self confidence, is like the foundation of a house. The walls are self satisfaction. The roof is self sacrifice. Finally life is self realization. So we must always enquire, "Who am I?" We say, "My body, my mind, my senses, but who am I?" "I am not the body, the mind, the senses. These are only instruments. I am the MASTER." If you take the body, mind and senses along the wrong path, it is your mistake. So follow your 'Conscience'. Senses are 'Conscious'. The witness is 'Conscience'. Conscious is out of 'Consciousness'. That consciousness is everywhere. Conscience is out of Brahma and Brahma is all pervasive.. The entire creation is from Brahma. There is no place without him. God (Brahma) cannot be known. In order to see the divine, one must experience him.

Take for example, air. You cannot see air. Likewise, God too is everywhere but to experience Him we need experience and the way is only through sadhana, spiritual practices. For example, we put sugar in a glass of water. The sugar rests at the bottom. Unless you stir it with a spoon, then only it goes all over. So when you taste, it is now a syrup. Similarly, the body is like a tumbler, the sugar is divinity. Because of our worldly desires, there is no taste. Take the spoon of sadhana and you can taste the syrup (Divinity). We should use the buddhi in order to experience divinity. Basing on this, in Vedic parlance, it is said, "Tat twam asi." "That Thou Art." Also, "Poornamadam Poornamidah Poornath Poorna Mudhachayathe", "That is full. This is full."

There are the Mahavakyas. Thou and that is one, Ayam Atma Brahma, meaning, "I am Atma Brahma". What is Prajnanam Brahma? It is not study. It is constant integrated awareness. Total awareness is God. For example, I say this is a cloth. (Swami holds up a folded handkerchief). It is not awareness. Once you open it up, it is total awareness. That is total awareness. Not a segment. Total understanding is Brahma. That awareness is within. We are not ignorant, we are covered by the ash of ignorance. For example, the fire is covered by the ash. Ash came out of the fire only. It covered the fire. If you blow away the ash, you can see the fire. The fire of awareness is always shinning but the worldly desires covers the divinity. The worldly desires are like ash. If you blow it out it is Prajnana.

Take for example, there is a tree. It is full of birds. They make a mess all over. How to get rid of these noisy ones? You should clap loudly. Similarly, in this tree of life, there are birds of desires. The heart, therefore, becomes dirty. In order to cleanse it, do bhajans.