' How to Perceive GOD'

      The question most often asked is about God. Even those who do not believe in the concept of God utter the word without ever realizing it! When a person says, 'I do not believe in God, he is unconsciously uttering the word 'God'? There is an interesting account of the existence of God. God is thus an inseparable part of our life and we eat and breathe Him and we do not know It! 

    It is stated that once the Emperor Akbar asked Birbal whether there is God, and if there is God, where is He and what is He doing? He gave one week's time to answer failing which his head will be cut off! Now, Birbal was worried. How to explain the presence of God was the question. Almost five days were over and he found no way out. His son, a small boy of eight looked at his father and asked him what was the problem and why was he so worried? In the beginning Birbal simply dismissed him saying that he would not understand it. When the child insisted, Birbal explained the problem. The child laughed and said that this is no big problem and he would answer the Emperor himself, if he is take to him, Birbal got the permission and took his son along with him to the Emperor's Darbar. When the child went to Akbar's Darbar it stood silently next to his father since there was no place for him to sit. The Emperor started the Darbar asking Birbal about the question he had asked him. Birbal respectfully bowed to the Emperor and requested that he wanted permission for his son to answer the question. The Emperor looked at the child and laughed loud. However, he permitted the child to answer his question and repeated the question again. In turn, the child asked Akbar whether it is the custom in his august Darbar to ignore the simple courtesy of offering a seat however a small a person might be? Akbar felt ashamed and immediately ordered for a chair, some fruits and milk to the child. The child respectfully thanked the Emperor and said that the answer is so simple that even a child in the country knows the answer. It is just like the pure ghee that is hidden in the milk! God is everywhere! He is always looking at the world. He can explain much better if the Emperor permits him to sit on the throne for a few minutes. Akbar agreed and stepped down and put the child one throne! Now, the child said, "Sir, this is exactly what God is doing!" God keeps some people up here and brings them to keep some others up here! Akbar was so delighted he hugged the child and presented valuables and honored Birbal and his son. This is how the Hindus of the sacred land of Bharata realize God!

    Chapter VI, verses 29-31 of the Bhagavad-Gita explicitly states that, "The supreme Lord is present in every atom, every cell, every soul of His creation." He is avyakta (unmanifest) and becomes manifest, vyakta, in many forms of vayakti, vishaya, vastu and vichara.  Bhagavan Sri Krishna says, "I am established in the form of 'Energy', 'Chaitanya', united in the soul in all living beings. I am visible to whoever looks at everyone with equanimity, without any discrimination". Not only, this, the Lord assures redemption to all those who realize Him, thus." The fundamental principle is - ayam Atmaa brahmn | Atmaa eve brahmn | sarvam khalividam brahmn ||
  But, then how to perceive God" It is as easy as getting the pure ghee out of milk! It takes concerted effort. I is a constant meditative process. God is perceived in transcendental meditative state since God is transcendant! God is also immanent and as such we can perceive God in Temples or shrines in physical form. "God created man in His own Image, and man created God!" is the maxim. Man visualized, they say! A sculptor visualized in his dream and carved out an image. He created a form and added all the attributes to the One formless, and without attributes, the supreme power of Creation, the Creator! It is the Bhavana, perception of the sculptor! Now, one can visualize God in savikalpa samadhi. One has to take to yoga in order to meditate and perceive Him. It is as arduous a task as boiling the mik and cooling it, making curd out of it and taking out butter, and finally, heating slowly the butter to give us the pure aromatic ghee! There is no short cut means of visualizing God. Knowledge of the Self, 'Atmajnyan' will reveal the true nature of the Self and that is enough!

Mythology and Ancient History

    One of my FB friends asked me recently how is it that Sri Ramachandra was a Role Model of all Kings from Turkey and Egypt to Indonesia? I had to explain when did Sri Ramchandra, the Blessed son of Ayodhya King Dasharatha actually lived and how he was given this name Ramachandra. The details are here. How Ramachandra became a God to us as an incarnation of Vishnu is another long story, that will come later!  
   We are living in a peculiar state of existence. We have no sense of what Time is and never know what 'Life' is (?) until we spend the entire time of our life, some how living! Somebody said long long back, today is Friday, the 29th Day of May, 2020. Neither we know what is this month of May, nor what this year 2020 is! Our people have forgotten the Hindu Calendar (panchang) and how we manage the paksha masa of Chandra mana and the 'Rutu mana' and the Soura Varsha? Our Calendar is of many a hundreds of thousand of years. We too have the Shalivahana shakha, Vikramaditya shakha, etc, for that matter! However, it is strange that we adhere to Christian Era due to the accidental rule of India by the British for just 350 or 400 years?!

   This 2020 is counted from what day is the question. Some say it is AD and some say, it is CE? AD stands for 'Anno Domini', the year of the Lord. However, the Christians do not want the Lord, or God of another religion so they want the CE as the Christian Era.is. They want the Year of the Birth of Jesus of Nazareth. 

   Moreover, the anomaly exist in many, many, other spheres of our thinking! When two old persons aged 80+ were talking of their youth and said, 'during our times'..., a naughty boy came and said, "ajja, you are living in our times only, not any way different' and ran away! This makes us wonder what is this all about? The entire life and times appears to be a myth?

    Now to this confusion is added another big confusion! We suddenly talk about Sri Ramachandra of treta yuga, and Sri Krishna of dva para yuga! Neither we know what this treta or the dva para? Actually, treta means, third. and dva is second and para is above, this 'dva' is second para, above ours kali yuga? This Kali yuga is said to last for 432000 years! Then, naturally 'treta' becomes the third from ours? So what is this second and the third if we do not know what is the first one? The first one is said to be krita or satya yuga of our vaivasvata manvantara, the Seventh from the First manvantara of our Sun Vivasvan, the Vivasvanta! Now, the time that has elapsed from the day the Sun as a star is born is about 4.56 Billion years! This Sun may lose all its energy and become a Red hot ball of rock in another 6.46 Billion years! Thus the Sun as a hot gaseous body of Hydrogen (65%) and Helium (35%) Matter is not the matter of importance here. Our Surya is one of the Twelve Adittyas among which come Vishnu. Sri Krishna (of dva para yuga?) says, Adityanam aham vishNor- jyotishamraviH…| Sri Krishna says, I am the Ravi, as also, Chandrama, the Lord of the Stars! [BG X. 21], Hence, the Sun (gross matter) is not the Ravi, Surya or Vivasvan? Chandrama or Soma is not the Moon (Satellite of the Eartyh)? Then what is this confusion galore and how to understand all these? There is some clue here. All these Western knowledge seems to be a bunkum, half knowledge. We have to go to the spiritual texts like the 40 branches of the Vedic system of knowledge (the Upanishads included). The Bhagavad-Gita also gives a beautiful account of all these. We have to study carefully every word spoken by the Lord, Bhagavan Sri Krishna in order to understand ourselves and the 'place' and 'times' we live in! Maharishi Mahesh Yogi has given a very beautiful account of the Veda and its scientific- Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Genetics, aspects, as well as, the and mathematical account of the Rk Veda, elaborating on the first verse- Agnimeelay purohitam yajnyasya devam rutvijam hotaram ratna dhatamam | His Published works are available from Maharishi Mahesh Yogi Vedic University, Jabalpur. I have got a copy that deals with these. 

Idiosyncraies

    We see a certain attitude, behavior peculiar to each individual. The svabhava or nature of a person is decided by the mind he has acquired from the soul, Atman. The Soul, Atman, a spiritual entity, actually builds a material physical body from the water and soil (food), like a silkworm weaves a cocoon from its saliva. The silkworm survives on mulberry leaves and acquires a body of a worm that goes into hibernation in a cocoon and finally escapes as a colorful butterfly! This is the model for a jiva, like the human being! The jiva should finally hibernate(take to Renunciation/sanyasa),yoga and samadhi, and try to escape the clutches of rebirths as a butterfly?

  Now, the life and activities of a person is determined by the inherent qualities as well as acquired ones. The dominant qualities are of the Rajas, Tamas, or the Sattva (that vary from time to time). Further, the circumstances, the environment- physical and social or cultural, decide the idiosyncrasies- attitudes and behaviors of the person. Nothing is common between persons, not even between the twins or siblings. Some persons are adamant, argumentative, and never budge.Some are bent on holding on to their preconceived ideas. Some do not think about the pros and cons of their attitude and behavior and never bother to respect others, hear or take their points of view! Some persons remain short-tempered throughout their life, whereas, some are mild and timid! the world goes on. There is a saying, adage, that "the born qualities cannot change!"

  The most beautiful thing that one can observe here in these persons of different types is that "nothing counts at the end!' "All unto dust", they say. This is the ultimate truth. This prompts us to just love a person for all his nuances (nuisances?), idiosyncrasies, attitudes and behavior, likes and dislikes. Love a person judgment does not arise. Judge a person love disappears!

   Hence, even the mind and its attributes are of no consequences in the liberation from bondage of the  jiva, from its sufferings, miseries, and rebirths, from its prarabhda karma! Only yoga will deliver at the end.

Mystery of Mind!

    The Mind is very mysterious. Actually we do not know what this Mind is. "It is, it is not!" This is the Vedic doctrine. We are lost for a moment and we do not know where we are since the Mind is absent. We cannot understand the ways of Mind, its attitude, behavior, and its waywardness puts us in awkward situation. Our entire life is governed by this mysterious entity called Mind (manas). The more we try to find out, grasp it, the more it slips off from our grip. But, there are yogi, attained persons who control the Mind! Either the Mind controls us or we should control it? It is extremely difficult to know what it is, let alone, control it!

    What is this Mind, Where is it and where does it come from? There scriptural Texts that answer these questions. According to the Vishnu Purana, the Mind is the manifest aspect of Sri Hari. It is the Sp[ace, Akasha. It is also known as the core of the objects, soul, Atman. This is the first Element that gives rise to, accommodate and support the other Elements (bhutadi gana) such as Vayu, Agni, Aps (jal), and Prithvi (pancha bhutadi). In scientific parlor, it is the same as Space that accommodate and allows movement of gaseous, liquid and solid materials. But, where is the 'Mind' here? Mind is the Akasha, Space. Everything rises in the Mind, lives and dies in the Mind! Thus, the world is the Mind and the Mind is created by the Mind. The elemental, objective, phenomenal, transient world  is created and sustained and finally dissolved in the Mind. Mind is also a bhava, bhavana, or thinking!  As we think so it happens- yad bahavam tad bhavati | 

   Now the origin of Mind (manas) is traced to Purusha and Prakruti. 'Purusha' is the 'efficient cause', adhishthana  karana, and the prakruti (sva bhava) is the 'Evolutionary' or 'Material Cause'. Kala (Time) is the catalyst, principle of inner activity, and the spiritual activity of God as the transcendent and immanent agent. The causal 'trinity' finds its fundamental active principle in this! In a way, it is the 'kriya shakti' of the 'ichha' of the Lord. In the beginning there exists only 'Purusha'. The 'prakruti' or 'svabhava' is the inherent quality of the Purusha. It is like the Sun and its light, or Fire and its heat. 

    Now, the process of evolution begins with the 'mahat'. it is known by different names, such as, vidya, gauh, yavani, brahmi, vadhu vriddhi, mati,madhu, akhyati,Ishvara, and prajnya. Three qualities exist such as tamas, rajas, and sattva and these determine the category of mahat- such as kala(Time), buddhi (Intellect), prana (Life Force). The sattva of mahat emanates as virtue, ('dharma'), knowledge (jnyan), disinclination (vairagya),and allmental powers (aishvarya). The tamas aspect create the opposite of all these!

   The manus descend into Mahat.and from mahat there spring out Indriya (the Senses) by which the objects are perceived as existence or non-existence. Another aspect that emerges from mahat is ahankara (Ego) through the influence of the spiritual energy of God. Ahankara is also called as abhimana, prajapati, abhimanta, and bodha. Ahankara is known according to its tamas, rajas or sattva as vaikarika, taijas, and bhutadi. 

   The Ego, Ahankara, manifests itself as will, anger, greed, manas (Mind) and trisha (desire). At this stage, the manus become the thinking entity called man. Then all the tanmatras create their respective bhutadi. Sound emanates from Akasha, touch from Vayu. form from Agni, rasa from Aps and gandha from prithvi. The respective sense organs come as if to experience the tanmatras! All these are said to be the spiritual creative desire of God.  

Manas and Chitta as Ocean and its Waves

    Manav (Man) is said to be borne out of Manu. It is the manas (Mind) that evolved into Manu and manav. The life and activity of the humans are controlled by the 'manas' and 'chitta', the Mind and its vibration. There are scriptural texts elaborately describing the 'manas' and 'chitta', but not much is known about these in the Western scientific world. The psychologists who deal with the mind only scratch the surface and have not gone any deeper! At best, they may talk about feminine aspect or the mind of children, or the state of lunatic's mind. One beautiful text on Mind is by Swami Shivananda of Hrishikesha. The various aspects of Mind is described in the text on Mind here.

    The Mina or 'manas' is the firs manifest form of brahmn. This 'manas' is also said to be Atman. The Creation (srushti) is the supposed to be the effect  the cause of which are 'manas' and 'chitta' of Paramatman. "He Desired." "He willed", say the texts. The 'Desire' (Ichha) or 'Will' (chitta)  of Ishvara is the cause of creation. This manas is one of the three manifest forms of antahkarana that emanate from the Atman. Ahankara (Ego) and Buddhi (Intellect) are the other two manifest forms. The entire human life depends on these three manifest aspects of the Atman, ie. brahmn. However, what this manas is,remains an eternal mystery! It(Mind) is a form of spiritual entity, say some sages and the materialists say that 'the Mind is Matter'. In fact, both these views are correct since Spirit only becomes Matter and Matter can revert to state of Spirit. The intensity, frequency and duration of vibration and the resultant nature of the waves decide whether the Mind is Matter or Energy (Spirit)! Mind is gross or subtle according to its state of vibration! Mind can expand, contract, or even disappear for some time! 

    The 'manas' and ;chitta' are thus like an ocean and its waves. The Ocean is real, static, while the waves are unreal and changing. The waves are caused by the winds. Stronger the winds, much fierceful are the waves! So also, a calm and peaceful mind is the natural sate. Any desire creates the vibration and waves like a pebble thrown into still water; stronger the desire, much stronger the waves and vibrations of the mind, such as, thoughts, ideas, dreams, aspirations, fear, anger, anxiety, etc. The desire bring forth action that results in joy, happiness, or anger, frustration, etc. These vibrations are the ruling factors of life!

   A jnyani or yogi will take recourse to yoga and maintains a calm and quiet state of mind and thereby will not be subject to vibrations and the result thereof! He is of an equanimous mind ('sthitaprajnya')  who will not have any dualities.  But, it is very difficult to attain this state of equanimity. Mind becomes a turbulent ocean when desires surge and destroy its peaceful state. The Mind is like a thermodynamic reactor, a reservoir full of energy. This energy has to be contained and channelized. The 'laya yoga' suggests total destruction of the mind. 'Kill it', says the laya yoga. But it is not possible to kill it since it is the basis of existence. No mind, no life, is the doctrine. However, one can channelize the forces of mind, chitta. The Mind can be mastered by a simple technique. Just observe it, it disappears! It is so simple as that. if one observes the mind keenly, the vibration stops! Go to the root of the desire, say the Great Sages like Ramana. It may not be possible to control it, but it can be easily observed and thereby mastered! 

     

The Moon, the Mind, and the Oceans

     The entire universe is one continuum with the living beings, jiva rashi (at the micro level) and the brahmanda at the other end (macro level) connected like a spring, the Lagrangian string. Everything is intricately connected to every other! The Sun is the center at the solar system and the Planet Earth and its living beings (jivarashi) located at distance of 140 Million Kms, in the 3rd place (nearer to the Sun after Mercury and Venus). This position decides most of the happenings on the Earth and its life forms. The entire solar system is governed by the mutual attraction and repulsion forces that keeps everything in the appropriate position. Whatever comes nearer is pushed out and whatever tries to go away will be pulled back. This push and pull is the balancing system operates everywhere in the universe. 

   Now, the Oceans are large masses of water (covering almost 79 per cent of earth's surface).These are subject to forccs of attraction by the Moon (0.56 M.Km) away! Every Full Moon and the New Moon causes high tides. The same thing happens every summer and winter as the Sun comes nearer and goes fartheraway by a small distance!. Thus High tides and low tides happen periodically every fortnight and spring tide and neap tides happen seasonally. Now these forces of attraction also have very dramatic effect on living beings on earth.

    The human mind is a fragile apparatus like the Ocean, but invisible. in fact it is called a lake, manasa sarovar. The mind easily succumbs to pull of the Moon like the tides in the oceans. The  lunar cycles easily affect weak minds. The humans and even animals react differently on Full Moon and New Moon days. The human behavior is thus controlled by the Mind that is affected by the position of the Moon during the rotation of the earth (on its axis) and the revolution of the Moon around the Earth. This is one of the major aspects of human behavior that we have to notice!

    This inter-relationship between the sun, the moon, the earth and its oceans, and the human mind and its behavior, attitude, etc. are significant factors that are to be noticed. Human behavior is thus unpredictable!

'Siddhi

  We have heard of some people walking on fire, some on water, and some simply fly in air (clairvoyant)! Theses are nothing when compared to the feats of Hanuman who used to appear and disappear in a fraction of a second, or appear everywhere at the same time like Bhagavan Shree Krishna. These feats are not only mythological, but shown by some magicians like Jadoo Sarkar. The magic is different and achieving siddhi is different!
   The human potential is vast. There is no limit to one's attainment! The Yogi is one who has attained siddhi as a result of steadfast (dhruti) spiritual practices (adhyatma sadhana), and yogabhyasa. There are several methods of spiritual practices or yoga, such as, Hatha yoga, Kundalini yoga, Ashtanga yoga,  chakradhyana, pranayama, Gayatri japa, ajapajapa, etc.The great sages belong to a special category of attainers. Some have attained brahm jnyan, some have attained siddhi and these are called siddhi purusha. There are the set of people who worship Shiva and some who worship Shakti adopting unscientific or irrational, avaidiki cult (prohibited for householders and common people). Some have adopted very scientific methods of asana pranayama and transcendental meditation. All these get certain success, not necessarily siddhi! 

   The Rishi is one who visualizes the mantra. Even a sound, a syllable or a word or few words may be the mantra, so received or visualized. For example, the King Sharadvan of Gadi Kingdom became a drushtara, Rishi Vishva Mitra, a brahma rishi, by visualizing the mantra in Gayatri Metre. He meditated on Paramatma Narayana and Sun, Bharga deva of savitru devata, and prayed that the inner potential be activated. This became a mantra in Gayatri Metre of Three and a half lines consisting of 24 letters: tatsavitruvarenyan bhargo devasya dhi mahi dhi yo  yo nah prachodayat | However, this is not that simple. He visualized 24 Devi Shakti like Adhya, Brahmi, Vaishnavi, Shambhavi, Vedamata, Devamata, Vishvamata, Rutambhara, Mandakini, Ajapa, Ruddhi and Siddhi - twelve of them are of Vaidiki / yantra and, twelve of them of Tantra- Savitri, Saraswati, Lakshmi, Durga, Kundalini, Pranagni, Bhavani, Bhuvaneshvari, Annapurneshvari, Mahamaya, Payasvini and Tripura, each one having the bijakshara like tat, sa,vi, tru, etc.and a mandala or Chakra suitable for practice. Hence, one can realize how much power can be gained by this mantra when all the twenty-four devata become glad and bless!  

    Normally, an adept who practices yoga sincerely will get success, siddhi within six months! However, this is only an indication of the progress, but not attainment. The real attainment comes at the end. The ashtasiddhis so attained are said to be anima, mahima, garima, laghima, prapti, prakamya, Ishtva, and vashitva.

    The yogi should not use these powers for selfish ends. It is for the universal wellfare and good of all! 

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Our Place in this Universe

   Do we really exist as an entity? Where do we exist? What is our place in this Universe (brahmanda)? This Universe is like a ball within a ball. There are layers after layers like an onion and nothing remains when each layer is peeled off! That which remains when the sheaths are removed one by one, that which is invisible, that which supports the universe is the Atman! The living beings are also like mini universe. The humans that appear as solid gross bodies are 75% water and the remaining solid portion is also, in a way, not solid. The scientists say, "Solid is not solid"! Solids are the condensed forms of the gaseous state. The sun is a hot gaseous body out of which all the so called solid gross planets and their satellites are formed. The Bhu (Earth) is one such. There is enormous space between galaxies, stars and even considerable space exist between the Planets and the Satellites. This space is called akasha. Nobody knows the extent of this akasha, but they say there is One who folds it like a mattress and goes away! The great sages have visualized these different levels of existence and called them the vayhruti, realms or spheres of existence. What exists here is also said to be almost like, "It is, it is not"! Nothing is certain. At the most seven vyahrutis are recognized and these are stated in the Gayatri mantra as bhurbhuvasvah maharjanahtapahsatyam| Of these, the first three are said to be more important to us. These are the realms of the Earth, the Moon, and the Sun.
  Thus, the three realms, vyahruti or loka, stated in the Gayatri mantra are the lower levels.The three  higher levels, or realms, known as the janah, tapah, and the satya are separated by the mahar lok. These seven realms of existence are filled with different types of creation gross, subtle, and the subtler most. The Earth supports plants and other living beings, such as, the aquatics, amphibians, reptiles, avian or the arboreal, quadrupeds and bipeds like the primates and man. The nature of existence and the types of creation at higher levels are not well known to us. However, we are told, as in scriptures, these higher levels also support different types of creation, albeit, of subtler and subtler nature as forces (waves and vibrations)! For instance, we find very powerful forces, shakti, that influence us, our thoughts, ideas and actions called 'Devi Devata' in the Mahar Loka. The other realms are the home of manes or pitrus (janah lok), the jnyani, yogi or Rishis (tapo lok), and finally, the divine souls that have attained the brhamn, satya loka, or the Brahma lok. Thus, there are the gross, subtle and subtler existence at different levels of the cosmos. 

  The doctrine of "yatha brahmanda (cosmos) tatha pindanda (jiva)"states that "The jiva at the gross level on earth is as good as the subtler powerful cosmic entity, at large!" In fact, there is yet another subtler state- andanda, which is as good as the brahmanda! It is like a mandala which is a continuum, lika a point on the circumference! Everything is replicated. Whatever exists outside is also inside! The idea of 'inner' and the 'outer' are just an illusion due to the wall, that exists in illusory time and space!  
    Thus, all the seven realms found 'outside' are also found within the jiva! The human cell is amini universe. It has all the knowledge, information, technology to create and recreate! It is the source of pindanda. The jiva begins with a subtler state, as if nothing existed at first, and gradually manifest or evolve into solid gross form. In the silence exists the sound and, the sound merges in silence. The jiva is gross in its external and becomes subtler and subtler in its innermost! The human cell is a beautiful example. It consists of almost invisible Ribose- the DNA and the RNA!

   These equivalent of the seven levels of existence are that of levels of Consciousness. The jiva can exist at any of these seven, or just go up and come down these. There is no limit to our existence! The yogi attains it by sheer practice of yoga- Kundalini or chakra dhyana. The equivalent of the Bhu is the muladhara chakra and its bijakshara mantra is 'lam' (subtlermost form in sound). It is also the jagrata stateofthe jiva. The rest are as explained in the Kundalini yoga, reaching upto sahsrara. 

    Now, the question is there anything as the 'Universe" (brahmanda)? In fact, there is no entity as such called the 'Universe'. It is the Veda, ('vid', meaning, Knowledge, jnyan). It is like an University- a citadel of Knowledge. It is the repository of knowledge and all Departments from A-Z, Astronomy to Zoology, exis whether there are students and faculty are there or not! The entire universe is nothing but 'vid', jnyan, and it exists within us!
     The Veda emphatically states that Atman knows all! Atmai vedgm sarvam | ayam Atmaa brahmn | Atma eva brahmaa | aham brahmasmi | Brahmn is totality, vid, jnyan. All that exists is jnyan, knowledge. Consciousness! Everything is revealed in the background of Consciousness! prajnyanan brahmaa| Evam Veda | "I am the Universe", is the realization, brahmn. the Self (Atman) is all!    

Closing Balance

   It is stated that, "the Chitraguptas, Accountants of Yama Raja, the Deity of Death, who maintain the accounts of every thought and action of ours recommends for future course of action, and we appear here in different forms, and perform functions and acquire credits and debits" Even, a single thought forms the seed for the next birth. Since thoughts are the basis of action, the thought is the cause and, as such, much severe than the action and it calls for more severe drastic action! Hence, one has to be careful as to what thinks, desire and acts! Once the account is closed, no thoughts, desires and actions, by absolute still mind through laya yoga, the jiva is redeemed and there is no need to come back, for there is nothing to clear. Hence, it is the Closing Balance and B/F (Brought Forward) that is the problem!
  We have heard of issue of ATM cards with Zero Balance Account. We also have come to knowof 'Jan Dhan Account' and direct credit of money to our account by the Government. In both these cases, there is the need for opening a Bank Account. Here lies the trap! A person who is completely free from any obligation gets into obligation and the 'Credit- Debit' accounting starts. Once the account is open in a Bank, the customer has to run to bank? This is the trick of the trade?

   So also, the jiva starts its account of credit and debit, papa and punya account the moment it starts its function on earth. This function starts with the first breath and continues till the last breath of the jiva. The physical body needs food and this creates the first Bank account. The 'desire' is the cause and in its wake comes resolve (sankalpa) followed by action (karma) and the fruits of action (karma phala). Thus the accounting system begins with debit and credit. Good actions bring credits and bad actions get debits and the jiva has to settle its account before it leaves the earth! But, the accumulation of these credits and debits of points makes it appear again and again in different forms and the jiva has no chance of getting out of all these. Finally, the jiva seeks guidance from the Lord and He sends a Guru as His representative to help the jiva to get out of this rut. 

   The central idea here is that of credit (punya) and debit (papa) account. The jiva will be in bondage (bandhan) and will not get redeemed of its obligation until the closing balance is nil or Zero. The jiva came here to earth in a pure and pristine from as a spark, (angira), a stellar dust particle, Energy or Prana shakti, entered the clouds, entered the rain drops, entered the soil and entered food, and entered the gross, jiva! This physical body made of food derived from the soil is ignorant of its source, its true nature! This ignorance is the trap! Desire is the Pass Book, action begets the debit and credits and the jiva runs to bank till its account is settled and redeemed! 

    The crux of the situation is simple. Whether one does good deeds or bad deeds there is no way but to take birth again and again, life after life, to settle its account- may be born in rich family or good family toenjoy punya phala or suffer misery in families that face distress and disadvantages. There is a wrong belief that the jiva will go to heaven due to punya phala. But, once the jiva arrives here, this is the stage where the drama goes on. Whether the jiva has acquired punya or papa, it has to settle the account here only. Unless the jiva realises the futility of the gross physical body by jnyan, it is bound to suffer! Once it realises its mistake of taking a body, it tries to get rid of its attachment by yoga and gets redemed, onec for all. The account is settled!
   Bhagavan Shree Krishna gives simple solutions to closing the account and returning to Him. He says, "sarvarambha parityagi" is very dear to Me. Then He says, sarvaasha parityagi is very dear to Me. And, He says, Sarva phala tyagi reaches Me! No desire, no resolve, no action, and no reaction or fruits of action! There are many accounts of jiva returning to its abode without taking the physical body. Garbhopanishad explains how the jiva remembers its past life and resolves not to come to earth and does not take birth. In fact, if the jiva realizes its mistake of taking birth in this mrutyu lok, where what all is born here has to die, jatasya maranam dhruvam | 

  

Human Population on Earth

  The entire population of humans on the earth is estimated to be about 800 to 850 crores. These human beings are in different stages of evolution, mental capacities, mental development, consciousness level and abilities and skills. Not all people are equal or same, like the five fingers! However, the fingers are designed for a particular purpose, to hold, grasp, etc. but not the humans  in different levels of existence. Although all humans belong to the same species, Homeo sapiens sapiens, they are yet to develop into the human level of existence, There are many tribes living in deserts, hilly and mountain regions, lakesides and riverbanks, coastal plains and high plateaus. Each of these tribes have different skills adapted to their respective regions, live, work, and die. Hardly any of these matter when it comes to their mental abilities and survival skills. Many a great civilizations have ended and some have no traces left. Let alone great cities, even large chunks of land, continents like the Atlantis, have disappeared! Now, we see a modern civilization with many scientific and technological innovations! But people still live in ghettos, squalor, eat worms, rats, snakes, scorpions, grasshoppers and dogs! People die like worms with the onset of virus and germs! This makes one sit and think what has gone wrong with the Creator and His creation! Is there is no plausible answer?

   The present day scenario of human population and their civilization is one of low mental development. Higher the mental development, more the maturity and higher level of consciousness, better is the civilization. The best of civilizations have come and gone! These great civilizations are depicted in mythologies. The mythological characters are of highly divine nature. They depict divine qualities. The ideal ones are eulogized in the Great Epics.

   Hence, it appears that it is futile to expect anything higher, divine or even human from the present human population! This civilization may be summed up as one of unconscious people who kill each other for sheer greed and selfish reason, and many for no valid reason, too! 

The Human Being

    Sage Veda Vyasa, Sri Krishna Dvaipayana, gave us eighteen great epics. These are classified into Brahma (6), Vishnu (6), and Maheshwara (6). These Great Epics depict the Creation (srushti), Sustenance (sthiti) and Dissolution (laya) aspects, as also merger (vilaya). This completes the cycle of journey of jivas on this Living Planet.  

   According to the Brahmanda Purana, the Creator Chaturmukha Brahma was ordained by Mahavishnu to go ahead with creation. Actually, Chaturmukha Brahma emanated from the navel of Vishnu when He desired to manifest Himself as many (bahusyam). "He willed". The first manifestation of the supreme Lord is a beautiful narrative creation. Atharva (Ganesha) is the first, followed by Sanaka, Skanda, Sanakananda, sanatkumara, Sanatsujata, and narada. Each one of these is said to be the 'Brain-child' of Brahma/ These are the first sattva aspect that devoted their life to 'Brahmn' and nothing proceeded in creation since they refused to reproduce or re-manifest themselves! When Brahma looked to Vishnu for advice, the Lord advised him to create in 'rajas' instead of 'sattva'. Then came the asuras, daityas, and other evil forces that threatened very creation. Brahma was afraid of these and turned to Vishnu for help. Then came all the animals like pigs, cattle, sheep, and the like in 'tamas' aspect! This did not satisfy Brahma and he resorted to a blend  or mixture of all the three qualities (gunas)- a little of sattva, rajas and tamas and then came the humans! Thus, the the various types of creation proceeded.

    In Shiva Purana, it is stated that Lord Shiva Himself manifested as the jiva in different forms! These jivas created the jagat. The Jiva disgusted with the jagat bound by time, space and causality takes recourse to yoga and reverts to Shiva.

    In the Vishnu Purana, the creation is described at length. It manifests from 'brahmn' and there appear the Lakshminarayana principle.  The first manifestation of the 'brahmn' is the Akasha (Space) which in turn, produces vayu; together these produce 'agni' (Fire) and together these produce Water and Earth (land). These five principles carry with them their respective qualities (tanmatra) such as sound, touch, sight, sound and taste. The Lord created the sense organs to experience these qualities and thereby established as the multifarious jiva rashi. thus came the visible gross world from subtler aspects!
   There is another explanation as to how the different levels of existence manifested from the Supreme Lord Narayana, Eternal Flow of Pure Consciousness. The firs manifestation is the Desire (Ichha), Creative Power (kriya), and the Knowledge (jnyan). These three are the Shakti aspect- Mahalakshmi. The six qualities of power of Mahalakshmi are: shakti, jnyan, aishvarya, bala, virya, tejas. These form the resources for creation vested in Vasudeva, the Ruler of the World. Vasudeva, in turn diverts these powers to Sankarshana, Pradyumna, and Aniruddha- sharing two of these as prominent ones like- Sankarshana with shakti and jnyan creating Sages and Saints; Pradyumna with aishvarya and bala producing Devi-Devata, and Anirudhha with virya and tejas producing the pitrus or manes and Brahmanas, kshatriya, Vaishya and Shudra clan, respectively, experts in knowledge, defense, exchange or trade, and production of food products, etc.

    The Great sages said, the creation of human form is the most beautiful one and has a divine purpose. The Learned Saint Purandhara Das has rendered beautiful lyrics comparing the human form to a Chariot of Ten sense and the Mind as Charioteer taking it around sansar. This human form is compared to a pot (head) worth not a paisa resting inverted on a body!" He said, it is like "Three tanks built on the tip of a needle!" The purpose of this human form is to take to yoga and visualize brahmn, the supreme Lord, the cosmic reality behind all creation!

The Way We Live

   It  is so strange that we never know how we live until we reach the fag end of our life. It is only when we look back and assess our life, the way we lived, we will find certain things we never noticed during the days we went through them. For most of us it was just a routine life, for some it was tumultuous, every moment a challenge, and for some it was all joy and happy days! There are some who have never seen success in their life, and some have tragic days through out, with mishaps, failure, and misery to the point of killing oneself! Now, is there any plausible explanation for all these? The Vedantins may simply dismiss these as praraabhda karma. But, it is not so according to those who argue that we are our own masters and create what we want! But, why misery? No answer. Is there any clue? Yes there are plenty of clues, instructions, and guidance in the spiritual texts for a happy, peaceful successful life, particularly in the Gita.

    There are many beautiful doctrines enunciated in the Gita. It says, all the karma action,arise out of desire. So desist desire? The problem is solved. Ashasha paramam duhkham, nirasha paramam sukham! Second, the desire leads to resolve and resolutions become action and their results in theit turn. Everything is hidden in the resolve. So the Lord says, "sarvarambha parityagi, sarva asha parityagi, sarva phala tyagi" is dear to Me! Further, Bhagavan says, "Just trust Me, offer everything to Me and go ahead. Do as you like. I shall take care of you"! Will He save me if I commit crime? Lo!Who is assuring us? Yes, only if it is done in His name, for the universal welfare, but not with a selfish motive? We have seen Prince and Princes killing Kings and coming to throne and say, "King can do no wrong"? But, these days political crimes are punishable by Law. 

   In sum and substance, The jiva arrives here, runs its errands using the Senses driven by the Mind full of desires, dreams, aspirations and ideas, thoughts and forces of karma. Control the Mind, be its master, not a slave and see. The jiva sails through life and merges in Him! The jiva is bestowed with 'free will' and endowed with skills to achieve its desire. But the desire should be to attain to Him, become divine, not to fulfil sensuous desire that are never ending! Once the knowledge brings wisdom and takes to renunciation, the jiva will enjoy here so well that it will not desire to come back. The journey ends!
   The best way to live is to live a simple life. One must realize how all the pomp and glory of great nations and their civilizations, empires and Emperors and Kings, even the great Rulers ultimately ended with a whimper! The world goes on. It's all a creation of our mind and feelings, bhavana..It is bhavanatmikajagat!  

Are We Really Going to Die?

In the wake of the deadly attack of Corona virus (Covid 19), we hear hundred of thousand of people are dyeing all over the world. Are these people really dead? Yes they are dead, as far as their physical body is concerned, and their mortal remains are disposed off. The sad news of people dyeing due to Corona Virus (Covid19) all over the world has indeed made one and all very nervous. The source of corona is said to be a chemical warfare or some leakage of chemicals from Lab. Whatever the reason, people have been affected by the virus and are dying due to high fever, cough, and lung afflictions. The Cornona virus-afflicted  bodies die, or become inert, dead, and soon disposed off! This is the story of a jiva that is hapless, helpless, hopeless, greedy and visited the Earth as tiny particle of stellar dust, a spark, angira (s).

   Now taking clue from the Gita, what Bhagavan Sri Krishna said, "Arjuna, you and I are always here! We are neither born nor die. We are here even before the Sun, Vivasvan, is born!" The real meaning of this is: "The soul, Atman, covered by the physical body of flesh and bones is immortal, eternal, unborn! This Atman is the very true nature of existence of the jiva, in its subtlest form. This is like the seed that produces a tree that bears fruits and falls off! The seeds remain?  

   Bhagavan says, "One should not grieve for the dead or alive!" All those born are going to die! Those who are not born cannot die? The body is discarded after it is non-functional. It is like an electric bulb thrown out after it is burnt out! Another bulb will take over? So also, my grand parents have come and gone and theirs, roo. We also depart from the body and our body will be disposed off. What is important here is that we don't die when we depart from the body, but we become pure and pristine soul, if we are cleansed of our prarabhda and sanchita karma. If we are still carrying these karma klesha and full of desire, our soul will take another body and try to satisfy its desires or cleanse of its karma. That's all! Where is birth and death here. Bhagavan says, "These births and deaths are like changing the worn-out clothes!". There are beautiful examples to make us understand these doctrines. For example, the gold jewelry takes different forms like bangles, chains, ear andnose studs, These revert to their original state when melt. So also the pots, cups, plates and the like made of clay revert to their original state when broken! All that appears in the background of sky (akasha) or the reflections on the mind screen revert to sky or Mind, nothingness! Thus, the various forms of jiva revert to their original state when their forms are discarded!
    So, one need not worry about these natural or man-made calamaities, the latter being the foolishness of people who do not know how to live or let  live?

   So be safe, do good to others while living as a service rendered to the Creator! He, the supreme Lord only visits the earth in different forms and performs functions. There is none besides Him. All that we see is an illusion, like the characters in a drama or film on the screen (of our min?). Nothing else"!

  

'Chaitanya'

    'Chaitanya', prana, life-force is the critical factor in creating life. This prana or life-force is coming from oxygen and hydrogen, but who puts it there is the question! Oreover, one seed only becomes a orchard, plantation, or forest. One person only becomes family, society, and nation. ‘Life’ is a word loosely applied to a collection of processes- DNA replication and transcription krebs cycle, lactic acid cycle. We are yet to decipher the true nature of the ‘life-force’ or ‘prana’ that is at the root of allliving beings, jiva (prani). Water and soil play a very important role in germination of the seed. The scientists are still busy in finding the mystery involved in the creation of life. The molecular biologists have discovered the constituents of the structure and composition of the cell- the protein gel membrane that covers the cells, the genes and their inherent characteristics, the DNA and RNA chains, the amino acids, enzymes, the vitamins, hormones, and the chromosomes are all now known but for the exact source of their energy component, may be traced to an extraneous source that can never be described! The following illustrations will give us some idea about these. 

  What creates and sustains the universe is the ‘Purusha’, the potential for creation, the inherent Energy in Matter. But nobody knows what is this ‘Energy”, its source, its true nature, and its dissemination. Nobody knows how much Energy is needed for different functions of all that is created, or for that matter, where this Energy lies and in what form, whether it is always dormant or active, always potential or kinetic- as an electron and a positron and a neutron! The result is what we see as a paraphernalia of a vibrant energy field. It is the vibration that is the universe and everything disappears the moment the waves subside! Science tries to discover this ‘God particle’ and Vedanta describes the potential and the kinetic aspects of this Energy in the various epics, such as the Vishnu purana, Shiva purana, Padmapurana, brahmanda purana, etc. What is the outcome of all these? 

   The entire Universe is nothing but the 'purusha'. The first manifest form of this purusha is ‘Energy’. It is the ‘mass of clouds of stellar dust’ that first appeared as a figure of a person (purusha) - with head, torso and limbs stretched! Later, it expands, spreads far and wide, takes the form of a vast and deep Space (sagara) in which exist all that we see and experience. The stellar materials take the form of dark energy, dark matter, gravitate and start emitting light and become galaxies and stars and develop their own systems of planets and satellites like our Solar System. These stars are of different dimensions and potentialities. But we do not know what sort of, and how much of, this energy is required to create the stars, galaxies or the visible universe? Where did it lie and how does this energy emerge or manifest and in what form? For all practical purposes, ‘Energy’ is derived from stars and the nearest to us is the sun, also known as Aditya and all living beings are sustained by it. The Sun is the chief source of energy for us. 

    As regards the actual process of creation or evolution of life forms, there are a number of sources and Vishnu purana and Devi Purana are the important ones. Some of these details are given later. However, in brief, it is stated that “Eighty-four thousand species are created by cosmic force Adi parashakti. Two opposite forces-equal and opposite are created as Satyarupa (Aditi) and Diti as consorts of Kashyapa, the self-effulgent, svayambhuva manu. From Aditi are created Sun, vayu, soma, Indra, agni, varuna, aryaman, pushan, ashvin, vasu- all considered the Vedic Devata. The human beings are created by svayambhu manu Kashyap and Aditi while all others including the demons are created by Diti. Brahma creates, Vishnu nurtures and Ishvara neutralizes the forces of fusion and fission. The energy component of the Trinity- Brahma, Vishnu, and Ishvara will be reflected in the human beings as the ‘Atman’. 

     The Atman is chaitanya the chit-shakti of Lord Vishnu, with intellect (buddhi) and creativity or intelligence derived from Ishvara. The humans can cognize or realize the Atman and experience its true nature- sat chit and ananda, only through Conscious awareness of the Self. There are no other physical entities or parents and off-springs, as such, here. Body, mind, and intellect, as well as, the soul are spontaneously generated, and tuned to cosmic energy of the supreme spirit- soul, paramatman. The scientists are still busy in finding out the mystery involved in the creation of life. The molecular biologists have discovered the constituents of the structure and composition of the cell- the protein gel membrane that covers the cells, the genes and their inherent characteristics, the DNA and RNA chains, the amino acids, enzymes, the vitamins, hormones, and the chromosomes. We all now know everything except the exact source of their origin, their energy component, and think they are derived from an extraneous source that can never be detected!

Are We Aliens?

   

 In the Gita, Bhagavan Sri Krishna says, “I am the seed of creation”. Everything is ‘chaitanya’, energy inherent in spirit as we as matter that is unborn, eternal and immortal. Energy cannot be created or destroyed. Energy is derived from sun, also known as Aditya (and distant stars, too,) as far as earth and its living beings are concerned. The Sun is the chief source of energy for us. As regards the actual process of creation or evolution of life forms, there are a number of sources and Vishnu purana and Devi Purana are the important ones. Some of these details are given later. However, in brief, it is stated that “Eighty-four thousand species are created by cosmic force Adi parashakti. Two opposite forces-equal and opposite are created as Satyarupa (Aditi) and Diti as consorts of Kashyapa, the self-effulgent, svayambhuva manu. From Aditi are created Sun, vayu, soma, Indra, agni, varuna, aryaman, pushan, ashvin, vasu- all considered the Vedic Devata. The human beings are created by svayambhu manu, the manifest forms of Aniruddha, the mixed impure sattva!

   Kashyap and Aditi while all others including the demons are created by Diti. Brahma creates, Vishnu nurtures and Ishvara neutralizes the forces of fusion and fission. The energy component of the Trinity- brahma, vishnu, and Ishvara will be reflected in the human beings as the ‘Atman’. The Atma is the chaitanya of vishnu, intellect and creativity come from Ishvara, and, finally the humans can cognize and realize Atman and experience sat chit and ananda only through self-awareness. There are no physical entities or parents and off-springs as such here. Body, mind and intellect as well as the soul spontaneously generated tuned to cosmic energy of the supreme spirit sol, paramatman.  

  The Bhagavad-Gita explains how the jiva arrives on earth. All the living beings survive on food which comes from the soil. Plants depend on Rain for germination of seeds. Rain comes from clouds. Clouds are formed from evaporation of water from oceans due to sun’s heat. Thus, it is the same ‘solar energy’ that lies in the form of water vapor in the clouds that produce rain due to cooling and condensation. This ‘solar energy’ is the ‘life–force’ that we get from the sun as well as the distant stars. Each jiva is an ‘ion’, a subatomic particle, a photon, a stellar dust particle, in this sense of the term.

    This life-force or ‘prana’ is at the root of all jivas (prani). Water, heat, and soil play a very important role in germination of the seed. Vedic Texts say, “purusha’ (brahmn) is the seed. In the Gita, Bhagavan Sri Krishna says, “I am the seed of creation”. Everything is ‘chaitanya’, energy inherent in spirit, the soul that is unborn, eternal and immortal. The soul is eternal, in the sense that, ‘Energy cannot be created or destroyed’. How can an entity that is invisible, unborn and eternal create a physical body of biological entity called ‘cell’ and function within the limitations of time, space, and causality? In other words, how can the ‘non-existent’ (‘asada’) become existent (‘sada’), and again revert to the state of ‘non-existence’? This is the mysterious universe. This has been explained in the concept of ‘maya’.

Higher Levels of Consciusness

  It is stated in the scriptures that "Consciousness flows down from Sri Hari Purna Prajnya Narayana. By the time it reaches down to the earth and its jiva rashi, living beings it is so diluted that very little exists here! However, the jiva can rise to higher consciousness with yogabhyasa. Allthe seven levels of prajnya exist within the jiva in a subtle unmanifest state, as it were, and only traces are experienced!
   The three lower levels of muladhara (at the base /seat), svadhshthana (below navel) and the manipura (nabhi or navel) are the normal states of jiva as in jagrata, svapna and sushupti, respectively. The fourth is the anahata (heart). The first three levels are the levels to which the jiva is condemned and made to suffer. The fourth is the state if 'is and 'is not'. This is very difficult to understand. The jiva suffers due to limitations. These limitations are, more or less, self-imposed. The jiva is the limitation. Limitation, niyati, is due to its contraction, sankuchan (constriction); what was once vast, unlimited, free becomes limited by time, space, causation and reduced to limited in size, shape, and sphere of influence and activity. All these are the attributes of the prakruti, svabhava. The jiva can always revert to its original pristine pure unlimited form anytime by taking recourse to yogabhyasa and brahma chintana! But it has forgotten its true nature!

   As we have seen the struggling jiva and its predicament without any clue as to why it is suffering, and it never occurs to us that we are also enjoying this suffering! If we were to suffer, or even know that we are suffering we would definitely try to stop it? We are not even aware of it, as if, the unconscious person in the ICU? The very moment a person feels there is a problem, that he is suffering, he will find out the cause of it and works out to get rid of it. This is how atma chintana helps. The realized person thinks about the cause of suffering is the limitations, the desires, greed, ego, selfish nature of the jiva and tries to get rid of these afflictions and becomes pure. This is the higher levels of consciousness, much above the mundane, sensuous, worldlyexistence.

   The higher levels of Consciousness are the  vishva prajnya, daivee prajnya and the brahmn. The jiva as a limited entity becomes expanded to cover the entire world as vishva manava. Then jiva rises to divine state, and finally to the brahmn. But all these three higher levels are like journey by air. The passengers in a flight, flying across the world. The aircraft has to take off and then reach a certain height and put on auto-pilot state? Only yogabhyasa will help. Divine will, anugraha or grace of the Lord and the purva punya are essential.

   The bijakshara mantra for these three higher levels are: vishuddhi at throat level- 'ham'; 'ajnya' at the bhru or between the eybrows- 'Om', and, finally at the highest shiras- 'shivo'ham'. respectively. The upper limit is dvadashanta, 12 units above head. The method of chakra dhyana is the same as explained earlier. The divine state is one of higher level where there is no body consciousness. However, buddhi, manas and ahamkara exist. This is the level where attachment (moha) is still there. This is like the departed souls- pitamaha, pra-pitamaha and pra pra pitamaha, may be in heavenly abode, always wishing well their progeny!
   The next higher level of devi-devata is also one of attachment and the gods are benevolent to their devotees. It is at the ajnya level that real knowledge dawns and the Rishis are completely bereft of attachment and the worldly existence. The Rishis are interested in attaining to the state of absolute stillness, brahmn. There is nothing to attain further.
   It must be noted that each of the higher levels is blocked and difficult to transcend! There exists something like a barrier, a locked gate and the jiva has to break it open and cross with the help of divine grace. There is an unseen power operating here that pulls the jiva out and liberates it! 

The 'Turiya'

  The Turiya is the 'Fourth', the 'mahat-prajnya'. It comes as interval, gap, sandhi between every state of existence.. This level of existence is somewhat difficult for the simple reason that it is the gateway to higher levels of janah, tapah, and the sat prajnya. The difficulty in reaching the 'turiya' is due to the 'brahma granthi', the valve or lock system at the manipura level! Unless one breaks this nadi granthi, the flow of prajnya to higher levels is not possible. This done by the practice of Kundalini yoga. The 'anahata' level of prajnya is almost the best possible state for an adept! Even if it is attained, one cannot stay for long in this state of almost 'nothingness'. This level is governed by the principle of Atmosphere, vayu tattva. It is the kumbhaka state in pranayama. The adept who regularly practices yoga attains this state to experience the state of  'I am, I am not' at this level. Then reverts to lower levels. Normally, the yogis who transcend this level will drop the three lower levels and try to exist in the higher divine levels of manes (pitrus),devata and the Rishis. The last state is the 'brahmn'.
   The seat of 'turiya' is the heart. The 'heart' is in its subtlest state is the seat of  'Sri Hari (Hri' daya). The Vedic doctrine is tad srushtva tat evanupravishat | Having created 'creation', the supreme Lord entered it! When the jiva was created, it was not functioning. So, 'He entered it'! The subtler aspects of the jiva such as the antahkarana have their source here. The manas, buddhi, ahamkara and the chitta are the manifest forms emanating from the 'Hridaya'. Once the anahata level is reached by the yoganishta, the Lord takes over, as if the plane has taken after a long taxi on the tarmac!  

    The bijakshara of the turiya level is 'yam'. This is the vayu tattva and once the mastery over this level is attained, the person can become clairvoyant, move in air at free will! The technique is simple. Breathe in with Om and breathe out with Yam in a cycle of seven times during the pranayama daily. The practice of yoga (yogabhyasa) should be continuous exercise.  

Sva-adhishthana and ManipuraChakra

   The seven steps to the highest state, param padam, starts with the mula adhara, the basis of existence. The seat is the place of this chakra. Here the principle is water, jal tattva.The basal plexus is the normal consciousness of the jiva. Much of it is instinctive as in animals. However, the normal awareness is just sufficient for a the survival of the jiva, and nothing more. The jiva has to strive to attain fulfilment by expanding its consciousness and can reach up to brahmn. After the mula adhara comes the sva adhishthana and the mani pura prajnya levels.

    The second level is sva adhishthana. This is the state of one's normal existence. It is the second chakra and the principle here food (earth/prithvi tattva). This is located below the navel, nabhi, at the womb. This is considered as the Second seat of the Mother and supports creation, birth. Once the jiva is born, the entire life is devoted to survival, search for food, and rest. 

    The bijakshara mantra of svadhishthana chakra dhyana is 'vam'. One can conquer this level and rise to the next level of manipura chakra by taking recourse to mantra japa, dhyana, pranayama. This will take six months and one has to devote 40 mins. everyday at a stipulated place and time and inhale of 'Om' and exhale with sound of 'vam'. Once th person gains control over this, siddhi is attained, he /she will not be dependent on food and drinks. This is why the wise men say, "Man does not live by bread alone!" This gives longer life than the stipulated 80 or 100 years! At this stage, the person will have more energy to concentrate on higher aspects of life and normally loses interest in mundane life.
  Next level is manipura chakra. Here 'mani pura' means teh Palace decorated with precious stones, pearls, and other shining material and Lights! This is where the Queen Raja Rajeshwari, who governs the cosmic entity, rests! This is the seat of Fire, agni tattva! The bjiakshara of the mantra japa is 'ram'. This is the third level and has to be transcended by a severe practice of chakra Dhyana. This may take six months with a constant practice of yoga- inhale 'Om' and exhale 'ram', at least for 40 mins. twice a day at a stipulated place and time. This will give siddhi control over fire principle, agni tattva. Once the adept gains control over the three gross elements- water, soil, and fire, there is no need for dependence on food and water. The person will be getting ashta siddhi and may be able to walk on water and fire! But these siddhi or attainments should not be used for display or making money out of it! This will destroy the person.
   The first three principle govern life in the day-to-day life- jagrata (awake), svapna (dream), and sushupti (deep sleep) levels. These are the three levels of prajnya- vaishvanara, taijasa, and Prajnya. This is how a jiva struggles through out life! There is no mukti, or liberation for the jiva. 

Mula adhara

  There are seven levels of existence and these are dictated by the 'consciousness'. These start with the mula adhara at the base and slowly rise with much effort up to sva adhishthana and mani pura levels. Then it is very difficult to reach higher and higher levels of anahata, vishuddhi, ajnya, and the sahasrara prajnya. These are also the levels or stations of life that one can reach! Unfortunately, we find the first three levels are what we have reached as humans. The plants reach the first with soil heat and water, the animals with one more, i.e. prana, and the third is mind (manas) in primates and man! The Rishis and sages reach the anhata, and then, may be, only  the divine and the knowledgeable reach the vishuddhi and the ajnya levels. So, none at sahasrar?   

  The basis of all existence is life. Life consists of light, intelligence, force, and energy. All these emanate from the sun, the sunrays (electromagnetic waves). The earth is the product of the sun, all the five elements- space, air, fire, water and earth are governed by the Deity Ganesha, the Lord of the elements (ganas), mula adhara adhipati. Since Consciousness is everything, rather, consciousness pervades the universe, the Lord Ganapati is also the Lord of basal plexus. The basis that supports all jivas is the soil, water, air, food, and prana is sustained by the elements under the grace of the Lord Ganesh. These three sheaths-anna, prana, and the manas, cover the soul, Atman of the jiva rashi that include plants, aquatics, amphibian, arboreal and the land animals with four legs (chatushpada), and two legs (dvi pada). The main support of the jiva is food, annam.

   The quality of the jiva is dictated by the quality of the food. The sattvika ahar makes a sattvika and the rajasic and tamasic food make the people full of physical activity and lazy ones, respectively. The food is what makes the people what they are! However, these three qualities may be found in each person in different proportions every day, varying from hour to hour! But, one thing is certain. The quality and quantity of food one consumes makes a person active or lousy, drowsy. Most of the people just live and work for food. Apart from rest and recreation there is not much left! Thus, the life of a jiva in a day of jagrata, svapna and sushupti begins and ends with mundane life! Nothing much is seen here!
   How to rise from the muladhara level of mundane existence to higher levels of consciousness? There are several techniques, The yoga suggests Kundalini yoga, pranayama with Gayatri japa. There is chakra Dhyana and and other techniques. The Bijakshara mantra of muladhara is 'lam'. One should devote 40 mins. twice everyday at the stipulated time and deep in with Om and deep out with 'lam' for six months. This will give full control, siddhoi over the muladhara!  

Station in Life

   Life is an eternal journey and we are all passengers. The train of life is a long ,long one with varieties of Bogies and compartments, including some luggage vans! Passengers enter in and get out of these with their bags and baggage. Some travel First, some Second AC or 3rd AC, some in Resrved Compartments, and mostly others in sleeper classes. Everyone is in tension, anxiety, worries bother them, but a few lucky ones are enjoying the window seats and the beauty of nature unaware of the goings on inside. Some make friends and become, even life-partners! No wonder the journey is full of stories and surprises! People are moving, moving, and moving on!

   The reality is different! The Train of Life, a Path of Journey of life of nara manava, is 'Narayana'. This is "Ananta", endless! there is no beginning or end to this and there is not even a sense of direction, although Dhruva, North Star, is said to be the goal? Now, the Darwin or Neo-Darwin theory tells us about the evolution of mankind. The Vedic doctrines tell us that the supreme Lord only manifests, just appears and disappears in varied forms! Whatever, once the jiva appears on this earth as a living creature, it has to undergo the transformation from its pristine pure form to the the one acquired by it under the influence of the Prakruti, nature. The jiva lives on food and works to get food. The entire life is one of ignorance. The jiva forgets its pure and pristine state of the Atman and suffers the trouble and turmoil of the physical body afflictions! Hence the Body is different and the soul, Atman, that supports it is different. The ten sense organs, the mind, the intellect, the ego and the chitta of whimsical vibrant mind- full of desires, thoughts, ideas, dreams, aspirations and the like make it feel suffer or enjoy! This enjoyment and suffering ends with the annihilation of the mind.
   Now, the jiva undergoes the mill, experience of life in different forms and comes to some conclusion! Most of the jivas feel disgusted of life and even terminate life in the middle by commit of suicide. But, a few jivas take this opportunity to turn to search for real meaning of existence and take to spiritual practice and attain eternal joy, peace, brahmn.
   As to the different stations of life, it may be the childhood, youth, gruhasta, vanaprastha or, even sanyasa. These different stages, stations are not of one life, but each one carried over several lives! One life span is 80 yrs on average and the jiva may take ten lives in 800 years! We have seen some people are childish throughout life. They take life as a child's play. Some become very mature and serious at the very beginning as a child and some become highly mature like Shankara, Ramakrishna! Hence, each jiva undergoes the mill, experience and finally reach the mature, ripe old spiritual life! Some may be at the end  and most of the jivas maybe just at the beginning of the scale of evolution with animal propensity, just adhering to prana and physical conditions of life! Mental development may not have taken place, yet! Most of these jivas are just toiling to eke out a living unaware of the larger, more satisfying, spiritual goals! This is just like a journey that starts  from Kanyakumari to reach Badrinath or Kedarnath and Kailas or Vaikuntha! They are on the move!  

The Nature of the Mundane World

The mundane world is normally a non=entity unless the person shows interest in it! If I am not interest in the day-to-day happenings the world simply does not exist to me. A person lives and works in a very narrow sphere of his span of 60 or 80 years of life and much of it is lost in childhood and old age. The life is so restricted that the jiva cannot look beyond its survival. The happenings in distant parts of the world  is of  no concern unless it affects him directly. Under these circumstances, it is quite obvious that the mundane world is of no consequence. The world has seen two global wars, recession, floods, famines, droughts, earthquakes, tsunamis, and many other havocs that almost threatened the very life on earth. The human evolution is quite recent in the history of the earth. The very existence of life seems to be a miracle, a magical or illusory one!

  The illusory nature of the world is explained by many sages in simple words. The world simply does not exist! The world disappears even if we close our eyes for a minute! The deep sleep state (sushupti) is all consciousness and the jiva rests peacefully unaware of the happenings in the world; the jiva does not know what lies next to it in deep sleep. The unconscious person or a person in coma is oblivious to his very existence! A yogi, on the other hand, is fully aware of his existence, but not interested in all that goes around him! Thus, it is now necessary for a troubled jiva to find solution to its misery, pain and death like Prince Gautama!

   A few simple questions also solve the riddle of this illusory world. Let's ask ourselves two simple questions- "What do I want? and Why do I want it? The answer will solve our problem. First, want or desire creates the phenomenal objective sensuous and the transient world. The moment I find this will not give me absolute happiness, I discard this! Second, the moment I realize the secret behind creation the very magic of life disappears! I am just a product of food (earth/soil)and my existence as a physical body is highly limited. This brings renunciation. Sage Vashishta says, "Due to ignorance about the Atman the world appears to exist. It ceases to exist when the knowledge of the Atman is acquired." This is like the rope appearing like the snake due to ignorance and the illusory snake disappears when the light falls on it. 

  A jnyani, yogi, will go beyond all dualities. For a jnyani the Sunrays and the Sun are the same, the ocean and its waves and the fire and its heat are same. He goes beyond all these differences. We all know how often we are fooled by the shining metals that are passed as gold, cheap soft cloth as the valuable silken, etc. The ignorance that separate the thread from the cloth, the pot from its clay, and the  gold from the glittering jewelry- all disappear with dawn of knowledge! Everything appears  to exist due to erroneous thinking. Experience of the existence of everything arises from 'brahmn' who is Consciousness itself.   Prajnyan brahmn |