"Urdhva retasa"

    Normally it is at puberty, early adolescence days that sex harmones are released and the children behave erratic. After some time, the regulation of harmones is induced and the children are directed towards studies, sports and other activities. There may be some cases of children being spoiled due to bad company, may be due to lack of control or supervision by elders. However, a better life is awaiting those who are properly educated and trained for some avocation.
   Sex plays a limited role in life, may be, about 3 to 5 percent of our life time! This may come as a surprize to many who are obsessed with sex and go on talking right into their old age and unto death. In fact, sex by itself is not bad. It is sex obsession that is bad. It is the vasana, sexual urge that is prompted by constant sex thoughts and memories of sex that haunt a person till death. The reason for this is just food and nothing else. Such an obsession is common amongst the ignorant people since they are revelling in thoughts, ideas, and talks of sex, day in and day out. We can say people talking about sex and making jokes and enjoying. Sex is an obsession since it is a pastime for many and it has lost all sanctity. But, definitely it is different- it is one thing to think and talk, and another to walk into the trap of sexual indulgences due to these thoughts, ideas and urges. Indian culture prohibits exhibitionism, talk and overt indulgences in open about sex and attaches great sanctity to sex.
   Vatsayana has given the code of sexual life and has given dos and don'ts. It is a ritual, yajnya- putrakameshti yajnya. It is for progeny, prosperity and propagation of life. In fact, it is extremely difficult and dangerous to approach a woman according to Vatsayana. The sex is bound with marriage and any promiscuity is a sin. Sex is forbidden before marriage and the code, shastra, dictates when and how to carry on the rituals. Any freedom in matters of sex, svechha, free indulgences, lead to dangerous consequences, to the extent of destruction of the moral fabric of society and heralds doom. It is warned, that promiscuity will lead to immorality and way-word life, a life of adharma. It produces bastards, off-springs that are cruel, mentally and physically retarded. There are anecdotes in Upanishads to narrate how harmful for mankind it is to indulge in sex without any care for the consequences. All the unwanted disastrous consequences, anishta prarabhda, occur due to free sex. Sex should be limited to marriage within family life and only for the purpose of begetting progeny and nothing more! One male and one female issues are advocated in the shastra, too. But, who cares is the attitude. The result of free sex is already there to see. Unstable marriages lead to wreck of young lives. Lack of sex education leads to this situation; however, efforts are being made to educate the youth. Moreover, the thriving business of pornography, human trafficking, and flesh trade have become a such a profitable trade world over that even the responsible people who should stop this too are encouraging these nefarious activities openly or tacitly. The result is suffering, misery and doom of humanity.

    Sigmund Freud and Alfred Jung are supposed to be authorities on sex in the Western psychology and they have clearly stated that 'sex is an inseparable part of life'. But, this is not so in Indian culture. Sex in Indian culture is restricted to the extent of getting an off-spring, progeny for promoting family lineage. But, sex these days has become almost like breakfast and dinner! We will not discuss these aspects any further.

    The spiritual life is asexual. Children are not thinking about sex while playing together. So also, old people engaged in discourses of spiritual texts, epics and shastras. This asexual form life, one of asceticism, comes only after one takes to vanaprasthashrama and sanyasa after leaving the family life. The famous upanishad account of Sage Yajnyavalkya and his wives Maitreyi and Katyayani is very famous. The sage takes the permission of his wives to leave the family and take to full time meditation, However, Maitreyi insists to know why it is necessary to leave the family. When the sage explains the goal of life and the path of salvation, Maitreyi also wants to follow him and take to ascetic life. Vanaprasthashrama is the state when the individuals live alone in secluded place like caves, forests, or mountains totally devoted the meditation and attain to higher level of consciousness. However, there is no need to go out if conditions for meditation in seclusion is possible within the family surroundings.What is important is meditation without disturbance for longer duration with total focused attention (chitta ekagrata).

    The result of ascetic life is wonderful. It brings enlightenment. It brings supreme bliss, happiness and joy in old age. the persons who take to meditation in a secluded pace will achieve tejas. The retas that was flowing downward earlier, begins to flow upward and converts it to ojas (shakti). This ojas becomes tejas,'Light' Such a sage is tejomaya, an embodiment of Light. Thus, the purpose of being born a human is attained. The human becomes the divine.

Life of an Enlightened Person

An enlightened person is one who has realized the true nature of the Self as well as the reality of existence in an external world. The realization of the Self, 'Atmajnyan, brings an end to the ignorance, and clears avidya, makes the jiva realize the illusory nature of the world and makes him withdraw from it. The jiva will not get perturbed to the happenings in the outside world since it is peacefully, happily, joyfully established in the Self. 

   Let's take an example of Syria. Whatever is happening is pathetic and our heart bleeds when we see children fleeing in the rubbles fearing for life.No sensible person will aprove of the heinous crime perpetrated on humanity, whatever the reason.But, who cares is the attitude of the Governments! Similarly, the situation elsewhere in USA, Libya, India due to demonetisation,etc. An enlightened person will remain calm amidst all chaos and confusion and go on his daily life without being disturbed. The yogi knows that having born, it is the nature of the jiva to suffer.This suffering ends with the knowledge of the Self and the knowledge of what is perceived as an other than the self. 

   Another important point to be remembered is the fat that "everything will pass over time'. There is a higher divine Supervisor and He supervises things. Let's hope for the best and go with our lives. This attitude will not come unless a person is too much involved in the worldly affairs, as if it is real. This world is a stage where every one plays an actor and often sits as a spectator, too. Be a spectator, 'witnessing self' and be happy.

  Reading a Chapter of the Gita everyday will greatly help the troubled souls. Whenever a person is disturbed by any event, it is best advised to take to reading a Chapter; It gives great solace and restores confidence in the self. Krishna comes as a savior to all those who seek Him like Droupadi and befriend Him like Arjuna.

   An enlightened person, thus, will not get involved in the worldly affairs since he/she has realized the transient nature of the world. Let us always remember that our forefathers lived and died and nothing changed much! We too have seen the days of the World War I and II, alien rule in India, and the changes that happened during the last seven decades. Let's not lose faith in our ability overcome crisis after crisis and let's face life boldly as it comes. Only cowards die again and again. 

"Swami"

Not all become 'swami' if one just calls himself a swami or herself a swamin/. One has to transcend the limitations of time, space and causality, one has to transcend 'maya', one has to cross the ocean of sansar in order to become a swami. People may call anybody a swami if he/she sees a saffron-robed person with a rudraksha mala or a mark on the forehead, but he/she is fooled. A true Swami does not move around and, may occasionally visit a village or town. In fact a swami has no business in the market place. He has nothing to busy or sell. So one has to be careful about swamis who collect money and teach how to breath, or even profess to teach kundalini yoga, etc A person who travels in jet airways from ashram to ashram or runs a show in his/her ashram is not a real swami. A true swami, as already stated, sits alone in meditation on a hill top, or deep in a forest, or alone in a secluded place on the riverside or lakeside and, definitely will not entertain people unless they want some help like medicine or guidance. Only those who have crossed the ocean sansar can guide or help others to cross the misery of life. So let us be clear about this.

  As it is already stated, "a swami is one who has transcended limitations" What are the limitations? These limitations are that of the senses, buddhi, thinking and decision-making ability, or even the limitations of time, space, and causality (cause and effect). But how to cross these limitations.It is just like the deep sleep or sushupti state where one is not aware of his/her existence, but sleeping in ignorance, not knowing that he/she is enjoying the bliss of union with the supreme (pure) consiousness. But, definitely, remembers the fact that he/she enjoyed the bliss!

  All limitations can be crossed, transcended by just sitting firm, thinking of the supreme Lord Almighty, how He is running the universe! Just looking at the sky may be enough in some cases. Just looking at the vast sky also will help. Just reminiscing the happy times is also another easy method. Staying in a state of trance, in transcendental meditation mode, is a beautiful way to transcend all limitations. What doctors give as anaesthesia is one such; it makes you totally unaware of your existence. Body consciousness ceases as soon as one gets into dhyan mode, meditative trarnce. A regular practice of meditation will do the trick.

   Many people are not aware of the different meanings and connotations of the term 'maya'. teh term ma and ya when reversed becomes ya ma, (kaal) or death). Thus, maya is a limitation, limiting of existence from date of birth to date of death. But one does not know that our existence is not limited to this life between birth and death. We should remember that we were there before birth in the form of light, energy, force, and intelligence (L I F E). We should remember that 'we continue to exist without a physical body, of course,  even after death! So where is the limitation. This knowledge itself becomes liberation.

    Now, a person who transcends the mind, its vibrant activity, chittavrutti, will be free from maya. All that is measurable (ya- that is and ma- measurable) is siad  to be 'maya'; ya ma also means kaal, death that removes the limitations of the physical body. Hence one has to carefully understand and realize the fact that we, as humans, are under limitations, maya, yama due to our ignorance. When we realize that we are no more limited beings, but we are the sat, chit, anand by virtue of our soul, the battle of sansar is won. It is our ignorance, this embodiment of the soul like a cocoon building a nest by its saliva feels that it is imprisoned (but frees itself and flies off as a colorful butterfly later), that we feel we are under limitations. But this ignorance is removed, the cataract is removed by a true guru. But, our ego will not permit us to surrender to the guru. We go on passing remarks one everybody who tries to help us and thereby get lost in this wilderness, this land of sufferings, misiery, sickness and death. The choice to seek liberations is ours!   

"Making of a Swami"

   What exactly happens when a person arrives at a turning point is confusion, perplexity, and a test to his ability to decide quickly to take a firm decision to move forward. Does every jiva on the move can cope with that? The big question is the role played by the unseen divine hand (adrushta) , the accrued fruits of past lives (purvapunya), divine grace (daivaanugraha),  or the role of fate of destiny (vidhi),  Nobody knows what is the governing principle here. But, one thing is certain, some jivas are instantly liberated from the shackles of bondage- the bonds that bind the jiva to repeated births and deaths in earthly existence, gets enlightened as to the reality of existence, and relieved once and for all! This is like the cataract (that blinds) is removed by a (lazer) surgery. The person is thus totally enlightened. How does this happen?

  The 'quirk of fate', as it were, leads the jiva by hand to a critical situation, to the verge of a cliff and takes away everything he/she possesses and leaves him/her naked on the street! We have quoted the life of Lalleshwari in Kashmir. The same is the case of Bharata Ratna Bhimsen Joshi, Gurudev Ranade, and many many others who turned mystics, less to speak about the experience of this author writing the blog. When everything is withdrawn overnight, left high and dry, left nothing to hold on, there is a choice of only one thing and that is suicide, to which many succumb, take recourse to. But that is only to those jivas which are totally ignorant, loaded with karma and unable to think and unable to run to a guru who can redeem him/her. But, this situation comes only to a few as a blessing in disguise to those who are blindly going on in a worldly life, revelling in sensuous life. They suddenly gets a bolt from the blue and is shaken to the core. Such a jiva asks the Lord,"What is your design, resolve, my Lord? Do not punish me, Lead me unto the heavenly abode of 'Light' (go loka), Knowledge (jnyan), Immortality (amruta) and kindly take me by your hand and lead me out of this mess." Lo, there comes a sudden 'Light' and you are relieved from all shackles. The chain is cut off. Now you can live happily, peacefully, joyfully unmindful of what is going on around you. Nobody bothers you or, you do not bother about anybody and life goes on happily till last breath. Nothing touches you. You are your own 'Master', gained full control over the self, a 'Swami' - established in the self. Thus a Swami is born,

  Is this Swami a teacher? No. He does not teach anything, not even yoga. He is the one who has left interest in worldly life and lives alone in a forest, hilltop, or alone in a secluded place. sometimes, may be in a cave or a tree top! He appears like a mad person who throws stones at those who look curiously at him or trouble him. How can he relieve us from our bondage? Who told you he does anything? It is we who go to him with a purpose and full faith in him. We go there to surrender all our ego, attachment, pride, envy, and other quaities at his feet. He acts like a fire pot, agni kunda and get purified. When we go within his aura all our blemishes attached to our soul as a stain gets cleansed. We become totally liberated. No desire rises in us and we desire nothing thereafter.
   How does a Guru come to him, the earnest seeker to lift him/her up? This is the miracle! The Guru comes to the door of his disciple, as if ordained by the supreme Lord Almighty, and takes him/her by hand and, leaves him in the domain of the Lord, nothing to bother about after! 

Turning Point

   There is a turning point in the journey of every individual, society, nation and even the world, the way it is moving. Whether it is for the good,better or worse, nobody knows. Bhagavan Krishna says to Uddhava, when the latter came to meet Him, the Lord, before the close of the Dvapara yuga, "Dear Uddhava, why did you not meet me earlier? Now you are complaining about the prospects of the world after I leave here. Look, once the wheel of time turns, sudarshan kaala chakra starts moving nobody knows what is there in in it. Just like a plant bears flowers, fruits at the appropriate time, things happen. Nobody can stop it. I also do not know. Infact, as the Ruler of dharma I cannot stop or change it. Let anything happen, you need not bother. Take my name and be happy. I shall protect all those who seek my shelter. yogakshemam vahaamyaham | But, there is one condition. Drop all that you trust and seek Me and Me only. sarva dharma parityjya maamekam sharanam vraja | 

  Where is the problem? Trust in God and go ahead. Do your duty in the interest of the Nation, State, society at large. loka sangraharthaya karmanyevaadhikaraste... | 

   This is the mahamantra for a "Happy, Healthy, Joyful Living".

Step-by-step to Salvation

Salvation or mukti, moksha is not a big deal. It can be attained now and here. There is nothing to do to attain to to this state; one has to just realize that he /she is already liberated and not bound by anybody or anything. This realization comes after one gets rid of all attachment (moha)- this ego 'i', me and mine. The moment this 'i' goes just as it appears in deep sleep everyday, or just as one is given anaesthesia in the case of a surgery, or as in nirvikalpa samadhi there is a sense of total salvation. This salvation is not to be attained after death. It should come as a peaceful existence now and here. One should feel happy, joyful to be alone in deep meditation to experience this state of salvation, mukti. Such persons are always happy, nothing bothers them and they will peacefully exit after the assigned number of breaths and get promoted to pitru loka (where many a blessed souls wander as light particles in the atmosphere along with oxygen. Though the physical body is cast off, these blessed souls as photons can see their kith and kin and help them by wishing them well! This is the reason why we pay respects to our departed parents, kith and kin. 

   The path of salvation is just simple. The person desirous of a happy and peaceful old age and a joyful death should withdraw senses, in the senses, stop the outgoing tendencies of senses, eager to look at, taste, smell, touch, or hear. Then he/she should stop thinking of anything that does not concern him or her, desire things which do not give permanent happiness; should avoid all sensations and greed, desire for things that make one a slave craving for it more and more. Half the battle is won whe he or she is able to sit the whole day in one place without moving! Such people should desist eating when not hungry and going to bed when not feeling sleepy. What is more when one does not desire anything and feels happay and contented? This is like a person saying a firm 'no' to anything when offered.

   Ask yourself what do you want when everything is already is there with you. What do you take from here when you die? What did you bring when you came here? So give away everything when alive and be free. Salvation lies in giving up, not possessing. This is the secret of salvation. 

 But, are we ready for this? This is the problem.  

Attainment- mukti, moksha

   Actually, there is nothing like mukti or moksha. Mukti is liberation; but, liberation from what? Once born, there is nothing else but 'to live' and one cannot die on his own. To die committing suicide is said to be sin. Nobody can run away from responsibilities. But, one thing is certain. What all is created will be destroyed and that is the natural law. So, as a human being, jiva born due to karma, it has to eat what it has cooked. Karma klesha are the seeds of our repeated births and deaths. These kleshas accrue due to the jiva's desire, attachment, and ignorance. Hence, the jiva can get liberated from its repeated births and deaths bu burning the seeds of karma by jnyana. This is the very purpose of life. Having born, to realize the purpose, the goal of life is the first duty of the jiva ifit wants mukti. But, the senses and the mind play the villain of the piece. They get the jiva entangled in the worldly pursuits become the cause of our misery, albeit a little joy in between.
    There is misconception regarding the concept of 'mukti' and 'moksha'. These are loosely translated into English as liberation, emancipation, release from bondage, attainment, etc These are to be clearly understood. In fact there is nothing like liberation according to great jnyanis like Raikva, Ashtavakra, Sage Vashishtha or Aavadhuta, They are of the opinion that 'only those who think they are in bondage seek liberation'. They proclaim "You are already free". Where is the need to seek liberation to one who is already liberarated?" If a person is already happily enjoying his life where is the need to seek happiness? The tricky situation is that one does not realize his happy state when he is already deeply involved in it and enjoying; when he comes out of it and revels in it he desires to enjoy it again! Thus the race begins. All desires start with either a memory or a dream to fulfill. No desire, no running about! this is real liberation from bondage, mukti, moksha.

   There is another deeper aspect of liberation. This is the liberation of the embodied soul. But, ordinarily people are not aware of this. Hence, there is no problem. However, certain jiva who come to know of this embodiment and its consequence, seek for immediate liberation. They get frightened at the prospect of taking repeated births in different births and the consequences (suffering). They realize that the earth is a place where "Whatever is born has to die". jatasya hi maranam dhruvam. In the Gita, Bhagavan Shree Krishna warns that" A  person (jiva) once born has to die and take birth and die, take birth and die, again and again and there is no guarantee that one who dies as a human will take birth as a human only again!" So a wise man will start planning to get out of this cycle of metempsychosis. Thus there arises the need for a teacher, study of scriptures, practice of yoga and finally, the grace of the Lord.

   There is no specific method by which one becomes a Rishi, Sage-seer or jnyani. However, spiritual practices are prescribed as in Patanjali Yogasutras to become a purified person eligible for this status. There is no other alternate but to become pure in thoughts, words, action, nature and attitude towards fellow-living beings- kaya, vacha, manasa, buddhyatmika svabhava parishuddhata and loka- sangraharthaya karma karyah. Gods or Cosmic Forces, devi devata shakti only bestow their grace on the spiritual seekers (sadhaka) and reveal the sacred word from the Heavens, as it were, (richa akshare parame vyoman).  The intuitional knowledge thus obtained, the revelations or darshan is the only knowledge beyond doubt! There is no need for further proof once a person gets this divine knowledge. This ;liberates the embodied  soul, and this is mukti, moksha.

   A Sage -seer is one who gets the divine knowledge. This is said to be the grace of the Deity of Ananada, Soma. Soma is the bestower of Bliss and the Lord of the Mind. One may get supreme knowledge, but will not become a Rishi. A Rishi must get the subtle word, mantra from the divine source. It is the unheard sound (anahata shabda). 

  Rk Veda 1. 31, 16 says, "Agni deva, the Divine Purifier, creates a Rishi, an enlightened soul with revelation", whereas, RV 9. 96. 18 says, " Soma creates a Seer". The famous Gayatree mantra is said to be the revelation had by Madhsudana Vaishva Mitra (3. 62. 10). 

  Although a number of Rks state that female Rishis had revelations it is not clear how come there is a division of male or female amongst the great attained souls who are beyond all dualities, who revel in unity consciousness!. hence one has to be careful as to the interpretations of the Vedic doctrines. There is total abnegation of Self at this level. This is what is called "I am the Universe" -aham brahmasmi However, there are different levels of heightened Consciousness before one attains this unity state, brahmn.  There may be Rishi, Maharishi, deva rishi, brahma rishi, etc. But brahman is not attained in all these states. When one drops everything and remains in stillness, he is brahmn.