Vol. 90

Ms. Sasano: Lately, I often encounter a type of suffering that people are apt to fall into, especially the more serious and diligent they are, and I wonder what conditions would trigger a sudden realization in them that would allow them to have enough conviction, or even a hunch that it’s fine to be more at ease within themselves. When I’m having a conversation with someone who is suffering in such a way, being unable to change the situation despite the actions that they’ve taken in order to change the situation, I have a lot of frustration; of course, the problem is their own issue, but I am wondering what can be done.

MASTER: Yes, that is quite difficult. There is a way of viewing in Yoga through the guna—sattva, rajas and tamas—and these three qualities can be applied to the mind as well; and I suppose that you understand each of these qualities already. Peace of mind is the guna that has the quality of sattva. However, the mind is in a state of the three guna being mixed together, and rajas takes the lead. That is the reason why the mind changes, and being restless and amplifying uneasiness is the quality of rajas. Therefore as long as rajas is the main subject, the first step or clue cannot be found.

You just mentioned about the case of serious and diligent people, but then in the case of people who aren’t so serious (laughs), how are they normally prevented from falling into a depression? This is also the same working of rajas, but it is by shifting the rajas of the cause of a depression to that of another cause through involving different objects—that means, in other words, by venting it out through creating a diversion—temporarily one forgets the prior suffering. Drinking, partying, traveling, changing the environment, shopping…the ways might vary depending on the person, yet they are merely variations of rajas. Therefore there is a temporal benefit through diversion, yet nothing ultimately changes. These are like means to cope that the mind learns through life experiences.

Someone who is straight-laced is not so good at handling these means of coping. So they may keep getting stuck in the same rut, which results in the aspect of tamas getting stronger, and they end up getting even more shut-in. That is why unless a major transformation of the mind is brought about, it is very difficult to find the first step, or clue [that leads to it].

However, I think that Yoga will be the most useful for resolving this. Take asana, for example; by continuing to practice asana, the condition of tamas can be shaken up, and one is brought closer to sattva, or one can at least shine a single ray of sattva onto the situation. Therefore, I feel like rather than words or anything else, experiencing Yoga in a practical way is perhaps the shortest path.

Ms. Sasano: I don’t think my friends will even consider practicing Yoga, but I understand and now I see that practicing Yoga is what’s best for them.

MASTER: Indeed, and rather than explaining anything to them, it is the best for them to experience it a little and see what happens. Perhaps it’s not too late to tell them about it, after that.

Everyone is like a frog living inside a well after all. The mind is like that; one only knows a tiny world, one’s own mind, and of course the mind neither knows about the outside world, nor the means to get out. However, it is important for one to realize that truly one is in such a condition.

Ms. Sasano: It is really so. The more I spoke or explained to them, I felt like I became anxious myself about not knowing what to do.

MASTER: Well, if they want to quickly bring about some environmental change and have the opportunity to experience Yoga, it’s probably best for them to come to Kyoto some time. (Ms. Sasano smiles.)

Ms. Sasano: Yes, if such an opportunity can be given, truly.

Stilling the Prana through Sitting Positions

Ms. Nakamura (Sarani): It happens in meditation very often that a while after starting to sit, the mind continues to think about various things, and I am falling into the state which is more like thinking about something, rather than meditating. Even in these cases, after a while I have a moment when the mind suddenly quiets down, or stops talking, as if it just gives up. I would like to ask what is actually happening when that happens, is it because of the effects of the sitting position?

MASTER: The mind’s activities and breath are closely related as you know. If you can sit in this siddhasana or padmasana, and be able to still your body, then the activities of the prana which have been scattered until then, become concentrated and in a way the state of stillness comes about. In short, it is pranayama. (Ms. Nakamura nods as if she is convinced.) The still state of prana, called pranayama, occurs automatically. Indeed, this is acknowledged to be the effect of padmasana or siddhasana. Because of that, that state will not arrive right away as you sit, however, it is only more or less in the amount of time that the thoughts, or the mind are active, that the body will eventually become still and the state where prana is stilled arrives. That is what has been acknowledged as the effect of these sitting positions.

The activities of prana are countless, but the main activities are about ten, and further summarized into five. These are (pointing to the relevant parts of the body) prana, samana, apana, viyana, and udana, which are activities within the body. For example, apana usually operates downward, however, when sitting in padmasana, apana automatically operates upward, even if one is not engaging in pranayama. Then, the other activities such as viyana come to be still, and samana as well. By the power of apana, prana and apana are gathered into one, and come to be stilled—the same effect is what results as the effect that is aimed for in prayanama, so to speak.

Ms. Nakamura (Sarani): That takes quite a bit of time for me to reach, but will I eventually be able to reach it as soon as I sit down?

MASTER: Yes, you will eventually. And another thing is that, of course, if you can concentrate strongly, putting your concentration on the object of meditation from the moment you begin, without distracting thoughts, then, since the concentration is happening in both the physical body and the mind, you can enter meditation swiftly.

What is Symbolized by the Chakra Symbol

Saturday March 18, 2006, Kyoto

Ms. Wada (Dharmini): Regarding the chakra symbols, the lowest one, muladhara, is a large square inside a circle; then, the next one, svadhishtana, is a circle on top of a circle, manipura is a triangle, and further up, the star-like symbols get smaller, it seems. Is that symbolizing that the tube of sushumna itself gets narrower?

MASTER: No. Simply, the symbols get more complex, so it becomes smaller.

Ms. Wada (Dharmini): So there is no meaning?

MASTER: Yes, there is.

Ms. Wada (Dharmini): What kind of meaning?

MASTER: The square is the symbol of each of the respective [elements of] Earth, Water, Fire, Wind, Void; so the shapes that symbolize each is drawn within the chakra. The earth, or ground, just as it creates space with the four cardinal directions of east-west-south-north, is symbolized by a square. Svadhishtana is water, it is the essence of water, especially related to reproductive organs as well as excretory organs; you mentioned a circle on top of a circle, but that’s actually the symbol of the crescent moon.

Ms. Wada (Dharmini): Oh, the crescent moon.

MASTER: Yes, the crescent moon, or water, well it can even be a circle; the symbol of the crescent moon or a circle is the symbol of water.

Ms. Wada (Dharmini): The moon is the symbol of water?

MASTER: Yes. The moon and water are deeply related.

Ms. Wada (Dharmini): Um, like the high and low tides?

MASTER: That too, and also, the energy of the open sky that makes it rain. With surface tension, the water expands in all directions; that is why the symbol is a circle. Manipura is the essence of fire, therefore the triangle.

Ms. Wada (Dharmini): (whispering) The essence of fire is a triangle.

MASTER: Yes. Visualizing or symbolizing the flame.

Ms. Wada (Dharmini): Wind…the symbol is a star?

MASTER: By crossing an upward triangle and a downward triangle, it symbolizes the joining of the elements of heaven and earth—that is why the two triangles overlap.

Ms. Wada (Dharmini): Next…?

MASTER: Vishuddha chakra.

Ms. Wada (Dharmini): A small triangle, downward triangle.

MASTER: Its shape is something a little like a nail. It is the Void. The Void is the beginning part of the five elements, earth, water, fire, wind, and void, and it symbolizes the Void; it is considered that from there, all and everything emerged, therefore it is the downward triangle [that is used] as the symbol of prakriti. Then, there is something like a nail, which perhaps symbolizes it endlessly manifesting.

Ms. Wada (Dharmini): This one, ajna, is that an eye? It looks like a white circle with wings? (laughs)

MASTER: Well, that is not an eye. That is a circle with two lotus petals.

Ms. Wada (Dharmini): Then this one, [sahasrara,] is the crown.

MASTER: There, [the petals are] a thousand.

Ms. Wada (Dharmini): (whispering) Ah, now I get it.

MASTER: The meaning of two petals is that it is the starting point to flow toward the two, called ida and pingala, it is two. Then, if you count the petals from the bottom, there are fifty in total.

Ms. Wada (Dharmini): Fifty, but [the top] has a thousand?

MASTER: Not counting the thousand, sahasrara. The number of petals up to the point between the eyebrows, are four, six, ten, twelve, then sixteen [then the two for ajna, totaling 50]. (Ms. Wada calculates as well)

MASTER: That symbolizes the fifty sounds of the Sanskrit alphabet. The Japanese alphabet [called “50 sounds” in Japanese] is also derived from Sanskrit.

Ms. Wada (Dharmini): I see, it’s the same fifty sounds.

MASTER: Yes, the same fifty sounds. Times twenty is a thousand. That is then considered a complete number.

Ms. Wada (Dharmini): What is the meaning of multiplying by twenty?

MASTER: Well, perhaps because the number one thousand symbolizes completion.

What is Necessary is Belief, not Self-Confidence

Ms. Mishima: If I don’t believe in myself, does that mean I don’t believe in God?

(After some silence, Shri Mahayogi quietly continues.)

MASTER: I wonder what do you mean by “not believing in myself”? (Shri Mahayogi says it as if truly perplexed by it.)

Ms. Mishima: Well…I don’t have self-confidence…I don’t trust myself… (Shri Mahayogi nods.)

MASTER: That is normal, I think. First of all, what can you really believe in if you don’t even know who you are? I wonder, even if you say you have self-confidence, what you really think about who you are, having that as the base of your self-confidence. Frankly speaking, whatever the mind believes the self to be, is completely elusive, vague and unreliable…I can conclude that it is (firmly stating) utterly incoherent. That is exactly why I think you must resolve the issue of who you are.

Ms. Mishima: (whispering) Yes.

MASTER: As long as this issue remains unsolved, then one is deluded into thinking something that refers to something else is self-confidence, or merely applying such things and making do with a substitute. Truly, the act of believing in one’s self—there is no answer to what these words indicate; there is no answer, or rather to say, being within maya is an illusion, whereas abiding within the Truth is an impossible thing; since this phrase and what it indicates is itself what the mind created or what the mind is trying to depend upon—in other words, it’s a trap.

Therefore, [the only thing that] can happen is to solely seek “who am I” and “what is God” and realize It; and so, to seek only That and realize It are the only imperative words you must give to the mind. That being the case, why don’t you try to only see God, or Atman, the true Self, and work toward making these clear to yourself… In this way, rather than self-confidence, what is needed is belief. And furthermore, from this belief there will be a continuous connection to faith.

(Shri Mahayogi finishes speaking. Silence continues to flow.)

Ambika: Before I began practicing Yoga, I had confidence in myself. But I think that now, compared to back then, I don’t have any self-confidence, in a good way. Society considers the forties and fifties to be the time when one’s life should be firmly settled, so I suppose that that is probably why Ms. Mishima is thinking about self-confidence. (Ms. Mishima laughs.)

MASTER: Yes… it is precious thing to share.

Ambika: This is the advantage of the wisdom of age (laughing). (Shri Mahayogi laughs loudly.)

MASTER: Perhaps, it might be different from self-confidence, but you can say that whether good or bad results are brought about, it is up to one’s own self. That means, as one sows, one reaps—this is the origin of the law of karma. At least you must firmly accept and face that nobody else can do [anything about it], but only you can and there is no one else. Then, no one will think they want to get worse (laughs), and everyone will want to improve, I suppose. Then, the next issue and phase will be simply related to what the base of good is, how one must actually practice it. This is not the level of believing in oneself or not, nor having self-confidence or not, this is much more directly connected to the fundamental issue of Self Existence. That is exactly why the Truth, God or the true Self, will urgently become the most dear to your mind.

(Shri Mahayogi finishes speaking, and silence flows throughout the Ashrama.)

In Order to See Atman in Everything,
The Mind Must Practice Silence and Renunciation

Saturday March 25, 2006, Kyoto

(It is unusual that Sanatana is sitting right near Shri Mahayogi. Small talk has been continuous in today’s Satsangha, but Sanatana begins to speak up with a serious expression.)

Sanatana: I think that to perceive Atman in various people, and to feel love towards everything is something that can be sensed intuitively and at all times, and over the years we’ve heard time and time again about what we can practice in order to realize this. Around the time I started to practice Yoga, I was taught to see Atman in all people as much as possible. It was around that time that Yoga Asana was published, and I went around to various bookstores to ask them to carry the book; and even when they flat out refused (Shri Mahayogi laughs gently) and I was made to feel very sad or unpleasant, I tried as hard as I could to see Atman in these people. I suppose that to intentionally shift the thinking to see Atman in as many people as possible is one of the ways, but if it is felt inevitably even without intention, then I feel like the rest, my words and actions, will all naturally transform. That ideal has lately come to be more strong and to have a real sense within me, nonetheless, it is still somewhat hollow and I feel like they’re strangers.

I think Vivekananda said, “If you want to become an astronomer and sit down and cry ‘Astronomy! Astronomy!’ it will never come to you,” so one must make the appropriate effort. What would be the effective path I can take to direct straight toward the condition where there is nothing else but to feel Atman, or where I can’t help but feel Atman, besides just trying to see Atman alone?

MASTER: Hmmm… (thinking for a while) Well, that is the destination of all the yoga, and they are, as paths for example, discrimination or bhakti or karma yoga, and what removes all the prejudices that get in the way of them—raja yoga. Therefore, along with the deepening from an overall continuous application of practices of disciplines of Yoga, these come to manifest as results. Take the astronomer mentioned earlier, if you want to become an astronomer, you must make an appropriate effort in order to become one, and as a result, you will be equipped with the wisdom of an astronomer and will be considered as one. That is the case in Yoga as well, if you continue to put forth the effort in Yoga after setting your ideal to be perfection as a yogi, then without noticing it, you become a yogi, and you will be equipped with an eye to see or to feel only the Truth.

At least, in discrimination, I suppose that since you’ve learned well about what is the essence of all and everything, you must practice to discern what is Truth and what is not, and only take what is Truth. All situations and conditions change, so the differentiations in the appearances that come with them are completely meaningless. Regardless of what the external form looks like, it is as clear as day that what is there is only the existence of Truth. And indeed, Atman exists exactly the same in good and evil people. Therefore, in order for you not to be fooled by the various changes on the exterior, keep your mind steadfast and unshakeable—that is another thing you must accomplish.

Sanatana: Lately, very simple words pop up suddenly—for example, “If you see the world through the mind, the world is various; yet through the True Eye, the world is One,” from Shri Mahayogi, or Ramakrishna’s words, “See all women as your mother and worship them”—I have known these words from long ago, but they seem more real to me now. Previously, these felt too abrupt or seemed to be the result of an extremely lofty ideal, so my eyes went toward teachings that said, “Do this, do that.”

I had not read Ramana Maharishi’s book for a while, but when I happened to read it, it felt to me that the words there were truly important, like in the Bible, and especially there is one book that contains his answers to twenty or so very short questions such as “Who am I?” which he answered when he was twenty-one or two. Truly there was nothing lacking, and everything was all there; and I thought how tasteful each and every one of his remarks are, and all of it is so fulfilling that I couldn’t help but read the same passages again and again (smiling). For example, to the question, “How do I know God?” his answer was, “Who is the one knowing?” and “first find out.” If the questioner answers, “I can’t do that,” then he said, “In order to do so, you need precise meditation, so practice Yoga in order to still the mind.” He said, “The Yoga practiced within the mind is superior to japa or any other surface practice.” Truly, he wraps everything up with three or four passages. Especially since I’m writing about the Yoga Sutra right now, I find that it feels like all the content is cleanly included [in his words], so I am increasingly captivated, while on the other hand I wonder even more, why I can’t be like his words. (Shri Mahayogi and Sanatana laugh.) (Shri Mahayogi is listening with a full smile.)

MASTER: Why you can’t be like that is exactly what’s explained in the content of the Yoga Sutra. It’s easy to conclude that it’s the fault of the mind, yet, it’s truly a simple and clear thing, indeed.

I mention from time to time that 100% of everything that the mind thinks is an imperfection that has come about through some kinds of conditions; imperfect means that if the condition changes even a little, then the content and the answer received will change as well. Yet the mind itself is captivated only by such an unreliable, unstable, non-Truth. Even thinking about anything, what accompanies it are various conditions such as words, concepts and memories. These are data constructed based on the experience of the mind. That means that it will be utterly impossible to understand Truth or God within the mind since the original data is imperfect. You can infer from this that the Truth must exist where these conditional situations are completely (emphasis) eliminated. However, it is in a place where the mind cannot reach.

On the other hand, there are the words of Awakened and Holy Beings who appear in any era that remind us. Even if the mind has not experienced samadhi [to know That] yet, the words of Truth confront the mind with absolute existence. It comes from outside the boundaries or the realm of the mind’s experience, that is to say, it is not from that realm but from another dimension.

Therefore, what the mind must do is be silent as much as possible—that is renunciation. Since the mind is attached to various things, it will urge and stir up renunciation of these things. In this way, once the mind eliminates the dependencies on these various conditions that the mind has cultivated, then the mind is liberated from conditioning.

In the Yoga Sutra, that is expressed as the state of the mind called sattva; and furthermore, that state of the mind of sattva is a state that can project and reflect Purusha or Atman. And if silence is maintained further, then samadhi is realized—that is the Awakening of Truth, the self-awareness of Atman.

(Shri Mahayogi speaks with a slow tone, as if to deeply saturate everyone’s hearts. Some disciples shed tears, and others remain silent as if to feel the teaching. A sacred, silent mood permeates the room.)

The Experience of Death and the Awareness of Atman

Dayamati: Long ago, Shri Mahayogi once told us about the dream of his own death, and I’ve also dreamt about my own death; though I was thinking that it may have been something different from what Shri Mahayogi saw. Were there any changes in Shri Mahayogi after seeing the dream of his own death?

MASTER: In my case, it was not a dream. It was before falling asleep, so it wasn’t a state of dreaming during sleep, and probably that was the state of meditation—but within that, I experienced death.

Dayamati: So then, mine was most likely just a dream.

MASTER: Yes… It was when I was in elementary school, and every night, having strange experiences was a daily routine.

Yogadanda: For example, in the case of Ramana Manarishi, when he experienced death, first he saw that his body became stiff and immobile, and then recognized that the physical body had died. Next, the breath stopped and was gone—it seems that he confirmed it step by step in this way. Was Shri Mahayogi’s case not the same?

MASTER: By then, there weren’t any of these steps. When it began, I was already looking at my own corpse.

Yogadanda: Then afterwards?

MASTER: Then there was something like a cremation scene, a symbol of death.

Yogadanda: Your own corpse?

MASTER: Yes. Afterwards, seeing from far, far away (laughs), the far cosmos, further than the moon or the sun…at first there was a vision of space, like a galaxy, then there was a recognition of Earth, then gradually, it zoomed into this house, (disciples let out utterances of awe) then there was a funeral being performed there (laughs), and my corpse was there—that was the vision. There were no disturbances in response to seeing this or anything, of course; I simply understood that it was this body at elementary school age. Then [the consciousness] returned.

Yogadanda: So you returned and then had a self-awakening that Atman was there.

MASTER: Was it that continuous… Well, there is a disconnect. The consciousness that is seeing and the object of what is being seen suddenly disconnect and it is not continuous. Then the awareness of Atman comes; and as a matter of course, everything has already disappeared.

Mr. Hiraoka (Gurudas): So you went from the death of the physical body directly to the death of the mind without break?

MASTER: The death of the physical body and the death of the mind are the same.

Mr. Hiraoka (Gurudas): The same?

MASTER: Yes. The death of the physical body is the symbolic vision of the death of the mind.

Mr. Hiraoka (Gurudas): Uh-huh, well then, is it on a totally different level from what is commonly referred to as an out-of-body experience?

MASTER: An out-of-body experience… I hear about it from time to time, it seems similar but is not similar at all (laughing). These experiences are just floating around in the room at best, (pointing his left hand towards the ceiling and turning it around), wandering around. (everyone bursts into laughter)

Mr. Hiraoka (Gurudas): I’ve never seen it yet.

MASTER: According to anecdotes. For example, seeing the River Styx.

Mr. Hiraoka (Gurudas): So you didn’t encounter the River Styx.

MASTER: No. (Everyone laughs.)

Michiyo (Shantimayi): It’s too small.

Mr. Hiraoka (Gurudas): So are the void and Atman the same?

MASTER: No, they’re different.

Mr. Hiraoka (Gurudas): I don’t quite understand it.

MASTER: You’ve heard often about cosmic consciousness or the universal consciousness, but that is still experienced within the remnant of the vision of the universe. Pure Atman transcends all that, not even having a trace of such a thing. However, It is existing vividly, as the only Existence. Compared to that, obviously, it’s incomparable, but even the cosmic consciousness is still unreliable and vague.

Mr. Hiraoka (Gurudas): So the void is like cosmic consciousness?

MASTER: Yes.

Mr. Hiraoka (Gurudas): The one that Yogananda experienced still has a trace of it?

MASTER: Which part was it? (Mr. Hiraoka (Gurudas) is trying to recall where in Autobiography of a Yogi this episode was mentioned, but can not recall it.)

Well, there are subtle variations in the experiences of samadhi in meditation, so you can’t necessarily define them. However, only the True Consciousness of Atman is unmistakable for sure.

Sanatana: In the Yoga Sutra, one of the siddhi mentioned is called maha-videha, translated as “great disembodiment,” and I assume this appears as a result of samadhi.

MASTER: That’s right.

Sanatana: Where does that fit into this?

MASTER: That is similar to what was mentioned just now. In short, the experience includes being separated from the physical body and experiencing a feeling like cosmic consciousness. And also, it might not be called cosmic consciousness but things like making only the mind separate from the physical body and using the mind the way you want, these can be great disembodiments, and [these experiences] fit within that.

Sanatana: The content of that can be various then.

MASTER: Right.

Only the Wisdom of the Truth Can Eliminate
the Ignorance Coming from the Fear of Death

Kinkala: There are two mechanisms of fear: one is based on experiences from the past, and another is based on the unknown. Is that correct to say?

MASTER: Yes, if you divide them into large categories.

Kinkala: I think Sanatana wrote about this, but the fear of death is subconsciously stored within oneself from one’s past experiences of death, even if one does not have it in one’s memory, so that is why we’re scared, as mentioned in the article, isn’t it? When we experienced death in past lives, we were still conscious, experiencing it as an actual experience, right?

MASTER: Yes.

Kinkala: At that time, is that experience imprinted as fear in that person? Does fear get imprinted not as the fear of the unknown, but rather imprinted into sanskara as an actual experience of the past?

MASTER: No, the opposite, it is the thirst and attachment towards life. The survival of this physical body’s life.

Kinkala: While being alive?

MASTER: Yes, yes… The attachment towards that is rather big.

Kinkala: That is why fear arises.

MASTER: Yes. Because of that, one has fear.

Kinkala: The actual experience of the dying period is not something to be scared of that much?

MASTER: It’s not. As I mention often (emphasizing), this is truly the world of dreams. (laughs) So, everyone, every day, there are times that even if they have a hard time sleeping, they will fall asleep before they know it and will eventually wake up in the morning realizing they were dreaming, or even within dreams, one can be self-aware of dreaming. Similarly, the threshold of death is like the moment you fall asleep. Therefore, there is no fear or anything there; it is an instant, since from the next moment you’ll be in a dream. Well, the dream reflects what the state of your mind has been until that point. Such is the experience.

Ms. Hotta (Jayadevi): As a child, I often thought about what would happen after death. When I was little, I was scared of the body disappearing; but by the time I was in junior high school, I was afraid of losing something like “myself,” and when I imagined it, it made me scared to the point that my legs could get shaky, so that was the end of the inquiry. But hearing what Kinkala said, that is ignorance, because the mind could not do anything if there was no “me.”

MASTER: Well, you can put it that way, however, you can understand rather that that is the consciousness of “I” that attaches to the physical body; and through death, the body becomes no longer active; therefore, what is “I” collapses, and then you cannot know what is further ahead. So then, a fear of not knowing what will happen to the “I” that is dependent upon the physical body comes, which means that it is the opposite and you are actually attached to the body.

Ms. Hotta (Jayadevi): For example, I’d heard about the word reincarnation before encountering Yoga too, and I was thinking vaguely about how I was going to be reborn. But then I learned much more in Yoga, and that there is always something like “I” that is there in it. That something like “I” is not the physical body, and the names change of course, and the way of the physical body and appearance of it, and everything changes too, yet I have been feeling like there is something that is the “I” continuously. That part doesn’t disappear.

MASTER: That’s right. Because the “I” cannot stand alone, for the various attachments adhering to the “I” will be gone, or will be extinguished, (laughs) fear comes. After all, it is the fear towards the “I” being destroyed.

Sanatana: During the dream-like state of death, is there a continuous ego-consciousness called ahankara or asmita?

MASTER: Yes. Well, that is the protagonist. That is why, in this sense, the world after death, (with extreme emphasis) is completely the same as a dream. Therefore, it’s not that the world after death exists somewhere, but it exists within each respective mind.

Sanatana: So then, the gross body and sensations are extinguished, but there is a subtle self-consciousness and an object that dreams on.

MASTER: Exactly so.

Ms. Endo (Mirabai): Earlier, you’ve mentioned that because we’re attached to the physical body, we feel fear when it disappears. I am sure that you’ve mentioned again and again, but the “I” cannot stand alone by itself, correct?

MASTER: No, it cannot. Correct.

Ms. Endo (Mirabai): Because “I” is in the state of dependency, we feel fear.

MASTER: Yes, you see, (gesturing to place an object in front of him) in order to raise an object in this world, you need at least three legs. Imagine one leg going missing, or being removed. Then there will be a fear that the object will collapse. (laughs) Just like that, the mind is always working in conjunction with something, and is always in a state of dependency, therefore, when the mind imagines being destroyed, the mind fears it.

Ms. Endo (Mirabai): In order to eliminate that attachment, the practice that we can apply is to work on it through making an intention in our daily lives, and in addition, to meditate on that?

MASTER: You must proceed with your will, however, what determines it is the Truth—the Wisdom of Truth. In other words, the fact that the mind is dependent in such a way itself is a product of ignorance. The root cause of it is ignorance. That is why in order to eliminate the ignorance, there is nothing that is effective but the true Wisdom of Truth. To proceed with that task, too, you need willpower, the power of the mind. The more that the Wisdom of Truth permeates oneself, then the more the power of the will gets stronger. Therefore, as for the sadhana of Yoga too, everything can be referred to as sadhana until Yoga is perfected, as one deepens the practice and the state of Yoga, faith is born and is heightened, and the mind becomes able to accept, or acknowledge the Wisdom of Truth.

Ms. Endo (Mirabai): The mind acknowledges…

MASTER: Yes, the mind begins to acknowledge. Because, when it comes to the mind, regardless of how many times it has been reborn again and again, some people don’t believe in reincarnation (Ms. Endo (Mirabai) who did not believe in reincarnation when she started to practice Yoga, laughs as if the joke hit the spot.) See? (Shri Mahayogi laughs along with her) However, as one continues sadhana, eventually, there will be an aha-moment when it will all make sense, right?

Ms. Endo (Mirabai): I see, I can understand that. (laughs)

MASTER: That is the way it is, yes.

Intuitive Knowledge Comes from the Mind’s Pure Quality of Sattva

Ms. Takagi (Ranjani): I think that when we reject the words of Truth, not accepting It, that is because of the ego; but even in the case that the words of Truth are simply not accumulating in us, can that be due to some kind of resistance?

MASTER: That can be a part of not accepting.

Ms. Takagi (Ranjani): If the words of Truth haven’t yet come to be ingrained in me, then that means I am still…

MASTER: It means that you haven’t acquired them yet. (laughs) The mind’s recognition of the words of Truth, or the Truth itself, is still not sufficient.

The Truth is not something that can be understood by the mind or the intellect; rather, it is something that is to be intuited by the heart. Therefore, [when it happens] the intellect can no longer contradict that intuition, so it cannot help but acknowledge it—it is beyond usual understanding. It transcends the usual understanding, which is the knowledge based on information. (laughs) Therefore, including discerning whether that Truth is the Truth or not, you need to bring the mind into a confrontation with the Truth, or rather, that is to say, thoroughly and carefully examine it. As you proceed in such a way, the intuition will eventually teach you whether it is Truth or not.

Ms. Takagi (Ranjani): Then understanding is not something we can force with intention.

MASTER: When it comes to intention, you need to use intention even before that. In short, you all say Satori, Satori, but then what exactly is Satori? It is to master the Truth through experiencing It with your whole being. So then what is the Truth? Various Awakened Beings have uttered the so-called Words of Truth, but are they really true? Desire to know that secret—in order to maintain such motivation, willpower is necessary.

Ms. Takagi (Ranjani): Conversely, [the Truth] might have accumulated somewhere outside of my consciousness.

MASTER: Yes, it is already there. [Truth is already] abiding [within you]. Yet the mind is simply maneuvering around on its own. (laughs)

Ms. Takagi (Ranjani): On the surface level…

MASTER: Yes (laughs), you may realize later on that resistance, or when conviction wavers, that is the soliloquy of the mind. However, you still need to use the mind in order to proceed with practice.

Mr. Hiraoka (Gurudas): Does that willpower correspond to the Right Intentness of the Eightfold Right Path?

MASTER: No. What we’re discussing now is the first two, Right View and Right Thought. (laughs)

Mr. Hiraoka (Gurudas): It’s the very first.

MASTER: Right.

Mr. Hiraoka (Gurudas): So it’s just the beginning. (everyone laughs) So Right Intentness is really much deeper…

MASTER: Right Intentness is part of the word [that in written Japanese kanji] is used to mean the crucial point. So it is the last stage.

Mr. Hiraoka (Gurudas): I see, so I’m still lingering around the beginning stage.

Ms. Umeda (Madhri): Earlier, you mentioned that intuition comes from the heart. Lately, I’ve been thinking about where intuition comes from. Is it correct to consider that it comes directly from Atman?

MASTER: Intuition refers to the mind’s pure quality of sattva. Since that is the undefiled, unbiased passageway of Atman, its power is great.

Ms. Umeda (Madhri): So that means that the mind of sattva reflects Atman or Purusha?

MASTER: Yes, that is correct.

Ms. Umeda (Madhri): That is intuition.

MASTER: I think so.

Ms. Umeda (Madhri): I may think something is an intuition when it’s actually my own firm conviction (Shri Mahayogi and Madhri laugh), so it is difficult to know.

MASTER: That too can perhaps be due to when the quality of rajas is mixed in, however, as you continue, the intuition itself should become the quality of sattva. The whole of Yoga is to bring the mind to the quality of sattva, and that is the entire theme of the Yoga Sutra as well. Isn’t that right? (Shri Mahayogi looks at Sanatana and laughs joyfully.)

Sanatana: Until the height of wisdom, and therefore understanding, [is reached], in which sattva and Purusha are recognized as different things.

MASTER: Normally, the quality of rajas and the quality of tamas are intermingled, and not only that, the quality of rajas is rather leading, since it has an advantage due to the active nature of its essence. Therefore, it is subjectively leading all movement and activities in this world. That is why it brings about a wall, such things as anxiety or depression.

Ms. Hotta (Jayadevi): By listening to the words of Truth, there are times when we simply realize, “Well, it is really true.” However, the Wisdom of Truth is supposed to be very different from that, and having recognition does not mean that we acquire the Truth itself. What is that True Knowledge or Wisdom?

MASTER: In a relative aspect, that is the discriminative knowledge that is the same as the wisdom of Truth. Discriminative knowledge can be defined as an infallible wisdom born from meditation, or that is manifesting. Infallible wisdom means the wisdom that clearly penetrates to the essence of things. Therefore, in a relative sense, it is nothing other than the Wisdom of Truth.

Ms. Hotta (Jayadevi): The day we performed “Amrita,” and gratefully worshipped Shri Mahayogi at the beginning before we did anything, when I saw you sitting on the stage, I felt very much that such a thing as Eternity exists. (Shri Mahayogi laughs joyfully.) I felt that I had a glimpse of eternity, of Eternal life, while being in a middle of thinking things change. Even now, it helps me tremendously, (Shri Mahayogi nods, seemingly impressed), and in regard to what happens after death too, which was discussed earlier, I am encouraged that there is no such thing. (smiles) I am so glad, and I am relieved

MASTER: That is wonderful. (Everyone smiles at each other, recalling the scene.) That experience is indeed intuitive wisdom. It is the Wisdom, the intuitive wisdom that is felt and grasped directly without rationalization, beyond logic.

(looking around at everyone’s faces) We must do it again. (Everyone laughs.)

The Effect of Asana on the Mind

Saturday April 1, 2006, Kyoto

Dayamati: There is something that I wanted to ask. Some time ago, when I had a chance to read the original manuscript of what later became Pranava Sara, which was written about the time of the Ashrama long ago, Shri Mahayogi said that he thought that if everyone just practiced asana solely, they would all reach Satori (Shri Mahayogi laughs), but it was written that later on Shri Mahayogi understood that without practice of meditation, [Satori] does not come alive. Can you please explain why you thought that if one just practiced asana, one could realize Satori, and then after observing everybody, you learned that unless meditation is done, Satori does not come alive? (Shri Mahayogi lets out a small rueful smile.)

MASTER: Indeed, yes…well, looking back now, it was a very optimistic outlook. (Shri Mahayogi and Dayamati laugh.)

Dayamati: Because Shri Mahayogi is an embodiment of purification, you could not see impurity around you, perhaps?

MASTER: Yes, that is right. (laughs)

Dayamati: Shri Mahayogi had an understanding of it though.

MASTER: Yes, exactly. (Both Shri Mahayogi and Dayamati laugh loudly and joyfully.)

MASTER: Yet, I was made to realize that it wasn’t the way I thought (Shri Mahayogi and everyone burst into laughter), that there were much more complicated things. And that to deal with these, asana was insufficient.

(After some silence, Shri Mahayogi and Dayamati laugh quietly.)

Truly, simply, it is like that.

Sananda: A while back, when I asked that question of Shri Mahayogi after some time passed since reading that manuscript, Shri Mahayogi mentioned that rarely there may be a person with such a characteristic, or a person who has some kind of ability or suitability [to realize Satori through asana alone].

MASTER: Yes.

Sananda: In other words, well, there are people who perfect it through hatha yoga, rarely.

MASTER: Yes.

Sananda: Does that mean (laughs) even if rare, it is possible?

MASTER: Hmm… After all, whether it is asana or meditation, these are only means to an end. So it doesn’t matter what the means are, but in order for the means to be effective, the time has to be ripe. Therefore, I think that there is a case where it can be completed immediately through any means.

Sananda: I think that the trigger for the mind of a seeker to begin to grow depends on the karma of a person and also which stage the person is in, but is it possible to have this mind of a seeker begin to grow at once, jumping over other steps, through moment by moment encounters, or through encounters with Holy Beings or with Yoga?

MASTER: Yes, that is very much possible.

Sananda: Through practicing asana, the body can become very healthy and the mind can become quite tranquil, but can it possibly be the case that asana alone can cause the mind of a seeker to begin to grow?

MASTER: Oh, I think that that can happen too.

Sananda: That too is possible.

MASTER: Indeed, through experiencing asana, when there is a psychological shift, that turns into trust, belief or faith towards Yoga, and that then becomes the mind of a seeker, and one proceeds—such cases can be very possible.

Sananda: When I asked the same question a while back, you mentioned that everyone practices asana, and once they reach a certain level, they get satisfied and quit. (laughs)

MASTER: (laughing ruefully) That’s right.

Sananda: Such cases were frequent. (laughs) So how do we proceed one step further, well, in the case of bhakti, can it be possible but within the steps of learning raja yoga?

MASTER: Well, that is exactly what I’ve learned about (laughs loudly), basically, even if faith begins to grow, can it continue to maintain its purity? Conversely, again through maya—through karma or sanskara—the mind of the seeker that preciously begins to grow can at last wilt again. Therefore, through that I was taught that asana is wholly insufficient. (Shri Mahayogi laughs ruefully with amusement.)

Sananda: …If we practice asana as much as Shri Mahayogi, can [we] change?

MASTER: (while laughing) I think you can. (Shri Mahayogi and everyone laugh.)

Sananda: That means while having that level of content, or concentration, right?

MASTER: Yes (laughs); of course, for example, it doesn’t mean just the two-hour daily asana practice, but it means that its power, or its content will have a ripple effect on other times and throughout… You see, the effect or the result of asana, as mentioned in the Yoga Sutra, is to transcend duality. Duality means, of course, there are physical and physiological meanings, but if it is about transcending even psychological and philosophical duality, what comes to manifest is Advaita; therefore when one becomes only that, then it means that Yoga is complete.

Sananda: Hmm…

MASTER: …In this sense, even in the case of asana too, unless the state of Advaita is realized through asana as one of the means, it is meaningless of course.

Faith is the Same as Ekagrata

Sanatana: With regards to what was said about the need of trust, belief or faith beginning to grow first toward Yoga, in the Yoga Sutra, there is really not much mentioned about faith, and I suspect that probably it is written on the premise that those who would read the Yoga Sutra would have it already; however the word shraddha¹ does appear just once in Part 1 as a means of which there are five—shraddha, which is faith, endeavor, recollection, meditation, and wisdom—and this comes after the explanation about samadhi with cognition and samadhi without cognition. The steps of the actual practice of faith, endeavor, recollection, meditation, and wisdom are different ways of mentioning the steps of the actual practice that comes from the eight limbs of Yoga, but I suspect that probably in content, the last parts—recollection, meditation, and wisdom—correspond with the last sanyama of the eight limbs of Yoga. And I think that endeavor, which is virya, can match the parts before that, which are the practices of various asana and pranayama, or it can also include putting emphasis on yama and niyama. Yet, in the eight limbs of Yoga, faith—perhaps though there actually is a little part in ishvarapranidhana—does not have any description of how it is born or whether it has to have arisen beforehand. For the writing I am working on, I am currently thinking that I need to organize and deliberate on the means of the actual applications [mentioned] in the Yoga Sutra, such as practice and non-attachment, faith, endeavor, recollection, meditation, and wisdom, the eight limbs of Yoga, kriya yoga, the seven ways to clean the mind, and so on. And I think that among them, the systematic ones are faith, endeavor, recollection, meditation, and wisdom, along with the eight limbs of Yoga; I think that they are quite complete forms, yet I was pondering on this part especially: faith—should we understand it as the first step or rather is it something like asana or other constant applications of practice that will be cultivated as the base, and there isn’t really order in these five items? Please teach me your view.

MASTER: Faith, of course, is something that will be cultivated as the continuous application of these disciplines of practice grow, and at the same time, it is something that you must have from the beginning. What you must have at first is the mind of a seeker. The mind of a seeker, to put in other words, that is where faith is placed. And then, as endeavor, which is virya, is concretely and continuously accumulated, and since it results in the weakening of that which are the pain-bearing obstacles, and in the heightening of what are not pain-bearing obstacles—faith too is no exception—faith with a higher quality of sattva will grow accordingly. And it will not be extinguished until final completion has been attained.

The Yoga Sutra often explains from many aspects, but you can find that these eight limbs are described concisely also, for example, from an earlier period, putting them into six limbs, or even in a more simple way that is recorded in the Upanishads fragmentally. I think that, however, in the Yoga Sutra, they are offered in an almost perfected state. There in the Yoga Sutra, you can see that emotional parts are comparatively excluded and it is consistent in what are exceedingly psychological aspects. Nonetheless, since the human mind is not at all comprised of only such aspects, but is widely various, including emotions, the parts that cannot be described in the eight limbs are dealt with in other parts—that is how the Yoga Sutra is structured.

Sanatana: Is it possible that faith, or shraddha, is especially closely connected to yama and niyama?

MASTER: Yes, it is possible. Shraddha is not something that is born from the idea of what is so-called “divine grace in this world,” but strictly from the premise of realizing the Truth or Satori; therefore in the case of the practitioner of Yoga, the content of shraddha must be a great power, or factor in directing what is called manas, the mind.

I, too…Well, this is from a time long ago, as Kinkala mentioned earlier today, when I was teaching and introducing something such as a part of the eight limbs of Yoga—I didn’t really speak about shraddha, faith. However, this is something that without verbalizing it…actually somebody pointed out to me that the faith [in me] is incredibly pure. Honestly, I had never been aware of the word or the content of faith in me; however, by it being pointed out, that sort of made me realize it.

Therefore, shraddha is, in other words, nothing but ekagrata, one-pointed concentration. Only see one, if it is Satori, then only seeing Satori—this attitude. Through this consistency and action, you can bring yourself to the last part—recollection, meditation, and wisdom.

Sananda: What was born in Nachiketas as he saw the lie or falsehood of his father’s practice of ritual was shraddha.

MASTER: That is right, yes.

Sananda: I think that shraddha is a particular word in India that includes a very deep meaning—which includes clearness of mind, belief and such conviction that you never have a doubt about it. And I think that such faith or strong will can be born naturally. The content of yama and niyama, mentioned earlier, and the ways to calm the mind, or there are sutra that describe that if one concentrates on one object, all troubles will be removed—can we understand that these are various means for the purpose of preparation?

MASTER: That can be said. That is why Ramakrishna often says, “Have pure faith.” Originally the mind of faith, shraddha, was something that is pure. (laughs) Just like what I said now, “That which is Clean.” “That which is Clean” means Brahman. It is, by another name, Truth. You can say that shraddha is the mind that longs for That, or to seek only for That. Well, however, after more than two thousand years have passed from the time of the Yoga Sutra or the Upanishad, various faiths have been born, and if it is the case that faith with the color of “divine grace in this world” is what has prevailed throughout the world in general, Ramakrishna cannot but dare to mention the mind of pure faith.

Precisely the attitude of Nachiketas, who was only seeing what he believes—no matter how God Yama offered various temptations to him, he did not even cast a glance nor did he flinch at a thing.

(Shri Mahayogi finishes speaking, and only silence ensues.)

_________________________

[1] Yoga Sutra 1.20: For others it occurs through faith, endeavor, recollection, meditation, and wisdom.

In Order to Sense Reality, Faith is Crucial

Sananda: Shri Mahayogi often mentions the word Reality. I think that we can understand that we can’t sense Reality in this world, and yet it is possible to sense it too; but then, with regard to “it becomes Reality itself, through Satori,” until reaching Satori, does the sense of Reality gradually become more definite? Or can Reality not be sensed until the very last step?

MASTER: On the way to Satori, it can only be said to be a relative reality. From the view of the Ultimate, True Reality, that is still merely the sense of its presence.

Sananda: Regarding Reality, I think that, for example, while we continue to practice Yoga and as we have sacred experiences that leave a very strong impression in meditation and various situations, they are marked as impressions of a more pleasant experience than the experience in the relative world, therefore it leaves a very strong sense of presence. However, is Satori something way beyond that?

MASTER: Yes.

Sananda: I suppose that it can’t be understood unless one experiences it.

MASTER: Yes, really. (with a slow pace) Indeed, the occurrences in this world, even if these are spiritual experiences, are experienced through the mind—and it is the truth that unless you arrive there, the true Reality beyond the mind cannot be tasted. Well, that…is inevitable.

(Shri Mahayogi says the last word “inevitable” and laughs with a smile. Afterwards, Shri Mahayogi has a full smile, just like at the beginning of the Satsangha, and looks slowly around at everyone.)

Sananda: I feel that, to live daily life simply and without any attachment, is one of the ultimate essences of Yoga. And I think that while doing that, it feels to me that it is like erasing your presence in a way, rather than reality; and through that then, the mind begins to become aware of a sense of the void. On the other hand, you have just mentioned that the Reality in Satori is not something to be tasted by the mind, but I can only imagine (laughs with a sigh) that it’s something totally awe-striking. But it can be realized for the first time by the mind disappearing into that void, right?

MASTER: Right.

Sananda: Can’t the mind seek it? (laughs lightly)

MASTER: It may sound strange, but because the mind is what obstructs it, on the other hand, it is through the mind seeking it that the mind inevitably has to conduct the task of removing the obstacles that are in the way.

Sananda: Ultimately, renouncing even that sense of the void itself.

MASTER: Yes, what is necessary for that is shraddha, which was just mentioned. Thus, by shraddha, virya, which is endeavor, and smriti, which is the power of strong recollection within the depths of the mind, and of course, meditation, and the wisdom or true knowledge tasted from it—with these, you strengthen your conviction—“to strengthen” means that single-pointed concentration toward the Truth is being maintained without interruption and more steadfastly—and that strength is required. That is why you can say, in other words, that it is practice and renunciation.

Yogadanda: Shri Mahayogi, the shraddha in the Yoga Sutra and the bhakti in Gita Govinda—are they completely the same, only differing in the aspects featured?

MASTER: …Well, the flavors look to be very different, however, in essence, they are exactly the same; that is because both are directed towards True Existence, and both fasten [the mind] towards it.

(Shri Mahayogi finishes speaking, and only silence ensues.)

Establishment of the Mind

Mr. Noriyasu T: While reading The Universal Gospel of Yoga, I saw the word “mind” often. It’s easy for me to have the image of “thoughts” and “pain-bearing obstacles” concretely, but when it comes to the “mind,” I feel it exists but don’t know how I should imagine it.

MASTER: Thinking about it from the view of Yoga, the mind consists of various factors… How do I word it, hmm…it is like a mechanism.

Mr. Noriyasu T: A mechanism?

MASTER: There is ahankara, which is the ego-consciousness, you understand ego-consciousness, right? Thinking you yourself are ego-consciousness creates separation that you are not others; the workings of discriminating various things, categorizing and recognizing them; and thinking and ruminating on various things, in general, is what is referred to as “thoughts.”

Mr. Noriyasu T: The mind is not the thoughts themselves?

MASTER: Thoughts themselves are the mind, however, it’s better to understand it as the machine that generates the thoughts. In addition, there are memories, too.

Mr. Noriyasu T: So the mind consists of these things.

MASTER: Yes, it consists of these things. That is why it is likened to a field (with his left hand, pats the rug he’s sitting on) of rice or crops, likened to earth. And many things grow out of it; these are the thoughts and various karma.

Mr. Noriyasu T: We say “seeds of karma,” but they are planted in that ground.

MASTER: Yes, yes, you can understand that these seeds are planted into the so-called earth, or into the fields, in the soil.

Mr. Noriyasu T: So the earth itself is what it is?

MASTER: All of these combined are what is called the mind.

Mr. Noriyasu T: It’s like the planet Earth? (Shri Mahayogi laughs loudly.)

MASTER: Well (gestures as if he is holding a big bowl), rather than the Earth (he changes the shape of his hands to the shape of a rugby ball), it’s like a cosmos. Within the cosmos, everything, the Earth, Sun, Moon, all and everything is there; so in that sense, it is the cosmos.

Mr. Noriyasu T: When you mentioned “mechanism,” if the analogy of the mind is the Earth, then the mechanism is like the weather?

MASTER: Yes, it acts, creates various changes, and brings about many things—that is the meaning.

Discriminate the Conditions that Create Suffering

Ms. Endo (Mirabai): What is the mechanism of the mind [that causes one] to feel suffering?

MASTER: That is the coloring that is appearing from attachments towards the pain that you experienced in the past, things you dislike, or the memory of things that you are repulsed by, being triggered by a similar experience and occupying the mind.

Ms. Endo (Mirabai): In order to go beyond that…

MASTER: Because that is non-freedom, and it is bondage, the mind is seeking for liberation.

Ms. Endo (Mirabai): So then, what is needed is to learn well, correctly and thoroughly…

MASTER: Yes. No matter what it is, you can find that there is some factor, which is a condition that causes it to form. If you discriminate these [factors], you see that these conditions are not absolute conditions, in other words, they are not conditions based on the Truth and they are merely the recognition of memory, acquired by the experience of a single mind. And you will find that they are biased, or based on erroneous judgements. So then, by using the discriminative wisdom that I just mentioned, you practice not to make judgments based on these errors.

Ms. Endo (Mirabai): “Based on” means to direct the flow not in that direction.

MASTER: Yes, that’s right.

(Ms. Keiko looks at the notes in her lap and asks a question.)

Ms. Keiko T: The mind that seeks liberation from these non-freedoms—is it different from the mind that seeks the Truth?

MASTER: Well, it will eventually connect with it.

Ms. Keiko T: Connect…

MASTER: Yes. Obviously, for that mind that seeks freedom, too, you can apply another type of freedom in order for you to escape one type of bondage, nonetheless, you will gradually come to understand that if that is imperfect, everything comes with bondage until you reach perfect freedom. The perfect freedom is nothing but the Truth.

If you ask where that is, it is already within everyone. (gently) It is there vividly…only when the mind stops its activity, (clearly) it emerges.

MASTER: Yes…in this relative world, just like how light and darkness are woven together in everything, that is the inevitable result.

Ms. Endo (Mirabai): I was reading a little bit from a prior record of Satsangha. What I used to understand about what Buddha referred to as the teaching of birth-illness-aging-death up until then was that being born itself is suffering. But then, it was written that what Buddha thought was not about that, but about not knowing who the true Self is, and that it is referring to the suffering toward existence itself. Is that a correct understanding?

MASTER: Yes, that is correct.

Ms. Endo (Mirabai): …So did Buddha start his inquiry from that existence itself?

MASTER: Around that time, the law of karma must have been accepted as common fact.

The law of karma is the way of the world as cause and effect. Regardless of what it is, if there is a cause, there comes an effect, and every result inevitably has a cause. If you think about the physical existence applying that, it results in everything being suffering—this existence, whether it’s illness, aging or death, all of these come from having an existence in this world, meaning, it is coming from being born. For birth, the cause to bring it about in this world is that of karma being accumulated. In this way, you can find the cause before that. Well, if you keep tracing back the cause further and further, then you will find that there is sanskara, and the biggest cause, ignorance. In sum, that is the existence being referred to.

(Shri Mahayogi finishes speaking. Silence flows throughout the Ashrama.)

Seek Nama Rupa and Destroy the Mind

Yogadanda: When I was reading a record of a past Satsangha, Shri Mahayogi said, “If you discriminate nama–rupa, name and form, you will even grasp what words are,” but that cannot be explained with words, of course, right?

MASTER: Right, however, when the mind recognizes something, regardless of what it is, what’s imperative is nama–rupa, that is, name and form. That is why no matter what we see, or what we think, words are absolutely a necessity, and also, whether concrete or abstract, a word has an image as a form, unified with its name. Therefore, nama-rupa, or name and form, that is, a name, if you pursue it, unless the mind itself is ultimately destroyed, you will not be able to see it to its end. Or rather, it may be more accurate to say—by going to the root origin of it, the mind comes to an end. (Shri Mahayogi laughs quietly.)

Yogadanda: It means that in the process of the mind coming to an end, it becomes clear what words are…

MASTER: Yes.

Discrimination Performed With Words and Without Words

Ms. Nakamura (Sarani): While Shri Mahayogi was abroad, Satsangha was held by disciples here, and several senior disciples said, “Words are not used in the practice of discrimination.” When I tried to practice discrimination, I was surely using words by saying “This thought is not the Truth,” and by denying things I was trying to clear it all up somehow, yet they said that they use images, not words. Would you please explain this a little more?

MASTER: Usually, words are necessary. As written in the Yoga Sutra, there are several siddhi called prajna, which translates as true wisdom—that is where unmistakable wisdom is described; that while relying upon words, [it means] to destroy the idea of the word created by ignorance. And also, there is wisdom of discrimination without relying on words, for example, taraka, which is introduced as the wisdom and power that intuitively discriminates without words. Therefore, there are both. However, that taraka, as it is described as the wisdom that can know everything in an instant, is considered to be the ultimate step of all discriminatory wisdom. Therefore, in general, you can say that in the process of discriminating using words, the wisdom of discrimination that no longer requires words, ultimately arises.

Ms. Nakamura (Sarani): Does that mean that when we are not intentionally practicing discrimination, but rather, when we are concentrating, like in bhakti, and suddenly have a realization or come to an understanding in a flash—that is called taraka?

MASTER: Yes, it is that kind of wisdom of discrimination.

Ms. Nakamura (Sarani): So is it the power of discrimination that is born, not intentionally doing it, but through continuing to seek and inquire always?

MASTER: Yes, it is said that the meaning of the word taraka, is that which carries one across the ocean of transmigration, which is Satori, or another meaning of the word is an eye. In either case it indicates the same thing, since the eye can recognize everything immediately only by seeing—that has the meaning that without going through the process of words, you can grasp at once; and it also has the meaning of taking one to the world of infallible Truth, or the wisdom coming from It.

Ms. Nakamura (Sarani): As I spoke earlier, I am in such a situation that I bring up an issue within myself, for example, the word “fear” or “death,” and wonder why these things come up in my mind, yet the mind just fires questions without seeing a solution. And recently I have started to wonder if it would perhaps be faster to just bring words of Holy Beings, seeking out teachings concretely in books by myself, and meditating on them. These ways can be…

MASTER: I think so. (Shri Mahayogi laughs.)

Ms. Nakamura (Sarani): I understand, yes. I’ll try that way from now on.

MASTER: Yes, that will lead to the most unmistakable wisdom of discrimination; proceed in such way.

Ms. Nakamura (Sarani): Thank you very much (folding her palms together).

The Position of the Legs in Padmasana

Dayamati: Please teach us again the correct position of the legs in padmasana.

MASTER: The middle of the foot, the arch, if it is coming to the hip bone, that is just right. Then, the heel touches the lower abdomen. The other foot is the same. That is just right. The distance between the heels is fine according to the individual, but ideally, both knees should touch the floor. Whether in meditation or yoga mudra, the position of the feet is the same. [For the case of women, since their pelvis is wider,] the upper half of the arch (closer to the base of the little toe) to the pelvis is about right.

Dayamati: I was taught to do this deeply in yoga mudra from you.

MASTER: To be strict and precise, you can say that in order to place the position of the legs and feet deeply, you are practicing yoga mudra to make [the body] get used to it.

Art Originally is an Oblation, to be Served

Saturday April 8, 2006, Kyoto

Mr. Erikawa: I participated in an event¹ that the Mission was participating in, and asked Yogadanda about art.

Yogadanda: I answered based on what Shri Mahayogi mentioned previously that “In art—whether it remains as expressions of the struggles of the mind, or one practices it while having an ideal, faith or bhakti, it makes a difference.”

MASTER: (immediately) Clear answer. (laughs)

Mr. Takahashi: I’ve always thought about this from long ago, but is there value in third-rate artists?

MASTER: Well, it is not limited to art but it can be said for any occupation. That is, various people choose various occupations and live their lives. So then what determines what is appropriate for each person is based on karma after all. Therefore, without knowing anything spiritual, or without knowing the Truth, Holy Existence, or without having that in mind, if one just focuses only on expressing emotions of the mind from beginning to end, then that means that one is simply and merely executing karma; therefore it is the same whether it’s art or any other profession.

However, I think that in art, as in the latter part of what Yogadanda mentioned earlier, art, in its origin, does not have any selfish motives, unlike other businesses. So then art that is practiced while having an ideal, or after the mind begins to grow to seek spiritual things—well, even though that can also still be a struggle, while karma is at the base of it, it is possible for the mind to become gathered into one that will try to transcend it. However, it is imperative that one learns the Truth and studies under a Guru. An artist who is self-satisfied, only ends up having too many troubles, and they will never be resolved.

Mr. Takahashi: Should I think that artists and people like us who have jobs are different?

MASTER: No, it is considered to be the same.

Mr. Takahashi: Even if an artist, if that person is beyond the realm of karma, then is it okay for us to sense something from that art?

MASTER: In the case of such a blessed artist, then that artist might have realized things through that art, or frankly speaking, they might have attempted the work of eliminating the ego. If so, the art expressed from that work perhaps has something that moves people’s hearts. However, if comparing it to the spiritual, or Satori, it too is not something that is special.

Mr. Takahashi: (seems to be convinced) Thank you very much.

Dayamati: Coincidentally, I was also thinking about aesthetics. I have my own view about a certain aesthetic, but I’m not sure if that is pure aesthetics, or if I say further, I am not sure if aesthetics are actually ego or not. Please teach us about it.

MASTER: Art can form by having a creator and a receiver who enjoys it. You can say that when that happens, the work, from which the receiver feels joy or receives an impact that feels like the mind is being washed to become transparent—this work has the timeless essence and power of fine art. However, because that world too can only be formed if there is a receiver or an audience, it comes with conditions. Therefore, the artwork, a piece of art, is not eternal. These are merely a means to an end.

Dayamati: Within me, there is a part that judges, “That is nice” or “beautiful” and at the same time, there is a part that considers sacred things as “It’s wonderful”; so I feel like there are two people inside of me. There is a part of me that accepts anything straightforwardly, and there is a part of me thinking that I should not be like that, but is it possible to say which is closer to the Truth?

MASTER: That can’t be said, however, if the state of mind of the artist affects the artwork and the receiver, then that state of mind, the content of the mind itself, comes to be the issue. The mind of the creator.

Therefore, to me, for example, the scriptures—which are, including the Bible, letterings, manuscripts, and scriptures in which the words of Truth are written and conveyed—and for example, paintings (pointing to the miniature painting on the wall in front of Shri Mahayogi that Shachi painted), and various forms of expression—are all equal. Some people may be inspired by words, however, there are other people who may be able to sense and grasp more intuitively by seeing pictures or by seeing a drama or by hearing music, or even from mundane occurrences. In this sense, you can’t just treat art as special at all.

If I may say, I think that nowadays, art is erroneously praised too highly. Originally, art is proper to be an oblation, something that ought to have been offered or served [to God]. But nowadays, I feel the tendency of art to be coming down in the world as merchandise and completely for business, and that is no different at all from the motivation for a general business.

Yet, since the mind can only sense something through some medium, whether it is art, music, literature or scripture, if various things of this world become means to an end for the mind to direct to what is Real, then that would be fine.

Ms. Keiko T: Does it mean that for the mind, art or literature is necessary? If so, if the mind becomes still, then is art no longer necessary?

MASTER: Right, not necessary. (Shri Mahayogi smiles towards Ms. Keiko.)

Ms. Keiko and Mr. Shocho Takahashi: Thank you very much (putting palms together).

(Ms. Keiko Takahashi, since meeting Shri Mahayogi last November, quit practicing piano, which she used to practice daily until that point, and allocated that time instead for the study of Yoga and for practicing asana. Art has been frequently discussed among her family members. By hearing about art today, the father and daughter of the Takahashi family seem to be finally feeling convinced.)

_________________________

[1] MYM participated in an event in which Yoga was introduced through a demonstration of asana and through several gurubai who spoke about their experience of Yoga.

* * *

Testimonies from a Practitioner

Sanatana Dharma Avatara Mela Celebratory Message
April 3, 2022

by Mika Noguchi

Shri Mahayogi says, “Truth already exists.” He teaches us that, “As a ripple on the surface of the lake does not reflect the true form of the moon, the stirrings of our mind veil the Truth.” Buddha, Jesus Christ, Ramakrishna, and Shri Mahayogi have been continuously showing that same Light to all people, so that people would be able to notice for themselves the Light of Truth that is already there, so that people would be able to calm the stirrings of their minds, so that the true Self would shine forth by Itself. They are uttering words solely for that purpose. The words uttered from the mouth of the Avatara are Light.

We are able to deliver what was taught from Shri Mahayogi, to others. I think that that is the true work of the disciples of the Avatara.

The words that the Master imparts to an individual disciple, are Light for that disciple; and to embody that Light, to live out and live up to It is the role that no one but the disciples are able to do. I think that it is only by each respective disciple continuously putting the teaching into action in daily life, that Yoga can be communicated to someone for the first time. Mercifully, Shri Mahayogi speaks to us about what the way to live according to the Eternal Truth means, using simple words that each disciple can understand.

Long ago, I asked Shri Mahayogi how I can communicate about Yoga to visually impaired people. Shri Mahayogi was deeply considering these people, saying that it is not easy to find the right timing to communicate for someone who already has a disability, and then advised me that I can communicate to them that, “Even if one’s eyes can’t see, ears can’t hear, or legs can’t walk, we can all have consideration, kindness and peace.” The Truth is the same for everyone—his words were the teaching that hints at and shows the ideal of all human beings. I thought that in order for me to communicate the words of Shri Mahayogi with their purity intact, I must live these teachings myself. That is because the words received from Shri Mahayogi are words, yet beyond the words, only their essence reaches the heart, for that is because Shri Mahayogi is a being who precisely lives these teachings themselves, and that is precisely where I have been feeling the significance of the words uttered by Shri Mahayogi. When a person who utters words embodies their words, the words function correctly and accomplish their role. That is why I aspire to match my thoughts, words, and deeds, in order to be in accordance with the teachings of Shri Mahayogi.

By making this effort, the purpose of my life and its process are becoming unified, and right now, my purpose and the meaning for living my life, match. All my efforts connect directly to joy. And, the ones who have shown me the concrete picture of living the teachings of the Master, are the direct disciples of Ramakrishna. Through the work of each of the respective direct disciples, with a unified voice, Ramakrishna’s words of Truth have connected with us too, even to this day, transcending time and space.

The direct disciple, Turiyananda, who I have been fascinated by, I believe is a person who stuck to the teaching that was first taught to him by the Master, throughout his life, even if the conditions were changing variously: “Rely only on God—the Mother.” After the Master left his physical body, even when Turiyananda was living in silent austerity in the jungles after that, even when agreeing to the appeal of Vivekananda, or even upon answering the pleas from Vivekananda, when he went to the metropolis of America, where life was completely the opposite of his life until that point, he took action to communicate the teachings of the Master to others…and even when in the middle of nowhere, deep in the mountains of California, he solely took care of leading a dozen students who had come to learn the Truth, starting life from scratch, and showing a real example of how to live the Truth to these students—he always steadfastly followed the Master’s initial teaching.

Just as his Master did, Turiyananda, with all of his heart and soul, guided each person who came in front of his eyes, under his auspices. I think that he must have thought deeply for others, thinking, unless he himself lives, becoming the example of the Truth manifested by the Master, other people could not come to know it. That was his humility towards the Truth, and the responsibility to live the teachings of his most beloved Master, which, for him, must have been joy.

The words that he spoke to others, were exactly what he was doing, so these straightforward words were perfectly matched between what he says and what he does, which must make it impossible not to reach people. It would be impossible not to convey the Existence of his Master.

I think that if you opened Turiyananda’s chest, just like Hanuman, there would have been Ramakrishna dwelling there. Right now, I feel like Turiyananda is telling me to devote everything to the Divine Mother; and to eliminate unnecessary things from my chest, and fill it up only with God; and that to live the teaching of the Master, to communicate it, means that. If it can’t be communicated, then my effort is lacking. When it is communicated, it is by the grace of God. Just like Turiyananda, I will continue practicing what my Master, Shri Mahayogi taught me, and never give up making an effort to discipline myself in that every day.

And just like Turiyananda always respected his fellow disciples from the bottom of his heart, no matter what, communicating the Master’s teachings respectively yet with a unified voice, I too would like to live the teachings of Shri Mahayogi together with my precious gurubai. A senior disciple told me that Shri Mahayogi said, “No one can be missing; everyone is necessary.” If Shri Mahayogi says that, then we must be able to straightforwardly express this Light of Truth, which Shri Mahayogi has continued to demonstrate to us, vividly with joy.

The words of Truth are eternal. When we encounter the words of the Avatara, we can arrive at their Essence from these words. These words can be known equally, even if one cannot see or hear. Those who cannot see, can sense its gentle voice, and ones who cannot hear, can feel its warm expression. Those who can neither see nor hear, can sense its sacred vibration. Shri Mahayogi’s words are sacred breath, because it is the direct breath emanating from Shri Mahayogi. I wish for that sacred vibration to reach others exactly as is. In order to become a transparent medium for that purpose, I must be single-minded and true to the Teachings, and to the Truth.

There are words of Shri Mahayogi that express everything that I’d like to offer in the celebratory message today, and I consider them be the ultimate ideal. In conclusion, please allow me to recite these sacred words:

“The Supreme Truth has no name or form—only Existence.
It alone is True Existence, the true Self, and what is called God.
That which is One manifests Itself as All and Everything.
Rejoice and revel in the bliss of non-dualistic Silence.”

Sanatana Dharma Avatara Mela Celebratory Message

by Prasadini

“Let’s look at this photographic album of Swami Vivekananda. Look, this is a group photo of Vivekananda and his gurubai. After Ramakrishna passed away, they all renounced the world, established an organization with their Guru’s name, and passed forward the teachings of Ramakrishna, for posterity.”

When I first visited Kyoto to learn Yoga, a senior disciple introduced me to Vivekananda. In the photo, Vivekananda and his gurubai had pristine eyes and smiles. When I saw them, envy and admiration arose in me. Of course, one of the reasons is because of their unshakable faith and passion for the Truth, but the other reason is that they all supported each other in going in the same direction. They gave me encouragement, and I began to think that I would like to create a sangha upon returning to Taiwan.

Please allow me to reminisce a little about a few things from back in the past.

When I first met Shri Mahayogi in New York, there were still many things I wanted to pursue in this world, and I also could not understand the words of Shri Mahayogi much, but I was strongly drawn to the purity emanating from Shri Mahayogi. The more I spent time with Shri Mahayogi, the more I began to have a peculiar feeling. The worries and pains of the world felt as if very far away and insignificant, and instead, much joy arose in me. The prior concept that the world is an ocean of suffering, and everyone must experience the various sufferings in it, was overturned by the existence of Shri Mahayogi. Later on, I found out that such an existence is called an Avatara, and an Avatara abides in true Joy and Freedom, showing the ideal way of life for people.

When I returned to Taiwan, because Shri Mahayogi and the gurubai live far away, I often felt lonely or like I did not have the ability to form a sangha. I was thinking that I wanted to move to New York and be with the sangha in New York.

This was around the time when I saw the photos of Vivekananda and heard about him. Vivekananda went to America with very few possessions in order to lessen the material poverty in India and the spiritual suffering in the West. Because there were no Yoga centers or ashrama in the West, he lectured about the non-dual philosophy of Vedanta at Christian churches, and he started up the Ramakrishna Mission in both America and India. I was strongly uplifted by Vivekananda’s proactiveness and energy, so I made him my ideal. I was encouraged to shift my thinking positively: I am in Taiwan, there must be a role that has been given to me; even if the goal is far away, I must get into action; my lack of ability is just an excuse, if I don’t have a comrade in Taiwan, then I need to share the teachings of Shri Mahayogi and find fellowship through that.

Shri Mahayogi has said not to worry about whether you are perfect or not, but that what’s important is to fill your mind and actions with God. I think that what it means is to get rid of ego, and shift to devoting my thoughts and actions to serving God. I have begun to be conscious of the fact that, if I want to be in action like Vivekananda, I have to deepen my faith more and more, practice the Guru’s teachings thoroughly, and tell others about Yoga and Shri Mahayogi. And now I find myself strongly wishing for this.

The past few years, every time Shri Mahayogi has visited Taiwan, more people have gathered around, attracted to the Truth. Sangha has begun to form in Taiwan at last, and we have been gathering regularly, doing various activities, and learning the teachings of Yoga together. Sangha has supported everyone’s spiritual growth, including that of myself. By working together with sangha and getting rid of unnecessary thoughts, we began to be able to taste the joy of “Living in the Now” demonstrated by Shri Mahayogi.

Through this opportunity, I would like to express my gratitude towards the gurubai around me who are working together on the works of the Mission. Indeed, because of everyone’s efforts and concentration, this sangha can stand. Even when I cannot do the work of the Mission with all of my strength, due to being drowned in the waves of daily life, the works have been able to continue because of the support of the gurubai. Everyone has become so dependable. Seeing how the gurubai have grown through putting practice into their actions, encourages me that I too need to practice harder. I am grateful to Shri Mahayogi from the bottom of my heart, for providing such reliable brothers and sisters.

Last year, during the Specialized Meditation classes, in Taiwan, held by Sananda, he spoke to us about the need to have an ideal to aim for. At that moment, Vivekananda’s form, who proceeds straight forward toward the Truth and his Guru, Ramakrishna, came to my mind again. Seeing him, I realized that the reason why my mind is still disturbed is because my faith has not become firm. Since then, I have made Vivekananda my object of meditation, and I made a commitment to myself to bring my mind toward the Truth, and act with lightness, and with proactivity. From that point on, by having that in my awareness, my mind began to shift; such that I started to spend my time thinking about such things as, what more can be done through the works of the Mission, or how can the works of the Mission be deepened, what can be done to maintain everyone’s passion, and etc. I aspire to carry through to completion the work of the Mission, truly extending myself, no matter what the task might be, no matter what the role might be; and with passion, I aspire to proceed forward to the Truth with my brothers and sisters.

From ancient times, the Enlightened Holy Beings have continued to show us the path of Truth. And precisely because countless practitioners have continued to walk on this path, the path to that Eternal Truth is known. Just as it is all due to the striving of Vivekananda and his gurubai that people who have come in later eras are able to feel the existence of Ramakrishna, I too want to do the same, following their examples. For the sake of future generations being able to perceive the existence of Shri Mahayogi and be guided to the path of Eternal Truth, from now on, I will fill my thoughts and actions with God, concentrate on serving God, and make a steadfast effort.

Sanatana Dharma Avatara Mela Celebratory Message

by Sadhya

One day, Anandamali mentioned that there must be some significance as to why Shri Mahayogi went through asana himself and now teaches us; if every Enlightened Being teaches the Truth according to the need of the era, surely there must be some reason as for why now. Personally, for me I see that asana has a profound benefit, but I really hadn’t thought about what’s the significance of its practice for this era. So, after hearing it, this question stayed in my mind.

Soon after, I attended an Asana & Meditation online class, as a participant, this question still centered in my mind. Then, in the moments right after releasing the tension from simhasana, suddenly something became simply and straightforwardly apparent, as if in some sense I was being shown what asana really is, starkly, concretely.

And it was as if asana was this cosmic or even beyond cosmic thing. Completely beyond time, beyond space, beyond any person, any thing, entirely unrelated to anything or anyone—yet everything. Even Shri Mahayogi, Babaji and Lord Shiva, were nowhere to be grasped, as if their forms that I hold onto dearly were like ideas in my mind that became too confined to hold the vastness of this content that they, and the asana they convey, symbolize. I got the sense that this essence or content of the asana must be the reason why asana has such a great power, why it can transform us so much, even we still may not understand why or what it is. As if, asana itself, and the power it holds, is beyond what the body can do, beyond what the mind can do. But It will do on its own, by itself. Its power—much beyond any perceived power that can be created in this world. And it seemed clear, that this essence of Asana, is without beginning or end, it’s not something to be gained or created, it’s not something possible to destroy. It simply is there already, always. And with that, there’s nothing to do but trust and allow that essence of it to shape us, to mold us, above all other worldly matters…and whatever it is we come to have to face in the world, I felt, just has to be accepted as it is, since everything, in its own time, is going to come and go.

Though I struggle to find the words to express it, and even at first I thought it’s better not to speak about it because my words are only going to create a limitation, but if I look to Shri Mahayogi, and to the teachings, probably the best way I may be able to express is: Sanatana Dharma, Eternal Truth.

It may be a very small beginning for coming to understand the role that Asana plays in this era—and just coming from these few moments in the silence and stillness of simhasana—but I feel convinced that this, Sanatana Dharma, is the heart of Shri Mahayogi’s Asana that he teaches to us.

What an immeasurable blessing that is! And a great, great lesson. Though it’s like a symbol at first, perhaps like with any expression coming from Shri Mahayogi or the Existence of any of the Great Avatara, it is like that symbol is just waiting to give way to that Eternal Truth, that is simply always there.

And this is so completely fascinating to me, and at the same time I am so moved and so filled with gratitude that Shri Mahayogi mastered Asana and conveys it to us, now. That we may be able to receive it and pass it forward, sparking this seemingly invisible, yet all-prevailing, Sanatana Dharma in the hearts of others, even through Asana. And all because Shri Mahayogi, the Great Avatara of our time, makes the invisible become visible—right now, Asana is being revealed! And Sanatana Dharma is being revealed!

Pranam at the blessed feet of Satguru Shri Mahayogi Paramahansa, of Babaji, of Lord Shiva.

Jai, Sanatana Dharma Avatara Ki, Jai!!

Sanatana Dharma Avatara Mela Celebratory Message

by Yukti

“How can the dying best be served?” This question was the beginning of religion for me. When I first encountered someone dying, I felt the sacred, holy brilliance within the depth of this person, and simultaneously there arose in me the thirst to save him, to find some way. Yet, I did not quite understand what about him I wanted to save, nor did I understand what was the best condition for me to be in for the dying person, what would be of most benefit. Later, I encountered Yoga and as I learned the teaching of Truth from Shri Mahayogi, and as I pursued the way Mother Theresa lived, I realized that what I wished to do was save souls—to liberate everyone from all suffering and guide them back to God. Yet, I thought that this was the role given only to perfect souls like Shri Mahayogi and Christ, or highly spiritual practitioners like Mother Theresa, so I could not immediately grasp why someone like me, who also needs salvation, wanted to save other souls. However, as I got the answer—“The best way to be with someone on the deathbed is to be a holy person”—through the way that Mother Teresa lived, and received the message from the Mother—“Be holy yourself”—I came to know that, just like she brought the love of Christ to people and brought their souls closer to God, the more I myself become pure, the more I myself am able to do the same work. And it was at that moment, I realized that the work I must accomplish in my lifetime is exactly that.

One time, Shri Mahayogi said, “If faith deepens, it becomes pure faith, and the state that transcends life and death arises. That exists in the place closest to Satori. You all have that already dwelling in your hearts.” That was at a Satsangha, one month before I was about to move to Fukushima after the great earthquake. That true faith already dwelled within me—when I came to know that, it wiped away all anxiety about moving away from the Guru and all anxiety toward what may unfold after that. In aiming to become holy, I worked in various lands, following the example of the Mother, who was on the run all over the world. I went to work in Fukushima prefecture after the nuclear accident, in Hiroshima prefecture and Okayama prefecture, the areas of the 2018 Japan flooding disaster; I came to Ehime prefecture to support my family, and there were periods when I went back to Osaka prefecture to support the work for the pandemic. What I’ve learned through many works is that all actions, no matter how small the action might be, all begin from loving God. And what was necessary in every process, was the guidance from the Guru. Had I not met Shri Mahayogi and learned the teaching of Truth, even if the same question arose within me in front of the dying person that day, or even if I traveled around here and there trying to live like the Mother, I would have never understood the meaning of the works of the Mother, her true greatness, or what I should see of her and how to follow her example. The doors were always opened in front of my eyes, and there was always only a single, straight path, and all I had to do was step onto it with courage. Perhaps, even that courage may have been given to me [by the Guru].

Long ago, for me, the dying were a very special existence and to serve them as they passed on was sacred work. However, at some point, no matter who it was, whether it was the dying, the healthy, someone battling an illness, a newborn, an elderly person, a family member or not a family member, whether it was nursing or not—there came to no longer be any differences to me anymore.

Now, I truly want to become holy. And I want to support people by living a spiritual life until their very last moment. Even if I spend every moment given to me for the rest of my life, filling myself with thoughts of God, God cannot freely use me unless my thoughts are sheerly pure without a single spot. Therefore, what I must do now and from now on, is to live according to the teaching of Truth, get rid of everything of me and mine, break away from myself, and belong fully to God. If my faith comes to belong to God, then my work will wholly belong to God, and it will accomplish nothing short of something miraculous, which is to sprout true faith in people’s hearts and to walk on the path towards God, transcending time and space in this chaotic world. Only then, for the first time, the religion that began with my tiny question, will come to fruition. That is the best I can do towards myself and the world, and the aim of why I was born. Shri Mahayogi, who appeared in this world as the Avatara to guide us, and the Holy Beings who love and love God until their last breath, putting their lives entirely at stake, are my refuge. While being in this world, may I only be with God though, and may my work, because of its purity, bring God to people.

Teachings of Shri Mahayogi

Testimonies from Actual Practitioners

Teachings of Shri Mahayogi

Yoga Brings the Quality of Sattva to the Mind

Stilling the Prana through Sitting Positions

What is Symbolized by the Chakra Symbol

What is Necessary is Belief, not Self-Confidence

In Order to See Atman in Everything, The Mind Must Practice Silence and Renunciation

The Experience of Death and the Awareness of Atman

Only the Wisdom of the Truth Can Eliminate the Ignorance Coming from the Fear of Death

Intuitive Knowledge Comes from the Mind’s Pure Quality of Sattva

The Effect of Asana on the Mind

Faith is the Same as Ekagrata

In Order to Sense Reality, Faith is Crucial

Establishment of the Mind

Discriminate the Conditions that Create Suffering

Seek Nama Rupa and Destroy the Mind

Discrimination Performed With Words and Without Words

The Position of the Legs in Padmasana

Art Originally is an Oblation, to be Served

Testimonies from a Practitioner

In Order to See Atman in Everything,
The Mind Must Practice Silence and Renunciation

Only the Wisdom of the Truth Can Eliminate
the Ignorance Coming from the Fear of Death