The Mind's Servant

In the Ramayana story, Queen Kaikeyi yields to the selfish wiles of her maid and as a consequence, her lord King Dasaratha lost his life. Rama who she regarded as her very life-breath was exiled into the forest, and Bharatha her son, disowned her for the very same act! She drew on herself the condemnation from all the people in the Kingdom of Ayodhya. The story is an allegory. Dasaratha is the human body with the five senses of perception and the five senses of action - the ten chariots or Dasha-ratha. He wedded the Queen, the Mind, and the mind yielded to the servant and caused the downfall. This clearly teaches us the legitimate role of the mind as the master of one’s senses. If the master serves the servants, then, he or she loses their self-respect and falls in the esteem of all.

Baba (thought for the day)

To listen, think it over and absorb works like an allegory. In seeing it in our own life we find characters in the light of ‘insights’ and that is Baba. It does symbolize ideas and concepts, they get repeated and by that and it is growing in us.

Only we don’t invent literary characters, but our own life and the people we met in our life and our ‘insights’ and that ‘insight’ as it is Baba, it is the main role and the other complex ideas and concepts turn around that key idea, it gets easily digestible and tangible to the reader or listener, therefore, we tell listen, think it over and absorb.

The listening is just the beginning to get finally to the inner understanding being able to absorb the meaning in Baba’s words.

It is also a form of conveying the meaning differently than just in reading and forgetting it again and thinking, we know it already. If we are able to absorb it means we get into it and begin to see it in different situations in our mind.

Self-Realization

Co-operation among individuals grouped as a society guarantees security and stability. It is called, Shri Rama Raksha (protection), the mark of Divine Grace. The surest sign of awareness of one’s Divine Nature is the recognition of the bond of kinship with other beings. This bond has now snapped, and as a result, life has been rendered meaningless. The evil spirits of greed and pride, of envy and hatred, are executing their demonic dance in the hearts of man.

People are not able to appreciate the value of the air they breathe, of the Sun's rays that illumine the world, the drops of rain that sustain life, and the subtle power that underlies every object in Nature. They have become low-minded people, dedicating their lives to meaningless pursuits. What needs to be done today is to foster people who are determined to stand and even suffer to realize the holy goals of peace and prosperity for the entire world.

Baba (thought for the day)

We get great news that Baba will come again if we pray for him that is what we get by email and we read it in the Internet. He will take soon a body again if we pray for him to come. 

Baba never left, he dropped the body and it fell into dust, he is always around us, it was always the question why we cannot experience it.

It was a surprise after six months of staying with him in the ashram and there was nothing but love and the universe seemed to be made out of love only and coming back, where did that love go? I was convinced that it was true, it was universal love, only here we didn’t feel it.

I wondered how that reality could be true in his presence of only love and as soon as I was back it was gone, but I went on with my meditation, because it should be possible with meditation to stay in that universal love, shouldn’t it?

But in my meditation I was alone and Baba is sharing it with others, only we have to know how to share and it is different from socializing and I guess there is the biggest problem if we cannot feel that love all around us.

Attain the State of No Mind

What manifests externally is called 'Manas' (Mind). That which is internal is 'Nama' (The Name of the Lord). Repeating the Name of the Lord, you can gain control over your mind and attain the state where there is no Mind (Amanaska).

As long as you are under the influence of your mind, you will tread the worldly path and get lost. You can clearly hear the voice of the Lord, only when you attain the 'No Mind' State. To attain that state, you must listen to the inner voice, the voice of the Lord within you. To hear Him, you must practice Devotion and Surrender. The easiest way to understand and experience God is to Love Him. You can easily grow in love for God, by worshipping Him in a specific form. A true devotee does all duties with total surrender only to please God, and dedicates every action to please Him.

Baba (thought for the day)

The world is 'Manas' (Mind), and everything is conceptual and relative, including what we think is God as form it is all the same.  And so it is with Baba in the body, body is body; there is no difference, only he has no mind. If there is no mind, but a body, we will not be reborn and not come back. As human beings we are born because there is a mind, if there is no more mind, there will be no birth and no death.

The mind is the source of our birth in the body, if there is no mind, there is no birth.

Repeating the name of the Lord we do with a mantra. Baba said all mantras as okay, also TM mantras, but they have no meaning, the aim is the same, and we go beyond the mind.  

He explains that what is internal is the 'name', if we repeat the mantra, we focus on the lord and we should by that meditation attain a state of no mind. It tells us that divinity is beyond the mind. If we use Soham, the mantra with the breath, we with every inhale the breath tells So and with every exhale it tells Ham.

And if we forget it, we are back in the mind and the body. Our normal state we are used to is body-consciousness, if we meditate and progress steadily dedicating every action to him and we surrender all duties to the Lord, we do every action to please him.

Like that with repeating the name of the Lord we develop a higher state of consciousness.

Self-Control and Duties

Health is the greatest blessing. Without it, you cannot do even the smallest work. Health is indispensable for your progress in material, moral, political, economic, artistic and spiritual fields. Food habits are of primary importance if health must be secured and maintained. 'No restraint, no success' is the axiom. Among the 8.4 million species of living beings, all except humans live on food as provided by Mother Nature.

Human beings alone strive to make such food more palatable, more attractive to the senses of sight, touch and smell by boiling, frying, freezing and mixing, grinding and soaking. Natural Food is really beneficial. Catering to the cravings of the tongue, if you intake heavy food thrice or more a day, you will fall ill and lose the sprightliness of youth. Restraints, controls and limits must be applied to the tongue. Regular and limited intake a lone will enable you to discharge your duties.

Baba (thought for the day)

My digesting was not all too well for some time and some time ago it said in the 'insight' that I should fast.

I did it the next day, for a day just drinking and as my daughter was in vacation it was a good time and it got better real fast.

An 'insight' is like a window in the dream state or in meditation, we know it is not a thought, it is coming from the higher self or the inner master.

Divinity or the inner master is like the sun and the 'insight' is the reflection of the sunshine.

We can see our body as a glass in that glass is water and if the water is clean enough it reflects the sunshine and if it is not, we can hardly see it. But if we are used to see it, we can see that reflection mostly in the dream state, but sometimes it is also just in the air or it is reflected in meditation.

That reflection is not the mind, it is in the watcher, it is different from the mind. It is not like sense-perception what means thinking or seeing with the eyes, it is different, it is a reflection and therefore, we see it, it is inner view.

The Nature of the Divine Soul

Understand the Nature of the Divine Soul (Atma), which gives sustenance to all the senses. The five senses originate from Ether, which emerges from the Atma. Hence, if you understand the Atma, it is highly likely that your senses will be under your control. Then you will always be happy. Know that happiness is beyond comfort and sorrow. Comfort and sorrow are just the manifestations of the human mind. The state which is beyond this pleasure and grief is truly happiness. You can realize this state when you listen to the voice within you. God is present within you and He truly speaks to you from within. To experience that inner voice, you must silence your mind. You must control the activity of the external senses. When the inner and outer organs are completely controlled, you will clearly hear the Lord, speaking to you, from within.

Baba (thought for the day)

Baba tells us that we should understand the nature of the divine Soul (Atma) and if we understand the Atma, it is much more likely that our senses are under control and that we will be happy.

He doesn't tell us to just listen to the heart. The higher self is in the heart and self-enquiry is about that higher self in the heart. We do not get there with the mind, so how can we understand the Atma? There is a way to understand it? When we listen to the voice within us.

But it seems there can be some confusion about it, some think they listen to him and it is only the mind. There is a difference between listening to the mind and the heart and what is that difference? The heart is always the mirror and therefore, listening to the heart is getting aware of the insights in the mirror. It is not direct perception, but indirect seeing.

Direct and Indirect

If you are established in peace, you will find that Love arises from it. Peace and love are intimately related. Many pretend as if they love all. Their actions represent how dramatic one can get in the field of love. This is not true love. True love finds fulfillment only when it is with peace. Once you develop true love, Non-violence will naturally manifest from within and you will not hurt or harm anyone. Love is present everywhere, in every being in this world. Love is beyond a specific name, form or action. Love is God, Live in Love. 

This is taught to you by Educare. The process of education inculcates desire, hatred, jealousy, lust, greed and avarice, which are worldly traits or behavioral tendencies. Educare on the other hand, consists of adherence to Truth, Non-Violence, Love, Peace and Righteousness - qualities that are present within you.

Baba (thought for the day)

Baba insights or Baba in our dream, it is about the man who comes in our dream to awake us.

He said in the dream, Baba in the dream that is ‘insight’ and he is the following step, also ‘insight’, that is an ‘indirect’ level. It can be we have Baba dreams which didn’t make sense, because it was too negative and in writing and thinking over Baba’s words, listening, if we are lucky, we get the meaning in his words and are able to absorb, also that is indirect, not direct.

We have to listen, think it over and absorb.

He is not talking in us, which would be too direct to be possible, because the higher self is separate from the body and the mind. If we had lots of Baba dreams, they have to make sense in an indirect manner. We are not standing here and telling Baba is talking in us or through us, what would be not the same indirect way of getting an insight, but it would be only mind level.

We can see it in the difference between direct and indirect. If it is the mind it is direct and if it is atman it is indirect and therefore, it results in a process in self-enquiry.

The Mind and the Five Sheaths

Mind is present inside the body amidst the five sheaths (Pancha Koshas). The five sheaths are gross body sheath (Annamaya Kosha), Pranamaya Kosha (pertaining to the life force), Manomaya Kosha (mind sheath), Vijnanamaya Kosha (intellect sheath), and Anandamaya Kosha (Bliss sheath).

Above the mind sheath is Prana(life force) and below it is discrimination power. Both of these are related to Fire. Mind is related to Water. The Moon is the presiding deity for the Mind. Hence coolness is its nature. Because of the presence of life force above and discrimination power below, the Mind melts and gets transformed into water. Water’s nature is to flow towards a lower level. It does not have the nature of flowing upwards. Hence the mind always wanders around the sensory and worldly pleasures. It cannot voyage towards the pure and higher stages. To divert the mind towards higher realms, spirituality is of utmost necessity.

Baba (thought for the day)

If we listen to Baba’s words and see it in our own life, we get aware of it differently than when we just read it. Today’s thought for the day is about the mind and it is great how he describes it, because we can see the difference between the mind and the breath and the intellect, the nature of the mind is cold and goes downwards, the nature of the intellect and the breath, the discrimination power and the energy level are related to fire and go into an upward direction.

In listening to his words and thinking it over, we see it in our own life and Baba talks here about the mind and it brings that mind reality up in our own life.

Thinking over Baba’s word we get to the right conclusion if we see it in our own life, otherwise, we are not able to understand it. He is atman and not the mind and not the body, therefore, he knows and we cannot know on the mind level, if we are too much inti the mind, but in listening to him our insights in the dream begin to make sense. If we listen to Baba’s words and think it over, we are able to absorb it.

Breaking into Pieces

Truth is not merely describing what you have seen, expressing as is what you have heard or sharing honestly what you have experienced. Truth is beyond all this. It is a deep inner feeling and it must come from within. Truth must originate from your heart. Truth is permanent; it does not change with the passage of time. When you rely on Truth (Sathya), Righteousness (Dharma) arises out of it. It is Truth that teaches how one should conduct oneself and perform one’s duties. Righteousness is a reflection of Truth. You will experience peace when Sathya and Dharma co-exist. This is indeed peace, Shanti. It is foolishness to think that Peace exists elsewhere and is separate from you. If you separate truth and righteousness, you will find only pieces; on the other hand if you blend them you will experience Peace always.

Baba (thought for the day)

It refers to today’s thought for the day and what Baba describes as honestly expressing what we have heard or seen and sharing sincerely what we have experienced. Baba tells us that truth is beyond all this.

As mentioned in yesterday’s thought for the day, if it is contaminated by the ‘evil’ qualities, evil qualities like lust, greed, anger, jealousy, hatred and avarice which do not befit a human being) if that level is present, it is not true or it is not honest. Getting aware of not that is how we become human beings.

If he mentions duty, we have to see three levels. Duty without love is deplorable and that is the case when evil qualities are not controlled. That is the level of the body and ‘not that’ and by getting aware that we are not that, we reach the level of being human. Duty with love is good, that makes us human, but not yet divine.

 (Duty without love is deplorable, duty with love is good, love without duty it divine. Baba)

Joyful Role of Parents

Never forsake your parents till your last breath. Even if they didn't provide for all you asked and wished, you must love them. Your mother has undergone many hardships for your sake. She nourished you in many ways. Forgetting or ignoring your mother is the worst of sins. Father has worked hard to take care of you and raise you. Never make your parents feel distant from you. Love and respect them at all times. You must satisfy the needs of your parents, using the education they gave you. Their satisfaction will give you infinite joy. Do not believe your friends to be your everything – as long as you have money in your pocket, they are your friends. When you are penniless, most of them will bid goodbye.

Baba (thought for the day)

I began to think that parents are God during the time in Geneva after reading books for Yogananda and after I had tried about everything to find the reason why it felt upside down in my family.

At that time I didn't know Baba yet and I got to the conclusion that whatever I did, it was not good enough and therefore, I decided to see in them God.

The Mantra in the Breath

Wherefrom does humanness come? It comes from your heart. Here, the heart referred to is not the physical heart but the spiritual heart which is free from all blemishes. Like fragrant air, your purity should spread everywhere. You should share with others the pure thoughts and the pure feelings that emanate from you. Whatever you do, it should be helpful to others. Help Ever, Hurt Never - If you imbibe these two qualities, everything will become good for you.

Today educated people are proud of their Ph. D. degrees. What does the true Ph.D. mean? The letter ‘P’ stands for Person, ‘h’ for Help and ‘D’ for Divinity. Hence, one with Ph.D. degree is the person who helps others and attains Divinity. On the contrary, if one does not help others, then the letter ‘p’ will denote that he is a papi (sinner). You will attain everything if you protect your humanness.

Baba (thought for the day)

In the last few days I was focusing on the Soham, not because it was new, not because I had not done it before, because it was not just as a mantra, but related to the states of consciousness and it was in those three steps, breathing in as So into a transition state of just being and breathing out as Ham. It felt like first it went into the mind, our waking state and it relaxes in Ha in the dream state and goes in the deep sleep state in the m in just being or Samadhi and there we meet the hamming of the universe.  

After a while it felt like nothing but God breathing in and out and today it ended like with the meditation with ‘not that’ in a feeling of love, just in that focus on the breath.

I was a great experience and there was a moment I was that surprised that it interrupted the focus and I fell out of my meditation and I was back in the mind.

Dichotomy

Today people tend to go by the letter of the scriptures. The words of the scriptures should be interpreted and understood in the context of the prevailing time and circumstances. Then their real meaning will be clear. Also no one adheres to what one says or preaches.

More than listening to spiritual discourses, one must try to practice at least a part of what one learns. Vedanta is being expounded at many places, not to speak of the discourses on the Gita. But how many understand the real spirit of the Gita and act up to its message? It is because of this dichotomy between preaching and practice that spiritual teachings are being treated with little regard. Only when the feelings emanating from the heart, the words coming out of the mouth and the actions one performs are all in perfect harmony will one's life be based on truth. 

Baba (thought for the day)      

As he is telling us that the word of the scriptures should be interpreted and understood in the context of the prevailing time and circumstances, we should find out how we are able to do that. If we see it in our life, only then the real meaning will be understood. How do we see it in our life? We have to enquire about it.

Baba and the scriptures are not different from each other, he is a living principle and the scriptures describe the principle, but it is the same. He is Veda and he even tells us to interpret it to be able to understand it in our time and in our circumstances.

How do I get closer to the meaning in his words?

The words of the scriptures should be interpreted and understood in the context of the prevailing time and circumstances. Then their real meaning will be clear. Also no one adheres to what one says or preaches.

Working with the Dream Level

People who take a pledge to observe certain disciplines in all times, fail to do so when the circumstances are not congenial. One day all the deers in the forest held a conference. They discussed thus: “Do dogs possess the abilities we have?” One of them bravely said, “If we kick a dog appropriately, it can be disemboweled; we have that power!” Another deer added, “Dogs cannot run at speeds we can. We can even leap in the air.” The third said, “Exactly! Dogs can’t run as fast as us and we are stronger and more capable. From now on, we should not be afraid of dogs. We must face them with all our strength and fight back”. Having thus decided, they all clapped merrily. Hearing this noise, a dog in a distance howled loudly. No sooner did the deers hear the sound, all of them, without any exception, fled the place. The behavior of those who preach Vedanta these days is very much on a par with these deers.

Baba (thought for the day)

If the head of the Sai movement tells us to write, the purpose of writing is getting clearer, because not only we are directed into it by Baba in the ‘insights’, but I asked why he said it and if Baba had told someone to do it on a verbal level. He mentioned a book.

Whatever, he was very clear about it that we should write. He told the group in the center that we should write as much as we can. With writing we can get the inside contact with Baba, that is what happens when we write. It is also about how to listen, to think it over and to absorb.

The Principle is the Essence

God is beyond all qualities. He is blemishless, steady and selfless (Nirmalam, Nischalam and Niswartham). He is beyond time and space. Don't try to confine God to just one form. Install the principle that God is the Divine Soul (Atma) present within you and contemplate on Him. In every step, everything you see, God is present. God is the current that makes fans work; God is the mike that absorbs the sound, and the speakers that help others listen. If you put off the main switch, all the lights will go out. When you forget Divinity, you forget everything. Love God deeply, from within. Love God and you will be able to conquer the demons of bad qualities and also develop the society. Only a person with character can bring development in society. Only the one with love for God can lead a life of morality. Morality is truly a life principle. Without moralit y there is no community.

Baba (thought for the day)

How can we help ourselves to understand something we cannot understand on the intellectual level?

God is beyond all qualities. We can ask what a quality is. What is an attribute we give to something, it is always related to a thing, so whatever we can see as a thing is 'not that' and in seeing the opposite as not that, what will be left is 'that', it is pure being, no name, no form, no quality.

He is blemishless, steady and selfless (Nirmalam, Nischalam and Niswartham). He is beyond time and space. Don't try to confine God to just one form.

Samadhi and Meditation

Meditation does not mean simply sitting with eyes closed, contemplating on a Form. You may close your eyes, and focus on the form. But if there is some fickleness in the mind while meditating, then it becomes concentration and not contemplation. When the fickle-mindedness fades away, then your concentration becomes steady and turns into contemplation and slowly, you forget both yourself and the Form, and attain Samadhi. Ultimately, there will be no Form – hence it is called Atma. People give it different names. Don't worry if you are worshipping one Form over another – it is not the end; this is not concentration. Persist and focus on the Form and see that it becomes steady. As you proceed further on the path, your focus becomes fully steady and contemplation blossoms into meditation.

Baba (Thought for the day) 

Meditation was actually a simply way to think a mantra, we repeated it in our thoughts and those thoughts were part of it. As the attention wavers after I while we noticed that thoughts are there and we allow them to come, but whenever we get aware of it that we were in thoughts and not anymore with the mantra, we began again to think the mantra. It is an effortless method with eyes closed, sitting comfortably and it is done for about twenty minutes morning and evening.

In the beginning I had some troubles to do it for twenty minutes, because I felt waves of energy coming up and I wanted to go into action and afterwards there was a time I always felt tired and I was glad to lie down and rest. But also that was okay; we just finished that rest with 5 minutes of meditation and counted it as meditation.

With time it became a settled feeling and usually I enjoyed doing it, because it felt good.

We didn't focus on the form, we just focused in the mantra, but if I would focus on the form, it would be the same, as we cannot keep the focus always on one form or mantra only we notice what Baba calls here fickleness in the mind and there are thoughts, we also get back to the form again to keep our mind in meditation and not just in thoughts, if we begin to watch the thoughts it becomes contemplation. It is by regular exercising that the fickle-mindedness fades away and the mind gets more calm and that is how our concentration grows and becomes steady and that is also the state of mind when we are open for spiritual matters, because the mind is settled enough and not just directed towards worldly stuff.

The Lesson and the Reflecting Object

It is not sufficient if you study well, receive degrees, get good jobs and earn high salaries. Today people worship wealth. They earn a lot of money and as they amass it, they waste it by spending it on constructing tall buildings, buying cars and for other such selfish purposes. Wealth acquired through unfair means is also being spent off in similar unfair activities. Money comes today and goes tomorrow, moves from person to person. Your ancestors also earned a lot of money. But they used it for judicious, righteous and noble pursuits. They built shelters for passersby, dug wells to provide water and established educational institutions and health centers. You must spend hard earned money in righteous ways. Else, that money will cause a lot of tribulations in your family. 

   Baba (thought for the day) 

Until now I had no idea what is meant with it that people worship wealth and Baba has its own way to make us aware of it in the inner view, only I didn't expect that. Of course, we know that some people amass money and that it gets always more and it was Maharishi who said once, it is never enough and we should not think about money, just because of that reason, because it is never enough. So I never thought about it anymore, to get confronted with the opposite, I guess. That is always possible if we go in one extreme, what happens is that we attract the other side of it.

As my aim is to see those words in my own life, I just follow the thoughts coming up with it and first that needs the patience to do so to haven enough focus on it to be able to go deeper into it. If we don't do it, it is mostly because of lack of interest. The mind is directed outwards to the world and has not time and inclination to go and think about it.