Universe is Her Divine Play

Eternal consciousness known as chiti, by Her own free will, constantly unfolds within Her own being the wondrous universe with myriad names and forms, says the spandakarika, all renowned text of Kashmir Shaivism. She carries out Her blissful sport by enacting the wonderful drama of the deluding activities of the walking state, the astral, mysterious worlds of the dream state, and the oblivion of the deep sleep state of consciousness. There is no other material cause of creation.

Infinite universes keep arising and subsiding of their own accord on the canvas of chiti- the creative energy, consciousness of everything she has brought into being. Just as a clear mirror, while reflecting huge and diverse objects in itself, retains its clarity without undergoing even a minute change in its nature, chiti, the eternal consciousness, despite the projection of the variegated cosmos, does not suffer the least diminution of Her perfection and continues to retain Her transcendental aspect.

In a movie we observe the colorful costumes, speeches, gestures and actions of the characters; scenes that evoke laughter and some that bring tears - all creations of the director. In the same way, Chiti alone is the author and the director of the infinite occurrences that constantly take place in the walking, dream and deep sleep states. All the sentient and insentient beings and objects of the world comprise the blissful dance of Chiti who constantly enacts enchanting scenes on Her own stage, for Her own delight and ecstasy.

There are thus dimensions to chiti the perceiver and the perceived. The entire external universe which is experienced through the senses and is understood as idam, as 'this' is the perceived; while the inner self which becomes aware of 'this' from within, which sees things separately as 'this book, this pen' is the perceiver.

The entire external world is the domain of the perceived while the perceiver is the universal self. The perceived universe cannot exist at variance with the nature of the perceiver; it comes into being only for the perceiver to enjoy. Thus, the omniscient and omnipotent chiti projects Herself both as the universe and the universal self by becoming the perceiver as well as the perceived. "Chiti is the play of the world; and the world is the play of chitshakti"

According to Swami Muktanda, exponent of the doctrine of Kashmir Shaivism, the normal waking state of consciousness is not true wakefulness. On the contrary, the state of waking being coupled with ignorance is enveloped with darkness. He said it is only when by the grace of a perfect master the dormant Shakti within the seeker gets ignited that the seeker enters into deep meditation and begins to perceive, in the inner most recesses of his being the dazzling blue rays of consciousness, referred to as the light of inner knowledge.

The dark clouds of ignorance then get automatically dispersed and the seeker leaves behind his identification with the physical body the mind, and finally, even with the oblivion of deep sleep. For such a seeker, there is neither one, nor two, nor many; neither matter nor consciousness; neither jiva nor Siva; neither gods nor goddesses. In the luminous region within, he perceives the Divine Effulgence radiating in all directions, reverberating with the knowledge of aham, "I am".

Saving from Indulging

Meaning: According to the Rigved 1/147/5 — we should save ourselves from those who are constantly busy in slander and picking holes in other people's character. The reason for this is that by remaining near them, our nature also becomes similar.

Message: It is said that man sees even a small blemish in another person, but cannot see big blots on his own. He gets great joy in discussing others' faults by enhancing them and making them spicy. The height of it is that in front of a person, such people flatter him and behind his back slander him. Flattery or sycophancy and slander reveal the low level of such a person. By indulging in slander, gradually the person's view becomes such that he starts seeing bad everywhere and he fails to see even the good qualities of other.

People slander others under the influence of ego and hypocrisy. The belief arises in them like, "I only am highly intelligent, valorous, responsible and the rest are useless, ignorant and shirkers." With this attitude, he starts considering others as petty and tries to find fault also in the good points of others. Whether others' interests are harmed or hot, but his own progress is affected. Many individuals themselves do seeking others' faults without any reason. Such a person slanders others and tries to show them as inferior by trying to hide his own weakness. Malice and jealousy act like fuel and contribute to increase in slander. Most people do not know how to recognize others' qualities and go on falsely accusing them. They themselves do not possess skills for any work but finds faults with others just like a person not knowing dancing, blaming the floor or the stage as uneven. Those who have no clear aim for themselves, no plan for the good use of time, they only waste their time in gossip and slander. The intoxication of slander does not give them any time to think and understand anything. The disease of increasing one's own reputation by showing others as inferior is prevalent everywhere these days.

The situation is becoming more and more dangerous day by day.  Nobody cares to read the biographies of great men nor do they try to learn something from them. Nobody likes to talk about the renunciation, service, bravery, firmness and other good qualities of Lord Shri Ram and Lord Krishna and other great men like, Rana Pratapm Chhsatrapati, Shivaji, Lokamanya Tilak, Mahatma Gandhi, Subhashchandra Bose, Lal Bahadur Shastri etc. Everywhere the paraphernalia of sexual lust obscenity and denouncement of other is available in plenty, whether it is literature, radio or TV etc.

One should never slander others, because that stains our own soul. There is some good quality or other in every man. Like the honey-bee going from flower to flower, we should cultivate the habit of seeing good qualities in others. By doing this, the heart becomes clean and pure. When you start seeing the good qualities in others and your own faults, you will realize that you yourself are full of faults and bad tendencies.

Cleansing ourselves is possible if we save ourselves from indulging in slander.

Liberate from the Feeling of Enmity

Meaning: According to the line of Rigved 2/7/3 — just ad flowing water can never remain at one place, similarly enmity also should not remain (i.e. one should not harbor enmity). One should renounce inimical feeling and create friendship.

Message: The main reason, for all our collected bad tendencies, influences and bad habits is our ignorance and lack of knowledge which becomes an obstacle in our progress. We remain neither alert towards our divine form nor do we get the knowledge of our divinity. The rise of ego and egoistic arrogance is only because of this ignorance. The arrogance of 'I an so and so' etc inspires us to consider us as separate from others. With that arise the emotions of attachment, condemnation, 'mine and yours' and like and dislike or malice and we stray away from the path of spirituality and cause the downfall of our own life.

With the constant thinking of enmity, an increase in wicked activities takes place and accordingly man's behavior, man's conduct comes to low level. There is only one constant thought of how to take revenge, how to case maximum harm, and how to insult him. Constantly this agitation is going on in the mind. By adopting the attitude of accusation, taunts, sarcasm and bitter conduct man causes the downfall of his own personal character; to add to that, others coming in his contact suffer mental tension. Such inferior men continuously think of destroying their opponents and also show their meanness by showing happiness with even a slight harm to these opponents.

How clean and pure is flowing water! Rivers brooks and streams give joy to one and all. But if the water is halted and kept stagnant in a pit, it starts rotting and smelling. The same condition prevails in our mind when we store enmity and malice there. In such people's minds instead of the emotion of love, there is hatred and there is an all round harmful atmosphere of enmity and non cooperation.

The number of innocent men in this world is very little. Every man will have some faults, deficiencies and some bad tendencies. We ourselves also are not an exception. But man never pays attention to his own bad tendencies and even on a small matter, creates enemies. Today the society's economic and political atmosphere has become so unnatural that people are wallowing in the stinking mire of an attitude of revenge. There can never be an atmosphere of peace and happiness in the society as well as the family unless the attitude of enmity is given up and until the feeling of mutual friendship does not flourish. For this is the most important feeling, the feeling of tolerance and truce. As far as possible if the situation is studied with a cool mind, then it will be understood that the other person's conduct was not with a feeling of enmity or malice. If we were in the same situation, may be, we too would have acted similarly. With this thinking, there will not be any unnecessary malice in our mind and the attitude of cooperation and forgiveness will arise.

One can be liberated from the feeling of enmity only by total purity in the mind, speech and action.

Constantly busy in Slander

Meaning: According to the line of Rigved 1/147/5 — we should save ourselves from those who are constantly busy in slander and picking holes in other people's characters. The reason for this is that by remaining near them, our nature also becomes similar.

Message: It is said that man sees even a small blemish in another person, but cannot see big blots on his own. He gets great joy in discussing others' faults by enhancing them and making them spicy. The height of it is that in front of a person, such people flatter him and being his back slander him. Flattery or sycophancy and slander reveal the low level of such a person. By indulging in slander gradually the person's view becomes such that he starts seeing bad everywhere and he fails to see even the good qualities of others.

People slender others under the influence of ego and hypocrisy. The belief arises in them like, "I only am highly intelligent, valorous, responsible and the rest are useless, ignorant and shirkers, "With this attitude, he starts considering others as petty and tries to find fault also in the good points of others. Whether others' interests are harmed or not, but his own progress is affected. Many individuals' themselves do not make efforts and becoming disappointed with failures, start seeking others' faults without any reason. Such a person slanders others and tries to show them as inferior by trying to hide his own weakness. Malice and jealousy act like fuel and contribute to increase in slander. Most people do not know how to recognize others' qualities and go on falsely accusing them. They themselves do not possess skills for any work, but find faults with others just like a person not knowing dancing, blaming the floor or the stage as uneven. Those who have no clear aim for themselves, no plan for the good use of time, they only waste their time in gossip and slander. The intoxication of slander does not give them any time to think and understand anything. The disease of increasing one's own reputation by showing others as inferior is prevalent everywhere these days.

The situation is becoming more and more dangerous day by day. Nobody cares to read the biographies of great men nor do they try to learn something from them. Nobody likes to talk about the renunciation, service, bravery, firmness and other good qualities of Lord Shri Ram and Lord Krishna and other great men like Rana Pratap, Chhatrapati, Shivaji, Lokmanya Tilak, Mahatma Gandhim Subhashchandra Bose, Lal Bahadur Shastri etc. Everywhere the paraphernalia of sexual lust, obscenity, and denouncement of other is available in plenty, whether it is literature, radio or TV etc.

One should never slander others, because that stains our own soul. There is some good quality or other in every man. Like the honey-bee going from flower to flower, we should cultivate the habit of seeing good qualities in others. By doing this, the heart becomes clean and pure. When you start seeing the good qualities in others and your own faults, you will realize that you yourself are full of faults and bad tendencies.

Cleaning ourselves is possible if we save ourselves from indulging in slander.

Beauty As An Ideal

The traditional ends or ideals of life are dharma, artha, kama and moksha, fulfillment, emotional gratification and spiritual freedom. The Nepalese psyche has been shaped by these time-honored principles of organizing one's life and they have given us a certain direction and guidance, underpinning our life, both sacred and secular. While dharma is what sustains all our activities and moksha is the ultimate state of being, artha and kama are driven by our innate nature and largely define our material life. Our material and emotional pursuits are products of our intrinsic psyche and mental attributes. However, there is one pursuit that is worthy of being included as a purushartha or ideal in its own right, or at the very least woven as a subtext to artha and kama, and that is seeking the beautiful and making it a part of one's life, or realizing saundarya inwardly and subjectively.

To beautify, adorn, decorate and embellish, not only enmities and delights our senses, it becomes an important value to strive for. Celebration of the beautiful pleases our senses on first encounter and arouses a state of adbhuta or wonder. However, the state of wonder ultimately enriches our spirit in a second more contemplative moment, for the transformation from what is objectively and sensuously beautiful to the subjective and in ward state of beauty creates a serene and tranquil state akin to Amanda or bliss. This can not replace our realization of the ultimate but comes very close to it.

In recognizing the importance of the beautiful we are not m only valuing what is created by human hands but equally the human artistic creativity that is responsible for the beautiful object. The beautiful in its many and varied different forms and expressions goes beyond the unnecessary and distracting distinction of ma4rt and craft, or the needless separation of sacred and secular, or the differentiation of classical from folk, for neither of these modern and mainly western dichotomies are relevant in the traditional Indian context of beautiful objects that are a part of daily lived lives.

The beautiful defies categorization or even definition, and stands self-assuredly alone. It needs no reason for its existence and lives in holistic harmony with both the animate and inanimate world around it and thus becomes a part of our life. Creating objects of beauty and making them central in our lives brings to us grace and dignity. There's more. We beautify our surroundings, bringing s certain elegance and brightness into our homes. We adorn our own selves with the traditional 16 adornments and this gives us pleasure and enhances our looks but there is a higher purpose to creating personal beauty than mere adornment decoration or vanity.

Sangit, chitra, shilpa and sahitya are sources of beauty for us. They express our world view, creating fluffiness, bringing us closest to the divine. The beautiful for us can also be a part of everyday objects that are lovingly made such as a kalash, diya or textile draped over our body. The various akritis or forms - whether they are made with thread or brush, drawn on the ground or on mud walls - are visual metaphors passed down through generations. Many derive their form from primal archetypes and reveal the inner logic of their form to the inquiring mind.

Celebrate beauty. Make saundarya a purushartha.

You are What You Think

Self is immutable and so is the supreme self. Therefore, be one with the immutable. Why do you allow yourself to be swept hither and thither like a straw? You become peace-less in the face of petty troubles - a notice from a government department, not being able to have your way, not being able to gratify your senses, a slight to your ego, a servant not saluting, not getting approval or recognition in some matter.... how small you become!

As you think, so does your mind become? Therefore, please think of God.

Don't let your mind go towards any person or thing other than God. Focus.

You are told that God is in everybody and everything and that His will be done. It means the Lord abides in you. Thousands of gamblers are plying games; let them play. You think of playing with the indweller Lord and so turn your mind inward. You shouldn't exhaust yourself capitulating to kinsmen laboring under delusion. God's will be done means accepting whatever is happening whether or not it is to your liking.

Some people, when they meditate, expect some type or depth of meditation. Don't predetermine any type of meditation nor have preconceived notions of the results it should produce. As you sit for meditation, tell Him, 'O Lord! Hail to you! Thy will be done! This is meditation and reflection, too.

Whatever you do with your body, do it for the pleasure of Indweller Lord. Don't work for sense gratification or for ego trip. Work with a view to propitiate the Lord. This is real service. If people seek your help or service by flattering you, be careful and examine yourself whether you are being motivated by adulation or you are rendering service for the pleasure of the Guru or the Indweller Lord. If you exercise this care, your service will become much rewarding and your nature will be sweet.

Those who work for appreciation and fame end up quarrelling and fighting with each other.

Reject your ego. Doing so is good for you. Give your acceptance by saying, 'O Lord! What you will is for the best of all! Thy will be done! God, the knowledge Absolute, Bliss Absolute and Freedom Absolute, wants you to be like Him. God's will being fulfilled means God will make you God. The Supreme Brahman wants to see you as Brahman for you are in substance one and the same as Himself.

Instead of praying for a particular kind of weather, pray to Him, 'O Lord! Thy will be done!" Then whatever the weather may be, it will not cause any trouble to you. Just give your consent. If somebody hurls abuses at you, say in your mind, 'God! You are great! Through these cuss words, you are destroying my ego. O Lord! Thy will be think ' Oh my God! It is very hot. 'You will be tormented by hot weather. But you want to enjoy the rain - summer heat is essential for the rains to come.

Summer heat is essential also for making one strong enough to tolerate cold as cold is tolerate the summer heat. Insults are necessary to make one able to assimilate appreciation and fame. Death is necessary for one to assimilate life. The Lord is doing all that is necessary for you

Supra-conceptual Awareness

The human brain has a frontal lobe that has the power of abstraction and imagination. A perspective upgrade enabled by the frontal lobe makes possible comprehension of complex concepts and ideas.

Religion, God, spiritualism and belief systems are complex concepts. These are acquired and planted by social conditioning of the individual. They are legacies of culture and conditioning influenced by a host of geopolitical social factors. Their diversity harbors immense potential to breed conflict within the individual as also without. They are relative to the environment in which the individual grows up. The personality and thought processes of each individual are a sum total of all such influences.

All learning is also concept based. These concepts lead to a conditioning of the intellect. Once the formatting is done. It becomes a template and reference for future thought processes.

The identity of one's own self is also a concept. Various influences of the environment mould this concept of the identity of the self. Like sedimentary rocks, time keeps adding layers to this notional entity. Likes, dislikes pleasure and pain also develop in accordance with development of this identity. Eventually each person becomes an eclectic mix of ideas, concepts and opinions accumulated from diverse influences. An individual identity is unformatted consciousness super imposed with an acquired identity integrated with an assortment of concepts.

All thoughts that arise in the mind are also based on concepts that have been learned and acquired. Anxiety, fear, joy, happiness and sorrow are concepts that affect our lives profoundly. But they are all concepts, nonetheless. What is primary is consciousness animating this identity.

All pleasure and pain arise as a function of this assumed identity and are very relative to this identity. Pleasure and pain are mere sensations mediated by neurotransmitters as response to events in the environment. The sense of pleasure or pain never affects the sense of am-ness, which is impermeable to variable circumstances.

Liberation is also a concept. Liberation is sought from what, the travails of life? It seems more a pre-emptive effort to obviate any impending suffering since it promises deliverance from subsequent births. It may be an extension of the pleasure-seeking principle. True liberation would be from all concepts. All thoughts are in effect founded on the backdrop of concepts. Thought are derivatives of the assumed identity. They have no a prior existence. They are secondary to the identity. Thoughts and ideas are totally in the domain of tangible form.

The form can perceive only a form. For consciousness to be aware of itself, it has to abandon all paradigms of knowledge and concepts. Thoughts are images and attributes of the conceptual identity arising and subsiding on the screen of consciousness.

Meditation attempts to induce a state of thoughtlessness. Liberation is the wiping of this screen of al concepts, including the concept of the self as identity. The sense of 'I am' needs no knowledge to become just am-ness. The "I" tries to perceive am-ness is supraconceptual. It exists plainly and uncharacteristically and obviously.

Realization would be a shift from "I" residing in a sense of mere am-ness. This state of residing in unqualified am-ness is called Nirvikalpa Samadhi or supraconceptual awareness.

Neurons, Love, Attitude

When we respond negatively to people and situations, we set in motion a negative trend in our entire body system. All our emotions are elector-chemically charged and intrinsically connected to the endocrine, nervous and immune systems through our thoughts and feelings. If the systems are negatively charged, they set in motion a chin of negative reactions. Hence we need to respond carefully to situations in life.

When American journalist Norman Cousins became very ill his doctors, finding the prognosis poor, had to give up on him. In a few days, he would be gone. In his state of illness, Cousins was convinced that negative emotions have negative physical consequences just positive emotions will impact the body in a positive way. So he rented really humorous movies and began watching them regularly.

He noted that he was able to sleep more without the aid of sleeping pills. The pain that was excruciating was reducing. He was now less dependent on pain killers. Once he became well, he wrote of his experience in the British Medical Journal.

Art Mathias was allergic to hundreds of food items including fiber. He could wear only cotton clothing and these were expensive. The prognosis being bad, doctors reluctantly gave up on him.

One day, he listened to a teaching on forgiveness and simply decided to forgive those who hurt him. He suddenly realized from that day he could eat many foods, to which he was allergic. Even his skin allergies stopped. Behind this phenomenal healing was the major shift he made in his thinking, that is, to move from harboring bitterness to forgive and bliss those who hurt him.

For both Cousins and Mathias, the turning point was their attitude towards health and hurts. The World Health Organization reported in 2002 that one out of every three persons, who went to consult doctors for a common symptom, got diagnosed with some form of mental illness arising from anger and depression. To a large extent many of us suffer a degree of anger and depression. A great many of our physical sicknesses could be avoided if we could only change our attitudes.

It has been said that 10% is what happens to you and 90% is your response (attitude) to that. The important thing is to learn to deal with disappointment in constructive ways. Abraham Lincoln wrote a letter to his son's teacher, in which he requested. "Teach my son how to win but also teach him how to handle failure."

We don't always know everything bout an illness but a recent study says 82% of all physical sickness is caused by emotions. Caroline Leaf, a medical specialist, in her book. Who switched my brain off? Says, "If this is true positively to all the failures and disappointments in life"

In our reactions to failures and disappointments, which are bound to occur, it is good to make an effort to avoid bitterness, anger and resentment. Neurologists tell us that the neuron, which is the basic unit of the brain, was created by God for love. When you and I experience God's love and find others to express our love, every organ in our body will function to its optimum level. Hope and confidence itself will produce positive energy in the body.

Enmity and Malice

Meaning: According to the Athervaved 3/30/1 — let us discard mutual enmity and become good at heart, good thinkers and with excellent nature of temperament. Let us look at each other always with love. Only then we will be able to live happily.

Message: In Nepalese sociology, 'tyaag' (renunciation) has a very important place. Here a 'tyaagmya' life (i.e. a life of self denial or renunciation) has been considered as the best. Whereas in 'daan' or donation there is an emotion of obliging someone, one's ego nurtured and there may be an expectation  of  name, fame, reputation  etc; "Tyaag  or renunciation is higher than  'daan' or donation because it is above sorrow, attachment, anger, arrogance etc. The system in which the renunciation of money and material wealth is so important, there one is also able to experience the glory of the renunciation of one's faults and wicked tendencies. In this too, giving up of mutual enmity is the fundamental basis of the uplift of the family as well as the society. Purity and cleanliness reside in the mind when malice disappears from there. Because of that goodwill towards people arises in man's heart and in return he gets the cooperation from all.

Whether it is the society or the family, unless and until there is dealing with the unity of heart and mind, absence of malice and with love and goodwill, till then an atmosphere of peace and happiness cannot be created. Even though the objective is one only, if there is mutual ill feeling quarrel, jealousy and malice, then how can the work to on? If there is difference of opinion, difference of thinking, the objective also cannot be one. When the objective is not decided, then it becomes a cacophony instead of symphony.

If somehow a single objective is decided, then the minds and hearts of all should also be one. Only then will there be an atmosphere of mutual cooperation and sympathy. Only with sincere cooperation, the objective will be achieved. Inspiration and activeness come only with that and there is an increase in mutual love and sympathy. With deep love everywhere, people rise above selfishness and think of helping others and are ready to even give up their lives. Even above love and affection is the feeling of 'vaatsalya' or love with compassion and sacrifice which we see in the mother for her child or a cow for the calf, the way she likes her calf and is ready to defend it, even by risking her own life. If we can adopt this sentiment in mutual dealings, then this world can become heavenly.

But how is it possible for this love, affection and 'vaatsalya' (or sublime love) to be born in the mind when it is full of malice and ill will and enmity? Unless these ill feelings are eliminated, love cannot sprout. Ill will is the greatest enmity of love. One's personality is developed and friendship and cooperation aware established only with mutual unity, affection, good will and understanding. The activity of taking part in each other's sorrow and happiness will increase only with the strengthening of each other's love. Then people will see their interest in the family's interest, societal interest and national interest.

Enmity and malice should never be allowed entry in our minds, and if they do enter, then they must be forced out.

Chanting as Therapy

If you are searching for God, any name of God is a mantra. If you know the significance of the mantra, you will feel more comfortable. When you know the meaning you know what you are doing... but without knowing, it can also become clear. Mantra means "that which can take one out of the flow of life's miseries". It's a very beautiful thing; it has that power. Mantra is for the awakening of the self.

Some people keep mantras a secret. It's the traditional way; it is perhaps to ensure its sanctity and purity. Here's story. One day a saint went to a village. A young man there welcomed him and offered him food with great respect. Happy with the young man, the saint thought he would make a good disciple.

He said to the boy: "I find that you are a very good soul, a very good person. I want to give you a mantra." The young man asked "What for?" The saint continued all your problems. All your miseries: Prosperity and happiness will come to you". The young man said. "Ok, give it to me". The saint gave it to him and the boy was very happy with the secret mantra.

In the village there was a lot of poverty, problems and unhappiness. The boy went up on his roof and called everybody saying, "Look, this is the mantra, repeat it". The saint was there and he said to the boy, "what is this foolishness, what are you doing? I told you to keep it a secret! But the young man replied, "Why can't I share it? If it is such good thing that it can solve all my problems, it could also solve the problems of the whole village".

If something is good for you it doesn't have to be a secret. Every tradition, every sect has something good. Sometimes we are so complicated that to become a good person we have to follow a sect or tradition and give our life to that. After 15, 30, 50 years. Your seed will grow.

If the method is to repeat five mantras, give your life to that and be patient, maybe your seed can grow. Normally we have no patience. Now nothing is secret, everything is written in the scriptures. Look up the internet and you will find everything, but there is one thing more beautiful and that is the touch of a person.

In these days there is no need of teachers, of schools because the internet is there, but the touch of a teacher is needed because there are many things that we cannot learn from machines. The master's purpose is to give you a special touch, a touch that the internet cannot give you. The touch of the master is important to give you the mantra because it has some vibration. Some energy, some force. It is not a visible thing.

Reciting mantras, sometimes aloud and other times silently, could impact our psychology positively. Our psychology is always changing; we feel good, we feel bad. When something inside us starts speaking, we can repeat mantras and all our problems finish. Suppose we are alone and we have fear; our mind tells us, "Chant a mantra" and we start chanting and our fear goes away.

Psychologically, what we need is some support, some help. The whole process is therapy.

Art, Science and Spirit

The fundamental difference between art and science is that one is movement towards finer sentiments, and the other is a rational expression, with each and every stage having cause and effect.

What is art? You do so many things. If you do these things in a fine way, in a subtle style, then within that style, they come within the scope of art, as in the art of saying, writing and languages. When you are doing something along a rational line or on the basis of logic, and at the same time, you are drawing attention to cause and effect, it is science.

In this world, everything comes within the scope of causality. Nothing in this world is non-casual. What we can detect by seeing has got some causal factor. You see sugar. What is the cause of sugar?

The cause of sugar is sugar cane or sugar beet. Sugar is the effect. Then, where sugar cane or sugar beet is the effect, the seed is the cause. So, in all spheres of life, there is a cause. What is science? Science means that which is based on rationality and pays proper attention to cause and effect.

Spiritual practice comes within the scope of science. The first scientist who invented forms, there is intellect, but no intuition. In the cause of human beings, there is both intellect and intuition.

Once Parvati asked Shiva how one is to know that devotion is the only way, and how when one feels that devotion is the only way, one can devote one's all possibilities, potentiality, and stamina in developing devotion. When one devotes everything to Parama Purusa, those devoted propensities of the human mind make a man a devotee, and his faculties are then known as devotion.

Shiva says that this self-realization, when the subjective portion of the mind is metamorphosed into consciousness, other knowledge is of no avail.

A shadow has two portions - the umbra and the penumbra. Shiva says that neither the umbra nor penumbra is gyan. All objective knowledge, where knowing means subjectivisation of objectivity, is actually not knowledge.

There lies the umbra and penumbra of shadows. By seeing the umbra and penumbra, you cannot have a proper idea of the actual thing. There is a lichee tree and there is a guava tree. By seeing the shadows, you can't understand which is which. You have to see the original tree. This was the reply given by Shiva.

The question asked by Parvati was, "Oh Lord, there are so many people who says, this is a holy place that is an unholy place". They go on moving throughout the world in search of so many tirthas, places of pilgrimage. What should be the correct approach?"

Behind that final form of the expressed world, there lies covered the supreme consciousness, the Atma. So atma is the best tirtha. Rather Atma is the only tirtha.

All are spiritual aspirants. Your movement is not from subtle to crude, but from crude to subtle. You must not neglect this crude world, because your existence is being nourished by this crude world. That is why you should pay your proper respect to the crude world also. That is why we believe in subjective approach through objective adjustment.

Deity of Fire

According to the Sam Veda 22 our ancient Rishis says that: O deity of fire! You are always doing justice to all. Please destroy wicked persons and obstructive elements by your powerful flames and please give strength and divinity to those who are religious souls, who worship you and praise you.

Message: God's justness is praised in this mantra. He is not partial to anyone. it is impossible that we turn him in our favor by any type of sycophancy and make him do whatever we want him to do. We can see clearly all around us that innumerable people worship God in various ways, do anusthans (reciting certain prayers for a specific number of times) and rituals; even then they remain in want, misery and bad conditions. The reason for this is that their sentiments are always of narrow selfishness and wicked activity. In the scale of justice of God, this type of act of worship is pretentious and deceitful and deserves punishment.

On the other hand those persons who do not perform ritualistic prayers but always behave themselves as ordained for religious conduct (i.e. truthful, fair, just dealing, goodwill, honesty etc), are continuously showered with the grace and blessings of God. All human beings are the children of God and are al alike. They get the results of their deeds according to the type committed by them. "Avashyamewa bhoktavyam krutam karma shubhashubham" i.e. one certainly has to bear the consequent result of the good or bad deeds committed by him or her. We actually forget this fact. We will certainly get the results of our deeds today or tomorrow, in this birth or the next, but nobody can save himself from the consequences of fruits of the karma or the deeds. This is the form of the justness of G  od. The more firm our trust in this fact, the sentiment of moral goodness and simplicity will develop more within us. Moral goodness and simplicity is nothing but the destruction of the lowly tendencies of the mind and its moving towards higher thinking. When the aspiration to develop excellence of character is roused within us and we start striving for it, that I scaled moral goodness and simplicity. The entire universe has sa tva, rajas and tama characteristics in it - satva element means the characteristics of morality, goodness, simplicity, love, forgiveness, compassion etc; rajas element means the characteristics of continuously running after material wants, riches, luxury, indulgence of desires etc; tamas element means darkness, anger, lust, greed, attachment, lowly and heinous tendencies etc. Man's mind is also made up of all these three tendencies. Man has to strive to evolve from lowly 'tamas' tendencies to the 'rajas' tendencies and then to discard even these 'rajas' tendencies and develop the 'satva' or 'satvik' tendencies - that is the ultimate goal of Vedic dharma (or Vedic religion). Only this knowledge saves us from bad deeds and wicked tendencies and this knowledge, by manifesting in every aspect of life, makes it beautiful, excellent and 'satvik' as described above. When so evolved, the person's vision is always towards 'satva' characteristic while doing any task, big or small. The person is always alert with discretion which does not allow any deed by which one has to suffer the anger of God.

Everyday and every moment we must remember the good resolve that we shall always believe God as just and present everywhere and adopt His law in our lives. Therein lays our salvation. With its help we shall be liberate from the desire for sons, money and fame and save our soul from sins. Only then shall we get the strength of soul, the strength of intelligence, the strength of money and divinity.

That itself is called the worship of god.

Special Sadhanas for women

 Women have the same right as men in respect of worship of Vedmata Gayatri. To convert inertia into momentum two objects of opposite qualities which attract each other are required. Electricity is generated by attraction and repulsion of negative and positive currents. Electrons and protons of an atom get activated on account of their mutual give and take. This conscious creation has been divided into male and female forms to make the eternal animate creation alive; otherwise this universe would have remained enveloped in in-conscience. Union of rayi and pran energies results in chaitanya. If there is no union of male and female elements, consciousness, pleasure, pulsation, speed, activity, growth etc. will all disappear and in-conscience will reign supreme in the universe.

Male and female elements supplement each other. One is incomplete without the other. The importance, utility, position and rights of each are the same. Those who say that women have no right to chant Gayatri Mantra, which is a ved-mantra, are completely mistaken. Of course, uneducated, unwise and impious women are like Shudra, and due to their own mental state they become deprived of the right of Gayatri worship.

Women have equal right with men to perform all Sadhanas relating to Gayatri. It has  however, been observed that housewives who are ever much busy in household chores, who have small children to look after and are unable to maintain cleanliness cannot find time to take up difficult Sadhanas. They have to be provided with a technique of Sadhana which is easy and does not take much time. Those who cannot remember full Gayatri Mantra can make do with chanting the grief Panchakshari Mantra (Om Bhoor bhubaha swaha). During the period of menses they should suspend regular Sadhana. The performance of Anusthan, if it is being done, should also suspend during this period. It can be resumed on the expiry of this period, after taking bath.

Issueless women or those whose children have grow n up, unmarried women or widows, can conveniently per form Gayatri Sadhana like men. In routine, Sadhana it is not necessary to observe specific rules and restrictions and there is no bar to discharging normal marital functions. But during specific Sadhana or Anus than, the rule of observing Brahmacharya is to be strictly followed.

Value of Meaningful life

Life is like a river, which keeps on flowing from its source to its merger into the sea. That the feeling of worthlessness of life gives rise to the wish for suicide is evident from the fact that man wants to keep only useful things which are worth keeping. No body likes to keep worthless dirt with him.

Therefore when life is found worthless, it is but natural that man tends to destroy rather than save it. There may be some connecting fiber, which because of attachment or infatuation; May save him from rash acts but when such a connection breaks down, then the desire for self-destruction becomes intense. This desire becomes fulfilled upon gathering enough courage - otherwise there is only the wish in the individual.

Many have found life's fulfillment in collecting wealth, but even wealthy persons have been found committing suicide. Many people have tried to make lives successful through fame, reputation and renown. It has been found that even after success in this direction, they are not satisfied. Some think that life becomes worth through scholarship and knowledge but many profound scholars and knowledgeable people and scientists have been found committing suicides.

These types of successes create an illusion of success, but do not give a meaningful life. If life became meaningful with these, then big scholars, wealthy, famous people, leaders and knowledgeable people would not be seen dejected, disappointed and unhappy.

What makes life meaningful? With a little thinking, it becomes clear that man's own soul is a part of the vast universe. Man's soul - bound within the body - is eager to meet the vast sea of vitality pervading the universe. Whosoever has understood this eagerness, made the gesture of dissolving one's selfish interests in the vast interest of the universe - they have never been found to be disappointed, nor is a description found of such person, who having accepted this direction, has ever committed suicide. Just as a drop of water merges into the river and becomes meaningful, similarly man also, by breaking away from the hold of his wretched ego and merging into the vase creation becomes meaningful and fulfilled. Then the question of thinking about committing suicide does not arise at all.

Weakness is also a type of unforgivable sin which gives rise to impulsive sentiments and ultimately to diseases. It is natural for those without strength to feel hopeless and sad, but nature does consider lack of strength as some disease or helpless and pitiable condition. Sages with the strength of knowledge have called weakness as a sin, for which the punishment has to be suffered in all spheres. When every particle of creation inspires you for gathering strength, and the facilities for this are available everywhere, then why should you remain weak because of laziness and inaction? Weakness is not a condition but a result of laziness and lack of action. For this reason whatever be the type of weakness - whether physical, mental, intellectual or spiritual - the person will have to bear unfavorable results of efforts in the related field.

A weak person is not able to take proper advantage of his natural rights. The effect of nature's organization always works against him and the rules and organization which give benefits to the strong; the same prove injurious for him.

For such an individual, song, music, entertainment, facilities, money and wealth all these are of no use, to the extent that he is not able to sleep peacefully. It is well known that the reason for ill health is weakness. Bacteria and other matter which can produce ill health cannot remain even for a second in a strong and well-nourished body. The moment they enter, the body's vital resistance-power destroys them. How is this possible for a weak person?

From an intellectual view all that is best and beautiful is included in the literature. The advice and experience of pleasant sweetness, love and beauty can be had through the mediu, of literature. If unfortunately some person is a victim of intellectual weakness, then the incomparable knowledge and the treasure of joy of this world has no value for him.

Blind and deaf people are able to enjoy literature by hearing and reading literature, but mentally retarded people remain deprived of this joy despite enjoying good health. People with mental strength are able to go ahead even in adverse conditions. As against that, mentally weak persons become disappointed and stupefied in similar conditions.

Where is it possible for spiritually weak persons to make any kind of progress in the spiritual field? For them - that joy and peace which a spiritually fulfilled person gets and makes his life successful is not only available, but impossible.

The elements like water, air, heat, open brightness never harm anyone, but they become fatal for weak persons. It is also said in Sanskrit language "Devopi durbalaha ghatakaha" i.e. for a weak person, even deities are fatal. As a result of lack of alertness, laziness and malingering, people are not able to pay any attention to the supreme requirements of life. Their own weaknesses grasp the contrary of effects of supportive powers. The elements which are helpful to strong persons becomes injurious for weak people.

Vedan (Piercing) Of Shat Chakras

There are six gates on the way leading to the origin of Kundalini power. Or, it may be said that this path is locked by six locks. Human soul can reach the inner energy centers by opening these gates or locks. These six obstructions are called Shat-Chakras in spiritual language.

These six Chakras are related to Brahamnadi which is one og the three nadis situated in the inner most part of the Sushumna. They can also be compared to lotus flowers strung into the thread of a garland. Readers will be able to see in the picture where a particular Chakra is located in the body. Mooladhar chakra lies in the genital region; Swadhisthan chakra in the portion between the navel and the pubic region; Manipur chakra in the umbilicus region; Anahat chakra near the heart; Vishudakhya chakra near the neck; Agya chakra in the middle of both the eye-brows; and above all lies Sahasrar.

Sukshumna and three nadis encased within it namely, Vajra, chitrani and brahmanadi are so subtle that they can not be seen by naked eye. The corresponding chakras are still more subtle. Any attempt to operate upon the body to locate shat chakras will be ridiculous and futile because the power of vision of human eye is very much limited. Sound waves, atoms of air, germs of diseases cannot be seen by the naked eye, still their existence cannot be denied. Yogis have seen these chakras by their yogic vision and have gained miraculous knowledge, insights and powers through investigations of the inner being of man. They have given a well-organized scientific description of such investigations and presented it before those who are interested in the subject.

Shat chakras are like subtle knots (granthis) formed in the passage of Brahmanadi. When a Sadhak concentrates his mind on these chakras he unusual experiences of subtle conditions prevailing there. These knots (granthis) are not circular but angular like petals of a flower. These petals are called Padma-dal. They are like a bunch of fibers.

These chakras are of different hues because of energies of varying potencies of elements dominant in different Granthis. This also affects the quantity and color of the blood of that region. The color changes to pink, blue, red and smoky according to the prominence of the elements of earth, water, fire, air and sky respectively. The mixture of these elements changes the color of each chakra.

When a weevil (wood-worm) cuts through wood, the cut portion assumes different shapes. When vital breath (pran-vayu) passes through these chakras, its passage becomes slightly zigzagged according to the position of the Granthi. It takes different shapes similar to the shape of some letters of devnagri script and they are called letters of that particular chakra.

In a fast flowing river, whirlpools of different shapes are formed at several points. When the vital breath of Sushumna flows rapidly through these chakras, subtle whirlpools are formed, which are quadrangular, triangular, hexagonal, circular, semi-circular and phallus-like in shape. The flame of rising fire is thick at the bottom and thin at the top. Thus an irregular triangle is formed when the chakras are pierced. Different shapes are thus formed by the flow of vital breath; these are known as yantras of chakras.

Performing Pranayama

Mostly three types of Pranayamas are described in the scriptures for the panca kosiya sadhana of Gayatri. Whether it is the Sadhana of Kundalini, Gayatri or the awakening of the panca kosa, the basic practices in each deal with the sadhanas of refinement and elevation of the prana. The Savitri Sadhana is also similar. The knowledge of these Sadhanas of Mahaprana is defined in the Upanishads under the name of pancagni vidya. Practicing of pranayamas is an essential component of these Sadhanas. Mostly, the following five steps are involved in these preeminent spiritual experiments. Each of these could be practiced at home by anybody who has received intensive guidance and demonstrative training.

These fundamental steps are (a) the ajapa japa of Gayatri that is, the soaham Sadhana; (b) khecari mudra; (c) sakti calini mudra; (d) Tratak and (e) nada yoga. Of these, the soaham sadhana is supposed to be most facile. It can be performed all the twenty-four hours of the day and is equivalent to the paramount spiritual sadhanas in terms of its super natural attainments.

In general, a pranayama is based on two crucial features - (a) controlled breathing to harmonize the system in a measured way and churning of the prana so inhaled and (b) Attracting the maha prana by a samkalpa - determination with strong will power and intrinsic urge. The attraction of the maha-prana and its circulation inside the body together make one complete cycle of prana yoga. Only one of the above activities would not serve the real purpose. Because, deep breathing alone would remain just a good exercise of the lungs, which can also be performed by many other exercise of the body recommended by the physiologists such as - jugging, up and down stretching, surya namaskar etc. On the other hand, only the determined attempts to attract the maha-prana would be like a meditation. This alone will not be so effective unless coupled with the controlled breathing and churning of the maha-prana in the body and the inner self.

There are about sixty-four types of methods for controlled breathing as described in the Nepalese Sastras on yoga Sadhanas. Several other type of breathing activities associated with the yoga sadhanas of pranayamas do offer the positive effects of physical health along with rousing mental alertness and inner strength.

The Samkalpa part of the pranayama largely depends upon the Sadhaka's willpower and mental concentration. A variety of mantras and pictorial patterns or images for mediation are prescribed for this purpose. The japa (repeated enunciation) of these mantras and focused imagination of the specific objects helps develop the mental engrossment necessary for the initial training of meditation. The Sadhaka should feel as though he is immersed in the ocean of divine prana and attempt to consistently suck this subtle energy through each breath.

The 'magnetic' power of viswasa and sraddha and the potential of determination are not mere imaginations. Indeed they are conscious streams of immense power. The unlimited power of emotions and strong will has also been well recognized and experienced in the present era of scientific developments. The philosophers, psychologists and the experts of the science of spirituality know that the limitless world of the mind and the sentimental core - the mana (mind), buddhi (intellect), citta (subconscious mind) and ahamkara ( sense of self existence), works on the basis of this sublime power of the cetan (consciousness). The vital energy and hence all the functions of the (gross) body also materialize with the help of this power only. It is the basic source of liveliness, charm and glory of one's personality.

Human life is the Gift of God

Health, peace as well as honor and reputation are given to the powerful people. Everyone looks in a cruel way at weak and feeble mended persons. The existence of an emotional and weak person is insecure in every place and situation. No body becomes helpful in their development and even God seems to be averse to such a person. Even cruel death throws its cold arms around them first. The principle and rule in this life is the protection and development of the fittest. That is why in its organization, weak people have to face dangers and suffering at every step.

One must accept the need for nourishing and maintaining strength for successful and secure life. Swami Vivekananda has written that first of all one must develop strength. Developing and maintaining strength is the only path to progress. By this way only can one go nearer to the soul and the Supreme Entity viz. God? What ever the goal, it is achievable only by individual or collective power.

Sudden success is not achievable in any field. For that purpose, one has to go on developing one's powers by constant efforts. There is no doubt that all the things and attainments are achievable. But it is also true that for achieving them, worthiness is essential, also it is equally true that to protect them development of the powers is essential.

Worthiness is created only by constant efforts. There is no scarcity of knowledge in this world, but there is a scarcity of that intellectual capacity because of which we are not capable of attaining it. That capacity has to be developed by constant education. To develop worthiness and strength for success in any fields only this rule applies. For this reason, weakness is considered a sin which makes a person stray from the path and throws a person into the pit of difficulties.

Weakness is considered a terrible punishment in the law of nature. To remove it, one will have to become worthy because only a strong person becomes successful in the battle of life. Such a person never becomes old, because he always remains young at heart.

Nutritious food is certainly essential for keeping the body healthy, but even more essential is the stability of mental condition. Nourishment gives energy and energy provides health. However the essential source of energy is the brain which provides not only the energy for digesting the food but to keep all the organs of the body working in organized co-ordination.

Howsoever nourishing the food, it will not give any benefit if the mind is upset. On the contrary when the mental condition is peaceful and balanced, health can be maintained even with meager simple food. Constant mental exertion without interest causes dryness of the skin and other skin-diseases. Similarly at the time of anger, fury and excitement or during disappointment and dejection, the mental condition produces poisonous chemicals internally and their effect is seen on the body. Although the effect is seen on the body, the symptoms are related to the condition of the mind. Lingering frustration and fear due to any event or situation are the two diseases conferred on man by modern culture or 'progress' - psychiatrists call them as depression and phobia. Such type of ill persons keeps an attitude of resistance towards their familial and societal obligations. The main symptoms found in these patients are to become irritated at the drop of a pin and to start weeping suddenly after becoming angry.

Emotional tension also gets converted many times into physical pain. Headache, pain in the abdomen, pain in the joints, chest-pain, pain in the waist etc are more because of mental reasons than physical ones. The root causes here is some worry, fear, some anxiety about trouble in the future or some unhappy memory of the past. This condition of the mind affects any organ of the body and manifests in the pain in that part.