Pearls of Wise

As soon as Bhagavan returned to the hall and sat on the couch, one of the devotees put some incense into the stove nearby. The fumes were a little too intense and as they spread around Bhagavan’s face, he felt almost suffocated. “Shall we open the windows?” suggested a devotee. Bhagavan said, “Let it be. Leave it alone. In the temples, we burn the incense and fan the fumes towards the deity so that the idol is completely enveloped in the fumes. Your idea in burning the incense here also is to see that the Swami should enjoy the fumes. Moreover, they are spreading out of their own accord. Why are you now trying to drive the fumes away?” Just as Bhagavan was saying this, a devotee fanned the embers in the stove with his hand. Suddenly the whole thing burst into a flame.  We were afraid that the heat of the flame might affect Bhagavan and began to feel anxious. But Bhagavan said with a smile, “Yes, now it is all right. The incense has been burnt and the l...

All the sins of the body flyaway if one chants the name of God and sings His glories. The birds of sin dwell in the tree of the body. Singing the name of God is like clapping your hands. As, at a clap of the hands, the birds in the tree flyaway, so do our sins disappear at the chanting of God's name and glories. A parrot repeats by rote the holy name of RadhaKrishna, but as soon as it is caught by a cat it screams 'kang, kang', betraying its natural cry. Worldly wise men sometimes repeat the name of Hari (God) and perform various pious and charitable deeds with the hope of worldly gains, but when misfortune, sorrow, poverty and death overtake them, they forget Him and all such deeds. . Repeat God's name and sing His glories, and keep holy company; and now and then visit God's devotees and holy men. The mind cannot dwell on God if it is immersed day and night in worldliness, in worldly duties and responsibilities; it is most necessary to go into solitude n...

The status of the individual soul is one that has occupied, and perplexed, humanity for many millennia. Some have concluded that there is no individual soul; rather, that there are concatenations of energy and matter that create the form or the illusion of an individual soul-personality, which dissolves eventually, with the elements of that soul distributed into new forms and energies in the future. Others hold that the soul is created at some point by an omnipotent Creator God, but then survives eternally, although perhaps in some other place or circumstance, perhaps in some heaven beyond. Still others hold that the entire concept of the soul is an illusion that deceives humanity into a focus on the outer world, while the reality is the silent, infinite Brahman. The Sankhya philosophy holds that there are multiple Purushas, as otherwise when one is dissolved, the entire universe would dissolve with it, which obviously does not occur. Sri Aurobindo observes that when we see...

Don’t label duties as pleasant or unpleasant. In duty the question of like or dislike does not arise. You cannot say, “I like hiring people but not firing them!” If our position is such that both these jobs have to be done, then we must do them without any feelings of like or dislike. If one remembers the altar of dedication, then these things will not count. We know what happened to Arjuna. He did not want to perform a particular duty and his dislike made him want him to leave the battlefield. Bhagavän then said, “If you are running away from performing your duty because of your aversion in doing your duty, it is not the right thing to do. You must stay and fight because it is your duty”. The very definition of duty is ‘that which has got to be done’. So we have to remain firm in it whether we like it or not. Swami Chinmayananda Chinmaya Mission

"Do not feel that you are only an ordinary individual, one in millions. Do not think that unless you have co-operation from thousands and thousands all over the world, nothing of real importance will be done. No, you forget that every thought sent out by you, you the humble individual that you think you are, every thought sent in the proper manner with full trust in God, for pure unselfishness, has behind it the support of all well-wishes, embodied and disembodied. You do not know how many great well-wishers of the world are everywhere in spirit ready to give invisible help to selfless workers." Within you is the hidden God. Within you is the Immortal Soul. Within you is the inexhaustible Spiritual Treasure. Within you is the fount of Joy and Happiness. Within you is the ocean of Bliss. Look within for this happiness which you have sought in vain in the perishable sensual objects. Rest peacefully in your own Atman (Self) and drink the nectar of Immortality. "F...

(Delivered at the Shakespeare Club House, in Pasadena, California, on January 18, 1900) ( For Recap -Read Part-1. ) THE LECTURE :- I must begin by saying that you may have to bear with me a good deal, because I belong to an Order of people who never marry; so my knowledge of women in all their relations, as mother, as wife, as daughter and sister, must necessarily not be so complete as it may be with other men. And then, India, I must remember, is a vast continent, not merely a country, and is inhabited by many different races. The nations of Europe are nearer to each other, more similar to each other, than the races in India. You may get just a rough idea of it if I tell you that there are eight different languages in all India. Different languages — not dialects — each having a literature of its own. The Hindi language, alone, is spoken by 100,000,000 people; the Bengali by about 60,000,000, and so on. Then, again, the four northern Indian languages differ more...

Later the Yogi asked: How is the spiritual uplift of the people to be effected? What are the instructions to be given them? M.: They differ according to the temperaments of the individuals and according to the spiritual ripeness of their minds. There cannot be any instruction en masse. D.: Why does God permit suffering in the world? Should He not with His omnipotence do away with it at one stroke and ordain the universal realisation of God? M.: Suffering is the way for Realisation of God. D.: Should He not ordain differently? M.: It is the way. D.: Are Yoga, religion, etc., antidotes to suffering? M.: They help you to overcome suffering. D.: Why should there be suffering? M.: Who suffers? What is suffering? No answer! Finally the Yogi rose up, prayed for Sri Bhagavan’s blessings for his own work and expressed great regret for his hasty return. He looked very sincere and devoted and even emotional. source: Talk 107 Sri Ramana Maharishi

1. Isvara satya hai – God is Truth. Then will not the things made by Him be satya – real? Yes. But do we call things made by God as ‘His’? No. We call them ‘our’ things. When we bring in ‘me’ and ‘mine’ and ‘you’ and ‘yours’ in His creation, then such a world is called samsara – fleeting and unreal. If we see the Lord as satya – real and the entire world (and oneself) as His, then everything is real. In fact, if we see all as His or all as Him alone, then all is real. What therefore is asat (unreal) is only our wrong notions, which have to be dispelled. As long as we quote from Vedanta, as someone else’s statements – be it of the Guru or the scriptures – knowledge remains vicarious. When we assimilate them and make them our own, then they become clear and meaningful. Realize that ‘God is Truth’ then we will see the world made by Him also as real. 2. Is the Lord’s justice really just? How can we ever know the justice of the Lord? Most of the time, we do not even know whe...

Can you serve like Florence Night in gale? Can you obey like a soldier in the battle field? Can you be generous like Ranti Deva? Can you spend sleepless nights in devotion to the Lord, like Mira? Can you do Tapas like Dhruva? Can you stick to your convictions like Mansoor and Shams Tabriez? Can you be fearless like the sage who met Alexander the Great, on the banks of the Indus? If you say Yes, you will have Self-realisation this very second. You will contact Avataras and full-blown Yogis this very second. O Lord of this world! Prostrations unto Thee! Thou art my Guru, real Mother, real Friend and real Guide. Protect me. I am Thine. All is Thine. Thy Will be done. O Adorable God! Salutations unto Thee. Give me pure intellect. Make me pure. Give me light, strength, health and long life. Make me a good Brahmachari. O Almighty Lord! Remove all my evil qualities. Make me virtuous. Make me a patriot. Let me love my mother-country. Be honest. Be sincere. Be truthful. Be alert. Be ...

(Delivered at the Shakespeare Club House, in Pasadena, California, on January 18, 1900) 1. Introduction SWAMI VIVEKANANDA: "Some persons desire to ask questions about Hindu Philosophy before the lecture and to question in general about India after the lecture; but the chief difficulty is I do not know what I am to lecture on. I would be very glad to lecture on any subject, either on Hindu Philosophy or on anything concerning the race, its history, or its literature. If you, ladies and gentlemen, will suggest anything, I would be very glad." QUESTIONER: "I would like to ask, Swami, what special principle in Hindu Philosophy you would have us Americans, who are a very practical people, adopt, and what that would do for us beyond what Christianity can do." SWAMI VIVEKANANDA: "That is very difficult for me to decide; it rests upon you. If you find anything which you think you ought to adopt, and which will be helpful, you should take that. You see I am ...

There are a number of philosophical or religious traditions that do not accept the unity of all creation as a “given”. They see a separation between the Creator and the created, between God and creature, with an insuperable gulf between them. The traditional Yoga of knowledge tends to dismiss this stance as a lower and incomplete understanding, or as another form of bondage to the lower Nature and the outer creation. For the practitioner of the integral Yoga, however, it is incumbent that the truth that underlies even this apparently contradictory formulation of existence, as consisting of a duality, be ferreted out and understood. Sri Aurobindo observes: “If in their grosser forms these religions aim only at the ignorant joys of the lower heavens, yet there is a far higher and profounder sense in which we may appreciate the cry of the devotee poet when in a homely and vigorous metaphor he claimed the right of the soul to enjoy for ever the ecstasy of its embrace of the Supreme...

A. One needs to be detached from one's pain and sorrow, no matter how serious they may seem to be or may really be. The mind really should become still. It should be blank so that the Master can speak through. One day the Master will speak through. B. The more we can release ourselves from the bonds of slavery to fear and selfishness, the freer we shall be to enjoy the blessings of the Infinitude of God. C. We must never forget that hatred is conquered by love,harshness by gentleness. Do not brood over an injury. Only a noble man forgives. D. Life means a struggle. God sends us hardships as a blessing, that we may change. When real maturity comes, it makes one mellow, gentle and enduring. E. You are a medium. Always remember this. YOu are not the doer, but the channel through which energy and the breath of God flows. For a moment, do not entertain any illusion that you have power or are spiritually on a higher plane. Swami Udit Chaithany...

A. You must stick to one path with all your strength. A man can reach the roof of a house by stone stairs or a ladder or a rope-ladder or a rope or even by a bamboo pole. But he cannot reach the roof if he sets foot now on one and now on another. He should firmly follow one path.  Likewise, in order to realize God a man must follow one path with all his strength. But you must regard other views as so many paths leading to God. You should not feel that your path is the only right path and that other paths are wrong. You mustn't bear malice toward others. B. The wind of God's grace is incessantly blowing. Lazy sailors on the sea of life do not take advantage of it. But the active and the strong always keep the sails of their minds unfurled to catch the favourable wind and thus reach their destination very soon. C. The water of a rapid stream moves round and round in eddies and whirlpools in some places; but passing these it resumes again, a...

A. 1. Real religion is transcendental, beyond the mind and the senses. 2. Real religion is the attainment of God-consciousness. 3. Self-realisation. Every religion is the practical way to this attainment. We should practice the tenets. Every religion says ‘Be truthful’. ‘Let your conduct be pure and religious.’ ‘Love thy neighbour as thyself.’ Share what you have with others. Never hurt others’ feelings; be kind to all. Control anger. We should practise these. Only then can we be the true followers of our own religion. 4. "With every struggle you evolve a little." B. 1. In spiritualism, there is the unanimous report from the enlightened spirits that there is not even a bit of pain during death. They clearly describe their experiences at death and state that they are relieved of a great burden by the dropping of this physical body, and that they enjoy perfect composure at the time of separation from the Physical body. Maya creates va...

Despite the awareness that all religions talk of the same universal values, we are painfully aware of the conflicts and divisions amongst them. We all want to live happily, individually and collectively. A little thinking shows us that what is required for this is common sense! For applying or using common sense in life, we do not have to belong to any religion or subscribe to a particular philosophy. Speaking about this rare quality, Swami Vivekananda remarked, “Common sense is one of the most uncommon things in this world." The Gita is a transformational text whose teachings transformed Arjuna from a hysterical broken down personality who wanted to escape the battlefield to a dynamic warrior ready to face the challenge with the bow in hand. It has also transformed the lives of many great personalities. Universe is a cosmos and not a chaos. There exists a mental affinity; a scientific law; a rhythm of mental relationship in which the entire living world is ...

A jiva is only the light reflected on the ego. The person identifies himself with the ego and argues that there must be more like him. He is not easily convinced of the absurdity of his position. Does a man who sees many individuals in his dream persist in believing them to be real and enquire after them when he wakes up? This argument does not convince the disputant. Again, there is the moon. Let anyone look at her from any place at any time; she is the same moon. Everyone knows it. Now suppose that there are several receptacles of water reflecting the moon. The images are all different from one another and from the moon herself. If one of the receptacles falls to pieces, that reflection disappears. Its disappearance does not affect the real moon or the other reflections. It is similar with an individual attaining Liberation. He alone is liberated. The sectarian of multiplicity makes this his argument against non-duality. "If the Self is single, if one man is libera...

Part-4. This article was recorded by Ida Ansell in shorthand. As, however, Swamiji's speed was too great for her in her early days, dots are put in the articles to indicate the omissions, while the words within square brackets are added by way of linking up the disconnected parts. (Delivered on March 25, 1900, in the San Francisco Bay Area) C. Their temples are like Protestant churches. ... no music, no paintings, no pictures. A pulpit in the corner; on that lies the Koran. The people all stand in line. No priest, no person, no bishop. ... The man who prays must stand at the side of the audience. Some parts are beautiful. ... D. These old people were all messengers of God. I fall down and worship them; I take the dust of their feet. But they are dead! ... And we are alive. We must go ahead! ... Religion is not an imitation of Jesus or Mohammed. Even if an imitation is good, it is never genuine. Be not an imitation of Jesus, but be...

The influence of the three Gunas, the qualities of Nature, cannot be underestimated for all action that takes place in the world generally. This includes the practice of Yoga until such time as the seeker has attained the status that is “beyond the three Gunas” (trigunatita). It is a basic tenet of the Yoga of knowledge as practiced historically that the seeker, in order to attain the refined states that are the object of the practice, must withdraw from active life in the world as much as possible. Sri Aurobindo observes that there is a natural tendency, when adopting the poise of the Witness Self, to back off of the frenetic activity that characterizes the normal life of humanity. At the same time, he clarifies that if this becomes an opening for the action of tamas, through indolence, lassitude, indifference and sloth, rather than an inactivity that is based on a concentrated force of light and energy through tapas, then it will not yield the desired result, and is in...

There are innumerable pathways leading to the Ocean of Immortality. The essential thing is to reach the Ocean. It doesn't matter which path you follow. Imagine that there is a reservoir containing the Elixir of Immortality. You will be immortal if a few drops of the Elixir somehow get into your mouth. You may get into the reservoir either by jumping into it, or by being pushed into it from behind, or by slowly walking down the steps. The effect is one and the same. You will become immortal by tasting a drop of that Elixir. The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna,

D.: Why then is samsara - creation and manifestation as finalised - so full of sorrow and evil? M.: God’s will! D.: Why does God will it so? M.: It is inscrutable. No motive can be attributed to that Power - no desire, no end to achieve can be asserted of that one Infinite, All-wise and All-powerful Being. God is untouched by activities, which take place in His presence; compare the sun and the world activities. There is no meaning in attributing responsibility and motive to the One before it becomes many. But God’s will for the prescribed course of events is a good solution of the free-will problem (vexata quaestio). If the mind is restless on account of a sense of the imperfect and unsatisfactory character of what befalls us or what is committed or omitted by us, then it is wise to drop the sense of responsibility and free-will by regarding ourselves as the ordained instruments of the All-wise and All-powerful, to do and suffer as He pleases. He carries all bur...

Sadhana is steadying the mind and fixing it on the Lord, It gives you freedom, bliss, peace and immortality. Friends! Plod on patiently like the farmer at his plough, Be persevering; be steady in your daily Sadhana. Destroy Tandra, Alasya and building castles in the air, Take light food at night and drive off sleepiness. Be regular in your Japa, Kirtan, meditation; Regularity in Sadhana is of paramount importance. Just as you separate the pith from the Munja grass, Separate this Atma from the five Koshas. Peace, cheerfulness, contentment and fearlessness Indicate that you are advancing in the spiritual path. "Behold the one Atman in all names and forms, which is immortal, infinite and eternal. "Remove the veil. Remove the obstruction to knowledge, know that you are the ever-free, pure Atman. Being and Consciousness are identical. To know Brahman is to become Brahman. "May you attain Self-realization in this very birth." ~ Swami Sivananda ...

Each one of us has duties which come to us unasked, depending on the status, post and place that we are in. For example, a student’s duty is to study. To do one’s own duty is sva-dharma and to do another’s is para-dharma. In settling a land dispute, an evaluator is called in court. His job is to evaluate the land and not pass judgment as to who it should belong to. A clerk’s duty may be to write cheques. He cannot sign them in the absence of his boss or forge his boss’s signature. Swami Chinmayananda

It is one thing to recognize intellectually that the true Self of the individual is not the body, not the life-energy and not the mind. That recognition is the first step in the path of liberation; yet, there is still the fact of the identification that we experience with the body-life-mind to address. For most human beings, our inner experience is limited to the bodily life and we see, feel and experience ourselves to the limit of the physical body and no further. Occasionally, through some extraordinary experience of consciousness, we may temporarily go beyond this limitation in our perception, such as when an individual is suddenly confronted with an “out of body” experience and can actually observe the body from a viewpoint outside while the conscious awareness is with the individuality that is now, temporarily, separated from the body. An implementation stage is therefore required, during which the seeker works to actually realise, not just intellectually accept, the sep...

This article was recorded by Ida Ansell in shorthand. As, however, Swamiji's speed was too great for her in her early days, dots are put in the articles to indicate the omissions, while the words within square brackets are added by way of linking up the disconnected parts. (Delivered on March 25, 1900, in the San Francisco Bay Area) Part-3. A. [Mohammedanism] came as a message for the masses. ... The first message was equality. ... There is one religion — love. No more question of race, colour, [or] anything else. Join it! B. That practical quality carried the day. ... The great message was perfectly simple. Believe in one God, the creator of heaven and earth. All was created out of nothing by Him. Ask no questions. ... Swami Vivekananda To be continued  ...

You cannot buy happiness , you cannot buy peace. The greatest possession is the inner light. Reveal that in your daily living, in every expression of life, then you will find unending happiness and will give something definite and real to the world. Apart from celebrating the festival on a special day, every day should be treated as a series of joyful moments of time so that the happiness is not restricted to the day of the festival alone but every day is a fun filled festival. When once we obtain self - possession ( siddhavastha ) we act, not for gain but out of our anchorage in God - consciousness. Through work we struggle to obtain self - control, when self- control is attained , we obtain peace. This does not mean we abandon all action. The Gita states that a true Yogin is one who performs work and not one who renounces it. Swami Udit Chaithanya