“The Reality”
(Part 2)
August 10th, 2008
OM…OM…OM…
Sai Ram
With Pranams at the Lotus Feet of Bhagavan,
Last week we commenced a series of talks on the subject, “The Reality”. This is the second in this series. For those who were not here last time, I will sum up what we talked about last week.
We talked about certain important aspects relating to the fundamental principle of consciousness, or the spirit or soul. We are trying to experience and learn more about that Reality and, in doing so, we are also trying to understand the obstacles and other factors on our way there. These are the aspects we talked about last Sunday, when we began this series of talks. Today I would like to continue on the same wavelength.
Upanishads
The Upanishads speak of several aspects. Some of the aspects relate to the birth of man; some relate to the life of man on earth. Certain aspects are about the afterlife, while certain aspects relate to rebirth, various dimensions of the field of action and the depths of wisdom. But one point should be made very clear to all of us. That is this: all these are only indicators to learn about rather than to experience and realise this Reality. These are only indications.
To give you one example, it was Bhagavan Baba who said mothers feed their children while telling them stories. Mothers know the child will not easily eat his food. So the mother goes on telling some stories, while carrying the child in her arms. She will point out the moon, “There is the moon, there is the moon!”
The child asks where the moon is. The mother says, pointing her finger at the moon and the tree in between: “See, see! Between those two branches, there is some space. Look there! There is the moon.”
Do you think the moon is right there? No! The mother is only showing the direction of the moon. It is only an indication of where the moon is. However, the moon is not exactly at the end of her finger! Am I clear?
“There is the moon!” does not mean the moon is right at the tip of her finger. No! She is only showing the direction, only giving an indication. Therefore my friends, the Upanishadic literature only gives us an indication of the Reality, a sort of direction to the Reality. It is not the Reality itself. It shows the direction only, that’s all.
Then one may begin to wonder when one starts seeing the Reality, when one starts realising the Reality, what is the next step? The next step is: no more learning is needed. No more indications are necessary.
A simple example: Once Neil Armstrong landed on the moon, you didn’t have to tell him that there is a moon. If you had, he would say, “Well, I am on the moon, I am on the moon! You don’t need to tell me where the moon is because I have travelled to it. You don’t have to describe the moon. You don’t have to tell me the definition of the moon or the stories of the moon because I am on the moon!” So my friends, realise.
Similarly, once we experience the Reality, the Upanishads, their readings, their knowledge will drop off on their own. We do not need any more learning; we do not need any more acquisition of knowledge or information. That is the first point.
THE REALITY is the only one-without-A-second
We will be taking up one Upanishad after another, in order to discover the essence of all Upanishads. The essence is this: the Reality is one, and that Reality is the only one. That Reality is the One-without-a-second. This means that there is only the Reality, nothing else!
Nothing else! There is nothing like an individual, there is nothing like the cosmos, there is nothing like the world. Nothing at all! It is only one Reality. You may call it different names for utilitarian purposes or for a personal purpose, as we move alone to some extent. But the essence of Upanishadic literature tells of the presence of one Reality, One-without-a-second.
Upanishads are compassionate and loving
The Upanishads are so compassionate, so loving; their approach is altogether different (perhaps we to have something to learn from them). The Upanishads start speaking as if they agree with our views; they seem totally in agreement with our views, or so we believe. We feel very happy. But then, slowly, they take you in the opposite direction, proving that your view is wrong; that the Reality is something quite different from your understanding.
So, they begin by agreeing with you, but then slowly disagree, taking you towards the Reality--a very nice way of brainwashing. Why do they do it this way? Because, if you go on saying, “This is the Reality!” nobody will hear because my concept or idea of Reality is different from yours. So now I will put it straight: What is our idea of Reality?
duality is our idea
Duality is our idea--God and the Universe. Therefore, while the Upanishads goes on speaking of duality, we are very, very happy. But suddenly, it calls you a fool! There is no duality; non-duality is correct. Upanishads will finally take you to that eternal Truth of non-duality. Therefore, the Upanishads travel from one point of view—the duality in which we live, which we understand, which we experience—to the state of non-duality.
Then a doubt arises, “Why should this happen? How did this happen?” It is a simple thing. If you want to convince anybody, first agree with him. Say, “Yes, you are right!”
Arreh! Arreh! What an observation this is! Slowly, prove that fellow is totally wrong. Slowly! If you tell him to his face that he is wrong, he will move away from you and treat you as his nearest enemy. Instead of that, say, “Sir, weather is very bad.”
“Yes, yes, yes! Perfectly correct! Weather is bad.”
“I didn’t expect the weather to be like that.”
“Yes, yes, yes! You are correct!”
Then he comes closer to you. “You know, there were no rains recently and people were praying for rains. The agriculturists, the farmers, were praying for rains as the summer was very hot. Therefore, I believe cool breezes and rains came.”
That fellow, he says, “Ah, ah, you are right!” (Laughter)
In the beginning, he will tell you that the weather is bad. Go along with him and say it is bad. Say, “Yes, yes.” And then, take him along with you to prove that this type of weather is good. Am I clear? That is the Upanishadic approach.
The Upanishadic approach is to agree with you in the beginning, but slowly disagree with you totally, taking you towards the Reality, which is existence, which is only one, which is superconsciousness, the One-without-a-second.
Why should Upanishads do that? How do they do that? Why do I tell that? So we gain sympathy and have friendship with Upanishadic knowledge. When a friend agrees with us, then in the end, when he takes us to his own place, to that destination or goal he wants us to reach, we are happy. Correct! How does one do it?
A simple example: suppose I say that this is a stick. “This is a stick.” The Upanishads will not say it is not a stick in the beginning. They will say, “Ah, it is a stick, a beautiful stick. You have found out that it is a stick. It is only possible for you to know that it is a stick. Very good!”
Slowly, Upanishads will begin to say, “If it is a stick, it cannot be made out of paper. If it is a stick, it cannot be so soft like this. You are thinking it is a stick, but it is not a stick. It is only a paper roll. You have imposed or superimposed that stick nature on the paper roll, so you are thinking that it is a stick. No, my boy, it is only paper.”
So, is it a stick? No. But you are thinking it is a stick; initially, the Upanishads also agree it is a stick. Finally though, Upanishads proves that it is not a stick. It is only a paper roll. This is what is called Adhyaropa Nyaya Veda.
adhyaropa nyaya vada
Adhyarop means ‘superimposition’. Children play games. You know, they will wear some monkey cap. But is the child really a monkey? No. Still, we also do the monkey dance! The dancer is not actually a monkey. We impose that monkey idea on the child wearing the dress of the monkey. Am I clear? So similarly, the Upanishads superimpose, appearing as if they agree with your view; but finally they show you the Reality.
mistaking THE rope as a serpent
Here is a rope, okay! A rope is lying on the ground. It is a dark night, so when you see the rope, you think it is a snake and cry out, “Amma! A snake!” The Upanishads say, “Yes, it is a snake. You have been very careful. You have done a good job; so in the beginning, duality.
Later, they will say, “There is no snake. It is only a rope. You have mistaken it for a snake, but it is only a rope.” This is what is called Adhyaropa Nyaya Vada: the theory of superimposition. Therefore, when the Reality is finally known, the Upanishads say, “Come on! Why do you think it is a snake? Don’t worry. Go and examine it. Then you will see there is no snake.” The Upanishads then go on to say that there never was a snake.
“In the beginning, it was a rope. Now, you say the snake has gone away. The snake ran away!”
“It didn’t run away. It was never there! It is only a rope. You thought it was a snake, so then you thought it had run away. Now look! It is a rope.” Therefore, this Adhyaropa Nyaya Vada is one kind of approach the Upanishads use to take you to the horizon of the Reality or pure consciousness.
Light of awareness will help you to get out of mistaken identity
Then another point is this: “What am I going to do now? Why has this misunderstanding happened? Don’t I have eyes? Why should I think a rope is a serpent? Why?”
The reason for this misunderstanding is that there is no light outside. As it is dark, I have mistaken a rope for a serpent. If there were light, I am not that foolish. My eyes are fine; my vision is ok. I don’t need an eye doctor to check my eyesight. No, I am perfect. Because it is a dark, or there is only twilight, I got confused. Thus I have mistaken the rope for a serpent. So what is to be done?
Now, come on, get a torchlight! Once you switch on the torchlight, you will understand that it is not a serpent; it is only a rope. Therefore, this light is the Upanishadic knowledge; this light is wisdom and awareness. The moment there is awareness, you will understand that it is not a serpent; it is only a rope.
Therefore, my friends, we think the world is real. Why? We do not have the light of knowledge. We do not have the light of Truth; we do not have the light of awareness. Therefore, we think the world is Truth. We think that the individual is Truth. Wrong! It is because we do not have knowledge.
Therefore, the next point that we’ve got to understand is that the Upanishadic knowledge is like the light that will make you come out of that mistaken identity—mistaking the rope for the serpent. So, to get out of the mistaken identity, you need that Upanishadic knowledge. That is the point.
Then, in relating to our personal lives, we are often mistaken. Why? Nobody wants to make mistakes intentionally. Why are all of us mistaken? Why is the whole universe mistaken? Why is all of humanity mistaken? Why? It is a big mistake to say that others are mistaken! So why is there a mistake at all?
identifying yourself with non-self or anatma
Here is the reason the Upanishads give: “My dear fellow, you have made one mistake. What is that mistake? You have identified with the non-Self. The Self is the Reality. Instead of identifying with the Reality, you are identifying with the non-Reality or non-Self. Therefore, all your vision is non-sense.”
So, our identification is with the non-Reality or anatma, (Reality is the Atma, pure consciousness.) Because of my attachment to anatma or non-Reality, there is this mistaken identity, illusion or delusion, like when the rope is viewed as a serpent. In that example, after becoming frightened and shouting out, suddenly the Upanishads say, “Stop shouting and switch on the light; then you will understand.” Am I clear? Therefore, my friends, we are mistaken because we identify with the non-Self, finding ourselves continuously in anatma bhava.
A simple example: Instead of clearing my voice using some drinking water now and then, or having some throat lozenges, if I identify with the mike and say that the mike is not working properly and therefore I am not speaking well, some of you will get up and say that the mike is alright. “Something is wrong with your tone!”
Suppose I start singing, but it is not melodious. I say, “Let me break the mike because my singing does not sound good!” Some people will then say, “There is nothing wrong with the mike, sir. There is something wrong with your symphony. Correct your music first, or stop the music. But don’t blame the mike!”
Similarly, I identify with the external world, the anatma, the non-Self, and thereby commit a mistake. Therefore, I am deluded and think that the rope is a serpent, get frightened, make a complaint and a big issue out of it. It is my mistake. That is what the Upanishads tell us. Now what to do?
turn the mirror toward self
Therefore, the Upanishads say: Look here, young man. There is only thing we want you to do, only one thing. What is it? Till now, you have turned your view towards the non-Self or the mirror. The mirror has been turned towards ‘you’, meaning on the non-Self. What we say is, turn the mirror towards the Self. Turn the mirror from the non-Self to the Self; that’s all you have to do. That’s all!
There is a mirror you are all looking into, adjusting your scarves and seeing how nice they are. But I go on blaming you. “Arreh! I can’t see my image there. I too want to see how awful I look. (Laughter) I too want to correct my hair while standing in front of the mirror!” What should I do? The mirror has been turned toward your side till now. That mirror has to be turned towards my side so that I can see my own image. Okay? That’s it! Am I clear?
Similarly, we have to change our view, our perspective, our dimension, our viewpoint, and then we will understand the Reality, the Self or consciousness.
individual consciousness is restricted by time and space
Now I would like to make one point here. Okay, if I am the Self or consciousness, good! I know what is happening right now. I know the time also. I know the people, the situation, and the place where we have assembled. So, individual consciousness, the ‘I’, knows time and place. The individual consciousness is restricted by this ‘I’, by time and space.
I know time; I know space. I know what happened when I was born; I know what happened in my childhood. I know what happened in my college days; I know what happened during my career. I know what took place on this day. I can only imagine what will happen in future though. That is all.
But what if someone asks me, “Can you tell me what happened before you were born? Can anybody tell me what happened before you were born?” I do not know! I see. Would anyone be able to tell me what will happen after we leave this world? We do not know! So, I do not know what happened before nor do I not know what will happen later. It means that my personal awareness, my individual ‘I-ness’ is not beyond time. The individual consciousness is not beyond time, because no one knows what happened before nor what will happen after.
The individual consciousness is also not beyond space. I know what is happening here. If anybody asks me, “Tell me what is happening in the Mandir right now?” I do not know. “Do you know what is happening at the railway station?” I do not know! “Do you know what is happening in New York?”
“Arreh! When I do not know what is happening in the railway station here, how would I know what is happening in New York?” Declaring that I do not know simply means that my individual consciousness is limited by space. This individual consciousness, which is limited by time and space, is actually nothing but the superconsciousness, which is beyond time and space.
name, form and action have conditioned the superconsciousness to individual consciousness
The superconsciousness is beyond time and space. That superconsciousness is encased within and limited to the individual body. Within the individual, it acts as individual consciousness. So, within me, it is individual consciousness; while, all over, it is superconsciousness. This superconsciousness in me is the individual consciousness. Both are the same. The difference is that individual consciousness is limited by time and space, while superconsciousness is beyond time and space.
Why? That is the next question: why? If individual consciousness and superconsciousness are the same, why am I limited by time and space? And why is superconsciousness not limited by time and space?
We belong to the computer age, so we are sufficiently scientific in our understanding. We are certainly technological in our approach, befitting the space age, as we know about space travel and astronauts. Ultimately, if I become a nutcase, then naturally, I would doubt that the individual consciousness is limited by time and space. But why is superconsciousness not limited by time and space?
At the same time that we agree individual consciousness and superconsciousness are one and the same, still we note there is this difference regarding time and space. Being basically the same, then why is there this difference? That is the next question.
The answer is simple. It is because of name and form, nama and rupa. You can also add kriya or action as well. So due to nama, rupa and kriya—name, form and action—the superconsciousness has been conditioned to the limitations of individual consciousness.
When there is no mirror, you alone are present
I bring a balloon and blow it up with air. The balloon is full now. Where has the air come from? I have not created air just now; I have not pumped new air into that balloon. I was not capable till now, nor will I be capable of it in the future. After all, the same air that is outside was simply blown into the balloon just now; that is all.
Air outside is pumped into the lorry tire; air outside is pumped into the cycle tire; air outside is pumped into the wheels of an aeroplane. It is all the same outside air that is pumped into these tires. The same quality of air will be there in all places. The air in the tire is like individual consciousness, whereas the air all around is like superconsciousness. That is all there is to it.
I do not call out to the air inside the tire, “Oh air! Come on, run, run!” No! It is inside a tire. I have blown the air into it, so now it is full. “Oh, air, come on!” No, it won’t, it can’t. It is a balloon now. So, once the air has gone into that form and name, it is limited, as in the examples of the balloon and tires. Therefore, the balloon has got limited air. So, come on! Blow more until it bursts! Only in that way, when the balloon bursts, can the air escape, that’s all.
Similarly, I am limited to this body, which is bound by time and space, so I am the individual consciousness or pragna. Pragna is individual awareness, which is limited; whereas the superconsciousness, Brahman, the Reality, is beyond time and space. This is the teaching of the Upanishads.
Of course, these things have been said last week, but since I see many, many new faces, you will pardon me if I repeat these things. These things have to be repeated again and again. When we can drink four cups of coffee a day, why not four readings of the Upanishads, which are far more precious than a cup of coffee? I think so! If you think coffee is more than the Upanishads, okay! I too love coffee. I don’t complain, see!
So another point is this: there are some people who say, “No, sir, I am the image of God.” Hmm, hmm! Good! “God is there, and I am His reflection.” Hmm, hmm! Good!
Now my point is that the Upanishads are only collected from Swami’s literature. What I am trying to do is get the essence from the Upanishads, mix it with Sai’s speeches, and share whatever collection, whatever information I have—more for my own benefit, as I am fully aware that most of you know more than what I know. We are happy to share, that is all, nothing more.
When I think that I am the image of God, when I think that I am a reflection of God, the question is this: When do you get a reflection? When does the question of an image arise? Okay, when I am here standing in front of a mirror; yes I am here, and my reflection is there. Correct? When I am here, there is my shadow, right? My shadow cannot be there without me.
I cannot say, “Sir, I am sitting here alone. My friend, please find my shadow, please call him.” He will immediately say, “Mr. Anil Kumar, your place is not this hall, sir! The mental hospital is there.” (Laughter) So I cannot be here and my shadow elsewhere! I cannot say: “See, my image is very bad, so please bring that other image; bring that other reflection.”
Why that reflection is bad? Arreh! You look like that; therefore the reflection is like that. What can I do? As is the object, so is the reflection. Agreed? Without you, there cannot be a reflection. Without you, there cannot be an image. Am I clear?
Now, in front of a mirror, I see my reflection. Good! Remove the mirror and there is no reflection. Then you will say there is no reflection because there is no mirror. When there is a mirror, you have you and the reflection. When there is no mirror, you alone are present. Am I clear?
body is the MIRROR AND god is the reflection
Similarly, the body is the mirror and God is the reflection. God is the consciousness in me, while the body is the mirror. Once the body is gone, what happens? Only superconsciousness remains.
The finite and infinite are one; the determinate and indeterminate are one. Am I clear? Therefore, my friends, to say that the individual is a reflection of God, or to say that the individual is the image of God, is basically wrong. But in the beginning, we say you are right; the Upanishads say you are right. You and the reflection are correct; you are very much correct.
But after some time, Upanishads will say: “Remove the mirror.” Then, they will question you: “Now where is the reflection?” Oh, I see! Not two! Only One is present. When there is a mirror, two are present: ‘I’ and the reflection. When the mirror is not there, ‘I’ only remains.
THE REALITY stays when the body attachment is given up
Similarly, once body attachment or body consciousness, when name and form are given up, it is the Reality that remains. That Reality is existence; that Reality is superconsciousness. It is very much the same in everyone, all over the cosmos. It is very much the One-without-a-second, the Reality, the ultimate. That is the point I want to draw your attention to.
Then another point is this: so my problem is solved now. Why? I am thinking that I am separate; I am thinking that I am the reflection. Now it is proven that I am not the reflection; now it is proven that I am not the image. Now it is proven that I am the awareness, that I am consciousness, I am the Reality. To quote Baba: “I am the One.”
you feel separate from god because of name and form
Then Baba says, “I am God.” What does it mean? I do not have the feeling that I am God because of name and form. Once name and form are gone, you will understand that you are God. Because of name and form, I feel that I am separate from God. This separateness is because of name and form.
So my problem is now solved because it is clearly understood that I am not separate from God. The theory of duality is nonsense. Duality has only come because of this mirror problem, the mirror only being the body. Once the mirror is gone, there is no image and there is no reflection; then only pure ‘I’ remains. So, there is nothing like the individual and God; there is only God. This problem is solved.
world is not different from god
Now comes the second problem: the world. The world is there. I cannot say there is no world. If I do, you will ask me, “Mr. Anil Kumar, are you in the other world? Where are you? Are you not in this world?”
The answer is this: There is no world either. How is that? I see the glass of water. Why? Because it exists. Now suppose the glass is not there. If I still say there is a glass, what will you say? “There is no glass.” So can I say there is glass? No! If I insist in saying there is glass of water, you will say, “Mr. Anil Kumar, you are having some problem, some nightmare, some dream, some psychic problem. There is no glass there.” So, you can only see that which is in existence. Isn’t it clear? Not only that, that which is in existence must also be seen.
Therefore my friends, there are two points here. One: existence–sat, and the second—chit, being noticed, being seen. Sat and chit are the qualities of this world. All are in existence.
There are a number of mountains near Kashmir. There you will all see mountains. I cannot say that there are many mountains here. “Arreh, there are no mountains? How do you say that?”
Only that which is in existence—sat—can be seen. Prakash means the light, the seen, what’s noticed or cognised or felt. Am I clear? That is what is called chit. So, sat and chit are the qualities of this world. Sat and chit are qualities of God also. So how can this be different from Him? Do you see that?
When the world is sat, when God is sat, how can this world be different from God? When the world is chit, when God is chit, how can this world be different from God? Sat and chit are qualities of God and the world; therefore, this world is not separate from God, my dear.
world and you are not different from god
The Upanishads tell you that this world is not separate from God. In fact, it is God only. You are not separate from Him—you are God. The world is not separate from Him; the world is also God. So, what is present? Only God, that’s all. Therefore, in the beginning itself, we made the Upanishadic statement that the Reality is one, only one, the One-without-a-second. As individuals, we are not the second; we are Divine. The world is not the second; it is Divine. So it is only one consciousness; it is the only one Reality. That’s all. That is the teaching of the Upanishads.
I think many of the details we have discussed till now have already been dealt with last week, if my memory is right. (I am conditioned by time and space, of course!)
isa-vasya Upanishad
Now, we begin to some extent, within the remaining limited time, to study the first Upanishad: Isa-Vasya Upanishad. Isa-Vasya Upanishad is the first Upanishad.
For your information, the Upanishads are the ultimate of Vedic literature. Therefore, the Upanishads are called Vedanta. Veda refers to spirituality, while
anta means ‘the ultimate’. This is the Vedanta Upanishadic literature.
So, let us study the Upanishadic literature, namely the Upanishads, one after one, to the extent possible, taking only the essence. We will not take every sloka, stanza-after-stanza in a conventional style. Instead of that, we will take the essence and also take from Swami’s literature, blending the two to understand, grasp and experience that which is to be learned. That is what has to be grasped in satsangs like this.
So Isa-Vasya Upanishad is the first Upanishad of all the Upanishads. As I have noted, my friends, having gone through all the books on Isa-Vasya Upanishad, I understand that Isa-Vasya Upanishad wants us to know, wants us to learn, four points. Yes, the book may be this size, but the points are four.
Somebody once said, “Can you say the Ramayana in three words?” Yes, Katte, Kotte, Theche. Katte means ‘completely tied up’; kotte means ‘Ravana was beaten’, and theche, ‘Sita was brought’. Those three words mean: Ravana is attacked, killed, and Sita is brought back.
Katte means that the bridge to Lanka is constructed. The bridge was constructed right across the sea to Lanka—the first point. Ravana is killed–the second point. Sita is brought back to Ayodhya—the third point. Only three words and you’ve got the whole Ramayana, that’s all!
So in that same way, let’s take the essence of this Upanishad and try to understand it. We are certainly not going to appear for any examination in the Upanishads; nor are we not interested in learning the whole of the Upanishads by heart—a futile exercise and waste of time at this age. So, let us just try to understand the essence.
So my friends, the Isa-Vasya Upanishad, the first Upanishad, tells us four major points.
isa-vasyam idagum sarvam
The first point is this: the whole world is filled with Divinity, nothing else. The whole cosmos, the universe, is full of Divinity:
Isa-Vasyam Idagum Sarvam
Sarvam means ‘the whole thing’, while Isa-Vasyam indicates ‘full of God or Divinity’. That is the first point of Isa-Vasya Upanishad.
tena tyaktena bhunjitha
Tena Tyaktena Bhunjitha
This is the second teaching of Isa-Vasya Upanishad. What does it mean? Tena Tyaktena means ‘sacrifice’ and Bhunjitha means ‘partake’.
Two points here: first, sacrifice. What am I to sacrifice? I do not have anything to sacrifice. Isa-Vasya Upanishad says sacrifice or give up the feeling of body attachment, nama and rupa. Kenat saktena: give up these two.
How to give up the name and form? Shall I commit suicide or what? How to give these up? What do you mean? It means don’t get attached to your name and don’t get too identified with your form. Baba gave a number of examples on this particular point that we shall study and know in due course of time.
Therefore, the first teaching of Isa-Vasya Upanishad is that the entire universe is filled with Divinity. Only Divinity is all-pervading, all-encompassing, all-embracing.
The second point is Tena Tyaktena Bhunjitha: give up the identification with your body and name. Bhunjitha: partake of this experience. It means that you can only experience the Reality that God is everywhere if you give up name and form. Do you understand?
If the doctor wants to see my chest, what will he do? This is the season of cough and cold, so we find every alternate person coughing right in our face at times. So what is to be done? If he wants to test my chest, what should I do? I should remove my coat, I should remove my shirt, and I should remove my banian. Then, “Sir, come on and take your stethoscope to examine my chest now.”
So similarly, if you want to experience superconsciousness, if you want to experience the Reality, come on! Give up attachment to your name and form.
So, Tena Tyaktena or ‘give up that’; and then Bhunjitha, ‘then you can experience’. That is the second point. We learn in every detail, how Swami subsequently explains this point.
ma grdhah kasyasvid dhanam
Ma Grdhah Kasyasvid Dhanam
This is the third lesson that Isa-Vashya Upanishad teaches. What is the meaning?
Usually we think that houses, bank accounts, our position, all our comforts and conveniences are Dhana or wealth. Dhana means ‘wealth’.
Ma Grdhah Kasyasvid Dhanam
Don’t aspire or work for that wealth, and don’t serve yourself for that wealth. It is not true wealth.
Ma Grdhah Kasyasvid Dhanam
Don’t aspire for that wealth at all, because it is not true. All the wealth you consider to be true is not in fact true. It is not the Reality.
We know of paupers becoming millionaires; we have seen many millionaires becoming paupers. We know that. So what is true? We know people in high positions; we also have seen people who lost their position. We know of people who are elected to position, and we also know of people who are thrown out of position. So what is true? Nothing! So, all that you consider to be wealth is not true.
Ma Grdhah Kasyasvid Dhanam
Don’t aspire for that kind of wealth. It is not true, says the third lesson of Isa-Vasya Upanishad.
ekatva manupasyatah
Then here is the fourth point or lesson it teaches. You may ask the question, “Why?” For example, “Why should I know that the whole cosmos is filled with Divinity? Why should I know?” I may also get a question like this: “Why should I give up attachment to my body and name when my name is known to everybody? My body seems to be tolerably alright. Why should I give it up? Why should I not aspire for wealth?”
Ma Grdhah Kasyasvid Dhanam. Oh Upanishad! You say that I have to give it up. No, no! Why? (These days we cannot tell anybody anything. They will ask you why and why not!) So we have to answer their next question, which is “Why?”
The answer is quite simple. It explains to you very clearly what the benefit is. It is clearly stated: you will not have any kind of misery, any bumps and jumps in life, any kind of shock. No, no, no!
Yasmin Sarvani Bhutan Yatmaivabhudvijanatah
Tatra Ko Mohah Kah Soka Ekatva Manupasyatah
That’s what the Upanishad says. Once you understand the Reality, that only one exists, there is no pain, there is no pleasure, there is no attachment; there is no detachment. You will be in a blissful state.
Kah Soka means you will not have any kind of misery. Mohah means you will not have any kind of attachment. Ekatva Manupasyatah means you will have that Ekatva, that Oneness, which is a balanced state of life. This is the next teaching of Isa-Vasya Upanishad.
The fourth point, the final teaching of this Upanishad is this. Yes, we have two forms of knowledge. One has two ways to Oneness or Ekatva Manupasyatah. To experience that Oneness, to experience that one Reality, there are two ways. One is vidya, while the other one is avidya.
vidya – scriptural knowledge
People may say, “I have got vidya, knowledge.” My dear man, you may have vidya, you may have all knowledge of the scriptures, but it will not confer moksha or liberation. Scriptural knowledge will not give you liberation. Why? Vidya or scriptural knowledge will take you to deities or devatas. You will enjoy their company, be one with them, one of those deities, angels, or those celestial bodies. But that is not moksha. So, vidya is not the way.
AVIDYA -- ACTION
Then the second is avidya. What is avidya? They will say, “Do pradakshana, do worship, go on pilgrimage, or stop eating every night!” I would add stop eating in the day also! (Laughter) Don’t waste. (Very good! That problem is solved.) These are the ritualistic things or karma kanda. Actions are karma. They will not give you liberation. At the most, it will get you to the pitruloka, where our forefathers are.
So avidya will take you to the state or place of your forefathers, and vidya will take you to the celestial bodies. But neither takes you to liberation or moksha.
So when vidya cannot take you there and avidya cannot take you there, what will take you there? That will be your next question.
Again the Upanishad comes back to its second statement. What is it? Give up nama and rupa. Dispense with the attachment to your name and form, Tena Tyaktena Bhunjitha.
Then, once you sacrifice, you will experience Isa-Vasyam Idagum Sarvam: that the Universe is filled with Divinity. These are the four main teachings of this Ish-Vasya Upanishad. We will learn point-after-point in the coming weeks.
My friends, we have studied enough experiences; we have had enough of them. We know enough stories. But life is not full of stories, no! Parents gave us chocolates to go to school in the beginning; but we cannot expect our parents to give us chocolates when we go to college, when we go to university, when we do our research. My father won’t come and lift me in his arms and give me chocolates every time.
So the experiences we have had, the stories we have heard, are only chocolates or visiting cards. Life cannot always be a chocolate affair. It is something more serious, something that requires inquiry.
Bhagavan has spoken a lot on these matters. So I have decided to share His points with my learned, experienced friends, a gift to me from Bhagavan Baba, every Sunday. Thank you very much for your gracious presence. May Bhagavan bless you.
OM…OM…OM…
Asato Maa Sad Gamaya
Tamaso Maa Jyotir Gamaya
Mrtyormaa Amrtam Gamaya
Om Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu
Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu
Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu
Om Shanti Shanti Shanti
Jai Bolo Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Babaji ki Jai!
Jai Bolo Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Babaji ki Jai!
Jai Bolo Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Babaji ki Jai!