Religion, Yoga & Spirituality-- Key learnings from Swami Sivananda

Love expects no reward; love knows no fear; love Divine gives, does not demand!

Love thinks no evil, imputes no motive; love beautifies giver & elevates the receiver!

To love is to share and serve. ( Swami Sivananda)

Swami Sivananda ( Sept 1887- July 1963), Philosopher, Writer, Vedantist, Reformer and Yoga learner & Trainer, was a genuine apostle of Peace and Love. His teachings crystallized the basic tenets of all religions---- combining all four Yoga paths ( Karma Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, Jnana Yoga & Raja Yoga) into one called,"The Yoga Of Synthesis", with its motto as,"Serve, Love, Give, Purify, Meditate & Realize". 

To him, all work was sacred. He was a shining example of the ideal of selfless service  of Karma-yoga. He worked tirelessly for serving and helping others. Some of the saintly values visible in his personality include " आत्मभाव , समदृष्टि, अहिंसा , सत्यवाद, आतंरिक एवं बाहरी पवित्रता, संयम , संतोष , परमात्मा की भक्ति". He wrote and disseminated scores of books covering Yoga, Metaphysics, Vedanta, religion, Ethics, Education & Health as well as Western philosophy.

" Neither want, nor give up---, that must be the attitude of a Vedantin. He should be supremely indifferent. He should see God (ब्रह्म ) in everything and everywhere"( Sivananda on Vedantic Ethics, 6th June 1948). He advocated three" R"s of His Yoga as Righteousness, Renunciation and Realization.

 On Religion, he forthrightly conveyed that all religions of the world have come out of Hinduism, which is मानव धर्म  as well as more of a philosophy than a religion. The teachings of ancient Hindu Saints and Scholars( ऋषिः) are of an all embracing universal nature, meant for the whole world. As per him, Religion is eternal life in the immortal soul, is oneness or unity, is above mind and senses, is above ceremonials and ritualism, is union with God. 

He emphasized that Religion is the attainment of Divine Consciousness and freedom from illusion, doubt, fear, grief & delusion. It is a faith for knowing God and realization of True Self. As per him, Real Religion is feeling God. Seeing God and Talking to God.

He respected all Religions of the world. Jesus Christ was as much honored at Sivananda Ashram as Lord Krishna. In his book," Life and Teachings of Lord Jesus", Sivananda wrote that Jesus welcomed and embraced the sinners, the despised, the fallen & broken hearted AND comforted & purified them. His central teaching was," Thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself AND the love of God manifests in the love of man."  As per Sivananda, Jesus's," Sermon on the Mount" was nothing but practice of right conduct or सदाचार and it corresponds to the practice of यम -नियम of राजयोग. . Jesus was an apostle of non violence and peace, besides an embodiment of mercy, love and humility

 In another context, while reviewing " Gospel of Islam", Sivananda wrote," The Prophet taught love, tolerance, understanding and unity. He further wrote that the Prophet's teachings were as sublime as the teachings of any other seer or saint in any other religion. He conveyed that he wished all the followers of Prophet all over the globe to re-read the holy Quran and understand its true message for humanity.

Some of the Ethical Traits and Spiritual Values preached and practiced by him can be visualized from his following prominent messages to the world;

• Cultivate peace in the garden of your heart by removing the weeds of lust, hatred, greed, selfishness & jealousy. Then only, you can manifest it externally with those who come in contact with you.
• Rely on your inner self, the divinity within you. Tap the source through looking within. Improve yourself.Build your character.Purify the heart.Develop the divine virtues. Eradicate evil traits. Make the lower nature the servant of the higher through discipline, tapas, self- restraint and meditation.
• Every temptation that is resisted, every evil thought that is curbed, every desire that is subdued, every bitter word that is withheld,every noble aspiration that is encouraged, every sublime thought that is cultivated, adds to the development of will force, good character and attainment of eternal bliss and immortality.
• Faith is a belief in the unknown.Faith is the search- light for finding God. Adhere to faith, unity and sacrifice; avoid back- biting, falsehood and crookedness; admire frankness & honesty; control tongue, temper and tossing of mind AND cultivate cosmic love, forgiveness and patience.
• See good in everything. Rise above evil and good. Go on introspecting and eradicating impurities in your personality one by one. 
• Truth is complete in itself. It is bold. It has no fears. It has a strong foundation in itself. It has no limits of space or time. It is wealth in itself. Dwell on the glory of truth. Take lessons from the lives of great men who adhered to truth; overcome the pitfalls and obstacles in its path.
• Learn to give, give in plenty, give with love, give without any expectations. Giving is the secret of abundance.
• Make others truly happy as you strive to make yourself happy. Speak a helpful word. Give a cheering smile. Do a kind act since kindness is like a healing balm. Wipe the tears of those in distress. Such little actions can make an ocean of goodwill. 
• Look within. Within you is the hidden God. Within you is the immortal soul. Within you is the inexhaustible spiritual treasure. Within you is the ocean of bliss. Look within for the happiness you have sought in vain.
• Individual peace paves the way for universal peace. The attainment of inner calm is the greatest work you can do for humanity.
• If you do not find peace within, you will not find it anywhere else. The goal of life is the attainment of peace and not the achievement of power, name, fame and wealth.

Let me move towards another treasure of knowledge shared by Swami Sivananda on "Knowing Self for God Realization". Quoting Sivananda," Man is born for Self Realization. Brahman (ब्रह्म) is identical with Self ." तत त्वम असि", thou art that, one of the Mahavakya of Upanishads conveys that know-er of ब्रह्म  becomes ब्रह्म  itself and leads to his emancipation (मोक्ष). A few powerful lessons from his scriptures or discourses are;

•  Having true desires(सत्यकाम) as well as having true will or volition (सत्य संकल्प),one must search out & try to understand" the Self or आत्मन ", which is free from sin, from old age, from death & grief, from hunger & thirst. He is the Self, the immortal, fearless ब्रह्म .
• This great unborn Self is the same which abides as the intelligent soul in all living creatures. This undecaying, immortal, fearless Self is ब्रह्म  and he, who has subdued his senses, is calm, free from all desires, enduring & composed in mind, beholds the Self in Self, sees all as Self becomes a true ब्रह्म .
• He, who has no आत्मज्ञान , is only a confirmed fool, even though he may be a learned पंडित  with all the best of degrees and intellect. He may know by heart all the major spiritual scriptures as well as philosophies of the world, yet there is no salvation for such a learned man without the realization of one's identity with ब्रह्म  through constant intense meditation.
• In an answer to a question on " Developing Cosmic Consciousness", he replied," Meditate on themes like' I am not the body, I am not the mind, I am absolute ब्रह्म , omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient---', that is the nature of Satchidananda. As this idea gets deeper and deeper into you, you will enjoy universal consciousness.
• मुक्ति ( Salvation) is attained through the knowledge of Self. To attain आत्मज्ञान, you must have one pointedness of mind (एकाग्रता). It comes from उपासना (Worship),which comes from purity of heart (चित्तशुद्धिः) and is achieved through निष्काम  कर्म। To do निष्काम कर्म, one must control senses (इन्द्रियाँ) and that can be controlled by विवेक (Discrimination) and वैराग्य ( Renunciation)। 
• God is beyond cause and effect, beyond time and space & beyond the reach of mind and speech. But yet, He is the nearest, the innermost dweller of the heart, the very life of all that lives and moves. God is hidden love and hidden power.
• God is truth. God is peace. God is an embodiment of bliss. God is Satchidananda, existence absolute, knowledge absolute, bliss absolute. God is eternity, infinity and undecaying (अविनाशी). God is all pervading essence or substance. God is close to those who are free from lust, anger, greed & egoism. God is free from any limitations. He is omnipotent (सर्वशक्तिमान).
• भक्ति  destroys lust( वासना) and egoism (अहंकार). It elevates the mind to magnanimous heights. If you want to develop भक्ति , you will have to weed out thorns both internal as well as external. Internal thorns include lust, anger, jealousy, greed, pride, hypocrisy & cunningness while external thorns include bad company, bad readings and many more.
• Selfishness is leading us to become narrow minded. Destroy it thru selfless service, charity, sat-sang and other noble deeds.
• Work is worship (पूजा ) of Narayana. Work is meditation.Surrender everything to Him.Place your ego at His feet. He will take complete charge of you.Let Him mould you in any way He likes. Let Him do as He wills. Hear the marvelous music of His flute, the mysterious music of the soul and rejoice.
• Merge in the soul. Live within. Know the self. Move about happily.Realize " one in all" and " all in one".
• Selfless work ( service of Humanity) with आत्मभाव is the seed. A feeling that all creatures are manifestations of the lord (नारायणभाव) is the root. उत्साह ( cheerfulness, zeal) is the shower. Expansion of the heart is the flower. Purity of the heart is the fruit. This is the path of कर्मयोग.
• There is no light like that of knowledge of the self. There is no treasure like that of contentment. There is no virtue like that of truthfulness (सत्य). There is no bliss like that of the soul. There is no friend like आत्मन.
•  Develop contentment. Speak the truth. Drink the bliss of the soul. Think yourself as body-less. Identify yourself with supreme self and enjoy the supreme peace and eternal bliss.

The knowledge and spiritual thoughts shared by Swami Sivananda to the world community are enormous and can not be covered in a small blog like that of mine. He repeatedly conveyed universal nature of his philosophy with ultimate aim of Self Realization. To quote, " Vedanta preaches universal principles.It has no quarrel with any religion whatsoever. It is the knowledge of Self and teaches that individual soul is identical with the supreme soul and helps aspirants to Realize Self." 

Let me end the blog by another quote from Swami Sivananda.

" There is no virtue higher than love.There is no religion higher than love because love is God and God is love. Therefore kindle the light of love in your heart."

Religion, Spirituality & Self Realization-- Key messages from Paramhansa Yogananda

Entire universe is God's cosmic motion picture and the individuals are merely actors in the divine play, who changes roles through reincarnation--- Yogananda

Paramhans Yogananda,a direct disciple of Shri Yukteshwar Giri, conveyed powerful messages on India's spirituality in foreign shores for close to 30 years. Although he lived a short life of around 59 yrs ( 5th Jan 1893 to 7th March 1952), his messages. helped changing lives of millions across the world. To quote him on Religion,

 " The true basis of religion is not belief, but intuitive experience. Intuition is the soul's power of knowing God. To know what religion is really all about, one must know God."

Amazing!, he had a strong conviction on the subject of Religion and God Realization. Moreover, his initiatives on Self Realization Fellowship founded by him in 1920 & enormous work undertaken by both of its Indian and International links, Yogoda Sat-Sang  and many more provided a platform for both Indian and Western nationals to get a deeper understanding of these subjects in illuminating their lives. He promoted Universal Brotherhood and Respect towards all Religions.

 Let me share a few key messages, relevant to my theme from one of the best spiritual book of 20th century," Autobiography of a Yogi" written by him and his spiritual  talks and discourses.

• Self Realization is the knowing---- in body, mind and soul; that we are one with omnipresence of God, that we do not have to pray & that it comes to us.Further,a realization that we are not merely near to it all the times, but that God's omnipresence is our own omnipresence. We are just as much a part of Him now as we ever will be. All we have to do is to improve our knowing.
• A Master bestows the divine experience of Cosmic Consciousness to a disciple, who has strengthened his mind by meditation and devotional discipline to a degree where the vast vistas would not overwhelm him, where his mind can absorb the liberating shock of omnipresence and his intense craving begins to pull at God with an irresistible force.
• The greatest romance is with the infinite. You have no idea how beautiful life can be. When you suddenly find God everywhere, when He connects and talks to you and guides you, the romance of Divine Love has begun.
• Divine Love is without condition, without boundary and without changes.
• The soul is bound to the body by chain of desires, temptations, troubles and worries and it is always trying to free itself.
• Being spiritual is to have an open mind, understand and forgive, and be friends with everyone.
• I am a spark from the infinite. I am not flesh and bones. I am light. In the welfare of others, I shall find my own well- being. I am space-less. I am timeless. I am beyond body, thought, and utterance, beyond all matter and mind. I am endless bliss.
• Most of the world is a mental hospital. Some persons are sick with jealousy, others with anger, hatred, passion and so on. They are victims of their habits and emotions. Making our homes a place of peace depends on us.
• Be kind to others, so that you may learn the secret art of being kind to yourself.
• If you want to be loved, start loving others who need your love.If you want others to sympathize with you, start showing sympathy to those around you; if you want to be respected, you must learn to be respectful to everyone. Whatever you want to be, first be that yourself.
• When we serve others, we serve ourselves. Do not think," I will help others"; think rather," I will help my own, my world", because I can not otherwise be happy.
• A good habit is your greatest friend; a bad habit your mortal enemy.
• Praise does not make you better, nor blame worse than what you are.Then why heed these too? Do not pay attention when they praise you, but survey yourself carefully when they blame you. If you are in fault, free yourself from error quickly, but if you are not guilty, forget it. Truth will speak for you. 

Yogananda taught Kriya Yoga and other meditation practices to help people achieve deeper understanding of " Self " As per his teachings, Kriya Yoga leads to union with the  infinite through certain actions. A Yogi, who faithfully follows its technique is gradually freed from KARMA or universal chain of causation. Consistent practice of Kriya Yoga enables the devotee to switch off and on, at will, life current from five senses and finally leads to uniting his mind at will with Divine.
 He advocated the need for direct exposure of TRUTH as opposed to blind belief. Some of his viewpoints focusing on Dharma & Ethical Practices can be visualized from the aims and ideals nurtured by him for his spiritual offspring's, Yogoda sat-sang society and/ or Self Realization Fellowship. To quote,

• To convey that the purpose of life is Evolution thru Self Effort.
• To reveal the complete harmony and basic oneness of original Christianity as taught by Christ and original Yoga as taught by Lord Krishna and to show that these principles of Truth are the common scientific foundations of all true religions.
• To point out the one Divine Highway to which all paths of true religious beliefs eventually lead; the highway of scientific & devotional meditation on God.
• To encourage plain living and high thinking and to spread a spirit of brotherhood among all people by conveying the eternal basis of their unity and kinship with God.
• To overcome evil by good, sorrow by joy, cruelty by kindness and ignorance by wisdom.
• To serve mankind as one's larger self.

Stressing on Ethical Living, Yogananda conveyed several powerful messages to masses, some of which are shared below.

" Every day in New Year must become an altar for the God of new living, new achievements in wisdom & new joy. Every day in New Year must bring hope and cheer to yourself and all humanity. Cast off the coil of decayed thoughts of the past year and be reincarnated into vital living of the New Year."--------- Yogananda, New Year message, Jan 1937.

" The truth of Yogoda is marching steadily on through the territories of dark ignorance. New regions have been conquered by the armies of divine love. Soldiers of superstition, narrowness, misunderstanding & dogmatism are on the run.Wake, soldiers of Yogoda. Train yourselves in the art of Self Control. Drill yourselves by regular meditation. Let us make the coming Christmas season by disciplining ourselves, conquering the Satan of ignorance and establishing peace within us. Let us learn to love those who love us not. Let us meet religious bigotry by our inner conviction won by realization. Let us break all our mental boundaries of color, creed and nationality and receive all in the endless, all embracing arms of Christ Consciousness".--------- Yogananda,1928, on Christmas Season.

Each and every message, writing or activity propagated by Yogananda had an everlasting impact on people or society in general, whether on Religion, Narrowness and Superstitious Beliefs,Ethical practices to achieve purity and Self Realization efforts. The simplicity and purity, which he preached was visible everywhere.
Once again, quoting from Chapter 24 of Autobiography of A Yogi, Yogananda shares his feelings on becoming Monk of Swami Order by singing these verses from famous spiritual saint, Shankara.

" Mind, nor intellect, nor ego, feeling,

Sky, nor earth, nor metals am I;

I am He, I am He, Blessed spirit, I am He !

No birth, No death, No caste Have I,

Father, Mother, have I none;

I am He, I am He, Blessed spirit, I am He !"

Quoting yet another of his thoughts expressed in one of his writing" Samadhi", he conveys the glory of its cosmic state;

" I live without the cosmic shadow, but it is not bereft of me;

As the sea exists without the waves, but they breathe, not without the sea !"

"Dreams, wakings, states of deep sleep, Present, Past, Future, no more for me;

But ever- present, all flowing I, I everywhere!"

"Thou art I, I art thou, Knowing, Know-er, Known, as one;

Tranquilled, unbroken thrill, eternally living, ever- new peace;

Enjoyable beyond imagination of expectancy, Samadhi, bliss!"

"Not an unconscious state, or mental chloroform without willful return,

Samadhi, but extends my conscious realm, beyond limits of mortal frame;

To farthest boundary of eternity, where I, the cosmic sea, watch the little ego, floating in me."

Endless are lessons and messages from the life of Paramhans Yogananda and it is extremely difficult for me to put down in this blog, though limited to my area of concern-- Dharma and Ethical living. I would like to conclude the blog by another quote from Yogananda.

"If you want to be sad, no one in the world can make you happy. But if you make up your mind to be happy, no one and nothing on earth can take that happiness from you."

Prominent Learnings during 1750-1950 CE-XII-- Sant Mat (2)

In the body, floweth the pool of Immortality;

By drinking its nectar, thou dost lose egoity;

And birth and rebirth, do for ever cease.(Namdev)

                                                                 

Continuing my previous blog on Sant Mat, let me now cover some of the key messages picked up from the discourses/ spiritual wisdom of one of its greatest Masters, Baba Sawan Singh ji Maharaj during the period, year 1858 to 1948.

Baba Sawan Singh ji Maharaj or the Great Master and second Sat-guru of Radha Soami Sat-sang Beas had been one of the greatest exponents of teachings of Sant Mat. He studied spiritual scriptures of various religions but retained a strong connection with Gurbani of Sikh religion.

 He initiated more than 1,25000 souls into this mystic path and established religious centers all over India as well as Europe, America, South Africa and Canada. His spiritual gatherings thrilled, inspired and enthralled the minds and hearts of people & helped them resolve their problems. Every word of the Great Master was an ambrosial drop that quenched their thirsty souls. 

His disciples included Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians and others from all parts of world. Let me now quote a few messages on Dharma and Ethical living from some of his discourses, Sat-sang sessions as well as spiritual scriptures including " Gurmat Siddhant' and " Philosophy of Masters".

• The Kingdom of God is within us. We have to live in this world and discharge our obligations towards our family,relations, friends and humanity. For God Realization, let us simply turn our heart God-ward, within us.
• Sant Mat is pure, unalloyed spiritual work, holds no promise to cure the sick & the blind, nor to improve one's worldly position.Initiates are to follow their normal vocations in life, earn their livelihood by honest means and utilize the same to keep themselves fit. Sant Mat aims at pure spiritual uplift.
• Lasting peace and happiness are within us. Peace and happiness derived from worldly objects and companions are transitory, these change and in time vanish. Attachment to these, leave behind scars and worries in life.
• Religion means union of the individual soul with its Source. It is an individual affair. True religion admits of no external ways of devotion. All outward ceremonies are meaningless. Burning of incense, human and blood sacrifices, eating bread or drinking wine are non essentials.
• The Truth lies within everybody. Truth is within us, in the brain, behind the eye focus, while its rays activate the entire body.
• Universal Service as the aim of brotherhood is an excellent idea. But universal service and individual are contradictory terms. An individual is an individual as long as his attention is confined to nine portals of his body. He has to cure himself from the disease of individuality, before he thinks of brotherhood and universal service.
• The first duty of man is to know himself; that is to free his soul from the bonds of mind and body; and then unite it with HIM. This is the highest service.
• God is nameless. He is the Divine Father & Sustain-er of us all; yet you can not see HIM until you are liberated from the prison house of the body. Once you realize HIM, all duality and conflict cease and disappear.
• Millions of sacrificial rites, penances, acts of charity & other deeds, can bring no salvation to human beings. Salvation is gained only by devotion to the word of God and following ethical practices.
• Self-Surrender is the key to God realization. It gives strength to the weak, sight to the seeker, beloved to the lover, God to the devotee, holiness to the sinner, freedom to the bound and immortality to the mortal man.
• Saints put the individual spirit in touch with the Sound Current, and as the spirit catches it and rises up, it throws off the influences of mind and matter and gets stronger and stronger.
• Saints use no will of their own.They live in HIM. They are HIS servants, not equals. They do not assert themselves against HIS will. As HIS dear children,God gives them everything.
• All saints are Sons of God; their mission is to make others the Sons of God and their method of achieving their mission is the Word,---Sound Current.The Word is Light.It rescinds within us and outside us. Sant Mat connects with it as Sound.
• Purity of character is the fundamental basis on which the edifice of spiritual progress is built.The five passions- lust, anger, greed, pride and attachment will become weaker and weaker as the Bliss of Sound Current increases. In the end, all passions as well as the mind will come under the control of soul.
• The real form of Guru or the essence of Guru is Shabad. Following the practice of Shabad thoroughly, the passions of lust, anger, pride, greed and attachment are destroyed. Further, when you control your mind and senses, you enjoy Shabad all the more.
• Where there is no Shabad, there is no Jyoti or Light.
• Cleanse your mind of mutual accusation as well as remonstrance and increase love and affection.for each other.Each one should admit his mistakes, ask pardon of the other, and grow in love and faith.
• The right way should be that the senses do not run after the objects, the mind is not led away by the senses and the soul has the grip on the mind and uses it as a tool to serve its purposes.
•  The mind as our master, keeps us on the wheel of birth and death. The object of human life is to control it and get off this wheel.The only power that can control the mind is the Word or Na-am.
• Mind is the veil between man and God; mind revels in the pleasure of the senses. It can be weaned away only when it gets something supremely superior, sweeter and nobler. The saints name this  as Divine Melody, the Audible Life Stream, the Voice of God, the Na-am, that ceaselessly reverberates at the third eye.
• We are captives of the mind and the senses; we wander in I-Ness. But once our inner eye is opened, we shall be in the hands of Thou-ness
• The action of Anger is to stir up strife, cause confusion and scatter the mind so that it can't concentrate. Anger destroys peace,neutralizes love, engenders hatred and turn people into enemies. It tears down, destroys, weakens, annihilates every finer quality of mind and soul. At the end, it leaves the victim nothing but a wreck, burned out, blackened and dead.
• Belief in one God is the cornerstone of all religions.There are different roads, leading to same destination. The soul of religion is indeed one; only it is encased in a different form. Irrespective of their rules and conventions, customs and ceremonials, the Substance of Reality, the essence of Truth,the basis of Spirituality, underlying them all is one and the same. The Saints, turn away from the outer religion of form and ceremony to the inner religion of the Heart.

There are innumerable messages conveyed and emphasized by the Great Master, Baba Sawan Singh ji Maharaj on the subject of Spirituality, God Realization, Ethical values and Human behavior in general. I have covered only a few of these focusing on my theme of Religion and Ethical practices. Let me end the blog by a humble advice from Guru Ramdas, the 4th Sikh Guru on Truthfulness, Sat- Guru & Ethical Behavior.

Sat-Guru is He, who meditateth on Truth. Sat- Guru and Truth are one. Verily is He Sat-Guru, who all the five foes-- Lust, Anger, Vanity, Greed&Worldly attachments, hath controlled