Chandogya Upanishad 3.12 Summary Lecture 155 on 15 November 2025

Full Transcript (Not Corrected)

Opening Invocation

ॐ जननीं सारदां देवीं रामकृष्णं जगदगुरुम पादपद्मे तयो: श्रित्वा प्रणमामि मुहुर्मुहु :

Om Jananim Saradam devim Ramakrishnam jagadgurum Padapadme tayoh shritva pranamami muhurmuhuh.

ॐ आप्यायन्तु ममाङ्गानि वाक्प्राणश्चक्षुः

श्रोत्रमथो बलमिन्द्रियाणि च सर्वाणि।

सर्वम् ब्रह्मोपनिषदम् माऽहं ब्रह्म

निराकुर्यां मा मा ब्रह्म

निराकरोद निराकरणमस्त्व निराकरणम् मेऽस्तु।

तदात्मनि निरते य उपनिषत्सु धर्मास्ते

मयि सन्तु ते मयि सन्तु।

ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः॥

oṃ āpyāyantu mamāṅgāni vākprāṇaścakṣuḥ

śrotramatho balamindriyāṇi ca sarvāṇi.

sarvam brahmopaniṣadam mā’haṃ brahma

nirākuryāṃ mā mā brahma

nirākaroda nirākaraṇamastva nirākaraṇam me’stu.

tadātmani nirate ya upaniṣatsu dharmāste

mayi santu te mayi santu.

oṃ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ

Translation

May my limbs, speech, vital force, eyes, ears, as also strength and all the organs become well developed. Everything is the Brahman revealed in the Upanishads. May I not deny Brahman. May not Brahman deny me. Let there be no spurning of me by Brahman. Let there be no rejection of Brahman by me. May all the virtues that are spoken of in the Upanishads repose in me who am engaged in the pursuit of the Self. May they repose in me. Om. Peace. Peace. Peace be unto all.

The Gayatri Mantra

We are discussing the Gayatri Mantra:

Oṃ bhūr bhuvaḥ svaḥa

tat savitur vareṇyaṃ

bhargo devasya dhīmahi

dhiyo yonaḥ pracodayāt

"We meditate on the glory of that being who has produced this universe. May he enlighten our minds."

This Gayatri Mantra is also known as the Sāvitrī Mantra as well as Sarasvatī Mantra. It occurs in Ṛg Veda, 3rd Maṇḍala, 62nd section, 10th Mantra.

Understanding Mantras

Etymology of Mantra

We also had discussed what is a mantra. Mananāt trāyate iti mantraḥ – "That which saves through meditation" – this is the etymological meaning of the word mantra. Similarly, Gayatri also has got etymological meaning.

Gāyantaṃ trāyate iti gāyatrī – "She who saves, that divine power which saves those who surrender themselves to that divine power" – that is called Gayatri.

A long-worded mantra usually is very rare, but Gayatri Mantra is one of the few exceptions. It comprises of three lines having eight letters each, in total twenty-four (3 × 8 = 24) letters.

Purpose of Mantras

A mantra can be used for meditation, japa, and worship, or for spiritual practice. One can remember it all the time. As we discussed so many times, the ultimate meaning of this Gayatri Mantra is: "I surrender myself. May you guide my body, my mind. May you bless me both in the world as well as in the spiritual world."

The Importance of Receiving Mantras from a Guru

Any mantra must be transmitted by a guru or a spiritually evolved person to an equally qualified disciple. Now, this is a very important point I bring up again and again.

Can We Take a Mantra from a Book?

Can we not take a mantra from a book? Of course we can take. But we must have the faith, because what is the book which contains the mantras? That is called scripture, śāstra. And a śāstra is not a human compilation, human production. Every scripture is a revelation by the Divine. Knowledge is eternal as God is eternal.

Knowledge and Objects

Here, one of the most important principles we have to keep in mind: if there is an object, then that object is conveyed or is understood by anybody in the form of knowledge. And if that knowledge is lacking, that object cannot even exist.

I gave many times an example: if someone is standing in front of you and you are not aware of that person, so far as you are concerned, that person does not exist. So every object is a thought. Every thought is a piece of knowledge. They are called vṛtti in Vedanta. Thoughts are called vṛtti in Vedanta. And every vṛtti is nothing but a piece of knowledge, whether these thoughts are real or imaginary.

The Power of Belief

One of the important points we have to note down here is: it is not the question whether the thoughts are real or imaginary, but if we think they are real. For example, whatever objects we see in dream, for us they are absolute reality. Only upon waking up we come to know they are all only my imaginations. They are not real.

So if I believe this is true, then that becomes truth for us. And that which we believe as true, it influences our behaviour instantaneously. If I think this person is good, in spite of his being an evil person, then my behaviour towards that person will be only according to my understanding or belief. Similarly, if I believe a good person, that he is not a good person, my behaviour, my reaction, my action and reaction also follows my belief.

Wrong Beliefs

So many wrong beliefs we have. And Vedanta points out to us: one of the greatest wrong knowledge we have is that we do not belong to God. We are not divine. We are anything other than divine, other than God – anātmā. And we are behaving accordingly.

If I think I am the possessions, then possessions will be the most valuable things for me. If I think my body, "I am the body," my body is the reality, then I would like to protect, to preserve prāṇa at any cost. And if I think my mind – not possessions, not body, but mind – then I will try to behave; my thoughts are real to me, just as my thoughts are real to me in my dream state.

The State of Non-Duality

So even in the waking state, I only value my thoughts. And if somebody says, "I am neither the body nor the mind" – and possessions belong to the body only; actually, it is an idea. Possessions even do not belong to the body, it is our understanding. So if I have bank balance, "it belongs to me" – it is a thought.

But if I think, "I am neither the body nor the mind," that state will remove at once, even though temporarily, and brings us to a state like advaita – non-duality. And where there is non-duality, where there is no second object, there is no cause of either having a desire or a fear. And therefore it is the most tranquil state. And each one of us are going through these three states.

The Teaching of Gayatri Mantra

So what is this relationship? Gayatri Mantra teaches us ultimately, gives us that understanding that I am an effect. I am from God. God is the real material. I am the effect. God is the cause. I am the effect. And therefore every effect is temporary, is dependent upon the cause, is a gross manifestation of the cause. And every effect has a birth, has a continuation (even though it is a changing continuation), and there is a going back, merging back. Therefore cause alone is real.

That would be the first stage. Then when I attain to that state of identity with the cause, then my understanding comes: I am the causeless cause. I am not even the cause. That is called causeless cause.

Complete Surrender

And every mantra teaches us complete surrender. That is why that process of repeating the mantra with concentration, with śraddhā, with complete surrender, that is called upāsanā. Upāsanā means gradually approaching – upa, nearer and nearer to the cause which is God.

And then once we are pulled into God at the final stage, we don't merge into God – we are pulled because God cannot tolerate duality. Infinity cannot tolerate finiteness, cognitively only. Then we do not exist. That is called śaraṇāgati or complete surrender. And that is called saving – trāyate.

Every mantra ultimately removes our false understanding, "I am separate from God," and takes us to God.

Mantras as Divine Revelations

Then mantras are not human creations. They are divine revelations obtained by the ṛṣis.

The Nature of Knowledge

Just like every day we are hearing the news of some new development in the AI – Artificial Intelligence. And I am only talking, taking the positive side of AI, because any knowledge can be used either for good or evil.

So taking – somebody has surrendered himself, practiced one-pointedness. The truth, which means knowledge, doesn't fall from the sky. It is everywhere, just as God is everywhere. Knowledge is everywhere. Truth is everywhere. But in order to access a little bit of that truth, we have to focus our small minds. And to the extent our mind is capable of focusing, to that extent our misunderstanding or ignorance gets removed, and a new revelation comes.

That is how you call it invention, or you call discovery of truth, which is called new piece of knowledge. And every new piece of knowledge inevitably ends in some innovation that is useful in some either good way or evil way.

How Mantras Save Us

So mantra means what? That which removes the obstacle which is our own mind. And as soon as that happens, knowledge is revealed. And that is how mantras save us – secularly or spiritually.

And so even these secular ṛṣis – every doctor, everybody, whoever discovers a new piece of truth aligning to God – he can be called a ṛṣi. Thus for Indians, Einstein can be called a ṛṣi.

So the point is: mantras of that which is revealed to the... What is a mantra? A piece of knowledge. And what is a piece of knowledge? God. And a piece of God, as it were, a part of the God, a little bit of knowledge about God are revealed to those minds which have surrendered themselves to God. Therefore every mantra is capable of helping a person move forward towards God.

Examples of Secular Knowledge

So as I said, if somebody had invented a cure for cancer, for example... And millions of people are literally working to find a cure for the incurable diseases. And incidentally, millions of people are also trying to create various types of germs where in the future the warfare would be germ warfare – not weapon. Germs are so powerful. They spread very fast and very effectively. By that time we can find out, God alone knows how many people die.

There are incidents in the history where you call it black plague, or whatever plague. A recent example would be COVID, where millions of people have lost their lives. And of course, human beings are not the exceptions – every creature is dying. But how soon? How quick? How painfully or painlessly a creature dies? It is a different issue.

Mantras and Receptivity

What are we discussing? A mantra is a piece of knowledge that is revealed to a mind which is ready to receive. That means which is in a state of reception. Then knowledge will just rush in, like when you open a window, the outside air, be it cool, be it hot, rushes inside the room.

So these mantras flashed in the depths of ṛṣis' hearts and enabled them to progress in life, to realize God, to have self-knowledge. Hence anyone who follows in their footsteps also will obtain the same result, which is God realization.

Spiritual and Secular Life

But this is not only a spiritual result. Even in the secular life, there is something called spiritual secular life. What does it mean? Dharma-aviruddha kāmo'smi bhārata-ṛṣabha – Bhagavān reveals: "If a person has a desire, then that desire, if that desire is not opposed to dharma" – marvelous statement – "then I am that special desire." God says, "I am that desire," because any dharmic desire takes us to God.

Defining Dharmic Desire

How do we define a dharmic desire? That which takes one nearer to God is a dharmic desire. And that which takes one away from God, even if it is claimed to be religious or spiritual, that which takes us away from God, definitely that is ungodly, non-godly, unspiritual desire.

The Four Āśramas

So that is why life is sacred. Each soul is potentially divine. So going to get educated is a stage in spiritual progress called brahmacārya-āśrama – beautiful name. And two people coming together like co-pilgrims, helping each other, fulfilling each other's natural desires in a dharmic way...

So the whole purpose of a married life, gṛhastha-āśrama, is to take a person slowly to God through legitimate fulfillment. Whether I would say spiritual fulfillment, both would satisfy the person, quench the desire, awaken more spiritual desire, and thus take him nearer to God.

That is why a husband and wife relationship is like the relationship between Śiva and Pārvatī, Lakṣmī and Nārāyaṇa, Brahmā and Sarasvatī. It is not a one-sided affair. The moment we say one-sided, ruination will take place. That is what Indians have been doing. That is what many religions preach: "Male is supreme, supremo. He can do whatever he likes. But women should be only spiritual people."

Unfortunately such a thing is not going to happen. And that is why God establishes dharma through the fulfillment of all the three – or rather all the four āśramas.

Sri Ramakrishna's Example

That is how Sri Ramakrishna – he entered, he kept Holy Mother, even though after taking sannyāsa, so that he can establish an ideal householder's life.

Did Sri Ramakrishna practice vānaprastha-āśrama? Absolutely. How did he do it? Every dawn, every dusk, every holy day, every Tuesday, every Saturday, every sacred day, festival day... All festival days are only religious holidays in India, or they have turned them into spiritual holidays. Even Saṅkrānti, which is nothing but a spring season festival when harvest is gathered, is turned into a spiritual festival.

So every religion, more or less, tries to do it, and especially tries to do it in the form of sacraments: birth, baptism, marriage. That's why the core teachings of any religion are very dharmic. But some people misinterpret, and that is how problems come. Of course that is also the will of the Divine Mother.

Back to the Subject

Coming back to our subject: these mantras flashed in the depths of ṛṣis' hearts. And in whose heart these mantras, this knowledge flashes, they are called ṛṣis. And these mantras enabled them to progress in spiritual life, to realize God, to have self-knowledge. Not only that – whoever follows in their footsteps with faith and tries to emulate their lives will also get the same result, just like a scientific experiment.

Problems with Taking Mantras from Books

Merely taking a mantra from a book or internet by oneself is not enough. It has several problems. First, very briefly, I will tell you a few problems.

Problem One: Changing Mantras

First problem is that every book extols a particular mantra. Those scriptures which adore Viṣṇu, they adore Viṣṇu; therefore they insist upon Viṣṇu Mantra. And those who adore Śiva, naturally they insist on Śiva. And those who adore Śakti...

So when we go on taking mantras from these books, I might stumble, or one might stumble upon another book, and there they glorify... This person says, "Am I wasting my time taking Viṣṇu Mantra? Maybe Divine Mother will reveal to me quickly, or Śiva."

You see, Śiva – he gives mukti. Nārāyaṇa doesn't give mukti so easily. He gives, but those who die in Vārāṇasī, irrespective of whether they are human or non-human – every creature, by just dying there, that would be their last birth. This is a deeply ingrained faith in every Hindu's mind.

So one might change if one takes by oneself. That is the first problem. Mantra should be taken only – mantra should be only one. Guru should be only one. Scripture should be only one. Chosen deity must be only one. Otherwise it is a waste of time. Anybody who changes one's mind every day or every few days, that is not very helpful.

Problem Two: Loss of Faith

Okay, what is the second? So one may lose faith.

What is the advantage of a guru? A guru is one who has deep faith in what he gives and he tries to follow to the best of his ability. So his very life inspires the disciple. That is the second benefit, second reason why one should take from a guru.

Problem Three: Understanding Ourselves

Third reason: the guru tells him – guru understands – a third person understands one's psychology much better than the ourselves. And therefore, when we open our hearts, even ordinary people understand us more objectively, better way than we understand ourselves.

So a guru understands better. He observes us and then he guides us accordingly, if he is a sadguru.

Problem Four: Target Practice

Fourth, most important reason: a guru is one whom we choose to make him a target practice. What is it? "I must try to see God in one person." Even to see God in our mother, in our father is not very easy, because when we really objectively look at them, we do not see any greatness. "She is my mother, okay. He is my father, okay." But there are also people filled with desires, worries, ambitions, desires. Maybe their character is not that great.

So to think of them, consider them as a manifestation of God is not going to be very easy. But to choose a person and deliberately say, "That I have chosen this person to make him as my target."

What target? Not to torment, but: "Whatever he may be, I do not care. I decided to consider him as God, and I will try my level best to think of him as God. Whether he thinks of me as God or as a dog in a positive light or a negative light, that is not important. I decided. How he reacts to me is his headache. But I want to better myself, and therefore I have chosen this particular person."

That is why I call him "target practice." Whether he is angry, whether he is pleased with me, whatever he says, even if he abuses me, I am prepared to think of him only as a manifest God. So this is how we grow.

What is Spiritual Life?

What is spiritual life? Gradually to see more and more God in everything. That is called spiritual progress. That is why guru is a target practice.

Receiving the Mantra with Faith

Therefore the disciple should receive the mantra with deep faith and devotion. How do we know that we are really targeting the guru for our spiritual practice? Because the disciple, with a little bit of objectification (that is called svādhyāya, introspection), can understand that "I am able to look upon my guru as God and keep my mind tranquil, not hesitated, whatever his words, his actions, his behaviour. But I remain devotional, faithful, joyful."

And so, "I myself am progressing towards God." Crystal clearly we can understand, but we must only exercise a little bit objectivity, that's all – just like a paid psychologist. He is studying us with all his training to find out so that he can help us.

Examples of Gayatri Mantra Practice

Let us take – how many millions and millions of people have been repeating Gayatri Mantra. And here I have to tell you something: it need not be the Gayatri Mantram, need not be Oṃ bhūr bhuvaḥ svaḥa, tat savitur vareṇyaṃ, bhargo devasya dhīmahi, dhiyo yonaḥ pracodayāt. Whatever mantra saves us, that is Gayatri Mantra.

"Lord Jesus Christ, I surrender myself to you. Please help me. Lord Jesus Christ, I am a sinner. I will not commit – I will try not to commit anymore sin. Please pardon me and please pull me towards you." That is Gayatri Mantra.

So towards any God or Goddess, "I am surrendering myself," and at the same time, "I am repeating not only this mantra, but I am trying to change my behaviour according to my goal." That is how a mantra saves.

Example: Sri Ramakrishna's Father

Let us take one or two examples. So first of all, we have to take the example of Sri Ramakrishna's father. Many times I have mentioned it: when Khudiram used to repeat Gayatri Mantra, his chest used to be filled, become red. And his whole life is like a ṛṣi's life. And other people understood – people in the village understood. That is why spontaneously they get up to show respect to him.

Example: Sri Ramakrishna's Initiation

When Sri Ramakrishna received his first Śakti Mantra just before beginning the worship of Mother Kālī, his brother arranged him to take initiation from a great sādhaka called Kenaram Bhaṭṭācārya. And as soon as the Kenaram Bhaṭṭācārya uttered the mantra – remember, he was a great sādhaka himself, and with all sincerity he uttered this mantra in the ears of Sri Ramakrishna – Gadadhar (his name Sri Ramakrishna came much later), when Kenaram uttered the mantra, Sri Ramakrishna gave a huge cry and fell down unconscious. And Kenaram Bhaṭṭācārya understood what a great soul he was.

So he practiced with steadfastness and he received, he realized Divine Mother. But what we have to understand is: not merely repeating the mantra he received, Sri Ramakrishna received, but every minute he kept a watch over himself – "Am I behaving as a spiritual aspirant should behave or not?" We also have to keep – that is why we have to practice svādhyāya – svādhyāya means study of oneself.

The Psychology of Faith

So there is a psychology. How do we know we have faith? Because Jesus Christ clarified it so beautifully: if anybody has the faith of the size of a mustard seed and if he says to a mountain, "Move hence to the other place," immediately the mountain will move. Faith can move mountains.

What it really means is: faith can bring, must bring about tremendous change.

Example: Naciketas

Look at how Naciketas became possessed of faith – faith possessed him. A beautiful expression in the... He did not say, "I'm having faith." His father was telling, "I am having faith. I want to go to heaven." But that faith is a loose faith. He had some – we can't say he did not have faith, but it was not strong enough.

How do we know? Look at his behaviour. He was keeping the best possessions and trying to distribute only second or third class possessions. By that we know that he was still attached to this world, which means he doesn't want to go to heaven, etc.

So if a person has faith, there would be tremendous transformation in his character. That is the only way.

The Philosophy of Sound

Now coming back, we also discussed that Indians had developed a special philosophy of sound called śabda-brahma-vāda.

So Brahman, the highest reality, simply called God in day-to-day language – is God, is looked upon by our Vedic ṛṣis in two forms. One is there is a form, and there is a – that is called rūpa – and available to the sense organ called eye. And there is another form of Brahman which is called śabda – sound Brahman. Śabda means sound. And further, there is a sense organ that is called the ear.

Sphota-vāda

So these Hindu seers developed a special school of philosophy called sphota-vāda. So the whole universe is nothing but sound.

What is a sound? I hope you recollect our last talk. What is sphota? Vibration. Sound. What is sound? Vibration.

And in that connection we have seen, sound means vibration. So if you utter the word – even as I utter the sound, the – this particular word – the moment I say word, from my mouth it goes in the form of vibration and touches the microphone and transforms it into electronic signals. And on your end, it again makes it sound vibrations of which you are familiar.

Understanding Through Language

And you also have to be aware: if I am speaking in Chinese language, you will only hear sound vibrations – no meaning will occur to you. But if you know English language and I am speaking in English language, then only the sound vibrations will make meaning to you.

And not only that, they enter into your mind, illiterate the mind in the form of vibrations. So certain words like God, dharma, spirituality, mantra, etc., they bring a certain transformation in your minds, whether we are reading a solid book – the meaning of the book enters in the form of thought, and that thought is nothing but sound vibration.

The Power of Sound Vibrations

And according to our receptive capacity, these sound vibrations, it transforms our character. Let us not expect overnight complete transformation, but as we go on uttering the mantra, reading sacred books, hearing sacred talks, ritual talks, and trying to keep a watch over our behaviour, slowly, slowly transformation must take place – no doubt about it.

The Universe as Vibration

So the whole universe, as Swami Vivekananda had explained, is going to explain: So when we say Oṃ, it is the highest form of sphota – para. But when we utter bhūḥ, bhuvaḥ, svaḥa – and these are representing three worlds.

Three Worlds

Three worlds means gross, subtle, and causal. The whole creation is divided into gross, which we are experiencing to some extent; then subtle, which most of the time we do not experience but can; of course causal, but also we do not experience really.

So every what we call the world – loka – that which is experienced through our mind – subtle, sometimes in the form of sense organs, most often in the form of thoughts, vibrations, ideas, understanding, knowledge – they are our world.

Example: Heaven and Hell

Simple example I am giving, even though I am repeating myself, but the idea should become very clear. Suppose somebody is in hell, but is – imagine that person is one of the greatest devotees of God, and he is thinking of Nārāyaṇa. And the understanding of Nārāyaṇa, idea of Nārāyaṇa, knowledge of Nārāyaṇa makes him live in the world of Nārāyaṇa.

So is this person in hell or in heaven? If you try to understand, you have to understand that he is in heaven. Why? Because his mind is in heaven.

Example: Prahlāda

Prahlāda, even when he is being tortured inhumanly, you will see he is only filled with the thoughts of Nārāyaṇa. He is living in Vaikuṇṭha. That is why his very name, if you explore his name, you will see – what is his name? Prahlāda. Prahlāda means indescribable spontaneous bliss – prakṛṣṭena hlāda – indescribable bliss. And that is his name. What is the state of Prahlāda?

Example: Sri Ramakrishna's Illness

And everybody would say – Ramakrishna especially – you read when his body was suffering from that intolerable throat pain, but his face was radiating bliss. That is why, in fun, one day he wanted to test Swami, future Swami Turiyānanda: "See how much I am suffering." And Turiyānanda, he understood. He said, "No sir, you are swimming in the ocean of bliss." And Sri Ramakrishna spontaneously explained, "This rascal found me out!"

So very difficult to understand. That is why we have to study the great master līlā prasaṅga. And the very meaning of the title – līlā, meditation on the divine sports of Sri Ramakrishna is called Sri Ramakrishna Līlā.

All Worlds as Vibrations

That is why all worlds, all heavens, all hells are nothing but a play of different vibrations and energies. Further, all these vibrations are interconnected, but they all can be traced to one primary fundamental reality called Śabda-Brahma. They are all emanations of the Śabda-Brahma. This is the philosophy of mantras.

Function of Mantras

Every mantra, in short, be it Sanskrit mantras, English mantras, Latin mantras, Greek mantras – any mantra, the function of these mantras, as we discussed, is to help us gradually raise our consciousness to the highest level of vibration possible through a purified mind. Thereafter, a purified mind would be made to merge in the unmoving mover, Brahman.

The Essence of the Vedas

So the essence of the three Vedas is these three sentences beginning with tat savitur vareṇyam. Last class I mentioned a story: the whole universe is nothing but Vedas. Vedas are three, and Brahmā, the creator, churned the essence of each Veda.

Three Essences

So the essence of the Ṛg Veda is tat savitur vareṇyam. Essence of Yajur Veda is bhargo devasya dhīmahi. And the essence of the Sāma Veda is dhiyo yonaḥ pracodayāt.

And the essence of tat savitur vareṇyam is bhūḥ. Essence of bhargo devasya dhīmahi is bhuvaḥ. Essence of dhiyo yonaḥ pracodayāt is svaḥa.

And the essence of bhūḥ, bhuvaḥ, svaḥa is Oṃ. The syllable Oṃ – a, u, ma – because it starts with the beginning of this throat. That's what Swami Vivekananda explained. Essence of the a is u. And the essence of the u is ma.

This is the whole of sound box. So every, any sound that passes through the sound box must produce a + u + ma = Oṃ. And this was the greatest discovery of our ṛṣis. That's why Oṃ is the greatest mantra.

Every bīja mantra, every mantra, bīja or no bīja, is emanated from this Oṃ.

The Purpose of Ritual

But then to understand the greatness of the Oṃ, we have to start with the grossest, which is called sandhyā ritual. And when the purpose of the ritual – I am briefly discussing, even though I discussed all these points, and especially Hindu rituals – especially if you are patient, devotional, and sitting patiently observing the Durgā Pūjā or Śivarātri Pūjā, night pūjā, whole night pūjā, or Kālī Pūjā, you will see elaborate mantras, mudrās, meditations, offerings, mental pūjā, physical offering, etc., etc. All have one purpose.

Focusing the Restless Mind

What is that purpose? Our minds are naturally restless. Therefore we cannot concentrate at the beginning. Therefore we are asked: "Now you clean the room, go and fetch flowers, wash them and make garland, some, keep some flowers for worship, then you go and take bath, come and decorate the altar, and then you start this pūjā," which is divided into four parts.

I told you:

First is cleansing
Second is identifying with God
Third is mental worship
Fourth is external worship

So the purpose – "I am collecting flowers for whom? For Mr. Devatā. I am making garlands for whom? For Mr. Devatā. I am making sandal paste for whom? Mr. Devatā. I am decorating whom? Mr. Devatā."

Centralization on God

So a restless mind is given various tasks, but all the activities – they are all separate activities – but every activity is centralized only on the chosen ideal. And if I can do that, then in course of time our mind becomes fixated on God.

That is what Sri Ramakrishna meant: all the sandhyā – sandhyā means rituals, mārjana, Gayatri – means end in Gayatri, means the mind will be fixed on our chosen ideal. I deliberately described Gayatri, translated Gayatri of Sri Ramakrishna's word as "chosen ideal."

Final Merging

And then go on meditating – even that, even though subtle but still gross in comparison with the subtlest which is oṃkāra – merges in oṃkāra, and oṃkāra merges in Brahman as identical with Brahman.

Conclusion

So this is what – the essence of the Oṃ, essence of bhūḥ, bhuvaḥ, svaḥa, essence of three lines of the Gayatri Mantra, essence of the Vedas, essence of all scriptures, essence of all knowledge – beautiful thoughts. We will talk about them in our next class.

Closing Prayer