Chandogya Upanishad 4.15 Lecture 146 on 12 October 2025 Q&A

Question 1: On Desires and Suffering

Student A: General question, Maharaj. We know that suffering is because of desires.

Maharaj: No, suffering is because of our bad karmas. Desires will keep us bound to this world. But sukha dukkha is a different issue.

If those desires are fulfilled following the instructions of the scriptures, then the person will get maximum happiness. Of course, every happiness is tainted with some kind of unhappiness. If you don't feel hungry, you can't really enjoy. So that hunger is also an instrument for your final happiness. Do you understand?

So you see, the desire is not—desires are also of two types. A person wants preyas or shreyas. And there is no choice in the beginning. One has to go through preyas only. Unless a person goes through this, what is called worldly life, he will never have a desire to have a spiritual life. So everything has a purpose.

But within this, can I follow scripture or do I do impulsively something? That is the point. So desires themselves are not the causes of happiness or unhappiness. It is how those desires are executed, put into practice. Okay?

Student A: Yes Maharaj. If a person executes these desires in a proper manner, then it should result in sukha?

Maharaj: Maximum sukha! There is nothing called absolute sukha.

We have to pay the price, you know. Blessed are the persons who are ravenously hungry. Even though it is a very small payment. Just imagine, you are ravenously hungry and you are hurrying to a feast. Is it suffering or is it a blessing?

Student A: A blessing.

Maharaj: Ah! I am not joking. The more is the unhappiness, the more would be the joy. Ah! This is the psychological connection between maximum squeezing means maximum desire, maximum thirsty, maximum hungry, maximum tired. That is the precondition. The more maximum is the, what is called, desire, intense desire. The fulfillment also is proportional.

Question 2: On Dharmic Actions and Attachment

Student A: Maharaj, another related question. Raga, we have seen before that from avidya comes asmita, ego. And from asmita arises raga and dvesha.

Maharaj: Yes.

Student A: And from them arise attachment.

Maharaj: Correct.

Student A: How is, if we are trying to satisfy the desires, even in the dharmic way, wouldn't that increase the attachment, Maharaj?

Maharaj: This point also, many times I have dealt with. When a person does dharmic action, that is following the instructions of the scriptures, how to fulfill and that is called karma yoga. What does it do?

First of all, it purifies the mind.

Secondly, it focuses the concentration, power of concentration increases.

Thirdly, the mind becomes expanded because such a person can identify easily with other such persons who are in the same condition. Yes. But this person is accumulating punyam and punyam produces spiritual desire. You see, punyam always leads to higher and higher goal. That is the result of following the scriptures.

Student A: Sure.

Maharaj: Yes. It is only the persons who neglect the instructions of the scriptures, they just become, they get the opposite result.