Dakshinamurti Stotram Part 31 on 04 April 2021

Full Transcript(Not Corrected)

OM JANANIM SHARDAM DEVIM RAMAKRISHNAM JAGAD GURUM PADAPADMETAYOR SRIDHVA PRANAMAMI MUHURMUHUHU OM YO BRAHMANAM VIDADHATI PURVAM YO VAI VEDAMSYA PRAHINOTI TASMAI TAMHA DEVAM ATMA BUDDHI PRAKASHAM MUMOKSHUR VAI SHARANAMAHAM PRAPADYE We have been discussing the 8th verse of the Dakshinamurthy Stotram which is one of the most profound verses. The essence of what we discussed was this entire universe that we are living in and interacting is a universe of plurality, multiplicity, bheda. We see everything as different from everything else. Every single object in this universe is different from every other single object in this universe. This is called duality and this duality leads to a consequence which very few of us realize. That consequence is called relationship. The whole universe is nothing but a world of relationships. Whether a person is happy or unhappy, positive or negative, progressing or stagnating or going down, all depends upon one's relationship. Spiritual life is nothing but to forge a spiritual relationship. That means we all are united in that central point which is called Brahman. At first we want to get rid of negative relationships. Adharma, practice of Adharma is nothing but getting rid of negative relationships. Then we develop positive relationships and as we progress we understand no relationship is necessary because the reality is one and no more. Advaitam Brahma. Thereafter, if the person in that knowledge gives up the body, that person has no problem. He will be forever merged in the supreme reality called Brahman. Brahma with Brahmaiva Bhavati. But in case, not out of his will but out of God's will, if that body-mind is preserved, who functions through that body-mind is God himself and not that previous personality called Jeevatma and he sees the whole universe as nothing but Brahman. In that perception of Brahman also, not that the person will not consider, will not see the duality. Like a person who understands what is a mirage, still perceives the mirage but doesn't fall under the delusion that it is a real water because he knows the truth and because of the truth he will not be affected by tiredness, running after it, desiring it and then finally suffering from it. Every Jeevan Mukta has this dual vision. From the vyavaharika point of view, body-mind duality, differentiation, manyness, everything is perceived, experienced and action and reaction follow it. But at the same time, he knows this is all one Brahman with Nama Rupa and as a result he enjoys every experience which we classify as either positive or negative. So the reason why in this eighth verse we are discussing all these classifications is to cognize the fact it's a world of relationships. Duality means a world of relationships and Shankaracharya divides all relationships into four categories karya and karana, cause and effect. We see in this world everything as cause and effect. Here is a girl or a boy and they are born, their effects of their parents. Parents are the cause, children are the effect but when these very children grow up and then again happen to, if they happen to marry and they become the cause and they produce children which are called effects. Here is wood and a carpenter transforms it to a furniture or clay into pots etc., gold into ornaments etc. So we say gold is the cause, wood is the cause, clay is the cause, the ornaments, the furniture or the pots etc. are the effects and then this is what is the relationship then for example between the carpenter and a table. He is the nimitta karana and it is an effect. Wood is the what we call the material cause, the carpenter is the intelligent cause, the planer, the hammer etc. is the instrumental cause. So cause and effect, cause and effect. A person passes medical science and he becomes a doctor. Study of the medical knowledge is the cause. He is becoming a doctor is the effect. So if he understands properly then he diagnoses the patients and helps him recover if everything goes alright and that is called karya karana. See anything whether the sun, the moon, the planets, the galaxies, living beings, non-living beings. Another example the Himalayas. The tectonic plates beneath the earth, beneath the ocean they clash and push up something when they come together and this is the result is the mountains and again when they drift apart slowly these things will come down. The severe low temperature in the arctic areas is the cause of freezing the oceans but when the atmosphere becomes heated and again all those ice caps, huge millions of square meters becomes melted again and raising the sea levels and destroying cities near them. So cause and effect, cause and effect. That is the first one. Then the second one is Swaswami. Ramana is superior to Shudra and a teacher is superior to the student. A prime minister is superior to all other workers etc. Swaswami sambandha. This is another type of duality resulting in another type of relationships. Then teacher and taught. Anybody can teach us and anybody who teaches us becomes the acharya and anybody who learns sincerely is called a student. Here also the relationship one of reverence, one of reception and parasparambhavayantaha. So that relationship makes a great deal of difference whether this teacher is able to teach, whether the student is able to grasp. Then of course we have got Pitru Putra. It means for parents, children, brothers and sisters and friends, relatives, families and then one's religion, one's language. What a relationship it forges. I have seen it. When two people who are not known to each other, as soon as they hear their mother tongue being talked, they leave everything and run towards each other. This relationship comes. Then if by chance they come to know they are initiated by the same guru, another relationship is forged creating dissensions and then conflicts in many other types of things. Comparing one guru to the other and the moment we start comparing our relationship with these different personalities also become very completely delineated. Look in whatever way you like in spiritual life, all these relationships from a sadhana point of view are divided into three. These are popularly known as Dvaita, Visishta Dvaita and Advaita. From our earlier discussions you can discuss this Dvaita or differentiation or classified by Vedanta into three categories. What is it? Vijatiya, the difference that exists between two different species. For example, mango tree and coconut tree. Sajatiya, two mango trees and one yields sour fruits, another eats very sweet fruits. So there is a difference between them. Nobody will mistake them. Even while buying we make all these differences. This is Alphonso, this is Malgova, this is Neelam, etc., etc. Then same Swagata Veda, within the same tree there are branches, flowers, blossoms, unripe fruits, ripe fruits, fruits at a lower level, fruits at a higher level. All these differentiations create different relationships. For example, if I see two fruits, one is unripe, another is ripe. Immediately without our conscious thinking we reach for the ripe fruit and that is how I like it, I love you and I do not like it, I do not love you. This is the type of relationship and depending upon the relationship the effect also will come there and that relationship produces bondage and spiritual life is to get rid of this Raga Dvesha mainly and to do that the only way is to get rid of the differentiation and finally when all the differentiations have been removed that supreme vision dawns upon each one of us, the reality is one and seeing difference is because of the delusion. So that is why so much of analysis is there. Yesterday we discussed waker, dreamer, sleeper relationship. Then we also are going to discuss a little bit more cause and effect and cause and effect are the resultant of time, space and causation. Cause is earlier, effect is later. A seed comes first and the seedling or plant or tree comes later on. So this is the sequence without much cognizance we are acting upon it like anything. Then master and servant, superior and inferior and then teacher and the taught and father, mother etc. This is the classification with which it will make it easy for us to understand this 8th verse. यह एशः पुरुषः मया परिभ्रामितः तस्मयि स्री गुरुमूर्तये नमयिदम् स्री दक्षिनामूर्तये He who is the supreme reality called Purusha whirled in Maya, sees the world in terms of cause and effect diversely related as possessor and possession, father and son, teacher and taught, both in the state of waking and dreaming. To him the divine teacher who removes all this duality and at one stroke destroys all the relationships the resultant of this duality to that supreme teacher Sri Dakshinamurthy who is manifesting in the form of my own teacher is this prostration again and again. So we are seeing yesterday विश्वं पश्चति, each one of us perceives, perceives means that is the highest truth. I am the son, I am the parent, I am the officer, I am a doctor, I am a lawyer, I am an enemy, I am an Indian, you are a Pakistani etc. etc. This is the division. So we have discussed in sufficient details and we saw that this division and plurality is everywhere, not only in human beings but in every living creature, in plants also. I'll just give one small example. In a forest where there is a very tall tree and then beneath it its own offspring from the its own seeds fall down and when these small seeds want to grow up, remember every seed is heliocentric, it wherever you plant it, it grows towards light but the parent tree doesn't allow it, not consciously perhaps but it is the greatest competitor. So some plants have developed what we call terrible cleverness, they become climbers and then they take the very tree which is opposing them as the support like zoodo and goes on growing and reaches the topmost and sometimes even smothers the tallest tree which dies because of the lack of sunlight. It's such a wonderful system and there are some things, they sponge upon, they are called parasites and they go on sitting there and sucking the very blood of a parent tree and then when that tree dies, they shift their allegiance to the nearby one. What I am trying to tell you, in every living species there is this Bheda differentiation, distinction and it is impossible. If we want to understand this particular shloka, what did we discuss so far? The world is nothing but a world of duality and where there is duality, there will be a relationship and different types of relationships we have discussed so far and seeing these relationships, forging these relationships whether it is positive or negative, both are causes of bondage. Our endeavour as a sadhaka, this particular Dakshinamurthy Stotram is to inculcate the knowledge that all duality is completely false. We must see only unity and oneness in everything that we see. The underlying reality, the platform, the background, the substratum which is categorically declared by every scripture as Brahman and just as a dry desert becomes the platform, a rope becomes the platform for deluding ourselves as a mirage or as a snake, Brahman is the substratum without which it is not possible. Once we perceive the substratum, the delusions might remain but they will not be able to affect us. Then a wonderful transformation comes and that is called seeing Brahman everywhere, in every way and enjoying Brahma Leela and that is what many great teachers tell us. Instead of merging completely in Brahman, the joy one gets by seeing Brahman and playing as part of the Brahman is much much more desirable. Advaitam Advaitadapi Sundaram Duality is much more enjoyable than even Advaita. To recap what we discussed, Waker-Dreamer-Sleeper relationship, Possessor-Possessed relationship which falls into four categories, Cause and Effect, Time-Space-Causality, Master and Servant, Superior-Inferior, Teacher and Taught, the tradition of passing the teaching from Para and Aura, from the superior to the lower, not inferior, to the lower, from the teacher to the taught and all the worldly relationships that we have including the relation, negative relationship called enmity etc. These are all delusions. Now why are we having these delusions? That is what we need to discuss now. Maya Pari Brahmitah As if Brahman has become powerless by its own power, as if the power of Brahman overpowers Brahman, as if, always keep that word as if and it makes Brahman think. Really can it make? No. Brahman himself wants to play with himself and this is how with his own Shakti, Prakrutim Swam Adhishtaya Sambhavami Atma Mayaya. This is the process. What is Maya? Where there is one, we perceive the many. Several examples are given. Shri Ram Krishna also gives an example. Let's imagine there is one sun and ten potfuls of water. How many suns are there? Eleven suns. One the sun in the sky, the real sun and ten reflections. Now we are talking all these realities nothing but the reflections. So he says, he gives this beautiful example. Supposing one pot is broken. How many suns are there? One real sun and nine reflections. Suppose nine pots are broken. How many suns are there? One real sun and one reflected sun. Supposing the last pot is also broken. How many suns now? And one so-called intelligent person, thought he was intelligent, he replied one sun is there. Immediately the axe came down from Shri Ram Krishna and said now. It is the reflected sun which says I am a reflected sun. I am one and the original sun is one. Different from me. I am the reflection. So I am not the original sun. Original and duplicate sun, two suns. The moment the mirror is broken, who is to say that there is or there was a reflection is there. Nobody should say, nobody can say because the sun doesn't calculate. It is the reflected suns which calculate all these things. What is that reflecting media? Our mind. What is the reflected sun? This is called Maya and that causes. So Maya Paribhramitah, overcome by Maya, as if Brahman, sees reality where there is only himself as one and then he goes on forging relationships and then he goes on suffering. But does this suffering go on and on and when will it come to an end? And that is where the Advaita Vedanta provides the answer and says, how long do you have dreams? Because if there is something curious psychology here. Every dream begins at a particular point of time and whatever begins at a particular point must come to an end. This is a universal law. That which is born must die or disappear at some point. But again Bhagavad Gita and other scriptures come to our aid. What is that aid? It is this, that even though the Swapna, in the Swapna, in the dream, that there is a beginning, we call it Janma, birth and death, but they are not really birth and death. As we in our ignorant state understand it, it is nothing but the unmanifested comes into being experienced, into manifestation and that which remains as experienced, some experienceable something, goes out of our capacity to experience it and that is what we call death. There is no birth, there is no death. It is a play of manifestation and non-manifestation. So this whole Swapna begins at a time. It's a manifestation of the waker. As we discussed yesterday, in the dream world, the one waker remaining constantly as a witness divides himself into three, as the witness, as the participator and the objective world, Swapna Loka and as soon as a Swapna ends, what does he realize? That was a dream. I am the only one. There were so many divisions there and I am the only one. There is no division at all. As soon as he comes out of that dream state, he understands that whatever happened in the dream has no effect whatsoever. He is the same undivided whole, unaffected by whatever happens during all the dream experiences. So also a sadhaka, when he comes to know, I am the highest reality and then he enjoys everything, positive, negative, just as we enjoy a drama or a cinema. That is the most important fact. So the whole universe consists of duality, means relationships and as cause and effect, as teacher and taught and as superior and inferior, as family relationships, as a friend or enemy and these are all, there is only one cause for all this and that is called Maya. How to get out of that Maya? Only by the grace of God which comes to us in the form of the grace of our own teacher. The entire teachers of everybody in this universe, past, present and future is presented as Dakshinamurthy. Dakshinamurthy is not a individual deity or individual teacher. He is the universal teacherhood who manifests in the form of every other teacher. That is why we say Karyakarana. Every day we sing, especially the devotees of Shri Ramakrishna. The entire essence of the eighth verse is put in this Sarvamangala Mangalya, especially in this second shloka, that means Guna Shreya Guna Mai. Divine mother is consisting of three gunas, Sattva, Rajas and Tamas and the duality is caused by the interplay between Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. All the differentiations is only because of these three qualities, Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. But the divine mother is, she is Guna Ashaya. She is the substratum, that means she is not affected. As Sri Ramakrishna so beautifully puts it, the poison in a poisonous snake's mouth doesn't affect the snake, so also the three gunas do not affect the divine mother. Sri Ramakrishna used to call Brahman as the my divine mother, so this divine mother is beyond all the three gunas and when only her grace descends, we are able to get out of this maya because maya is a statement of fact. A statement of fact is nothing but the interplay between Sattva, Rajas and Tamas and this getting out of this bondage is possible only by the divine mother's grace. Another meaning of the Guna, usually Guna means quality and the final gunas or qualities are Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. But another meaning of Guna is bondage. It is this bondage, this is sweeter and that is more beautiful, that is more enjoyable, that person is more friendly etc. etc. These are delusions caused because there is no enemy, there is no inferior quality. The divine mother alone is fully manifest as the Tamas, as the Rajas and as Sattva in different proportions according to the need as a Chichakthi Leela, this divine mother's sport. Once we understand it and we can only understand it only through the grace of the divine mother which comes in the form of the teaching of our own Guru. If we have reverence for our Guru, it is possible only to get rid of that maya. Ultimately the Guru's grace, God's grace, divine mother's grace, there is no difference, they are one and the same. This is what is the essence. Vishwam Pashyati Karya Karanataya, Saswami Sambandataha, Shishya Acharyataya, Tatha Eva Pitru Putraadhyatmana, Bhedataha, Swapne Jagrativa. Either in waking state or in dream state, only this differentiation. There is no differentiation in the third state called deep sleep or Sushupti state. What happens? Esha Purushaha, this Paramatma caught in the net of the three gunas and the three gunas is called Maya. Maya Paribhramita, being whirled round and round in this Brahma Chakra by the power of Maya which is the power of Brahman. But there is a way out. Tasmai Sri Gurumurthaye, Namaidham Sri Dakshinamurthaye. Only by the grace. Categorically this Dakshinamurthi Stotram tells us the grace of God is the only way. There is no other way. I'll just touch upon one simple very important point of all these relationships. Karya Karana, cause and effect relationship is the most important one. But it is very difficult to understand that no one single cause creates an effect. Take simple example. Then I will give another example. You take a seed and put it in the soil and then a plant seedling or plant comes out. Immediately we jump to the conclusion that the seed is the cause of this plant. Forgetting the seed is the main cause. But if the seed doesn't come into touch with the soil, soil is one cause. Right season is another cause. Right amount of sunlight is another cause. Right amount of cold or heat is another cause. Right type of water is another cause. Right type of enrichment or fertilizer of the soil is another cause. And absence of enemies like pests or animals is another cause. When all these subsidiary causes come, then alone it is possible for the seed to become a plant. Forgetting all these subsidiary causes, we simply home in on that one seed. This is one example to understand what is about to come. In Chandogya Upanishad, there's a beautiful illustration is there. And this has come to us in the form of one Upasana. It is called Panchagni Vidya or every Jeeva passes through five fires and then only he is born as a male as a female child. We simply we say this child is born out of the parents. But we do not understand if these parents do not eat food, then that child cannot be born. He is the Anna Rasa Mayaha, the essence of the food. Food comes from the earth and earth is made possible to become fertile only because of the water. The water is made possible only because of the sunlight. The sunlight is made possible because of the Akasha or clouds and it is made possible only because of certain very harmonious combinations. These are called Panchagni. There are many causes but five in the form of cloud, then rain, then food, then parents, then the husband and wife and only the wife who becomes the mother is the Panchagni or last Agni. So who is the cause of the Jeevatma? Is it only the mother? No, it is father. Is it only the father? No, it is the food. And is it only food? No, it is the Prithvi. Is it only the earth? No, it is the water. And is the water comes from where? From the, in the form of rain. The rain comes in what form? Form of the cloud and the cloud is formed because of the the effect of the sun. So many causes are there. Similarly, what is the point? We are going to discuss it in the ninth verse but I am going to give you a hint. What is it? So what is the cause of the Jeeva? Food. What is the cause of the food? Earth. What is the cause of the earth? Water. What is the cause of the water? Fire. What is the cause of the fire? Air. What is the cause of the air? Akasha. What is the cause of Akasha? Atma. That means what? We have all come from where? From Atman. And if Atman is the real cause, then what are we? Because remember that universal law, the effect is nothing but the cause in a slightly different combination. That's all. So that means we are all coming from, entire universe is coming from only what? From Atman himself and that beautiful truth, universal truth, we are not coming from parents. We are coming from Paramatma. A puppy is not coming from a dog. It is coming from Paramatma because this is the Samya, similarity. Whether it is a human baby, a puppy or a small fish or a microbe, whatever it is, finally they are made up of what? Panchabhutas. The Panchabhutas come from where? Atman and that is why the whole universe is nothing but a combination of Panchabhutas and we are part of the universe. We are also cause of the Panchabhutas and the Panchabhutas are nothing but manifestations of the Atman and so all differentiations will cease and there is a beautiful thought and I will also put it here before we go to the next verse. Supposing all the things that are born of this earth, if they have to be united, they will be united in a subtler higher level only if we identify them with the water and if all the waters are traced to their cause which is fire, then the unity becomes much more closer and all the fire will be merged in air. Then the differentiation is much less and then all the air is merged in Akasha. The differentiation is practically indivisible. Just look at it. There are not two fires, there are not two waters, there are not two earths. As earth, it is one and universal. As water, one and universal. As fire, it is one and universal. As air, can you think of air? Can you divide it? This is small air, this is big air, this is mother air, this is father air and this is grandfather's air. Air is one. The subtler level we go, every creature living, non-living, everything becomes completely merged and the highest of that merging is called Akasha and this Akasha is inert thing, material thing, belongs to Prakruti, apparently, seemingly, not really. But to understand the truth, we go to the only one cause which is causeless cause, that is Atma or Paramatma and in Paramatma, it is Akhanda, Nitya, Eka, Advaiteya. In that description, there is no Prapancha, there is no Nama, then no name, no form, no utility, no low, no high, no cause and effect, everything is transcended in that Paramatma. This entire eighth verse is devoted only when out of His grace, the God comes in the form of a teacher and says, if you realize that the duality first of all is a complete falsity, the duality is caused by Maya and Maya is nothing but manifesting in the form of Panchabhutas and if you understand, if you go beyond the Panchabhutas, five elements, then what remains is the indescribable Paramatma. This is another angle of viewing, all the differentiations. The important point is as we merge, the gross into the subtle, the differentiation, a lot of differentiation becomes less and that subtle is merged in its cause which is still subtler, then the differentiation becomes much less, much more pervading, much subtler and much more harmonious and in Paramatma, Brahman, all the differentiations completely become merged even at the level of air or Akasha. That's why Akasha Dhyana is taken for meditation because it is the nearest to the Atman. It is the nearest manifestation of the Atman and it is nearest in similarities to the Atman. That's why Akasha Dhyana is very much advocated. Akasha is infinite, Akasha is completely unattached, Akasha is indivisible and Akasha doesn't undergo any type of change. If we can understand Akasha in this manner, it would be a little more help in understanding the Paramatman and why am I talking about all these things? Because how to get the grace of God? Without the grace of God, this division, this Veda, this Maya, Maya means Veda. Swami Vivekananda gives the most marvelous definition of Maya. Maya is a statement of fact. What is a statement of fact? We see each other as completely different from each other, experience, forge relationships, positive or negative or neutral and go on experiencing pain or pleasure or a neutral state. This is Maya. But there is existential suffering which we can never get rid of it through any one of these things, only by the grace of God. And how does the grace of God come? By meditating upon God, by contemplating upon God, by praying to God, by modifying our behavior as if what we are seeing is nothing but God. How is this to be achieved? Well, here is one of the most marvelous Upasanas that is maintained in the ninth verse and one more point that there are two types of creations. One is called Ishwara Srishti, another is called Jeeva Srishti. The five elements which are the basic cause of the entire universe including the living and non-living is called Ishwara Srishti, creation of God or God manifesting through Maya in the form of five elements and Jeeva Srishti means when we interact with this Ishwara Srishti because of the layers of our own mentality, we see the same Ishwara Srishti in myriad forms. So what is the point? These are called technically, there are two names for this. This is called Srishti Drishti Vada and Drishti Srishti Vada. A theory that God has Ishwara Srishti, God created everything. Remember creation means manifesting not like a potter separately creating something called pot which is totally different from him. It is more like the milk trying to transform itself into curds or even better the rope trying to appear because of the semi-darkness as snake. It is called Vivartavada. But each one of us as I mentioned in the Bhagavad Gita class, we are the Brahmans, we create our own world, we live in our own world, a child's world for example, a youth's world, old person's world, man's world, woman's world, rich person's world, poor person's world, guru's world, sishya's world, everything is totally different from each other. There is some similarity is there for practical purposes but for every living purpose we are living in our own world, perceive things in our own peculiar what is called dimmed visions and then we act and react and that is caused by maya and maya means sattva, rajas and tamas. The only way is to get out of it or to put it in simple words to discard the drishti srishti vada, to discard, to get out of jiva srishti and enter into Ishwara srishti, srishti drishti vada as it is that is the spiritual sadhana. In other words this Ishwara is only manifesting in the form of the entire universe that is called Ishwara srishti vada and to see that Ishwara whatever experience we have through our five sense organs that is called living in Ishwara srishti and not in jiva srishti and to do that we will have to contemplate God and which is coming in a very beautiful way which we are going to study in the ninth verse and until we do that Let me summarize the eighth verse. Maya is duality, duality is relationships, reality is one ekam eva dvitiyam. Maya, reality, relationships. This has to be overcome and what is the way? Realization of reality and that knowledge that everything is one there is no difference. Sarvam khalvidam brahma is available only through God's Dakshinamurthy's Guru's grace. This is the essence of the eighth verse in Dakshinamurthy's stotram. svasvami sambandhata shishya acharyataya tathaiva pitru putra dhyatmana bhedataha swapne jagrativa yah esha purusho maya paribhramitaha tasmai sri gurumurthaye namah itam sri dakshinamurthaye He who is the purusha whirling in maya sees the world in terms of cause and effect diversely related as possessor and possession father and son teacher and taught both in the state of waking and dream but which can be broken by the grace of God to him that divine teacher manifesting in the form of my own Guru to that universal teacher Dakshinamurthy I am prostrating I am begging him please give me that knowledge. Now I'll give a short introduction to this ninth verse which is practically the last verse there. Dakshinamurthy it is called Ashtakam. Ashtakam means consisting of eight verses but even though it is there Shankaracharya seems to have added or we are not 100% sure somebody someone another Shankaracharya in his parampara might have added this but it is not really bad thing it is one of the most wonderful things how to get out of maya by the grace of God how to obtain God's grace through bhakti how to get bhakti through upasana or contemplation of Ishwara this is the essence of this ninth verse we have to do sadhana in the form of upasana. Upasana the word is very beautiful upa means near asana means the effort to come nearer and nearer until we become one with what we contemplate upon in other words to become Brahman and every Jignasu every aspiring spiritual person helps this Bhagawan or Guru helps to consume the ego leaving the Atman in all its glory what does Guru do he reduces the ahankara he reduces the differentiation because what what constructs the difference ahankara that's why ahankara is called maya Ramakrishna says you take a stick and put it in a stream immediately the stream appears to be left side of the stream right side of the stream this side of the stream that side of the stream etc or if you wish suppose there is a bridge this side of the bridge that side of the bridge etc we say so one may ask what is the advantage of knowing the truth about the Atman because truth is it know the truth and the truth will make you free by knowing truth ignorance is cast away Sureshwaracharya about whom i mentioned in the first class who wrote a beautiful commentary called Manaso Lasa in about 142 verses or so this Sureshwaracharya introduces this ninth verse of the Dakshinamurthy Stotram with a preface like this somebody might ask the Guruji how can this kind of maya that manifests in the form of relationships and differentiations be destroyed forever and Sureshwara says the way to do that what is it and that is praised very much it is to meditate upon Ishwara and this how to meditate on Ishwara is explained in the ninth verse of the Dakshinamurthy Stotram Maya was described in the earlier verses in a greater detail in the form of Jagrat Swapna and Sushupti it is shown that all our understanding of ourselves and of the world is an illusion in the same way we need the help of Shastra and especially of Acharya to destroy this Maya and to gain the knowledge from the scripture only with the help of the teacher this is called Sampradaya and to own up that knowledge that means everything is Brahman we need the grace of Ishwara here comes the role of Upasana to know the reality which is none other than Brahman we have to neutralize Ahamkara what is the problem Ahamkara what creates the difference Ahamkara Ahamkara Prahlada's story Hiranyakashipu's Ahamkara makes it him different from Narayana and as if Narayana is hidden by his Ahamkara as soon as that pillar which is which symbolizes the Ahamkara of Hiranyakashipu is destroyed by the grace of God in the form of Acharya who is the Acharya Prahlada was the Acharya in the case of Hiranyakashipu and then immediately he realizes I am that God this Ugranara Simha Moti coming out and swallowing Hiranyakashipu is to destroy the ego and making that Jeeva Bhava is completely removed and then Hiranyakashipu knows that I am Brahman this is the inner symbolism worship or meditation upon God requires an altar of Ishwara this ninth verse presents us with an altar which is closest to and the best representative of the supreme reality the Brahman the verse goes like this and this is for Upasana not only that this is the highest knowledge every Jeevan Muktha sees everything as Brahman everything is divided into what we call is seven categories the whole universe is divided into seven categories which are finally classified as five categories Panchabhutas what a beautiful shloka the divine teacher Sri Dakshinamurthy and we have to understand who is manifesting in the form of our own teacher is this frustration what a beautiful thing we are talking about Panchabhutas the whole universe is what in the 13th chapter Prakruti and Purusha and whatever is born is nothing but a combination of Prakruti and Purusha that is what we are going to discuss very soon in our next Bhagavad Gita class after a few minutes but here this so much of relationship is there between Dakshinamurthy Stotram especially this particular verse and the end of the 13th chapter of the Bhagavad Gita Bhumi first is Bhu we know five elements the whole universe is consisting of five elements what is the process to manifestation Bhumi Bhu Ambasi Ambaha means water then water Prithvi and Jala this is Jala Analaha Analaha Na Alam that means sufficient if you go on pouring petrol into fire and instead of putting it out you only increase it the more fire burns the more it wants food it is never satisfied so Alam it is enough a fire never says it is enough that is why it is called Na Alaha Analaha then the air is called Anilaha Nila means Nilaya Nilaya means a particular place where it can reside the air is everywhere and everywhere is its residing place so that element which doesn't have any particular place that means it is pervading everywhere that is called Anilaha so do not get confused between Analaha and Anilaha Analaha means never satisfied I want more and more to burn Anilaha means that which doesn't have a special place of residence that means it is everywhere how many we have discussed now then four then Ambara Ambara means Akasha that's why Digambara Nilambara Pitambara Krishna is called what Pitambara that means yellow cloth is there and Digambara means what the whole nature is his cloth to cover all the four directions so Bhumi then Ambasi water Jala then Analaha Agni or Tejas then Anilaha Vayu then Ambaraha Akasha five elements we have discussed then Aharnadaha a manifestation of a special manifestation which makes life possible which makes death also possible remember that sun and moon are the manifestations through which life and death play is going on both are going on Aharnadaha means the master and Ahaha means daylight so the one who is the master of the day who makes the day who makes every creature active because of the light that he throws he in other words the sun and then what is the next one moon what is moon it is said that for life not only the sun is necessary the moon is also very necessary in fact all the Voshadis become very effective only because of the moon and in the 15th chapter of the Bhagavad Gita specially he says the moon strengthens gives so much of nutrition to every Voshadi in the form of eye if there is a tremendous sweet Rasa in the sweetest mango that is not only because of the sun because of the especially moon the Rasa is produced because of the moon only the mango is grown because of the sun only Aharnadaha Himaangshu Angshu means rise Hima means cool so moonlight always cools the sunlight gives us relief that's why it's called Himaangshu these are the seven five elements the sun and the moon belongs to the Prakruti and what is the Purusha Puman means Purushaha Iti Abhati Characharatmakam Idam Charachara moving unmoving Idam this entire Jagat Yasyayivam Murthyashtakam these are the eight fold five of the elements the sun the moon seven plus that pure consciousness reflecting as Jeevatma or Siddhavasa these eight elements that divine Brahman is manifesting in this world in the form of the eight elements Prakruti and Purusha Nanyat Kinchana Vidyate Vimrushitam those who are intelligent capable of discriminating besides this Brahman nothing else exists at all Asmat Parasmat besides that supreme reality Na Anyat Kinchana Vidyate that means only Brahman in the form of these eight elements is sporting in the form of this Jagat is a combination of Purusha and Prakruti and if we can realize it that is called Brahma Leela and this knowledge that what I am experiencing through my sense organs through my five sense organs and plus the mind is nothing but that Brahman in the form of the Jeevatma plus the seven fold elements and that knowledge comes only by the grace of divine Lord in the form of our own Guru Asmai Sri Gurumurthy Namai Damsri Dakshinamurthy He whose eightfold forms are the earth, water, fire, air, ether, sun, moon and the Jeeva and who manifests himself as this universe consisting of both the movable immovable objects and besides which the supreme all-pervading Lord there exists nothing to those who reflect well to him who gives this knowledge that this universe is nothing but Brahman what we are experiencing is nothing but God this is called seeing God everything and this is what is expressed in the first mantra of Isavasya Upanishad to that divine teacher Sri Dakshinamurthy is this presentation we will conclude with a little elaboration and then the 10th shloka is called Phalashruti what results will come by the continuous recitation of this Dakshinamurthy Stotram with Bhakti and Shraddha we will conclude on our Thursday class Om Jananim Sharadam Devim Ramakrishnam Jagat Gurum Pahad Padme Tayo Shritva Pranamami Muhur Muhur May Sri Ramakrishna, Holy Mother and Swami Vivekananda bless us all with Bhakti