Patanjali Yoga Sutras Lecture 085

Full Transcript(Not Corrected)

Om Sahanaavavatu Sahanaubhunaktu Saaveeryam Karavavahai Tejasvinavaditamastumavidvishavahai Om Shanti Shanti Shanti Hari Om Om Yogena Chittasya Padena Vacham Malam Sharirasya Javaidhyakeena Yopakarottam Pravaram Muninam Patanjalim Praanjali Rana Tosmi I bow to the eminent sage Patanjali who removed the impurities of the mind through yoga, of speech through grammar and of the body through medicine. In our last class we have been talking about Parinamas. Parinama means change and of these changes we briefly introduced three types of changes. What are they? Nirodha Parinama, Samadhi Parinama and Ekagrata Parinama. Now before we enter into these very important subjects, we also talked about our sadhana or spiritual practice starts with discrimination, the practice of viveka, discrimination. Now there are four stages of discrimination Sukha, Dukha, Viveka. The discrimination between what leads us to happiness and what leads us to unhappiness. Second stage is accordingly what are those actions which lead us to happy results and which lead us to suffering. This is called Karya, Akarya, Viveka Sukha, Dukha, Viveka, Karya, Akarya, Viveka. Third stage is the discrimination between Nitya and Anitya in the sense what is very temporary and what is permanent. Simple example would be supposing you go on a work to some other city or town or visit India. Now you know that's not your place. You make plans accordingly but when we come back then we say oh this is my home and we make long-term changes in this place whichever we consider to be our own. Every time we have this experience what is permanent and what is temporary and yet the power of Maya is such that we take the temporary as permanent. This is one of the characteristics of Maya. To mistake Dukha or unhappiness as Sukha, to mistake untruth as truth, to mistake that which is temporary as permanent, these are the characteristics of the Maya. Now what is the third stage Nitya, Anitya, Viveka. The fourth stage is called what is real, what is unreal, Vastu, Avastu or Sat and Asat. Let us keep this in mind. What are we talking about? Changes. Once what happened? The Maharaja of Khetri asked Swamiji, Swamiji what is life? By the way do we ever stop and ask ourselves what is life? As though we know what is life and we just make plans and go about it. We never ask. Swami Vivekananda's beautiful reply said, Swamiji what is life? The answer is life is the unfoldment of a being under circumstances tending to press it down. There is something within us which wants to manifest and there is something outside which is trying to press us down. In other words, there is a constant battle between Maya and Atma. In Sankhya language, Yoga language, it is a constant struggle between Purusha and Prakruti. Swamiji said, very important thing, life never keeps quiet. You may think after I retire, I will be leading a very peaceful life, it is not going to happen. So before you retire, you will be suffering from problems of Danti. After retirement, you will be suffering from problems of Vedanta. Danta means teeth, Vedanta means no teeth. But what is the important point is life never stops. It is a constant state of flux. Prakruti is a constant state of change, flux. That is why a Buddhist used to say that no man steps into the same river twice. Can you understand that? He says, every day I take bath in the same Ganges, no, even one millisecond it appears to be the same but the water is constantly changing. We all understand that but do we understand that the banks are also changing, the trees are also changing, all the animals in the river are also changing, our body and mind are also constantly changing but we don't take notice of it. So this constant change is taking place. This is the first point. It is not only change, it is also changelessness is going on all the time. In between the changes, there is a changelessness is there. So I also spoke about these changes, two types of changes, not only states of change, types of change. What are the types of change? Changes that lead us until Sampragnata Samadhi and changes that take place after attaining Sampragnata Samadhi. We briefly had already discussed this point. Ramakrishna had attained Sampragnata Samadhi. What is that? He was able to see, behold constantly the idea of the Divine Mother in his mind. Only one vritti, no more vritti but that is a vritti, that is a mental modification. So later on the change has to take place. What is that? Even that modification has to be totally removed and how does one remove that? By bringing, that is called Vyutthana. This idea, this is my mother, is called the rising thought. No this is not the highest truth, that is another thought which had to come. So Totapuri said remove all thoughts from your mind. He said I could remove every thought excepting the thought of the Divine Mother. Totapuri got very angry and said you have to remove that thought also. What is the point here? The thought of Divine Mother constantly staying is called Vyutthana, a rising thought. But there should be an opposite thought to completely remove it. Then naturally the question that comes is the thought which prevents the last thought is also the last thought. The thought which removes the thought before, that last thought is also a thought. What happens then? Another thought is necessary to remove that thought, at infinitum it goes on. No, the last thought, like Sri Ramakrishna says, if one thorn enters into your foot. It is a beautiful saying, not one thorn, you make one million thorns enter into our foot. Then take one thorn and remove with itself all the thorns until only one thorn remains in the foot. What do you do? Remove that and then what do you do? Throw away that last thorn also. But the point here is who throws away that last thorn? That is the Divine Mother's work. So what did Totapuri do? This thought of the Divine Mother is an obstacle. It is not an obstacle for us, it is an obstacle just before reaching the highest state. So that has to be God. You know what was the stratagem he adopted? He took a sharp piece of glass, pressed it in the forehead, said you meditate, fix your mind upon this pain. So what happens? There is a clash between these two thoughts. One is a vritti, I used, it's a better word, vritti of joy, another is a vritti of pain and they cancelled each other and his mind became free. How did it become free? Shri Ramakrishna's human language, you know, you can't avoid this human language, the dichotomy. He says I took the sword of discrimination and cut the form of the Divine Mother into two. Okay, what did you do with that sword? I took another sword and cut that sword, that's what we are talking about. No, as soon as that form disappears, the sword also magically disappears and then the mind becomes free. What it means? Mind becomes free means mind becomes absolutely absent, that is called the state of nirodha. So the first sutra, Apatanyoga Sutra says yogaha atha yoga anushasanam, now I am going to expound what is yoga. The second sutra tells us yogaha chitta vritti nirodhaha. Now he has used a beautiful word, nirodha means what? Absolutely there would be no modification at all in the mind, in prakriti. Now before leading that state, we have to recollect what we had discussed earlier. At any given time, our mind can be in any one of the states. Before explaining that, let us remind again the body and mind are made up of what? Prakriti. Prakriti is constituted of what? Three gunas, sattva, rajas and tamas. So the mind also is made up of the three gunas, sattva, rajas and tamas. Basically these gunas are always changing, the very nature of the gunas is one dominates, the other comes. For example, simple example is when we are in the waking state, alert, fully alert, which guna is there? Prajoguna. When we are in a very meditative mode, very sitting quietly, in which guna is dominating? Sattva guna. And when we are falling asleep, which guna? Tamoguna. Let us keep this picture in mind, sattva, rajas and tamas. At any given time, our mind, because it is constituted of the prakriti, means constituted of the three gunas, at any time it would be in five states. What are they? Kshipta, mudha, vikshipta, ekagra, nirodha. Remember this, kshipta, mudha, vikshipta, ekagra and nirodha. What is the definition of yoga? Yogaha, chitta, vritti, nirodhaha. That nirodha, that last stage, what is that nirodha state? The mind becomes absolutely still and is a still mind, still is it a mind? A still mind, is it still a mind? No. That's what Sri Ramakrishna tells beautifully, a pure mind. So a discussion came that whether mind can ever understand the atma. Can anybody have darshan of the atma? Sri Ramakrishna says yes, a pure mind and pure atman are one and the same. That is what that pure mind, what Sri Ramakrishna called pure mind is what Patanjali is calling the state of nirodha and that is called yoga and that should be our goal. But what happens, our mind as I said is constantly in a state of change, flux. Another point we have to keep in mind is given a free hand to nature, these changes that appear, all the changes gradually, they are all taking us towards God only. But we can hasten the process. So these changes are always taking one to God only. This is called evolution, that process is called evolution. But if we can apply a scientific method which is called yoga, yoga doesn't mean only Patanjali yoga, it could be karma yoga, it could be bhakti yoga, it could be of course raja yoga, it could be also jnana yoga, usually a combination of these four yogas. That is how we progress. Swamiji also made clear this last point, what is the point, nature, prakriti is gradually taking us from a lower stage to a higher stage and it won't stop until the soul knows that I am different from the body and mind. It will happen in its own time. But if we want it sooner, then we can adopt some of these yogic practices, any yoga and then go forward. This was the great truth, Swami Vivekananda put it so beautifully, it is so important. Man is not travelling from falsehood to truth, from untruth to truth. Man is not travelling from untruth to truth, he is travelling from truth to truth, from a lower truth to a higher truth, gradual manifestation. What a beautiful statement, each soul is potentially divine. What it means is, if our nature is divine, there is no way you can be anything else other than divine. Even now we are divine, but the manifestation is very, very small. What if we can consciously, systematically and scientifically can adopt a method, then we can hasten this process, that is what we are talking about. Another way of putting this progress from the yogic point of view is from tamas to rajas, from rajas to sattva. Another way of doing it from the bhakti yoga point of view, Bhagavad Gita points out, there are four stages of spiritual progress according to the path of devotion, Artha to Artharthi to Jignasu to Jnani, Chaturvidha, Bhajante Maam, Janaha Sukruthino Arjuna, Artho Jignasur Artharthi Jnani cha Bharatar Shabha, beautiful. But what he is telling is, even a devotee in distress is also a devotee. A devotee in want is also a devotee, but a higher stage. A devotee who wants to know, what shall I do with life, he is also a devotee, but in a much higher state. And a devotee who knows, he is of course a true devotee. That's why Jnani itu atmaiva me matam, a Jnani is none other than my own self. Important point to remember is, our mind evolves from a tamasic state to a sattvic state. How does it happen? Here is kshipta, mudha, vikshipta, ekagra, nirudha. It is slightly a different arrangement. It is mudha, kshipta, vikshipta, ekagra and nirudha. Now what is the first stage? Mudha. Mudha means what? Tamas. Very dull, sleepy, unawakened. That is sometimes our normal state. Not always, sometimes. When we become a little alert, what does it become? Becomes very scattered. Kshipta, mudha means what? Absolutely dull, doesn't think, doesn't know what's happening, doesn't want to know what is happening, absolutely dull. But when the mind evolves a little, means this is tamasic state, then rajas enters. The moment rajas, it agitates. The moment it agitates, we become restless, but alert, restless but alert. This a little bit of rajas, rajas overpowered tamas. Then vikshipta, what is vikshipta? Occasionally the mind becomes focused, concentrated. You know it happens to all of us, not that all the time we are restless. You will notice, if you notice, you will not fail to notice that sometimes our mind it becomes completely concentrated. Many times it becomes concentrated, but in a passive way. People complain, I don't have the power of concentration or you ask me to read this book and I feel restless. I will give you a few examples. First of all, suppose you are walking in the street and suddenly there is a terrible accident, two vehicles collide, as an example, and you are witnessing it. For few seconds, do you know what state your mind will be? You will be absolutely focused on that event, time, space, everything is forgotten. Have you noticed it? This is one example. Another example is, supposing you are watching a very, very lovely film. A lovely means what? You don't feel like stopping watching. Go on watching. Do you have concentration or not at that time? You are reading a book, very interesting book. It is called Paget or not. What is this? This is called passive concentration. I spoke in our last class, passive concentration. That means concentration is there, but it is not coming from our side. It is something is pulling us. We are not in charge. Something else is in charge. Other word for this is called attachment. That's why attachment is bad. Attachment is bad because it masters us. Whenever we are attached to something, what is the problem with it? Is there a problem with attachment? Yes. What is the problem? The attachment becomes our master and it rules us and it doesn't allow us. We can have tremendous amount of concentration in a negative way. That's why millions of people go on watching some violent movies, beautiful movies, etc. Two hours, three hours. What is our definition of meditation? Do you know? 144 seconds. Do you remember? 12 seconds of focus is called dharana. 12 into 12 seconds, how many? 144 is called dhyana. 144 into 12 is called samadhi. And here is a man, three hours he is totally absorbed. And why is he not enlightened? He is not enlightened because he is not the master. What is enlightened? You know, if you sit in front of the TV, what is enlightened? The TV is enlightened, you are sitting in darkness. That's what happens. This is called passive control. That is the nature of attachment. What is detachment? Detachment is an active type of attachment. You should not understand it in the wrong way. I don't care for anything. That is not detachment. That is indifference. What is detachment? I am the master. When I want, I am attached. When I want, I will be detached. Detachment is not a negative concept. It is a most positive, active content. I am the master of what happens here. See Ramakrishna, he can at will attach himself or detach himself. He can do anything he wants. He is talking, he is expressing his love to his devotees in 150 ways. Holy Mother, that's probably even a more telling example than even Sri Ramakrishna. It is difficult to understand Sri Ramakrishna. You know how much Holy Mother loved Radhu? So difficult, people thought, even Sharath Maharaj thought, how could Holy Mother live without Radhu? In fact, he was right in another way. You know what is it? Without Radhu, her mind will not be here. As soon as she said, I have withdrawn my mind and then Radhu was sent away, her child has been sent away and Holy Mother left the body because there was no attachment. But what is that? That was, she was the master because she actively said, I am going to attach myself to this and that is what a yogi needs to do it all the time. That's why practice detachment in the beginning. Afterwards, when you are a master, you can, this is what Sri Ramakrishna says, first you realize God, afterwards you can do samsara. Why? Because you will be the master, you won't be caught. But before realization of God, if you do that, then you will be caught. So what is the point here? Kshita means what? The mind becomes extremely restless. What is the nature of mudha, first stage? There is neither attachment nor detachment. But in the stage of Kshita, it is terribly scattered, momentary, it is, the third stage is called Vikshita. Vikshita means not too much of scattering, Vikshita means occasionally the mind gets concentrated and this concentration is of two types, just now we discussed. What is it? Passive and active. A yogi's goal is to make it active and not passive. What is the fourth stage? Ekagrata, the mind becomes absolutely concentrated, much of the time, but there is still a small weight can be there. But in the last stage, the stage of Nirodha, that weight has been totally cut off, then he becomes a free person. That is what we have been talking about. From the Jnani's point of view, how does this evolution take place? Here are four steps, the first he says, I am the body with a mind, lowest stage, what is it? I am the body with a mind, what is the second stage? I am the mind with a body, what is the third stage? I have a body and mind, see I am the body, I am the mind, these are the two stages, what is the third stage? There is a body, there is a mind, but I am not the body-mind, but I have a body and mind, what is the last stage? I am neither the body nor the mind. This is so beautifully, that in that Nirvana Shatakam, if you remember, six stanzas, Mano Budhya Hankara Chitta Aninaham, I am neither the mind nor the body and in six stanzas, Swami is his favourite, you know, he translated himself this one. Let me give you a beautiful example, Swami Ashokananda was telling about Poornachandragosh, whenever people asked, he used to say, I am only aware of my head, below the head I am not at all aware of anything, what is it? Can you imagine a person who is not conscious of anything below the head excepting the head, what a high stage he used to be there, Poornachandragosh, he is always, he used to be in a state of yoga. Do you think, Shri Ramakrishna just issued a statement saying, he is the last of my antarangas, inner circle, with the coming of Poorna, my inner circle had become Poorna and he did not mention the eleven other direct disciples, only five, six antarangas, remember, including Poornachandragosh, the other five disciples, how many disciples Shri Ramakrishna had? Sixteen minus five, how many? Eleven, he did not speak, even though Sharath Maharaj, Ramakrishnanandaji, Swami Thuriyananda, what a great soul he was, he did not say, he said Poornachandragosh. If being a householder, what householder, he was only aware of his head. Now Swami Ashokananda also adds something very, very interesting, if a man constantly feels I am the head, what do you think he feels about the others? You know there is an important law, that law is how we identify ourselves, we also identify others also with the same thing. So if I think I am the body, I think everything else is a body. If I think I am the mind, then everybody else is without a body. But because we are never out of this body consciousness, we never have. That is why it is said about some people that they have out of body experiences or near death experiences, NDE or out of body experiences, OBE. These people when they have such a deep experience, their whole life becomes changed ever after because they know that I am something which is not the body-mind. If those people have that experience, how do they look upon other people? We can judge people only according to what we judge ourselves to be. If I am a body, you are also a body. If I am a mind, you are a body. If I am the Atman, you are the Atman. This is how the process takes place. Coming back, whole Prakruti is changing all the time, both body and mind and body undergoes how many changes? According to Vedanta, body undergoes how many changes? Six changes. You know that? Asti, Jayate, Vardhate, Viparinamate, Apakshiyate, Vinashyate. That is to say existence, birth, growth, change, decay and death. So this is well known. We have to remember ourselves. Constantly we are changing. Can you give me, can you answer me that no, for one minute nothing changes. There is something called, for one minute nothing changes, constantly it is changing. But there is something very, very important to know. Every change that occurs is cognized. What are we saying? This is changing. To say this is changing, there must be something which doesn't change. That is called pure consciousness. Not conscience, consciousness, conscience means that which feels good or bad, conscience. Consciousness awareness. What is important for us, before we go back to the next sutra is, whatever knowledge we have, whatever cognitions we have, whatever thoughts, images, emotions etc. we have, they are all in the form of, in the Sanskrit name is vritti, vritti means modification. The mind as it were becomes modified. Whatever be it, whether it is cognition, whether it is emotion, whether it is reaction, everything is a modification. So what do you say? Modifications, changes. You can't use the word change because change means single and there is no such thing called singleness of change, then there will be nobody to witness it. What happened previously, it was like this, now it is like this. What is the point here, every experience in the form of change, in the cognition of change will be in the form of thoughts, mental modification, vritti. What is important here, whenever we talk of two vrittis, we talk of two things, that was the previous thought, this is the present thought. What was the previous thought, this is the present thought. You can't say this is my future thought because if you simply say this is future thought, your present thought has already gone. So will that be future thought or present thought? If you are thinking about the future, are you in the present or in the future? If you are thinking of tomorrow, are you thinking of now or are you thinking of tomorrow? If tomorrow, you think tomorrow but tomorrow will not be tomorrow when tomorrow comes, it becomes present, vartamana, it will happen. So what is the point here, you cannot talk about the past also in that same sense because if you are bringing, it is a present thought about the past. The point here is to know that was my previous thought, this is my present thought. So one thought ended, another thought started, there are two points here. In between these two, there is a very fine time when there was no thought and that is called nirodha. Another name in this yogic language for that in between two thoughts is called nirodha. I am making the foundation for the next sutra because it is so difficult to understand. The second point is there must be something to connect the past with the present. Simple example is here, you can see, here are some papers, here are some papers, isn't it? What do you say, on this side there are some papers, on this side there are some papers but can you understand this concept unless there is a background which holds both. You are sitting there, two people, left, right, the moment you are in the left, right, there is another background concept is there, what is that concept? Space, unconsciously but supposing there is nobody excepting only one of you, nothing excepting you, you will not be conscious of this space, I am telling a finer point, you will not be, I am alone here, only when there is something, this person is behind me, in front of me, left of me, right of me, above me, below me but all these involve one concept, that concept is called space, what is the point? The point is a thought before and a thought afterwards, what is sustaining, what is the background which is cognizing that was the past thought and this is the present thought, what is that? That is called pure consciousness, pure consciousness, now as soon as a thought comes, what happens you know, pure consciousness becomes one with the thought, that is what we call awareness, Jnana, Pratyaya, we call it, technical language is Pratyaya, now between the two Pratyayas, what is there? Pure consciousness, Chaitanya is the word is put here in this yogic language, it is called Purusha, now that moment which is in between, that has to be slowly prolonged, prolonged means who prolongs, when you prolong what happens? You know that in between, space between two thoughts when we prolong and that process of prolonging is called yoga or meditation, what happens at that moment? You don't say I am prolonging, you simply say I am or do you say I am, you don't even say that because there is nobody to say that but human language, I have to express it, so you say I am but the moment you say I was thinking, I was a table, I am thinking, I am a chair, I was thinking, I was a table, I am thinking, I am a table, I am introducing slowly very tough Vedantic concepts, you have to bear with me, what is this? I am asking you, what is this? When you cognized this one, what were you? How did you cognize it? How did you know this is a paper? You had become paper, first you say I am the paper, then you go back and say this is a paper. Wow! But this is the truth, our mind goes, that is why it is said in the third aphorism of this yoga, it says, Tadadrashtu svarupe avasthanam, Athayoga Anushasanam, first sutra, second sutra Yogaha Chittavrithi Nirodhaha, what is the third sutra? Tadah means when we are in the state of Nirodha, Nirodha means no mind, Tadah in that state Drashtu svarupe, one, the self, the Purusha abides in himself, he does not say I am abiding, it is human language, he says I am Atman, I am the Purusha, that is why Ramakrishna says nobody has succeeded in describing Brahman, because if somebody says this is Brahman, he is not Brahman, I am just poking a little further, that is why Ramakrishna's words are so deep, he says he can understand, I am Brahman, human language, but that is what he feels, I am Brahman, he experiences, but you cannot describe it, because the moment you describe, he is not a Brahman, because any description is about something else. For a Yogi, when he is able to reach that state of Nirodha, that Nirodha Kshana, then he is Tadah Drashtu svarupe avasthanam, at that time he knows I am the pure consciousness, I am Brahman in Vedantic language, but what happens when he comes out of that Nirodha state? What is the fourth one? Vritti sarupyam itaratra, when we are not in that state, when we feel we are pure consciousness, when we are not in that state, what is the other state? I am pure, but there are only two states, what is the state, I am happy, I am not happy, I am consciousness, I am not consciousness, that is called Prakruti, that is why any thought that comes, I am a human being, I am happy, I am unhappy and I have these desires, anything, any thought, even passing thought, oh that is a dog, you know many times, it need not be Raga and Dvesha, oh what is that, oh the wind is moving the leaves, a leaf is falling, but at that time what have you become? You have become a falling leaf for a millionth of a second, that is why you are able to say, this is called epistemology, a branch of what is called theology or philosophy, epistemology means the science of how knowledge arises, according to Vedanta, our mind goes, envelops that object, becomes that object, brings back the impression and that is how knowledge arises within us. So that means what? If I say this is a paper, what have I become? If I say this is a chair, what have you become? We are all in that state, first we become, then we become separated, that is how knowledge comes, impression comes. What is, what should be our goal, now we are coming back, what should be our goal? We have to increase that nirodakshana and before we increase that nirodakshana, understand what is nirodakshana? The time in between the two thoughts, when there are no thoughts, that is called nirodakshana, but peculiarly, paradoxically what happens you know, when there is no thought, we will be beyond time, space and causation. When you say I am pure consciousness, are you within time, space, causation, are you not even outside? That word outside also is bad, inside also is bad, no description at all, that is what we want to prolong. How does one prolong before that? Slowly reduce, that is why from mudha to kshiptha, to vikshiptha, to ekagra and finally to nirodha. What a beautiful way of slowly evolving towards that state. Now purusha and prakriti are in a state of rest and change, static and dynamic, peace is a state of rest, peace is a state of rest, that is why when you are peaceful, do you know what happens practically in your mind? Thoughts are less and there will be one particular type of thought which comes again and again, you know what is that thought? I have nothing to worry, I am at peace, I am happy, this is this piece of, that is why when do we experience this state automatically, do you know when we experience? We experience it in the state of deep sleep, that is why it gives so much of peace and rest to the body and to the mind and not only that to everybody else. Now this is an important law, what is that, what is our normal state right now, what is our state? It is a mixture of purusha and prakriti and that is why we are constantly in a state of change and changelessness. When are we in the state of change? All the time, not all the time. So when are we in a state of changelessness? Two times. What is that two times? Actually it is only one time but when it is a longer period we call it nidra, when it is a very short period we call it that movement between, movement between two thoughts, nirodakshana, it is called nirodakshana. This static and dynamic is constantly going on throughout the prakriti, throughout the body, throughout the mind but there is one thing, if there is change taking place, that is an important law, if you have to observe change, what should you become, when can you observe change, when you become changeless, when you feel I am changeless then only you can observe change, when you are changing you have already become part of that process and you will not be able to say that I am witnessing, that is why one of the names given to the atman when we are in this body and mind is a very beautiful word, it is called sakshi witness and it is going on. This sakshi idea is a very important idea but there is behind the sakshi idea, I am introducing now, not yogic term but Vedantic term, kutastha, another word is called kutastha. Kutastha means it is not a sakshi, it is not a sakshi means it is not a witness at all but that lends the awareness, reflected awareness in the mind which is change taking, change taking place. The apt example for this is a cinema theatre, imagine cinema theatre, we have to be aware of only one thing there, you are the audience, there is a projector, there is a screen and there is a film, projector, screen and film is the second, you are the witness, you are the sakshi. What happens? The projector projects light and it falls on the screen, that is why you know as you enter into the cinema theatre, the first thing you see is pure white screen, nothing else and then the film starts, then you see clearly it is changing and all that, then the title comes and other things come, now that light has fallen upon the screen, what is this analogy for? The light is pure consciousness, the screen is the buddhi or mind, I am simplifying it, it is the mind upon which this light is falling and without the screen you cannot see the, it must be something to focus the images and if there is no image, then there is no picture, if there is no screen, there is no picture, if there is no light, there is no picture, the light is atman, the light of the atman is falling upon the buddhi, when it falls upon the buddhi and there is no image, the buddhi reflects what? The light, pure light, nothing else, when you are seeing the screen, what are you really seeing? That is called pure atman and pure mind is one and the same, you are seeing the really the light only, the screen is only a medium through which you are seeing the light, you have to think deeply about it, suppose there is no screen, can you see the light? The screen is element, I will come to this very funny part because these are very very fundamental concepts, so what is the analogy here? The screen is the pure mind, what is the projector? Projector means light, what is it? Pure consciousness, you cannot see pure consciousness unless there is something upon which it falls, it is the screen which reflects all the thoughts, supposing there is image is moving but there is no light, will you see anything, you won't see anything, so supposing the screen is there, light is there but no image is there, can you see any image? It is not there, this analogy is so very important because this light is getting reflected there and in between thoughts, every thought, then what does the screen become? What does the screen become? That is called in the yogic language, at that time when there are no vrittis, the purusha abides in himself, pure light is there, that's all, nothing else is there, the moment a thought, an image is focused, then that screen and that light both change into what? Into the image, that image in this analogy is vritti. A vritti comes there, what is the point here? The point is if there is no prakriti, mind, then there is no problem at all, that's why in deep sleep, you don't have any problem, prakriti, that is why yoga sutras are so beautiful, we have already discussed it, avidya is the cause of bondage here in these sutras, what is avidya, this prakriti and purusha coming together and getting mixed up, in tantric language it is called chit-jada-granthi, granthi means knot, chit means consciousness, chitta, chit is consciousness, chitta is mind, chit, there is sat, chit, ananda, chit and jada, jada means prakriti, unconscious something, these two coming together somehow and each thinking I am the other one, this mixture is called avidya, this is the definition of avidya, what is the point here? So such an important point that in this analogy, if the light and the image both gets mixed up, what happens? That screen becomes pure mind and what happens? That purity of the mind is disturbed, then the image comes, but if you analyse what is that image, that image is nothing but pure light only, what a wonderful thought, there is nothing, nothing else excepting light modified slightly for some in a peculiar way, that is what you call a vritti and without consciousness there is no vritti, without vritti there is only pure consciousness, so we have come into this peculiar state where these two are mixed together and we suffer, as a result we suffer, what is our goal now? Somehow to separate ourselves, how to separate? Yoga is there, yogaha chittavruti nirodha, what do you do? Slowly stop this movement of the image, then what happens? There will be pure screen only, when there is a pure screen, what happens? When do you go to the theatre, just before you see for a moment that pure screen and the moment pure screen comes again, you get out, in between you are absorbed there and your mind goes through, oh this is a good picture, this is a bad picture, this song is nice, dance is nice, this is horrible, like that go on doing all sorts of things, beautiful analogy. Slowly to make that screen only alight with the consciousness and that is called purity of the mind, that is called yoga. So to come back you know, come out of the theatre, what is yoga? Chittavruti nirodha, what is chittavruti nirodha? Come out of the theatre, when you come out of the theatre you feel so relieved, oh nothing happened to the heroine, nothing happened to the hero, nothing happened to the villain also and then what happens, it is a wonderful thing you know, supposing there are two people who acted, say yourself and your friend and both acted in the film and then preview you know, before the cinema is released they will have a preview, preview is there and what happens, both you are sitting, your friend also is sitting and then hey, there you acted beautifully, the hero is telling to the villain and the villain is telling yes, yes you know, there you acted really, I felt like bashing you. So like that the people are here sitting and enjoying it but when later on the film is projected and we are watching it and if it is so beautifully you know, acted out, do you know what happens in your mind, all the time this is going on, this is again another analogy given, this is sakshi buddha. So when you are watching a film, a very interesting film, two phenomena is taking place at the same time. You know one phenomena is you are thoroughly identifying with all the characters and enjoying and suffering and at the same time, this is a cinema, that background is constantly there, that is why happily you come out and if it is so nice, supposing it is a film, all about tragedy and killing and all those things but it is taken so beautifully and not only you go second time, you also take somebody else with you, paying money, why? Because you are enjoying it, how are you enjoying the suffering? Because it is not real, that is important, a yogi, one who reaches this nirodhakshana, he becomes a yogi, he knows I am the purusha, after that he comes back and he says to prakriti, now you do your best, you can kill me, you can torture me, somebody is you know taking a knife and then slowly cutting the throat, my throat, you know what people do, halal they call it, slowly they cut the throat and that too you should not cut very quickly, slowly you should cut, Allah, Allah, Allah, this is all for you, in bracket, afterwards, don't you dare to eat it, just look at it, bless it and afterwards it will become prasada, this is called leela, leela dhyana, it will come. We have not even gone into this because I want this, what is nirodha samskara? That samskara, so many negative, contrary thoughts are arising in our mind and we have to slowly overcome them with another type of thought and the thought which is inimical to us is binding us and the nirodha thought, slowly it helps us to move forward and when we succeed, then we become established in that nirodhakshana, then like pure screen, then there will be only light of the atman, it is called prajnalokaha, prajna aloka, aloka means light, prajnalokaha, only the light of knowledge will be there, what is that knowledge? I am the purusha, everything else is, prakruti means nothing, it cannot do me anything, it is not reality, that is what it happens, I will close this today's talk, all these things are very important. Now I want to make you an experiment with you, so what are you looking at and what are you looking at now, where my hand was, what do you see, do you see space, you don't see space, not only that, supposing there is, it is midnight, there is no light, I lift my hand, can you see, now you are able to see why, because there is light but that light is not manifest because there is nothing there, do you get my point, if I remove this one, you can't see the mic here, but neither can you see the light, light is there because if light is not there, you don't see anything, but even though light is there, everywhere, light is everywhere, but when there is an object, the light becomes manifested in the form of the object. If you understood this, what I wanted to convey to you, this pure consciousness is behind every vritti, every thought, but we are not conscious of pure consciousness, we are only aware of modified consciousness in the form of an object and even to call it an object would be wrong because we are not aware of even the object in a way of speaking, we are aware of the vritti, the thought of that object in our minds. If we can become and when we become aware of that pure consciousness without which nothing else can be, come to know, come to know, then we become free. Now what is happening is as soon as this consciousness reveals an object, consciousness manifests in the form of an object, our mind becomes identified with that object and then that is called bondage, that's why as soon as an image falls on the screen, the screen disappears and the object appears. What is the purpose of yoga? You should be first of all focus only on this pure screen and not on anything, pure screen is nothing but pure light and every object that comes is nothing but modification of this pure light and if we can have that knowledge. After that you can see any image you like, it is not going to affect us, why? Because you are only conscious of that pure light, that is called tada drashtu svarupe avasthanam. Let's remember these two, what is yoga? Chitta vritti nirodha. What happens? Tada in that state, drashtu svarupe avasthanam, the purusha, the consciousness abides in himself or in itself, that is the goal of yoga and this change has to be brought through systematic practice and it progresses in three stages, nirodha parinama, samadhi parinama and ekagrata parinama. We will discuss these three points in our next class. Om shanti shanti shanti.