Patanjali Yoga Sutras Lecture 059

Full Transcript(Not Corrected)

OM SAHANAVATU SAHANAVUBHUNAKTU SAHAVIRYAM KARAVAVAHAI TEJASVINAVADHITAMASTUMAVIDVISHAHAVAHAI OM SHANTI SHANTI SHANTIHI HARIHI OM OM YUGENA CHITTASYA PADENA VACHAM MALAM SHARIRASYA JAVAIDHYAKENA YOPAKAROTAM PRAVARAM MUNINAM PATANJALIM PRANJALI RANATHOSME 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. Summary of what we discussed in our last class. Everything is painful for a discriminating person. Even when he is enjoying happiness that also is very painful for him. Why? For four reasons we gave. The first reason is everything is changing. Happiness changes into unhappiness. A worldly person doesn't mind but for a yogi it is unacceptable. Second reason, later it leads to unimaginable, unthinkable sorrow later on. That is also unacceptable. Third, whenever we experience something, pleasant thing, the craving becomes very strong. It produces what we call samskara and that is very painful. Why are we born? Because of samskara. So what is the way? Get rid of it. Fourth reason is we are all under the control of what we call three gunas. Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. What is their nature? They go on changing. This is what we call in normal language moods. Now we are in good mood. Why do we say we are in good mood? Because after some time we will not be in the good mood. Usually people's answer, there is a lot of wisdom there. I am happy now. What does that now mean? In the past I wasn't, in the future I will not be. Definite about it. So for a yogi everything is painful. How painful it is? Vyasadeva gives the example of the eyeball. If a hair, even a cobweb's thread touches the eyeball, how much even we ordinary people suffer, even one particle of dust. For a yogi any experience in this world is absolutely painful. In other words what is meant is we indiscriminating people, we think this is reality. For a yogi this is not at all a reality. There is some other reality. He hasn't realized it but he knows this is not acceptable. If there is a reality and he has faith, he wants to realize it. This is what we discussed before. Now the Patanjali Yoga Sutras were commented by great people. One of them is called Vyasa. We are not sure whether it is the same Vyasa who wrote this Mahabharata etc. But his commentary is very terse and many times extremely useful. Now this Patanjali yogi is like a psychoanalyst and most possibly he was born after Buddha had come. Buddha had already preached four noble truths. If you recollect four Aryan noble truths, what are they? Life is full of suffering and there is a cause for this suffering. Find out what is the remedy by which we can get rid of that cause of suffering and try to get rid of it. Put it into practice. So Vyasa also takes the example of a medical case. Whenever a patient goes to a doctor, the doctor takes four steps. What is the disease? What caused the disease? What is the remedy for the disease? And accordingly prescribe and see that the patient takes the medication, takes care and gets rid of the disease. What is the ultimate goal? Get rid of the disease. What is the goal of a yogi also? Get rid of suffering. And whether we are suffering or enjoying, so long as we have a body and mind, both go through. It is foolish to think we will have body and mind and will have only happiness and never unhappiness. It is a most irrational proposition. In Vedantic language, these are called six changes. Shatvikara, birth, confirmation, growth, old age, disease and finally death. So long as anybody has a body, everyone has to go through these things. There is no other way. Exactly, Vyasadeva also says, what is yoga? Yoga is to find out there is suffering. What is the cause of the suffering? What is the remedy? And apply the remedy. That's what we are going to discuss now. Heyam dukkham anagatam. Now we have come into the 16th aphorism, second chapter called Sadhana Pada. The first Pada is about theory and about Samadhi etc. What is yoga? Define. Second is how to practice yoga? This is a very practical thing. In this 16th, Patanjali is telling us the pain which is yet to come may be avoided. Why may be avoided? Because it is sure to come. But if you take proper steps, it can be avoided. If you do not, it's going to come. In this context, Vedanta also works. There are three types of karma. Karma means karma phala, the result of our actions. Three types. We have been acting since time, timelessness, since beginning of time. We don't know when it started, when karma started. In my last class, if you remember, I quoted Holy Mother. Somebody asks, when does this karma really start? 5000 years back? 1 million years back? No one can find out. But what is the origin? Holy Mother gives a brilliant answer. This is God's will. And it has many implications which I will not go here. Just to give you a brief glimpse from the Vedantic point of view, who are you? God. You are Brahma. But you are suffering from self-imposed ignorance. So who is the cause of your karma? Yourself. Yourself means what? God. Brahman or God is the cause of our karma. Can you find out? You can't find out. It is a logical paradox. If I ask you the question, is there any time when time did not exist? Was there a time when time itself did not exist? What would be your answer? It is impossible because you are still talking about time only. So what is God? Timelessness. What is God? Spacelessness. What is God? Causelessness. So you cannot talk of time. When did karma start? You cannot talk. Why? Because it starts with God. And God is beyond time. Therefore you cannot answer that question at all. It is not necessary. So what is meant in this aphorism? The pain which is yet to come in future may be avoided. Why may be? Because if you want to avoid, you have to take proper steps. The funniest thing here is we all want not to have any pain. We all wish, nobody wishes pain. But how many of us are taking steps to produce the causes which would avoid pain? And according to Patanjali, just now I have summarized it. What is it? You want happiness. What type of happiness? Worldly happiness. It invariably produces pain. Therefore what is the way? If you want to be happy all the time, get out of this cycle of transmigration. That is the only way. So in Vedantic terminology, there are three types of results. The results which have already started. For example, I can't change my body. I can't change many things that have already started. I cannot change what we have been doing because of this body. But what can be changed? I can change through my present actions the suffering which could come in future. I can change that. So that is what is called yoga. What does yoga do? It presents the pain, the suffering, the grief which is going to come in the future. And that's what we can do. There are three kinds of karma. The karma which has already been created and stored up so that it will bear fruit in some future life. The karma created in the past or in some previous life which is bearing fruit at this moment. And the karma which we are now in the process of creating by our thoughts and actions. We are also creating karma for our future life. The karmas which we are now creating, they can help us to avoid the pain which can come in the future. How? What is the cause of result of karma? Karma. Karma comes because of karma. So you don't want karmaphala, either happiness or unhappiness. What is the remedy? Do not do any karma. Is it possible? It is never possible. So how to go on doing actions and not produce the result? Do you know what that is called technically? Nishkama Karma Yoga. How can we avoid the future pain? Not by ceasing to act. That would be impossible. Even if it were desirable, but by ceasing to desire the fruits of action for oneself. If we dedicate the fruits of actions, all actions to God, we shall gradually unwind the wheel of karma and thus avoid its pain. The thing to be got rid of is the suffering which is yet to come. Here we have to take special note that Yoga promises the eradication of only the suffering of future lives. The chain of suffering already begun has to be worked out through experience in this life itself. There is no other way. Ramakrishna had to go through very, very painful period as we all know. Holy Mother had to go through. Swami Vivekananda had to go through. Everyone has to go through. Now what is the cause of this pain? Like a doctor diagnosing a patient. What is the cause? Why is this person suffering? So 17th aphorism comes. Drashtru drishayoho sanyogo heya hetuhu This pain is caused by false identification of the experiencer or Purusha with the object of experience. It can be and must be avoided. So what is the cause of this pain? What is the cause of any pain including happiness? Let us never forget that idea. Even what everybody calls happiness is the most terrible thing for a Yogi. So what is the cause of this suffering? Only one cause. Let me first start giving a small example. There are people who enjoy life more moderately. There are people who suffer. Before we even start talking about this, one question if I put you, I want a real honest answer. In this world, in your life, do you enjoy more or do you suffer more? What would be your answer? Definitely there are two states. The state of happiness itself is very short, very fleeting. What is the rest of the period? Either we actively suffer or we are planning to suffer or there is no happiness, not much of unhappiness too. With this background, there is one state where we neither experience happiness nor experience unhappiness. Neither experience bondage nor experience liberation. What is that state? What is the reason? Why is it? You know what is the reason? The reason is the Purusha, the consciousness has absolutely cut itself off from both body and mind. And in that state, we are neither aware of the body nor aware of the mind. It is there in a very subtle way. That is why it is called causal state, like a seed. Just imagine there is a mango seed and all the potentialities of the mango tree is within us. We don't know whether the fruits of that tree would be very sweet, just sweet or even sour or even bitter. We don't know because it is in a causal state. So what is this deep sleep state? What is it called? Causal state. All the causes are there. But my point is, while we are experiencing deep sleep, what a wonderful state it is. There is neither happiness nor unhappiness and no problem. No God. Why there is no God? Because there is no world. Only when the world is there, God is necessary as a counter factor. So in deep sleep, the next question that leads is, am I happy with that state? Am I happy with that state in which there is neither happiness nor unhappiness? What would be your answer? How many of you do not desire deep sleep? All of us desire deep sleep. Why do we desire? And remember, always this psychological love. We only desire what really we love. And we love only what gives us the highest type of joy. So what is this special type of joy we are getting there? It is completely unlike the joy we get from experiencing an object. Because there is no object at all. And that is what the yogi tells. Experience it with full consciousness. Coming back, so what is the cause of this pain? For a yogi, everything is a pain. What is the cause of this pain? It is caused by the false identification of the experiencer with the object of experience. The cause of the suffering is the association of the seer and the seen. The knower and the known. The experiencer and the experienced. One important factor here. You are sitting here. I am sitting here. I am talking. You are listening. You are seeing me. I am seeing you. Where are you seeing me? And where am I seeing you? Am I seeing you or am I seeing a copy of you in my mind? Hearing also. Everything that we do, we don't know what is outside. But the delusion is so great. I see you. All of you sitting. You also do that. What is a delusion? There is something. Not that there is nothing. But yet I can only experience the whole world including my body and including my mind only as a copy in my mind. Like seeing a cricket match on a TV. But it gives equal amount of joy. So we cannot know external objects as they are. During perception, the chitta, the mind goes out and takes the form of the objects. So what we actually experience is only a mental copy or mould of the object. Identification of this I with these various internal and external objects is the cause of this suffering. Why? Purusha by itself is pure. Purusha means Atman. And it is Satchitananda. Sat, Chitta and Ananda. Sat means there is no fear of death. Chitta means there is no fear of not knowing. Ananda means there is no fear of experiencing any pain. What is the problem? We think that we are experiencing all these things through external things. Let me dwell a moment on this. I say I exist. What do I mean by I exist? To which I am I referring? I say I was a child. I was a young person. I was a middle-aged person. Now I am an old person. To whom, to what object am I referring? I to the physical body. But the Atman is Sat itself. It doesn't exist. It is existence. It doesn't know. It is knowledge. It cannot be happy. It is happiness itself. That is most wonderful point. Also difficult point for us to understand. Because we have been accustomed to experience Sat, Chitta and Ananda only through the manifestation of body and mind. There was never one single moment when we have experienced pure Sat in itself. Even though without Sat, without Chitta, without Ananda, we could never experience or exist for a one millisecond. So the experiencer is the Purusha or real nature. The object of experience is the totality of the apparent world including the body, the mind, the senses, the body, everything. But by the false identification through Maya, which is the mystery of our present predicament, the Atman is mistaken for the individual ego. Our individual ego is mistaken as Atman. Subjected to all the thought waves which arise and trouble the mind. That's why we imagine that we are happy, unhappy, angry, etc. So what is the way? Think always. I am doing nothing. No matter what one sees, hears, touches, smells, tastes. This is what the Bhagavad Gita says. When I am closing my eyelids, opening the eyelids, when I am seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, touching, walking, grasping, do anything. Think that it is Brahman who is doing and I am not doing. We also have discussed these points very elaborately in the first bhada, chapter on what is called Samadhi. There we said there are two factors. There are only two principles according to Sankhya. What are they? Purusha and Prakruti. Our body and mind is a modification of Prakruti. Purusha has nothing to do. Purusha means the Atman has nothing to do with body and mind. The Atman doesn't do anything. The Prakruti does everything. In between who are we to come and say I am doing. Somehow this I comes and it says I am also Atman. It says I am also doing. I am happy. I am unhappy. So what is the remedy? Remedy is to say I am the Atman. I do not do anything. Swami Vivekananda's most illuminating commentary and he adds a lot of very beautiful stories. There is a story written by Swami Vivekananda that the king of the gods Indra once became a pig wallowing in mire. He had a she-pig and a lot of baby pigs and was very happy. Then some gods saw his plight came to him and told him you are king of the gods. You have all the gods under your command. Why are you here? But Indra said never mind. I am alright here. I do not care for heaven while I have this sow and these little pigs. The poor gods were at their wit's end. After a time they decided to slay all the pigs one after another. When all were dead Indra began to weep and mourn. Then the gods ripped his pig body open and he came out of it and began to laugh when he realized what a hideous dream he had had. He the kings of the gods to have become a pig and to think that pig life was the life. Not only so but to have wanted the whole universe to come into the pig life. We all want everybody to come into the pig life. Yes to be a little bit funny. You know so many of our devotees they are married people, they have children and they are highly devoted. So they think. What is the problem? Problem is when their children somehow get attracted to Sri Ramakrishna and Swamiji and want to become monks who will be the first persons to prevent them? It is the parents. This is what Swamiji is referring. They themselves are leading piggish life and they don't want their children to escape that piggish life. Sri Ramakrishna also told this story even more beautifully. But Swamiji had a point here. The point is if there is a pig from its view the whole world is viewed as what? Pig's point of view. If you ask what is the best type of life in this world? What do you think? He says it is the pig's life it is the best. What about human life? Oh these wretched human beings they are absolutely nothing. Pig's life. What a beautiful thing. I have got my wife, I have got my husband, I have got this wonderful. What beautiful squealing, what music to the ears. So we are all trying to pull each other into this piggish life. If anybody tells you God is myth, spiritual life is only a madcap's dream. Do not go. This would be the answer. So what is the cause of our suffering? Suffering means according to Yogi both enjoyment and suffering. In fact according to Patanjali enjoyment is even more suffering. I brought this point many many times. Suppose there are two people. Both are devotees. Both are spiritual aspirants. One is enjoying life, good family, good job and very nice good health. The other person is suffering. Both are spiritual aspirants. If I ask you the question, who is likely to go to God quicker, sooner? You know why? Because what is the nature of happiness? We do not wish to move. That state from which we do not wish to move is called the state of happiness. This is one way of looking at it. By definition what is suffering? A state from which we would like to move as quickly as possible. This is the truth. The Atman when it identifies itself with nature forgets that it is pure and infinite. The Atman doesn't love. It is love itself. It doesn't exist. It is existence itself. The Atman doesn't know. It is knowledge itself. It is a mistake to say that the Atman loves, exists or knows. Love, existence and knowledge are not the qualities of the Atman but its essence. This is something which we have to be rationally, intellectually brave, strong to accept this. Instead of saying Atman, use the word God. Does God love us? What would be your answer? If I ask you, does God love you? What would be your answer? The answer is no. God doesn't love. Do you know why? Because God is of the very nature of love itself. Because the moment you say God loves me, you are putting your foot in deep muddy water. That means He is there. I am there. And He sees me. And He thinks hundred times, shall I love thee? Shall I love thy? Shall I love thy? Shall I love thy? Not love. No. It is He from whom we are deriving that very act of love. There is a lot of psychology involved here. I will not go into it. But just to tell you very mildly, what is love? Do you know what is love? It is not emotional effulgence like soda water bottle when you press. Some foam comes out. This is called emotional outburst. What is true love? Swami Vivekananda said, At one moment when a person absolutely identifies himself or herself with an object that is called love, he feels this is me. You know a mother, even though she is ignorant person, she identifies anything happens to her child, she feels as though it happened to her. If the child is doing better, who derives more happiness, child or mother? So Swami Vivekananda is telling, when they get reflected upon something, you may call them the qualities of that something. But they are not qualities, but the very essence of the Atman, the infinite being. What are those qualities? Existence, knowledge and bliss. They are not qualities. Again, this is a little bit philosophical. What is a quality? A substance. An object is called a substance. And how it is known to others is called a quality. Here is a microphone. What is a microphone? It is an object. But how do I know what is a microphone? Because it is in a particular shape etc. Black, such and so height, what it does etc. Why do we call it qualities? Because qualities can disappear. That's why happiness, if happiness is a quality, and whenever we say, I am happy, are you talking about your nature or are you talking about your quality? It is a quality. That is why, what happens to a quality? A red flower. When it fades, what happens to the redness? It is a hot coffee. Coffee is a substance. What is hot? It is a quality. Cold coffee, hot coffee, lukewarm coffee, anything. That means it is a quality. What does it mean? Hot becomes lukewarm. Lukewarm becomes still warm. Warmness becomes cold. After some time, it will become very cold. That means it is changing. It changes according to circumstances. Any quality. Quality is that. Two points. Quality is that which is not in the intrinsic constituent of an object. Secondly, what is its nature? Goes on changing. That is why we say, Trigunas, Sattva, Rajas and Timat, they are called qualities. Three qualities. Why they are called qualities? Because they go on changing. Whatever changes, you cannot really rely upon them. Supposing there is a person, you want to love that person. Morning he is very warm and noon he is very hot. Night he is very cold. Would you love him? Whom are you going to love? A person whose nature is loving but not one who shows the quality of love. This is a very interesting subject. You can only rely upon something which you think will not change. And whatever doesn't change, that is called substance. And whatever changes, that is called? Yes. Like your children, you know. 24th night, how much they hug you. How long does it last? Until 25th morning. Afterwards, you know. What is the cause of this suffering? It is the identification of the Purusha or the Atman or the seer or the experiencer. What Patanjali is telling, these are totally separate. Now in Vedanta, even to start spiritual practice, what is the first quality? What is the first Sadhana? Viveka. Viveka means what? Discrimination. Discrimination means what? Separation between what is real and what is unreal. What is Atman, what is non-Atman. What is Purusha and what is Prakruti. Without that, the saying that I want to realize God is a misnomer. It cannot happen. Patanjali had divided. There are two entities. One is the experiencer, the seer. Another is the experiencer and the seen. One is Purusha and one is Prakruti. What is Samsara? Samsara means transmigration. What is it? Somehow Purusha and Prakruti come together and each think I am the other. It's a mixture of the Prakruti thinks I am both non-conscious as well as conscious. The Atman thinks exactly the same thing. I am both conscious and also unconscious. This is the cause of suffering. This is the cause of transmigration. So what is the way? This is the cause. What is the remedy? Get rid of this remedy. Cause is known now. What is the third point? How to get rid of this cause? But before that Patanjali brings us to the 18th aphorism which says He is defining and he will also define what is called Purusha. He is now defining what is called body and mind complex. Prakruti. Drishya means whatever is experienced, whatever is non-Atman, whatever doesn't belong to Atman that is called in simple words object, subject and object. The subject is called Purusha and the object is called this whole body, mind, world complex. So he is telling what is the nature of this Drishyam, experienced. The object of experience is composed of the three gunas, the principles of illumination, activity and inertia. What we call in Sanskrit language Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. What is the nature of Sattva? Illumination. Illumination means what? You become aware. Oh! Here is Swamiji. Here is a microphone. Here is I am sitting. This awareness is the result of Sattva guna. What is Rajas? How does it manifest? In the form of activity. I become restless, I sit here, I sit there, I do this, I do something else. It is very nature is activity. It cannot keep quiet. What is the nature of Tamas? Inertia. Inertia means what? It just wants to withdraw both from awareness as well as activity. In other words it wants to go to sleep, not be aware of it. This whole universe is composed of these three gunas. In Sanskrit the word guna is translated into English in two words. One is called quality. The second is called bondage. What is guna? That which binds is a guna. Sattva guna binds. Rajas guna binds we know. Tamas guna binds we know. Do we know that Sattva guna also binds? Who said that? Vedanta said. What did Sri Ramakrishna call these three gunas? Three robbers. He called them. Why he is called? They rob. What do they rob? A robber's activity is to rob. What does he rob? He robs our knowledge that I am the Atman. He makes us forget that. That is why they are called robbers. But there is a difference between the three robbers. One makes us profoundly unhappy. Another one makes us go both through joy and also pain. Whereas Sattva guna brings us nearer to our true nature. And it gives us more happiness. And through happiness it binds us. This is the most wonderful thing. So the object of experience is composed of the three gunas. The principles of Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. From these the whole universe has evolved together with the instruments of knowledge such as the mind, senses, everything that we know. The objects perceived such as the physical elements. The universe exists in order that the experiencer may experience it and thus become liberated. So the question comes now. Why is this Prakruti consisting of these three qualities? Why God has created it in Vedantic language? Why God has created it? It is to make us understand we are not Prakruti. This is the most funniest statement I have ever come across. It is like saying a person commits theft. Why did you commit theft? Because I want to go to a prison. Why do you want to go to a prison? So that I can get the happiness of being released from the prison. Can you imagine that? Yes. In our language there is something very interesting saying. There was a fellow in a village. There was a pond and he was sitting on the bank of the pond very happily. Suddenly he felt an urge to step into the pond which is small and dirty. So he stepped into it. His feet got wet and dirty and he was feeling very unhappy. So he took a small utensil, brought some water, came outside, thoroughly washed his feet and said, Now I am very happy. What were you before you stepped into the pond? You were very happy. It is a very peculiar thing. The question is always asked. Why did Brahman create Maya? After all this is our Maya in Vedantic language. What Patanjali calls Sankhya Yoga, Yoga philosophy calls Prakruti, is called in Vedantic language Maya. Why did God create Maya? Somebody has given this kind of answer. He said why did God get himself involved as a Jeeva? Why did he become? The answer given is, I want to experience the joy of being released from this samsara. What an answer! What were you before you got involved into this samsara? You were a most happy person. For us, it is okay. This answer is okay. Because we don't know originally what we are. So we are always, the moment we are born, even sometimes our Vedanta tells, you have been born a million times before. It may be true, but I don't know it. I only know this life. Where I am born, to whom I was born, where I grew up, what happened to me, what am I now, and I don't even know about my future life. It is a very interesting fact. So many people come and authoritatively I tell them, you have a future life. The truth is I don't know about myself, much less to talk about yourself. But it is faith, based upon faith. This is the law of Karma, cause and effect. The point here is, why did Purusha get involved at all? How did he get involved? What is the answer? There is no answer. Vedanta flatly accepts, I have no answer. Why it happened? I know it happened. I know you can get out of it. But I don't know why it happened. This is our condition. Sometimes doubts will come. Why did God put us into this samsara? Vedanta is sometimes a very crafty fellow. He doesn't want to admit he doesn't know the answer. He says, you know, why did you put me into this samsara? So that you can experience the joy of samsara. But how did you happen? How did it happen? It is all maya. What is the meaning of maya? Whatever I don't know, very convenient excuse. If I say maya, neither you understand what I am talking, nor I understand what I am talking about. There are no answers to this question. Swami Vivekananda was put this question. How did the infinite become finite? You know what answer he gave? He said, you put me a logical question, then I will answer you. Illogical question I can't answer you. What is illogical question? What did you ask? How did the infinite become finite? How can infinite become finite? That's no answer at all. We don't know. But we know we are here now. We can escape. That much is enough for us. What is the nature of this experience? The world in other words. Now here is mahamaya. It binds us. You know how it binds? We think that the whole world is maya excepting my body and mind. But my body and mind is also part and parcel of the world only. When you look at me, you don't identify yourself with me. When I look at you, I do not identify myself with you. Both this body and mind of everything, anything falls within the realm of the prakriti or maya. This is what he is telling. Whatever you experience is maya. How do you know what you are experiencing? There is one word. Beautiful word. Whenever you say my, that is the experience. Anything my. Do you say about your body, my body, my hand, my legs, my head, that is not you. Whatever you say about my is not you. Simple. We can apply it. All of us can apply it. So there are two. One is purusha. One is prakriti. Purusha is the subject. Everything else is the object. An object is that which is experienced. An object never experiences the subject. The subject always experiences the object. What is the cause of suffering? Somehow this subject and object get involved and mistake each for the other. It is a mixture of both. And that has to be gotten rid of. So he is telling what is the cause of this bondage, suffering. Bondage means suffering. What is the cause of this suffering? This stupid mixture of the purusha and the prakriti. In the aphorism 19, visesha, avisesha, linga, matra, alingani, gunaparvani. These gunas pass through four states. Gross, subtle, primal and unevolved. Very briefly let me tell what it is. Now we are seeing each other. This is called gross. But this gross has come from something subtle. Subtle cannot be seen. It can be experienced but it cannot be experienced. You know it is there but you can't point out. That is why it is called tan-matra. Tan-matra means as though it is very subtle. Something is there. I know it is there. I don't know what it is. Our body is called pancha bhutas, five elements. This can be experienced by myself, by everybody else. My mind, my thoughts can be experienced. Have you ever seen your mind? When you look into your mirror, do you see your body or your mind? And yet what is it that sees? Is it your body that sees or is it your mind that sees? It is only the mind. And yet we know that we are working through mind. We know without mind we cannot experience anything. And yet what is this mind? Even great scientists are thoroughly confused about it. Thoroughly, totally confused. They confuse the brain with the mind. Suppose somebody is brain dead, this question is also important for us. There are sadhus, monks, there are spiritual aspirants. Sometimes they are in such a state, outwardly they are not conscious of anything. For example, our Swami Geetananda. He was totally like a vegetable. And he led such a marvellous life. So far I know he was one of the greatest monks I have ever seen. Always thinking about God, talking about God, doing japa of God. You know for the last 10 years or so, he was in a completely vegetative state. Nobody knows what is going through his mind. He was fed, he was bathed, he was put to bed. Everything has been done. But what goes on in his mind, nobody knows. Where he was made to sit, he will sit. Now the question that comes is, what happened, is there something inside or totally whatever he did in the past is wiped off. Of course you will give me bookish answer. What is the bookish answer? Oh nothing goes in vain, no karma goes in vain. He did so much of karma, so it must be waiting. That is a different question, different answer. But we want to know now, why we make, why we commit this kind of mistake? Because we cannot simply experience the mind. Why can't we experience the mind? Because it is subtle. But subtle mind can be experienced by subtle mind. We know, I know what is happening in my mind. Don't you know what is happening in your mind? So long as you are aware, if you are not in deep sleep state, both in waking state and dream state, I don't know what is happening in your mind. But I know what is happening in my mind. But there also psychologists come, there is a part of the mind of which I am not aware of it. You know what they call that part of the mind? Unconscious mind. It is true also. But if I make effort, I can know what is deep in my unconscious. It is a different subject. What is important is, I cannot know, I cannot experience your mind. You cannot experience my mind. None of us can experience the other person's mind. But there are persons who can experience what is in everybody's mind. If you go to Sri Ramakrishna, do you think he knows what is in your mind? Not only he knows what is in your mind now, he knows what was in your mind in the past. He knows also what is going to be your condition in the future. And when you are going to die, means body, when you are going to attain liberation, how many obstacles you have to face and how you can be helped. They know everything. Sri Ramakrishna used to say, I can look at people and know what is inside their mind, just as objects are kept in a glass case. Can you not know? Can you not see? Even though it is glass case, you can't touch them, you can see them. So that is why it is called subtle elements. Mind is made up of what? Subtle elements. But the subtle elements itself is a gross state compared to another state which is even subtler to it, its root, its origin, its cause. And that is called intelligence or ahankara. And even that is very gross compared to its root, which is called prakriti. So to simplify, not to confuse you more, prakriti means the origin of this entire matter. Then from there comes intelligence. First manifestation is called intelligence. That's why we call it Brahma. Brahma is the creator. How was he able to create? Because of intelligence. That's why Saraswati is his partner, his shakti, manifest. So here is the intelligence. So prakriti produces intelligence. And intelligence produces the mind which is subtler. And five elements, five subtle elements. And from those five subtle elements come out this gross universe. There is four divisions. This is what Patanjali is indicating in this 19th. These gunas manifest rather through four states, gross, subtle, primal and unevolved. We do not need to go into these details. Anyway, we are not going to remember them. But it's enough to say that. Why is it necessary? When we practice yoga, when we go through spiritual development, spiritual progress, what happens is we can know the mind. It's the most fascinating subject any Swami can tell about you. What is our problem? Why are you unhappy? I don't know. Okay, go to a psychiatrist. What does he do? What does a psychiatrist do? He very cleverly elicits from you through talk and through your gestures, postures, etc. What is happening in your mind? Even he can't read your mind. He can only read your credit card, not your mind. So he understands through the mind. But beyond the mind there is something only a yogi can do. So what is important for us? What is our problem? There are so many obstacles. Why are we not progressing? I am talking about the grossest state of progress. Because there are so many things of which we are totally aware in our mind. I am saying one thing and I am doing something else. If we can know what is a little bit inside our mind, go a little bit deeper into our mind, many of our problems can be solved without going to a psychologist or psychiatrist. In this context, I can make a categorical statement. Any spiritual person becomes a superb psychologist or psychiatrist and he knows what is troubling him, he knows what is the remedy and he has sufficient willpower to apply the remedy and he becomes free from that. Call it depending upon God's will or whatever it is. And on the other side, a person may consider himself or herself as a great spiritual person and yet visits the psychologist or psychiatrist. Do you think that person is really a spiritual person? I am telling you the plain simple facts. Why? The more we meditate, the more we become introspective. As though we are throwing a floodlight into every nook and crevice and corner of our mind and if our meditation doesn't do that, then it is not proper meditation. And the problem that comes is, why should we know? Because you want to think about God. And when you sit to think about God, your mind goes somewhere. And after one hour you come out and say, what did I do? What was I thinking about? And if the person is not even aware of it, then happily he is thinking for one hour, undivided attention, I am thinking of God. That's not true. This is not the only reason. Another most important reason is, a spiritual person is the happiest person. What is spiritual progress? I made another comment in my last classes many times. What is spiritual life? It is progressing from a lower state of happiness to a higher state of happiness. That is called spiritual life. What is spiritual progress then? I am going from a lower happiness to a higher happiness and we all want to be happy. This is one reason why we have to be spiritual. There is no doubt about it. We will discuss these beautiful points in our next class. Om Shanti Shanti Shanti