Chandogya Upanishad Lecture 20 on 28 July 2024

Full Transcript (Not Corrected)

We are studying the Chandogya Upanishad, which belongs to the Samaveda. In our last class, we have been talking about what is called Prana Upasana. Prana means Hiranyagarbha, Ishwara, who is the creator. The same Ishwara, in the form of the Prana, is very much alive and active. And we are called Pranis, only because Prana is there. Prana, wherever there is Prana, there is consciousness. So consciousness means knowledge. And knowledge will be useless without activity. And action is never possible without knowledge. So wherever there is a living creature, there are both what we call the energy in English language, Prana, as well as the knowledge. Both will always be together. Wherever there is Shiva, there is Shakti. Wherever there is Shakti, there is Shiva. Now this Prana, which is working within each one of us, does five important functions because of which each one of the living creatures is absolutely alive. Now that is what we call the individual soul. And there were some people who would meditate upon this. But the ideal is to meditate on the universal Prana because in any case, our Prana, our consciousness is only a manifestation of the universal cosmic consciousness as well as cosmic Prana. But we are separating ourselves from everybody. And that separation, that I am separate from everything else is called bondage. This is called Dvaita, multiplicity. And multiplicity leads to fear. If there is even one thing separate from me, that can create fear, not only a living creature but even the non-living creature. For example, a person is walking and there is a rocky path, he will slip down, he will hit the rocks and he can injure or die. So even if there is a second thing, either living or non-living, supposing there is a mosquito and it is living and there is fear, especially, you must have noticed, when you are about to fall asleep, a beautiful music emanates and that mosquito becomes a Madharma Raja for each one of us. Not only we may not die, but we may not be able to even to get rest, good rest. We may not be able to sleep properly and that is considered as death. That is to say, unhappiness is death, dissatisfaction is death. That is why Ananda is compared to God and Dukkha is compared to death. Remember, Asatoma Sadgamaya, Tamasoma Jyotirgamaya, Mrutyorma. Mrutyorma means death. So lead me from death to eternal bliss. Here death means any form of suffering, small or big, because it is alien to our nature. So anybody who thinks I am an individual is sure to suffer. Separation will be one, union is another, change, birth, growth, old age, disease, difficulties, death. Six types of changes and every change is equivalent to death. Every millisecond, we are not the same. So that is also death. Therefore, what is the way out? To know that I am beyond all limitations. And that is the meaning of identifying ourselves with Ishwara, God. And that is our goal. So there is a beautiful, as I said, a story and it is a peg. Just to hang the story is only just to create interest. It is a kind of aid for remembering. So there were Gods and Demons. And Demons means the causes of suffering and happiness. Gods means happiness. But there is always an eternal fight between these two. So long as we are in bondage, there will be eternal war. Daivashara Yudha, Kaurava Pandava Yudha, Rama Ravana Yudha. First world war, second world war, third world war. So this is indicated, but everybody wants to be happy. Not only the Devas, but Asuras also. But it is the very nature of the Demons to create problems to others. Now the Devas, they wanted to know. So they started identifying with each function of the Prana. And that is indicated, some identified with the smelling organ, nose. Some with the eye, seeing organ. Some with the mind, etc, etc. And that did not solve the problem. Then some teacher must have come and he explained, you should meditate not on separate Prana, but on the universal, on the cosmic Prana. And they followed. And then the result was, the Demons could not do anything. That was the essence of the second section, of the first chapter of this Chandogya Upanishad. So then, they, means the Gods, meditated on the Utkita as the principal, Mukhya Prana. And then the Demons tried to hit them or cause pain. But as a clod of earth hitting a stone, is shattered, scattered, made into dust. And nothing can be done to this stone, because stone is a billion times stronger than any clod. So even so, the Demons were destroyed when they hit it. So then, those who meditate upon God, that is, you surrender yourself to God. And you merge your individuality in the Cosmos. Cosmic Being, whom we call the Creator. So, identify yourself with the universal Prana. And then what happens? Then the person will be smelly. The person will go beyond the effects of both happiness and unhappiness. What happens? Everything becomes pleasant. Is there foul smell? That also becomes pleasant. Is there good smell? That also becomes pleasant. How come? We all know that very fragrant smell always is attractive. Anyway, I can make a little bit of fun. So somebody puts on, sprays some fragrant smell. And then someone else is attracted by that. And they come together. They unite together. And then the real fun starts then. And endless amount of suffering takes place. Even in the ordinary day-to-day events also. But then, there is another deeper meaning. What happens? We are all quite happy when we smell. And this example of smell is only illustrative, we have to say, etc. When we see bad sights, evil sights. When we touch unhealthy, too much heat and too much cold, etc. I am going to give a few examples. How even these negative things, which we consider as negative things, are the most positive things. If we don't identify ourselves with everybody. For example, there is what is called cold. And for those who are coming from tropical countries. If they go to Alaska or some north hemisphere countries, probably they will freeze to death. But if the polar bear, which cannot survive any less temperature, if it comes down, say to India, then it will also die. So the polar bear is accustomed to something. But if the polar bear happens to be in an atmosphere where cold is intense, then it is very, very happy. For example, when it is not very cold and you have a very warm blanket, and then you cover yourself. If you don't cover, then you suffer from cold. If you cover, then you suffer from too much of unwanted heat. So like that, everything can create unhappiness. Or the same things can create happiness depending upon the particular body, mind, etc. So similarly, very good smelling food is very welcome to most of us, of course. But we, in our previous incarnations as the nomads, nomadic civilization, when we see, when we smell from a long distance, from miles together, very foul smelling, decomposing smell, that very smell makes us exceedingly happy. And then we run towards it because our bodies are accustomed, our stomachs could digest. And this foul smell, decomposing smell was a very welcome smell. There is very nice food awaiting me. Just as nowadays we say, very nice smelling, freshly baked from the oven, bread, etc. attracts us. And what makes us happy or unhappy? The suitability or non-suitability of the material. But if we can identify universally, then if it is not pleasant to this particular body, but it will be very pleasant, most welcome to another body for which that is most suitable. So here we are talking about all the five sense organs. All our happiness and unhappiness is the combination of all these five sense organs. And every time our taste differs, our capacity to put up with heat and cold also differs. The same person from a very tropical place goes and settles in a cold country. And after some time, he cannot tolerate the tropical atmosphere from which he had come. And so many people require very high temperature, probably minus 20 degrees even in the summer season. So what I am trying to tell you is that happiness is possible and we will not be affected. If we can identify ourselves with the cosmic self, then we can adjust to everything. Everything becomes extraordinarily pleasant. And that is the summary of this one. So there were some great souls who meditated upon them. And in four mantras, 10 to 13, this is being explained. We don't need to dwell a long time upon it, but I will just read out. There was a sage called Angira. He came to know about this Vidya, Mukhya Prana Upasana. So his name was Angira or Angirasa. So Angira meditated on the Uddh Gita as the Mukhya Prana, Principal Prana. Principal Prana always means we have to understand the Creator. And people call it, that is the Prana Angirasa. The Upanisad is going into some etymological explanation which is not necessary for us because it is the essence of the limbs of Angas. Anga, Anganam, Rasaha, Angirasaha. But actually there was a person who meditated upon them and he became the very embodiment of happiness. Another person called Brihaspati, he meditated on what is called Creator. Identify, meditation means what? Complete identification with the object of one's chosen deity. So here Ishvara is the chosen deity. So he meditated. That means he gave up his identity with the individual self and identified himself with the universal self. And so the Prana got the name Brihaspati because Sage Brihaspati meditated upon it. And there is an etymological, there is an attempt at explaining why Prana is called Brihaspati. Brihat means great. Pati means Lord, Lord of the speech. And therefore this person who is very happy, from his mouth only comes speech indicating great happiness, greatest happiness. That's why he is called Brihaspati. There was another saint, Sage, whose name was Ayasya. He meditated exactly in the same way. He first of all started chanting Omkara. It is called Udgeetha. Udgeetha, Ud means loudly. Geetha means chanted. What did he chant? Omkara. And what did he do? He contemplated upon this loud sound symbol called Om and identified that Om with the Ishwara or what we call the creator. And then he became extremely happy. He became an embodiment of happiness. So his name is Ayasya because it comes from the mouth. That is the happiness just as it were flowing. Then another person called Vaka, the son of Dalviya. He also contemplated on Ishwara. That is identified himself. That is lost his separatedness. And then he saw the whole universe as one unit, one cosmic whole. And he became the important priest of the sacrificers who has the capacity to chant his Omkara loudly in the Naimesha forest. So by singing the Udgeetha, he became full of happiness. All his desires were fulfilled. Alright, these were the four people mentioned. Okay, they contemplated upon Ishwara. What do I get from this? That is not the point. The point is like them, imitating them, following their footsteps. These are only a few examples given. Anybody who contemplates himself, identifies himself with the Ishwara, he goes beyond limitations. And limitations are known as Dwandwa. That is in pairs it comes. Happiness, unhappiness, good and evil, life and death, victory and defeat, loss and gain, honour and dishonour about which the Bhagavad Gita gives a most beautiful explanation. So much for the by singing Udgeetha, any person who meditates upon this imperishable Udgeetha, Om, imperishable Udgeetha indicates imperishable Akshara Brahma. He also becomes Akshara Brahma. That is the real meaning of contemplation. Then such a person, not only in the past, not only at present but in future also, anybody who follows this methodology obtains all his desires because Brahman embodies every bliss, Brahmananda. So much for the Udgeetha as meditates on with reference to the body. I am only giving a few samples of what these Upasanas can really do. And as I mentioned from the 1st to 5th chapter of this Chandogya Upanishad, there are extraordinary and many many Upasanas are there. Perhaps it would not make good sense to call them as meditations, but that is the nearest equivalent or we can substitute it with the word contemplation. You contemplate, deeply think about it until you become one with it. Now I am going to give you a second example. This is called Vaishvanara Pranagni Vidya. What does this Vidya mean? What is Vidya means Upasana. Remember there are two types of Vidyas always. Even though I have mentioned it because it is good to remember. One is called the meaning of Vidya. One is called Upasana. That is the way we have to travel to obtain real Brahma Gnana. This is the only way. Because by climbing a staircase, we reach 1st floor, 2nd floor, 3rd floor or to the roof. Even if it is 108 floors, 127 floors as in some countries there are. So it is a way and it is also the goal. And here we are talking about the way, not the goal. Ultimately if we go on not stopping on the way but continue our journey. Then we will also in the end, we end up by identifying ourselves with Brahma. So this Vaishvanara Vidya occurs in the Chandogya Upanishad. That is in the 5th chapter. Now there is 8th Khanda. 12th to that is 18th Mantras it occurs. What happened? There is a small story about it. There were 5 great students of Vedas. They are highly qualified. And they were meditating upon what is called individually. So they felt they are not going anywhere. They attained something but it was not satisfactory. So we are meditating. Probably they were in communication, Satsanga, holy company. And they were comparing each one of them. So it is not sufficient for us to meditate the way we are meditating. There seems to be some lacuna. Something is lacking. So is there somebody who could guide us? So the story goes, locally there was another great person whom they thought that he could perhaps complete their knowledge and then guide them to the highest goal. And they approached him. But this person also, he understood these are all learned people. They are approaching me. Suddenly they are going to put some questions to me. And I know what they are going to ask. But I myself do not know what they are seeking. So let me join them. And let us go to our king. And this story, it is also a very interesting story because there is a tradition which says Brahmins were the masters of Vedas. That means they know every secret of the Vedas. But these stories like this indicate particularly that there are so many in Brihadaranyaka also we get that there were so many kings where a specialized knowledge is passed on from the father to the son. And you know in the ancient Vedic society, Brahmins were considered to be the upper class. Compared to them, Kshatriyas belong to a class below, warriors. Of course, the Kshatriyas, warriors, were superior so far as the Shudras, Vaishyas are concerned. But compared to Brahmins, they are less. And there was also a tradition, Brahmins are all-knowing, Kshatriyas have to go as humble students. And that was the tradition. And they were taught. Like King Janaka approached Yajnavalkya, who was a Brahmana. And then he learnt Brahma Vidya until the guru, Yajnavalkya, certified. Abhayam vayi prapto si janaka. O Janaka, you obtained fearlessness. That means you have realized Brahman. That was the tradition. But in this particular Vaishvanara Vidya, the Brahmins, the students were the Brahmins, Rishis. And they did not know complete knowledge. They know something. They know a partial knowledge. And whatever little they know, they were following. But it was giving them some result, not what they wanted. Because partial knowledge can only give partial happiness, partial profit. And so they approached the second person. Second person understood. He also became very humble. Said, I also do not know. I know with what purpose you are coming to me. Let us all go to our local king, which is actually against the tradition. And historically, this also tells us something very surprising. Sometimes, Kshatriyas can also become teachers, teaching the highest knowledge. So that much information is enough for us. So there was a king. He was called Ashrapati Kaikeya. And nothing to do with Kaikeyi. This Ashrapati Kaikeya was a very great spiritual king. And then he describes this Vidya to the Uddalaka and other seekers. The second person I was mentioning, where the other Rishis approached him was Uddalaka. And he frankly said, my knowledge is limited. So let us all go, because I am also a humble student. I also want to complete my knowledge. And then they were all after this. What did they do? So they all went. Usually, when Brahmins approach, sorry, when Kshatriyas approach, sorry, I am sorry, Brahmins approach Kshatriya, it is to want either some money or some cows or something like that. So the king received them very respectfully, made them comfortably sit, and asked, certainly you have some needs. And so ask whatever you want, that is, whatever you need, and then I will help you, because I can do that help. But they all confessed, no, we don't want any, what is called possessions, or money, or gold, such things. We are seekers of knowledge. We want knowledge. And we don't have the knowledge. And we are aware that we don't have complete knowledge. Now it seems the Kshatriya was hesitant, the king was hesitant, because that was not the tradition. But then he understood, these are very apt, fit students, and they deserve, because there is a law, that if a fit student approaches, then the Guru will commit a sin, if he doesn't teach. Like Dronacharya, even though Ekalavya was a very fit student, he refused to teach Ekalavya. So Dronacharya would not have lost anything, along with the other students. If Dronacharya was speaking to one student, even if there were 15, 20, 100 students listening to him, he would not have lost it. At the same time, many people could get benefit. Like our YouTube, once some video is uploaded, of a talk, or music, or anything, then everybody at any given time, all over the world, and permanently, they can enjoy the music. So knowledge doesn't diminish. It will always be the same to the giver, but like digital copying, it can be conveyed to many other people also. So the king decided, that you don't need to humble yourself, because that is not acceptable, but you are fit students, I will teach you. Then what does he do? He asks, how much each one of them, upon what type of deity, you are meditating upon. And they all describe, five deities, like Akasha, like water, like earth, like mind, etc. And then, his Ashwapati says, that is ok, you are not loosening anything, but it is incomplete Upasana. Partial Upasana. Partial knowledge. Partial knowledge, always gives only, partial result. What is called a finite Karma, always gives only, a finite result. It is just like your, a labourer, who engages himself in the, hourly wages. If he works for one hour, he will get one hour's wages. If he works for three hours, similarly, correspondingly, he will get three hours wages. If he works eight hours, he will get full, whole day wages. It is just like that. Nothing goes in vain. Every effort yields a result. But if the effort is limited, the result also will be limited. So then, Ashwapati Kaikeya, describes this Vidya, which Vidya? Vaishvanara Vidya, to Dalaka, and also the other seekers, who are after this knowledge of the, Vaishvanara Self. What is Vaishvanara? Beautiful word. Nara means human. And Vishwanara, you know, revered Swami Gambhiraranjan Maharaj, he has written the biography of Swami, Vivekananda, in Bengali. And he said, Vishwa Manava, Charitra. It is the life story, of a universal person. Because Swami Vivekananda, truly is a Jagat Guru. And so many other Swamis, assume the title themselves, Jagat Guru, like that. Truly speaking, they are not Jagat Gurus. Because the person, who teaches only Advaita Vedanta, he can only, be a guide to those people, who are following Advaita. If Ramanujacharya, is teaching Visishta Advaita, that will be helpful, only to those people, who are following Visishta Advaita. Not those who are following, either Dvaita or Advaita. Similarly Madhvacharya. So a person, who cannot teach, even if one single person, is excluded from the teaching, or a universal teacher, cannot be a universal teacher, unless he is capable of teaching, every single type of mentality. So Swami Vivekananda, very interesting, when Sriram Krishna, in his love, overwhelming love, wanted to give everything, on the third or fourth visit of Narendra. But Narendra, he said, what are you doing to me? I have my parents at home, in Calcutta. And Sriram Krishna, had understood, by the grace of the Divine Mother, even though I want to give him, but his training is not complete. Why was he not complete? About whom Sriram Krishna used to say, my Naren is a Dhyana Siddha, from birth itself, by very birth, he is perfect in meditation. And he was brought down, from the Saptarshi Mandala. And then why was he not fit, to receive this? It is not that he was not fit. He had personally to go through, agnosticism, stoicism, and what is called, atheism, skepticism, and so many isms, with belief, with God, without form. Belief in God, with form. And whether he is a Vaishnava, or a Shakta, or a Shaiva, or a Christian, or a Muslim, or a Jaina, or a Bauddha, because these are all partial views. And therefore, he should be able to guide, help, and of course inspire, and make that person reach, the universal truth. So only then, such a person can be legitimately called, universal teacher. But the others only, very limited people, but people like us, we also like to come, Jagadguru, Jagadguru, like that. Nothing can be more foolish than that. Anyway, this Ashwapati understood, and he did not ask them, you prepare yourself. Remember, the Upanishads are full of stories, where Prajapati had asked, both Virochana and Indra, 32 years, and then after 32 years, Virochana misunderstood, or received the lowest type of knowledge, and then he was satisfied, and then he went away, never to return. But Indra, before returning home, he came back, and he expressed his doubt, I think this is incomplete knowledge. And Prajapati smiled and said, yes, you are right. So you are not fit. Therefore, another 32 years. Similarly, another 32 years. So like that, 3 times, 32 into 32, 96. That is, the waking state is the reality, the dream state is the reality, on the second 32 years completion, and on the completion of the 32 years, for the third time, the Sushupti, deep sleep, is what you are seeking, the Atman, the Brahman. But when that is also, upon proper reasoning, doesn't seem to be the highest truth, then he was asked to do just 5 years, and at the end he says, he who is a witness to all these 3 states, he is the Atman, and you are that Atman. This time, Indra became a knower of Brahman, and then he saluted the Guru, and he departs. So this is the story. And we get the same in the story of Shruti Kamajabala, etc. But look at what happened, when Totapuri Maharaj came to Dakshineshwar, had one look at Shri Ram Krishna, and he certifies, involuntarily, you are completely fit to receive Sanyasa, because he could recognize. And then I will give you Sanyasa, without delay, and give you the highest knowledge. Sanyasa means what? I will initiate you into a Mahavakya. And then Shri Ram Krishna's typical reply was, I don't know, I will ask my mother. He was totally surrendered himself to the Divine Mother, and dependent upon the Divine Mother, and the Divine Mother guided him on every occasion correctly. So, in the end, we all know that Totapuri Maharaj, who declared categorically, I will not stay for more than three days here, he had to stay eleven months, also suffered quite a lot, and ultimately attempted to commit suicide. But then he realized, so what we call Nirguna, impersonal God, is Saguna, Brahma. He is the same personal God. So, from one point of view, He is the personal. From another point of view, He is the impersonal. They are not two separate beings, or they are not two separate states. Saguna is lower, and Nirguna is higher. This is what Shri Ram Krishna called, Brahman and Shakti are one and the same. So, this introduction was to show that, this Ashwapati Kaikeya, he understood, my students are ready, they are very earnest, what we call Adhikari, Purusha Sadhana Chatursthaya Sampannas. And then he asks them, what are you meditating upon? One said that, I meditated on earth as the supreme, and the second one said on water, third said on Akasha, fourth said on the mind. These are all partial views, limited aspects of the cosmic form, that is Ishwara. But the Vaishvanara, Vaishvanara means universal being, is not mere all-pervading existence or being, He is the very embodiment of you, me, the living, non-living, everything. So in the real sense, He cannot be an object of perception. So the simplest way to imagine Him is, in the form of a universal person, the Purusha embedded in Agni. So the Sadhaka comes to meditate, on the concept of Vaishvanara Agni. So what is the consequence of it? You see, we are individuals, only from an ignorant point of view. I am first giving you an example, so that we can continue this discussion. Once a devotee mistakenly thought, Ramakrishna sat down to eat, and there are various dishes, and this devotee mistakenly thought, Ramakrishna is a great person, no doubt about it, but he loves food. That's why he loves to eat various types of food, because the doubter himself, he does the same thing. So we all judge the other persons, according to each individual's personality. And that is a great law, that I can only have knowledge of the other person, including God, as much knowledge as I have myself. If I think I am a human being, God also is a human being. If I think I am an ant, God will be a big, big ant. If I think I am a cow, God will be the biggest cow or bull in the whole world. We cannot step out of this limitation. We only magnify our limitation. That's why Swamiji was very fond of saying, as the man grows, God also grows. Mysterious statement, but what he meant is, as our understanding grows, our concept of understanding of God also, proportionately grows. That is what he means. So this universal being, there is a beautiful meditation. So just like a human being, head and then trunk, the legs, etc. Here is an English translation of that. So that Vaishvanara's head is heaven, and his eyes is the Surya, the Sun God. His every breath is the Vayu Devata. Its trunk is Akasha, because Akasha is that which supports our backbone, our trunk, what we call. That is what supports our entire body. And the water is its bladder, just like our bladder. And our feet are always on the earth. Therefore, even if we put carpet, we have to say it is only on the earth. So this universal being, his feet are the earth. Not that he is putting his feet on earth. His feet themselves are the earth. And his breast is the sacrificial altar. And his hand is sacrificial grass. His heart, the Garhapatya fire. His mind, the Anvaharya Pachana fire. And his mouth, the Ahavanya fire. In case you are getting a bit confused, what are these three fires? In the Vedic times, these are the three fires which every householder has to keep. And then he must borrow from one fire to the other fire. Whenever he is doing Vaidika Puja, not our modern Puja, but Vaidika Puja, and then he has to use on many occasions these three types of fires. So, in this Chandogya Upanishad, 5th chapter, a Vaishvanara, a universal man, Purusha, Self is described as pervading all the three worlds. If you remember, we discussed about the Lord Narayana, Vishnu, taking the form of the Vamana and then occupying in a trice with his two feet the earth as well as the heavens and indicating that he is all-pervading. So, what can you give if everything is God? Who are you? You must be God only or God is you. And if you have possessed something, who is the real possessor? Only God. That is how we have to understand. The attainment of excellence is affected by contemplating upon Creator, God. Then what happens? It is proportional to the extensiveness or the inclusiveness of the conception of the body of the Vaishvanara Self that is meditated upon. That is how in the Dvaita philosophy, dualistic philosophy, I am different, you are different, things in the world are different, all human beings are different, human beings are different from animals, insects, birds, plants, each human being is different from God and the world is also different from God. Everything is different from everything else. But when a person progresses even through that step and transcends that step, then the separation, unity and diversity, there is separation, there is also unity. Just like the hands, the legs, etc. become part, they are separate from each other and yet irrevocably united in the concept of body. So this unity and diversity, existence, knowledge and bliss, they make us. This is a much higher step. But still there is unity and there is also diversity. But when this person progresses further, he ends up in Advaita where there is no unity, there is no diversity because there is no second. Where there is no second, that is called Purnam. That is the meaning of the Shanti Patha, Purnam Adha, Purnam Idam, Purnam Adha, Purnam Udachyate, etc. So when a person, through contemplation, it may be, I think, through many, many births, attains that identity with the Vishnu or Sarva Vyapaka, All-Pervading Divine Being, then what happens? So other people see this person is eating and whatever that person does, it becomes an action of God Himself. And what happens? When a person has knowledge, he thinks according to the knowledge. And then this person, he has knowledge, I am Ishwara. So his thoughts are Ishwara's thoughts. So what happens? When he takes food, then God is taking food. When he is speaking, God is speaking. When he is moving, God is moving. When he is listening, God is listening. And whatever action he does, God is doing. When he is sleeping, God is sleeping. When he is dreaming, God is dreaming. When he is in the waking state, God is in the waking state. So whatever, when I become that kind of Vaishvanara Atman, through this Upasana called Vaishvanara Vidya, whatever I speak, becomes an expression of the Vaishvanara Atman. In fact, whatever I do, becomes its action. This is what in Bhagavad Gita it says, whether you are eating, whether you are sleeping, whether you are moving your limbs, whether you are closing your eyes, or opening your eyes, or breathing through your nostrils, everything, Brahman is doing. And that is the meaning of every time the devotees, especially of Ramakrishna, are advised to do Brahmarpanam. So the person who is offering is Brahman. And to which it is being offered is Brahman. And that which is offered is also Brahman. And through this process, the person slowly attains what is called Brahma Karma. That is called Karma Samadhi. What is Karma Samadhi? Through that action, every action that I do, if I breathe, it is God who is breathing. And in the Puranas also, we get these stotrams. That is, yad yat karo mi shem bo tat tad akhilam tava aradhanam Whatever I do, if I move my hands, I am doing Aratrikam to you. If I am eating, I am offering Naivedyam to you. If my legs are moving, I am entertaining you with a dance. If I am talking, that is Giraha Stotraha. That is, I am hymning you through my talk. yad yat karma karo mi Whatever actions I do, shem bo, O Lord Shiva, then tava aradhanam is nothing but worshipping you. Rather, you are worshipping yourself. In fact, if we connect to this Vaishwana Ragni Vidya with the evening Vesper service, so what are we doing? All the five sense organs are the outcome of five elements. Akasha, that is Shabda, Vayu, Sparsha, Touch, Agni, Rupa, Form, Jala, Taste, Rasa, Prithvi, that is Smell. And we consist of only five sense organs. And so, five items indicating that is your nature. First, the lamp indicating Agni. Then the water. Then the cloth indicating the Akasha. Then the flower indicating the Earth. And then finally, the fan indicating the Vaidevata. That is to say, you are manifesting, O Lord, in the form of these Pancha Bhutas. And the whole universe is nothing but Pancha Bhutas. And I am part of that universe. Therefore, I am also nothing but Pancha Bhutas. Since the Pancha Bhutas came from You, so there is nothing called I. Everything is nothing but You. If we worship God properly, this should be the result. So, whenever I speak, it is God speaking. That's why Shri Ram Krishna says, I do not know anything. So just my mother speaks. If anybody thanks Him, He used to say, I don't know anything. If you are thanking, I don't understand. It is Mother who is speaking. I don't know anything. I just eat. I just drink. I make merry. But it is God who does everything. And if a person has this knowledge, his actions become cosmic sacrifice. Just as God's thought, creation, universal sacrifice. We have seen it in the Purusha Suktam. We have taken classes on that. So, the meditation by any individual on this cosmic form or Vaishvanara means he becomes gradually comes nearer and nearer to this Ishwara or Creator and becomes finally completely united with Him. Then his very body becomes the body of the Vaishvanara. And every action either through the body or through the mind, whatever that person does becomes what is called the Vaishvanara expression of the Divine. What Sri Ramakrishna used to call by my Divine Mother, She makes me do and I do. I speak as She makes me speak. I dance as She makes me dance. I sing as She makes me sing. This marvelous identity with that incomparable infinity, unimaginable infinity, that would be the result of this particular Vaishvanara Vidya contemplation. So, this is what is called Vaishvanara Vidya. And then such a person's body, mind becomes perfect instruments for the for expressing the will of God. That is why when such people whatever they express it is called Satya Kama and Satya Sankalpa. Whatever they think they are not thinking. It is God who is thinking. God is Truth. Truth is thinking. And whatever they speak is nothing but Truth. And whatever they speak, whatever they think must come true. That is why two titles are given Satya Sankalpaha Satya Kamaha Whatever they desire must come true. Satya Kama All their desires are fulfilled and such a person who identifies with Brahman becomes completely identified with Brahman. Brahma with Aapnoti Param and Brahmanasaha Modathe. He experiences at once infinity because he has become infinite. Purnamadaha Purnamidham Purnat Purnamudachyate Purnasya Purnameva Avasishyate Om Shanti Shanti Shanti So that is what is expressed in this beautiful Upasana in our next class. Perhaps I will give you one or two more examples which are very useful for our day to day life and we will do that from the next class onwards. Om Jananim Sharadam Ramakrishnam Jagadgurum Pada Padme Tayo Saritva Pranamami Moho Moho May Ramakrishna, Holy Mother and Swami Vikananda bless us all with Bhakti. Jai Ramakrishna