Bhagavad Gita Ch18 part 41 on 07 May 2022

Full Transcript(Not Corrected)

Om Jananem Sharadam Devem Ramakrishnam Jagadgurum Pada Padme Tayo Sritva Pranamami Mohur Mohur Om Vasudevasutam Devam Kamsachanuram Ardhanam Devaki Paramanandam Krishnam Vande Jagadgurum Sarvopanishadokavo Dogdha Gopalanandana Partho Vatsa Sudhir Bokta Dogdham Gita Amritam Mahat Mookam Karuti Vachalam Pankum Langayate Girim Yath Kripathamaham Vande Paramananda Madhavam The teachings of the Bhagavad Gita is over. Now the Lord's message was to take complete refuge. Give up your ego, egotism, what you call I-ness and my-ness. Completely merge them in the Divine. And if you do that, I will destroy all the obstructions that stand in the way of your obtaining that ultimate knowledge, supreme knowledge that I am Brahman. You will attain me. You will become free. You will be filled with indescribable bliss. With that, the teaching is over. Now the question comes, such a marvellous teaching. O Lord, I have complete faith. Now I do not have anything to worry about. All that I need to do is to surrender myself to You. Can I share this with other people? In our last class, this is what we have been trying to find out. In verse 67, Bhagavan Krishna points out, No, no, you may be appreciating it, but this sacred as well as a secret highest knowledge should not be under any conditions. Na kadachana. Never should you distribute it, teach it, even by mistake to other people. Why, sir? Am I to be so selfish? Can I not share it with others? No, I am not saying that you should not tell it. You should find out who is capable of receiving it and incapable of receiving it. Now I have outlined four disqualifications. That means the people who have these four qualifications, which are disqualifications really, should never be taught. What is the reason? First of all, it will do no good to that person. Secondly, on the contrary, it may harm you because if this person makes fun of you and you have become extremely sensitive, this is a very peculiar state. If you are a non-believer, you will be very insensitive, thick-skinned. If you are a realized soul, you have no skin at all. But if you happen to be in between, your skin progressively is going to become very, very sensitive. Like, do not touch me, touch me not. There are some plants, some flowers, immediately they close themselves. So what happens? That you are in such a position, if somebody directs some criticism against you, and that is unwarranted criticism, making fun of you, many people have not progressed sufficiently to withstand these shocks of criticism. So at that stage, you better not to tell anybody in the advanced stage also you should not tell because it does no good to the other person. But in the initial stages of your spiritual conversion, you should not tell because these people invariably, inevitably, they will not accept the truth. They will only accept the untruth, the opposite of the truth. They will ridicule the scripture, the concoctions of the priests, of the power mongers, which unfortunately in many cases, seems they are justified in telling the way most people interpret and then try to impose with their authority. Otherwise, they can be put to death. How many millions of people have been put to death? I would say billions of people, all in the name of God, all in the name of religion. That is why a great historian Bill Durant, he said, if you study history and really pay attention, you will lose all faith in a benevolent God, and which is very true because history is nothing but full of bloodshed of the strong oppressing the weak. Therefore, four characteristics, if we find in anybody, do not teach them. What is the first one? He who has got no austerity. Here the word austerity has to be understood. The person who has no capacity to understand, no capacity to think over, no logical capacity is there, no rational capacity is there, that means he is only nothing but completely irrational, uncultured, very very raw material. Second, na bhaktaya. Never disclose this secret to anybody who is not a devotee. Who is a devotee? A devotee has got two characteristics. First of all, he has complete faith in the scriptures, in God. Faith seems to be innate in such a person. Maybe it differs from advanced student to not so advanced, but both are convinced. The only difference is that I am weak, I have lot of defects in me, so I am not able to realize what the scriptures tell, but I have absolutely no doubt about what the scripture tells me, what my Guru tells me. This is first characteristic. Second characteristic is this person is convinced. The goal of life is God realization. So I must make whatever efforts are possible for me, whether I succeed or not, it is in the hands of God. Whether I will succeed at all, even in future births, that will be left to the discretion of God. But I will do my best. When you find such type of people, they are called purely devotees. But they who go on doing useless japa, useless meditation, useless study of the scriptures, useless everything, their character has not changed, their selfishness has not become less, their generosity is becoming less and less day by day, year after year, and they are completely as it were caught, like the fourth type of fish as outlined by Ramakrishna. They do not think they are bound. They have absolutely no self-introspection. They have no capacity to objectify themselves. Such a person, if you find, if you understand, and you will understand very soon, if not on the first attempt, then close your mouth and say, yes, yes, yes, yes, and get out of that place. Then there is a third characteristic. A devotee is also known by the eagerness. There are some devotees, we get in the Gospel, everywhere, Oh, this Rabbi is not teaching anything new. We know all those things. We know everything. So he is not telling anything new. This arrogance, this incapacity to try to understand what is the other person telling. Whereas a devotee, not only he has the capacity to understand, but he is not satiated, even hearing these things a billion times. In fact, our class proves the point. Since whatever class we are taking, we are listening, we are trying to understand. The essence is the same. Rest is repetition after repetition after repetition. God exists. I have come from God. My goal is to go back to God. And my duty is to try what best I can do to go back to God. If anybody understood this, that is repeated. So many words, so many examples, so many parables, so many different ways of expression, so many inspiring incidents from the lives of saints, etc., etc. So that is the third qualification. An intense eagerness, even if a person heard it a billion times, he is not satisfied. On the contrary, his thirst, his desire increases. Like a man who goes on drinking salt water, his desire to drink more and more goes on increasing by leaps and bounds. The fourth disqualification is he who cavils at me, finds fault with my teachings, finds fault with my life, finds fault with everything. He thinks he doesn't say it. Most people don't say it. But he means it in their actual, day-to-day action and reaction. I am better than God. I know better than God. Funnily, Swami Vivekananda once, he was undergoing bitter experiences in life. He used to remark, at the time of creation, if God had consulted me, I would have given a good bit of my mind so that he could have created a much better world. Later on, the very Swami understood and said, everything is perfect. In this world, the will of the Lord is absolutely perfect. And that is a marvellous statement. Because if somebody is cutting my throat, will this statement apply? Yes. Somebody is cutting my throat. This is the perfect thing. It is the will of God. I deserve it. And what is the criteria? It does me immense good. It is saving me. It is giving me a lot of suffering. So the Lord tells, avoid the people who exhibit one or more of these qualities. Even if you find one quality, simply discard that person. If God wants to teach such a person, let him find out somebody else. But as far as you are concerned, protect yourself. Because the very presence, the very power of these people which is exuding from them is sometimes more powerful than even the holy company, the study of scriptures. One person's book can wipe away your years and years of faith in so many books. When we are in that particular state of mind, God alone knows, when we are in that low state, we are extremely ready to receive this kind of teachings of these nastikas, non-believers, materialists, etc. All because of our fault. So avoid their company if you wish your own good, like poison. Now naturally the question comes, to whom should it be given? So in this 68th verse, the Lord is outlining two important points, characteristics. So what is He telling? Even when we are giving these things, giving, teaching, trying to comment, or even by just reading, etc., to people, you must find something very important. What is it? You must give it only to My devotees. Who is My devotee? He who doesn't have at least most of the 99% of these four qualities outlined above are absent in My devotees. After all, we are not completely realized souls. So if we don't have these qualities, we are already realized souls. But they will be there. But our goal is to bring that percentage down, and down, and down. When you find a person sincerely struggling, then you do this. In the 60th verse, this is how it goes, Beautiful verse. He who with supreme devotion to Me teaches this deeply profound philosophy to those who are devoted exclusively to Me shall without question come to Me. Some marvelous things are there. Any teacher of any scripture, of any religion, he wants to pass it on. Because remember, the scripture of every religion is known as Veda. Just as for Hindus, Veda is the highest scripture, most exalted, authoritative scripture. So far spiritual life is concerned, so a Bible, a Koran, etc. But it must be taught by people who are devotees. Most often, it is perverted people, fanatical people, power-mongering people, who interpret and they want to force their ideas, inject their ideas into the brains of their followers. And I'm surprised, or rather I should not be surprised, that they are very easily able to do it. They have some capacity to induce. But there is a saying, those who, an unqualified, unfit disciple receives an unfit teacher and a fanatical teacher will only get a fanatical disciple. That means the people for whom God has given brain, a capacity to think, they choose not to exercise that right, but just listen, swallow and follow whatever some of these fanatical teachers are teaching. For example, my religion alone is a real religion. Everybody must be converted to my religion and no other religion is good. And any other name of God, except in the God whom I belong, I preach, I utter, alone is the name of God. These are called some of the fanatical ideas. How much misery, country after country, are being made to experience because of these fanatical religious leaders. Many times they are not only religious leaders, they also assume the role of the spiritual leadership and even more tragic, they become the rulers of that particular country and try to impose and then go on making people suffer terribly. Only God can release them. Through sincere prayer, we have to pray to the Divine Lord to show His mercy upon all these people. Coming back, any teacher, whoever wants to teach, the one who wants to pass it on, this most sacred and secret teaching, we understand not only to Arjuna, but any teacher. Such a teacher must first of all consider the scripture as most exalted and it is the only way to reach God because understanding the scripture and putting it in practice alone can give Moksha and there is no other way. Applying it here, this dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna, the most sacred and then secret. The Lord uses this word, paramam guhyam, most secret, most sacred. Everything sacred, unfortunately many times, is also a secret. Now, in my last class, I promised, this word has many connotations. I want to talk about that. So why is this scripture, this teaching, is considered to be so sacred and so secret? Secret means it should be imparted to only very few people whom a real teacher considers as a fit person, fit disciple, fit receiver. First of all, if something unsuitable is taught to a person, it can definitely damage a person, not only who doesn't need it, but who is not ready for it. A simple example, supposing there is a devotee and he wants to say, Oh Lord, you are my master, you are my loving mother, loving father, loving friend, and loving everything. So, beloved, so you, I, I depend upon you. You please help me. For such a person, straight away you tell him, No, no, you are following a wrong path. Nanamarga, the path of knowledge, is the only path. Tattvam asai, you are Brahman. Then this person, he will be damaged. In the gospel we get this story, that Sri Ramakrishna was one day scolding Hajra. There was a character called Hajra. And this Hajra was ridiculing people, devotees, who used to come to Sri Ramakrishna with great reverence and faith, that hey, you fellows offer bananas, mangoes, oranges, fruits, flowers. Do you think these most insignificant offerings God either receives or God requires? You are stupid fellows, in other words. He used to ridicule them. And he had a power in ridiculing them and hurting them, including the direct disciples of Sri Ramakrishna. Hajra used to tell, Sri Ramakrishna doesn't know anything. That's why he cannot teach you. I will teach you the right thing. So you are Brahman. Because he used to have these talks, even I think with Totapuri, Sri Ramakrishna's teacher. And then he used to ridicule, even Sri Ramakrishna. Sri Ramakrishna one day very mildly is telling, it is true, what you say is the highest truth. Aham Brahmasme, the highest truth. But these youngsters, they are in an initial stage. If you teach them these things, what little devotion, faith they have, that also they will lose. And their arrogance will rise to the topmost level. And then they will be falling down, even worse than what they were before. And then Sri Ramakrishna very gently chided him. Sometimes of course, he used to take to task Hajra, right and left. Sri Ramakrishna was not a sparing of anybody. He used to talk in the most harsh voice. Sometimes whenever he wants, he was a great actor. He could speak in where even they say, butter will not melt in the mouth. So on some occasions, he was telling like that. So I also told you the story of a king. I don't remember in this Gita class or some other class, that a king was taught by his guru, everything is God. And then immediately the king said, not only my wife, my queen is my wife, but every maidservant is the same. I can enjoy any of them. And then the queen complained to the guru and the guru taught him a great lesson. So you please recollect that story. So if this highest truth, that there is no two beings, you and I, only I exist and the world to that and you are Brahman, if this is taught, many people's devotion will just wither and die and it will take a long time for them to recover. Of course they are going to recover. Thus this knowledge must be taught only to the person who is ready for it. More than that, this teaching gives the highest goal, Param Purushartha. Therefore being the most valuable, it should be given only to the person who knows the value and who cherishes it and then who puts into practice what is given. We must always remember a teaching is always given for practice. The teacher points out the goal but then to reach that goal. Simple example, that you must always practice truthfulness. That is the goal. Only a realized soul it becomes most natural to him because he has become the truth. No untruth can ever escape his mouth. But for all of us, we are in such a state that this truth is our goal right now. Call it God, call it by whatever name you want to call it, doesn't really matter. So this is why it should not be given. And then it is very, very secret because sacred, not only sacred but it is also secret. Now why are you trying to hide it? Many people accused Swamiji, why have you broadcast these Upanishadic truths? Upanishad is called Aranya Bodhana Upadesha. Only to few people, Rahasya Vidya and a Guru should take them to a solitary place where no chance of anybody even eavesdropping and there one should teach it stage by stage. And you went and gave public lectures. Swamiji gave very rational answer even though people did not understand it. He said, if people are incapable of understanding it, they will not understand it. But at least there may be some who may be longing for it, who may have the capacity to understand it. If I don't tell, then people will not have the opportunity to hear of it. In fact, thousands of people it came as a divine shower. After hearing Swamiji, they know our soul was unable to breathe being caught in this tight net of sectarian teaching, fanatical teaching. We were waiting. We know there is something. We don't know what it is. We don't know where it is. We don't know how to get it. But after hearing Swamiji, they breathed a sigh of relief and said, Ah! This is what we have been waiting ever since our birth. So many people involuntarily exclaimed this one. So in this Bhagavad Gita, it is said, Secret of the most secrets. So why is it called? There are certain reasons. Simply, Bhagavan doesn't use a word without any reason behind it. So what is the reason? Here are four reasons are given. Why this sacred teaching is called the most, utmost secret. First reason. This teaching about God is not available through any other pramana. Pramana means a means of knowledge. Now we have got five means of knowledge to obtain any worldly knowledge, secular knowledge. So this secret of God, a secret of the Atman, sacredness of the Brahman is not available through any means of knowledge, pramana, that we commonly have at our disposal like perception and inference. What are they? Pratyaksha, direct experience, anumana, inference. For example, I am seeing a tree. So even if the whole world comes and says you are not seeing a tree, our heart will not believe them. Because I am seeing it directly. Not only I have seen, I am still continuing to see it. Anumana, inference. When a person says that here is smoke behind a hill, that is the classical example, we infer without fire there cannot be any smoke. It is invariable, what is called relationship is there between these two. So through inference we are not seeing the fire but we are inferring the fire but something has to be seen and smoke is seen. If we don't see the smoke, we cannot infer really. So this is also inference but based upon direct experience. Then we have got something called Upamana. So somebody asks what is this Indian Rasagulla? Then the person had never seen, never heard first time. So we can give an analogy or a comparison. You know you make cakes. Apple pie or apple cake etc. Mulberry pie or any other strawberry pie etc. and it is very sweet. So this is sweet similar to that sweet it is much different from it but then at least some knowledge is there Oh! this is also sweet this is also sweet. Further you can understand there is a definite difference between any given two sweets. So mulberry pie and apple pie they are both are pies but anybody who has eaten both immediately thereafter with closed eyes will say this is mulberry pie and this is strawberry pie and this is apple pie etc. Even though they are all pies that special distinguishing features he can see. This is called Upamana. Upamana means comparison. So somebody has not seen a cow. He has seen a buffalo. It is something like a buffalo different in colour, different in nature less same species it also gives milk and its milk is very good for children. So this is called through Upamana, Pramana means a person can be conveyed the knowledge. Then Arthapatti Arthapatti means presumption. Presumption means one day you get up and then you see the whole not only your street the whole area, the whole town is full of water. If it is a small bit then maybe the water tank has come and it was leaking or a water pipe is leaking and so the whole street is flooded with water but the whole area cannot be flooded like that and then you can see water is dripping from the trees, from the houses etc. Okay, it must have rained. This presuming, seeing something this is also part of inference only really speaking. All these are part of inference only. So only Pratiksha and Anumana are the most important things. Variations of inference is this Arthapatti to come to the right knowledge yesterday it rained, I was deeply asleep, I did not know this is how we have right knowledge. Then of course then Abhava means one day you see a book in your room you read every day, keep it there in one particular place and the next day you come and then you don't see the book and you know that you have not taken it out you know that nobody has entered so you infer absence of this book at this particular place at this time so somebody or I myself without noticing, without being aware of it must have taken to some place. Ah! Yesterday night I took it to the fireplace and I must have left it there. So you run there and of course it is lying there. So this absence of book at the usual place gives the knowledge since it is not here it must be somewhere. This is how through these five means of knowledge we obtain right knowledge but only with regard to the secular knowledge science falls under five but not spirituality that which can never be experienced like the existence of God, existence of other world, existence continuation of life after the fall of the body. These must be learned only by faith in the scripture because the scripture is the experience of a sage who had seen God, who had seen the other world, who had also watched life continuing in the other world. So that is called Shabda Pramana. So this most secret teaching about Brahman cannot be obtained through any pramana but only one pramana, scriptural pramana that is called Shabda Pramana. And now second point even when somebody explains also in this world itself for example if you take the example of theory of relativity E is equivalent to MC2, Einstein's theory of relativity, theorem of relativity. It can be explained. Einstein perhaps is your neighbor and he takes pity upon you and he explains but you don't even know that what is the multiplication of 2 into 2 even though he explains it is a secret for you because you don't have that capacity, you must study so many other things, you must master what is called abstract mathematics and then only it might make some sense, not otherwise. Third, further, then what is the secret? The secret is it is the nature of myself and therefore it is not available for anyone looking for it. I am looking, I am looking left, right, above, below, east, west, south, north. I am looking everywhere like the musk deer looking everywhere accepting from itself. So we are looking, there is this God. This God, Swami Vivekananda had composed a beautiful poem. Oh Lord, so you are over the hills and dales I have searched for you everywhere and I became despaired. I don't remember the exact words, but this is the essence of it. And then suddenly one day a gentle voice said, my son, my child, where are you searching for me? I am here with you all the time. While you are searching also, I am by your side only. In fact, I am the searcher within you. Moko kahan dundere bande. Fool, where are you searching for me? Mai to tre paas mein hoon. I am inside you, outside you, by the side of you. In fact, I alone am. You do not exist at all. Kabir Das beautiful song. Then I am looking everywhere and the more I look, the more I am missing because what I am looking for outside is called objectification. I see a tree. Oh, is this God? A tree is an object. How can God be equated? The searcher himself is God. The subject is the God. The experiencer is the God. How can he be objectified? Then how is one to know the Atman? The Upanishads say the one who chooses the Atman by him it is gained. This is a translation which is I think is a faulty translation but Ramakrishna gives. This is a beautiful mantra from the Kata Upanishad. That is the essence of it. This Atman cannot be attained by any amount of lectures. Every amount of intellectual understanding. By any amount of studying, reading or listening to lectures. How to get the knowledge? He whom the Atman chooses only such a person can understand it. Ramakrishna gives a beautiful example. I will come to it. When the Atman finds a mind which is pure, which is longing and which is ready for that mind, purified mind then the Atman it just reveals itself. It is not doing anything. It just by its very presence it makes the mind understand I am that. This is a unique experience where nobody can experience Atman and say I see the Atman. I hear the Atman. I experience the Atman. No. It is I am. That's all. It ends. Even this saying I am is only because I have to use some words. But really speaking it is like saying you ask a person in deep sleep, in what state are you now? Oh, I am in deep sleep where I do not know anything. The person will not say. If he says he is not in that state. So like that one can experience it by becoming one with it but one can never express it. The Atman is available only for the person whom the Atman chooses that is called bestowing its grace and nobody else can know it. Ramakrishna used to say pray to the police sergeant to turn the light upon himself. It is a very famous analogy. A police sergeant is going around as a watchman, as a security man. He has a powerful torch light. He can put the torch he can turn it on anybody and he can see everybody. Nobody can see his face. Somebody wants to see his face they have to pray. Oh, sergeant sir, please turn the torch light upon your own face. This is what we have also seen in the Isavasya Upanishad. Hiranyamayena Patrena Sathyasya Apiltam Mukham Tattvam Poshan Apavruno Sathya Dharmaya Krishtai. That eternal Anandam, Tramman that I am seeking is hidden in everybody in the very Atma, the seeker as what? Not as the part of the personality but as the very real nature of the seeker and so there is no better hiding place and because it is the nature of oneself and the very seeker who doesn't know his own nature but who is seeking outside he is looking for a solution which he is not going to keep. So a seeker's very seeking keeps it hidden because the seeker is the Atma that is sought. Even if it is taught, even if the person doesn't have the proper qualifications the teaching will not convey anything and thus remains a secret. For example try to describe a colour to a blind person. That is why it is called Guhya. So then to whom is the teaching to be taught? Remember, those who do not have or who are disqualified because of four characteristics they should never be taught. But those who are devoid of those four qualifications at least to a great extent they must be taught because they are the Sadhakas, they are the seekers they are the devotees they are people who are sincerely striving to attain that one. So here the devotees are those who are the devotees, they don't want anything from God, they want only God. So some people want money some people want security but some people want to say I want you, I don't want anything else. Sri Ramakrishna illustrates so beautifully a child is there and the mother suckles him and then gives him some toys and then the child is very busy the mother knows the child is playing too long calls but the child doesn't listen because he is getting Ananda from playing but then he feels the pangs of hunger. As soon as the pangs of hunger comes he kicks the whole thing aside and runs to the mother until she takes him in her arms and then suckles him, feeds him, he is not happy at all after that he will enter into deep Samadhi. This is what he is telling. Devotees are those who want only God who want only Moksha. God Moksha, Peace, Kingdom of Heaven, Nirvana Shunya, this is all synonymous words. Paradise etc. They want the knowledge of Parameshwara they do not want anything less than that. And what is the knowledge of Parameshwara? Parameshwara is the only goal. Parameshwara is the knowledge not like knowledge of a tree knowledge of God knowledge of God is not different from God knowledge is God Brahma with Brahmaiva Bhavati. So these are called seekers, true seekers they want Moksha. So Krishna says here that the one who is teaching this knowledge is manifesting the highest form of devotion to me because a person who believes in God who has faith in God who is absolutely devoid of those four disqualifications he is a true devotee and a true devotee will only want to pass this knowledge share this knowledge not to non devotees but only to other devotees. Shri Ram Krishna in his inimitable style he observed you know there are cows when the lazy cows come they go together and they recognize each other and they lick each other but if any stranger bull or cow comes they kick it out. Like that devotees don't want the presence of the disturbance, the nuisance of any non devotee. Of course same thing applies to non devotees they get bored of the devotees naturally they will not come at all. I have seen this anyway I am sharing this one with you. It's a funny thing there are some people they want to waste my time and they want to talk worldly things and then I start only spiritual topic after preliminary enquiries how are you, your health is ok and I take a serious subject many times I have noticed after 10 minutes by that time their patience has come to an end and they make morass. So we have got very urgent work we have to go somewhere by this time I think already we are late we will take leave of you. Oh ho what an opportunity I thought I will tell you. I am also pretending to feel the loss but inside I am very happy that this nonsensical boredom is disappearing very soon and you can also try it. You speak something in which your listener, your audience your friends are not interested very soon they will bid goodbye very sweet way and it will work this is the only way you can get rid of them. So a person who is teaching himself is an authorised person who is an authorised person he who is following himself sincerely exhibiting the highest devotion and such a devotee as I mentioned earlier he is a thirst for sharing his things among other devotees he feels a natural urge like water which is naturally flows to lower levels. So this devotee he wants to share with other devotees but he is highly discriminative he also knows by experience who is a devotee, who is not a devotee when he is fortunate to get some listening true devotees then he will pour himself out and the lord is telling he himself is endowed with a great devotion and he is imparting this knowledge to other devotee is one of the expressions of the highest devotion to me and this is one of the highest means of serving me not merely puja rituals etc but he is really showing his devotion by sharing with others who deserve it when such a person is teaching he is revealing Bhagawan and that is his devotion his service to Bhagawan as well as his fruit what fruit? the more he is teaching the more he is thinking of God many times we see Sri Ram Krishna is teaching and then he begins, he sings a song he goes into Samadhi tears of joy well up and sometimes they fall, ours together he is in that unconscious state Swami Vivekananda he wanted to teach Raja Yoga in America and then a few devoted followers used to come and you sit in this way he will sit himself you make your backbone and neck and then head straight like a rod like military pose and then straight like a ram rod and then you relax the whole body and meditate and this is how you meditate and then he used to slip into that meditative state and by experience his devotees came to know for ours together he may not come back so they used to salute him and slowly move away because they are not capable of sitting or even forbearing, bearing that kind of thing, just imagine what we are talking here a non devotee cannot bear it even a devotee cannot bear it unless he is fit for that, that's why so many devotees they have a capacity 15 minutes half an hour, 45 minutes after that either they want to change the subject which I will never allow or they take leave of me which I gladly allow or joyfully I allow, so when a teacher is teaching, first of all that is his love devotion, expression of devotion then he thinks this is the greatest service I can render to God by passing on what knowledge I have to other people thirdly, he himself is overwhelmed with Anandam, why? because Brahman is Sat, Chit, Anandam so Bhagwan himself is the knowledge and that way of teaching is called Parama Bhakti Supreme Devotion because between the Lord and the devotee there is no longer any difference, physically yes there is a body mentally the person has become by talking about God very soon he has become absorbed in the thought of God become one with God Swami Vivekananda was expressing this that in this Bhakti Yoga what is supreme devotion at the end, at last, a triangle a love a lover and the beloved love, lover and the beloved become one, that is Parama Bhakti when anyone is teaching about God there are no other devotees who is really teaching, it is really Bhagwan who is teaching because Ram Krishna when he used to teach such highest truths in such simple language even ordinary people were able to understand and they used to say, Sir you have given the highest teaching, thank you Ram Krishna used to smile no, you know who is teaching the real Guru is Sat, Chit, Anandam is the real Guru because Gnanam is Bhagwan so a true devotee having achieved identity with Parameshwara in the form of thinking meditating, listening reading, etc he becomes a Gnani Bhakta and by teaching he continues to enjoy to increase his devotion his knowledge and serve Parameshwara and be merged in in him, in Parameshwara so what happens to that person? he reaches me alone mam eva eshyati mam eva eshyati in this life he becomes liberated he becomes a Jeevan Mukta, living free second, he reaches Parameshwara after death also in that when the Prarabdha Karma is exhausted there is only Parameshwara so one is Jeevan Mukti, one is called Deha Mukti, but in reality Mukti is Mukti liberation is liberation he has gone beyond time, space and causation, there is no living or non-living now Bhagwan is praising that he who passes on this knowledge joyfully shares it with other people this is the greatest sacrifice greatest Karma or activity, greatest Yajna, anybody can do it so that is being explained in the 69th verse but even though in this case, as we discussed earlier in the earlier 67th as well as 68th Shloka there is no material, there is no there is no fire, there is no physical activity among all the devotees but he who does this the Lord categorically declares among all the devotees he who performs this divine service called Jnana Yajna this tremendous puja, worship of me by sharing the knowledge of the scriptures about me and whose author is me and who is the propagator of me who is, which is powered by me and which ultimately brings everyone to me such a devotee is the most dear among all the devotees, there may be millions or billions of devotees in fact billions of believers, devotees and first of all they are not all spiritual seekers they want something from God, not God secondly even if they are there they want they are slowly, they don't want to change their character, they are satisfied a little bit of prayer little bit of Japa etc. etc. but he who himself has advanced who himself is enjoying who himself is passing on such a person is the most dear to me, categorically the Lord is declaring this 69th verse among the manushyas nobody such a dear person does not exist but who exists? who joyfully shares the knowledge of me he himself enjoys and he passes on his enjoyment to others who deserve that not only now even in future is it possible that in future you will see somebody else who becomes who can become even more dear to you, the Lord says no I know everything because the world never changes whether it is in the past, present and future that a person who himself is practicing who himself is enjoying his practice and who passes on his experience and joyfully talks, sings meditates among other people such a person is most dear to me because very soon there will be no difference between him and me there is none among men who can do anything more pleasing to me than such a devotee nor shall there be another on earth dearer to me in future than such a devotee among all devotees there is no other devotee who is more dear to Bhagawan, why? the one who knows me is myself, the Lord declared umpteen number of times there are four types of devotees Artha, those who are in distress, Artharthi those who are not in distress but plenty of unfulfilled desires and they only depend upon me and I too fulfill their desires but the person comes to a stage, enough is enough I don't want anything belonging to this world, I want to know what is the ultimate goal I want to become, reach the ultimate goal, reaching and becoming are exactly one and the same gantavyam and bhavitavyam is exactly one and the same, mukti is not only knowing but becoming me that is what he says, gnani tu, tu means but gnani, a man of knowledge who knows me, who knows I am everything, atma eva me matam that he is me there is nobody, the self is the most beloved, its nature being limitlessness and ananda which is happiness after all, the person who has reached God, he is ananda swaroopa, he has become an ocean of joy and that is why Ramakrishna from every pore of his body only ananda is to percolate, the person who knows atma is teaching that ananda he is not teaching something just a dry teaching dry knowledge is conveying what ananda can be this is a most marvelous thing we have to understand if you are in the presence of a cheerful person joyous person, very positive person, you will understand what I am talking about you cannot remain for long morose depressed or what is called down hearted you can never become, even if you are there, you approach him many times devotees of Shri Ramakrishna, who used to visit him, we used to be filled with peace and many devotees categorically stated when they are in the presence of Ramana Maharshi, they used to be filled with indescribable joy, so long as they are in the periphery of his influence so therefore a person who is conveying is not merely teaching, but he is conveying the highest joy once a person understands I am getting so much joy if I can realize this teaching I will not be getting joy, but I will be becoming joy, I will not be having ananda, I will be becoming ananda swaroopa I will become satyachit ananda, I will be swimming in the ocean of bliss so the devotee also feels, I am only teaching there is no other but the devotee who is preaching says he doesn't say, I am teaching, he says Krishna is telling, Krishna is only teaching, I am only teaching means Paramatma alone is teaching there is nobody accepting him, because who can talk about Paramatma, only Paramatma who can describe God only God, thus there is no one later than the one who teaches this knowledge, so what is the best way of helping anyone, helping another man is to take him to God, so that his life's purpose will be fulfilled and then not only a person who teaches, a person who listens, a person who even recites as Shankaracharya points out, we will see in our next class, he will also be getting the same result it is a marvellous shloka 17th shloka, we will be discussing it tomorrow Om Vasudeva Sutam Deivam Kamsa Janura Marthanam Devaki Paramanandam Krishnam Mande Jagadgurum May Ram Krishna Holy Mother and Swami Vivekananda bless us all Thank you for today