Brihadaranyaka Upanishad Ch.1.4 Lecture 34 on 17 May 2026
Full Transcript (Not Corrected)
Opening Invocation
ॐ पूर्णमदः पूर्णमिदं पूर्णात् पूर्णमुदच्यते
पूर्णस्य पूर्णमादाय पूर्णमेवावशिष्यते
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः
OM PŪRṆAMADAḤ PŪRṆAMIDAM PŪRṆĀT PŪRṆAMUDACYATE PŪRṆASYA PŪRṆAMĀDĀYA PŪRṆAMEVA VAŚIṢYATE OM ŚĀNTI ŚĀNTI ŚĀNTIH
OM That Brahman is infinite, and this universe is also infinite. The infinite proceeds from the infinite. Taking the infinitude of the infinite universe, it remains as the infinite Brahman alone.
OM Peace, Peace, Peace be unto all.
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There was a great discussion in a sacred Gurukula, the students. Real seekers of Brahman have started a discussion. What is Brahman? What did our Acharya teach us and how can we implement and progress and realise that I am Brahman.
The Householder and the Fourteen Lokas
So in our last class, with regard to that, in the 17th mantra (last mantra in the fourth section), we were discussing about what are the duties of a householder. That is to say, who is a householder? Anybody who thinks "I am the body and mind," he is a householder. Such a person's desires will be confined only to the satisfaction of the body, of the mind, and at best he wants to have higher happiness by going to higher lokas called svargalokas. Varieties and degrees of happiness are described there. Of such, the six higher lokas according to Hindu division. Hindus have divided every state of experience anybody can go through into 14 lokas, starting with this earthly world bhūloka. There are upper six lokas. Six lokas plus our earth (where we are) that form half of the world, and below us there are six lokas, or seven lokas are there. Total 14 lokas are there.
Now the point is: we are very fortunate to live in this earthly world, because this is called karma bhūmi. Other worlds, higher or lower, are considered as only to exhaust our karma phala – either puṇyam or pāpam. We will be going to those lokas either to experience higher happiness and thereby exhaust our puṇyam, or go down to the lower lokas and exhaust our pāpams. But one has to come back to this earthly world to do sādhanā.
Two Kinds of Desires: Worldly vs. Spiritual
So here is a person who is involved, who has also evolved into a human being – not an uncouth, uncultured human being, but has awakened to some higher faculties and he realizes human life is precious. Such a person can cherish two desires:
- I want to be happy in this world or higher lokas. But after experiencing for some time again and again through a lot of labor, such a person realizes: what I want is not temporary (which is ephemeral, lasting for only a very short time). I want permanent happiness.
- That is the second category of people, of which the Gita beautifully describes: out of millions of people, perhaps one person awakens to the fact that spiritual life, godly life, is the only life worth living.
The Fivefold Necessity (Pāṅktam) for Rituals
So there is such a householder and he thinks "I am the body and mind." He has faith in the scriptures, and the scriptures describe higher lokas. So he says: "I want to be happy in this world as well as in the higher worlds." For such a person, the scriptures prescribe certain actions to be done according to one's caste (though it is not a good word actually) and according to one's stage in life – varṇa dharma and āśrama dharma.
So we presume this person is a good person, and he goes to the teacher, spends several years, learns all about life, comes back, and he has unfulfilled desires pertaining to the body and mind. Such a person desires: "I want to perform this ritual." For that, the Vedas tell us that you require five things. What are the five things?
- He himself should be in young age, capable age, capable of undertaking this yajña ritual.
- He must have his wife. (You may be wondering why such a person should require a wife. Because a person imbued with worldly desires will be thinking: if I get a woman, a wife, then not a free life. But a duly married wife, then the rightful actions can be discharged, duties can be discharged.)
- Son
- Human wealth – money, animals, servants, and many other objects for the performance of yajña, yāga, etc.
- Divine wealth – control of mind, a deep faith in God, etc.
So he requires five items. This is called pāṅktam (a group of five). Through that he has to discharge his varṇa dharma āśrama dharma, which have to be discharged through the proper performance of pañca mahāyajñas (five great sacrifices or removals of debts), which we have discussed in the past and yesterday also.
Thus: first is himself, called yajamāna; second is wife, called patnī; third is the son; fourth is human wealth; fifth is divine wealth. All these five are indispensable if a person wants to properly discharge all the pañcamahāyajñas.
From External Ritual to Inner Upāsanā
We presume such a person does it throughout life, throughout many lives, and he slowly awakens, he becomes evolved. Then amṛtatvamicchan. So:
उत्तिष्ठत जाग्रत – arise, awake, approach learned ones, sit humbly at their feet and serve them, please them, ask them: "What type of life should I lead?"
tadviddhi praṇipātena paripraśnena sevayā |
upadekṣyanti te jñānaṃ jñāninastattvadarśinaḥ ||
So this evolved person says: "I have done physically all those things. Now from external ritual, I want to progress into higher action, that is called upāsanā." Such a person now turns his mind, and the Upanishad (or the Veda) tells us – but the Upanishad also tells us that as wrong as a person doesn't get married, doesn't get a son or sons, performs all the yajñāś yāgāś, he cannot evolve.
That is why I mentioned yesterday: the appropriate duties apportioned to one's own caste and to one's own stage of life – they are called āśrama dharmas. Due discharge of these dharmas (proper performance) is called karma yoga. Karma yoga, in other words, is nothing but getting rid of our debts to these five beings: our ṛṣis, gods (presiding deities), our ancestors, every other human being, and everything in this world – nothing is left out.
Citta Śuddhi and Its Fruits
When we are grateful for our life, for our health, for our happiness, for our fulfillment, for everything, we have to give back what we receive. And this is a continuous process, constant process every second. For example, breathing in borrows oxygen from the vaiśvadevatā, and we have to give back what is helpful to other creatures (like trees, etc.) through the proper giving away of carbon dioxide, etc.
So when a person properly discharges the duties, his mind becomes pure. This is called citta śuddhi. Karma is the result; the result of karma yoga is citta śuddhi. What does citta śuddhi do?
- It purifies the mind.
- It generates puṇyam – the ability to experience happiness irrespective of any circumstance.
- Mind becomes concentrated.
- Mind gradually expands, identifying itself not only with one's own family, but with one's village, one's state, one's country, the world in which one is living, later on with every human being, with every non-human being – because the great fact (to which even today we have not awakened) is that everything depends upon everything in this world. Nothing is redundant.
God has not created anything that is redundant. Everything helps us in some way or the other. That is called the sacred attitude (holistic attitude in scientific terms). Looking upon the whole universe in which we are living (including our body and mind, sense organs, everything) as manifestation of God has been taught to us again and again: sahasraśīrṣāpuruṣaḥ, sahasrākṣaḥ, sahasrapād, etc. in Viṣṇu Sūktam, Nārāyaṇa Sūktam, Puruṣa Sūktam – everywhere. The continuous refrain is: everything is the body of God. Every single part is a body of God. Nothing is actually redundant. That is the most wonderful truth we have to understand.
Turning Inward: From Ritual to Upāsanā
So when a person reaches a certain stage of development, he says: "I have had enough of this. Now I want to turn this external ritual into an inner ritual," and that is called upāsanā. That is much more important. But unless a person really does these external rituals, simply sitting and saying "I don't need to do all those things" will not help us. We cannot evolve, for everything – nursery school, elementary school – everything is a necessity. Middle school, high school, then college, university – these are all graduated steps, and we cannot neglect even one step.
So these are called external rituals, and they produce citta śuddhi. Citta śuddhi sharpens our understanding, and finally we understand the goal of life, as Sri Ramakrishna says, is God-realization.
Now, what does this person feel? "I am married, I have children – so many births. I have gone to higher lokas, came down, but I still don't feel the sense of fulfillment. I still feel dissatisfaction – tremendous dissatisfaction. I am not a happy person." (But don't say every unhappy person is an evolved person. No, this person was very happy performing – having a wife, having children, performing duties – tremendous amount of higher happiness he gets. But at the end he realizes these are all achieved through hard labor and they are all ephemeral. Every happiness has to be re-earned, because nothing will be permanent.)
Such a person awakens and says: "I feel unfulfilled." That is called vairāgya (dispassion) – not because of śmaśānavairāgya, prasūtivairāgya, jobless vairāgya, mārkaṭavairāgya. No, it is because the person really evolved says: "There is a higher goal." Very clearly he can understand.
Example of Swami Vivekananda (Narendra) and Sri Ramakrishna
There is a beautiful incident. Once Swami Narendranath approached Sri Ramakrishna: "I am very unhappy, so please bless me that I may progress in spiritual life." Sri Ramakrishna, he was testing Narendra: "Why do you have to complete your college education?" Then he (Narendra) said: "I wish I forget whatever I have learned so far. I thought that was the goal earlier. Now I understand, by your grace, these very things are great obstructions for my future life. I wish I could forget everything and restart my life." Sri Ramakrishna was of course highly pleased, and Narendra was telling his real experience actually, not simply temporary vairāgya.
Pāṅkta Upāsanā (Fivefold Contemplation) and Ahaṃgraha Upāsanā
So what shall this person do? He must discharge the same pañcamahāyajña in the form of upāsanā.
The Great Discussion in the Gurukula
There was a great discussion in a sacred Gurukula, the students. Real seekers of Brahman have started a discussion. What is Brahman? What did our Acharya (आचार्य) teach us, and how can we implement and progress and realise that I am Brahman?
Review of the Last Class: Duties of a Householder
So in our last class, with regard to that, in the 17th mantra (last mantra in the fourth section), we were discussing about that: What are the duties of a householder? That is to say, who is a householder? Anybody who thinks "I am the body and mind", he is a householder. Such a person's desires will be confined only to the satisfaction of the body, of the mind, and at best he wants to have higher happiness by going to higher lokas called svargalokaḥ (स्वर्गलोकस्). Varieties, degrees of happiness, is described there of such the 6 higher lokas according to Hindu division.
The Fourteen Lokas
Hindus have divided every state of experience anybody can go through into 14 lokas, starting with this earthly world bhūloka (भूलोक). There are upper 6 lokas. 6 lokas plus our earth where we are that form half of the world, and below us there are 6 lokas or 7 lokas. Total 14 lokas are there.
The Uniqueness of Earth as Karma Bhūmi
Now the point is: we are very fortunate to live in this earthly world, because this is called karma bhūmi (कर्म भूमि). Other worlds higher or lower, they are considered as only to exhaust our karma phala either puṇyam (पुण्यम्) or pāpam (पापम्). We will be going to those lokas either to experience higher happiness and thereby exhaust our puṇyam, or go down to the lower lokas and exhaust our pāpams. But one has to come back to this earthly world to do sādhanā (साधना).
Two Kinds of Desires
So here is a person who is involved, who has also evolved into a human being – not an uncouth, uncultured human being – but has awakened to some higher faculties, and he realised human life is precious. Such a person can cherish two desires. One: "I want to be happy in this world or higher lokas." But after experiencing for some time again and again through a lot of labour, such a person realises what I want is not temporary, which is ephemeral, which is lasting only for a very short time. "I want permanent happiness." That is the second category of people, of which the Gita (गीता) beautifully describes: out of 1,000,000 people, perhaps one person awakens to the fact that spiritual life, godly life is the only life worth living.
The Householder with Faith in Scriptures
So there is such a householder, and he thinks "I am the body and mind." He has faith in the scriptures, and the scriptures describe higher lokas. So he says: "I want to be happy in this world as well as in the higher worlds." For such a person, the scriptures prescribe certain things, actions to be done according to one's caste (we say, though it is not a good word actually), and according to one's stage in life – varṇa dharma (वर्ण धर्म) and āśrama dharma (आश्रम धर्म).
The Five Necessary Items (Pāṅktam)
So we presume this person is a good person, and he goes to the teacher, spends several years, learns all about life, comes back, and he has unfulfilled desires pertaining to the body and mind. Such a person performs – he desires: "I want to perform this ritual." For that the Vedas tell us that you require 5 things. What are the 5 things?
First, he himself should be of young age, capable age, capable of undertaking this yajña (यज्ञ) ritual. He must have his wife. You may be wondering why such a person should require a wife. Because a person imbued with worldly desires, he will be thinking: if I get a woman, a wife, then not a free life. But a duly married wife, then the rightful actions can be discharged, duties can be discharged. So he requires 5 items. This is called pāṅktam (पाङ्क्तम्). Pāṅktam (पाङ्क्तम्) means a group of 5.
Discharging Varṇa Dharma and Āśrama Dharma
So through that, he has to discharge his varṇa dharma (वर्ण धर्म) and āśrama dharma (आश्रम धर्म), which have to be discharged through the proper performance of pañca mahāyajñas (पञ्च महायज्ञस्) – 5 great removals of debts – of which we have discussed in the past and yesterday also.
The Five Components
So first is himself called yajamāna (यजमान). Second is wife called patnī (पत्नी). Third is called the son. Fourth is called human wealth: money, animals, servants, and many other objects for the performance of yajña (यज्ञ), yāga (याग), etcetera. And he must have control of mind, a deep faith in God, etcetera. So that is called divine wealth. So yajamāna (यजमान) (the performer, sacrificer), his wife, his son, human wealth, and divine wealth. All these 5 are indispensable if a person wants to properly discharge all the pañcamahāyajñas (पञ्चमहायज्ञस्).
Awakening and Evolution
We presume such a person does it throughout life, throughout many lives, and he slowly awakens, he becomes evolved. Then amṛtatvamicchan (अमृतत्वमिच्छन्). So uttiṣṭhata jāgrata (उत्तिष्ठत जाग्रत) – arise, awake, approach learned ones, sit humbly at their feet and serve them, please them, ask them: "What type of life should I lead?"
तद्विद्धि प्रणिपातेन परिप्रश्नेन सेवया | उपदेक्श्यन्ति ते ज्ञानं ज्ञानिनस्तत्त्वदर्शिनः ||
Tadviddhi praṇipātena paripraśnena sevayā | Upadekṣyanti te jñānaṃ jñāninastattvadarśinaḥ ||
From External Ritual to Upāsanā
So this evolved person says: "I have done physically all those things. Now from external ritual I want to progress into higher action" – that is called upāsanā (उपासना). So such a person now turns his mind, and the Upanishad (उपनिषद्) or the Veda tells us. But the Upanishad (उपनिषद्) also tells us that as wrong as a person doesn't get married, doesn't get a son or sons, performs all the yajñāḥ (यज्ञाश्) yāgāḥ (यागाश्), he cannot evolve. That's why I mentioned yesterday: the appropriate duties apportioned to one's own caste and to one's own stage of life. They are called āśrama dharmas (आश्रम धर्मस्), and due discharge of these dharmas inevitably does certain things. Due performance, proper performance of these duties is called karma yoga (कर्म योग).
Karma Yoga and Citta Śuddhi
Karma yoga (कर्म योग), in other words, is nothing but getting rid of our debts to these 5 beings – our ṛṣis (ऋषिस्), gods (presiding deities), our ancestors, every other human being, and everything in this world; nothing is left out. When we are grateful for our life, for our health, for our happiness, for our fulfilment – for everything, we have to give them back; that giving them back what we receive. And this is a continuous process, constant process every second. For example, breathing in: borrowing oxygen from the vaiśvadevatā (वैश्वदेवता), and we have to give back what is helpful to other creatures like the trees, etcetera, through the proper giving away of carbon dioxide, etcetera.
So when a person properly discharges the duties, his mind becomes pure. This is called citta śuddhi (चित्त शुद्धि). Karma (कर्म) – the result of karma yoga (कर्म योग) – is citta śuddhi (चित्त शुद्धि).
What Does Citta Śuddhi Do?
What does citta śuddhi (चित्त शुद्धि) do? First of all, it purifies the mind. Secondly, it generates puṇyam (पुण्यम्). Puṇyam (पुण्यम्) is the ability to squeeze happiness irrespective of any circumstance. Thirdly, mind becomes concentrated. Fourthly, mind gradually expands, identifying itself not only with one's own family, but with one's village, one's state, one's country, the world in which one is living, later on with every human being, with every non-human being, because the great fact to which even today we have not awakened is that everything depends upon everything in this world. Nothing is redundant. We cannot say "it is useless, let us get rid of it." God has not created anything that is redundant. Everything helps us in some way or the other.
The Sacred Attitude
So that is called the sacred attitude, holistic attitude in scientific terms – but sacred attitude: looking upon the whole universe in which we are living (that includes our body and mind, sense organs, everything) and that is looking upon everything as manifestation of God, which again and again has been taught to us: sahasraśīrṣāpuruṣaḥ (सहस्रशीरषापुरुषः), sahasrākṣaḥ (सहस्राक्षः), sahasrapād (सहस्रपाद्), etc., in Viṣṇu Sūktam (विष्णु सुक्तम्), Nārāyaṇa Sūktam (नारायण सुक्तम्), Puruṣa Sūktam (पुरुष सुक्तम्), everywhere. The continuous refrain is: everything is the body of God. Every single part is a body of God. Nothing is actually redundant. That is the most wonderful truth we have to understand.
Turning External Ritual into Inner Ritual (Upāsanā)
So when a person reaches a certain stage of development, he says: "I have had enough of this. Now I want to turn this external ritual into an inner ritual" – and that is called upāsanā (उपासना). That is much more important. But unless a person really does these external rituals etc., simply sitting and saying "I don't need to do all those things" – that will not help us. We cannot evolve; for everything, nursery school, elementary school – everything is a necessity. Middle school, high school, then college, university – these are all graduated steps, and we cannot neglect even one step.
The Goal of Life: God Realisation
So these are all called external rituals, and they produce citta śuddhi (चित्त शुद्धि). Citta śuddhi (चित्त शुद्धि) sharpens our understanding, and finally we understand the goal of life, as Sri Ramakrishna says, is God realisation.
The Sense of Unfulfillment and Vairāgya
Now, what does this person feel? "I am married, I have married, I have had children, so many births. I have gone to higher lokas, came down, but I still don't feel the sense of fulfilment. I still feel dissatisfaction, tremendous dissatisfaction. I am not a happy person." But don't say every unhappy person is an evolved person. No. This person was very happy for performing, having a wife, having children, performing duties – tremendous amount of higher happiness he gets. But at the end he realises these are all achieved through hard labour and they are all ephemeral. Every happiness has to be re-earned, because nothing will be permanent. Such a person awakens and says: "I feel unfulfilled." That is called vairāgya (वैराग्य), dispassion – not because of śmaśānavairāgya (श्मशानवैराग्य), prasūtivairāgya (प्रसूतिवैराग्य), jobless vairāgya, mārkaṭavairāgya (मार्कटवैराग्य). No, it is because the person really evolved says there is a higher goal.
The Incident of Swami Narendranath and Sri Ramakrishna
Very clearly he can understand. There is a beautiful incident. Once Swami Narendranath approached Sri Ramakrishna: "I am very unhappy, so please bless me that I may progress in spiritual life." Sri Ramakrishna, he was testing Narendranath: "Why do you have to complete your college education?" Then he said: "I wish I forget whatever I have learned so far. I thought that was the goal earlier. Now I understand, by your grace, these are the very things that are great obstructions for my future life. I wish I could forget everything and restart my life." Sri Ramakrishna was of course highly pleased, and Narendranath was telling his real experience actually, not simply temporary vairāgya (वैराग्य).
Pañcamahāyajña in the Form of Upāsanā
So what shall this person do? He must discharge the same pañcamahāyajña (पञ्चमहायज्ञ) in the form of upāsanā (उपासना). And I also interpret it in this way. Since we have been studying Taittirīya Upaniṣad (तैत्तिरीय उपनिषद्), we are familiar with the pañcakośas (पञ्चक कोशस्). So we can say pāṅktam (पाङ्क्तम्) – a group of five. We have to transcend with the help of these five kośas (कोशस्). Every kośa (कोश), remember, has to be sacralised, looked upon with sacredness, as manifestation of God. Body is God, mind is God, external world is God, somebody who is friendly is God, somebody who is inimical – even more of God. Everything in this world is there to push me nearer to God. That is how I understand.
The Ascension in Bhṛguvallī
So this person – how he ascended or he is going – we have seen in the Bhṛguvallī (भृगुवल्ली) also practically what Bhṛgu (भृगु) had done. So this person wants to do this upāsanā (उपासना). This is called ahaṃgraha upāsanā (अहंग्रह उपासना), pāṅkta upāsanā (पाङ्क्त उपासना).
Meaning of Pāṅkta Upāsanā
Pāṅkta upāsanā (पाङ्क्त उपासना) means my own personality containing all the 5 elements, 5 types of wealth – the person who is the performer, his wife, his son, and human wealth and divine wealth. This is called pāṅktam (पाङ्क्तम्) – 5 types of wealth.
Internal Contemplative Instruments
So my mind is the myself (yajamāna (यजमान)), etc. We will see this. My speech is my wife, and my prāṇa (प्राण) is my son, etc. We will see the eye as well as the ear that completes the 5 elements. So he turns these external very things into internal contemplative instruments.
What Does He Want? Fulfilment
And what does he want? "I want fulfilment." How are you going to get fulfilment? When I perform this upāsanā (उपासना), I will become one with Brahman. And that, very briefly, we will discuss this. This is called pāṅkta upāsanā (पाङ्क्त उपासना), and this pāṅkta upāsanā (पाङ्क्त उपासना) is another name. It is called ahaṃgraha upāsanā (अहंग्रह उपासना).
What is Ahaṃgraha?
What is ahaṃgraha (अहंग्रह)? Ahaṃ brahma asmi (अहम् ब्रह्म अस्मि), ahaṃ ātmā asmi (अहम् आत्मा अस्मि), ahaṃ īśvaraḥ asmi (अहम् ईश्वरः अस्मि). This feeling – like Sri Ramakrishna, by doing upāsanā (उपासना) of Hanuman, felt "I am Hanuman" – completely identified. Upon completion of meditation on Radha, he felt "I am not a male, I am a female like Radha. I am Radha, and my only thought is Krishna." So that is called ahaṃgraha upāsanā (अहंग्रह उपासना).
The Four Āśramas as Stages of Mental Development
So the Upanishad (उपनिषद्) is telling that especially they say in Vanaprasthāśrama (वनप्रस्थाश्रम) – means the stage of vituddhrayala (वितुद्ध्रयल) – and incidentally whether it is Brahmacaryāśrama (ब्रह्मचर्याश्रम), Gṛhasthāśrama (गृहस्थाश्रम), Vanaprasthāśrama (वनप्रस्थाश्रम), Sannyāsāśrama (सन्यासाश्रम), they are all stages in mental development, nothing to do with age, even though age can help us. We have to crystal-clearly keep this point in mind:
- When I know what is life and what is the goal of life and how to reach my goal of life, I have completed my Brahmacaryāśrama (ब्रह्मचर्याश्रम). - When I start practising karma yoga (कर्म योग), bhakti yoga (भक्ति योग), rāja yoga (राजयोग), jñāna yoga (ज्ञान योग) – whether it is Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism, Islam, Buddhism, whatever ism – I experiment taking that path which is suitable, which gives me greater joy either through bhakti (भक्ति) or jñāna (ज्ञान), whatever, and I start progressing. That is called Gṛhasthāśrama (गृहस्थाश्रम). - In the end, when my mind matures, I don't want anything else in this world. I want to disidentify myself from this body and mind. The world is nothing but our own body and mind, and everyday we experience it through this what is called suṣupti avasthā (सुषुप्ति अवस्था), and how much peace of mind – that is called ānandam (आनन्दम्) – we get. So this is what is beautifully being outlined here. So detachment from body and mind is called Vanaprasthāśrama (वनप्रस्थाश्रम). - When we succeed, identify ourselves with the divinity within – that is called Sannyāsāśrama (सन्यासाश्रम).
This is how we have to understand, really.
How Ahaṃgraha Upāsanā is to be Done
So let us briefly discuss what the Upanishad (उपनिषद्) is telling – how this ahaṃgraha upāsanā (अहंग्रह उपासना) had to be done.
मन एव अस्य आत्मा वाक् जाया प्राणः प्रजा।
Mana eva asya ātmā vāk jāyā prāṇaḥ prajā.
The Fivefold Objects
Please keep in mind that these fivefold objects necessary to complete any ritual, we have to keep in mind. The person who has decided, determined "I want to perform this ritual" – he requires his wife, requires his son, requires human wealth (the instruments, the firewood and the cows, the milk, the Kurds, etcetera), and Ṛtvik (ऋत्विक्) (the priests who perform all those things) – that is called manuṣya mitham (मनुष्य मिथम्) – and certain divine qualities, divine wealth. Only with this will the ritual be really successful.
Turning Externalities into Internal Activity
So now the Ṛṣi (ऋषि) wants to convey: having reached this higher stage of life, the person now turns all externalities into internal activity which is called upāsanā (उपासना). So he requires these five also, and why he requires these five – that is also going to be explained.
Mind as Ātmā, Speech as Wife, Prāṇa as Son
So the mind is the himself. His speech is his wife, and his vital force or prāṇa (प्राण) is like his progeny or son. Then there are only three: manas (मनस्), vāk (वाक्), prāṇa (प्राण). What about the other two?
Eyes as Human Wealth (Manuṣyavittam)
Cakṣū (चक्षू) – manuṣya mitham (मनुष्य मिथम्), so the eyes are called the human wealth. Why? Cakṣuṣā tattvindati (चक्षुषा तत्त्विन्दति). So it is the 'I' which discerns everything, which can experience, which is the giver of the greatest knowledge from outside world; then from the inside world, inner 'I' which is called discrimination, the intelligence that can discriminate our experiences and come to the right conclusion.
Viveka in Sri Ramakrishna's Words
And viveka (विवेक) – discrimination – in Sri Ramakrishna's words: everything is temporary; God alone is permanent. And so everything has to be gradually given up. Given up means not throwing out, but to develop: "I have no relationship with this external world. I have no relationship, no attachment to this body. No attachment to the mind." This is called withdrawal. This is called Vanaprasthāśrama (वनप्रस्थाश्रम), really speaking.
So this knowledge through the 'I' gives us the knowledge. How does it give? Let us proceed to the next one.
Ears as Divine Wealth (Daivavittam)
श्रोत्रम् दैवम्। श्रोत्रं नहि तत् श्रृणोति।
Śrotram daivam. Śrotraṃ nahi tat śrṛṇoti.
So marvellously, this Upanishad (उपनिषद्) is telling us: our ears are called daivivittam (दैविवित्तम्). And second, this 'I' is the manuṣyavittam (मनुष्यवित्तम्) (human wealth), and the śrotram (श्रोत्रम्) is called divine wealth.
Why Are the Ears Divine?
So why are the ears? Because when a person hears about God, about the highest life – that is called śruti (श्रुति). That is why Vedas are called śrutis (श्रुतिस्). Through hearing only – either when we read the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, the works of Swamiji, the vāks (वाक्स्) of Ramana Maharshi or Upanishads (उपनिषद्) or Bhagavad Gita (भगवद्गीता) – we get that knowledge, and that's why the ears are most important.
And when the same ears are used in worldly life, we remember Madhu and Kaitabha. So we desire: everybody loves me to hear, everybody appreciates me, they love me. Nothing can be further from truth. Nobody loves us. We have seen that in this very first chapter, that excepting one's own ātman (आत्मन्), nobody loves anything else. If anything is loved, it is not loved for the sake of that object. A wife is not loved for the sake of the wife. Son is not loved for the sake of the son. Wealth is not loved for the sake of wealth. Body is not loved for the sake of the body. The different sense organs are not loved for their sake, but for the sake of the ātman (आत्मन्), because ātman (आत्मन्) is of the nature of ānanda (आनन्द). We love ānanda (आनन्द). We come from ānanda (आनन्द). We live because of ānanda (आनन्द), or we live in the hope of getting ānanda (आनन्द). If I am not happy right now – even if I am happy right now – that I am in such a higher type of happiness, degree of happiness, higher qualitative happiness and for a long time, as long as it is possible – and only when we reach God, this condition can be really fulfilled.
Scriptural Knowledge and Satpuruṣa Association
So therefore all this knowledge comes to us from studying the scriptures, from coming in association with satpuruṣas (सत्पुरुषस्) (great people), etc., by hearing the scriptures, etc. That is why the ears are called divine wealth, and with the help of the divine wealth, our eyes must examine: is the scripture speaking the truth? So when we see that which has birth is continuously changing, ending in that final change called death – everything is ephemeral excepting pure consciousness – and that observation with the eye of discrimination, and if the discrimination is proper, then slowly (may take many lives) dispassion comes. Passion turns into dispassion. Dispassion means passion turned towards God. That is called dispassion – not śmaśānavairāgya (श्मशानवैराग्य).
Vairāgya as Higher Happiness, Not Frustration
That affection, that attachment which does not attach itself to a higher thing – that is called frustration, not higher attachment. Vairāgya (वैराग्य) should never be understood in a negative manner. Vairāgya (वैराग्य) means: "This is a lower happiness, but I am in search of higher happiness, and when I get higher happiness, lower happiness becomes natural, automatic."
Sri Ramakrishna's Example
Sri Ramakrishna gives a beautiful example, taking of course from the śruti (श्रुति). Sri Ramakrishna's mouth never speaks anything except in scriptures, even though he said "I have not read much; I have heard much, and my mind retains in memory everything that I had heard."
Turning Inward
So this person turns inward. Inward means Godward. So that is called vairāgyam (वैराग्यम्), and that which after discrimination doesn't make us turn towards God – there is a great defect in that discrimination. It is frustration. I would call it frustration. And a frustrated person is not a happy person, and nobody wants to cultivate the company of a frustrated person. On the other hand, Sri Ramakrishna says we have to cultivate holy company.
Who is a Holy Man?
Who is a holy man? I defined earlier – you will have to exercise your mind to remember – but one characteristic: by whose presence – in whose presence we become terribly happy without any objects to give us happiness. The mere sannidhya (सन्निध्य) (presence) is enough to make our mind go up, and the more it goes up, the more happiness we feel. The higher a person progresses, the greater would be his happiness, the longer would be his happiness. This is how we have to judge.
Mind as the Yajamāna
So the whole world – "am I the body-mind?" That is a thought in our mind. That is why this yajamāna (यजमान) is called mind. That is why it is said:
मन एव मनुष्याणां कारणं बन्धमोक्षयोः
Mana eva manuṣyāṇāṃ kāraṇaṃ bandhamokṣayoḥ
– mind alone is the root cause of both happiness as well as liberation, as well as happiness and unhappiness, good and evil – everything. Mind is everything.
Thoughts and Holy Company
And what our mind thinks – they are called thoughts. If they are holy thoughts, pure thoughts, spiritual thoughts, then that is called real progress. And if a person's mind is filled with these thoughts, then what he speaks is nothing but his thoughts.
Examples of Holy Scriptures as Thoughts of Avatāras
The whole Gospel is nothing but the thoughts of Sri Ramakrishna. The Gospel of Holy Mother is nothing but the understanding in the form of spoken words – is the Gospel of Holy Mother. The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda, the Bhagavad Gita (भगवद्गीता) – is nothing but the thoughts of Bhagwan Krishna Himself. That is why it is called Bhagavad Gita (भगवद्गीता) – directly from the mouth of Bhagavan, these things have emanated.
Mind as Ātman and the Role of Ahaṃkāra
So the mind: "I am the mind." Where does the ahaṃkāra (अहंकार), "I", reside? In the mind. Therefore it is considered ātman (आत्मन्) – means myself, my real self. And then if my mind is pure, then I am a spiritual person. If it is impure, that is called "I am a worldly person" – I am identified with anātman (अनात्मन्). And then a person whose mind is filled with holy thoughts, he will speak only holy thoughts, and his deeds will be only holy deeds.
Prāṇa as the Power to Translate Thoughts into Actions
And that is why, to perform holy deeds, a person requires energy, and that energy is called prāṇa (प्राण), and that prāṇa (प्राण) represents that power to translate our thoughts, our speech into real actions. Just imagine you go to Sri Ramakrishna and he never talks – then it is very difficult to understand what Sri Ramakrishna really wants to convey. Fortunate few are those people whom he touched and awakened their kuṇḍalinī (कुण्डलिनी). That is a different issue. But usually if a person is keeping quiet, we will not know what this person is, because speech betrays a person's personality.
The Five: Ears as Source of Knowledge
So through these 5, the ears which give us the knowledge of the scriptures – incidentally that also gives us the worldly knowledge: how to create bombs, how to destroy, how to rob a bank or other human beings, how to kill – all these things are the outcomes.
A Great American General's Statement
A great American general once made a statement: wars are born out of the thoughts of people who are warmongers. So peace also should spring only from the minds of people whose nature is peace and who want peace. This is a beautiful teaching we have to understand.
Purpose of Ahaṃgraha Upāsanā
So this ahaṃgraha upāsanā (अहंग्रह उपासना) is to understand that God has given me mind, and this mind is meant for cultivating higher thoughts, and of the higher thoughts, cultivating ahaṃkāra (अहंकार) – that is, "I am a servant of God, I am a friend of God, I am the parent of God, I am a child of God, I am the beloved, I am the lover of God." All these things must come only from lower to higher mind in spiritual progress, and accordingly the thoughts also will come.
The Prayer of Surrender
त्वमेव माता च पिता त्वमेव | त्वमेव बन्धुश्च सखा त्वमेव | त्वमेव विद्या द्रविणं त्वमेव | त्वमेव सर्वम् मम देव देव ||
Tvameva mātā ca pitā tvameva | Tvameva bandhuśca sakhā tvameva | Tvameva vidyā draviṇaṃ tvameva | Tvameva sarvam mama deva deva ||
If this sentence teaching did not come from the mouth of people, we would never have understood this. That is why the mind must be pure; then speech will follow the mind like a wife follows her husband, and like the obedient, loving child follows the footsteps of his father – especially so.
Prāṇa, Śruti, and Verification
This prāṇa (प्राण) means that our expressions of our thoughts in the form of concrete actions follow our thoughts and our speech. And for that, the first instrument is the ears – śruti (श्रुति). You can also say the Vedic scriptures. And this śruti (श्रुति) must be verified. The śruti (श्रुति) says everything is ephemeral. Is it true? How do we know? Exercise your eyes. See everyday how many people are dying, how many are being born, how many behave so cruelly, how many are robbed, how many people are doing good in this world. If anybody thinks there are no good people, there are no people who are well-wishers of this world and sacrificing their life for others, we will be terribly, terribly mistaken. Just as there are evil people – I think even more good people are available in this world.
The Essence of Upāsanā
So this is the upāsanā (उपासना): "My mind – I am the mind. I have to purify, I have to transform my unripe ego into the ripe ego." And for that I have to perform, I have to hear the spiritual advice (how to live the life), and I must verify how I should live, how my Guru is living. How Sri Ramakrishna lived, how Ramana Maharshi lived, how the ṛṣis (ऋषिस्) and munīs (मुनीस्) lived.
Sri Ramakrishna on the Ṛṣis
As Sri Ramakrishna says about the ṛṣis (ऋषिस्): when somebody remarked and passed a bad remark, he said: "Never say such a thing. Early morning these people used to get up – even though they were householders – go away far from home, spend whole day in deep thinking, forgetting the world, thinking only of the ātman (आत्मन्), and come back in the evening, satisfy their hunger with roots and fruits, and take a few hours of rest – and that is why they became the ṛṣi (ऋषि)."
Definition of Ṛṣi
By definition, a ṛṣi (ऋषि) is a mantradraṣṭā (मन्त्रदृष्टा). Ṛṣati jānāti iti ṛṣiḥ (ऋषति जानाति इति ऋषिः) – one who knows spiritual truth, real truth, he is called a ṛṣi (ऋषि). So we must become ṛṣis (ऋषिस्).
Direction of the Sense Organs
For that purpose, God has given us the body. Body consists of 5 sense organs. They can be directed, misdirected, they can be ill-directed, they can be well-directed – and that direction should come after hearing the scriptures, after cultivating holy company, we come to know about it, and then we must verify whether the scripture is telling the truth.
Jāgrat – Open Your Eyes
Open your eyes – jāgrat (जाग्रत). Not only arise, awake. Why was Sri Ramakrishna so happy, even though he possessed so little from the worldly point of view? Why so many swamis are so happy, so satisfied, so pleased with themselves, with their simple life? They must be getting some happiness from somewhere devoid of all these external objects, which we are convinced without them we cannot be happy. We should understand: we cannot be happy with them. Whatever tends to give us happiness also tends to give us its opposite effect, and maybe in greater degree.
Essence of Ahaṃgraha Upāsanā
So this is the essence of this ahaṃgraha upāsanā (अहंग्रह उपासना), which ultimately leads – first it leads from withdrawal, which means what is called detachment, non-identification – neti neti (नेति नेति) – from the external world, from the body, from the mind, etc. And this available pure mind is now directed towards God. That is called upāsanā (उपासना). Finally, even that instrument through which we are approaching God itself is discarded, or it melts finally in the Divine.
River Merging into the Ocean
Then there is, like a river:
नामरूपे विहाय समुद्र भवति
Nāmarūpe vihāya samudra bhavati
Every river that merges in the ocean loses its name, form, taste, colour, everything, and thereafter it is known only as the ocean. So this jīva (जीव) completely gives up jīva bhāva (जीव भाव) and becomes merged in Brahman (ब्रह्मन्). Thereafterwards, others can call such a person – he is Brahman (ब्रह्मन्), but if body-mind is alive, they are called jīvanmuktiḥ (जीवन्मुक्तिस्). This is the essence of this pāṅkta upāsanā (पाङ्क्त उपासना).
The Result of Realising Ahaṃgraha Upāsanā
And then a person who realises this ahaṃgraha upāsanā (अहंग्रह उपासना) – what does he get?
सर्वम् आप्नोति तद् इदम् सर्वम् आप्नोति यः एवम् वेद
Sarvam āpnoti tad idam sarvam āpnoti ya evam veda
One who performs this ahaṃgraha upāsanā (अहंग्रह उपासना), pāṅkta upāsanā (पाङ्क्त उपासना) – pāṅkta (पाङ्क्त) means mind, speech, prāṇa (प्राण), the eyes and the ears – what does he get? What does not he get? He gets everything. He gets Brahman (ब्रह्मन्). Brahman (ब्रह्मन्) means everything.
तद् इदम् सर्वम् आप्नोति हि यः एवम् वेद
Tad idam sarvam āpnoti hi ya evam veda
– he who succeeds in performing the ahaṃgraha upāsanā (अहंग्रह उपासना), and then only aham (अहम्) remains; graha (ग्रह) falls off automatically.
Conclusion of the 17th Mantra and 4th Chapter
This is the essence of this ahaṃgraha upāsanā (अहंग्रह उपासना). With this ahaṃgraha upāsanā (अहंग्रह उपासना), the 17th mantra is over, and with this the 4th chapter is over.
Essence of This Teaching
And what is the essence of this? So this is what Swami Vivekananda had come to teach:
उत्तिष्ठत जाग्रत प्रव्यवरण निबोधत
Uttiṣṭhata jāgrata pravyavaraṇa nibodhata
Review of the First Chapter
So, in this first chapter we have seen how this sṛṣṭi (सृष्टि) has started. That is the līlā (लीला) of Brahman (ब्रह्मन्) – brahma līlā (ब्रह्म लीला). It is also called brahma cakra (ब्रह्म चक्र). Saṃsāra (संसार) is called brahma cakra (ब्रह्म चक्र). But if we forget it is brahma cakra (ब्रह्म चक्र) – that is what in Hindi they call it chakkar meṃ paḍ gayā (चक्कर में पड़ गया): "I have fallen into delusion, misunderstanding, etc."
The Process of Creation
So after Bhagavān (भगवान्) first created, started the sṛṣṭi (सृष्टि): first subtle pañcabhūtas (पञ्चभूतस्), then gross pañcabhūtas (पञ्चभूतस्), then creation of the gods, then creation of the human beings. Then he divided everybody into these four castes, varṇas (वर्णस्). I am afraid to use that word "caste" because that is inevitably associated with birth, which is an absolute anomaly. It should not be understood. It is only through quality – guṇa (गुण) – which guṇa (गुण) is dominant: sattva (सत्त्व), rajas (रजस्), or tamas (तमस्)?
Creation of Satyam, Dharmam, and Varṇāśrama Dharmas
And then Bhagavān (भगवान्) created satyam (सत्यम्) and dharmam (धर्मम्), and to put the satyam (सत्यम्) and dharmam (धर्मम्) into practice, Bhagavān (भगवान्) has created this varṇāśrama dharmas (वर्णाश्रमधर्मस्) in the form of "do this" and "do not do that." So for every stage of varṇa (वर्ण), for every stage of life, there are certain duties appropriate for that stage of life, and the discharge of those appropriate dharmas (धर्मस्) helps us evolve further.
Evolution Through Varṇas
In both varṇa (वर्ण) – a śūdra (शूद्र) becomes a vaiśya (वैश्य), vaiśya (वैश्य) becomes a kṣatriya (क्षत्रिय), kṣatriya (क्षत्रिय) becomes a brāhmaṇa (ब्राह्मण) – and I will also tell you in the next class. So a person develops so gradually. Intelligence – that development of intelligence ends in the rebirth as vaiśya (वैश्य), that is: "I want to earn more and more, I want to know more and more." Who can become a successful businessman? Only an intelligent person. And then to protect what one earns, one requires strength – for that I must develop tremendous strength, not only to earn but to enjoy and to protect – yoga (योग) and kṣema (क्षेम). And then after some time, "I must make everything external into the internal" – that is called to become a brāhmaṇa (ब्राह्मण).
What is a Brāhmaṇa?
So a brāhmaṇa (ब्राह्मण) is a spiritual person. Everything is spiritualised. Spiritualising whole life is called living a brāhmaṇaḥ (ब्राह्मणस्) life. These are marvellous thoughts that the Upanishad (उपनिषद्) wants us to grasp, understand, retain, and ponder over and slowly develop.
Concluding Remarks
We will talk about these things in our next class.
Closing Prayer
ॐ जननीं शारदां देवीं रामकृष्णं जगद्गुरुम् ।पादपद्मे तयोः श्रित्वा प्रणमामि मुहुर्मुहुः
Om Jānānāṃ Śāradāṃ Devīṃ Rāmakṛṣṇaṃ Jagadgurum Pada Padme Tayo Śṛtvā Praṇamāmi Muhur Muhuh
May Rāmakṛṣṇa, Holy Mother, and Swami Vivekānanda bless us all with Bhakti.
Jai Rāmakṛṣṇa!