Taittiriya Upanishad Lecture 108 Ch3.10 on 10 June 2026
Opening Prayer (Śānti Pāṭha)
ॐ जननीं शारदां देवीं रामकृष्णं जगद्गुरुम् ।पादपद्मे तयोः श्रित्वा प्रणमामि मुहुर्मुहुः
Oṁ jananīṁ śaraḍhāṁ deveṁ rāmakriṣṇam jagad-gurum
pādapadmetayosritvā pranamāmi-muhurumuhu
ॐ सह नाववतु ।
सह नौ भुनक्तु ।
सह वीर्यं करवावहै ।
तेजस्वि नावधीतमस्तु मा विद्विषावहै ।
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥ हरि ॐ
OM SAHANAVAVATO SAHANAV BHUNAKTO SAHAVIRYAM KARAVAVAHAI TEJASVINAVADHITAMASTUMA VIDVISHAVAHAI OM SHANTI SHANTI SHANTIHI HARIHI OM
OM May Brahman protect us both. May Brahman bestow upon us both the fruit of knowledge.
May we both obtain the energy to acquire knowledge.
May what we both study reveal the truth. May we cherish no ill feeling toward each other.
OM PEACE PEACE PEACE BE UNTO ALL
Introduction to the Bhriguvali of the Taittiriya Upanishad
We have been studying the last chapter of the Taittiriya Upanishad, called Bhriguvali. How Bhrigu had transcended every kosha by merging it in its cause and finally found out, realized that Brahman is the cause, the original cause of the entire creation. How to attain like Bhrigu? And we presume, by studying the Upanishad, he must have practiced certain disciplines. Not only certain disciplines, but every teacher has his own methodology. So Bhrigu's teacher had also his own special means of how to attain the knowledge of Brahman. Where from did he get? This is what we call the Guru Parampara system; he must have got it from his guru. He might have also added something which he found helpful for himself. So he thought, "I will also pass on this knowledge, the methodology, the way how to progress from the lowest stage to the highest stage."
First, the greatest hint he has given: find out the cause of your body, then you will automatically get the cause of the entire universe. Because how do I experience the world? Through my body. How do I understand the world? Through my mind. As I have many times mentioned earlier, if a person becomes blind, one-fifth of the world has disappeared. So similarly, the whole body is nothing but consisting of ten sense organs, and if all of them are merged in their cause—in this case, Pranamaya Kosha—then what does he understand? The Annamaya Kosha will not get destroyed, but it is looked upon with a new insight, a new outlook: "This is nothing but prana." Annamaya Kosha is looked upon as the manifestation of Pranamaya Kosha. Similarly, Pranamaya Kosha is a manifestation of Manomaya, which is a manifestation of Vijnanamaya, which is a manifestation of Anandamaya, which is of course a manifestation of Ananda. Ananda is another name for Atma or Brahman.
The Path of Upasana and Sacred Vision
But how can one succeed in making this upasana successful? For that purpose, certain disciplines are indicated. We have seen how one should look upon the whole universe as one's own self, and that is how the upasana has to be done. What is upasana? Thinking that I am not only this individual body, but everybody. My eye is a universal eye. My ear is a universal ear. My head is a universal head. Sahasraśīrṣā Puruṣaḥ Sahasrākṣaḥ Sahasrapāt sa bhūmim viśvato vṛtvā atyatīṣṭhad daśāṅgulam—we have seen because other Upanishads also exactly tell the same thing, but with a slight difference in expression. The sadhana cannot be different whether you are a Christian or a Muslim or a Buddhist; whatever you be, you have to go deeper. That is inevitable.
So it started with certain upasanas have to be done, thinking that they are sacred. What is it? The body is sacred, the physical universe is sacred, our mind is sacred. Similarly, the minds of everybody are also sacred. Sacred means none other than Brahman himself or itself. So for that purpose, we have studied three types of vratam. A vratam is a vow; it is a promise to God, a promise to my own inner self, that I will look upon everything as sacred.
For that, first of all, this body. Body means body-mind complex. Instead of using the word body, this Taittiriya Upanishad chooses to use the word annam. Actually, whether our physical body or our mind (which is called Sukshma Sharira or Karana Sharira) are absolutely interrelated; one affects the other, and this whole personality is to be considered as the sacred sanctum sanctorum, the sacred temple. We have seen how in the Chandogya Upanishad it is called Brahmapurī. In order to be able to sit, you cannot simply sit and say that from this moment onwards I will be looking upon my body as sacred. You have to think deeply further. Even if my body is old, even if some limbs are not functioning, still, so long as I am conscious, I have to consider this body as sacred. What happens the moment I succeed in thinking that my body is sacred? Then automatically I look upon every other body, including that of a mosquito or amoeba, as sacred. That sacredness is nothing but divinity. So I am divine. Everything is divine, because in divinity there cannot be ups and downs, lower and higher. No differentiations are ever admitted.
The Three Vows Regarding Food
So for that purpose, start with food. Why? Our body is nothing but made up of food. It is born out of food, it is sustained by food, and it merges back into food after the physical body goes away. And the mind is also nothing but food. But what is the food for the mind? Thoughts, ideas, ideals, aspirations, noble thoughts. That is what Sri Ramakrishna says: cultivate Satsanga.
So three we have already seen: how to start with the lowest. What does it mean? It means start where you are. Everyone must start where one is standing. Either the teacher tells you "start from here," or if we are perceptive enough, discriminative enough, discerning enough, we can also find it out.
First, annam na nindyāt—food should never be criticized, looked down upon. Don't use bad words. Nowadays it has become a habit to say, especially in Western countries, "food is called grub." If you go on using that word, you also become grubby, because whatever we think, that is what we speak, and whatever we think, that is what we become. So the food for the mind is the thoughts we give, the discrimination we give, and the cultivation we develop to think deeply, etc.
Second, annam na paricakṣīta—never waste any type of food, because if it is not useful for you, it can be useful for many others.
Third, annam bahu kurvīta—one should multiply, acquire food by whatever means, and the whole world is nothing but a manifestation of annam, even taken in the sense of thoughts, because our food also affects our mind and our thoughts.
The Upanishad so beautifully says that this universe, this creation, nothing but a manifestation of food, must be looked upon in three relationships. What is that? Anna, Annada (enjoyer, enjoyed); Pratiṣṭhā, Pratiṣṭhitam (supporter, supported); Pramātṛ, Prameya (knower and the known). So I am the enjoyer, I am the enjoyed. I am the supporter, I am the supported. I am the knower, I am also known.
What do we learn from this? First, the entire creation called the world is the body of Ishvara. Therefore, the entire physical universe is the physical body of Ishvara (God); the entire mental world, causal world, is the subtle and causal body of Ishvara. So Ishvara is not somewhere else far away from us, not even one billion millimetres away from us. This Ishvara was unmanifest, and that unmanifest, in the form of body, mind, subtle body, causal body, becomes manifest. That is why Sri Ramakrishna used to test people and, by finding out the physiognomy and physical traits of the body, he could more or less understand the thoughts, which are nothing but expressions of the character of every person. So very keenly, very minutely, he used to observe the very bodies of the people, including the eyes. That is why there is a saying: "Eyes are the mirror of the mind." By looking at somebody's eyes, if they are restless like a monkey's, his mind is a monkey mind. If they are calm, steady, kind, compassionate... Just let a baby look at the mother. Even when the mother is pretending to be angry with a scowling face, the baby knows: "Mother is playing with me. I will also play with her." There are people who are intelligent enough to gauge the inner feelings of a person by looking at the eyes. That is why they are called the mirror of the mind.
Dependence and Independence (Mithya and Satyam)
Second, if everything in creation depends on one another—we have seen the pratiṣṭhā, pratiṣṭhitam sambandha—if everything is dependent, then nothing is independent, and that which is not independent, that which is dependent, always changes, and that which changes is called by the special term mithyā. So every mithyā, every dependent existence, must be dependent upon something which is independent. But if one dependent existence depends upon another dependent existence, it cannot last long. The mind is dependent upon prana. Prana is also not independent, and therefore one has to go further. That is how Bhrigu found out what is that independent existence which does not depend upon anything that we know, but upon which everything depends. That is called Brahman. So mithyā must have a dependency, and that upon which it depends is called satyam. Satyam is another name for God, Ishvara, Brahman, etc. So whatever we are experiencing is nothing but mithyā. And this mithyā totally depends upon satyam. Even for one billionth of a second, it cannot exist independently. If there were to be no rope, one cannot become deluded that it is a snake. There must be a 100% mithyā which depends upon 100% satyam. So a mithyā must have a true substratum, and that is called Brahman. Thus Brahma Satyam is to be realized by going through these disciplines, and with that, the ninth section is over.
The Tenth Section: Giving Shelter and the Karma Siddhanta
We have also entered into the tenth section and have already discussed two important points. Na kaṃcāna vasthau pratiyācakṣīta—so one should never reject anybody who comes hoping that we will give them shelter. They should never be rejected, especially in the olden days because there was no means of communication to let them know earlier that we are coming. So nobody should be rejected. Why? Because the Upanishad itself tells: if you reject anybody, you will be rejected. That point is going to be discussed very soon.
But Karmaphala—this is where Hinduism's greatest strength is: the Karma Siddhanta. It is a marvelous theory. Everything is the result of what we do, what we did, and what we are doing now. Upon that depends the future of our life. I also, by the way, mentioned referring to the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad: in the sixth section of the first chapter, the whole universe is nothing but names, forms, and karma. So karma is very important. Everything depends upon our karma. But what is the problem with karma? Sometimes we don't see what we have done. In fact, most of the time we don't see. By the time we are born, the karmaphala has already taken place. Why is a person born in a rich family, a healthy family, another is born even as a tiny baby in the most unfortunate circumstances to an unfortunate family and has to suffer a lot? No science can explain except that we infer our rishis have said. How do we know it is true? Not by proving. Once we realize God, we understand. So it is said: when a person is about to realize God, the ultimate dispassion is needed, and when it is not coming, then out of his infinite grace, the Divine Mother reveals all the past lives a person had led, and the person was unable to go further because of attachment to something in this particular life. And when he looks—how many times I was born, how many times I was attached to this body and to that which this body belongs to (parents, country, religion, language, community, group, etc.)—then with that, why am I specifically holding on to this? With that, the ultimate dispassion will come, and he will be freed, and he will become a knower of Brahman, identifying with everything. If he survives, that state is called jīvanmukti.
So let us not refuse anybody to give shelter. That means what? Shelter doesn't mean only housing; shelter means help. Whatever help we can do, we should never try to withhold. Why? Not because the other person deserves or doesn't deserve, but because the result will come to us. What I give, that will come back to me. What I don't give will never come back to me. In simple terms, that is the essence of Karma Siddhanta. Then for that purpose, as we have seen earlier also, annam bahu kurvīta—food should be acquired, cultivated, stored plenty. Tasmāt yayā kayā chavitayā bahavānāṃ prapnuyāt.
Stories Illustrating the Duty of a Householder
In this context, I am remembering two stories about what happens if we do not follow these rules. Especially a householder—remember, these are the vratas for householders. Because Hinduism has divided people into four types of ashramas, a student, a retired person (retired means vānaprastha, not simply retiring from a job), and a sannyasi. They depend upon the householder. So Swamiji, in his Karma Yoga (I think in the third chapter), says how it is the bounden duty of a householder to treat the guests. Therein, a most marvelous story from the Mahabharata: how a king and a sannyasi took shelter under a tree, and there was a family of birds. It was the cold season, so there was a conversation between the birds. The husband bird said that guests have come; they are shivering in the cold. So it went and brought a faggot of burning fire. Then these people gathered a bit of dry wood which was present in the forest, and soon they were relieved of the cold. But then what about food? There was no food to be brought, especially at night. Then, one after the other, all four of them jumped into the fire so that they could be cooked and that food could be eaten immediately. The Mahabharata tells us they all attained to the highest loka that is possible.
Also, if you remember the story of the mongoose whose half body had turned into gold—a marvelous story. We have to remember they are not just stories, but they are part of Karma Yoga. That is why Swamiji had taken them in the Karma Yoga. What we are talking here—all these vratas—they fall under Karma Yoga only.
The Exposition of Karma Siddhanta
Now comes the most marvelous exposition of Karma Siddhanta. In brief, what is Karma Siddhanta? We get what we deserve to get. This is the simple truth. We get the results of what we have done, not what we are planning to do, but what we had already done. So supposing a guest comes, then he should be welcomed.
First, I will read the mantra, then very briefly we will discuss it, but it is a marvelous exposition:
Ārādhyasma annamiti yācakṣate etadvai mukhato annam rāddham. Mukhato asmā annam rādhyate. Etadvai madhyato annam rāddham. Madhyato asmā annam rādhyate. Etadvai antato annam rāddham. Antataḥ asmā annam rādhyate. Ya evaṃ veda.
So first, I will give you a small gist with an English translation, then we will discuss it.
"The householder should not deny lodgings to anyone. This is the vow. Therefore he should procure much food by any means whatsoever." That is the translation of the earlier things which we already discussed. But when a guest comes, what should be his attitude? This householder should run joyfully. Ārādhyasma annam ityācakṣate—"Food has already been prepared for you."
Now the plain translation of these mantras: If this food is given first, food comes to the giver first. If this food is given in the middle, food comes to the giver in the middle. If this food is given last, food comes to the giver at last. And he who knows this—he who knows the truth mentioned above in this very rishi's logic.
When a guest comes, what should the person do? He should run forward. I remember a Christian classic, The Way of a Pilgrim. There was a Christian who was a traveler. Once he entered into a Christian village. There was an ideal Christian family. Parents were highly devoted to Jesus Christ. They trained their two lovely children exactly in the same way. So the children were also born with the highest samskaras (though Christians don't say that, I am saying it). So this traveler entered. He was perhaps tired, and he was looking, "Where shall I take shelter?" Then he passed in front of the house of this devout Christian. The children were playing there, small, three or four years old, but they were highly trained. As soon as they saw this wandering Christian, immediately they ran. Each child caught hold of one hand of the person and said, "Christian guest, please come to my house. My mother will be so happy. My father is out; he will come soon. But meanwhile, you can have food, you can have drink, you can have rest. My father will be exceedingly joyous upon seeing you." Such a marvelous description is given.
So when a guest comes, one should not go with a sour face. Swami Bhavyananda Ji told me a marvelous incident, and I was shocked after hearing it. There was a family—perhaps a Christian family, I don't know—but they used to frequent the Vedanta center and used to stay in the guest house. They used to be treated so well, and there was almost an intimate relationship, a close relationship developed between the Swami and the devotees. The Swami was telling: once I had to go to give a talk to some other village, and the place where these intimate devotees were living was on the way. So early morning, the Swami started and reached this village after one or two hours of travel. He was diabetic. Perhaps he wanted to go to the toilet and also have a cup of tea or whatever. So he went. Of course, the doors were closed—every door will be closed even if it is not bolted from within. He knocked, and this woman devotee, the wife, came out and saw the Swami early in the morning standing. The Swami, of course, never expected this kind of behavior. She simply said, "Swami, we are not prepared to receive you," and she banged the doors closed and went away. The Swami said, "This would never have happened in India." But he had accepted that this is their culture, the culture of these particular individuals. So he went on. When I heard this, I was shocked. Even ordinary manners: she could have told, "Swami, unfortunately we are preparing; come and sit in the drawing room, and we will soon attend to you," or "We cannot receive you." But the manner in which he said it... Do you think the Swami will ever revisit that house again in his life? I don't think so. Anyway, I just remembered it in the course of my talk; that is why I am telling you.
So as soon as a guest comes, especially in the olden days, you should say Ārādhyaṃ sma annamiti yācakṣate—"Food has been prepared." Oh, I am so happy to see you. Joyously go forward, really joyously, catch hold of him and welcome him, like Krishna ran in the episode in the Bhagavatam to see his boyhood friend Kuchela. He saw him from a distance from the gate. Krishna was playing with Rukmini and others on a swing. He saw from a distance an old man with a very weak body, probably walking from early morning. Immediately he ran, fell at his feet, and made pranams because Krishna was Kshatriya and this person was a Brahmana. Immediately he caught hold of him: "My friend, it took you so many years. You have never come to visit me. I am so happy." And embracing him, he almost carried him, made him sit on that swing, washed his feet, and then he must have done something. The Bhagavatam doesn't tell us about these things in detail. He must have offered something—that is the custom. This is what we call welcoming a guest in puja. So we have to give first water, cold water, or a cold drink, or tea, or coffee nowadays. "Welcome, welcome." So that is how first we have to welcome the people. Krishna did all that, and once asked, "Why did you come?" Just to remind—how marvelous this story was.
So the sadhaka we are talking about—sadhakas, but apart from sadhakas, even people who are decent householders should do the same thing. So you should run and say that. Why should he run and say "Food has already been prepared plenty for you"? Because the guest may be thinking, "Am I going to be a troublesome person for these people? Are they going to be put to hardship because of my arrival?" He may be thinking, he may be worried. No, remove that worry at first itself. "Food has been already prepared," even if it is not prepared. Because by the time he is welcomed, Arghya is given. Arghya means you wash your hands and feet, and afterwards, if necessary, take a bath. But first, remove his tiredness by offering him at least a glass of water. That is why Sri Ramakrishna, when he used to visit some of the brahmo devotees' homes, and some of them were not trained in this ancient Hindu methodology, they never used to offer. Sri Ramakrishna, out of infinite grace, used to say, "Will you give me a glass of water?" Not that he needed water, but because if a guest departs from that house without giving anything, without receiving anything, that will reflect upon the host; then some problems will come. This is Karma Siddhanta.
So "food is already cooked"—you don't worry. People usually do that: even if the food is not ready, by the time he sits, the wife, who is already trained, goes inside and cooks something. Usually, something extra is prepared already. They may have to reheat; that is all they have to do. So the food is given first. Food comes to the giver first—that is what we are going to discuss. This is how the guest has to be welcomed. Don't think it is going to be any trouble because it is already prepared. Only you have to come, wash your hands and feet. If necessary, take a bath and then sit. By the time you do that, your food will be prepared.
Now this attitude—Ārādhyasma annam ityācakṣate—the host should welcome joyously, etc. Ya evaṃ veda—he who knows this and observes this, follows it, then he obtains the fruit. This attitude first starts with the mind: the attitude for giving this dānam, especially annadānam. So one must be earning these samskaras from many, many past lives, from family tradition, from the teachings of the guru, etcetera.
The Subhashita on Giving
There is a beautiful saying, and these beautiful sayings in Sanskrit are called Subhashitas. Bhāṣita means that which has been spoken, so Subhashita means extraordinarily meaningful sayings. There are thousands and thousands online; you can get them if you just search, especially on Archive.org. You will get so many Subhashitas, thousands and thousands, and even some selected ones. Very good to read once in a while.
Śateṣu jāyate śūraḥ Sahasreṣu ca Paṇḍitaḥ | Vaktā Śatasahasreṣu Dātā Bhavati Vā Na Vā |
This is a saying: among thousands of people, there may be one great fearless hero. Among thousands and thousands, one may become a real scholar (Paṇḍitaḥ). Among hundreds of thousands of people, there may be one who can explain it so well, beautifully, crystal clearly, so that the listeners can understand without the least bit of doubt—at least they can understand intellectually, if not the true meaning. That kind of speaker, among hundreds of thousands of people, maybe one is born. And then the Subhashita goes on to say: Dātā Bhavati Vā Na Vā—maybe the person who has that mentality of sharing what he has got, giving away, maybe there may be one, or there may not be one. Even to give, that attitude—many people can give, but they don't give.
Just to remind: Swami Vivekananda understood how poor our Indians were in giving. That is why he said any Indian who has been educated at the cost of India and then doesn't lift a little finger for helping other people is a traitor to the country—deśadrohī. And there are millions of deśadrohīs earning a lot of money and staying in Western countries. It doesn't exclude India also—so selfish. I am not talking about other people; I am talking about so-called devotees. How many swamis are spending their lives trying to preach these things, trying to live this kind of life? And then the institutions have to be run, so many works are going on. At least if one decides to give 1/25th of whatever one has—and it is not giving away, it is only collecting for their future—how much good, how much support can be given? And do you think if one doesn't do it, these people are not even Hindus? Because Hinduism tells clearly: this Upanishad is telling what you give to the world, you will get back as the result of karmaphala.
Three Types of Dana
So now the Upanishad is talking about dānam. Dānam means charity, especially food in those days. So the Upanishad divides this charity into three classes: first class, second class, and third class.
Just before going, I am reminded of a story from Buddha. Once two people came to Buddha; both were emaciated. Buddha knew the past lives of everybody that approached him. Sri Ramakrishna also knew about it. He told about the lavatory cleaner, Rāśik: "He was a Devata in his previous birth," like that he told about other people and why they were born in this way. The disciples saw these two people approaching Buddha, and they asked, "They are looking like this. Can you tell us what made them be like this?" Buddha looked at one man and said, "This man was a rich man and he never gave. Therefore, in this life he is born as a poor man, and he has appetite, but he doesn't have that puṇyam, that merit, to get because he has not given; he is not receiving. So that is why he has become so fragile, so weak." "What about the other man?" He said, "This man was not a rich man, but neither was he a poor man, and he had some samskara to give to people. But he used to give with a curse on his lips: 'These parasites always come and they want to drink the blood of people like us, hard-working people.' He used to give, but with harsh words on his lips. The people were helpless; they had to receive, but at the same time, nobody was happy to take whatever had been given with this kind of harsh, angry, insulting words. So they used to feel pained. Even though they had to receive, they received. As a result, this person has become a rich man. As a result of giving, he became rich, but because he cursed, his stomach has gone so bad that he cannot even digest boiled water." So both of them are suffering because of the result of their past karmaphala. This is what happens. We have to be extremely careful.
First Class: Mukhata Dana
Etadvai mukhato annam rāddham. Mukhato asmā annam rādhyate. If anybody treats a guest joyously, joyously feeds them as much as they want, prepares food tastefully, and throughout the stay the guest is filled with happiness—how much respect, how much reverence—Atithi Devo Bhava. This is how this person gives the food. Then what happens as a result of this giving away? When he requires food, it will come joyfully with the highest respect and very tasty food, plenty of food throughout his life, because as one gives, one receives. This is also true: as much as you empty your room, so much you can receive and keep in your room. This is the simple truth.
So this is the main meaning of this particular statement of the Upanishad. The feeling with which a person welcomes—the joy and respect with which this person welcomes, makes him sit, makes him feel "You are the most important in our lives"—and as if Atithi Devo Bhava, God Himself has come to eat. What is the result? In this birth, in the next birth, in many births, whatever time, whenever, wherever, he will never lack food. It will come with the highest respect, tasty food, with the tenderest, loveliest feeling. Joyfully he is offered, joyfully he receives, and his devotion to God will increase. The giver's devotion also will increase. About such persons, the Bhagavad Gita says: śucīnāṃ śrīmatāṃ gehe yoga-bhraṣṭo 'bhijāyate. Such persons, if they do not attain God realization—because this is part of the spiritual endeavour—then he will be born in a family where all his desires (we are not only talking about food, but food, clothing, other instruments of enjoyment, everything), all his unfulfilled desires will be naturally fulfilled, so that he will feel "Enough is enough. Now I want nothing else except God."
Second Class: Madhyata Dana
Etadvai madhyato annam rāddham. Madhyato asmā annam rādhyate. Same idea. If somebody's feelings are neither worshipful nor hateful—"OK, you have come, all right, we have got food, plenty"—he will give mechanically. Preparation is also normal preparation, and he doesn't show much respect, but he doesn't insult also: "Please sit down, please have your food." So the attitude is a very important part of the result we are going to get, whatever we do. What is the result of this kind of welcoming guests and sharing food with him? Remember, sharing means not only food but any type of help: clothing, money, or other materials, etc. In the olden days, they used to give dānam of cows, etc. So when such a giver does this kind of offering, then when he requires food, in the same way food will come—not given with tremendous love and respect, nor given with so much joy, and it is sustaining the body but not prepared very well, etc. Not only in this next birth, but so long as his karmaphala lasts, he will get the same thing. That is what we understand as karma: as the action, so also the result.
Third Class: Antata Dana
Same thing we have to apply to the third class. There are people who will not reject, but they come with a grumbling—like the story in Buddha's story—with a curse: "Sit down," and then offer with disrespect, and give only probably old food, not well cooked, etc., sustaining but not so well cooked, or maybe harsh words or even harsh looks. So there are people with terrible, inimical, disrespectful, hateful feeling: "This guest has come. No, this ghost has come." That is why the guest first becomes a ghost, but afterwards, the house feels the burden; this ghost-guest turns into a ghost. And then the preparation is not tasty, not fresh, etc.—what is called tāmasika bhojana, and with disrespect, etc. So when this kind of giver gives, he will also receive because he has given, but exactly the same way: with disrespect, not tasty food at all, maybe not sufficient in this life or in the next life also.
Therefore, we have to be very careful. The Upanishad is telling: even if you don't want spirituality, but you want to be happy in this world, this karma has to be created by you. This is part of good karma. Karma yoga comes later on. He who knows it, he does the best and he gets the best result. These are wonderful instructions given to us. If you want to give, give with respect. Even if you give a small amount, give with respect. Because as Swamiji tells, this world is a mirror. If you smile, then you will see a smile in the reflection. If you frown, then you will get a frown. That is the Karma Siddhanta. Etha karma tathā phalam. Ya evaṃ veda means one who is convinced of this truth. One should remember that if I am not getting my food, my enjoyment with respect, and I have to work very hard, it is the result of what I had done in the past.
Therefore, our scriptures tell us... Life after life, this world, this sṛṣṭi gives us nothing new. That is why I often say that nobody can make us happy, nobody can make us unhappy. Whatever we deposit in the bank that we call this world in our life, we can only withdraw that, both in this life and in future lives. So if we can deposit happiness—and how do we deposit happiness? Through these actions—we can withdraw happiness only will come. And if we deposit pain, pain will come. This inevitability of the result of karma is called Karma Siddhanta.
The Six Upasanas
Then we have got certain wonderful meditations: how one should look upon this body itself as Brahma Śarīra, a temple of God. For that purpose, six upasanas are given. I will just give you the sample; I will talk about them in our next class.
Speech
When we talk, it should be pure talk. All these ideas are so beautifully exposed and expounded in the 18th chapter of the Bhagavad Gita: kṣema iti vāchi—speak gently, speak what is helpful, speak what brings joy. And where is poverty if you have only to speak? So otherwise, pray to God. Holy Mother used to say that if you have something to give, then measure out without thinking, because you are not measuring out to somebody and losing; you are going to get back. But if you don't have, then japo, pray to God. Speak with that person very gently, very positively, with respect, and it will come back to us. This is why our speech towards others is as if God Himself is present in front of us.
Prana and Apana
Then Prāṇa and Apāna, our breathing—this is called prāṇayama. That will lead to a lot of good, which, as I said, we will discuss in our next class.
Hands, Legs, and Other Limbs
God has given us our hands. Just imagine, in an accident or by birth, hands are missing, legs are missing, limbs are missing—how inconvenient life becomes. So these are God's hands, these are God's legs (Sahasrapāt), these are God's eyes (Sahasrākṣaḥ), Sahasraśīrṣā—this is God's head; everything is included. Karmeti hasta yo ha—then gatirīdipādayoḥ—respect the feet: how many places they take us, how much they help. Just imagine a person without legs: how much inconvenience he has to bear.
Elimination
Then two things are given—our scriptures are marvelous, actually. So this what is called throwing out undigested food is called imukta ritipayo. If we cannot throw out undigested food, either by vomiting or by going to the toilet, then how much we suffer, how much unhappiness and pain will be there in the whole body? With that kind of body, we can never progress. These five are given.
Generative Organ (Daivi Samjna Upasana)
But the sixth one we have to remember it is given: what is called Daivi Samjna Upasana—upasanas regarding the deities. But unfortunately, the sixth one is included there by the Upanishad, so we have nothing to do with that. So we will have to bring it here. So I have brought it here: Prajātiḥ Amṛtam Ānanda—etat upastha. Upastha means generative organ, both man's and women's. It is said: prajātiḥ means it gives three when a man and woman, in a righteous manner, legally, they join together. Then three results will come: Prajāti, Amṛta, Ānanda.
First, it leads to joy—Ānanda. Second, it leads to progeny—children will come, and with those children we become identified, and we live through those children. That is what we call our genes—from Genghis Khan, whatever it is. So this is called Amṛta. Amṛta means immortality, relative immortality, because even when this physical body falls off, we live through our bodies. So my body is nothing but my parents; my parents' bodies are nothing but their parents' bodies, etc., etc.
Therefore, do not misuse this generative organ; look upon it as a God-given gift. Look upon our speech, our breathing in and out, our hands, our legs, our action of the ability to have good motion, and of course the greatest joy of every animal including human beings—the union of the two sexes, because it gives joy, it leads to progeny, and it also leads to immortality through the progeny.
About this, in a little more detail, we will talk in our next class.
Closing Prayer
ॐ जननीं शारदां देवीं रामकृष्णं जगद्गुरुम् ।पादपद्मे तयोः श्रित्वा प्रणमामि मुहुर्मुहुः
Oṁ jananīṁ śaraḍhāṁ deviṁ rāmakriṣṇam jagad-gurum pādapadmetayosritvā pranamāmi-muhurumuhu
May Sri Ramakrishna, Holy Mother and Swami Vivekananda bless us all with Bhakti. Jai Ramakrishna!