A Milestone to Infinity

2 days ago, I finished another reading of a book - perhaps the one book that I can never put down and one that has had and continues to have the GREATEST influence in my life - The Yoga Vasishta by Swami Venkatesananda.


My first reading started in July 2003 and ended 9 months later. After that I tried hard to restart several times, but wasn't successful until last year when a chat with my teacher made me pick it up again. And 2 days ago, my eyes moist, hand trembling, heart reverberating with gratitude, I read the last paragraph.

At the end I held the book with love and reverence and thanked Guruji from the bottom of my heart for blessing me to be able to finish the book.

Some beautiful things about the Yoga Vasishta :

1. It is a unique scripture. Bhagavad Gita is about God giving his devotee Arjuna the knowledge of life. Yoga Vasishta is about Sage Vasishta narrating the knowledge to Lord Rama himself.

2. If you have deep questions about creation, consciousness etc, this book is a must read. Here are the Sections :

• On Dispassion
• On The Behavior Of A Seeker
  
• On Creation
• On Existence
• On Dissolution
• On Liberation

3. To be read right after kriya/meditation - just 1 page a day.

4. Guruji has this scripture read to him every day.

Available at the following stores :

• Most Art Of Living Divine Shops in India (it is titled "The Supreme Yoga" in India)
• Online in India here or here.
  
• Online on Amazon.com here.
  

I leave you to ponder the last para. Hopefully it will inspire you to begin/continue reading this amazing knowledge :

"Thus I have told you the story of Rama, Oh Bharadwaja. By practice of this yoga, attain supreme bliss. He who constantly listens to this dialogue between Rama and Vasishta is liberated, whatever be the circumstances of his life, and he attains the knowledge of Brahman".

On Dispassion......the journey continues.....

Jai Guru Dev,

? , !

Been reading the Bhagavad Gita and Yoga Vasishta regularly for a few weeks now and pondering on how the infinite wisdom within applies to my life and the knowledge that I have gained in Guruji's grace. A little Q&A with myself.

Q> Do spiritual people also face suffering ?
A> The Mahabharata is full of spiritual folks that were divided across the battlefield and perished.

Q> When one has a Guru, does one face tough situations ?
A> Arjuna had Krishna Himself as a charioteer in the Kurukshetra war and lost his own son, Abhimanyu, on the battlefield. Whats the point of being given precious knowledge like "Accept situations as they are" if there are not going to be any situations to deal with ?

Q> Why do some folks progress more than others on the spiritual path ?
A> The Yoga Vasishta starts its amazing commentary by emphasizing "Self Effort". As a teacher of mine used to say "The Sun is always shining. Its your choice whether to open the blinds or stay in darkness".

Q> If God is doing everything, why do I need to do anything ?
A> The entire Bhagavad Gita is devoted to this question. Even while showing Arjuna the Vishwaroopa Darshan where the entire Kaurava army was dissapearing into Krishna's infinite form (i.e. they were already dead), Krishna exhorts Arjuna to fight and do his duty as a warrior.

This reminds me of something a teacher of mine used to say regarding seva "The event will happen - whether to participate or not is your choice". I used to think of it as arrogant - why should I participate if my participation makes no difference ? Now I see it differently :) Participation is not about changing how things evolve - it is about my own evolution as part of the universe's evolution i.e. being God's hands and thus becoming a channel for HIS grace.

Q> If all is ONE, then why so many shapes and forms, joy and misery, the dualities ? Could the ONE not just BE ?
A> This question is still the deepest one I have. No answers anywhere yet - not in the Gita, not in Yoga Vasishta. The only thing I notice is that I want things to get over only when I am miserable. When joyous, I can accept the world as is. But this question comes again and again. Maybe thats why Guruji says in Ashtavakra "Wonder about it" !

It so interesting - suffering. A beautiful intense phase where one comes face to face with ones own boundaries, cravings, desires, limitations, fears. If I give knowledge a chance, all this will dissolve in a second, if not, I continue to reel in misery.

Guruji - Can I accept ?

I WONDER.

Jai Guru Dev,

Misery

Misery is - well - a miserable thing. Sucked into its vortex, life takes many tumbles. Like clothes in a washing machine spin cycle, it turns me around and around. Like a whirlpool or quicksand, it sucks me into its fold. Like jeera or pepper just added to boiling oil in a cauldron it makes me jump, crackle and cry. Like freshly cut onions it makes me weep. OK enough analogies.......

More recently I've thinking a lot about misery. In those moments when I am not consumed by it just watching its ways provides some truly interesting perspectives into life.

What is Suffering ?

Guruji says that "Suffering is the product of ignorance". Ignorance of what ? Ignorance of myself. Ignorance of my purpose in this life and body. Not accepting people and situations (however horrible) as they are.

Now what prevents me from accepting situations and people as they are ? Lets see. Tough situations put life into a tailspin. My own plans for life have to be set aside. A lot of compromise is necessary. Sacrifice is necessary. I am forced to stop taking from life and start giving.

All the above are not easy. Why ? Desires Desires Desires Desires.

My own desires in the form of goals, ambitions, likes, dislikes, all subdued by the situation start a tug of war with the present moment. The situation demands I accept and be and do what is needed NOW, but desires pull me in the opposite direction. This tug of war tears my mind apart and results in my not being able to function fully in the NOW.


The Use Of Suffering

Suffering has been a great way for me to realize that pleasure is temporary and that more indulgence in pleasure will only bring more suffering. My own suffering also teaches me to look around and realize that there are others in deeper pain. By supporting them I see that my own pain is not that bad.


Why Suffering ?

Obviously karma has something to do with it :) Why would a benevolent God want to heap suffering on his children ? A good thing about thinking about karma is that is prevents the blame-game / self pity cycle from going on and on. I realize that I have dues to pay and that suffering is basically payback time.

But why does suffering even exist ?

This is a deep question. What if there were no suffering ? What would happen to this world ? Life would become one endless indulgence in the pleasures of life leaving no time or need to dwell into the true nature of who we really are. Nobody would have any problems and obviously removing the need for anyone to solve them. Would life have any meaning left ? Would it even exist ? The Yoga Vasishta chapter on Prahalada and Vishnu goes much deeper into this aspect.

Another Way ?

A baby struggles out of its womb causing pain to itself and its mother before that moment of bliss called birth. A butterfly struggles out of its cocoon before spreading its beautiful wings. Any achievement in life is preceded by a struggle of some sort. Just wondering, is this the only way life can evolve ? Chaos always preceding and resulting in bliss. Could it not have been easier ? Even possible ? Just wondering.

Jai Guru Dev,

Getting Away

Image Source : http://majorlycool.com/item/sunset-ride/catid/10

Sometimes when life gets too crazy, I feel like riding into the sunset. Don't care on what : a bicycle, a motorcycle, a car, a horse, camel, a buffalo (nah not really!) ....somewhere, somehow just GO.......

Am I running towards something ? Or away from something ? Myself ?

And then I realize that I cannot run from the situation. And also with my MIND as a permanent - sometimes unwanted - companion, can I really go far ? Don't think so.


Been reading the Yoga Vasishta regularly for a few weeks now and it dwells so beautifully on the secrets and tendencies of the mind. A must read after you meditate - it elevates one to a different level of consciousness. A little secret - some lucky soul reads some pages to Guruji every day - phir meri kya zurrat ki mai na padhoon ?

Yoga Vasishta - not just a book, but a Guru's blessing.

But someday I will take that ride into the sunset and it won't be running away.


Jai Guru Dev,

Smiling Through

It was during Guru Poornima 2006 - my first and only so far - with Guruji . In a huge hall at the San Matep Expo Center, CA. We were all participants in the "Yoga and Meditation Seminar" (also called PDS in India), being led by none other than Sri Sri Ravishankar.

About 300 of us were twisted like pretzels in a difficult pose - grunting, sweating and breathing at the same time, when Guruji's soft ethereal voice wafted over the microphone "Smiling In a Difficult Pose Is Yoga" .

Boom..crash...flash of lightning...the whole town visible from a hilltop.....Aho !

Suddenly it was so clear what He was saying - If you can smile through tough times in life, you have attained that state called Yoga. This was the MOST amazing definition of Yoga I had ever heard in my life.

The essence of the Bhagavad Gita says the same thing. Krishna exorts Arjuna to fire the arrow, but from a state of calmness. In the midst of what would have been a world war in those days, when Arjuna was in the most tumultous of times in his life, Krishna asked him to be centered and do his duty - no matter how difficult.

Guruji says this very directly too - The sign of success is your SMILE.



Ah - that elusive SMILE :) :) . Every week, at Long Kriya, the teacher asks us to do the same thing again and again - S M I L E. At times I feel like...Grr...just get on with the pranayams already, but its clear that the goal of Art Of Living is not just to teach folks a few asanas and breathing techniques - it is to bring back that lost smile on people's faces.

Especially on faces like mine that look perenially like :( .

And this smile has to be from within - not the polite smile that masks the agony from within - not the "Tum Itna Jo Muskura Rahe Ho, Kya Gam Hai Jisko Chupa Rahe Ho" Smile, but the SMILE of the BEING ! The SMILE that shines through the clouds of darkness, misery, desires, failures, setbacks. The SMILE that makes others forget that they are in misery .

And after all who is not subject to miserable events ? Krishna had his uncle plotting his murder before he was even born and was hounded by him for years. Guruji's own mother Amma fell a victim to cancer when Guruji was about to address thousands at a satsang hundreds of miles away. Buddha had to leave his family and kingdom and walk away to attain nirvana. Jesus was nailed to the cross for showing people the path of love. The difference between these noble souls and us : The SMILE never went away even in these tough situations. These situations were just events to them, not problems.

When Will I really SMILE ? Well until then as they say in the Art Of Living "Fake It Till You Make It" !!

" You sell you happiness for peanuts! You sell your smile for pennies! I tell you, it's not worth it. The entire world is not worth your smile. Even if you are made the king or the emperor of the world, it's not worth giving away your smile. " - Sri Sri Ravishankar
Oh Gurudev, you have so much to give - am I ready to receive ? How much will I receive in this lifetime ? The Yoga Vasishta says "Self Effort" .


Jai Guru Dev,

Is Life.... ?

Is Life Worth Living ? It depends upon the liver - so goes the old adage / joke !


I've been reading Yoga Vasishta for about 2 months now after meditating and a question comes up often : Why this foolish creation? Why the pain and suffering? Why the avatars ? Why the dualities ? Why the roller-coaster ride of pleasure and pain ? Whats the point of this creation if all is anyway ONE ?

If just ONE consciousness exists then why can't just 1 consciousness BE ?

Why create these individual small minds, let them make mistakes, gain bad karma, then provide a Guru to show them the path, allow them to suffer on it and then finally go back to where you were anyways - in the Self ?

What has been achieved ?

Why is the wave allowed to be separate from the ocean ?

Agar Duniya Aisi Hai to Aisi Yeh Duniya Kyon Hai ? (from a lovely song from the movie Saath Saath, I think) .

Are folks like Sage Vasishta, Krishna, Guruji and others exempt from pain and samsara ? Were they always enlightened ? If I am God, then why am I not like them, why do I have to suffer a million births before getting to where they are ?

Just occurred to me that whenever these questions came up in my mind, the quality of life wasn't that great. Disappointments, hardships, unfulfilled desires, a sacrifice to be made, pain...whatever be the reason, my mind was never at rest. When I was happy, my mind never questions anything, I am just floating in the bliss of that moment !!!!!!!!!!

Guruji has simple answers for this : Wonder About It ! God Loves Fun !

Haan Guruji .....Par Yeh Dil Hai Ki Maanta Nahin Guruji !!!

More sadhana, satsang, knowledge, seva...........now only if life allowed me to fully soak in all these...sigh.....Accept the situation as is.

Jai Guru Dev,