"Faith In The Guru"

Thisincident occurred almost fifteen years back and much before i had any idea about gurus and their grace. Now that i am on the path, my thinking has changed completely. A gentleman came in for admission for severe Coronary Artery Disease and needed grafting of two of his arteries. His ventricular functions were quite bad, placing him in the high risk category. i was to operate on him the following morning. While examining any patient before surgery him, it is customary for us surgeons to explain the procedure and to answer any queries he/she may have. Mr Kumar’s (name changed) question surprised me…he wanted to know whether we had generators in the Operating Room! i was taken aback as even in those days it was routine to have not only generators in the OR but also uninterrupted power supply as a backup for most of the important equipment…hence just laughed his question off. The operation started off well enough. In those days almost all heart bypasses were done by the conventional method in which the Heart Lung machine is used, based on the principle of draining all the impure blood from the heart, cooling and purifying it by oxygenating it and then pumping it back into the heart. The heart is “arrested’ electively, which means that it is made completely still by injecting certain solutions into the heart arteries, to facilitate the operative procedure. During this period the patient is virtually “dead’ …in very very deep sleep. Once the grafting is done, the heart usually comes back to ‘life” either by itself or is “shocked” back to life. ( At this point of time most of us operate using the“Beating Heart technique” in which the use of the Heart Lung Machine is dispensed with) The operation proceeded well till the grafting of the last coronary artery commenced. The heart was absolutely still , considered a very good sign of arrest, had completed about half of the anastomosis (suturing of the conduit to the lower end of the coronary artery) when suddenly the lights went off! There was total darkness in the OR and the generators failed to kick in! Pandemonium reigned. To make matters worse, the uninterrupted power supply also failed! At this point the patient was completely dependent on the heart lung machine for much needed blood to his brain and the rest of his body…but the machine had stopped working! There was no way he could survive. Another shock awaited me….the crank which can work the heart lung machine manually was nowhere to be found! Chaos reigned in the OR for God knows how long…i tried to complete the anastomisis with the help of a flash light…for whatever it was worth. After a few minutes, which appeared to be hours, i felt the patient’s heart start beating gently…ever so gently…i wondered whether i was confusing it with my own heart which was galloping like a horse! Soon the lights came back and the operation could be completed. Mr Kumar was shifted to the Recovery (an ICU where operated patients are nursed intensively). Though the operation had been completed, there was an extremely high possibility of serious of damage to his brain, kidneys and practically all organs of the body as none of them would have received adequate blood supply during the shutdown. Bracing myself for the worst i went to see him the next morning…lo and behold, i saw a smiling Mr Kumar lying comfortably in bed none the worse for the ordeal he had gone through. When enquired as to how he felt he asked me if the generators in the OR had worked! He then took out a picture of his Guru and asked me to keep it in my pocket at all times! i obliged him for many years till i found my own Guruji (or rather till my Guruji found me)! God does have a sense of humour when it comes to bringing non believers on to the ‘Path”!

Yog Nidra…..the art of complete Relaxation

To be able to relax completely is an art. So many methods have been described, from just sleeping, to sitting in silence, to listening to music, just closing one’s eyes, counting down from 30 to 1 but what is not talked about much is the method taught by our sages of yore…Yoga Nidra, which is a method in which one is fully conscious but relaxed completely. This is how it differs from sleep. Sleep may not relax us fully since the very moment sleep dawns, the dream state starts, the mind remains active and is not at peace. It is only during deep sleep that we achieve rest but how much of deep sleep do we manage to get? Yoga Nidra, on the other hand restores the mind to a state of tranquility and profound peace. Yoga Nidra is also known as ‘Chetan Nidra” and, in my experience is the best method for achieving complete relaxation. i, therefore, wish to share it with all of you. Yoga Nidra literally means “Sleeping Consciously” and is a state in between wakefulness and dreaming during which our subconscious and still deeper layers of our mind open up. These, as we are aware are very powerful levels of the mind, indeed. It thus brings about deep relaxation at all levels namely physical, psychological and mental and results in a higher level of energy in the body. It is at this stage that we become more amenable to suggestions and the subconscious mind, the obedient servant it is, ensures its attainment. Incidentally this is the stage which is used for “Hypnosis’ by Psychiatrists during ‘Hypnotic meditation” or Regression. During Yog Nidra our consciousness travels from one layer to another resulting in wonderful experiences. The Method: First Stage…resting in “Shavasana” Lie on the back, with the legs spread one and a half feet and arms a little away from the body and palms facing up, fingers spread out. Relax the body completely, close your eyes gently, and breathe slowly and deeply. Second Stage: Start observing the body with the mind’s eye…..as if a person standing way from you is observing you lying on the floor (it is like your atma observing your body). Direct your “mind’s eye” to the great toe of the right foot, followed by the second toe, then the third, the fourth and finally the fifth…all very very slowly. Look at the sole of the foot, the upper part, the calf of the leg, the thigh and the buttock. Turn your attention to the left foot and very slowly follow the same sequence from the big toe to the buttock. Keep relaxing the part or organ which you see with your mind’s eye. Now look at the centre of your abdomen, which is the seat of ‘Saman Pran” followed by all the internal organs, namely the stomach, liver, pancreas, spleen, intestines. This should then be followed by the right lung, the left lung, the pulsating heart, the right side of the waist, the left side. Then look at the spine from the lower to the upper end. Remember to relax whichever structure you see. Look at the right thumb of your hand, the second, the third, fourth and fifth fingers, the upper part of the palm, the wrist, front of the arm, elbow, the upper part of the arm and the shoulder. Similarly observe the left thumb, fingers, palm, arms etc in the same order. Divert the gaze of your mind’s eye to your throat, chin, teeth, the two nostrils, right and left ears, right and left eyes, right and left eyebrows, the space between the eyebrows and the crown of the head. Keep concentrating on each relaxed part of the body. The Third Stage…..Meditation on the Five Elements: You now need to meditate on the Five Elements or “tatvas” starting from the earth Element. Feel the heaviness of the bones, flesh, muscles and the skin. These represent the Earth Element. Basically there is no difference between the Earth element and the parts of our bodies represented by it. Try to appreciate the smell of the earth. Now think of the blood flowing in your arteries and veins flowing from the great toe to the crown of the head. These represent the Water Element. There is basically no difference between the outside water and the fluids flowing inside our bodies, therefore try to visualize the taste of water also. Come to the Fire Element now. Concentrate on the warmth (better expressed as “oonshrata”) present in your entire body. This is representative of the Fire Element. Body heat does not differ from the heat present in the environment, therefore, try to feel this warmth. Now gently concentrate on you inhalation and exhalation as this represents your Air Element which does not differ from the air you breathe. Feel this connection between your body and the environment. Gently observe the spaces in your body representative of the Space Element. Our body is completely “saturated” with space and does not differ from outside space. Try to feel the connection with the inner and outer space and also to appreciate the inner primordial sound, carried by the Space Element. Fourth Stage…Meditation on the “Super”Element: This “Super” Element gives rise to all the other Elements which are ephemeral in nature while this is permanent. Try to stay in this stage of Divinity for some time. Imagine a beautiful white (or golden) light surrounding you and feel it travelling down your entire body. The longer you can stay with it the more peaceful and relaxed you get. Fifth Stage….Meditation on your breathing: Concentrate on the process of breathing. Breathe deeply, draw the breath from the “foot” to the “crown” of your head while inhaling and vice versa while exhaling. Do this 6 to 7 times, and gradually sit up. It is important not to go to sleep during Yog Nidra as it would deprive you of all the benefits. Yoga Nidra is very similar to the process of feeling energy internally. As you observe every organ or part of your body, it is possible to observe and feel whether that part or organ is energy depleted or not. If so it indicates the presence of disease in that area, which can easily be “replenished” by transferring “cosmic” energy to it by the different methods of Energy Healing. It is like scanning your bodily energies from the great toe to the crown of your head. i have found it Yoga Nidra to be an extremely good tool for relaxation as well as meditation. It is also a great method for managing stress which is plaguing our lives. Since it relieves stress and anxiety it is greatly beneficial in heart disease as well. Those who practice Yoga Nidra find that their need for sleep decreases significantly. It is a wonderful method to practice for all of us. Source: ‘Asan And Yog Vigyan’ published by Bhartiya Yog Sansthan Seventh Edition 2008, “Miraculous Health” by Dr Rick Levy 2008,and The Internet.

"God...Self....And The Connection"

YesWe are always being taught that if we wish to connect with Him we need to connect with our selves. Even Jesus Christ said “Know Thyself”…but what is this “Self”? Most of the time we stumble since we ate not sure what this elusive “Self is! What is it after all? Volumes have been written about it but us most do not know what it is or whether it exists at all! We have been told that “The Self is one. Ever still, the Self is Swifter than thought, swifter than the senses. Though motionless, he outruns all pursuit. Without the Self, never could life exist”…….and further “The Self is everywhere. Bright is the Self, Indivisible, untouched by sin, wise, Immanent and transcendent. He it is Who holds the cosmos together” ( Isha Upanishad). It has been considered so important that even the gods have found it difficult to understand it…what to say about us humans !This is brought out very clearly in the Chandogya Upanaishad, which i am briefy recapitulating. Prajapati, the great teacher said "The self is pure, free from decay and death, free from hunger and thirst, and free from sorrow. The Self desires nothing that is not good, wills nothing that is not good. Seek and realize the Self! Those who seek and realize the Self fulfill all their desires and attain the goal supreme. When Indra learned about this, he along with Virochana approached Prajapati, lived with him for thirty two years as they wished to realize the Self....but by the end of it they still felt that the self was the body. Prajapati told Indra should live with him for another thirty two years and that he would teach him more about the Self...this went on for many years till Indra had lived with Prajapati for a hundred and one years when he was taught that (among other things)"Those who know this Self and realize this Self obtain all worlds and all desires" The above mentioned quotes from the Upanishads are so beautiful but still we fail to translate them into their practical meanings. The following story as told my Respected Guruji makes the predicament we are facing abundantly clear. There was a lion cub which got separated from his mother. As luck would have it, he was then picked up by lambs and reared by them…he started behaving like a lamb as he had no concept of being a lion’s offspring and grew up like a lamb. One day a full grown lion passed by and was surprised to see this ”lamb” and went to it and tried to remind it that he too was a lion like him but the grown cub refused to accept it. The lion then took him to a pond and asked him to compare the reflections of both and told him that both of them looked alike. He then roared and asked the cub to do the same…when the cub roared himself he understood that he was not a lamb but a lion. This is the situation of most of us as we do not realize our true potential since we see ourselves as small while in reality we have immense spiritual power as we have been made in the image of God. This power only needs to be harnessed! So how did the Self come into being? The “Self” is integrally associated with the ‘Spirit”, which as we know is the same as God beyond Creation. Spirit has always existed, it has no birth, no death as it is immortal, it cannot be destroyed, is all powerful and just exists. When the Spirit , which is ONE decided to become many, it created this and so many other Universes, with a part of it in everything created. Hence there is a part of this spirit inside us too, our soul, or atma which is, therefore the reflection of Spirit inside us. This “atma” or soul is our true essence , a reflection of the Spirit and, therefore, our” core” which has all the “ingredients’ of the original spirit of which it is a part. It stands to reason, then that if we wish to merge with the Almighty, we need to realize that this atma is a part of God and that to find God we need to “connect” to the core of our” self”, the atma. It has been rightly said that “we are spiritual beings having a physical experience and not physical beings having a spiritual experience”….de Chardin Hence basically there is no difference between the Spirit and our Atma (read ‘Self’) except that we are not aware of it. The reason why we are not aware of it is because of our Ego (There are two types of egos which exist....the first is the Cosmic Ego, which has been given to us as a part of our evolution as for us to exist as humans we need to have an individuality, but when this sides with our body rather than the self, it creates the sense of separation...this is called the body identified ego ….a deterrent to spiritual evolution). Where is the Atma located? Our “Self” or Atma is located at the Third Eye or the Agya Chakra in between the two eyebrows. It is contained in five sheaths or “koshas” as described in yoga. We have an “Annamaya Kosha’(the food sheath), Pranamaya Kosha ( the Energy Body), Manomaya Kosha (Mental Body) Vijnamaya Kosha ( Intelligence Body) and finally the Anandmaya Kosha (the Soul or bliss body) . The agya chakra controls the Manomaya and the Vijnamaya Koshas and is related to the mind. The Agya Chakra, as we know has two petals (all chakras have a certain number of petals, each symbolic of some important aspect or the other). These two petals in the case of the agya chakra indicate “Atma’ and “Paratama”…..indicative of union of the two. What is this mystical “Third Eye”? We are aware that the human body has nine orifices…..two eyes, mouth, two nostrils, two ears, the excretory orifices, all of which open to the outside. The Third eye, however, is the tenth also called the ‘Daswa Dwar”, and opens to the Inside. When this actually opens to the “inside” meaning , the Manomaya and the Vijnamayaya Koshas have been transgressed and Atma is” layed open” in the “Anandmaya” kosha, the last sheath. Hence the Third Eye, is the flimsy veil which covers our “Atma” or “Self”. When this veil is “lifted” the Atma is free to go on its onward journey to merge with the Supreme Being or Paramatama. This Third Eye is also called “and”(the “a” here is pronounced as the letter a as in ‘anda or ‘egg”)’the border of human consciousness and Divine Consciousness. The chakras below this are associated with the body or “pind” while anything above the Agya chakra or the Third Eye is called ‘Brahmanda’. How does the Third Eye open? In order to achieve this four paths of Yoga (Union) have been described . Gyan, Bhakti, Karma and Raj Yoga. Unfortunately , a lot of controversy exists as to which path is the best, whether reading the scriptures alone, praying, doing action (Karma Yoga) or Meditation is the best. All the four paths lead to Union but as i understand, Raj Yoga is the best. No matter which path one follows ultimately one practices all four. If one sees someone becoming enlightened or becoming ‘Realized’ ( it means that he has “realized” or understood what “truth’ actually is and has achieved the connection with the Divine Being) by the other three methods…..this is because of him having meditated in his earlier birth and to have been born again in an advanced evolved stage and full realization occurred by any one of those methods in the present birth. Dhyan or Meditation, is the most effective method for opening the Third Eye, as taught by a Realized teacher. What happens when the third eye opens? The opening is associated with the “hearing” or appreciation of “Aum” or ‘Shabd”. This is the primordial sound which brought about the creation of this and all other universes and comprises of sound and light. When the Third Eye opens this “unstruck” sound or “Anhad Shabd” is “heard”…..this may either be appreciation of the various “sounds” or divine music or beautiful vistas may open up. As the atma travels higher and higher beyond the Third Eye through five different stages or “Khands”, namely Dharam Khand, Gyan Khand, Saram Khand, Karam Khand and finally Sach Khand……the sounds change along with the beautiful vistas and different coloured bright lights finally culminating into union with the Divine. The path travelled by the atma is simply beautiful and virtually impossible to describe. It is just like asking a dumb person to describe the taste of honey! The Shvetashvatara Upanishad describes some of these experiences as ‘They may see within them more and more light: Fireflies, lightning, sun, moon. These are signs That they are well on their way to Brahman” All the above experiences are associated with tremendous changes both in the human body as well as temperament. One becomes calm, wise, love for all beings becomes more and more pronounced, one becomes all powerful as one rises above Kama, Krodha, Lobha, Moha, Mad and Matsya and one becomes “ONE” with everything and everyone, more and more humble till ego dissolves completely, the last “bastion’ so to speak, and the atma merges with the Parmatama and one loses oneself into Him …to remain in this state or, take on a form of a Being guiding and helping humanity from afar or come back again to act as beacons for seekers for their onward journey! “Aum”, “Shabd” or the “Holy Ghost” is the link between the self and Him…..and this connection is what we need to seek. Sources: “The Upnanishads” Eknath Easwaran, “God Talks to Arjun the Bhagwat Geeta” by Sri Parmahans Yogananda

Attachment Leads To Detachment"

We are taught by spiritual teachers not to get attached and to “detach” ourselves from desires and sense pleasures if we wish to achieve spiritual progress. As a result, people have resorted to all sorts of practices like “tapas”, etc to achieve their aim. Many have left their homes seeking they know not what. Is this correct practice? When we do tapas, what are we achieving? We are merely punishing ourselves. If we just stop to think we realize that the human body has been given to us for a purpose and it is our divine duty to keep it well because “it is easier to hold the mind of God without distraction of pain”….Sri Paramhans Yoganandaji. This is one of the reasons why Yoga was devised…when the body is healthy it is easier to meditate without any distractions from the body. Of course, a disciplined yogi can still retain his calm and happiness even when suffering from physical pain. It is widely believed that our desires are a great obstacle to spiritual progress. The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad states “When all the desires that surge in the heart are renounced, the mortal becomes immortal. When all the knots that strangle the heart are loosened, the mortal becomes immortal, here in this very life”.This is absolutely true but can suppressing them make us immortal? The answer is no because whenever we suppress anything it ultimately rears its ugly head again with a vengeance and we are back to square one. It is also said that the Universe runs on two basic principles…rita (meaning law, order etc) and renunciation or sacrifice. If the Universe has to run on renunciation, what is it that we need to renounce? Also what is, therefore, the true meaning of ‘detachment” or “renunciation”? The Gita tells us that in order to achieve salvation we need to renounce all mortal desires. What this actually means is that we need to renounce the fruits of our actions. We all need to perform our worldly duties as a sacrifice …”giving oneself to life” for this basic principle to be fulfilled. Not acting or doing something is certainly not the solution because act we must, since it is by our good actions that we manage to wash off our karmas. By just not doing anything we do not achieve this. By running away into the forest, away from worldly life fails to achieve this purpose. When meditating in a cave or living in a forest, we still have the demons of longings, passions, greed, sex propensities etc present in our minds …..which will burst forth again at an opportune moment. This is the reason why Sri Paramhans Yoganandaji says ”it is the better path to live in the world but not belong to the world” We are also taught that we should not get “attached” to anything lest we increase our longing and desires for sense pleasures. This again is true but is it practicable? The Bhagwat Gita has taught us that we should practice “titiksha” or imperturbability, something which the Greeks of old labeled as “stoicism”, meaning that pain or pleasure, sorrow or happiness should have no appreciable change in us, physically or mentally, that all events are good whether actually good or not (based on our understanding). How then do we achieve freedom from desires, cultivate “titiksha’ and remain free from the bondage of attachments? The only way to do that is to attach ourselves to Him. When we attach ourselves to the Almighty we automatically achieve all the desired results. This is possible when we follow Jesus Christ’s teaching “Seek and Ye shall find; knock and it shall open” meaning thereby, meditate on Him and seek Him with desperation, total surrender and complete love leading to the opening of the Third Eye at the centre of the forehead culminating in God union. To quote fellow blogger Mahin Ahsan ,(with my profound thanks) “Is He (not best ) who responds to the desperate one when he calls upon him…”(Quran 27:62) When we seek Him with all our heart and love, we achieve the connection with the primordial sound of Aum/ Shabd with the opening of our Third Eye. Our entire self opens to us, we gradually and surely “ascend” through various stages to the Divine. Our ascension is associated with freedom from desires, negative emotions, tamasic tendencies….we therefore, rise above all that is bad for us, slowly get wrapped in His warm embrace, enjoy the beautiful vistas of scintillating bright light and divine symphony.…finally losing our own entity by merging with Him……the drop becomes the ocean. Source: “God Talks With Arjun The Bhagwat Gita by Sri Paramhans Yogananda, “the Upanishads” by Eknath Easwaran

"Death Vs Death"

When we talk of death, we normally mean death of the physical body. As we are all aware, our body consists of a Sthula Sharir, or the physical body made of matter. In addition we have an Astral body also known as the Sukshma Sharir made up of “Prana” and the mind (manas). The third part is the Karan Sharir, or the Causal Body (as it is the cause of the other two), comprising of Intellect or Budhi and the Soul. When physical death takes place, it is the physical body and the prana which are affected, the other parts remain as they are. Thus our mind, intelligence and the Atma remain and we come back again in a new form based on our karmas and desires. (i shall refrain from elaborating about it in this blog as a lot has been written about it). There is another type of death…. true death as described by our sages. What is It? Perhaps the following story might explain it. There was a caged parrot which was very dear to its owner, who was a trader. The parrot was well trained and could talk quite a bit. The trader was going to another city for some work and, being kind hearted, he asked everyone if they wanted him to get anything for them…he asked his parrot too. The parrot just said, if you meet anyone of my kind, please give them my regards. The trader left and when he reached his destination, he found many parrots sitting on a tree. He called out to them and conveyed the message as requested by his parrot. Hearing the message, all the parrots flew off except an old one, who screamed …and dropped dead! The trader felt very sad as he thought, perhaps his parrot may have been related to this old one and he blamed himself for the old parrot’s death. When he came back, he told his parrot about what had happened. When the caged parrot heard the news, he asked the trader incredulously …”did he die”? The trader said ‘yes’. Hearing this…. he too died! The trader felt doubly sad and blamed himself again and cursed himself for having divulged the news of the demise of the old parrot. With a heavy heart he opened the door of the cage and took the parrot out. The parrot woke up and went and sat on a tree! The trader felt cheated and asked him why did you do this? The parrot replied that when the old parrot had died he had given a very strong message…that if you want to be free from your cage, you must “die”. Bulle Shah has said that this is a symbolic story…. a hint to all those who want to be “free”…go inside see the beautiful sights(part of spiritual evolution) and fly towards freedom. He has also said that one should ‘die while living”. Here the parrot symbolizes the atma which is trapped in the cage….like our atma is trapped inside our physical bodies. Let us explore this a little more. Those saints who can open their third eye, situated at the centre of the forehead, between the two eyes…..connect with themselves at will , leading to the merger of their consciousness with the Universal Conciousness. This is true death. “Saint Paul said, “I protest by our rejoicing which I have in Christ…..I die daily”. He could withdraw his life force and consciousness from the body into bliss (rejoicing) of Christ Consciousness. He could daily experience the state of conscious death when the soul does away with body consciousness and its physical and mental restlessness and activity, and the breath and heartbeat slow down to almost nothing or cease altogether. After mastering the breathless superconscious state , the soul can ascend and make contact with the Christ Consciousness and return again to the body….switching the life force on and off at will from external bodily senses and activity’ (Sri Paramhans Yogananda) Real Death, therefore, means not only extinction of the physical body, but also the dissolution of the two other bodies, namely the astral as well as the causal bodies. Hence death is applicable to these three bodies. Let us remember “Die before you die so that you don’t need to die again”!(Bulle Shah) ....mystical but so true! The best way to “Die while living’ is to internally connect with the Shabd/Aum, gifted to us by a Realized Guru…..and bask in the glory of the soothing divine music and the ever so beautiful and breathtaking vistas of the beyond….nay the inner self! Sources: My Guruji and “The Second Coming of Christ” by Sri Paramhans Yogananda.

"Ego Too Has A Purpose"

Volumes have been written about this so common but abstract word…but do we actually know what it is? We have been made to believe that it is something which is very bad…but is that really so? What is it after all? All of us have an ego but do not know that we have it. It is difficult to define it but this small story may be able to explain it. There was a king who prided himself on being very knowledgeable. He had read a lot about the Ego but had not understood what it was. He , therefore ordered that a learned man be produced before him to explain to him as to what it was. Unfortunately no one could be found despite a wide spread search till someone mentioned the name of a very wise old man, who was produced in the king’s court. The king asked him to explain what Ego meant…the old man roared with laughter and made fun of the king for not knowing what it was! The king got angry at being laughed at but asked him the same question again. The old man laughed even louder and said that he had never heard such a foolish question in his life before. This so enraged the king that he ordered the wise old man to be beheaded. The old man laughed again and told the king that he had given a practical example of ego by behaving the way he had. My Guruji puts it so beautifully…if there are three things, my ego, myself and God…..what happens when the ego is removed? Then only God remains! This is because ego is the biggest barrier between me and Him….when the ego disappears then my Self merges into Him. The above relate to the body identified ego…which affects most of us. If Ego is really so bad, then why has God created it? The genesis of Ego. According to the Sankhya Philosophy of Creation, Purusha, which is the male but passive counterpart, and Prakriti, which is the female active principle,( Mother Nature/Holy Ghost) together, lead to the development of Mahad or Mahat or Intelligence/Awareness or Buddhi. This gives rise to Ahamkar or Ego. This Ego is responsible for the genesis of the three Gunas of Prakriti, namely Sattva , Rajas and Tamas. Sattva is responsible for the Mind, the five sense faculties, namely ears, skin, eyes, tongue, nose, and the five motor organs, which are mouth, hands, feet, reproductive organs and the excretory organs, while Tamas is responsible for the Five elements or Tattvas…Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Space. Ego, therefore, is our sense of self identity and the seat of our consciousness. This is the Universal Ego, which is supposed to be identified with the Self. What does Ego do? For any action to take place, first and foremost a body is needed and the second requirement is the presence of the ego, or the pseudo soul, which enthrones itself in the body, senses, mind and intelligence. For any activities to be directed or executed, this “I-ness’ is essential. What is then, the real purpose of the Ego? Ego is actually a divine manifestation when it identifies itself with the soul. It uses the various instruments of the body and mind to interact with the manifestations of creation. On the other hand when it identifies itself with the senses it becomes the body destroying ego. According to Sri Yoganandji ‘When identified with the subtle instruments of perception and knowledge in the astral body, the “I-ness” becomes a clearer sense of being…when it expresses through the pure intuitive wisdom, the instrument of the causal body, it becomes the pure discriminating ego(divine ego), or its highest expression the soul, the individualized expression of Spirit. The soul, the purest individualized sense of being knows its Spirit-identity of omniscience and omnipresence, and merely uses the instruments of the body and mind as a means of communication and interaction with objectified creation” In other words, Ego has two parts, one identifies with the body while the purer form is identified with the astral and causal parts of our bodies. If the Astral ego identifies with the sense organs it becomes the “pseudo soul”and rules us, and actually gives us a false personality, but if it remains in its pure form it remains in conformity with the wisdom consciousness of the causal body. The pseudo soul gives us a false personality. A classic example is Bhishma Pitamah in the Mahabharat... Sri Yoganandji has called Bhishma Pitamah as Universal ego… here he has been symbolized as the astral or inner seeing ego (which is the consciousness identified with manas, buddhi and chitta). But this astral ego, in Bhishma’s case, has been strongly affected and identified with the outward pull of the sense mind and sided with the Kauravs, but when Bhishma was in samadhi this astral ego became more transcendant and ultimately became part of the pure being. His was the divine ego originally which identified with the senses and he sided with the Kauravs, later, however, he went into samadhi when he achieved union with the pure being. This also goes to prove that ego is very difficult to annihilate. The purpose of the ego, therefore, is to hold together, along with the soul, the body, life force and consciousness, which are three different rates of vibration. Ego, therefore, has been given to us for ident ifying ourselves with the Self or soul….but we misuse it and convert this divine form into the pseudo soul which takes us away from Divinity. Body identified ego is very difficult to kill…our Hindu Scriptures have said “When this ‘I’ will die, then will I know who am I”. In other words, ego is that bubble that separates the drop from the ocean, when the bubble bursts the drop becomes the Ocean…and for that to happen one needs to transgress the Conscious and Subconscious minds and go into the Individual or Universal Superconsciousness through meditation. We, therefore, need to identify with the divine ego and rise above the physical ego. Sources: “God Talks to Arjun The Bhagwat Gita” and “The Second Coming Of Christ” by Sri Paramhans Yoganand and “The Complete Book of Ayurvedic Remedies’ by Vasant Lad.

'Balance...The Essence of a True Life"

Human life as we are told is invaluable and has been achieved through His immense kindness. It has been bestowed upon us for us to learn, experience and progress to ultimately merge with Him. Life is a continuum and the human body is multidimensional….. with myriads of factors coming into play for it to run smoothly…but smoothly it runs only when delicately balanced. How is this delicate balance achieved? To understand this we need to start from the beginning…. Creation. As we are aware, the human body as well as the entire Universe came into being through a vibration comprising of sound and light, called ‘Aum”, ‘Shabd”, “Amen”,” Ameen” or “Hum”. The human body formed through what is called “Pranashakti’ also known as “Chi” or “Ki’.This pranashakti, after giving birth to us lies dormant at the base of the spine, at the Muladhar chakra from where it controls the functioning of the human body through a network of nadis. As pranashakti descends down it divides into a number of energy centres called chakras, which are “wheels” and are spiritual and energy processors, each related to an endocrine gland and concerned with the regulation of the functioning of the various systems of the body. They are also related to the five elements or ‘tattvas” and store specific types of emotional memories. These chakras, therefore keep the energy flow of the body in balance…the flow of which is normally positive, but whenever it becomes negative or blocked imbalance of the chakra results leading to the development of various diseases in the body. We are also aware that this entire creation has been formed by five elements…Earth (Prithvi), Water, (Jal) Fire,(Tejas), Air (Vayu) and Ether (Akash).The human body is also derived from the same elements. Every cell of the human body is represented by all the five elements….the cell wall is formed from the Earth element, the vacuoles in the cell from Space, the cytoplasm from the Water element, Nucleic acids from Fire and cell movement is due to the Air element. Human beings and Nature are thus interconnected….our bodies are holograms of the Universe (each part of a hologram contains the whole). To quote Kahlil Gibran “In one drop of water are found all the secrets of the ocean”. Our sages tell us “As is the atom, so is the Universe; As is the microcosm so is the macrocosm; As is the Human body , so is the Cosmic Body; As is the Human mind so is the Cosmic Mind;” Elsewhere, the same thing has been expressed as “As above, so below” We, human beings as well as everything else in Nature bear an integral relationship. The five elements or Tattvas combine into three basic energies or functional principles, present in all of us in varying degrees. In other words they are responsible for Vata, Pitta and Kapha. Space or Ether (Anahat and Vishudhi Chakras) form Vata, Fire (Manipur chakra) forms Pitta. Kapha is constituted by Water and Earth elements (Muladhar and Svadisthan chakras). These have been called “Doshas” in Ayurveda. Vata, Pitta and Kapha are present in each and every cell…when in balance, they create health but when imbalanced they cause disease. These doshas are responsible for the variety of our individual differences, preferences, our eating habits as well as the various biological and psychological processes of our mind, body and consciousness. Very briefly, Vata is the principle of Air and is the energy of movement, while Pitta is the principle of fire which is responsible for the energy of digestion and metabolism. Kapha, being the principle of water is the energy of lubrication and structure. Each of these have quite specific characteristics, for example, a person who has a predominance of Kapha is generally heavy or obese with a fine skin , beautiful eyes, is stable (grounded), happy and has a graceful walk. A Pitta, on the other hand has a sharp intellect, ambitious, an overachiever, has a pronounced hunger and can see “ahead”. A person with a Vata personality is generally thin, very intelligent, creative, has a good grasp of things but forgets easily. The whole of life’s journey is also divided into three major milestones. From birth to age 16 is the Kapha period, from 16 to 50 years is the age of Pitta while from 50 to 100 is the age of Vata. Seasons have also been classified according to the doshas. The windy, cool, dry weather of autumn is predominantly vata, followed by the dark, heavy, damp, cloudy qualities are Kaphic in nature. Early spring is still mainly Kaphic but late spring and summer are Pittic, characterized by increased warmth, light and brightness…and heat. Similarly, the various times of the day and their effect on the human body have been described in detail in Ayurveda…. Kapha predominates from 6 am to 10 morning and evening, Pitta is dominant between 10 to 2, afternoon and night while Vata is at its peak at dawn and dusk. Living in accordance with these principles and moulding ourselves accordingly brings a proper balance to our lives. There is a lot of truth in the saying “early to bed and early to rise makes Jack healthy, wealthy and wise”! The Cycles of Nature are responsible for our Biorhythms which create the basic vibratory backbone of our existence…namely the beating of the heart, pulsation of the cerebro spinal fluid, the menstrual cycle etc. There are many such examples…the two hour shift between right and left hemispheric dominance (of the brain)…our breath regulates this and there is a distinct shift of our mindset from linear to intuitive depending on the shift of our breath from one side to the other(the nasal cycle) It is well known that when we are born, we are born with a particular “prakriti”, which is a unique and specific combination of the three doshas at conception, which is one’s psychobiological temperament and does not change during one’s life time. It is decided by the person’s combination and proportion of Vata, Pitta and Kapha and is determined according to the genetics, diet, life style and current emotions of the parents. Incidentally, the five “Mahabhutas” as these elements are called form part of practically all Complementary Systems of Medicine, be it, Ayurveda, Chinese, Tibetan, Thai or Unani Medicine, Yoga etc, though the names are somewhat different. As life progresses, a lot of changes take place in the balance of the doshas in our body due to weather, dietary choices, fatigue, stress, emotional state, exercise etc . All these factors alter the state of our doshas and reflect the state of health …this is called Vikriti. Prakriti has certain ‘gunas’ called the ‘gunas of Prakriti’ which are Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. It is these gunas which decide how we behave since each has certain typical characteristics. Sattva is characterized by purity and virtue, and related to the Spiritual Eye or the Agya chakra, Rajas is concerned with passion and worldly activities and related to the Heart centre or the Anahat Chakra. Tamas is characterized by inertia, pride, arrogance and evil tendencies and related to the lower three chakras, namely, Manipur, Svadisthan and the Muladhar chakras. All of us have a mixture of all three but one or the other predominates. As per Yoga, our body has five parts, or sheaths or “koshas” which are known as the Annamaya Kosha or the “Sthula Sharir’, (the Physical body), the Energy body or the Pranamaya Kosha, (the Physiological Body), the Manomaya Kosha (the Psychological Body)…these two together constitute what is called the “Sukshma Sharir”/Astral Body. This is followed by the Vijnanmaya Kosha (the Intellectual Body) and finally the Anandmaya Kosha, or Bliss Sheath (Space). The last two are together called the ‘Karan Sharir’ or the Causal Body. In a nutshell, the human body thus has a Mind, a Body and Spirit…all being ENERGY, which must remain in balance. Generally there is a tug-o-war between our mind, body and spirit….the mind is forever pulling us towards sense pleasures while the spirit tries to take us towards Him…the resulting pull is detrimental to our healths. Ayurveda states that the purpose of our lives is achieved by balancing four fundamental aspects of life, namely, Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha. ‘Dharma’ broadly means duty or right action, “Artha” is material success or wealth, “Kama” is positive desire while “Moksha’ is spiritual liberation. For all these to be possible, sound health is essential. From the above, it becomes clear that to maintain a balance in life there has to be a balance between our Mind, Body and Spirit, which is the Inner and the Outer, between the Self and the Environment, between the three Doshas…Vatta, Pitta and Kapha, between our Energy flow and our chakras, between our Prakriti and Vikriti, and last but not the least a balance of Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha. How is this to be achieved? All of the above are possible by connecting to the Self…through Yoga (as in “Union’). This union is best achieved through meditation as learned from a Realized guru. Ashtanga Yoga too plays a very important role….all the eight “petals’ slowly but surely lead one to the yoga of union. Yoga asanas and Pranayam bring about a balancing of the chakras leading to balancing of our energy system. This combined with Meditation gradually leads us through our spiritual evolution…we transgress the negative aspects of the chakras which occur when they are imbalanced…namely transgressing the Muladhar Chakra gives us freedom from fear and brings about grounding, balancing of the Svadisthan Chakra makes us rise above our five major negative qualities…Kama, Krodha, Lobh, Moh, Madha and Matsya, ie we rise above our Tamasic temperament by transgressing the two lower chakras. Transgression of the Manipur chakra makes us rise above our Rajasic temperament. As we ascend to the Anahat or the Heart Chakra, positive emotions of Bliss, peace, love, harmony, understanding, clarity, purity, compassion, empathy, forgiveness and unity come to the fore. This combined with ascension to the Vishudhi Chakra brings us closer to the truth and one becomes sattvic in temperament. Similarly meditation helps us gradually transgress the various koshas…. When we meditate, the first thing that happens is improvement in physical well being, followed by harmonization of the breath (the pranamaya kosha). The two together lead the development of a strong body and strong will power. As meditation becomes deeper and deeper, our breathing becomes slower and slower, and tranquility of the mind starts, which is conducive to focusing on the Self leading to beautiful experiences.With still deeper meditation, we reach the level of the Vijnamaya Kosha or the Intelligence sheath, resulting in greater development of wisdom….finally with still deeper meditation, we reach the level of the Bliss sheath which is supposed to be the ultimate…..merger with Him. Yoga and Meditation increase our awareness, which helps us in our eating habits, our life style, our mental processes, and brings us closer to the Divine all of which are conducive to balancing our mind, body and spirit….and enable us to live in conformity with Nature. Therefore, in order to truly ‘live’ one needs to be in balance……just ‘Be” Sources: “The Complete Book of Ayurvedic Remedies’ by Vasant Lad, ‘Radical Healing” by Rudolph Ballentyne, “The Spiritual Approach to life” written by Sri Bimal Mohanty