Chanting and Meditation – Sarada Devi

Chanting and Meditation – Sarada Devi

Pray to the Lord to make your heart as pure as the star. As a result of sincere and regular Japa and Meditation you will find that the Lord will speak to you. All your desires will be fulfilled and you will experience pure bliss.

The kundalini will awaken in course of time. Do japa and meditation. It does not rise of itself. Continuous meditation will make the mind so steady that you will not feel inclined to give it up. When the mind is not in a mood to meditate, do not force it to do so. In such conditions, get up from the seat of meditation after making prostrations. Real meditation is of a spontaneous nature. . . . If meditation is not possible, do japa. Realization will come through japa.

Realization of God, or meditation, all these depend on the mind. Concentrate, and everything will come to pass.

Mind this, my child, one has to take refuge and wait on God’s mercy; then only he takes pity.

A pure mind easily gets concentrated in meditation. When pure souls perform japa, they feel as if the holy name bubbles up spontaneously from within themselves. They does not make any effort to repeat the name.

The kundalini will gradually be awakened. You will realize everything by the repetition of God’s name. Even if the mind be not quiet, still you can sit at a place and repeat the holy name a million times.

As wind removes the cloud, so the name of God destroys the cloud of worldliness.

Desires are waves in the mind – Nisargadatta

Desires are waves in the mind – Nisargadatta

 

Q: Do you experience desires occasionally?
M: Desires are just waves in the mind. You know a wave when you see one. A desire is just a thing among many. I feel no urge to satisfy it, no action needs be taken on it. Freedom from desire means this: the compulsion to satisfy is absent.

Q: Why do desires arise at all?
M: Because you imagine that you were born, and that you will die if you do not take care of your body. Desire for embodied existence is the root-cause of trouble.
Q: Yet, so many jivas get into bodies. Surely it cannot be some error of judgement. There must be a purpose. What could it be?
M: To know itself the self must be faced with its opposite — the not-self. Desire leads to experience. Experience leads to discrimination, detachment, self-knowledge — liberation. And what is liberation after all? To know that you are beyond birth and death. By forgetting who you are and imagining yourself a mortal creature, you created so much trouble for yourself that you have to wake up, like from a bad dream. Enquiry also wakes you up. You need not wait for suffering; enquiry into happiness is better, for the mind is in harmony and peace.

Q: Who exactly is the ultimate experiencer — the Self or the Unknown?
M: The Self, of course.

Q: Then why introduce the notion of the Supreme Unknown?
M: To explain the Self.

Q: But is there anything beyond the Self?
M: Outside the Self there is nothing. All is one and all is contained in ‘I am’. In the waking and dream states it is the person. In deep sleep and turiya it is the Self. Beyond the alert intentness of turiya lies the great, silent peace of the Supreme. But in fact all is one in essence and related in appearance. In ignorance the seer becomes the seen and in wisdom he is the seeing. But why be concerned with the Supreme? Know the knowers and all will be known.

 

I Am That – Talks with Sri Nisargatta Maharaj
The Supreme is Beyond All
Item 20

 

Spiritual Practices – Sarada Devi

Spiritual Practices – Sarada Devi

Holy Mother: “Do you know the significance of japa and other spiritual practices? By these the power of the sense organs is subdued and the ties of past karma are cut asunder. But realization of God cannot be achieved without ecstatic love (prema bhakti) for Him.”

Disciple: “But how can one yearn for God without seeing the manifestation of His love?”

Holy Mother: “Yes, you can do so. There lies the grace of God.”

You see, it is the nature of water to flow downwards, but the sun’s rays lift it up towards the sky; likewise it is the very nature of mind to go to lower things, to objects of enjoyment, but the grace of God can make the mind go towards higher objects.

Lay the burden of your mind before Sri Ramakrishna (Paramahamsa). Tell him your sorrow with your tears. You will find that he will fill your arms with the desired object.

Referring to Sri Ramakrishna, Holy Mother once said, “Really and truly he was God himself. He assumed this human body to remove the sorrows and sufferings of others. He moved about, as a king walks through his city in disguise. He disappeared the moment he became known.”

He who has really prayed to Sri Ramakrishna, even once, has nothing to fear. By praying to him constantly one gets ecstatic love through his grace. This ecstatic love, my child, is the innermost thing of spiritual life. The gopis of Vrindavan attained it. They were not aware of anything else in the world except Sri Krishna.

Repeat the Name and Meditate – Sarada Devi

Repeat the Name and Meditate – Sarada Devi

 

Repeating the name of God once, when the mind is controlled, is equivalent to a million repetitions when the mind is away from God. You may repeat the name for the whole day, but if the mind be elsewhere, that does not produce much result. The repetition must be accompanied by concentration. Then alone one gets the grace of God. One must repeat the mantra at least fifteen to twenty thousand times a day, then only one will get some results. One is sure to get it. One must practice first before one complains that one is not progressing. But then one must practice japa with a little concentration. People don’t practice and simply say, “Why am I not progressing spiritually?”

Do not give up japa even if the mind is unsteady and unwilling. You must go on with the repetition. And you will find that the mind is getting gradually steadier—like a flame in a windless corner. Any movement in the air disturbs the steady burning of the flame; even so the presence of any thought or desire makes the mind unsteady. The mantra must be correctly repeated. Incorrect utterance delays progress.

One should practice japa and meditation at regular times, giving up idleness. While living a Dakshineswar I used to get up at 3 o’clock in the morning and practice japa and meditation. One day I felt a little indisposed and left the bed rather late. The next day I woke up still late through laziness. Gradually I found that I did not feel inclined to get up early at all. Then I said to myself, “Ah, at last I have fallen a victim to idleness.” There upon I began to force myself to get up early. Gradually I got back my former habit. In such matters one should keep up the practice with unyielding resolution.

God is Eternal Law – Gandhi

God is Eternal Law – Gandhi

 

Om
The Supreme Ideal
Man’s Ultimate Aim is Realization of God.

God
is Sat-Chit-Ananda Existence, Knowledge, Power and Bliss.
He is an Omnipresent, Omniscient, Omnipotent, Omniblissful Mysterious Power.

God Is ETERNAL LAW

God is Law Himself. He and His Law abide everywhere and govern everything. Therefore, though I do not think that He answers in every detail, every request of ours, there is no doubt that He rules our actions and I literally believe that not a blade of grass grows or moves without His will.

I do feel that there is orderliness in the universe, there is an unalterable Law governing everything and every being that lives and moves. It is not a blind law, for no blind law can govern the conduct of living beings. . . . The Law and the Law-giver are one. I may not deny the Law or Law-giver, because I know so little about It or Him. Even as my denial or ignorance of the existence of an earthly power will avail nothing, so will not my denial of God and His Law, liberate me from its operation; whereas, humble and mute acceptance of Divine Authority makes life’s journey easier even as acceptance of earthly rule makes life under it easier.

 

Pathway to God
Part 1 : Intellectual Sadhana
CHAPTER ONE
GOD

God is Being-Awareness-Bliss – Gandhi

God is Being-Awareness-Bliss – Gandhi

Om
The Supreme Ideal
Man’s Ultimate Aim is Realization of God.

God
is Sat-Chit-Ananda Existence, Knowledge, Power and Bliss.
He is an Omnipresent, Omniscient, Omnipotent, Omniblissful Mysterious Power.

GOD IS SAT-CHIT-ANANDA 

The word Satya (Truth) is derived from Sat which means “Being”. And nothing is or exists in reality except Truth. That is why Sat or Truth is perhaps the most important name of God. In fact, it is more correct to say Truth is God than to say God is Truth.

And where there is Truth, there is also Knowledge, which is true. Where there is no Truth, there can be no true knowledge. That is why the word Chit or Knowledge is associated with the name of God. And where there is true Knowledge, there is always Bliss (Ananda). Sorrow has no place there. And even as Truth is Eternal, so is the Bliss derived from it. Hence we know God as Sat- Chit-Ananda, one who combines in Himself, Truth, Knowledge and Bliss.

 

Pathway to God
Part 1 : Intellectual Sadhana
CHAPTER ONE
GOD

Brahma Jnanavali Quote 7

Brahma Jnanavali Quote 7

Brahma Jnanavali Mala – Verse 7
Knowledge of the Blissful Self

I am the supreme Self, beyond all the categories (such as Nature, Universe, Ego, etc.), I am the supreme auspicious One, beyond all those in the middle. I am beyond Illusion. I am the supreme light. I am the very Self, indestructible and changeless.

Discrimination between real and unreal – Sarada Devi

Discrimination between real and unreal – Sarada Devi

 

Always discriminate (between the real and unreal). Whenever the mind goes after anything other than God, consider it as transient and surrender the mind at the sacred feet of the Lord. Be like the man who, while angling for fish, became so absorbed in it that he did not hear the least of the din and bustle of a marriage procession passing by.

Everything – husband, wife, or even the body, is illusory. These are all shackles of illusion. Unless you can free yourself from these bondages, you will never be able to go to the other shore of the world. Even this attachment to the body, the identification of the self with the body, must go. What is this body, my darling? It is nothing but three pounds of ashes when it is cremated. Why so much vanity about it? However strong or beautiful this body may be, its culmination is in those three pounds of ashes. And still people are so attached to it!

My child, this mind is just like a wild elephant. It races with the wind. Therefore one should discriminate all the time. One should work hard for the realization of God.

This world is moving around like a wheel. That indeed is the last birth in which one gets completely rid of all desires.

God is everywhere – Sarada Devi

God is everywhere – Sarada Devi

God is everywhere. Does one get a faith by mere study of books? Too much reading creates confusion. Sri Ramakrishna used to say that one should learn from the scriptures that God alone is real and the world illusory.

As you meditate you will realize that He who is in me is in you too and in the humblest of people—only then will humility grow in your mind.

People have been worshiping images from time immemorial and attaining liberation through that. Do you want to say that does not mean anything? Sri Ramakrishna had no such narrow dogmatic views. God is everywhere. But this you must believe; holy people are born to guide others and each one talks in a different way. There are many ways, and so what each one says is true.

In the course of one’s spiritual advancement one comes to the stage when one does not feel even the existence of God. After attaining wisdom (jnana) one sees that the forms of gods and deities are all maya. Everything comes into existence in time and also disappears in time. . . . The aspirant then realizes that the Mother alone pervades the entire Universe (as the Supreme Spirit). All then become one. This is the simple truth.

God is Supreme Good, Truth and Love – Gandhi

GOD IS  SUPREME GOOD, TRUTH AND LOVE – Gandhi

Om
The Supreme Ideal
Man’s Ultimate Aim is Realization of God.

God
is Sat-Chit-Ananda Existence, Knowledge, Power and Bliss.
He is an Omnipresent, Omniscient, Omnipotent, Omniblissful Mysterious Power.

GOD IS  SUPREME GOOD

Is this Power benevolent or malevolent? I see It as purely benevolent. For I can see that in the midst of death, life persists; in the midst of untruth, truth persists; in the midst of darkness, light persists. Hence, I gather that God is Life, Truth, Light. He is Love. He is the Supreme Good.

God is wholly good. There is no evil in Him. God made man in His own image. Unfortunately for us, man has fashioned Him in his own. This arrogation has landed mankind in a sea of troubles. God is the Supreme Alchemist. In His presence all iron and dross turn into pure gold. Similarly does all evil turn into good.

Again God lives, but not as we. His creatures live but to die. But God is Life. Therefore, goodness and all it connotes is not an attribute. Goodness is God. Goodness conceived as apart from Him, is a lifeless thing and exists while it is a paying policy. So are all morals. If they are to live in us, they must be considered and cultivated in their relation to God. We try to become good, because we want to reach and realize God. All the dry ethics of the world turns to dust because apart from God they are lifeless. Coming from God they come with life in them. They become part of us and ennoble us.

GOD IS TRUTH AND LOVE

The Absolute Truth, the Eternal Principle, that is God. There are innumerable definitions of God, because His manifestations are innumerable. They overwhelm me with wonder and awe and for a moment stun me. But I worship God as Truth only.

To me God is Truth and Love. God is ethics and morality; God is fearlessness. God is the source of Light and Life, and yet He is above and beyond all these.

God is conscience. He is even the atheism of the atheist. For in His boundless love, God permits the atheist to live. He is the searcher of the hearts. He knows us and our hearts better than we do ourselves. … He is personal God to those who need His personal presence. He is embodied to those who need His touch. He is the purest Essence. He is, to those who have faith. He is all things to all men.

Pathway to God
Part 1 : Intellectual Sadhana
CHAPTER ONE
GOD

Brahma Jnaavali Mala – Adi Sankara

Brahma Jnanavali Mala – Adi Sankara

In this work attributed to Sri Adi Sankaracharya, the characteristics of the person who has realized the Real Self are described. The aspirant seeking Liberation and Self-Realization is advised to meditate on these, in order to attain the same pristine state of Perfection and Bliss.

 

भगवान श्री आदि शंकराचार्यकृत

ब्रह्मज्ञानावलीमाला

Bhagavan Sri Adi Sankaracharya’s Brahma Jnanavali Mala

Knowledge of the GREAT SELF (Brahman – ब्रह्मन्)

1. sakRt SravaNamAtreNa brahmajnAnam yato bhavet
brahmajnAnAvalImAlA sarveshAm mokshasiddhaye

सकृत श्रवणमात्रेण ब्रह्मज्ञानं यतो भवेत्‌ ।
ब्रह्मज्ञानावलीमाला सर्वेषां मोक्षसिद्धये ॥ १ ॥

The work entitled Brahma Jnanavali Maala, by hearing which just once, knowledge of Brahman (Blissful Self) is attained, which enables all to attain liberation.

2. asango’ham asango’ham asango’ham punaha punaha
saccidAnandarUpo’ham ahamevAham avyayaha

असङगोऽहमसङगोऽहमसङजोऽहं पुनः पुनः ।
सच्चिदानन्दरुपोऽहमेवाहमव्ययः ॥ २ ॥

Unattached am I, unattached am I, unattached am I again and again. I am of the nature of Existence-Consciousness-Bliss (Sat-Chit-Ananda); I am the very Self, indestructible and changeless.

3. nityaSuddhavimukto’ham nirAkAro’ham avyayaha
bhUmAnandasvarUpo’ham ahamevAham avyayaha

नित्यशुद्धविमुक्तोऽहं निराकारोऽमव्ययः ।
भूमानन्दस्वरूपोऽहमहमेवाहमव्ययः ॥ ३ ॥

I am eternal; I am pure; I am ever liberated, I am formless, indestructible and changeless. I am of the nature of infinite bliss; I am the very Self, indestructible and changeless.

4. nityo’ham niravadyo’ham nirAkAro’ham acyutaha
paramAnandasvarUpo’ham ahamevAhamavyayaha

नित्योऽहं निरवद्योऽहं निराकारोऽहमच्युतः ।
परमानन्दस्वरूपोऽहमहमेवाहमव्ययः ॥ ४ ॥

I am eternal, I am free from blemish; I am formless; I am imperishable and permanent. I am of the nature of supreme bliss; I am the very Self, indestructible and changeless.

5. SuddhacaitanyarUpo’ham AtmArAmo’ham eva ca
akhaNDAnandarUpo’ham ahamevAhamavyayaha

शुद्धचैतन्यरूपोहमात्मारामोऽहमेव च ।
अखण्डानन्दरूपोऽहमहमेवाहमव्ययः ॥ ५ ॥

I am of the nature of pure consciousness; I revel in my own Self. I am of the nature of unbroken bliss; I am the very Self, indestructible and changeless.

6. pratyakcaitanyarUpo’ham Santo’ham prakRteh paraha
SASvatAnandarUpo’ham ahamevAhamavyayaha

प्रत्यक्वैतन्यरूपोऽहं शान्तोऽहं प्रकृतेः परः ।
शाश्वतानन्दरूपोऽहमहमेवाहमव्ययः ॥ ६ ॥

I am the indwelling consciousness; I am calm, free from all agitation; I am beyond Nature (Prakriti). I am of the nature of eternal bliss; I am the very Self, indestructible and changeless.

7. tattvAtItah parAtmAham madhyAtItah parah Sivaha
mAyAtItah paramjyotih ahamevAhamavyayaha

तत्वातीतः परात्माऽहं मध्यातीतः परः शिवः ।
मायातीतः परंज्योतिरहमेवाहमव्ययः ॥ ७ ॥

I am the supreme Self beyond all truths and fundamental principles (Tattvas), I am the supreme auspicious One, beyond all those in the middle. I am beyond Illusion (Maya); I am the supreme light; I am the very Self, indestructible and changeless..

8. nAnArUpavyatIto’ham cidAkAro’ham acyutaha
sukharUpasvarUpo’ham ahamevAhamavyayaha

नानारूपव्यतीतोऽहं चिदाकारोऽमच्युतः ।
सुखरूपस्वरूपोऽहमहमेवाहमव्ययः ॥ ८ ॥

I am beyond all the different forms; I am of the nature of pure consciousness; I am imperishable and permanent. I am of the nature of happiness; I am the very Self, indestructible and changeless.

9. mAyAtatkAryadehAdi mama nAstyeva sarvadA
svaprakASaikarUpo’ham ahamevAhamavyayaha

मायातत्कार्यदेहादि मम नास्त्येव सर्वदा ।
स्वप्रकाशौकरूपोऽहमहमेवाहमव्ययः ॥ ९ ॥

There is neither illusion (mAyA), nor its effects such as the body and so on for me, ever. I am of the nature of self-luminosity; I am the very Self, indestructible and changeless.

10. guNatrayavyatIto’ham brahmAdInAm ca sAkshyaham
anantAnandarUpo’ham ahamevAhamavyayaha

गुणत्रयव्यतीतोऽहं ब्रह्मादीनां च साक्ष्यहम्‌ ।
अनन्तानन्दरूपोऽहमहमेवाहमव्ययः ॥ १० ॥

I am beyond the three basic qualities of the mind (gunas : sattva, rajas, and tamas); I am the witness of even the Creator Brahma and others. I am of the nature of infinite bliss; I am the very Self, indestructible and changeless.

11. antaryAmisvarUpo’ham kUTasthah sarvago’smyaham
paramAtmasvarUpo’ham ahamevAhamavyayaha

अन्तर्यामिस्वरूपोऽहं कूटस्थः सर्वगोऽस्म्यहम्‌ ।
परमात्मस्वरूपोऽहमहमेवाहमव्ययः ॥ ११ ॥

I am of the nature of indwelling Supersoul; I am immutable; I am all-pervading. I am of the nature of the supreme Self; I am the very Self, indestructible and changeless.

12. nishkalo’ham nishkriyo’ham sarvAtmA Adyah sanAtanaha
aparokshasvarUpo’ham ahamevAhamavyayaha

निष्कलोऽहं निष्क्रियोऽहं सर्वात्माऽऽद्यः सनातनः ।
अपरोक्षस्वरूपोऽहमहमेवाहमव्ययः ॥ १२ ॥

I am devoid of parts; I am actionless; I am the Self of all; I am the primordial one; I am the ancient, eternal one. I am of the nature of directly intuited Self. I am the very Self, indestructible and changeless.

13. dvandvAdisAkshirUpo’ham acalo’ham sanAtanaha
sarvasAkshisvarUpo’ham ahamevAhamavyayaha

द्वन्द्वादिसाक्षिरूपोऽहमचलोऽहं सनातनः ।
सर्वसाक्षिस्वरूपोऽहमहमेवाहमेवाहमव्ययः ॥ १३ ॥

I am of the nature of being a witness of all pairs of opposites; I am immovable; I am eternal. I am of the nature of being a witness of everything; I am the very Self, indestructible and changeless.

14. prajnAnaghana evAham vijnAnaghana eva ca
akartAham abhoktAham ahamevAhamavyayaha

प्रज्ञानघन एवाहं विज्ञानघन एव च ।
अकर्ताहमभोक्ताहमहमेवाहमव्ययः ॥ १४ ॥

I am a mass of awareness and I am a mass of consciousness. I am not a doer nor an experiencer. I am the very Self, indestructible and changeless.

15. nirAdhArasvarUpo’ham sarvAdhAroham eva ca
AptakAmasvarUpo’ham ahamevAhamavyayaha

निराधारस्वरूपोऽहं सर्वाधारोऽहमेव च ।
आप्तकामस्वरूपोऽहमहमेवाहमव्ययः ॥ १५ ॥

I am of the nature of being without any support, and I am also the support of all. I am of the nature of  all desires fulfilled; I am the very Self, indestructible and changeless.

16. tApatrayavinirmukto dehatrayavilakshaNaha
avasthAtrayasAkshyasmi ahamevAhamavyayaha

तापत्रयविनिर्मुक्तो देहत्रयविलक्षणः ।
अवस्थात्रयसाक्ष्यस्मि अहमेवाहमव्ययः ॥ १६ ॥

I am free from the three kinds of afflictions (those in the body, those from other beings and those caused by higher powers); I am different from the three bodies (gross, subtle and causal bodies). I am the witness of the three states of waking, dream and deep sleep; I am the very Self, indestructible and changeless.

17. dRg dRSyau dvau padArthau stah parasparavilakshaNau
dRg brahma dRSyam mAyeti sarvavedAntaDiNDimah

दृग्‌दृश्यौ द्वौ पदार्थो स्तः परस्परविलक्षणौ ।
दृग्‌ ब्रह्म द्र्रिश्यं मायेति सर्ववेदान्तडिण्डिमः ॥ १७ ॥

There are two things which are the seer and the seen;  they are different from each other. The seer is the Self (Brahman) and the seen is Illusion (Maya). Thus all Vedanta proclaims.

18. aham sAkshIti yo vidyAt vivicyaivam punaha punaha
sa eva muktah so vidvAn iti vedAntaDiNDimah

अहं साक्षीति यो विद्याद्‌विविच्यैवं पुनः पुनः ।
स एव मुक्तः सो विद्वानिति वेदान्तडिण्डिमः ॥ १८ ॥

“I am the Witness”; one who realizes this after carefully contemplating again and again; He alone is liberated; He is the enlightened one. Thus Vedanta proclaims.

19. ghaTakuDyAdikam sarvam mRttikAmAtram eva ca
tadvad brahma jagat sarvam iti vedAntaDiNDimah

घटकुड्यादिकं सर्व मृत्तिकामात्रमेव च ।
तद्वद्‌ब्रह्म जगत्‌ सर्वमिति वेदान्तडिण्डिमः ॥ १९ ॥

The pot, wall, and so on, are all nothing but clay. Likewise, the entire universe is nothing but the Self (Brahman). Thus Vedanta proclaims.

20. brahma satyam jaganmithyA jIvo brahmaiva nAparaha
anena vedyam sacchAstram iti vedAntaDiNDimah

ब्रह्म सत्यं जगन्मिथ्या जीवो ब्रह्मैव नापरः ।
अनेन वेद्यं सच्छास्त्रमिति वेदान्तडिण्डिमः ॥ २० ॥

Brahman, the Self, is real (Satya); Jagat, the universe, is illusion (mithya). Jiva, the individual soul, is Brahman itself and not different. This is what should be understood as true Sastra, scriptural teachings. Thus proclaims Vedanta.

21. antarjyotirbahirjyotih pratyakjyotih parAtparaha
jyotirjyotih svayamjyotih Atmajyotih Sivo’smyaham

अन्तर्ज्योतिर्बहिर्ज्योतिः प्रत्यग्ज्योतिः परात्परः ।
ज्योतिर्ज्योतिः स्वयंज्योतिरात्मज्योतिः शिवोऽस्म्यहम्‌ ॥ २१ ॥

I am the Inner Light, the Outer Light, the Indwelling Light, Higher than the Highest. I am the Light of all Lights, Self-Luminous, the Light that is the Self; I am the Auspicious One.

 

॥ ईति श्री आदिशंकरभगवत्‌पादकृ त ब्रह्मज्ञानावली सम्पूर्ण ॥

॥ ईति श्री आदिशंकराचार्यकृत ब्रह्मज्ञानावलीमाला सम्पूर्ण ॥

Thus Brahma Jnanavali rendered by Sri Adi Sankara Bhagavat Pada comes to a close.

Thus Brahma Jnanavali Mala rendered by Sri Adi Sankaracharya comes to a completion.

 

Originally translated by Shri S. N. Sastri
https://indiaspirituality.blogspot.com/2013/06/brahma-jnanavali-mala-by-shri-adi_26.html