The Bhagavad-Gita — The God Song. Chapter XVI: Forces divine and forces undivine

The world, fear and bondage enjoy the deepest intimacy. He who thinks of God is ultimately loved by the world. He who loves God has no fear. Bondage he transcends.

He who feels that sense-pleasure and the supreme joy are one and the same is utterly mistaken. Self-indulgence and the Goal of life never can and never will meet.

To see God one has to be practical, absolutely practical, both in the world of realisation and in the world of manifestation. Nobody can be more practical than the one who is endowed with the spiritual qualities. His life is guided, protected and illumined by the forces divine.

Fear fears to stay with him who has perfect faith in God. His heart is purity. His mind is freedom. Duplicity? He knows not what it is. His love he uses to love mankind. He expects love in return only if so is the Will of God. His service he offers to the Supreme in humanity having utterly destroyed the root of expectation, nay, temptation-tree with the sharp axe of his wisdom-light.

Devotion’s delight and meditation’s silence constantly breathe in him.

Violence is too weak to enter into his fort of thought, word and deed.

Purest sincerity he has. Mightiest self-sacrifice he is.

He wears no man-made crown, but God-made crown which God Himself cherishes. The name of this divine crown is humility.

He who is devoured by the undivine forces is not only unspiritual but impractical in the purest sense of the term. Never can he stay alone even if he wants to. Vanity, anger, ostentation and ego arouse him from his slumber and then they compel him to dance with them. Secretly but speedily ignorance comes in and joins them in their dance and then cheerfully and triumphantly it teaches them the dance of destruction.

His ego he uses to buy the world. His anger he uses to weaken and punish the world. His vanity and ostentation he uses to win with the world. Consciously he offers himself to the glorification of sense-pleasure. Alas, he himself fails to count his imaginary projects, for they are countless, innumerable. What he has absolutely as his own is his self-praise. What he infallibly is is verily the same.

He says to charity and philanthropy: “Look, I am sending you two to the world. Remember, I am not giving you to the world. Bring back from the world for me name and fame. Come back, soon!”

Charity and philanthropy humbly listen to his command. They go running toward the world. They touch the world. They feed the world. They forget not to bring back name and fame from the world for their master. The master receives his coveted prize: name and fame. Alas, to his utter astonishment, futility follows his name and fame.

His life is the hyphen between sin and hell. What is sin? Sin is the taste of imperfect ignorance. What is hell? Hell is the ruthless torture of unsatisfied desires and the fond embrace of ignorance fulfilled.

At first the seeker has to take ignorance and knowledge separately. Later on he realises that in both ignorance and knowledge THAT exists. Let us kindle our aspiration-flame with the soulful lore of the Isha Upanishad. “Avidya a Mrityum Tirtha…” (By the ignorance he crosses beyond death, by the Knowledge, Immortality he enjoys).

The chapter comes to its close with the word Shastra (scripture). Shastras are not to be ridiculed. Shastras are the outer attainments of the inner experiences and realisations of the Seers of the Truth. Not for those, the Goal Supreme, who look down upon the spiritual experiences and realisations of the Seers of the hoary past. They are committing a Himalayan blunder if they feel, on the strength of their vital impulses, that they can practise meditation and learn the secrets of inner discipline unaided. Personal guidance is imperative.

Easy to say: “I follow my own path.” Easier is to deceive oneself. Easiest is to starve one’s inner divinity that wants to reveal and manifest itself.

The Teacher enjoins on the student: “O my Arjuna, follow the Shastra.”

Meditation

Our life is not our thoughts.
Our life is not our deeds.
Our life is surrender to the Mother.

The Bhagavad-Gita — The God Song. Chapter XVII — The threefold faith

The outer man is what his inner faith is. All our activities, physical, vital and mental, have a common fount. And the name of that fount is faith. With our faith we can create, control, conquer and transform our fate. To be sure, what unconsciously we call human faith is nothing short of the divine will in us and for us.

What does a Sattvic man do with his luminous faith? He uses his faith to invoke and worship the Supreme. What does a Rajasic man do with his passionate faith? He uses it to worship and satisfy the deities. What does a Tamasic man do with his tenebrous faith? He worships the unsatisfied, dissatisfied, hungry, obscure, impure and earth-bound spirits and ghosts.

They say that in the West, food has very little to do with faith. In India the link between food and faith is almost inseparable. Our Upanishadic Seers cried out: “Annam Brahma”(Food is the Brahman).

A Sattvic man eats the foods that are fresh, pure and soothing so that he can acquire energy, health, cheerfulness and a long life.

Sour, salty and excessively hot foods are liked by a Rajasic man. Illness captures him. Pain tortures him.

A Tamasic man also has to eat after all. He avidly eats the foods that are stale, tasteless, impure and filthy. The result of his eating can be better felt than described.

Austerity

Austerity does not mean physical torture, far from it. Mortification of the flesh only a devilish nature can enjoy. God the Merciful does not demand our physical torture. He wants us to have the soulful light of wisdom. Nothing more and nothing less.

Austerity means a dedicated body, a pure mind, a loving heart and an awakened soul.

The outer austerity grows on the fertile soil of simplicity, sincerity and purity. The inner austerity grows on the fecund soil of serenity, tranquility and equanimity.

Sattvic austerity wishes no reward. Gain, honour and fame, rajasic austerity expects and demands. Self-immolation or the destruction of others, tamasic austerity wants and cherishes.

A seeker of the Transcendental Truth and sex-forces can never run abreast. The seeker while walking along the path of self-discovery and God-discovery must know what true celibacy is.

To quote Krishnaprem: “A neurotic celibacy with the so-called unconscious mind full of thwarted sex, issuing in a welter of more or less disguised fantasy, is the very worst condition to be in for one who seeks the inner life. Such a condition may, like extreme bodily weakness, give rise to strange experiences and visions, but it will quite effectively prevent any real treading of the Path. Sex will be transcended; it cannot be suppressed… with impunity.”

The chapter ends most soulfully with the Brahman. Brahman is divinely designated by the three soul-stirring words: AUM TAT SAT.

AUM is the mystical symbol supreme. Aum is the real name of God. In the cosmic manifestation is the Aum. Beyond the manifestation, farthest beyond is the AUM.

TAT

Tat means “That,” the Nameless Eternal, above all attributes majestic “That” stands.

SAT

Sat means Reality, the Truth Infinite.

We have to chant AUM and then begin to perform our life’s divine duties.

We have to chant TAT and then offer to humanity all our achievements, energising and fulfilling.

We have to chant SAT and then offer to God what we inwardly and outwardly are, our very existence.

Meditation

The more we escape our duties the bigger we become a round 0.

The inner freedom¹

The outer freedom is to see what we should. The inner freedom is to be what we must. We should see the golden face of Truth. We must be the flowing Life of God’s Vision and the glowing Breath of God’s Reality.

The mother of freedom is light. The father of freedom is truth. The wife of freedom is peace. The son of freedom is courage, The daughter of freedom is faith.

Freedom rings where light shines. Freedom rings when truth sings. Freedom rings if peace expands. Freedom rings because courage demands. Freedom rings hence faith blossoms.

Somebody said: “When there’s more freedom for mankind the women will have it.” This deplorable fact deplorably fails to breathe in the inner world. In the inner world woman and man have equal freedom to cherish the mind’s inspiration, the heart’s aspiration and the soul’s realisation. Furthermore, inspiration is woman. Aspiration is man. And realisation is both man and woman.

We fight for the outer freedom. We cry for the inner freedom. With the outer freedom we see and rule the four corners of the globe. With the inner freedom we see the Soul and become the Goal of the entire universe.

True freedom does not lie in speaking ill of the world, or in speaking ill of an individual or individuals. Again true freedom does not lie in mere appreciation and admiration of the world at large. True freedom lies only in our inseparable oneness with the world’s inner cry and its outer smile. The world’s inner cry is God the Realisation. The world’s outer smile is God the Manifestation.

Freedom is expressive. This is what the body tells me. Freedom is explosive. This is what the vital tells me. Freedom is expensive. This is what the mind tells me. Freedom is illumining. This is what the heart tells me. Freedom is fulfilling. This is what the soul tells me.

My outer freedom is my self-imposed and self-aggrandised obligation. My inner freedom is the birthright of my eternal aspiration and my endless realisation.

Now the paramount question is: whether my inner freedom and my outer freedom can run abreast or not. Certainly they can. Certainly they must. My inner freedom knows what it has and what it is: realisation. My outer freedom must know what it wants and what it needs: transformation.

When the freedom of my life without is soulfully and unreservedly transformed, it immediately becomes the mightiest might and the highest pride of the freedom of my life within.

My outer freedom is my life-boat. My inner freedom is my life-sea. My God is my Pilot supreme. Today I am my journey’s searching and crying soul. Tomorrow I will be my journey’s illumining and fulfilling Goal.

My soul of freedom is my God’s compassionate constant necessity. My goal of freedom is my God’s smiling and dancing transcendental surety everlastingly fulfilled.

Meditation

Firm resolution is ninety per cent victory in advance.

Aspiration — The inner flame²

God had a glowing Dream. The name of that Dream was Aspiration. Man has a climbing cry. The name of this cry is also aspiration. God was originally one. With His Aspiration God wanted to become many. He wanted to divinely enjoy and supremely fulfil Himself in and through infinite forms.

Man is many. With his aspiration, man the dividing and divided consciousness, man the obscure mind, man the unfulfilled being wants to become one with the world-consciousness, the world-life and the world-soul. He unmistakably and soulfully feels that this is the secret and sacred way to feel the deepest Depth of Reality and the highest Height of Truth.

Aspiration: the inner flame. Unlike other flames, this flame does not burn anything. It purifies, illumines and transforms our life. When purification takes place in our lower nature, we hope to see the Face of God. When illumination dawns in our outer nature, we feel that God is near and dear, God is all-pervading and all-loving. When our nature, lower and outer, grows into the Transformation-flame, we shall realise the truth that God Himself is the inmost Pilot, brightest Journey and highest Goal.

Some people are under the impression that desire and aspiration are the same thing. Unfortunately or fortunately that is not true. These are two totally different things. The difference between desire and aspiration is very simple and clear. Desire wants to bind and devour the world. Aspiration wishes to free and feed the world. Desire is the outgoing energy. Aspiration is the inflowing light. Desire says to man: “Possess everything. You will be happy.” Poor man, when he wants to possess one single thing, he sees that he has already been mercilessly caught and possessed by everything in God’s creation. Aspiration says to man: “Realise only one thing and that thing is God. You will be happy.” Fortunate and blessed man, on his way upward and inward, long before he sees God, he feels sublime peace in his inner life and radiating joy in his outer life. He feels that the realisation of the supreme Beyond can no longer remain a far cry.

Aspiration has not one but three genuine friends: yesterday, today and tomorrow. Yesterday offered its Inspiration-flight to aspiration. Today offers its Dedication-might to aspiration. Tomorrow will offer its Realisation-delight to aspiration.

Aspiration is our inner urge to transcend both experience and realisation already achieved. This is absolutely necessary because God the Infinite constantly transcends His own Infinity, God the Eternal transcends His own Eternity and God the Immortal transcends His own Immortality.

The childhood of aspiration wants to realise the Supreme in its earthly individual way. The adolescence of aspiration wants to realise the Supreme in a divine and glorious way. The youth of aspiration wants to realise the Supreme in the Supreme’s own way.

Aspiration is realisation. Aspiration is revelation. Aspiration is manifestation. Aspiration is realisation if and when the aspirant needs God-Realisation and God-Realisation alone. Aspiration is revelation if and when the aspirant feels that God-Revelation is absolutely for God’s sake. Aspiration is manifestation if and when the aspirant feels that God-Manifestation is his birthright.

My Task

I ask, my Lord Supreme, I ask:
What is my task, what is my task?
“My child, try and cry to change thy face,
And tell the world my Name is Grace.”

Shall I succeed, can I succeed?
“Why not, why not?
My Breath shall feed
Your life of love, devotion pure.
Victory all-where when surrender sure.”

Meditation — Self-Transcendence³

Meditation is self-transcendence. Self-transcendence is the message of the Beyond. The message of the Beyond is God the eternally evolving Soul and God the eternally fulfilling Goal.

The animal in man is proud of his self-aggrandisement. The human in man is delighted with his self-awareness. The divine in man is conscious of his self-realisation. The Supreme in man is fulfilled in His self-transcendence.

Material wealth man needs to enjoy a prosperous earthly life. Meditation man needs to live a peaceful heavenly life. Revelation man needs to live as a divine hero, to guide and serve and serve and guide as a divine hero. Heaven does not want a weakling. Earth does not need a weakling. Life is not an empty talk. Life is not the breath of illusion. Life is the action of aspiration. Aspiration is the action of man’s inner Pilot. Let us fight the battle of life within. Let us wake up consciously and devotedly to the reality of our world. Ours shall be the victory without. Forget we must not. Never. We are of God the Infinite and we are for God the Eternal.

Meditation means the evolution of the body and the soul. The body’s ultimate evolution is transformation and perfection. The soul’s ultimate evolution is the highest illumination and complete manifestation.

He who meditates consciously dedicates his life to God. He who dedicates his life to mankind soulfully meditates on the real God. His are the eyes that see heaven on earth. In him are triumphantly blended divinity and humanity.

Temptation and Meditation. Temptation, this is what an unaspiring man precisely knows. Meditation, this is what an aspiring man constantly is. An unaspiring man must needs descend in the scale of life and feel the very breath of ignorance. An aspiring man eternally ascends in the scale of life and lives in the very heart of God.

We have hundreds of secrets. But meditation has only one. “Competence is achievement.” Competence and achievement are the smiles of God’s unconditional Grace.

Sri Krishna meditated. He became God, the Love Divine. The Buddha meditated. He became God, the Light Divine. The Christ meditated. He became God, the Compassion Divine. Now God wants you to meditate. He wants you to become God, the Life Divine.

1.

Man is Infinity's Heart.
Man is Eternity's Breath.
Man is Immortality's Life.