Friday, April 3, 2009
REALIZATION OF BRAHMAN - GOD
" More are the names of God and infinite are the forms through which He may be approached. In whatever name and form you worship Him, through them
you will realise Him."
"It is said that truthfulness alone constitutes the spiritual discipline of the Kaliyuga.
If a man clings tenaciously to truth he ultimately realizes God."
"God can be realized when a man acquires sattva. Householders engage in philanthropic work, such as charity, mostly with a motive. That is not good. Yet it is very difficult to leave motives out of one's actions."
"All will surely realize God. All will be liberated. It may be that some get their meal in the morning, some at noon, and some in the evening, but none will go without food. All, without any exception, will certainly know the real Self."
"The rishis of old attained the Knowledge of Brahman. One cannot have this so long as there is the slightest trace of worldliness. How hard the rishis laboured ! Early in the morning they would go away from the hermitage, and would spend the whole day in solitude, meditating on Brahman. At night they would return to the hermitage and eat a little fruit or roots. They kept their mind aloof from the objects of sight, hearing, touch, and other things of a worldly nature. Only thus did they realize Brahman as their own inner conciousness."
"In the kaliyuga, man, being totally dependent on food for life, cannot altogether shake off the idea that he is the body. In this state of mind it is not proper for him to say: 'I am He'. When a man does all sorts of worldly things, he should not say, 'I am Brahman'. Those who cannot give up attachment to worldly things, and who find no means to shake off the feeling of 'I', should rather cherish the idea, 'I am God's servant; I am His devotee.' One can also realize God by following the path of devotion."
"Through selfless work, love of God grows in the heart. Then, through His grace, one realizes Him in course of time. God can be seen. One can talk to Him as I am talking to you. "
"People speak of doing good to the world. Is the world such a small thing? And who are you, pray, to do good to the world? First realize God, see Him by means of spiritual discipline.
If He imparts power, then you can do good to others, otherwise not."
"The yogi seeks to realize the ParamAtman, the Supreme Soul. His ideal is the union of the embodied soul and the Supreme Soul. He withdraws his mind from sense-objects and tries to concentrate it on the ParamAtman. Therefore, during the first stage of his spiritual discipline, he retires into solitude and with undivided attention practises meditation in a fixed posture."
"Of course you can realize God without complete renunciation ! Why should you renounce everything? You are all right as you are, following the middle path. [note: Thakur was speaking to a BrAmho devotee] - like molasses partly solid and partly liquid.
Do you know the game of nax? Having scored the maximum number of points, I am out of the game. I can't enjoy it. But you are very clever. Some of you have scored ten points,
some six, and some five. You have scored just the right number, so you are not out of the game like me. The game can go on. Why, that's fine !"
"I have heard that man can acquire superhuman powers through Theosophy and perform miracles. I saw a man who had brought a ghost under control. The ghost used to procure various things for his master. What shall I do with superhuman powers? Can one realize God through them? If God is not realized then everything becomes false."
"One should not think, 'My religion alone is the right path and other religions are false.' God can be realized by means of all paths. It is enough to have sincere yearning for God. Infinite are the paths and infinite are the opinions."
"There is no use in merely making a noise if you want to establish the Deity in the shrine of your heart, if you want to realize God. First of all purify the mind. In the pure heart God takes His seat. One cannot bring the holy image into the temple if the droppings of bats
are all around. The eleven bats are our eleven organs: five of action, five of perception, and the mind."
"God cannot be realized without purity of heart. One receives the grace of God by subduing the passions - lust, anger, and greed. Then one sees God. I tried many things in order to conquer lust. "When I was ten or elevn years old and lived at KAmArpukur, I first experienced samAdhi. As I was passing through a paddy-field, I saw something and was overwhelmed. There are certain characteristics of God-vision. One sees light, feels joy, and experiences the upsurge of a great current in one's chest, like the bursting of a rocket."
"God can be realized through all paths. All religions are true. The important thing is to reach the roof. You can reach it by stone stairs or by wooden stairs or by bamboo steps or by a rope. You can also climb up by a bamboo pole."
"God is realized by following the path of truth. One should always chant His name. Even while one is performing one's duties, the mind should be left with God. Suppose I have a carbuncle on my back. I perform my duties, but the mind is drawn to the carbuncle."
"Once a man realizes God through intense dispassion, he is no longer attached to woman.
Even if he must lead the life of a householder, he is free from fear of and attachment to woman. Suppose there are two magnets, one big and the other small. Which one will attract the iron? The big one,of course. God is the big magnet. Compared to Him, woman is a small one. He who has realized God does not look upon a woman with the eye of lust; so he is not afraid of her. He perceives clearly that women are but so many aspects of the Divine Mother. He worships them all as the Mother Herself."
"How is it ever possible for one man to liberate another from the bondage of the world? God alone, the Creator of this world-bewitching mAyA, can save men from mAyA. There is no other refuge but that great teacher, SatchidAnanda [existance-knowledge-bliss]. How is it ever possible for men who have not realized God or received His command, and who are not strengthened with divine strength, to save others from the prison-house of the world?"
"God is realized as soon as the mind becomes free from attachment. Whatever appears in the Pure Mind is the voice of God. That which is Pure Mind is also Pure Buddhi; that, again, is
Pure Atman, because there is nothing pure but God. But in order to realize God one must go beyond dharma and adharma."
"For the Kaliyuga the path of bhakti is especially good. One can realize God through bhakti too. As long as one is conscious of the body, one is also conscious of objects. Form, taste, smell, sound, and touch - these are the objects. It is extremely difficult to get rid of the consciousness of objects. And one cannot realize 'I am He' as long as one is aware of objects."
"A man cannot realize God unless he gets rid of all such egoistic ideas as 'I am such an important man' or 'I am so and so'. Level the mound of 'I' to the ground by dissolving it with the tears of devotion."
"Spiritual discipline is necessary in order to see God. I had to pass through very severe discipline. How many austerities I practised under the bel-tree ! I would lie down under it, crying to the Divine Mother, 'O Mother, reveal Thyself to me.' The tears would flow in torrents and soak my body."
"I vowed to the Divine Mother that I would kill myself if I did not see God. I said to Her: 'O Mother, I am a fool. Please teach me what is contained in the Vedas, The PurAnas, the Tantras, and the other scriptures.' The Mother said to me, 'The essence of the VedAnta is that Brahman alone is real and the world illusory.' The SatchidAnanda Brahman described in the Vedas is the SatchidAnanda Shiva of the Tantra and the SatchidAnanda Krishna of the PurAna."
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