Tust-Belief-Faith by Osho

Belief is in ignorance. If you know, you know. And it is good that if you don’t know, know that you don’t know — the belief can deceive you. The belief can create an atmosphere in your mind, where, without knowing, you start thinking that you know. Belief is not trust, and the more strongly you say that you believe totally, the more you are afraid of the doubt within you.
What is trust? Is it a belief? No, because belief belongs to the mind. Trust is a rapport. You simply put aside all your defense measures, your armor; you become vulnerable. You listen to something, and you listen so totally that the feeling arises in you as to whether it is true or not. If it is untrue, you FEEL it.
Trust is simple. It is just like a child trusts in his mother. It is not that he believes — belief has not yet entered. You were a small child once. Did you believe in your mother or did you trust her? The doubt has not arisen so what is the question of belief? Belief comes only when the doubt has entered; doubt comes first. Later on, to suppress the doubt, you catch hold of a belief. Trust is when doubt disappears; trust is when doubt is not there.
If you have a belief and you come against an experience which the belief says is not possible, or, the experience is such that you have to drop the belief, what are you going to choose — the belief or the experience? The tendency of the mind is to choose the belief, to forget about the experience. That’s how you have been missing many opportunities when God has knocked at your door.
The difference between belief and trust is simple. I am not talking about the dictionary meaning of the words — in the dictionary it may be so: belief means trust, trust means faith, faith means belief — I am talking about existence. In an existential way belief is borrowed, trust is yours. Belief you believe in but doubt exists just underneath. Trust has no doubt element in it; it is simply devoid of doubt. Belief creates a division in you: a part of your mind believes, a part of your mind denies. Trust is a unity in your being, your totality.
Belief is of the mind, of the thinking; faith is of no-mind, of awareness, understanding.
Do you believe in the moon? Do you believe in the stars? You simply know, there is no question of belief. Belief arises only for fictions, for lies, not for truth. Every belief system is a hindrance for spirituality.
I don’t want people to have any kind of belief system. Whether it is Christianity or Hinduism or Buddhism, it does not matter. To me, any organized religion – and Christianity is the most organized religion in the world – is a danger to human beings. Their individuality, their freedom, their dignity is destroyed.
Only the open mind can be ready to listen to something that goes against it. The closed mind can listen only to that which supports it. The closed mind has only one dimension open, that is: everything that supports it is allowed in, welcomed in. All other dimensions are kept closed because there is fear. Things may enter you which may shake up your belief system, disturb your so-called peace of mind; they may sabotage your faith. No person who is a believer can afford to be open.
Organized religions have been deceiving humanity for thousands of years. But they could do it because you allowed it to be done. Belief is cheap; you don’t have to do anything. You don’t have to go into the unknown, the mysterious. You have just to cling to your belief system and Jesus will save you, Buddha will save you. Nobody can save anybody else. That will be against human dignity. If I save you, I am not your friend. I have taken away your birthright — the most important, the most significant glory of your being. I have not allowed you to discover the truth yourself, and I have destroyed you, not saved you. Truth can be known only as an individual experience. It is just like love. You don’t have organizations of love. Just think of organizations of love! — and they say to you, “You have just to believe, you have not to do anything else. The savior will do everything; he will make love on your behalf.” But truth is an even higher quality.
Meditation should be absolutely necessary in every educational system, because meditation is not Hindu, not Christian, not Buddhist. Meditation has nothing to do with any religion. It has nothing to do with any belief. Meditation does not require you to believe in God first, heaven and hell, Jesus Christ as the only begotten son. It needs no belief of any kind. Meditation is an inquiry, a search, a pilgrimage towards your own center. And the person who knows himself cannot do anything wrong. That is an impossibility. The person who realizes himself needs no morality. Morality is needed by blind people.
A belief system is nothing but poison to your capacity to understand.
You go on pouring belief, more belief; but you are simply suppressing doubt deeper and deeper into your unconscious. And the deeper it goes, the more dangerous it is because you will become unaware of it. One day you will think that you believe, that you are a believer, that you have attained to faith — because your doubt has gone so deep in your dark unconscious that you cannot see it anymore. I would like you to see your doubt clearly. Rather than repressing it by any belief system, bring it out into the conscious mind, face it. And just by facing your doubt, it dissolves. No belief is needed, it simply evaporates. Doubt is not to be substituted with a belief. If you substitute it with a belief, then you are in a very strange dilemma: just scratch your belief a little bit — and there is doubt flowing, fully alive. The belief is skin deep and underneath your blood is flowing.
Remember the distinction between belief and faith: belief is in an idea; faith is in total reality, faith is a reverence for the whole. Belief is of the mind; faith is of your totality. When you believe in God, you believe in the God of philosophers. When you believe in God, God is an idea, a doctrine. It can be proved or disproved and it will not transform you. But if you have faith, it has already transformed you. I will not say that it WILL transform you. If you have faith, it has ALREADY transformed you.
Belief is theoretical. Trust is existential. You can change your belief without any trouble; it is just like changing your clothes. From a Hindu, you can become a Christian; from a Christian, you can become a Mohammedan; from a Mohammedan, you can become a communist. There is no problem, because belief is only of the mind. If anything is more convincing, more logical, you can change it. It has no roots in your heart. Belief is like plastic flowers, which look like flowers from far away. They don’t have any roots, they don’t need any care — no manure, no chemicals, no watering, no gardening, nothing is needed. And they are permanent people, they can remain with you your whole life long — because they were never born, so they will never die. They are manufactured. Unless you destroy them, they will remain. Trust is a real rose. It has roots, and roots go deep into your heart and into your being. Belief is just in the head.
Always remember: that which nourishes you is real, and that which simply gives you a consolation is very dangerous. Because of this consolation you will not seek the real food. If you start living in dreams and you don’t eat real food, then by and by, you will dissipate, disappear, become dry, and you will be dead. So take immediate action: whenever mind is trying to give you a substitute, don’t listen to it. It is a great salesman, a great seducer. It convinces you, and it says, “Those things are very cheap. Faith is very difficult to find because you will have to risk your life; belief is very easy, very cheap. You can get it for nothing.” In fact, so many people are ready — if you accept their belief they are ready to give you something more with it: become a Christian, become a Hindu, become a Mohammedan. People are ready to give you a great welcome and respect, respectability. Everything is available; just accept their belief. Belief is not only cheap, it can even bring many more things with it. Faith is dangerous, never cheap. You will have to put your whole life at stake. It needs courage, but only a courageous person can be religious.
Jesus says, “Truth liberates.” But how to attain to truth? It is not a question of belief, but a question of meditativeness. And what is meditation? Meditation is emptying your mind completely of all belief, ideology, concept, thought. Only in an empty mind, when there is no dust left on the mirror, truth reflects. That reflection is a benediction.
Belief is opposite to trust. You believe because you have doubt; the belief is an antidote to doubt, it is a need to cover up the doubt. Trust is when you don’t have any doubt, so trust is not a belief. Belief is always in something — in some doctrine, in some principle, in some philosophy. Trust is in the totality of the cosmos. It has nothing to do with books — HOLY BIBLES, GITAS, KORANS — no. Then there is only one scripture which is spread all around you — in the trees, in the rivers, in the ocean, in the stars. And you don’t have to read it; you have to be just silent, and it starts showering on you all its wisdom, which is eternal. I am against belief because I want you to come to the point of trust.

Universal Being

The Source of existence is called Brahman. Brahman is the substratum of the Universe. Every living and non living being has come out of Brahman. Brahman is beyond, body, mind and intellect. Brahman is Pure Awareness. Brahman reflects as Witness - Sakshi in all living and no Living Beings. One who has dropped all identification with the body mind complex and realized that he is the Witness - Sakshi becomes Universal Being. Such a Universal Being has Universal Outlook beyond all sectarian concepts - of culture . Such a person is called Brahman in sankrit. One who has become one with Brahman. He/She has Divine Love ,Compassion and wisdom. Glory of such a being is sung in Vedic literature "Go Brahmana Hitaya Cha Jagad Hitaya Krishnaya Govindaya Namo Namaha. Let us pray to Lord who is known as Govinda (keeper of cows). Govinda also means one who is known through Go (root word Cow). Cow stands for Kamadhenu - Celestial Cow - Wisdom of Vedas. Go Brahmana Hitaya - one who protects the Universal Wisdom ( Go), mother Cow (Go) and all Brahmanas - Enlightened ones.

Cow is revered as mother providing nourishing milk which sustains life and body. While Brahmana - Universal being is reverred as the giver of nourishing milk (Go) of the Universal wisdom of Vedas. In one prayer, the animal cow, the celestial cow - Vedic literature, and the enlightened being Brahamana is reverred.

In this prayer four aspects are covered.

- Go Hita - representing the animal cow - which nourishes the body through milk like mother.

- Go Hita - representing the Celestial Cow - Kamadhenu - another name for Vedic wisdom which is truly Universal in nature.

- Brahmana - representing the Enlightened being who provides the milk of Wisdom which nourishes the Soul and leads to Amritatva - Liberation. Brahmana here is not any community but a Universal Being - enlightened one who lives in Truth.

- Shri Krishna - protector of cows (animals), protector of cow (Vedas), protector of enlightened one (Brahmana).

- Govinda - one who can be known through the Vedic literature.

Evolve or Revolve !

Punarapi Jananam, Punarapi Maranam - says Shri Adi Shankaracharya. We keep on going through cycle of birth - growth - oldage and death. This is cycle of suffering. Punarapi janani Jathare shayanam - in the womb of mother.
This is called cycle of transmigration. This process continues until we evolve spiritually. Evolve spiritually or revolve in the cycle of birth and death - this seems to be the choice.
The trapping in cycle of birth and death happens due to ignorance of our higher Reality. Due to wrong understanding of the nature of reality ( Inner/Outer/Higher), this process continues.
One who evolves spiritually - called Jivanmukta gets out of this cycle.

Fact and Fiction, Perception and Reality

We view the world through the lens of inner models. These inner models are based on our impressions (samskaras) and Vasanas (tendencies). The reality what we see gets corrupted due to these impressions. We cannot deal with reality as it is because of this.
When people talk about facts, facts are corrupted by the images in the mind. We super impose our images on the facts.
For example there was a group which went for a picnic. The picnic was wonderful. At the end of the picnic every eligible boy married every eligible girl. That was 100% success success. Everything here is a fact. There were two boys and two girls who went for picnic. But our mind starts imagining things and perceptions set in.
This is true for Scientific knowledge also. Basic discoveries in science start with hypothesis ( speculation). Like theory of big bang. Over a period of time, lot of empirical data is collected to substantiate/contradict the hypothesis. Fact becomes fiction.
This happens in religion also. Spiritual realization is indiscribable. Description of that is the fact. Over a period of time, the Truth becomes myth. So on and so forth. We go on living in illusion created by perception.

Spiritual Evolution - Concept of Yugas

There are two aspect of us - Inner Reality ( of body, mind and spirit) and outer reality ( of matter-world and nature). Living in Truth means understanding inner and outer reality fully. Living in ignorance means wrong understanding of inner/outer reality leading to actions which cause lot of suffering to Self and others.

Spiritual evolution of human beings is classified into four yugas - time periods. Satya Yuga is a period when human civilation is very highly evolved and 100% of the population live in the light of Truth, wisdom, enlightenment. As the Satya Yuga passes into next age - Treta Yuga, 3/4 of the population live in Truth and 1/4 pass into ignorance of the Self. In Dwapara Yuga 1/2 the t

he population is in a state of ignorance. In Kaliyuga totality of population is in a state of ignorance about the nature of Self and Reality. Current age is the age of Kaliyug. Age of darkness. People live in the reality of matter and forget totally about Conciousness - Reality.

In todays age as the people are coming gradually darkness of Kaliyuga because of discoveries in Science, Information age, focus on ethics values etc, we start gradually entering into Dwapara Yuga. We are gradually moving towards Dwapara Yuga. Discoveries of Quantum physics, advancement in medical science and psychology are gradually bringing in the awareness of inner/outer reality in the world. This is a transition from Kaliyug to Dwapar yuga. As we enter deeper into Dwapara yuga, spiritual values start dominating all our actions. Love, compassion, wisdom become the foundation.

Truth and Myth

Truth (Satya) is beyond human body, mind and intellect. It is beyond all words, thought and images. It is like seeking direction for space. How do you show direction for space which is all pervading. Anything you point is a direction for space but that is not space !. Similarly Truth.
Similarly "Source of Existance". That is the reason it is said , total surrender - sharanagati is the way to reach the source. Dropping everything, all concepts.. and to be one with the Truth.
Truth when it is explained through human Intellect becomes - Darshana. Speculation about Truth becomes philosophy. Explaination of the Truth through abstract logic, Mathematics becomes science. Explaination of Truth through stories - heroes, heroines, demons becomes Mythology - Purana.

Everything has a bit of Truth in it. Be Mythology, Science, Philosophy or Darshana. But none of them are the "TRUTH". Truth can only be experienced by dropping all our concepts about Truth.

Revealation and Realization

In India we have two categories of Scriptures - Shruti and Smriti. Shruti means heard. Heard from the Self within. It is the Lord speaking. It is the Universe speaking to us directly. When the body, mind and intellect are purified the source of existence Universal conciousness speaks through that body mind complex. This is called Shruti. This is what our Rishis did. Worked on the purification of self - becoming a vehicle for Univerals Conciousness. This became Shruti - Vedic literature. This is Revelation. From Higher Source to lower conciousness. Revelations are universal in nature. Sanatana. Coming from Universe, they are equally applicable to all.

On the other hand, there is individual effort to apply the principles of Universal Truths - Revealations to our day to day life. To our spiritual practices. To our society. This is the realization part. Realizing the revealations. This is the application part of revealation. There are smritis - like manu smriti etc. Smriti stands for memory. Memory comes from two components.
Memony from experineces in life - society, environment... Memory comes from listening to Shrutis, listening to revealed Truths. Synthesising these two leads to realization. While Shruti is
Universal in nature, Smriti is not. Smriti is time and space bound. It involves changes as the society changes.

While Shruti can be called as Universal first principles, Smriti can be called as second principles - applied principles. While Shruti can not be amended, Smirti can be amended depending on the time and location.

End of Knowledge

As children we are born innocent. We have no knowledge of self or the other. As we grow up we become knowledgeable. We know a lot about the world and know a lot about ourselves from the world. With the knowledge our ignorance also grows. Ignorance is about not knowing and knowing that we dont. In otherwords ignorance is also knowledge of not knowing ! Both knowledge and ignorance belong to the ego. Knowledge and ignorance are derived from the memory/experiences of the world. Knowledge about Self is called Self knowledge. Traditionally the focus of scriptures. Even this is knowledge derived from sources. It is still a part of memory.

While all other knowledge requires an authority - Pramana, knowledge of Self doenot require any authority. It is Self evident. Self shines by itself. It doesnot require any reference. It is called Vedanta. Veda means knowledge. Anta means end. End of knowledge is the end of knower - ego. It is a state of pure knowing - where there is no knower.

Primal innocense -Beyond knowing and Not Knowing

We need to know the difference between knowledge and ignorance. One who knows that I know is knowledgeable. One who knows that I dont know is ignorant. Both knowledge and ignorance are coming out of knowing about and not knowing about - both are a form of knowledge. On the other hand Innocence is beyond knowing and not knowing. It is the state of the child. It is the state of enlightened one. Both are blissful. While the child is not aware of the bliss, enlightened one is aware of the bliss. State of innocense is the primal reality. Reality of existence. Beyond knowing and not knowing. Beyond knowledge and ignorance - Eternal bliss.
Story of Socrates
Chaerophen in Greece visited Oracle of Delphi to find out who is the wisest in Athens. Oracle repplied - no doubt - Socrates. People rushed to Socrates to congratulate him. He said "How can it be true ? I dont know anything. Oracle must be wrong !". People rushed back to Oracle and told about words of Socrates. Oracle laughed and said "That is why I told he is the wisest".

He who knows not and doesnot he knows not. He is a fool shun him.
He who knows not but knows he knows not is simple. Teach him.
He who knows but knows not he he knows is asleep. Wake him up.
He who knows but knows that he knows. He is a learned man. Learn from him.
He who has gone beyond knowing and not knowing is enlightened. Respect him.

From Instinct to Illumination and Enlightenment

Instinct
Instinct is a set of programmed behavior. Based on circumstance, instinct determines the action to be taken. For example a donkey is bound to kick if somebody goes behind. Instinct is plain reaction for a given situation. When we act mechanically, whether it is getting angry or jumping with joy, we are working with instinct. We live our animal nature when we live purely by instinct. Instinct is required for survival. Without instinct survival becomes impossible. One who operates out of instinct alone can be a brute/ruthless.
Inputs from sense or mind >> Reaction.




Intellect
Intellect brings the element of choice in responding to situation. Based on the circumstance, intellect can chose set of possible responses possible based on logic. When we exercise intellect, we are using our human abilities. For example a donkey does not have the ability to stop kicking somebody behind. Human beings have the ability to reason out and stop an instinctive action. All the advances in science and technology are due to intellect. One who operates out of intellect can be a human.
Inputs from sense or mind >> reasoning >> thoughts >> Action.



Insight
Many times there is a deeper understanding of the situation be in business/profession or any other area of life. This is because of sharpening of the intellect due to repeated applications. Insight can be related to the world or spirituality. One who operates out of insight can be called expert.
Experience in application of intellect >> insight >> thought >> action.



Intution
While instinct and intellect require data from the sense organs or mind, intuition does not require any such data. Intuition is the higher faculty. Many fundamental discoveries in science happened out of intuition. Intuition brings about original thinking. Deeper realization in domain of spirituality are based on intuition. One who operates out of intuition can be mystic.
No data >> Intution >> thoughts >> Action.



Inspiration
Inspiration can be two types – external based on the observation of extraordinary thing outside or internal guided by the Source (Atman/Self) within. While external inspiration is based on the power, internal inspiration is based on Love, compassion, wisdom.
External/Internal inputs >> inspiration >> thought >> Action



Illumination
When intuition about ones own nature – self and nature of Higher reality ( Source/God) dawns, there is a deeper transformation. Most of the actions of such a body mind complex are based on the inspiration from higher source. If the ignorance causing feeling of separation from the source is totally destroyed, such a state is called illumination. One who operates out of illumination is a saint – Mahatma.
Intution of Nature of self/Higher reality >> destroys ignorance >> inspiration >> Action.

Web of Words - Maya

World is nothing but name and form – nama and rupa. Words are associated with certain concepts in the mind – for example beauty, ugly etc. We start living these concepts as reality and superimpose these concepts on what we observe. When we say a rose we say it is “beautiful rose” borrowing the concept of beauty in the mind. Our mental projection stars influencing our perception. This is creation. You have started creating a world of your own with words you use. Just like a spider uses saliva to build a net to trap the prey, you have started creating a web of words. Unlike the spider which never gets trapped in web of its own creation, we get trapped in our web. We start believing our mental projection to be real ! This is Maya. This is Matrix.

Look at the web we have created for yourself - "I am happy, I am sad, I am ugly, I am beautiful, I am so and so ... He/She is beautiful .. "

What is Reality ?

“Om Athatho Brahma Jijnasa Om” 1.1
Atha: now, then, afterwards; Atah: therefore; Brahmajijnasa: a desire for the knowledge of Brahman (the enquiry into the real nature of Brahman).
1). What is the meaning of Brahma Sutra ?
Sutra means string. Like a string is used to make a garland of flowers, Brahma Sutra makes strings together flowers from Vedanta . Brahmasutra provides a concise way of summarizing the findings of the Rishis documented in Upanishads.
2).What is the meaning of “Brahman”.
Brahman means the eternal, unchanging, infinite, immanent, and transcendent reality which is the Divine Ground of all matter, energy, time, space, being, and everything within and beyond the Universe.
Immanent aspect of Brahman is the Universe. This aspect of Brahman is Saguna Brahman. Transcendent aspect is called Nirguna Brahman. The Saguna aspect of Brahman is worshipped in various forms. For example the manifest Cosmic form of the Universe is worshipped as Shri Maha Vishnu while transcendent form is worshipped as Shri Narayana.
2a). What is Reality ?
Reality is the Truth behind the apparent. While the apparent changes, Truth does not change. To give an example water can exist in different forms – liquid, solid (ice) or vapor. In reality molecules of oxygen and hydrogen constituting water do not change the form. The apparent reality changes form while fundamental reality does not change.
Brahma Sutra is enquiry into the nature of Reality of existence.
2b).What is existence?
That which exists is existence! Existence has objective aspect and subjective aspect. Objective aspect is available for perception while subjective aspect is available for experience. For example I see the world. This is objective. I experience beauty in the world. This is subjective aspect. In addition there is experiencer who is beyond experience. In general we can say existence has manifest aspect which is available for perception, unmanifest aspect which is yet to appear and transcendental aspect which is beyond perception.


For example, seed has tree in unmanifest form. Tree is the manifest form of seed. So we are speaking of three areas.
· Manifest
· Unmanifest
· Transcendent.
3). Why should someone enquire into the nature of Reality?
Someone who has fallen into dark well should find out where he is and search for escape route. He/she should seek alternate possibilities. As per Vedic literature we are in a cycle of birth and death and consequent suffering in the phenomenal universe. We keep looking for happiness and fulfillment from the world. Enquiring into the nature of Reality and realizing its essential nature leads us to eternal bliss and freedom from cycle of birth and death.
4). Why should we take authority of Vedas on this ?
Human mind can logically or scientifically deduce things in the domain of objective world. The transcendental part of the Reality is beyond human mind. It is here that the authority of Vedas comes into picture. Vedic literature gives us pointer to the Reality which is beyond the scope of human mind. The spiritual scientists Rishis received the highest wisdom from the Transcendental Reality during their intense penance. The spiritual practices of the Rishis involved silencing the body mind complex to receive the higher wisdom without the corruption of human mind. This forms the authentic source for the wisdom of Reality.
5). Is the enquiry into Reality similar to Scientists search for Truth ?
Yes and no. Spiritual Seeker and Scientist seek the Truth. Scientists search for Truth or reality is in the domain of objectivity while ignoring the subject. This has been the direction for past few centuries. This is typically called Newtonian Science where the mechanical model of the objective world is used. However discoveries of Quantum physics have brought tremendous change in the approach of scientists. Quantum physics brings into the picture role of observer. The observed phenomenon gets altered when the observer comes into picture. It is here our Spiritual Scientists played a key role. They investigated the nature of the subject – the observer and realized that the fundamental nature of universe is consciousness.
While scientist seeks the truth in the objective world, spiritual seekers seek the Truth in the subjective world.
6). Who is qualified for the enquiry into nature of reality ?
One who has lead dharmic life and attained the four means of liberation is eligible for Self enquiry. Four means of liberation are given below.
i. Viveka – Discrimination between what is eternal and non eternal ( Nithya, Anithya vastu viveka)
ii. Vairagya – Indifference to enjoyments of fruits of action in this world or in heaven.
iii. Sadhana Sampatti – Sixfold spiritual wealth.
iv. Mumukshatva – Intense desire for liberation.
7). What is Sadhana Sampatti ?
Sampatti stands for wealth. The virtues one needs to develop for liberation are called sadhana sampatti.
- Sixfold virtues
o Shama – Control of mind.
o Dama – Control of external senses
o Titiksha – Ability to withstand pain and pleasure.
o Uparati – Cessation from worldly enjoyments
o Shraddha – Faith in Vedanta and Sadguru.
o Samadhana – Patience.

8). Why Brahmasutras are called Shariraka Mimamsa ?
Sharira means body. Mimamsa means enquiry. This phenomenal Universe is considered as the body of Paramatman – Supreme Self. Enquiry into the essential nature of the Phenomenal Universe is called Shariraka Mimamsa.
On the other hand, the embodied individual self – jivatman out of ignorance identified the self with the body and says - I am male, I am female, I am old etc. The same jivatman when identifies the self with the mind says I am happy, I am sad etc. While the universe is macro cosm, individual is of the nature of microcosm. Enquiry into the nature of microcosm – individual self to understand the identity of individual self Atman with Brahman – Paramatman is also purpose of Shariraka Mimamsa.
9). There are different commentaries on Brahma Sutra by various Acharyas. What is the purpose of these many commentaries ?
In general the commentaries can be classified under two categories.
o Devotion (Bhakti) oriented commentaries – eg. Shri Madhwa, Shri Ramanuja and others.
o Wisdom (Jnana) oriented commentaries – eg. Shri Shankara.
The commentaries focusing on devotion focus on the realization of Transcendental aspect of Divine through the immanent aspect. For example worship of Lord Vishnu in the form of Universe and thereby focusing mind on His transcendent aspect of Shri Narayana is followed in this approach.

The other approach followed by Shri Adi Shankara takes the path of Jnana and focuses on the Transcendent aspect of the Brahman.
These two approaches are required since Vedanta has Rishis who have attained wisdom through either of the two paths.
Human beings have hands, heart and head which means action, emotion and intellect. People with heart orientation find devotional approach more suitable and people with head orientation, approach through Jnana more appropriate.

10). What way the enquiry into Brahman leads to liberation ?
We have two types of knowledge. Direct and indirect. These are called paroksha and aparoksha Jnana. The vedantic literature provides the inputs regarding realization of Rishis. They realized it as aparoksha Jnana – direct knowledge. But for us it is still indirect knowledge. Understanding the importance of the meaning of the vedantic literature, contemplating on the same leads to Direct knowledge or aparoksha Jnana. This is deep intuitive understanding of the Truth. Only aparoksha Jnana can lead to liberation.
11). Do the followers of Jnana and Bhakti realize the same kind of liberation ?
Jnana is direct. It leads to immediate release from the ignorance. This is called Sadyomukti. There is a gradual process of liberation for the people who are Bhakti oriented. This is called Salokya, Sameepya, Sarupya and Sayujya mukti.

Go.. go .. Ego !

Ego is called "Ahankara" in sanskrit. It is feeling of "Iness". Feeling of seperation from the existence. Many spiritual teachings stress on dropping the ego, surrendering the ego etc. Ego is like a shadow. Absence of light. A product of ignorance. No matter how hard you try, you can not catch the shadow let alone dropping it. Only way is to investigate the nature of ego. The moment you do that ego disappears - never to be

seen.

Name and Form

Manifested universe is made up of the name and form. If you look at the map of the world, how are the boundaries of country are drawn. Where does a country begin and where it ends. It is all in the map only ! By giving a name and form, we are identifying countries. If there is no name and form, there is only "land". It is the mind which plays this trick. Converting "Oneness of existence" into many name and forms. Creating appearance of duality where as non duality is the Reality.

Be Still and Know tha I am God - Witness Consciousness

Jesus said "Be Still and Know that I am God. I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth" ( Psalm 46:10).

To be still is the way to know God. Mind is in a state of mess. Mind keeps chattering. Ceazelessly thoughts outpour. When we operate from the center of witness consciousness in us, we know that "I am" is God. That deep stillness is called Sakshi Bhava. Witness consciousness belongs to pure awareness. The moment we start witnessing our thoughts, neigher accepting or rejecting we move to a center of deep stillness. Lifes goal is achieved. Lord is found in the heart.

Witness Consciousness - Sakhsi Bhava - Amma

Questioner:
Amma, if we are truly the Atman (soul, infinite consciousness, Holy Spirit, etc), why is it so difficult to experience the truth?
Ammachi:
Truth is always the most difficult thing and at the same time the easiest. For ignorant and egotistical people it is the most difficult thing to know, and for those who are inquisitive and have a burning desire to know, it is the easiest. People are intent on only feeding the go. They never think of knowing the Self (soul, Infinite). To know the Self one should starve the ego. But unfortunately most people cannot starve the ego. Instead they cling to it more and more. The predominant tendency in human beings is to attract as much attention as possible. They want to be praised and recognized, believing it is their birth right. This is all food for the ego which thrives on attention. How are you going to know the Self if you ego is constantly craving attention? In order to realize the Atman (Self), the mind has to dissolve. As long as there is mind, you will be dominated by the ego.People point their finger at insane people and call them 'crazy.' But they don't know that they themselves are actually crazy as well. Whoever has a mind is mad, because mind is madness. In the case of a person who is insane it is clearly manifested and therefore you can see it. Whereas in your case, it is not so clearly manifested and therefore not as obvious. But the madness is there, because the mind is there. Look at people whenever they get excited, anxious or angry. They actually go mad. Anger is nothing but temporary madness, and it is the same with excitement and anxiety. When you are extremely angry you are crazy, you speak and act in a crazy way. It is a temporary state in which you lose your mental balance. When such a state becomes permanent, it is called insanity. If you give in to your mind too much, and it is not kept under proper control, you lose your stability and go insane. The mind is the ego, which makes you very self-centered. But instead of being self-centered, you should become centered in the Self (Atman), the real Center of your existence. For this to happen, the mind should be extinguished. The ego should die. Only then can you become established in the state of sakshi bhava (witness consciousness). The ego is the greatest obstacle on your path towards the Truth. The ego has no real existence of it's own, for the mind and the ego are false. At present we are under the impression that the mind and ego are our friends, but they are only misleading us, taking us away from our true nature. The mind and the ego have no power of their own; the source of their power is derived from the Atman (infinite consciousness, soul) which is our real existence. The Atman is our true Master, but we are presently being controlled and misguided by false masters, namely the mind and the ego. Not only do they delude us, they also cover the face of our real nature. Know this and try to come our of the limited shell of your mind and ego. The seedling cannot emerge and grow into a large tree unless the outer shell breaks and dies. Likewise, the inner Truth cannot be realized unless the ego dies. (The mind has 4 different functions or aspects. They are: 1. The mind which is the doubting faculty. 2. Chitta which is the storehouse of memories. 3. Buddi which is the determining faculty. 4. Ahamkara which is the ego - the feeling of 'I' and 'mine.' It is the same mind, but named differently according to it's functions).
SAKSHI BHAVA (THE STATE OF ETERNAL WITNESSING)
Questioner:
Amma, the other day You were mentioning the state of sakshi bhava, or witness consciousness. I wonder if witnessing is a function of the mind, or is it an experience beyond the mind?
Ammachi:
No, it is not a function of the mind. Sakshi bhava is a state in which you remain constantly detached and untouched, simply watching everything that happens, without the interference of the mind and it's thoughts. You cannot be a witness to everything if there is a constant interference of the mind. The mind consists of thoughts. It can only think and doubt. In that supreme state of witnessing, you constantly abide in your true nature. In shashi bhava you become a witness to everything. You simply watch everything. There is no attachment or involvement. There is only watching. You will even witness your own thoughts. As you consciously observe your own thought process, you are not thinking - you are not doing anything. You are still. You are simply watching and enjoying, without being moved or affected by anything. How can the mind be in a state such as this? The mind can only think, doubt and cling. It cannot witness. The thinking process belong to the mind, whereas witnessing belong to the higher Self. Witnessing is a state of abiding in Pure Consciousness. The and it's thoughts are not real. They are the fiction of your own creation. Consciousness alone is real.Thinking may seem natural to you, but it is not natural. It is not a part of your real existence. Your thoughts and your ego create nothing but restlessness and agitation. They don't belong to you, and you will continue to be restless until they are eliminated. Witnessing is the state of simply watching with perfect awareness. In the state of sakshi bhava you are absolutely conscious. On the other hand, when you are identified with your mind and thoughts, you are not conscious - you are far away from Pure Consciousness. You are in darkness and cannot really see. The mind sees only the external world, the outer shape of things. It can never see something as it really is because you never see, you only think. And when you think you miss the thing as it is. More and more accumulation and indulgence will only create more thoughts, and more thoughts will drive you away from your real Center. In order to witness, one needs to be established in a supreme state of detachment. A clinging mind cannot witness; it can only be attached to thoughts and objects. It cares only about 'I' and 'mine.' In witnessing there is no experience of 'I' and 'mine.' You go beyond all such limited, narrow thoughts.
THE REAL CENTER WITHIN
When you become the witness of everything, you no longer have any claims. Everything, whether it be 'you' or 'I' is the Supreme Lord, or Supreme Consciousness. Once you are established in that state, nothing can hurt or affect you. You move away from the mind and you are no longer identified with the body. The body is there, but it is as if it were dead. You don't give any importance to the outer world or to what people say. You know that you, in truth cannot please or displease anyone. Sometimes you act as if you are crazy, at other times you appear to be an ordinary person. At one moment you may seem attached, and the next you are beyond all sense of attachment - completely carefree and detached. You may be loving and compassionate, and then all of a sudden you seem to lack any trace of love. Altogether there is something very unpredictable about you.Once you have attained the state of sakshi bhava (where there is no more conceptual thoughts, only eternal witnessing), you can be in any mood you like, go to any level of consciousness - from the highest to the lowest and vice versa. But at the same time you are just a witness. Everything becomes a beautiful, delightful game - a wonderful play. Externally people will still see you moving from one mood to another, from one place to another, and from one emotion to another, but internally you are motionless. You never move from that one center of Reality. The real Center is within. It is not to be found in the external world. When you are established in that real Center, you do not move. You are established there forever. At at the same time you can move without limit, infinite ways without ever leaving the Center. You become God and God can move infinitely. There are no limits. Once you are established in the Center of existence, you can ignore everything if you wish; or if you want to smile at everything you are free to do so. If you don't want to sleep or eat at all, there is no need for it. On the other hand you can eat what you like, and if you prefer to sleep for a whole year, that is also possible. But you will be awake within - wide awake. Though you may appear to be sleeping, you are not sleeping at all, and though you may appear to be eating, you are not eating anything. If you want to remain in your body, that is possible. Or, if you wish to leave your body, that too can be done. And having left your body, whenever you wish to reenter the body, you can do so. Or, if you do not want to return to the body, you can remain where you are. You can choose the womb that you will enter and what type of body you will have. Anything is possible. People may say you are doing something, but you know that you are not doing anything. You are just watching, just witnessing.So, witnessing happens when you become totally detached from the mind and the thought process. You then become fully conscious of everything, even your own thought process. For the aspirant on the spiritual path this can also be practiced as an attitude towards everything. Children, getting established in sakshi bhava (witnessing at the level of pure consciousness without the interference of the mind, also termed as immersion in the Infinite) is the real purpose of life. That supreme state of witnessing is the pivot around which all of life and the whole universe revolves. You may work, use your mind and your intellect; you may live in a house and have a family, you may have a lot of family responsibilities and you may have a lot of official duties to perform, but once you are established in sakshi bhava, in the real Center, you can do anything without moving even an inch out of that center. Being in the state of sakshi bhava does not mean that you will remain idle without taking care of your duties. You may be concerned about your children's studies, the health of your parents and your wife and so on, yet in the midst of all these external problems you remain a sakshi, a witness to all that happens and to all that you do. Within, you are perfectly still and unperturbed. While enacting the role of a villain in a movie, the actor may be seen to be shooting his enemy, getting angry, being cruel and treacherous. But within himself, does the actor really become angry or cruel? Is he really committing those acts? No, he is not. He is just a witness to all that he does. He stands aside and watches without becoming involved or touched by it. He is not identified with the external expressions of his body. Likewise, one who is established in sakshi bhava remains untouched and unperturbed within, under all circumstances.

Love Thy Neighbour

"Love Thy Neighbour" taught Jesus. What is the meaning of this ?
What is love ? Is love an act ? Love is a state of consciousness. Love is a state of being. Many actions can flow out of state of being - for example anger can trigger violence.

When Jesus says "Love Thy neighbour" is referring to action or a state of being? Answer which Jesus gives to Pharisees has some clues.

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself."

So we should love Lord and love neighbour as ourselves. The difficulty is love being a state of being rather than doing. Mother loves a child because she is mother. Relationship develops love. Knowing the relationship with Lord develops love.

That leads us to the question what is our relationship to Lord ? View of Yoga in this matter is God/Ishwara is our innermost consciousness. Pure consciousness. Source of our existance.

Knowing God from Yogic point of view is knowing our self identity. Dropping all our false identity, personality and knowing ourtrue identity is the way. All beliefs,concepts about oneself, personality-everything is social conditioning. When we drop the conditioning, only pure awareness remains. That is our innermost controller, self. Only this realization leads to pure love for the Lord.

The statement makes more sense when we understand when Jesus says love your neighbour as yourself . Do we love ourself ? Do we accept ourselves with all the weakness and shortcomings we have ? To love ourselves, we need lot of deconditioning about concept of right and wrong imposed by the society. We need sincere repentance and dropping of the mask of personality.

When we do that, really we start loving ourselves and the Lord and offcourse neighbour. Here neighbour doesnot just mean neighbour. It means all human beings, all creation including even enemies as Jesus makes it clear in another place.

'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. (Matthew 5:43) .

So the path Jesus lays is very clear. Come to a stage of acceptance of yourself as you truly are. Then realize relationship between you and Lord. This will lead to transformation of your Being. Your being gets filled with love. That love will overflow to your friends and enemies.

Fate and Freewill

Fate is about history

Freewill is about future.

Fate is the tree

Freewill is the seed

Fate is cremation

Freewill is creation

Fate is suffering

Freewill is an opening

Fate belongs to mind

Freewill belongs to Heart

Identification with the body is fate

Identification with soul is freewill.

Fate is choicelessness

Freewill is choice

To live in the present

Is to live with Freewill

To live with the past or future

Is to live with the fate.

Who is the drinker ?

When we do any action we believe we are doing it. Is it really true. Take the case of simple drinking of the coffee. Even to drink a cup of coffee millions and millions of actio should happen. Right from growing of coffee seeds, boiling water, rains, creation of earth, creation of universe. Each action of ours is dependant on zillions of actions. Zillions of chain of actions. So who is the doer ? Or is it just a happening ? And we probably are the observers ?

Destiny Vs Free Will

What is guiding us ? Destiny or freewill ?

Kalavadins - Say time is responsible. No matter how hard you try unless time is ripe, you cannot achieve.

Brahamavadins - Say God is responsible for all that happens to us.

Swabhavadins - Say everything happens because of inner nature.

Karmavadins- Say everything is due to past karma.

Niyativadins - Say destiny defines everything. Whatever is to hapen will happen.!

Bhutavadis - Those who say everything happens because of material nature. Materialists!!

Akasmatvadis - Those who say everything is an accident!!

Purusharthavadins - Say everything is due to individual effort.

What is true ?

It seems that a combination of all the factors is responsible. Any external factor will predominate in a state of ignorance. Free will prevails in a state of awareness and knowledge.