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Dear Gurudev, please share with us some of the secrets from the Upanishads.
The secret to the Upanishad is, you are Om. Your true name is Om. Whatever name you have, is given by your parents in this lifetime, but what were you before this lifetime? What was your name? Om. And what will be your name in the future, once ... -
Gurudev, what is the importance of yagna? I heard that if we do yagna, then even the rain comes. Why don’t we do a big yagna, and finish all the bad things in the world?
Have you heard about the butterfly effect? A butterfly, fluttering its wings in Amazons, can affect the clouds in China. It means, every little thing, affects every other little thing in the universe, in the cosmos. So, yagnas are those ancient rituals ... -
Please tell us something about Hanuman?
It is said that the Ramayana is happening in your own body. Your soul is Rama, your mind is Sita, your breath or life-force is Hanuman, your awareness is Laxmana and your ego is Ravana. When the mind wa ... -
During a few festivals, we give all kinds of grains as donation. Why is it said that one should not give salt as donation along with the grains?
This is just a practice. It has not been mentioned in the shastras. Do not worry about it. There is no dish that does not have salt in it. Everything contains salt in some quantity. Everything that is offered during a ritual contains some salt ... -
Gurudev, our scriptures are supposed to take us beyond the 'What am I going to get' type of thinking? Then why is it that in every scripture the Phalashruti (the benefit of the scripture) is so elaborately explained?
Just to tempt you to do them! (Laughter) It is a marketing strategy. You know, there is a saying, ‘Without getting any benefit, nobody will do anything’. A dull person will not do anything unless he thinks he is going to get something out ... -
Gurudev, our scriptures are supposed to take us beyond the 'What am I going to get' type of thinking? Then why is it that in every scripture the Phalashruti (the benefit of the scripture) is so elaborately explained?
Just to tempt you to do them! (Laughter) It is a marketing strategy. You know, there is a saying, ‘Without getting any benefit, nobody will do anything’. A dull person will not do anything unless he thinks he is going to get something out of it. ... -
Gurudev, often we read in the Puranas of Indra committing some sin. We never read of Agni, or Varuna, or Vayu, or any of the other Gods committing sin. There must be some significance or some learning from this as well, just like the story of Ganesha. Could you please explain the spiritual meaning of this?
Indra is the mob psychology. What we call mob mentality? A group has a mind of its own. That group mind is called Indra. Indra is supposed to have one thousand eyes. One thousand eyes do not mean that somebody has eyes ... -
Gurudev, even though there is no difference between Lord Vishu and Lord Shiva, who originated from whom? The Vishnu Purana glorifies Lord Vishnu and the Shiva Purana glorifies Lord Shiva.
When you think, who originated from whom, you are thinking on linear terms. But truth is not linear, it is spherical. That is why this is also true and that is also true. From which side you see, that is where it comes from. If you ... -
Gurudev, in the fifteenth chapter of the Gita, there is a description of a tree which is upside down. The branches are in the ground and the roots are in the sky. Can you please explain the significance of this?
This is a symbol to signify that your origin is the Divinity; the consciousness. That is your roots. The mind and all its paraphernalia are like the branches. And all the different types of rhythms in life, all the different emotions, etc., are like t ... -
Gurudev, I have been reading the book on Ashtavakra Gita by you. Every word I read makes me feel so good. However, what you have mentioned about Dharma (one’s duty towards social and moral righteousness), Artha (pursuit of material and financial prosperity), and Kaama (desires) being the causes of bondage, is very true indeed. But I am not able to free myself from this bondage. I have done my Purushartha (four noble pursuits of human life – Dharma, Artha, Kaama and Moksha (liberation)) but I feel this is possible only through your blessings now.
See, in the Ashtavakra Gita it is said, ‘Na Grahyam Na Tyajyam.’ Neither must you hold on to it and nor should you try hard to drop it. Just be hollow and empty and see things the way they are. It is said, ’Ye drishta labha santusht ...