The Atma Jyoti Blog

The absolute best translation is THE SONG OF GOD: BHAGAVAD GITA, by Swami Prabhavananda and Christopher Isherwood. It conveys the spirit of the Gita as no other translation does. It is, though, an interpretive translation. But the interpretations are according to the great commentators such as Adi Shankaracharya. The supplementary material, including an essay by Aldous Huxley, is extremely valuable in understanding the Gita’s subtle philosophy.

However, in time you need to engage in a deeper study of the Gita, and for that you need translations that will give you the original Sanskrit text, a word-by-word translation, and some commentary. Among the best of these are the translations of Swami Sivananda, Swami Swarupananda, and Winthrop Sargeant.

All four of these translations can be bought from Amazon.com.

The Gita is a lifetime study which you will find continually reveals new insights and inspiration.

Since the Gita is a digest of the upanishads, I also recommend that you get THE UPANISHADS: BREATH OF THE ETERNAL by Swami Prabhavananda.

This begins a serialized commentary on “A Method Of Enlightening A Disciple” from Shankara’s Upadeshasahasri–A Thousand Teachings

The opening verse of Shankara’s Upadeshasahasri–A Thousand Teachings–is: “We shall now explain a method of teaching the means to liberation for the benefit of those aspirants after liberation who are desirous and are possessed of faith.” Shankara then outlines in a section titled “A Method Of Enlightening A Disciple” how the aspirants should receive the first instructions in the inquiry as to the nature of the Self. The texts cited certainly need comment–as Shankara assumed those who used his text would do.

There are very many citations, most being from the upanishads though some are from the Bhagavad Gita and some minor sources. We will look at each one in turn from first till last.

1) “In the beginning this universe was Being [Sat] alone, one only without a second.” (Chandogya Upanishad 6:2:1)

Brahman is Pure Being, absolute unity, ekam, evam, adwitiyam–one, only, without a second. This is perhaps the purest statement that can be made about Brahman, and also the most accurate–always keeping in mind that nothing can be said about Brahman in the highest sense.

2) “Where one sees nothing else, hears nothing else, understands nothing else–that is the Infinite. Where one sees something else, hears something else, understands something else–that is the finite. The Infinite is immortal, the finite mortal.”

“In what does the Infinite find Its support?”

“In Its own greatness–or not even in greatness.” (Chandogya Upanishad 7:24:1)

When the Infinite is perceived, it alone IS. There is absolutely nothing else. This takes two forms. The highest is the perception of nothing but Pure Being. The other is the perceiving of “others” but at the same time directly seeing that the “others” are mere appearances and that Brahman is manifesting as everything.

But when we believe in “others” as really being “other” in their essential nature, then we are in finite consciousness and subject to all that entails, experiencing ourselves falsely as finite and ever-changing.

The short dialogue about the support of the Infinite is intended to show us that Brahman is Its own support–Its own greatness (mahima.) Besides Its very Being, Brahman neither has nor needs any support at all. For this reason the upanishads usually declare Brahman as supportless, as we will see later.

Read Further installments of A Catechism of Enlightenment.

or Hail To the Sages!

“Having known the Self, the sages are filled with joy. Blessed are they, tranquil of mind, free from passion. Realizing everywhere the all-pervading Brahman, deeply absorbed in contemplation of his being, they enter into him, the Self of all.” (Mundaka Upanishad 3:2:5) What an inspiring description. These are the things that should motivate us, not such cheap things as promises of heaven and threats of hell, or bribes of “good things” and “power.” To at last be ourselves as we really are, to end all struggle with unreality and ignorance–this is the worthy aim. The only worthy prayer is that of Jesus: “O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.” (John 17:5)

How to become a sage

How do the sages get that way? “Having fully ascertained and realized the truth of Vedanta, having established themselves in purity of conduct by following the yoga of renunciation, these great ones attain to immortality in this very life; and when their bodies fall away from them at death, they attain to liberation.” (Mundaka Upanishad 3:2:6)

Having fully ascertained and realized the truth of Vedanta. First the Vedantic truths–the teachings found in the upanishads–are carefully read and pondered. But this is not enough–in fact it is worthless unless they go on to realize those truths through meditation, for it is this realization which is of supreme value, and the wise diligently seek it.

Having established themselves in purity of conduct. Not wanting empty theory, the wise understand that their lives must be disciplined for the purification of their outer actions and inner consciousness. Moreover, they ground themselves immovably in that purity.

Following the yoga of renunciation. Since neither Angiras or his students were monks, it is mistaken to interpret sannyasa yoga as monastic life. Rather, it is the inner discipline of detachment from all externals (sannyasa) while fixing the mind on the Eternal (yoga).

Immortality in this very life. Those who follow this path of the sages will realize their nature as immortality itself. They will not attain it, they will recover and manifest it. Nor will this happen in some vague heavenly realm, but right here and now.

At death, they attain to liberation. For them there is no longer any need for future birth in the material plane. As the Buddhist texts say: “Birth is ended, the holy life fulfilled, the task done. There is nothing further for this world.” But they are not just liberated from the earth, they are liberated from all “worlds” and enter The Real as their eternal abode.

The liberation process

“When death overtakes the body, the vital energy enters the cosmic source, the senses dissolve in their cause, and karmas and the individual soul are lost in Brahman, the pure, the changeless. As rivers flow into the sea and in so doing lose name and form, even so the wise man, freed from name and form, attains the Supreme Being, the Self-Luminous, the Infinite.” (Mundaka Upanishad 3:2:7, 8 ) There are two aspects to these verses: what is shed by the sage and What he merges with in liberation.

At the time of death, the various bodies no longer retain their configuration. Since they are no longer needed for future incarnations, they resolve back into the elements from which they came. Even the karmic forces, now unnecessary, melt away into basic energy along with the subtle bodies that created and embodied them. What remains? Brahman and their atman-self. Since these are really the source of all the foregoing, in reality nothing whatever is lost–only the conditioning dreams that held them in false bondage for so long. Finitude is traded for infinity–blessed bargain!

“He who knows Brahman becomes Brahman. No one ignorant of Brahman is ever born in his family. He passes beyond all sorrow. He overcomes evil. Freed from the fetters of ignorance he becomes immortal.” (Mundaka Upanishad 3:2:9)

Who should learn this?

“Let the truth of Brahman be taught only to those who obey his law, who are devoted to him, and who are pure in heart. To the impure let it never be taught.” (Mundaka Upanishad 3:2:10)

In India everyone knows the basic principles of Brahmavidya. The sage is not recommending secrecy, but warning us away from wasting our time with people who are wilfully disqualifying themselves for spiritual life. So who are qualified (adhikari) to receive detailed instruction in the eternal truths?

Read more of How to Become a Sage.

Cartoon courtesy of Rex May, alias Baloo

Paramhansa Nityananda was born in India in the latter part of the nineteenth century. The year of his birth is not known, but we do know that he was a young adult by 1900. In his early teens Nityananda (called Ram at that time) began to travel around India, spending quite some time in the Himalayas and in various holy places in the north of India. It is said that he even travelled to Singapore, Malaysia, and Japan. Around 1910, in northern Kerala he became known for his miraculous ways, but his major “revealing” was in the sacred city of Udipi in 1918. Not staying for long in any one place he wandered mostly in the south of India. In the 1920’s he began speaking from a exalted state of consciousness as devotees sat around him. These words were eventually collected and published in several languages, including English, under the title The Chidakasha Gita. In the mid-1930’s Nityananda settled in a jungle near Bombay called Ganeshpuri. There he remained for almost thirty years, until his mahasamadhi in 1961, becoming one of the most renowned spiritual figures of modern India.

The following are quotations from The Chidakasha Gita. The numbers refer to the sections where the quotations are found. I am including them in this book so you can see that Om Yoga is not just my idea, that it was taught by one of the greatest masters in the spiritual history of India.

The Chidakasha in the Head

The head is the ocean of ananda (joy). In it is situated the Prana Linga [the Chidakasha], the seat of liberation (mukti). (41)

Paramananda [the bliss of the Supreme] is experienced in the head. This state is eternal joy. This state is jivanmukti. (53)

The prana should enter the holy Brahmarandhra [the Chidakasha area]. Here the light of lights becomes visible to the divine eye. This is mukti. This is eternally supreme joy. This is the place where the manas [mind] ought to dwell; this is the eternal being whence the Vedas have sprung. This is seeing Paramatman in all; this is the real place of jivatman. (59)

Prana should be raised to Brahmarandhra, the highest point in the brain.…You should sit in the upper story and look around downwards. The buddhi’s place is above.…Just as we rock a child in a cradle, we should fix our attention in the head and examine what takes place there. Paramananda, Sadananda [the bliss of the Real] are there in the head. Shiva Linga is also in the head. (69)

If by the internal exercise of the sadhana which is with us, we lead the prana to the Brahmarandhra, and there if prana and Shiva are united, then we do not require anything. (85)

The climbing of the tree of peace which is in the head and being one with that “peace tree” is the real imperishable desirelessness.… Desirelessness is liberation from bondage in this very life. (89)

Our head is like a coconut fruit. In the coconut there is water and kernel. Likewise…

Read more of Nityananda’s Instructions on Om Meditation.

Answers to questions posed by our blog readers

Q:Since it is all a matter of our personal development, why do Masters come into the world at all?

A:The presence of a perfected being enables those who are ready to experience a more open state of spiritual awareness. Actually, such a person does in a sense “awaken” those who are capable of awakening. People are changed by encountering them if they are so inclined. Those who truly awake then listen to the teachings being given and follow them. The teachings of a real master are only minimally philosophical and theoretical. They teach practical ways for their hearers to gain realization for themselves. The last thing they want to do is start a religion. All master-teachers are yogis and so are their disciples. Theologians and “believers” are those that move into the station and live there, never taking the train. “Why, the kingdom of God has come on earth!” they say. And never get anywhere. But, as Jesus said: “They have their reward.” And to them he inquires: “Why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and DO NOT the things which I say?” It is in the DOING, not the “believing,” “trusting,” “hoping,” “obeying,” “dedicating”–no, not even “loving”–that we truly follow a Great One.