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Introduce yourselves at www.hradeckralove.cz. Today we have a rich program. We also have a talk about Śrī Śaṅkarācārya, about his life and his work. But since the evening is short and the talk is long, we will probably shorten it by half and continue at the next seminar. Then there would be āratī, and then we have Svāmījī’s instruction on DVD for practitioners. And then we will have the āratī and Svāmījī’s instruction on DVD for the practitioners. So, before we begin, here is Svāmījī’s instruction on the DVD for practitioners. Yesterday, we shared beautiful experiences that some of us had with Svāmījī. And I am aware that when we had finished, we had actually not finished. Because then people still came to me who said, "I also had something I wanted to share, but it was already too late for that." And I also received a response by email, which I would like to share with you. Saṅgītā from Hamburg wrote about her own experiences or insights. And she continued from what Kṛṣṇānandajī said about how, during that satsaṅg in 1987, he saw the light that goes to the interpreter. And Saṅgītā says that she saw the very same light two years later. It was in Pěštěny in the year 1989. There were 400 people there. Svāmījī was sitting on the stage. And in the midst of it, when Svāmījī was speaking, suddenly a great light appeared. And Sādhvī Indrapurī, who was sitting next to Saṅgītā at that time, also saw that light. But just as Kṛṣṇānandajī said, not everyone there saw it either. And the light spread more and more, until finally the entire hall was essentially illuminated for them. That is what I wanted to share with you. Thank you. Yesterday evening was wonderful. It was extraordinary. And I think we should repeat this perhaps in the next seminar, in the post-seminar. I think they could prepare themselves with experiences and insights. Well then, something different. To repeat that thought. So let us attune ourselves to Śrī Śaṅkarācārya, so that we may sing the bhajana, Citānanda Rūpa, Śivoham, Śivoham. This bhajana was composed by Śrī Śaṅkarācārya at the age of eight, when he first met his guru. It is one of the few bhajans that we have directly in Sanskrit. "I am consciousness itself, why live for the śruti, why not for the grāṇa, why the duality of vyāma, why the body’s bondage, I am the form of Cidānanda, Śivoham, Śivoham. Citānanda rūpaṁ, neither connected to prāṇa, nor having five sheaths, nor seven elements, nor five airs, nor hands and feet, nor the five senses. Is it the form of dānand, is it the form of dānand. Named viśrāga, namelubha moha, madh naivame naivamatsaryabhāva, neither dharma, nor chatu, nor kāma, nor mokṣa, Neither merit, nor sin, nor happiness, nor sorrow, neither mantra, nor pilgrimage, nor Veda, nor yoga. I am not the food, nor the eater of food; I am the form of perfect bliss, Śivoham, the form of perfect bliss, Śivoham. Death is not to be feared, suffering is not to be lamented; there is no mother, no kin, no friend, no guru, no disciple, no form of giving or taking, no illusion. nirvikalpa nirākāra-rūpa vibhārvyāpyā-sarvatra-sarvendriyāṇām sadāme samātvam na muktir na bandham." Let us slowly shift so that we can see the pictures, and perhaps sit closer if you need to. So Śrī Ādi Śaṅkarācārya is considered the incarnation of Lord Śiva. According to the Purāṇas, God Śiva incarnates in the Kali Yuga. It is the time when dharma declines, when the understanding of the Vedas declines. And when spirituality declines, then the Ācāryas come, thereby helping to restore dharma and spirituality once again. Śrī Śaṅkarācārya is regarded as the greatest philosopher in India, and indeed throughout the world. He is a proponent of Advaita Vedānta and a reformer of the Sannyāsin tradition. He was born during a time of decline in dharma and Hinduism. And despite his short life, he managed to accomplish a tremendous work and once again establish and strengthen dharma. His parents, Śaṅkarācārya's parents, came from a very respected Brāhmaṇical family. His father was named Śivaguru; he studied and taught the śāstras. His mother’s name was Āryambā. His family belongs to the Nambudiri brāhmaṇas. They are Brāhmaṇas from the state of Kerala, which is the state where Śrī Śaṅkarācārya was actually born. And these brāhmaṇas perform rituals in temples based on ancient tantric traditions. And these traditions are known only in Kerala. And in some temples where these brāhmaṇas serve here. They are known for their orthodoxy and, unlike most brāhmaṇas, they are more specialized in tantras than in mantras. They follow the ancient philosophy of Pūrva Mīmāṃsā, and most Brāhmins today follow Vedānta. The microphone. Janika, I will show you something about that Mīmāṃsā, you probably practice it, you probably remember it, at least something for sure. Mīmāṃsā means analysis, examination, understanding, investigation. Mīmāṃsā means analysis, discovering, understanding. It places emphasis on ritual and provides methods to understand the Vedas and rituals. It is a very ancient philosophical school, one of the six philosophies of Darśana. It actually means the original inquiry of Pūrva Mīmāṃsā. The most important duty of a person is considered to live according to dharma. The fundamental collections Ṛgveda, Yajurveda, Sāmaveda, and Atharvaveda. Then there are the Brāhmaṇas, Āraṇyakas, and Upaniṣads. Mīmāṃsā is concerned precisely with dealing with those saṁhitās, especially the Yajurveda. He is more engaged in the activity of karma, in the performance of ritual. And Vedānta is the end, the culmination of the Vedas. And that means the end of the Vedas. And every emphasis on knowledge. It is also called Uttara Mīmāṃsā, which means the higher, later teaching. It focuses on the Upaniṣads, which are essentially the final part of the Vedas. It is therefore concerned with the knowledge of jñāna. So Mīmāṃsā is the spiritual heritage that Śrī Śaṅkarācārya received by birth into this Brāhmaṇa family. These traditional brāhmaṇas have actually been engaged in Mīmāṃsā for many generations. Tomorrow we will return to our parents. It is said that the parents of Ādi Śaṅkarācārya were childless for a long time. And in the end, they decided to ask Lord Śiva for a son. They performed such worship as austerities for 48 days. With great devotion, they prayed to Lord Śiva. They ate only the fruits, roots, and leaves of the tree under which they were actually performing this austerity. Lord Śiva was pleased with their asceticism. He appeared to them. He asked whether they would prefer to have several sons who were less intelligent, or one son who was brilliant but would live a short life. And the parents were very humble, very devoted. And they said that they actually did not want to decide about it themselves, that they would leave the decision to him. And Lord Śiva was very pleased and said that he would be born as their son. So that’s how they went to the family. And when Śaṅkarācārya brings goodness, Ācārya means teacher and Ācārya means teacher. Spiritual presentation. The one who teaches by example. A highly learned person. It is actually a title, and this title was given to Śrī Śaṅkarācārya at the age of twelve. So Śrī Śaṅkarācārya was born in the village of Kalāḍi. It is there in South India, we see it. The exact date and place of his birth are not entirely certain. Some scholars indicate the eighth century CE, which is the view held by the majority of scholars. And others, mostly Indian scholars, speak of the year 509 BCE. Here, for this term, they give a date between June and July. The fifth day of light after the new moon. And the day ruled by snakes. Which would correspond to Lord Śiva. It is said that when the child was born, the sun stood still in the sky to look upon his face. Birds gathered around the house and sang hymns of praise. And the wind caressed him. The childhood of Śrī Śaṅkarācārya. When Śaṅkarācārya was still very young, his father passed away. At the age of five, he began studying the Vedas. He bestowed all with exceptional intellect, clear understanding, and precise pronunciation of the text. Everything he heard once, he immediately remembered. The second image relates to a story we probably know; I will repeat it here. Those who studied actually went for alms, as if they were dependent on alms. And the hosts felt greatly blessed to be able to give them some alms. And once Śrī Śaṅkarācārya came to the house where a very poor lady lived and asked for alms. She actually had nothing to give him. And in the end, she found a dry āmalaka fruit. And this I give. And I give it with a blessing. She said, "May your self-realization shine like āmalaka in your palms." That āmalaka, that fruit, is traditionally used as a metaphor for direct and unequivocal perception of reality. He gave a beautiful blessing to that. Śaṅkarācārya was moved by poverty and began to sing a hymn in praise of Śrī Mahālakṣmī. Mahālakṣmī appeared, there we see her in the picture. Śrī Śaṅkarācārya asks to provide the inhabitants with the means of livelihood. The goddess lets golden fruits rain down and grinds them for the house. And this prayer of Śrī Śaṅkarācārya, which he sang there, is called the prayer for the golden rain; it has eighteen verses, and it is actually his first poem, a Bhajan. Once, a group of learned brāhmaṇas visited the house of Śaṅkarācārya. They were deeply moved when they saw his intelligence and wisdom. They asked for his horoscope and said that he would be a great teacher and a great sannyāsī. But that he would die at the age of eight, or sixteen, or thirty-two. Before completing the eighth year, several witnesses visited the family. They were moved by the destiny of mother Śrī Śaṅkarācārya and the exceptional wisdom and erudition of Śrī Śaṅkarācārya, and they bless him that his age may be doubled. After eight years, Śrī Śaṅkarācārya completed his studies, and in fact, it was a study that does not require decades. So two years were enough for him. Śrī Śaṅkarācārya was very eager to become a sannyāsin. Naturally, his mother did not want to allow him to do so. There is a story passed down about how Śrī Śaṅkarācārya attained the fulfillment of his desire. Here we have the third picture. When he was eight years old, a crocodile caught his leg in the river. Śrī Śaṅkarācārya told his mother that if she allowed him to become a Sannyāsī, it would extend his life. Because, in fact, he would be embracing a new life. Of course, mother allowed me in that horror. And they found Śaṅkarācārya, who actually accepted āpat sannyāsa in this way. But that is sannyāsa in times of danger or severe illness. This sannyāsa is actually performed by the mother, the mother of the boy. This sannyāsa is such that if a person escapes from the situation they are in, from that illness or from that danger, it is thus assumed that afterwards, the person legitimately undergoes the three stages of sannyāsa, sannyāsikṣu. And if he does not come out of the given situation alive, he will earn merits for the next life. The story is that as soon as the mother agreed, the crocodile released Śrī Śaṅkarācārya’s leg. He transformed into a Gandharva, the celestial singer, and sang praises of Śrī Śaṅkarācārya before flying away. Śaṅkarācārya then left his mother in the care of relatives and promised to come at her final hour. And he also fulfilled this promise. He set out to find Guru Govindapāda, about whom he had heard, and received initiation. Actually, Śrī Śaṅkarācārya only saw that Govinda lived somewhere to the north of his village and that he had to cross the river Narmadā. So he had to walk through the jungle on foot. It was a demanding task, even for an adult, let alone for an eight-year-old child. This is a demonstration of perseverance in Kerala. Where could Śaṅkarācārya have gone? So, just in case you might not feel like practicing somewhere, we can remember all that he had to endure to attain his guru. And now we will let it go for a moment and look at his guru paramparā. The guru paramparā is essentially a tradition, or a lineage of gurus. And it is like a sturdy tree that we lean on and from which we grow. The Guru Paramparā of Śrī Śaṅkarācārya was also such a mighty and strong tree. The paramparā from Śrī Śaṅkarācārya was named Śrī Gauḍapādācārya. He is considered the first teacher of Vedānta philosophy in the Kali Yuga. And he is also the first historical representative of Advaita Vedānta. He is the author of a series of commentaries on the Upaniṣads. His commentaries on the Māṇḍūkya Upaniṣad, where he describes the hidden meaning of mantras, so these commentaries are considered the foundation of Vedānta philosophy. He explains here the concept of Māyā, that the world is actually just an illusion. Reality is Parabrahma, the divine being, the divine essence of all. Śrī Śaṅkarācārya also wrote commentaries on this work. And with Kāṇi, they read Gauḍapādācārya as if before their param guru. And also before the guru who revived Advaita Vedānta. Śrī Gauḍapādācārya also founded the first maṭha in the monastic community. And Śrī Śaṅkarācārya then continued in this tradition. It is said that Śrī Gauḍapādācārya renounced the world at a very young age and set out to seek spiritual wisdom. His inner voice guided him northward. Where in Badarikāśrama he received the grace of Lord Nārāyaṇa and the blessings of Maharṣi Vedavyāsa. And he beautifully received the blessing of the knowledge of Vedānta. And this knowledge was passed on to the man, Śrī Govinda Bhagavatpādācārya. Who was a great yogi and a great scholar. Once, they set out together on a pilgrimage to Kāśī. And on the way, they stopped by the river Narmadā. And there, in the caves on its shore, Govinda Bhagavatpādācārya and Śrama established themselves. Most of the time, he remained here in Samādhi. So after months of walking, Śrī Śaṅkarācārya came to the cave where Śrī Govinda resided. From inside the cave, Śrī Govindapāda asked Śrī Śaṅkarācārya who was standing there. Śrī Śaṅkarācārya introduced himself. He asked Śrī Govindapāda again. This time Śrī Śaṅkarācārya responded to those bhajans with Śivoham. At that time, Śrī Śaṅkarācārya responded to those bhajans with Śivoham. Actually, the bhajan we sing is a little different, or perhaps it is more like different versions of the same one. It is somewhat different from how we narrate it, because there may be various versions. And Śrī Govindapāda was introduced and presented as being introduced. He was initiated by the Guru Dīkṣā and Sannyāsa Dīkṣā. Śrī Śaṅkarācārya stayed with him for three years. And in fact, Śrī Govindapāda imparted to him the teaching of Advaita. After three years, Śrī Govindapāda sent Śrī Śaṅkarācārya to Kāśī. Kāśī is also called Vārāṇasī or Benares. It is an ancient city, a center of learning. Śrī Śaṅkarācārya lived here for four years. At that time, he was writing commentaries on the Upaniṣads and the Bhagavad Gītā. And at that time, there was the recitation of commentaries on the Upaniṣad and the Bhagavad Gītā, Brahma Sūtram. And in fact, his guru gave him a blessing and also bestowed upon him the blessing to lead learned discourses. At that time, Śrī Śaṅkarācārya was between 12 and 16 years old. The comments he wrote are highly valued. And to this day, everyone refers to them, both scientists and spiritual seekers. In the Czech edition by Mrs. Šáta, there are also many references to the report of Śrī Śaṅkarācārya. We have two pictures, showing my experiences and what happened there. Once, when Śrī Śaṅkarācārya was going to the Gaṅgā, he encountered what is called an untouchable person without caste. Accompanied by his wife and four dogs. Śrī Śaṅkarācārya asked him to clear the path, to make way. And the man smiled and said to him that he teaches Advaita, the philosophy of non-dualism, and thus teaches that all souls are identical with God. So how did you come to duality? Are you asking me to step aside? Do you mean this body or this ātman? Who is to renounce? Śrī Śaṅkarācārya immediately realized the truth that was hidden behind these words. And he sang a hymn in praise of Lord Śiva. It is said that the man transformed into Lord Śiva and blessed him. And those dogs represented the four Vedas. When Śrī Śaṅkarācārya was 16 years old, Ṛṣi Vyāsa, the third figure, appeared in the form of an old brāhmaṇa and inquired about the commentaries on the Brahma sūtras that Śrī Śaṅkarācārya was writing; they debated for several days. When Śrī Śaṅkarācārya realized that he was actually debating with Ṛṣi Vyāsa himself, he apologized to him for having argued. And Maharṣi Vyāsa told him that he fully agreed with his comments and blessed him. And I will also ask him to live for another 16 years. And he will spread the teaching of Advaita throughout the land. After several years spent in Kāśī, the disciple Śaṅkarācārya began to travel across India. He truly passed from his courtyard to theirs, these ones to the north. He was accompanied by a group of disciples and passed through many pilgrimage sites. It is also said that he visited the Kailāśa play, where he received five crystal Liṅgams from Lord Śiva. And Śiva also told him how to worship them. Śaṅkarācārya established [them] throughout India. And one of them, that was Yoga Liṅgam, he kept for his own use. And also for the followers in Kāñcī, where he settled for a time. Kāñcī is a town to the east, just a little bit above that. And if anyone here has been to South India with Svāmījī years ago, we also stayed there. It is said that Śaṅkarācārya attained final realization in Kāñcī. In Kāñcī, he also devoted himself to the reorganization of the Sannyāsin order. He established maṭhas, monastic centers. And the community of Sannyāsins Daśanāmi. It was for the protection of Vedic dharma, for the propagation of Advaita philosophy, and for the safeguarding of the sannyāsīs themselves. It is said that those maṭhas, those monasteries, were founded at the behest of their guru. It is said that he expressed this wish to him shortly before his departure from this world. And yesterday, Śrī Śaṅkarācārya established four kāṣṭhā centers, four maṭhas, one for each cardinal direction. We have it written down, we have it on the map. And then there was the fifth center, which he established precisely in Kāñcī. We are called Kāmakoṭī Pīṭha. And Pīṭha essentially means a sacred seat. Śrī Śaṅkarācārya became the head here and remained so until the end of his life. He established several such maṭhas, and these are actually the main centers. Many of them actually disappeared due to, for example, economic problems or political reasons. And those maṭhas became the core of the sannyāsī order. Śrī Śaṅkarācārya had four main disciples, to whom he entrusted the care of these maṭhas. So these are all the disciples, and now I will continue. We have one, two, two. So, Hastāmalakācārya. He was entrusted with the care of Govardhana Maṭha in Purī, which is to the right there. Hastāmalaka brought the poor Brāhmaṇa to Śrī Śaṅkarācārya. Half Brahmin brought Śrī Śaṅkarācārya to Śrī Śaṅkarācārya. Hastāmalaka was deaf and mute. Śrī Śaṅkarācārya asked who he was. The boy opened his mouth for the first time and said that this body is not mine; it is Paramātmā who is in my body. Śrī Śaṅkarācārya was very pleased and gave him the fruit of āmalaka. And he named the boy Hastāmalaka. Hasta means hand, and Āmalaka is like the āmalaka. You will recall that at the beginning I said that āmalaka symbolizes receptivity and a clear perception of reality. One version of the story says that he was not actually deaf and simply had no need to speak, nothing to say. Then there is Śrī Padmapādācārya. He was entrusted with Kālikāmaṭha in the west of India. It is said that Padmapāda was devoted to serving the guru. He did not attend the teaching. Once he washed the guru’s clothes and hung them to dry on a stone in the middle of the river. And suddenly the river flooded, and he was afraid that this object would dry out over time. So he decided to reach them by crossing the turbulent river. He knew that the blessing of the guru would save him. He began to walk on the water, and wherever he placed his foot, he laid down those lotuses. So the lotuses carried him, fulfilling their task. Therefore, he was given the name Padmapāda, Padma meaning lotus and Pāda meaning foot. And by the grace of the guru, which is also to receive all knowledge. Then comes Totaka Sureshvarācārya. He received Śāradāmaṭha or Śṛṅgerīmaṭha, which required Śṛṅgerī maṭha. It is in the south, and that is also the type of maṭha we need. Śrī Sureśvarācārya is also considered one of the most significant philosophers and great scholars. His birth name was Maṇḍana Miśra. And it is said that he debated for several days with Śrī Śaṅkarācārya because he also adhered to the Mīmāṃsā school. And after many days, he was finally defeated. And before that defeat, he says that if he is defeated, then he will be initiated and accept Śrī Śaṅkarācārya as his teacher. So he became a disciple. He is also the most prominent proponent of the teachings of Śrī Śaṅkarācārya. And his commentaries on Advaita are among the very best. Sureśvara means lord of the gods. It is a name for Lord Śiva, or for Brahmā or for Indra. Sureśvarācārya was the right hand of Śrī Śaṅkarācārya. And he was able to clearly and succinctly defend his teachings and explain them. It is said that Śrī Śaṅkarācārya once asked him to comment on one of his works. The students did not like it because they said that Śrī Sureśvarācārya was formerly a proponent of Mīmāṃsā, to write a separate work on Advaita. And this work is the oldest extant independent treatise on the commentaries of Śrī Śaṅkarācārya. He received Jyotir Maṭha in Badarikāśrama in the north. Originally, he was named Giri. He listened to the teachings, the discussions of the students, but never spoke. The other disciples thought he was foolish and beneath them. Once the disciples gathered, and the śiṣya-ācārya waited for Giri to arrive. Giri came and instead of the usual silence, he began to sing verses he had composed. The seekers were humbled and began to praise Giri. These verses are called Totaka and Aṣṭakam. Śrī Śaṅkarācārya then gives him the name Totakācārya. And Totaka means meter. Totaka means meter. They are four verses of twelve syllables each. Then the fifth, the most significant disciple. Śaṅkarācārya gave him initiation like to a little boy. And even as a small boy, he was appointed as a representative or successor in Kāñcī. Standing beside the boy was Śrī Sureśvara. Later, Śrī Sarvajñātmanācārya stood for many years at the head of Kāñcī Maṭha. He wrote commentaries on the Sūtrabhāṣya and many other works. At the time when Śaṅkarācārya was traveling with disciples, he was actually still very young, so perhaps that is why he is not counted among the main disciples. We always know that photograph or that image where Śaṅkarācārya is there with four disciples. And perhaps the reason why Śrī Śaṅkarācārya is always depicted with only four representatives is that Śrī Sarvajñātmanācārya was truly a small boy. Someone can be a representative of Maṭha if they were a representative of Maṭha in the first time of life, Brahmacārya. Śrī Śaṅkarācārya accepted sannyāsa directly during the period of Brahmacārya, actually still in childhood, and this tradition is essentially maintained here to this day. Even now, the unbroken tradition of Śaṅkarācārya remains alive. To this day, the tradition is never forgotten, and those who have never interrupted Brahmacārya continue it. Students who stood at the head of those maṭhas, those main centers, they actually became followers of Śrī Śaṅkarācārya. This system works to this day. And the ascetics of these paths are still called śaṅkarācāryas today. And they are revered as representatives of Śrī Śaṅkarācārya. So I would probably leave the rest for next time, it’s already three quarters past, and we wouldn’t have time to cover everything. So the continuation will be in 14 days at the seminar. You will go to Rembagvān, Kýče, Satagrudéva, Kýče.