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Part 1: The Glory of Satsaṅg: A Discourse from Jaipur on Ancient Wisdom and Indian Culture If food is sour, it should be so. That same amṛtatattva—that knowledge, that light—a portion of it certainly comes. That is why, when you eat that kheer in the morning, even if you take only a spoonful, as they say in English, it is not the quantity but the quality. So, the thing must be real. The person who receives that kheer is considered a fortunate one, and there is great development of intellect. One whose intellect is refined becomes one of good intellect. It is said that once Viśvāmitra had the thought, “I should obtain the status of Brahma Ṛṣi.” In those days, one could only receive it through the grace of kings and their gurus. Kevala rājāoṁ aura unake gurūoṁ se hī milatā thā. To Vasiṣṭha Muni jo haiṁ, ve Rājā Daśaratha, Sūryavaṁśa gurukula ke guru the, Bhagavān Rāma ke guru the. So Viśvāmitra nursed a great desire: “Let Vasiṣṭha Muni grant me the title of Brahma Ṛṣi.” Vasiṣṭha Muni did not give any answer. Then anger, which is the enemy of a person, arose. Krodha vah caura hai, hameṁ hamāre daravāje para hī lūṭa letā hai—krodhāgni, jñānāgni, havanāgni, virahāgni, cittāgni. A demon only drinks the blood of others, but anger drinks the blood of both oneself and others. Rākṣasa to kevala dūsrōṁ kā hī khūna pītā hai, lekina krodha svayaṁ kā aura dūsrōṁ kā, donoṁ kā khūna pītā hai. Therefore, one who renounces anger becomes greatly blessed. Isse liye jisane krodha tyāga diyā, vaha baṛā dhanya ho gayā. It is said that Viśvāmitra killed the sons of Vasiṣṭha Muni. There are many such incidents that show how great greed is. The father of sin is greed. So one day, on the night of Śarada Pūrṇimā, Vasiṣṭha Muni and his wife Arundhatī both went to attend a satsaṅga of some sages. Their hermitage was far from the gathering. After the satsaṅg ended late at night, Arundhatī and Vasiṣṭha Muni were returning together. Viśvāmitra learned that Vasiṣṭha Muni had gone to the satsaṅga and would come back by that very path. So he took up his bow and arrows and waited in ambush. Usa meṁ Viśvāmitra ko patā chalā ki Vashiṣṭa Muni satsaṅga meṁ gayā hai, aura isī rāste se vapasa āyegā, to tīra aura dhanuṣa lekara ke baiṭha gayā. His mind was resolved: “I will finish him off, because he is not giving me the status of Brahma Ṛṣi. I want to hear from his very mouth that he calls me Brahma Ṛṣi.” Lalaca, ambition, is very great; it utterly destroys a person. Vaha vyakti ko khatama kara detā hai. He says, “Dying is acceptable, but I will do one thing: whoever says that, I will throw a bomb, I will shut it down, I will die.” They know that I will die, yet I will kill the other. And we say, “Save me, save others—you will also be saved.” So, Vasiṣṭha Muni and Arundhatī were coming. The light of Śarada Pūrṇimā was very beautiful: neither hot nor cold, the atmosphere exceedingly pleasant. Arundhatī was saying to Vasiṣṭha Muni, “Ṛṣivara, today the light of the moon is so beautiful, so good.” Vasiṣṭha Muni replied, “Devī, today the light of this Śarata Pūrṇamā Candra is so pure, so pure, as if it were the Brahma Ṛṣi-ness of Viśvāmitra.” When Viśvāmitra heard this with his own ears—that Vasiṣṭha Muni was already considering him as a Brahma Ṛṣi—he was stunned. He threw away the bow and arrow, came out from where he was hiding, rushed to Vasiṣṭha Muni, and fell at his feet. “Forgive me, Vasiṣṭha Muni! This is what I wanted to hear from your mouth—that you would once call me Brahma Ṛṣi. And you never uttered a word of complaint. What I did, what I did—all my misdeeds—I did this, I did that, I did that…” He continued, “Vasiṣṭa Muni, Viśvāmitra kī he munivara, āpa ne mujha para bahuta kṛpā kī. Āpa kā koī krodha nahīṁ hai. Maiṁ āpa ko bāsaṭha hajāra varṣa kī merī tapasyā bheṇṭa karatā hūṅ. Itanī tapasyā kā jo bhī phala hai, Vasiṣṭha Muni meṁ āpa ko samarpaṇa karatā hūṁ.” So Vasiṣṭha Muni smiled, looked at him, and said, “O Ṛṣi, I will give you one minute of satsaṅga.” You will understand, one minute of satsaṅga. What is the benefit of going to satsaṅga? What do we gain? One minute. Upon hearing this, Viśvāmitra became heated. “You have done me an injustice! Why? I have offered you the penance of sixty-two thousand years, and you give me a moment of your satsaṅga? Is my tapasyā and this satsaṅga so different?” So, the muni said, “Let us ask the Lord.” He went to Lord Śiva. Lord Śiva said, “Go to Viṣṇu. Go to Brahmājī.” He went to Brahmājī. Brahmājī said, “Ask Nārada.” Nārada said, “Go to Viṣṇu.” So, Viṣṇu Bhagavān said, “I cannot answer this question. He will answer it—he will declare the truth about the difference between tapasyā and satsaṅga.” Both the sages then went to Śeṣanāga. Wherever Śeṣanāga was present, they joined their hands in prayer. Śeṣanāga Jī said, “Come. Aise ṛṣiyoṁ kā darśana āja mere lie bahuta hī śubha dina hai. Maiṁ to dhanya ho gayā. Maiṁ kyā karūṁ? Āpa kī sevā ke lie mere pāsa to kucha aisā hai nahīṁ. Aura mere to sira para pūrī pṛthvī kā bhāra hai. Maiṁ āpakī kaise, kyā sevā karūṁ?” To Viśvāmitra said, “Please give us the verdict: what is the difference between satsaṅg and tapasyā?” Śeṣanāga Jī said, “Tell me, what happened?” Viśvāmitra replied, “I gifted sixty-two thousand years of my tapasyā to him, and in return, he gives me one minute of satsaṅg. Maṁne 62,000 barasa kī tapasyā inako bheṇṭa kara dī, pūrā arpanā na mujhe eka minaṭa satsaṅga kā. Kyā maiṁ tumhe eka minaṭa detā hūṁ? Yeh to anyāya ho gayā.” So Śeṣanāga Jī said to Viśvāmitra, “Ṛṣi, āpako bahuta pranāma hai, ādara hai. Āpa aisā karo ki āpake savāla kā javāba maiṁ spaṣṭa dūṅgā, but what can I do? The earth is on top of my head. So if you do this, tell the earth to stop.” Then Viśvāmitra said, “This earth is the fruit of my sixty-two thousand years of penance. I have not yet given this ṛṣi completely. I give it to you. You wait a while.” With that, Śeṣanāga Jī closed his eyes, faced Vasiṣṭha, and said, “Vasiṣṭha Muni, tell me, what is the good fruit within you?” So Vasiṣṭha Muni said, “O Mother Earth, tell me, how much fruit is there in one minute of satsaṅg?” Eka dama thoḍī sī ūpara ho kara ke ruka gaī. Sesha Nāga jī, yugo-yugo se sira para bhāra lekar rahate the. Unhone apanī gardana ko thoḍā aisā hilāyā, yā thoḍā āsana kara diyā—Sarvāṇga āsana yoga meṁ vaise kara ke kahā, “Maiṁ to dhanya ho gayā āpa sabhī donoṁ ṛṣiyoṁ ke darśana kara ke.” Viśvāmitra Jī said, “Ke javāba do? Nā aba to nirṇaya de do. Ūpara chuī to rukī ho?” To Śeṣa Nāga Jī said, “Javāba to mila gayā nā, Mahārāja? Kivāsara? Bāraha hajāra varṣa kī tapasyā se pṛthvī nahīṁ rukī, lekina eka minaṭa satsaṅga se dekho, pṛthvī ruka gaī.” So it is said: thousands of theories, hundreds of tons of theories, are nothing compared with a gram of practice. Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters around the world, good evening. Blessings are coming to you from holy India. Beautiful city of Jaipur, Viśvadīpa Gurukula Āśrama. As you know, I have just arrived in India. In India, the climate is beautiful—neither hot nor cold. And many bhaktas, devotees, are waiting with the hope that I will come and hold a satsaṅga. I will be with you a few times through webcast. Bhārata, India, is unquestionably known as the cradle of culture. It is a holy land. If you believe in some incarnation or in holy saints, know that all incarnated in India. Why? That you have to ask yourself. It is the Divine Mother. There are many countries which you call by the name of the country, but there is one country which we call Bhārata Mātā. Do you call America Mātā or China Mātā? So around the whole world, one country which we know is called Bhārata Mātā. This Bhārata Mātā is that mother who gave birth to millions of great saints and countless divine incarnations. Someone has said, Kanyā kā hai Devī kī pratimā, baccā baccā Rāma hai. Imagine from which part of India she is—Rajasthan. Rajasthan is that place where even the stone of Rajasthan is holy, and you will find it in every temple. So here, sitting with us, is Sumitrā Siṅgha Jī. She has been elected many, many times as an MLA, and she also held a minister’s position. Today we are very fortunate that she visited our āśrama. She is a great learned person, and you know, I received an invitation to write something for the United Nations. That invitation concerns the problems women face around the world, how to protect them, and what is the position of women in our society or in our culture. Culture is present wherever humans are, and humans are present wherever culture is. Every human carries their culture around the world, and that culture, if we reflect deeply, originated from India. That is why India is known as the cradle of culture. I think our dear sister will give you more information about Indian culture and the culture of the Indian family system. Thank you. Sumitrā Siṅgha Jī, the floor is yours. Sumitrā Siṅgha Jī then spoke: “Bar3ā hai, āpa logoṁ ne kāphī kucha isa mahina meṁ, bar3ā hogā ki santa milanā Hari Kathā. Suta dārā aura Lakṣmī pāpī ke bhī ho. And hearing Hari’s stories—these two things are rare. As for the rest, wife, children, and wealth, everyone possesses them. Even a sinner has a wife and wealth. I once felt very good: in just an hour, or a half hour of good deeds, I met a saint who had committed many sins. So today we have met such a saint that we should say we will gain immense merit from meeting him. Mahārāja has written about Mātā, and I have read about Mātā. Just a little while ago, everyone was saying, ‘Bātrā Deva Bhāva, Pitṛ Deva Bhāva.’ In the Mahābhārata, it is written that during the years in the forest, when the Pāṇḍavas were wandering, once they grew very thirsty. Yudhiṣṭhira said, ‘Go, Nakula, you are the youngest; go and see if there is water, and bring some.’ He climbed a tree and saw that a little distance away, the chattering of birds could be heard and there was a grove of trees. Eka peṛa para caṛhake dekhā ki thoḍī dūra para pakṣiyōṁ kā kalarava sunāī de rahā hai, aura peṛoṁ kā jhurmuṭa hai. So Nakula went there and found a lake. From the lake a voice sounded: ‘Dekho, pānī pīne se pahle merī praśna kā javāba do. Varnā tuma zindā nahīṁ rahoge.’ So intense was his thirst that Nakula drank the water and fell lifeless. After him, Sahadeva was sent, then Arjuna was sent, then Bhīma was sent. Each went there, drank the water, and after drinking, each perished—all died. At last, Yudhiṣṭhira himself went. The same voice arose from the lake. The Yakṣa was not visible; the lake belonged to a Yakṣa, yet the Yakṣa remained unseen. Yudhiṣṭhira answered the questions and revived his brothers. What do we do to the earth? The earth does not utter any sound. Similarly, a mother bears so much for her children but never tells anyone, ‘I did this, I did that.’ She cleans the child’s filth and does everything for the child, yet remains silent. Thus, the entire gathering was blessed by these words of wisdom. Part 2: The Mother, the Father, and the Culture of Dharma I was asked many questions. Out of them, the first was about the mother, and the answer was that the mother is greater than the earth. I remember four of those questions that I liked very much. The second question was, “Who is higher than the sky?” The answer was that the father is higher than the sky, for the way a father takes care of his children is incomparable. Yet, what is the miracle? Your miracle is death. Sab ko mālūm hai ki ek din marnā hai, jānā hai is pṛthvī se. Lekin phir bhī jhūṭh bolne se, dagā dene se, aur pāpācār karne se, koī bhī manuṣya ghabrātā hai. Sab kartā hai. Ye jānte hain ki mere sāth kuch nahīṁ jānā hai. Everyone knows that one day we have to die, we have to leave this earth. Yet, by lying, cheating and committing sins, no person is afraid. Everyone does it. They know that nothing will go with them. But I want to die. And after dying, my name and fame will be erased. Even after that, why does one need all those things? Phir bhī, ye sab karte hain, to yah kyā hai? Maiṁ buḍhā ho gayā hūṁ. Yet if they still do all this, what is it? I have grown old. When I was speaking about the mother, I said that the mother is the first teacher of her child. She is the one who gives saṁskāras and looks after the child. That is why Jijābāī made Śivājī brave. He wrote many things that are eternal truths. But one thing he wrote – and Mahāmaṇḍaleśvar Jī, please forgive me, I speak according to my own understanding – one thing he wrote was: Karma pradhāna viśva racirākha, jo jasa karahu tasa phala cākhā. The world is founded on karma; as you do, so shall you taste the fruit. If you do good, you get good results; if you do bad, you get bad results. But I say, looking at today’s times, after winning elections nine times, looking at the world, I say: Artha pradhāna viśva raci rākhā – jo kuchh karo acchā phala pāo. A world built on wealth: whatever you do, you get good results. I say this because I am sorry. You stole money, you earned black money, and when caught you said, “Take it, brother, this is a tax theft of five crore rupees, take it.” No case, no problem – the money just goes away. You are driving a car, you meet with an accident, a man dies. You have a licence – yes, you do. You give five lakh rupees to someone and tell him to say that he was driving. Under section 304A, the maximum punishment is six months, and to date I have not heard of anyone being punished; it does not happen. So by giving five lakh rupees, nothing goes wrong for you: no case, acquitted. That is why I say that in this Kaliyuga, which is now running, this artha-pradhāna world is fixed. Whatever you do, you will get a good result. Although a Mahāmaṇḍaleśvar should not say such a thing, and he may not like what I am saying, I speak the truth. Mahāprabhujī kī karatā, Mahāprabhujī kī karatā he kevalam. This is our culture, our Indian culture, because of which we are still alive today. There was a time: Yatra nāryas tu pūjyante, ramante tatra devatāḥ. Our woman was so important, so respected, that in a country where women are honoured, the gods delight. There was so much respect for women. That is why Maitreyī and Gārgī could debate with the sages. But when the Mughals came, our women were no longer in the same state as before. Yet you saw how much of a goddess you are. First comes the name of a woman. After that come Rādhe Śyām, Rādhe Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa, Sītā Rām, Sītā Rām… In our Indian culture, I see that certain things are prescribed for the Sadgṛhastha, and what he should do is written in the Mahābhārata. Those householders who follow that – that is our culture. First of all, a person should take out time in his daily life, whether he chants mantras, worships someone or does meditation. If he is completely nāstika and does not wish to do any of this – neither meditation, nor pūjā, nor mantra-japa – then let him think for fifteen to twenty minutes in his mind: “Why did I come to this earth? What is my duty? Am I fulfilling my duty towards society? Am I fulfilling my duty towards my family? After all, what is it?” Even if he thinks this much, he will keep in mind, “What is my duty? I should fulfil my duty.” So this is the first thing. Secondly, knowledge is never complete. A person should keep studying until the last moment of life. Our books, our scriptures are the best companions, and the knowledge we get from them is not obtained by mere talk. So until the last moment of life, one should continue to study and be an entrepreneur so that his knowledge keeps increasing. After this, to keep the environment balanced and clean, we must feed the birds daily. These birds are of great use to us. Pariyavaran bhī śuddh hotā hai, hamārā pariyavaran aur in kā sab kā upyog hai. Jab hal calātā hai kisān, to āp dekho, uskī hal ke pīche pīche kitne sāre pakṣī, chote chote ciḍiyā̃ haiṁ, pakṣī, safedī, bagule, ye sab phirte haiṁ. Jamīn meṁ se jo chote moṭe kīṛe kīṭanu nikalte haiṁ, ye sab unko khāte haiṁ. To vo kisān ke baṛe upyogī jise kenā cāhiye. Jeev hai kabūtar kī havā, paralysis ko ṭhīk kartī hai. Kabūtar ke pankhon kī havā, kabūtar ko dānā, ise le to ḍāltā hai ki kabūtar sīdhā rahe to ye baṛe pakṣī dānā ḍālnā chāhiye. Phir gau kā unne baṛā mahatva batāyā ki vyakti ko apne jīvan ke andar gau pālnī chāhiye, kyūnki duniya mein amṛt kya hai? Gau dūdh amṛt hai. Isliye gāī bhī har ghar ko pālnī chāhiye. Phir āp se baṛā aur āp se jo vidvān hai, āpko pahle usse namaskār karnā chāhiye. Uske alavā, atithi devobhav hai. Āpke ghar mein jo vyakti āyā hai, vo āpkā atithi hai, aur vo devatā ke samān hai. The environment itself becomes pure; it, and these creatures, are useful to all. When the farmer ploughs, look, behind his plough how many birds – tiny sparrows, birds, snowy egrets, herons – all wander there. The small insects and worms that come out of the earth, all these birds eat them. So they are of great use to the farmer. The air from a pigeon’s wings is healing; it can cure paralysis. You should scatter grain for the pigeons, and large birds too should be fed. Then, the great importance of the cow was explained: a person should keep a cow in his life. What is nectar in the world? Cow’s milk is nectar. Therefore a cow should be kept in every home. Next, one who is greater than you, one who is learned – you should first bow to him. Further, Atithi Devo Bhavaḥ. The person who has come to your home is your guest, and he is like a god. Along with this, you should never think ill of any person, your neighbour or someone else; you should not think that it will be a loss or that something will happen. A person should be able to live like this. I think that these are all the features of Indian culture. Because of all this, our culture is said to be the guru of the world in the spiritual field. And these are our stories, because of which, even today, the identity of Bhāratavarṣa remains. That is why all those who have come from outside, they came and played. There are not twelve saṁskāras like ours, not six saṁskāras like ours – they have only two: either winter or a little heat. In Bhārat Deś, these fairs, these festivals happen nowhere else. They have just one festival, simply Baṛā Dīn, that is all. But we have Tīj, Kośī, Dīvālī, Holī – this is our culture. And because of this culture, Bhāratavarṣa even today, in its present form, has made its mark in the world. I am saying this to you, expressing it from my side. Now, for everyone’s information, our brahmacārī, Avatārpūrī Jī, will recite some Vedas. Śrī Gurubhyo Namaḥ, Hari Om Om. Gaṇānāṁ tvā Gaṇapatiṁ havāmahe, kaviṁ kavīnām upamaśravastamam, jyeṣṭharājaṁ brahmaṇām pata ā naḥ śṛṇvann ūtibhiḥ sīda sādanam. Śrī Mahāgaṇapataye Namaḥ. Prāṇo devī Sarasvatī vācāvir vācīnīvati dīnamāvittir, Śrīyavatu no divoprihatā parvatāda Sarasvatī yajñaṁ āgantām, Vāgdevye Namaḥ. Om Bhadraṁ Karṇebhiḥ Śṛṇuyāma Devāḥ, Bhadraṁ Paśyema Akṣabhir Yajatrāḥ, Sthirair Aṅgai Stuṣṭuvāṁsas Tanūbhiḥ, Vyaśema Devahitam Yadāyuḥ. Svasti Na Indro Vṛddhaśravāḥ, Svasti Naḥ Pūṣā Viśvavedāḥ, Svasti Nastārkṣyo Ariṣṭanemiḥ, Svasti No Bṛhaspatir Dadhātu. Paraprabhudīp Karatā Paraprabhudīp Karatā… Tare Nārudhāṁ Etatau Manusvarūpaṁ Gakāro Purvarūpaṁ Akāro Madhyamarūpaṁ Anusvāras Chandirūpaṁ Binduruttararūpaṁ Nādasandhānaṁ Saguṁ Mitasandhi Saishagaṇeśa Vidyāgaṇaka Ṛṣi Nichirudgāya Trichandha Śrīmagaṇapati Devatā Oṁ Gaṅgānapatim īḍāhe, ekadantāya vighnavināyakāya vakratuṇḍāya dhīmahi, tanno dantī pracodayāt. Ekadantaṁ caturhastaṁ pāśaṁ kṛṣṇājinadhāriṇam, nidhānaṁ vardhamānāṁ ca hastair vibhrāṇam, mūṣakadhvajaṁ raktaṁ lambodaraṁ śūrpakarṇakam. Raktavāsataṁ Raktakaṇṭhanul Pīṭhaṅgaṁ Raktapuṣpaisa Pūjitam Evam Dhyāyati Om Nityam Sayogiyoginām Varāḥ Namo Vratapati Namo Gaṇapati Namo Paramatipati Namaste Namaste Śūla Madurai Kadantai Vinnāśrī Śrī Suttai Śrī Vardha Mūrti Namāham Hetā Dātharvaśiṣāy Yodite Sabra Muguya E Kalpate Ssarva Vighnāyī Nābadhati Ssarvatra Sukhmedate Ssupañchi Mahāpāpād Pumuchate Ssayam Dhyāno Papo, papo bhavati sarvatra dhyāno bhavati. Dharmārtha kāmamokṣāṇ cāvindati yidam atharva śiṣyam śiṣyāyaṁ deyaṁ. Yo yidimoha dasati svapāpiyan bhavati śāstra vratanadeyaṁ kāmāvadite. Chaturthī amaraśrañjapati svīthyatharvaṇavākyam Brahma ādyavarṇam midyāravvaiti kadāchaneti. Samādha Vāṁ Vahuti, Oṁ Oḍhaka Sat Sre Nechati, Śivaṁ Citta Phalaṁ Mā Pnoti, Aśā Jī Samit Bhirjati, Sarvalāpati, Sarvaṁ Navati, Aṣṭo Brāhmaṇaṁ Samyak Brāhita, Sūrya Varcasvi Vahuti, Sūrya Graheman, Adhyāṁ Vrati, Mā Sannidho Vajapta, Siddha Mantro Vahuti, Mā Vijñāth, Praṇcīte Mātā Doṣāt, Praṇcīte Mātā Pārthivyāt, Praṇcīte Sarva Vidhvati, Sarva Vidhvati, Evam Veda Ittya Upaniṣad, Om Śāntiḥ Śāntiḥ Śāntiḥ, Hari Hari, Hari Hari,…