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Om Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinaḥ, Sarve Santu Nirmayāḥ, Sarve Bhadrāṇi Paśyantu, Mā Kacchit Duhkha Bhāga Bhavet. Om Śāntiḥ Śāntiḥ Śāntiḥ... Sarve bhavantu sukhinaḥ. All should be happy. No one should be unhappy. No one should suffer, and also, Lord, I should also be happy. Peace, peace, peace. Good evening, blessed selves, dear spiritual seekers here and around the world who are with us through webcast. This divine blessing is coming to you, as our dear Sanjeevanī spoke, from Alachandria, Swami Madhavānanda Ashram, D.C., or Washington, America. America is very big. Welcome, and especially we are very happy, and I am very happy to introduce you to our very dear Swami Vivek Purī. At the Mahākumbh Melā in 2013, in the month of February in Allahabad, he received the initiation of Mahāmaṇḍaleśvar from Mahanirvani Akhada. I knew Swami Vivek Purī when he was 17 years old. Now you can see how old he is, how long we have known him. From the very beginning, he always had a very spiritual life and was searching. He is a very loyal, very disciplined, and very loving person to all people. So you can see, from 17 years, it means something from 1978-79. It’s a long time, no? At that time, he was a student, and he began to teach yoga at that age. He kept the science of yoga in daily life alive in his country, which was previously Yugoslavia—we call it ex-Yugoslavia—and he is from there. The beautiful country, which at that time was a province of Yugoslavia, is now called Croatia. Croatia is a beautiful country with more than a thousand kilometers of Adriatic coast, a blessed country with very nice soil and beautiful people. You know, everyone who wears a tie around your neck in the morning when you go to the office, mostly the men, this tie is invented by the Croatians. Yes, the original name is called Kravat. But then, after the French people, cowboys or boys, they used to have this one cloth, and they were tidying like this. And then the English came; because every day they had to tie here, they called it "tie." But in reality, the name is called Kravat. Kravat is coming from Kravatsia, Kravats. Anyhow, the second is one of the biggest and sweetest hearts. That is the symbol of the Kriveṣya. So if you go to the Kriveṣya or Kriveṣya embassy, as a souvenir they will give you one heart, lots of olives, and very, very good olive oil. So our dear Mahāmaṇḍaleśvar Swāmī Vivek Purī is coming from Kṛṣṇa Yoga. In daily life, many people think it is very simple and is boring. It depends on the teacher. Maybe the teacher is boring. Yoga in daily life, now you know, you had only two sessions with him this morning and this afternoon. And now you see the same exercises which you used to do, now you feel them differently, and you feel different in your physical body, in your energy body, and in your way of thinking. Last month, in March, there was a conference in the Czech Republic. Previously, there were two countries, Czechoslovakia. There was a scientific conference at the medical university and the sports university, at the medical clinic of our hospital, the University Hospital of Brno, where 135 doctors, physiotherapists, and psychologists were gathered, and they presented their papers for research on the effect of yoga, and especially yoga in daily life. They declared that this system is really a scientific system, what we call psychosomatic movements. The body is only made of five elements: water, earth, fire, air, and space. So when we leave this body, these elements will go and merge into their origin, that’s all. They will not die. Those elements are the mighty powers in our body. If any of them, one of those elements, tattvas, becomes a little less, we feel ill and we may die. So anamaya kośa, the body of nourishment, then comes manomaya kośa, the mental body. We all speak about mind, but no one has seen the mind. Mind, you can’t touch, you can’t see, you can’t hold. But the mind has such a great power over us, it is governing us, and we don’t know where it is. Maybe sitting somewhere else, or in this body. Where is the mind? But we know there is mind, mental body. The third is the prāṇa body: anamaya kośa, prāṇamaya kośa. Prāṇa is energy. Energy will never die. There are only three principles in the entire universe. The space is the body of the mother, the entire endless universe, endless. We don’t know where the beginning is and where the end is. That’s called the cosmic mother. That’s called the divine mother. And within that endless universe, or that cosmos, that is called cosmic consciousness. It means universal consciousness. We don’t say conscious universal. We don’t say "conscious cosmic." No, "cosmic consciousness." So, the consciousness is within the space. And this, what is in the space, that is called Hiraṇya Garbha. Hiraṇe means gold. Garbha is embryo, the golden embryo. That’s like an egg, a golden egg. And the third is called energy, śakti. So energy is that which maintains harmony, oneness, and balance between consciousness and the cosmic. And that is an energy body; that energy is prevailing in the whole universe and in the consciousness. That is our body. That is our energy. When you go, "Oh, I have no more power, I am energy-less. Can I have something to drink or eat?" What is in that? In that drink or in eating, there is energy inside. Again, supplementary, additionally, you get this energy. And with each and every breath, the ascending and descending breath process, is that cosmic mother nourishing her child as an individual soul. We inhale, we drink this milk from the cosmic mother. And we exhale, we reduce all the toxins. Therefore, prāṇa body, annamaya kośa and prāṇamaya kośa. Prana is that energy which we inhale, and apana is exhale. Apāna and prāṇa, these two are strong forces in order to maintain our good health, confidence, and our certainty to feel our presence. Prāṇa and apāna. Apāna is that force in the body which rejects all kinds of toxins and what the body doesn’t need anymore. If the apāna prāṇa is not in the body, our heart will not function, our liver will not function, our gallbladder will not function, and our pancreas will not function. The lungs will not function; the respiratory strength will not be there to exhale. Can you imagine that you can’t pass urine? Five hours, ten hours, one day, you have to run to the doctor. Otherwise, you can die. So, prāṇa, inhalation. Without food, we can stay a few weeks. Without water, we can stay a few days. But without prāṇa, without air, at most we can stay a few minutes. Not even a few minutes. Similarly, exhalation and inhalation are both balanced, and that is called a miracle, or the science of prāṇāyāma, or the breath techniques, breath practice, inhalation and exhalation. According to Rāja Yoga, there are many different kinds of yoga, but in reality, there is only one; it is called yoga. But they divided different Rāja Yoga, Jñāna Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, and Karma Yoga; these are four. According to the Bhagavad Gītā, if you read, there are 18 different kinds of yoga, because there are 18 chapters. Each chapter of the Bhagavad Gītā begins and ends with a title, like Athabhakti Yoga, Athagyāna Yoga, Sāṅkhya Yoga, etc. Haṭha Yoga is a sub-yoga. Hatha Yoga is a sub-yoga of Rāja Yoga. Hatha Yoga has six kriyas and is only for purification of the body, cleaning of the stomach. That’s what we call Śaṅkhaprakṣālana. If you can manage to do Śaṅkhaprakṣālana, I can tell you that 70% of your health will be better, if you have any health problem. And it’s done four times a year. You can do four times a week, but then there is a different way. You can do it, yes. This is the beginning of every season. Now it’s just the right time, in the springtime, to do our Sāṅkhya Prakṣaṇa. It’s not difficult, it’s very good. It’s a cleansing of the intense time. In such a way, with drinking a little warm water with a little salt, five exercises, drinking, doing this, it takes two hours, three hours. You are completely cleaned. It is wonderful. It’s a wonderful technique. It can cure many kinds of allergic diseases. It can cure many digestive problems. And it is the best prevention against cancer diseases. And it is also very good for changing the processes in the body. It’s cleaning, cleaning body and mind both. And energy, it will give immense energy. And of course, if you want to do it, let’s go. We can do it tomorrow. No problem. If you are ready. We have here a very expert Saṁskāraśālā, who can teach you, guide you to do it. Vivek Purī is here, and our dear Eva is here. She also knows. You know how to do Saṅkṣālan, no? Yes, she is very expert in this. She is very healthy, very good and healthy. You enjoy your eating afterward. That’s it. We are not living for eating. We are eating for living. But sometimes we are living for eating. When the food is tasty, we would like to eat a little more. Śaṅkh Prakṣālan. The Haṭha Yoga is not these āsanas what you are doing. In America, it is very, very misunderstood that we practice only haṭha yoga, and that means postures. That is not haṭha yoga. That is āsanas. That is Rāja Yoga. But if a blind one says this is a green, then let’s say, "Yes, it’s a green." But those who can see will say it is not green, it is yellow. This is that. So you don’t know anything about that, so anyone can present it under a different name, and you can say, "Oh yeah, this is that." Yoga is the science of body, mind, and consciousness to gain self-confidence and self-discipline. So, what in America the businessman says, the key to success is self-confidence. You have to develop your inner strength and confidence. Yes, I can. And that’s what Mahatma Gandhi used to say, be the change you want to see. And your president, in the first election, he used this logo: "Yes, we can." Change, no? That was a half slogan of Mahātmā Gandhījī, and the other half he completed this time. When he became, both times he used this sentence of powerful words. So prāṇa, body, is that prāṇa is for us like cement between two bricks. The cement between two bricks, which holds them together. So prāṇa is that which keeps all five elements together in our body to be healthy. And therefore, we have to take care about eating. What we eat is not only for our tongue, for our gums’ taste, but it should be food which has a lot of prāṇa. And it should be balanced food. So you should have some fruits also, you should have some greens also, you should have some grains also, you should have something, honey or something sweet also. Do not avoid sugar completely. Our brain needs fat and sugar both. Don’t avoid oil or ghee completely. Our brain needs ghee, and our brain needs a kind of sugar. If you don’t use ghee or fat, and you don’t eat sugar, okay, then the body will produce it itself. Then you will have very high cholesterol, you know. You are very thin, no kilos there, but your blood diagnosis is that you have very high, different kinds of fat in your body. This is the biggest mistake we do nowadays. The doctors and everyone say, don’t eat any fat. And due to this, the body is now producing. How shall the body produce fat when we don’t eat? Yes, the cow doesn’t eat fat in the field. She eats only salad. But in her milk, how much fat is ghee? How much is butter? So similarly, when you reduce the sweet completely, then diabetes will appear. Because then the body produces its own sugar, and our pancreas, which produces the insulin, the body does not accept anymore. And that is a disharmony between the pancreas and our digestive system or the tissues. They do not acknowledge, not that your pancreas doesn’t function. The pancreas puts out so much insulin, more and more and more. Or finally, we replace artificial insulin with injecting. The pancreas again begins to produce more than is exhausted. Pancreas then is exhausted, is tired. So yoga is that natural way which we have forgotten, and we are not doing. We lost the trust, and when we lost the trust, everything is lost. So, it doesn’t matter who designed your American money, the dollar. That’s written, "We trust in God." Yes. So, we should have trust in ourselves. They didn’t mean that we trust in the dollar. But now is the time that everyone trusts their dollar, not God. They don’t read properly what is written on it. They read only the number that is on it. Is it one dollar, or twenty, or fifty, or a hundred? So, how did you get your money? That God, you work and God gave you? You do trust that God will give everything. Who gave you the peak will give the food also. Who gave you the mouth and stomach? That one will give you eating too. Have confidence. So, prāṇa and apāna śakti. These both, they are two forces in the body, constantly giving the light of God or light of the Cosmic Mother energy, that is, recharging and reducing all the dead cells from the body. That is prāṇamaya kośa. These two kośas have to be purified. Which one? Annamaya kośa, body of nourishment, and prāṇamaya kośa, the body of the prāṇa, the energy. So this body, okay, we can purify through the Saṅkprakṣālana, Kunjala Kriyā, Netī Kriyā, Dautī Kriyā, Naulī Kriyā. These are the six techniques of Ḍāṭī Yoga. Neti, Dhauti, Basti, Nauli, Trāṭaka, Kapālabhāti, and Kapālabhāti. Six already: Netī, Dhautī, Naulī, Bastī, Trāṭak, and Kapālabhātī. Basti is the Saṅkṣālana. The basti was generally done so that you can suck the water through your anus and then pass it away. There are two mudrās: mūlabandha and aśvinī mudrā. Through Aśvinī Mudrā, you can suck the water, half a liter. It is like a vacuum. Yes, and you go to the toilet again. You pass it. And then they call it Vajrālī Mudrā. That is not so easy. Not so easy, but you can do it, and you can do it through your urinary system. You suck the water in. Yes, that’s it, and this is an exercise of the abdominal muscles, the lower muscles. When you have a good stomach, without layers and layers, you know. Then, if you see and put your stomach in, you see, like, two parts of the hemisphere from here, the lower stomach. You know, there are two parts. These two muscles, if you can nicely control them, you can suck the water, milk, oil through your urinary system. But that is not so easy; you have to practice long, long. But nowadays we are afraid to do it because all water is polluted. Even the tap water is not so good. Even you can’t trust the mineral water, and we don’t have so much distilled water. So, it’s good to do the Saṅkt Prakṣālana. Let’s go the easy way. So, the Annamaya Kośa, with pure eating, good eating, you can eat as much as you like. But you have to eat that quality of food, then we will not have a problem of gaining the kilos and losing, and gaining the kilos and losing. Nowadays, fast food and food is done in such a way that it develops a kind of taste that we like. But in reality, there is nothing. And there are so many chemicals that are growing and growing and growing in the body. In the body, there are so many gases that we have in our body. All tissues are filled with gases. And unnecessarily, we are carrying luggage with us. Some people have so many kilos, and when I put them on a flour diet and good diet, they lose 35 kilos. How do you feel? I can walk so quickly on the staircase, Swamiji, it’s so easy. I say, now take a 35-kilo suitcase and go up. How is it? It is a lot. So health is that which balances our energies, our everything, and then automatically you will feel inside self-confidence and happiness. After this comes manomaya kośa, the mind. The mind is that system in our body, that principle that takes all the information, collects information from our jñānendriyas, the senses of knowledge, whatever we receive through listening, through looking, through smelling, through taste, etc., through touch. These are the five Jñānendriyas: ears, eyes, nose, taste, and skin. Whatever we receive through this, the mind takes all information and brings it to a safe place. And that is called our subconsciousness. And then it goes one after the other, five from the whole day. Certain parts which are more intensive come back again with your memory, or dream, or your feeling, emotional, intellectual, or hate, or love, or sadness; it depends. Rest, they are pressed down to the unconscious level. So either they will be brought back sometimes again, or in the next life. What does that mean, the next life? As a destiny. So destiny, our bad luck or good luck, is the protection of our own actions. Actions, what we call karma. Actions we can do through four media. One is called tan. Tan means the body. Tan se, through the physical body. Whatever you do through the physical body, it is karma. And the Bhagavad Gītā said, if you do it, it will be counted as karma, and if you don’t do it, it will be counted as karma. The saw cuts both sides. On the road, some accident happened. You stop and call the doctor, and this you did. A good karma or bad karma, I don’t know. And you said, "Oh, I don’t care," and the person died. You didn’t do that, but that also became karma. If you would have done, the person could leave, or the doctor could have come. So, sorry, to do or not to do, both are there. So Krishna again said, "Krishna, Arjuna, better to do than not to do. But better to do, but before that, you should use your intellect." In your intellect, the cream, the cream of your intellect, is the intelligence, vivekā. Through discernment (viveka), you will perceive two things clearly: the precise nature of an action and the inevitable fruits of that action. When you see that the fruits are negative, you will refrain from acting. Conversely, you may now be experiencing good karma from actions you did not perform in this life. Thus, both action and inaction lead to karma. It is said that karma is a chain that binds you. One chain is made of iron—negative karma. The other is made of gold—positive karma. Both bind you; whether you do good or bad, you are still bound by action. Therefore, you must first transform your karma from iron into gold, and then renounce it. This means performing selfless duty without expectation of results. Through this, we can purify the immense karmas from past and present lives and free ourselves from negative destinies. When you have nothing—neither positive nor negative, neither the rājasic nor tāmasic guṇa—then you possess the sattvic guṇa. This sattvic quality will lead you to Brahmaloka, the divine world. The mind, the manomayakośa, is like a clerk in a lawyer's office. It carries letters from one lawyer to another, fetches files as ordered, and brings them to the court of justice. Who is the justice within us? It is Dharma Rāja, the lord of righteousness. We also have Yama Rāja, the king of death. For those with bad karma, the Yamas—messengers—come to take that person. Such a soul departs through the lower chakras. There is even a waiting list for naraka (hell), and the waiting itself is a torture. In naraka, the soul suffers pain. A soul becomes impoverished due to ambition, intellect, ego, jealousy, hatred, and careless actions. The soul exits through one of nine gates. Two are the anus and urethra; the soul descends to the lower loka if one dies in a bathroom or toilet. Destiny follows a law that no one can override. Even the lawmaker cannot repeal it. In any country, certain laws even the president cannot change. Similarly, the law of karma is decreed by the supreme court of Śiva. Neither Śiva, Brahmā, nor Viṣṇu can change it. However, the power to alter or forgive this law resides with the highest justice, the Supreme Court. This is expressed in the principle: mokṣa mūlaṁ gurur kṛpā (the root of liberation is the Guru's grace). That law can be changed, forgiven, or nullified by the fourth principle—the Guru principle, not a physical body but the highest reality. Śiva is not the physical universe; we create his form through imagination. Therefore: Guru-Brahmā, Guru-Viṣṇu, Guru-Devo-Maheśvara, Guru-Sākṣāt-Para-Brahmā—that is Para-Brahmā, the Supreme Absolute. The problem is our inflated ego. We operate with half-knowledge, which is more dangerous than no knowledge. Give a car key to a driver with only half-knowledge, and he becomes a danger. Someone with no knowledge won't even take the key. Similarly, a little yoga practice and scriptural reading lead some to proclaim, "I am the guru." Such a person is not a guru but a kangaroo, jumping about. Certain spiritual lineages are like that. You may get a nice apple, but it is claimed to be an ancient, superior variety. There is a difference between a horse, a donkey, and a mule. A mule, a hybrid, is used to carry heavy loads, like karmas, across the Himalayas. Many humans are born merely to work for money until they die, devoid of contentment, purpose, freedom, and happiness. The mind rules. It is very kind, but we do not give it time. Beyond the mind is the vijñānamaya kośa. Vijñāna means science; here, it means knowledge or intellect. We should use our given intellect wisely, without overthinking whether to act or not. Next comes the ānandamaya kośa. Ānanda means happiness, joy, and bliss. Among the five kośas, the ānandamaya kośa is described as the kāraṇa śarīra, the causal body—the body of causes. And what is that? It is the body of desires. The intellect is present, but desires are overpowering. We, the self, compromise with our intellect. But in quality, dharma, and cosmic law, there is no compromise. In supreme, cosmic justice, there is no compromise. No amount of prayer alters this. Even any incarnation who took birth had to undergo certain karmic suffering. Consider Jesus, whom we see as a great soul. His life was one of suffering; it was not easy. To be a disciple like Jesus is not easy. He wanted to give up, crying out, "Father, why me? I don’t want it, I can’t!" The Father said, "My son, because I trust you." That trust must be mutual. Though he struggled, he trusted the Father's words, the Master's words. Despite the suffering, he kept his trust. When trust is lost, everything is lost. It is like a beautiful building cracked by an earthquake. The earthquake represents blackmail, doubts, bad company (kuśaṅgas), negative societies, and drug abuse—subtle curses that can destroy us. But fortunate are those who awaken and declare, "No, I will work for it. I will give up, or I will overcome." Both possibilities and facilities are available to you. God gave us everything: certainty, self-confidence. Self-confidence can break rocks; it can melt them. That self-confidence, or love, is paramount. If the ānandamaya kośa is absent, you become depressed, unhappy. You feel life is senseless, hopeless. You find no joy in eating, going out, or talking. When your child approaches, you say, "Yes, child, I have no time, please give me peace." Your husband greets you; you reply, "Don’t talk to me." Your wife comes; you say, "Keep quiet." You ask your husband to feed the dog. You lose all motivation in life. There is motivation for karma as well. Everything exists either to draw you inward or outward—inward to Naraka Loka or the cycle of 8.4 million births, or outward to Brahma Loka. That is why God, or whatever higher power exists, prods us repeatedly to awaken. Do not lose your confidence. The day confidence is lost, we lose our way. We are plunged into darkness, without destination. Life is a journey, not a destination. Our journey should be comfortable and beautiful. Those who speak to you, whether good or bad, cannot accompany you. In the end, you must go alone. People can only carry you to the grave. If you ask them to join you, they will refuse. Similarly, there is a limit to how far others can go with you. Your dear ones can only come to the border. At the airport, only passengers with tickets and passports may proceed. Your parents stand and wave, but you go alone. So finally, you go alone. Who then accompanies you? Your good karma accompanies you. Your spiritual light, the motivation, the energy of the master, the blessings and goodwill of your parents—these go with you. The darkness... we shall call it by another name. These are the five kośas. If we keep them healthy and balanced, we have inner trust. When trust is lost, it is very hard to rebuild. If a dog bit you as a child, even at age 70, when a lone dog approaches, fear arises: "I hope it doesn't attack me." Here, "dog" symbolizes the mistrust from people who seek to abuse us. Where can we find love, certainty, and wisdom? Without self-confidence, we cannot even rise from our chair. If confidence is lost, all is lost. It is said this confidence should be in your kiśmat (destiny). Anyone can take something from your hand, but no one can take what is in your destiny; it belongs to you permanently. We should meditate, practice our mantra, and develop the self-confidence that says, "Yes, I can do it." There is a story for children. In a small village, children walked several kilometers to school. On the way was a hill. To ensure the children returned home on time, they were told ghosts and devils lived there. So after school, they would gather, count themselves, and run home together. One day, a boy was late buying nuts. He was alone as the sun set. A ghost appeared, threatened him, and took him to a cave sealed by a large rock. Inside was a large fire with a big cooking pot. The ghost said, "This is a devil's kitchen. I cook everyone I bring, but I like you. I won't kill you, but you must stay with me forever." The boy was sad but trapped. After some days, he befriended the ghost and asked where he went daily. The ghost said he attended meetings with Dharmarāja and Yamarāja. The boy asked if he could find out how long his own life would be. The ghost agreed and returned saying, "God said you have 80 years." The boy, only 16, was dismayed. He asked the ghost to request a shorter life. The ghost went again and returned, saying, "God cannot shorten or lengthen your life by even an hour." The boy then asked, "Can you ask God how long your life is?" The ghost found this interesting and agreed. He returned and said, "God said I have only a few hours left." The boy then took a large burning log and threatened to kill the ghost before his time, demanding he open the door. The frightened ghost complied, and the boy escaped. This story illustrates that our fear is the ghost, and our confidence is God. With confidence, no power can stop you. With fear, even an owl's hoot or a white tree in moonlight can seem like a ghost. Lack of confidence is fear. With confidence, there is no fear. Ādi Guru Bhagavān Śaṅkarācārya said clearly: You see a snake on the path. When you look closely or shine a light, you see it is only a rope. The visualization of a snake creates fear. Knowledge reveals the rope, and fear vanishes. Self-confidence exists where there is no fear. Many students fail exams due to fear; though they know the material, nervousness makes them forget. Those who sit without fear simply write what they know. Sometimes we need to feel that someone is constantly with us—that is confidence in God or Gurudev. You will then never fall into fear and will be successful. Develop certainty in your abilities, actions, and beliefs. When you attain realization, you see that prāṇa is merely an instrument. You now think you are the instrument, but it is prāṇa. That is why I borrowed this bhajan from Śaṅkarācārya today: Chidānanda rūpaḥ śivo’ham śivo’ham. A beautiful bhajan. Tomorrow, perhaps, I will translate more. It is truly very nice. Chidānanda rūpa, śivoham śivoham. Na puṇyaṁ na pāpam, na sakhyam na duḥkham, na māntro na tīrtha, na vedā na yajña. Chidānanda rūpam. When you rise above all fear and become certain you are the Ātmā, then everything is merely your tool. You finish your work and set the tool aside. Tomorrow, translation of these bhajans will come. For tonight, I wish you all the best. The website has been announced, so you will know when you can see the webcast and lecture from the Washington Ashram. Hare Om. Dīpānand Bhagavān. Kījā. Devaishwar Mahādeva. Kīja. Oṁ Śāntiḥ Śāntiḥ. Areyo.