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Praṇām Swāmījī, Hari Om, dear brothers and sisters. I welcome you to the first seminar of this year here in Strelka Ashram. From my heart, I thank Mahāprabhujī that we again have the possibility to meet our beloved Master. Cordially, we welcome you among us, dear Swāmījī. We also welcome Mahāmaṇḍaleśvar Śrī Svāmījī Vivek Purījī. White flower for the elders, and colorful for the young people. We would like to congratulate our Mahāmaṇḍaleśwar Swāmījī Vivek Purī Jī. Yesterday was exactly one year since he became a Mahāmaṇḍaleśwar, and we wish him all the best. Holī Gurujī used to say, "You have heard about the stone called paras. When you touch the iron, or the paras to iron, then that iron becomes gold." Paras doesn’t make the iron; paras makes the gold. And Gurudev makes the disciple as a Gurudev. So this is the difference between guru and parās. But it should be a disciple. One is a follower. One is a flower. And third is falling over. So it’s not easy to be a disciple. That’s it. So thank you, Mr. Om Prakash, and all the sannyāsīs, and all the brothers, sisters, and bhaktas of Mahāprabhujī. Yes, indeed, this is the first satsaṅg and first seminar in this year. This is really the first satsaṅg and the first seminar here in 2014. And, of course, time doesn’t make any difference. This is only for our material world, to keep things in order. That’s why we are counting the years. In reality, there is no time, beyond time and space, one without second. That divine consciousness, Brahma consciousness. But we are far from there still. So time calculation is made by ṛṣis. Therefore, of course, time is also very important for putting things in order. And that’s why it’s counted as a yuga, kalpa, vanmantra, etc., etc. Bhagavān Kṛṣṇa said in the Bhagavad Gītā, "Śāmbhavīm yugī yugī. In every yuga I come." Similarly, in every Satya Yuga, Śiva again manifests. So Viṣṇu comes often in the yugas. Brahmā is there. Balancing the creation, Śiva and the Śakti, they again come to manifest a new world. New positive consciousness and new energy in the creation. That is called Mahāpralaya, and in Mahāpralaya everything goes sleeping. We don’t know how Mahāpralaya will be. It can be a big earthquake. The earth will split. All will fall in, or a disease which can’t be controlled, or a flood, or the storm, or the fire. These are the five elements. In these five elements, such a strong power comes that, in time, everything is finished. So, how long will you play the theater on the podium or the stage of this world? Therefore, God is merciful, and He gives us a limited, counted time in human life so that you will not come into that disaster. It is full of pain and suffering. There is nothing and no one to be helped. But in one bhajan of Śrī Maṅgīlāljī, Mahāprabhujī’s disciple, he speaks very nicely about Mahāpralaya. What happens to the bhaktas? So before Mahāpralaya will take place, automatically by Guru Kṛpālā, all will merge, come to Brahman before Mahāpralaya will take place. And that Mahāpralaya then again begins a new Satya Yuga. Then again, Shiva and Shakti have to appear. That consciousness awakes as Shiva, and his consciousness is all around the entire universe. And that entire universe is called Śiva consciousness or Śiva Liṅgam. And so Śiva Liṅgam means the entire universe. And it is said everything is round, and within that, the Śakti means that positive energy, which we may say as health, pleasure, happiness, joy, unity, peace, love, kindness, balance. That is called Shakti, Shiva and Shakti. Do not misunderstand Śiva and Śakti with the genders. You are also Śiva and Śakti, it doesn’t matter if you are female. Or, it doesn’t matter if you are male; you are also Shiva and Shakti in oneness. When you are very tired, you can’t anymore. Then you say, "I have no more energy. I can’t anymore." You have still consciousness. Śiva is there. Then the doctor comes, gives you some bomb inside, glucose in your veins. Oh, thank you, now I feel better. So that was the Śakti. So we cannot separate Śiva and Śakti. So in that way, after this Mahāpralaya, it becomes Dundakar, which means everything is emptiness. It’s only like a fog, or smoke, or the light; we cannot explain and decide. But in that Mahāpralaya, it is a long, long time. It’s not only for one day. Don’t think that in one day we will suffer a little. That will last more than four yugas. And in that period, those who have negative energy, negative thinking, they have to suffer so long. Then again, from that śūnyakāśa comes Śiva-nāda, nāda-rūpa-parabrahma, saṅkha-nāda-like. From the... like when you step on the lasturum. Oṁ karvindu sayuktaṁ nityadāyanti yogina kaṁdhaṁ mokṣaṇaṁ tseva oṁ karāyināmodhamah. That nāda is the Oṁ. That comes from Pūrṇa. And today is Pūrṇimā, the full moon. Pūrṇamadaḥ, pūrṇamidaṃ, pūrṇāt, pūrṇasya, pūrṇamādhāya, pūrṇamevāvaśiṣyate. When there is a pūrṇa, there is nothing empty. Complete is complete. What comes from complete is complete. What you take out of the complete is complete. And that complete will ever be complete. God is perfect. And what creation comes out of God is also perfect. And that perfect is Pūrṇa. Therefore the Pūrṇimā today, full moon day, for this planet, for our earth, has a great, great meaning. Today, one should fast very strictly. In 44 years, in one thing I felt—in many things I passed, came through—but in one thing I felt I couldn’t become successful: to give the Europeans that they were really fasting according to the principles. There is no one, not a single disciple I found in the entire Western countries, who can fast properly. So here I felt, perhaps in next life I will try better. You cannot fast, or you cannot do the things, till you really do not feel in your heart and in your soul. Yes, they are fasting. I am fasting. It’s not solid, no problem, chocolate. It’s chocolate, that’s it. I tell you one example: in Islam, there’s coming many, many holidays also, and one, I think, fourth night or one month called Rosa. Very devoted believers or practitioners of Islam only eat or drink. First, they will see the moon and then. Between, even they do not swallow their own swallows. This year, there was one elderly lady, 98 years old, and she is a Muslim, and she was very ill, and they took her to the hospital, and the doctor wanted to give her infusions, glucose, and she said, "Careful, don’t put any foreign things in my body till Rosa is not over." They said, "Mother, you will die." She said, "What can happen more just than to die? But if I break these, my rules, principles, I don’t know how many lives I will suffer." The doctors and nurses were standing and listening to her. That means one understood something. Otherwise, today you practice yoga, then you practice some kind of, what they call, "Oh my God, what is that?" aerobics. Oh, this is also yoga. Then nowadays something comes with the pilates. And someone told me, I don’t know, I never saw what is the pilates. But in Australia, some man told me, "Gurudev, he’s just nothing, like in a nightclub." He used some words which I don’t want to tell you. So, everything is good. Okay. But it is the discipline and understanding of what life is. And what is my aim? So don’t break this. To be born as a human means not that you have completed your 8.4 million cycles of life. This is just given to you. Now, the chance: use it or lose it. So life is a journey, not a destination. And this journey should lead us to our destination in this life. Otherwise, again, the game is lost. The game is lost. You try to climb high on the rocks. It is hard work. But you did, and the last half meter before you could come up, the rope broke and you fell down. So, do not celebrate the day of your success. Wait till the sun sets. Don’t glorify your day. At the last minute, we can make such a big mistake that we lose all our spiritual work that we did over many, many years. Just look within thyself. What is yours? For what are you here? So this is pūrṇimā, pūrṇam. And it has no sense for me when I talk about pūrṇimā, it should not happen. But my blood pressure goes high. And then I surrender my bow, arch, I surrender my weapon, and say to Mahāprabhujī, "I failed in it." I would be one of the luckiest men in the entire universe, not in the world, if one of my European disciples would understand what the fasting means. All who are sitting left and right to me, orange and yellow, all. So it’s not easy. It is said that bhakti and the spiritual path is a path on the edge of a knife. Khaṇḍegī dhār. You are practicing yoga. Your yogī is khaṇḍegī dhār, the sharpness of the sword. Don’t take it too easy. It is said in the Purāṇas, you know the Purāṇas means very old, old scriptures: Vedas, Purāṇas, Upaniṣads. And it is said, from that which we have, one nice symbol: like this, like this, and like that. You know, all very good. We understand, but we are not capable to do. Therefore, Mahāpralaya time, which I pray to Mahāprabhujī that before that, as Maṅgīlālji said in his bhajan, that they will come to the Brahmalokas. So please understand. And of course there is one exception, and for that you have to work: if you have diabetes, or you are pregnant, or you are taking some medicine, you must eat something. This is an exception. And for that, on that fasting day, you must make 11 or 21 mālās more. And 21 mālās, and that must—how must you eat? Also, you should give to birds or other animals so that you could not follow this principle? Not that you don’t want, but this is something which you must do. So it is given, exception is given, but not for these healthy people. So, keeping Mauna and fasting, I failed it. So, maybe, or when I will die, my last minute of my life, Gurudev will ask me, "Mahesh, did you fulfill your mission?" I will say, "Yes, Lord, except two things that could bring the people," what means fasting, I think, and Mauna. So this is, you have to understand. Similarly, your yoga way, it is not a sport. It is not body building. It’s not a body culture. Even if you are a bodybuilder and have muscles like this, like a buffalo. One day we will put you under the earth or on the fire. How long will you keep this body? There were the great heroes. They are not existing anymore. You know, in Europe also you can see, you can see the beautiful statues sitting on the horse and how they are controlling the horse, and at the same time how heavy the weapon they have in their hand. And all we who are sitting here, I don’t see one person who can control such a strong energy of the horse and take this weapon in the hand. Consciously, so that is gone. Now, what are we? We are the plastic bag of the non-organic food. In our blood, we have plastic. In the lungs, we have a nice layer of plastic. So we don’t need plastic surgery anymore. No strength. When your nourishment has no strength, your body cannot have strength. So we have to search: is there something which has a life, in the energy, strength, that we can eat? So it means Mahāpralaya has begun already. All we are victims of many, many... Diseases, and nothing pure to eat, drink, or inhale. This has just begun, the torturing of oneself. So in the beginning, before the critical situation comes, we say, "Begin to practice." Not because you are teaching yoga for the money. Many are teaching because of the money. Many times, people are telling me, "Swāmījī, now we are in other times. Yoga in daily life is very simple." I say, "Yes, simple but powerful, simple but successful? No, we need something strong." One lady gave me one example. About seven years ago, we had a lecture in the Sydney ashram, and she was coming from the Paramahaṁsa Rāmakṛṣṇa institutions. She gave an example about how simplicity and ease make you successful, and she gave the example of the Second World War. So there were the three who were the main persons who were fighting. One was Hitler. The other was from Russia. What was his name? Stalin. And the third was from France or someone. No, no... America. Okay, doesn’t matter. And they met together, like always they did, in some clubs and restaurants, and said, "Oh, today you are the best one." You talk bad about me, but I give you one vodka, come over, drink. So they were sitting and discussing, "Who will be the winner in this war?" And there was a big villa, a nice swimming pool. Nice, big swimming pool, and they brought one fish. And they put fish in the water. And he said, "Whoever can catch this fish will be the winner." So, Mr. Hitler, he took the gun and he tried to shoot fish in the water. Was not successful. The other one, he said, I will catch. He jumped in and tried to catch fish. He couldn’t. For five hours, he failed. Then Stalin said, "Well, it’s very hard to be a successful winner." And they were drinking coffee. So he was sitting near the swimming pool, and with a spoon, he tried to throw the water out. And he said, "What are you doing? Are you crazy?" He said, "I’m not crazy. I’m going to win. What do you mean? I will catch the fish alive, and this is my technique: one by one, spoon the water out and eat it. Day by day, stone by stone, who sang this song?" That’s it. For the friends from Ašiši, if you understand and would like to be successful in this life, to come to the Brahmaloka, then yoga in life is perfect for you and your practitioners. And if you want to miss the chance, the poor one who comes to you will also be missing the chance. Yoga in their life is the blessings of Alakpurījī, Śiva, Devpurījī, Mahāprabhujī. It is not only the exercise, and this is not exercise in that way to build up your heart muscles, but it is a treatment: heart, body, mind, and soul—physical, mental, social, spiritual balance. So when I speak about... On Pūrṇimā day, then I sit and think, "I can’t swim to catch the fish. I swam through the whole Western world but didn’t find one who can understand one thing." So you have to come back again in this world, and it means still I didn’t complete. I also have to come, that’s it. If the ship goes down in the water, the captain also has to go down. So fasting is a principle, a discipline, and there is then given what one should not do, because fasting has a great effect on your physical health, your mental health, your spiritual health, your intellect, and your consciousness, and the best of the best, what you could do for your body to remove certain hidden illnesses like cancer. Treatment or prevention is the first thing. God gave us everything within our body. And that which is not good for the body, God gives certain energy and immunities in the body to remove those things, which you cannot remove through the antibiotic. And that is, the best is fasting. Fast for ten days, only water. Two months, only water, and then die. So you have to consult with your doctor or someone. And this fasting means your body is eating more than every day, but eating those restless energies, unnecessary energies, foreign bodies in our body, and all dead cells which are stuck somewhere. And before, 80, 90 years, 100 years ago, people were more disciplined and fasting and so on; they had less cancer. And nowadays, unfortunately, nearly every third person has cancer. So, fast. One Mahatma said that it’s not easy to master the ten senses, but two are very hard: the gender desires and the taste of the tongue. Very, very hard. Suddenly, the hand goes there, even if it’s very dark. So we are experts in these things. One king said, "If someone can bring me one goat, which goat has eaten enough and for ten minutes or half, five minutes, doesn’t want to eat anything. If one can bring to me such a goat, I will give half my kingdom." So many people agreed to become the king. So they brought their goats, which were eating the whole day. And then they brought it to the king. The stomach of the goat was like a drum. He said, "Your Highness, my goat is completely satisfied. Not hungry at all, can’t eat anymore." So he said, "Bring, please." And he had very nice green leaves. And he did like this, and the goat came and began to eat. He said, "Take your goat." So no one was capable, or no one could be successful, to bring one goat which would not immediately attack the eating again. So then one man trained his goat. When she had eaten enough and she saw something and wanted to eat, he would hit her on the mouth. It took some years, and then one day he fed his goat, and he brought it near the king. The king took the nice green branch of the tree, and he saw the goat, and at the same time the man was standing, he saw the goat. A little stick, and the goat didn’t eat, because the stick was there. That’s it. So we all need a stick of discipline, because definitely we were, in our last life, goats. Why not? Goats are good. It is said, how many goats’ meat you eat, that many times you have to become a goat. So, to understand and do something, and don’t be attached to your body. Of course, our body has desires. We have hunger, we have thirst, we are ill, we are healthy, we feel cold, we feel warm. We are not used to that, what we call Einstein. We had no dress, we would spend the time under the stones or the rocks. That was also time, so Satya Yuga times, but we are talking about the ṛṣis and so on, no? Now, in the film, they are nicely dressed and beautiful, and it comes: Śiva and Śakti, Pārvatī, Lakṣmī, and Satya Yuga creating. And I am wondering, was there so much makeup also? So nicely made up and everything, and dressed, and nails were nicely done, and there was nothing. Even the nails were longer, and it was going like this. But we create what we like, so Śiva is different than how we see. But we haven’t seen before, or we haven’t seen him or her at all, so we can believe like that. But now we know what the real picture of Mahāprabhujī and Gurujī is, so now we know. And if someone shows us some wrong picture and says, "This is Mahāprabhujī," we will say, "No, no, no," or, "Your Swāmījī." Doesn’t matter how he is. Therefore, Pūrṇa. We are coming from the Pūrṇa, from completeness. And we have to become Pūrṇa. But we have many layers of clouds over our soul. There are so many layers, we can’t come out. These are the karmic layers. These are different energies which come to our body, and that energy disrupts us. So there are certain meditation techniques. There is also one person who is giving meditation retreats. I don’t know what technique they call it; it’s called something, I’ve forgotten. And when he gives the seminar retreat, there are about a thousand people or five hundred or hundred, and you have to apply. Then they will send you the questions, and you have to fill in the answers. Then they will decide if they will accept you or not. So you are not talking with anyone, only computer letter to letter. And so many questions, even you don’t get so many questions to get a visa for some country. Then they said, "There is a fixed your sleeping place with one mat and one blanket on the floor." This place is only two square meters or something. Your eating place is fixed. Only you will sit there and eat. And your own medicine mat, āsan, and given place there, you should sit only. And keep the distance between two bodies at least one and a half meters, and not even mistakenly you touch someone’s body. Eating will be only this and this, and you have to get up at that time to that time and practice many, many things, if you agree. Then you send back, "I read, I understood, and my own decision, my responsibility. Please accept me." Then you go there, and so many people are waiting in the waiting list of his seminar. And really, the serious practitioners are going there. 99.8% of us will fail. We will not be accepted for his seminar. So the changing of the energy touched to somebody immediately brings a layer of his or her energy into your body. So, how many times would you touch someone? His or her energies have many layers on you. How many different kinds of nourishment you have had. So there are many, many experiences and feelings. All are in our body. It is said two are immortal now in this world. One is ātmā, and second is plastic. So this plastic we can’t destroy. And so that is in our body, in air, everywhere. So similarly, certain energy, going and talking and sitting with certain negative people who are against your path or your principles, that destroys your many, many years’ work. And if you have so many negative layers within your citta, your consciousness, then you can find out yourself very easily. It’s not difficult to find out. And that is, are you offended by some things? Are you angry? Are you greedy? Are you selfish? Are you negative? Are you talking negative words? The light will give the light. But if it is a red light on the filter, it will give the red light. Are you selfish? If someone tells you something, you explode like popcorn in a frying pan. This is your analysis to know who you are and how you are. So, my dear, who am I to declare you have many, many negative layers? Such a layer we can only purify by constantly remaining in that consciousness, like Gurujī said, "O Mahāprabhujī, please dwell in my eyesight. Nita nita prema mera adhika badi jo," day by day my devotion, my prayer, my love. It should grow, it should grow, it should not go down. It should not become less, increasing, it should not decrease. Sometimes it’s hard. Why? Sometimes it’s hard. Because suddenly that negative layer came up, then you don’t like this place, you don’t like these techniques, you don’t like these people, you don’t want this liking and disliking. That between is certain energy, so like it is said, like one fly. One man was preparing a sandal paste, which has a very good smell and a very, very nice fragrance. So the fly came and sat on that sandal paste, but she was not feeling pleasure. And suddenly, someone made dirt somewhere. A child made a toilet. And immediately, that fly flew onto the toilet. The fly which was sitting on the sandal paste flew to the dirt. Similarly, that person who has the very, very negative layers in the antakaraṇa will go away from real spirituality to the gossiping society. If you put a honey bee on the dirt, even if you put it in some vase and put the dirt and put this bee inside, she will die. Because her karma, her quality, is life was on the blood of flowers. Therefore, sometimes even if something is dear to you but negative, you must go away. And, of course, don’t think that you are not a divine person. Don’t say, "Mahāprabhujī is talking in me." There are some people who say, "I am born as a Mahāprabhujī." And one day, I went to Mahāprabhujī. Like this. Mahāprabhujī, what did you say? Mahāprabhujī said, what? Mahesh, I didn’t say anything. Calm down. But I said, this person is telling that you are talking in him. He said it is his ignorance, but they said, "You are incarnating in that." He said, "Yes. My bhajans incarnate in them." If they will follow, then it’s okay. So, my dear, don’t dream. It’s not easy; it’s like that. Often, I get emails: "Gurudev, now I’m pregnant. And I dreamt his holy Gurujī is incarnating; he is in my body." I said, yes, wait and see. I will come for the darśan. It’s not like that, my dear. Don’t dream, it harms you. Don’t make yourself in this way, that the other thinks that you are holy, but is it true? I speak what Mahāprabhujī spoke through the bhajans. I realize that, I feel that, and I realize it is good. And so I am talking to you. So Mahāprabhujī said, don’t be angry, be nice to all. Work to all. Mahāprabhujī said to Holī Gurujī, when Holī Gurujī took sannyās, "What is my duty? In which way can I serve you?" Mahāprabhujī said, "Serve the entire creation; that is a service to me." That’s it. And protect yourself from negativity. So when there are still many negative layers, other energy from some others, then some days you are good, then again you are angry or offended, or something like that. Tomorrow I will translate this bhajan from Swāmī Achal Dājī. The spot of the dirt that is so hard on your mind, fixed ideas, a naked gentleman, many, many lives you try to wash that, but you can’t remove that spot. What a terrible spot of some fat or something. I will translate, maybe tomorrow, if you remind me. Therefore, some people come here and say, "Well, it’s today’s full moon and Guruvār, we should fast." The other one said, "No, why not? We can fast at home. Here we paid money, so we must eat. How to take our money back?" That’s it. So you take your money into your stomach. Doesn’t matter, even if it’s poison. I paid for it. And there are some others who think differently. One man didn’t like medicine and doctors. And he was always talking bad about medicine and doctors. And one day he said to his friend, to whom he was talking very badly all the time, "Can you go with me to the doctor?" You? Yes, me. I realized something. Come, we must go to the doctor. So the doctor brought some medicine, and you have to pay, of course, a fee to the doctor. Then he went to the medical shop and bought the medicine. Then he went for a walk with his friend over the bridge, and you throw the medicine in the water. His friend said, "I think you are mentally not in order." He said, "I think I am perfect mentally." What do you mean? He said, "What do you mean? That I’m not mentally good. You talk bad about doctors. And now you went to him and you gave him money. You talk bad about medicine, but you bought the medicine. And how stupid you are, putting the medicine away. Why did you pay?" He said, "You know, my dear, because the doctor also has to live from something, so I begged only for that, that he get some money. Then why did you buy the medicine? The pharmacy must also live. Then why did you throw the medicine in the water? And why did you throw it into the water in the end?" Because I also want to live. Thank you. So you sing the bhajan, so webcast, Hari Om, tomorrow what time is it? Program begins tomorrow. What time, morning? My lecture. Okay, tomorrow’s webcast will be between 11 and 12. 11 a.m. till 12. Thank you.