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Mantra is the key, meditation is the door

A spiritual discourse on meditation, mantra, and the path to liberation.

"Meditation is the key. The mantra is the key, meditation is the door."

"Vairāgya nahī̃ ho vairī binā satsaṅg. O my dear, you cannot realize the vairāgya without satsaṅg."

The lecturer delivers a teaching, using metaphors of keys, doors, and light to describe the journey inward through mantra and meditation into the śūnyākāśa (space of emptiness). He emphasizes the necessity of a burning spiritual desire and explains the crucial roles of viveka (discrimination) and vairāgya (detachment), illustrating the latter with a lengthy parable about a disciple whose attachment to his worldly life is tested by his Guru. The talk concludes with blessings for sincere practice.

Filming location: Strilky, Czech Republic

Śrīdīp Nārāyaṇa Bhagavān, Devīśvara Mahādeva, Dharmasamrāṭ Satguru Svāmīmādhvānandajī Bhagavān, Satyasanātana Dharmakī. Blessings of Mahāprabhujī to all of us. I wish you a very good afternoon, before noon. I do believe that you began your anuṣṭhāna sādhanā and that you enjoy your meditation. Meditation is the key. The mantra is the key, meditation is the door. To enter into that śūnyākāśa, and when we go further in it, we need that light of guidance, like a torchlight to walk through the darkness. When we enter into śūnyākāśa, then there is—how to say—now you have no direction there, because you don't know; there is no more guideline of east, west, north, south, above and below. That's why it's called śūnyākāśa. Now, if you are driving on the right side or the left side, you don't know. At that time, the meditation, if it is a meditation, what we call it, has a torchlight or a light path. And that light path will guide us, but still, it depends on you. There are different vṛttis that will always try to push you out of the door where you entered, and then push you again back to the saṃsāras, the world. Therefore, for meditation, the first is your personal mantra. Different kinds of mantras, they all are good mantras. Gāyatrī mantra, peace mantra, Mahāmṛtyuñjaya mantra, etc. There are many, many mantras which are very good. But our key is our own mantra. So, this is the first. Second, that your need, your desire towards your spiritual path or development, constantly directs you to the end. Like an ambulance, when there is a serious patient inside, it is between life and death. At that time, the ambulance has all rights. Then there are no rules of the right way or the wrong way. The driver has instructions. It doesn't matter through which road. Bring the patient as quickly as possible to the hospital. Similarly, when one has the target, spiritual achievement, to make this jīva free, liberated, then it is said, "Milta hai sacca sukha kival bhagvan tumhari charno me," the real happiness is in thy lotus feet, O Lord. And to reach that point, I don't care, even if I have to walk on thorns. You don't know what it means to walk on the thorns. Even we can't walk on the gravel, the stones. Can you imagine the thorns? If a tiger is running behind you, and there are a lot of thorns, will you remain there and think that you don't care, or try to rescue yourself? So there's a tiger of these worldly desires, the ghost of ignorance, and our negative thoughts that are behind us. Even I have to walk through the fire, and not only this. Death may become a rope around my neck. And even I have to leave my country, because these are all temporary. This temporary joy will suffer this soul many, many lives. Then we will be sorry. Such a clear decision, that's called a burning desire. That time, the key which you have in your hand, the mantra, opens the door to the wide horizon. But in śūnyākāś, we don't know directly now where we are. At that time there are two apavarga or the svarga. There are two streams. Upwork is down. Again, to those lives, from those creatures, there is nothing but only suffering. Svarga is that, which you may call heaven. But svarga is something more than heaven. They call it Vaikuṇṭha. But Vaikuṇṭha is still not that one which is the Brahmaloka. And so our jīvātmā is always facing toward the brahma-loka, where we put a seed in the ground. That seed grows toward the sunlight. A sprout breaks through the earth. It has strength. We think it is very gentle. It is not very gentle. It breaks through the rocks. That is the will. The will of life, the will to live. And will to achieve, it goes towards the sun. Every branch, every leaf of that plant looks towards the sun. When we put a candle flame or any flame, it goes upward to the origin of fire, the tattva, the sun. Flame doesn't go down, except an electric bulb, you can hang it like this, which is not natural. So everything is facing in that direction where the sun is. But in the same way, this jīvātmā is facing in the direction towards Brahman. Even in animal life, this jīvātmā has that one desire. But we kill our jīvātmā's desire because we are the slave of the material body's desire. We will be sorry. Many, many lives we suffered, and we have ahead many, many lives or yugas and yugas, ages and ages to suffer. Whether we believe or not, belief does not change the reality. Víra nijak nemění skutečnost. And so we got one of the most precious chances, that we will be born as a human. Dostali jsme drahocenou příležitost tím, že jsme se narodili jako lidé. And for that, you have to get this path. A k tomu máte tuto cestu. Therefore, in this subject, two points are very important: vairāgya and tyāga. Mahāprabhujī said in one bhajan, "Vairāgya konī hovere binasa tsaṅ, vairāgya nahī hovere binasa tsaṅ, binasa tsaṅ nahī lage hari ko raṅg, bina satsaṅg nahī lage hari ko raṅg." Vairāgya nahī̃ ho vairī binā satsaṅg. ... O my dear, you cannot realize the vairāgya without satsaṅg. And without satsaṅg, you can't get that color of Lord God, meaning that bhakti. And whatever bhakti you have, you may have lost it in the kusaṅga. Oh, my mind, you lost everything in bad societies. Don't. Follow your mind, this I explained to you yesterday, day before yesterday. So man is greedy. Man is tricky. Man is restless, and man is always changing. Man ke matena chaliye. Don't follow your mind. Gadī pālakamān or always his others. So vairāgya. This is the second point of the jñāna yoga. The first practice is called viveka. Viveka is very pure knowledge. Viveka is a lemon. One drop in the milk and it divides water one side and paneer one side. And we throw the water away, and we enjoy the paneer. That is, it means Viveka will say finally, "Kalī brahma satya, jagat mithyā," that Brahman is the truth, all is unreality. But how to do? Attachment. Attachment is that which is pulling you back. It gives you little freedom and pulls you back. You know, now dogs have some kind of chain or rope. So it goes to about ten meters, and the dog thinks, "Oh, I am free now." And after ten meters, it pulls you back again. This is our condition. You make little steps toward freedom and spirituality, and then your attachments pull you back again. You say, "Oh, it's painful." He says, "Yes, then stay here." Even if it's painful, you have to take a lot of trouble. But that desire is out of your capacity. Vairāgya. I remember now a beautiful story. Gurujī was telling many times, and it was very nice. Guruji was telling with full of masalas. Always, people were laughing, full of the stomach. When they came home, they said, "Oh, my stomach has sore muscles." Because Gurujī told such nice things, but directly. So language is always joy. When you use your own language, how you enjoy to make a joke or this and that, you feel more comfortable. And you accept this, you accept that. Is it clear to you? But with a foreign language, it doesn't matter how clear it is. And at home, you will speak your mother language, your dialect. Best language. Well, the story is very peculiar. Or should I say evening? So we can talk further about tyāga. So, vairāgya and tyāga. Tyāga is renunciation, and vairāgya is detachment. We can renounce, but we can't cut that detachment. Please, nobody should mind if I tell something, and this is not—I'm not mentioning these persons who talk to me—but one person was in love with some man, so they were both good friends. But sometimes there comes a rock on the path, or an island, so it's separated. So that man found some other woman, or a girl, it doesn't matter, females. And the new broom cleans the scooter. For a time being. So they went about thousands of kilometers overseas. And lost their addresses. Neither this person knows where you are, nor does that one know you. After 25 years, the sleeping giant of desire, oh, remembering, again that memory comes back, and one is very unhappy. Now, some ways, thanks to technology, some ways not good, nowadays there is something called Facebook. I always look in my mirror, my face is not a book. Everybody is talking about Facebook. Again, I go to the mirror. No book in my face. And the person found it. One of them was so happy and tried to get in touch. The other one was also happy. And now one is traveling a four-day journey by aeroplane. You know all about what you are doing, people to meet, your friends. And they meet. A person came to face the other person from the airport. But in two days, there was quarrelling, and it's not possible for what you came. Disappointment is more painful. Expectation leads to disappointment. Still can't forget. So tyāga means to forget those vṛttis in our unconscious level, then subconscious level, then conscious, then higher conscious, then we are free to go to the superconscious. We will forgive, but we will not forget within that burning desire, and that is what we call moha, attachment. So attachment is like a piece of pizza where you cut it, the cheese is going longer and longer. You will suffer again and again, so let me begin the story again. So there was one rich man. At that time, he was called the richest one. When one has one million, it's called a millionaire. And there was a time in Italy when everyone was a billionaire. Italian lira. My God. And in our language, lihra means everything is by some dog tear to your dress. That's called lihra. But that is the language. They had only one son. And we have a very good saying in India. This saying has a great, great knowledge. Putra sā putra tokya dhan sañche, or putra kā putra tokya dhan sañche. Sorry. Putra sa putra tokya dhan sanche. If your children are good, capable, then, for what are you saving money and properties for them? Because they will manage themselves. Putra sā putra to kyā dhan sañche? Putra kā putra to kyā dhan sañce? If your children are not capable and out of your hands, kuśaṅgas, addictions, then why are you collecting your wealth with hard work? You collect, but they will destroy it. So in both ways, for what you are doing, anyone can take money from their hands, but not from your kismet. So give the children that kind of saṃskāras. Through those saṃskāras, they will be great. But that son, he had good saṃskāras. The parents were very materialistic, and the boy was very spiritually inclined. Sometimes that is also not good. You have to balance the family life, social life. So, outside of the village, about two kilometers far, his Gurujī had a big āśram, about three hundred square meters, all in all. That I was enough. So every day that young man used to go to the ashram. He would get up in the morning, wash himself, have breakfast, and go. Evening comes at 12 o'clock, 1 o'clock, and sometimes not. Parents are alone, they have beautiful two buildings. Now he is about 24, so parents ask something. He said, "Well, I am grown enough." My dear, you are never grown enough in front of your parents. Even if you are a president, the president, for your mother and father you are that one who has a fresh nappy now. First, God, Mata, Pita, Matri, Bhava, Devo Pita, Devo, Bhava. And now, what are children telling you? Das ist nicht mein Kaffee. Ich will tun, was ich will. To se mi nelíbí a já si to udělám po svému. Ich möchte. Já to tak chci, chci to jinak. If I would say, "My father, I want." Kdybych já řekl svému tatinkovi, já to tak chci. Then he gives me that, "This you want." Tak by mi řekl, "A tohle taky chceš." So that is the love and education of the parents. Čili jde o lásku a o výchovu rodičů. Parents were unhappy. The parents were unhappy. What to do? So some guest came, and he expresses the sorrows of their son. They said, "I have a treatment for that. Yes, you are the best one." Please, we are getting old, and we have sorrows. What will this boy do? And look, big, beautiful buildings, a lot of money, nothing is missing. Why does he not enjoy this? Why is he just sitting there in the ashram, blooming and cooking and so on? What does he say, the boy? He said, "I am very happy." I'm very happy. I'm happy with you, I'm happy with them. So the guest told him, the couple, that only one treatment, then he will not go there. Occasionally, he will go. What is that? Marry him. Find a good girl. And because he's a very rich businessman, who doesn't want to marry? In America, many people are going and searching for some elderly person to fall in love with. And give that man unhealthy food. But they ask, "Have you children?" and these and all documents, checks. So you know that. So very nice, beautiful, intelligent, good, educated, one girl. We call her Lakṣmī. When the married young daughter-in-law comes in our house, Mother-in-law makes praṭhanā, prayer, pūjā, and tilak, and tells, "Please enter in your house. You will be the head of the house." So, every woman is now a home minister. And the father is a foreign minister. Work and bring money. No right to say anything in home. So when a man comes home, if you want to be happy, peacefully sit in some corner and read your newspaper. Don't pray. That is the constitution. Man can think whatever he wants to think. Můž si může myslet, cokoliv chce, a má plné právo si to myslet. Čili muž je hlava a žena je krk. Hlava nemůže říkat ano nebo ne bez krku. You said immediately, "Yes, yes, yes." But who is saying yes? She is saying yes. She cannot nod in agreement. Kdo to totiž kývá? Jedině krk. Therefore, keep your neck healthy. So they married him. He was happy. Okay. But Niyama, Śayamā, Atta, Yoga, Anuśāsā, Nām. So he had his Niyama, his rules, his principles. Morning, get up at four o'clock, wash himself, do his yoga in daily life, prayers, yes. Now the new woman, newly married, she was preparing a nice breakfast, so he ate the breakfast, left his plates there, and went into the ashram. Sometimes they come at twelve o'clock, sometimes at four o'clock, sometimes they are not coming. Same rhythm. Parents were unhappy. Again, the same guest came. So the parents asked, "Dear Premanenjī, what can we do?" He said, "Well, this problem can only be solved by your daughter-in-law." But she is also in a problem. Give her free hands. Permanent treatment will be. Like go and lie down on the bed and give the doctors, let them give the anesthesiologist, and let the doctor take your body into the operation theater. Perfect operation, everything taken out and needed, and bring you back. Go home next day. Dokonalá operace, všechno, co potřebuje ven, vám. Vyndají a vrátíte se druhý den domů. So Prema Nanjī said, only she knows how to make operation. A Prema Nanjī řekl, jedině ta jeho manželka ví, jak na takovou operaci. So, in India, we call them hatha yoga, bhal hatha, and triya hatha and yoga. So tria-hat and tria-carita, these are two things. Well, the old couple, or parents-in-law, called her. And she was nice to see them, and they were nice to her. But they said, "My daughter," the father said, "we are very sad." Especially for you, we feel guilty. Your parents married in this house. And your husband doesn't care at all. She said, "Father, no problem. What can be greater than this, that he goes in the ashram and śavāsana? But this is the best chance for human life." Mother-in-law tells her, in dialect, to her husband. I think she's also infected, so father said, "What to do?" She said, "Let me talk." In our Indian system, at home, the last final word is the mother's word. Yes, that must be respect. Grandfather and grandmother are still living, then the final word is grandmother's. And we children accept it with great joy, and mother. You see, sometimes people are talking so much about the Middle East woman problem. In my opinion, only a few have problems, but you see, in Islam and in Middle Eastern people, they have a great respect and love for the mothers and everything, really, and the men automatically obey them, they follow them, go. And see their countryside, not these few troublemakers. So around the whole world, mother is a mother, and we have to listen, except she is not in a normal condition mentally. So she told her, "This and this is not good, and you know, my dear, if we die, you will be alone." So, woman talks to woman, and then they said, "Oh, yes." So the young girl, the daughter-in-law, said, "Mother, what should I do?" My daughter, you know how to do it. I only told you. And you have a hand free. Okay, Mother. Day after tomorrow, he will not go to the ashram anymore. That is the plan, no? Beautiful, perfect plan. That's called the master brain of the grandmother. Well, that evening, her husband, the young boy, the man, arrived at 1:30. And what did she do? She left one window open. And one part of the window, throw it out and unlocked the door. The sleeping room is open, and she's sitting somewhere in the corner. When she heard that he was coming, she was shivering and crying. You know, you are doing open, no? He said, "What happened to you, darling?" She said, "Why did you marry me?" You don't care about anything. Is it better for me to die? He said, "But what happened? Don't ask me what happened." It will not happen if you would be here, but what? She said, "Whatever happened, I can't leave anymore." You know, my dear, when I don't see you, My prāṇa goes out. I love you so much. If without you, I will die. I will not go anymore. Thank you. You know, at midnight, at night, someone comes, runs, breaks my door, and this, nobody is here to protect me. 24 hours, I will be here. Don't worry. And now the Gurujī is sitting, he will come, he will come. Door of my heart, open wide I keep for thee. Open wide, wilt thou come just for one? Wilt thou come day by day without seeing, night and day, night and day? Well, he said to his wife, I thought Gurujī would give me mokṣa, and you also, but I think he taught me good things. Now I stay here. Guru Pūrṇimā came. Of course. Love never dies, like that story. So again, on Guru Pūrṇimā, the devotion awoke to go to Gurujī. Guruji said, "You did come so many days." He said, "Gurudeva, what can I tell you?" Your daughter, we always call your daughter. He said, "What do you mean, my daughter? Yes, you know whom I mean." He said, "Yes, my daughter-in-law, her name. What is the problem?" Gurudeva, accept the mala, flowers, chakras, and bed quickly. Because if you stay longer, she will die. She will not die. I tell you, Guruji, I tell you. No, Guruji, I have to go. Gurujī said, "I know your attachment." I taught you samādhi, nirvikalpa, savikalpa, both samādhis. Savikalpa samādhi is when the body is like dead. Because your cetanā is in sahasrāra cakra and ājñā cakra. Anytime you can again come into the body. And nirvikalpa, there is no more sign of knowledge from outside. Someone calls sabīja-samādhi, nirbīja-samādhi. So after ten days, Morning at breakfast time, when your wife is preparing breakfast, And tells you to come and have breakfast. At that time, you should say, "I have a stomach problem," and fall down near the pillar of your veranda, and make sure that you knock your legs, cross your legs around the pillar. And go to Savikalpa Samādhi. And she was saying, "What theater are you doing?" Why do you put your legs down there? This is not a yoga ashram. It's a grasta ashram, and he fell down. She comes, she touches his head, and he died. She was thinking. She went and locked the door inside, and she stands. Thanks to God, you died. And first, I should eat a whole breakfast because when people come to know he died, I can't eat. And yes, there is a tradition in certain parts of India. That twelve days or twenty days, that women have to sit in one place. It is a tradition. Some things, she will put under the furniture. When people are not there, she can eat. So the elephant has two different kinds of teeth for showing a beautiful outside, but the tooth is inside. So you never know who is what, or what is thinking now. She opens the door, and Gurujī said, "Do not open your samādhi until I am there." It doesn't matter what will happen. And I will come to see all. Will you follow this? Yes, Guru Dev, this is a Guruvākya; I will follow. He made this perfect theatre. People came, parents came. All are crying. Father said, "My son, why did you die?" It was my chance to go; I should have died. Mother said, "My son, why did you leave me here all alone for all these days?" You should have taken me with you, and his wife was artificially crying. You know, in Europe you had a tradition? When someone dies, especially girls or ladies, they are trained. They come and sit and cry. What is it in German? Klage? Klageweiber. And they are still here. In Czechoslovakia also? Yes. I'm not joking. My words are authentic. Because they don't have that love to cry for the person who died. But we don't need to, because we do feel love and cry. So she was crying, the young married girl. My Lord, my golden son, you gave down. The ocean of my joy and bliss is dried, and what not, and what not. Neighbors said, "It's time to move him to the crematory place," and so they were arranging. Now they want to put him in a very special wooden structure, but they can't open his legs. It is like a tight, what to do? So some people said, "Well, either we break it, or with the axe we cut his leg." And he is listening. He said, "Gurujī, what have I done to you?" Now you will let them cut my legs because I didn't come. But I will wait. Well, somebody said, "No, that we can't do." Even a dead body. So others say, "What should we do?" Break the pillar while crying, his wife. Don't do this, please. Better to cut his legs than my pillar. Who will repair? He said, "Oh, Gurujī." And in that minute, Gurujī came. Everyone met, Pranam. What happened? Your disciple died. The parents said, "Please, Gurujī, it is your child, it is your disciple, give him life." We are all yours. We will do everything. Please save, please save. Selfish are we. Gurujī said, "Okay, don't worry, I will do something." Oh, Gurujī, he's great. Gurujī said, "Bring me one nice glass of milk, inside nice crystal sugar, and some nice nuts, saffron," and so now he has milk, and he's mixing, making some mantra. In reality, he just cooled down the milk because it was too hot. How nice, they said, "Oh ho ho, Gurujī is making some good mantra." Gurujī said, "Time is over, but I will not let you hang." Gurujī said, "My dear Bhaktas." I am so sad, I feel pain. How you are crying for him: father, mother, wife, uncle. So I pray to God, and I prepare this nectar, but it has one speciality. This milk, whoever will drink it, will die, and he will wake up. So he told that old man, the father of the boy, "Bhakta, you said it's your time, it was, and this, it is a chance for you." Swamiji, one cannot die for someone. It is illogical just to tell, to cry. And you, mother? Mother's heart is great. So now you take it, and he will wake up. You will die. No. If I die, who will take care of my husband? I can't die. God gave me some days, or months, or years to see with these eyes the beautiful God's creation. Then he told the wife of that young boy, "My daughter, you are crying so much, full of pain. So please drink, and the golden sun will rise. An ocean of bliss will come." She said, "Bābājī, not Gurujī, even his parents can't drink." What do you think I drink? I was fed up with this man. I'm looking forward, after certain days, I will marry somewhere, and he's listening to everything. It's like now a dictaphone, even in the watch. In the ring, you have the recording. All these technologies are coming from that samādhi science. Swamiji said, "But what to do?" The whole village, some people made that turban and went home before he gave the prasāda. He said, "Well, mantra is inside, and it cannot be just neglected." But for the sake of you all, and for this young lady and these boys, what do you think if I drink it? Yes, Gurudev, quickly. Wow, Gurudev, quickly. Yes, Gurudev, quickly. Like that disciple and master's relation. That master dies for the disciple. Gurudeva, quickly, it will be cold, and we will make a big bandana for you. This lady said, "Yes, yes, Gurudeva." Now she said, "Gurudeva." Parents said, "Can I hold the glass, please?" Guruji drank the milk and told that young boy, "Whatever you want to do, decide to do it. I am going." He opened his samādhi and he went with Guruji. So it means when you see the reality, not the emotional things, so jīva janam janam dukh pāyegā. This jīva will be suffering immense suffering. Tyāga cannot be realized without experiencing yourself. In India we say, "Mare bīnā svarg nahī̃ dikhtā hai," if you want to see heaven, die. And if you don't see it, it's your problem, because now you've already died, so hurry up. So, my dear, tyāga and vairāgya. When you see the result of your attachment, then Vairāgya comes. So viveka develops from the experiences, and viveka judges the experiences. Then develops the second level of the buddhi, that's called vairāgya. Adhiguru Bhagavān Śaṅkarācārya said in his book, from the earth till the Brahmaloka, all kinds of joy are tasteless to that joy. So if you want to achieve that, then deny all. But that cannot happen without Guru Kṛpā. That should be kṛpā. And kṛpā you can't see. It's not a body. Those are waves. These waves will guide us. Well, about Vairāgya, We will speak this evening. Wish you all the best. Much love. And whatever it is, let us enjoy our lunch. Enjoy, boys. Without any sorrows, and do your sādhanā. So tyāga and vairāgya. Tyāga, vairāgya, bhakti, jñāna, many, many good, good things we have. So overcome the obstacles. So amṛta chodh jeher ko pītā, you just deny the nectar and drink the poison. Hari Om. Hari Om. Thank you.

This text is transcribed and grammar corrected by AI. If in doubt what was actually said in the recording, use the transcript to double click the desired cue. This will position the recording in most cases just before the sentence is uttered.

The text contains hyperlinks in bold to three authoritative books on yoga, written by humans, to clarify the context of the lecture:

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