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Opening of Yoga Ashram in Gyor, Hungary

A formal address at a university following the opening of a new yoga ashram.

"Without education, a human is nearly like an animal. And education is that where we have ethic, moral, and spiritual education."

"Spirituality leads us to sustainability. And spirituality is there where there is compassion, non-violence."

His Holiness Swāmī Maheśwarānanda Purījī speaks at Széchenyi István University in Győr, following speeches by Dr. Péter Földesi and Mr. László Rózsa-Völgyi. He discusses the vital role of universities in providing holistic, spiritual education, critiques modern technology and agriculture for harming nature and health, and advocates for the inclusion of spiritual principles and practical cooking courses in higher education to ensure a sustainable future. The event concludes with a Sanskrit mantra for universal peace.

Filming location: Hungary

Brothers, sisters, and family, the Dhyomarshan Sopran Association of Yoga and Daily Life opened its new ashram today with the blessings of our beloved and respected Master, His Holiness Vishwaguru Mahāmaṇḍaleśwar Paramahaṁsa Swāmī Maheśwarānanda Purījī, the spiritual successor of His Holiness Varmasamrat Paramahaṁsa Swāmī Maheśvarānanda Purījī, of the Om Śrī Allāh Purījī Siddhabīt Paramparā, and the author of Yoga and Daily Life. We have Dr. Péter Földesi, director of Széchenyi István University, and Mr. László Rózsa-Völgyi, the head of the Committee of Education, Sports and Tourism at the municipal government of the city of Győr, to welcome His Holiness Swāmījī. Dr. Földesi, you are respectfully asked to deliver the opening speech of the event. Thank you. Dr. Péter Földesi: Your Holiness, dear guests, dear friends, ladies and gentlemen, it is a great honor for us to have His Holiness Swāmījī on the grounds of Széchenyi István University. As we have learned, His Holiness has planted over 100 world peace trees on the globe. On behalf of the university, it is a privilege to welcome His Holiness here, the founder of Yoga in Daily Life. His Holiness Swāmījī’s holistic and scientific system is applied widely around the globe, in institutions, leisure, health care, and, of course, education. Széchenyi István University is no exception. What’s more, Yoga in Daily Life has been used as a branch of sport and an optional course at our Center of Physical Education and Sports since 2006. While the underlying core motivation of an institution of higher learning is the dissemination of scientific knowledge and the preparation of students for a smooth entry to the labor market, our primary commitment is undeniable education, yet we mean the notion of schooling in a broader sense. It is important for us to endow our students with sustainable knowledge that enables them to face the demands of the rapidly changing scientific and corporate environment. However, it is equally relevant for our university to train self-sustaining and responsible young people. We understand that yoga leads to the wholeness of the personality. Therefore, we support all the practices that contribute to the long-term physical and mental well-being of the students who choose to spend the probably most treasured time of their lives in Győr at Széchenyi University. Finally, I once more wish to express my warm welcome to His Holiness Swāmījī and take the opportunity to congratulate him on his very recent Pride of India Live Achievement Award. Thank you very much. Moderator: I thank Dr. Földesi for his cordial words, and now I’m turning to Mr. László Rózsa-Völgyi to deliver his presentation. Thank you. Mr. László Rózsa-Völgyi: Your Holiness, dear guests, dear friends. On behalf of the municipal government of the city of Győr, it is my privilege to welcome you on this special evening. In the past hour, we have planted a tree together with His Holiness, and this tree reminds us that today there is too much emphasis on the shadow, yet the relevance is in the tree. Nowadays, when the information flood, full of shadows, washes us away, it is especially important that from the many ways we choose the one which carries real value. One of these ways can be yoga, which is definitely very popular in Győr. I hope that the path of yoga takes us closer to knowing ourselves and our environment, and consequently, to fixing all these. I wish for all of you to nourish tonight, learn from each other, and think together. And I wish for His Holiness to get to know this city, this beautiful city, and please return home with cherished memories. Please do not forget, we have never had as little time to do as much. Thank you for your kind attention. Moderator: Mr. Rózsa-Völgyi, thank you for your really, truly cordial words. And now I’m turning to His Holiness, Paramājī, and I’m asking him to address the audience. Gurudev, the floor is yours. His Holiness Swāmī Maheśwarānanda Purījī: Thank you. Om Sukhadam Jñānam Uratyam Dvandatītam Gaganasadṛśam. Tasmād adilakṣyaṃ vikaṃ nityaṃ vimalācalam sarvadhi sākṣibhūtam satitaṃ triguṇarahitaṃ śāntiḥ, śāntiḥ,... Salutations to the cosmic light, lord of our hearts, omniscient and omnipresent. In His holy presence, very good evening, dear brothers and sisters. Respected Rector, and all the dignitaries of this university in Győr. This university is that center where the human gates, the human knowledge, Jñāpaśu Samāna, it is made in Sanskrit. Without education, a human is nearly like an animal. And education is that where we have ethic, moral, and spiritual education. Here we prepare the models, and we send these models to the world to work for the protection of all creatures, the protection of the environment, and to understand what the environment means for us, and its protection of human life. For that is this university, we call Viśvavidyālaya. And you know, my dear, the first university in the world was in India. And where was it? Nālandā. So it’s a very, very old, yes. So that name was given, Viśvavidyālaya. Vidyā is the knowledge. Viśva is the universe, where we can learn about the entire universe in the Vedas, which are the oldest, first scriptures. Yathā brāhmaṇḍē tathā piṇḍē. What is in the universe, that is existing in the human body. And what is not in the human body is not there. Therefore, the human body is very valuable, but it has to get education. Education is that kind of vidyā, vidyā and avidyā. Ignorance or knowledge, the final course was that time. "I am body" is ignorance. "I am pure consciousness" is the wisdom. This was the slogan for the students to enter the university. On the main gate, they have written two words in Sanskrit for the knowledge: "You are welcome." When you finish your study and for service, you should depart from here. That when you have this knowledge, the knowledge should be utilized. What you have, you should give. If you will not give, it will lose. Our dear rector has great knowledge. We had very nice discussions, all our friends and our special respected guests coming from Slovenia. Recently, it was the minister, now we call the former minister, when sunsets will rise again. So, our dear Gregor Kos, Secretary-General of the Ministry of Education, Science, and Sport, our dear Gregor Korsor, and our dear Mr. Igor Lušik, University of Ljubljana and Minister for Education, Government of Slovenia, ex-minister. So he presents the ministry, the government, as well as the university. And many of our dear professors have educations or diplomas of yoga in their lives. The main branch on the roots of yoga in their life is in Vienna, Austria. And we call that the Śrī Svāmī Madhavānanda World Peace Council and the Fellowship. This is the International Śrī Svāmī Madhavānanda Fellowship. So, we have today the secretary of our fellowship, Dr. Radha Renate. Well, so these noble cards which we all have, and our dear rector, I can tell you that in Hungary people are very nice, very kind, very spiritual. But I can tell you today that this hall is full of this spirituality, this spiritual life. I think 98% here are all practitioners of yoga in their life. They know about the Vedas, the Upanishads, the Sanskrit language, etc. So the university is very important for higher education. And higher education should not go only to technology, but techniques without spirituality will one day become the problem. What tree we plant today, we should know that this tree will give good, cool shadow, shelter to the birds, and fruits, and blossoms, and beauty. That this tree will not be that kind of tree, that many people will have allergy from this tree. So there are many kinds of technologies developing nowadays. It has a side effect, and something is good. Now, the difference between the God-made world and the man-made world. The man-made world and education is different. Man-made and God-made is perfect, so we are searching sustainability. Sustainability means forever lasting. Man will never be able to do this. What is created will be destroyed. Who came will go. Who appear will disappear. Even God himself will incarnate here; he can’t live forever on this earth. So we, human... cannot dance on this stage forever. Our days are counted; our age is limited. So what do we think? Anybody is in the sustainability? Sustainability? That which ever will go, like a river, like a pond, like the vegetation, like the mountains, etc. But what we are creating, well, we are very happy. I was very happy that in one hour and thirty-five minutes we came from Vienna to here. And not even the water from my stomach was moving. And who was sitting behind? They were enjoying sleep and admired the highway. It’s a beautiful road, a highway. But the highway, how much earth we have destroyed. And most pollution which is coming near the highway is because of this rubber, the gummi, the tires which are used on the highway. The oil, the diesel, etc., what is dripping? And the petrol, so we are proud to have a highway. It’s a comfort, a little bit of comfort, but we destroy nature. I hope, and do you think, will the time come we destroy the highway and make it again the fields? That will be the bright future, my dear. Technology develops so quickly, and unfortunately, we call Kali Yuga Rupiyaram. In this iron time, Kali Yuga, money is the god. But a wise man of America said, "When the last tree will be chopped off and the last fish will die, oh man, then you will realize that you can’t eat your dollars." So, I hope that time will not come. Now, it is the university education that they study. Biology, they develop the gene techniques, manipulation in all the vegetation. You know, any grains are available which are not manipulated: soya, corn, wheat, barley, etc. No fruits are available now. All they are manipulated, and many, many other things, which are harming human health very much. Thanks to God that Hungary, the soil of Hungary, is blessed by God, and you have such good fruits. Hungarian melon is world famous, the paprika, my God. Everywhere I went in Canada for shopping to get some chili, I got a paprika made in Hungary. Sorry to say and proud to say, because it was Hungarian, I said I will buy two packets, because I love Hungary. Then I put in my vegetables. I was looking like this. It doesn’t look like a lecho color. I like Hungarian lecho with paprika. Color was on it. My dear, those who are Hungarian here, maybe you have power or not, it pulls the Hungarian image down. Only for three or four forints more. Don’t put the image of a beautiful, glorious country, Hungary. But you have many fruits, and many still we get organic. The world food companies are paying millions or billions of dollars to do research work and destroy all the original seeds, and make it such a way that you have to buy new seeds next year. Hungarian pumpkins, I have. To buy new seed every year that doesn’t anymore. This is the number one problem. The second problem is we people have lost the knowledge of cooking and eating. How many percentage of people can properly cook in Hungary? In the countryside, yes. In cities, no. Yeah, just putting potatoes, paprika, and meat inside, that’s not cooking. To secure a bright future for the country, society, family, and yourself, and to save your economy, learn cooking, and not just cooking meat. But natural, ancient way of cooking of Hungarian, great-great-grandmother recipes. So I would request that in your university, dear Rector, you should create one subject of healthy cooking and understand, yes, this is a subject of university. It’s called Pakṣāstra, that is one special philosophy. Cooking can be for everyone. But which kind of, how much water, which spices—this, this is a great thing. Now, the second problem: they are designing and building skyscrapers. But without a kitchen. It is indirectly forcing you to go to eat in a restaurant. And they write, "Not allowed to cook in this building because it smells bad." So not only that you cannot cook, don’t cook, but now even you don’t know what they cooked. Is this a sustainable world? No. Therefore, we have to—I’m, from time to time, attending conferences with the United Nations—and we have to write and tell them. Spirituality leads us to sustainability. And spirituality is there where there is compassion, non-violence. When we made the highway from Vienna to Budapest, it was not with compassion. It was a violence, because we destroy how many thousands of hectares of soil and vegetation. I think that Gandhījī would not drive his car on that highway. Better he walk by the old road. So, my dear ones, well, I would say education is perfect if there is ethic, moral, and spiritual education. And this ethic, moral, spiritual education is not only towards humans, but all creatures. Spirituality is not one-sided because it is a university. And that university brought the world the diversity that brings to the unity. So the university had diversity to bring to the unity, to create the spirituality. Otherwise, humans lost the knowledge of God and everything. So, I have one request. Of course, we have to forward to the government, and of course, the ministers have a little different knowledge than yourself, so what you write, the minister can’t refuse, maybe don’t like, but they can’t refuse. You are the light of the nation. And all the students are the raw model in your hands. And how you will educate them, they will carry the light of your wisdom in the world. So, two subjects. Spirituality, you said already the ethic was there. The mental was there, the physical was there, and this is not a joke. I tell you today what I say, very soon, not in a hundred years, but in a very few decades. These words, my words, will be written in golden letters, cooking. Keep one subject. It’s a university subject; it’s not a kindergarten. In kindergarten, you just give knowledge, and they are happy. But university is that nourishment for body, mind, and for our spirit that will save the world. And that will be a big, big support for coming generations. I thank all the organizers of Yoga in a Life, and dear Sir Rector, and all your friends, and the representative of the government. I thank you very much. I feel very humble and very respectful, accepting your invitation that I can be here at this University of Győr, and I wish that it will be the number one university. Thank you for your coming, all. God bless you. I will chant one mantra. Before I chanted, it was a spiritual Sanskrit mantra. In Indian culture, it is not a religion. Because in India there is only one religion. That is called Sanātana Dharma, the universal principle. So there is only one God, that is called Parameśvara, or you may call Him the Holy Father. So Sanātana Dharma is one religion. That is the principle of the universe. All visible and invisible elements, planets and stars, are balanced and harmonized by that principle. The religion is called man-made religion, where God incarnates, so we write a holy book. For example, the Bible is after Jesus, also the Koran after Mohammed, or the Bhagavad Gītā after Kṛṣṇa. And there is a personal God. That’s called man-made religion. But Sanātana Dharma and Vedas do not tell about any physical form. God is within all. So when you chant these Sanskrit mantras, it creates harmony and energy. It’s for all, even for the tree. Even for these flowers, they were saying to me when I came. They present me here. I said, "Don’t worry." I will give you a lot of energy and blessings. I would not have come into the garden to bless you. So they are also listening and feeling. So the sound, the sun signs for all. So Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinaḥ, all should be happy. No one should suffer. No one has troubles. Vegetation and all creatures. The harmony and peace in the universe, and O Lord, I should also live happily without any trouble. Om Śānti, Śānti,... peace, peace. Thank you for your listening, and God bless you. Thank you, sir. Moderator: Your Holiness, dear Swāmījī, thank you. We feel truly blessed and humbled by your words. And now I’m asking Mr. Tamás Silasi to deliver the closing remarks of the evening and express gratitude to His Holiness Swāmījī on behalf of the partakers of this evening and, of course, on behalf of the Mobilis Science Centre. Thank you. Mr. Tamás Silasi: Dear Wholeness Swāmījī, it has been a distinguished honor for us to have you here tonight and to listen to your speech and your messages. We at Mobilis believe that science is beautiful. We believe that progress is good, and thank you very much for your guidance that we need to take special care when we teach our kids that soul, mind, and science should be one. Thank you. Thank you very much for that. We take it with us, and whenever small kids, kindergarten kids, and school kids—small kids—are coming to our place, as a lobby of the university, we already teach them this, so when they progress on to the university, they will have this in their pockets. Thank you very much. Thank you very much once again to have us have you here. Thank you. A little sign of our appreciation, please take these little flowers. His Holiness Swāmī Maheśwarānanda Purījī: Thank you. Thank you. It was very... nice person, I’m not going your word then from the kindergarten, which is over, that from primary school, college, high school, college, and coming to university, and we call. It is ācārya. That means the university is the highest person, and that is called guru. The ācārya means the highest ranking person in the university, and that’s called guru. If you call in Hindi, Sanskrit "guru," and in your language you call the teacher, or the rector, the director. So after they prepare all the students, and then finally they come to me, they see me as a guru, and all your students see you as a guru. So it’s only different in language. So I respect you very much. And all the students will go through your education, your trainings, they will go with the full light. And please take into consideration the cooking course. So next time when I come, I will be happy to hear that you are vegetarian and healthy. Health is not everything, but everything is nothing without health. Thank you, sir. Thank you. Wish you all a good journey. Thank you. Before going, say goodbye to the green.

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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