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Om Śāntiḥ, Śāntiḥ. Deep Nārāyaṇ Bhagavān kī Jai, Deveśvara Mahādeva kī Jai, Mādhav Kṛṣṇa Bhagavān kī Jai, Satya Sanātana Dharma kī Jai. Good evening to all dear ones and devotees here and around the world. As our dear sister Gita mentioned, blessings are coming from the beautiful ashram in Melbourne. Many of you know it is a beautiful, peaceful city with very friendly people. Living in such a place, there should be no cause for nervousness, restlessness, or imbalance. What then can cause imbalance, nervousness, or anxiety? This morning we received beautiful information about the chakras and their locations. Specifically, the five chakras balance our body, mind, emotion, and consciousness. Imbalance stems from fear. Why is there fear? Fear exists where there is ignorance. It is ignorance that disrupts our concentration, our aim, and our spiritual development. Ignorance is the cause of all negative qualities; it is like darkness through which we cannot walk. These chakras we spoke of belong to the five elements: Mūlādhāra (earth), Svādhiṣṭhāna (water), Maṇipūra (fire), Anāhata (air), and Viśuddhi (space). Our body is created from these five elements. Whenever we feel imbalance or unpleasant bodily sensations, it originates from the earth element, our foundation. No matter how solid the foundation, when an earthquake occurs, everything moves, causing cracks in walls, buildings, or the earth itself—even rocks break. Similarly, from fear, uncertainty develops in the body, damaging our physical form, which manifests as illness. If we neglect to repair this damage, it slowly develops into a major distraction. Secondly, our past karma, our destiny, lies dormant at the level of unconsciousness. When it awakens, it can cause great damage. Fear is hidden in the Mūlādhāra Chakra, but we do not feel it; it is a sleeping serpent. As soon as we touch or disturb that snake, it wakes up. Thus, our fear begins from ignorance. Therefore, balance is essential. The practice of Kriya and mantra brings balance. The best mantra to remove fear addresses the greatest fear: the fear of death. We know we will die one day, yet we do not want to die. When something happens to our health, we become afraid. Perhaps we are not afraid of death itself, but of the process—how we will die, the potential pain, the duration of suffering in a hospital or coma. We do not know how much pain we will endure. Sudden death can be a blessing, yet we neither want to die suddenly nor slowly. When the five elements are imbalanced, pain appears in the body, and we fear that pain. Consider dying in a fire. If we touch a hot cooking pot, the burn is intense. Can we imagine being alive and burning? It is unbearable pain. Every second, we die a minimum of ten times. When strong pain occurs or something falls on our body, our ability to move is limited. Unbearable pain can be caused by injuries like iron rods in concrete piercing the stomach or shoulders. We will die, but we do not know how, and that is the greatest fear every creature has: the fear of pain. Pain is the curse of this life, carrying karmic reactions from the past. Therefore, practicing yoga or any spiritual practice is to understand life and accept it. We pray to a merciful God—Mother God or Father God. When we speak of God, there are no gender dualities. There have been hundreds or thousands of holy, divine women as well. Some say women have no soul, but I cannot believe that; if they had no soul, how would they live? In spirituality and God consciousness, there are no gender differences. Female saints have been great. We prayed to the Divine Mother this morning and yesterday. When we say "God," duality vanishes. We pray to the God you believe in. In Christianity, there is a mantra: "I pray to thee for thy mercy, O Holy Maria. Pray for thy mercy, Holy Mother Maria." In Hindi, it is the same: "I pray to thee, O Divine Mother Durgā, Kālī, Sarasvatī, Divine Mother." All are the same dualities within us. The best mantra to rid oneself of the fear of darkness is: "Divine Mother or Divine Father, lead me, please. Lead us from the darkness of ignorance to the light of knowledge." When knowledge comes, all anxieties disappear. "Lead us from unreality to reality." This world is unreal, like a dream. What you see of me now is a dream; after a minute, it is past, though it remains in your memory—what I said, how I looked. What I spoke is a dream. At night, we dream, wake up, and say, "Oh, it was such a good dream. I was on my farm with many fruit trees, and my horse was so happy to see me." That was a dream, and this present moment will also become a dream of the past. Therefore, in yoga, it is advised not to dwell on the past. Do not waste time knowing your past life; it is gone. You cannot bathe in the same river water twice. The river flows; you dip in and come out, and the second time you dip, that water is gone far away. You dip in new water. The past is past; remain in the present. "Asato mā sad gamaya"—lead us from unreality to reality. What is reality? "Brahma satyaṁ, jagan mithyā." The supreme Brahman, the highest God, is the ultimate truth. This world is unreal; everything grows, comes, and changes with the seasons. Therefore, "Merciful one, lead me from death to liberation, from mortality to immortality." Why? As long as we live healthy and well, life is happy and good. We do not want to die; we want to enjoy every day—good eating, good friends, good walks, good conversation. But birth and death are not easy. We may think it was nice in the mother's womb, but it was not so nice. Imagine the body developing in a small space, forcing expansion, thinking, "Can you give me a little more space? I am not comfortable, Mommy." By six or seven months, we are even boxing. It is not easy. The soul is aware, caught in the flow of hormones and blood. Yet, the one who gives us life takes great care. Consider the fine work of the divine architect: both eyes, light, brain, hearing, smelling—everything. God never forgets. To this day, He has never given someone one eye here and the other there. We would say, "My God, what have you done?" He might say, "Well, the Divine Mother wanted to place it here, and I wanted it there, so both are happy." But we do not want that; we want perfection. And it is perfect. Yet, time is not easy. Imagine being a rock and someone carving a statue from you—it is painful. Sometimes we say it is better to be a rock. But it is designed and carved perfectly. I do not know how many gods are involved or how He performs His miracles, but everything is a divine miracle. Death is also not pleasant. Thus, the Vedas say: "Tamaso mā jyotir gamaya" (from darkness to light) and "Asato mā sat gamaya" (from unreality to reality). Human consciousness, intellect, and heart, after all experiences, pray: "Mṛtyor mā amṛtaṁ gamaya" (from death to immortality). "Merciful one, lead me from mortality to immortality. Do not give me again this cycle of birth and death." Chant this mantra five times in the morning upon waking, five times at noon, and five times in the evening. When you leave your house, start your car, or begin a journey, repeat it. This mantra is known as the Mahāmṛtyuñjaya Mantra. "Mahāmṛtyu" means the great death; "Jaya" means victory. It is the victory mantra over death. Repeating it will definitely protect us. Many of you know it from our books, but I will chant it. Mahāmṛtyuñjaya is the name of Bhagavān Śiva. "Oṁ Tryambakaṁ yajāmahe" (We worship the three-eyed one). "Sugandhiṁ puṣṭi-vardhanam" (The fragrant, nourisher of strength). "Sugandha" means good fragrance, symbolizing good health. When health is good, everything is good; when it is not, our diet begins to stink. "Sugandhiṁ puṣṭi-vardhanam"—always give me complete good health, good thoughts, and good actions to lead me to my destination. "Urvārukam iva bandhanān" (Like the cucumber from its stem). "Urvāruka" generally refers to a cucumber or "Kakadī." When ripe, fruits separate smoothly from the vine or branch without pain to the fruit or the plant. If plucked unripe, the branch breaks, causing pain. A vegetarian life means not only green leaves but especially fruits, vegetables, pumpkins, melons, eggplants, etc.—all are fruits. But we are not discussing diet again. How does the fruit separate from its origin without pain on either side? "Merciful Lord, liberate me so gently, without suffering, from this world. Bring me to Thy divine world, where I may offer all my sweetness—the good karma I have collected from Thy divine energy and light, Thy divine juice (water), Thy divine healthy air. You gave me the fruit, and now I feel worthy enough to offer Thee, O my Lord, myself. May I come to Thee as sweetness, not bitterness; as complete, not half." "Mṛtyor mukṣīya māmṛtāt" (Free me from death for the sake of immortality). "Mṛtyu" is death; "Mokṣa" is liberation. "Mahāmṛtāt"—lead me to that nectar of immortality, the greatest of the great. Whether we understand or not, the sound and resonance we spoke of this morning have an equal effect on our consciousness. There are different melodies for chanting. Artists chant very nicely; those who are not artists chant slowly with a different melody. God does not require your best, sweet voice or good melody. God is like a parent. When a little baby begins to speak and cannot pronounce words properly, how happy we are. Not only the parents, but all who come say, "Oh, you speak so nicely." So it does not matter how you pronounce; God will never tell you that you are chanting wrong. He is happy that in your chanting, you offer your devotion and love. At that time, the balance of body, mind, and consciousness is maintained. The fear that awakens in the Mūlādhāra Chakra manifests in the Maṇipūra Chakra and resonates in the Anāhata Chakra. Why did God give us fear? Without fear, we would not survive. Some children have no fear and must be taught it. Without fear, one might jump from a building or into a fire. We teach, "You will burn; do not touch fire. Do not take a knife. Do not jump into water if you cannot swim; you will die." Consciously or unconsciously, we teach fear to protect life. Fear is healthy, but not the kind that prevents sleep, causes nightmares, and constant anxiety—"Oh God, who is coming? Who is doing this?" That becomes like a phobia. Such fear can only disappear when the light of knowledge dawns. February 17th is Śivarātri, the night of Lord Śiva. On Śivarātri, all devotees worship Lord Śiva. We will have a prayer program at the ashram here. I will be in Brisbane, where we have established a small Śiva temple. In all Śiva temples, there will be big celebrations. You can go to a temple, worship at home, or listen to something. Every morning, if you have a Śiva Liṅga at home—the Śiva Liṅga represents the entire universe. Once, someone gave me a beautiful article from the ancient Vedas. In the Trinity, Śiva is the first; He is Svayaṃbhu (self-manifested). No one created Him; He manifests Himself. He then created Viṣṇu and Brahmā. One day, Brahmā and Viṣṇu thought, "We are the greatest, and we will do something." Śiva appeared and said, "Oh yes, you are the greatest ones. Please find the beginning and end of this Liṅga." Brahmā and Viṣṇu could not find the end; it was universe upon universe. It is the universal body of that Svayaṃbhu, called the Liṅga. It is like an egg—which relates to Easter time, with toys about eggs and rabbits. How do we coordinate a rabbit and an egg? Similarly, how do we coordinate Śiva and the Liṅga? It is a universe. That egg is known as the universe, and within it is Hiraṇyagarbha, the golden embryo of life in divine consciousness. To understand the Śivaliṅga, look at the sky—that is the real Śivaliṅga. Brahmā and Viṣṇu searched for ages but could not find the end. Then Śiva said, "Go and do your duty." We offer water on the Liṅga in the morning. Water is the symbol of life. In every language, water is life and life is water. In some languages: "Vodha Jīvatā, Jīvatā Vodha." We offer water on the Śivaliṅga with the mantra. Chanting this mantra, if you feel its energy, fear, nervousness, and imbalance immediately disappear. These words from the Vedas are given to remove anxiety, fear, accidents, and negative energies. All barriers will be removed. When you start your car, before turning the key, chant it quickly. He knows we are thinking. The energy of that Śiva Liṅga, as the universe, is directed to protect and escort us, removing all negative energy. Śiva is the lord of the devas (gods and goddesses) as well as the asuras (demons). When creation began, two kinds of forces arose simultaneously: the devī śakti (divine energy) and the āsurī śakti (demonic energy). Devī Śakti is the Divine Mother; all incarnations, holy saints, and good people belong to the divine world. But there is also a parallel negative force. On one side, death walks; on the other, liberation (mokṣa) and light walk. Death walks with us as our body's shadow, saying, "Sooner or later, I will be the winner. I am observing you, looking for a chance to take you away." But the divine energy says, "You may do your dharma, your duty." It is the principle, the rule of life: whoever is born will die. Death is called Yama; the king of death is Yamarāja. The king of liberation, the lord of justice, is Dharmarāja. Dharma is purpose, righteousness, purity, the divine. Dharma is not merely religion; it is our principle. What is the dharma of a human? What should humans do and not do? When we make a mistake, people say, "Is he not human? He is talking like a devil." Thus, the divine and the devil both sit within the same phenomenon, traveling with us. This mantra will move away negative forces and protect us, escorting us toward our destination or the divine. At that time, there is no fear. This mantra is very powerful. Try it, and you will see that when you chant it and drive your car or go anywhere, no accident will happen. Be sure. Perhaps it even removes traffic cameras—I cannot promise that, but maybe it is true because Śiva will give you good consciousness to drive carefully and follow traffic rules. You can repeat it with one hand here (gestures) and the other here (gestures). Please feel it. You will feel beautiful balance and certainty. Chant after me. When you chant, you will feel the first movements of energy beginning at the navel—the Maṇipūra Chakra. Then, the sound manifests in the vocal cords, rises to the head, especially the Sahasrāra Cakra. Parā, Paśyantī, and Vaikharī manifest a beautiful vibration that goes through the whole body. As sound travels in space, try to feel it. Close your eyes, and you will feel a strong vibration in your head. It begins from the navel because the jīvātmā resides there; it does not go from the head to the navel. Now you can move your hand. While chanting and concentrating, everyone had the same feeling. I will not ask, but did you have any fear? Did you feel balance and peace? The āsurī śakti is pushed down to the lower chakras, set aside, and the divine śakti takes over to lead our consciousness, knowledge, and mind. Anxiety, fear, and imbalance are set aside. This is the effect. The reality of different mantras is that we can chant them in different rāgas (melodies). Many of you chant every day. Do this mantra five times in the morning after bathing. When you shower, let the water fall on your forehead and the crown of your head. It should be cool, not hot. Remain there and say, "Oṁ Tryambakaṁ yajāmahe sugandhiṁ puṣṭi-vardhanam, urvārukam iva bandhanān mṛtyor mukṣīya māmṛtāt." You yourself become a beautiful Śiva Liṅga, like Śiva, the Divine Mother, the Divine energy, washing away all the dirt of the āsurī śaktis. This is how the chakras act. When the soul is conceived and enters the mother's body, it goes through the water element. Where the soul arrives, a beautiful chakra and vibration form. That is the center of our self—the navel. Everything develops around the navel: the spine, intestines, brain, hands, legs, and all limbs. The soul is guided, nourished, and connected to the mother's body from the navel. It is beautiful. Our being, manifesting in this human body or any life, is centered there with the soul. The soul is water and fire. Fire is that Viṣṇu, that soul, that light, but fire cannot live without water. Thus, it resides in water, and the entire body develops. In the water, Bhagavān Viṣṇu resides in the Kṣīrasāgara, the milky ocean. That milky ocean is the mother's body, collecting all the liquids in the embryo. How beautiful it is—the science of body, mind, and consciousness. This one mantra alone can give us immense knowledge and protection. There is another mantra, the Gāyatrī Mantra, also from the Vedas, with a different meaning. For us as yoga practitioners and yogīs, it is very good. It automatically balances the chakras. Knowledge comes where ignorance was. Imbalance and fear are removed; fearlessness, balance, harmony, and the light of knowledge are present. Merely doing postures, prāṇayāma, and sitting with closed eyes to meditate is not enough. Meditation without such a mantra is like a body without a soul. Balance or imbalance does not come from outside; it is within us. We must help ourselves to proceed. We came alone, and we will go alone. It is our soul that knows what happened, what is happening, and waits for the best, for the light. With this wish, I wish you all the best. Tomorrow we will meet again in the morning. What time is the webcast? Nine o'clock? Yes, 9:30. I will begin at 10:30 so I can attend to some work for the people. Thank you. Our Brisbane time is 10:30 tomorrow. See you then. Oh, Melbourne—my Brisbane is always one hour behind, so Melbourne center, okay? All the best. Oṁ Tryambakaṁ Yajāmahe Sugandhiṁ Puṣṭi-vardhanam... Melbourne is a very good name. Mahāprabhujī, Mādhavānandjī, and Maheśvarānand.