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The Ānandamaya Kośa represents one of the highest levels of our being. It has two meanings or principles. It is like being on the peak of a mountain. From there, we can either go down or ascend higher. Similarly, the soul can either return to the mortal world or ascend to the highest level. Thus, Ānandamaya Kośa means both the sheath of bliss, which is eternal freedom and happiness, and also our desires for enjoyment, such as eating. However, when the physical body ceases, the soul, which resides in the subtle body, departs. We do not know where it will go; it is not in our hands. In our physical life, we can decide: "I will go to Bratislava," or "I am going to Prague, Ostrava, or Vienna." We have a vehicle and can choose. But this is physical. After the physical body, we are still alive. This body is composed of the five elements—space, air, fire, water, and earth. Our body is created from these five elements. The body itself does not die; each element simply returns to its source. Water returns to water, air to air, fire to fire. When the body is gone, we have no decision-making power. Yet the soul sees everything. What we generally call death is, in one way, a moment of happiness for the soul. This soul was suffering in the mortal body, which has many conditions: diseases, problems, and difficult situations. As soon as the soul comes out of the body, it is relaxed, like a bird flying out from its nest. Now, no snake or any creature can harm it. From above, we see our karma. Karma means our action. Where there is action, there will be a reaction. And where there is a reaction, there will be another action. Good and bad belong to us, and we must go through it again. In Australia, there is a weapon made of wood called a boomerang. When you throw it for hunting, it is designed to come back to your hand. There is a technique for throwing it. If you throw it incorrectly, it will not return. But if you throw it correctly, it comes back. So it is with our karma, good or bad; it returns to us. If you throw a stone upward, it will fall back down. This is one of the truths, a cosmic law. Humans are subject to this law of karma. When we have performed not-so-good karmas, the soul will never die. Consider a seed. This seed is the reality, the cause. We put the seed in the earth. The seed dissolves; some call it dead, but it is not dead. It is written in the Bible: "Die and leave." We also say, "Die and come again." It multiplies, but it is the same seed with the same genetic essence. If it is an apple seed, it will not produce a plum or a mango. If it is a mango seed, it will not become an apple. One seed may grow into a big tree with thousands of fruits, and all those fruits contain seeds again. We all belong to one line. We say "apple," and there may be tons of apples, but in reality, it is the same quality, the same apple, only one. The bloodline is one. Now, a question arises: if you have certain karma, will your grandchild have the same karma? If so, that implies dualities, which is not correct. The grandfather may have made a mistake, but the grandchild may be good. The activity of karma is different; we must understand this. It is said that when one person attains the highest consciousness, reaching Brahman, then seven generations from the past and seven generations from the future—these fourteen generations—are liberated through that one great being. They are freed from the prison of birth and death. Thus, our good actions, our good way of living, our good thoughts, and our spirituality are important. Spirituality also depends on what we call religion, but religion and spirituality are different. It is like having one country called the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The difference is that people can be better here or there; it is only a platform upon which many different kinds of dramas are played. The soul became individual, and now it acts out its drama on the platform of this earth. It is not certain that you will come again as a human. Life is life. As I always tell you, there are 8.4 million different kinds of creatures. These fall into three categories: creatures in the water, on land, and in the air. No matter how big or small—even bacteria in the water we drink—they are living beings. Water itself is life. In your language, it is called "Vodha Jīvot." In Sanskrit, we say: "Jal Jaha Jagadīś," meaning where there is water, there is God. And where there is God, there is life. Though bacteria are minute and invisible, they possess a soul. Do not think an elephant has a big soul and bacteria have a small soul. The soul is the same. How can we see it? We cannot see it, even with a magnifying glass. If you could see the soul of a dead person or animal, then you could see the soul of all. It is very simple to understand the similarity. Consider a big fire on a hill, seen from Brno. There is big smoke, a big fire. But fire is fire. A small matchstick in my pocket has the same power, the same quality, as that big fire. This little matchstick can burn a whole country, or it can do nothing. Similarly is the soul. Whether it is in an elephant, a big shark, or a small bacterium, the soul is the same. Even small bacteria have power; they can fell an elephant. Bacteria are powerful. If you do not know how strong bacteria are, come to India. I will show you. Immediately upon landing, Indians are very welcoming people. As the airplane door opens, the bacteria come to welcome you, also with bread and salt. They are good bacteria. You cannot see the soul. The soul sees you, but you do not see it. When the soul is different from the body, who performed the karma, the action? Did the soul make the action, or did the body make the action? Who was working? Our hands, legs, etc.? How did the soul become involved? The soul becomes coated with the action and its reaction. How does this happen? As long as we are in this body, is it in our hands? It is still in our hands. I have a stone in my hand. Can I keep it, or should I throw it now? I do not know. It might hurt somebody or break a window. Someone on the other side could be injured. When I throw this stone, I might say, "Oh God!" Czech people say, "Jesus Maria!" We immediately remember God. But God says, "I am not responsible anymore; it has gone out of my hand." I can do anything, but that action will hit its target and return as a reaction. Thus, action begets reaction. Before we act, we should think, and then we will be good. In the Bhagavad Gītā, it is said that before you want to do something, first know what the desire is, what the object is, and what the action will be. Consider what the reaction in you will be. Think with vivekā—discernment. It involves the mind, desire, intellect, and vivekā. Viveka means you are clearly deciding. It is like having a beautiful piece of cheese and a sharp knife. The knife will cut it into two halves. Viveka, that discerning knowledge, will decide both sides: this and that. What do you want? Similarly, when you come to know—even if your enemy or neighbor is there—you should know that if you shoot a gun and kill someone, the one who receives the bullet will feel pain, fall down, and die. He may come again in another life. But how many years will you suffer in prison? You will suffer more than the one who died. So, action, reaction, action. This soul goes into other bodies. There are 8.4 million different creatures; among them, one is the human. It does not matter if it is in Africa, Europe, China, Japan, or Mexico—a human is a human. Some time ago, about 15 years or more, scientists researched and said the first human was born or appeared in Tibet, not in Nepal. We call it Tibet, but it is the Himalayas, the Kailāśa Parbat mountain. There, the first human was Śiva, who had no father and no mother. The Vedas say that at that time there was no earth at all. Nothing. The earth came out afterwards. That was Varāha; Varāha brought the earth out. That is the first incarnation of God. Anyhow, there was nothing. Out of nothing, what is that? It is said: the sound. And it is said: Eko’haṁ Bahusyām: "I am one, I shall become many." I am the whole God, or everything. All this space, there is nothing. The empty space is called the mother. First, God is the mother. So there is space and cetanā. Chetanā means consciousness, not intellect. Excuse me, this chetan means life, or the sentient principle. Now, chetan can do nothing because chetan does not have desire, and without desire, nothing can happen. And the material, which is mortal, can do nothing without chetan. So, the mortal is the chetan. Chetan does not have desire, and the mortal cannot do anything. Then how was the world created? Between these two is what is called the sound. Thus, between space and consciousness is what we call yoga. Yoga means uniting, keeping together. Yoga means balance. Yoga means uniting, harmonizing, and balancing. This is the definition of the word yoga, but still, there is nothing. You may give many lectures—somehow, not me. I am only telling how someone told, and who told? Someone told. And who told? Someone told. So it is said: "I am one, and now I will multiply." How? Then it begins. This sound is the highest, the supreme. There is only resonance, nothing else. Out of that resonance comes: I am one and I multiply. From this resonance, space was there, consciousness was there, the resonance for sound was there, and so appears fire. Thanks to that, fire appears, which means light. From this light comes the flame. From the resonance comes fire, and from the fire comes what is called Svayambhū. Eko’haṁ bahusyāmī: I am one, and I will multiply. That is called Svayaṁbhū. Swayam Bhū means having no mother, no father; no one created it. It is you who created. Only that one. And so he appears as Śiva. Then begins the whole drama. Now, you know, in Europe many people ask questions in such a way that no one can answer them. Or someone will answer in a particular way. If you want to humiliate a great speaker or yogī, you ask: which came first, the bird or the egg? Now you know the answer today: the Swayambhū, Śiva, then creation begins. So it is billions, trillions of yugas. Now the jīva, the soul, became individual, fluttering in this space. In whichever direction the wind blows, there our flag will flutter. Similarly, our actions, performed while the soul is present in this body, determine our course. We exist in five sheaths. The body moves here and there. We are free from one body, the physical body, but still, the mental body is there, and the subtle body is there. With that, we have what you call Śikṣāl in Arabic, and we say karma. Now these souls—in the German language, they express it very well, and now is the time. This is the time when Germans use this word. Do you know what I want to tell you? Altweibersommer—are there any Austrian Germans here? So, what is the word? Altweibersommer? The old woman’s summer? Oh, my God! The grandmothers will pull our ears. But what they mean is that when a person is old and losing their hair, there is a good plant they call the "Liebmännchen." When the flower is ripe and dry, all the hairs of this flower disperse. But each little petal has one seed, and this seed travels with the wind, landing in Mexico from the Czech Republic, flowing and fluttering. Similarly, our soul, with a certain other part of the body, is free from the physical body. This seed is free, but there is a feather, and it will flow. Let it go in that direction. There is a poem: Pata tutā dāl se le gāyī pavan uḍāī, ab vicāre kab mileṅge dur paḍeṅge jāī. Now is the time of the herbs. A strong wind comes, and the yellow leaf falls down, taken away by the wind. We do not know in which area this leaf will fall down after being carried. When will we come again to Strilky’s hills? Such is the life of everyone, not only plants. So we do not know where this soul will go. It may go to God; heaven and hell are the second quarter. But we have to go where there is neither hell nor heaven. Yet we are bound by our actions, which reside in all five bodies: Annamaya Kośa (the sheath of nourishment), Prāṇamayakośa (the sheath of energy), Manomayakośa (the mental sheath), Vijñānamayakośa (the sheath of intellect), and Ānandamayakośa (the sheath of bliss). Either we ascend or return again. So, my dears, no one can remain forever on this earth. God made generations. You are here; you are a father and mother. You have children, grandchildren, and so on. But the karma of the grandfather is not suffered by the grandchild. However, in a certain way, it is in the genes of the family. That is another subject we will talk about. What kind of disease do you have from your grandparents, from your mother’s side or your father’s side, in your bones or your heart? And one might say, "Yes, my grandfather or grandmother also had it." We call this inheritance. This inheritance is karmic, passed from generation to generation. But in yoga, we can finish it in this life. Change the diet. Change the way of living. Change the way of life and bring a change in your thinking. Never say, "My family had this cancer." No. It is a fear that you think is cancer. But you can remove it with positive thinking, prayers, meditation, and changing your diet. You liberate everyone, which I told you: the seven generations back, meaning where your ancestors are fluttering. Now, coming September and November, everyone—Hindus have it, Christians have it also—it is called the ancestor remembrance. You go at the beginning of November to the graveyard, to the grave of your ancestors. You clean it, put a nice candle and flowers, and bow down in prayer. That soul is already in a different place, perhaps in its sixth generation elsewhere. That soul is in Egypt, in a new body. That soul says, "Father, my grandchildren, listen. I am not in this grave, but it does not matter; we believe." We believe, we pray to our ancestors, worship, giving flowers. Because blood is thicker than water. Your blood is there, going from blood to blood. That is my root; I cannot let it be destroyed. But now a generation has come that does not know your fifth great-great-grandfather. Do you know the name of your fifth grandfather? We have forgotten, so we should know. We should remember, but now the generation has forgotten. Some even say, "I have no grandfather anymore. I was an only child." And my child was a girl who married into another family. By the third generation, you forget. But, my dear, there is a relation. It will not get lost. This body will get lost, but your soul, that soul, will purify itself. Then it becomes Jīvātmā. In Sanskrit, we call it Jīvātmā. Jīva is the soul, and Ātmā is the supreme. When we become human, we have a jīvātmā. This Jīvātmā can ascend to Paramātmā. Paramātmā means the supreme, or you can say Holy Father. Yoga practice is, first, physical exercise for good health. Health is not nothing; it is everything. But everything is nothing without health. The body is not everything, but without the body, nothing is there. So we must work with all these tattvas, the five elements. Through practicing exercises, positive thinking, and purifying energies, we engage in real yoga—not just jumping here and there or torturing your body by standing on your head. God said, "My child, I gave you two legs to stand. Why do you stand on your head?" Long ago, nearly 38 years ago in Slovakia, in a city called Zyar, there was one of my disciples at that time. He was about 75 years old. He was my disciple, but that does not mean I was 100 years old. You might ask: how is that? Were you older than him then? That is a yogic miracle. So do not think, "How old am I?" or "How young am I?" We will talk about that in the coming days. You know, you were born in your last life. I was also there still. Oh God! Yes, but we will close that subject. That man, about 74-75 years old, practiced yoga before I met him, and he liked to stand on his head. Once, he was standing on his head—goodbye, the train is going, I will stop very quickly—and he stood on his head for about 45 minutes, and then he fell down. His wife called an ambulance, and he went to the hospital. Blood rushed to his brain, but thanks to God, he survived. After one week, the doctor asked him, "Pāṇe, what have you done?" He said, "I was doing headstand. How long?" "45 minutes." The doctor said, "You should know, the head is not for standing. God gave legs for standing." So we have to think very carefully. Yoga is not only headstanding. Yoga is that which allows you to perform smooth and comfortable movements. So, regarding the soul, the five sheaths, and how the soul changes, we will think about that later.