Swamiji TV

Other links



Video details

What are we thinking about our being?

An evening satsang on the soul's journey and the science of yoga.

"Our soul, our self—when this soul... becomes conscious of the highest Self—somehow, either we become bored there and desire to come to some good situation to enjoy this world. Thus, the soul descends and ascends, up and down."

"Through practicing yoga, the physical exercises and breathing are good for our health. The real practice of yoga is from that Master who will give the mantra and give you the techniques."

Swami Madhvanandji addresses the gathering, exploring the nature of the soul, its embodiment, and the path of yoga. He discusses the five elements, the relationship between the soul (the 'president') and the senses (the 'prime minister'), and the limitations of human science compared to divine creation. The talk emphasizes self-realization, the importance of spiritual practice, and seeing the divine light within.

Filming location: Slovakia

Good evening, dear sisters and brothers. Dobrý večer, drahé sestry a bratia. Welcome all of you this evening. Vítajte tu dnes všetci. I am very happy to see you. A som veľmi rád, že vás tu vidím. We are always waiting for something for ourselves. Every day, different thoughts come, and we change our thoughts. Every day, we think something will be good. But we do not know. Perhaps we are going deeper and deeper into the snow, sinking down. Similarly, we are all sinking in our thoughts, which come from our desires. Day by day, we think more and more about our body, thinking, "I will live long and happy." But day by day, our life is getting shorter and shorter. Our soul, our self—when this soul, what you call the soul, becomes conscious of the highest Self—somehow, either we become bored there and desire to come to some good situation to enjoy this world. Thus, the soul descends and ascends, up and down. We are here. The soul is already thinking again. In the womb of the mother, it thinks, "Now I am caught in a prison. I cannot go out. I cannot do anything that I want." Perhaps God does good things, but we do not want them. We are tied inside. It is not easy—for humans, nine months. But if God has given us the wish to live in this world, then how? We have to always be and become an individual. So even when you are separated from the mother's body, you are an individual. You come out, and it is a completely different thing. Now you are alone as just one self. For many months, we cannot do anything. What we tell, they do not understand, and what they are crying for, we do not understand. That is called the destiny of the soul. That which is achieving something—but what are we achieving? This is a point. The second point I will tell you later. Now I leave you here. This is what we are thinking about our being: all the five elements, or the life. Let us call it the Annamaya Kośa, the physical body. This Annamaya Kośa is the physical body we can see, touch, and which we eat. But day by day we think differently, and day by day our time is going. Here we think something about which God has brought us or made us. Which God? And how is that God doing? No science till today can give clarity. A very tiny fly, which we cannot even see with our eyes, flies, bites us, drinks our milk, our blood. And then there is what we see: an elephant. The elephant has two eyes, we have two eyes, all creatures have eyes, and that very fine fly also has eyes. Sometimes I think a lot, and I think you are also thinking. If not, then you should think now about technology. We call it technology, and that is called the creation—the creation of God. But which God? Why is He doing all this? A tiny, invisible creature to our open eyes, but others have eyes and see everything. So, how many organs, and how big? How is God giving even to a very tiny creature? We look at ourselves, our physical body. Almost our problem is the physical body. We enjoy our body, but we are not enjoying the body. This is what I am telling you: that one thinking is called a yogī. Not that a yogī is like we are. To be the same truth, I am also not like that. You have caught me, but there are yogic thoughts and techniques, and that is going through everyone. That we should achieve. So this science—no matter how much they think about science, how much we study many, many things—still we cannot compare. Of course, through science we are developing many things, many machines. You often fly on an airplane, but I fly also. Sometimes, 12 hours only over the ocean, flying. Looking up, if God is there, or down, nothing. But our human brain made this airplane. For example, there is a nest in a thorny bush with a few babies or eggs. The bird will go somewhere to get something to eat. That bird will fly not slowly, but quickly, exactly. Sometimes I think: it is a bird; from Bratislava it takes off, and in New York it lands. It is the science of the humans also. We should not criticize, but still we are not there. In the time of God Rāma, he was 150,000 years ago, and there was an aeroplane, you know? Who does not know? Hands up. So I do not know. Please, hand is like this, hand is like that. Who does not know? Hands up. God gave you the hand: from one finger to the wrist, and then the elbows, and then here. All like this. It means you do not know the signs of your elbow. So that time there was an airplane. Before that, in Chicago, there is a big library. Two scientists went to that library every day to read only that one book for five years, but still they could not find it. They were reading the holy book Rāmāyaṇa. Every day they came, four people, and the same chapter about this aeroplane. But they could not find out how that was created. We know we cannot. A little bird—how she is flying, how quickly she flies and comes quickly to sit on a branch. We humans, when we run very quickly, cannot stop suddenly. We drive a car at 150 km speed, but we cannot stop in one place. So still the human brain cannot achieve that which God has done for other creatures. But we are here, now in our body, and this is our yogic science. It will take a long, long time. So the first part is the physical body. Now we shall take care of our body. Can you really take care of your body? Some may be, but many do not, because we do not have control. I am also a little bit sometimes. Truth is the truth. I am like you, my dear, but I am thinking more than this, you may be. Let us say the doctor said, "No ice cream." Parents said, "No ice cream." Friends said, "No ice cream." But suddenly someone comes with ice cream and says, "Two bites I can have." It is not so harmful. Maybe it is not harmful, but our discipline is not that strong. That is why Patañjali said in his yoga, "Atha Yoga Anuśāsanam." Patañjali was a great yogī who tried to make different branches. It is not Patañjali's yoga. Yoga is from God Śiva. And before Śiva, the yoga was there to bring Śiva. If you understand—I have spoken many times—there was nothing. But then these elements are coming. There are three principles: the space, the consciousness, and the balance. This balance, harmony, balancing, and uniting—these three principles are called yoga. It means connecting the space and the consciousness, which we do not know. Through this, when all in all there was nothing, all in darkness, that is called then first the light. Light means the fire. The first is the fire. The space is there. We call that emptiness. You and I and they all—we are that part of that. We were that time like this, and now we are like that. So, Agni Deva, Agni Deva—God or the element fire. Like when you came out of the mother's womb and your eyes opened, and we see. Yes, before we did not see; it was different things. That is called the light, and that we were singing here: "O Satguru Dev, please, Guru Dev, the light to light. From light to enlight the light." So one candle is already lit, and the other one is not. We are those who are not still lighted. That enlightened one has the light. Maybe you are all, many of you, are light. Maybe? So we will blow up everything, nothing, and you stand up, and there is a flame. We all will praṇām to you. But still, that light means the knowledge, and ignorance is the darkness. This is the difference: knowledge or ignorance. But there are different kinds of light. And there, which side are we doing something wrong or good? After that comes beautiful prāṇa, the air. It does not matter what we are doing—dreaming, sleeping, working, running—we are breathing constantly. It does not matter which situation we are in, but we are taking this breath. So the breath is the life, and life is the breath. But in the breath is that light, and that light is the breath and the space. After that, what we have is called the water. We cannot survive without water. Nothing can exist here in this world. Even in the rocks, there is water. So everywhere there is water. What you say in your language: water is life. What we say in our Sanskrit language: "Jal jaha Jagadīś." Jal means water. And where there is water, there is life. So there is life. There is God. "Jal jaha Jagadīś." Jagadīś means God—that which is on the earth. What I am telling you today, you should think about for your good health. Think very clearly. So these are the five elements: earth, water, air, fire, and space. And within that is your soul, your Ātmā. Now, you are one, and you have your own kingdom, universe; you have the whole universe. So you are not alone. Let us say this country, Slovakia. There is one who is maybe president, or what you are thinking—who is it? Prime Minister or President? So, who is highest, the president or the prime minister? In Slovakia, prime minister. Prime Minister, not President. So it means the father or brother, which is good, better. When another president or prime minister comes to your country, then who is the president or the prime minister first? What we call the first lady—who is the first lady of your Slovakia? The prime minister's wife or the president's wife? Please, what? Yes, President. The prime minister is active, but the president is the main one. So the president has the… He is a king. The prime minister is active. He has everything, power in his hands. But if it is wrong, then the Prime Minister will be blocked, and the President will have the power. Your army will be in the hand of the Prime Minister or the President? Yes. So, anyhow, it does not matter. But it does matter. I am talking about your jīva, your ātmā. This ātmā is your president, and the Prime Minister is balancing all this. And what are you? You are the public. Yes, all in your country. All your cows—what will you call it? Are they Slovakian cows or Austrian cows? Slovakian. The honey bees in Slovakia—are they from Vienna or from here? My dear, so you have your country's territory, and the soul is the president. So you are the president, and these five… not elementary; there are ten powers. That is called the Karmendriyas and Jñānendriyas. Now you understand? Jñānendriyas means the knowledge, and that is the eyes, the inhalation, the ears, the mouth, and the whole body. And then the karmendriyas, which are acting, and we are observing. So five are the observers. You are looking, but they cannot speak. But without eyes, finished. So without a prime minister, it cannot function. You are blind, you cannot hear, etc. Further, the action—taking care—is the karmic yoga. So we are all who are working in different fields. These are five Karmendriyas and five Jñānendriyas. This is our life now. I want to put you in beauty, in oneness. Today, you are the king of kings, and you will be the God of Gods. You go home and tell your wife, "I am the king of the king." If she is a nice wife, she will say, "Wonderful. And what about me?" She will say, "Also, I am the king of the king. Because your soul is yours and my soul is mine. But only one soul can do nothing. It must have everything in our body." Now, it is said. So you are the king of your body, and the indriyas are your people. Do not become the slave of them, but let them work. In one prayer of Mahāprabhujī's disciple Śivānanda: "Mahāprabhujīho Jyākā, Śiva Ānandu." Just in this prayer is a very beautiful, great knowledge. Already, only in the first line, everything is given to you. You will practice yoga, I am telling you. And you are practicing already now, that science of the wisdom of the yoga that will lead you to happiness, joy, everything. But now is Kali Yuga. Kali Yuga means the dark time. But in this darkness of Kali Yuga, you all are the light. What I am listening from my mouth, and what is going in your ears, and what your eyes are seeing, this vision, etcetera—it is giving that science of the wisdom in your body, developing now already. Buddha. So it is said. Now I will speak. Very good, because you listen and sing beautifully. Many of you know, and many maybe do not understand. So it is Śrī Guru Ātmā. Ātmā, your soul, your Ātmā is your Guru. Yes, you all will become Gurus when you achieve what I am telling. But still you will be a guru, but without knowledge. "Śrī Guru Ātmā paramātmā." This, your ātmā, is the highest ātmā. The highest one. "Śrī Guru ātmā param ātmā. O Mahātmā." That you are the self-realized soul, your ātmā. To, že sa vaše ātmā stalo ātmā, ktoré si všetko uvedomilo. "Śrī Guru ātmā param ātmā Mahātma." Who is Mahātma? Therefore you are all Mahātma, like what you call Gandhījī Mahātma, no? Mahātma Gandhi. Did you get the statue? He is standing here? Why? Okay, good. So, Mahātmas, you are all Mahātmas now, because your actions are very positive, with happiness, joy, peace, humbleness, kindness, etc. That is why you are Mahātma. Puruṣa means human—not only the man. Generally, right, the Puruṣa means the male. But in all of humanity, in this what I am telling, "Purushottama, Om Ātmā Purushottama, Sakal Jag ke Ātmā." So, "Śrī Guru Ātmā Parama, Maa Om Ātmā Puruṣottama." That is your ātmā, your soul—you are. And that same we all have. I am yours, and you are me. We are human. Why do we make the dualities between Czech and Slovak, German and Austrian, Hungarian and Ukrainian? This is a territory. But human is that human, and again Satya Yuga will come. Then we will be very humble, very humble and peaceful. But in Kali Yuga, many, many different thoughts of the people developed, and that is why we are suffering. So, our body has everything, but the body does not have the unlimitation. It is limited. Someone who has become a great saint, that is called Avadhūta, Alakpurījī. They are there, but they purified their body, so they have no bones, there is nothing. It looks like that. It comes in the form. But this form is only like a vision; they speak, they walk, they give. But still, we are very far. And those who can fly anything—they can make their own plane. Just like this, and the fly is there, and they expand bigger or smaller. Now, how would you think about this? There is also, let us say, a balloon in your hand. You blow the breath. Do you want to have your balloon so big or so big? If it is too much, you can take air out, or you can expand and expand and expand. That is that time that was the science. We had, we had, we could talk. We could talk from here to other countries. But if we are purified and we have that science—now we have telephones, but there is a difference between talking with a telephone to you and me and that Mahāyogī. There is functioning without electronics, no electronics. It is called the inner voice. At that time, there was no pollution, nothing. And when they needed, then they talked. Otherwise, not. The time will come, you will see. Once ago, there was some Swāmī in Slovakia, and now we can talk without electronics or anything, and without any instrument, because our body is the instrument. That is the power of yoga, the science of yoga—the science of the humans, and we can come to the highest. We achieved that border, so either we come in or we go out again. So we are here, and do not think that now my God will liberate me. No. The sun is everywhere. This side is dark does not mean that the sun is gone. Everywhere is the same sun, the same other part. So we have to become in oneness. Through practicing yoga, the physical exercises and breathing are good for our health. The real practice of yoga is from that Master who will give the mantra and give you the techniques. It does not need anything; you need not even sit and meditate. But you are 24 hours coming in that light; that is this. Otherwise, we go back again, and when we go, we do not know where we go. Be sure that you cannot say, "Next life, I will be human." I cannot tell this. It may become the animals—what you call the sloth, not the mouse. The mouse has legs; they are snakes. No legs, no hands, no ears, only one mouth. But there are also some techniques through something, but we do not know where we will come. So this life, this body, is one of the greatest in this creation. So be humble, be kind, be helpful. I am the ātmā. I am that God. Yes. How many mistakes do you do? And are you really trying to take your mistakes out? Or, let us say here in the church, the Christians will say, "I am guilty, I am guilty… yes, God, I made a mistake, please forgive me." But after that, you go outside and again do the same thing. "Yes, die, so I will not kill." He did not say about not killing the humans, but all creatures. But even we are ready to kill human to human. So a day will come when we will all become one human, and we will be humble to all. That is very, very important. So practice your yoga: āsanas, prāṇāyāmas—means physical exercises, breath techniques, concentration, and relaxing. It is good for this body of ours, very, very good. But there is that technique, and all you can give is to the Gurudeva, and we cannot understand. Many times your Gurujī will tell you, but you will not understand. So it is coming, then it is coming, suddenly so. Otherwise, you can sing and sing, and nothing will happen. So when you are singing like this, either you are killing the animals or making warm your hands. That is it. So it is a very good thing, my dear. I know you are thinking, you are doing, and go with all your whole kingdom in our body, in a little drop of the blood. How many cells do we have inside? These cells are living, and it is yours. It means your soul is not alone only. All creatures are within our body, immense, endless, but your duty is to take care of them. And these ten karmas: five, the jñāna, and five karma. So think, and now is coming very soon the Christmas. You know, all festivals are mostly our great people made them. This means when everything is harvested and now is cold and snow, there is no work. Then what will you do? Fight each other? So, what did they make? One festival. In the name of God, we are not doing stupid things. And we are on the day of the holy days. We think of God, this, that, that. Yes, that is good. So mostly they have done some kind of festivals for us to control the humans. So, let her think what I say today: "Śrī Gurū ātmā, pramātmā, ho mātmā, puruṣottamā, sakalajakṣiṣṭhā." This is what we said. "Ancharakī ātmā nabharūpavyāpo satyayāpo vimalachetan ātmā prabhu-vipta." Tomorrow we will continue. So what I want to tell you: never think that I am unhappy. Never think you are not a good person. Never think I am lost, and never think I have nothing. You are that light of God. Have strength. The body will go one day. It is given to us to achieve that. So, tomorrow we will begin again. Śrīdharaṁ Bhagavān, Devapurūṣa Mahādeva, Satguru Svāmī Madhvanājī Bhagavān, Satya Sanātana Dharmaka, Oṁ Śāntiḥ, Śāntiḥ, Śāntiḥ. Ādio.

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:

Email Notifications

You are welcome to subscribe to the Swamiji.tv Live Webcast announcements.

Contact Us

If you have any comments or technical problems with swamiji.tv website, please send us an email.

Download App

YouTube Channel