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Part 1: The Radiance of the Full Moon and the Path of Yoga Today is a full moon day. The moon possesses more power than the sun. If the moon were perpetually full, our planet would explode; our hearts could not endure that lunar power. Today, a very special radiance of the moon is upon our planet. God Kṛṣṇa said, "Through the moonlight, I enter into the vegetation as a nectar." Our subject is yoga and meditation, especially today. Meditation is a key to yoga; without it, yoga cannot be completed. The word 'yoga' is known worldwide, yet many are unaware of its definition, purpose, and benefit. Yoga is ancient. The space, the ākāśa element—that empty space we call ananta, endless. Our experiences and knowledge are limited. But in the Vedas, self-realized masters speak of "Ānanda Brahmāṇḍa," the endless universe, a dark empty space. Within this space of Ānanda, the endless universe is called consciousness. Consciousness is in the space, not the space in the consciousness. Consciousness is like an embryo in the mother’s body. This space is nowhere empty; consciousness is ever-present there. Between consciousness and space, there is a third power, energy, or principle we call tattva. It is the balancing, harmonizing, unifying force. That principle of balancing, harmonizing, and uniting is known as yoga. Yoga is not physical exercise, breath exercise, concentration, or meditation. All these practices are the way to yoga. Literally, the word 'yoga' translates to uniting, balance. It derives from the word "yoke." In the West, some philosophers explain it with the image of two oxen pulling one chariot. A piece of wood called a dhurī rests on their shoulders or necks, and both oxen must pull it, walking with the same speed and rhythm. If one walks quickly, the other suffers. Both must balance. This is the yoke. So yoga is that which unites space and consciousness, balances and harmonizes them. Literally, it means the union of individual consciousness with cosmic consciousness. We exist as individual souls, but as consciousness or ātmā, the Self, we are all one. The space in this hall, in different rooms, on the road, and in Hyde Park is the same. Duality is created by objects like walls, leading to different activities and atmospheres in each room. Similarly, as a Self, we are all one. However, the soul is the entity experiencing birth and death, coming and going, happiness, unhappiness, pain, and pleasure. The soul is not the ātmā; it is not that Self of self-realization. Within this endlessness, where there was nothing except consciousness, that cosmic consciousness evoked one tendency. The Vedas say that from this point, time began—the counting of time, what in Vedic mathematics and according to the yogīs is described as the yugas: Satyayuga, Dvāparayuga, Tretāyuga, Kaliyuga, Mahāyuga, Manvantaras, and so on, spanning millions of years. The year on Earth differs from the time of Brahmā, the creator. We will touch on this later. The awakening of that special power is what in Christianity is expressed as, "Thy will be done, O Lord"—the divine will. Does God have a wish? Not a wish like ours. We wish to be happy, healthy, long-living, to live in harmony, to have money. Human desires are endless and will never be completed. Like the full moon: now it is full, tomorrow it will wane. It will decrease and increase, but never achieve finality. That cosmic or divine will is the awakening of consciousness. The purpose of meditation is to reach that level of consciousness, which is not easy. It is easy to speak of, interesting to hear and read, but to achieve it is hard work. Yet nothing is impossible. That divine will is stated in the Vedas: "Eko’haṁ bahu syāmī"—"I am one, and now I will multiply myself." With this, the Nāda, the sound, the resonance, awoke. That resonance we call Aum. From the sound of Aum, Śiva, Viṣṇu, and Brahmā manifested. The Śiva consciousness. With this, the creation of the elements began: fire, air, water, and earth, or material, within space. Thus, the five elements. Endless universes and thousands of solar systems are created from one consciousness. From that time, every individual soul, the jīvā, has existed. The individual soul is a taraṅga, a ray, like the sun rising with numerous sun rays. When we speak, the vibration, the resonance, spreads everywhere. These souls, since that time, have been floating on the waves of time through the endless universe, experiencing pain and pleasure, happiness and sadness, darkness and light, and from time to time manifesting or changing into form. In the endless universe, life exists everywhere, but not life as on this planet. There is a difference. Even life in the water differs from life on land. Different principles govern creatures that can fly thousands of meters high. In space, in astral forms, there are different forms of life. The soul does not change with our lives. This body is merely a garment that will be changed; we will have another fine body. Presently, we are involved in five different kinds of bodies: Annamaya Kośa, the body of nourishment; Prāṇamaya Kośa, the body of energy; Manomaya Kośa, the mental body; Ānandamaya Kośa, the causal body; and Vijñānamaya Kośa, the body of knowledge. Within these five layers, one after the other, the soul resides. On this planet, the Creator has fashioned 8.4 million different creatures, divided into three categories: Jalchar, Thalchar, and Nabchar—creatures in the water, on the ground, and in the air. Among these, one is the human. With the awakening of cosmic consciousness, different kinds of energy developed. Two major parts of energy exist: Devī Śakti and Āsurī Śakti. Devī Śakti means spiritual power, the power of God, the holy souls, saints. Āsurī Śakti refers to the asuras, the rākṣasas, the devils. Gently put, these are positive and negative energies. Since that time, both have been in conflict, a battle that continues today. Sometimes Devī Śakti is victorious, sometimes Āsurī Śakti. We are the victims caught in between. From that time, every form of life, whether astral or physical, has a different kind of enemy. It does not matter where you are; you cannot hide. There is no space in the entire universe where you can find shelter. Culture and nurture for these three layers of life on and around this planet have also created a protection, a guard. In our modern system, we call it the navy, ground force, and air force. Similarly, the 'ground' represents problems in this present life where we exist. The 'navy,' which is deeper, connects to our past, our psychic dimension—what we call psychology. The psychic problems follow us generation after generation. Do not think a problem we have today will be finished tomorrow. No, it will follow us everywhere. We desire revenge, and our blood boils in the fire of that revenge. We wish to take action, and every action has a reaction, and every reaction begets another action. Thus, we have an enemy from the past, in the present, and in the future. Simultaneously, we have spiritual support and protection from the past, present, and future. Whatever happens through this body, mind, intellect, and emotion is counted as a layer over our soul. Imagine you are like a balloon, and you are sitting within it. Positive thoughts and energy enlighten the balloon; negative actions or thoughts pollute and darken it. This follows from life to life. Humans possess one powerful tool, and only through it can they liberate themselves from this darkness, the cycle of birth and death, and from suffering, pain, and pleasure. That tool is buddhi, our intellect. The human intellect has the capacity to store memory through education. Anything we learn is education, which begins from birth. The first time you opened your eyes, new information began. The intellect has five channels, or sources, to receive information as education. These are known as indriyas, or senses: the five senses of action and the five senses of knowledge. If you wish to meditate and realize the power of meditation, it is not easy. Who is powerful now: the mind or your meditation? Do not think that today you will meditate and possess such strong power that you can concentrate on a bulb and cause it to fuse. Perhaps someone expected such a demonstration today. To fuse a bulb is a pity; it costs money. Do not do it. But it can be done. However, those who can, never do, and those who try, cannot. The five senses of information are called jñāna-indriyam. Indriyam means senses; jñāna means knowledge. First is vision: whatever you see is recorded in your consciousness. Perhaps you saw me from afar at the airport and now recognize me. We did not speak, but my picture was registered in your brain. Second is hearing: when your father telephones and says, "Hello, how are you?" you immediately know it is him because his voice is already recorded. So the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and skin—these five senses give us knowledge and information, good or bad. But they do not judge; they merely perform their dharma. The principle of the eyes is to see whatever comes before them, unless you close them. That is why it is said of the three monkeys: see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil. The mind and intellect, which receive this information, can become overloaded and explode. This is what we call stress in modern times. How to rid ourselves of this stress? How to relax? For this, yoga and daily life offer many techniques: concentration, meditation, prāṇāyāma, relaxation, and so on, which we will address. But first, I wish to explain literally what yoga is and why we practice it. The information received by the conscious mind must be transferred to the subconscious. The mind is a messenger; it delivers everything. Immediately, the mind takes that information to the subconscious. Whatever is brought to the subconscious mind becomes desire, vāsanā. Some desires are strong, some negligible, but everything is recorded. Who knows when we will need it? After a while, the same desire seeks expression. Consider this example: You wish to go for a walk with your wife. Walking down the street, you see a beautiful ice cream shop with appealing pictures. You say to your wife, "Let's have ice cream." She replies, "Yes, dear. But remember, yesterday your doctor said you should not eat ice cream for ten days." She is a good wife, and you are a good husband. A good husband never says "no" to his wife, for she uses her brain wisely. Similarly, if you wish to drink alcohol, she will say no, knowing why. So you, the husband, listen obediently and say, "Okay, let's go home." But inside, you are disappointed and angry at the doctor and your wife. You think, "It is good for me, so I should not eat for ten days." Three days later, you dream that a month has passed—dream time differs from waking time. In the dream, you and your wife are walking and approach the same ice cream shop. Your wife invites you to eat ice cream, saying, "Now it's been over a week; you can eat." You agree. Both of you go to the shop, buy a big ball of pink, yellow, and white ice cream, sit at a table, take a spoonful, and bring it to your lips—one centimeter away—when the alarm rings. You open your eyes: no ice cream, nothing. What happens to the desire you could not fulfill on the first day? And now, in the dream, the same thing occurred, yet you could not enjoy the ice cream. These desires slowly lose their form and become a psychic problem: indescribable, unpleasant feelings and selfishness. You become so selfish you are ready to renounce anything to fulfill your desire. Desires unfulfilled in the subconscious transfer to the unconscious level. Thus, we have unconscious, subconscious, conscious, and superconscious levels. All problems from the three lower levels can be dissolved, solved, or understood when you reach the higher consciousness. That is the power of meditation: to free you from all problems and suffering. The unconscious level is a storeroom, the destiny from past lives. We have two kinds of destiny: one from past lives and one from this life. Psychic problems or conditions begin from the first day your mother and father came together. In what situation was the mother? In what condition was the father? What was the environment—anger, hate, happiness, love? This influences the new life the mother receives. Then, how were the nine months of pregnancy? If her husband neglected her, quarreled with her, or with in-laws—many factors influence the embryo. Therefore, during pregnancy, it is the duty of all family members to support that person. Even animals must be respected and supported. Such situations from past life constitute our destiny. First, destiny is created; then the body. First, a nest is made; then the bird lays the egg. According to destiny, our life is given to us. To realize one thing: What is my origin? And how to become one with my origin? All kinds of liquid—whether in plants, vegetation, our bodies, the air, humidity—originate from the ocean. All, even clouds and rain, have the ultimate destination of returning to the ocean. Every river flows toward the ocean. Similarly, every creature, even a small ant, possesses the same kind of soul, the light of God, as humans do. Do not think a big body has a big soul. An elephant is large, but its soul is not correspondingly large; it is just a light. Due to our human knowledge and education, the best education is that from parents, mother and father. You will never find a better teacher than a mother and father, barring psychic illness. "Mātā bhavati nāku mātā." A mother can never be a bad mother, except if she is ill. Part 2: The Path of Meditation Therefore, he said, the first God is mother, then of course father, the first teacher, your brother, sisters, your friends, colleagues, then your school teacher, then your religious teacher, then the Satguru Dev, the spiritual master, and the final is thyself. Your master is that one which, like this candle, is burning. And we are that kind of candle which is still not lighted. Now we have to bring this candle in order to light it with that candle which is already burning. Then this burning flame can help to light the candle which is not burning. Similarly, the enlightened master can enlighten the disciple. Otherwise, it is not possible. You can do many things, but you will not come to that point. So the last aim of practicing yoga is to purify all the levels of the consciousness and to solve all the problems, as a great saint, Patañjali, said, "chitta-vṛtti-nirodha," to purify all the thoughts in your consciousness. That finally, your individual self will merge into the cosmic Self. One drop will fall into the ocean. Then we will not say anymore it is a drop; it is ocean. So this individual, one day, will suddenly awake in that cosmic light. There you will lose your individual existence. No karma, nothing. This name is also not there. If it doesn’t happen, then as an individual soul, not this body, we will be traveling who knows how many ages, and so this is how we come, that through personal experiences, through the discipline, through the practice, we can realize this. Mother and father, wife and husband, children, all we had in every life. Eating, drinking, sleeping, and creating children—every creature is an expert. If a human is involved only in this, what a pity. This is only two days of life we have. Only two days of life we have. One day was yesterday, which is gone. The second is today. Tomorrow, no one has seen tomorrow. Tomorrow will always be tomorrow. You never can be present in tomorrow. Therefore, whatever is done, do it today. But a person who is not awakened inside is sleeping in the ignorance of desires and fulfillment, which will never be fulfilled. The joy which you want to enjoy has little joy compared to the suffering of that enjoyment which you want to enjoy. This life is more full of temptation than that of other creatures. What will happen to this human soul? There is no difference in God’s kingdom or in the astral world. A soul is a soul. We will not be saying this is human, and this was a buffalo, and that was a rabbit. No. There is no rabbit, there is no elephant, there is no buffalo, there is no human. Only one, and these are the souls. And these souls, carrying the light of the Self and that Self-consciousness, can only awaken this within us through the guidance of the Master. So the meditation can break through. Now, prayer, mantra, and meditation. All these three are the one. Prayer is a meditation. Repeating mantra, God’s name, is a meditation. And meditation is a longer prayer. When I pray, I have a consultation with God. When I repeat my mantra, then I am with God. And when I am meditating, then I am sitting on the lap of God, like a baby sleeping on the lap of the mother. Meditation, different kinds of meditations. Active meditation, passive meditation, creative meditation, which we will practice today, tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow, we will try to do something. Meditation is very, very hard to practice. If you think, close your eyes and sit down, is this meditation? No, that’s not meditation. We are trying. That’s concentration. Even we can’t concentrate. And when our concentration becomes a little calm, then it happens: between concentration and meditation, there is a very big obstacle, a very, very big, thick wall. And that thick wall is the sleep, drowsiness. So there are a lot of thoughts, and now I am relaxing. I close my eyes and relax. Now thoughts are disappearing. Now I am sleeping. Where is my meditation? It is not easy, my dear, to master your sleep and your dreams and your waking state. The dream, I will not touch now, it will be another big lecture on dreams, but literally, dream is your reality. Whatever you dream is very personally connected to your personality, to your soul. Meditation cannot be practiced; there are no techniques to practice meditation. All techniques are only concentration, no, no techniques to meditate. It comes from itself, like your sleep comes from itself. What do we do? We go into our sleeping room and tell others good night. We lie down, and we have our pillow. We close our eyes. And only one thing, one thought we had: now I will sleep. That’s all. Suddenly you are in sleeping loka. Suppose you have only six hours, and then you have to get up because you have to be at the airport. And you said, "Now I must sleep quickly. Tomorrow I have to do this." I packed everything. I’m sure I didn’t forget anything. Now I will sleep. Now I sleep, and I will get up earlier. The alarm is on. Yes, I will sleep. What will happen? That you will not be able to sleep. Your sleep will not be sound sleep. Every forty minutes, half an hour, or one hour, you will wake up. You can’t sleep. You disrupt your sleep. Similarly, when you think, "Now I sit down and I will meditate," okay, that will follow. But you say, "No, I will meditate." I want to know how meditation is, the power of meditation. I don’t understand what is the power of meditation. Then you can’t meditate. Therefore, Patañjali, Maharṣi Patañjali, great, says Patañjali, who wrote beautifully about yoga, and he divided yoga into different parts: Karma yoga, Bhakti yoga, Jñāna yoga, Rāja yoga. Patañjali is the father of psychology. Patañjali researched the human body, mind, consciousness, soul, and everything. And the first instruction that Patañjali is saying is, "Atha yoga-anuśāsanam." Yoga begins with discipline. Who has no discipline can never be successful in yoga. Then, second, yogaś-citta-vṛtti-nirodhaḥ. Your yoga practice begins to develop when you master your thoughts. You don’t allow out different thoughts during your meditation. Or through practicing yoga, you can reduce your thoughts, what I call the anti-stress meditation, like yoga nidrā, like deep relaxation and so on. So meditation will come from itself in the beginning. We have to make our body comfortable. Kāyā is therium. Meditation needs kāyā, therium. Kāyā means body, sthira means motionless. Motionless body. And when the body is motionless, then the mind is relaxed. This glass is motionless on this table, and the liquid is also very motionless. If I move the table, the liquid is also moving. Or I take a little stone and drop it into the water or a lake. It will create the waves. So when the body is in discomfort, you cannot meditate. Or when you are meditating and one thought comes, the thought which is in a very calm, beautiful, calm lake, you throw the stone and the waves go like a disc, one after the other, waves. One thought creates so many vṛttis, thoughts, like one stone you throw in the peaceful pond, and then sit down and count how many waves are there. The same thing is when you meditate and you think about one thing, something that disrupts your meditation’s level of the consciousness. And it’s not easy for us to be without thinking. Let’s say now I meditate, and I will say, "I will not think anymore, I am meditating." No, I will not think. So when I think that I will not think, I am already thinking. But meditation will come and has its power to destroy all the negative energies. It will break through. Like when the sun shines, the fog will disappear, or the darkness will disappear. In the cave, there are millions of years; there is darkness. And you go and say, "Please, darkness, now you are existing millions of years, go out." Darkness will not go out. Just make a light; darkness disappears. Similarly, we have to come to that knowledge. And the darkness of ignorance will disappear. Lead us from darkness to light. Lead us from mortality to immortality. Asato mā satgamaya. Lead us from unreality to the reality, and that is the path of meditation. Now, it must not be that you sit in lotus. It must not be that you sit like I am sitting. Meditation doesn’t need that posture. Liberation doesn’t come from the posture. Liberation comes from the blessing, the mercy of the master or the god, and your knowledge. So you can lean on your chair, you can have your legs straight. Patañjali says, "Don’t meditate while lying, otherwise you will sleep." You lie down and say, "I am meditating." Yes, after some minutes or an hour, you will fall asleep. Meditation needs that you are alert. You withdraw yourself from the external world, but you don’t disconnect yourself from the external world. That doesn’t disturb you, but you know it is there. So through meditation, we can create the energy that is called willpower. And willpower will have that energy to solve certain problems. Through the meditation, you can fulfill your wish. Because meditation should be without any kind of ambition. Meditation should be without fear. Meditation should be without arguments. Meditation should be very clear, crystal clear. There is no selfishness, there is no anger, no jealousy. That pure light you will receive. Through this pure light, you can purify everything. Mahātma Gāndhī said, Whenever I had problems or needed to solve some situation, I went to my meditation place. I closed my eyes and prayed to God. And I surrendered my entire being to Him, and He gave me the answer. He gave me this strength. My strength is not from my physical nourishment, Gandhijī said. My strength is from my prayers, my meditation. I can fast physically, but I cannot fast mentally from my prayers. That gave me this strength, and so in his name I realized that unbelievable things, unsolvable problems, I could solve. And so is the power of meditation. After five days of continuous meditation, you will realize what strength your meditation has. And it is the meditation which will lead to God realization. It is the meditation which leads to self-realization. And the key, or the door to spirituality, is meditation. So without meditation, no sādhanā practice can be successful. Even if you are a karma yogī, meaning only working, that also needs meditation. Work, my work is a worship to thee, O my Lord. My work is a worship. When you help someone, that’s like a meditation. Without expecting the fruits of the actions. Renounce the fruits of the actions; that is a meditation. But expect the fruits of your actions? That is not meditation; that is selfishness. So, but still people like to know how to sit down, what to do, where to concentrate, so that I can come into the meditation. That we will do now, and before that, I give you 10 minutes or 15 minutes rest. You can open the window and have fresh air and move. Then we will have. It will be easier for you to feel your blood circulation if you take off your shoes. Don’t worry, we ask them to clean. Three times they clean the floor with the vacuum and with some water and some kind of organic cleaning soap. Okay. Please stand up, interlock your fingers, turn your palms in front, and stretch your hands up. Place your hands on the head. Inhale and stretch your arms up, and stand on your toes. Exhale, again, once more. Stretch arms up, stand on the toes. Normal breath, and again, hands on the head. Difficult? No, tired? One, one, normal breath. Look to your hands and bend your body to the left side. Left side of you in the middle, right side in the middle, left side in the middle, right side. In the head, on the head again, stretch your hands up and stand on the toes. Make steps. There are 50 steps on the same place on the toes, heels above. I’m not counting, you have to count yourself, please, because everyone has a different rhythm after. Walk on the heels 50 times. You see my glass? Good. Hands sidewards and down. You turn to this side, and you can turn to this side. Interlock your arms and comfortably sit on the chair where you are. Bend your knees. That’s it. Lean on the chair, okay. Don’t lean on the table, please. It will give you more energy and strength to sit. Relaxed for meditation. Once more, sit on your chair. You need not go very deep. You are more down than a chair, boy. Yes. More down is easier, and up. Very, very good. Turn to my side, please. Hands, fingers, touching the tips of the shoulders, and ten times roll your shoulders like you are writing zero with your elbows on the blackboard. Other direction, very good. Thank you, please take a seat. You can stay without taking shoes on. Lights off, some lights off, not all. This all, your cameras, man, other one put off. This leave it. Oh, very good. Now is the best, yes, very good. Make yourself comfortable. You can place your hands on the thighs, touching index finger and thumbs together, palms touching the thigh or the knee, or you may keep your palms facing upward. Or you may cross your fingers, put it on the lap. How you feel comfortable should be like that. Anything you want to see, do it now. Then please close your eyes and relax. Deep inhale and exhale, and we will chant Aum three times. While chanting the Aum, withdraw yourself from the external world. Listen to the OM resonance, and feel the vibration in the whole body, and feel the resonance. Deep inhale the breath. Your eyes are gently closed. Relax the whole. Be aware of your being here in this hall and just relax. The whole day has passed. You were working hard mentally and physically. But now it is time to relax. Say yourself mentally to thyself, relax, my friend, relax. Just relax for the time being and let me be one with myself, without concentration, without creating any restless thoughts. Just be aware of your being here and your relaxation. Relax the whole body from the toes to the top of the head and from the top of the head to the toes. Feel and relax your foot soles, toes, and muscles. Feel the relaxing of your thighs and hip joints. Feel comfortable in your knee joints, ankle joints, and hip joints. Relax your stomach muscles, your back muscles, your shoulders, your neck, elbows, wrists, fingers, and palms. Throat muscles, face muscles, the jaw, and relax your skin, head, the whole body. And now feel the motionlessness of the body. My body is relaxed, my body is comfortable, and my body is motionless. Not that I can’t move, but there’s no need for movement. With the motionlessness of the body, you will feel your biorhythm and bioenergy, like your aura. If you move your body a little bit, this energy will disappear, but you should not feel discomfort. Just relax. Be comfortable and motionless. Become aware of your breath. That you know you are inhaling, and you know that you are exhaling. Do not change the breath rhythm. Let it flow as it is. Just feel the ingoing and outgoing breath, that I am inhaling. I know that I am exhaling. At the time of the inhalation, the trunk of the body is expanding slightly. At the time of the exhalation, the trunk of the body contracts slightly. Now feel the expansion and contraction of the trunk of the body with normal and natural breath. Breathe and touch the breath deep in the nostrils. At the same time, feel the expansion and contraction of the stomach. The breath becomes deeper and deeper. Your body is relaxed, your breath is relaxed. Now, just observe. No concentration, just observe. The inner space behind the forehead wall, the eyebrow center. Don’t concentrate; do not try to create any visions. But if some waves of the colors, dots of the colors, curtains of the colors, or just darkness, be witness. Our main aim is to relax. Feel comfortable and relax. Back to the breath. Feel the breath through both nostrils. Breath is flowing with the same quantity or capacity. And you are exhaling, expansion and contraction of the trunk of the body. The whole body. Each and every limb of the body is relaxed. Try to inhale and exhale a little deeper and longer. Inhale and exhale. We will chant Aum three times, and while chanting Aum, try to become extroverted. Follow the resonance of the Aum beyond this room. Inhale, breathe, slowly move your toes. Contract the toes and stretch the toes. Stretch your ankle joint, your foot towards the ground and heels up, and then toes towards the body and heels. Stretch in the front. Fingers, close the fist, open the palm, close the fist, and rotate your wrists and shoulders. Move up and down and rotate the shoulders. Fold your palms together and rub the palms. Place the palms on the face and wait until the light is on. Keep your eyes closed, leave your hands on the palms of your face, and wait until the light is on, then slowly open your eyes.