TV Channel

Part 1: Language, Translation, and the Quest for Spiritual Nourishment I'm very happy to see you again. Yesterday was very nice, our satsaṅg in the meadow. And here also, beautiful. We have one bhajan that I would like to translate. Mahāprabhujī has written it, and perhaps Maṅgīlāl-jī as well. But I think this is Mahāprabhujī’s bhajan. No, no. So, Ājñā, they, because they are Yoga Nidrā. And that is something great. Of course, many times we cannot easily understand what Mahāprabhujī has composed—the bhajan or his profound writings on yoga and many other things from Mahāprabhujī. But this is written by some, like the birds on it. So I have to correct it in Sanskrit, Hindi. Or my bhajan in Hindi, in the book. In Hindi, very good. It will come in the Hindi book. There is a difficulty very often when we make, or try to make, some letters in different ways. In Vienna, they speak German. And Czechs and Slovaks, they also learn the German language. And we know that mother tongue, and mother tongue is from the birthday. And there are different teachers in a tongue, so there is a great difference. And, of course, we try to correct the language about the teacher's tongue. The Czech language is the mother tongue of the Czech people. And that goes deep through the whole body. Feelings, everything. For example, how? And when our friends from Czechoslovakia are coming to, let's say, Vienna, so we say "Kyche," and they say "Kichen." That's the same thing, but the Austrians will not say it; they will say "Kyche." But Rakṣaṇa is pronounced differently in German. Nāṭhuālikī Jai, within the Kī Jai. This is someone who is twisting, not from the mother tongue, but from another language. And when you learn the language as a second language, in the mother tongue, then you pronounce it a little differently. Also, you know that in our modern technologies, we have this, what we call, we ask someone on our camera, in this telephone, the street name. And so, in different languages. And they make the navigation, and so they are writing to me or to anybody in English. So in Vienna, in our Gurujī's Ashram, the street name, what is that? So, it is called the Trubelgase. And what's again? They said trouble gas. So you can write in English in your telephone and go with your navigator. They said, we said the, what we call the, true belgace. And they said, "Trouble has..." Now, everybody says, "Please, which is the street called the Trouble Gas?" They don't know. May they go to the doctor? Similarly, in India, also very near our ashram, near Pali, there is a village with a name that means something sweet. And it's completely different. So, I've forgotten the name of that village; I will look and see the name. Similarly, from the Czech public, the mother tongue, and then very good learning, listening, everything, and our very neighbor, Indian, the Vienna, and they will speak. So when Gajānanda translates from Hindi to English, and from that English to German, and from German to French, they don't know which language that is. So, therefore, we have to try to write and listen in our mother tongue. Which mother tongue? I'm talking English mother tongue. And so, the British language, English. And there, exactly their letters should be written like the Hindi will also be learning. When you write in a newspaper in London, and in that paper, something is written about India in Hindi, so then the German writer, they should write like here Gazarans have written, the English language in Hindi or Hindi in English. So don't make confusion. It's good that we said kīchā. Peter Comancy, Aysen, Holinsy from the Kishan. That's different. Many, many years, I have been in Austria. So at least I know in the, not kiche, kiche. Hold on, let me check, please. So check and check. Thank you. So that's why you always give it in my hand. Then this, I cannot see what it is. Thank you very much. So if you give me such a translation from bhajan, from Hindi to English, you can't read it at all. Yes, this is perfect. Okay, very good. There are two or one? Pārvatī, two. There are two pages, or? Aha, I think this, I don't know. Two pages, yeah? There are two pages, one bhajan is on... It's very long. Oh, this is for my whole seminar. So this bhajan is on both sides. Yes, thank you. Now I can see. Okay, very good. Sorry to Gajananjī, you are in India and listening to me now, so you are great, and I am just making it very clear, okay? So, I am just correcting. You are very great. You know, my dear, our Swami Gajānana Purī, he is from Germany, and how many years he is with us. Gajānana is a very, very clear person, and if he likes something and he wants something, if he likes something and... He wants something, then it is very clear to him. And he stayed a long time in India, and Rajasthan is different. And Germany is different, and now he is in South India. And now he likes South India better than Rajasthan. But in that language where he is, neither I nor Gajānana can understand. But the language of southern India is completely different, and neither I nor Gajānanda understand it at all. I think we have nearly 45 good Indian languages and thousands of what we call dialects. But very great, our yogī, Gajānanda, he doesn't want to learn and listen to, what we call, the different languages. And Gajānanda is a very great person. Yes, he is still singing bhajans. He likes South India, and he is definitely longing to see all of you, because Gajānanda is known worldwide. In Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, everywhere, Fiji, not so, it's everything. Alright, thank you, Gajananjī. Very good, thank you. Let's come into that way. So you know that Mahāprabhujī said, "When you come to the satsaṅg, or going to sing." Bhajans and certain things, then first have to greet Gurudeva. Many people in different countries, with different religions and different languages. And there they said, first, now, many people they don't want, but mostly they said their religion is everything. But in Germany, there are also many different languages. So we in Vienna, we say, "Guru is God." Or you can say the Czech people, the Guru's God. But the Guru is God. Others said, "Not the Guru is God, but something different." So every language has something, and they mean good. And so we ourselves, how we are coming and welcoming. And so in our seminars, in our path of yoga in life, etc. So what did we say? First, we said Praṇām. And then, we mentally or loudly. Namo Gurudevajī, like Gurudev. We are talking about Gurudev. We are talking about Gurudev. When we are going to satsaṅg, seminars, to bhajans, to gurudevs, then we are going there to get something. If we go to satsaṅg, to a lecture, we go to sing bhajans, or to a gurudev, we go there because we want to get something. We are all here to get something. We are not here for money. We are not coming for some eating. We are not coming here for a comfortable hotel. We are here; it doesn't matter how it is. But we come for our learning and for attaining our Brahmalokas. So we speak, and someone teaches someone. And one is learning for that. So it is like this: we are thirsty, and any kind of creature, when it is thirsty, is suffering, and somehow it would like to satisfy its thirst. So little, very little, even the little ants, they search for some green grass, or some little bush, or big tree, so little leaves of that. And a little tiny, this, that, that ant. And only this seed, bite a little of the leaves. That's more than enough water for that, and for an elephant. A python. He needs a lot of water, but when he is full, then he is okay. Or he will go into the lake, and then the elephant is so happy. Then he does not feel that he is very heavy, so he is in the water. Many hours, they are just getting very heavy, this knot, and very light. Then they suck the water into their nose and put water on their head, nice and cool. Water is life. Life is water. So, we are searching for that. So, in the same way, we are on this to quench our thirst. We are thirsty, we are thirsty. So there are different kinds of thoughts, and we are all thirsty for the Guru's kṛpā, blessings, and liberation, all that we are searching for. We are going to yoga only, without any spiritual, and like this. This is just like plastic, that's all. We are here, now it's already been one month. And according to the government of the Czech Republic, we can hold this many people here, and we are respecting that very much. That many people like you are here, like this every seminar, so many come and so many come. They have a home, they have children, they have partners, they have friends, they have a job, etc. But for a time, they leave it out. And coming here, what is that? They have the thirst to learn, that human and human, after the human, to God or anywhere you can. Every religion has different things. And so they tried to see that, to see what was there when their eyes were open. It is like this: through our eyes, we are fulfilling our thirst. And everybody that I want to come quickly, I won't sit in front here or that back side. Yes? Many people like to sit in the back. And some like to sit in the front, like Mr. Jagdish. I see him always in the front. Pana Vasant, and also always sitting in the front, who? Vivek Purījī, but he is sitting in the last, not in the front, because from the front he sees everyone, and everyone sees him, but if he turns this side, he will see me and Gurujī's altar. That's it. But what is the divine beauty? Great loving, all is behind you, and you are looking this side in the front. Do you understand me? When she is sitting here in my deal, now behind her, I don't know who is there. We came here to see so many, many people, our friends. So, when you sit behind there, and when you sit there in the back, then you are getting more energy and power. So one is a locomotive, and the other is the last cabin. But what is between doesn't matter. Now, you don't have in the West or in Europe something like this? It has, but it is different. There is a, there is one, what to call them, where there is coffee, chai, something to eat, but it is a buffet. So you can go and drink, and come and sit. And Indians, they don't want to go and say, "Please, I would eat this and drink." There are two reasons. One reason is that, I'm very lazy. I don't want to go and drink there and come back. And second, what they want to know very well, that is a great thing. That is why he or she doesn't go and drink there and come back. You know that? Then what? Have you not seen Indian airlines or trains? So I can tell you, with me you are going, then you are going with a taxi, bus, or car, you know, you are different. Then you are from the Western countries or any other countries. So they are neither there nor here. If they want to go, then they should go on an Indian train. So, what is that? Why do they want to go and drink tea there in the next cabin and then come back? No, why don't they go there? Because when they come back to their seat, there is no seat. So from Delhi or Jaipur, you come to Rishikesh. Or a Kumbha Melā in Ilāhābād, so only you drink one tea. You come back, there is no place at all. That's Indian joy. Then you will come and you get out from, let's say, Frankfurt, from the aeroplane, and then go by train to Vienna. Part 2: Yoga Nidrā: The Path of the True Yogī In India, the rhythm of life is different. On the train, they tell you, “Remain seated. We will bring you chai.” And so, with chai in hand, you hear the sweet call echoing from the third cabin: “Chai, chai!” Not only the vendors — even Prime Minister Modī Jī once served chai. It is a sound that speaks of hospitality and connection. Compare this to the sterile announcement of “Coffee, coffee” elsewhere — the way of relating is not the same. And yet, how do we bring together peoples as different as Croatians, Slovenians, and Hungarians? That coming-together in oneness is called satsaṅg, true association. This very seminar, yoga itself, is satsaṅg. It is for this reason that Mahāprabhujī said: Guru Satsaṅgī Aryo Luvave, Jalābhināmina Praṇatajādeve, Tarapa tarapa jaro jīva jahāve. You can take away your cares with that beautiful bhajan from Mahāprabhujī — it holds everything. Now is a beautiful season. We are in summer, and new grass and trees are springing up. But sometimes in Europe, if ten days or two weeks pass without rain, people cry, “Oh God, there is no water,” despite enough water lying on the ground, in lakes, in rivers. Yet there is a bird — and only that bird — which thirsts only for what falls directly from the rainclouds. Though surrounded by water, it says, “My prāṇa, my life, will depart if I do not catch that water from above.” Everything is available in the world: brands, possessions, all good things. But there is another kind of being — the real spiritual person, the saint, the bhakta — who will not go where there is only a good program of dancing, eating, and drinking. When we arrange satsaṅg and only meditation, nobody comes. We are like that bird, longing only for Amṛt, the nectar. And in the ocean there is a fish — like a sheep — that will not drink the seawater. Only when a raindrop falls from the clouds directly into the ocean does it open its mouth and catch that drop. From that act, the finest and most precious pearls begin. Do not confuse these with cultured pearls, where men catch the shell, insert a droplet artificially, and let it eat. Those are not proper. In fact, there are two kinds of fine pearls, and a third made of plastic or something else. All this is written in Mahāprabhujī’s bhajans — the sea creature, and the bird that all day and night cries, “Water, water, water!” That bird is called Papaya. Even when heavy clouds gather and the heat is intense, he will not drink from any other source. Only from the cloud. So too, we who come to a good yogī, a good religion — not only in our seminar, for many are like this everywhere — once you have accepted your guru, you should not keep changing. It is like having only one mother who gave birth to you. Your neighbor will also marry and have a child; that is very good. We can be friends, we can do everything. But you cannot place that child back into the womb and tell the doctor, “Go away, I will take my child to another doctor to be delivered again.” So if there are people who behave that way, do not follow them. Yet you may visit others who, though not your guru, hold a good satsaṅg. When they ask, “Who is your Gurujī?” you tell them. And they will say, “Please give my praṇām to your Gurujī.” That is the mark of a real guru. You understand? In this spirit we are sitting here, and you are that fish, that bird, catching the drop of nectar — the words of Mahāprabhujī, Gurujī, Alakhpurījī, Devpurījī — which enter us so that we may become like those real pearls. And that real pulse will carry us further into that living water, and you will see what unfolds. This is the Yoga Nidrā of the yogī, as the bhajan declares: Yogī Janakī Yoga Nidrā, Viralā Sant Jāṇīye. Only the real yogī knows how to enjoy this sleep. What kind of sleep is it? Yoga Nidrā — for yogīs and seekers alike — this Nidrā means a sleeping in which one learns how to enjoy a state where, though asleep outwardly, one is awake inside. Immediately upon entering that sleep, the yogī awakens within. As the verse says: Pūrṇirātri me divas jāgī hai. In that sleep — call it dream or dreamlessness — you wake up to yourself, and that is the mark of the genuine yogī. Ulṭā Naiṇā — then your vision, though your eyelids are closed, turns into another light. Without opening your physical eyes, your gaze opens to another dimension, based on the ultimate sense. Your seeing turns into happiness, joy, and beauty. And in that Yoga Nidrā: Śūnyame sahaj viśrānti hai. In that beautiful void, a bed is prepared for you — not a physical bed, but one in the sky. Just as when we are very hot we long for fans, so in your Yoga Nidrā an indescribable, beautiful air, an energy, comes to you. Phuni, śveta, śūnya selānī hai. And there, immediately, phuni means “immediately”; śveta, white, very pure light; and you come to know all that is going on here and beyond. But in this Yoga Nidrā, the flower blooms in reverse, facing upward. The flower which was hanging down awakens and rises. And in that state, there is a sound, a sanmukha, before your face. Lakhi ūrdhvamukha vāṇī hai. The glories are given in that ūrdhva — upward direction. Ūrdhva is the breath rising, inhaling and exhaling. Thus: Ulṭā phūl khilā hai sanmukha. The flowers that were pointing downward or a different way now turn upwards. This is the awakening of our Kuṇḍalinī chakras, the same chakras we develop in our Anuṣṭhāna. And in that, Turīyā — the light of the light — appears. Like the sun’s light yet beyond any support (Nirādhāra), it is above everything. That yogī who practices, who performs the ceremonies, knows this. In his eyes you see that he knows his life, his thought, his Ātmā; he knows who he is. Śūnyame Sūra Ananta Ugā. In that void, the sun and moon awaken Sūra — the true hero. They are the heroes, for they have awakened this inner sun. And: Kudrat Kalā Viśvānī hai. Kudrat means your fortune, your ability; kalā, the art. In your luck, in the Kriyā Yoga you are doing, you have practiced, you have learned, you have taken refuge in the Guru Paramparā. Then it is said that for you, a place is given in the whole world — not only on this earth, but everywhere. You will find comfort and all that you need. This is not material comfort; it is the state where great goddesses and saints are one with all, and all are one with them. So, next we will speak more. But understand, many people now run about saying “Yoga Nidrā, Yoga Nidrā,” yet they do not know. Next time at a conference, because everyone is teaching Yoga Nidrā and following me, I will change my approach: I will not translate; I will let the words stand as they are. Go, yogī janakī, holy Gurujī has a very beautiful picture of sound — the sound of Gurujī’s bhajan. Early in the morning Gurujī used to sing it, Purījī, Purījī… This is very lovely. We should learn from Holy Gurujī, bring it from Gurujī, from Gurujī, from Gurujī. It is like the story: One person went to God in heaven, and God said, “Everything is good, but you do not have that.” The person replied, “Yes, I have it here. Let me take it.” God said, “But you cannot sing. You cannot chant.” The devotee said, “Here is my melody; everyone is there.” This is our technique of mantra, of yoga nidrā, given to us by Bhagavān Dīp Nārāyaṇ Mahāprabhujī — not by just anyone. Some people learn only to lie down in deep sleep and call it yoga nidrā; that is fine as a relaxation. But the one described here, when known and practiced, means you need no other technique. That is why there are many kriyās, many yoga kriyās, many different yogīs. But we, the real yogīs, sādhus, whatever you call such a person, are called sat — truth, Satpuruṣa. Iski, very nice. Tomorrow we will go to Toribni or somewhere. Thank you. And here we have Bhagavān Śrī Dīp Nārāyaṇ Mahāprabhujī. Many people practice yoga nidrā, but it is just a relaxation. That is also good; you relax with it. But this is the real yoga nidrā described here. We will explain the mission sometime in the future, and the person who masters this yoga nidrā and practices accordingly will not need any other technique. There are many yogīs with different techniques, but this is the yoga nidrā given to us by Mahāprabhujī.