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The Four Pillars of Life and the Path of Yoga

Spirituality is the exclusive, positive energy sustaining the universe, while this mortal world is defined by birth and death. Ancient knowledge, the Veda, is a complete science of existence, containing insights modern research has yet to match. The current age, Kali Yuga, is marked by hybridization and a loss of natural purity, creating great hardship. In this time, devotion is the advised path, but it cannot stand alone. The four yogas—Bhakti, Karma, Jñāna, and Rāja—are interdependent. You cannot perform selfless service without love and knowledge, nor can you gain liberation without balancing life's four pillars: duty, wealth, righteous desire, and ultimate freedom. Practice harmonizes body, mind, and soul, purifying the inner instrument by cultivating virtues like love and discarding enemies like ego. True spirituality transcends religious borders and is the foundation for peace.

"Kali Yuga kevala nāma ādhāra, sumira sumira nara ho’i bhava pāra."

"Helping hands have more value than folded hands."

Filming location: Dungog, Australia

Welcome, everyone, to our Śrī Devapurījī Āśram in Dungong, Australia. A warm welcome also to our dear brothers and sisters all around the world. We are here for a sādhanā camp. Sādhanā means to practice. As the saying goes, sādhanā says siddhi prāptote—practice makes perfect. Practice makes a master. Many different kinds of spiritual practices exist around the world. Spirituality is something very exclusive on this planet. This planet is known as a mortal world, Mṛtyuloka, because here, birth and death are connected. I think such a life cycle for creatures exists only on our planet. However, as astral souls in different forms, life is everywhere in the universe, not only on some planets. God is everywhere. He is on every planet, in every star, in every corner of space. Spirituality is the exclusive, positive energy in the entire universe. If there were no spirituality, everything would die. What we call science, the ideas of science, we call vijñāna. Jñāna vijñāna, jñāna vijñāna tṛpta ātmā. Jñāna means knowledge, and vijñāna means science. Through this knowledge, you research and find other or more sources of knowledge. Science means to find the sense of things. In ancient times, we used to call this research tapasyā—meditating, praying, doing sādhanā to know what is the truth, what is what. This hard work, enduring all pleasant and unpleasant situations, we call tapasyā. In modern times, we call it science and research. To this day, no research work could understand or achieve in this universe what spiritual saints, ṛṣis, or yogīs have achieved. The Vedas, the most ancient literature, were spoken by God Brahmā, the creator. Brahmā’s four hands are the four Vedas. Veda means knowledge. So the knowledge doesn’t need any title; it is only Veda, only the knowledge. The Vedas are not a spiritual dogma like a religion in that sense, but they are a science of the entire universe. Till today, nothing has been researched by scientists which is not presented in the Vedas, in any aspect—even cloning and many of these genetic techniques. Very clearly, before 6,000 years, God Kṛṣṇa said in the Bhagavad Gītā while telling Arjuna that in Kali Yuga, there will be Varaṇa Saṅkara. When Varaṇa Śaṅkara will be born, then Kali Yuga will become very tough, very hard, and it will signal the end. Varaṇa Saṅkara means manipulating, what you call hybridizing, cloning—a horse with a donkey and a donkey with a horse. Neither horse nor donkey remains. What has it become? A kachar (mule). Similarly, all vegetation is Varaṇa Saṅkara. Seeds are Vāraṇa Saṅkara. Now it is very hard to find seeds which can grow again. Mankind was thinking, "We create something the farmer must buy from us." Very systematically, this modern science has killed the farmers. The entire big supermarket system has killed all village and small business people. It is very hard to find real lemon, real apple, real cherry, real grapes, real banana. Very hard to find a real cow, a real buffalo, a real goat, real corn, real wheat, and a real human. A storm of emancipation and so-called tolerance and democracy came. The seeds of one field flew into another field. This is a cyclone of democracy, which is not understood. In democracy, another meaning is called "demon crazy." It is a demon power. Demons are anyhow very dangerous, but when they get crazy, then it is more dangerous. In Kali Yuga, we are all suffering. But finally, it is said in the Śāstras and in the Rāmāyaṇa: Kali Yuga kevala nāma ādhāra, sumira sumira nara ho’i bhava pāra. O human, only the name of God, the mantra, is our hope. Repeat and repeat through practicing, and you may cross the ocean of this Kali Yuga on this planet. Therefore, Bhakti Yoga is mostly advised in Kali Yuga because it is easier than any other kind of yoga. So, Karma Yoga and Bhakti Yoga. Bhakti means faith, spirituality. No science will ever and ever understand what spirituality is. No scientist will ever and ever understand what spirituality is. No fanatic people will ever understand what spirituality is. As long as you do not understand spirituality, you will not understand what God is. As long as you will not understand what God is, you do not know what life is. And when we do not know what life is, then you do not know what salvation or mokṣa, liberation, ātmā jñāna, is. Therefore, in this Kali Yuga, the Bhaktas have priority. Those who are doing bhakti, devotion, will have a priority check-out and check-in. But you cannot do Bhakti Yoga without Karma Yoga. If you do only Bhakti Yoga—sitting, meditating, and doing nothing—then somebody will cook for you and somebody will invite you for eating. Someone will do this. You say, "I don’t want to do it. I only want to do this: 'God, oh my God, oh my Lord.'" The Lord will say, "I didn’t send you for this. I sent you to work and help." So it is said, "My work is my worship." Lord, my Karmayoga, my Seva is a worship to thee. Helping hands have more value than folded hands. You cannot do Karma Yoga as long as you do not have love in your heart. Doing seva, you can only do if you have love. And that love means bhakti. Now, you cannot do Karma Yoga as long as you do not have Jñāna Yoga. Jñāna means knowledge. If you do not know how to do, you cannot help, you cannot do. Therefore, you have to use, and you have to be a Jñāna Yogī in order to do Karma Yoga. Jñāna-yoga does not mean only "all is illusion, I am Supreme Ātmā, Hari Om Tarsara, Eko Brahma Dutīya Nāsti." Yes, then why are you eating? When everything is nothing, then do not eat, do not sleep, do not take dress, do not take shoes. Disappear in the forest, Hari Om. As we said, there are four pillars of life: dharma, artha, kāma, and mokṣa. Dharma, Artha, Kāma, Mokṣa. Dharma means the religion or discipline or obligation or duty, which we spoke about as the dharma law three days ago. Artha is wealth. We live in such a civilized situation that without money we cannot exist. Without money, even you cannot breathe in and out nowadays, but nobody is ever coming and giving you money. You have to work for that. In old times, there were many people saying that there were slaves. Some people had people who were working for them, called slaves. But now the whole world is a slave. If you are employed somewhere, you are a slave. That is all. You are a slave of the government, or you are a slave of the company or someone who is employing you, and the person can send you home. So this is always happening. Work is not bad, and it is very good that you work and you get money, and that you can exist, you can live. That is a good system. So artha means that you have something. Lord, give me that much that I can feed my family and I am also not hungry, and guests who come to my door do not go hungry. So suddenly a guest comes home; you should be able to give them one blanket, one pillow, tea. But where is the cup? From where will you have the cup? You have to buy the cup, spoon, milk. So for that we have to work, and that is called Artha. Life becomes easier and comfortable for you if you have the material things. But not too much. Ati sarvatra varjayet: too much is everywhere prohibited. Enter the kingdom of the Lord through the gate of sacrifice. So in yoga, tyāga is very important: tyāga, tapasyā, vairāgya, bhakti, jñāna, and tyāga. Tyāga means renunciation. And tyāga means not only material things, but also inner things. It is very hard to renounce, very, very hard. We are attached, and suddenly we are attached like a super glue. Karma: do your duty, do your dharma. Karma, achārya karma. Marriage, have children. Good children, educate your children, and mokṣa, the liberation. So Karma Yoga is a part of all other yogas, Jñāna Yoga. So if you do not have jñāna or knowledge, I will ask you: my microphone does not function, can you please repair it, or put it on or off? If you have knowledge, you can do it. If you ask me, I will come with a hammer, and here and here somewhere, then destroy everything. I had a good will to help you, but I destroyed everything. So to know how, no? There was one lady, like Tagma sitting here, Didaya. She bought a very nice car, an English car, what is called a Rolls Royce. It was saying, "Lifelong guarantee and worldwide service immediately." There was inside a kind of wireless, so you can ask for help, and they will come with the helicopter to make a service. That is all. So she went to drive across Australia. In the desert, the petrol ran out, and she did not know what to do. Why does not the car start? So she made the wireless call, and immediately a helicopter came, and they had all kinds of things with them. They asked, "Where are you?" and they saw the navigation. He came, put petrol in, started the key, and he said, "$10,000." She said, "What? You are crazy! You have done nothing. For what?" He said, "Yes, I have done nothing, but for that, to know what it is." So, to know how is the Jñāna Yoga. If someone thinks, "I am a Jñāna Yogī, I do not believe this, I do not believe this," then die. Go to Bondi Beach and swim towards the sharks. Therefore, it is easy to say that I do not believe this and this and that, as long as you are healthy. One day you will come, "Oh my God, how blind I was. Please, Lord, forgive me. I was not spiritual, but what can I do now so that I will be spiritual?" So some angels will come and say, "Now only one thing you can do: die." That is all. Next life, you will have a chance to do anything. So, Jñāna Yoga: without Jñāna Yoga, you cannot do Bhakti Yoga or Karma Yoga. And without Karma Yoga, you cannot do Bhakti Yoga. Can you do Bhakti Yoga without Jñāna Yoga and Karma Yoga? And then comes the Rāja Yoga discipline. Without discipline, you cannot do anything. You should know that you have to go and cook. What will you cook? How will you cook? Food is there. I send you into the kitchen: go and cook. And you say, "Swami, you said go and cook, but what?" Then you call someone: a Rāja Yogī, Jñāna Yogī, Bhakti Yogī, and Karma Yogī, like Gaurī. She is not here today. She will say, "Yes, my dear, this is the cooker, put on the gas, but I have no money, I have no gas." So this is a fuel, this is a pot. Put the first pot on the fire, put in oil, prepare the chopped vegetables, and so on and so on. This is, you know, a principle, the rules. Without systems, you cannot come through. That is why yoga in life is the system. It is the system which harmonizes body, mind, and soul. But if you have antaḥkaraṇa not clean, then your body, mind, and soul are somewhere else. Mind is somewhere else. Mind is in Tokyo, soul is in London, and body is in Dungong. No harmony. So Bhakti, Jñāna, Rāja, and Karma—all four yogas are one, no difference. And without these four parts of yoga, you cannot complete your dharma, artha, kāma, or mokṣa, these four pillars of life. And without balancing these four pillars, you cannot get liberation or mokṣa. This all needs spirituality. How to gain this spirituality? Through practicing. Practice makes a master. Abhyāsa, abhyāsa, kaunte, abhyāsa. Arjuna, practice, practice, practice. You have to prepare for the future. In archery, no one was perfect like Arjuna. But one who was a very devoted, selfless devotee, Ekalavya, he was better than Arjuna. That story I will tell you after some time. So if you are a bhakta, a disciple, then be like Ekalavya. If you are a bhakta, a disciple, then be like Hanumānjī. If you are a bhakta, a disciple, and a good child, then be like God Rāma. There are many examples in the world, and they are immortal. We remember them still. But our sixth grandfather from the past, nobody knows who it was. Rāma had two sons, Lava and Kuśa. That is all. We do not know if they had grandchildren or not, and this Hari Om. Mahatma Gandhijī: the whole world knows Mahatma Gandhijī, but his own children and grandchildren, few people know. And their children, nobody knows. Hari Om Prasad. So it is exclusively spirituality for you, my dear. Your name will be spiritual around the whole universe. So spirituality is the priority. Yes, we practice yoga for good health, a good figure, and everything. That is very good, no doubt; we need in our life to be happy, relaxed. But it is not all. That is not all. It does not matter how much you take care of your body and your mind. One day will come that we do not know where you are. Even we cannot send you an SMS, only an SMS of prayer and mantra: God bless. That is all with eternal peace and light. Where does it disappear? Where? It is just like you jump into nothing, without base, into endless emptiness. So spirituality has a priority, and no one will understand this. Only they who have realized this love for spirituality or for God, and that comes through your anuṣṭhāna and what you are practicing, purifying your antaḥkaraṇa: mana, buddhi, citta, ahaṃkāra. Ego, anger, jealousy, hate, doubt, greediness—these are our enemies. Love, happiness, peace, respect, forgiveness, tolerance—these are our friends. They will carry us towards heaven, and others will pull us with a chain down into the hill, so that you cannot climb up again. So practice your kriyā, your mantra, your prayers, your āsanas, and be happy. Wish you all the best. You have one hour still for practice. Oh, we still have 20 minutes. My God, I thought I spoke long. So spirituality has a priority. Someone gave me this magazine, that is why I spoke about this subject. This is called Time, and this was a special issue: "How Faith Can Heal." So faith is spirituality. Spirituality means pure, purity, crystal clear pure. And it is beyond religious borders, beyond religion. Every religion is an ocean of spirituality, but in some places there are sharks also inside. And all, every ocean is the same. Therefore, no dualities, no fighting among religions. That is the only way to world peace, love, humanity, to save the planet, and to lead a harmonious spiritual life. That is all for today. Dīpa Nyāya Bhagavān Akī.

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:

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