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Come, today is again a beautiful day—the most beautiful day. It is the day of wisdom, the day of mercy, the day of light, the day of love, the day of vairāgya, the day of discipline. This day is called the divine day. According to the lunar calendar, our dear holy Gurujī, Śrī Svāmī Madhavānandajī, was born today. It is Gurujī's birthday, his incarnation day. So, I bless you all in the name of holy Gurujī. Many devotees know Gurujī, and many know him through videos or photos. Many read the Līlā Amṛt book, which is a divine glory of Bhagavān Śrīdīp Nārāyaṇ Mahāprabhujī. Līlā means divine play. It means those miraculous things that happen in the presence of a great incarnation, of great souls. In the Līlā Amṛt, you will read about Mahāprabhujī, and you will also come to know about Gurujī's sādhanā and Gurujī's message. That is why we have this Śrī Svāmī Madhavānand World Peace Council, which organizes an international conference every year with the aim of promoting bhakti, devotion, ahiṃsā, and so on. Many are born, but the question is whether we bring a good message to the world or not, whether we understand our own life and the life of others. Gurujī also said, "What is impossible, Gurudev can make possible, and what is happening, Gurudev can change." But now there are many people who say, "Why didn't my wish come true? I believe, I agree with you." Your wish didn't come true, and I don't think it will come true if you lead life like this. In your mind, in your intellect, in your heart, in your cidākāśa, there is more conflict and more doubt. You think you will begin to pray with great love today, and tomorrow all your wishes will be fulfilled. And when your wish is fulfilled, you forget the Gurudev. It is not like that. You have to purify your karma, your destiny—over years and years, even over many, many lives. Whatever happens, you must not lose your confidence or your faith. Then your every wish comes true. If your wishes are selfish, it will take time. It's not that your wish is selfish, but God knows that this selfish wish is also not good for you. A child has a selfish wish to eat ice cream, but the parents don't give it because the child is ill, and this cold ice cream will not do good to the child. The child doesn't understand why the parents don't give it. Similarly, our selfish wish, no matter in which direction, always has a negative result, which means disappointment. And that is not everything that you should wish for. Therefore, God ignores our selfish wishes. That is the greatness of God; that is the greatness of Gurudev. But what we do is lose our confidence and say, "If God doesn't help me, I will do it myself." Of course, no one tells you not to do it, but then don't blame God, saying, "Why do such things happen to me?" That is the truth. So now, blessing came from above. Thank you, Holy Gurujī, for your blessing. Many yogis practice every day, but still, it is not what we should do. We should know that the only chance to come through is through surrender. This means our devotion, our positive way of life, having discipline. Sahan Śakti. Sahan Śakti means the power, the energy to endure. Sahānā śīlatā. Whatever happens, one is still very kind. So if someone is shouting at you, if someone is angry with you, you show mutual understanding. You endure it, you digest this, and still you show kindness. That is called sahānśīlatā. Sahan means to go through but not losing your temperament, or your thoughts, your visions. Those who have sahānśīlatā have ātmbala. Otherwise, you cannot have this sahānśīlatā, enduring the pain or pleasure, thirst, hunger, everything. Ātmbala is there. It means the power of your ātmā is very near to you, and you don't care, or you don't become angry, or you don't make notice in your mind, because everything that comes negative is coming out of ignorance. A bhakta sees only love. A bhakta sees only light. Good people see only good things. Even when bad things happen, they know, they understand that it can happen, and it has happened. What has happened is happening. If we can't change it, then why should we suffer for that? We know we cannot change, so where sahan śīlatā is, there is surrendering, there is love, and there is understanding. I welcome all of you. This week, we had a beautiful two-week seminar, a retreat, in this beautiful ashram, Mahāprabhujī Deep Satsaṅg Foundation and Yoga and Daily Life Ashram in Strelky, in the beautiful country called the Czech Republic. The Czech Republic is a country of landscape and nature. They used to say it is a country where milk and honey flow. When we talk about milk and honey, that means literally: purity. Honey means health, honey means love, purity. Milk means love, mother love, mother care, understanding. Indeed, the nature is not so much polluted as in some other countries, especially here in the ashram and its surroundings. Where we are sitting is a pollution-free spot. Many devotees, hundreds of them, were here last week and the week before. They went away very happy, healthy, and full of energy, full of love, full of experiences. We spent the last 14 days specially reading and explaining Patañjali's Yogasūtra. The great saint Patañjali gave instructions to disciples, guiding them from the physical level, this physical planet, till the Brahmaloka. What in Vedanta is said: "Brahma Satya, Jagat Mithyā." The truth, the ultimate truth, is Brahman. That Brahman is the cosmic consciousness; that Brahman is that reality in the universe. Not as embodiment, but that God in that form, truth. You cannot describe truth. What is the truth? We can say, "I tell you the truth." Others will say, "No, he didn't tell the truth." Or love: "I love you," or someone says, "I don't love you." But can you describe the form of love? How is it that, though you know what is love, what is the truth, what is hate, and what is a lie? Both we cannot explain. So, how are you going to explain the ultimate truth, the cosmic Self? Though you know, you cannot explain. Similarly, some people can understand and achieve, and some cannot. Kabīr Dās said, "I am laughing, full of stomach I am laughing. Because I see a fish in the water, very thirsty. A fish who is living in the water is thirsty. Pānī mein pyāsī re moi, dekhath āvath hāsī. When I see the fish thirsty in the water, I must laugh." Similarly, we humans are living in this Brahma Jñānam, in the presence of Brahman; we are in Brahman. We are that fish of that cosmic aquarium. But still we don't know. We are thirsty. We don't know how to drink that nectar of the Brahma Jñāna. For that, again and again, Patañjali tries to help the people and students. He is one of the greatest and the father of psychology. How much he understood about the human, from the physical body till the Brahma Jñāna, till samādhi. He very step-by-step follows the situation of a devotee, a practitioner, and where are the mistakes, and where are the dangers, where one is making mistakes. Of course, if these mistakes we make were easier, then we would not make them. But somehow we don't understand. And that means we don't understand; it means we don't know how to drink the water in the aquarium, as we are a fish and we are thirsty. So our spiritual journey, which we began many, many births ago, is still uncompleted. Though we don't want them, obstacles come. And obstacles have to be expected. Don't think that everything will be very comfortable and very nice. There is no one in this creation who was born, incarnated, or manifested who did not go through obstacles. Even God went through many, many difficulties. Even the messenger of God, what is called Jesus, how many difficulties he had, though he had such a high consciousness and all this. So, who are we? From which garden's carrots are you, that you said, "I am"? No. But if we follow the instructions given by great saints from our smṛti... Yesterday we spoke about śraddhā smṛti, which is coming from past life. So smṛti means our memory. Always keep in your mind why you are there. Someone told that there is a spy, and she or he, it doesn't matter where and what, is going through what situation, but inside, one knows what one wants, and one gets that information. So, we know we are going through such situations, but we know what we want, and that's our aim. And that's what Patañjali is guiding us, step by step. So, what was the last? What he said was very nice, describing the prajñā samādhi, where he is speaking about śraddhā (confidence), vīrya (strength), smṛti (memory)—that memory which is spoken by great saints through the scriptures, Vedas, Upanishads, holy books. Every religion has a holy book and has written something that a human can follow and get salvation. Then it is explained about the Bhagavad Gītā, in the 4th chapter, 39th verse or mantra of the Bhagavad Gītā. Jitendriya means that you are the winner of your senses. Your senses are your slaves. You are not a slave of your senses. That one who is a Jitendriya is constantly practicing. Don't think now, "I am the master of all my senses, and I don't need to practice any more." That is the biggest mistake we make. Still, you have to keep under control, observing everything. That one can achieve the paramśānti. It means free from the vikṣepas, free from tṛtāpa, and free from the kleśas. Always, kleśas are there. Even kleśa will attack you as a temptation or whatever it is on the door of Brahman. You are half inside, half he will pull you out. Like a snake pulls out a mouse or a fox pulls out a rabbit from the earth, from the hole. Yes, till the last minute. Lucky are they who can protect through their feelings, through their behaviors, through their tyāga, vairāgya, śraddhā, bhakti, and we have to follow the instruction. So Patañjali is saying in the next verse, on the 21st: Tīvra saṁvega. This is a strong burning desire. Tīvra means quick, fast, speedy, quicker, intensive. So tīvra saṁvega means feelings, unbearable pain. Oh, God, unbearable pain when you have your tooth aching or somewhere aching, anywhere. Similarly, there is a fever, a feeling of desire for self-realization, God realization, are coming to the samādhi āsana. Why is he asking about here? Āsana means that one is fixed in this feeling. No one can change your opinion; nothing can be changed because that is the final truth. And you know, and you are going towards this path. So those whose practice becomes now quicker means... Not that khaṭupaṭṇa, we will make tomorrow in half minute whole round. This is another also say, in one way we tell yoga practitioner, "Do slowly, steady, relaxed." So this is not tīvra. It is burning desires. "When will I come there? When will I get that? Or what? I can do all that. I will remain there." That must have feeling inside, inner feeling, demonstrate your outer behavior or your outer actions. Your all decisions, physical decisions or anything, depend on your inner intensive feeling, and no one can understand you. Everyone knows what love is, but they cannot describe it, and you cannot describe what love is. It is said in one poem, "If it's a piece of paper, I can read to you, but I can't read to you my destiny." You cannot read your destiny to anyone, nor can anyone read your destiny. That's written somewhere else, in other language, in other letters, and even you can't see that. "If it's a piece of wood, I can break it. But love, I cannot break." And therefore it is said that love is such a fragile, gentle thread. Do not break it with some misunderstanding. If it breaks, you can't join again, and if you do, there will be nothing between. So finally, we are who can come through, and it's we who can't come through. Therefore, be aware and do your sādhanā every day. Yes, there are some situations where you can't do now when you cannot perform your āsanas, prāṇāyāmas, or some exercises; it doesn't matter. Inner, inner continuity must be there. Holy Gurujī gave an example once. Someone asked the question, "In this troublesome world, we cannot concentrate. How should we get realization?" Gurujī gave the example of a tailor who shows that shirt for us. He takes a cloth, he's ironing the cloth, cutting with the scissors, listening to the radio, talking with the friends who are coming, looking at who's going and coming, he sits near the machine, starts the machine, and he's knitting the shirt. Though he listens to the radio and this and that, no time, the shirt is ready. Similarly, there are vikṣepas from families, from children, from parents, from illness, no good school, parents are unhappy. Many, many things happen. And other diseases, and this. But your tīvra vega, your concentration, your sādhanā is there. And that you cannot have unless you have śraddhā, confidence, love. And that you have realized it, yes, this is what I want to have. That's also selfish, but that selfishness to see God, to become one with God, to become Brahman, that's also the biggest selfishness. But there is a healthy one. There is a positive one. In that, everyone has a good benefit. If one of us becomes a Brahma Jñānī and we bless, everyone will get prasād, blessings. One sun rising illuminates the entire earth. That's it. There are millions of stars, but they cannot illuminate our Earth that much. And so, great incarnations, great saints, they are that light of the universe and path for us to go through, that light of wisdom. So, practice every day faithfully with great concentration. As I always tell, there are three kinds of disciples, three kinds of practitioners: the best, the medium, and the worst. And it's very hard to say who is the best one. And if I tell you that you are the best one, then the other one will be jealous or angry or will say, "Nā yā." We are very expert at giving judgment immediately. But it is said, "Baḍā badāī nahīṁ kare"—the great doesn't speak about greatness. A great person doesn't speak about her or him, how great I am. Bada na bole bol, never praises oneself. Rahim Dās was one poet. He said, "Badā badāī nahī̃ kare, badā na bole bol, Rahiman hīrā kab kahe, lākh hamārā mol." Rahim Dās said, "When does a diamond speak to us that my value is millions?" A diamond doesn't say that my value is millions. But we say this is a diamond, and it is very expensive. Similarly, those who are spiritual and great, they don't say, "I am a great bhakta, and I know this, and I am more of a sevak, and I am very close to the Gurudev, and you don't know this." That is ignorance. Therefore, it is said, as long as you didn't speak, you were wise. So best to be silent. And when someone is very angry with you and tells you you are stupid and this and that, be silent. And you know, when you are silent, that is also provoking the anger in others. But still, you listen and smile. Then that will become more angry, even will come and hold you to throw your head towards the glass door. Some man came and told my wife, "Hold me and throw me through the glass door." I said, "Well, this is very rare." So he said, "What do you mean, 'so I'm very rare'?" I said, "Well, wife..." Does very rare, so after few minutes he or she will become... You should not become aggressive. Don't let your temperament come out. Then it is like this: donkey to donkey. When they come together, they don't know each other, but when donkey to donkey comes together, then you know what happens with their back legs. I think what they call the boxing came from donkeys. And the Australians said, "No, no, to the kangaroos." Do you know how the kangaroos are boxing? Bow. I saw one nice video from Australia, and they told about kangaroos. How quickly they can box with their legs, the back legs. Since that time, I don't want to go near the kangaroo to see how they are, you know. Always better from far. So, inside, be calm. Others will realize their mistake, or others will also become calm, peaceful, and go. So, this practitioner, three kinds of: mṛdu, madhyam, mātra, tattva, topi, viśeṣa. Someone, their sādhanā is light. Yes, I am practicing, but occasionally. It is also something, better than nothing. But your sādhanā is very slow. There are some people who work 12 hours and come home, and then again they make a side work. And there are some people who work one and a half hours in the morning and one and a half hours in the evening. And when they both of them get salary, the one who is working 15 hours a day, two jobs, he sells. Money is coming bigger, more. And who works only three hours gets little, then one is jealous. "Why does he have so much money getting?" Yeah, because he or she is working well more. Similarly, who practices more has a more benefit. And who is ignoring? Sometimes, okay, I will do my sādhanā when I'm in my yoga class. I practice. Other days, I am not doing so. Once a week practicing means you will get only benefit for this one week. What? Once a week you practice? One? For an hour, or 40 minutes and 45 minutes, you were gushing up in drinking tea and sitting and doing nothing. And my yoga teacher, they are so expert in how to do the things that people are sitting, drinking tea, and practicing little, and then they are surprised why they are so few. I'm talking about, especially for my particular disciples in Vienna, Austria. You know, in the webcast, everybody is saying, "Why is Swāmījī talking so much about Austria?" Is there a specialty? Yoga teachers, when the students come, first ask them, "How are you? Would you like to drink, relax, and so on? And then, 'Now should we practice?'" Asking them, "Should we practice?" So the other is thinking, "With them, for what am I here?" Then they practice a little bit. They say, "Lie down and relax." They are relaxing. They put the music on, and what the... The teacher is going into the other room and having a quick cup of coffee, then practicing Marjari and a few postures again, relaxing, then having a coffee or tea break. They offer them tea for about twenty minutes, then they do a little pranayama, five times in and out, and then said, "How are you?" and "Nice." Then they are sitting again together and having biscuits and chocolates and this. And then they were surprised, "Why so little practitioner come?" Because practitioner didn't come for your coffee and your chai; they come for practicing. So when a teacher, he or she doesn't have that feeling to give to people something, then you are not successful. A master, a teacher, an instructor must have a lot of wisdom inside. That one would like to give them, that's it. But when you don't have that kind of feeling, then you are gone. So when I ask, "Come in and speak something," you are speechless. Why? Because you think, "What will I talk now?" You have so much wisdom in you, you can come and talk a lot. But when the gushing up is there, then the teachers are so expert in sitting there and talking and talking. So I will not tell more about which country, but you know. The mother-in-law tells hard words to her daughter, but with the intention that her daughter-in-law should listen to this. The mother-in-law, the mother, is telling her daughter, "You are uneducated, and you are so and this and that." And the mother and daughter-in-law are sitting in another place, and the mother-in-law is telling her daughter, but indirectly. She's telling to her daughter-in-law, you know, that's why people don't like so much mother-in-law. Before marriage, they want to have an apartment, they want to move from other town, and that's why our lot of environment is destroyed, because everyone wants to have a house. And do you imagine, you know, the farmer's family, big family, staying in one small farmhouse? We don't know how to maintain, and we become individualistic, and we don't care about others. So the sādhanā there is a sādhanā which is a very light practice, slowly, time to time, yes and no. This one will have to wait for a few lives to come to this point. Why not a few lives? We enjoy life, no? Good eating, good drinking, good breathing, good ocean swimming, sitting. Nice nature in Brahma-loka, not even an apple there. And when you enter in the Brahma-loka, forget it about this loka. Therefore, read carefully all ślokas of the Bhagavad Gītā and decide which karmas you will do. So one lady came to me, sorry, ladies, and she said, "My husband is true, but from which country, I don't tell you now." She said, "My husband is so angry, so angry, hardly a day goes by when he doesn't beat me, and this and that. But Swamiji, the problem is that I love him." So I said, "Okay, be ready. Put more powder on the face, which is blue." That's love. Even if he beats or kills, he's my husband. I said, "You are the best woman, that you have such a mutual understanding. I tell you, in five days your husband will change." And she said, "How? Because he will be nice and kind to you, and he will never raise his hand on you." She said, "Gurujī, I believe you in many things, but on this point, I disagree with you. Even you didn't see my husband, how can you tell me this?" I said, "Well, I wish you, okay?" And when the next day, week, she came to practicing, she said, "Swamiji, from the last time when I was here till today, my husband didn't raise even one finger. He's so calm, and even three times he told me, 'I'm sorry for my rude behavior.' What have you done, Swāmījī? My magic?" I said, "I have no magic, no." So, but the thing is that you began, since one week, meditation and became calm. He said, "Yes, that's true. Actually, Swāmījī, I am the cause. I make him so angry and crazy that he... I cannot swallow this all, and since one week, I didn't tell him anything except good words, and nothing happens." So it means we have to change. We have to change and speed up our humbleness, kindness, mercy, understanding, love. Give up your hard words. He or she will become your best friend. And so, sādhanā, little. That you are doing little, then also your development will be little. Madhyam, the middle one, and the adhimātra, viśeṣa, and others which are strong desires towards God, and this, your development is quicker. So it means that Nirbīja Samādhi, you are on the door of Nirbīja Samādhi, near. But now you speed it, but there's one thing missing. Now it doesn't depend if you practice āsanas and prāṇāyāma or not. There comes Īśvara Praṇidhāna, and there is a Patañjali said, "Īśvara Praṇidhāna." Īśvara is that God which has no name, no form, but we must call him in some way. We cannot say "nothing one," and even we say "nothing one," it is always a name, "nothing one." So Īśvara, he is in everyone, omniscient, omnipresent in each atom, and to understand him is very hard. If he is in everything, then he must be in the bullet also, and when from the gun the bullet is released, it can kill. If Īśvara is in every atom everywhere, then how can he kill someone? And there is a problem to understand. Many people said a small child died. My God! Even God has no mercy on this small child. But how should we know what destiny was saying? So it is difficult to understand. But when you will come to the Brahma-jñāna, then you will become bulletproof, okay? So it means no weapon—this is śāstra: kāṭe nā agni jalāve, bujhāve nā pānī, nā mṛti mitāve—no weapon can kill, death cannot take you away, and no elements can destroy you, fire cannot burn. So Īśvara Praṇidhāna is now the last remedy. What do you need? Devotion. Īśvara Praṇidhāna. Surrender to God. More and more bhakti. Now, God, I know that I am old. I have no strength to do all these āsanas, prāṇāyāmas. But I surrender. I am thine. That's called Tīvra Vairāgya. Your Vairāgya will be great. So Patañjali is the greatest teacher who is leading us step by step, and we will have the whole week's continuity on these Patañjali thoughts, these sūtras. And so today is that beautiful day; it is the birthday of our dear holy Gurujī. And on behalf of Śrī Alagpurījī Siddha Pīṭha, I bless you all in the name of Gurujī. And thanks to Mā Prabhujī that he brought and blessed the Holy Gurujī for us, who inspired us and who is our example of our sādhanā. And I pray to Holy Gurujī that his divine, immortal light should guide us, and may the light of his physical form and the light of his ātmā be with us and guide us further. So today, that's all. I wish you all the best. Good. Good evening, and I'm very happy to welcome you. I'm looking forward to being with you the whole week again together. Īśvara praṇidhāna means that you come to the nirbīja samādhi. Sabīja samādhi, where there is a seed, is called bīja, meaning the seed. You are in the higher consciousness, but still you have desires. And you are in the higher consciousness, but you have no desires, only Īśvara Praṇidhāna, only you, Lord, that's it. Wherever you go, you are there. You are eternal consciousness, formless. In prayer, we used to say, wherever I see, I see you, Mahāprabhujī. Holy Gurujī said in prayer. You are nitya, everlasting; cetana, conscious and everywhere; nirākāra, without form. So that is the consciousness which is coming to the Nirbīja Samādhi.