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Salutation to the Cosmic Light, Lord of our hearts, Omniscient and Omnipresent, in the Divine Presence of the Cosmic Self. Good evening, dear brothers and sisters. Welcome, you all. It is a blessing for me to be with you this evening, especially today, as it is a full moon day. The moon has more power than the sun. If the moon were always full, our planet would explode. Our hearts would not be able to endure that power of the moon. So today is a full moon day. A very special radiance of the moon is on our planet. God Kṛṣṇa said, through the moonlight, I enter into the vegetation as a nectar. Yoga is our subject and meditation, especially today. Meditation is a key to yoga. Without meditation, yoga cannot be completed. The word yoga is known to all humans around the world, but the definition, the purpose, and the benefit of yoga, many people do not know. Yoga is very, very ancient. The space, the ākāśa element, the empty space that we call ānanda, is endless. Our experiences, our knowledge is limited. In the Vedas, and by those self-realized masters, they said Ananta Brahmāṇḍa, endless universe, empty space, dark empty space. Within this space, in 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 and ever present there. Between consciousness and the space, there is the third power or energy or principle we call tattva. And that is the balancing power, or harmonizing, or keeping together. That principle of balancing, harmonizing, and uniting, that one is known as yoga. Yoga is not physical exercises, not a breath exercise, not concentration, and not meditation. All that we do is the way to yoga. Literally, the translation of the word yoga means uniting, balance. The word it comes from is called "yoke," and here in the West, some philosophers explain about two oxen. They are pulling one chariot; on the shoulder or the neck of both oxen there is a piece of wood, and that we call dhurī, and both oxen have to pull this. But both have to walk with the same speed or rhythm. If one is walking quickly, the other is suffering, so both have to balance. And that word here in the West is... Yoga is used in the German language also, right? So balance, where we will come later on. So yoga is that which unites the space and consciousness, balances, harmonizes. So it literally means the union of the individual consciousness with the cosmic consciousness. We exist as individual souls, but as a consciousness or ātmā, the Self, we are all one. The space in this hall, space in different rooms, as well as on the road and in this Hyde Park, space is the same. Duality is created by objects, walls, and then in every room there are different activities, different atmospheres. Similarly, as a self, we are all one, but as a victim of the changes, we call birth and death, coming and going, experiencing happiness, unhappiness, pain. Pleasure is the soul, and soul is not the ātmā; soul is not that Self, what we call in Self-realization. In this endlessness, where there was nothing except consciousness, in that cosmic consciousness awoke one tendency. That is in the Vedas said, that time begins the time. Counting of the time, what we in Vedic mathematics and according to the yogīs say, the yugas: Satyuga, Dvāparayuga, Tretāyuga, Kaliyuga, Mahāyuga, Manvantaras, and so on, millions and millions and millions of years. The year on the earth is different time than the time of Brahmā, or the creators. We can program? We will touch this point a little bit after. The awakening of that special power that in Christianity they said, "Thy will be done, O Lord," divine will. Now, does a God have a wish? No. But not that kind of wish, what we wish. We wish to be happy, we wish to be healthy, we wish to be long-living, we wish to live in harmony, and we wish to have money. We wish to have this, you know, the human desires are endless, never, and never will the human desires be completed, like a full moon. Now it is full, tomorrow... It will be decreasing, it will decrease and increase, never. Or the moon goes up or rises, what they say, equally. So that cosmic or divine will is the awakening of consciousness. And the purpose of the meditation is to come to that level of consciousness, which is not so easy. Easy to speak, interesting to hear and read, but to achieve is hard work. But nothing is impossible. That's another thing. So that divine will, it is said in the Vedas, that he said, "Ekoham bahu syāmi," I am one. And now I will multiply myself. And with this, the nāda, the sound, the resonance, awoke. That resonance we call Aum. OM, A-U-M, OM, Makār, Ukār, Makār, trinity manifested out of this sound of OM: Śiva, Viṣṇu and Brahmā, the Śiva consciousness, and with this begins to create the elements—fire, air, water, and earth, or material in the space. So, five elements: ananta, brahmāṇḍa, śāstra, sūryas. Endless universe and thousands of the sun systems are created from one consciousness. And from that time, every individual, the soul, the jīvā, the individual soul, is a taraṅg, a ray, like the sun rises with numerous sun rays. When we speak, the vibration, the resonance, spreads everywhere. So these souls, since that time, are 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 endless, there is everywhere there is life, but not life like here on this planet. There is a difference. Even the life in the water creature has a difference from the creature which is on the earth. And the different principles also have creatures which can fly thousands of meters high. So, in space, in the astral forms, there are different forms of life. Now, the soul does not change with our lives. This body is only a cloth, and this cloth will be changed. We will have other fine bodies. At the present, we are occupied or involved in five different kinds of bodies. Annamaya Kośa, body of nourishment; Prāṇamaya Kośa, body of energy; Manomaya Kośa, the mental body; Ānandamaya Kośa, the causal body; and Vijñānamaya Kośa, the body of knowledge. Within these five layers, after the layers, the soul is inside. On this planet, the creator has created 8.4 million different creatures. Divided into three categories: Jalchar, Thalchar, Nabchar. The creatures in the water, on the ground, and in the air. Among these 8.4 million different kinds of creatures, one is the human. Now, with the awakening of that cosmic consciousness, different kinds of energy developed, and so two major parts of the energy are there. That's called devī śakti and āsurī śaktis. Devī śakti means spiritual power, the power of God, the holy, souls, saints, whatever you call. Āsurī śakti, asuras means the rākṣasas, the devils. Now we can say gently, positive and negative energies. And since that time, both began to fight, and they are still fighting now. Sometimes Devī Śakti is the winner, sometimes Asurī Śakti is the winner, and we are the victim between. So, from that time, there is a different kind of enemy for every form of life, astral form or this physical form. Doesn't matter where you are, you cannot hide. There is no space in the entire universe where you can find shelter or hide yourself. So, Jalcha, Thalcha, Nabcha, for these three different layers of life on and around this planet, they have also created a protection, the guard. In our modern system, we call them Navy, Ground Force, and Air Force. Similarly, ground means the problem in this time, in this life, where we are existing. Navy, which is deeper, that is our past, that connects with our psychic, what we call psychology. The psychic problems which are following us, generation after generation. Don't think that the problem which we have today, maybe tomorrow, is finished. No, it will follow us everywhere. And we would like to have revenge, so the blood is boiling in the fire of revenge. We would like to take action, and every action will have a reaction, and every reaction will have again an action. So we do have an enemy in the past. We have it in the present, we have had it in the past, and in the future we will have it. At the same time, we do have the spiritual support and protection from the past, present, and future. Whatever happens throughout this body, mind, intellect, emotion, and everything is counted as a layer over our soul. So imagine that you are like a balloon, and you are sitting within the balloon. The positive thought, positive energy is enlightening the balloon. Negative actions or negative thoughts are polluting, darkening the balloon. And so, life to life follows this. Humans have got one powerful tool, and only through this powerful tool can humans liberate themselves out of this darkness, or cycle of birth and death, or from the suffering of this pain, pleasure, and so on. And that tool is buddhi, our intellect. Human intellect has the capacity to store memory through education. Anything that we learn is education. Education begins from birth. The first time you were born and opened your eyes, new information began for you. The intellect has five channels, or five different kinds of sources, to get information as an education, our intellect. And this is known as indriyas, or senses. Five senses of action and five senses of knowledge. Now, the meditation, if you wish to meditate and to realize what is the power of the meditation, is not easy to realize who is powerful now, the mind or your meditation. So don't think that today you will meditate and you're so... strong power that you concentrate on this both, and this both will get fused. Maybe someone was expecting today like this: Swamiji will demonstrate, no? To fuse this bulb is a pity, no? It costs money. Don't do it. But it can be. It can be. But who can, will never do. And those who try to do, cannot. So, five senses of information. That's called jñāna-indriyam. Indriyam means senses. Jñāna means knowledge. Let's say, first, our visions, whatever you see, is recorded in your consciousness. Maybe you saw me at the airport from far, and now you said, "Aha, this is the person whom I saw at the airport." We didn't speak; we were at a distance, but my picture was registered in your brain. Second, through the hearing: when your father telephones you and you say, "Hello," and your father will say, "How are you?" Immediately, you know it is your dear father, or your dear mother, friend, and so on. How do you know? Because the voice of the father is already recorded here, so the eyes, the ear, the smell, the taste, and touch, the skin. These are the five senses which give us knowledge. Information, good or bad, that they don't tell you. They only keep their dharma. The dharma of the eyes, the principle of the eyes, is this: it doesn't matter what comes in front, they will see, except when you close your eyes. That's why they say these three monkeys don't see bad, don't hear bad, and don't speak bad. The mind, the intellect, which gets the information, becomes too much. It will explode. That's what we call stress now, in modern times. How to get rid of the stress, how to relax, and for that, in yoga and daily life, you have many techniques: concentration, meditations, prāṇāyāms, relaxations, and so on, which we will come to that point, but first, I want to tell you literally. What is yoga, and why do we practice? The information which is received by the conscious should transfer to the subconscious, and that is our mind. What we call the mind, mind is a messenger. Mind delivers everything, so immediately mind is ready. Takes that information and brings it to the subconscious. Now, whatever is brought through the mind into the subconscious becomes desire, vāsanā. Some are strong, some are nothing, but there is a record of everything. Who knows when we need it? Now, after a while, the same desire would like to come out, so here is one example. Let's say, let's say you would like to go for a walk with your wife. You are going walking through the street, and there comes a beautiful ice cream shop. There are nice pictures, nice things, and you tell your wife, "Let's go and have ice cream." She said, "Yes, dear, but don't forget, yesterday your doctor told you for ten days you should not eat ice cream." Good wife, and you are a good husband. A good husband never says no to his wife, because whatever she says, she's using her brain. Also, when you want to drink alcohol, your wife will say no. She knows why she said no. So you said no to your husband, and the husband was very nice, an obedient husband. He listens to you and said, "Okay, let's go home," but... You, as a husband, are still inside disappointed, angry at the doctor and at your wife inside, but you said, "Okay, it is not good for me, so I should not eat for ten days." Now, after three days, you are dreaming that one month passed in the dream. Not in reality, dream time is different and awakened time is different. And now you and your wife are going for a walk, and you come near that same ice cream shop, and your wife invites you to eat ice cream. She said, "Now it's..." More than one week has gone, and you can eat ice cream. "Let's go and eat," and he said, "Yes, good idea." Now both of you are going to the ice cream shop. You buy the ice cream, sitting near the ice cream salon, on the chair and table, and a nice big ball of... Ice cream, pink and yellow and white ball, you know. You take the spoon, and you take a big portion of the ice cream, and the ice cream is coming near your lips, one centimeter away still, and the alarm is ringing. You open your eyes, no ice alone, no ice cream, nothing. Now, what will happen to this desire which you couldn't fulfill on the first day when you saw the ice cream? Now, in the dream, the same thing happened, but you couldn't enjoy the ice cream. What happens to these desires? Slowly, slowly, desires will lose their form but will become a psychic problem, indescribable feelings, unpleasant feelings, and... Selfishness, you become so selfish that you are ready to renounce anything to fulfill your desire. Now, those desires which are still not fulfilled from the subconscious will transfer to the unconscious level. So, unconscious, subconscious, conscious, and superconscious. All the problems of the three levels of consciousness can be dissolved, solved, or understood when you come to the higher consciousness. And that is the power of meditation, to free you from all the problems and sufferings. The level of the unconscious is the storeroom, the storeroom from the past life that we call destiny. Two kinds of destinies we have: one is from the past life, and one from this life. The psychic problems or psychic conditions begin from the first day when your mother and father came together. In which situation was the mother? In which condition or situation was the father? What kind of environment was there? Was there anger or hate or anything, or happiness, the love? That influences the new life which the mother is receiving, and then, how were the nine months of that lady, or the mother, during the pregnancy? If her husband neglected her, if he was quarreling with her, or her parents, or parents-in-law, many, many... Things influence the new life as embryos in the mother's body. Therefore, during the pregnancy, it is a duty of all the family members to be with, help, and support that person. Even the animals have to respect and support. Now, such... Situations are from the past life that we call the destiny. First is created our destiny, and then the body. First was made a nest, and then the bird gave the egg. So according to destiny, our life is given to us. Now, in order to realize one thing: what is my origin, and how to become one with my origin? Like all kinds of liquid, whether it is in plants, vegetation, or in our body, all the different kinds in the air and so on, the humidity, all is originated from the ocean. And all, even the clouds and the rain, the destination, the ultimate destination for this liquid which is flowing around, is to come back into the ocean. Every river tries to flow towards the ocean. Similarly, every creature, no matter in which form, even a small ant, has the same kind of soul, the light of God, as humans have. Don't think a big body has a big soul. The elephant is very big. Do you think he has a big, so big soul? No. That's just a light. But due to our human knowledge, education—the best education is the education of the parents, mother and father. You will never get any better teacher like a mother and father... except some psychic problems. Maybe someone is ill; that is a different thing. Mātā bhavati na ku mātā. A mother can never be a bad mother, except if she is ill. Mother? Therefore, the first god is mother. Then, of course, father. The first teachers are your brothers, sisters, friends, and 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, 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 does not happen, then as an individual soul, not this body, we will be traveling for who knows how many ages. And so this is how we come to realize that through personal experiences, through discipline, through practice, we can realize this. Mother and father, wife and husband, children, 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 temptation-filled 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. The soul is soul. It will not be saying, "This is human, and this was a buffalo, and that was the rabbit." No, there is no rabbit, there's no elephant, there's... No buffaloes, there's no humans, only one. And these are the souls, and these souls are carrying the light of the Self. And that Self-consciousness can only awaken 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, day after tomorrow, we will try to do something. Meditation is very, very hard to practice. If you think closing your eyes and sitting down is meditation, no, that's not meditation. What we are trying is concentration, but we can't even concentrate. And whenever concentration becomes a little calm, then what happens is between the concentration and meditation, there's a very big obstacle, a very, very big, thick wall, and that thick wall is sleep, drowsiness. So there are a lot of thoughts, and now I'm relaxing. I close my eyes and relax. Now thoughts are disappearing now. I'm sleeping. Where is my meditation? It is not easy, my dear, to master your sleep and your dream and your awakened state. The dream I will not touch now; it will be another big lecture on the dreams. But literally, dream is your reality, whatever you dream, is very personal, connected to your personality, to your soul. Meditation cannot be practiced. There are no techniques to practice meditation. All techniques, meditation is only concentration. There are no techniques to meditate. Meditation 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, we have our pillow, we close our eyes, and only one thing, one thought we have: "Now I will sleep." That's all. Suddenly, you are in the 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 is that you will not be able to sleep? Your sleep will be no sound sleep. Every 40 minutes, half an hour, 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 said, "No, I will meditate. I want to know how meditation is." The power of the meditation, I don't understand what is the power of the meditation, then you can't meditate. Therefore, Patañjali, Maharṣi Patañjali, the great sage Patañjali, who wrote beautifully about yoga, divided yoga into different parts: Karmayoga, Bhaktiyoga, Jñānayoga, and Rājayoga. Patañjali is the father of psychology. Patañjali researched the human body, mind, consciousness, soul, and everything. And the first instruction, what Patañjali is saying, "Athaḥ yoga anuśāsanam." Yoga begins with discipline. Who has no discipline can never be successful in yoga. Then second, yoga chitta-vṛtti-nirodhaḥ. Your yoga practices begin to develop when you master your thoughts. You don't allow 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, sthirā 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, 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 in, that... thought, which is a very calm, beautiful, calm lake, you throw the stone and the waves go like a disc, one after 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 consciousness, and it is 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, then the fog will disappear or the darkness will disappear. In the cave, there are millions of years of darkness. And you say, "Go and say, 'Please, darkness, now you have existed for millions of years, go out.'" Darkness will not go out. Just make a light, and darkness disappears. Similarly, we have to come to that knowledge, and the darkness of ignorance will disappear. Tamaso mā jyotir gamaya, lead us from darkness to light. Lead us from mortality to immortality. Lead us from unreality to 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'm 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 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. Mahatma Gandhi said, "Whenever I had problems or had 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." So, it's 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. Without meditation, no sādhanā practice can be successful. Even if you are a karma yogī, meaning you are 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 meditation. But expect the fruits of your actions. That is not a meditation. That is selfishness.