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Om Dīp Jyoti Parabrahma Dīpam Sarve Mohanam Dīpānām Sajjate Sarvam Sandhyā Dīpam Sarva Satyam Śubham Karoti Kalyāṇam Ārogyam Dhana Sampada Śatru Buddhi Vināśāya Dīp Jyotir Namastute Tamaso Mā Jyotir Gamaya Lead us from darkness to light. Om Śāntiḥ, Śāntiḥ, Śāntiḥ. Hari Om. Thank you. Hari Om and a very good evening to you all. Greetings. There is a great problem in the world: a conflict between religions. There is nothing left but to find a dialogue together and to develop tolerance, understanding, and compassion. Compassion means accepting others—their feelings and beliefs. This is very important now in this modern age, a time when we see the whole world as a small village. Through media and the internet, we can see everything from the whole world, what is happening in which part. There are certainly many good things, and therefore it is very important that we come together with our spiritual feelings, with our feelings of faith. I am very pleased that in Hamburg there is an organization or a community where multireligious leaders come together and speak. This is very important. For me, yoga does not mean merely physical exercise and breath control; it means everyday life—how one should live life itself. To live together in harmony, balance, with feelings of bliss, and with mutual respect and love. The goal of Yoga is union. It means the Self becomes one with the cosmic Self. And the goal of practices means, once again, union. This means that we are a part of the cosmic Self. But we have shrouded ourselves in our ignorance. We do not know that we are the Ātman, the highest Self. The Ātman is unborn and will not die. No weapon can destroy this Ātman. Fire can burn nothing of it. Air cannot dry it. No elements can destroy this Ātman. And even death can take nothing away. It is immortal, eternal, the highest consciousness, the divine Self that dwells in our hearts, like a spark from a great blazing fire. All living beings are these sparks from a glowing fire. And a small spark has as much power as a large ember. But between our current consciousness and the realized consciousness, there is a difference—a wall, a curtain of ignorance. And where there is ignorance, there is insecurity, fear, fear of losing something, fear of dying, fear of existence, and so on, because ignorance prevails there. Knowledge has two types: Aparāvidyā and Parāvidyā. Vidyā means knowledge. Aparāvidyā is what we learn here in this world about matter, about our life, science, and so on, from mother's lap to the university. But Parāvidyā is knowledge of the Cosmic Self, God, and consciousness. And Parāvidyā cannot be learned in school or at university. Parāvidyā is transmitted through a teaching from a master who is called a Brahmaniṣṭha Śrotriya. Brahmaniṣṭha is the knower of the Supreme, and Śrotriya is one who can inspire us, explain to us, and bring us closer to it. And so, Parāvidyā comes to us when we purify our qualities: mind, intellect, memory, ego—our mind, our intellect, our consciousness, and our pride or ego. There is still much that we must overcome or liberate ourselves from. There is already enough hatred, envy, greed, jealousy, and so on. This hatred, envy, greed, jealousy, anger—these are the thorny thorns. And we are like a bird caught on the thorns. There are so many thorns because you try to free one side of yourself, moving it a little, while the other side, the thorns, pull you back. And so, it is simply said, but unfortunately difficult to master. It is easier to speak and beautiful to hear, but difficult to attain. But as I said, there is nothing impossible. It is possible. Those who seek, find. Who makes an effort will achieve. Those who take steps will reach their goal. And thus, all saints are called incarnations or saints. Buddha, for example, was born as a prince—a normal person, they say. But the others are not abnormal. But seen in this way, worldly life... Through his inner spiritual intuitions and longing for God, as well as from past life karma, he came onto the spiritual path and pursued it with great effort. And he attained it. Siddhārtha was his name. Regarding Siddhārtha, when he attained enlightenment—is it enlightenment or illumination? We are all illuminated, and he was enlightened. I believe that is the difference. And so, as an enlightened soul, one dissolves into the breath in the Highest, and then there is no difference whether one is a realized being or an incarnation. The soul is nothing but the Ātman. Jīvātmā and Ātman. Jīvātmā is a mixture of ignorance and a seed of knowledge in reflection. Jīvātmā, the Jīva, the soul, is a bundle, a mixture of our good and bad karmas or actions. And when all these karmas are freed, then the soul merges into the Ātman. And the Ātman is infinite, indestructible, eternal, divine, supreme consciousness, the truth. And so, all religions speak of one truth, and there are not two truths. All religions speak of one God; there are not two gods. One believes that in India there are so many gods. Yes, everything born in India is a god. Not only the humans. Because the Ātman in every living being is a spark of the same flame. And the spark has power. There is a difference between a lamp, a flame, and the spark. The spark has more power than the flame. The flame is the shell, and the spark is the ātman. The flame is very weak, and the spark is the strength. There are few who help the poor. And it is very good that the church organizations help very, very much to assist the poor. There is a monastery soup, right? Is there also in Hamburg? Yes? Have you tasted it? No. And the monastery soup we have is called Annashetra. It is called Annashetra. Anyone can go there and receive something to eat. So, there has been Annashetra with us for thousands of years, and it also exists in Christianity. But it is also present in other religions. Seva means to help, to serve. Greatest love, greatest religion means to help. Helping hands have more significance than folded hands. And so, those who have attained this divine realization have freed themselves from karma and stand above all things: hatred, envy, greed, jealousy, anger, doubt, and so on. And they have realized Parāvidyā. And the one who has realized Parāvidyā can transmit this knowledge to us and also help us in the process. And Parāvidyā does not come through words. Words only inspire us. Parāvidyā comes through love. It means surrender. Surrender, give yourself up. That means, dedicate thyself, physically, mentally, spiritually; bow to God. And so, someone said, it is easier to kneel, but it is difficult to bow from the heart. Why is nothing possible? Because there are many thorns standing here in front of the chin. You cannot bend forward. And these thorn hooks, they are the ego, pride, greed, the "why should I?" These are the words of ignorance. Where there is love, there is no dualism. Everything is beautiful. And where there is no love, there are arguments. And love means your heart opens, and the inner part of your heart becomes deeper, like a valley between the mountains. And when rain falls, up on the mountain, on the rock, water flows beneath, where there is depth. And so the love, devotion, and blessings of God flow automatically into the hearts of people where there is devotion. Of course, our love and blessings. Each one of you has the power to give blessings. And animals also feel the blessing. When you pet your dog or cat, they feel your love, security, warmth, and that it is very beautiful. A grace, a love, compassion; that is why Yoga speaks and Hinduism speaks of compassion, love for all living beings. There are people who feed the chickens every day, and the chickens love their owners. And every day they come, full with bags or buckets of grains, and they give, and they feel good. And afterwards, you start a scuffle or hens, hen and head switch. That is not grace, that is not love. And so, yoga in daily life means that every thought, every step, every action should be made fully conscious. How you eat, you should eat with full awareness. Sometimes a situation arises where one hand holds the phone, the other hand holds a fork or spoon, and on the other side, the television is on. Yes, yes, I already know what you are doing. Yes, yes, it’s okay, all right. So you don’t know whether your mind is making a phone call, eating, speaking, or watching television. So, in the area of the table at the monastery, I have experienced this both in Europe and in India, in āśrams. During the meal, you should not speak; remain silent. Only what is necessary. When you reach your hand into the water jug, your neighbor knows that you want water. Or when you reach out your hand for rice or bread, everyone knows that those people are with you. Or can you say, please bread? But now, when people come into a restaurant, you can hardly understand the words because people are talking and eating so loudly. A yogī, a saint, someone who has realized something within themselves, will naturally remain silent while eating. And those who have not yet realized anything, who have not even seen the spark, they talk and talk and weep and count emotional faces. It is a person sitting opposite you, and next to them sits the poor person who has to share your emotions. And that is not good. Therefore, a prayer is recited. And then, I believe, Christianity says Amen. We say Hari Om. The normal language, everyday language says Bon appétit. And we say Austrian meal. I once said "meal time" and Hamburg got me all dirty. I said, yes, meal time. They said, yes, titt. Then after eight years, every time I came, I said, "Meal time." And the whole group laughed. And then I said, only the workers call it a meal. I asked, are you all unemployed? No matter how high your position is, whether a director or something else, you are still an employee. You are also a worker. So this difference, discrimination between people, towards people, should be removed. So I am not here to speak, please. In your vernacular, "good," "appetite," "appetite is good." And "Grüß Gott" is also good, and "Mahlzeit" is also very good, everything is good. But I just wanted to add a little spice to awaken you all. So, Sabbe Sāyak Sabbelkī, those who are stronger always help. The poor and weak help very little. Koī, Nirbal, Sahāī are very few who help the poor, those who have nothing, who have no strength. For example, Pavana Jagavat Agako, the wind, intensifies the fire, the spark. Dīpai Dethu understands, but when a strong wind comes, the flame swells. And so, the flame is like a soul; it must dissolve at some point. But the Ātman, the spark, will grow larger and will truly return again. Of course, the flame also has the power to set the entire house on fire. These are different matters again. The flame also came from the spark. So Parāvidyā and Aparāvidyā, that is the difference. So, Parāvidyā comes through blessings, through love. And where love is present, there is a depth, that means surrender, devotion. And where there is depth, there water gathers. And that means, where there is devotion, humbleness, there comes the blessing. If you go to a saint with a knife and say, give me a blessing. Otherwise I will put a knife in your stomach. Blessing please. He will say, I bless you. But this blessing will not help. You cannot learn like this. And thus, you can learn Aparāvidyā through your books and through your teachers at school or at university or at college, and so on. But Parāvidyā comes through meditation, through mantra, through living consciously—what you eat, what you drink, what you do—and through the blessings of my holy Realized Ones. And when do I know that I am realized? Often people come to me and say, please look at me, am I already realized or not? Then I say, yes, you are confused, not realized. So it is. The realized one speaks nothing. The more your spirituality grows, the more humble you become. The more one becomes wealthy, the less one says, "I am a rich man." And the more money one has, millions or billions of marks—but do you still have marks in Germany? So you have already switched over. So, he doesn't count every day how many marks he has. But as for us, I don’t know, maybe you are millionaires, but if we have 5 euros in one cup, and in another cup we have 10, and in another cup we have 30, then we say, aha, 5 and 10 is 15, 30, 45, right? Alright, I have 45 today, I need to be careful about what I buy. The richer one becomes, the less each day counts. And do not tell everyone that I am a wealthy man. So when your spirituality begins to grow, when you become a spiritual person, and your cakras, your kuṇḍalinī awakens, then you will not say that I am a spiritual person, I am a realized person. Then please be careful and say, yes, yes, good. How do you feel? Oh, great, absolutely great. In a year, go and see how he or she feels. It will be completely different. And so, when you see, for example, you live and know more about Jesus, how simply he lived and how humble he remained until the end. What he did until the very last moments, how he lived. This is an example for us. He lived Yoga in daily life. And so, if you are interested in that spark one day becoming a whole blaze, united with the cosmos and the self, then change your way of life—how you live, what you eat, what you think, what you do. Not that you sit for an hour meditating, an hour practicing prāṇāyāma, an hour exercising the body, and an hour reading a book, and then quickly rush to the car or bus to go to work. And you are in a hurry and the light turns red, and you say, damn it. So where did your practice go? And someone drives right in front of you, across your street, and you brake and honk. So your inner restlessness is still there. What have you done? To live consciously, inner purification, self-realization, and never to rush. Yes, I did not ask for your answer. How do you know that one is realized or one with God? At the last breath. You must wait that long. And if nothing happens, you cannot come to me, because it is over. That is so. So that means, do not expect, just be present. Pray every day for His grace and forgiveness. This is the best thing we can do. When you meditate or practice your mantra to realize something and attain your powers and siddhis, then forget your enlightenment. So Yoga means the union of this individual self with the divine self. It is very important that in our lives we already know, of 8.4 million different living beings that Brahmā has created. There are three principles: Brahmā, Viṣṇu, and Maheśa, Śiva. Brahmā is the intellect, the Buddhi. Viṣṇu is the Ātman and Śiva is the consciousness. So Brahmā, Viṣṇu, and Śiva, all three are within you. It is your intellect, your Buddhi, that creates. It is your Self that is present and holds love and care for all. And it is your consciousness that liberates you into divine consciousness. Brahmā has created 8.4 million different species of living beings on this planet. They are divided into three categories: Jalchar, Talchar, and Nabchar. Living beings exist in the water, on the earth, in the air, and in space. This is a circus, a wheel, and this wheel keeps repeating itself, from astral planes to physical planes. In ordinary language, it is called birth, rebirth, and death. Whether one believes it or not, in English it is called The Evidence Will Never Die. And so, faith alone cannot change reality. This is a rebirth. And in modern language, we have used this word and expressed it differently. And in modern language, this is called the recycling process. The question is, do you believe in recycling or not? Please, yes or no? It is very weak. I have not had dinner yet. So, do you believe in recycling or not? Thank you. Then where is the problem in believing in rebirth? The problem is that we do not know about rebirth, but we do know about recycling. Because we have learned more about the recycling process. Among 8.4 million, one is the human being, and the human is a special living being because of its intellect. And the human intellect also requires education. And the human intellect has a great capacity, a very great capacity for learning. But through improper diet, through laziness, and through wrong company and a wrong way of life, one loses their memory, meaning their intellect becomes weaker again. And so yoga practices support our intellect, either to stretch more or to remain more as it is. Yogis die fully conscious and with complete memory until the very last moments of life. And other people slowly, slowly lose so many memories. Please don’t be offended, but in German, it’s called a calcified brain. Isn't that so? But this brain process remains active when we practice Prāṇāyāma—breathing exercise. The best thing for our memory is breathing exercise. And headstand, because more oxygenated blood flows in the direction of our head, to the brain when we do the headstand, but not for too long. And please do not do anything right away tomorrow. You need to take the time to first practice the other exercises, and then slowly, slowly, when your yoga teacher permits, you should do the headstand. Otherwise, it can cause saddle sores. Food is also very important. For the brain, food is called fat and sweets. Sugar, haha, chocolates. But not these kinds of sweets. The food itself has enough sweetness. The wheat has enough sweetness. The grain has enough. The rice has enough as well. And the grains also have enough nutrients and fats. But if someone wants to take more, then please work harder physically, so that you can digest it. Very good for memory are the, what do you call them, the tonsils. Soak almonds in water in the evening, a handful or about 20, 15 pieces. In the morning, soak it, then blend it in your mixer with a glass of milk and a spoonful of honey. Oh, milk, honey, and almond milk, that is delicious. Do you know how delicious it is? Some people like nothing, honey and milk. Then you take only almonds and honey. Drink one tea bag every day, not too much. In the morning, first thing. Then do not drink or eat anything else for 20 minutes. No coffee immediately, no tea immediately. Let time flow, cleanse yourself, and so on. Twenty minutes will pass very quickly. It will greatly support your memory. Headstand, prāṇāyāma, almond milk with honey. This is the best thing we can do. It is also very important that food is organic. At that time, when the yoga techniques were developed, there was no question about biology. Because there were no chemicals. It was all organic. It was completely logical. But now it is no longer logical. Everything is poisoned. And in yoga, there is an Agni-Śarkriyā, because our topic is the Maṇipūra-cakra. And many are waiting, when will I speak about Manipur, but I have actually finished with Manipur. What I spoke about was all concerning Manipur, but I did not realize that it was Manipur. Manipur will come again tomorrow. To Agni-Śarkriyā. Agni means fire, Śark means the strengthening of our digestive fire, supporting our solar plexus or abdominal glands, pancreatic glands. Naulikriyā and Śaśāṅkāsana are very, very good. Please, if anyone still wants to improve their memory, then remember. Prāṇāyāma, breath control, all exercises where you bend forward, but make sure you don’t get dizzy or have very low blood pressure. Almonds, milk, and honey in the morning. Agniśar Kriyā and Nauli Kriyā, as you will see, are also practiced at the foundational level. And in this book, I have prepared exercises for the Maṇipūra cakra here, all very carefully. And they are also depicted here in these practice charts. And also in a book. Yes, in these modern times, in this stressful life, we have a great deal of stress. And we are very much the victims of two diseases: diabetic and high blood pressure. Perhaps one of you does not have diabetes, but has high cholesterol. Also a danger for our heart. And also the food, how we eat and what we eat, is unfortunately not entirely beneficial for our healthy life. Back then, 100 years ago, people were very athletic, slim, and healthy. I have always admired how people are so slim. But now, every day we step on the scale and see how many grams we have, or big kilos. Not only do we work a lot, but the food is like that as well. And so many chemicals. I have heard that cows are given injections of cortisone so that they produce more milk. The melons are injected, the bananas that are completely green are dipped into a liquid, into poison, and are gutted. And then, that they last longer, but become ripe. There are so many things, and they all come to us in the form of milk, yogurt, butter, cheese, fruit. A watermelon is this big, and they inject it with cheap sugar and color and some other chemicals, and the next day it’s this big. Cut it open, quite red. But that was dye inside. Many, many things, we do not know what is inside. And that is the reason why we suffer from weight issues and high cholesterol, and so on. And so, in the yoga way of life, there are also very specific practices to support our memory and our pancreas. And fortunately, right now, it is not just by chance, and I am not promoting anything, but a very beautiful book has just been published by Ibera Verlag. It is about diabetes. And in this Diabet book, I saw the exercises today again, precisely those that support our memory. And a very special treasure in this book that I liked is a chart. All the practices are there within, in a single glance. Can we buy just that, a book? No? So, they have everything there, in one book. And so, Maṇipūra-Cakra corresponds to our German word, I believe, responsible. Thank you, I have just returned from India, after three months I spoke more English and Hindi, and it is there, responsible for our entire state of health first and foremost. Āyurveda speaks. The first mantra, the first principle of Āyurveda, first, the Sukha-rogika, yes. First happiness or joy or living beautifully or I don’t know, because "Sukh" cannot be translated. Sukh means something beautiful, but in the German language, this word does not exist. I live well, I live happily, I am happy. And all this mixture, when you bring it together, perhaps means sugar. Sugar and Dukh. Dukh means all negative things, pains, problems, everything. Everything that is negative in this life. And Sukh is the opposite. Prathama Sukha, Āyurveda speaks of the first seeker as healthy living. And so, an Austrian once said, health is nothing, but everything—and yet, everything is nothing without health. And so this divine realization, highest consciousness or lower consciousness, no matter where we are, what matters is a healthy life. When we are there, then everything is there. And when we are not there, nothing is there at all. And so, front row, that we live a healthy life. And if God is so gracious to us, may God grant that we suffer nothing. Weeks, months, years confined to a sickbed. This is no longer life. Swami Vivekananda said, Life means being active and full of energy and movement. Life in a sickbed is no longer truly alive. And we see how many people unfortunately suffer from cancer and many other illnesses. They are in a coma, just lying in bed, hooked up to the machine. Do we not desire that, Lord God? Perhaps we are postponing our enlightenment for the next life. But Lord God, please do not let us suffer so agonizingly, so painfully. We have no fear of dying, but we suffer painfully. And so, Yoga says that you will not suffer unless there is an accident. And then, of course, it is something else. And therefore it is very important to practice Yoga, to live according to Yoga, and to surrender. Dedicate your life to help others. And that is why the people understood it. In the midday life of yoga, thousands of yoga teachers have emerged, because they want to help people or individuals through yoga in daily life. When you have knowledge, you believe, I have enough now. I only want for myself, and I do not want to have anything to do with people. Ah, you are so selfish. You are so greedy. You are so lazy. No, that means you have understood nothing and achieved nothing. Distribute everything you possess within yourself. Keep sharing your knowledge, your love, your devotion, your help. In every way you can. That is the goal. This will further deepen your spirituality. Now you have realized and attained something. Now, when you give to others, your interest will grow from the capital. But if you just leave your capital lying there and inflation rises or falls, then it diminishes and your capital becomes nothing at all. You have lost that. So let your interest grow, your spiritual interest, so that you may help people and other lives. Helping, teaching, guiding people, speaking. Of course, no one is saying that you should give up these beliefs and adopt those beliefs, and so on. No, simply say, this person should live consciously. Pray, if you believe in Islam, then according to Islam. If you believe in Judaism, then believe in the Jews. Or Buddhists as Buddhists. Or Christians or Hindus. But to make you aware of a higher life beyond this worldly existence. The Maṇipūra Cakra is responsible; from here our consciousness begins to purify. It is the fire principle in Manipur, the Hara center, the energy, the life force. We will speak more about the Maṇipūra-Cakra over these two days. But everything, everything culminates in one thing: spirituality. And spirituality means purity. The word spiritual means pure. Crystal clear, transparent is what spirituality means. In life, in thought, and in action. Then our human life becomes successful. So, human beings have this consciousness, and consciousness requires cultivation. And through this, one will realize how many hidden powers one has within oneself. The hidden powers, the hidden talents, treasures, infinite treasures. You are completely rich, not poor at all. We are not poor. And our wealth is so great, you can give and give, and it will never change and never diminish. A holy Mīrābāī says, I have received the wealth of the Divine Name. I can use my wealth as much as I want. And no one deep can take it away. And day by day it grows. I believe I have to stop, right? Is this a transcript? And We have been just. My Gurudev was so gracious to me and bestowed this wealth upon me. What wealth? The names of God mean mantra. And day by day, you should repeat your mantra; that is wealth. No one can take your mantra away, you do not get lost, and day by day you grow. God's Name. And so, without spirituality, a human life is a bird without wings, a body without eyes, earth without water, a cow without milk, a tree without fruit, an elephant without tusks.