TV Channel

Salutations to the cosmic light, the Lord of our hearts, omniscient and omnipresent. In His divine presence, a very good evening, dear brothers and sisters. I am glad to be in Linz again. Linz is not new to me; my first journey here was in 1974. Something new I see now is that Linz has grown a lot, as have other cities. Before I begin my lecture, I would like to speak about this very beautiful row of orange-colored ones right at the front. Certainly, many are thinking, "My God, where do so many in orange come from? Certainly from India, or where could it be?" They are from Austria. First, I would like to speak about the color orange, which would be good and interesting for everyone. This orange color is the color of dawn. Before sunrise, you see the entire sky completely orange, and it is also the color of the sun. When dawn breaks, the entire consciousness expands and awakens. In the evening twilight again, at sunset, it also turns orange, and the entire consciousness goes to sleep. The symbol means a change of consciousness, an awakening of consciousness. The second meaning of this color is the color of the earth. Just as it is also said in the Bible, "You are the salt of the earth." Our physical existence has come from the earth and will once again become one with the earth. The third meaning is the meaning of fire. Fire means purity. Dharma, the principle of fire, is to purify everything. And so, this color cleanses all karma, protects us from negative energy or, as mentioned, black magic, negative thoughts, and so on. The negative energy does not come near the orange or this color. Another meaning of this color is surrender, renunciation. This is the law of nature. We now see beautiful new leaves, very fresh and green in color, but in October, November, everything will turn beautifully orange again, and that means these leaves will fall once more. In English, one says: renounce, die, enter the kingdom of the Lord through the gate of sacrifice. To enter the door of heaven is a path and the act of surrender or renunciation. In Christianity, it also says, "Thou shalt not carry, you shall not bear." Have faith in your kismat, your śikṣā, your prārabdha. What you are meant to receive, you will receive everywhere. Unnecessarily, you should not carry things along with you. The happiest tourist, traveler, is the one who has a very small suitcase. And sad is the one with two suitcases, two handbags, a camera, and a view further... how do you say this? Watching from afar. And when he has to get on a bus, that is a horror. If someone travels to India and boards the bus, yes, they can get on, but without any luggage. You can take half with you, and when he gets off, half remains inside. That is how it is. So, into the kingdom of the Lord goes the sacrifice. Renunciation. Renunciation to enter the door of Īśvara. And Gandhiji had said, "Renounce and enjoy." Give up, renounce, and be happy. Who is sad, who is unhappy, who is poor, is the one who has too much and still feels hunger, wanting more and more and more. The richest person in this world is the one who no longer has any desires. And if there is something, he gives up. And so, this color comes from the Ādi Anādi Sanātana Dharma, from the god Śiva. One more thing for this color—there are many good things, but today I do not want to speak only about a color. This color is a very safe color for traffic. When crossing the streets and someone approaches, pressed for space, they will immediately slow down because someone is walking there. It is a visible color, a radiant color. And therefore, the Indian monks wear this orange color: the Buddhists, the Hindus. Buddhism is a branch of Hinduism. Hinduism is also a branch of Sanātana Dharma and so on. Śiva is the very first to have appeared in this universe. No one created Him or gave Him birth; He manifested Himself. And so this spiritual lineage is called Paramparā, Sannyāsa. Sannyāsa means to give up everything and renounce all for worldly life—not only for humans, but for all living beings, and also for our nature: trees, vegetation, rivers, lakes, oceans, and so on. Be the master, be nothing here but the destroyer. From this Sannyāsa Paramparā, which in your word is called Advaita. Dualism, Non-dualism. Dvaita-Vāda means Dualism and Advaita means Non-Dualism. Ādiguru Śaṅkarācārya further developed this Sannyāsa and established certain principles, and he presented the Advaita Vedānta philosophy. He said, only one God. And so the Hindus, all who believe in only one God, that is the Brahman. But from time to time, many incarnations come with supernatural power, one could say. We worship all, and therefore they have said again and again, everything is sacred. Even the snake is sacred. In India, there are many festivals where the snake is honored, also the horse, the scorpion, cows as well, fish too, all living beings and trees as well. So people, men and women, of course, they are sacred anyway. But because they all have this divine light within them, all represent the one Brahman. As Śaṅkarācārya said, for example, we have five cups and in each cup there is liquid inside. The form is different and the color of the cup is different. And now the full moon is in the sky. We see, in all five cups one places a moon. And when we look up, we see there is only one. One in all and all in one. Our holy Master, Holy Gurujī, has always said that. One in all, all in one. The one Brahman is in everything. And all are bound with the One. Our origin, no matter who, human or another living being. Where the soul is, there is the light of the ātman. And all are bound with the Brahman. And that is Sanātana. "I live in all beings, and all are my Sanātanī; that is my part." And there, in our Sannyāsa, which is one of the oldest monastic orders or systems, and the oldest existing on this planet, there are Sannyāsīs, and we also have various Akhāḍas and titles. Just as, for example, here among Catholics there is a Pope and a, what is it called, Bishops, cardinal bishops, and so on have a certain rank, let’s say. And so, there is also in Sannyāsa, and there we have the Akhāḍas. Akhāḍa means the groups, and ours is the Mahā Nirvāṇī Akhāḍa, one of the oldest Akhāḍas. Everyone is connected with Śaṅkarācārya, Ādiguru Śaṅkarācārya. In yoga, there is a sādhanā; I will come to my topic a little later, may I say something? Or you are angry with me. You will say, "We waited for an elephant, and he brings a camel." There is a sādhanā with yoga, Kuṇḍalinī-yoga, and cakras. Awakening of the Anāhata-Cakra. And Saṅkalpa-Siddhi. Manobal-Saṅkalpa-Siddhi. Although a Sannyāsī has no desires, sometimes it is very important, and to carry the light forward, sometimes there is also a desire. And the desire is for everyone. God, Kṛṣṇa told Arjuna, "There is nothing in the entire universe that I cannot obtain or achieve. Everything is possible for me, but still, I act or do work so that others will also learn." One should work for the good and show a path. In this case, I also made a saṅkalpa for myself once, that a special soul or Ātman comes. And if I can pass on my teaching, even nothing, as I said, only, but also. Because I have such wonderful Sannyāsīs, very wise, very advanced, many, many years of practice and decades of practicing. But this desire is called Manasaputra, a child or son who is to come through your Saṅkalpa. And so, I believe, this is the case. And that means she is sitting beside us, a little Svāmī Autarpurī. A scientist once said, "Health is nothing, everything. But everything is nothing without health." And whoever is a healthy person, or if we are all healthy, we can thank God. Well, the healthy head sounds like this. Right? That is it. Yoga. Yoga means much. If I briefly speak about yoga, from my meditation, my experiences, my saṅkalpas, and so on, what we see—a space, sky, universe—is an endless space. We know nothing, where it begins and where it ends. Beyond. Ananta Brahmāṇḍa. Infinite space. And in this most ultimate space in the universe, there exists one thing, which is called consciousness. Universal Consciousness. There is no empty space anywhere. Not even for, how do you say, the tip of a sewing needle, the tip of a sack, or how do you say, a pin. So, compactly, that is consciousness. Space and consciousness. Now, between space and consciousness, there is a principle that maintains a balance between the two. Yoga is that which maintains balance in the infinite universe. And where there is balance, there is harmony. And so, Yoga means harmony. Where there is harmony, there is Yoga. Where there is balance, there is understanding, there is Yoga. Why is there so much unrest throughout the world? Because there is no balance. Because there is no harmony. And where there is harmony, there is unity. So literally, one speaks of Yoga, "yuj," meaning union. Union here again means that the individual Self realizes its knowledge with its origin, universal, the entire universe. Ātman is not the soul. The soul is individual, and Ātman is universal. The soul has its karma, the soul has its destiny, but Ātman is free from this. And so, Yoga means balance, harmony, and union. And that is why it was said, many, many thousands of years ago, about Brahman, the endless universe, and thousands and thousands within the solar system, declared by both Ṛṣis, the sages or saints. Whoever wishes to know more about these matters, it would be very advisable to read the Purāṇas, Upaniṣads, Vedas, these books. Incredible, incredible, how much knowledge is contained within. And so we come to our planet. In this infinite universe, only one Śakti exists, power. And that which awakens, that is called the awakening of consciousness through a sound. And the world is a sound. This entire world stands before a sound. And this sound is the primordial sound. Yogīs say Oṃ. And it is said that Amen also comes from Oṃ. So that is A-U-M. Oṃ. From this sound arise the four elements: fire, air, water, and earth. And so, we are here as the five elements: space, fire, water, air, and earth. The creator on this planet has created 8.4 million different living beings. He divided or distributed into three categories: Jalacara, Sthalacara, and Nabhañcara. Living beings in the water, on the earth, and in space. Only one of these is called the human being. And now modern science, after much work—or how do you say, the scientific work—they have found, not just the human race, they say there is only one, and that is the human being, and it began somewhere in Tibet, in the Himalayan mountains. It is a complete mistake if I say the European race, Indian, African, and so on and so forth. A human is a human. And this is also what our United Nations Human Rights states. Every voice will be counted. Man is special because man has an intellect. The human intellect can be trained, without limits. And man takes on his habit according to his teaching, education. In German, it is said that man is a creature of habit. And this comes from our upbringing. Through this human existence and through the human brain, consciousness, and human intellect, a person can develop to such an extent that they return to their origin. Otherwise, 8.4 million. It is a cycle, how do you say, rebirth, death, and rebirth cycle. In Tibetan cultures, there is also one called Yamarāja, the King of Death. And in Hindi as well, we say Yama, Yamarāja. And Yamarāja, he has a chain, a large chain hanging from his mouth, not from his neck. And this chain means that all 8.4 million different living beings must go through this chain in this world, in Mṛtyuloka, through rebirth and death. Whether one believes or not, those are different matters. Belief does not resolve anything. Belief ends nothing at all. Evidence will never die. Evidence will never die. What is Satya, is the Satya. Truth is truth. And so they come and go. So human life has been given with a Dharma. The primary task of human beings is self-realization. Nothing but ego. I am not this body, not these thoughts. I am not these feelings, I am not these layers, but I am the breath. Ego grows, self-awareness diminishes, self-realization declines. The ego diminishes, knowledge and spirituality rise. So minus and plus go like this. It is very difficult to get rid of or purify our ego. Therefore, Kṛṣṇa says to Arjuna, God Kṛṣṇa, "Arjuna, practice Yoga." And Kṛṣṇa has explained everything that he attains through yoga. And Arjuna asks, "Well, I practice yoga for, say, 15 or 20 years or even 100 years. I have not yet reached my goal, and I am dying. What about my practices then?" Kṛṣṇa said, "Yes, be certain then, you will become like your human self in the next life, and from childhood your interest in spirituality will grow, and you will walk the spiritual path and your past life energies or spirituality will awaken. It will include you again." And so every step counts. Now, that is why human life is very precious, because one can realize this self-realization in this very life. And therefore, one thing is very important, namely to stay healthy. It means to live long. How? That is the question. Āyurveda said, the first happiness, the first happiness, is to be a healthy life. And a healthy life through nourishment and movement. Our food, what we all consume nowadays, is very unhealthy. Back then, those who discovered this Yoga, or those who taught Yoga practices, there was no question of organic vegetables at that time. Everything was biological, completely logical. But in these 80 years, we have polluted the entire Earth with these chemicals. And we do not know how far we will go. And therefore also this vaporization in this air, what we breathe, everything is unhealthy. Perhaps we will go to Mars now, the planet Mars, maybe it is a bit healthier there, but we will no longer be able to breathe there. Austria, thank God, has beautiful nature, is healthy, and it would be advisable to spend a few hours in the mountains every day or every weekend. We can do this for our own life. And also food. A pure sāttvic food. Of course, in Yoga it was said to have vegetarian food. We will come to that later. And then body exercises, breathing exercises. According to Yoga, as the Yogī said, it was like an athlete, how do you say, top-level sport, for the Olympics or whatever, or someone who goes jogging. Your body consumes 95% energy and you receive 5% energy back during your movement. And so after a few hundred meters or kilometers, you are exhausted and say, relax. Why? Why relax? The cameraman comes and the media say, "I have to relax." Why? What is relaxation? Yoga gives you energy again. Then there is an exercise called Dynamical Movements. Not so extreme. You gain 50% energy and lose 50% energy. Then comes the stretching. In stretching, you gain 80% of the energy and you do not lose 20%, but it is kept far away from your body. Afterwards, it comes back again. And then they are called postures, āsanas. Psychosomatic Movement is Yoga exercise. In Yoga postures, you receive 95% energy and perhaps 5% is lost. And that is why yoga exercises are among the best in the whole world so far, one can say, from the viewpoint of health, but only if followed regularly and with discipline. In yoga, there is no, how shall I say, challenge and competition. There is no challenge and there is no competition. Practice slowly, calmly, and beautifully, and you receive energy. And I would like to practice this with you now. Are you ready? You did not think that we would practice today, did you? But why not? It is all-inclusive today. The holy Svāmīs sit, that was also Darśana, and we say Darśana, it is still free today. Tomorrow one does not know what the cost will be. And what I have shared about this color and so on, that was also free of charge. And now comes something exclusive that we can practice, which is wonderful. Or should I skip it? No. Okay, good. If it is not difficult, then please take off your shoes. Please take them off like this. These exercises, what we will be doing, are for tomorrow morning. Anyone can practice, those who can stand up or stand. Even those who are in wheelchairs can do it as well. How wonderful. So please stand up. Stand up please. Let us practice yoga today. Mahāmaṇḍaleśvarījī, you have come all the way from India to Linz to practice yoga. How nice, beautiful. This is a focal point for me. Stand, be clean, comfortable. This exercise is only to warm up the body and gain more flexibility in the morning, when standing on the bed. Okay, I go to my coffee, coffee water, and sit down again in the kitchen. So why not receive energy before the coffee? Then you will take a little coffee and say, "Ah, bitter coffee, I don't want it, I have energy, I'm back." This is the best. So, interlock your fingers. Is this very difficult? Okay. Man, sometimes it is too difficult to say something. Very good. And now, your palms facing forward. Not difficult at all. And now we place our hands over the hand. Now, slowly we stretch our hands upwards. Tāḍāsana. And stand on your legs. And see how much balance you have. Two, one, deep inhale. And two, one. Feet together, it becomes even more comfortable. And count the tips. And two, very good. Please stay like that. Hands straight up and legs apart. One. Inhale. Left side. Links. Exhale. Inhale. One. Twist your body to the left side. Two. Three. Take your seat. Hey Aftab, it's you. Come here. With this practice, I might then change my lecture today, because we will continue to practice throughout the entire weekend. This posture, this seated position, is called Vajrāsana. Vajra means strong, solid. Āsana is seat. There is a nerve, and this nerve runs between the big toe and the small, second toe. And it flows throughout the entire body. It unites with the Suṣumnā Nāḍī or central nerve. You may have seen, perhaps in India, sādhus wearing these Charaṇa Pādukā or wooden sandals made of Kalau wood. Where the woodcutters have something like a hatchet or nails that are between two toes: the big toe and the second toe. And that helps those who are always at this acupuncture point to keep the mind calm, focused, and to keep away many unnecessary feelings and thoughts. In Vajrāsana, in Islam, when people pray, they sit in this posture because it brings a beautiful sense of calm. The mind becomes calmer and more focused. People who have depression, and now it is precisely the time of depression, or nervousness, or are very restless and angry—when one sits in this posture, the mind becomes calm. Why? Therefore, because you are sitting like this. Clear. But why is that? Yes. When the autopilot is on, he sits so passionately, without making any movements. You see how he sits very passionately. His spinal column is very strong. His backbone is completely straight. When the spine is completely straight, then automatically your shoulders are relaxed. And when the shoulders are relaxed, then your elbows are also relaxed. Result? Your neck muscles are completely relaxed. And because the spine is completely straight, all our abdominal muscles are relaxed, and our intestines feel completely free. And so the digestive process begins. After eating, it is highly advisable to practice Vajrāsana. Especially those who have digestive problems or gastritis issues. You are simply sitting in this automatism. You don’t need to sit up straight deliberately. This is a very comfortable sitting posture. And in many offices, people have a chair that they sit in like this. This keeps the spine straight. And whoever does not sit straight and peaceful, that means there is a problem. One person did not get any chocolate, or ate too much chocolate. There are many problems. This way, our entire diaphragm, our chest cavity, is free and has its own original, natural state. It opens. This allows for more volume, to get more air in. And through this, the heart will receive its own natural heartbeat. And the cycle is beautifully normalized. And more circulation flows toward the brain. And through this, one calms down. We could talk for hours about Vajrāsana, how beautiful and beneficial it is. But those who have difficulties with their ankles or knees should not do anything. Others can do everything. After this Vajrāsana, we will do an exercise called Khaṭu Praṇāma. Khaṭu is the place where my holy Master lived, the Great Master. And Praṇāma is a greeting. There is a practice called Sūrya Namaskāra, which is the sun salutation. And this has a Khaṭupāna, which is part of yoga in daily life. So, when you sit upright like this, take a slow breath in and stretch your hands forward and then upward. Inhale, man. Beautiful. Remember. Well, you, the oblique muscles are stretching a lot. Wonderful. If the hands are just like that, then it does not stretch the side muscles. And when you come together, you feel it, it expands. Exhale, do. This point is truly very important. In the yoga series, one can say Śaśāṅkāsana, a hare. But this practice very much calms those who suffer from depression, anxiety, or are very nervous. If you cannot concentrate, if you cannot sleep, stay in this position for a while. And often a mother finds a child in the crib, a small child who sleeps early, in this place. That's right, have you seen it sometimes? No, the mother knows. Because the child suddenly feels so relaxed and calm there, and falls asleep. This is a wonderful practice. And if one has not practiced and has the belly forward, then it is a bit difficult. A person like me must demonstrate certain exercises, I must have courage, and therefore I avoid this exercise. Once I was in an office in Vienna, and there was a large sign that read, "A man without a belly is like the sky without stars." Number three, beautiful, you can see how it moves, how the muscles stretch and also contract, and the belly hangs completely relaxed. And the shoulder muscles, upper arm muscles, they become strong. Also, the sartorius muscles, all these front muscles of the body, are being stretched. Similarly, correct. And not everyone should practice there, except those who have back issues, but if you have disc problems, you should not do anything. It is a cycle, a beautiful cycle. It stretches all the opposing muscles. I read a yoga book about this cobra pose and it really said, this is no joke, women who regularly practice this exercise, not constantly, but regularly, can be 95% sure that they will not get breast cancer. Please. But at least five minutes daily. Who has five minutes? In India, they say we don't even have time to die. Five. Heels on the ground. Yes, that is beautiful. Look at your belly. Look at your stomach. Beautiful. Now you can see how this practice stretches all the back muscles. Even the muscles of the soles of the feet contract, also the sitting muscles, also the tendinous muscles, and the circulation moves toward the head. It is beautiful. Staying in this practice for one minute is equivalent to drinking two cups of coffee. Why not then do this exercise and why should we stir that black, gray water inside our belly? Six. Working, the body experiences differences; the right side has one effect, the left side has another effect. Two in one, very good. Two in one, Altaf Uri, right? We can give a name to this two-in-one, alright? Seven. The practice itself reveals its meaning. How does it affect our body? Eight, nine, nine,... nine. This Khaṭupraṇāma helps us to strengthen the immune system within our body. The immune system gains more immunity, energy. It is especially very, very advisable or important to practice in the evening, when you come home from the office. Five rounds, minimum. It helps a lot.