Upanishads

The Upanishads is a study of us.

It urges us to “Know Thyself “and be free.

In our social setting, it is the more educated that enjoy greater freedom in society, but the Upanishads tell us, that this type of knowledge cannot make us free.

The study of the Self is the study of everything the Self cannot become as the subject cannot become the object, but remains the essence.

The Upanishads remind us of 3 defects of the mind.

1)   Mala or dirt – as a thick coating over a mirror preventing the reflection of the light.

2)   Vikshepa – the inability to concentrate for a long time.

3)   Avarana – it is like a thick veil over the mind.

The Atman or Self is pure subject, but when pulled into the direction of what it is not, it is pulled toward sense perception.

So the Upanishads gives us 4 important instructions.

1)   The creator pervades the whole universe

2)   Everyone is to do one’s duty

3)   Knowledge and action have to be combined and not considered separate.

4)   We must view God and the world as being in a state of harmony and not as opposed to each other.

The first tenant:

All is enveloped by the Supreme Being. The creator manifests the Universes.

The aspect of God in creation is called Ishvara.

Ishvara is tied to consciousness. Consciousness exists everywhere. It is universal. It is the one thing being all things and being everywhere.

Upanishads on happiness:

We will not be happy by acquiring land, houses or money.

Possession is not the way of being happy.

Actually, there is no such thing as possession. We cannot possess land, because it was already here before we were even born.

What does this mean “I possess something”?

Does that object enter our being in any way? No, possession always remains outside of us, just as they were outside even before we were born. So it follows, that an object outside of us cannot become ours.

If someone has taken away something and the location shifts, we consider it lost. We get upset, because it is gone, but it has not gone anywhere, only its location has shifted.

Anything, that is capable of leaving us, is not ours.

The idea of the whole argument is to renounce attachment. Another way of saying this is to renounce our sense of possession and by doing so, we renounce attachment.

Happiness is a state of being and not one of possession.

It then follows, that the more we feel the need to be alone in a state of being, rather than in a state of possessing, the happier we will be.

Another tenant is to be in communion with the creation of God.

One needs to enjoy all things without forming an attachment. Attachment is a selfish attempt to possess.

When we have emptied ourselves of all selfish cravings and desires, the world will enter into us and it shall be ours.

Therefore perform all duties as a participation in the work of this evolutionary process of creation and not as a self serving activity.

There is no conflict between meditation and action, knowledge and work. They all go together.

We generally think, that knowledge means knowing something that can be obtained from books, art etc., but it is not necessarily so. This type of knowledge is none other than gathering of information from the outer world.

The inner essence is not gained by academic learning. It teaches nothing of its essence only of its behavior. True knowledge is the insight into the being of things, the Self of all things.

What have we observed?

Ekam sat: “Existence is only one”.

Ultimate Being is Existence. Being and Existence have the same meaning.

Everything exists in some form or another. The Upanishads states: “this existence is Supreme, complete, universal, all pervading, the only Being.

That which is everywhere and in all things is Brahman in Sanskrit.

Whoever realizes Brahman attains Supreme understanding. It is so because when anyone contacts Pure Existence, that contact is equal to the contact of all things.

How can we attain Brahman?

In the state of samadhi through meditation,

Through direct inward communion,

In deep thought and profound contemplation,

Meditation is also called jnana or wisdom path.

How to define Brahman

It is Pure Existence, sat yam, Ultimate Truth.

When we conceive this universal Brahman as the deepest reality in ourselves, it is called Atman or Self.

To go into the Self is the best achievement, the highest attainment. The knowledge of the essence in us is also the knowledge of the essential secret of the universe. With this Self knowledge we begin to feel a Bliss contact with all things. All desires get fulfilled in that state in an instant.

Brahman, God, Self experience is not an object of contact, it is an identity.

The object is the experiencing consciousness itself. The content of awareness becomes awareness itself.

Existence and Consciousness merge into each other.

Sat becomes Chit, Chit becomes sat. In actuality, it is not one thing becoming another, as the one thing is the other thing. Existence is none other than consciousness of existence. When we say we exist, we confirm that we are conscious that we exist.

Prayer

How should we approach prayer?

Scriptures recommend prayer as a way to commune with God, or the opening of the soul to God.

What motivates most people to pray?

A hope of communion or the experience of union with God

A believe or feeling that God should be acknowledged

A desire for personal or material benefits

Experience suggests that most people are more concerned about their immediate physical, psychological and material well being. They pray that their desires are fulfilled and their needs met, rather than being in communion with God.

To what form do people generally pray?

A caring superior being

A loving father or mother

A specific figure like Jesus

Is God confined to time or location in space?

God’s presence is all-pervading and everywhere present. Where we are, God is. The Absolute Existence-Being of God is not confined by time or space.

God response to prayer is determined by our attunement and receptivity.

We are never separate from God

Yoga teaches that God alone exists and souls are individualized units of God. The God imminent is our own consciousness.

Dualists see God separate from them and therefore pray to God as a separate Being. The resulting effect is that it produces results in accordance with once personal belief and expectation.

Prayers are most effective when our individualized soul awareness freely interacts with God’s omnipresent consciousness. When praying from this level of awareness we pray to an aspect of the same consciousness, we pray in God rather to an aspect of God that we perceive as being separate from us. This is a higher level of prayer which allows consciousness to express in accordance with our higher good and for the highest good for those for whom we pray. This level of prayer, in its purest form, is the one consciousness referring to itself.

Some prayer styles

They are vocal, mental, devotional, or contemplative where one contemplates the presence of God without words, mental concepts or willful intention.

Forms of prayer

Some are: prayer of adoration, devotion, thanks giving, confession, petitioning, healing, spiritual growth and more.

Do prayers work?

Claims are made that Individuals who know that they are being prayed for and who believe in prayer often experience more improvement than those who are unaware of prayers on their behalf.

Individuals, who are unaware of being prayed for, experience improvement in accordance with their sub-conscious and super-conscious receptivity.

Individuals who are being prayed for, but who doubt the usefulness of prayer, or people who are attached to their problems and limitations, experience little improvement.

All who request prayer support should be informed of their true nature, their relationship with God, the importance of being self-reliant, the need to awaken their higher potential. These suggestions will help them to get people away from a sense of dependency and helplessness.

Paramahansa Yogananda - About Prayer

“Blessed are those who pray for others, for in so doing, they become aware of the unity of all life. We are not isolated beings, struggling alone against the forces of adversity. Our happiness is linked with the happiness of all; our highest fulfillment lies in the welfare of all. May you ever be aware of the constant protection and all satisfying love of God”. 

“When you pray to God, do it from the bottom of your soul. Tell what you truly feel and not what you think He would like you to feel. Be completely sincere towards Him, because there is no way you can hide your inner feelings from Him. An intense prayer gives you a very strong mental force. Your thoughts will then be focused and centred upon Him. Without honesty, this won’t happen. If you don’t feel any state of devotion, pray to Him like this: “God, help me love You.”

He is for you exactly what you really need and He will do for you much more than you can ever imagine.

More than anything search Him for Himself, for His love. Ask Him:

“Reveal Yourself to me!” If you ask Him to come to you in such a sincere way, He will certainly be always there for you.

Don’t ever pray with a beggar’s attitude. Never forget that you are a child of God. So, as such, you have a right to His treasures. Pray to Him and at the same time be sure that He is listening to you, because He will certainly fulfill all your prayers if you pray with love.

A firm faith and love are the most important elements in prayer.

How should you love God? Love Him as a poor man loves money, as a drowned man longs for a breath of air, as a man lost in the desert longs for a glass of water. Love Him with the enthusiasm of all lovers during their first love.

When you learn how to love Him from all your heart, then you will find Him. It is only then that you will be a true yogi, a human being who has reached the union with God.”

Helpful hints and suggestions for those on the path

Pray for the highest good of everyone

Engage in spiritual studies and practices

Nurture consciousness of the presence of God

Do the best you can do for yourself, yet be receptive and responsive to grace (unplanned good).

Be realistic, using knowledge, skills and abilities to provide for your total well-being. Achieve worthwhile goals and accomplish meaningful purposes.

Maintain your faith in one power that pervades the universe and resides in you.

Share your realization of the oneness of God and the supportive actions of God’s grace with others who are interested.

Meditate until all thoughts and feelings of being separate from God are dissolved and you are aware of your oneness with God.

Acknowledge all souls as perfect expressions of God without trying to change anyone of their circumstances.

Sustain your acknowledgement of wholeness and right action until your realization is complete; until opposing thoughts and feelings are absent and you are established in soul peace.

Purusha and Prakriti – Spirit and Nature

Purusha: Of the two companion principles, Purusha is consciousness that is untainted, ever-pure. It is self-existent, standing alone from other identities of individuality; conscious being-ness; the principle of spiritual energy.

Purusha (Spirit) is transcendental and changeless; it is the Witness of manifestation, of prakriti or maya.

Purusha (Spirit) is Being, Existing, beyond Creation, and therefore unaffected by it.

Purusha (Spirit) is the cause of the Universe

Purusha (Spirit) activates Prakriti (Nature)

Prakriti: The other of the two companion principles, Prakriti is the unconscious, unmanifest, subtlest of the material aspect of energy. It is the primordial state of matter, even prior to matter as we know it in the physical sense. Prakriti manifests as the three gunas and the other evolutes.

Prakriti, (Nature, Cosmic Energy, Maya, Creative Force) is the first Manifestation. It contains all the knowledge of the Universe.

Ahamkara: This is the process of ego, by which consciousness can (incorrectly) take on false identities. The I Ness principle, it believes that perceptions are true.

Atman or the Self is part of Purusha (Spirit). When it is involved in the realm of matter, it identifies with it and thinks it is the personality self.

Once the Atman or Self realizes its oneness with Purusha (Spirit) the Ego disappears. This is liberation

Purusha (Spirit) is the Universal aspect of the Self

Atman or Self is the self revealing essence in everyone

To the enlightened person Atman and Purusha are the same

We may ask the question, is the world real or unreal?

The world and its manifestation are real when seen through the perception of the Ego or Ahamkara, but for the realized one, the world of matter ceases to exist as it merges with Purusha without any distinction.

Rediscovery of pure consciousness: The process of Self-realization is one of reversing the process of manifestation, of retracing consciousness back through the levels of manifestation to its source. To have a general understanding of this process is extremely useful.

Senses experiencing the Elements: Notice below that the Senses and Instruments of action (Indriyas) emerge out of unmanifest matter, or Prakriti.

 Notice that the five Elements also emerge out of Prakriti. Thus, one set of evolutes (Senses and Instruments of action) are relating to another set of evolutes (the five Elements in the form of many objects).

This is one way of explaining the mechanics of how one can appear to be multiplicity.

Senses experiencing the Elements: Notice that the Senses and Instruments of action (Indriyas) emerge out of unmanifest matter, or Prakriti. Notice that the five Elements also emerge out of Prakriti. Thus, one set of evolutes (Senses and Instruments of action) are relating to another set of evolutes (the five Elements in the form of many objects). This is one way of explaining the mechanics of how it can be that all is one can appear to be multiplicity.

These descriptions are intended to give a feel for the inner process, not to be literal, step by step instructions. The specific practices are the subject of the Yoga Sutras. But this systematic journey gives a general understanding of the process and supplements what was learned when we studied the sutras.

 

Meditation on I-am-ness: Most of the time we mistakenly think that "who I am" is my mind and personality. However, as we gradually come to witness the subtle elements, the senses, and the mind itself, we come to see that there is a still subtler aspect, which simply declares "I am!" When it stands alone in this way, it is independent of the other manifestations.

To be aware of this "I-am-ness" (Ahamkara) is a further stage along the journey to realization of pure Consciousness (Purusha). This Ahamkara (literally "I-maker") becomes the coloring agent for attachments and aversions, which define our personalities and false identities.

In meditation on this subtle level, those have subsided along with the senses.

Notice, once again, that the process is similar to dealing with gross objects of meditation, as well as the elements and senses. Something emerged from something, and now we are simply becoming aware of that substratum, letting go of the more surface manifestations. (Take a look at the third level of concentration in Yoga Sutra 1.17, which is on I-ness.

Meditation with Buddhi standing alone: Still subtler is Buddhi, which is the individuated intelligence itself. It doesn't yet declare itself to be this or that identity, but is the very intelligence, which supports the ego (Ahamkara), the senses and instruments of actions (Indriyas), and the constructs of the inner objects and physical body, the Tanmatras.

One of the final resting places of the individuated person is to know oneself as Buddhi, this most fine vehicle of consciousness (Purusha). It is still constructed of Prakriti, leaving that final discrimination or uncovering yet to be done. To know oneself at this level of Buddhi is sometimes called the level of bliss or ananda, as all of the other levels and false identities have temporarily come to rest or been transcended.

Purusha resting in itself:

Finally Purusha, pure consciousness, rests in itself, alone, separate from all evolutes of Prakriti. When the aspirant on the path of Self-realization seeks even a minute moment of this highest glimpse of Realization, he or she continues to purify the remaining samskaras and karmas. (See Yoga Sutras 1.3 and 3.56)

Keep it simple: As already said above, these descriptions are intended to give one a sense of this inner process, but not to be taken as literal, step by step instructions.

The specific practices are the subject of the Yoga Sutras. The journey is systematic, and flows much more smoothly by having a general understanding of the process.