Commentary on Paramahansa Nityananda's Chidakasha Gita–Number 21
by Swami Nirmalananda Giri

Chidakasha Gita:
Verses 109-121

109. Omkar is one without a second. Omkar is the cause of both creation and dissolution. Omkar destroys manas. Omkar is really the atman in you. Omkar is indivisible; a divisible object can never be indivisible. From the beginning there is only one religion taught by Shiva. If you sit in a room closing the doors, you do not see anything outside. When the doors are closed, the jiva communes with Shiva. When the doors are not closed, the jiva is separated from Shiva.

• Omkar is one without a second.

Om is absolutely unique: it alone is the Shabda Brahman. That is why the major upanishads, Gita, and Yoga Sutras recommend Om as the moksha mantra. This sentence also means that Om is Brahman, who is One, Only, Without a Second.

• Omkar is the cause of both creation and dissolution.

Om is the same as Brahman, who alone creates and dissolves. It also is the instrument, the means, by which Brahman creates an dissolves all things. That is why Om is the Pranava, the Life Word.

Omkar destroys manas. That is, Om breaks the power of the senses over us, for the manas is the lower, sensory mind, whereas the buddhi is the intelligent, thinking mind. Through the japa and meditation of Om intuition eventually takes the place of both manas and buddhi.

• Omkar is really the atman in you.

Many verses in the scriptures affirm the identity of Om and the Self.

“The Self [atman] is of the nature of the Syllable Om. Thus the Syllable Om is the very Self. He who knows It thus enters the Self [Supreme Spirit] with his self [individual spirit].” (Mandukya Upanishad 1,8,12)

“Meditate on Om as the Self.” (Mundaka Upanishad 2.2.3-6)

• Omkar is indivisible; a divisible object can never be indivisible.

This is because Om is the indivisible Brahman, whereas all else is divisible. This is why cosmic illusion is called Maya, The Measurer. In its realm all things are divisible, and the Transcendent Reality alone is indivisible. Om is the means to realize that Reality.

• From the beginning there is only one religion taught by Shiva.

What I wrote under aphorism 106 applies here. Only Yoga is the religion of Shiva, of the Absolute.

• If you sit in a room closing the doors, you do not see anything outside. When the doors are closed, the jiva communes with Shiva. When the doors are not closed, the jiva is separated from Shiva.

When we are centered within we are ourselves Shiva; when we are externally aware we are Jiva. Meditation alone enables us to permanently become Shiva.

110. Omkar is indivisible. Omkar is creation. Omkar is maya, action, manas, consciousness, light of consciousness. Chitta is the cause of desire.

• Omkar is indivisible.

This has just been covered.

• Omkar is creation. Omkar is maya.

Creation and maya are the same thing, but Nityananda is saying that Om is the power that produces creation. Om is both cause and effect.

• [Omkar is] action.

This pretty obvious, because action only take place within Creation/Maya. Om is Kriya-Shakti, the power of Action. That is why Om can counteract action in the form of karma.

• [Omkar is] manas.

Om is the substance of all our subtle and gross bodies. But Om being the mind, it is the natural transformer of the mind into Consciousness, into the Self.

• [Omkar is] consciousness.

Absolutely, and it makes us conscious by its japa and meditation.

• [Omkar is] light of consciousness.

Consciousness is self-luminous, and that quality is also Om.

• Chitta is the cause of desire.

Without chitta desire is impossible, but since chitta is formed of Om, It can be used to transform chitta into consciousness, as well.

111. Sat is the one, indivisible. It is the one “subtle” which is everlasting. Chit is always changing.

So we need to take the center of our awareness from the chitta, to the Real–to the Self. By now we should be able to figure out how Nityananda says that is done: by Om.

112. When the Sat unites with Chit, the result is Ananda. This Ananda is Satchidananda, Sri Nityananda, Sri Paramananda. Union of the jiva and Paramatma is Ananda, Yogananda, Paramananda, Satchidananda and Brahmananda.

This is exactly part of aphorism 102 and the commentary need not be repeated here.

113. You must see that God Who is in the heart-space. Yes, you must see Him. You must see that Krishna who is eternal bliss (Nityananda). It is delusion to regard stone as God. Pain of death given by Shiva is no pain. All sorrow is mental delusion. Praise God within yourself. Praise Him in your head! You must know the secret of Parabrahman who is eternal joy. Yes, you must know that secret. Look for Him in the heart.

See Him with your inner eye; not with the outer. See the royal road with the internal eye. Leave the downward path and come to the central path. The downward path is that followed by those people who decorate the external body without knowing the secret of God.

• You must see that God Who is in the heart-space. Yes, you must see Him.

We have already seen that the heart-space is the Chidakasha in the head, the sahasrara chakra–or more accurately, the core of the chakra is the Chidakasha, the Jewel in the Lotus. We must realize that Divine Being.

• You must see that Krishna who is eternal bliss (nityananda).

The lesson here is that the true Krishna of the Gita is not a historic figure, however great, but the Infinite Consciousness which was manifest in Krishna. The same of true of Rama, Buddha, Christ, and any of the forms of God. It is absurd to obsess on their limited appearance rather than seek to know their inmost reality: Brahman. And we are not really their devotees or followers if we are not seeking that highest realization.

• It is delusion to regard stone as God.

Here Nityananda is saying that if a person believes a stone image is really stone, then to worship it is ignorance. But those who understand that the image is pure consciousness appearing as stone certainly can worship it, knowing it is God they worship and not even a form.

• Pain of death given by Shiva is no pain.

Those who have recall of their pasts lives, including the experience of birth and death in those lives, say that it is easier to die than any other phase of life. Death itself is not pain, but release from pain, for even entry into the astral world is less confining than earthly birth. To die is to be delivered, as least for a while, and Shiva is the sole deliverer.

• All sorrow is mental delusion.

Only ananda (bliss) is real, for Brahman is Ananda. The way to end sorrow is to end mental delusion by attaining Self-realization.

• Praise God within yourself. Praise Him in your head!

True worship is internal, and that should be within the sahasrara to really be worship of God. Since the sahasrara is the essence of all the lesser aspects of our being, to worship in this way to fulfill the words of David: “Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name” (Psalms 103:1).

• You must know the secret of Parabrahman who is eternal joy. Yes, you must know that secret.

“He who knows–he knows, none else knows” (Paramhansa Yogananda).

• Look for Him in the heart.

Look and see.

• See Him with your inner eye; not with the outer. See the royal road with the internal eye.

There really is no other way to follow this advice than through meditation–meditation as described by Nityananda.

• Leave the downward path and come to the central path.

The central path of the sushumna leads directly upward into the sahasrara, the place of liberation.

• The downward path is that followed by those people who decorate the external body without knowing the secret of God.

Nityananda is thinking of those who put on different kinds of unusual clothes–vivid red, orange, and yellow–and wear a load of huge beads looped everywhere, and have elaborate tilak (sectarian marks) on their foreheads and faces–and sometimes on other parts of their bodies, as well. This is the way of people who foolishly think that outward signs will produce the inward state, and who egotistically desire to be thought of as great yogis and fervent devotees. Swami Sri Yukteswar, Yogananda’s guru, detested this behavior, and sternly rebuked those who came to his ashram all rigged up. If anyone protested that these things were indicative of spiritual aspiration he would adamantly reply: “Too much of a good thing is no longer good!”

On the other hand, real yogis have a simple appearance with no show or interest in gaining attention. There is a video of Swami Sivananda showing him with various well-known religious figures. Nearly all of them have some kind of theatrical get-up, but there is Sivananda dressed so simply, without beads, tilak, or any such. He did not need them, for those with inner vision could see his glory. He did not need to make an impression on anyone, for he possessed Infinity.

114. No one is not mad in this world.

This is plain fact. But we do not need to die to become sane–that will not do it. What we need is to transfer our consciousness from this world into the realm of Spirit. “Therefore, Arjuna, become a yogi” (Bhagavad Gita 6:46).

115. Leave the gross pleasures and enjoy the subtle pleasures. Leave off the physical sleep and enjoy the subtle sleep. Enjoy that sleep which is eternal. This sleep is enjoyed only in our subtle state. Burn to ashes the delusion of the mind.

• Leave the gross pleasures and enjoy the subtle pleasures.

Children, absorbed in their toys and romping around, cannot conceive that there is anything more enjoyable or satisfying. That is why they often bring toys to adults and cannot understand when they are not interested in them as they are. As they grow older, new toys and games replace the older ones in their affection, until as adults they are totally disinterested in such things, other distractions having replaced them. Though a few undeveloped souls are intent on model railroads and doll collections, adults in general see nothing interesting at all in the diversion of childhood and adolescence. Quite the opposite: they see them as silly and pointless. The same thing will happen for those who grow beyond ordinary adulthood and seek even higher levels of awareness. They will find “normal” interests boring, foolish, or even harmful. Having left behind the obvious, they have begun to live in realms unthought of by those living around them heedlessly.

I often think of my maternal grandmother’s house. Across the street was a rich family of F. Scott Fitzgerald drunks. Next to them was the town gossip who wandered the streets several hours a day, relaying the latest news (never malicious or derogatory). To the west was the house of the town grouch, to the east was the house of the town librarian, a real lady. On the north side lived a mother and daughter whose interest in life was the mental destruction of “poor little Willie,” the daughter’s only child. (They succeeded. Considered mentally incompetent but not dangerous, he inherited the house, lives on welfare, and roams the town all night, looking in the windows at a family life he never had.) But when I walked into my grandmother’s house I was always flooded with the vibrations of healing and holiness. It was a different dimension altogether. No one guessed such a treasure was there: a great healer and spiritual clairvoyant who kept her gifts a secret to everyone but me. There was hardly a household in that town without someone she had healed in silence and anonymity. She had long ago left behind the ways of “normal” people. Everyone who knew her considered her virtuous and even angelic, but did not realize at all the greater world in which she moved every day. My sharing of that world was the great blessing of my life, superseded only when I came into the orbit of the great saints of India after her departure from this world.

• Leave off the physical sleep and enjoy the subtle sleep. Enjoy that sleep which is eternal. This sleep is enjoyed only in our subtle state.

By “sleep” Nityananda means a perpetual state of inner silence and peace–true rest. We need not die for “eternal peace,” but live the yoga life. Only those who have refined themselves through meditation and purification of conduct (including diet) can experience that inmost, subtle state that is the Self.

• Burn to ashes the delusion of the mind.

Through tapasya this is done–not by any other way, although many observances assist the process.

116. He is a Brahmin who has performed the upanayana ceremony. Establish what is called “upadhi” in you. Being desireless, look inwards in your heart. See with the eye of desirelessness. Discard distinctions. Burn to ashes the idea of “you” and “I.” Yes, you burn it to ashes.

• He is a Brahmin who has performed the upanayana ceremony.

This is speaking of external ritual. The sacred thread represents the Thread (Sutra) spoken of in the Gita: “On Me all this universe is strung like pearls on a thread” (Bhagavad Gita 7:7). Brahman is known therefore as the Sutratman–the Thread-Self. The greater upanayana is coming into contact with this inner Self and being established in that awareness. The major part of the upanayana ceremony is the learning of the Gayatri mantra, the prayer for enlightenment. Therefore, intense aspiration for enlightenment is the essential part of the higher upanayana that makes one truly a Brahmin, a knower of Brahman. No one can be made a Brahman-knower by a mere ceremony.

• Establish what is called “upadhi” in you.

I cannot figure this out. The Sanskrit word upadhi cannot make any sense here. Either the transcriber heard wrong or it means something in Malayalam that it does not in Sanskrit.

• Being desireless, look inwards in your heart. See with the eye of desirelessness.

Ignorance is often referred to in India as “dust in the eyes.” The “dust” of desire blinds us to inner realities, but when desire has been eliminated we can look into our heart, the Chidakasha, and “see” the realities of the spirit.

• Discard distinctions.

By this Nityananda means all kinds of likes and dislikes and responses to outer factors that should mean nothing in our lives. We should be indifferent to most things simply because they are unreal and look for the One in all.

• Burn to ashes the idea of “you” and “I.” Yes, you burn it to ashes.

Duality must be burnt in the fires of wisdom. And it will not happen automatically. We must bring it about through tapasya, “generation of heat” by the practice of meditation.

117. In the beginning, there was only one religion propagated by Shiva. In the beginning, there was no difference like “man” and “woman” among human beings. This distinction was only in the gross nature. In the subtle nature, all was one. The subtle has no qualities. The subtle receives only the eternal ananda everywhere. “Having” and “seeing” is all mental delusion. The visible world is transient.

• In the beginning, there was only one religion propagated by Shiva.

This has been discussed before.

• In the beginning, there was no difference like “man” and “woman” among human beings. This distinction was only in the gross nature. In the subtle nature, all was one.

This is simply too vast a subject. Odd as it may seem, I advise those interested in this subject of how matter descended from subtle to gross to read The Secret Doctrine by Blavatsky. It is divided into two parts: Cosmogenesis (Origin of the Universe) and Anthropogenesis (Origin of Humanity). It is so unique in its scope that some people find it difficult to understand, but careful and patient study will yield a great deal of information. It is good to read it with “yoga eyes”–with the yogic perspective so you will not just be gathering interesting trivia but gaining knowledge that will help you in your spiritual life and practice.

• The subtle has no qualities. The subtle receives only the eternal ananda everywhere.

That is why we must dwell in awareness of the Subtle.

• “Having” and “seeing” is all mental delusion.

Nityananda says this because they take place in Maya and are motived by selfish egotism and the illusions of the mind and senses.

• The visible world is transient.

Hopefully we all know this, but we must also live as though it is fundamentally true. Which it is.

118. Hari is no Lord; Shiva is the Lord. What is called Hari is delusion. We must not be fooled by the shadow (reflection). What is called maya is delusion. To distinguish between the subtle and the gross is delusion. The delusion caused by the subtle and the gross are the same. The delusion caused by the gross is multitudinous.

Nityananda is speaking from a very high, abstract view of things. In contemporary Hinduism, Brahma is the Creator, Vishnu (Hari) is the Preserver of the Creation, and Shiva is its Dissolver. From the yogi’s standpoint Brahma and Vishnu produce and maintain Maya, whereas Shiva destroys it and brings about liberation. So when Nityananda says “Hari” he means the force that perpetuates Maya and our life within it. By “Shiva” he means that which frees us from Maya. Unfortunately a lot of conduct–even religious conduct–just keeps us going round and round on the wheel of samsara. In this case religion, even devotion, is harmful and is false. What we need is “Shaivism” in the sense of the spiritual outlook and practice that gets us out of Maya and into the Absolute. A lot of people’s religion consists of holy toys that amuse and distract them but in no way free them from delusion and bondage. And that includes any philosophy that is just talk and no practical application.

Basically Nityananda is saying that Maya is delusion, whether gross or subtle, and that we should have nothing to do with it or we will suffocate in its numberless manifestations. He is telling us to carefully study our religion and see what it is really doing to us and get rid of it if it is not taking us to moksha. The “religion of Shiva” is the path to liberation, whatever form it might take.

To say that “this” is different from “that” is itself delusion. This delusion is caused by the mind. Look into the heart and realize the delusion called worldly joy. See the eternal soul in the heart. Yes, see it. You must say what you experience. You must not speak from hearsay. Speak what you have experienced. What is hearsay is no reality. What is hearsay is no ananda. What has repeatedly come to your experience is ananda.

• To say that “this” is different from “that” is itself delusion. This delusion is caused by the mind.

The mind is the source of Maya.

• Look into the heart and realize the delusion called worldly joy. See the eternal soul in the heart. Yes, see it.

If we look into the core of our being, the Atman, the Chidakasha, we will easily see that all external enjoyments are momentary illusions, that only “the eternal soul in the heart” is real, that only Satchidananda, Existence-Knowledge-Bliss absolute is True and worthy of our pursuit. But we must experience the Self, not just think about it and talk about it.

• You must say what you experience. You must not speak from hearsay. Speak what you have experienced. What is hearsay is no reality. What is hearsay is no ananda. What has repeatedly come to your experience is ananda.

We have to get away from theory altogether and gain experience of what is real and true. Then we will know Brahmananda, Divine Bliss.

119. Realize your atman. When you see another and yourself as different, it is delusion. Identify yourself with another. Realize the secret which is in yourself. It is not enough if you talk of this identity but you must act according to it. What you see with the external eye is of no use. The feeling of distinction will be the cause of trouble at the time of death.

• Realize your atman.

For ignorance of the Self is the root of all troubles, of the bondage of birth and death, the obstacle to liberation.

• When you see another and yourself as different, it is delusion. Identify yourself with another.

Nityananda is particularly speaking of a selfish, egotistical distinction between us and others. “You are not me or mine, so why should I care?” “You are not like me, so I want nothing to do with you.” “You and I are different. How could we be friends?” These are examples of what he is thinking of. But since we all draw our existence from Brahman, as part of Brahman, we are also one, and need to be aware of that unity. Certainly we are not at all one on the level of Maya, but we are to see with the eyes of the Atman, not of Maya, and to respond with the heart of the Atman, not the heart of Maya. All the talk of universal brotherhood and universal peace is so much well-meaning clatter. The only people capable of bringing those things about are those that have realized the Self. That is why Yogananda used to say: “Save yourself and you will save thousands.” Saint Seraphim of Sarov, the great nineteenth century Russian Orthodox saint used to say the same: “Change yourself and you will change thousands around you.” Of course he meant spiritual change, an internal turnabout in consciousness.

• Realize the secret which is in yourself.

The secret in each one of us is the Self.

• It is not enough if you talk of this identity but you must act according to it. What you see with the external eye is of no use.

If we know our Self we know the Self of others, and we can then live out the truth of the Self. With the eye we may see difference, but with our inmost awareness we must “see” oneness.

• The feeling of distinction will be the cause of trouble at the time of death.

For if our consciousness is mired in the sense of separation at the time of death we will continue in separation, unable to enter into union with Brahman and become free.

120. “Same-sightedness” is the “urdhvashvasa” (gasping upwards) at the time of death. Same-sightedness is the indivisible one. This is supreme bliss. This is the “subtle.” This is the “eternal.” In the “upward breath,” there is no cawing sound. O Shiva! By your grace permit us to breathe in and breathe out harmoniously. One must meditate in the head. One must meditate upon the ocean of eternal bliss. Meditate in the ida (lunar nadi), in the pingala (star nadi) and in the sushumna (solar nadi).

Ananda-Kundalini! Rise! The match is in the match box. Light is in the match. Rub the match and kindle the fire. Ajnana is darkness; jnana is the light.

Kundalini is the eternal bliss; yes, it is so. Eternal bliss is in the heart. Infinite light is kundalini! Kundalini is the Light of Brahma [Brahma Jyoti]. The sunlight is the subtle light. The solar nadi is the sushumna–the lunar nadi is the ida and the stellar nadi is the pingala.

The nadi of the third eye is the seat of jnana. In this nadi is jnana. In this nadi is sleep–sushupti. In sleep there is no wakefulness. Enjoy this sleep. Harmonizing both prana and apana, enjoy the subtle sleep. Harmonizing the prana and apana, enjoy the eternal bliss. The seat of breath is the truth. It is the internal space (chidakasha). In the eternal space is the tower of eternal bliss. This tower is the seat of eternal peace. In the “unconscious sleep,” enjoy the “conscious sleep” of bliss. This is not the sleep of beasts. Sleep the “sleep of man.” Enjoy that sleep which must be the aim and end of man. Sleep the sleep of the “spiritual eye” (upanayana). When talking, when sitting, without any desires, without any thoughts, sleep this spiritual sleep. Fixing your attention on breath, sleep. Perform the natural “japa” of the inward and the outward breath. Have mental (subtle) bhakti; yes, have it. Attain liberation from bondage. Have constant bhakti; never interrupted. Breathe up and down without any restraint. Drawing the breath upwards is puraka; stopping the breath is kumbhaka. Kumbhaka is your “real seat.”

Breathing out is rechaka. While breathing in, it should be like drawing water from a well. Draw the breath up to the brahmarandhra in the brain. By such a breathing, kindle the fire of jnana. Purify the nadis. Burn the three humors (vatha, pitha and kapha) in this fire. What is called discrimination is such a fire: it is the yoga-fire; it is the food-digesting fire in the stomach. The discrimination is the solar light. God pervades the universe in the form of subtle energy. Creation is caused by the doubts of the mind. Creation is purely a mental affection. When you have attained same-sightedness, there will be no creation.

• “Same-sightedness” is the “urdhvashvasa” (grasping upwards) at the time of death. Same-sightedness is the indivisible one. This is supreme bliss. This is the “subtle.” This is the “eternal.”

Samadarshana literally means equal vision–seeing all things equally (equal-sightedness; equanimity). Here Nityananda is meaning it in the sense of seeing the One–not just in all, but as all. We must be established in unitive consciousness in life so that at the time of death we will unite with the All, with Brahman, and attain total liberation.

• In the “upward breath,” there is no cawing sound.

I have an idea as to the meaning of this sentence, but it is so much speculation that it seems honest to simply say nothing about it.

• O Shiva! By your grace permit us to breathe in and breathe out harmoniously.

The breath is life itself, which is why it is called prana. The breath is intimately connected to our consciousness, to our atman-self, the word “atman” coming from the root at which means “to breathe.” So the atman is the breather. This is why breath is almost always a part of meditation practice in various spiritual traditions. In India there is the saying: “Jiva is Shiva”–the individual atman is essentially one with the Paramatman. This sentence is a prayer that by the grace of the Supreme our atman will be able to manifest fully and perfectly in this evolving universe–in this body. The breath is a reflection of our state of consciousness at all times. It is a kind of spiritual weather gauge. So our desire is to breathe harmoniously without any impediments or conflicts, as that will be an indication that all is harmonious and right in the inner bodies and mind (antahkarana). Without this condition our development and yoga practice will be impeded–hindered.

• One must meditate in the head. One must meditate upon the ocean of eternal bliss. Meditate in the ida (lunar nadi), in the pingala (star nadi) and in the sushumna (solar nadi).

At all times our awareness should be centered in the sahasrara chakra, of which the brain is the physical manifestation. Nityananda has already said that the ocean of ananda is in the head, and also that the ida, pingala, and sushumna are subtle passages in the head, the passages in the spine being only secondary reflections of them.

• Ananda-Kundalini! Rise!

Nityananda considers that kundalini is not a kind of energy (shakti), but that it is the bliss consciousness of Shiva (Brahman). Swami Rama of Hardwar said the same to me many years ago when I was visiting his ashram at Ram Kunj. So Nityananda is telling us to pray that Brahmic Consciousness arise in our consciousness and unite us with Itself.

• The match is in the match box. Light is in the match. Rub the match and kindle the fire. Ajnana is darkness; jnana is the light.

That which gives us light is within. Divine Light lies within the inner world, in our inner mechanism or antahkarana. If we “rub” it through yoga sadhana, it will catch fire and illumine us with true jnana.

• Kundalini is the eternal bliss; yes, it is so. Eternal bliss is in the heart. Infinite light is kundalini! Kundalini is the Light of Brahma [Brahma Jyoti]. The sunlight is the subtle light. The solar nadi is the sushumna–the lunar nadi is the ida and the stellar nadi is the pingala.

Here more is explained about the nature of kundalini. Kundalini is the Brahma Jyoti which is the essence of the light of the sun. For the sun is formed of spiritual energies which gives life to all sentient beings on the earth and awakens and develops their consciousness. That is why at dawn and sunset the Gayatri Mantra–a prayer for enlightenment–is recited facing the sun. Om is the essential mantra for invoking the solar energies at all times. Again, sushumna, ida, and pingala are in the sahasrara within the head.

• The nadi of the third eye is the seat of jnana. In this nadi is jnana. In this nadi is sleep–sushupti. In sleep there is no wakefulness. Enjoy this sleep.

The subject of “sleep” as an attribute of the atma has occurred before. The third eye in the brain is not between the eyebrows, but halfway between the point between the eyebrows and the medulla. In the physical body this manifests as the pineal gland, from which physiologists say the two eyes have emerged. This gland is constructed from eye substance and is affected by light, just as are the two eyes. This is the “single eye” spoken of by Jesus (Matthew 6:22). This is the point of pure consciousness in the body. There the awareness “sleeps” in pure awareness itself.

• Harmonizing both prana and apana, enjoy the subtle sleep. Harmonizing the prana and apana, enjoy the eternal bliss.

Observing the breath in meditation refines and harmonizes it and enables us to enter into the subtle sleep that is really conscious. This is the gateway to atmic ananda, as well.

• The seat of breath is the truth. It is the internal space (chidakasha). In the eternal space is the tower of eternal bliss. This tower is the seat of eternal peace.

The breath rises from the Self, so the Self is the seat (stan) of the breath. That is why we observe the breath in meditation. Breath arises from the chidakasha, from the internal paramananda, paramshanti.

• In the “unconscious sleep,” enjoy the “conscious sleep” of bliss. This is not the sleep of beasts. Sleep the “sleep of man.” Enjoy that sleep which must be the aim and end of man. Sleep the sleep of the “spiritual eye” (upanayana).

This is now quite clear as to its meaning. Meditation is the means of experiencing the reality of Nityananda’s words.

• When talking, when sitting, without any desires, without any thoughts, sleep this spiritual sleep.

That subtle experience in meditation must be extended throughout all other times. This is the way to real peace of mind and heart.

• Fixing your attention on breath, sleep. Perform the natural “japa” of the inward and the outward breath.

The inmost, subtle breath makes the subtle sounds of the subtle Pranava by its very movement.

• Have mental (subtle) bhakti; yes, have it. Attain liberation from bondage. Have constant bhakti; never interrupted.

True devotion is conscious, deliberate union with the Self–and therefore with God the Supreme Self.

• Breathe up and down without any restraint. Drawing the breath upwards is puraka; stopping the breath is kumbhaka. Kumbhaka is your “real seat.” Breathing out is rechaka.

This occurs naturally, spontaneously without any effort or intention on the yogi’s part when the subtle breath is being experienced.

• While breathing in, it should be like drawing water from a well. Draw the breath up to the brahmarandhra in the brain. By such a breathing, kindle the fire of jnana.

This, too, occurs automatically. Those who attempt drawing up the pranas into the brain with various forms of breathing exercises will harm themselves. In our ashram library we have a copy of Swami Dayananda’s Satyartha Prakash which was printed as a memorial to a member of the Arya Samaj who, the opening pages say, died while attempting to raise the pranas into the head.

• Purify the nadis. Burn the three humors (vatha, pitha and kapha) in this fire. What is called discrimination is such a fire: it is the yoga-fire; it is the food-digesting fire in the stomach. The discrimination is the solar light.

Nityananda is speaking of purely subtle matters which are produced by subtle meditation and not by external practices.

• God pervades the universe in the form of subtle energy. Creation is caused by the doubts of the mind. Creation is purely a mental affection. When you have attained same-sightedness, there will be no creation.

This is certainly easy to comprehend. It is the defects of the mind that keep returning us over and over to this world.

121. The subtle state is common to both mobile and immobile beings. The difference is in the casual (prakriti). Difference is delusion. Difference is in the body. Bodies are transient. Prakriti is evanescent. When you realize the subtle in the gross, that state is called moksha. Mukti is the indivisible. Mukti is in the heart-space. In the heart-space is Shiva-Linga. It is self-existence. This is also called the prince-prana. This is the “upward breath.” This is known in yoga as prana. Prana is the ONE. Prana is the ONE in all. Prana is existence. This is known only to those who have practiced yoga. Those who have not practiced yoga are not aware of this fact; they being bound by desires. So, cut asunder the bondage of desires and hence attain salvation. Realize the one Tattwa, i.e., Paramatman. Realize Him by the internal eye.

He is a man who has realized God by the internal eye. Such a man feels that the universe is in him and he is in the universe. Mind, engrossed in the world, is not steady. Shiva who dwells in the heart-space is the ONE, everlasting. Shiva is Omkar. Omkar is Pranava. When united with forms, it is Pranava. Omkar is the unawareness of bodily existence.

• The subtle state is common to both mobile and immobile beings. The difference is in the casual (prakriti). Difference is delusion. Difference is in the body.

All things rise from the universal consciousness, from Brahman in the form of Mulaprakriti, the primal, causal matter. All difference springs from there as the many forms or bodies make their appearance.

• Bodies are transient. Prakriti is evanescent.

Therefore the wise seek to center their awareness at all time in the eternal, the permanent, Brahman.

• When you realize the subtle in the gross, that state is called moksha.

When we directly perceive the indwelling Parampurusha, Brahman, in all things, then we are liberated.

• Mukti is the indivisible. Mukti is in the heart-space.

Moksha is the state of non-dual consciousness, and this consciousness exists forever in the hridayakasha, the chidakasha, that is the essence of our being.

• In the heart-space is Shiva-Linga. It is self-existence.

The true Shiva Linga is not made of stone or any material substance, but is the self-existent (swayambhu) Atman. To realize this Self is to truly worship Shiva.

• This is also called the prince-prana. This is the “upward breath.”

The Self is that which draws all things upward into their Source.

• This is known in yoga as prana. Prana is the ONE. Prana is the ONE in all. Prana is existence.

Certainly there are five modes of subtle life force in the body we call prana, but the supreme Prana of the yogis is the Living Self or Pranatma. It is Brahman, the One.

• This is known only to those who have practiced yoga. Those who have not practiced yoga are not aware of this fact; they being bound by desires.

No need for comment, just to become perfect yogis.

• So, cut asunder the bondage of desires and hence attain salvation.

No need to analyze–just to do it.

• Realize the one Tattwa, i.e., Paramatman. Realize Him by the internal eye.

Meditation is the way. The internal eye is actually the Self.

• He is a man who has realized God by the internal eye.

This is a play on the word “purusha” which means both man and person in the sense of the individual being or Self.

• Such a man feels that the universe is in him and he is in the universe. Mind, engrossed in the world, is not steady.

When the cosmos is understood as an internal, spiritual reality, we are at rest, but when we are occupied with the world as an external experience, we have nothing but instability and suffering.

• Shiva who dwells in the heart-space is the ONE, everlasting. Shiva is Omkar. Omkar is Pranava. When united with forms, it is Pranava. Omkar is the unawareness of bodily existence

. Om is the Life-Giver, the Pranava. Although It animates all forms, it also enable us to take our awareness beyond all form into the Formless Absolute, Nirguna Brahman.