Self-Realisation | In Quest of Truth - Q&A with Babaji, No.233

Register your free place for the live online meditation and Q&A with Babaji: https://www.shivarudrabalayogi.org/en/online-satsang 

Self-Realisation | In Quest of Truth - Q&A with Babaji, No.233
Recorded on 14 October 2023 with worldwide participants

0:00 Intro
0:08 What is the achievement of Self-Realisation?
5:37 The Self as the permanent thing which does not change.
7:53 Is it right that the droplet has got involved in the imaginations, but the Self has not got involved?
9:54 Is there an awareness of 'I' when the droplet merges with the ocean of the Self?
17:08 In everyday life should we be careful not to be attached to things in the world?
19:14 When a Yogi's body moves in the world does it simply happen mechanically?
28:30 Where does the yearning to go on the spiritual path and achieve Self Realisation come from?
36:03 Babaji's devotion to Swamiji wiped out all other desires and made the mind quiet?
36:40 The meditation practice to 'just watch' is so you can be quiet and become aware of your true nature?
38:05 Is each individual body a droplet, or is the whole universe a droplet?
38:36 The line 'Bhoota Pisaacha Nikata Nahi Aawai' from Hanuman Chalisa.
39:14 How to motivate a younger sister to meditate.
39:34 How does a small mind caught up with ego change when Self Realisation is achieved?
42:40 How can a family person cultivate a yearning to spirituality?
44:06 Can we chant a mantra within our mind during daily chores?
44:26 Contentment not coming in meditation and the feeling that everything is pointless and without purpose in life.
46:47 Are we getting actual glimpses of Self Realisation when we experience bliss in meditation?
48:10 Are these glimpses useful for us?
48:36 On the way to Self Realisation, when peace replaces misery and they can accept everything but they still have ego, what does such a being experience?
49:49 In meditation there is stillness and silence, but the yearning or emotion is not there.  Am I on the right track?
___
Website: http://www.srby.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shivarudrabalayogi
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SRBYmission
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shivarudrabalayogi/

Register your free place for the live online meditation and Q&A with Babaji: https://www.shivarudrabalayogi.org/en/online-satsang

Website: http://www.srby.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shivarudrabalayogi
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SRBYmission
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shivarudrabalayogi/

Transcript

Self-Realisation | In Quest of Truth - Q&A with Babaji, No.233

Recorded on 14 October 2023 with worldwide participants

Question:   So, Baba, for those who might be new to Babaji's teachings, could Babaji first of all explain and give some clues as to what this achievement of Self-Realization is and how can one realise this Truth of Existence? 

Shri Babaji:   It's all about the consciousness, and consciously being aware of what we are. Like we tell, we are much more beyond the birth and death of the physical body. We exist as an eternal entity. Generally, this has been recognised as a soul or atman. Means, some school of thought tell it has the substantial existence value. Not simply we are recognising a certain thing which is not there. Though it might appear to be, it is there and it is not there. 

So, now, this is the ‘I’ we are. But just now, generally everybody has forgotten this ‘I’ because of their preoccupation with their imaginations, through which that portion which imagines has become mind. We recognise it as mind. So, when it is totally preoccupied, it is something like when you are watching a movie and you become totally preoccupied with the movie to the extent that you see yourself in the movie, and everything that happens in the movie appears to be totally real. A good, a bad, a happiness, unhappiness, all these things, thus you would have forgotten that you are sitting on a chair and just watching a movie. In the same way here, you would have forgotten that you are simply existing in supreme peace and you have nothing to do with this universe. And for your existence, for your security, for your peace, even without this world, this universe, you exist. Means you don't need. You don't have to depend on this which is impermanent. So, thus, you stop all your imaginations in the mind through a sadhana called meditation and eventually tapas. You burn out all the acquired habits of the mind. 

Mind has acquired habits since time immemorial. Recognising an existence, or imagining and then recognizing that existence, then analyzing that to be a good or a bad, a right or a wrong, mine or not mine and then making a judgment in that sense, and absorbing an imprint to become habitual to that attitude. Like an apple is apple because we have assumed. The whole world might have assumed. But that can be something else. Don't know, nobody knows. It is apple because you have named it and we all recognize it as apple and that is why it is apple. That is the truth. 

So, now you try to overcome all these imaginations, preoccupation with your own imaginations that is in your consciousness which we call it as mind. Then it gets purified in a process called meditation and the tapas; deeper meditations up to 8 to 10 hours, totally focused to remain quiet is the tapas. One hour, an ability to remain quiet, totally focused single pointedly, that is meditation. 

Like this, when you practice, finally, that all awareness which was on to the imaginations, on to this world, so much preoccupied that it had forgotten itself. When you go out in the world, you forget that you have a home and you have to come back. That type of situation has happened. So, when we clear the mind of all its imaginations and visualizations, then automatically that awareness is revealed, that existence of ourselves as that eternal soul entity is revealed. That is what is known as Self-Realization. You realize yourself as that Truth, as it is, not with any imagination, not in any identity. Just you become aware of yourself. That means consciously you settle into yourself. That is what is known as Self-Realization. 

Same Questioner:   Okay, thank You very much, Babaji. So, Baba has talked about the attention being preoccupied with the thoughts and the thoughts are always changing. And the permanent thing is not changing. There is no movement. Babaji, You have mentioned ‘nishcheshtit’. 
 
 

Shri Babaji:   Nishcheshtit. Yeah, which doesn't waver. It is totally stillness. 

Same Questioner:   And that is the permanent thing. That permanent thing cannot ever be changing. Is that right, Babaji? 
 
 

Shri Babaji:   Yes, it is a Supreme Consciousness of Existence. For that, the clue I always give is, amongst millions of thoughts that are in you or in your mind, one thing is this consciousness of your existence. You always have a feeling that you exist. It's a different thing if that consciousness has shifted on to the body and you feel as the body you exist, as a personality you exist. It is not so. As a body, it is your imagination that you exist as the body, and you identify it as a personality is also your imagination. But what you, and how you exist is the, totally it is a different entity. It has no attributions. You can call it absolute or you can call it zero, that type of existence. 

So that's what you become aware of and that is unchangeable. Because it has never come into existence. It was always there. Only a certain thing which comes into existence, appearance, will disappear, can disappear also. Everything is impermanent. Anything we produce is not guaranteed that it is unchangeable and is permanent. We might produce huge machineries, huge weapon systems, anything we produce. We might even produce a planet also, but that is all changeable, not a permanent entity. 
 
 

Same Questioner:   Thank you, Babaji. So, Baba, the Self we can't say has gotten involved, it's the droplet that has gotten involved in the imaginations, Babaji? I just try to understand, because the droplet is a part of that ocean, but we cannot say the ocean has gotten involved, the droplet has, but only in imagination?
 
 

Shri Babaji:   Yeah, say we take it that as the space is boundless, and that Truth also is as boundless as the space. We can call it the space itself. That is the Supreme Consciousness. It is in total stillness. Mahasamadhi is the word used for that. It itself is not involved into any creation or any imagination. It is just in Supreme Peace and Supreme Consciousness. Whenever an imagination happens, means a small portion comes out in illusion, a consciousness rises. And when that imagines, the more it imagines, the more chatterbox it becomes, it goes away from its Real Self, the origin that is the Divinity. In consciousness, it goes away, like life after life, life after life it goes away. So, that in spiritual language, when it becomes more corrupted with thoughts and imaginations, it goes away from its home, from its original abode and totally forgets about its original abode. So, that is what is known as… as an example, we use the term as the droplet. If it is like a droplet, its ocean is the Divinity that is recognized, Ultimate Truth. 
 
 

Same Questioner:   Thank you, Baba. Babaji, for the Self, is there an awareness… when the droplet emerges with that ocean, is there then still an awareness of ‘I’? And how is this also different from a state of deep sleep, for instance, where we are not conscious? 

Shri Babaji:   There will not be any thought of the ‘I’, that “This is ‘I’.” When the merger happens, existence is there. You experience the existence as you are merging. Once you totally merge, every experience comes to an end. You are there, but no thought that you are there comes. This thing, rarely, as a glimpse, every human being would have experienced, like a sound sleep; no dream, no identity. During the time of deep sleeping, nothing is there, no awareness. But only when you get up, then you tell, “I was sleeping, I was there.” So, that awareness was there, that means, during that sound sleep, not that you were not there – you were there. Simply, you are not aware, there was no such thought, “This is I am, I am here”. There is no such thing in that oneness. 

So, that's how that experience goes. But just before that merger, that Self-awareness comes. And once that happens, then the final disappearance is the imagination of the ‘I’ – that also disappears. So, there is no definition that “I exist. I am this Self” – all this all vanish. It is beyond that. For this only, I have tried to use the terminology to go ‘beyond bliss’. A blissfulness can always give a wavering spinning of the consciousness. But when it is totally peace, it is settled down, composed, calm, totally settled down. That is why probably the ancient sages also always used the word ‘Shanti’ for the final. Like many times, in the mantras of what is known as ‘shanti mantra’, the peace mantras, in the end it is chanted as ‘Om shanti shanti, shanti’, like that. 

That is the recommended goal always. That's what you have to achieve. That means you will never come back again. You don't have to. And you don't need to come back. This is important. You don't come back and don't need to. You don't come back and you don't need to. If there is a need to come back, then you are miserable. Here, there is no need to come back. That's why you are at peace. Total contentment. All these things come naturally there. You don't miss anything. There is no such thing called depression or loneliness there. Nothing. A loneliness happens or a depression happens when you have an imagination in your mind and you are missing something for your happiness about which you had imagined. So, when you miss that one, then you feel, start feeling miserable, loneliness and you want to change that situation, circumstances, your position, your status, or any such things. 

Like, once we came to my Guru’s abode 50 years ago, that imagination got dropped out of what I need. That was what I needed. So, I never missed anything. Never looked back anything. Never wanted anything else. That was the peace. The Guru’s abode. So, never had to change that situation. Because there was no other intention to come to the Master. When I came to Master, coming to the Master was the intention. Sometimes somebody might plan, “Oh, I need to achieve these things. I need to cover myself with these things. So, I need my Guru’s abode for some time”. So, for some other purpose you are coming to the Guru’s abode, then that Guru’s abode itself may not give you that peace or that contentment. It may give you loneliness, something missing or something binding because your idea was something else, not the Guru’s abode. If it is all the Guru’s abode and you have come to Guru’s abode, then you have peace and you will never miss. Something like that; the Self-Realization also happens. 

You will not miss anything. You will not have any depression. You will not feel any loneliness. ‘Ekam Nithyam Vimalamachalam’, we chant in the sloka of Guru Gita's ‘Brahmanandam Paramasukadham’. He is in Himself, in Itself, all alone. And that is not a depressive state. It is supremely peaceful. Nithyam, because He is eternal. Vimalam, in peace, Achalam, unmoved. It is totally still. It doesn't have to move looking for anything. A movement happens when it looks for something. In the same consciousness, it goes into spinning and becomes a mind when it misses its peace, that which it had enjoyed by remaining in the Self. And thus, then it gets involved into imagination. It goes on into imagination after imagination to find that peace. So, then it loses its path and it loses its peace. It is looking for something. It is no more contented. It has lost its contentment. That is because it has come out of its original abode. 

So, that is what is the Self-Realization we talk. Once it gives up all its looking for something else and just becomes quiet, nothing else. Don't look for anything. You don't have to achieve anything. You don't have to get any world gold medal or any Wimbledon championship. Nothing. No billion dollars. Nothing is that you need to get. All it is simply to become quiet in the mind. Stop looking and you are there. That’s the Self-Realization. 

Same Questioner:   Thank you, Babaji. Such a simple teaching, but Babaji, so many of us get attached to things in the world. So, in our every day lives we should always be careful not to get too attracted to things and too attached to desires and be in the direction of, “Okay, calm down, make the mind peaceful”. Should we always be aware of this?

Shri Babaji:   Yeah, if one simply understands, you live a normal life, go on doing everything that you are supposed to do or you are doing already. But just remain alert that you don't become addicted to any one particular thing. Not even to the physical body we should become addicted, that we are unable to give up that one. Then we will be miserable with the imagination that this body to go away. Like I have told, imagination about the death is more miserable. But the death itself is beautiful. There is nothing that you have to imagine. Nothing that you will feel. There is nothing. Only those who get to see that dead body, they have miserable feelings. They might have if it is a beloved one, “Oh, what happened? My God, died”. So, these things happen. So, such peculiarity is there in this Self-knowledge, that's why it is recommended to achieve. 

While, again, as I reiterate, you can live a normal life, just be alert about the impermanence of everything that is surrounding you. This universe, your physical body, this life. You live a life but if it has to come to an end, let it come to an end. If this body has to go, let it go, be at peace. There is nothing that we will have to miss. That is the Self-Realization, and you live a normal life. 

Same Questioner:   Thank you, Babaji. Baba, when a Self-Realized Master is acting within the world, does the body of such a Master simply move mechanically and the consciousness is not getting involved in it? Is that a little glimpse of what's happening? 
 
 

Shri Babaji:   Yeah, this is exactly the little glimpse. Most of the things mechanically, by practice, the body goes on doing. However, the truth is, a little bit of consciousness is in touch with the brain. Scientifically, technically, we can tell that one. That's why this body is still alive and it goes on, it is able to teach or it is able to learn, whatever it is. And in such times, say when I have to teach, 99% the easiest teaching for me is when a question is asked. Then I don't have to imagine. I don't have to frame an answer, knit an answer. Spontaneously that thing comes out. But if I have to talk, I have to give a certain teaching to newcomers, then I have to little bit imagine by practice. But that does not mean that the mind, the consciousness will become mind, and get involved into further thinking, thinking. It is just like you press the accelerator just to drive and once the job is done, you are able to press the brakes and bring it to a halt. But if you are unable to bring it to a halt, that is dangerous for you. You forget that you have to stop and you have pressed the accelerator and you go on and on and on and on. So that can be disastrous and dangerous. 

That is how the mind has made human beings miserable, life species all miserable, because they are unable to stop their consciousness which has become mind. Like all other species, animals, everybody is simply a victim of the body urges. They have to do that one; if they are hungry, they have to hunt and find, otherwise the body will die. Such a tricky situation it is. You fulfil the need of the body, you get involved into an illusion. You don't fulfil, you will die. Without Self-Realization, you must not allow the body to die. You must save the body. This body is a rare gem. While teaching, just I want to clarify, nobody should misunderstand. We don't advocate any such thing. Body need not be killed. One day it will go away on its own. Until then it's a bonus. You utilize this one. This is one thing. 

That's how the Truth happens. It's something like the old sayings are there; “You can get married if you overcome your madness, mental retardedness. But you can overcome your mental retardedness only when you can get married.” That type of peculiar situation. Like hen out of the egg, egg out of the hen and one is confused. It goes on and on. But if you use the wisdom, if you can skilfully withdraw one of them. When it is hen, if you can take care that it does not lay any egg at all. Or when it is egg, it does not give out any hen at all. Then the process stops. 

Here also, that's why the meditation technique is taught. The process is going on. Your imagination is going on. And you need to live in this world. All these are essential. But that imagination has made you miserable, fearful, anxious, brooding. All these things it is making, making, making. You are unable to find the hundred percent, twelve months, and twenty-four hours peace. The enjoyment all the time is becoming elusive. For some time you might find some happiness. Forcibly, you might spend some money and you might find some happiness. Or you might accuse somebody and you might find some happiness. How long you are going to accuse somebody? Afterwards you will be tired. Then you will reach a saturated point. 

So, people enjoy in so many ways; hundreds of ways are there. They try to belittle the other and then enjoy. They try to accuse forcefully and then they enjoy. And they think when they are enjoying, they want to continue that habit. Like this, humans all have become habitual, addicted. Instead of finding that peace in the contentment, in themselves, in itself. They are trying to find it externally with a particular habit of the mind's imagination. So, then it is elusive. They will always have to find one. If they find happiness in telling a lie, one lie, then that lie is over, then they have to tell another lie. They become habitual. Then they start boasting. “Oh, I can tell such beautiful lies, you will have to tell the lie”. That becomes their principle, policy, everything. “If we don't tell the lie, it's not possible to live in the world.” “Arrey, living in the world is so important that we have to tell a lie?”

In our childhood nursery school, I remember this once, our teacher was talking about this topic. He said, “Look at the tiger. Even if it has to die, it will accept that death, but it will not eat grass”. Means this is a highly principled statement; not that it eats grass or it doesn't eat grass. Whatever is its food, it will eat that thing. Well, human beings, many times for survival have tried to eat so many things in normal circumstances that they wouldn't have eaten. But, however, not always it is possible. So that is a principled stand – a tiger will not eat grass, even if it has to die, “Death is beautiful, better for me”. It's a matter of self-respect, that type of thing. 

But we lose that character, you see. By hook or crook, we have to live in this world. If we have to tell a lie, we have to live in this world. Even if we have to rob somebody, we need to live in this world. We try to accuse somebody, we try to blame somebody, we need to live in this world, “It was necessary, I needed to do this one. Otherwise, I would have been blamed. Before somebody could blame, I wanted to blame, so that nobody blames”. A child slaps its friend and starts crying so that the mother would misunderstand that her child was beaten up by the other child. But it was this child which is crying that beat up the other child. That type of cunning people are there in this world. We come across in the society often. 

So, these are all the principled standings. How far are we going to lose our self-respect? Like a soldier is ready to die in the battlefield, “I will defend my country. If I cannot defend, I will die. I will not run away.” So, he decides that. It will be an individual choice. Nobody can impose. If one wants to run away, “Bhai, I have no business to defend my country and I don't want to die also. I want to live. I will run away to some other”. That also one can do, but what is the principal? A real soldier, he will be ready to die. So, that is how detachment, Self-Realization needs to be valued. We need that Self-Realization. We will not compromise. We need that twelve month, twenty-four hour peace and happiness. All the time it must be there. And we will not depend on anything. We will not be beggars. We will not bend down to our knees. So, that type of principal, a valiant soldier – my Guru used to tell this – is ready to go for Self-Realization. 

Same Questioner:   Thank you, Babaji. So, that really strong yearning has to be there. 

Shri Babaji:   Yearning. Yearning is the point. Yes. 

Same Questioner:   And Babaji, where does this attitude come from? Would it have been from one's efforts previously? How does such a habit to think “I need this Self-Realization?” Where does that come? 

Shri Babaji:   Your understanding by listening to the Upadeshas, the teachings of a Master. And when you strongly get the inclination. So, generally it is visualized as since previous lives you have been putting effort. And thus you have been given a situation, a circumstance. Like, in the retreat also I was talking the same topic today morning. Like all of you are there, about 127 to 130 people there who have switched on, joined this meditation class. Who have taken out, all of you have taken out your precious time to be with me. That means you are all fortunate to be able to sit with a live Master, a Self-Realized Master and practice this meditation, and listen to the answers of the Master as a teaching, as a Upadesha. 

So, you all are, all of you are fortunate. I say for all this, all of you have earned this by your efforts, by your inclination. Very definitely, since previous lives that you have had been putting efforts in this direction. That's why such strong inclination to have reverence to a Self-Realized Master has come within you. And you are here. Otherwise, you could have given a hundred excuses, “Babaji, I need to receive a relative. Please, I won't be able to join today's meditation. I'm sorry.” That's fine. I'm not going to do anything. Your sorry is fine. I just send my blessing. “Some other time, we are not lucky to have you in our meditation class.” But, like my Guru always used to tell, “Can you give an excuse to something else that you are supposed to go?” “I'm sorry, I cannot come for this wedding. I need to go for a meditation session”. Swamiji used to tell. I'm not very rude. I don't be so blunt usually. I try to be soft. He used to bluntly tell, “Can you give such an excuse? Then you are fit to meditate.” Giving an excuse either way. If you are ready to give an excuse there or ready to give an excuse here. What you are going to lose, what you are going to gain. 

So, that is how things happen, yearning. What we are talking of. Yearning has to be there. That's when you understand the need. And when you understand the impermanence of your physical body. An opportunity is given to you, a time frame is given to you. “Before, death shall claim thee”, that Krishna said to Arjuna. And have such humility of samskaras, proper behaviours with your Master, you surrender to Him. Surrender means you don't have to become a slave. You just behave properly. Be humble. Seeking the permission of the Master, prepare yourself that you are ready to learn what upadesha the Master gives, ready to accept, ready to think that, “Maybe somewhere I must be wrong, that's why the Master is telling like this. Let me try to understand.” Once you are ready, then you will be able to understand. 

Then once you understand, the yearning will come, “Oh God”, you will be waiting for Saturday, “Babaji will come online. We will be able to listen to Him talking to us, answering our questions and making us to do meditation”. And you will understand how fortunate we are. You won't think it ordinary. Amongst the millions and billions and billions of population on this earth, 127 are here. They are the chosen ones. They are the fortunate ones. Maybe a few more might be sitting who are not online, but still all are fortunate. 

That is how the yearning comes. Once yearning comes, you will do it. You won't keep asking me, “What should I do? Should I go back to home or should I stay in the ashram? Should I meditate or should I go to a wedding?” They ask the Guru; is this a thing to ask? Whatever you want to do, you do it. Tell me, “I need to go to wedding. I cannot come for meditation”. “Fine, that's no problem”. “I cannot stay in the ashram. I need to go somewhere else”. “Fine, no problem. You can go”. If you want to stay, you stay. You don't have to ask me, “Should I stay in the ashram? Should I go somewhere else? Should I go back home? I am missing something. I am lonely something”, all these things. 

We never asked this question to our Master. That's why I don't know about these things. I said “Master. I want to come to Your ashram and serve”. He said, “You come to this ashram. This is ideal for your sadhana. You can serve.” I went and never asked Him, “I'm not feeling well in this ashram. I'm feeling miserable. I'm feeling lonely.” Never. That never happened because that was what I wanted. The abode of the Master was what I wanted. So how will I feel miserable? I didn't go there to time-pass or do for any other job. I just wanted to be at the abode of the Master. That's why I never felt miserable or depressed or loneliness. Nothing. More happy. Even if I was alone I was happy. Some people were there, I was happy. All the time, happy. We kept ourselves busy with the sadhana. Everywhere we were learning. Doing karma, whether we were dusting the ashram, we were learning. “Oh, this is the seva. Not my job. I'm not going to earn any salary for this but this is a seva I'm doing”. Cooking, accounts and meditating, doing bhajans. Every way we were learning. Every moment we were learning. 

So, twenty years of sadhana happened. The world may not have noticed. Afterward the five years, because the beard and the matted hair came, the world noticed. “Oh, this man is becoming Self-Realized.” They recognize with the beard or matted hair that a person is Self-Realized. No, that is not the thing. Self-Realization is the inside. You are contented. Everything is same. You see the Divinity everywhere in everything as everything. And you accept everything. Acceptance comes. So that type of yearning only can make you to go for that. 

Same Questioner:   Thank You, Babaji. Baba, so that devotion to Swamiji, it wiped out all other desires and made Babaji's mind quiet. And that learning was just simply for that quietness to come more and more in Babaji. 

Shri Babaji:   Definitely. When the acceptance was there in that situation, the mind became quiet. It receded. It never went into any brooding. It never went into any anxiousness. It never missed anything. 

Same Questioner:   So, Babaji, just to ask finally, the meditation to just watch, that is to just simply be quiet. And by being quiet, you become aware of your true nature?

Shri Babaji:   Exactly. When you are trying to meditate, you are trying to become quiet mentally. Once, in due course of time, one day when you achieve total silence of the mind, when it would have become pure consciousness, when it would have become silence, it would have become still also. That is what is known as Samadhi. Still. Then the secret is automatically revealed, the awareness of the Self, “Oh, this is That, this is that ‘I’. What all I had imagined, like being in a mental asylum, my God. What all I was holding dearer, what all I was holding as ego, what all the things. But this is the truth, this is it.” You are cured. 

Same Questioner:   Pranams, thank You so much, Babaji. Baba, do we have some time for questions from participants? 

Shri Babaji:   Ah yeah, we can take some questions, 10, 15 minutes. Please ask precious questions and raise your hands. 

Question:   So, the example of the droplet coming out of the ocean; is each individual body a droplet in that example, or is it this whole universe is the droplet? 
 
 

Shri Babaji:   In each physical body, there is a droplet that is working. That droplet needs to go back. For that, that droplet needs to become quiet. That is mind. 
 
 

Question:   Pranams Babaji, when you chant on Tuesday mornings the Hanuman Chalisa, there is one particular line, ‘Bhoota Pisaacha Nikata Nahi Aawai’. So, are there bad spirits or are those imaginations that leads us to imagine there are evil spirits, in essence? 
 
 

Shri Babaji:   In my opinion, both bhoot and pret are in the mind. That gets washed away. Your mind is full of the remembrance of the Divinity. 
 
 

Question:   Babaji, I was just wondering, can you please tell me how to motivate my younger sister to meditate? She's a pretty young person. 
 
 

Shri Babaji:   If she can meditate, encourage her to meditate, telling that she can become a genius. 
 
 

Same Questioner:   Awesome, thank You. 
 
 

Question:   Pranams Babaji. So, I just wanted to get a little bit more of an understanding if Babaji can put it into words at all. When we speak about a normal mind, a mind that's caught up in ego, being the small mind, and then once one becomes Self-Realized, like Babaji starts identifying more with the big mind, is there any way to explain the perception of size? Like, change that you're identifying with, is there a change in your mind? 
 
 

Shri Babaji:   You see, some of the points I will tell in my opinion. You will always have a broad-minded view. There is no narrow-minded relationships for you. That's one sentence that explains, “May all beings in all the worlds be happy.” Sincerely, you will pray for that. There is no such thing, “Oh, God, please help me only. Oh, God, please help my grandchild only.” All disappears. That's how the mind broadens its viewpoint, consciousness expands. Many times I have told the familiar example of belonging to one house, and a street, then you belong to that city, then you belong to the state, then you belong to the country, then you belong to the world, planet earth, then you belong to the space. 

That's what Adi Shankara encounters; in His story it also comes. He was going to have a bath in the Holy River, and the story says that the Divine came as an untouchable person, having a country-made alcohol on his head, carrying. So, then Adi Shankara tells, “Give way, get out of my way.” Then that person simply said… For space they used the word Brahmanda, which the Brahma has imagined and created, which does not exist in that way. That is Brahmanda. “Beyond Brahmanda, out of the space, in which you and me are both living, in the space only we are existing, if there is any place outside the space, show me, I will go away, leaving this entire space for you.” Then Adi Shankara realized this person is not an ordinary person, who has this amazing knowledge of the broad-mindedness. That broad-mindedness must come. That is the essence of purifying the mind, your meditation, eventual tapas and one day, Self-Realization. 
 
 

Same Questioner:   Thank you, Baba.
 
 

Question:   Pranams, Babaji. My question is about how one can cultivate yearning up to 100% living as a normal human being with parents, family, being as a normal citizen of the country itself. In a family how one can cultivate that up to 100%? 
 
 

Shri Babaji:   You live a normal life, but don't forget the impermanence of the world and the physical body. It is actually a time bomb which has been fitted in your body. 
 
 

Same Questioner:   But Maharaj, you know, I’m a family person. 

Shri Babaji:   No problem. Be a family person, look after the family. That’s no problem. You don't have to give up looking after simply because of impermanence. Simply to give awareness in your mind, “I need to accept and remain quiet”. And then you do all your job, all your responsibilities. Take care of the family. It is not at all prohibited. Just the awareness, that yearning. While looking after the family, at least you will get some remembrance to pray to the Divine, “Please, give me an opportunity. Help me to have this yearning. Help me to do sadhana in the midst of the busy life. Let me accept the things as it comes.” Like that, you can pray.
 
 

Same questioner:   Maharaj, minus the meditation, what we do as a sadhak, can we naam jap mentally without speaking as we do our daily chores? Can we do that? 

Shri Babaji:   Yes, yes it will be very helpful. It will increase your awareness. 
 
 

Same Questioner:   Okay, okay. Thank You, Maharaj. Thank You.
 

Question:   Namaskar Babaji. Babaji, I had this very burning question inside me; it's been very often, very often I have been actually realizing this thing that I'm finding like everything and every activity to be pointless. Like there is no reason strong enough for me that is going to wake me up every morning. I have been practising Shambhavi Mudra for a few months, but I, I feel that I have been unable to touch the bliss-body. I miss that contentment and purposefulness in my life. 
 
 

Shri Babaji:   What you have to do is simply understand the technique. Whenever you do the Shambhavi Mudra, you just have to keep watching in between eyebrows. Even if it is not possible to look in between, in the central point, closing the eyes, watch the front portion. And do not think about anything that comes, whether it is dark or light, whether thought or not thought, whether good or bad, just like keep watching. Then slowly, the peace will descend. Your mind will start becoming quiet. 

And about the world, you don't have to think that things are pointless to work. Because the body has come, you just fulfil so that you keep your mind busy at least. Otherwise, it can become a devil's workshop if you don't do anything, if you think everything is pointless. Thinking like that also is pointless. That is the effect of illusion. So just go on doing. You are not doing anything, but you keep doing, like that. You don't have to imagine why you have to do. Simply do it as a duty. Then your mind will recede and become quiet and more peace will come. And simultaneously do sadhana whenever you get time. So that is important. Means, finally one definition I will tell, never try to run away from the world. The world will come after you to eat you up. Because you are carrying the mind. Mind needs to become peaceful. Just do everything as a duty. You will be all right. We will pray for you. 
 
 

Same Questioner:   Thank you, Babaji. Namaskar.\

Question:   Hi Babaji. Good to see You, so good, always. When we meditate, sometimes I feel like a lot of happiness, extreme happiness, bliss, whatever you want to call it. And so my question is, do we get actual glimpses of Self-Realization? Or are they still contained in the illusion? 
 
 

Shri Babaji:   Yeah, you do get the glimpse of the Self. Means, like I have also explained, thought after thought when it comes in the mind, in between every thought there is a gap. But that goes unnoticed. You notice only the thought. So, you don't notice that Self. That is the Self. So, whenever mind is totally peaceful on its own, that is the glimpse of the Self. But now you have to maintain the permanence of that awareness by getting rid of all thoughts once for all. So, for that only you continue the meditation. The glimpse that you are getting, that gap will increase eventually. You'll be able to have that. 
 
 

Same Questioner:   Okay, I have one more question in the same thought. Are these glimpses useful? Is it something I should say, “Okay, this is a good thing that's happening.” 

Shri Babaji:   [Babaji laughs] An opportunity is always useful provided you have the wisdom to utilize the opportunity. 
 
 

Same Questioner:   Okay, thank You so much. 
 
 

Question:   Pranams, Babaji. It's similar to Alex's question; when peace replaces misery in one's experience, can you please describe on the way to Self-Realization what a being experiences when they still have ego, still have intentions but they accept everything? Thank You. 
 
 

Shri Babaji:   If the acceptance also comes, then there won't be any ego or any pain, or any tension, any such thing. It will all go away. It is there because you take it as an imagination. “This is a wrong situation. I wanted this to happen in this way but it has not happened. Something else has happened. We wanted our beloved one to behave in this way. They have not behaved that way and they have made me miserable.” So, these imaginations only give you tension. Once that imagination disappears, mind settles peacefully. That means acceptance has come. As the acceptance comes, that glimpse is the Self. 
 
 

Question:   Pranams, Baba. Babaji, when there is that deep yearning, that deep urge to be one with that Self, what happens is that even I am not able to complete a song. That tears will flow down and I will go into a silence more. So, this happens. And when I meditate, so much of stillness and silence is there. And this yearning is not there. These emotions are not there. Then I am confused that am I on the right track? These are different things that are happening. 
 
 

Shri Babaji:   No need for yearning or the tears all the time. When you go into a bhava, by the remembrance of that Self and the yearning, wanting to be one with the Self, then this bhava comes and the tears also can roll down. If that comes, very good, no problem. Maintain that one. And in meditation, if the stillness comes and all these bhava stops, it's fine. Slowly, your mind is transcending all these things and going towards the actual peace of the Self. Continue the sadhana simply, you are on the right path. Have faith in yourself.
 
 

End of Session